Early the next morning, when Yan Qingshan came from Xiao Yixian’s room to the outer courtyard, he saw Manager Yao sporting two large dark circles under his eyes, looking as though he hadn’t slept at all.
“Manager, good morning!”
Having slept soundly, Yan Qingshan was in high spirits.
He greeted Manager Yao with a refreshed smile, only to find that the man—who had been so warm just yesterday—refused to even look at him.
Manager Yao pulled a sour face and turned away without a word.
Yan Qingshan didn’t mind the cold shoulder.
He began his morning exercise and cultivation in the courtyard alone.
By the time breakfast was over, more people began to gather, and a flurry of whispers could be heard, containing words like “Southern Town,” “Wolf Head,” and “Mu She.”
After wiping his sweat with a damp towel, Yan Qingshan shook his body and walked toward the hall where Manager Yao was located.
When he entered the room, Manager Yao was speaking with his subordinates; a flicker of panic crossed the man’s face upon seeing him.
Manager Yao stood up, his suspicious gaze constantly sizing up Yan Qingshan.
“Qingshan, is there something you need?”
Yan Qingshan went straight to the point, glancing at the few trusted subordinates around the Manager.
“Manager, I have something I want to discuss with you.
Just the two of us, privately.”
“Fine.
All of you, get out!”
Manager Yao remained silent for a moment before waving his hand.
His subordinates filed out one by one.
“Speak.
What is it?”
Manager Yao watched Yan Qingshan sit on the rosewood chair to his left.
The doubt in his eyes intensified, and he seemed to be sitting on pins and needles, growing increasingly uneasy.
“Heh, Manager, don’t be so nervous.
You’re acting like I’m going to do something to you.”
Yan Qingshan smiled and pulled two scrolls—one new and one old—from his robe.
He first unfurled the new white scroll, which listed various precious materials rarely seen on the market.
“I hope you can help me collect everything on this list.”
“This…
Did you write this wrong?”
Manager Yao’s brow furrowed deeply as he scanned the list.
Many of the items were already in his private collection, and he could gather the rest by utilizing his connections and resources.
However, doing so would drain nearly ten years of the Thousand Medicinal House’s profits, not to mention the exhaustion of his social capital.
Yan Qingshan pushed the other pale green scroll toward him.
“This is the reward I’ve prepared—a down payment.
The rest is in a manor in the southern part of town.
I’m sure you will be satisfied.”
“This is…
Low Xuan Class Dou Technique…
Wind Blade Dance.
The matter in Southern Town…
you…”
Manager Yao stared at the Low Xuan Class Dou Technique scroll; such things were hard to find even for ten thousand gold coins.
But that wasn’t the root of his terror.
More importantly, connecting this to the news coming from the southern district this morning, his face changed color repeatedly.
His eyes, as he looked at Yan Qingshan, were full of sheer horror.
Facing the smiling Yan Qingshan, Manager Yao felt immense pressure.
Finally, he forced himself to stay calm and spoke, “Rest assured, I will gather the items on this list as quickly as possible!”
Yan Qingshan rose composedly.
“That’s good.
I’ll leave it to you then, Manager.” Visit g.com for the full chapter.
…
Later that morning, Yan Qingshan stepped into the courtyard holding a storage ring.
Xiao Yixian was helping him tidy up when her vision blurred.
A bovine-sized Magical Beast and a severed tail slammed into the courtyard; the sudden commotion gave her a fright.
“Xian’er, go stand guard at the door for me.”
Yan Qingshan spoke in a grave, low voice.
He then began the processing of the Blue-Maned Scorpion Lion and the preparations for the Lion Heart Baptism.
“Ah, oh, okay…”
Though Xiao Yixian was curious about what Yan Qingshan was doing, she was obedient enough not to speak.
Instead, she peered outside the door, wary of anyone coming to disturb him.
“Dawn, record the actual process.
Attempt to analyze and simplify.”
Yan Qingshan activated Dawn to prepare for the ritual.
Deductions were, after all, just deductions.
In actual practice—whether it was a combat plan or a medicinal configuration—it was impossible to achieve the same perfection as the simulation.
This required him to record the process and try multiple times to correct erroneous behaviors.
The Lion Heart Baptism required many items, some of which were quite precious.
A portion was from the grotto treasure, and the rest were finally gathered after Yan Qingshan nearly emptied Manager Yao’s collection and after the Manager utilized his network.
A dark green medicinal cauldron with a rich medicinal fragrance appeared in the courtyard.
Although the senior in the grotto was not an Alchemist, they were a knowledgeable individual with deep attainments in the path of medicine and poison, naturally researching and concocting medicines.
This cauldron might not be as good as those of high-tier Alchemists, but for Yan Qingshan’s purposes, it was more than sufficient.
Chunks of black wood that looked like hard stone hit the ground with the sound of bricks landing.
Black Locust Wood—a type of Yin-wood, hard and heavy.
The Yin-fire produced by burning this wood had a high temperature and was easy to control.
Though it wasn’t a Beast Flame or a Heavenly Flame, it was perfect for Yan Qingshan, who also shared a Wood-attribute.
The Black Locust Wood was Yin in nature, not as fierce or violent as Yang-fire; the flames were more stable and lasted longer.
A single block of Black Locust Wood was enough to burn for over half a day.
A long-lasting, stable heat source was vital for Yan Qingshan.
He stacked the wood neatly.
After carefully centering the cauldron, a small blue-black flame rose.
The blue-black flame didn’t have the roaring intensity of ordinary fire; instead, it heated and raised the temperature extremely steadily.
With a solemn expression, Yan Qingshan began throwing the prepared herbs and auxiliary materials into the cauldron one by one.
Every plant was at least a Mid Rank herb, which he threw in after stimulating its properties with his Wood-attribute Dou Qi.
Pure mountain spring water and spiritual dew were poured in.
Wood-attribute Dou Qi stirred the medicinal spring, and the Yin-fire slowly heated the decoction.
Before long, a medicinal fragrance permeated the small courtyard.
The carcass of the Blue-Maned Scorpion Lion had already been processed.
Its body shimmered with an azure-blue light; its fur and mane were more lustrous than sky-blue silk.
Even after nearly a day, it hadn’t changed much, lying on the ground like a vivid, sleeping lion.
The scorpion tail, which was even longer than the lion’s body, lay beside it, as brilliant and translucent as a sapphire.
The flickering blue light was beautiful, but the black-gold sheen on the stinger at the end revealed the endless killing intent beneath the beauty.
Under the gentle heat of the Black Locust Wood, the medicinal spring in the cauldron quickly boiled.
A refreshing, faint fragrance filled the air.
The spring had turned a lake-green, resembling the most beautiful imperial green jade.
Yan Qingshan had already opened the lion’s body along the neck.
A pale blue heart still held a trace of warmth, as if it had only just stopped beating.
He lifted the lion’s body, using his Dou Qi to force all usable blood into the cauldron, and finally tossed the heart into the churning medicinal spring.
The pale blue lion blood mixed with the emerald spring.
At first, the two colors were distinct, but as time passed, they began to merge.
This was the trace of high-rank bloodline originating from the Ancient Lightning Lion, containing extremely pure lightning energy.
Having dealt with the lion’s body, Yan Qingshan picked up the scorpion tail.
He held the end of the tail and inverted the severed opening over the cauldron.
With the injection of Dou Qi, drops of blue blood were forced out.
By the last drop, the blood actually carried a hint of emerald green.
The Blue-Maned Scorpion Lion carried bloodlines from two high-rank Magical Beasts: the Ancient Lightning Lion and the Scorpion Dragon.
This hint of green was the manifestation of the Scorpion Dragon bloodline, hidden within the tail that symbolized the Scorpion Dragon clan.
Although the Blue-Maned Scorpion Lion was only a 3rd Rank Magical Beast, its bloodline sources—the Ancient Lightning Lion and the Scorpion Dragon—were both high-rank beasts that reached at least 5th Rank upon adulthood.
The Ancient Lightning Lion is now nearly extinct, and the Scorpion Dragon clan is also rare on the Dou Qi Continent, though some branches still exist.
In the future, one of the primary materials Xiao Yixian would need to condense her Poison Core would be the 7th Rank Sky Poison Dragon Scorpion Beast.
There was also the 7th Rank Illusionary Fire Scorpion Dragon Beast, from whose eggshell remains one could obtain the Illusionary Golden Flame.
These were all powerful Magical Beasts active on the Dou Qi Continent.
After all the blood from the lion body and scorpion tail had been extracted, the once-lustrous carcass grew much duller.
Yan Qingshan carefully removed the Monster Core and tossed this precious 1st Rank Lightning-attribute Monster Core into the medicinal spring.
A Magical Beast’s most important assets are its essence blood and its Monster Core.
Once these two are gone, although the fur, bones, and meat still have value, most of the profit has been stripped away.
The medicinal spring, containing nearly all the essence of the 1st Rank Blue-Maned Scorpion Lion, was undergoing a qualitative change.
The blue-green liquid gradually became thick and glassy, and the blue-purple heart seemed to glow.
*Boom—*
Yan Qingshan held his breath and gathered his Qi, approaching the side of the cauldron.
Both hands channeled Wood-attribute Dou Qi into the burning wood below.
Under the stimulation of the Wood-attribute, the fire suddenly surged.
The stacked Black Locust Wood, which had only been partially burning, now ignited in every piece and section.
Fierce fire decocts great medicine.
The flames were fierce, and the fragrance was potent.
Within the glass-colored slurry in the cauldron, there were faint blue flashes of lightning and sounds like lion roars, as if the Blue-Maned Scorpion Lion were roaring in unwilling fury.
The green vapor rising from the cauldron even seemed to form the shape of a lion.
Seeing this, Yan Qingshan knew the heat for the baptism spring had reached its peak.
“Xian’er, help me control the heat!”
Yan Qingshan turned his head and spoke solemnly.
Xiao Yixian ran over, and with a splash, Yan Qingshan leaped into the medicinal cauldron.
The shimmering medicinal slurry almost completely submerged him as he sat cross-legged, with only his head and a small part of his torso remaining outside.
Xiao Yixian dared not be careless.
She came to the side of the cauldron and meticulously followed his instructions to control the flames of the Black Locust Wood.
The blue-green glassy slurry seemed to have a life of its own, slowly spreading up Yan Qingshan’s exposed upper body, gradually wrapping his entire being in a glassy glow, as if forming a large cocoon.
Inside the glassy medicinal cocoon, Yan Qingshan’s eyelids closed as he sat in silent meditation, circulating his Dou Qi.
Strands of lion blood essence were absorbed by his Dou Qi and traveled into his body, performing a deep-level transformation and evolution.
His heart beat slowly, carrying a hint of glassy color; each beat sounded faintly like a lion’s roar.
His body shimmered with light.
Within his bright red blood, there were traces of glassy divine radiance.
As the blood circulated, there were faint sparks of electricity.
His frame shone and hummed, his internal organs glowed, and his flesh emitted a rosy mist, as if he were a celestial being in the world.
Wave after wave of ripples vibrated.
Yan Qingshan’s bones crackled, and his flesh rhythmically pulsated.
Amidst the popping sounds, his aura and cultivation reached a peak, then burst through a barrier with a “poof,” continuing another round of advancement.
Sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed and hands in seals, Yan Qingshan at this moment possessed a solemn and profound air, full of moving temperament and mystery.
Xiao Yixian looked at him and smiled unconsciously, her eyes appearing dazed with affection.
After an unknown amount of time, he suddenly snapped his eyes open.
A flash of blue light swept through the courtyard, like a bolt of lightning in a dark room that one couldn’t look at directly.
His aura slowly shifted, growing ever more powerful.
(End of Chapter)