The sky in the demon world is always darker than in the mortal world.
At the end of the obsidian street, a purple-gold palace hung in mid-air, like a moon gnawed by a mist of magic. Chu Xuan followed Mo Chen up the floating steps, and as soon as the soles of his shoes touched the first step, a sweet and sickening fragrance crept up his ankles - it was the scent of the Love Silk Pill, which was said to make a heart of stone crumble into mud in three breaths.
"Hey, old Mo, your queen usually greets guests with this scent?" Chu Xuan pinched his nose and lowered his voice very low. "If I sneeze, will it be considered disrespectful to the demon world?"
Mo Chen, still expressionless, replied to him, "Yes. So hold it in."
Chu Xuan rolled his eyes. He could tell that the leader of the dark hall was not only quick-witted but also quick-witted, not giving a word of nonsense. Fortunately, the steps were not long; in the blink of an eye, ninety-nine steps reached the end. The palace gate opened automatically, and there was no light inside, only a long, deep purple corridor, like a lazy snake, meandered and led the two of them further into the darkness.
The aroma grew stronger and stronger, sweet with hooks, and the tips of the hooks were tinged with a hint of numbness. The spirit in Chu Xuan's dantian suddenly spun around itself, like a cat smelling catnip, excited to roll around. He quickly slapped back the restlessness - joking, to be lured to break through on the spot by Dan Xiang on the first meeting, that would be too disheartening to the mortal world.
At the end of the corridor, the sound of water trickles. In a pool of blood jade, the size of a bath, the magic crystal liquid was bubbling and a woman was leaning against it. The purple veil was soaked and clung to the skin like a second night; Long, flowing in the pool of jade, the golden bells entwined at the ends of the hair jingled, each sound lighter than the last, yet more soul-stirring than the last.
"Primordial spirit? The woman spoke lazily, her voice like a cat that had just woken up, "Come here, let this king inspect it."
Chu Xuan did not move. He raised his hand first and made a proper gesture of a junior from the mortal world: "Chu Xuan of Qingyun Sect, I see Her Majesty the Queen."
"Qingyun Sect?" Su Mei 'er picked up a wisp of pool water with her fingertips, and the drop slid down her collarbone into a deeper chasm. "I've heard that your place is the most etiquette - then do you know the rules of the demon world, if you don't kneel before the king, what should you do?"
"I'll punish." Chu Xuan straightened up, laughing and showing a mouthful of white teeth, "But my knees are hard, kneeling to heaven, to earth, to wives, but not to trade. "After all --" he deliberately dragged out a long voice, "if you kneel, the deal will be lower and the price won't be negotiable."
The golden bell by the pool fell silent. Mo Chen took a silent step back, leaving Chu Xuan with the silhouette of "You have your own good fortune." In the next moment, the pool water rose up without wind, and a drop of blackish purple magic crystal liquid hung between Chu Xuan's eyebrows, just a sheet of paper away from his skin - if it had advanced another half an inch, it would have corroded his entire face into a skeleton.
"A deal?" Su Mei 'er narrowed her eyes, and the cinnabar mole at the corner of her eyes lit up. "Little cultivator, on what basis do you think this king will do business with a little fellow who hasn't even formed a golden core?"
"With my face..." Chu Xuan held the drop of magic liquid between his two fingers. A glimmer of the spirit body flashed, and the purple-black was instantly purified into a clear amethyst that rolled around between his fingertips. "-- It seems not enough. Then it's up to my ability to nullify the Silk Pill."
Click. Amethyst drops back into the pool, creating a small circle of ripples. The ripples spread out, and the sweet fragrance in the pool fades a little. The lazy mist in Su Mei 'er's eyes finally dissipated, and for the first time she looked straight at Chu Xuan - her eyes were deep purple, like two glass beads soaked in wine.
"It's interesting." She raised her hand, and the purple veil by the pool flew up automatically, wrapped around her body, and stepped up the jade steps barefoot, step by step, to Chu Xuan. The golden bells on her ankles jingled, and each step felt like stepping on the tip of one's heart. "I have been really bothered by erysipelas recently. If you could really refine a magic pill without any side effects --"
She stopped three steps away and the scent suddenly became dangerous. Chu Xuan felt a flash before his eyes, and a cold finger was already on his chest, the nail pointed, drawing a circle through the fabric: "What price do you want? Magic crystal ore? Or... Will the king himself help you form pills?"
Chu Xuan moved his Adam's apple. It wasn't shyness, it hurt -- the nail gave off a bit of pure demonic energy, like a cone piercing into the heart. The spirit automatically protected its master, and just as it was about to fight back, it was forcefully pushed back by him. It's too early to show your cards now.
He took a breath and laughed nonchalantly: "Mine, I want the technique. But I have to check the goods first - does Her Majesty dare to give me a alchemy room and three portions of medicinal materials? In one day, hand over a batch of 'unaddictive Love pills'. If successful, the trade will continue; If I fail, let you refine my life into blood pills."
As soon as the words were spoken, the golden bell stopped. Su Mei 'er tilted her head to look at him, her purple eyes reflecting the young man's still somewhat naive face - there was no fear on that face, only a light of eagerness to try, like a freshly drawn sword, eager to test its edge.
"All right." The Queen suddenly laughed, flicked her finger, and a wisp of demonic energy sank into Chu Xuan's sleeve. "I give you the elixir room, give you the herbs, and give you --" she turned, her sleeve lifted, and a roll of black jade slips flew towards Chu Xuan. "Soul Devouring Magic Skill, Part 1. Remember, little cultivator, there is no losing business in the demon world. One day later, either exchange the elixir or sacrifice your life."
The jade slip is icy cold when you get it. Chu Xuan closed his fingers and looked up, but the pool was empty, with only the sound of bells ringing on the ground. Mo Chen emerged from the shadows, with a rare fluctuation in his voice: "Come with me to the alchemy room. You'd better be able to do it -- The Queen's joke is never funny."
Chu Xuan weighed the jade slips, the corners of his mouth curled up: "Don't worry, I have a hard fate and a hard joke."
The alchemy room was cleaner than Chu Xuan had imagined.
The walls were hollowed out with a single piece of obsidian, and there was no light. Only the lava from the earth's core flowed slowly beneath his feet, slightly distorting the air. In the center stood a dark red magic crystal cauldron with three carved legs, like a crouching beast that would open its mouth to bite at any moment. Three medicinal herbs were placed beside the cauldron: the magic salix flower, the soul-breaking grass, and the love Thread Vine - all poisons whose names make one's legs go weak.
"That's all?" Chu Xuan crouched down, picked up a little powder of the vine with his fingernail, and sniffed it up to his nose. Sweet and cloying, like a honey-mixed hook, one would want to take out the heart and lungs and give them to someone.
Mochen stood at the door with his arms crossed, his voice chilly: "The Queen's habit - giving plenty of opportunities and leaving plenty of fallback options. Poisonous grass, though poisonous, is the lowest dose. If you can actually turn the toxicity into a tonic, you have reached the threshold."
"Threshold?" Chu Xuan chuckled, "I'll just lift the roof."
He stopped talking nonsense and put his palms on the Magic Crystal Cauldron. The spirit gushed out from the dantian, like a transparent, wanton dragon, moving along the wall of the cauldron. Wherever it passed, the crimson patterns of the cauldrons were dyed inch by inch to a lustrous white, like snow falling from lava, making a sizzling sound. The first to be unable to bear it, the petals curled up, and the black gas was pulled out like a cocoon, condensing into a drop of ink in mid-air; The soul-breaking grass follows closely behind, the dark green poisonous mist in the veins is stripped away and turns into smoke; The wisteria is the most stubborn, its vines twisted and entwined around the ear, as if struggling, but with a spin of the spirit, it is directly rolled into powder, and the sweet and rich aroma is purified into a cold and refreshing scent.
The whole process takes no more than half a cup of tea. Three drops of venom of different colors hung around the mouth of the cauldron, dripping and spinning. Chu Xuan pointed together like a sword and gently tapped --
"Together." "
Instead of bursting as expected, the venom was sucked into the center of the spirit like a stream encountering a whirlpool. When the white light came out again, it had turned into seven pale purple pills, round and lustrous, each wrapped in a faint mist.
The elixir is formed, the mist is born, and it is non-toxic but has a soul.
Chu Xuan picked up a pill, shook it against the lava and fire, and squinted his eyes to admire: "Unaddictive Love Silk pill, with sugar and heart, no poison. Her Majesty should give it a five-star rating, right?
At the door, Mo Chen's expressionless face finally showed a crack. He stared at the circle of light mist, his voice tightened: "... The soul of the elixir mist, above the highest grade. You actually did it."
"No big deal." Chu Xuan stretched his body, flipped his palm, swept all seven pills into the jade bottle and threw them casually to Mo Chen. "Come on, deliver. Remember to help me get a good price."
The two turned back the same way. At the end of the long corridor, the purple veil remained the same, the pool remained the same, but the golden bell was as quiet as if asleep. Su Mei 'er leaned against the jade steps, with a lock of hair around her fingertips, as if she had waited a little bored. Seeing them come in, she raised her eyes lazily: "Back alive?"
Mo Chen came forward and presented the jade vase with both hands. The stopper was opened, and a wisp of pale purple mist rose, condensed into a small mist flower in the air, and then dissipated. Su Mei 'er's eyes changed slightly, and with a light flick of her finger, the mist flower was drawn into her palm and felt carefully. After a long while, she chuckled softly, her voice hoarse: "Actually, poison has been refined into fragrance... Little monk, you gave me a surprise."
Chu Xuan clasped his hands, grinning with sharp teeth and sharp tongue: "Then it's time to talk about the price of surprise."
"Price?" With a stroke of her gauze sleeve, the jade bottle has fallen into her hand. "I have said that the demon world does not do losing business. Dan, I want; People, I want them too." She stepped closer, her purple eyes shining with seductive light. "From today on, you live in the magic palace, one furnace of elixir a day, you can dig magic crystal mines, you can learn Soul Devouring magic skills. As for the golden Pill -"
She touched Chu Xuan's chest again with her fingertip, but this time it was no longer prickly; instead, she drew a light arc: "I'll tie it with you myself. I'll protect you... Take the gold pill comfortably."
The tone is ambiguous, but the breath is hot. Chu Xuan's heart gave a sudden jolt, and the spirit almost rolled out on its own again. He cursed the fairy inwardly but remained calm on his face, raising an eyebrow and saying, "Deal. But I'm going to add a condition --"
"Say."
"The alchemy room should give me autonomy. I'll pick the herbs, I'll control the heat, and I'll be responsible for the yield of the elixir. Does Your Majesty dare to take the gamble? Within a year, I'll triple your demonic elixir production and halve the cost."
As the words fell, the golden bell rang, like a wave rolled up by the wind. Su Mei 'er stared at him intently, her eyes brimming with purple, after a long while, she suddenly curved her lips: "What a bold look. I bet." She raised her hand, flicked her jade finger, and a wisp of dark golden demonic energy descended into Chu Xuan's sleeve. "This is the 'Demonic Crystal Order', you can pass through the palace of demons. If you can't do it in a year --"
She drew nearer, exhaling like a orchid: "Make yourself into a pill and pay it to this king."
Chu Xuan laughed loudly, advancing instead of retreating. With a flip of his palm, a wisp of purer white light from the primordial spirit body circled around the Queen's fingertip, instead enveloping that wisp of demonic energy: "Your Majesty, remember this too. If I manage to do it -"
He lowered his voice, with the distinctness and sharpness of a young man: "What I want is not just the magic crystal mine."
The golden bells jingled as if responding to this silent bet. Su Mei 'er narrowed her eyes, after a while, chuckled softly: "Little cultivator, no small appetite. I... Wait and see."