The dawn of the magic palace comes very early -- or rather, there is no dawn at all in the magic world, only a purple-black moon slowly sinking to the horizon. Chu Xuan, holding a bowl larger than his head, crouched on the threshold of the elixir room and slurped his porridge, which was filled with magic grains and crunched in his mouth like chewing sugar beans. On the opposite side, Mo Chen, dressed in a black robe, stood straight like a stake driven into the ground.
"Hey, old Mo, your food in the demon world is really tough. You're giving guests a burst of sand and gravel so early in the morning?" Chu Xuan put the empty bowl aside and wiped his mouth contentedly, "But it tastes great. I can finish three more bowls."
Mo Chen, expressionless, said, "It's for you to replenish your spirit energy, not as a snack. Eat and get to work -- Her Majesty summoned."
Chu Xuan raised his eyebrows: "Another big order? She won't want me to make the 'Resurrection Pill' this time, will she? Let's make it clear that bringing the dead back to life costs extra money."
"You'll know when you get there." Mo Chen turned, the corner of his robe brought a gust of wind. "Remember to put on your shoes. The floor of the Magic Palace is cold. Don't get cold."
Chu Xuan lowered his head - he was indeed barefoot on one foot and wearing half a shoe on the other. He mumbled to put on his shoes and tucked a bottle of "Unaddicted Love Silk Pill" on the table into his pocket, jotting to catch up: "Wait, I haven't pulled out my heel yet!"
...
Outside the Zichen Hall, the afterglow of the demonic moon was falling. Su Meier leaned against the railing, her purple dress changed into a tight-fitting sleeve, her waistline neatly drawn, like a soft sword in its sheath. Hearing footsteps, she turned her head, and the cinnabar mole at the corner of her eye stood out in the morning light.
"Little monk, did you sleep well?"
"Thanks to Your Majesty, the bed is soft enough to melt a person's bones." Chu Xuan laughed with a mouthful of white teeth. "It's just that in the middle of the night there are always bats squeaking outside the window. I almost thought they were coming to collect protection money."
Su Meier chuckled, and with a flick of her finger, several bats fluttered away outside the railing: "They wouldn't dare. I called you here today for a trouble - a riot of magic slaves."
"Magic slave?" Chu Xuan stopped laughing, "I've heard of it, the lowest level of the demon world... Commoners?"
"Civilian?" Sumei 'er's lips curled into a sneer. "They're not even 'commoner'. A thousand years ago, in the great war, captives, sinners, and descendants of the defeated were all marked as slaves and have been slaves for generations. Now the spirit of the demonic world has dried up, and the demonic slaves are the first to starve, and their emotions explode at the slightest provocation."
She raised her hand, and a wisp of magic gas turned into a curtain of light - in the picture, a mass of dark magic slaves raised their bone rods and charged at the magic crystal mine, guards were blown over, and magic blood splashed. At the very front of the crowd, a man in a grey robe stepped on a black lotus, his hands spread out, and countless black threads flew out from his fingertips and into the slave's brow.
"Messenger of the Heavenly Dao Pavilion." Su Meier's voice cooled down. "Under the pseudonym 'Wugou', he sneaked into the mining area three days ago and incited riots. The 'heart-sucking line' in his hand can magnify the pain of the slave seal and make the magic slave lose his mind and become a mad dog that only follows his command."
Chu Xuan stared at the light screen, his eyes darkening: "Does the Queen want me to refine the elixir to break the heart-eating line?"
"No." Su Mei 'er shook her head, her eyes sharp, "I want you - Ping! Sure! Violent! Move!"
"Three thousand magic troops at your command, restore order in the mining area within a month. Remember, it's not suppression, it's 'resolution' -- I don't want to see demonic blood flowing into the mine again."
Chu Xuan scratched his head and suddenly asked, "What is the root cause of the demon slave's rebellion?"
Su Mei 'er was silent for a moment and then slowly uttered four words: "The curse of the Love thread."
It turns out that in order to control the demon slave, the demon realm has long added low doses of the Love Pill to his diet, making him dependent on the superior. But the side effects of the love Pill are extremely strong - emotional suppression, pain amplification, and even more intense rebound once the supply is cut off. Now that the mining area has run out of food, the Love Silk Pill has been cut off, and the pentup anger of the magic slave has been ignited in an instant. With just a little provocation from the Heavenly Dao Pavilion, it has spread like wildfire.
After hearing this, Chu Xuan made a TSK sound: "It is better to release someone with hope than to lock them up with elixirs. Your Majesty, give me three thousand troops and a month of rations, and I'll let them lay down their own bone rods."
Su Mei 'er narrowed her eyes: "Are you sure?"
"Sure." " Chu Xuan grinned, revealing two small tiger teeth, "but I must first refine a batch of 'Hope Pills' -- Oh, Your Majesty, don't frown. The name is rustic, but the effect is great. It can relieve the addiction symptoms of the Love Thread Pill, clear the demon slave's mind, and prevent him from being led by the nose by the heart-sucking thread."
Su Mei 'er pondered for a moment, suddenly raised her hand, and a dark gold token flew into Chu Xuan's arms: "Three thousand magic soldiers, at your command. The granary is open for you to use. A month later, if the mining area is still in chaos --"
She moved closer, exhaling, "I'll throw you into the mine and let the sorcerer bury you with his own hands."
Chu Xuan weighed the token and laughed even more mischievous than her: "Your Majesty, rest assured. I have a hard life. I can't bury you in a mine."
...
Half an hour later, the training ground.
Three thousand magic soldiers lined up, black and dense, like a moving iron mountain. In the front row, a one-eyed strong man, carrying a bone rod, glanced sideways at Chu Xuan: "Just these little arms and calves? Did the Queen send him to lead us? I could punch him into a pancake!"
There was a burst of laughter around. Chu Xuan, unhurried, walked up to the strong man and looked up - he was nine feet tall and had muscles like rocks. He grinned: "Big brother, how should I address him?"
"I'm called Red Bear! Mine centurion! Boy, if you're afraid, it's not too late to get out now!"
"Brother Red Bear," Chu Xuan suddenly reached out and patted his bulging pectoral muscles, "the muscles are fine, but the voice is too loud and it hurts my ears."
Before he could finish his words, he touched the tip of his finger and a wisp of white light slipped through Red Bear's chest. The one-eyed strong man felt a chill in his chest, and then the years of pent-up restlessness, violence, and craving for blood were smoothed out as if by an invisible hand. He opened his eyes wide, his bone stick clanged to the ground, and his mouth opened like a hippopotamus: "You, what did you do to me?"
Chu Xuan stepped back, his voice not high, but clear enough for three thousand people to hear: "A little appetizer - to relieve the addiction of the love silk pill. Now, who wants to hit me?"
The playground is silent. A moment later, the sound of the bones hitting the ground rose and fell like a metal rain. Chu Xuan raised his hand, with the palm facing up, white light rose and turned into a huge mist lotus, enveloping the entire army: "Those who are willing to go with me, one 'Hope Pill' every day, until you are no longer controlled by the slave seal. Those who are unwilling --
He grinned, revealing two small tiger teeth: "I won't force it either. The mine is deep and it's cool to jump in."
In the silence, Red Bear was the first to kneel on one knee, his voice trembling: "I, I will follow the Lord!"
As if a row of dominoes had been toppled, the three thousand demonic soldiers knelt down in unison, their armor clashing, and the sound shook the clouds: "I wish to follow your Lord!"
Chu Xuan stood on the high platform, facing the eyes of countless double new lights, and suddenly felt his shoulders a little heavy. He took a deep breath and raised his hand: "Rise! From today on, you are not magic slaves, you are 'Hope Army'! The goal - to reclaim the mining area, to reclaim freedom!"
"Regain your freedom!"
The roar broke through the training ground, shaking the moon. In the distance, Mo Chen stood with his arms crossed, and a rare smile appeared on his paralyzed face: "Boy, something interesting."
And on the watchtower higher up, Su Meier leaned against the railing, with a lock of hair around her fingertips, murmuring softly: "Little cultivator, don't let this king down..."
The training ground, where the roar had dissipated, had a rusty smell in the wind. Chu Xuan was not in a hurry to deliver the "King's speech", but instead set up the large pot - literally: the cast-iron pot that the red bear carried to cook porridge for the magic soldiers, he filled it with clear water, and stuffed several pieces of red-flame animal bones at the bottom, and with a lick of the flame, the water gurgled and bubbled, just like a mini version of the magic crystal cauldron.
"Don't just stand there, queue up to get the porridge!" Chu Xuan took out handfuls of herbs and threw them into the pot as if they were free. The magic salim flower, the Clear soul grass, and most crucially - the semi-finished "Hope Pill" he had concocted last night, crushed into powder and used as monosodium glutamate. The water in the pot instantly changed from transparent to pale golden, and the aroma was not pungent, but it made one's mouth water.
The red bear sniffed, his one eye red: "Sir, this... For us to drink?"
"What else? Give me a bath? Chu Xuan scooped up a spoonful and placed it in front of him. "Taste it. It won't kill you."
Red Bear gulped it down, smacked his lips and froze. The next second, he 'plop' down on one knee, his voice trembling: 'Brain... My head doesn't hurt anymore! My chest is no longer burning!" As if afraid Chu Xuan wouldn't believe it, he swung his fist and pounded his chest twice with a thud, "It's been ten years, this light for the first time!"
In an instant, the line formed a long line, bowls of golden porridge were passed down, and the sound of snoring rose and fell. Some people began to cry as they drank, crying louder than the bonfire last night; Some carefully left their last sip to their companions -- that was the first time they had shared "hope" as something.
Chu Xuan crouched by the pot, watching the faces change from numb to lively, the "savior middle schooler disease" in his heart was instantly healed, replaced by a real weight. He took a deep breath and raised his voice: "Porridge only relieves burning eyebrows. To completely get rid of the elixir of love, you have to rely on this --"
He took out a jade slip, crushed it with a crack, and the white light turned into a huge scroll hanging in mid-air - it was densely written with the formula, the heat, the proportion, and the four big characters at the top: Hope Formula.
"From today on, you are not magic slaves, you are the Army of Hope, and you are also apprentices of the Workshop of Hope Pills!" Chu Xuan's gaze swept across the entire field, his voice not high, but each word smashed into the iron armor, "Learn to refine the elixir, teach your companions, and teach more magic slaves. Within a year, I will make the entire mining area free of the craving for elixirs!"
There was a moment of silence on the ground, and then a deafening roar came out: "I wish to follow you!"
Red Bear was the first to rise, his one eye shining terrifyingly: "Sir, do as you say, let's do it!"
Chu Xuan grinned, revealing two small tiger teeth: "The first step is to retrieve the granary that was snatched by the Heavenly Dao Pavilion. Without food to eat, how could I have the energy to refine elixirs?"
...
The granary is located on the outskirts of the mining area, backed by the black stone cliff, and is easy to defend but hard to attack. The messenger of the Heavenly Dao Pavilion, "Wugou", is stationed with three hundred puppet slaves. The heart-sucking line floats in the air like a black spider web. Chu Xuan led his men to the bottom of the cliff and raised his hand to signal to stop. A scout from the front reported: "There are three lines of defense outside the granary. Sixty men are on the heart-eating line and ten hidden sentries. There are many casualties in the forced entry."
Chu Xuan squinted at the cliff face and suddenly smiled: "Force your way in?" Do I look like such a rash person?" He turned back and hooked his finger at the red bear. "Can you dig a hole?"
The red bear slapped his chest: "I dug the magic crystal mine back then, a tunnel with a pickaxe!"
"Well, I'll give you two hours to dig from the bottom of the cliff into the backyard of the granary. Can you do that?"
"Yes!" Red Bear turned and named a hundred of the most agile magic soldiers, carrying pickaxes into the night. Chu Xuan looked to the other side again: "The rest of you, follow me through the main entrance - not to force your way in, to deliver goods."
"Delivery?" Everyone was stunned.
Chu Xuan gave a mysterious smile, took out a wooden box from his bosom and opened it - inside were neatly stacked dozens of "Hope Pills", each of which he had deliberately dyed black, looking exactly the same as the Love Thread pills, except that the scent was sealed off by the spirit body, not showing a trace.
"No matter how powerful the heart-eating line is, it has to be controlled by magnifying desires." Chu Xuan closed the box lid, laughing like a fox that had stolen a chicken. "Let's give him a 'poison against poison' -- send in a batch of 'fake poison' and let them mess up on their own!"
...
An hour later, at the main entrance of the granary.
The puppet slave guarding the gate, with bloodshot eyes, saw a cart slowly approaching, full of sacks, with the bag opening open, revealing black pills, and the sweet, rich aroma wafting into the nostrils - exactly the love pills they most longed for!
"Who is coming!" The puppet hissed.
"Convoy!" The driver was a bearded demon soldier with a voice louder than that of a puppet. "The goods ordered by Lord Wu Gou, one hundred jin of top-quality love silk pills, delivered while hot!"
The puppets looked at each other, their desires instantly magnified by the fragrance, their throats making a strange "ho ho" sound, and their hands involuntarily reaching for the sack. Just then, at the bottom of the ox cart, a wisp of white light crept out, through the cracks in the ground, into the feet of every puppet --
"Bang!"
As soon as the first puppet touched the pill, he stiffened abruptly, the blood in his eyes quickly faded away, replaced by a moment of confusion. Then, with a backhand claw, he slapped his companion beside him hard: "Get out! This is mine!"
"Mine!"
"Give me!"
In an instant, the entrance of the grain depot was in chaos. The puppets were tearing each other apart to snatch the "Love Thread Pill", and the heart-eating line was shaking wildly in the air, but they couldn't control the sudden surge of their primal desires. Wu Gou, who was in the dark, sensed something was wrong and was about to make a sign when suddenly there was a loud "boom" - the back wall of the granary collapsed, Red Bear led a hundred demonic soldiers out of the tunnel, the iron pickaxe flew like harvesting wheat, cutting through the hidden sentry all the way.
"Hope Army --!" The red bear roars, one eye shining in the firelight, "Grab the grain!"
"Grab the food!"
A hundred magic soldiers, like tigers descending the mountain, rushed into the granary, carried bags of grain and ran out. The puppets on the periphery tried to chase, but were lured by the scent of the "False Love Pill" and turned around in circles, fighting with each other. In anger, the black lotus bloomed beneath its feet, and the heart-sucking line turned into a huge net, covering the red bear --
"Your opponent is me." A clear voice rang out, like lightning, instantly cutting through the huge web. Chu Xuan emerged from the firelight, palm up, and his spirit transformed into a huge light lotus, enveloping Wu Gu along with the lotus. "The fragments of the Heavenly Dao Pavilion, taste the taste of being counterattacked!"
The light lotus closed, and the heart-eating line broke inch by inch. Wu Gou's face changed greatly. Just as he was about to flee, Chu Xuan pointed together like a sword and gently tapped: "Break!"
"Puff --" The black lotus exploded into a sky full of black mist, and Wugou spat out a mouthful of blood, staggering and using the blood to escape. Chu Xuan did not chase after him. He raised his hand and waved: "Stop! Enough food, enough men, back to the camp!"
...
At dawn, hope camp ground.
Piles of food bags were piled up like small mountains, and the magic soldiers sat in circles, holding hot golden porridge and drinking with a gurgling sound. Red Bear walked up to Chu Xuan, one eye red, suddenly knelt down on one knee: "Sir, I, Red Bear, have never obeyed anyone in my life. From today on, my life is yours!"
"What do I want your life for?" Chu Xuan laughed and pulled him up, "I want you to live well, learn alchemy, learn cultivation, learn how not to be led by the nose by the love thread Pill anymore."
He raised his hand, and the light lotus bloomed in the air, transforming into a huge scroll - the Hope Pill Formula, unfurled again.
"From today on, the camp will set up an elixir workshop, and each person will take turns to learn the elixir. In a month, I will see the first batch of 'Hope Pills' coming out; Three months later, I will see no one in the entire mining area suffering from the addiction of love pills!"
"I wish to follow your Lord!"
The roar broke through the camp, shaking even Moyue three times. On the distant mountain peak, Su Meier stood against the wind, her purple hair fluttering, a lock of hair around her fingertips murmured softly: "Little cultivator, you really did it..."
She suddenly raised her hand, and a wisp of magic gas turned into a purple butterfly, flying towards the camp and gently landing on Chu Xuan's shoulder, bringing the unique fragrance and sound of the queen --
"There are twenty-nine days left of the one-month period. Don't keep this king waiting too long."
Chu Xuan crushed the purple butterfly and laughed with sharp teeth and a sharp tongue, "Your Majesty, just wait to count the money!"