“Smart!” X13 praised enthusiastically, taking the lead and flying ahead.
“I don’t care about those primal crystals at all,” Hunyuanzi’s tone sounded insincere, “I’m doing this for you, my dear disciple.”
“For me?” Yang Hao naturally didn’t believe this old fellow, “What do you want from me now?”
“Don’t you remember? Last time I told you, our Dan and Cauldron Dual Cultivation Sect…”
“Medicine Sect!” Yang Hao snapped.
“Whatever sect,” Hunyuanzi decided to continue, “To cultivate into immortality, the most crucial part is cultivating the Primary Elixir.”
Yang Hao naturally remembered what Hunyuanzi had told him before—that alchemy mainly involved two types of pills: auxiliary pills like the Dragon-Tiger Great Replenishing Pill and its variations, which were used to enhance strength during regular times, and the Primary Elixirs. There were nine Primary Elixirs, and consuming one could elevate one to a new level of cultivation. If one possessed all nine, immediate immortality could be attained.
“What does this have to do with us going in there?”
“It has everything to do with it! The ingredients for the Primary Elixirs are rare treasures in this world, making them extremely difficult to cultivate. The first Primary Elixir, the Black Gold Marrow Replacement Pill, requires exactly forty-nine ingredients and a special pill furnace,” Hunyuanzi explained.
“That troublesome?” Yang Hao immediately wanted to give up, “Then I’d rather not cultivate it.”
Hunyuanzi was quite upset, “You, with such little ambition! Although it sounds like many ingredients, the first Primary Elixir is actually relatively easy. Of the forty-eight other ingredients, most are common medicinal herbs. Only the main ingredient is difficult to obtain.”
“What’s the main ingredient?” Yang Hao’s interest in alchemy was minimal—he asked purely out of curiosity.
“The core of a Black Magic Beast,” Hunyuanzi finally got to the point, “You must obtain the core of a Black Magic Beast to create the first Black Gold Marrow Replacement Pill.”
“What? You want me to kill a Black Magic Beast?” Yang Hao turned pale with fear, “I barely managed to defeat that Soul-Siphoning Spirit. Why should I go further?”
“Exactly! How could one person possibly kill a Black Magic Beast?” X13 noticed no one was following and turned back, “Even imperial teams usually send a group of elite fighters when they discover a Black Magic Beast. Going alone is suicide!”
“If you don’t get the Black Magic Beast’s core, you’ll still be in danger,” Hunyuanzi threatened, “Without progress for a long time, your energy will become chaotic, and you might die at any moment.”
“Don’t give me that!” Yang Hao refused to be fooled again, “If I go to kill the Black Magic Beast, I’ll die immediately. I’m not that stupid.”
With that, Yang Hao turned and walked away, not sparing a glance for the dark, dangerous cave behind him.
But Hunyuanzi wasn’t ready to give up, “Dear disciple, you don’t know this—based on my observation, the Black Magic Beast inside this cave is likely just a juvenile.”
“A juvenile?” Yang Hao stopped in his tracks, “Black Magic Beasts have juveniles? How do you know?”
“Black Magic Beasts are raised by their parents, of course they come in different sizes,” Hunyuanzi used his silver tongue, “An adult Black Magic Beast’s Soul-Siphoning Spirit usually consumes at least tens of thousands of lives. This one that’s only consumed a few thousand must be a juvenile’s technique.”
“Is that true?” Yang Hao turned to ask X13.
Though reluctant, X13 had to admit, “That’s quite possible.”
Hunyuanzi pressed on, “The power difference between a juvenile and an adult Black Magic Beast can be hundreds of times. This opportunity is rare and precious. If you don’t seize this chance to get the core today, you might never get another opportunity.”
These words finally convinced Yang Hao. Although he had little interest in alchemy, becoming an immortal was tempting. If he didn’t follow up on this success, who knew when another chance would come.
Thinking this through, Yang Hao unconsciously started moving deeper into the cave again.
“Hey, hey, are you both insane?” X13 cried out anxiously, “You’re really going in?”
“Just take a quick look. If things go wrong, we’ll leave immediately,” Yang Hao wasn’t sure if he was reassuring X13 or himself.
“My life is such a failure…” X13 muttered but followed slowly behind.
After passing through the corridor where they had defeated the Soul-Siphoning Spirit, the cave suddenly widened. To Yang Hao’s relief, he discovered a vein of primal crystals. The primal crystals looked like ordinary black stones, but their surfaces faintly revealed golden, flame-like glows from within.
Yang Hao originally planned to dig out a few primal crystals and leave, but Hunyuanzi insisted there would be even higher-quality crystals further inside.
With no choice, Yang Hao cautiously advanced until reaching the end of the crystal vein.
This was a magnificent cavern. Though it was called magnificent, it wasn’t filled with treasures. Instead, there was a three-meter-high black hill covered from top to bottom with various primal crystals. These primal crystals were indeed different from those in the vein outside—the golden energy within them couldn’t be contained and overflowed the stone surfaces, making the crystals shine like gold.
On this hill, there were more than a thousand of the purest primal crystals.
“Each worth 500,000! We’re rich!” Yang Hao, seeing money in his eyes, instantly forgot the danger. He ran up the hill and began moving the primal crystals with all his might.
Even Hunyuanzi, inside his stomach, was infected by this treasure-finding excitement, “Wow! Such pure energy! These would be perfect for cultivating swords!”
“Stop thinking about cultivation. Help me figure out how to carry these,” Yang Hao found he could only carry three or four stones at most, which made him anxious.
“If I were you, I wouldn’t be so happy,” X13 shivered in a corner of the cave.
“X13, what are you afraid of? There are only treasures here, understand? Treasures!” Yang Hao was ecstatic but didn’t notice that every time he moved a primal crystal, the hill beneath his feet would tremble slightly.
“Wait…” Hunyuanzi also sensed something amiss, “There really might be a problem.”
“What problem?” Yang Hao was in high spirits and couldn’t hear anything.
“Don’t you feel… an earthquake?” Hunyuanzi’s voice trembled. This fellow always became the most cowardly when things got serious.
“Earthquake?” Yang Hao indeed felt it. Not only that, he seemed to hear a series of roars coming from deep underground, as if some great beast was enraged.
“We…” Yang Hao stopped moving crystals and looked around nervously, “Where is the Black Magic Beast? Where?”
Before he could finish speaking, the hill beneath his feet suddenly erupted like a volcano, violently tossing Yang Hao effortlessly into a corner of the cave.
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