"Don't worry, sir. The origin of this pill formula is absolutely legitimate. No one will come looking for trouble because of it." Seeing Xiao Yan hesitate slightly, the vendor quickly added, thinking Xiao Yan was worried the formula might have an illegitimate background.
"You just said you stole it from your home. And that's what you call legitimate?" Xiao Yan toyed with the scroll in his hand, glanced at the awkward-looking vendor, and said casually, "Alright, just name your price."
"Three hundred and fifty thousand drops of Sovereign Spiritual Liquid," the vendor replied.
"Three hundred and fifty thousand, huh…" Xiao Yan nodded. That price was within his acceptable range. Just as he was about to pay, his gaze was drawn to a pile of odd trinkets beside the main items. He raised an eyebrow. "You're even selling these?"
"Just trying to follow the trend," the vendor said with some embarrassment. After realizing no one was buying his main wares, he started imitating other merchants by laying out some random-looking antiques. Unfortunately, his 'weathering' skills were far inferior to the pros, and anyone could spot they were fakes at a glance. That was why no one had come near his stall. "If you like them, I'll throw them in for free."
"Oh, I couldn't possibly…" Xiao Yan said with a smile, while promptly sweeping all the items into his storage ring. Then, with a grin, he handed over the three hundred and fifty thousand drops of Sovereign Spiritual Liquid.
Still, as he paid, curiosity got the better of him. "If you've got items like these, you must come from a decent background. How'd you end up selling stuff on the street?"
The vendor gave a dry laugh. "I snuck out. Didn't bring much money…"
"I see." Xiao Yan nodded and put away the Heart Demon Pill formula. He could tell the vendor was likely from a major force—some young master out for training. Judging from his aura, the guy was actually a nine-grade Sovereign, though probably lacking in worldly experience. Otherwise, he wouldn't have ended up street vending like this.
After leaving the stall, Xiao Yan went and bought some of the ingredients listed in the formula. Then he returned to his lodging. Qin Wan'er and the others had already left—likely off to attend the auction. Xiao Yan swept the surroundings carefully with his soul power, ensuring there were no spies or hidden eyes nearby, and then slipped into the Heavenly Tomb.
The Dragon God Relic was clearly attracting many experts. There were no shortage of nine-grade Sovereigns, and by comparison, Xiao Yan's current strength—peak seven-grade Sovereign—was still quite a gap. Even though he was confident in his ability to escape from a Heavenly Sovereign, he had always preferred to prepare thoroughly. Hence, he was taking the chance to get ready in every way he could.
The Heart Demon Pill was one of the most difficult pills to refine among Heaven-rank spiritual pills. Even with Xiao Yan's alchemical skills, he failed several times before finally refining a successful pill.
The ingredients required were also extremely rare. The remaining herbs Xiao Yan had gathered were only enough for ten more attempts. Given that even a skilled alchemist couldn't maintain a perfect success rate, when he used up all his materials, he ended up with just five Heart Demon Pills.
It wasn't that Xiao Yan didn't want to buy more ingredients—but with only five hundred thousand Sovereign Spiritual Liquid left, he needed to reserve some for emergencies. Five pills would have to do.
After putting the pills away, Xiao Yan took out a white jade slip. It was one of the random items he had picked up from the vendor earlier. Most of those trinkets had turned out to be worthless junk, but this jade slip… this was the only one that had truly caught his interest.
What drew his attention wasn't any visible feature on the jade—it was that the mysterious demon sword inside his body had reacted to it.
Although the demon sword came from the Dou Qi Continent, its power was clearly beyond the scope of that world. Xiao Yan hadn't yet fully awakened its true potential, but from what he'd seen with the Four Fiend Spirits, he was certain the sword's might surpassed most artifacts in the Great Thousand World. He just couldn't wield it fully—yet.
Since he'd acquired it, the sword had remained lodged within his Sea of Spirit, unresponsive to any attempts he made to probe or draw out its power. Yet now, at the mere presence of this jade slip, the silent sword had trembled.
For the demon sword to react, this jade couldn't be ordinary.
Xiao Yan examined the jade over and over, injecting spiritual energy and scanning it with soul power, but nothing happened. It looked just like any other piece of white jade. Still, his instincts told him something was hidden within.
Frowning, he considered using the Emperor Flame to burn it and test the reaction. But just as he prepared to act, the demon sword in his body trembled again. A surge of blood-colored, baleful energy burst forth from within him, flowing into the jade through his palm. At once, crimson lines spread across the previously spotless jade slip.
"What the…" Xiao Yan was startled as the jade began to glow with a blood-red light. The light quickly expanded, and his surroundings shifted dramatically. A heavy scent of blood filled the air, causing his brow to furrow tightly.
He realized this scene wasn't real—it was a projection, an illusion formed from residual willpower within the jade slip. But even as a phantom, the blood reek was so vivid it nearly overwhelmed the senses.
Looking around, he realized he stood in the center of a battlefield. Severed limbs and mangled corpses were scattered everywhere—it was clearly the aftermath of a brutal war.
At the heart of the battlefield stood a blood-red figure. Though its face was shrouded in haze, the moment Xiao Yan laid eyes on it, a crushing sense of danger surged through him. This figure's power clearly exceeded that of the Clan Leader Tianhuang—perhaps not quite a Heavenly Sovereign, but undoubtedly close.
'Who is this person… and what is the story behind this battlefield?' Xiao Yan stared at the figure, a storm of questions forming in his mind.
(End of Chapter)
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