That blatant contempt actually made Song Wanníng laugh.
So, it really looks down on her?
A chill flickered across her face, her clear voice laced with a hint of killing intent.
"It does look down on me. So, I roasted it and ate it." Song Wanníng clicked her tongue. "You know what? It actually tasted much better than a normal egg. Heh."
Her words carried a smile, but the cold lurking behind it was bone-deep.
Xi Rang's eyes went wide, a jolt running through its heart.
"You... you ate a divine beast egg? Are you insane? That was a divine beast!"
The power of a divine beast was extraordinary. Anyone else would have gone to great lengths to make it acknowledge them as master. Who in their right mind would eat it?
It completely failed to understand how Song Wanníng's mind worked.
But Song Wanníng only sneered. "And what of it being a divine beast? If it cannot be used by me, there's no need to keep it."
She had never been a benevolent person. She could never imitate Ye Chuxue's way of doing things. Resources she encountered were hers, to be used as she pleased. If they refused... she destroyed them.
In this world, strength spoke louder than anything else.
Hearing this, Xi Rang's heart gave a violent shudder, and the way it looked at Song Wanníng changed. "Was this a threat?"
"You… you can't scare me! I'm telling you, no matter what you do, I will never submit to you! And I will never form a contract with you!"
Xi Rang clamped down stubbornly. It wasn't raised to be timid. For all it knew, Song Wanníng was just making things up to scare it.
"What a pity," Song Wanníng sighed. She had thought about saving some of it for cultivating spiritual herbs, otherwise she wouldn't have bothered talking this much.
Since Xi Rang insisted on refusing to follow her, then she would simply use all of it to forge a clone. That would make her body even more resilient, and she could enter the Secluded Land with greater peace of mind.
She set the bottle down and got to work.
First, the refining furnace had to be lit. Her internal pill fire burst forth, fierce and blazing, quickly heating the bottom of the cauldron.
Song Wanníng carefully controlled the heat, making sure every part of the furnace was evenly warmed before she began the forging process.
West Wind Sand, spiritual liquid, meteoric iron, Mako stone...
One by one, precious materials went into the furnace, each slowly refined down.
The refining chamber soon grew hot.
Listening to the crackling flames, Xi Rang began to feel something was wrong. What exactly was this woman planning to do?
Why did she take it out?
Surely she wasn't going to refine it?
No, impossible. Even if this woman was crazy, she wouldn't actually do that.
She must be trying to scare it.
It snorted coldly, puffing itself up. "Stop wasting your effort. I told you I won't form a contract, and I mean it!"
Song Wanníng acted as if she hadn't heard a word. She had already set the fire and prepared the oil—did it really think she was just bluffing?
Talking to something this stupid was a waste of time.
She focused entirely on controlling the flames, adding the spiritual liquid with utmost care. A single mistake in the mixture would ruin everything inside and waste all the materials.
From the side, Xi Rang kept shouting for her to let it go. At first, it was confident and composed. But as time passed, the more serious Song Wanníng became, the more fear crept into its heart.
"Hey, I'm talking to you! Why aren't you answering?"
"Hey, do you hear me?"
"Are you deaf? Let me out right now!"
Xi Rang's composure broke, anxiety seeping in. No matter how it yelled, the woman ignored it. As the smoke from the furnace grew thicker, a deep sense of danger welled up inside it.
She wouldn't actually…
"Hey, are you serious?"
"I'm telling you, I'm not afraid of you!"
"Hey! Say something! Don't just stay silent!"
Xi Rang tried to comfort itself, but the unease was clawing at its mind. It was almost in tears. Though it was an innate spiritual object, its experience was pitifully limited. It had never seen such a scene before.
The noise was giving Song Wanníng a headache. She shot it a sharp glare. "Shut up."
Xi Rang: "..."
Startled, it quickly worked up its indignation again.
"Why are you so fierce? Let me go. If you let me out, I might even consider forming a contract with you!" It badly needed a way to back down with some dignity. If Song Wanníng begged it, perhaps it might accept her after all.
The problem was that furnace. Just looking at it made its heart pound uneasily. But Song Wanníng ignored it completely, not sparing even half a glance.
"Hey, did you hear me? If you just beg me again, I'll form a contract with you!" Raising its voice, it shouted once more, "Hey! I said I'll form a contract with you! Are you deaf?"
"Hey! Hey! Hey!!!"
It was growing more panicked, more irritable by the second.
Song Wanníng stayed entirely focused on fusing the materials inside the furnace. Xi Rang's offer didn't tempt her in the slightest. She had no need for something disobedient. That high-and-mighty, condescending tone—just looking at it made her annoyed.
The materials in the furnace were merging rapidly now. There was no room for even the tiniest error.
Though she didn't have much experience in artifact forging, she had improved her life-bound sword many times and knew the basic process well.
As more spiritual liquid was added, the contents inside thickened, becoming syrup-like. She took out a prepared long rod and carefully stirred.
Her serious expression made Xi Rang's heart sink into the abyss. It had already agreed to form a contract. Why wasn't she reacting?
What was this?
Was she testing it, or did she truly not want the contract?
Xi Rang couldn't figure her out. In the inherited memories, everyone who wanted to contract with it would flatter and protect it, win its trust, and then form the bond. Why was it completely different with her?
Baffled and tired from shouting, it began to mutter under its breath, calling out now and then.
The night passed in this way. At last, Song Wanníng set down the rod, a trace of fatigue in her expression. Both alchemy and artifact forging drained mental strength. Her head ached slightly. Just as she was about to rest, Xi Rang started again with its mocking tone.
"Are you sure you don't want to ask me again? Maybe this time I'll agree." Even now, its pride wouldn't let go.
Song Wanníng cast it an impatient glance, took out a pill and swallowed it, then sat to the side.
But Xi Rang refused to give up, continuing to chatter and grate on her nerves. Once her mind cleared a little, she rose, walked to the table, and grabbed the bottle in her hand.
Xi Rang's eyes lit up at once, and it assumed a lofty air.
"So, have you decided? As long as you beg me sincerely, I'll definitely form a contract with you!"
Song Wanníng: I have decided—starting with your head.