Before anyone knew it, the other cultivators had also noticed the commotion.

"I am also a pill cultivator, let me give it a try." A refined-looking man stepped forward.

His face was extremely pale due to excessive consumption of spiritual energy, but his eyes burned with an undisguised intensity when he looked at the bronze medicine cauldron.

As Chu Guiyi said, no alchemist can refuse a bronze medicine cauldron.

Helian Zhu and the others were undecided and subconsciously looked at Chu Guiyi.

Chu Guiyi seemed used to being fawned over. After a moment of contemplation, he nodded.

When refining pills, alchemists need to eliminate their distracting thoughts. Skilled alchemists are indeed more suited to wielding bronze cauldrons than others.

So Helian Zhu stepped forward and placed the bronze medicine cauldron in Danxiu's palm.

Xie Shuci straightened up and looked at the alchemist with curiosity.

Xie An gently tapped his neck with his index finger. Xie Shuci looked up and saw him say, "It's not difficult, just look carefully."

Xie Shuci realized what he was talking about, nodded, then tensed his back and stared intently at Dan Xiu's every move.

Dan Xiu held the bronze medicine cauldron in his palm, his breathing quickened with excitement, and his eyes turned red. Many ordinary alchemists from immortal sects never had the chance to encounter a bronze medicine cauldron in their entire lives, but he now had that opportunity!

However, an unsettled mind is a major taboo in alchemy. He took a deep breath, calmed himself down, sat cross-legged on the ground, and placed the bronze cauldron in front of him.

Xie Shuci watched intently, and unknowingly separated a small portion of his spiritual energy, which then swirled around the alchemist.

Xie Shuci's spiritual power was gentle and clear, surrounding Danxiu and providing him with some nourishment, which restored some color to Danxiu's pale lips.

He glanced at Xie Shuci in surprise, and seeing that the latter was focused and serious, he roughly understood his intention. So he did not resist at all, gently released his spiritual power, and tenderly accepted Xie Shuci's spiritual power, sharing his senses at this moment with him.

Xie Shuci was stunned for a moment. A strange feeling filled his chest, as if he had been split in two and possessed the senses of two people at the same time.

Xie An, standing beside him, frowned, a hint of displeasure flashing across his face.

Spiritual connection is very common in alchemy cultivation. Many beginners use this method to be guided in learning the art of alchemy.

This is an extremely simple and convenient method, and it is very common in alchemy practice.

However, for other cultivators, spiritual communication is a very intimate act, something that only trusted fellow disciples, family members, and Daoist partners would do.

For those who cultivate the path of slaughter, this is nothing short of a fantasy, something they would never do. They would never share their spiritual consciousness with anyone, and even the approach of someone else's spiritual power would be considered an insult.

Xie Shuci had no time to notice Xie An's suddenly cold expression. The moment Dan Xiu closed his eyes, he cleared his mind of all distractions. He followed suit, sat up straight, closed his eyes, and emptied his mind. The surroundings were quiet and silent. He didn't know where he was or who was around him. He focused all his attention on his body.

At that moment, he had an incredibly clear sense of his own body.

He could feel his heart beating slowly in his chest, feel the blood flowing in his veins, feel the pure white and powerful spiritual energy surrounding his body, and feel the golden elixir quietly radiating light in his dantian.

At the same time, Xie Shuci noticed that Danxiu was activating his own spiritual power, and he also tried to control the white gas. Under his will, the gas accelerated its circulation within his body; the spiritual power was him, and he was the spiritual power; he could control the spiritual power at will.

Xie Shuci suddenly had a brilliant idea. He activated his spiritual power and made it swirl in the air. Finally, the shimmering white gas gathered in the air and materialized into a small fan.

In the past, when watching martial arts movies, Xie Shuci's favorite weapon was a fan. Dressed in white with a folding fan in his hand, he was cool and stylish, and looked like a hermit master.

"He..." Chu Wenfeng saw that the spiritual energy in front of Xie Shuci had turned into a transparent fan, and he couldn't help but make a sound of doubt.

Xie An bypassed Xie Shuci and pressed hard on his shoulder. Chu Wenfeng winced in pain and quickly shut his mouth.

Chu Guiyi shook his head at him, signaling him not to speak.

Chu Wenfeng nodded obediently. He knew, of course, that being disturbed under these circumstances could easily cause a cultivator with a weak will to destroy their own golden core in the chaos. He was simply too surprised. Xie Shuci clearly couldn't use spiritual power, so how could he manipulate it at will after only two days?

Even for the most talented cultivators, it takes time to fully utilize spiritual energy.

Dan Xiu gently enveloped the bronze cauldron with his spiritual energy. The cauldron's azure halo flickered for a moment, but there was no rejection. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this.

Although the bronze cauldron did not reject his spiritual power, it also refused to accept it. No matter how much spiritual power he channeled, it could not enter the bronze cauldron and break the seal.

A moment later, Danxiu exhausted his spiritual power, stopped moving, and clutched his chest, panting heavily.

At the same time, Xie Shuci also withdrew from his spiritual consciousness, and his senses throughout his body returned to normal.

Dan Xiu's forehead was covered in cold sweat, and he shook his head with a pale face, saying, "No, there is a formation seal inside, and I'm afraid only your spiritual power can break it."

Chu Guiyi frowned upon hearing this, "An array?"

"Yes, a high-level formation."

When Xie Shuci manipulated his spiritual power at will for the first time and his five senses returned to normal, he felt incredibly light, as if he could fly with the slightest movement.

"Um, how about I give it a try?" Xie Shuci raised his right hand and said to everyone with an awkward smile.

He felt that this matter was not difficult. It was just using spiritual power to activate the bronze medicine cauldron. What was the big deal? He thought that it was quite simple for the alchemist to do.

All eyes turned to Xie Shuci once again, and everyone hesitated, none of them speaking first.

Chu Guiyi pondered for a moment, then said solemnly, "Shuci, do you know the consequences of being attacked back?"

Xie Shuci honestly shook his head, "I don't know."

Chu Guiyi looked as if he had known all along and said in a deep voice, "The bronze cauldron is not like other medicine cauldrons. It cannot tolerate any mistakes. The slightest carelessness will lead to qi deviation and the same fate as me and Young Master Xie."

Xie Shuci looked at Xie An, then at him, and began to hesitate.

He lowered his head and thought for a long time, while everyone else stared intently at him, waiting for his answer.

After a long pause, Xie Shuci looked at Chu Guiyi and said in a serious tone, "Then can I make a deal? Just... destroy my golden core and spiritual veins, don't make me blind. If I go blind, will Xie An and I still be able to live?"

Everyone: "..."

Seeing his earnest expression, everyone couldn't help but chuckle.

Chu Wenfeng kicked him from the side, "Are you an idiot? Who are you consulting with? The Heavenly Dao? If it knew about this, it would definitely strike you dead with heavenly lightning."

Xie Shuci retaliated with a kick, "If he's going to chop someone up, he'll chop you up first!"

At this moment, the alchemist straightened his expression and said to everyone in a deep voice, "Perhaps we can let this fellow Daoist give it a try."

Chu Guiyi frowned and looked at him. The latter said again, "Just now, I was connected with you by spiritual sense and found that you comprehended very quickly and your spiritual sense was clean and pure. You are the best candidate for alchemy."

Xie Shuci was flattered by the praise and proudly raised his eyebrows at Chu Wenfeng.

"Then... shall I give it a try?" Xie Shuci glanced at the little blind man, who was leaning against the rock wall with a cold expression and did not respond.

Seeing Chu Guiyi's hesitant expression, Xie Shuci simply stepped forward and took the bronze medicine cauldron. "Don't you have any trust at all? If we can't get out, we'll die together. Anyway, we're going to die anyway, so I want to struggle a little longer. That way, even if I die, it won't be a loss."

Chu Guiyi sighed helplessly, glanced at everyone's faces, and finally nodded, "Alright. Please hold your breath and don't make any noise to disturb Shuci."

After all, we're all in the same boat. If something happens to Xie Shuci, everyone will either die from exhaustion of spiritual energy or be killed by the crazed Helian Zhu. In the end, everyone will die, and Xie Shuci is the only hope.

Without objection, everyone found a place to sit down and rest. Deng Fengming mingled among the cultivators, his gaze dark as he looked at Xie Shuci.

Since he couldn't kill Xiao Xun in front of everyone and arouse suspicion, and besides, he didn't have much spiritual power left in his body, he might as well be trapped under the Fulong artifact with the others and perish together with Xiao Xun. This way, he could kill Xiao Xun and save face for the Xiaoyao Sect.

Thinking of this, a cold killing intent flashed in Deng Fengming's eyes.

He cannot allow Xie Shuci to refine the Dragon-Subduing Magic Weapon!

If Xie Shuci is not capable enough and suffers a backlash from the bronze cauldron, that's one thing. But if Xie Shuci can really do it, he will definitely do everything in his power to kill Xie Shuci!

Xie Shuci took the bronze medicine cauldron back to Xie An's side. Perhaps it was because the little blind man was always by his side whenever he was afraid, so he always felt safest by his side.

Xie An's expression was not good, and he let him sit down beside him without reacting.

Xie Shuci took a deep breath, placed the bronze cauldron on the ground, sat cross-legged, recalled the feeling from just now, emptied his body, and tried not to think about anything, controlling his spiritual power to cover the bronze cauldron.

Everyone held their breath, their eyes fixed on the bronze cauldron. When it came into contact with Xie Shuci's spiritual power, a ripple of light appeared on the bronze cauldron. The azure radiance merged with Xie Shuci's spiritual power, and an azure light array appeared in mid-air. As Xie Shuci's spiritual power approached, the light grew brighter and brighter, gradually obscuring the light of the spiritual pearl and spreading throughout the entire sky.

The blue light reflected on everyone's faces, and they all looked solemn, not daring to move.

Xie Shuci felt that the spiritual energy was flowing very fast, and he could hardly control it. His body was also slightly affected and he could not move.

"Buzz..."

He frowned, a bead of cold sweat trickling down his forehead, as the ancient, mysterious sound of bells echoed in his ears.

The seal has been broken!

Xie Shuci was overjoyed. He felt as if he had established a connection with the bronze cauldron; he could clearly sense its presence.

The palm-sized bronze cauldron continued to expand and grow, eventually reaching half a person's height. The openwork patterns on it were so unfamiliar that they seemed to come from another world. Despite the rust on the bronze, just standing there, it resembled a majestic mountain, instilling a sense of awe in people for no reason.

Xie Shuci couldn't help but feel a little strange; the way Chu Guiyi and the others described it was so terrifying...

He thought he would be half-dead even if he didn't die, but apart from the excessive consumption of spiritual energy and the inability to move his body, he didn't feel any discomfort. In fact, he felt an indescribable sense of familiarity with the bronze medicine cauldron, as if he had reunited with an old friend he hadn't seen for many years, and he actually felt a sense of joy from the lifeless bronze vessel.

He succeeded!

"This bronze artifact has long since recognized its owner!"

"That's incredible. It's not a seal at all. It's a restriction imposed after the bronze artifact recognizes its owner. No one but the owner can get close."

"To form a contract with bronze artifacts? This... how is that possible? Wasn't this kind of incantation lost long ago?"

An uproar erupted in the sky, even Xie An was momentarily stunned.

Chu Guiyi shook his head with a complicated expression and said, "It has not been lost. As far as I know, there are some disciples in the Futu Kingdom who can form a contract with their swords."

"Fellow Daoist... could you be from the Floating Pagoda Realm?"

After the seal was broken, Xie Shuci gradually regained sensation in his body and faintly heard the voices of the crowd talking.

He opened his eyes, his gaze blank.

Xie An grabbed his pulse, and Chu Wenfeng and the others also surrounded him.

"How does the letter feel?"

"Xie Shuci, you've been hiding your true strength all along!"

"Fellow Daoist, are you alright?"

Xie Shuci was stunned by their barrage of questions and didn't react for a moment. She timidly shrank a few feet closer to the little blind boy.

Seeing this, Chu Gui waved everyone away and said, "This is Shu Ci's first time opening the bronze cauldron, and he probably hasn't fully adapted yet."

Xie Shuci leaned against Xie An's shoulder, his breath trembling. He looked at the bronze cauldron, half his height, not far away, and strangely discovered a connection between himself and it. It seemed to have become a part of Xie Shuci, an organ like a finger, at his beck and call. Xie Shuci tried to manipulate it, and the bronze cauldron emitted a hum, as if responding to him.

Xie An held Xie Shuci's pulse, checking for any abnormalities in his body. Throughout the entire process, his expression remained somewhat somber.

A contract is a very intimate relationship.

It will completely bind the two things together, and it will take a lot of effort to untie them.

Xie Shuci not only shares spiritual consciousness with others, but also forms a contract with a cold, inanimate object.

"hiss……"

Xie An suddenly increased the pressure on his fingertips, causing Xie Shuci to gasp in pain and quickly pull his hand back. "It hurts so much! What are you doing?"

Xie An remained silent with a cold expression, his jaw clenching slightly.

Xie Shuci glanced at him, bewildered, and was completely jolted awake. He rubbed his wrist and said to the others, "I wasn't affected."

Chu Guiyi breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's good."

Xie Shuci nodded and asked, "Shall we refine that magic weapon now?"

Xie Shuci is now full of confidence. What's so difficult about refining something? He can do it with ease.

Chu Guiyi shook his head and said, "Shuci, alchemy is not as simple as you think. You have no experience, and I'm worried..."

"Senior brother." Chu Wenfeng interrupted him helplessly. He felt that Chu Guiyi was a bit indecisive today. It had already come to this point, and only Xie Shuci could refine the Dragon Subduing Artifact to let them out. There were no other options.

Xie Shuci also said, "What's there to worry about? At worst, we'll just suffer a qi deviation. We can't just let everyone wait to die."

Chu Guiyi glanced at him, remained silent for a moment, then pursed her lips and nodded.

"Fellow Daoist, do you know how to refine it?"

Xie Shuci thought for a moment, "Put it in here, and then refine it."

"..." Dan Xiu was stunned for a moment, then realized that what he said didn't seem to make any mistakes.

The two most important aspects of alchemy are the alchemy cauldron and spiritual energy. The better the alchemy cauldron, the stronger the spiritual energy, and the purer the mind, the higher the grade of the alchemy produced.

To refine something, the requirements for both are even higher.

With a wave of his hand, Xie Shuci sent the bronze cauldron soaring into the air, its four legs standing upright in mid-air, radiating a bright blue light.

Xie Shuci closed his eyes, and the outline of the bronze cauldron clearly appeared in his mind. After injecting spiritual power into it, the bronze cauldron seemed to understand his intention. Its light grew stronger and stronger, and a wisp of green smoke drifted up and lingered in the sky.

Xie Shuci knew nothing about refining the Dragon-Subduing Artifact. He simply followed the instructions of the bronze cauldron and continuously poured spiritual power into its body. As if it knew Xie Shuci's wishes, a fist-sized artifact wrapped in golden light separated from the sky by a wisp of green smoke.

Following the trail of the blue smoke, it gradually descended above the bronze medicine cauldron.

When two powerful magical artifacts from different secret realms collided, a dull thud resounded in the sky. The sound was not harsh, but rather seemed to come from ancient times, yet it seemed to cause the surrounding air to vibrate and compress.

Space seemed to be distorting, and souls and bodies were being torn apart by two different forces. Sound waves crashed against eardrums, causing a sharp pain. Everyone covered their ears with their hands and let out painful howls.

Xie Shuci felt as if something had pierced his eardrum. The voices of the crowd suddenly became distant. Two streams of blood slowly flowed from his ears. The excruciating pain made him want to jump up and down, but his body wouldn't obey him, and he couldn't even make a sound. He could only silently call out in his heart.

It hurts so much...

I'm not practicing anymore! I'll never practice again!

The two magical artifacts faced off high in the sky, neither willing to give way.

Xie Shuci's mind was in a state of chaos, and his spiritual energy was surging wildly throughout his body, eagerly gushing outwards.

A trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, staining his lips red, and hung precariously on his pale face.

Just then, a hand reached out in front of him, and the cool fingertips wiped away the blood on his lips, casually tracing the corner of his lips and caressing it lightly.

Immediately afterwards, the hand reached into his pocket, took out a bottle of pills from his pouch, poured out one of them, and pinched the snow-white pill with blood-stained fingers, instantly staining it red before stuffing it into Xie Shuci's mouth.

The sweet, icy pill lingered on the tip of his tongue for a moment before sliding down his throat. Xie Shuci's chaotic spiritual energy gradually calmed down, and the discomfort he felt throughout his body lessened.

The man stood in front of Xie Shuci, looking at the scarlet liquid on the corner of his mouth. Suddenly, as if possessed, he raised his hand, pressed the bloodstain on his fingertip to his lips, and gently swept his tongue over it, inhaling the sweet, metallic taste of his fingertip.

Not satisfied.

He wanted to control this person and sever all ties with him and everything that connected them.

While everyone was blinded by the magic weapon and preoccupied with their own survival, Xie An bent down, grabbed Xie Shuci's chin with one hand, and forced him to raise his head.

Blood trickled down his chin from the corner of his mouth.

Xie An pressed his lips to his, taking the drop of blood from his chin to the corner of his lips, and then punishingly prying open his lips and teeth, letting the sweet, metallic scent fill their nostrils.

Xie Shuci's physical pain had finally subsided, but then something warm and wet was stuffed into his mouth, taking away his breath. He felt as if he were falling into water and was about to suffocate!

Just then, a flying sword flew from the corner toward Xie Shuci.

The silver blade swept through the air like an extremely thin thread, flashing past silently as it approached Xie Shuci.

The blade was like a sharp thread, heading straight for Xie Shuci's slightly raised neck, ready to separate his head from his body in an instant.

But the young man who was holding Xie Shuci's chin high above him did not change his position. Instead, his eyes suddenly turned towards the direction of the sword blade. His cold and piercing gaze was like a poison needle, stabbing at Deng Fengming, who was hiding not far away and whose face was pale.

That glance was like an evil eye opening from a dark abyss.

Deng Fengming felt his blood rush back to his head, and he felt a tremor from his very soul. Coupled with the sound waves from the collision of the magical artifacts, his eyes rolled back and he fainted.

Those eyes, brimming with murderous intent, were truly terrifying!

I've never seen such a terrifying look in your eyes...

Is this the Path of Slaughter? Or rather... is this the Path of Slaughter at its peak?

Could it be... could it be... that Xiao Xun has already reached his peak?!

How is that possible!

Between breaths, many thoughts flashed through his mind.

On the other side, Xie An blocked with his long arm, and the flying sword blade sliced ​​across his entire forearm, sending him flying into the rock wall with a "whoosh".

The blade came at him with great force, piercing the skin of his forearm, and blood gushed out instantly.

Blood splattered onto his and Xie Shuci's clothes, like red wildflowers blooming across the mountainside in this kiss that could hardly be called tender.

Xie An seemed to feel no pain, not even frowning, his expression indifferent, but the way he pressed Xie Shuci's lips together was indescribably fierce.

"Ugh..." Xie Shuci let out a low sob. Xie An paused, slowly raised his head, and left his lips.

The standoff in mid-air seemed to have reached a conclusion. The golden light on the Fulong magical artifact was gradually swallowed up by the bronze cauldron, and the deafening sound finally stopped. Everyone who had survived the ordeal collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

"That's terrifying..."

"Now I understand why Patriarch Helian was so ruthless as to sacrifice his own disciples in order to enter the Floating Pagoda Realm. The things in this secret realm are just too powerful, too vast, and too terrifying!"

"Yes, it felt like I had just walked through the gates of hell."

The instant the bronze cauldron completely swallowed the Dragon-Subduing Artifact, countless cracks suddenly appeared in the sky. Sunlight streamed through the cracks into the sky, and fresh air rushed in. In an instant, the sky completely collapsed, splitting into fragments with a "boom" and disappearing into the air.

"It's a success!"

"Fellow Daoist, you have indeed refined the Dragon-Subduing Magic Weapon!"

"Amazing! No wonder you're from the Floating Pagoda Realm!"

Xie Shuci's body went limp and he slumped to the side.

Xie An quickly supported Xie Shuci's shoulder, letting him lean against him.

After swallowing the Dragon-Subduing Artifact, the bronze cauldron shrank continuously until it returned to the size of a palm. It then flew back to Xie Shuci's side on its own.

After giving his opinion, Chu Gui shook his head and said, "The bronze cauldron has not yet fully refined it; it will probably take some time. However, the sky has disappeared, and Shu Ci has succeeded."

Chu Wenfeng's face was also a little pale after what had just happened. He placed the wheelchair next to Chu Guiyi and immediately walked towards Xie Shuci and the other person.

Xie Shuci was so exhausted that she couldn't muster any strength. Her body was not only fatigued but also in pain. In addition, she had almost suffocated to death just now. When she opened her eyes and saw Xie An, whom she knew well, her eyes immediately welled up with tears.

He clutched Xie An's clothes, his lips trembling with grievance, tears welling up in his eyes, and he whispered his accusation, "Little blind man... I feel so bad..."

Recalling the feeling of suffocation, he cried even harder, unable to breathe. "Something was blocking my mouth, preventing me from breathing... I almost died..."

Xie An listened quietly with his eyes lowered, occasionally nodding in response.

"Alchemy is so difficult... I regret it..."

Xie An placed one hand on his temple and gently stroked it, his movements filled with patience and tenderness.

Finally, Xie Shuci gazed at the pristine white sky and murmured absentmindedly, "Did I succeed?"

Xie An nodded slightly.

Warm tears dampened his fingertips, like a drop of rain.

Xie Shuci's tears.

This time, he understood what Xie Shuci's tears meant.

There was grievance and pain, but also a hint of joy.