Chapter 52 Demon Realm 3: Unexpected Changes
If Shen Du hadn't brought up the topic of food, Xu Xing would have almost forgotten about it.
Strange! Her body usually gets hungry if she doesn't eat, but after sleeping in the demon realm for several days without food or water, she feels no hunger at all!
Xu Xing seemed to be deep in thought. Could it be because he absorbed the demon spirit?
She wasn't averse to demonic spirits; they were like spiritual energy, used for cultivation. Besides, Yin Xue had said she had no demonic energy within her, so there was no need to worry about her identity being exposed in the short term. However…
Xu Xing quietly raised her eyes to look at Shen Du. What would her senior brother think if he knew that she was not human?
Shen Du remained calm, showing no sign of surprise. He led Xu Xing out of the inn and into the streets of Luocang City.
The cities in the demon realm are somewhat different from those in the human realm. Even though the cities in the human realm that are also responsible for trade have many shops, compared to Luohu City, where shops are lined up one after another and appear rather crowded, Luocang City has shops scattered like stars, each occupying a large area, and there is no sense of close-knitness.
The shopkeepers in the shops also mostly had a relaxed and leisurely demeanor.
Cultivators from various races came and went, and occasionally humans could be seen. Although they were few, Xu Xing and Shen Du did not stand out on the street.
Apart from some half-demons whose appearance reveals demonic features, other demons and humans look very similar. If there is any difference, it is that all demons, regardless of gender, are extremely beautiful.
Countless handsome men and beautiful women passed by, and Xu Xing was overwhelmed by the sight, his eyes practically unable to take it all in.
"Senior brother, all the demons are so good-looking!"
Upon hearing this, Shen Du paused, glancing sideways at Xu Xing, who was looking around. She had taken the Illusion Pill, and her appearance was somewhat different, but thinking of her original appearance...
It is indeed very beautiful, and it wouldn't be surprising if it were a demon race known for its beauty.
Although cultivators have undergone marrow cleansing and purification, resulting in pure physiques and generally good-looking appearances, or at least handsome, they cannot be compared to the demon race, whose unique racial advantage lies in their appearance.
The two found a restaurant. Although Xu Xing wasn't hungry, it didn't mean he didn't want to eat. The food in the demon realm was very delicious. After eating and drinking his fill, Xu Xing bought a lot of dishes and ingredients and put them into his storage bag.
Her backpack could only hold things she made or gathered, but she could solve the problem by putting other things into her self-made storage bags and then putting the storage bags into the backpack. Nothing made her feel safer than her backpack, which she could never lose.
After finishing their meal, Xu Xing took Chen Du to look at a shop selling pills and magical artifacts, hoping to buy some things that might be useful in the secret realm. However, they saw a short boy standing on tiptoe in front of the counter, seemingly arguing with the shopkeeper.
"This pill was made by an alchemist from the Valley of Ten Thousand Medicines; it's of excellent quality. How could there be a problem? Don't try to scam me!"
The shopkeeper waved his hand impatiently, but smiled when he saw Xu Xing and his companion. "What kind of pills do you two immortals want? We have everything here!"
"But usually, after taking one pill, my sister wouldn't cough up blood for three days, but this time it only lasted two and a half days. Clearly, the medicine wasn't strong enough! You can't do this! I spent spirit stones!"
The boy had messy hair that was neither long nor short and was draped over his shoulders. His clothes were a little dirty, and he held a delicate medicine bottle in his hand, still refusing to give up.
"A bottle of Qi-replenishing pills costs only eighteen low-grade spirit stones! I'm not just wasting my time trying to extort that little bit of money from you."
Worried that he would affect business, the shopkeeper called his servants to push and shove the boy out.
"..."
Xu Xing glanced at the tearful boy and said nothing. He simply took a bottle of Qi-replenishing pills with him when he bought the medicine. Qi-replenishing pills are used to replenish the body's Qi and blood. They are not usually used by cultivators. Most people with Qi and blood deficiency would buy them.
She picked up a pill and put it in her mouth. After swallowing, she frowned. Converted to data, a Qi-replenishing pill should normally add 100 points of Qi and Blood, but this one only added 83 points. Just as the boy said, the medicinal effect was insufficient.
"Shopkeeper, were these pills really made by the alchemists of Ten Thousand Medicines Valley?"
The Valley of Ten Thousand Medicines is filled with countless spiritual herbs, and all the cultivators in the valley are alchemists. Most of the pills in the demon realm come from the Valley of Ten Thousand Medicines.
"I happen to be an alchemist myself, and quite knowledgeable about the properties of medicines. Shopkeeper, why don't you think about it carefully before you speak?"
The shopkeeper, who had been so confident, suddenly felt a little breathless when he saw Xu Xing's ambiguous smile. "The alchemist who sold me this pill did indeed say he was from the Valley of Ten Thousand Medicines, and I... I wasn't wrong..."
The pills were sold by a young alchemist who came to his door. He saw that the price was much lower than that of Wanyao Valley, but the quality was not bad, so he bought some. He did not find anything wrong with the medicinal properties. He never expected that he would be exposed today.
"When doing business, you have to verify the other party's identity. Selling pills with insufficient medicinal properties is not good for the shopkeeper's long-term business."
Since he was new to the place, Xu Xing didn't say much. He only pointed out that the pills were indeed not potent enough before leaving the shop. However, he saw the boy who had been kicked out at the door.
He gritted his teeth and clung to the pillar in front of the door, refusing to let go. He had already spent all his spirit stones on the Qi-replenishing pills. He had originally thought that a bottle of five pills would be enough to keep his sister going for half a month, but the medicine was not potent enough, and he had no more spirit stones to buy more medicine.
Seeing that the servants couldn't get rid of him, his thick eyebrows shot up, clearly angered. He raised his hand, about to strike, but a strong hand grabbed his wrist.
Shen Du frowned and pushed the other party away. They were the ones selling pills with insufficient medicinal properties, yet they were making things difficult for a young man.
Seeing that the other party was a customer who had come out of the shop, the servant was in a dilemma and dared not make a move. He ran into the shop with a fearful look on his face and did not come out again.
Xu Xing himself had refined many low-level pills such as Qi-replenishing pills in his early years, so he took out two bottles and handed them to the boy along with the bottle with four pills left from the store he had just bought, saying, "Go home quickly."
Xu Xing had plenty of these pills; he could refine two bottles in half a quarter of an hour. She had only helped a demon boy casually, so she didn't think much of it.
The boy was quite surprised. He took the medicine bottle in a daze, biting his lip. Before he could say anything, he saw that the two people who had helped him had already walked away.
"Sister, sister! I brought back Qi-replenishing pills!"
The boy stumbled back to a thatched hut outside the city. Inside, on a straw mat, lay a "person" wrapped in a red cloth. Only upon closer inspection could one see that the red cloth was clearly white, stained with the blood seeping from her body.
"With these few bottles of pills, my sister will definitely be able to hold out until she enters the secret realm!"
The young man carefully fed her a Qi-replenishing pill. The woman, still dazed, finally opened her dark red eyes. Her eyes were filled with demonic energy, clearly indicating that she was a demonic cultivator!
She glanced at the demon youth, her voice hoarse and lifeless, "Tonight, we'll explore the Ruins Secret Realm."
Early the next morning, Xu Xing and Chen Du, along with the four disciples of Shuiyun Xiandu, headed to Tiger Hill, where the Ruins Secret Realm was located.
Tiger Hill is the territory under the jurisdiction of the Tiger Clan. After Rong Jun dispersed his cultivation, the entire mountain, including the surrounding hundreds of miles, was shrouded in the domain of Mahayana stage cultivators. As soon as a low-level cultivator stepped into it, he felt an extremely terrifying pressure.
"Truly worthy of being a Mahayana cultivator!"
Xu Xing was somewhat curious, "However, since this secret realm was created by him dispersing his cultivation, even if he finds the key and cures the hidden ailment in his body, his cultivation cannot be restored to its original state, right?"
“Even if he can be cured, he will at least fall by two major realms,” Mei Zihan explained.
Domains are not so easily formed, let alone by dispersing one's cultivation. The Tiger Clan would rather his cultivation level drop to the Nascent Soul stage than not resort to this desperate measure. I'm afraid that if it fails, Rong Jun may face the risk of death and annihilation.
Shuiyun Xian had long suspected this, but what was even more terrifying than the impending demise of a Mahayana demon cultivator was the person who would cause his demise—the sword cultivator who had wiped out the demon realm with a single sword strike and whose name had been erased by the demon race.
That Sword Master has been missing for hundreds of years. If Rong Jun dies, will she appear?
"Is this the entrance to the secret realm?"
Xu Xing glanced at Chen Du with some hesitation, and the other man also looked somewhat surprised.
The entrance was guarded by four Golden Core cultivators and two Nascent Soul cultivators, so heavily guarded that it didn't seem like a place where people could freely enter and exit.
He Yue asked in surprise, "There weren't so many tiger clan cultivators when we came last time. Could something have happened?"
Xiang Di was sent to investigate, and when he returned, he brought back some bad news.
"Is it only allowed that alchemists with the Glazed Token are permitted to bring one cultivator in?"
Mei Zihan said in a deep voice, "Has anyone explained why the rules were suddenly changed?"
Xiang Di shook his head. Those tiger-clan cultivators kept their mouths shut and he hadn't managed to get any useful information out of them.
Shen Du suddenly spoke up, "I'm afraid only alchemists can grant them their wishes."
Apart from Mei Zihan, the other three disciples of Shuiyun Immortal Capital were not alchemists, which made the situation somewhat tricky.
Mei Zihan glanced at Xu Xing and said with certainty, "Fellow Daoist Xu, take Fellow Daoist Shen with you, and I..."
He pondered for a moment. In terms of cultivation level, it would be best to bring He Yue, who was at the peak of Foundation Establishment, but Qianqian's identity would be more helpful. So he said, "I will take Qianqian in. Junior Sister He, you and Xiang Di will meet us outside."
Xu Xing was not surprised that Mei Zihan had guessed his identity as an alchemist. She and Shen Du exchanged a glance and did not express any objection.
He Yue took out a glass token from her person. "Since we can't get in, Fellow Daoist Xu, please take this token with you."
Xu Xing smiled and said, "No need."
Now that they've decided to cooperate, there's no need to hide the fact that they already possess the Glazed Token.
He Yue and the other two were somewhat surprised to hear this, but Mei Zihan showed no change in expression. He handed a sound transmission bead to Chen Du, saying, "This is a secret technique of Shuiyun Immortal Capital. It can be used to send messages to each other in the secret realm. If you are separated by accident after entering, you can use this to contact each other."
Shen Du took it and handed it directly to Xu Xing. Xu Xing looked at it over and over, then...
Copying doesn't seem too difficult?
She can try making a few when she has time later.
Mei Zihan was unaware that someone had already set their sights on the communication artifact that had been used to imprint the Water Cloud Immortal Capital. After arranging everything, the four of them headed towards the entrance of the secret realm together.
Unbeknownst to them, a group of demons followed smoothly into the Ruins of Discovery.
He Yue, who was hiding in the shadows and watching the entrance to the secret realm, frowned. "Are all these demons alchemists?"
It's no wonder she was suspicious. Among all the races, the demon race had the most alchemists, followed by the human race, while the demon and ghost races had the fewest. How could this group of dozens of demon cultivators possibly have six or seven alchemists? When did alchemists become so common?
She couldn't help but have a bad feeling. What if the restrictions on alchemists only applied to demons and humans?
Have my senior brothers and the others stumbled into a demon's lair?!
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Author's Note: Thank you Xixi, Chenchen, and Lee for the nutrient solution! =3= [rose]
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