Chapter 116: The Taotie Cauldron's Transformation!

After seeing He Mingjing off and telling Qin Lan to keep the things in the courtyard safe, Qin Shuo lay down on the bed and fell into a deep sleep.

He slept long and soundly, not waking until the next morning.

As he stretched lazily, his whole body crackled like firecrackers, his energy so abundant it felt like it might explode; he felt refreshed and invigorated, as if he had endless strength.

"Divine abilities are great, but they do drain the spirit..."

Qin Shuo walked out of the room; Qin Lan had already cooked a large pot of exotic beast meat, saying it was to nourish his body.

Besides, she had asked Wei Laotou for a tonic recipe and added many precious medicinal ingredients to the meat; as soon as it came out of the pot, the humble courtyard was filled with medicinal aroma, making one's appetite stir.

"You don't say, but I'm really hungry!"

Qin Shuo picked up a piece of exotic beast meat and put it in his mouth; the rich meat fragrance spread, giving him great satisfaction.

He ate this meal very contentedly.

Because he no longer had to worry, as before, that Qin Lan would wrong herself by keeping the best for herself.

Earlier, he had ransacked the lairs of the two major powers, the City Lord's Mansion and the Sky Wolf Gang, gaining not only countless precious medicinal ingredients and pills but also tens of thousands of silver notes—truly an overnight fortune.

So now he had nothing to worry about regarding money.

"Time to take stock of the gains!"

After eating and drinking his fill, Qin Shuo went to the side wing of the courtyard, where piles of medicinal ingredients rose like small mountains, along with various porcelain bottles and gourds containing pills.

Besides, there were several large chests full to the brim with silver, all taken from the City Lord's Mansion.

Most of these gold and silver items had not been touched by He Mingjing; he had only divided some medicinal ingredients and pills needed for cultivation, leaving the rest to Qin Shuo.

According to him, by benefiting from Qin Shuo's luck, he had slain the Xiaoyue Yaowang, that great demon monster who had slaughtered cities and towns.

When he returns to the Demon Suppression Division, the court's reward will certainly not be small, and he might even be promoted two ranks directly to become a Cloud Dragon Captain.

By then, whether it be power, status, or cultivation treatment, all would be greatly elevated, far beyond comparison with these few melons and dates before him.

So he would not contend with Qin Shuo.

Qin Shuo passed over the piles of spiritual treasures and elixirs like small mountains and directly took out the Jingtie Daji bow placed deepest in the side wing.

Among all the gains from the raids, what pleased him most was this precious bow and Xue Chengkong's pill-refining furnace.

The former contains one of the four supreme arts of Wind Thunder Valley, the Wind Thunder Arrow, which holds great appeal for Qin Shuo, who began with archery.

With his strength increasing, ordinary archery techniques are now useless to him.

But this Wind Thunder Arrow is different; it is a supreme art not inferior to the Dragon Elephant Golden Body, so he must learn it.

Especially after personally experiencing the power of this supreme art, his desire for the Wind Thunder Arrow has only grown.

As for Xue Chengkong's pill-refining furnace, it bears the spiritual imprint of his pill-refining process, recording countless precious pill formulas; in value, it far surpasses all the gold, silver, and medicinal ingredients in this room.

【Discovered Material: Jingtie Daji】

【Refining Effect: Refining yields the supreme art 'Wind Thunder Arrow'】

【This arrow technique consists of four forms: Blade of the Storm (Perfected), Fury of Thunder (Minor Accomplishment), Storm Thunder Dragon (Not Initiated), Wind-Thunder Kill (Not Initiated)】

【Prompt: Detected host soul strength meets standard; can initiate second-stage refining mode!】

【Initiate?】

"Second-stage refining mode?" Qin Shuo was startled.

He had never thought the Taotie Cauldron could advance, opening a new refining mode.

Moreover, from the prompt, this advancement seems related to his spiritual strength, or rather, soul strength.

【Initiate!】

Qin Shuo's mind stirred.

Hum!

The black great cauldron trembled slightly.

The next second, on the round belly of the cauldron, the ferocious Taotie carving seemed to come alive.

A terrifying suction force emanated from its mouth.

Immediately, Qin Shuo's sea of consciousness was overwhelmed by towering waves.

Originally clear and distinct, belonging to the Vajra Buddha Nature and the Xiaoyue Yaowang, the two soul powers surged like waves and were swallowed by the black Taotie.

As the two soul powers surged in, the entirely black Taotie began to shine brilliantly at a visible speed.

The black lacquer on its body peeled off; the hard scales transformed from black to bright silver, while the scale edges seemed outlined in gold lacquer; the mane on its head and its pair of beast eyes turned radiant gold, like two furnaces.

In a short moment, the Taotie Cauldron changed drastically.

A silver-scaled, golden-eyed, golden-whiskered, silver-horned ferocious Taotie appeared on the cauldron, lifelike, as if it wanted to burst through the cauldron wall.

"Holy shit, is this Taotie really alive?"

Qin Shuo was startled, wanting to immediately pause the Taotie Cauldron's update iteration.

But once the second-stage mode is activated, it cannot be reversed; no matter how he sends his thoughts, the Taotie Cauldron remains unmoved, continuing to draw soul power from his sea of consciousness.

Humming!

The Taotie Cauldron glowed, rumbled, and emitted waves of heart-pounding beast roars.

The silver-scaled, golden-whiskered Taotie became even more vivid; its pair of golden eyes seemed to have gained spirituality, full of divine light.

It emanated an aura of heart-pounding brutality, as if it had crossed over from the primordial barbaric era when heaven and earth first opened, carrying boundless rolling killing intent, as if it wanted to swallow the entire heaven and earth into its belly.

"This..."

Qin Shuo was truly stunned!

Could this not be the spirit of the Taotie Cauldron?

In those novels of his past life, didn't they all say divine artifacts have artifact spirits?

Is this Taotie about to be reborn before his eyes the artifact spirit of the Taotie Cauldron?

Or perhaps, this entire Taotie Cauldron is actually just a Taotie, refined into a cauldron by people, and now it wants to use his soul to be reborn?

Thinking of this, Qin Shuo couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.

If the Taotie truly revives, the first to die would probably be me.

In my previous life's myths and legends, this was an extremely ferocious and tyrannical lord, devouring all things, eating everything, listed alongside Gonggong, Hun Dun, Qiong Qi, and Taotie as one of the Four Fiends of antiquity.

And now, such a great demon who left a fearsome reputation in myth and legend actually seeks to revive in my sea of consciousness,

Who wouldn't be frightened seeing this?

The silver-armored, golden-eyed Taotie continued devouring the spiritual power within Qin Shuo's sea of consciousness.

I don't know if it's an illusion, but I feel a bit dizzy, yet again it doesn't seem that dizzy.

Could it be a psychological effect?

Soon, the answer became clear.

After a frenzy of sucking and swallowing, the Taotie carving on the Taotie Cauldron indeed became more and more like a living creature, but only to this extent.

When its entire body transformed into a gold-and-silver interwoven color, that terrifying suction force abruptly ceased, and Qin Shuo's sea of consciousness returned to calm.

At the same time, a new panel notification popped up.

【Taotie Cauldron Evolution Completed!】

【Stage Two Refinement Mode Can Be Activated!】

【Activation Conditions: Consume 10,000 catties of Exotic Beast Meat, 1,000 catties of Spirit Beast Meat, 100 catties of Demon Beast Meat】

【After activation, refinement can be performed via qi and blood energy storage!】

"What? 10,000 catties of Exotic Beast Meat? 1,000 catties of Spirit Beast Meat? Why don't you go rob someone instead?"

Qin Shuo was completely dumbfounded!

10,000 catties of Exotic Beast Meat, even if it's the most ordinary Exotic Beast, would cost 10,000 taels of silver!

Do you think I'm too rich now and want to help me share the burden?

No need at all!

Besides, 10,000 catties of Exotic Beast Meat—even if he could scrape it together, where would he get this 1,000 catties of Spirit Beast Meat, and this Demon Beast Meat too?

Damn it!

Qin Shuo is really in trouble now!

If I had known it would be like this, I wouldn't have activated that damn Stage Two Refinement Mode— the previous one was just fine!

Everyone says system upgrades carry risks, and netizens never deceive me!

Apparently sensing Qin Shuo's resentment in his heart, the information panel suddenly protruded a new prompt:

【Detected a Demon King Inner Core inside the Taotie Cauldron; consuming it can offset 1,000 catties of Spirit Beast Meat and 100 catties of Demon Beast Meat!】

【Consume?】

"Alright, so you were waiting for me here all along!"

Qin Shuo raised his eyebrows.

He realized that the Taotie Cauldron probably truly possesses a spirit.

Moreover, this move clearly targets the lingering demon spirit power and Demon King Inner Core left by Xiaoyue Yaowang—everything was premeditated, and the upgrade was merely a pretext.

However, the other party seems restricted, and all actions must obtain his permission and authorization.

Thus, even if the other party truly has a spirit, it cannot harm me; instead, it will be under my control.

Thinking of this, Qin Shuo's tightly furrowed brows instantly relaxed, and he declared heroically in his heart: "Approved!"

The next moment, on the Taotie Cauldron, the originally dormant Taotie Cauldron sprang back to life.

It opened its bloody maw wide and erupted with a suction force, swallowing the damaged demon dan suspended inside the cauldron in one gulp.

At the same time, new text emerged beneath the Taotie Cauldron:

【Prompt: Still need 10,000 catties of Exotic Beast Meat to activate Stage Two Refinement Mode!】