Chapter 168: Journey Through the Desert

Lu Xingzhou and his master entered the desert.

Compared to the great desert outside, the desert within the Demon-Subduing Domain is not large. Yet for two humans trekking through it, one could still say it stretches endlessly.

Lu Xingzhou unfolded the map, just intending to check some marked oases and water sources, when the map's original owner came trotting up from behind, no longer needing the map.

Lu Xingzhou chuckled and put the map away: "Hey, didn't your protectors say they wouldn't follow?"

Sheng Yuanyao grinned: "Do you really believe that? Of course we must follow secretly."

"So this is your idea of 'secretly'?"

"Secretly for others, but why hide from you? Could you even expect others to protect you?" Sheng Yuanyao shoved A Nuo aside with a nudge and pushed the wheelchair herself: "The map is a public version; many places aren't marked. Come, I'll take you to an oasis I saw before. The plants there are different from those outside; they'll surely be useful for your alchemy."

A Nuo looked at his empty hands, then raised his head to see the man and woman who had already pushed the wheelchair far ahead, feeling as if he were lost in a dream.

Before, they went straight for A Nuo's face; now they don't even bother to act.

Lu Xingzhou was also laughing: "Why don't you act a bit? That third grade Mr. over there likely possesses some divine sense and can peer into this."

"Can they? I heard the divine sense range of someone just entering third grade is very small. Ah, never mind. How the Demon-Subduing Bureau operates doesn't need to be explained to the Alchemy Academy. If they have the ability, let them go complain to the leadership."

"So the young master gets upgraded and becomes mighty, huh?"

"That's right. After we leave, go see the flowers at Qingyao Garden; it's been quite lively lately."

A Nuo walked through the desert with his hands tucked in his sleeves, feeling like a child abandoned by his parents.

"Come to think of it, your wheelchair can actually roll in the desert. What kind of wheelchair is this..."

"Otherwise, why do you think I couldn't bear to give it up? It took years to craft. Wait, where is Miss Qingli?"

Sheng Yuanyao lowered her voice: "I suspect that Mr. Wang is up to something. On the surface, he deliberately quarreled with Miss Qingli to send her to the volcano side, but in reality, he left her there to spy on him."

Lu Xingzhou blinked his eyes, quite surprised: "Eh... you've grown a brain?"

Sheng Yuanyao snapped: "Besides being too lazy to use my brain in front of you, I'm not a fool!"

A Nuo touched his round chin, suddenly recalling that he had once commented that Sister Yao was quite smart. At that time, his master was being watched like a suspect until he felt numb. In fact, in the end, Sister Yao never gave up suspecting his master; she just chose not to pursue it. But since when did he start feeling that Sister Yao was like a running puppy?

"Fine, fine, fine, smart Commander Sheng." Lu Xingzhou pointed into the distance: "The sand over there has a different color, a bit of a black-red hue. What's the situation?"

Sheng Yuanyao glanced over: "That's where a demon beast once died, staining the sand. Hmm... for others, it might mean nothing special, but you alchemists might have some theories."

Demons: some, like the Flame Demon, have no blood or flesh bodies; others do, leaving bones and blood after death. Lu Xingzhou nodded: "Let's take a look; it might be useful."

Putting aside any potential targeting, the main quest this time is ultimately to gather materials for alchemy. Although the actual ranking doesn't matter much, the trial itself is, after all, a growth assignment the Alchemy Academy designed for its students. For the sake of one's own progress, it is worth taking seriously; Lu Xingzhou had no intention of slacking off.

Arriving at the spot, they saw that roughly dozens of zhang of sand in all directions had been stained by demon blood. The demon beast's corpse must have been enormous; faintly, a few exposed bones could still be seen.

Demon blood itself can be used for alchemy, but the flesh and blood have already blended into the sand, and in this special environment where spiritual energy wears things down over time, physical changes may have accumulated. Lu Xingzhou scooped up a handful of sand and pondered for a moment, feeling that alchemy was unsuitable; instead, it seemed more fitting for artifact forging...

But after the demonic power was worn down, the grade was quite ordinary, which is why, despite being exposed for so long, no one had dug it up.

Lu Xingzhou collected a small bag of sand for preservation and continued to dig through the sand to examine the bones.

Back in the Dragon-Tiger Secret Realm, the power contained in the dragon and tiger bones might have been fully absorbed during alchemy, leaving only meaningless calcified dry bones that were unusable. Now, although this corpse's demonic power had been greatly worn down, it still possessed quite a bit of unique dark demonic power. Lu Xingzhou pondered for a moment and pulled out the spine.

Sheng Yuanyao asked curiously: "What for? Making a spear? Many people have studied this bone; it looks tough, but it's not enough for a weapon. The grade isn't high enough."

Lu Xingzhou shook his head, sent his spiritual power into the spine, and pulled out a clump of dark green moss-like substance.

As the moss appeared, a wave of dark power rushed toward them. As if prepared beforehand, Lu Xingzhou waved his Soul Banner, and the power vanished without a trace.

Sheng Yuanyao's expression changed.

This corpse lay not far from the desert's edge, where trial participants were as numerous as ox hairs, yet no one had ever discovered anything inside. Yet Lu Xingzhou had just arrived and found it.

Lu Xingzhou smiled: "Don't blame yourselves. This place was basically a trial ground for the Demon-Subduing Bureau; the Alchemy Academy rarely came here. People from the Demon-Subduing Bureau and alchemists have different perspectives. Such marrow that might evolve into small trinkets is mostly outside your consideration... As it turns out, the grade is indeed ordinary, preserving the demon beast's pre-death fourth grade upper-level standard. It's much better than the bones and blood exposed outside, but it hardly counts as a lucky find. Still, it fits our alchemy task this time perfectly."

Sheng Yuanyao looked on eagerly as Lu Xingzhou put away the moss: "What does it do?"

"It's quite poisonous, belonging to that dark soul-type material category. I can't think of what to refine with it right now; it depends on other combinations. Hmm... perhaps using poison to counter poison to refine antidote-type pills might have some effect; it depends on the specific ailment."

Sheng Yuanyao felt a bit disappointed; she had thought following him would bring fortune, but it turned out not to be so.

Lu Xingzhou weighed the spine in his hand: "This is a bit too brittle for making a spear, but it's quite suitable for the pole of my Human Emperor Banner. It won't crack as easily as it does now, and it will likely enhance the Human Emperor Banner's effect slightly. I'll take it."

Sheng Yuanyao was very disdainful: "Can't you just give up on this Soul Banner evil method?"

"Currently, my Wu Xiu cultivation technique has been replaced, but I haven't found a Daoist cultivation technique yet. There's no way around it."

"Shall I find a Daoist cultivation technique for you from the Demon-Subduing Bureau?"

"If possible, I'd still prefer the Daoist part that pairs with the Yin-Yang Ultimate Intent Art. Anyway, my Wu Xiu technique is sufficient for now, so I'm not in a rush for the Daoist part." Lu Xingzhou turned the wheelchair: "Let's go, continue searching for things."

The group continued moving deeper into the desert. Two figures appeared at the edge, both frowning.

One was Daoist Xuan Qing; the other was none other than Chen Yu, who had just tried to team up with Lu Xingzhou.

Neither went to the volcano where most people were heading; each went to a different place, then circled around and followed Lu Xingzhou.

"In terms of the trial's 'insight' assessment, Lu Xingzhou is still outstanding." Chen Yu sighed: "As for the growth within that marrow, I certainly wouldn't have considered it. Darkness under the lamp."

Daoist Xuan Qing's expression was also not very good.

It's easy to criticize others carrying loads while not carrying one yourself. Lu Xingzhou found things so easily, as if any alchemist could find them, but as alchemists themselves, they knew very well they might not have thought of that themselves. Otherwise, although not many from the Alchemy Academy came here for trials, some did; why did previous generations miss it?

"Now that Sheng Yuanyao is openly following, trying to sabotage Lu Xingzhou's gains is very troublesome... Do you have any ideas?" Xuan Qing finally asked.

Chen Yu shook his head: "No. Sheng Yuanyao is following openly; unless you dare to kill her as well."

Xuan Qing's face turned black as a pot bottom: "So we just watch?"

Chen Yu pondered: "Entering the desert might be Lu Xingzhou's most mistaken decision... Because once something goes wrong in the desert, sandstorms easily arise, obscuring vision. When the situation becomes chaotic, Sheng Yuanyao might not even know what happened."

Xuan Qing nodded: "There must be dangers deep in the desert. I don't believe he can remain so calm and carefree all the way."

In terms of alchemy skill, Xuan Qing surpasses Chen Yu.

But in terms of combat power, Chen Yu hides much deeper than Xuan Qing.

As a retainer of Prince Jin, he is fourth grade.

"Besides..." Chen Yu whispered: "The entrance to the second layer of the Demon-Subduing Domain is very deeply concealed by the Demon-Subduing Bureau; they won't let people know it casually, to prevent unauthorized entry."

Xuan Qing's expression shifted slightly: "You mean... the second layer entrance is right here in the desert?"

"Yes. Although it is sealed tightly and impossible to enter by mistake, if the timing is right, if you and I suddenly open it, we might trick Lu Xingzhou inside... Even if Sheng Yuanyao knows there is a second layer entrance here, she probably wouldn't think anyone would play such a trick."

Daoist Xuan Qing's face lit up with excitement.

The Demon-Subduing Domain has five levels in total. The first level is full of demons below third grade, and the second level is entirely third grade! It's said the deepest fifth level even imprisons a super-grade demon, though whether that's true is unknown.

Even though the demons on the second level have been worn down by the Demon-Subduing Domain and no longer possess third-grade power, there are still plenty of demons that haven't died. How many cultivators are there in Lu Xingzhou's group? Going in would basically mean never coming out.

At this point, Lu Xingzhou's group had already arrived at a small oasis.

"I discovered this oasis myself," Sheng Yuanyao introduced enthusiastically. "It's not marked on the official maps. Back then, I made a desperate comeback nearby and cut down a Wind Demon."

That tone of hers, waiting to be praised—A Nuo felt she had stopped playing that game three years ago…

But Lu Xingzhou was especially experienced at coaxing children: "Commander Sheng is truly the best. That year's Martial Hall trial—Commander Sheng must have ranked at the very top, right?"

Sheng Yuanyao smiled so hard her eyes disappeared: "I was first! So don't think you're the only top scholar."

Lu Xingzhou looked around. The plants on the oasis were indeed ones he hadn't seen outside—mostly mutated into unusual forms due to contamination by demonic Qi and the special aura of the Demon-Subduing Domain. As for whether they were suitable for alchemy, that wasn't certain; at the very least, the plants on this oasis weren't very suitable.

They felt saturated with Yin Qi—plants that should represent vitality yet carried an aura of death.

After surveying for a while, Lu Xingzhou asked quietly: "A Nuo, did you find anything?"

A Nuo had been communicating with the plants the whole time, and only now spoke: "There's something off about this oasis… it wasn't formed by groundwater. The information I get going underground is being blocked."

Plant roots and stems dig deep into the earth—they know the ground better than anyone.

Sheng Yuanyao's expression changed: "If it wasn't formed by groundwater, then what was it?"

A Nuo hesitated for a moment: "Below, there seems to be a massive skeleton, and above the bones is a thick layer of soil. As for why water keeps seeping up, we might have to dig down to find out—possibly it's… corpse water, purified by the spiritual Qi of this place."

Sheng Yuanyao went pale as she recalled how, back then, she had drunk the water at the oasis in great delight. She clutched her stomach and ran off to the side, vomiting spectacularly.

(End of chapter)