Three days later.
An incident occurred in the Wei Dynasty that shook the whole royalty, and even the king, Wei Han, was alarmed.
Most of the alchemists started showing symptoms in their whole body. Their entire body showed spots of purple shade, and their health degraded simultaneously.
In fact, it was not a life-and-death situation for those alchemists. They had been ingesting small amounts of poison since they entered into alchemy. Alchemists and Poison Masters are two hostile professions. Thus, alchemists have always tried to gain resistance to poison as much as possible. However, even though it was not a life-and-death problem, it was still able to disable them. They might not be able to perform alchemy ever again in their life if not given proper treatment. It was a strange poison with at least Rank 6 potency. Not only did it harm their bodies, but it also affected their sense of smell, taste, and touch!
The Poison Master is one of the most popular professions in the Divine Spirit Continent because of the ease with which it can be learned. Even a Beginner Warrior can become a Rank 6 Poison Master! However, the difficulty of poison scriptures and various recipes increases exponentially after Rank 6. Rank 7 and Rank 6 Poison Masters have a gap akin to heaven and earth.
The difficulty is so high that there are less than 100 Rank 7 Poison Masters in the entire Divine Spirit Continent, while one can find hundreds of millions of Rank 6 poison masters! A Rank 7 Poison Master and a Rank 7 Alchemist have nearly the same status, but a Rank 6 Poison Master is inferior even to a Rank 4 Alchemist!
At this time, in a certain shop in the capital:
Wu Meng was sitting casually, selling alchemy pills. Since the day he made a deal with Li Gang, he has been working for him. He knows it is a good opportunity. Someone like Li Gang, who is not only demonic in nature but also possesses vast knowledge of alchemy, is a huge asset during a period like this, which has just faced a catastrophe.
Suddenly, a young man came.
He said slowly, "Mr. Wu, there has been no news of Master Ren since he met the king. It's been three days now."
Wu Meng nodded. "You did a good job; you can leave."
The young man left.
Wu Meng narrowed his eyes. "As expected of a Rank 5 Warrior, his shrewdness is not something we beginner warriors can see through."
He took out a scroll from his pocket and wrote a few words in it. As soon as the words were written, they disappeared immediately.
This is yet another means of communication among intermediate warriors. It is similar to sound transmission.
This scroll possesses a small formation, which identifies the words and converts them into certain encrypted signals. This signal is then transferred to the designated area through spiritual essence. The designated area has another similar scroll that attracts this signal when it arrives within its range. Then, this signal is converted back into words. It's important to understand that each pair of such scrolls encrypts the words uniquely to increase privacy in case a higher-class warrior sees through the transmission. The communication token Li Gang used in the Monarch Inheritance also works in a similar fashion.
The border of the Wu and Shu Dynasties is occupied by a large forest.
A few hundred miles away from the border in a southern direction.
There is an ordinary-looking cave, occupied by a Rank 4 Spiritual Beast. Most warriors avoid coming to this place because of the dangers lurking here.
In this ordinary-looking cave, there is a hidden passage that even a Rank 5 Warrior can't find unless they search carefully.
After going through the passage, one would find a huge basement. Thousands of warriors reside here. Their aura contains unrestrained killing intent. The whole environment has a bloody stench.
This is the main base of the Demonic Faction.
Their leader resides here along with his trusted subordinates. The leader of the Demonic Faction is called Mo Tiancheng. He is a Rank 5 Warrior, proficient in formation. This is also the reason why he has been able to lead the Demonic Faction for more than a hundred years.
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At this time, he felt something shaking within his spiritual ring. He knew it was the communication scroll.
He took out the scroll and read the content. He smiled, "It's about time that our Demonic Faction makes a comeback in the northern continent."
He shouted, "Mo Chang!"
Mo Chang is a Rank 3 Warrior. He is only 50 years old this year, and thus, he is highly regarded for his incredible talent within the Demonic Faction.
Mo Chang came and asked politely, "Yes, Uncle Cheng?"
Mo Tiancheng took out a paper scroll and wrote something on it. Then, he used his spiritual essence to create a mark on it.
He gave few instruction and then said lightly, "Go, send this message to Wei Han!"
Mo Chang nodded.
He left the forest and entered the Wei Dynasty capital. It took him seven days to reach the capital. He rested only four hours a day during this travel and was very exhausted when he reached his destination.
The Demonic Faction lives very secretly, and they can't afford to use a Spiritual Bird in their hiding place. The presence of a Rank 5 Spiritual Beast may cause conflict with a Spiritual Bird, and not just that, openly moving in the air can also reveal their location. Thus, these demonic warriors normally travel on their own and don't use any animal vehicles. This is also why it took Mo Chang seven days to reach the capital.
After taking a rest, he went to the royal palace. Initially, he was stopped by the guard. However, he showed the Demonic Faction Leader's token. Seeing the token, the guard dared not stop him.
They were very well aware that anything related to the Demonic Faction must be reported to the king. Only the king can handle such situations.
Wei Han was immediately informed, and he instantly called a meeting.
Mo Chang glanced at Wei Han and said calmly, "Your majesty, it would be better to have a private conversation. It concerns the alchemists of your Wei Dynasty."
Wei Han was surprised and frowned at the same time. "I suspected it was Ren Ying who did this. How is it possible that the Demonic Faction is involved? Could he have dealings with the Demonic Faction?"
Mo Chang is only a Rank 3 Warrior and has yet to master sound transmission. Thus, Wei Han could only hold a private conversation with him while alone.
He waved his hand and said calmly, "Everyone leave."
No one questioned his decision. They were all aware of his abilities. Even without a strategist, he had been able to lead this dynasty. His abilities were unquestionable.
Soon, only Wei Han and Mo Chang were left in the court.
He asked coldly, "So, Ren Ying has already defected to the Demonic Faction. Do you think by poisoning our alchemists, you can harm the dynasty?"
Mo Chang smiled calmly, "You are wrong, your majesty. We came here for a truce. We recruited Ren Ying. However, after he succeeded, he ruthlessly abandoned us. I am here for a deal. As long as you hand over Ren Ying, we will provide the antidote for the poison."
Wei Han frowned, "Do you think I am a fool? How can I believe that what you provided is truly an antidote?"
Mo Chang replied calmly, "You can verify these pills. You may try them on the alchemists and confirm if they work."
Wei Han looked at Mo Chang, narrowing his eyes.
He called one of the guards and gave an order, "Call Master Shi here."
Master Shi is a Rank 2 Alchemist. Although only a Rank 2 Alchemist, his knowledge is recognized by Wei Han. He is already 130 years old and likely won’t live more than ten years. He has dedicated his entire life to alchemy and often teaches younger generations.
Soon, a frail-looking old man appeared with the guard. He looked at Wei Han and said politely, "Your majesty, you called me here?"
Wei Han looked at Master Shi and said calmly, "Mister Mo has brought an antidote for the poison that has spread among the alchemists. I hope Master Shi can try this."
No one is a fool. Master Shi immediately understood the situation. He was being used as a test subject for the antidote. However, he was also aware of his situation. He could not refuse the request. In fact, it was not a request but an order, given politely. He had no choice but to try the antidote.
He said lightly, "Your majesty..."
Wei Han interjected, "You don’t have to worry, Master Shi. It is not dangerous. I am sure he would not dare to harm an alchemist in my presence. Even if there are unforeseen circumstances, we will provide compensation to your family."
Master Shi couldn’t say anything more.
He went ahead to try the pill. However, Wei Han stopped him again. "Wait."
Mo Chang looked at the king in surprise.
Wei Han asked lightly, "How many pills have you brought?"
Mo Chang replied, "There are 20 pills."
Wei Han nodded. "Take out every pill."
Mo Chang frowned. He said lightly, "Your majesty, this is our bargaining chip."
Wei Han said coldly, "Don’t worry. If the alchemy pills are indeed useful, we will complete our deal."
Mo Chang laughed, "In that case, you don’t mind this scene being made public, do you?"
Saying that, he took out a crystal. This crystal had a recording formation embedded within it, capable of capturing past events.
He took out a scroll and sent the information within the crystal to someone. He established the connection, and anything happening in the court from now onward will be transferred to the other end of the scroll.
Wei Han narrowed his eyes. He said lightly, “Even if you didn’t do that, I would still fulfill my words.”
Mo Chang nodded. “It’s just a precautionary measure.”
Reputation is something that no king wants to damage. It is one of the biggest weaknesses of righteous warriors. They care about reputation more than anything else.
Mo Chang took out all the pills and handed them to Master Shi.
Wei Han said calmly, “Master Shi, take one twentieth of each pill, merge them together, and then consume it. If you feel anything suspicious, then you can inform me.”