"Unless what?"
"Xun'er, remember that the body of the Evil God that my sister and I found has been given to Xiao Yan to suppress and refine for some time. The Saint-grade Heavenly Supreme plus the essence of the top-level Heavenly Demon Emperor should be enough for our child to break through. "Shackles, becoming the most powerful evil spirit clan ever!"
"..."
Seeing Cai Lin's conflicted expression, Xiao Xun'er continued, "Sister, you and I have been through this and this situation. Initially, Xun'er was filled with resentment and indignation, even contemplating death. But now, with the weight of my pregnancy, I can't let it go. I must endure it. Now that you and I have both cultivated our female bodies, long since unacceptable to the world, and now that our bodies have been defiled and pregnant with a bastard, do you still expect Xiao Yan to treat you the same way he did before? "Can't we?"
"But I will eventually..."
"Sister Cailin, the ability to take and let go is the key to freedom. A wise bird will choose a new tree to roost in, and a wise woman will choose a husband to follow. Besides, don't you think this is heaven's will? Within you and me lie the unfathomable beings, cultivating both demonic and spiritual powers, born supreme and demon emperors! Whether it's the finest elixirs, the inexhaustible supply of supreme spiritual fluids, or the mountains of resources within the treasury, left behind by the fallen demon race. Is there anyone in this world more suited than you and me to nurture the one who will dominate the demon race in the future? With the evil spirits of the Great Thousand World!"
"..."
Queen Medusa, fiercely loyal and devoted to only one man, didn't answer, and no one could see the change in her expression. However, the smile on Xiao Xun'er's face, sitting across from her, grew increasingly intense...
At the same time, on the Dou Qi Continent, billions of miles away in the Great Thousand World; deep within the Tianfu headquarters, in a small space carved out by a Dou Sheng, a medicine cauldron as large as a house stood in the center of the space, emitting a terrifyingly high temperature.
This massive medicine cauldron, with three legs and two ears, was thick and sturdy, jet-black in color. A faint, powerful aura lingered from its surface. Lifelike flame totems were engraved on its surface. As the cauldron slowly rotated, these flame totems whirled and writhed like real objects, spontaneously drawing fire energy from heaven and earth to fuel the flames. It was truly remarkable. Any alchemist present would instantly recognize this cauldron as the Black Demon Cauldron, ranked eighth on the Heavenly Cauldron List and poised to top the list after being used by Master Yandi Yao Chen!
However, this once beloved cauldron, like the Black Demon, had now fallen into demonic ways, living up to its name. When activated, black demonic flames surged, and dozens of agonized human faces appeared on the cauldron's surface, as if being consumed by the demonic flames along with the medicinal ingredients within. They emitted a powerful spiritual force to aid the refining of the elixir within.
A closer look reveals that those faces aren't simply contrived. Each one corresponds to the high-ranking alchemists who have vanished from the Danta over the years!
On the circular platform opposite the demonic cauldron, a man, skeletal in form and withered in appearance, struggled to mobilize the remaining Dou Qi within him to control the massive cauldron.
His wrists, ankles, and even his neck were bound by heavy, thick chains. The hard shackles, over the years, had worn the skin to a bloody pulp.
Even switching a single hand seal would result in excruciating pain from the stretched chains.
Finally, with a roar from within the cauldron, hundreds of pills emitting a seventh-grade aura flew out, disappearing into the air.
But then, a mountain of raw materials fell from above. This cycle repeated seemingly endlessly, almost cruelly treating the man as a restless, humanoid alchemy machine!
"Ahem... Elder Huo... You can come out now. This furnace of pills should be enough to lure away those insects... in half a quarter of an hour, ahem..." Xiao Lin strained to look up at the pitch-black space above him. A dark flame suddenly flashed in his eyes, and he spoke weakly to the air before him.
"Kid, can you still hold on? If not, I can secretly use the alien fire to repair your body. With the profound power of my Void Devouring Flame, I can devour everything, even the physical pain."
"It's okay, I'm used to it... And it's best not to leave even a single flaw..."
In the flickering candlelight, Xiao Lin's body was covered in ugly scars from the brutal slashing of blades. These were the result of having every bone extracted from his body, one by one, and replaced with the bones of his great-uncle, the Xiao clan's Dou Sheng.
His dantian was completely gouged out alive, and in its place, a Saint-level magical beast's magic core was implanted, serving as a Dou Qi hub connecting his entire meridians!
As a result, despite theoretically possessing Dou Sheng strength, he was forever deprived of the possibility of further advancement, unable to use his fighting skills, and devoid of any combat ability. It could be said that while remaining conscious, he had been transformed into a Saint-level puppet used exclusively for refining medicine!
Despite enduring such torture, the calmness in Xiao Lin's words sent a chill down his spine, even to Xuwu Tunyan, who had lived for countless years. This brat from the Xiao family was truly the most ruthless person he had ever encountered in his long life! Void Devouring Flame was almost certain that if he were to let his dragons enter the sea and tigers ascend the mountains, even his former master, Soul Emperor, or even Flame Emperor Xiao Yan, who had defeated Soul Emperor, would be no match for Xiao Lin!
"Hmph, as long as you're not dead, don't forget that I've contributed to your life!"
"With all the accumulation I've accumulated over the years, I can devour your tattered body at any moment, reshaping it into a perfect, quasi-emperor-level Devouring Fire Body. When that happens, don't forget what we've known..." Before he could finish his words, Xiao Lin sensed movement above him. His eyes flashed, and the black-clothed elder Void Devouring Flame transformed into black flames and sank into his body.
For a moment, Xiao Lin was left alone, his miserable figure, in the prison-like alchemy space.
"Xiao Lin!"
"Your servant is here! I kowtow to the mistress! I kowtow!"
The chains tightening around Xiao Lin suddenly loosened. The woman's charming voice, though incredibly sweet, sounded like a death sentence to him, causing him to kneel in awe and kowtow profusely.
Even though the people above couldn't see, Xiao Lin's face still wore an ingratiating smile, a stark contrast to his previous indifferent demeanor.
The enchantingly beautiful woman above remained unmoved by Xiao Lin's flattery. The powerful soul vibrations of the Emperor Realm poured down directly, penetrating every inch of Xiao Lin's flesh, every drop of blood, until they had completely penetrated every unknown element in his soul. Then, like a receding tide, they swept back.
"What a shame! You little slave boy, you act so despicable all day long. I thought you were bearing humiliation and wanted to find some fun in you, but... you're just as despicable as you appear to be! Boring!"
The enchanting woman Cao Ying, always moody, felt a bit bored when she saw nothing unusual about Xiao Lin. But then she thought of something else and couldn't suppress her smile.
She casually tossed a porcelain bottle down from above and said, "It's not right for the dignified young master of the Xiao family, leader of the Tianfu Alliance, to sit here like a useless person refining medicine all day, is it?"
"Crack!"
The porcelain bottle shattered in front of Xiao Lin, and the bright red blood of the Dou Sheng poured out like mercury.
The intense bond born of blood sent Xiao Lin's heart pounding with pain, but the next second, he was on all fours like a true dog, frantically licking the blood of his fellow Xiao clan member on the ground in the most despicable way. It was very likely even the Dou Sheng essence of his uncle or ancestor!
The power of shared origin was absorbed almost instantly, and Xiao Lin's withered and emaciated body became plump and smooth at a visible speed.
As he swallowed the last bead of blood, a black-haired young man appeared on the platform, lying prostrate on the ground. He exuded the powerful aura of a one-star Dou Sheng.
A new set of luxurious clothes and shoes fell from the sky again. The demon woman Xiao Lin feared vanished without a trace, leaving only her unfathomable, enchanting voice echoing: "Xiao Lin, you have done a great service in sacrificing the remnants of the Xiao clan. The master has summoned you in Wutan City. If you are late, you know the consequences, hehe~"
As soon as the words fell, the beautiful figure above impatiently vanished into thin air. However, the cautious Xiao Lin remained prostrated on the ground in a respectful posture for a full half-incense stick of time before slowly rising and gazing thoughtfully upwards.
"What a cunning woman! If I weren't a soul of the same Emperor Realm as hers, and my soul's incompleteness complemented yours, she would have likely discovered my intentions!"
"Old Huo, continue to sleep and minimize the fluctuations of your soul. I fear I'll face more tests and trials. Even if I faint, become disabled, or even face a life-or-death crisis, please do not intervene! If you had treated me just now, we would have been besieged and killed by now."
"Hmph... I understand..."
Xiao Lin brushed the dust off his collar, donning the regal robes only the leader of the Tianfu Alliance could wear. He gazed at the teleportation array left by Cao Ying, his eyes pensive.
That beastly Tuku's power is far from what it once was. After his father's beloved women left behind in the Northwest Continent, such as the Yaoye and Yaoyue sisters of the Jiama royal family, Nalan Yanran, Yafei, Xiao Yixian, Hujia, and other high-ranking members of the Yan League, all fell into his clutches, his ambitions finally became fully exposed in recent years.
Now, the entire Northwest Continent is almost completely occupied by the Black Barbarians. Those Black Barbarians, once infiltrating in secret, have now openly entered the homes of their subjects, contemptuously calling all those who cultivate Dou Qi "Dou slaves" and slaughtering and plundering them in the streets at will.
As for the Black Barbarian elites with greater bloodline potential, who were originally sent to serve as slaves in the rear quarters of various families by that bitch Yafei, they have suddenly become the masters, becoming the rulers of their respective cities or regions.
The original owners, whose cages were replaced, were either slaughtered or indentured into slavery, and their wives, daughters, and wealth were completely seized and taken over!
With the Black Barbarians' current meager population, even a single gorilla-like barbarian, supported by the entire continent's manpower and resources, could enjoy the tributes of thousands of households, with men as slaves and women as servants, and countless delicacies and fine wines, no less than a local tyrant.
All they need to do is ride on the women's buttocks, sowing seeds and enjoying themselves all day, expanding the Black Barbarian population.
Even more despairingly, as the evil power spreads, the cultivation and use of Dou Qi has become almost impossible across the entire northwest continent.
Aside from women, who can become fully imbued with the evil power through intercourse with Black Barbarians and thus wield the potent evil force, almost all men can only watch in despair as their cultivation plummets day by day, until even their Dou Qi-tempered bodies become like honeycombs, weakened to a point inferior to that of ordinary people.