The system's analysis hit me like a physical blow.
The Netherworld Depths.
That wasn't some backwater swamp in the empire. It was one of the Higher Realms. A place crawling with demons, devils, and ancient, soul-devouring entities. A place that shouldn't be accessible to a fifteen-year-old princess, regressor or not.
My sprint didn't slow, but my mind was racing, re-evaluating everything.
Lyra wasn't just a regressor playing a clever political game. She had an accomplice. A powerful, impossibly dangerous third party. This wasn't a simple ploy to meet some alchemist; it was part of a much larger, darker scheme. The Soul-Tatter Venom wasn't just a prop for her act; it was the calling card of her hidden ally.
You treacherous, ambitious little snake, I thought, a thrill of genuine excitement mixing with my cold fury. This was so much better than I had imagined. My sister wasn't just a pawn to be stolen from the protagonist. She was a player. A rival.
This changed my objective. Fetching this Jian Yue was no longer about disrupting her plan. It was about hijacking it.
I burst out of the palace gates, ignoring the shouts of the guards. I didn't need a horse. Thanks to the Marrow-Cleansing Elixir and my Body Tempering cultivation, I was faster on my own two feet. The Azure District, the Alchemist Guild's location, was on the other side of the capital.
As I ran, I dove into the System Store.
"System," I commanded, "show me everything you have on poisons, antidotes, and alchemy. Specifically, anything related to Soul-Tatter Venom."
The familiar blue screen filled my vision, instantly populating with a list. Most of it was astronomically expensive, far beyond my 1105 System Points. But I wasn't looking to buy a cure. I was looking for an angle.
I scrolled furiously, my eyes scanning descriptions.
[Soul-Nourishing Pill Formula (Heaven Grade)] - Cost: 80,000 SP
[Netherworld Poison Encyclopedia (Volume 1)] - Cost: 5,000 SP
[Basic Detoxification Skill] - Cost: 500 SP
Too expensive. Too slow. Then I saw it. A cheap, almost hidden item in the 'Misc' category.
[Alchemist's Discerning Eye (Single Use Talisman)]
Description: A one-time use talisman that grants the user the temporary ability to see the flow of medicinal energies and the composition of alchemical ingredients with perfect clarity. A cheap tool for aspiring pill-makers to cheat on their exams.
Cost: 50 SP.
My lips peeled back in a vicious grin. Perfect.
"Buy it," I ordered.
...50 SP DEDUCTED. [ALCHEMIST'S DISCERNING EYE] TALISMAN HAS BEEN PLACED IN YOUR INVENTORY.
I also bought a cheap, generic pill bottle for 1 SP. Theatrics were important.
The Alchemist Guild's headquarters was an imposing, pagoda-style building that reeked of rare herbs and smug superiority. I didn't bother with the front door. I was a desperate prince on a mission, remember?
I vaulted the side wall and landed silently in a courtyard garden filled with exotic, bubbling magical plants. According to the sign, this was the 'Apprentice Herbology Garden'. Perfect.
I crushed the talisman in my hand. A cool, analytical energy flooded my senses. The world transformed. The vibrant colors of the flowers and herbs were overlaid with shimmering lines of light—blue for cooling properties, red for fiery, green for vitality. I could see the very essence of their medicinal nature. It was like having a god's-eye view of a pharmacy.
I ignored the common ingredients. Soul-Tatter Venom was a spiritual poison. It required a spiritual counteragent. My new vision scanned the garden, searching for something that resonated with a pure, calming light.
There. Tucked away in a corner, almost overlooked, was a small, unassuming white flower with a single, silver-colored leaf at its base. The light pouring from it was a gentle, soothing silver-gold.
My eyes widened. I recognized it from a book I'd skimmed in my past life. A Silverleaf Soul-Calm Flower. A rare, Heaven-grade ingredient that was notoriously difficult to cultivate. What the hell was it doing in an apprentice's garden? Was it misidentified? Planted by a fool who didn't know its value?
It didn't matter. It was mine now.
I plucked the flower, stem and all, and slipped it into my robes. My new vision also spotted three other herbs with strong purifying properties, though they were of a much lower grade. I snatched them as well.
With my prize secured, I headed for the front of the guild. It was time to find Lyra's chosen pawn.
I burst into the main hall, making as much noise as possible. The hall was bustling with alchemists in embroidered robes.
"Where is Jian Yue?" I demanded, my voice ringing with authority and desperation. "My sister, the Fifth Princess, is dying! The Emperor commands his presence!"
My status as a prince and the urgency of my tone parted the crowd like a hot knife through butter. A wizened old alchemist pointed a trembling finger towards a private refining room on the second floor. "He is in seclusion, Your Highness, attempting a breakthrough! He cannot be disturbed!"
"He can and he will!" I roared, and stormed up the stairs.
I kicked the door to the refining room open.
Inside, a handsome young man in white robes sat before a simmering cauldron, his face pale with concentration. This was Jian Yue. The air was thick with medicinal fragrance. He looked up, his expression a mixture of shock and fury at the interruption.
Before he could speak, I strode forward.
"My sister, Princess Lyra, has suffered a severe Qi deviation," I said, my voice tight with feigned emotion. "The royal physicians are useless. They said only a third-rank Meridian Soothing Pill could save her. You are Jian Yue, are you not? The guild's famed prodigy? Can you make one?"
Jian Yue's arrogance warred with the opportunity before him. Saving a princess? The favor from the Imperial Family would be immense.
"I can," he said, his voice clipped. "But I have just failed my most recent refinement. I am low on spiritual energy, and I am missing a key ingredient—a Spirit-Guiding Orchid."
"I have no time for your excuses!" I snapped.
I reached into my robes and pulled out the three low-grade herbs I'd stolen. I slammed them down on his workbench.
"Will these suffice?" I demanded, playing the part of an ignorant, desperate fool who had grabbed whatever looked valuable.
Jian Yue glanced at the herbs. A flicker of disdain crossed his face. "Your Highness, these are common purifying herbs. They are useless for a third-rank pill. They cannot—"
He stopped. His eyes widened, his gaze fixed on my hand as I 'accidentally' pulled it back, revealing the prize I'd been concealing.
The Silverleaf Soul-Calm Flower.
His breath hitched. The smug arrogance on his face melted away, replaced by an expression of pure, unadulterated greed. He stared at the flower as if it were a naked goddess.
"That… that flower…" he stammered, his eyes wide with disbelief. "Where did you get that?"
I gave him a confused look. "This? It was growing in your garden outside. It smelled nice. Is it useful?"
His Adam's apple bobbed. He couldn't believe his luck. A Heaven-grade ingredient, willingly delivered by a clueless idiot prince. With this, he could not only create a perfect Meridian Soothing Pill, but he could likely skim enough essence to advance his own cultivation.
"Useful?" he said, his voice trembling with suppressed excitement. "Your Highness… with this flower… I can save your sister's life. Guaranteed."
My face flooded with 'relief'. "Then do it! Whatever it takes!"
Hook, line, and sinker, you greedy little bastard.
I had him. But as he turned to his cauldron, his eyes still burning with avarice for the flower, the system flashed one last notification. It was another analysis, this one on Jian Yue himself. And the final line twisted the entire situation on its head.
[ANALYSIS COMPLETE]
[Name: Jian Yue]
[Cultivation: Foundation Establishment - 2nd Stage]
[Hidden Status: Possessed by a Remnant Soul.]
[Identity of Remnant Soul: Lin Feng.]