Kael Silverlight's little trick wasn't something that could hide from a veteran like the red-robed man. The momentary shock in his eyes was already caught by the priest.
"Hey, hey, hey," Kael raised his hand and said quickly, "Priest, give me a little time, okay?"
The red-robed man laughed in anger, "Give you time? The language of the gods isn't something you can learn just by having time."
He waved his hand and added, "Kill him."
The white-robed men next to the priest laughed and stepped forward. After the ceremony, they could have a little extra meal.
The white-robed men all rushed in and grabbed Kael.
"Drip-[The Gluttonous One] path has been recorded. Sequence 1[The Feastbringer]. Is the life extension to complete the Potion Recipe?"
A little fly-like thing appeared in front of Kael Silverlight's eyes.
Could it really complete it?
"Yeah, yeah, do it," Kael shouted in his mind. The little fly thing quickly changed.
"Consuming 66 years, 11 months, and 17 days of life. Completing [The Feastbringer] sequence Potion Recipe..."
"[The Feastbringer] Potion Recipe is as follows:
Main ingredients: One heart of the Starving Wight, one strong stomach from a Stoneback Bear.
Secondary ingredients: 500ml of concentrated alcohol or high-purity liquor, a pinch of cursed Ashmoss, and three drops of the user's own blood..."
Kael didn't have time to read the rest, because the white-robed men had already picked up their swords and were ready to kill him.
Kael could only scream, "The Potion Recipe needs the heart of a Starving Wight, the stomach of a Stoneback Bear, and some alcohol and other materials."
The red-robed man turned around quickly, raised his hand, and shouted, "Stop."
The white-robed men froze in place.
The red-robed man rushed to Kael's side, his red eyes glowing. He said, "Continue."
Kael's eyelid twitched. He swallowed hard and read the tiny fly-like text: "On a night of the new moon, crush the living corpse's heart and bear's stomach into a paste. Mix with Ashmoss, pour into alcohol, and heat it slowly. Do not use open flame-use water bath or magical heating instead. At the same time, the user must keep chanting prayers to 'The God of Endless Hunger.' When the mixture becomes thick and full of tiny bubbles, turn it into a dark red liquid. Finally, add your own blood, stir it violently, and drink it immediately."
The red-robed man blinked. He was deep in thought.
The square fell into silence. Only Kael looked bitter.
The little fly thing clearly showed:
"Remaining life: 3 days."
Only three days left to live. Kael Silverlight's anxiety spiked. What could he do?
What could increase his life?
Kael's face was pale. His mind was all over the place, but at least he wasn't going to be eaten. That was something.
The red-robed man thought for a while, maybe he still didn't get it. He waved his hand and shouted, "Go, get the materials you need."
Kael forced a smile and said, "Priest, I gave you the Potion Recipe. Can I go now?"
The red-robed man gave Kael a sideways glance with his red eyes and snorted, "How do I know you're telling the truth? Tomorrow is the night of the new moon. Perfect time to test your ingredients."
In fact, the red-robed man had already believed Kael. He had already figured out the ingredients needed for the Potion - the heart of the Starving Wight and the strong stomach of the Stoneback Bear. What Kael said was almost exactly right, which shocked the priest.
"Put him in a cell," the red-robed man ordered. A big man in a burlap robe stepped forward, locked Kael's hands behind his back, and pushed him around.
Kael Silverlight mentally cursed, but smiled on the outside. "Priest, I just gave you the recipe. Can I really be treated like a criminal?"
"You're pretty confident," the red-robed man said in a rough voice, with a little smile. "Fine, no need to lock him up. Feed him well and take care of him. Use him for the test tomorrow."
With that, the red-robed man and the white-robed men disappeared into the shadows. The men in burlap went back to their posts and started to watch carefully.
Kael Silverlight stood in the square, his legs weak. If he didn't have a strong mind, he would have collapsed on the ground by now.
He found a cleaner spot and sat down. His tension finally eased a little. The aches in his body and the hunger in his stomach came at him like a wave. Kael felt like his throat was on fire.
At this moment, Kael Silverlight realized he hadn't had water in a long time.
"Do you have any water?" Kael shouted.
The men didn't answer. After all, Kael was still free. He wasn't even considered a guest of the red-robed man. They had no reason to be polite to him.
Kael Silverlight snorted and said casually, "Looks like you all think the Priest's orders are just trash. The Priest said to feed you well and take care of you. Are you going to disobey the Priest?"
The men in burlap looked around. One of them sighed in frustration and shouted, "Sok, go get him something to eat and drink."
Sok frowned and didn't move.
The man scolded, "You don't listen to my orders either?"
Sok hesitated for a second, then did it anyway.
Kael Silverlight smiled. Even though he only had three days left, this felt so good right now.
As long as he had the red-robed man's protection, he could live well for those three days.
But his smile disappeared quickly. The moment he thought about the red-robed man testing the potion on him tomorrow, he couldn't feel happy at all.
Soon, Sok brought Kael a plate. It had a bagel with some unknown sauce on it, and a pot of water.
Kael's eyes opened wide. He said in surprise, "You're telling me this is good food and drink?"
A black bread, some low-quality fruit jam, and that's it?
At least give me a hot dog and some meat.
Sok dropped the plate and snapped, "Eat it or not, your choice."
"..." Kael made a few grumbling noises, but finally said nothing. Looking at the state of the previous sacrifices, this was a world of swords and magic, but the resources weren't that rich. Maybe they were rich, but the big shots just held onto everything.
Kael drank half the water and picked up the bagel, taking small bites. With something in his stomach, he could finally think clearly.
What the hell is going on in this world?
From the original body's memories, this world was ruled by magic and Alchemy. As long as you had money, you could go to a basic magic school. If you had talent, you could get into the advanced one. Then you specialized. There was never a path that required a Potion Recipe to advance.
But now, the red-robed man was clearly following a different path. That didn't make sense.
The split between the real world and the one in his memory made Kael feel like he was in a dream. There was still a lot to figure out.
But his time was running out.
Kael looked at the little fly thing in front of him:
"Age: 16;
Life: 3 days."
He let out a bitter smile. He never thought his end would be surrounded by blood and meat scraps.
Life was really unpredictable.
Maybe he was just too tired, plus the shock from the ritual. He kept reminding himself not to fall asleep, but he still drifted off.
On the other side.
In the tent.
The red-robed man sat at a round table and asked, "Who was that guy?"
A white-robed man stepped forward, looking embarrassed. "Priest, those sacrifices were bought from the snakeheads in Scalesplice Alley. We don't even know their names."
The red-robed man leaned on his chin, deep in thought.
Whether the Potion Recipe was correct or not, being able to read the old language was already impressive. He was probably from a big family, maybe even a top student from the academy.
The red-robed man said, "Two things. First, get the materials for the Potion Recipe. This is a crucial step for us to reach Supernatural. Second, gather information on that guy. It shouldn't be hard."
"Priest, we're already working on it," the white-robed man said seriously.
The red-robed man nodded. He pulled out a bone stick, about to start studying, when the white-robed man still hadn't left.
"Something wrong?" the red-robed man asked.
The white-robed man looked a bit hopeful. He asked, "Priest, can you teach us the blood magic you promised us? Because this time, many of our followers paid a heavy price."
The red-robed man's red eyes suddenly turned sharp. He snapped, "Elton, I've told you this a hundred times. Magic isn't reliable anymore. Only the God's path can take us to Supernatural. Why don't you understand?"