CHAPTER 117: CHAPTER 101: GREAT FORTUNE FROM EVIL QI

In the depths of winter, there’s a saying:

"Children, children, don’t you crave,

Once Laba’s gone, it’s New Year’s wave;

Drink Laba porridge for a stretch,

Before you know, it’s the twenty-third."

After Laba, families essentially entered the New Year atmosphere. Every household began cleaning and took measurements for their children’s new clothes in advance, ensuring they would have them to wear on the first day of the new year.

Inside Chen Ku’s large courtyard, his mother and sister-in-law were bustling about. Back when they lived in the countryside, they couldn’t even dream of new clothes; even getting a patch mended for the New Year was a struggle. Life was truly much better now. Hu Zi played stone checkers with the maids in the yard. The courtyard was filled with a calm and warm atmosphere.

The Flower Fox Mink, quick as a phantom, arrived and departed without a trace, evading everyone’s notice as it returned to Chen Ku’s room.

"Flower Fox Mink, you’re hurt..."

Chen Ku saw the Flower Fox Mink holding a strange, chicken-sized bird. The bird was still alive, fluttering in the mink’s grasp, and the Flower Fox Mink’s own mouth showed signs of burns.

But these weren’t its most severe injuries. The worst were the flame-like patterns embedded beneath its skin.

"Is this a Volcanic Crow? Have you successfully hunted one down?"

Chen Ku excitedly examined the strange bird. It was still smoking from its beak, as if it had exhausted its Flame Qi and could now only emit smoke, not fire.

He had read about this creature in the Demons Manual. The Volcanic Crow, as a demon, couldn’t generate fire intrinsically. Instead, it possessed a unique internal structure allowing it to absorb Flame Qi, much like the Skinny Dog bloodline could devour the moon’s radiant power. They typically dwelled near volcanic vents, absorbing Flame Qi, which they would expel when needed.

Chen Ku reached out and took the chicken-sized Volcanic Crow from the Flower Fox Mink’s grasp.

After all, demons are demons. The moment Chen Ku took it, the demon bird became ferocious, struggling and attacking him with its two yellow talons and sharp beak.

[Volcanic Crow...]

Chen Ku’s expression remained calm. Since the Transformation Diagram mechanism had already been triggered, he let the Volcanic Crow peck at his right arm. With the ’Right Arm as Steel’ ability, his arm remained completely unharmed, regardless of how the bird pecked and clawed.

Instead, Chen Ku simply held the demon bird and twisted his hand forcefully.

[Diagram Master has killed the Volcanic Crow... Obtained one strand of First Realm Demon Evil Qi.]

A First Realm Demon.

For the Flower Fox Mink, at its peak First Realm strength, the Volcanic Crow’s ability to fly was its only disadvantage. However, the Flower Fox Mink could shape-shift. With a little luring, it could easily overpower and suppress the Volcanic Crow.

However, Chen Ku was puzzled. "How did you get hurt so badly? Did you encounter a strong enemy apart from the Volcanic Crow?"

With its strength and abilities, the Flower Fox Mink could ambush and kill an ordinary peak First Realm internal qi expert with a single bite, not to mention it also possessed the Blood Blade Claw attack.

The Flower Fox Mink whimpered, looking utterly exhausted, as if it were on the verge of its body dissipating into Evil Qi.

"Let me see what you experienced this time."

Without hesitation, Chen Ku immediately recalled the Flower Fox Mink to nourish it with his Blood Qi. This was a benefit of an Incarnation. An Incarnation itself couldn’t sustain fatal injuries. It was essentially a mass of Evil Qi, one with his body and Divine Soul. As long as it wasn’t dispersed or extinguished, it could be recalled and nourished back to health within his body.

Unexpectedly, just as Chen Ku recalled the Flower Fox Mink into his body:

[Diagram Master encounters the Ninth Realm Spirit Monster ’Fire Beak Pot’s Flame Qi assaulting the body, generating First Realm Evil Qi 1 strand... 2 strands... 3 strands...

18 strands...

49 strands...

108 strands...

158 strands!]

Chen Ku’s mind buzzed.

What the hell?

Attacked by the Flame Qi of the Ninth Realm Spirit Monster ’Fire Beak Pot’?

And more than a hundred strands entering my body at once?

Ninth Realm?!

Such a high level?

What is this thing?

As Chen Ku reeled in shock and alarm from the Transformation Diagram’s notifications about over a hundred strands of Evil Qi entering his body, the Flower Fox Mink’s memories from its seven-day journey manifested before his eyes.

In its memories, the Flower Fox Mink moved like the wind. It first crossed the edge of Baojiao County to Two Realms Mountain. There, it perched on a tree, gazing north towards another dynasty: The Yuan Dynasty.

North of Two Realms Mountain, in the depths of the twelfth lunar month, everything the Flower Fox Mink saw was blanketed in ice and snow, a vast, frozen wasteland. This was the terrain of the Yuan Dynasty. North of Two Realms Mountain lay a flat plain. Unlike the land of Ji Country, the soil of Yuan Country was black beneath the surface.

The Flower Fox Mink traversed the plain, observing the people of Yuan Country. Their appearance and attire were distinctly different from those of Ji Country. The people of Yuan Country—men, women, young, and old—were, on average, sturdier than the people of Ji Country and lived in single-story brick houses with tiled roofs.

In the villages of Yuan Country, winter chimneys puffed cooking smoke. Strong Yuan Country hunters, leading hounds and carrying bows and arrows, hunted in the deep mountains. Some even tried to hunt the Flower Fox Mink, but it eluded them.

Following a general direction, the Flower Fox Mink eventually spotted a snow-covered mountain. It rose sharply from the earth, stretching for thousands of miles, and the mountain, its animals, and birds were all white. The peak, however, was dark. Even in the dead of winter, green plants and trees thrived there, suggesting a very high temperature at the summit.

That was Fire Beak Mountain, part of Ximu Mansion in Yuan Country.

Chen Ku watched as the Flower Fox Mink, swift as a small arrow, ascended to the summit of Fire Beak Mountain. Peering down into the volcanic crater, he saw numerous red crows. They circled above the magma, each bird’s beak spouting fire, its wings wreathed in smoke.

Initially, the Flower Fox Mink climbed down into the crater. Naturally, its small, mouse-like form attracted the predatory attention of the Volcanic Crows within. Chen Ku noticed that among those Volcanic Crows, some possessed a formidable aura.

The Flower Fox Mink first lured a First Realm Volcanic Crow closer. Then, transforming into a White Elephant, it snatched the crow in its jaws. This provoked the entire flock of Volcanic Crows in the crater to attack. Despite its Blood Blade Claws, which allowed it to nimbly dodge on the fiery red cliffs and kill many weaker Volcanic Crows, it was still injured, burned by the flames of numerous Volcanic Crows. But these burns weren’t the worst of it. Squinting, Chen Ku saw something akin to fire toxins spreading from the volcanic magma vent and invading the Flower Fox Mink’s body.

Chen Ku suddenly opened his eyes wide and looked at his own body. Beneath his own skin, black-red fire toxins now writhed like dark serpents, bringing an agonizing, searing heat that felt like his very core was burning.

Is this... Fire Evil?

It made sense to him that an ordinary volcano’s intense heat could produce fire toxins. But how could this be connected to some Ninth Realm Spirit Monster?

However, there was no time for Chen Ku to ponder this. Over a hundred strands of Fire Evil Qi had entered his body. This wasn’t like the poison of a hundred herbs; even his bait mouse’s detoxifying Physique couldn’t handle it.

"It’s so hot! So scorching!"

Chen Ku felt his blood superheat, as if gunpowder coursed through his veins. He had the terrifying sensation that if he didn’t resolve this immediately, he would burn to death from within.

What to do? What to do?

His first thought was to go to Medicine King Hall to see if there was any Pill or secret recipe to counteract the fire toxin.

But just as that thought arose, Chen Ku seized upon a critical detail in the Flower Fox Mink’s memories.

Wait... If that volcano is connected to some Spirit Monster, and other creatures entering it are invaded by airborne fire toxins... then the Volcanic Crows, which treat the crater as their nest and absorb its heat for energy, must be immune to these fire toxins!

Upon this realization, Chen Ku excitedly removed the ’Ling Transformation’ from the third transformation diagram. He then applied the Evil Qi from the Volcanic Crow he had just killed.

[Volcanic Crow Transformation!]

[Volcanic Crow Transformation · Shape Shifting]

[Transformation Part: Bird’s Claw (Treading Fire)]

From the text that appeared with the transformation, Chen Ku discerned the ability. He roughly understood it to mean ’Red Feet Treading Fire’.

Continue, continue...

Feeling his blood about to boil over, Chen Ku hastily channeled the dozen or so strands of Black Feather Pigeon Evil Qi, obtained from a previous kill, into the Volcanic Crow Transformation.

[Bird’s Beak (Grasping Charcoal)], [Bird’s Feathers (Fire-Avoiding)]...

These were mostly abilities Chen Ku desired, ones that could help him achieve finer control over flames during Alchemy. But these weren’t what he needed right now.

Finally, after infusing a total of nine strands of Black Feather Pigeon Evil Qi into the Volcanic Crow Transformation, it broke through to a new level.

[Volcanic Crow Transformation Shape-Shifted]

[The Volcanic Crow: An offshoot of the Artifact Spirit from the Ninth Realm Spirit Monster ’Fire Beak Pot’, dispersed among the Demon Clan. They feed on Flame Qi emanating from the Fire Beak Pot. Their feet tread fire, their wings generate smoke, their stomachs store fire, and their mouths breathe flames...]

Transform! Transform! Transform!

Inside his room, Chen Ku instantly transformed. He became a Flying Crow, barely distinguishable from an ordinary crow, except his wings trailed smoke and his beak could spew fire. The heat radiating from him was so intense it felt as if ten furnaces had suddenly ignited in the room.

The moment he transformed into the Volcanic Crow, the strands of Fire Beak Pot’s fire toxins that had invaded his body miraculously began to be digested, one by one. Chen Ku could clearly feel his Volcanic Crow form inherently feasting on these fire toxins.

Meanwhile, notifications from the Transformation Diagram flashed wildly.

[Diagram Master successfully refined the internal Flame Qi... Obtained 1 strand of First Realm Fire Beak Pot Evil Qi... 10 strands of First Realm Fire Beak Pot Evil Qi... 100 strands of First Realm Fire Beak Pot Evil Qi... 158 strands of Fire Beak Pot Evil Qi.]

158 strands of Evil Qi!!

I’ve struck it rich!

Chen Ku had never obtained so many strands of First Realm Demon Evil Qi at once.