https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-688-Puppet-Capital-The-Simplest-Challenge/12942666/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-690-The-Final-Gate-The-Strongest-Fifth-Stage-Divine-Pill-/12942668/
Chapter 689: Demon Transformation, Monster Transformation, and Human Transformation
Chapter 689: Demon Transformation, Monster Transformation, and Human Transformation
"Snake-Horse Clan: Snake-like and horse-like, with scales covering their bodies and four legs on their bellies. Twelve major tendons and ninety-six minor tendons, forming a small cycle of heaven..."
"Horned Demon Clan: Human-like in appearance, with prominent horns. A single horn that absorbs wind and thunder power, making them fearless in battle..."
"Odd-Eyed Clan: Born with a third eye on their eyebrows, possessing the three strange powers of petrification, air restriction, and soul capture. According to legends, they are one of the three ancient demons of the Demon Realm, descendants of the Torch Dragon. They are born weak, but their third eye is so powerful that it cannot be looked at directly. Their acupoints are blocked, totaling one thousand and eight hundred, and when all the acupoints open, they transform into a demon body and awaken their demon eye..."
"Soul Devourer Clan..."
As Luo Chen expected, the bamboo slips in the study of the third gate contained not only information about various medicinal ingredients but also extensive records of the Demon Realm's races.
Some bamboo slips even had illustrations for reference!
Although the paintings were simple, the artistic skill was almost divine, allowing one to vividly imagine the mighty demons upon seeing them.
In reality, it wasn't just the paintings; the calligraphy on these bamboo slips was also exceptionally exquisite and contained special power. Even though Luo Chen didn't recognize the characters, he could understand their true meaning with just a glance.
If these bamboo slips were all personally written by the Heavenforge Demonic Lord, the implications would be truly astonishing.
Back to the main topic.
Through reading the bamboo slips for half a year, Luo Chen gained a deeper understanding of the Demon Realm, which he had never seen before.
The myriad of bizarre races, their incomprehensible abilities, their ugly or beautiful appearances, and their incredibly complex physical structures! With over a thousand races gathered in one realm, their physical differences led to the use of distinct pills for each clan.
"When I first saw the third gate's test, I was overjoyed, thinking it was just a Body Strengthening Spirit Pill, which I could easily handle."
"Now that I understand the distribution of Demon Realm races and most of their body structures, I realize that within this simplicity lies complexity!"
The difficulty that Luo Chen felt indicated the problem at hand.
The third gate's assessment indeed required the refinement of the simplest body-strengthening pill, but it had to be a pill with high versatility.
Breaking the boundaries of the Demon Race, this pill would enable most demons to use it, enhancing their body refinement realm and laying a solid foundation to pursue the true demon realm, which countless demons yearned for.
With this, things became more complicated.
The more ordinary the pill, the more extreme its requirements.
"I was a bit overconfident and underestimated the assessment of the Pill World's heritage."
Muttering to himself, Luo Chen put down the bamboo slips and slowly paced in the study.
His mind was filled with various inspirations, but at this moment, none of them seemed suitable.
Some were too eccentric, suitable for only one or two races, while others had high versatility but weak medicinal power, not guaranteed to meet the assessment's requirements. If he spent a lot of effort refining such a pill and only received a poor evaluation, it would be a waste of time and effort.
Just then, Luo Chen caught a faint burnt smell.
A faint charred scent drifted from a distance.
He looked into the distance and saw the alchemy chamber's door open, with black smoke billowing out.
Soon after, the figure of Sea Corner Heavenly Mother, covered in soot and dirt, appeared before his eyes.
Ah, another failure! Luo Chen smirked.
How many times had she failed in the past six months? Seventy? Eighty? Or perhaps, without his notice, there had already been over a hundred attempts?
Unaware of his schadenfreude, Sea Corner Heavenly Mother's face darkened.
"Hmph!"
Seeing her about to re-enter the alchemy chamber, Luo Chen quickly spoke up.
"Fellow Daoist, one person's wisdom is limited, but two can be more insightful. Why not share the alchemy formula you've deduced, and we can discuss it together?"
Sea Corner Heavenly Mother forced a smile, her expression unchanged, "Should I thank you for your kindness, old woman?"
Luo Chen waved his hand dismissively, "There's no need for thanks. Fellow cultivators should help each other!"
Then, with a self-satisfied look, he pointed at himself, "With my alchemy skills that have passed the first two gates with overwhelming might, guiding you should be no problem."
Sea Corner Heavenly Mother's face darkened further.
She spoke coldly, "Didn't anyone teach you to respect your elders? Even if you don't understand etiquette, you should know that the wise teach the capable. When will you surpass me? Come and show me your skills!"
"Hmph!"
After saying this, she let out a cold snort and re-entered the alchemy chamber.
As she left, Luo Chen's smile gradually faded.
What a pity.
He had wanted to see her research results to avoid those pitfalls of failure.
However, after such a verbal exchange and with her recent failure, it would likely leave a significant psychological shadow on Sea Corner Heavenly Mother!
As long as it had some impact, that was good enough.
"Next, I should simplify and research the most suitable foundational body-strengthening pill for most demons."
Luo Chen waved his sleeves, dispelling the pungent burnt smell from the air, and then closed the study's door.
...
"Another failure!"
"How could it fail?"
"Demon and monster bodies have commonalities, so why does my alchemy formula keep failing?"
Within the alchemy chamber, Sea Corner Heavenly Mother repeatedly asked herself, her face filled with confusion.
She didn't believe the issue lay with her alchemy techniques.
With her grandmaster-level skills in the alchemy path, whether it was her own research formula or the more basic foundational formulas, successfully refining them was the simplest of tasks.
Therefore, the problem had to lie within the formula itself!
"Could it be that the Abyss Grass is too overpowering?"
Her fingers twisted a clump of black ash, and Sea Corner Heavenly Mother fell into deep thought.
After a long time, she decided to return to the study to look at those bamboo slips once more.
The answer must be hidden within them!
Creak...
The study door opened, and Sea Corner Heavenly Mother, deep in thought, took a glance, only to find her pupils slightly shrinking.
Unlike the previous half a year, this time, the human cultivator named Azure Sun Demon Lord was no longer hesitating among the bookshelves but had sat down at the desk, writing with great fervor.
This scene made her mood suddenly heavy.
"So soon?"
"The knowledge recorded in these bamboo slips, even if not as vast as the ocean, is no less than an entire library. He only needed half a year to read through them all. Moreover... he's already reached the stage of creating his own formulas!"
Recalling the powerful confidence he displayed in his words, as well as his overwhelming might, even breaking through two of the three gates, the old woman's fists clenched imperceptibly.
"I can't see through his cultivation level, and he's neither arrogant nor timid when facing me, so he must also be at the Nascent Soul stage."
"But his alchemy skills are definitely profound, especially in creating formulas... Could it be that he's a grandmaster of the Upper Stage Nascent Soul, or even a direct disciple of a Divine Transformation Holy Land?"
"If that's the case, I fear I'm in trouble."
The old woman wandered among the bookshelves, her gaze occasionally falling on the young, handsome man at the desk by the window, writing with his head bowed.
Her thoughts were in turmoil, her mind filled with distractions.
When it came to the alchemy path, the human race was undoubtedly superior to the demon race.
Although Sea Corner Heavenly Mother hailed from the Sea Corner clan, renowned for their expertise in identifying spiritual herbs, their alchemy heritage was still lacking.
In the early years, to improve her alchemy skills, she hunted and killed numerous cultivators, acquiring alchemy books. She even dared to venture into the human race's territory, personally attending alchemy conferences, and exchanging insights with powerful alchemists.
It was through these efforts that she achieved her current accomplishments.
However, when compared to those grandmasters with legacies spanning thousands of years, her foundation was still far too weak.
If Azure Sun Demon Lord were to surpass her and break through the third gate ahead of time, this trip would be a complete waste.
Thinking of this, the old woman's expression grew increasingly gloomy.
"It's all because of the Shark Emperor. If he had been willing to give me the alchemy books he obtained from the Demonic Origin Sect, I wouldn't be struggling like this."
"If I manage to obtain the alchemy heritage this time, it's fine. But if I fail, then the friendship between the Sea Corner clan and the Shark clan..."
As she thought, Sea Corner Heavenly Mother suddenly froze.
"What's wrong with me?"
Just at this moment, she looked towards the window, where the young, handsome man had raised his head, gazing at her with a mysterious look.
Their eyes met, and in the silent exchange, they both looked away.
Sea Corner Heavenly Mother seemed to understand something and muttered under her breath.
"Despicable!"
...
No matter how despicable one's intentions or how low their methods, it didn't affect their achievements in their craft.
In Luo Chen's eyes, the so-called pure heart and sincere path merely referred to the level of dedication in a particular path, having nothing to do with goodness or evil.
Through countless battles, countless victories, and continuous reading over a hundred years, even if he didn't claim to have mastered the strengths of various schools, he had laid a solid foundation in the alchemy path.
This foundation played a crucial role in the evaluation of creating formulas in the third gate of the alchemy world, and it proved to be highly effective!
Regarding demon race body-strengthening pills, Luo Chen spent a year and a half and created dozens of formulas.
Subsequently, he realized that the demon race's body-strengthening methods were different from the human race's qi and blood transformation and the demon race's essence-tempering bodies, which were more similar to the ancient beasts' physical refinement.
However, in this process, some human and demon body-strengthening concepts were also incorporated.
Focusing on the body and supporting it with essence, he followed the path of extreme dominance!
After this realization, he suddenly understood.
If he wanted to create pills for cultivators in this path, he should present the pill's power with an unrestrained, overwhelming force!
In simpler terms, the secondary ingredient's strength should be strong, and the main ingredient should be even stronger, so the refined pill would possess terrifying power.
The demon race's physique was inherently stronger than the human and demon races, and the pill's power they could withstand was also greater.
Therefore, he should just go all out!
Following this idea, Luo Chen discarded most of the formulas, keeping only nine.
Among the nine formulas, the focus was on skin and bone, while blood and acupoints only accounted for one or two.
After this, he went to the Pill World to gather spirit herbs and brought them back for processing.
During the process of personally handling these herbs, he eliminated six alchemy formulas, leaving only the three most robust ones.
Then, through system appraisal, he confirmed their integrity.
At this point, everything was ready, and all that was left was to start the pill refinement!
Throughout this process, Sea Corner Heavenly Mother watched coldly from the sidelines.
Naturally, she could see the herbs Luo Chen collected, all of them possessing violent pill strength.
With this, she was filled with doubts and couldn't help but snort in disdain.
"Not considering the guest's strengths and weaknesses, is it possible that I overestimated him?"
In her doubt, Sea Corner Heavenly Mother's hands and feet didn't stop moving.
It took her three years to break through the first gate, separating the immortals from the mortals. The second gate, purifying the demon souls, only took a year, but the third gate, forging the demon body, took her a full three years!
It was time to test the results.
This time, she was very confident!
In the third gate's alchemy chamber, she had always been the one using it; Azure Sun Demon Lord had never taken a single step inside.
After three years and countless failures, success might be just around the corner.
The old woman began refining pills once more.
Three months later...
The old woman's eyes were bloodshot as she stared intently at the bright red pill furnace, her heart filled with an overwhelming feeling.
This time, she was certain she would succeed and pass the gate!
As for the young man outside, living in a thatched hut and refining pills, he would once again be left behind by her.
"He's only been refining pills for three months; his trial-and-error process has barely begun. For me, the gap is too wide!"
"I was once caught off guard by his move, disrupting my mental state. This time, I'm ahead of him, and he'll be thrown into disarray."
Thinking of this, Sea Corner Heavenly Mother's face broke into a satisfied smile.
However, before this smile could fully bloom, a weak voice rumbled from the air.
【Stony Skin Pill, third-grade low-grade, can assist low-grade demons in tempering their skin and flesh.】
【Thunder Bone Pill, third-grade low-grade, can assist low-grade demons in tempering their bones and marrow.】
【Mercury Blood Pill, third-grade low-grade, can assist low-grade demons in tempering their blood.】
【Evaluation Result: Excellent, Passed!】
Boom!
Inside the alchemy chamber, the pill furnace exploded.
The old woman, disregarding the potential waste, waved her sleeve, opening the door and rushed out.
In her sight, a dazzling light enveloped the Crimson Robe Daoist, and space seemed to distort and collapse.
The Daoist, with white hair and bloodshot eyes, looked at the old woman and nodded slightly.
"Fellow Daoist, I'll be taking my leave first."
As he spoke, the light pillar dissipated, and his figure completely disappeared.
Gazing at this dream-like scene, the old woman trembled all over, her face filled with disbelief.
"How is this possible?"
"How could he possibly refine the correct pill in such a short time?"
"Third-grade! With such a high grade, the pill strength must be terrifyingly exceptional. How could low-grade demons in the Foundation Establishment stage possibly bear it?"
"Impossible, absolutely impossible!"
The old woman's muttering grew louder, like a shout.
However, this time, no one responded to her.
Luo Chen left with a calm and peaceful gaze, as if he didn't consider her a competitor for the alchemy path at all.
Ignoring her was the greatest disrespect!
Sea Corner Heavenly Mother's mindset became somewhat unbalanced.
...
The days and nights passed, and a new day dawned.
Luo Chen absorbed the rich heavenly and earthly essence qi, feeling his Golden Core tremble within him.
As expected, after the third gate, there was still a fourth gate, seemingly endless.
But he understood that the Pill World Grandmaster's alchemy inheritance wouldn't be that simple.
What he needed to do was to keep going, no matter how many gates there were.
Previously, at the third gate, he had shown his advantage over the alchemy grandmaster, Sea Corner Heavenly Mother. With years of body refinement experience, he solved the puzzle faster, and with the system's help, he selected the alchemy formulas more quickly. Even the specific pill refinement process, due to the activation of achievement points, took only three months to directly enter the initial stage and refine the first batch of pills.
This thunderous momentum would likely shock the old woman! However, Luo Chen could sense that she was also getting closer to success, and his minor tricks might not hold her back for long.
Moving forward, he needed to put in even more effort.
With a faint smile, Luo Chen's eyes suddenly focused.
A voice entered his mind, reverberating endlessly like a deep bell.
"Demons envy demons' versatility, demons admire humans' intelligence, and humans desire demons' purity. The heavenly and earthly essence qi has its strengths. We alchemists enter the path with pills, breaking the limits of demons, monsters, and humans."
"Please refine the Demon Transformation, Monster Transformation, and Human Transformation pills."
"The alchemy formulas are as follows..."
In an instant, Luo Chen stood still, deep in thought.
This gate didn't test the fundamental understanding of the alchemy path but instead examined the specific pill refinement techniques.
(End of Chapter)
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