Volume One: The Misty Immortal Palace Chapter 110: Despicable

The Alchemy Prison was originally the place where Nangong Xun used to suppress demons and various immortal prisoners. As is well known, Nangong Xun was once the most gifted alchemy master of the Yunmiao Immortal Palace, so the immortal path he cultivated belonged to the "Outer Immortal Path," relying on the power of medicinal pills to attain strength.

As for the prisoners in the Alchemy Prison, they were essentially living ingredients for his alchemy. Nangong Xun naturally did not dare to refine humans into pills, but collecting the extreme essence of both immortal and demonic power to refine "Immortal-Demonic Pills" was a perfect experiment.

Throughout history, the immortal and demonic paths have been irreconcilable, like fire and water. However, through years of alchemy, Nangong Xun discovered that the two paths were like the yin and yang fish of the Taiji; they were not entirely contradictory. Just like the Taiji diagram, there is yang within yin and yin within yang. All things embrace yin and carry yang; nothing is absolute.

Nangong Xun once wondered, could there be a possibility of merging immortals and demons? If these two forces were fused through the form of alchemy, could a "surprise" emerge?

It was precisely at this time, while Nangong Xun was troubled by this dilemma, that the Night Envoy found him and lent him a Bronze Yin-Yang Cauldron. This treasure could invert yin and yang and fuse primordial sources. By using this cauldron to refine the essence within immortals and demons, the birth of an Immortal-Demonic Pill would surely be witnessed. Moreover, the Night Envoy promised to help Nangong Xun become the new master of the Yunmiao Immortal Palace.

Thus, under immense temptation, Nangong Xun agreed to cooperate with the Night Envoy to plot against the Yunmiao Immortal Palace, leading to the series of tragedies that followed.

At this moment, deep in the underground Alchemy Prison, Yu Nan and the others were still sitting cross-legged around the bronze cauldron, guarding Zhou Hao. They were unaware of the danger looming over them.

In the vast circular pit, the two fire-mouths of the bronze cauldron circulated black and white flames. The light was so intense that it cast the entire prison in shades of black and white, appearing rather eerie.

Surrounding the pit, the towering stone walls remained "riddled with holes." These were caves once chiseled out to imprison thousands of demons and sinful immortals. How "bustling" the prison used to be, filled with constant roars and curses! Yet now, every cave was silent and desolate; everyone had escaped.

But what if they had escaped? In the end, they could not escape death! Remaining in the prison meant becoming ingredients; leaving meant becoming nothing more than dust. The rules of the Immortal Realm were cruel: the weak are prey to the strong. Life and death are held by the powerful, and immortality is reserved only for them.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a drastic change occurred in the circular pit. Blazing, multicolored flames erupted from the depths, as vivid as a rainbow. The Yin-Yang Cauldron bobbed up and down in the inferno, as if floating on water rather than being scorched by fire.

"Crap, it's burning, it's burning..." The turtle tucked its tail, retracted its entire body into its shell, and bolted from the pit.

Yu Nan, taking Xiao Shanshan with her, immediately retreated to the caves in the surrounding walls. Fortunately, they moved in time, or they would have been badly burned.

"This is a unique geological formation that draws upon the fire of the earth's core. It seems to be specifically for alchemy. We were careless; we should have realized this wasn't a good place the moment we saw the cauldron in the pit," Yu Nan said, lingering fear in her voice.

"I remember now. I read in a book that placing a cauldron on a site that gathers the earth's core fire doubles the results and can even increase the grade of the pills. The fire here is no ordinary earth-core fire; it is the 'Six-Directions and Eight-Wastes' core fire. Even inferior cauldrons would be incinerated; only high-quality vessels can survive, and the fire purifies their flaws, making them even more perfect," Xiao Shanshan explained.

"No wonder! I was wondering how ordinary earth fire could burn my tail. This is the rare Six-Directions and Eight-Wastes fire. It can only be formed by a heaven-defying landscape. I've only seen it once in the mortal realm. I never expected a random immortal palace here to have such powerful flames. It hurts so much, Grandpa Turtle's poor tail... waah..." the turtle whimpered, baring its teeth. A third of its tail had been burned off; the ferocity of the fire was evident.

"Stop wailing. Show me your tail so I can see how bad it is and treat it," the Green Snake stopped the turtle’s crying. She had been coiled on the turtle's back and had fortunately escaped the flames.

"I won't let you see! It's too ugly!" The turtle stubbornly refused to reveal its tail.

In the circular pit, the multicolored flames rose, and the temperature became terrifying. The entire prison became scorching hot the moment the fire appeared. The vast prison, enclosed by stone walls, quickly turned into a chimney. Even hiding in the caves, Yu Nan and the others could feel the intense heat.

If it was this hot outside, one could only imagine the state of Zhou Hao and Hua Huo inside the Yin-Yang Cauldron.

Heated from all sides by the multicolored flames, the bronze cauldron became translucent, glowing red and reflecting the various colors of the fire. At the bottom of the cauldron, the black and white Yin-Yang fish drew in the immortal and demonic essence flames descending from the two fire-mouths. Zhou Hao and Hua Huo, who had originally been encased in a cocoon of milky white light, had now turned a pale golden hue. If anyone saw them now, they would surely exclaim: "This is practically a giant Immortal Pill!"

"Hmm, it seems heaven is helping this young man," the spirit of the Yin-Yang Cauldron mused to itself. "Nangong Xun used the bodies of immortals and demons as ingredients, but after they were incinerated, their essence flames remained. These essence flames, which could originally only coalesce and dissipate at the fire-mouths, are now acting as supplements for this 'Human Pill'—what a perfect match. The dregs Nangong Xun looked down upon have actually fulfilled this young man's cultivation. How ironic."

"With the addition of this Six-Directions and Eight-Wastes fire, I need only wait for the Human Pill to turn golden, and the task will be complete."

Just as the refining of the Human Pill reached its fever pitch, a soft sound of footsteps at the entrance of the prison shattered the silence!

"Nangong Xun is here." Yu Nan and the others, hiding in the cave, spotted the figure at the entrance.

Nangong Xun, dressed in green robes, walked toward the circular pit with a face devoid of joy or sorrow. He stopped three feet away.

"Spirit, what are you doing? How dare you refine pills without my permission?" Nangong Xun narrowed his eyes, his voice stern and cold.

The spirit of the Yin-Yang Cauldron remained silent, offering no reply.

"Very well. Very well indeed. Mr. Night Envoy, I shall ask you to answer my question then!" Nangong Xun laughed instead of getting angry, turning to look behind him.

The void rippled, and a figure in a black robe stepped out from nothingness. He gave a dry laugh, his voice raspy and strange: "It is true that we lent you this Yin-Yang Cauldron, but the spirit has its own interests. When you are not using it, it has the right to refine pills for its own amusement. Please, Palace Master Nangong, do not take offense."

"What kind of pill is it refining now?" Nangong Xun asked.

"A Human Pill!" the Night Envoy replied.

Nangong Xun was shocked: "What did you say?"

"Is that boy with the gourd inside the cauldron right now?"

The Night Envoy gave a cold, sinister smile: "So, I must trouble the Palace Master to wait a moment longer and join us in witnessing the birth of this Human Pill."

"Impossible. How could a Human Pill be so easily refined? That boy is destined to be burned to ashes," Nangong Xun shook his head.

"Has the Palace Master forgotten? This youth has cultivated the Sun of the Great Day," the Night Envoy reminded him.

"The Sun of the Great Day... you mean... the flames of the Yin-Yang Cauldron will cooperate with him?" Nangong Xun suddenly realized.

"Exactly. That is the reason we allowed him into the cauldron. Once the Human Pill is refined, his entire body will possess medicinal properties, and we can split this great human medicine," the Night Envoy nodded.

"There is no need to split the Human Pill. I only want the boy's gourd artifact," Nangong Xun said.

"Er... very well. Since the Palace Master desires it, we cannot refuse. Once the pill is refined, the gourd shall be yours," the Night Envoy replied.

In the distance, in the cave on the opposite wall, the turtle could no longer hold back its rage: "That, that, that, that is incredibly despicable and shameless! So the Night Envoy had set a trap for little Hao from the start. How sinister! And little Hao and Hua Huo don't even know it yet! What do we do? We have to think of something, or they'll be eaten by the Night Envoy!"

Yu Nan clenched her fists, her eyes burning with fury. She longed to stab the Night Envoy to death. She never imagined that every step they had taken had been calculated to target Zhou Hao.

"The more critical the situation, the less we can lose our composure," the Green Snake urged the others, who were filled with righteous indignation.

"Wife, think of a way to save little Hao and Hua Huo," the turtle turned to the Green Snake on its back.

The Green Snake pondered for a moment: "The situation is dire. The Night Envoy and Nangong Xun are waiting for Zhou Hao to emerge so they can strike. A surprise attack will catch Zhou Hao off guard. If we want to save them, we must warn them the moment before the cauldron opens."

"And then what? We are facing two experts at the Upper Immortal level. Even if we combine our strength, it won't be enough. Sigh..." Xiao Shanshan sighed.

Yu Nan, standing to the side, gradually regained her calm. She whispered: "When the cauldron opens, just escape the prison. Neither Nangong Xun nor the Night Envoy has any interest in you. Do your best to flee the Immortal Palace. Leave the rest to me and Zhou Hao. We will give it our all, and even if we cannot win, we will fight to escape."

After saying this, Yu Nan flicked her wrist and pressed a token into Xiao Shanshan's palm.

At that very moment, the multicolored flames in the circular pit vanished with a 'whoosh'—as sudden in their departure as they were in their arrival.

As the Six-Directions and Eight-Wastes fire disappeared, the Yin-Yang Cauldron stood alone in the center of the pit. The massive lid let out a deafening boom and automatically swung open.