Heavenly Demon Phoenix

Inside the room, the demoness Cao Ying stared intently at the dried Magical Beast corpse Chen Xiao had taken out, examining it closely.

Because the corpse had been dead for so long, its skin and flesh were shriveled and curled up into a ball. From its appearance, it was impossible to discern its original form.

"What kind of Magical Beast is this?"

"Heavenly Demon Phoenix."

"It's... what? A Heavenly Demon Phoenix!"

Hearing Chen Xiao's calm reply, Cao Ying was suddenly startled. Her eyes widened as she stared at him, as if trying to see from his expression if he was joking.

People from the Northwest Continent might not know what a Heavenly Demon Phoenix is, but Cao Ying, who hailed from one of the Five Great Clans of the Pill Domain, knew a little about the situation.

In the world of Magical Beasts, there were three major Magical Beast races: the Void Ancient Dragon, the Heavenly Demon Phoenix, and the Nine Nether Earth Python Race.

The Heavenly Demon Phoenix Race ranked second, only after the legendary Void Ancient Dragon.

The Heavenly Demon Phoenix Race was extremely powerful, no less so than the so-called Two Sects and Three Valleys; even the One Hall and One Tower dared not underestimate them.

In comparison, the Cao Family seemed insignificant.

More importantly, the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Race was notoriously vengeful. If a member of their race fell and their corpse was left outside and someone tried to make use of it, it would lead to a never-ending feud.

But now, since Chen Xiao could identify this dried corpse as belonging to the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Race, he must be well aware of the terrifying strength and vengeful nature of this race. Yet, he was determined to deal with the dried corpse. This audacity was truly extraordinary.

"Are you really going to process it?"

"Good things shouldn't be wasted."

Chen Xiao nodded in response, showing no intention of changing his mind.

With Zi Yan's connection, the Heavenly Demon Phoenix was destined to be on opposing sides with him; it was just a matter of time.

Therefore, there was no need to worry too much.

Cao Ying nodded slightly and said, "Generally, such powerful Magical Beast races have ways to sense the bloodline of their kin. Even a corpse might be detectable. In the Wind and Lightning Pavilion, there is a disciple from the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Race. You should try to stay away from that area in the future."

Seeing that Chen Xiao had made up his mind, Cao Ying didn't ask any more questions, only offering a few kind reminders.

She wasn't very clear about Chen Xiao's background, but judging from the reactions of the people in her family, it must be extremely impressive. Perhaps he truly wasn't afraid of the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Race.

"Don't worry, I know what to do."

"That's good. How do we process this dried corpse? I've never processed a Magical Beast corpse before, and since you specifically came to watch, I assume conventional methods won't work, right?"

Cao Ying looked at Chen Xiao, waiting for his instructions.

Chen Xiao stepped forward, held his breath, and with a lift of his hand, a sharp dagger condensed, emitting a chilling blue light.

Clutching the dagger tightly, Chen Xiao aimed at the point where the jade-like bone wing connected to the dried Magical Beast corpse and stabbed down fiercely. He met no resistance whatsoever; the corpse's surface skin was incredibly fragile, and the dagger easily penetrated it as if entering soft tofu.

He nimbly twisted his wrist and moved quickly. Moments later, a stark white piece of flesh, about a foot square, was completely cut off.

Strangely, even though Chen Xiao hadn't specifically used ice to treat it, not a single drop of fresh blood seeped from the cut. The dried corpse was like a withered piece of wood that had long since lost all vitality.

"Wait a moment, I'll dismember it first."

Hearing Chen Xiao's instruction, Cao Ying didn't follow it. She held her breath and stepped forward. A long sword appeared in her jade-like hand. With a thought, a stream of emerald green flame surged out, completely enveloping it. The scorching temperature caused even the long sword, made of refined steel, to emit fine white mist.

"Let's do it together. Although I am an Alchemist and am passionate about alchemy, it's not like I can't do other things. It's always good to learn more."

Chen Xiao glanced at the demoness with some surprise. He didn't stand on ceremony and smiled, nodding. "Okay."

With their blades flashing, in just a few minutes, all the flesh from the dried corpse was stripped away and piled up like a mountain. The dried corpse, having lost the support of its flesh and blood, was left with only a rugged skeleton and a relatively intact outer skin.

In that instant, a pungent, sour, and putrid smell erupted from the cut of the dried corpse. The sour smell turned into a wisp of green smoke that slowly rose.

The moment this green smoke touched the ceiling, a "hissing" corrosive sound echoed throughout the room.

Immediately after, under the astonished gazes of Chen Xiao and Cao Ying, a huge hole was corroded out of the ceiling above their heads. Moonlight poured down through the hole, illuminating the crescent moon in the night sky.

And a familiar face, hanging in the opening with a cunning and silly smile, was visible.

"Hehehe, Chen Xiao, Sister Cao Ying."

Zi Yan waved her small hand in greeting, attempting to charm her way through.

No one knew when she had arrived, nor how long she had been hiding in the dark. This was the core area of the Pill Tower, and Chen Xiao and Cao Ying hadn't expected any danger, so they naturally weren't overly cautious.

Looking at the Little Dragon Person who had jumped down from the roof, Chen Xiao gave her a roll of his eyes.

He was here to do something serious tonight, but the Little Dragon Person didn't seem to be that reassured by him.

Cao Ying raised her hand to rub Zi Yan's head, but feeling a smell on her hand, she withdrew it midway and smiled, "Zi Yan, stand back a little first. This dried corpse is incredibly smelly!"

Hearing this, the Little Dragon Person obediently stood aside, openly supervising.

Chen Xiao dispelled the dagger in his hand and also retreated to the side.

"Demoness, for the rest, let Zi Yan teach you how to handle it. Give her something to do."

Chen Xiao had an impression of how to deal with a Heavenly Demon Phoenix corpse based on the memories in his mind.

In contrast, Zi Yan seemed to know inherently how to do it and was less likely to make mistakes.

Hearing Chen Xiao's words, Cao Ying looked at Zi Yan.

The Little Dragon Person nodded vigorously and walked forward without any modesty. Her pair of gem-like eyes slowly swept over the dried corpse's skeleton and the pile of flesh. A faint purple light slowly enveloped them.

Purple light swirled around Zi Yan as she took the long sword from Cao Ying. Then, under the stunned gaze of the demoness, she cut off the ten pale claws and fangs of the Magical Beast's dried carcass and carefully placed them on the table.

"These are mine. Later, Sister Cao Ying can help me burn them with her Heavenly Flame. I'll make a pair of gloves with them; they'll be my weapon."

Cao Ying smiled and nodded.

Zi Yan swaggered over and kicked the pile of meat chunks. "Just burn these chunks directly."

Cao Ying looked at Chen Xiao, unsure why.

"Just listen to her."

With his approval, Cao Ying no longer hesitated.

She curled her fingers into a claw shape, and a powerful suction force erupted from her palm. The largest chunk of meat instantly detached from the pile and floated in front of her. Immediately after, a cluster of emerald green flames shot out from her palm, wrapping around the meat chunk like a living creature, completely engulfing it.

The emerald green flames tightly enveloped the meat chunk like a greedy beast. In an instant, scorching hot waves surged out, completely seeping into the muscle fibers of the meat. Visibly, the bone-white meat chunk emitted sizzling bursts under the high temperature, as if struggling in pain. As the flames roasted it, the meat chunk continuously shrank and deformed in the intense heat.

Several minutes passed, and the bone-white meat chunk had shrunk to the size of a head. Miraculously, the bone-white color had completely faded, replaced by a blend of blue and red, with a glistening surface as if it had been given a new life.

Cao Ying controlled the temperature of the flame and continued to roast it.

Soon, a drop of blue and red blood gradually condensed on top of the meat chunk, looking ready to fall.

Chen Xiao was quick. He quickly got up, took out a Jade Bottle, and caught it.

After this drop of blue and red blood was refined, the meat chunk in the flames instantly turned into nothingness, not even leaving ash behind.

"Continue."

Cao Ying nodded. With the first experience, the subsequent refinement was much smoother.

Half an hour later, Chen Xiao looked at the five drops of Heavenly Demon Phoenix essence blood in the Jade Bottle and nodded in satisfaction.

Zi Yan leaned in and sniffed. Her gem-like large eyes flashed with eagerness.

She had no appetite for the dried Magical Beast carcass, but she could feel that if she could consume this essence blood, it would be very beneficial to her.

However, from Chen Xiao's expression, she could also tell that the essence blood was very valuable, so she suppressed the urge to say anything more.

Chen Xiao chuckled and directly threw the Jade Bottle to her.

"They're all yours."

"Really?!"

"They were originally prepared for you. Seventh-tier peak Heavenly Demon Phoenix essence blood. With these few drops, I estimate you can advance again."

Chen Xiao said with a light laugh.

This essence blood was indeed very precious, but Chen Xiao wasn't stingy about giving it to Zi Yan.

After all, keeping the essence blood was useless to him; it couldn't unleash its proper value in a short time.

The Void Ancient Dragon once fed on the Heavenly Demon Phoenix, so Chen Xiao didn't need to worry about Zi Yan being overwhelmed by the violent energy.

"Hehe."

Holding the Jade Bottle, Zi Yan giggled stupidly.

She deeply sniffed it before forcefully suppressing the urge to swallow it directly.

Cao Ying watched the entire process, a trace of hidden envy flashing in her eyes.

Although she and Chen Xiao now had a significant relationship, from the beginning, their connection had developed gradually based on a transaction.

Therefore, there was still a long way to go before they could be as close as Chen Xiao and Zi Yan.

"Sister Cao Ying, this skin is the same. Just burn it directly with flames."

Having received benefits, the Little Dragon Person was full of energy. She quickly peeled off the withered skin and said to Cao Ying.

Cao Ying nodded slightly, raised her jade hand, and a gentle breeze directly blew the huge Magical Beast's withered skin to float in mid-air. Then, she flicked her finger, and a cluster of emerald green flames sprayed out from her fingertip, finally turning into a raging fire that burned under the withered skin.

However, after the Heavenly Flame roasted it for a full quarter of an hour, the withered skin, except for shrinking into a ball, showed no other changes.

Seeing this, Zi Yan's delicate nose wrinkled slightly. Very reluctantly, she took out the Jade Bottle she had just put away and carefully poured a drop onto the withered skin.

The moment the blue and red blood dropped onto the withered skin, it was quickly absorbed like sweet dew seeping into dry land.

The next moment, the originally lifeless gray-white withered skin seemed to be injected with life, twisting and wriggling like a spirit snake. The blue and red color spread rapidly from the point where the blood dropped, like a wildfire.

In just a few breaths, the entire piece of withered skin was completely transformed.

At this moment, the gray-white color was replaced by a bizarre blue and red, and its texture changed from dry and cracked to oily and tough.

Even more astonishing was that with the color change, the withered skin, which had been silent for a long time, suddenly erupted with intense energy fluctuations, causing the air to tremble, as if an ancient fierce beast was about to awaken.

"Sister Cao Ying, increase the temperature."

Cao Ying nodded and did as she was told, quietly being a competent tool.

As the high temperature rose, wisps of thin mist gradually seeped out of the blue and red Magical Beast skin, containing terrifying energy.

The emerald green flames burned more and more intensely, and the blue and red mist also became thicker and thicker, almost turning into a cloud of blue and red, covering the entire room.

As the mist surged, the invisible pressure continued to increase. Faintly, a strange, low roar sounded, causing the expressions of the three people's Dou Qi to change slightly.

Upon hearing this roar, Zi Yan seemed to be provoked. A burst of purple light instantly overflowed from her body, breaking through the Blood Seal. Under Cao Ying's stunned gaze, she gradually grew larger, her eyes filled with a noble purple light that made people awe-struck.

"Hiss!"

A soft sound broke the silence.

Chen Xiao and Cao Ying looked in the direction of the sound. Under the burning of the Heavenly Flame, the dry skin of the Magical Beast had completely turned to ash, which drifted down, forming a gray carpet on the ground.

As the last wisp of reddish-blue mist dissipated, a vortex suddenly appeared in the center of the cloud and began to spin rapidly. Vast energy surged into the vortex like rivers flowing into the sea, and the reddish-blue cloud quickly contracted.

Until a certain moment, the vortex suddenly stopped, and a dazzling reddish-blue light burst forth from it.

The intense light caused the three of them to instinctively close their eyes. When the momentary strong light receded, the three of them looked up.

Suspended in the air in the middle of the room was a slightly irregularly shaped reddish-blue crystal, floating without any support. As it slowly rotated, fine reddish-blue rays of light emanated from it. These leaked energy rays alone caused the surrounding space to slightly distort.

"Is this the Heavenly Demon Phoenix's Magic Core? What terrifying energy! The second largest race in the Magical Beast world truly lives up to its reputation."

Cao Ying's face was filled with awe. She had seen seven-star Magic Cores before, but the energy contained within them was simply incomparable to the one before her.

If the Magic Core of the second-ranked Heavenly Demon Phoenix was already this powerful, she couldn't imagine how wondrous the Magic Core of the Void Ancient Dragon, revered as the supreme ruler of Magical Beasts, would be.

"There's no one undeserving of their fame; the same goes for Magical Beasts. These bone wings and the claws Zi Yan picked are also good stuff."

Chen Xiao waved his hand and put the Magic Core away. He used an ice blade to remove the wings from the skeleton. He placed them together with the ten claws Zi Yan had picked out and waited for the girl to handle them.

Cao Ying rolled her eyes at him and went back to her work.

About fifteen minutes later, the ten pale claws were burned by the Heavenly Flame, turning into pure reddish-blue threads, their sharpness fully revealed.

The bone wings were also roasted until they resembled jade, and faint sounds of wind and lightning seemed to surge within them.

Seeing the two, one large and one small, each collecting the things they wanted, the one who had completed the task breathed a sigh of relief.

"Let me rest for a bit. I've read the method for refining the Heavenly Demon Puppet. It's not easy to refine a Heavenly Demon Puppet."

"Thank you, Sister Cao Ying." Zi Yan said with a sweet smile.

Chen Xiao didn't rush her. He took out a medicinal cauldron from his Storage Ring that had been gathering dust in a corner.

"Girl, let me show you something else. It's better in your hands than gathering dust in my Storage Ring."

With a 'clang', the large, overall reddish-colored Ten Thousand Beasts Cauldron crashed onto the ground.

The moment the Ten Thousand Beasts Cauldron appeared, Cao Ying's eyes narrowed sharply, and her breathing became slightly rapid, like a greedy hunter spotting the most precious prey.

To Chen Xiao, this thing was useless; it could only be exchanged for something valuable.

But for Alchemists like Cao Ying, a good medicinal cauldron was a huge help!

"Heavenly Cauldron Ranking thirteen, the Ten Thousand Beasts Cauldron! Are you really giving it to me?"

Reluctantly tearing her gaze away, Cao Ying looked at Chen Xiao, the tips of her ears flushed with excitement.

Chen Xiao nodded: "I don't need it, and I can't bear to auction it off, so I'll lend it to you."

Though he said 'lend', Chen Xiao didn't mention any time limit, and his meaning was clear.

Hearing this, Cao Ying's smile first spread from the depths of her eyes, then climbed to her lips, forming a brilliant arc.

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