Chapter 57: Secret Sauce

The next morning, Xiao Yan took out his alchemy cauldron by the stream, the blue-purple flames leaping at its base. Ning Jiuyou sat on a bluish-grey stone nearby, her bare feet dipped into the clear water and swaying gently as crystal droplets slid down her slender ankles.

Tilting her head to observe Xiao Yan as he focused on refining medicine, she turned to instruct Little Zi, "Go gather some ingredients in the woods; I'll stew some mushroom soup for you later."

The Violet-Winged Lion King's eyes lit up, a happy purr rumbling in its throat. Shaking its coat, its massive frame darted into the dense forest.

Unfortunately, her command of the language was rather poor, leaving Xu Yang utterly confused. With no other choice, he turned to Huo Qingtong for help, only to find her standing there in a daze, before walking over with an amused smile and waving her hand back and forth in front of her eyes.

At that exact moment, a strange look flashed across the Evil-Named Monarch's eyes. His body suddenly whipped around, and with a flick of his finger, a streak of crimson light shot from his fingertip straight toward Zhang Sanfeng.

Though she had initially felt a chill in her heart regarding the Emperor's actions, the moment she reminded herself that this was imperial statecraft—something inevitable in every dynasty and generation—her mind was set at ease. She even felt a sense of relief and quiet approval at the Emperor's unprompted mastery of royal arts. It showed that with the Emperor at the helm, the court of Gongmi would certainly never fall into chaos.

Someone whose martial arts were advanced enough to break into a prison might as well storm the Yue Palace directly to assassinate Goujian; the chances of success would probably be higher that way. Rescue someone? Heh.

Upon realizing that Jiayu's so-called "eating all her bento" actually meant throwing the bento away, the expression on his face instantly turned ice-cold. His straight, handsome sword-like brows furrowed with dissatisfaction. His usual expressionless poker face now carried an extra trace of anger, and driven by his emotions, Kaiyang involuntarily began to roar at Jiayu.

Hearing this, Chen Jialen couldn't help but feel a surge of joy. Since Xu Yang was willing to talk to him, any terms could be negotiated.

In truth, July simply couldn't stomach the throat-scratching, coarse grain flatbreads. Accustomed to delicacies from land and sea on a daily basis, her palate had long been pampered; how could she possibly stomach wild vegetable and coarse grain flatbreads anymore?

"What on earth is going on here?" Just as Zhang Sanfeng was at a total loss, a piece of false information flooded into his mind. It turned out that this alchemy cauldron was the legendary Primordial Spirit Treasure, the Purple Sun Wuji Bagua Furnace, used by the Daoist of Heavenly Evolution for concocting pills.

"Master Daoheng needn't investigate any further; we've already found out who the murderer is!" said Xiahou Yuanxian.

Ye Qinghong rushed forward and kicked the sailor squarely in the chest, sending him crashing onto the deck, then drew her pistol and aimed it straight between his eyes.

Gao Ming's heart had been drifting for some time without a new direction in sight, leaving him with no choice but to take things one step at a time. Su Han, after all, was still young; if a suitable career path presented itself, she might as well consider making a fresh choice. With a few more choices, life might offer a few more opportunities.

He had been far too excited upon seeing such a successful genetic serum. According to protocol, he should have read through all the applications first, even though he didn't hold out much hope.

This team was personally led by Hai Mingzhu herself. The reason she insisted on coming was that a glimmer of hope for her father still lingered in her heart.

Ye Qinghong, however, felt a surge of joy in her heart. She considered that if Wu Jie and Luo Lie traveled together, they could look out for one another, which would significantly reduce the risks of Luo Lie's journey.

President Liu said coldly, "Give me the phone; I'll talk to him." Ignoring whether Su Han agreed or not, he snatched the phone straight from her hand. Su Han had stood there in a daze for so long that she had completely forgotten to hang up.

With this thought, He Fei immediately grew excited once more. Judging from the conversation between Lin Yi and Su Han, one could easily guess that Su Han would definitely seek out Lin Yi, but she must also know that Lin Yi couldn't actually make any decisions, meaning she would ultimately have to negotiate with him in person.

Stephen was still chanting his incantation. The spell was significantly more difficult to cast, forcing him to spend a considerable amount of time on it.

Amidst the boundless white snow, only two distinct cart tracks remained, gradually fading and scattering away with the chilly wind.

These were all rare trinkets he had never laid eyes on before. If he brought them out, they could definitely fetch a handsome price, Jiang Han thought to himself as he walked a long distance ahead.