Chapter 519: The Source
Chapter 519: Chapter 519: The Source
The green-robed steward walked to the side and took out a cage the size of a birdcage.
He stuffed the long insect’s body inside. It immediately shrank, and as the three flying swords were withdrawn, it was pulled right into the cage.
Bai Mo looked at the long insect in the cage, noting the triangular pattern of three wounds on its head.
"How is this connected to ’Tian Weng’?"
The green-robed steward then finished what he had started to say.
"Junior Brother, do you know where the Pill Formula came from?"
Bai Mo shook his head.
The green-robed steward said, "It came from a Divine Being."
"When the sect went to discuss ’Tian Weng’ with it, the elderly Divine Being reacted violently. It attacked brazenly and was struck down and killed by an elder."
"Among its remains, we found this Pill Formula, as well as a journal. The journal mentioned that ’Tian Weng’ brought back a strange object from another realm, and that this Pill Formula could counter it."
"We originally thought it was just something in the Divine Being’s collection, but we never expected it would actually have a use."
In the distance, Ah Er crashed in a cloud of dust. A startled gray mouse in the courtyard found it, then scurried over to help it back.
It looked completely weak.
Bai Mo glanced at it. "Useless..."
He then casually tossed over a Pill. Ah Er caught it with its paws, looking utterly satisfied and unable to stop smiling.
Only then did Bai Mo turn his gaze to the Bingfeng disciple.
"Junior Brother, how do you feel?"
This disciple had a Foundation Establishment cultivation base and wasn’t very old. He was likely a young genius from his mountain peak, albeit a bit reckless in his actions.
The Bingfeng disciple shook his head, caught his breath, and looked around.
Realizing he was within the sect, his body finally relaxed.
"I feel mostly fine, but it’s like something inside me is empty."
Bai Mo nodded.
"With so many insects burrowing inside you, it’s only natural they’d eat something."
The Bingfeng disciple looked at him blankly.
Bai Mo continued, "Tonight, when the yin cold is at its peak, you will likely face one more trial. If you can get through it, you’ll be fine."
The green-robed steward’s expression grew solemn.
"What do you mean?"
Bai Mo said, "Based on my analysis of the Pill, these insects don’t just burrow randomly inside the body. I’m afraid they also consume yang energy and damage the heart meridian."
"Without the protection of yang energy, I’m afraid our Junior Brother’s heart meridian will constrict tonight, killing him."
The green-robed steward thought for a moment, then said to the disciple:
"I will stay here with you through the night."
The Bingfeng disciple’s face was grave. Not daring to delay, he took out several Pills, tossed them into his mouth, and sat cross-legged to meditate and recover his vital energy.
The green-robed steward, meanwhile, started talking to Bai Mo about the Pill.
"The Pill Formula on the silk scroll seemed to say that one must take three Pills in succession to completely kill the Witch Insects, correct?"
Bai Mo said, "The Pill I refined is a bit stronger in its insect-killing effect."
"That’s good."
The green-robed steward nodded. With nothing else to do, he began to tell Bai Mo the full story behind the incident.
"After that mutated great cultivator was slain, the Sect Disciples found his palace. It was a good eighty percent intact!"
"An elder found the great cultivator’s life records and learned that he was in close contact with ’Tian Weng,’ raising many strange beasts for them."
As he spoke, the green-robed steward shook his head.
"This great cultivator actually didn’t trust ’Tian Weng’ behind their back. He investigated a lot in secret and uncovered quite a few hidden truths."
"Unfortunately, before he could expose anything, the mutation outbreak occurred, and everything on the other side of the mountain was annihilated..."
The events on the other side of the mountain were gradually being unearthed, and many things were coming to light.
The sect would surely dispatch more people to accelerate the excavation.
Bai Mo suddenly thought of Lanshan and the others.
They were also scavenging out there right now. If things went wrong, they might run into something unpredictable and dangerous.
’I should send a letter to warn them,’ Bai Mo thought.
When night fell, around the third watch, Yuan Chu’s snores began to rise.
The Bingfeng disciple’s face was pale, the muscles in his face twitched slightly, and his breathing was short and rapid.
The green-robed steward watched him with great concern.
Fortunately, the man managed to hold on until dawn, safely passing through the crisis.
With this precedent, it was finally proven that the Insecticide Pill was effective.
Insecticide Pill was the name Bai Mo had given the Pill—simple and direct.
Before leaving, the green-robed steward sought out Bai Mo.
"Can you refine a hundred pills before the fifth day of the month?"
"I can."
Only after Bai Mo’s assurance did the green-robed steward leave, relieved.
In truth, it didn’t take long. Bai Mo spent just over ten days refining the rest of the Insecticide Pills and delivered them to the Foreign Affairs Hall.
The Sect Disciple from the Foreign Affairs Hall who came to collect them gave Bai Mo extremely high praise.
Afterward, Zhu Tong came looking for him in a great hurry.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The courtyard gate was being pounded on. Bai Mo, who was watching Yuan Chu take a Pill to heal his soul injury, had no choice but to get up and go.
"Senior Brother, what is it?"
The dark circles under Zhu Tong’s eyes were even more pronounced.
"Did you create a Pill that kills those insects?"
Bai Mo nodded.
"Is Senior Brother referring to the insects from the Voodoo?"
"Yes, I did refine the Insecticide Pill."
Zhu Tong immediately held out his hand.
"Quick, give me a few! I’m being sent to the Celestial Barrier Mountain range."
Bai Mo found this strange.
Zhu Tong spoke quickly, "Those insects, when they grow up, turn into fluttering moths. The powder that falls from their bodies is actually insect eggs."
"If you breathe in a single puff, your belly will be filled with eggs. If you’re not careful, it can be fatal."
"I created an Array that can trap and kill the moths, so the sect is sending me into the mountains to oversee the matter."
Zhu Tong had a bitter expression, clearly very reluctant to go.
Bai Mo comforted him, "Don’t worry. The Voodoo is potent, but we know its strengths and weaknesses. As long as we’re on guard, nothing will happen."
Zhu Tong shook his head.
"You don’t understand. People like us, we’ve done many such things for the sect, so we’ve seen a lot."
"Those moths are creations of sorcery, similar to your Alchemy Dao creations. They’re all strange, bizarre, and uncontrollable things."
His face was grim as he lamented.
"I’ve looked into it. These things have very long lifespans, longer than a human’s. There’s no telling how long they can live."
"Who knows, there might be some ancient, massive moths still alive in there, the kind that are unbelievably old."
"Junior Brother, my life is about to get very difficult..."
However difficult it might be, life had to go on.
Bai Mo gave him a few bottles of Insecticide Pills. Zhu Tong muttered to himself as he hurried home.
After he left, a messenger bird from the Foreign Affairs Hall arrived.
Bai Mo wrote a few letters, tucked some Pills inside, and sent them to Immortal Arrival City.
...
Wei An received the letter and was quite startled after reading it.
He called for Qin Wen. After the latter read it, he immediately took the medicine and ran to the medical hall.
When Qin Wen arrived, several emaciated men were in the middle of giving their last words to their families. Wives, children, and elders were all weeping sorrowfully.
"Don’t worry! The Shopkeeper sent me with medicine!"
One of the men who had been giving his final instructions suddenly widened his eyes and struggled to sit up.
"Really!?"
Qin Wen took the Pills from his robes.
"The Shopkeeper said a disciple from his sect was poisoned, and this very medicine saved his life."
"His original intention was just to warn us to be on guard, but it turns out you all have a use for it..."
As the men watched with hope in their eyes, he took out the Pills. He then waited for the right moment and had them take the medicine one by one.
Under the care of the physician, the men barely hung on, but they managed to survive until the next day.
But when noon arrived, something unexpected happened.
The men vomited up a large number of insect eggs and insects. Two of them were still active and grew rapidly upon contact with the air.
Members of the Demon Hunting Team fought them, destroying half the medical hall before they were finally able to subdue them.
After the intense battle, Qin Wen let out a long sigh of relief. He silently thanked his lucky stars and began to write a reply to Bai Mo.