Serpent Ancestor

Who got her into alchemy?

Xu Hei's heart sank when he heard this.

From the collapsed cave dwelling, a pitch-black white snake slithered out, carrying a cracked pill furnace on its back.

Behind her, she dragged Er Gou, whose eyelids were flipped, tongue lolling out, and completely unconscious.

"I... I didn't tell her to refine pills," Xu Hei quickly shook his head.

"Isn't that pill furnace yours? Stop lying!" Hei Huang fumed.

Xu Hei glanced guiltily at the pill furnace. It was originally a Spiritual Treasure at the Foundation Establishment level, but now it was covered in fine cracks. A few more attempts and it might just explode.

Xu Hei's mouth fell open.

"How many times has the furnace exploded?"

"This is the fifth time today. If you count the past few days, I've lost track," Hei Huang cursed.

In his entire life, he had never encountered such a talent. Every time she refined pills, the furnace would explode. Even with hands-on guidance, it was useless. Whenever he personally refined pills, if the white snake was involved in even a small step, it would go "boom" and explode. She was like an automatic furnace-exploding machine.

"Then why didn't you stop her? Why blame me?" Xu Hei retorted.

Hei Huang was momentarily speechless.

After he returned, he saw that Xu Bai had an exceptional wood Spiritual Root, loved pill refining, and was determined, so he wanted to guide her. But the more he guided, the more she failed. It was unstoppable.

He was naturally stubborn, never giving up until he achieved his goal. Even if it was a piece of deadwood, he believed he could carve it into something beautiful. But this time, he had hit a major snag.

"I... I succeeded this time. I refined a pill," Xu Bai said, feeling wronged as she saw the two arguing.

"Hmm?"

Hei Huang's eyes lit up. The furnace exploded, but she still managed to make a pill? That was unexpected.

Xu Hei also looked over curiously.

Xu Bai lifted the pill furnace, turned it upside down, and shook it. A pitch-black pill rolled out and fell to the ground.

The pill was uneven, surrounded by a layer of black mist, and emitted a faint, pungent smell.

Hei Huang's eyes widened. "What kind of pill is this?"

"A Minor Essence Nurturing Pill. Xu Hei taught me to refine it. This is my first successful product," Xu Bai said.

Xu Hei's mouth twitched as he stared at the black, shriveled pill. He couldn't see how it had any relation to a Minor Essence Nurturing Pill.

Hei Huang stared at it for a while, then suddenly picked up the pill, looked at Xu Hei, and smiled slightly. "Since you taught her to refine it, you should eat it. Don't waste her effort."

Xu Hei shook his head vigorously and stepped back repeatedly.

"No, no, I'm always humble as a snake. You should have it."

"Hey, no need to be so polite. We're all brothers here."

"You should have it. I can't handle it."

"You eat it!"

"You eat it!"

Hei Huang pushed the pill towards Xu Hei, who pushed it back. The two demons kept pushing it back and forth.

Xu Bai watched for a while, then blinked and said, "You don't have to be so polite. I can refine another one. Everyone can have a share."

"No need!"

This time, both demons spoke in unison, their voices particularly loud.

In the end, they had no choice.

Xu Hei and Hei Huang simultaneously turned their gaze to Er Gou, who lay on the ground, his fate uncertain. They exchanged a glance and nodded.

They took the pill and walked towards Er Gou.

Er Gou seemed to sense danger. Though unconscious, he suddenly sprang up and let out a series of sharp barks, "Woof! Woof! Woof!" The sound was extremely shrill.

Like a dog with its tail caught, he frantically retreated, barking as he backed into a corner.

Xu Hei swallowed hard. Had this pill caused such a physiological reflex? Was it really that terrifying?

Xu Hei regretted it. If he had known, he wouldn't have killed all those cultivators. He should have kept one alive to test the pill. It wouldn't have come to this.

"I'll go catch a demonic beast," Xu Hei said, turning to leave.

Hei Huang stared at the pill in his hand, brought it to his nose for a sniff, and a layer of black mist spread over his face. His fur showed signs of falling off, so he quickly sealed the pill in a jade box.

Xu Bai was anxious. She really wanted to help, but she was always clumsy and failed repeatedly. This was her first success.

She pinned all her hopes on that pill.

...

Not long after, Xu Hei returned.

He had caught a big fish and a monkey, both at the seventh level of the Spirit Communion Stage, bound with a demon-binding rope.

Actually, he wanted to catch a snake to test, but snake demons were hard to find, especially those with similar cultivation levels. After searching for a while, he only found the fish and the monkey.

"Let's try the fish first."

Hei Huang took out the pill and carefully scraped off a bit of powder, feeding it to the big fish.

After the fish consumed the pill, a layer of black mist enveloped its body. Its True Qi surged rapidly, breaking through to the eighth level of the Spirit Communion Stage within the time it takes to burn a stick of incense.

"It works! It has the effect of a Minor Essence Nurturing Pill!" Hei Huang exclaimed in delight.

"It really is a Minor Essence Nurturing Pill!"

Xu Hei also noticed the effect. This was indeed the effect of a Minor Essence Nurturing Pill.

And this was just a bit of powder. If the whole pill was consumed, wouldn't it allow continuous breakthroughs?

No wonder she had an exceptional wood Spiritual Root. She was a genius in pill refining!

But before Xu Hei could finish his thought, he saw the fish's abdomen start to bulge on both sides.

Two lumps of flesh extended out, transforming into two bare feet that touched the ground.

"Uh..."

Hei Huang was stunned, and Xu Hei was dumbfounded.

What was happening?

A fish growing legs?!

"Screech!!!"

Suddenly, the fish let out a sharp roar, broke free from the ropes, and started running on its two feet, kicking up dust as it fled into the distance.

In the blink of an eye, it disappeared from sight.

The scene was so shocking that the two demons stood there for a long time, unable to react.

"Did the fish... evolve?" Xu Hei asked, bewildered.

Hei Huang's mouth twitched. "Evolve my ass! It mutated into a monster!"

As the Heavenly Demon Scattered Person, he had seen many evil cultivators create all sorts of bizarre creatures. He had also seen demonic cultivators refine demonic pills, turning themselves into abominations.

But watching a fish grow human-like legs and run away right before his eyes was too absurd.

He glanced at the bewildered Xu Bai and thought, could she be a budding demon?

"Let's try the monkey. Monkeys are similar to humans, so we might be able to predict the effect on humans," Xu Hei suggested.

Hei Huang didn't bother with powder this time. He directly shoved the whole pill into the monkey's mouth.

"Oo oo oo!"

The monkey, being intelligent, knew the pill was poisonous and refused to swallow it. But Hei Huang wasn't to be trifled with. With a slap of his paw, the pill went down with a gulp.

The monkey's body was immediately enveloped in a layer of black mist. Its face turned a mix of blue and red as the pill's energy surged chaotically, its cultivation rising to the eighth level of the Spirit Communion Stage.

But that wasn't the end. Because it had consumed the whole pill, an hour later, the monkey broke through again, reaching the ninth level of the Spirit Communion Stage.

Then, its entire skeleton began to crackle and pop. Its posture became upright, its legs elongated, its tail retracted, its fur fell off, and its face underwent rapid changes.

"Is it evolving again?"

Xu Hei watched in amazement.

Hei Huang also stared unblinkingly at the "evolving" monkey.