Water Master Xuanwu did not immediately agree with me, instead falling into contemplation.

After a moment, he replied, "According to past agreements, I would only help you create an elixir once. The last time I used the token I left with the Zhu family. I have no obligation to make a second elixir for you."

"That's true, but the elixir you made last time didn't fully meet our needs," I said. "Last time, your own strength was insufficient. The limit of your abilities at the Great Success Rank was not enough to create an elixir that can perfectly heal Great Impermanence level injuries. No one would blame you for not being thorough enough or think you weren't trying your best. In fact, achieving what you did at your level was already quite remarkable.

"But now that you have reached a higher level, shouldn't you conclude the responsibilities you couldn't fulfill in the past?"

Water Master Xuanwu pointed out, "These words should be ones I tell myself to align with human sentiment, not you telling me, which feels like moral coercion."

Then he continued, "However, I have to admit that what you said is not entirely without reason. It was understandable to be incapable in the past, but if I can now return and fulfill responsibilities I couldn't perfectly handle before, no one would have anything to say.

"I could find some excuses to clear my conscience, but if I can meet your request, then there would be no need for excuses. I can straightforwardly announce that I did everything I could to fulfill the agreement."

I said, "So..."

"But, not now," Water Master Xuanwu said, "I can't make the Shen Gui Spirit Pill for you at the moment."

"Why?" I asked.

"You should be well aware that the Shen Gui Spirit Pill is an elixir made using my soul as a raw material," Water Master Xuanwu said, "Although I have now reached the Great Impermanence Domain, wanting to repair burns caused by the power of Great Impermanence is only a matter of time, but that's only if the burns appear on myself. If it appears on another person, especially someone who is not Great Impermanence, I would have to excise a part of my own soul to perfectly heal it.

"Regrettably, I am neither like you, possessing an Elementalized soul, nor like that artificially created Great Impermanence in black armor with monster-like regeneration power. If my own soul is injured, I would have to slowly and tediously repair it over time.

"Moreover, I still need to fight the Taoyuan Village Master, which is a battle with low odds of victory, so I can't allow myself to be in a state where I can't exert my full strength."

I inquired with curiosity, "Is that more important than fulfilling your obligation?"

Water Master Xuanwu replied seriously, "That involves another promise of mine."

"Don't you have any elixirs on hand that can heal soul injuries?" I asked.

"Elixirs that can repair Great Impermanence souls take a long time to complete. It is possible to shorten that time, but it requires rare materials of the Great Impermanence level," Water Master Xuanwu said, "Since becoming a Great Impermanence, I have not had time to prepare such elixirs, and the same goes for rare materials. Designing without raw materials, as they say, describes the current situation. In my current circumstances, I obviously can't focus solely on alchemy for an extended period either."

At the Great Impermanence level, many technical skills are no longer useful. Just like many rules-based and conceptual abilities that are only jokes to a Great Impermanence, expecting strong effects on the Great Impermanence Domain from chemical reactions derived from lower-level materials is as difficult as ascending to heaven.

In the past, merely being able to create an elixir like the Shen Gui Spirit Pill was already enough to accomplish a remarkable feat.

Ultimately, he does not possess the power of healing, but that of alchemy. Alchemy is inextricably linked to materials. To heal the burns inflicted by the Catastrophe Demon, he would have to use materials of the Great Impermanence tier. Currently, the only available material is Water Master Xuanwu's own soul.

"A significant part of the issue is that my alchemy skills are still stuck in the period when I was at the Great Success Rank and have not yet been updated to match my current perception and power. Given time, once my alchemy skills are updated, the current problems will probably no longer exist... but that also takes time," Water Master Xuanwu said.

However, I still felt something was off. According to my stereotype, after becoming a Great Impermanence, alchemy and formations should become more carefree and natural. Why would there be so many troubles?

After thinking about it, I asked, "The Great Impermanence level materials on your body are not limited to your soul, right? Although I don't really understand the rules and taboos of alchemy... Can your mana itself not become an ingredient for the elixir?"

This question seemed to strike at a deeper core issue.

"...It can. However, my mana is currently in a special state and is not suitable to be the primary material for creating a healing elixir," Water Master Xuanwu sighed, "In fact, my soul is also in such a special state that requires time to harmonize. Even though I'm familiar with using the soul as a material in alchemy, attempting to forcefully create healing elixirs under these conditions lacks sufficient success rates. This is one of the reasons I can't make it for you right now.

"If it were peacetime, I could try this several times, at worst suffering multiple severe injuries myself. But now, that's not possible."

Upon hearing this, I remembered the unusual aggressiveness of Water Master Xuanwu's mana previously—could it be related to what he is describing now?

Although I really want to ask more about this matter, I'll set it aside and ask later. Right now, the most important thing is to obtain a brand new Shen Gui Spirit Pill for Mazao. The material issue that Water Master Xuanwu is troubled by, I am well prepared here. No need for beating around the bush, I'll just take it out directly.

I summoned a mass of black Solar Eclipse Fire.

Unlike the Solar Eclipse Fire I used before, this one possesses the Earth Attribute. It's not something recently summoned, but rather summoned in the past when I defeated Huang Quan and Great Demon Xuanwu, and it's been maintained until today using my own spirit as fuel.

Upon seeing this flame, Water Master Xuanwu's eyes dramatically changed. The Earth Element Yellow Dragon Power is the nemesis of the Water Element Xuanwu Power, just as he can restrain me, this flame also holds extremely powerful restraint against him. It's highly possible that merely looking at this flame could cause him extreme discomfort.

But the real focus is not this black flame, rather it's the mass of black water firmly sealed inside by the strong gravity of the black flame.

This is the flesh of Great Demon Xuanwu.

For the Water Master Xuanwu before me, it's tantamount to the remains of another self.

Water Master Xuanwu's attention seemed to quickly shift to this mass of black water, and then a shocked expression appeared on his face.

"This... this thing, is it a part of my soul?" he said in disbelief, "Such a large piece... Impossible, could it be from an old injury... No! This piece of soul is at the strength of Great Impermanence, but I've never suffered such an injury after becoming Great Impermanence...

"How do you possess this Earth Element flame, do you have a Yellow Dragon Seed? But that's impossible, the Yellow Dragon Seed should belong to Shan Liangyi... did you kill Shan Liangyi?"

His intense reaction greatly satisfied my expectations, and I couldn't help but deliberately remain silent for a few seconds, allowing myself to savor the varied emotions on his face.

Then, I began to explain in detail the origin of the Great Demon Xuanwu flesh.

Regarding the Solar Eclipse Fire, I also provided some explanations, mainly clarifying that what harmed Mazao's soul was actually the Catastrophe Demon—it's basic knowledge to truthfully inform the 'doctor' about the real condition. Additionally, I clarified that I haven't yet had any contact or battle with Shan Liangyi, as I do not wish to falsely claim a non-existent achievement.

Killing Water Master Xuanwu yields no benefits for me, and although Water Master Xuanwu harbors dark intentions towards me, he bears no such malice towards those around me. If I can recruit him onto the chariot against the Evangelical Institute, it will greatly aid future battles. Therefore, in addition to explaining the above, I also took the opportunity to elaborate on the current situation of the Post-mortem World and the Evangelical Institute's bloody conspiracy.

"The Post-mortem World and the Doomsday Era, along with the human extermination plan..." Water Master Xuanwu recited.

Though he didn't seem entirely convinced, as it was merely hearsay, after his initial shock, he gradually calmed down, then focused on the present, looking at the Great Demon Xuanwu flesh in my hand, "...Let's not discuss those distant matters for now; the most important thing now is how to deal with the Taoyuan Village Master, and this thing in your hand..."

He exhaled and continued, "With this, yes... I can now refine the elixir for you."

"Then please proceed with the alchemy now," I said.

"Alright." Water Master Xuanwu extended a hand.

His palm dove into the heart of the Solar Eclipse Fire. As I temporarily placed him on the Solar Eclipse Fire's whitelist, the flame caused him no harm. With a look of inevitability, he grabbed the Great Demon Xuanwu flesh and extracted it.

Subsequently, a large amount of black Water Magic Power surged from around his palm, transforming into a massive water sphere, tightly enveloping the Great Demon Xuanwu flesh.

Though called a water sphere, its density was so high that it became as heavy as an iron ball. I sensed extremely powerful and complex mana fluctuations emerging from within the iron ball; the water sphere seemed to become an alchemy furnace, containing an environment of extremely high pressure, high temperature, and unpredictable variations.

Since it's for refining an elixir, I expected Water Master Xuanwu to take out an alchemy furnace or something similar. Perhaps Water Master Xuanwu used to do it that way, but now, what alchemy vessel could withstand the violent operation of the Power of Great Impermanence? At this stage, Water Master Xuanwu might only be able to simulate a sufficiently sturdy container using his mana.

I patiently waited for him to complete the alchemy process, and it seemed that the mana fluctuations emitted during the elixir refinement attracted some uninvited guests to this place.

Or rather, we were the uninvited guests, as the other side seemed to be soldiers occupying this land.

The mana fluctuations akin to the Taoyuan Village Master's Great Impermanence Level suddenly descended around us, and a total of five blue-light shimmering giant hand-shaped avatars of Meng Zhang appeared.

Undiscriminating killing intent simultaneously locked onto both me and Water Master Xuanwu.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.