It has been over a month since arriving on the island, and Shopkeeper Zhu has shamelessly stayed. This time, he brought over a dozen craftsmen, all skilled individuals from the Chaotian Immortal Sect. Disciples with low cultivation and limited talent would choose to learn a trade for a living.
The transport of the spirit wine had already been assigned to the accompanying guards. Since waking up, Shopkeeper Zhu had felt that the spiritual energy on the island was denser than outside, and after eating the island's food, his own cultivation had improved. He felt that by staying here, he might even reach the Deification stage. He was no longer willing to leave. After a lifetime of schemes and deceit, he now only wished for a period of peace.
In stark contrast to Shopkeeper Zhu, Chi Zu and Qilin were clamoring to help escort the spirit wine out to sea, under the guise of fearing that they might encounter strong individuals again and the spirit wine might not be secured.
Chao Yangzi looked at the cultivation of the twenty guards; although they had all advanced in just a few days, the sea surface was not calm, and they had encountered three waves of black-clothed men in the past six months. Thinking of something, he agreed.
In truth, they were afraid of being used as test subjects for A You's medicine again, without them even noticing. Thanks to the little lunatic A You, their resistance to medicine had grown stronger. Even the most potent poisons would at most cause them diarrhea or a few days of drowsiness, well, at most a quarter of an hour of rolling on the ground in pain... ordinary sedatives and poisons from the outside world had no effect on them.
This time, Qilin and Chi Zu wanted to escort the spirit wine out to sea. They had nagged A You for several days. They knew A You's medicine's efficacy best; it was useless to them but useful against enemies. Especially that "Immortal Drunk," even its initial version was terrifyingly potent.
A You, being badgered to the point of no return and seeing them capture over a dozen people for him to experiment on, gave each of them over a dozen bottles made of purple bamboo, each palm-sized. Inside were initial versions of some medicines, but all were essential elixirs for killing and robbing! Both of them smiled eerily when they received them.
Before departure, the head of the guards was responsible for safekeeping the spirit ring filled with spirit wine, spirit medicine, and spirit rice. This mission to deliver these items back to the sect was very important. These items could be consumed by the sect, and increasing the sect's combat power was paramount. The prophecy foretold that this world would face invasion from external enemies, so preparations had to be made in advance.
Thinking of the current demeanor of the Divine Venerable and her enthusiasm for wealth and treasures, Chao Yangzi found the current Divine Venerable a bit endearing! He couldn't help but purse his lips and smile. Afterward, he sent a message to the sect leader, transferring two top-grade spirit stone mines of the sect to Ye Ju's name, with people sent to deliver the mined resources monthly.
When Ye Ju heard this, she thought, "This is good, I'm satisfied with the price! As expected of Qing Yang, he handles matters so properly!"
The guards felt like they had arrived in paradise after waking up on the island. It was indeed called Penglai Immortal Island. They all wished to stay on the island permanently. The fairies on the island were generous, offering spiritual fruits freely, and gaining cultivation was as easy as drinking water and eating. Inwardly, they envied Shopkeeper Zhu for being able to stay. However, the sect leader's orders were not to be defied. Thinking that the eldest young master had said these resources were to be transported back to the sect to improve the disciples, they were instantly energized. In the Chaotian Immortal Sect, as long as one did not betray the sect, resources were never withheld. As long as sect missions were completed well, the rewards were quite generous!
Zhimen watched Chi Zu leave the island gleefully and without looking back, her teeth itching with anger.
Zhimen snorted, "Wait until you return, I'll deal with you."
Chi Zu was so focused on not having to constantly fear A You after leaving the island that he happily forgot about his wife. There was no farewell kiss... When he returned, he would be chased around the island by Zhimen.
Meanwhile, Ye Ju and Chao Yangzi arrived at A You's medicinal hut. Previously, A You's research and preparation of medicine had filled the entire bamboo house with the aroma of herbs. Ye Ju, unable to bear the overwhelming medicinal scent, had ordered a building to be constructed on the northern side, furthest from the bamboo house, specifically for him to refine and prepare medicines.
Ye Ju and Chao Yangzi intended to interrogate the black-clothed men. Chao Yangzi found the matter very peculiar; were these black-clothed men truly from the Tianxing Continent? There was a barrier between the two continents, and Ye Ju also felt it was necessary to clarify this.
When they arrived at the medicinal hut, they heard screams emanating from within. Ye Ju merely raised an eyebrow upon hearing them. She felt her heart had hardened! However, some things should be done in moderation. Who would have thought that the young man A You would become so engrossed in preparing medicine...
Pushing the door open, they saw two black-clothed men on the ground with their eyes closed, emitting screams. Ye Ju, upon hearing the screams, initially thought A You had resorted to cutting them open. She had intended to come in and caution him not to make it too bloody!
"What's going on, A You? What happened to these two?" Ye Ju asked, looking at A You who was squatting on the ground observing them.
"Master, I merely administered a hallucinogenic drug to them, making them fall into illusions. I don't understand why they are screaming?" A You sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, a look of confusion on his face. Logically, this hallucinogenic drug would cause people to fall into illusions, and the added hallucinogenic grass would only make them giggle foolishly or get lost in pleasant dreams. Why was this happening?
Ye Ju and Chao Yangzi exchanged a look. That must mean there was something peculiar about them.
A You watched the two men, as if they had fallen into their own dreams. However, their faces were filled with terror, suggesting that their dreams were not pleasant. Perhaps their dreams were filled with retribution for their misdeeds!
A You also didn't understand this hallucinogenic drug, but after adding Sister Zhimen's spider venom, how did it become so potent? When he tested it on Qilin and Chi Zu before, they would at most giggle foolishly for a while and wake up within half an hour. When asked what they dreamed about, Qilin said he had a lot of delicious food... Chi Zu absolutely refused to say. What was he supposed to say? How could he tell A You that he was fighting with his wife, the demoness Zhimen, in his dream? Later, when A You saw Chi Zu's reluctance to speak, he spent a period of time catching him and testing drugs on him... Chi Zu experienced pain mixed with pleasure...
He had already called Sister Zhimen over. Zhimen had gone to see Chi Zu off.
A You explained the cause and effect to Ye Ju.
The three decided to wait for Zhimen to arrive to clarify things. Zhimen could enter dreams, and thus, she could uncover the background of the black-clothed men, which would be more accurate than information obtained through torture.
When Zhimen arrived, the black-clothed men were already on the verge of death from torture. Chao Yangzi, fearing they might die in their dreams, was about to cast a spell to knock them unconscious.
"Master! Young Master Chao!" As soon as Zhimen entered, she bowed to Ye Ju and the others.
"Sister Zhimen, quickly help me see what's going on with these two in their dreams?" As soon as A You saw Zhimen enter, he ran over, tugged at her sleeve, and said urgently.
"Okay, don't rush!" Zhimen patted A You with a smile.
Zhimen closed her eyes and unleashed her innate talent. The air in the room seemed to distort. Ye Ju, Chao Yangzi, and A You all felt a moment of dizziness before the scene changed.
A world of wailing and howling. The sky was dim and gray, without sunlight. On all sides, whimpering cries and mournful sounds swirled, seeming to be both near and far. The ground was covered in withered bones and severed limbs...
Ah~~
Screams echoed from a distance. A You trembled in fear, his voice shaking, "Master, where is this? It's so terrifying, is this hell?"
Ye Ju looked into the distance, but could not see clearly. Her divine sense was obstructed, and it was indeed a bit frightening, her arms breaking out in goosebumps. Whether it was the Divine Venerable Ju Xun or the modern Ye Ju, both were afraid of such gloomy and terrifying, ghost-infested places. That's why, knowing Hua Xun was a Xuan Master who dealt with such things, she had wanted to stay a hundred meters away from him when they first met.
"This is the dream of the black-clothed men." Chao Yangzi was the first to walk towards the source of the screams. With a single step, the scene changed.