Caidie Takes Human Form (2)

"Uh!"

Hearing this, Cao Ying made an embarrassed face, awkwardly raised a hand to scratch the back of her head, and stuck out her tongue. She really had gotten the wrong idea just now and misunderstood her master.

Caidie was even more mortified. Her entire face flushed as red as blood, and she lowered her head deeply, wishing she could crawl into a crack in the ground.

Yet beneath the cover of her thick lashes, a faint trace of disappointment flashed through the depths of her clear eyes—so swiftly that even she herself failed to notice it.

At that moment, however, Su Baichen's attention was not on their little thoughts at all.

With a turn of his wrist, a warm, translucent white jade bottle appeared in his palm.

The instant he pulled out the stopper, an indescribably rich medicinal fragrance spread through the air as though it had substance, refreshing the senses. Even the surrounding energy of heaven and earth seemed to stir and grow more abundant.

He casually poured out a pill the size of a longan. It was perfectly round and deep violet in color, with three incomparably distinct silver pill patterns winding across its surface, slowly flowing as though they were alive.

The medicinal fragrance seeped out from those pill patterns. Just one breath of it made one feel comfortable all over, as if even one's dou qi had become slightly purer.

The Third Elder of the Snake-People Tribe, who had been standing by like scenery, now had his eyes widened to their limits and his mouth open wide enough to fit an egg. He made hoarse sounds in his throat, yet could not utter a single complete word.

He had lived for centuries, and as an elder of the Snake-People Tribe, he had seen his share of the world. It was not as though he had never encountered high-tier pills.

But this pill before him, merely through its fragrance and appearance, made every pill he had seen before seem dull and worthless! The energy contained within that fragrance was pure and vast, making even his soul tremble. This... what tier of divine pill was this?

"This is a Transformation Pill," Su Baichen said blandly, as if he were introducing a piece of candy. "Its effect is simple and direct: it allows you to completely shed your beast form and successfully take human form. Then, you can retain the long lifespan of a magical beast while gaining the exceptional cultivation talent brought by a human body."

As he spoke, he flicked a finger lightly. The seventh-tier pill, one that could have caused a bloody storm in the outside world, traced an arc through the air and drifted gently toward Caidie.

Caidie instinctively reached out and caught it. Feeling the warm touch and boundless medicinal power of the pill in her palm, she was completely stunned.

She had vaguely guessed that the pill was extraordinary, but she never imagined it would be the legendary seventh-tier pill—the Transformation Pill!

For every snake-person who had yet to reach the Dou Zong realm, this was practically a divine treasure beyond their wildest dreams!

"H-How can I accept this?" As if scalded, Caidie shook her head repeatedly and held the pill out with both hands, her voice trembling. "Young Master, this is far too precious! I... I cannot accept it! I can never repay the debt of you saving my life. How could I accept such a valuable gift as well?"

While she anxiously tried to refuse it, the Third Elder's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. A little person in his heart was frantically pounding the ground and screaming, Damn it! What a waste! If you don't want it, give it to me! Give it to me! A Transformation Pill! That's a seventh-tier Transformation Pill!

"For us snake-people to gain human form and free ourselves from these half-human, half-snake bodies, the most basic prerequisite is cultivating to the Dou Zong realm! How difficult is that? Countless ancestors spent their entire lives unable to reach it! But this Transformation Pill... a single pill can directly cross that heavenly chasm. Not only can it grant a perfect human body, it can also grant human cultivation talent... This, this..."

The Third Elder stared fixedly at the violet, glowing pill in Caidie's hand. The longing, jealousy, and envy in his eyes were nearly tangible, and saliva was practically dripping from his mouth.

He seemed to have already seen the wonderful future in which he swallowed the pill, successfully took human form, and saw his cultivation advance by leaps and bounds.

Just then, Cao Ying strode over to Caidie like a little adult, walking with her hands behind her back and an old-fashioned air. She tugged at Caidie's skirt, signaling for her to squat down.

After Caidie obediently crouched, Cao Ying stretched out her little hand and patted Caidie's shoulder with feigned maturity. In the calm tone of someone saying, "I know my master," she said:

"Relax, relax, Big Sister Caidie. You don't need to be so nervous. My master is an Eighth-tier Alchemist! Pills like this seventh-tier one? He makes them for fun. He can casually refine several in one batch, and there are probably piles of them in his Storage Ring! Go ahead and eat it. No need to stand on ceremony with him—just treat it like candy!"

"An Eighth-tier Alchemist?!"

Cao Ying's casual words exploded in Caidie's and the Third Elder's minds like a thunderclap from clear skies!

Caidie froze completely in place, even the hand holding the Transformation Pill going stiff. She had guessed from Cao Ying's words that Su Baichen was an alchemist, but she never could have imagined that he was actually an Eighth-tier Alchemist—one who stood at the pinnacle of alchemists across the continent! To her, that title was as distant as a legend!

After the Third Elder's extreme shock, what rose in his heart was boundless terror and bone-piercing cold! He had thought of far more than Caidie had, and much further ahead!

An Eighth-tier Alchemist! Those five words represented far more than merely the pinnacle of alchemy! They also represented an unimaginable, deeply interconnected web of terrifying influence!

Across the continent, who knew how many peak experts and enormous factions owed favors to Eighth-tier Alchemists! Offending one did not require the alchemist to act personally. So long as he showed the slightest displeasure, countless factions would scramble to please him by tearing the Snake-People Tribe to pieces!

Even if... even if Su Baichen was magnanimous today and chose not to hold the Snake-People Tribe accountable for their offense. Once word spread that the Snake-People Tribe had offended an Eighth-tier Alchemist... the tribe would immediately become the fattest and easiest prey in the eyes of every faction across the Northwest Continent!

Those factions would not care whether Su Baichen had forgiven the Snake-People Tribe. They would only seize this tiny chance to curry favor with the esteemed Eighth-tier Alchemist by ruthlessly suppressing—or even exterminating—the Snake-People Tribe, hoping to forge a connection with him!

Never underestimate the terrifying influence of an Eighth-tier Alchemist! Many times, he did not even need to do anything himself. There would naturally be countless people competing to clear away every existence that offended his eyes!

Thinking of this, the Third Elder seemed to see the miserable future of the Snake-People Tribe being besieged by countless factions, its city destroyed, its people dead, blood flowing like rivers, and its entire existence erased from the continent.

Boundless despair engulfed him like an icy tide in an instant. His entire body trembled violently, and cold sweat poured down his body, soaking through his robes at once.

Yet right at the edge of that abyss of despair, his gaze suddenly focused once more on the Transformation Pill in Caidie's hand. A thought flashed through his mind, nearly frozen by fear, like lightning!

"Wait! Transformation Pill... Caidie... maid... Eighth-tier Alchemist..."

The Third Elder's eyes suddenly lit up with a terrifying gleam as he stared fixedly at Caidie, who was still caught between shock and panic.

"An opportunity! A turning point! Our Snake-People Tribe... can still be saved!"

"The hope... rests entirely on her!"