Caidie's Transformation (3)

Caidie gently stroked the smooth Transformation Pill with her slender fingers. The pill shimmered with flowing light, faintly giving off a medicinal fragrance that refreshed the mind.

She raised her eyes toward the snow-white figure not far away, and her eyes grew slightly warm. The pill glowed softly beneath the sunlight, as though it held all of the young master's care and promises for her.

This favor was far too heavy!

She took a deep breath, then finally placed the pill into her mouth beneath everyone's expectant gazes.

The pill melted the instant it entered her stomach, and a gentle yet vast surge of energy immediately spread through her limbs and bones.

Caidie felt warmth envelop her body. A faint white radiance emerged from within her, initially like fireflies, then growing brighter and brighter until it formed a dazzling cocoon of light that completely wrapped around her.

The cocoon slowly pulsed as if it were breathing with life. Within it, the outline of a figure could vaguely be seen undergoing a wondrous transformation.

Half an hour passed amid silent waiting. When the white light receded like a tide, a pair of straight, slender jade legs with skin as smooth as congealed cream appeared where her coiled snake tail had once been.

Those newly formed legs were as perfect as Heaven's finest masterpiece. They gleamed ivory-white amid the lingering radiance, their curves breathtaking.

Even Su Baichen, who had always been cool and self-controlled, froze slightly when his peripheral vision swept over the sight. He felt a rush of heat shoot straight into his nose and instinctively raised a hand to wipe it, only to find his fingertips stained red.

"Master, why are you having a nosebleed?" Cao Ying blinked her innocent wide eyes and tugged at Su Baichen's sleeve, her little face full of confusion. "Did you accidentally mess up your breathing while cultivating?"

That clear child's voice instantly drew everyone's attention to Su Baichen, focusing on his somewhat awkward nose. Su Baichen inwardly cursed that little traitorous disciple who specialized in exposing him, but he maintained a composed expression as he swiftly wiped away the blood. Clearing his throat, he tried to salvage his image. "It is nothing. Recently... I have eaten too many heating foods. It is merely internal heat."

He shot Cao Ying a faintly warning glance, then added in a "gentle" tone, "So that you will not get overheated and have a nosebleed too, it seems I will have to add a dish for you tomorrow—Bamboo Shoot Fried Meat. It will help cool you down in advance, and incidentally cure that habit of yours of talking nonsense and overthinking!"

Without waiting for Cao Ying to react, Su Baichen had already turned and headed toward the cave. His steps appeared calm but were actually somewhat hurried, while the faint redness of his ears exposed how far from calm he truly was.

"Ah? Master! No!" Cao Ying's little face immediately fell as she chased after his retreating figure and wailed, "Why, Master? I... I did not say anything this time!"

Caidie, standing nearby, was already struggling not to laugh. She hurriedly covered her mouth with a slender hand, but she could not conceal the amusement in her eyes or the faint trace of pride there.

Though the young Cao Ying did not understand, Caidie knew perfectly well. A warm current of shyness and delight rippled through her heart. So... this new appearance of mine is actually this alluring in the young master's eyes?

Just as Caidie's heart fluttered, the Third Elder beside her was already dumbfounded. His shock far surpassed the little exchange between Cao Ying and Su Baichen.

His senses remained firmly locked onto Caidie, and he could clearly detect that vast aura—nine-star Dou Wang!

Before taking the Transformation Pill, Caidie had only been a six-star Dou Wang. Yet a single Transformation Pill had allowed her to leap three stars in a row! This was absolutely not an effect an ordinary Transformation Pill could possess. It could only be due to the extraordinary medicinal power contained within it—and this was merely its residual medicinal power!

As its name implied, the Transformation Pill's primary purpose was to help cultivators undergo transformation.

Yet Caidie's cultivation had now surged by three stars. Perhaps only this Transformation Pill could explain it. Even its residual medicinal power was already so terrifying; one could only imagine how immense the energy contained within the pill itself had been!

Even more astonishingly, Caidie's suddenly gained three stars of cultivation were exceptionally solid, without the slightest sign of instability.

This meant that Caidie had not only gained a massive increase in cultivation within a short time, but every bit of that cultivation was genuine, with no hollowness at all. Such an improvement was exceedingly rare for any cultivator.

Master Su's alchemy was simply unfathomable!

Just as the Third Elder's mind surged with excitement and he was nearly ready to kneel before this miraculous alchemy, a familiar, cool voice sounded beside his ear and pulled him back to reality.

"Third Elder, I wonder how you are feeling now."

The Third Elder abruptly raised his head and met Caidie's eyes, which had regained their clarity and depth. Her gaze was complicated, holding the estrangement of one who had once been hunted, as well as an understanding of the present situation. There was no longer any trace of the confusion from her amnesia.

"Y-you... you have recovered your memories?" The Third Elder's voice was dry with disbelief. From the conversation earlier, he had clearly heard that Caidie had lost her memory because her soul was injured. Yet the Caidie before him had sharp eyes and a steady aura. How could she still possess even the slightest trace of ignorance?

Caidie nodded faintly and parted her red lips. "That is right. The young master's pill had miraculous effects. Not only did it help me reshape my body, granting me the human talent for cultivation and greatly increasing my cultivation, it also nourished my damaged soul. Naturally, my memories returned."

Feeling the surging power within her body and the clear memories in her mind, Caidie's gratitude toward Su Baichen became even more immeasurable. What the Transformation Pill had given her was rebirth, hope, and a tremendous fortune far beyond anything she could have imagined.

Upon hearing this, the Third Elder's expression became incomparably complicated. The person before him had been the "traitor to the tribe" he had been ordered to capture not long ago. Yet in the blink of an eye, she possessed power capable of affecting the fate of the entire Snake-People Tribe and had become the only link to that mysterious expert.

Queen Medusa's fate remained unknown. The tribe was beset by crises within, while powerful enemies watched from without... Perhaps this Second Young Lady, who had obtained a new life, was already the Snake-People Tribe's last hope.

Thinking of the desperate situation facing the tribe and the heavy burden upon his shoulders, struggle and shame flashed over the Third Elder's face before finally turning into resolve.

He took a deep breath as if exhausting all his strength. His voice carried endless sincerity and humility as he deeply bowed to Caidie.

"Second Young Lady... all that happened in the past was this old man's fault. You may beat or punish me as you wish; I will bear no resentment. But now, we have offended Senior Su! The influence of an Eighth-tier Alchemist is far too great, and outside forces are eyeing us like tigers. Our Snake-People Tribe has reached the brink of life and death!"

He raised his head. His aged eyes were already bloodshot, filled with his last hope and plea.

"This old man begs you! For the sake of our shared bloodline, for the countless tribespeople struggling to survive, please save the Snake-People Tribe!"

Before his words had even faded, this elder of lofty standing within the Snake-People Tribe heavily dropped to his knees before Caidie, pressing his forehead deeply into the sand.