Yan Chihuo watched the thirty-six white pearls dancing before him and thought to himself, As expected, the Heaven Centipede Pearls are completely different after refinement.
These thirty-six white pearls were precisely the refined high-grade Heaven Centipede Pearls. They were worlds apart from the previous ones—only half their original size and semi-translucent, yet containing three times as much spiritual power.
Zihai suddenly slipped out of Yan Chihuo's sleeve and said, "Master, I want to taste one and see what it's like."
Yan Chihuo laughed and scolded, "These are treasures, not your rations."
Zihai said, "I have a faint feeling that consuming this pearl would be of enormous benefit to me."
Yan Chihuo paused, then flicked a Heaven Centipede Pearl out with his finger. Zihai opened his mouth and swallowed it, coiling his body together. Before long, a chill slowly seeped from his body, yet he opened his mouth again. "Master, give me another."
Yan Chihuo flicked another pearl toward him. After the time it took to burn half an incense stick, the chill around Zihai had grown increasingly dense. Still unsatisfied, Zihai asked Yan Chihuo for more Heaven Centipede Pearls.
Yan Chihuo gave him thirteen Heaven Centipede Pearls in all. Zihai swallowed every one, yet still wanted more. Yan Chihuo laughed and scolded, "I can't give you any more. I have uses for the remaining twenty-three."
Only then did Zihai reluctantly circulate his magic power to refine the Heaven Centipede Pearls. Half an hour later, a layer of frost covered his body, while cold qi continued to gush from within him.
By then, Yan Chihuo had already tossed thirteen Heaven Centipede Pearls, stalactite crystal condensate, Warm Jade, and seven other superior spiritual materials into the artifact-refining cauldron. He was wholly focused on refining an artifact and noticed nothing at all.
Seven