Soul Primordial Essence

The receptionist's blatant mental probing disgusted Li Ziran, but the moment he entered, more than a dozen mental probes invaded his Spirit World.

Some only touched the edge before being blocked by the thin layer of shadow, while others seeped into the shadow membrane, but none of them swept directly across his Spirit World as they had just been greeted.

"This waiter is extraordinary!"

Li Ziran instantly made a judgment in his mind, and quickly realized that this was not a mental invasion, but more like a cognitive invasion.

It's not about using your eyes, but rather your mind to detect things; it's more like a habit.

Demon! Soul Vision.

Li Ziran couldn't help but think of the records of Demon in ancient books. It is said that Demon have completely different vision from humans, and instead rely on a unique soul vision to distinguish living beings.

Just like bats use ultrasound for navigation, it is exceptionally unique.

After a brief period of adjustment, Li Ziran didn't take it too seriously. This kind of mental probing was only superficial and did not delve into the core of the Spirit World.

Conversely, in the Black-Red Slave Shop, almost everyone was Demon in disguise, and even among the slaves being sold, there were those who could be seen being spied on by spirits.

Although Emily said that Demon could be seen here, there are just too many of them right now.

This is absolutely a den of Demon.

"That's incredibly arrogant!"

Li Ziran thought to himself, if this were in the East Wasteland, they would have been uprooted long ago. How could they dare to openly probe like this? However, he remained silent and followed behind.

First, we entered the shop's warehouse and went down the stairs to the basement, which was the final packaging room.

Some bear Goblin were stuffing strong Sea Folk warriors into the sea-filled alleyways, sealing them off and packing them up.

They were very fast and their movements were very skilled; they were clearly experienced.

However, the moment Li Ziran entered, dozens of mental scans touched the barrier of the Spirit World.

"Another Demon?"

Li Ziran chuckled inwardly, unsure whether it was a transformation spell or if they had completely possessed the group of bear Goblin.

The moment the group of Goblin sensed Li Ziran, some of them frowned. Clearly, the appearance of a real human here was somewhat unusual.

Li Ziran glanced at it briefly and could roughly figure out the business model of the Black-Red Slave Shop. It did not rely on individual customers; the way to make money should be through large-scale wholesale.

All the shops on Seventh Street were doing the same business.

The continent of Hippo is bordered by deserts, Ice Plains, and Grasslands, while sea routes connect Human Race and Goblin. Coupled with the endless sea and abundant resources, this has laid the foundation for the unique trading methods here.

The transshipment and wholesale of large numbers of slaves could quickly stimulate economic activity.

Emily, following closely behind, looked on with envy. As a seasoned veteran of Hippo Ancient City, she knew better than anyone the value of these slaves, especially shops like this, which were practically raking in money every day.

"Sir, this way please!" The waiter was very polite.

Go down the stairs to the second basement level, which is much more secluded and quiet than the first level.

The view opened onto a corridor with thirteen rooms on either side. Each room had a sign hanging above it, and the doors were tightly shut, but light shone through the cracks, indicating that there were guests inside.

It's like a hotel, but simpler.

The waiter knocked on door number 9 not far away, asked a few questions quietly, and came over shortly after, smiling politely, "Mr. Li, please wait in room 3 for a moment. Our captain will be here shortly."

His title changed; he was no longer called "boss," but specifically "team leader."

After saying that, he went to the end of the corridor and pushed open the third door.

The room was simple, with a plain square table, a teapot and teacups on it, a map and a book of slaves beside it. The decoration was simple, yet elegant.

The other party gestured for Li Ziran to wait a moment, then gently closed the door, leaving only the two of them in the room. Emily, unable to contain her curiosity any longer, asked in a low voice, "Li, they seem to respect you a lot!"

Li Ziran smiled. Respect? That's because they can profit from it.

I found a chair, sat down, and casually glanced at the things next to me.

The map was from Hippo Ancient City, clearly marking the locations of each shop and the Fire Dance. As for the "Slave Register," it provided a detailed introduction to the various slaves in the Black-Red Slave Shop, like a product brochure.

He flipped through it a few times and then put it aside. He wasn't at ease; this was his first encounter with Demon, and he didn't know what this race was like.

He had met Demon merchants before, and his impression was that this race was quite shrewd and cunning. In any case, he had never gained any advantage over Demon.

The current negotiation concerns the business of cultivating Elder Demon. Although he is confident in his skills, whether the Demon are actually willing to invest is another matter.

If Li Ziran hadn't seen the Hippo Ancient City, he probably wouldn't have thought it was anything special. Just like when talking about the prosperity of the Human Race, in Li Ziran's mind it was just about having better food.

But things are different now. This place has piqued his interest, even though he has yet to see the entirety of Hippo Ancient City. He has a feeling that this place was tailor-made for him.

He liked slaves, but he liked spending money recklessly even more.

Here, he can live comfortably by virtue of his own abilities, and even continuously improve his skills.

All living beings on the entire Red Soil Continent gathered in this city-state. These beings were Li Ziran's raw materials. As long as he had money, he could dissect them without limit and then select the most special organs from these beings for transplantation.

This city-state is far superior to Sandrew's private stockpile.

But that's on the premise that he has money.

"So-so, just handling some small business deals," Li Ziran replied, leaning back in his chair. The moment he leaned in, the chair back automatically pressed against him, and at the same time, the teacup on the table began to tilt, the teapot slowly spilling a stream of clear tea.

Li Ziran hadn't expected to see witch-made trinkets here. He wasn't surprised, since he'd seen them at Sandrew's place. According to Sandrew, these things were things the witch had transformed into children. He wondered if breaking the teapot would reveal internal organs or something similar.

"Is this... the witch's teapot?" Emily's interest was piqued. She leaned close to the teapot and whispered, "Give me some rum."

A strange thing happened: the teapot tilted slightly, its spout pointing at another teacup, and rum actually flowed out, instantly filling the entire room with a rich aroma of alcohol.

This broadened Li Ziran's horizons; this little teapot could understand speech.

This should be a Transformation Spell, but it's unclear how the runes are constructed.

Li Ziran closed his eyes and carefully sensed the surface of the teapot. Sure enough, he saw a ring of fine lines on the surface of the teapot. These lines gathered at the lid and formed a distorted, strange character.

The character looks like a centipede and is completely incomprehensible, but two chains extend from the center of the character.

"Oh, this little teapot has chains?" This piqued Li Ziran's interest greatly, since chains represent specific abilities, and he really hadn't expected such a small gadget to involve complex chains.

A surge of joy welled up within him. So, the Transformation Spell could be attached to chains. Since the little teapot possessed special abilities, his Frog must have them too.

Just as I was about to examine the teapot closely, the door suddenly opened, and a young man in a formal suit, with pale skin and a very thin build, walked in, looking like he had albinism. As soon as he entered, he sent out a special mental scan, which quickly withdrew the moment it touched the Shadow Crescent Moon.

He was more restrained, not wandering aimlessly in the Spirit World like the other service provider. After confirming the identity, he asked in a low voice, "Li Ziran? The Organ Witch Doctor? Introduced by Sandrew?"

Li Ziran smiled and nodded; this must be his contact person.

The other person walked in quickly, slamming the door shut. When they looked at Emily, their expression was very unnatural. "This is... your assistant?"

Li Ziran shook his head, "Materials!"

The other party responded with an "oh," without pursuing the matter further, clearly aware of Li Ziran's business. He smiled faintly and said, "My name is Three-Tail, the manager of the Black-Red Slave Shop. I'll be temporarily in charge of liaising with you." Then, as if realizing something was amiss, he twisted his neck repeatedly and chuckled, "You don't mind if I use a different form, do you?"

"I don't mind!" Li Ziran shook his head.

The moment the voice fell, the other's body suddenly elongated. Its human head transformed into a snake shape, its skin turned green, and a greenish Tail rapidly bulged out from its lower back. The Tail tip split into three forks, as if it had three Tail, which was clearly the origin of its name. In a short instant, its entire body became an upright lizard.

Especially that forked tongue, constantly spraying slurries, it was utterly disgusting.

Three-Tail twisted its neck and stretched, laughing heartily, "Much more comfortable this way." It lightly tapped the teapot with its finger, and immediately a phantom image flowed from the spout, entering the teacup. A faint hissing sound could be heard. It picked up the teacup and gently pushed it towards Li Ziran: "Pure Soul Plasma, for humans, nourishing the Spirit World. Not bad, consider it a small gift for my impolite subordinates."

Li Ziran looked down and it seemed as if he could really see souls. He had long heard that Demon were experts on souls, but he never expected that they could actually brew souls into strong liquor.

Li Ziran took a small sip; the dry, pungent taste was incredibly intense. In an instant, his entire soul seemed to ignite, bursting into flames. Just as he was about to resist, a violent force suddenly surged from his stomach, burning throughout his body, and finally transforming into a torrent that rushed into his Spirit World.

This torrent was instantly absorbed by the Shadow Crescent Moon, and with a slight tremor, three more Spirit Crystal appeared.

"Amazing!"

Li Ziran's heart pounded wildly. At his current level, he could barely condense a single Spirit Crystal by devouring a hundred living beings using the Devouring Curse. Yet, after just one sip, three spirit crystals were born, which was equivalent to devouring three hundred living beings in one go.

This wine is truly excellent.

The Soul Plasma.

These four words were directly imprinted in Li Ziran's mind. If he could continue to consume this substance, it wouldn't be long before his Spirit World was filled with crystals, and he might even be able to attempt to become a legendary Witch Priest.

That would be a true transformation for a wizard, like the difference between High Mage and Magister.

"How are you feeling?" the Three-Tail Fox asked with a low chuckle.

"That's impressive!" Li Ziran replied. "This thing must be quite rare."

"It's nothing special, just the souls of a little over a thousand Mage. According to the prices on the Red Soil Continent, it's only worth a little over a hundred gold coins," Three-Tail explained.

Hiss!

Li Ziran gasped instantly; that didn't mean he had just swallowed a gold coin whole.

That's such a waste of money.

Three-Tail seemed quite pleased with Li Ziran's surprise, and laughed heartily, "Li, this is just everyday food. If you really want to satisfy the Commander in the future, I guarantee you can have a small cup every day. We live in the Abyss, but we're not much poorer than the Red Soil Continent. On the contrary, the resources we possess are things you might not be able to buy here."

Li Ziran smiled and nodded. He understood what the other party meant; they were offering him a sweet treat. Conversely, if his abilities didn't meet the standard, he obviously wouldn't get any of these things.

"You must have already seen the baby," Li Ziran asked. "Are you satisfied?"

Three-Tail nodded. "The sample is quite good, it looks just like the mandala from back then. However, since we weren't there at the time, the commander said it would be best if I could see it in person." As he spoke, he gently pushed open the side wall, revealing a huge room with bright lighting.

The ceiling of the room was almost entirely covered with reddish-white Sunstone. In the light of these Sunstone, there was a stone bed. In the very center of the bed lay a woman, and next to her was a green test tube.

The test tube contained a viscous substance, resembling blood or some kind of excrement.

"This is?"

"The operating room that the Commander prepared for you is all set up according to the Blackwind Pass standard. The list provided by Mr. Sandrew contains everything you need. That bottle contains the Demon Essence Blood, paired with the unique Butterfly Girl. I think, Master, you wouldn't hesitate to demonstrate your skills." Three-Tail spoke politely, but his words seemed to brook no refusal.