Chapter 96: Chicken Stewed With Mushrooms

Yaoshi Holy Land, Outer Sect, a certain secret chamber.

“Five hundred years ago, the Dragon Cauldron Alchemy Master gathered numerous spiritual herbs to refine a batch of Dragon Essence Pills. There were ten pills in total. Just one of them can significantly boost an alchemist’s soul power and even grant them a chance to inherit a wisp of the Dragon Cauldron Alchemy Master’s Dragon Essence Heavenly Flame. Unfortunately, as time passed, only four of the ten pills remained. And this is one of them.”

Zhou Ji explained the pill’s origin as he pointed to the floating, glass-colored pill hovering in the air.

Across from him sat a handsome middle-aged man. He was one of the very few male alchemists in the Yaoshi Holy Land. He was a top-tier Sixth Rank alchemist named Mei Jiji.

At this moment, Mei Jiji’s entire body trembled in disbelief. The legendary pill had actually appeared before his very eyes. Ah! That rich medicinal fragrance….it was definitely a top-grade pill!

“Brother Zhou, this, I… I…”

Mei Jiji was so overwhelmed with emotion that he couldn’t speak.

“Come now, Brother Mei, have a seat. Let’s chat slowly.”

Zhou Ji pulled Mei Jiji over, and the two sat down beside a table that had clearly been prepared in advance.

Then, Zhou Ji walked behind a folding screen, and not long after, he came out holding a small pot that gave off an enticing aroma of meat.

Mei Jiji was stunned once more. At his level, he was still being tempted by the smell of food? It had to be top-tier ingredients!

Bang!

Zhou Ji placed the small pot on the table, then picked up a wine flask. As he poured, he said,

“Come, Brother Mei, have a taste of this dish I personally made…Mystic Spirit Bird stewed with Spirit Chun Mushrooms.”

Hearing this, Mei Jiji’s eyes widened in shock.

“The legendary spirit bird, the Mystic Spirit Bird! Brother Zhou, you actually… stewed it!?”

Zhou Ji waved his hand nonchalantly and said,

“Brother Mei, it’s been so long since we last met. Plus, both our names share the character “Ji”. That’s fate right there! It’s just a Mystic Spirit Bird. Let’s treat it as a little celebration for our reunion. Cheers!”

With that, Zhou Ji raised his cup. Mei Jiji quickly followed suit.

The two clinked their cups and each took a sip.

After taking a sip and setting his cup down, Mei Jiji asked,

“Brother Zhou, where did you get that pill?”

Zhou Ji picked up the wine flask and refilled Mei Jiji’s cup as he replied,

“From the Inner Sect’s Sect Master.”

“Oh wow! Brother Zhou, that must have cost you a fortune!”

“Not at all, just a modest eighty thousand spirit stones.”

Zhou Ji didn’t seem the least bit distressed about it.

Now it was Mei Jiji’s turn to feel awkward. He couldn’t possibly accept such a precious pill without giving something in return.

“Brother Zhou, you’ve given me such a rare and valuable pill. I must repay you in some way.”

“No need, no need. Today is all about good food and drink between brothers. Let’s not talk about anything else.”

“Brother Zhou, now that’s too polite. As long as it’s within my ability, I’ll definitely do it!”

“Really?”

“I give you my word!”

Zhou Ji held up one finger and said,

“One person.”

“One person?” Mei Jiji looked puzzled.

Zhou Ji took a sip of wine and said,

“Yes, I want you… to capture someone for me.”

“Haha, that’s easy. With so many people in Yaoshi Holy Land, one going missing is nothing unusual,” Mei Jiji said confidently, then asked,

“Who is it?”

Zhou Ji swirled the wine in his cup and slowly said,

“The Saintess, Liu Xueyao.”

The atmosphere instantly turned tense.

Mei Jiji forced a laugh.

“Her Highness the Saintess… haha… Brother Zhou, what do you want with the Saintess?”

If this got found out, he would be as good as dead.

Zhou Ji picked up a piece of meat and placed it in Mei Jiji’s bowl, saying,

“Brother Mei, the Yaoshi Holy Land has oppressed us men for long enough. Are you really willing to keep submitting to them? With your alchemy skills, even the Inner Sect Elders might not be your match.”

“But… the Holy Master said recently that if I break through to become a Seventh Rank alchemist, I could be granted entry to the Inner Sect,” Mei Jiji replied, visibly torn.

“Brother Mei, hear me out. The prettier the woman, the less you can trust her words. The Holy Master has been in seclusion for a long time and rarely issues any orders. How do you know whether that news is even real? They’ve faked the Holy Master’s orders more than once,” Zhou Ji said, staring directly at him.

Mei Jiji began to waver.

“Then what… what should I do?”

Zhou Ji pointed to himself and said,

“Me.”

“Brother Zhou?”

“That’s right…more precisely, us.”

“Us?”

Now Mei Jiji was completely confused.

Zhou Ji smiled and said,

“We’ve been lying low in the Outer Sect for a long time. In fact, we even have eyes inside the Inner Sect. Once the time is right, we’ll open the Spiritual Vein Tree and seize the Spiritual Vein Elixir. When that happens, the entire Yaoshi Holy Land will be ours!”

Hearing this, even Mei Jiji began to waver. It was true….Yaoshi Holy Land had been oppressing them for far too long.

After hesitating for a while, Mei Jiji took a deep breath and said,

“Alright! I’ll do it, Brother Zhou!”

“Haha, excellent, Brother Mei!”

Zhou Ji raised his wine cup, and Mei Jiji raised his as well.

“For us!”

The two spoke in unison, then clinked their cups with a clang and downed the contents in one gulp.

“Gah!” Mei Jiji swallowed the wine and then asked,

“So what’s the plan?”

Zhou Ji took out a jade slip, which contained some intelligence, and said,

“According to the information, Her Highness the Saintess is urgently recruiting alchemists. With your skills, Brother Mei, it’ll be easy for you to get close to her. The Saintess is only at the middle stage of Sixth Rank cultivation. With your peak Sixth Rank strength, wouldn’t she be easy to handle?”

“Alright!” Mei Jiji agreed without hesitation, but then changed his tone. “However, Brother Zhou, I’d like to add a condition.”

“Hmm? A condition?”

Zhou Ji looked at Mei Jiji.

Mei Jiji grinned and said, “Kidnapping the Saintess is a huge risk. Just one Dragon Essence Pill…don’t you think that’s a bit…?”

“Haha, fair point, fair point.” Zhou Ji nodded, then flicked his finger, and an image of a young woman in red robes appeared. He said, “I can offer Brother Mei a little extra help. I heard you’ve been looking for someone with the Medicine Spirit Physique. This girl…she’s exactly that.”

Mei Jiji was instantly shocked. Of course he recognized the girl in red. “She’s the Holy Master’s adopted daughter!”

Although the Holy Master had been in seclusion for the past century, she was a cultivator with one foot already in the Ninth Rank. Touching her adopted daughter… would mean death without even ashes left behind.

“Brother Mei, once we pull this off, the Yaoshi Holy Land will be ours. Forget the Holy Master’s adopted daughter. What about the Holy Master herself, hmm?”

Zhou Ji raised an eyebrow.

Zhou Ji’s words left Mei Jiji in heavy silence.

Zhou Ji wasn’t in any rush. He simply waited calmly for Mei Jiji’s reply.

After a moment, Mei Jiji spoke in a low voice, “Alright! I’ll go crazy with you, Brother Zhou!”

“Brother Mei! That’s the spirit!”

Zhou Ji clinked his cup with Mei Jiji’s once again.

After setting down his wine cup, Zhou Ji said, “In that case, tomorrow at Little Green Lake, I’ll send someone to discuss the detailed plan with you. My man will say, ‘The Heavenly King covers the Tiger’.”

Mei Jiji was just about to respond with “The Pagoda suppresses the River Demon”, but then he caught sight of a piece of Blackspirit Bird meat in his bowl and changed his answer: “I’ll say, ‘Little chicken stewed with mushrooms’.”