Chapter 629: The Life Saint Lotus Pill

As the Divine Beast Glacier Ice Dragon flew into the Dragon Flame Cauldron, Alana triggered the final effect of Asclepius’ Elixir Inquiry. The Asclepius’ Herbal Staff in her hand suddenly erupted with a powerful green light, which surged toward the blue orb at the center of the cauldron. The instant the light was released, Alana pulled the Divine Artifact back out of the cauldron.

Then, an astonishing scene unfolded.

The red dragon and phoenix that had been circling the outside of the cauldron, their bodies wreathed in flames, were immediately drawn toward the green light. With a mighty roar and a piercing cry, they broke away from the cauldron’s exterior and flew inside, following the green radiance toward the blue orb. The red dragon and phoenix joined the blue Glacier Ice Dragon, which was already inside, and the three Divine Beasts converged around the orb, each carrying their own overwhelming power.

Boom!

A thunderous explosion shook the entire chamber.

Inside the Dragon Flame Cauldron, the two divine dragons and the Divine Beast Phoenix began spinning rapidly around the blue orb. Their movements grew faster and faster until ice and fire erupted together, filling the cauldron with a dazzling torrent of energy. The Dragon Flame Cauldron itself seemed to boil and burn beneath the tremendous power gathering inside it. Blinding light flashed from every direction, while the surging ice-fire energy completely obscured whatever was happening within.

About two minutes later, a sharp whoosh tore through the chamber.

A strange red-and-blue light suddenly burst from the cauldron. It illuminated the entire alchemy chamber of the Dragon Flame Pavilion, then continued upward, piercing straight through the walls and shooting into the night sky. The radiance was so conspicuous that every player in Dragon’s Peak Citadel could see it.

"Master, we did it!"

Alana’s voice was filled with undisguised excitement and joy. The moment her words fell, the soaring red-and-blue light vanished as abruptly as it had appeared.

What followed were the delighted roars of dragons and the clear cries of a phoenix.

Within the cauldron, all the scattered energies were rapidly drawn together. The energy-rich environment was still saturated with the power left behind by the refinement, and the two divine dragons and phoenix swam and danced through it almost playfully, greedily absorbing what remained. They had clearly benefited from the process as well.

Amid the swirling energy, a red-and-blue pill slowly emerged and floated into view.

At almost the same moment, the system notification rang out.

Ding!

[Congratulations, player Stonehaven! You and your team have successfully refined the Saint-tier medicine, Life Saint Lotus Pill. Reward: Reputation +500, Alchemy skill +...]

’Success!’

It really was a Saint-tier medicine.

Marcus immediately checked the experience he had gained. His Intermediate Alchemy skill, which he had barely touched since leaving Newbie Village, had actually broken through to Advanced. More surprisingly, it had already climbed to Advanced 89%, putting him only a step away from Grandmaster-level Alchemy.

Princess Phoenix and Princess Celeste, despite neither of them specializing in alchemy, had also benefited enormously from the refinement. Both had reached more than Advanced 60%, bringing them surprisingly close to Grandmaster as well.

As for Alana, she was in a league of her own. She had only recently broken through to Grandmaster, yet the refinement had already pushed her to Grandmaster 45%. She was now not far from reaching Divine-level Alchemy.

The effects of a Saint-tier medicine really were extraordinary.

Marcus looked at the three women gathered around him, then reached into the Dragon Flame Cauldron and carefully retrieved the Life Saint Lotus Pill they had successfully refined together. The pill was small, but the energy contained within it was anything but. Red and blue light flowed faintly across its surface, giving it an almost living quality.

—

Life Saint Lotus Pill: Saint-tier medicine. Usage Requirement: None. Refined from various supplementary materials derived from the Saint-tier herb Three-Star Sacred Lotus, combined with top-tier ingredients and refined within the Divine Artifact Dragon Flame Cauldron through the power of the Divine Beast Phoenix and the Glacier Ice Dragon. Possesses exceptionally powerful healing effects.

Effect: Cures all injuries. Upon consumption, automatically grants the Divine skill Life Saint Lotus. Because the primary ingredients are supplementary materials derived from the Saint-tier Three-Star Sacred Lotus, there is also a high chance of inheriting a portion of the Three-Star Sacred Lotus’s effects.

—

"Wow..."

Marcus stared at the description, unable to hide his surprise.

’A Divine skill.’

He could actually obtain a Divine skill from this pill.

For a moment, the thought of swallowing it himself genuinely crossed his mind. The temptation was enormous, especially when the pill could also grant a chance to inherit some of the Three-Star Sacred Lotus’s effects.

The Three-Star Sacred Lotus had the ability to produce powerful clones, if he remembered correctly. If he could inherit even part of that ability, the benefits would be extraordinary.

But then his eyes fell on the first effect.

Cures all injuries. That was exactly what he needed.

This was a Saint-tier healing medicine, and there was no guarantee that he would ever get another one. Yet there was only one pill, and Marcus already knew where it had to go.

The Yin-Yang Panda was about to become his pet. If there was even the slightest chance that this pill could save it, he could not bring himself to use it on himself simply because the rewards were tempting.

Saving the panda was his responsibility.

Besides, its egg had already absorbed the Saint-tier treasure Harmony Divine Bamboo and evolved into a Super Divine Beast. There was no telling what kind of existence would emerge once it finally hatched. It might very well be no weaker than the Dark Violet Sky Dragon.

He had made his decision, there was no time to waste.

Following Alana’s instructions, Marcus took out the Jade Purification Vase and poured a vat of the prepared mixture into a suitable vessel. The liquid was composed of Green Tide Aged Brew, Millennium Fire-Apricot Wine, and Spring of Purity. He then carefully placed the Life Saint Lotus Pill into it.

Alana immediately dipped the Asclepius’ Herbal Staff into the mixture. As she murmured an incantation under her breath, the staff began glowing with a rich green light. The radiance spread through the liquid, and the Life Saint Lotus Pill began dissolving at an astonishing speed.

They had only about two minutes left.

If Marcus simply poured the pill directly onto the Yin-Yang Panda Egg, there was no guarantee that its medicinal power would take effect quickly enough. That was why Alana had chosen to dissolve it first. By turning the pill into a compatible liquid medium, its medicinal effects could be absorbed much faster.

"Master, it’s ready!"

Less than a minute later, the Life Saint Lotus Pill had completely dissolved under the influence of the Asclepius’ Herbal Staff. Its medicinal power had dispersed throughout the mixture, leaving no trace of the original pill behind.

Marcus immediately took the vessel. There was no room for hesitation now.

He activated every buff he could, maximizing his own attributes as much as possible, then recalled his pets. Even the Glacier Ice Dragon, which had been absorbing the residual energy inside the cauldron, was reluctant to leave. Although the cauldron’s fire attribute was fundamentally incompatible with its nature, the powerful Ice effect had shielded it from the worst of the conflict and allowed it to absorb a considerable amount of the remaining energy, improving its abilities in the process.

But there was no more time, they had to go.

"Wanderlust!"

A flash of light erupted around Marcus.

With a sharp whoosh, his figure disappeared from the Dragon Flame Pavilion and reappeared in the Divine Bamboo Paradise, directly beside the platform altar.

The moment his feet touched the ground, Marcus turned his attention to the egg lying on the altar.

The Super Divine Beast Yin-Yang Panda Egg remained there, silent and motionless.

Marcus did not waste even a second.

Holding the prepared vessel with both hands, he slowly poured the liquid containing the dissolved Life Saint Lotus Pill over the surface of the egg, making sure none of it was wasted.

Crackle...

Rumble...

The instant the medicinal mixture touched the egg, strange sounds began coming from within it.

Marcus’s heart leapt.

He was more excited than he had been in a long time, yet beneath that excitement was a nervousness he could barely suppress.

This was it.

The Life Saint Lotus Pill was their only chance.

Now, all he could do was wait and see whether it would be enough to save the Yin-Yang Panda and finally bring the Super Divine Beast within the egg into the world.