Die clutched her chest, feeling her heart pounding wildly. Her face was flushed red, almost glowing with heat.
"H-he likes me too... Ahhh! This is so embarrassing!"
After taking a moment to calm herself, she quickly ran away, too flustered to linger.
[Ding! Affection +1. You have received 1 Affection Coin.]
"I didn't expect that confessing would raise her affection so much."
With this, his Host Level Experience had reached 93, and Die's affection had risen to 91.
"If a simple confession got me this much, what would happen if I kissed her...?"
Chen Mo suddenly felt expectant. Although he hadn't reached the level where they could become Dao Companions yet, surely a small kiss wouldn't be too much?
Shaking his head to push those thoughts away, Chen Mo reassessed his condition.
When he had said he was fine earlier, he meant that his injuries weren't life-threatening. However, as the saying goes, 'injuries to the tendons and bones take a hundred days to heal.' He could still feel sharp pain throughout his body.
Walking around normally wasn't a problem, but if he moved too quickly, the wounds inside would start acting up.
"Looks like I'll have to put off practicing Dou Techniques for now."
Curious about his new skill, Chen Mo opened the system menu to examine it.
According to its description, Top-Tier Fire Control allowed him to manipulate flames with absolute precision, freely controlling their size and temperature.
In other words, his idea of recreating the Buddha Fury Lotus Flame wasn't just a fantasy anymore—it was possible.
Moreover, this talent was a godsend for alchemy.
However, it wasn't all-powerful. It wouldn't assist him in absorbing or refining flames—that still depended on his cultivation and techniques.
After getting a general understanding of his abilities, Chen Mo turned his attention to the Sacred Alchemist's Codex.
He began searching for pills that could help heal his injuries and boost his cultivation.
Among the Tier 1 Pills, he found several useful ones:
Healing Elixir – The best pill for restoring injuries.
Coagulation Powder – Aids in blood clotting.
Rejuvenation Powder – Helps in physical recovery.
Fire Condensing Pill – Increases absorption efficiency for fire-attributed energy.
Qi Gathering Pill – Enhances the absorption rate of Dou Qi.
Chen Mo carefully copied down the necessary ingredients and stepped out of his room.
However, the moment he took a step outside, two long spears crossed in front of his neck.
"Without Her Majesty's orders, you are not allowed to leave this room."
Two powerful Snake-People guards, standing on either side of the door, blocked his path.
Using the system's probe function, Chen Mo identified their cultivation level—both were Da Dou Shi.
"So, Queen Medusa really is treating me like a slave, huh? She even restricted my freedom."
He silently cursed in his heart.
"Just you wait, one day I'll pin you down on a bed and... give you a good beating. Make you call me master!"
Of course, outwardly, he remained composed.
Smiling, Chen Mo gently pushed aside the spears and asked, "Big brothers, do you have an alchemy room or any shops selling herbs?"
"Then... did Her Majesty say what supplies I'm allowed to request?"
"Uh... Can I at least visit Die, Her Majesty's sister?"
Finally, one of the guards responded.
"Damn, do they have to be this stingy with words?"
Feeling a headache coming on, Chen Mo took a deep breath to calm himself.
Then, he handed over the list of ingredients.
"Could you at least take this to Queen Medusa? Ask if she can provide these herbs... and an alchemy cauldron?"
The two guards exchanged glances, before one took the list and nodded.
After ensuring the other guard remained on duty, the first left.
Within her majestic and imposing palace, Queen Medusa reclined lazily on her throne.
Her slender hand propped up her head, while the other held a sheet of paper.
A faint, intrigued smile curled her lips.
"Interesting. He actually knows how to refine pills?"
Her red lips parted slightly as she commanded, "Very well. Prepare what he needs... however—"
A small mountain of herbs and a basic alchemy cauldron were delivered to Chen Mo.
One of the guards sternly informed him,
"These were prepared at Her Majesty's orders. However, there is a condition—90% of all pills you refine belong to Her Majesty."
Chen Mo's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Ninety percent?! Are you sure you didn't mishear that?! That's highway robbery!"
Ignoring his protests, the guards left the room.
Chen Mo nearly cried.
"This damn Queen is nothing but a ruthless extortionist!"
Still, since the ingredients belonged to her, he had no choice but to accept.
"Fine, fine... But just you wait. One day, I'll turn the tables."
To his surprise, the process was much easier than expected.
Using Top-Tier Fire Control, his control over the flames was flawless.
Less than half an hour later, Chen Mo successfully refined his first Healing Elixir.
The pill was the size of a dragon's eye, with a rich brown color and a potent medicinal fragrance.
Even better—it was nearly perfect, with only minor impurities.
The only flaw lay in the cauldron. Since it was a low-quality one, he had to limit the flame's intensity to avoid damaging it, which resulted in slight imperfections.
Without hesitation, he swallowed the pill.
After about ten minutes of meditation, his injuries began healing significantly.
Encouraged, he moved on to refining three pills at once.
An hour later—three more Healing Elixirs were successfully produced.
However, this still wasn't his limit.
Unfortunately, Queen Medusa had only provided him with five sets of ingredients per pill type.
Thus, he proceeded to refine the Recovery Essence Liquid, using all five portions at once.
By nightfall—all herbs had been used, and all pills had been successfully refined.
That evening, Chen Mo handed the allocated pills to the guards.
"Here. These bottles contain the pills for Her Majesty."
One guard examined them and frowned. "Only two per batch? Where's the rest?"
Chen Mo feigned indignation.
"Do you even understand alchemy? There's always ingredient loss during refinement! Given the amount of materials, producing two per batch is already a miracle. I even failed with the Recovery Essence Liquid!"
The guard narrowed his eyes suspiciously but took the bottles and left.
As soon as the door closed—
Chen Mo smirked slyly.
"You have your tricks? Well, I have mine."
Did they really think he'd let them take 90%?
Queen Medusa held one of the brown-colored pills between her fingers, her eyes filled with surprise.
"These... were all made by him?"
A guard bowed deeply.
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