Grakk watched in disbelief as his ultimate attack was dismantled piece by piece.
The orc's eyes reflected both shock and a dawning realization of his own powerlessness. His once formidable soul energy was nearly depleted, and he hovered in the air, exhaustion evident in every aspect of his being.
"How... how can this be?" Grakk murmured, his voice barely audible. "You are just an awakening stage brat who hasn't even begun to dip his toes in the great dao of the heavens and yet… you… what is this abominable soul strength?"
Liam did not bother answering him. Instead, he wordlessly stepped forward, appearing in front of Grakk in a single step. He then clutched the neck of the huge orc, the massive being collapsing in his grasp.
His soul disintegrated into bits and pieces that scattered and dispersed in all directions. But with a single gaze from Liam, the wisps froze in place.
Liam immediately sat down right there in the soul space, floating in the middle of nowhere as he started absorbing the disintegrated soul wisps one by one. A surge of energy coursed through him. The entire soul space thrummed with power.
Memories and experiences of the orc flooded his mind.
Liam flinched in pain again. The orc's soul depth was truly immense. He had gotten lucky. If the whale octopus hybrid monster hadn't done a number on him both body and soul, he would have by now bitten more than he could chew.
Even after the remnant will was completely taken care of he only dared to assimilate three of the soul wisps at a time. Liam snapped out of his trance after some time. He then immediately collapsed on the floor of the system room unable to keep his eyes open even for a second. He was completely mentally exhausted.
He only stirred awake after a couple of hours. When he flashed his eyes open, the first thought that entered his mind was surprisingly of the pill he had seen a while back.
Liam was confused for a moment but then a smile appeared on his face. Perhaps because it was the last pill he had seen, the devil's ice pill was at the top of his mind and more importantly, he, or rather Grakk knew exactly how to make it.
As an added bonus, he knew of a better method to concoct it than the one that was currently in use—a secret tip to make the efficiency improve by leaps and bounds.
Liam immediately began sorting through the various ingredients he had collected during his travels, his mind racing with newfound insights.
One by one he took out several herbs from his spatial artifact. As for the herbs he was missing he was easily able to deduce which alternatives he could use and how he could modify the formula.
After he was done with the herbs, he took out an alchemy cauldron from his spatial artifact. Lastly, he took out one of the black ice rocks and got to work. He placed his hand on the cauldron and the next second roaring flames came alive that engulfed the bottom half of the vessel.
The cauldron began to warm, emitting a soft hum that resonated with the ambient energy in the room. He arranged the herbs in a specific order, each placement intentional and calculated based on the intricate knowledge he had gained from Grakk.
After adjusting the temperature to the perfect dial, he began. First, he added the Frost Lotus petals, their icy blue hue shimmering as they dissolved into the cauldron. Next came the Midnight Orchid, a rare flower that bloomed only under a new moon, its essence vital for stabilizing the potion's volatile components. He carefully measured out powdered Moonstone, sprinkling it evenly to enhance the pill's absorption properties.
Holding the black ice rock, Liam examined it closely. The rock emanated a cold aura, tiny ice crystals forming on its surface. This was the core ingredient—the catalyst that would transform the mixture into the Devil's Ice Pill. He crushed the rock into fine granules, feeling the chill seep into his fingertips.
As he added the granules to the cauldron, the concoction hissed and released a burst of frosty mist.
"Now for the crucial part," Liam murmured to himself. He began channeling his ice dao seed energy into the mixture. Having an ice dao seed was a requirement to concoct this version of the pill.
The mixture immediately reacted, swirling and shifting colors, from deep indigo to vibrant turquoise.
Minutes turned into hours as Liam maintained his focus, carefully controlling the flame and the infusion of energy. Beads of sweat formed on his brow. He monitored the concoction's consistency, waiting for the exact moment to proceed to the next step.
At the precise instant the mixture reached optimal stability, he added the last ingredient, a small wildflower that contained a hint of poison.
Immediately, the entire concoction swelled up looking as if it was going to burst but after a moment everything simmered down. The entire concoction hissed and roared before disappearing into wisps of icy hues, leaving behind nothing but a small round-shaped pill.
Liam grinned in satisfaction as he picked up the pill in his hand. He could feel the immense power emanating from the pill, a concentrated essence of icy energy. The Devil's Ice Pill glowed softly in his palm, its surface swirling with frosty patterns that seemed to move of their own accord. The air around him chilled noticeably, tiny crystals of ice forming and drifting gently to the ground.
However, after a few seconds of inspection, he could only frown. The pill in his hand was simply not good enough. With this, he couldn't possibly achieve what he wanted. But this was just the first try so he did not mind.
Liam placed the pill in a bottle and immediately began the second attempt. This was it. This was his way inside the eternal sword palace. So even if it took a hundred attempts, he was going to see through it and get it done.