Hua Mo clearly didn't appreciate the fact that Yang Kai, a prisoner, still had the audacity to haggle.
Yang Kai smiled faintly. "Then I can also choose whether or not to help you refine that particular pill when I reach the level of a saint-grade alchemist. Or perhaps, while refining it, I could introduce some undetectable irregularities."
The others' expressions shifted. Han Fei glared at Yang Kai with killing intent practically radiating from her eyes, her face cold and hostile.
"You wouldn't dare!" Hua Mo snarled.
Li Rong reached out to stop Hua Mo's outburst and looked at Yang Kai. "That is a matter for the distant future. I believe that as long as we satisfy your demands, you won't do anything of the sort. Isn't that right?"
"It depends on my mood." Yang Kai shrugged, looking every bit like someone who had them in the palm of his hand.
"State your demands. I was just telling Guan'er that as long as your requests aren't excessive, we can satisfy them unconditionally. In front of you, I'll say the same." Li Rong smiled gently, showing no anger.
Yang Kai studied her and discovered that this elegant, mature woman truly possessed a serene and gentle aura. Her magnanimity seemed capable of embracing everything. Moreover, she was the type of woman who had reached full maturity — even more composed than Yun Xuan, with a constant glimmer of wisdom and composure in her eyes that naturally drew one's sympathy.
With her words, the faint resistance and hostility in Yang Kai's heart dissipated.
He composed his expression and spoke in a deep voice: "I want Divine Sense Fire!"
Li Rong, Han Fei, and Hua Mo's expressions shifted subtly. Li Rong quickly laughed to cover her loss of composure and said softly, "Aren't you yourself a warrior who possesses Divine Sense Fire? Coming to us to ask for Divine Sense Fire — have you perhaps come to the wrong people?"
Yang Kai shook his head calmly, fixing Li Rong with a meaningful look. "Let's not beat around the bush. You know exactly what I mean."
The three of them fell silent.
Seeing their silence, Yang Kai knew he had leverage. Pressing his advantage, he said, "What use are those dozen or so flames of Divine Sense to you? Are you trying to cultivate alchemists who possess Divine Sense Fire of your own? Heh — I'd advise you to give up on that idea. If I'm not mistaken, you've already tried and know what the consequences are. In short, your demon race's physiques are simply not suited for alchemy!"
"You seem to know quite a lot." Hua Mo looked faintly surprised. Although Yang Kai's words sounded disconnected and strange, for those who knew the truth behind the scenes, it was perfectly clear what he was referring to.
"I have the texts that were left behind here to thank for that. There are quite a few cryptic records in them."
"Despicable humans!" Hua Mo gnashed his teeth. They had reviewed every single one of those left-behind texts and confirmed that none contained information detrimental to the Demon God Fortress before allowing Yang Kai to read them. They never expected the texts had still been tampered with.
The exchange between alchemists was far too subtle — impossible to guard against!
Li Rong nodded. "You're right. We do indeed have over a dozen flames of Divine Sense. These flames are the legacies left behind by human warriors captured and brought here by Senior Coffin Slave over countless years. They've been preserved through special methods to this day without the slightest loss of potency."
Yang Kai's eyes lit up. He licked his lips. "That's exactly what I want. Give me those, and I'll fulfill your wish!"
"It's not that we can't give them to you." Li Rong's delicate brows furrowed slightly. "Just as you said, we have indeed harbored thoughts of training our own alchemists who possess Divine Sense Fire. But despite our demon race's physiques being tough and resilient, something seems to be fundamentally wrong — we simply cannot practice alchemy. Moreover, when those clansmen attempted to absorb and merge with the Divine Sense Flames, their own divine sense was incinerated to nothing. Several of them died."
Yang Kai nodded slightly, confirming his suspicions were correct.
Locked away in this small mystic realm for so many years, Yang Kai refused to believe that these demons had only relied on finding human warriors with Divine Sense Fire from the outside world to resolve their predicament. They had been trying on their own as well — they simply hadn't made any progress.
"Your demon race is rather interesting. Your physical attributes surpass those of any other race, so why is it that you simply cannot practice alchemy?" Yang Kai smiled, a touch of schadenfreude in his tone.
"Gain and loss go hand in hand. Precisely because our physical attributes are too powerful — if we could also practice alchemy, would there be any room in this world for other races?"
"It's not that every single demon is incapable of alchemy. In the history of the demon race, there appeared one supreme alchemist — someone so far beyond even your human alchemy masters that they could never hope to catch up!" Han Fei retorted coldly.
"Oh? There was such a person? Who was it?"
Li Rong shook her head slowly, unwilling to say more, and returned to the previous topic. "The flames of Divine Sense are of little use to us. If you want them, we can give them to you. But can you guarantee that you'll be able to safely absorb those flames without dying? If you die, we'll be in considerable difficulty. Finding someone like you is no easy task — Senior Coffin Slave typically only finds one person every decade."
"Do I look like someone who would seek his own death?" Yang Kai grinned.
Li Rong gazed at him intently for a long while before finally giving a slight nod. "Then I'll satisfy your demand. I hope you won't push your luck further."
"Pleasure doing business!"
Li Rong smiled faintly, turned, and walked toward the exit. Her gentle voice drifted back: "Tomorrow I'll have someone deliver the flames of Divine Sense."
"I'll be waiting!"
Han Fei stared coldly at Yang Kai and warned, "You have only ten years. If you can't satisfy us after that, I'll personally make you experience what it truly means to wish you were dead!"
This cold, beautiful woman seemed rather vengeful. Yang Kai had merely said that people like her were the type who ran cold on the outside but warm on the inside, and she had already targeted him this aggressively. He couldn't help but feel a bit helpless about it.