Let Me Explain, Fairy
Chapter 428 - 290: Preparation for the Hunt_2

Chapter 428: Chapter 290: Preparation for the Hunt_2

"....." Bai Muxi.

Facing the gazes of the two women, Xu Yuan nonchalantly took out a military-grade Fasting Pill from the Sumeru Ring, swallowed it to satisfy his hunger, and for the first time found himself somewhat missing Old Man Luo.

If that undying old man who had experienced the great calamity of ghostification had been present, all questions concerning the ghosts would probably have been easily answered.

Unfortunately, it seemed that providence had found a new darling for the old man.

Nevertheless, after a brief contemplation, Xu Yuan still reluctantly offered a fabricated reason:

"Perhaps it’s because the tens of thousands of years were too lengthy, causing the Demon Crystal to vanish. However, I am certain that there was a Demon Crystal inside that ink serpent."

"So what exactly can the Demon Crystal do?" Li Qingyan’s words still went straight to the point.

"The effects of this Demon Crystal are numerous. Just the ones I know of, there are four."

Xu Yuan smiled slightly, counting on his fingers as he said with a smile:

"If you practice the corresponding Cultivation Technique, the Demon Crystal can directly enhance one’s cultivation. Even without a Cultivation Technique to absorb the essence within, it can still continuously strengthen one’s physique and enhance physical recovery. Swallowed directly, the effect is even greater. The Demon Crystal contains the essential life force of the ghosts, which can drastically increase one’s physical condition in a short time."

"Of course, there is a price to pay for everything. Consuming it directly will cause damage to the body’s meridians. Qingyan, you can think of it as a high-level ’Fierce Energy Powder.’"

Li Qingyan listened in silence, her expression unchanged:

"Though these three effects are tempting, they’re not significant enough for you, Changtian, to take the risk. What is the fourth effect?"

"Heh... You really do understand me, Qingyan."

Xu Yuan chuckled, his eyes becoming a bit vacant:

"By consuming the Demon Crystal, the process of ghostification can temporarily be reversed."

"..."

The words fell, into silence.

Li Qingyan’s eyebrows knitted slightly.

Bai Muxi’s eyes flashed with incredulity, and her calm voice lifted slightly:

"Young Master, the ancient records state that once transformed, the process of ghostification is irreversible."

"I know." Xu Yuan raised his hand to indicate she shouldn’t be hasty.

After Bai Muxi realized her own lapse in composure, she immediately regained her demeanor, and said in a low voice:

"Young Master... Is your information reliable?"

Xu Yuan sat cross-legged on the ground, his fingers interlaced on his legs, making up a half-true, half-false story casually:

"Mu Xi, your Underground City is probably something that the Jiatiange and some major Sects built together tens of thousands of years ago as a Blood Nest to study the ghosts, while my information comes from a Saint of the Jiatiange from ten thousand years ago."

Bai Muxi bowed her head, cautiously observing Xu Yuan’s expression, and said:

"It was...presumptuous of Mu Xi to question the Young Master’s words."

Xu Yuan waved his hand to show it was alright and looked at Li Qingyan.

The opinions of Bai Muxi were not important; what mattered was the thoughts of this Princess, who was to play the leading role.

Li Qingyan, however, did not immediately speak but pondered his previous remarks.

After a while,

She spoke softly, "Temporarily reverse?"

Xu Yuan nodded, "Ghostification is an incurable terminal illness; the Demon Crystal of a Mortal Transcendence ghost can only extend this process and allow the original consciousness of the transformed person to persist for a longer time."

A gleam of insight flashed in Li Qingyan’s eyes:

"This palace remembers, Changtian, when you entered the Underground Palace, you told this palace that even if you were to become ghostified, you had a way to save this palace. You weren’t simply boasting, were you?"

Xu Yuan squinted his eyes and smiled:

"Of course not, but the antidote for reversing ghostification is in the deepest part of the Underground Palace; we have to reach there first to obtain it."

There was an antidote to the transformation of the ghosts.

Xu Yuan wasn’t clear on how this antidote was made in the real world, but Cangyuan Chronicles, as a game, wouldn’t have irreversible permanent poisoning effects.

The 2.5D gaming style guaranteed that even the best player operation could not avoid taking damage.

Moreover, there were so many ghosts in this silent Underground Palace, and they loved to group together to attack players; even an expert player like Xu Yuan had to be extremely careful.

If an ordinary player got unlucky and was scratched by a minor monster upon entering the instance, immediately contracting the "ghostification" poisoning effect, were they supposed to just start over?

The Cangyuan Chronicles needed to consider playability and player feedback.

Therefore, the game’s planners designed a rather urgent timed challenge mode.

Poisoned, they would kill an Elite BOSS to burst open a Demon Crystal, consume it to temporarily delay the poison’s effects to cling to life, then quickly delve deeper into the Underground Palace, and do it all over again until they reached the BOSS room and obtained an antidote.

However, now that Ghost Beast, which had most likely gone after the Barbarian King, was not in the picture - the vastness of the Underground Palace meant they could take this chance to sneak their way into the Blood Nest and teleport away.

With these thoughts in mind, Xu Yuan looked towards Li Qingyan and asked:

"So, my Princess, how do you wish to choose?"

"....."

Li Qingyan, with her beautiful eyes cast downwards, her slender fingers habitually toying with the Sumeru Ring, suddenly asked:

"This palace agrees with your plan, Changtian."

Xu Yuan looked back at her and lightly chuckled:

"That was quick. Are you sure you don’t want to think it over? This is marking a Mortal Transcendence Ghost Beast we’re talking about."

"This palace can still discern what’s at stake."

Li Qingyan huffed lightly and gave him a sideways glance, "If we do not follow your plan, we would be at the mercy of fate, praying that we won’t run into any Mortal Transcendence Ghost Beasts on the way."

As she spoke,

a touch of the majestic and spirited bearing befitting a Princess Wu Yuan emerged in her gaze, her lips curving into a slight smile:

"Rather than leave things to fate, this palace prefers to have control over the variables."

Having explained this much, she had roughly figured out the man’s overall strategy.

Adventuring to kill that Mortal Transcendence Ghost Beast to obtain the Demon Crystal within it was a safety measure, and also their trump card to continue delving deeper into the Blood Nest.

As long as they could kill that Mortal Transcendence Ghost Beast and obtain the Demon Crystal inside it, should they encounter an insurmountable foe later on, she could let herself be willingly transformed into a Ghost Beast. While consuming the Demon Crystal to delay the transformation, she would exchange it for more powerful strength.

It was a tightrope walk.

If something went wrong at any point, they were most likely to perish here, but in such a dire situation, was there any path without risks?

Thinking this,

excitement tinged with a smile appeared in Li Qingyan’s fiery phoenix eyes:

"It’s risky, but this palace likes it."

"......."

Xu Yuan felt that the Princess might have been thinking all sorts of miscellaneous things, but seeing her agreement, he no longer said anything else and whispered:

"If that’s the case, Qingyan, proceed as I just directed you. As for Mu Xi, you..."

As he spoke,

Xu Yuan turned to look at Bai Muxi, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes.

Bai Muxi, catching that hint of hesitation, seemed to realize something. She pursed her lips slightly and spoke in a subdued voice:

"Just say the word, sir. Mu Xi will abide by any order you give, only hoping that when you return to the Imperial court, you will not forget about the Underground City..."

"I never said I would use you as bait,"

Xu Yuan immediately realized this woman might think he was planning to use her as bait and laughed as he waved his hand: "You just need to stay close to protect me. Once a fight breaks out, I likely won’t be able to keep up with Qingyan and the others with my level of cultivation. If that Ghost Beast targets me, I will have a teleportation Spellcraft ready inside me, and you will infuse your Origin Qi into my body to help activate it."

After a pause, Xu Yuan thought for a moment and suddenly took out a storage mustard box from the Sumeru Ring. From the box, he retrieved a Sumeru Ring.

Then,

"Boom—"

a thunderous sound erupted as a military Formation Patterns crossbow from the Dayan Empire’s city defenses appeared right in front of the three of them.

"...." Bai Muxi.

"...." Li Qingyan.

Seeing this, Li Qingyan stared at the dozen or so Sumeru Rings in the mustard seed box with her mouth slightly open.

She realized this guy’s wealth was somewhat beyond her imagination.

And that military Formation Patterns crossbow...

Noticing Li Qingyan’s gaze, Xu Yuan immediately returned the look with a light chuckle:

"Don’t be surprised. This was sold to me by the Sects. I also have some other military Source Crystal Bombs that I will set up in advance. When the time comes, I’ll give you a batch and will also have them pre-arranged in some places. We just need to lure that thing over and might be able to blast it to death without fighting."

Having said that,

Xu Yuan looked towards Bai Muxi, pointed at the military Formation Patterns crossbow, and said with a smile:

"Come, Mu Xi, let me teach you how to use this thing first. If you can hit that dark serpent with it, it might make our hunt a lot easier."