Chapter 354: Building the Bloodline Purification Formation
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The alchemy cabin.
Hiss.
A soft click sounded as the hatch slid open.
Zi Di, expressionless, stepped into the alchemy cabin first.
Following closely behind her were two alchemy puppets.
The puppets were equipped with swords and shields, clearly the swordsman guards.
The two swordsman guards carried a fishman, one in front and one behind, into the alchemy cabin.
The hatch closed immediately.
The swordsman guards gently placed the fishman on the ground, then stepped back, firmly guarding the hatch.
The fishman emanated the aura of a silver level magician—it was Zhong Yong.
Zi Di took a vial from her bosom and removed the stopper.
A wisp of yellow-green smoke immediately drifted out of the bottle. It seemed drawn to the fishman magician, approaching him on its own.
The fishman magician was unconscious, but upon sensing the yellow-green smoke, his brows furrowed tightly, and his limbs began to twitch.
Soon, he suddenly opened his eyes amid the twitching.
His eyes were filled with bloodshot veins.
“Where... where am I?”
“What was I doing?”
The fishman magician's vision was blurry, and his mind was foggy, leaving him disoriented.
He heard Zi Di's voice: “Zhong Yong, get up. You've arrived.”
Zhong Yong recognized the familiar voice. He lifted his head and saw Zi Di.
His vision cleared, and his mental faculties quickly returned. The memories of what had just happened flooded back.
“I remember now!”
“I received orders from my family to go to Snow Bird Harbor and join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and from then on, serve them.”
“What I never expected was that I would see Bu Quan on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ship.”
“Bu Quan had also joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, giving them all four of her alchemy workshops, and even agreeing to recruit others to join as well.”
“Most astonishingly, she had no demands regarding compensation!”
As his memories gradually returned, Zhong Yong’s heart was filled with a mix of emotions.
Shock, doubt, pity for Bu Quan, envy for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and hatred for the dragonman youngster.
“Bu Quan's gaze toward Long Fu was off!”
“If I'm not mistaken, she must have fallen for Long Fu.”
“Oh my god, how could this happen...”
“The princess has really been brought away by an outsider!”
Zi Di grew impatient and urged again, “Zhong Yong, the magic potion I gave you to drink doesn't have the side effect of causing limb weakness.”
Her voice startled Zhong Yong, who quickly suppressed his surging emotions.
He immediately stood up.
As a fishman, even when standing straight, his head didn't reach Zi Di's chin.
“Magician Yao Ma,” Zhong Yong bowed slightly to Zi Di, then surveyed his surroundings.
At that moment, he was utterly shocked.
The gold level aura filled the entire ship's cabin.
Even without activating it, Zhong Yong could tell that the alchemy formation in the cabin was of the highest specifications.
Various alchemy tools were neatly arranged along the walls, fully equipped.
A bizarre-looking alchemy puppet stood in an auxiliary position within the alchemy formation. It resembled a giant crab, and as Zhong Yong observed it, it seemed to be observing him in return.
“This... where is this?” Zhong Yong asked.
“Of course, it's our group's secret workshop,” Zi Di said with a smile, her expression calm.
Zhong Yong realized what it was, and his expression grew tense, "Then, what exactly is the content of my assessment?”
No wonder he was tense.
According to the previous agreement, his annual salary would depend on his alchemy abilities.
This required a preliminary alchemy test.
Although Zhong Yong did not want to see Bu Quan join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he could not stop it. He could only watch as Bu Quan signed his name on the contract and recorded his magic power, life force, and other vital signs.
Afterward, the group discussed compensation, and Zi Di proposed the alchemy test.
Both Bu Quan and Zhong Yong had no objections to this process.
Zi Di separated Bu Quan and Zhong Yong, giving Zhong Yong a potion to drink.
After drinking it, Zhong Yong immediately fell into a deep sleep, unconscious.
During this time, Zi Di secretly brought him back to the Deep Sea Monster Fish and directly to the alchemy cabin.
“This is what the test is about.” Zi Di activated the alchemy formation.
After a spatial fluctuation, a piece of formation plate and an incomplete formation diagram suddenly appeared.
They floated slowly through the air and eventually landed in front of Zhong Yong.
He quickly picked them up and examined them carefully.
He had encountered many formation diagram panels before, but gold level ones were rare.
After reviewing them once, he focused his attention on the formation diagram.
It was a fragmented alchemy formation diagram.
Zhong Yong studied it carefully and couldn't help but be amazed.
He couldn't understand it!
“Is the test content this difficult?” Zhong Yong's heart sank, “Or are they intentionally testing such a difficult question just to suppress the salary?”
“Never mind.”
“What can I do?”
“I must join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, even if the remuneration is poor, I have to do it.”
“Plus, Bu Quan has already joined this organization. She not only has no demands regarding salary but also contributed four alchemy workshops!”
“Compared to her, what am I?”
Zhong Yong gradually lost all hope.
Seeing his pale face and dejected expression, Zi Di’s heart couldn’t help but tighten.
After a moment, Zi Di asked, “Tell me, what did you notice about this formation diagram?”
Zhong Yong shook his head, "I'm just too incompetent
“This formation diagram is very incomplete, and I can't deduce the function of the complete formation diagram.”
“I think this should be a human alchemy formation, which seems to have a healing effect on the human body?”
"Pardon my frankness, Magician Yao Ma. The more incomplete the formation diagram, the harder it is to deduce and reconstruct. This incomplete diagram is likely only one-eighth of the original. Deducing the original diagram from this is extremely difficult. Perhaps Miss Bu Quan has the ability, but this task far exceeds my capabilities!"
Zi Di nodded slightly: “I didn't ask you to deduce the original diagram. I am also a magician, so I understand the difficulty involved.”
“The content of this assessment is for you to create this part of the formation diagram and engrave it on the formation diagram panel.”
“Just that?” Zhong Yong suddenly looked up, his face full of surprise.
"Of course. Do you find it difficult?" Zi Di asked with concern.
“This is easy!” Zhong Yong exclaimed with delight, "Although I specialize in potion-making, laying out such a formation is merely basic training.”
“Basic training...” Zi Di recalled the times she and Cang Xu had collaborated, repeatedly attempting and failing, and couldn't help but sigh.
"Then do your best and let me see your basic skills. The alchemy formation here can be lent to you for use. The alchemy puppet within the formation will monitor the entire process and record your work as a magic image. The commander and others will review it.” Zi Di said.
“Got it.”
“Do a good job!” Zi Di reminded him as she stepped out of the cabin.
“Sure thing!” Zhong Yong looked excited.
Meanwhile, on the Love Triangle.
Bu Quan was also studying an incomplete formation diagram.
This damaged formation and the one that tested Zhong Yong both came from the same place—the Bloodline Purification formation.
Zi Di had knocked Zhong Yong unconscious and secretly brought him aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, but she couldn’t treat Bu Quan the same way.
Bu Quan’s status and contract were vastly different from Zhong Yong’s.
Although Zhong Yong had just joined, the strict contract allowed him to gain trust instantly.
Bu Quan, however, was not the same; her contract was very lenient. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could not sign a contract with her that was as restrictive as Zhong Yong's, which was nearly akin to a slave contract.
Bu Quan studied the formation diagram, becoming increasingly engrossed in it.
It wasn't until the dragonman youngster coughed a few times, interrupting her thoughts, that she looked up.
Bu Quan said sheepishly, " Sorry, when I study these alchemy-related things, I get so engrossed that I often lose track of time."
The dragonman youngster smiled, “It's okay.”
Bu Quan also smiled, "Is this the content of this test? It's quite interesting."
“Although the formation's structure is simple, upon closer examination, one can see that despite its simplicity, it is incredibly efficient and harmoniously structured. It must have been created by a master.”
“Hmm... so far, I've only deduced three possibilities.”
“I'll draw it out right away.”
Bu Quan spoke as she extended her index finger, sketching in the air before her.
She manipulated her magic power to linger in the air and take on different colors.
The magic lines intertwined, adorned with magic runes.
The dragonman youngster was dazzled and hurriedly said, “Miss Bu Quan, I think you might have misunderstood our intentions.”
“This test only requires you to construct this incomplete diagram and engrave it onto the formation diagram panel.”
"Ah? Is it that simple?" Bu Quan was taken aback.
Having left Zhong Yong aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Zi Di, who was still uneasy, had just returned when she heard Bu Quan's words.
“Simple...”
Zi Di's eyelid twitched slightly.
However, when she pushed open the captain's cabin door and saw the three possibilities Bu Quan had sketched out in midair, she was still deeply shaken.
80%
Because she keenly noticed that one of the possibilities bore an 80% similarity to the complete formation diagram!
In an instant, she realized the huge gap between herself and Bu Quan.
She also truly understood Bu Quan's innate talent in the field of alchemy for the first time.
“That's amazing!”
“How did you manage to do that in such a short time, Miss Bu Quan?”
“If you had a few days, you could even deduce the complete formation diagram, right?” Zi Di marveled.
Bu Quan's face flushed slightly as she shook her head and replied earnestly, “It's not that simple.”
“The work of deducing the original diagram becomes increasingly difficult as you progress.”
"The initial stages are the easiest. Because we can identify the incomplete diagram and follow the clues."
“But afterward, we have no markers and no direction, so we can only speculate on multiple possibilities, continue to test one by one, and keep undergoing trial and error.”
"The workload here is enormous. The more incomplete the formation diagram, the more so."
"Moreover, not all formation diagrams can be restored. After all, some of the designer's ingenious ideas cannot be deduced conventionally."
Upon hearing this, the dragonman youngster sighed in relief.
He realized that Zi Di’s flattery was actually a probe.
She was worried that Bu Quan might deduce the formation diagram and uncover the secrets of the Bloodline Purification formation.
Bu Quan sighed regretfully, “If I were given a second fragment of the diagram, and it were not closely connected to this one, perhaps I could deduce it within half a year.”
“This formation diagram is not overly complex or intricate.”
“Of course, during this period, I would be unable to attend to other matters.”
Upon hearing this, the dragonman youngster and Zi Di exchanged a subtle glance, both thinking to themselves, “There will be no second fragment of the diagram for you!”
Bu Quan's talent was too outstanding, so much so that it made both the dragonman youngster and Zi Di feel threatened.