Late at night, the moon hung high in the sky.
The three demons did not disappoint Mo Fan’s expectations. In less than three days, they had tied up that rascal Rattlesnake and brought him to the Spring Pool Cave.
“Red Eyes, you scoundrel, where’s the monkey wine you promised?!”
“Heh, no monkey wine, but snake stew is coming right up!”
The rabbit demon Red Eyes grinned, leading the way, while the ox demon Da Li and Mr. Pig flanked Rattlesnake, each pulling a rope that bound him tightly in the middle, rendering him immobile, his body practically dragged along.
“You wretched rabbit, you dare to scheme against me!”
“The Great King Grandpa set the rule long ago that demons of the same mountain must not kill each other. What are you lot planning by bringing me here?!”
“You’ve got some nerve!”
“Aren’t you afraid that Lord One-Eye Ding will find out?”
“Aren’t you afraid of the Fourth General investigating?!”
“If you don’t want to die, release me now. I’ll report this to Lord Poison Eye and the Fourth General, and then that toad Lai Bao will face the Great King Grandpa’s punishment…”
In the midst of the three demons, the snake demon Rattlesnake kept shouting, his vertical pupils darting around, a trace of anxiety creeping onto his face.
He wasn’t stupid. He had already figured out why these three had brought him here.
It must be that Lai Bao coming to settle scores with him.
At this thought, Rattlesnake inwardly cursed that toad with every fibre of his being.
Sure enough, as they entered the cave, a figure soon appeared before Rattlesnake’s eyes.
“Master, we’ve caught this slippery snake!”
Red Eyes bowed to Mo Fan, then signalled for Da Li and Mr. Pig to push Rattlesnake forward.
Mo Fan looked closely and confirmed that the creature before him was indeed the human-headed, snake-bodied Rattlesnake. A slight smile curved his lips as he turned to the three demons and asked, “No other demons noticed, right?”
“Rest assured, Master. We planned this meticulously. No other demon will know!”
Red Eyes patted his chest confidently, grinning.
“Oh? What kind of plan?” Mo Fan grew curious.
In his mind, these three were stronger than the average small demon, but not exactly sharp-witted. What clever idea could they have come up with?
“It was all thanks to Mr. Pig this time. He had me deliberately run into Rattlesnake, then used our last dice game as an excuse to pick a fight. Mr. Pig stepped in as the peacemaker, suggesting we gamble again.
If I won, Rattlesnake would owe me five hundred stones of meat, and the previous matter would be forgotten.
If Rattlesnake won, the previous matter would still be forgotten, but I’d have to give him the spiritual monkey wine you granted me.
With the spiritual wine as bait, this slippery snake took the hook.
As planned, I lost again, luring Rattlesnake into the trap.
The rest was simple. I tricked him into believing the monkey wine would only reach its full potency if drunk at midnight, when its spiritual energy peaks.
To seize this opportunity, Rattlesnake wouldn’t share the news with others. He wanted it all for himself. So, he fell into our trap, and we nabbed him and brought him straight to your cave, Master.”
Red Eyes explained with a flourish, his face brimming with excitement.
Mo Fan nodded, impressed by his three loyal demons.
He had to admit, they had done an excellent job this time. Using the spiritual wine as bait to hook Rattlesnake, they had also banked on his greed, ensuring he wouldn’t share the wine with other demons. With the cover of night, no one would know his whereabouts.
“Well done. You may leave now. I’ll take care of Rattlesnake from here!”
Mo Fan praised the three demons with a nod of approval, which thrilled them. They left joyfully.
As demons, their thoughts weren’t overly complex. Having chosen to follow Mo Fan, they obeyed his orders wholeheartedly.
As for whether this would offend One-Eye or the Fourth General, they didn’t care much.
After all, their Master Lai Bao would handle everything.
“Lai Bao, you dare have your underlings tie me up!”
“What do you want?!”
Rattlesnake overheard the demons’ conversation and now deeply regretted his greed. But seeing the three demons leave, panic set in, and he could only glare at Mo Fan, putting on a brave front.
“What I’m going to do, you’ll find out soon enough!”
Mo Fan grinned. He had waited a long time for this final ingredient.
Even if Rattlesnake hadn’t crossed him multiple times before, Mo Fan wouldn’t have spared him for the sake of cultivating the Ten Thousand Poison Spirit Body.
“I’m a demon under One-Eye Ding and the Fourth General. You dare harm me?!”
Rattlesnake gritted his teeth, glaring at Mo Fan.
“One-Eye is nothing!”
Mo Fan sneered, then said slowly, “As for the Fourth General Poison Fang… don’t worry, he won’t outlive you by much!”
As Mo Fan approached step by step, Rattlesnake began to sweat coldly, his face filled with fear. He said gravely, “The Great King Grandpa set a rule against demons of this mountain killing each other. If you harm me, you’re breaking his rule, and you’ll be punished!”
“You’re absolutely right. So rest assured, no one will know you’re missing.”
“You…”
Seeing the cold smile on Mo Fan’s lips, Rattlesnake fell into complete despair. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, a flash of red light passed through Mo Fan’s eyes, and Rattlesnake froze.
Under the control of Mo Fan’s Charm Eye, Rattlesnake was entirely subdued. Mo Fan extracted all the venom from his body, then swallowed him whole. In the end, Rattlesnake vanished without a trace in Mo Fan’s internal space, transforming into a pure stream of demonic energy that nourished him.
“Snake demon venom!”
Mo Fan looked at the fist-sized black orb floating before him, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
This black orb was the concentrated venom from Rattlesnake’s body.
Mo Fan opened his mouth, and four other orbs of varying sizes appeared before him.
“The five poisons are finally complete. It’s time to begin the final three medicinal baths!”
Suppressing his excitement, Mo Fan headed to the spring pool to find Bai Yao Yao to tend the fire for him.
Soon, the seventh medicinal bath began.
But Mo Fan had underestimated the terrifying nature of the five poisons. In the end, even the magical cauldron was corroded, leaving a large hole.
If even the magical cauldron was damaged, the agony Mo Fan endured during the bath was unimaginable.
Fortunately, the seventh bath was a success, and Mo Fan breathed a sigh of relief.
Upon introspection, he was surprised to find that the poisonous vortex above his dantian was starting to crystallise, as if the toxins were transitioning from gas to solid. This furrowed his brow, unsure if it was a blessing or a curse.
Even the human skin scroll had not mentioned this phenomenon.
Since he didn’t understand, Mo Fan could only explore it slowly, taking it one step at a time.
Thankfully, after several experiments, he found that the crystallisation of the vortex didn’t affect his control over the toxins, which eased his mind.
But looking at the even more damaged magical cauldron in the corroded pit on the ground, Mo Fan felt a headache coming on.
It seemed the Ten Thousand Poison Body wouldn’t be so easy to cultivate in the short term.
