Supreme Emperor of Mist

Chapter 166: Mountain and Sea Sublime Painting (3)

"Splits around and asked the people politely. Make sure that you questioned everyone local if they had an idea about something called Fire Elemental Bloodstone." Han Xue ordered.

"We'll get it done perfectly! Everyone spreads around and starts asking!" another hot-blooded member of Han Xue's Assassination Team replied. Their action was like sweeping across the few smaller strongholds and leaving no secret unrevealed.

"Old man, how long have you been living here? Two generations?"

"Is there anything related to Bloodstones or Fire Elemental resources that appeared before in this Flame Demon Mountain?"

"Please share with us everything you know... We're doing this on behalf of Commander Qin or Alchemist Qin."

They went from one stronghold to another. And it was not a simple one-day task. Even with manpower of close to two hundred people, it still took Han Xue three days to barely finish his mission.

But finishing doesn't mean completing.

The information taken from close to ten thousand local residents will need to undergo a vetting process before it can be compiled into a detailed report. Only after going through all these processing can this report be qualified to rest on top of his respected young master's table.

And to Han Xue, such a task is like a test of his ability.

...

Another three days have passed after Qin Lan entrusted Han Xue to search for the Fire Elemental Bloodstone. As for the Yao Beast Blood, it had increased to sixteen types. This shows how abundant are the resources around this area.

While to the people from the Country of Wei, they're already here for an entire week.

Although Peng Yan seems to be having fun and flirting with Qin Lan all the time, she still managed to get her work done. The trade business between the Country of Wei and Demon Mountain Fort actually went on smoothly, thanks to her friendly attitude and willingness to share the information privy to both sides.

"I've heard that you're looking for something called Fire Elemental Bloodstone. At least that's from what my people told me." Peng Yan initiates a conversation with Qin Lan as she stands obediently beside him.

The latter was in the middle of refining a few batches of Turbulence Pill and Essence Transformation Pill at the same time.

"Your information network is quite good. What's about it? Are you interested in the Fire Elemental Bloodstone as well?" Qin Lan replied to her words with a chuckle. It was done while he's still controlling two flames with different intensity.

In the eyes of the other alchemists, Qin Lan's fluid movement is like how a painter produces a drawing. It was literally a work of art.

'No matter how many times I have seen him refining pills, his movement and technique are still as bizarre as always. To what extent has his mastery over Spiritual Qi has reached to enable him to control them like an extension of his own limbs?' Peng Yan asked herself.

The pill refining process is getting closer to its completion while Peng Yan kept herself quiet. As a fellow alchemist, she understands the importance of this final step because it will determine the quality of the finished pills.

Even Peng Yan herself would have to concentrate and give her all when it comes to this step during a pill refining. Not to mention that Qin Lan is controlling six cauldrons at once.

"Trays!" Qin Lan's order made the medicine boys standing by around him move quickly to complete his order.

Medicinal fragrance soon bursting out from the six cauldrons as the pills fly out of the cauldron and landed on top of the six trays. They're still glowing in red because the heat from the flames is yet to dissipate.

"Clean the cauldrons. Bring in the next batch of ingredients," said Qin Lan as he turned his attention to Peng Yan. Recently, her attitude was much better than her clingy self like a fox in heat. Although Qin Lan had some questions in his mind, he eventually decided to ignore asking her.

"What tricky idea you have in your mind again?" Qin Lan asked. 

He reached his hand to the cup of tea beside her to moisten his throat.

"Are you not afraid that I'll drop some Seven Night of Pleasure into your drink?" Peng Yan suddenly whispered beside his ear. The tone behind her words was filled with a hint of the temptation from a succubus.

"Seven Night of Pleasure? If you have to resort to that, then you're no better than a mere Yao Beast we'll find on some random forest. Is that even something the gorgeous and confident Lady Peng will consider using?" Qin Lan laughed.

"Humph!" Peng Yan smiled. Although there were some hidden improper remarks behind Qin Lan's answer, she was satisfied by the overall meaning of his reply. To be called gorgeous and confident by Qin Lan means she had such a presence inside his mind right now.

"I've heard something previously on my first visit here. It was still under the control of Lang Xue and the five other bandit bosses at that time." Peng Yan brought up what she was going to say earlier.

"And what is that?" Qin Lan showed an interest in what she's going to say.

"There was an abandoned mining shaft near the Third Milestone. The reason it was shut was unclear, but from what the bandit bosses said, it's because the fire element around there is too intense for commoners."

"Since it's not profitable, they decided to bury that place to prevent it from becoming a nest for some Yao Beast." Peng Yan shared what she knew.

"So... There's something like this... I might have my people search for it and have a look. What reward you want if it turned out to be what I'm looking for?" Qin Lan nodded. Looking at Peng Yan's face, he decided to ask what reward she wants for telling him such a piece of information.

"Whatever you're going to make from it, I want to be a part of it." Peng Yan said.

"That's quite a big appetite you got there, Lady Peng." Qin Lan smiled. He neither agreed nor rejected her demand.

Turning his back on her as he considered her proposal, Qin Lan once again continued with his day-to-day responsibilities. Peng Yan was soon escorted away by Zhou Mei and the two lasses under the pretense of walking around the fort.josei

On the same evening, Han Xue's finally returned with a detailed report of what his master ordered him to do. By narrowing the search to some keywords, there are three locations around this Flame Demon Mountain with rumors regarding the Fire Elemental Bloodstone.

And out of the three rumors, two of them came from the same place as Peng Yan's information. The other remaining one was about a Fire Elemental Yao Insect called Crimson Flame Scorpion.

"So... You believe that the place with rich Fire Element might be where we can get the Bloodstones, correct?" Qin Lan asked.

"Yes, Young Master." Han Xue replied.

"Go get Yi Feng and Qiang Shou to help you with this matter. Explore that rumored place near Third Milestone, and report back to me as soon as you determine the accuracy of the rumors." Qin Lan ordered.

"This Han Xue understand! I will get this verified as quickly as possible!"

After he left, Qin Lan once again went to the secret chamber and repeated what he's been doing daily. A hint of his Formation Qi is injected into the Night Glowing Pearl to authorize his entry before placing his palm on the Mountain and Sea Sublime Painting.

And in a flash, Qin Lan appeared on the other side.

It was still as foggy as usual due to the density of Spiritual Energy surrounding this piece. The only difference between this place and before was the number of Blood Balsam Leaves has now increased from fifteen to thirty plants. 

As for the grain-like seeds he once scattered around the Willow Logs, they have now grown into climbing vines wrapping around the wood as its foundation. Tiny flowers have started to grow all around the vines.

"Dragon Moss." Qin Lan called. It took him quite a while, but the tiny creature eventually turned up like an obedient pet near Qin Lan.

"Do something for me. Find me a place with a high concentration of Fire Element. I might bring in some high-quality Mineral Veins if I'm lucky. You know how significant it is, right?" Qin Lan said as he slowly poured the Blood Balsam Extract into the mouth of the creature.

And after repeating what he's been doing each time, Qin Lan returned to his Private Refining Hall once more.

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(Note: Following the storyline from volume 3, Flame Demon Mountain is, in fact, a piece of land as spacious as a quarter of Yunshan Province. It was just neglected previously due to many untold reasons.

Of course, there are still people living here, just not as loyal as the residents in Fuyun City (Yunshan's Capital), Xiyun City (ex Fu-Rong Town), and others. The reason Hushan Bandits are capable of controlling part of this place was that they're supported by people (locally), Financial (by Country of Wei through business), and Security (by Evil Infant Sect)

Remember that there are six stronghold leaders? This is why there's one fort, five strongholds, and six spiritual herb gardens. The Flame Demon Mountain Arc is a tedious part of my story as it will be the foundation for Kuangshan Lu Sect in the future, so please stay tuned, and forgive me if I'm still lacking in my writing to express things clearly from my POV)

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