Weapon seller in the world of magic

Chapter 550: Shang Jiao and the curse of time (part-2)

Shang Jiao

Nicknames: Little Princess, Emperor's favorite daughter (former), President Lu's sister, and Princess of the North.

Species: Human/???

Status: Cursed

Age: 16

Rank/Cultivation: peak-9-circle

Bloodline: Blizzard Pegasus

Attribute: Ice, Time (locked)

Affiliation: Northern Phoenix

Description: The princess of the Northern Phoenix Empire was the master's biological sister, sharing the same parents. Her current body is in the state of a powerful curse where her life force is being depleted rapidly each minute. An unknown object has been discovered in her mindscape which is likely the cause of time attribute and the curse.

*

Mark rushed to her, as soon as he confirmed her identity, and grabbed her shoulders in worry, "Jiao-mei, what the hell has happened to you? You were fine last week."

"Zhen-ge, I need your help," replied Shang Jiao in a weak tone. Followed by the cry for help, she slowly started falling down on her back. Mark caught her.

He quickly picked her up and left the grand hall without a care about the guests. Some were left curious, some were offended by his act as he didn't even apologize, some were understanding, and some acted as if he didn't matter.

Fortunately, Shen Niu acted quickly, replacing Mark as the host, making sure that the grand feast wouldn't get disturbed. As Shang Wei was a king and one of the distinguished guests at the events, he was forced to stay there to converse with others.

After a while, in one of the guest rooms, Shang Jiao was seen lying on a bed in an unconscious state and Sylvandria was trying to diagnose her condition. Mark and Shang Fu were standing on the side with troubled expressions.

Soon, the thread of divine energy that invaded Shang Jiao's system was expelled from her body, startling Sylvandria for a bit before she took a deep breath and turned her head to look at Mark, "It is the work of a powerful ancient artifact stuck in her mindscape which appears to be too powerful for my divine energy.

For now, I reduced the curse by sealing her cultivation but it is nothing but a temporary measure," Her tone was quite serious. She then got up and added, "There's also something you need to know."

"What is it?" Mark furrowed his brows.

Sylvandria answered, "When I was probing her system, I sensed something strange inside her body. She has a spirit core"

"Eh?" "Spirit Core?"

Shang Fu and Mark looked at each other in surprise. "But, that's impossible," Shang Fu cried out in shock.

His reaction was not surprising, considering the fact that spirit cores only exist in the bodies of beasts. Even Mark was shocked for once before remembering the data he saw earlier.

He meaningfully nodded, "I guess it should be the work of that artifact, which probably housed an ancient beast spirit."

"Eh?" As Shang Fu was taken aback once again and looked at his son, Sylvandria nodded in agreement, "That's the only explanation even I could think of."

"So, what should we do now?" Shang Fu turned anxious, "How to save my daughter?"

Before Sylvandria gets to answer, Mark, who has already failed in removing the curse with a purification stone, voices his opinion, "Can a Saint realm Deity help her?"

Sylvandria shook her head while letting out a sigh, "If you are referring to Lord Yujiang, it won't work either. Unless you know of someone in God's realm (13-circle), you cannot remove this curse forcefully." After a brief pause, she added, "However, if you want to save her, there is a roundabout way, although it is going to be pretty expensive."

"Money won't be a problem. What is it?" Shang Fu asked in a hurry. Mark, on the other hand, seemed like he had gone into deep thinking.

Sylvandria looked at Shang Fu and replied, "She needs to consume a de-aging potion for her youthful appearance to return and then needs an enormous amount of life force from someone. But, that is still not enough. We also have to destroy her cultivation for good."

"De-aging potion? And life force?" Shang Fu's facial expression hardened at those names. "That potion is very rare, only seen in auctions. Nevertheless, I will use all my connections to procure them at any cost. As for the life force, I will provide mine. Even if I die, my Phoenix Bloodline will resurrect me."

"But, you are only in 6-circle-realm, Emperor Shang. You won't be able to survive this," Sylvandria warned him. However, the father of the girl seemed like he had already made up his decision, "I'm prepared to die for the sake of my child." His voice was so resolute that it kinda moved the elf.

"No need. I know how to save her," Mark opened his mouth, surprising them. As they looked at him, they saw Mark taking a vial of transparent liquid out of nowhere and handing it to the elf, "This is the Elixir of Eternal Spring I won in the grand auction. This will maintain her youthful appearance and vitality for as long as she lives."

Shang Fu's eyes widened and a ray of hope could be seen in those eyes, but in the next second, the light dimmed as Sylvandria commented, "I don't think this will work effectively on her. The curse was too strong for this potion. The best this elixir will have a temporary effect, just like the de-aging potion."

"That's completely fine," Mark made his decision firm. He further said, "As long as it could save her for the moment, it will be worth it."

Shang Fu stared at his son with a mixture of various emotions; on one hand, he was grateful and happy. On the other hand, he never felt so helpless and angry at himself. This wasn't the first time he thought it but still, it has been a few months since he last blamed himself for stepping down from the throne.

Meanwhile, Sylvandria smoothly transferred all the liquid in the vial to Shang Jiao's mouth, which slowly flowed down into her stomach and was absorbed by her body. The amount of liquid was actually enough for two people but because of the current situation, the elf had to empty the vial.

The effect of the elixir was instant. Shang Jiao's youthful appearance returned; perhaps, the elixir also nourished her cells. Shang Jiao's beauty peaked to the extent that it is tough to say who is more beautiful, she or Song Yue.

After a while, leaving her on the bed with a rank-9 robot placed there as a guard, Mark returned to the grand hall to join the other guests. After all, he is the host and it is not proper for him to be absent unless the situation is dire. Now that the problem had been solved for the moment, he peacefully hosted the banquet.

Shang Fu also had to follow the etiquette of being a royal guest and joined Shang Wei and Shang Bo, updating them on the situation.

The next day, at the auction house, the guests with formal invitations as well as the uninvited ones, separated by their respective sections, took their seats as Chang Bo and Xie Mei were seen nervously standing there on the stage.