电车之狼系列

Li Qiye observed them for a bit before putting everything away. Then, he tapped on the cauldron next to him and gave a command: “Go. Under the capital is a Fire Source that has been strengthened with a spirit. Although it is not comparable to the supreme flames you have devoured before, this is something created by me and its spirit is not bad. Devour it and deal with some little problems for me on the way.”

The cauldron received Li Qiye’s command then crawled under the earth and disappeared.

***

After the monarch left Li Qiye’s room, he told Bai Weng to take good care of Li Qiye while he immediately went to visit the Demon King in the palace.

There was a secret conference going on with all of the strongest demon monarchs of the Giant Bamboo Country present.

Ancient Pine spoke: “Your Highness, Young Noble Li didn’t want to come to the palace for a meeting.”

Madam Zi Yan nodded and said: “I have heard about the Golem Square’s events.”

Another Demon Monarch spoke austerely: “He’s this arrogant? Does he want Her Majesty to go see him herself?”

This was one of the eighteen monarchs, the Eagle Demon Monarch.

Madam Zi Yan shook her head and said: “It’s not his fault. With such amazing pill techniques, he could just utter one word and countless people in the Stone Medicine World would line up to earn his favor. Even imperial lineages would be happy to commission him. Such a peerless alchemist would be well-received anywhere he goes. Not to mention, someone full of treasures like him doesn’t need anything. It is hard to get his interest.”

At this point, she sighed gently and lamented: “Our Giant Bamboo is only a small country. I’m afraid we won’t be able to keep an alchemist like him.”

Ancient Pine couldn’t help but suggest: “How about Your Highness goes to personally meet Young Noble Li? I see that he has some love for our Giant Bamboo Country, so if Your Highness shows up personally, then maybe Young Noble Li will be moved by the sincere gesture.”

Ancient Pine knew that a supreme alchemist with no need for treasures or money like Li Qiye couldn’t be convinced by material objects. They had to use a different method to impress him.

Madam Zi Yan was very open minded and felt that Ancient Pine made a lot of sense: “If Young Noble Li is willing, then I don’t mind making a trip. A peerless alchemist in this generation is worth a personal trip to recruit him.”

Another Demon Monarch voiced his concern: “This... doesn’t feel right. Your Highness is the Royal Lord of our country, how about we go welcome him instead?”

“No.” Madam Zi Yan shook her head and said: “So what if I am a Royal Lord? Every Alchemy Emperor is treated as one’s most esteemed guest, even Immortal Emperors are no exceptions. It is certain that Young Noble Li will become an Alchemy Emperor, so an ordinary Royal Lord like me greeting him personally is how it should be.”

“I wonder if Young Noble Li will be willing to stay or not.” Eagle voiced his musing: “Your Highness needs to have another plan. If we can’t keep him, then Your Highness needs to pick another participant for the conference.”

The Eagle Demon Monarch was somewhat related to the Qing Clan, so he wanted to help them.

Madam Zi Yan nodded and said: “I’ll have made my own decision by that time.”

Another demon monarch said: “Your Majesty, Young Noble Huangfu from the Huangfu Clan is interested...”

The madam quickly interrupted this monarch: “Do not mention this matter again.”

Her imperial prestige made others not dare to look straight ahead. A Demon King was still a Demon King, so Madam Zi Yan’s power was not to be underestimated.

The monarch who brought this issue up immediately shut up and didn’t dare to say anything else.

Madam Zi Yan declared: “Tomorrow, I will personally go greet Young Noble Li. It would be best if he could join the palace for some time.”

The moment she made her decision, a confidant hurriedly rushed in: “Your Highness, Your Highness! Something big has happened!”

Madam Zi Yan noticed the confidant’s urgency, so she grimaced and asked: “What happened that’s causing you to be so anxious?”

The confidant quickly said: “The Lie Clan is finished!”

One demon monarch stood up right away and asked in surprise: “Finished? Finished how?”

Although the Lie Clan was not an invincible clan, it was quite formidable within the capital, not to mention that they were also the number one alchemy clan in the capital.

It was not easy for such a clan to be finished in such a short amount of time.

The eighteen demon monarchs and Madam Zi Yan were all startled. They knew the Lie Clan still had several living ancestors. Although their ancestors were not comparable to those from the great powers, they were still top ranked experts. With their presence, the Lie Clan shouldn’t have fallen so easily.

Another monarch rapidly inquired: “Just what had happened exactly? You need to be more clear.”

The confidant answered at once: “It happened not long ago. The Fire Source under the Lie Clan suddenly exploded and blew away their ancestral ground. Their ancestors wanted to suppress the blast but were incinerated by the scorching Fire Source. People said that the Fire Source soared into the sky and rushed into the Lie Clan, killing Lie Jie, the Lie Clan’s Young Noble. Our disciples said that the flame penetrated the stone heart of Lie Jie in just one second. Although the rest of his body is still intact, his soul is definitely done for.”

After hearing this report, all the monarchs looked at each other. The Lie Clan was known as the number one alchemy clan in the capital for a reason — their Fire Source.

This Fire Source not only helped them by providing great cauldrons, it also made their pill refinement much easier. An alchemist in the capital had previously proclaimed with disdain: “The Lie Clan’s skill at alchemy is only third-rate at best. They would be nothing without that Fire Source.”

Although these words were quite extreme, there was a hint of truth to them. The Lie Clan’s alchemy dao was not particularly outstanding; they would have been overthrown long ago without the Fire Source.

“The Lie Clan’s prestige and ability to refine great pills were mostly due to this Fire Source.” One Demon Monarch murmured: “If the Fire Source has been destroyed, the Lie Clan will fall into the abyss and will never be able to rise again.”

“Their demise is certain.” An alchemist among the eighteen said: “Their alchemy dao relied on a few old geezers for support. Their younger generation can’t reach the apex. Now that those old men have been burnt to ashes, the slightly excellent Lie Jie had been killed, and most importantly, their Fire Source has been destroyed, the Lie Clan can only withdraw from the alchemy path.”

Madam Zi Yan sat on her throne and pondered for a moment before speaking: “This is quite strange. The Fire Source has been passed down for a long time; the Lie Clan has been guarding it generation after generation. It has always been very stable with its own sentience and is not the type to change or go wild. Why did it explode without any prior warning?”

It was not without reason that Madam Zi Yan was able to become the Royal Lord since she had many outstanding aspects. The moment she received the news, she understood that something was wrong about it.

The monarchs looked at each other and felt that the madam made sense. Ancient Pine suddenly recalled something and shuddered. He stood up and told the madam: “Your Majesty, I just recalled something. Perhaps it has something to do with this matter.”

Madam Zi Yan quickly urged: “What is it? Tell me.”

The Lie Clan was a big clan in the capital, so their fate left the madam puzzled.

Ancient Pine told the story of how Lie Jie blocked Li Qiye’s path since Bai Weng had reported it to him in great detail. And now, the Lie Clan’s demise reminded him of this matter.

Ancient Pine continued on: “I heard my subordinates say that Young Noble Li had said that the Fire Source of the Lie Clan will definitely be destroyed.”

Madam Zi Yan stood up and asked after hearing this: “Has Young Noble Li left your mansion at all?”

Ancient Pine shook his head in response: “When I left, Young Noble Li was still in the mansion. I believe he didn’t leave at all.”

After hearing this, Madam Zi Yan stood there, quietly thinking.

The Eagle Demon Monarch spoke: “Perhaps this is only a coincidence. It is normal for young people to utter a few words of arrogance.”

“That’s right.” Another monarch added: “The Lie Clan has many experts, not to mention their ancestors. It would be difficult for an outsider to sneak into the Lie Clan without being detected, at least, for those of the younger generation. But in this case, the Lie Clan didn’t seem to notice any outsiders, only their Fire Source’s sudden explosion.”

Madam Zi Yan thought about it a bit more and shook her head: “I’m afraid this matter is not that simple. That Fire Source definitely didn’t explode for no reason since it also killed Lie Jie. The Lie Clan had so many people, so why did this flame only kill Lie Jie alone?”

She was not only a virtuous ruler but also very intelligent. This sparked more questions for the demon monarchs.

The alchemist monarch said: “If this wasn’t an accident, then there are two possibilities. However, these two possibilities are quite unlikely.”

Another demon monarch quickly asked: “Old Sun, don’t keep us guessing. What are the two possibilities? Tell us so we can think about it together.”

The alchemist monarch mused it through a little bit before speaking: “I have only heard of these two possibilities and have never seen them before. These matters are only in the legends, so it is hard to tell whether they are real or not.”

Madam Zi Yan said: “Demon Monarch, go ahead and say it. Whether it is true or not is not important. At the moment, anything is possible.”