Chapter 4284 — Take Your Portion in Turn

The King of Spirit Beasts! There was no need for any ghostly thing to prompt him—the words burst unbidden into Wei Zhao's mind. The King of Spirit Beasts was born with the power to subdue all beasts, and apart from this one, he truly could not think of any other spirit beast that could produce such overwhelming intimidation from a mere statue alone.

He could not tell what material the statue was made of; it was black from top to bottom, gleaming with a faint, luminous sheen. And it seemed it had not been carved elsewhere and then hauled up here—rather, the stone itself must have grown in this very place, only later being carved into the likeness of the King of Spirit Beasts, with this altar built around it.

Upon the King of Spirit Beasts' brow stood a single horn, and before the eyes of all present, a drop of black liquid welled at its tip and fell into a small stone basin before the statue.

"That's right, this has to be Star Ink Milk—the legends say Star Ink Milk is ink-black!" Delight seized the crowd at once, and every one of them was so excited they could scarcely keep still. The black liquid was unquestionably Star Ink Milk, and by now a fair amount had already gathered in the little stone basin—though the color was so dark that, without crouching down for a close look, one could not tell at a glance just how much had accumulated.

So there really was Star Ink Milk—everything Chang Daoping had said before was true after all! Wei Zhao and Huang Xiaotao exchanged a glance, both startled and overjoyed.

Having been duped once already by Chu Bubai, Wei Zhao could not help but stay on his guard in matters like this. Right up until this moment he had kept doubting Chang Daoping's true intentions, never imagining that he would now see Star Ink Milk with his own eyes, real and tangible!

And judging by the volume, there should be a good deal of it. Even though he and Huang Xiaotao were last in line, if everyone took only a small bottle apiece, there ought to be some left over. This was already the most ideal situation they had imagined—their trip to the Aoduo Cultivation City ruins had gone unexpectedly smoothly.

With this, Star Ink Milk was within reach, and counting the Infant Ginseng and the Myriad Crossing Golden Core Fruit they had obtained earlier, the haul from the Lufeng Forest was simply off the charts! At this rate, they had practically swept up all three of the Lufeng Forest's most famous heavenly treasures in one go!

"All right, according to the order we settled on earlier, I'll go first." Chang Daoping's expression quickly returned to calm. He produced a small spirit-jade bottle prepared in advance and was the first to step up to the basin and begin drawing the Star Ink Milk.

Though their hands itched unbearably, the others still consciously stepped back a few paces. Since it had been agreed beforehand, unless one meant to break the rules, one had to keep a certain distance while another gathered treasure—otherwise it invited misunderstanding all too easily; and if one stood too close and Chang Daoping took it for ill intent, the situation could spiral beyond control.

Wei Zhao made no move either. He fixed his gaze on the little stone basin from afar. Though he could not make out the Star Ink Milk inside, if Chang Daoping meant to pull any trick under his very nose—say, swapping in an identical little spirit-jade bottle and secretly drawing a second one—then even as a Nascent Soul expert, the man could never escape Wei Zhao's perception.

Perhaps out of excessive caution, Chang Daoping drew the Star Ink Milk a little more slowly than expected, but he made no superfluous movements. Once finished, he rose at once and walked back, nodding to Cao Shishi.

As Chang Daoping's dual-cultivation partner, Cao Shishi's standing in the group went without saying. She was the designated second to take the Star Ink Milk, and she promptly drew out a small spirit-jade bottle of the same model and trotted over, all eagerness. Only after filling it to the brim did she turn back with visible reluctance, glancing behind her at every step.

Once Cao Shishi was done, it was Luo Tuoxiang's turn. He had long since readied his little spirit-jade bottle and rushed up without delay, likewise filling a full bottle.

After him came the three—Hu Youli, Fan Dongji, and Fang Miaojin. They too had prepared identical little spirit-jade bottles well in advance, and each took a bottle in turn.

At last it was Wei Zhao and Huang Xiaotao's turn. But before they could step up, Luo Tuoxiang suddenly spoke.

"You two, what kind of bottle do you plan to use? Surely not bigger than ours?" Luo Tuoxiang asked, grinning broadly. "Before you draw the Star Ink Milk, you'd best bring them out for everyone to see. You may be last in line, but by the rules you can each draw at most one small bottle—I don't need to spell that out for you, do I?"

"Exactly. And if there's any left after you two take your share, Brother Chang gets to decide what becomes of it. Surely you can't just scoop up the whole basin between you, no matter how much there is?" Cao Shishi nodded in earnest agreement, terrified that these two tiresome bumpkins might get the better of her.

At that, Wei Zhao glanced at Chang Daoping, only to find the man curling the corners of his mouth with a knowing, playful look, showing no inclination to speak—evidently he was taking a stance of tacit approval.

Their concern was not without reason. Wei Zhao exchanged a glance with Huang Xiaotao and obligingly produced two small spirit-jade bottles. As an alchemist, Wei Zhao never lacked such things, and these were of the most common size on the market, all but identical to the spirit-jade bottles the others had just used.

Cao Shishi and Luo Tuoxiang had nothing more to say. Even if they were loath to let Wei Zhao and Huang Xiaotao have any Star Ink Milk, they dared not act on their own before Chang Daoping spoke—what if they overstepped and trod on Chang Daoping's toes? Given his consistently domineering style, the thing he hated most was others acting on their own authority!

Wei Zhao smiled faintly and paid the pair no further mind, walking hand in hand with Huang Xiaotao toward the little stone basin. Given the relationship between them, they had no need to guard against each other the way the others did.

At long last they were about to obtain the Star Ink Milk, yet Wei Zhao's mood was nowhere near as calm as his face suggested. Anyone else in his place would surely be stirred to the depths—that was only human nature; if he felt not the least bit excited, that would be truly unnatural.

Reaching the little stone basin, Wei Zhao and Huang Xiaotao found the temperature around them had suddenly shot up several degrees, as though scorched by the blazing sun of high summer. At a distance they had not much noticed it, but now that they were close, this strange heat became unmistakable.

Yet this heat seemed to radiate from the statue itself, while the breath seeping from the stone basin below was its exact opposite—cool and faintly icy, like a rare gust of cool wind striking one's face in the height of summer, filling one with involuntary delight, refreshing body and mind alike.

It truly was a fine thing! R1152