Chapter 798 A Prisoner and His Lifeline
Kael’s heart sank.
It seemed he would have to placate the Machine Patriarch. Otherwise, the old man might kill him immediately.
Arno approached from the distance carrying a refinement furnace.
Kael took out the ingredients provided by the Machine Patriarch and began the lengthy refinement process.
He had his own plans, however, and deliberately held back instead of refining the ingredients to the best of his ability.
Approximately three days later, Kael successfully completed the first batch.
He drew out the liquid and tested its scent. Its quality was far below that of the Immortal Spirit Liquid he had previously refined.
The Machine Patriarch suddenly appeared inside the Inner Cosmos.
He snatched the jade bottle from Kael’s hand and held it beneath his nose.
“This isn’t right. This is nothing like the Immortal Spirit Liquid you refined before. Why is its quality no better than Lesser Immortal Spirit Liquid?”
He took out another jade bottle and removed its stopper.
Kael swept it with his Spiritual Sense.
“You already possess that much Lesser Immortal Spirit Liquid. Why do you still need me to refine it for you?”
His voice was cold.
“Hmph. This liquid is worthless. At most, it can delay the petrification afflicting an Eternal Realm cultivator. If I want to advance to the Real Deity Realm, I need the genuine Immortal Spirit Liquid you refined before.”
The Machine Patriarch put the jade bottle away.
“There’s nothing I can do about that. Refining Immortal Spirit Liquid requires a free mind and an unrestrained spirit.
You’ve imprisoned me inside your Inner Cosmos, so I can no longer refine genuine Immortal Spirit Liquid.
Lesser Immortal Spirit Liquid is the best I can produce under these conditions. ”
Kael spoke as though his explanation were perfectly reasonable.
“Kael, do you take me for one of those human fools? Do you truly believe a few words are enough to deceive me?”
The Machine Patriarch raised his organic eyebrow.
“Then release me from your Inner Cosmos and allow me to refine it on the Machine Race’s homeworld. With your cultivation and divine abilities, do you honestly believe I could escape your grasp?”
“The Machine Race maintains an intelligence network throughout the galaxy. Do you think I’m unaware of your abilities?
” The Machine Patriarch regarded him coldly.
“According to our reports, you killed Solvaris of Sunlance Academy while you were still at the Stellar Realm, even though Solvaris had already reached the late Galactic Realm.
“Now that you’ve reached the Galactic Great Circle, you probably still can’t kill an Eternal Realm cultivator. However, you have a very good chance of escaping from one.”
“What?”
Arno stared at Kael, fear creeping into his gaze.
“A rumor is still only a rumor,” Kael said. “No matter how powerful my divine abilities might be, how could a mere Stellar Realm cultivator possibly kill someone at the late Galactic Realm?”
“Every rumor starts somewhere. The very existence of those stories proves that you are unrivaled among cultivators at your own realm. I will not take that risk.
“Remain here and continue refining. If you fail once, try a second time. If the second attempt fails, try a third. Continue until you produce genuine Immortal Spirit Liquid.”
“If you insist on keeping me imprisoned, I’m afraid I may never refine genuine Immortal Spirit Liquid, even if you give me eternity.”
Kael raised an eyebrow.
“Is that so?”
The Machine Patriarch laughed without humor.
Kael suddenly sensed something was wrong.
His own Inner Cosmos began heaving violently, as though heaven and earth were being overturned within it.
Three jade bottles tore free from the region of his dantian and appeared in the Machine Patriarch’s hand.
“You—give me back my Immortal Spirit Liquid!”
Kael was genuinely alarmed.
The Immortal Spirit Liquid was his lifeline.
As his progress at the Galactic Great Circle rose from twelve percent to forty percent, the Devouring Beast’s appetite increased as well. He now needed to consume an average of ten drops every day to prevent it from turning on its host.
“You refused to refine Immortal Spirit Liquid for me because you still had a reserve of your own, didn’t you? Now that I’ve confiscated it, let us see whether you remain unwilling to cooperate.”
A satisfied smile spread across the Machine Patriarch’s face.
He had finally found Kael’s weakness.
“It takes me at least three days to refine a single drop of Immortal Spirit Liquid. Yet I need to consume more than ten drops every day to prevent myself from being devoured from within. Are you deliberately trying to kill me?”
Kael’s mouth tightened.
For the first time, he truly felt the pressure the Machine Patriarch could exert upon him.
“Very well.”
The Machine Patriarch flicked one finger.
Ten drops of Immortal Spirit Liquid flew out and entered a separate jade bottle.
“That bottle contains your portion for today.”
He sent it flying toward Kael.
Kael caught the bottle, anger and alarm warring within him.
“You’ve already taken every drop of Immortal Spirit Liquid I possessed. Why not simply kill me?”
“Killing you would leave me with only these three bottles. Even if each contained one thousand drops, that would amount to no more than three thousand. Such a small quantity is nowhere near enough for me to advance to the Real Deity Realm.
“Besides, I am not alone. I have an enormous family, and they will also need your Immortal Spirit Liquid to survive their tribulations.”
The Machine Patriarch finally abandoned all pretense of kindness.
His meaning was obvious.
Kael would be imprisoned inside this Inner Cosmos forever.
“But I consume ten drops of Immortal Spirit Liquid every day, while it takes me at least three days to refine a single drop. No matter how you calculate it, you’re losing far more than you gain.”
“That doesn’t matter. Once you advance to the Eternal Realm, you will have an endless amount of time to refine Immortal Spirit Liquid for me. I may suffer a small loss at first, but in the long run, I will always profit.”
A faint smile touched the Machine Patriarch’s lips.
“Once I reach the Eternal Realm, aren’t you afraid I’ll escape?”
“Hahaha! This is my Inner Cosmos. You cannot leave simply because you wish to. Even if you reach Eternal Tier 1, you will remain trapped here. In fact, even if you eventually surpass my cultivation and reach the Eternal Great Circle, I can simply seal half your strength. What could you do then?”
The Machine Patriarch laughed mockingly.
Kael fell silent.
His gaze sharpened as he surveyed the entire Inner Cosmos.
“One more thing. If you want to reduce your workload, teach Arno everything you know about alchemy. Once he can assist with the refinement, part of the burden will be lifted from your shoulders.”
After delivering that final instruction, the Machine Patriarch vanished.
Kael looked at Arno, his thoughts deeply conflicted.
If he refused to teach Arno, he could never refine Immortal Spirit Liquid quickly enough to satisfy the devouring beast within him.
But if Arno mastered the technique, the Machine Race would no longer need Kael. They could kill him and keep this extraordinary ability for themselves.
“Master Kael, what would you like me to prepare?”
Arno stepped forward and gave a shallow bow. There was something almost flippant about the gesture, as though he knew Kael had no choice but to cooperate.
“Arrange the ingredients in a row according to their age and hardness.”
Kael took out the spatial ring.
“Yes, Master Kael.”
Arno gave him a knowing smile and began following his instructions.
Time passed slowly.
Six months went by in the blink of an eye.
During that period, Kael refined a total of sixty-two drops of Immortal Spirit Liquid.
His own consumption, however, had reached nearly two thousand drops.
Every day, without fail, the Machine Patriarch delivered ten drops of Immortal Spirit Liquid to him.
At that thought, Kael checked his remaining Galactic Points.
[Galactic Points: 15,632.03]
He then opened his status panel.
[Human King: 769.639]
[Galactic Great Circle: 40%]
[Stage Twenty of the Fiendgod Transformation: 100,000,000/200,000,000]
[Grand Celestial Manifestation: 1/100]
[Sacred Skin—Fortification: 10,000/20,000]
[Sacred Tendon—Fortification: 10,000/20,000]
[Sacred Muscle—Fortification: 10,000/20,000]
[Sacred Organ—Fortification: 10,000/20,000]
[Sacred Bone—Fortification: 10,000/20,000]
[Supreme Divine Craftsmanship: 4,500/5,000]
[Divine Alchemy Dao: 50%]
[Tier 10 Sanguine Edge: 4,520/5,000]
[Basic Inner Cosmos: 299/500]
[Myriad Spirit Eye Tier 1: 15/100]
[Sound Spirit Root: 3%]