Chapter 157: An Empty World...
"You were talking about the insufficient energy of the Astral Plane and the details regarding me being from outside of this world… Something that I\'m still not sure how you knew with absolute certainty…"
Azmodeus understood that he gave a few indications of him not being from around here, but there was no way she knew with such assurance based on what he\'s said so far.
So how did she know…?
However, his queries would soon be answered by the Crimson Witch, as she found herself walking ahead of him on a sleek flight of spiraling marble stairs.
"I knew you were from a land beyond the Astral Plane solely because there is a certain gleam in your eyes—one that doesn\'t belong to those of this empty world."
Chi Wu\'s voice became eerily ominous toward the end, as she seemed to know something that little to no one else knew of in the Astral Plane…
"Empty world…? What does that mean?" Azmodeus inquired.
"It\'s nothing… Forget I said anything. First off, let me explain to you why the Potion Master is a dying profession, a reason that also just so happens to be related to your existence as an Astral Trial Participant."
Chi Wu diverted the Crimson Devil Lord\'s attention away from the topic without a hitch, as she continued by saying, "There are not enough spiritual stones and Star Stones to supplement the lack of energy that we can utilize in this world. And the reason for this insufficient number of spiritual stones that we used to have in massive amounts is because of people like you…"
"Astral Leap Participants…" Azmodeus muttered while walking through a few windy hallways on the fifth floor of the castle.
"Precisely. It is due to a lack of Astral Leap participants with extreme amounts of wealth that all our spiritual stone reserves are in decline. And as you know already, the Potion Master Profession is one that uses Spiritual Stones and Star Stones as midway points. These \'midway\' points allow us to utilize energy for potion making…"
Chi Wu\'s voice became a little despondent toward the end, as the subject of the Potion Master\'s decline was a touchy one. And she wasn\'t the only one sensitive toward that issue, as just about every single Potion Master was left in disarray after realizing that they would one day have to quit their practice.
"The situation for those in the Potion Master Profession has really reached such a degree of destitution? Because of the lack of Astral Leap participants no less…"
Azmodeus could imagine a scenario like the spiritual stone reserves running dry, but it just didn\'t make sense that it was only becoming a noticeable problem as of late.
The natives of the Astral Plane have likely been practicing the Art of Potion Making for countless years, and yet it was only just recently that they started running out of Spiritual Stones and Star Stones??
It just doesn\'t make any sense…
As he was pondering the matter concerning the decline of the Potion Master\'s, Chi Wu had already led him and Pan Nu into her room.
Before they even realized it, they were welcomed with the sight of a room that was split into two areas. One side of the space was filled with various common bedroom commodities, such as beds, small chairs, and a number of dressers, all light pink and blue in color.
While the other side of the room had vials and lab tables on every inch of the floor, some were spiraling, and some were in shapes that could only be described as four dimensional.
But regardless of the abstract constructs and objects on that side of Chi Wu\'s room, it left quite a vast contrast when compared to the rest of the space.
-
"Do you know what it is that uses up the Qi within so many energy containers—containers like spiritual stones?"
Chi Wu\'s oddly melodic voice resounded inside her unusual room as she stopped in front of a table that had numerous vials stacked on top of it.
After which, she picked up a vial that looked like a coffee mug and handed it to Azmodeus.
"???"
The Crimson Witch noticed the confusion in his gaze, which resulted in her saying, "You should take a sip from that potion. It will allow you to understand just why so much energy is expended in the creation of high-level potions."
"Okay…" Azmodeus responded after a moment\'s hesitation. After which, he downed the golden contents of the potion without any inhibitions.
"!!!" What the hell??
WAAAA!
An explosion of energy erupted from within his chiseled body as everything inside the room and even the castle itself started to violently shake!
However, before it could get too out of hand, he reeled it in, and when he did, the amount of power gained from drinking that potion could be felt in full.
"The Middle-Gold Rank…"
Azmodeus couldn\'t believe that such a simple potion had actually allowed him to breakthrough the bottleneck that prevented him from achieving the Middle-Gold Rank…!
In spite of that, the next words of Chi Wu quickly cleared up his confusion, as she said, "That potion was of the Diamond Rank, and do you want to know the cost of such a potion?"
"The cost…" Azmodeus suddenly got a bad feeling, and that feeling only became more prominent with what the Crimson Witch said next:
"That potion will go for 10 billion Azura\'s on the market, which is roughly the total net worth of a high-ranking Duke in the Capital."
"10 billion Azura\'s…" Azmodeus muttered with a voice laced with astonishment. "Why is it that you let me consume such a valuable potion and breakthrough…?"
What are her motives? Nothing is free in this world, and for one to give over something worth so much and expect nothing in return is impossible…
Is it poison? Not immediate poisoning… But some form of dormant poison that will show its effects at a later point in time…?
...…