Chapter 3: The Cauldron Devours the Fruit, the Birth of a Demon

Alchemy? Cultivation?

Inside the cramped space, Mo Fan was stunned. The conversation outside provided him with a preliminary understanding of this world. It seemed he had truly arrived in a world where one could cultivate.

At the thought of this, a strange, burning heat flared in his heart. Cultivation was something he had never dared to imagine before, but now, it offered a glimmer of hope.

However, he sighed helplessly a moment later. He was on the verge of being used as an ingredient for alchemy, and he didn’t even know if he would survive—what was the point of thinking about cultivation?

"No, I have to escape! I must escape!"

After a brief moment of despair, a fierce sense of unwillingness took hold of him, and he began to rally his spirits.

As time passed, he caught snatches of further conversation, learning that he was apparently within some kind of sect, and that he and two other unlucky souls were being kept in a space called a "Spirit Beast Bag."

*Thump! Thump!*

He did not know how much time had passed when two more thudding sounds echoed. Mo Fan realized the other two "Five Poisons" had been tossed in—a scorpion and a gecko.

Just as he was thinking this, he felt a sharp pain in his back, as if something had bitten him hard. The creature immediately let out a shrill, chattering sound.

"Damn it, that damned gecko must have ambushed me!"

Furious, Mo Fan kicked out with his hind leg, putting all his strength into the blow.

*Thud!*

"Chirp, chirp—"

Sure enough, as his leg connected, he felt something go flying, followed by a series of pained screeches.

"Oh? You guys are still fighting?"

At that moment, a childish voice rang out. Then, Mo Fan felt the world spin, and his eyes were suddenly met with light.

Had he left the Spirit Beast Bag? This was his chance!

Mo Fan’s bulging eyes darted around. He saw a bronze furnace that stood half as tall as a person, and beside it stood a young girl in a plain dress, looking to be about eleven or twelve years old.

The other four poisonous creatures scattered the moment they appeared, trying to flee. Mo Fan, however, did not move; he remained sprawled on the ground, knowing that this seemingly innocent little girl would not let them escape so easily.

As expected, the girl made a casual gesture, and the four creatures were instantly pulled back, their bodies flailing in the air as if restrained by an invisible force.

"Giggle... you little things are being naughty. You’re not as cute as this toad."

"Although I’d love to let you go, if I really did that, I wouldn't be able to answer to my master. So, you’ll all have to go into the furnace!"

"Be good and let yourselves be refined into medicine; offer up your final bit of usefulness!"

Following the girl’s laughter, Mo Fan heard a crisp *clack*—the lid of the bronze furnace was lifted. One by one, the other four creatures were tossed inside.

Now!

Mo Fan let out a low roar in his heart. He gathered every ounce of strength and lunged outward, sprinting desperately toward the exit.

"Eh?"

"Little toad, I just praised you for being good, and now you’re in such a rush to run away?"

"But you aren't going to get away, you know!"

Just as Mo Fan was about to scramble out the door, the girl’s voice reached his ears, sending a chill through him. The next moment, he felt a gust of cold wind envelop his body, followed by a tightening sensation, as if he were being bound by something.

"No... I don't want to die! I haven't even started cultivating yet! I haven't even tasted swan meat..."

*Ribbit, ribbit, ribbit...*

Mo Fan was mentally breaking down, but he had no choice. In the end, the girl tossed him into the bronze furnace.

*Splash!*

As a spray of liquid rose, Mo Fan realized he had fallen into a pool. But after smelling the pungent, medicinal odor surrounding him, he instantly understood: this was no water pool—it was a medicine pool!

He knew his fate. If there were no surprises, he was inside the alchemy furnace.

Mo Fan grew calm. He looked around and discovered that the interior of the furnace was vast, far larger than it appeared from the outside—it spanned several yards!

Meanwhile, apart from the scorpion and the gecko struggling desperately in the liquid, the silver snake and the red-backed centipede were pounding frantically against the lid above. Alas, the lid was far too heavy for them to budge.

"What do I do... am I really going to die here today?"

Mo Fan felt a wave of sorrow. He had finally been reborn into a world full of myths and legends, only to die in such a humiliating way—refined into a pill while still alive. He could not accept this.

Before long, the temperature in the furnace rose. The walls turned red and searing hot, forcing the silver snake and the red-backed centipede to fall into the medicinal liquid.

As for the gecko and the scorpion, they had already sunk to the bottom. Mo Fan glanced over and could faintly see the gecko’s white belly turned upward, its mouth foaming as if it had been poisoned.

The silver snake didn't last long either; after struggling for a while in the liquid, it followed the gecko and scorpion, drowning to death.

To Mo Fan’s surprise, the red-backed centipede managed to stay afloat by paddling with its wide, numerous legs. However, it was darting about like a headless fly, searching for a way out. When its attempts failed, it simply stopped, lying motionless as if dead.

"Wait... that guy... it's playing dead!"

Mo Fan watched the red-backed centipede. Although it appeared motionless, he clearly sensed a faint trace of life.

Mo Fan rolled his eyes, then flipped over, exposing his own belly to the surface, and began to play dead as well. He was gambling that if the furnace quieted down, there might be a turn of events.

But as the liquid grew hotter and hotter, Mo Fan felt a sense of extreme urgency. He knew this was likely his last hope.

Perhaps sensing that things had quieted down inside, the furnace lid was opened shortly after, and a small, white-jade hand tossed three fruits into the furnace.

The red-backed centipede suddenly moved, preparing to bolt, but with a loud *clank*, the lid was slammed shut, ruining its plan.

Mo Fan took this opportunity to flip back over, his eyes fixed on the three crimson fruits beside him.

"Aren't these the fruits from that precious tree in the cavern?"

"I heard that woman call them something like... Innate Spirit Fruits!"

Just as Mo Fan was thinking this, the red-backed centipede bit into one of the fruits.

Seeing this, Mo Fan abandoned all caution and swallowed one of the fruits himself.

The moment the fruit hit his stomach, a warm current surged upward, rushing straight to his head. Invisibly, it cleared his throat.

"Ah... I... I've transformed into a demon!"

Beside him, a pained, raspy voice sounded. Mo Fan was startled. He turned to look and saw the head of the red-backed centipede changing irregularly, as if it were about to burst.

"Holy shit, the centipede can talk?!"

In his shock, Mo Fan blurted out a curse. The next moment, he froze, because he heard his own voice—it was also raspy, but it was no longer the *ribbiting* of a toad; it was genuine human speech!

Although the language was not the Chinese of his past life, strangely, Mo Fan could understand it perfectly.

"Ah—!"

Suddenly, Mo Fan let out a scream. He felt his head aching as if it were going to explode, as if waves of power were battering his mind, causing him excruciating pain.

Intuitively, he had a feeling that if this power broke through a certain shackle in his mind, he would truly be reborn!

However, the power began to fade, which gave Mo Fan a massive fright.

"Damn it, whether I get out of here and get to taste swan meat depends on this!"

"Do or die!"

Mo Fan cursed internally, turned, and swallowed another Innate Spirit Fruit.

In an instant, the burning sensation in his stomach returned. A flow of energy rushed straight to his brain, while other currents integrated into his limbs and bones.

At the same time, a sharp screech erupted nearby. The red-backed centipede’s hideous head transformed into a human face amidst a cloud of black mist.

"Holy crap, the centipede really became a demon?!"

Mo Fan muttered to himself, but the creature glanced at him and, without a word, charged toward the top of the furnace.

*Bang!*

A soft sound echoed as the lid of the furnace was blown off.

"Ah!"

The girl’s scream came from outside, followed by her furious voice: "You audacious centipede! How dare you steal the spirit fruit to transform!"

"I will capture you today!"

Listening to the commotion outside, Mo Fan finally felt the shackle in his mind break open.

In an instant, his mind felt incredibly clear. His vision and hearing were far superior to before, and most importantly, he felt a massive amount of power surging within his body, along with a stream of strange, inherited memories.

But he had no time to ponder this. He glanced at his reflection in the medicinal liquid—a human face—and leaped upward, jumping straight out of the alchemy furnace.