Chapter 204: Concocting Poison

The Ares-class interceptor flew toward Hek. Now that the six-winged skylord’s venom was in hand, all that remained was concocting it into medicine.

Phantom was but a shade. Though he could figure out the formula for this medicine, Xia Fei still had to do it himself.

Xia Fei shut himself in the bathroom and spent the eight-hour journey purifying the venom in preparation for the next step of creating a complete medicine. Qin Mang was in danger, and every second was precious.

A row of transparent glass vessels were neatly arrayed before him, and inside was a murky-black liquid. It looked a bit like unrefined oil, thick and foul-smelling.

Xia Fei wore an air-filter mask as he gingerly poured these liquids into the medicine purifier. The venom itself was already extremely toxic, and it was unknown just what degree it could reach after refinement.

In order to suppress the toxin inside Qin Mang’s body, Xia Fei had no choice but to use an even more potent poison, and there was no doubt that the concentrated six-winged skylord’s venom met this requirement.

After the first round of purifications, the black liquid had its fluid and impurities removed, and what remained was not just more viscous and thick but also more obsidian.

Xia Fei had tried using the medicine purifier many times before, yet this was the first time he was using such a highly toxic substance. Luckily, the technique he learned from Phantom was the real deal; it was clever, and including his personal experience and precise grasp of timing, this refinement process proceeded without a hitch.

Soon, there was a small round canister in Xia Fei’s spatial ring, and inside was an even smaller vial, which was split into two layers, securing the poison within. Because of how potent the substance was, the consequence was unimaginable if it leaked out, so Xia Fei needed to be extra careful handling every aspect of it.

The used medicine purifier could not be reused. Xia Fei tightly wrapped it inside a piece of waterproof cloth before setting it aside. He then used clean water mixed with disinfectants to meticulously clean the bathroom several times. The foul stench of the venom intermingled with the smell of disinfectants, causing the air to become polluted. Even with an air-purifier device working at a hundred percent capacity, it still took Xia Fei more than an hour to remove the residue on the floor and the odor in the air.

Opening the door and exiting the bathroom, Xia Fei took off his air-filter mask and lit a cigarette, taking a seat as he rubbed his temples vigorously.

He took out three snake eye berries from his spatial ring and put them in his mouth for a moment, chewing and swallowing all. A wave of relief then reached his internal organs.

Xia Fei had sustained quite a bit of internal injury during the fight earlier, though it was not from the attacks of the six-winged skylord but the backlash of unleashing Demon Axe. Adding in the toxic fumes he had breathed in from refining the six-winged skylord’s venom, Xia Fei could only feel his head throb, his spirit somewhat in a daze.

He collapsed onto his bed and very quickly went into deep sleep, hoping that he could rapidly recover his strength. After all, he needed to begin the concoction of the medicine, which required plenty of his energy so he could focus better on the task at hand, immediately upon his arrival on Henk, and he could not afford even a single mistake.

His two eyes shut for some time as an inexplicable change slowly occurred within him. Countless silvery strands extended out from Xia Fei’s seventh brain region, entwining with his organs as well as his blood vessels.

Some of the black venom gathered in his seventh brain region through these undetectable strands; had his seventh brain region subconsciously taken the initiative to purge Xia Fei of his poison?

Phantom silently watched everything transpire before he quietly made note of it in his mind. He smiled as he returned to his personal space inside the Moore Stone, seemingly no longer feeling surprised over such a peculiar phenomenon.

The seventh brain region worked fast, very fast. All the toxin residue in Xia Fei’s body was absorbed, while that part of his brain appeared to have become wider than before.

In truth, Xia Fei’s seventh brain region had indeed been fuller than when he was on Heritage Planet. It was as if the organ was growing at its own pace, a really miraculous phenomenon. Heritage Planet had not only given Xia Fei a new ability but had also secretly introduced changes unknown to Xia Fei’s body.

The Ares-class interceptor landed on Hek, and Xia Fei hopped off his bed, exiting his ship rather spiritedly.

The two hours of sleep that he got left him feeling energetic, and even the peculiarities in his body had disappeared without a trace.

Third brother Ling Feng was presently waiting for Xia Fei by the open tarmac; the latter hurried over to greet the former the moment he disembarked from the ship.

“Second brother accompanied Mr. Thuram to the hospital, so I’m the only one here,” Ling Feng explained.

“Third brother, have you done what I asked of you?” Xia Fei anxiously asked.

“Yeah.” Ling Feng nodded. “As per your instructions, we’ve located a completely sealed laboratory in a chemical plant not too far away from the hospital. There are all kinds of equipment inside; Mr. Thuram has temporarily requisitioned the entire place, along with twenty capable men to help guard the area.”

“Very good. How is old man Qin Mang doing right now?”

Ling Wei furrowed his brows slightly. “The elder isn’t too good today. He fainted once several hours ago, waking after to mumble several names, one of which is brother Xia’s.”

Xia Fei silently got into the hovercar that had been waiting for him, gravely saying thereafter, “Let’s not waste anymore time and just depart right away.”

…

On Earth, the chemical industry was synonymous with pollution, and the surroundings of every chemical plant would always have weird smells, while trees and vegetation were unable to survive near such places; even nearby rivers would become unsuitable for use.

However, in the technologically advanced Pan-Human Alliance, pollution from chemical plants had pretty much become non-existent, and the sealed plants would hardly let even a trace of odor out.

…

The hovercar stopped in front of one of the plant’s white laboratory buildings. Two strapping men in Adjudicator Union’s uniforms were standing right outside the entrance, their expression stern as they stepped forward and opened the car doors for Xia Fei and Ling Fei to step out.

The entrance slowly opened for Xia Fei. There were layers of defense required before entering the laboratory: first was changing into an impermeable full-body labsuit and second was undergoing a complete sterilization process. Third was entering the contamination zone proper.

Xia Fei nodded at Ling Feng and went into the first layer alone, putting on the thick, protective suit, while Ling Feng stood guard with the others by the entrance.

“Okay, open the second layer.” Xia Fei spoke through the communication device inside the protection suit.

The person manning the control room pushed a button to open the sealed door, and Xia Fei stepped inside.

The door slowly closed and sealed behind him as white lights suddenly turned into violet sterilization rays. The ceiling ‘s many sprinklers sprayed out a special substance of disinfectant, which made it seem as if it was raining inside the entire room.

A series of sterilization procedures followed, lasting a whole five minutes, before Xia Fei could proceed to the final layer: the contamination zone.

The venom of the six-winged skylord was extremely potent, and its proportioning and purification were different from the usual medicine. An accident was all it would take to result in a venom spill, which was why it was important for Xia Fei to carefully handle the entire process here in the safety of a proper laboratory.

Glancing across the many devices and equipment available in this laboratory, Xia Fei could also see every ingredient he required for concocting the medicine already neatly arranged on a long, metal table by Ling Fei and his men.

Deftly opening a molecular filtration device, Xia Fei began to busy himself with the work at hand quickly and very orderly.

…

Outside the laboratory, Ling Feng received a call from Thuram.

“What is that rascal, Xia Fei, doing?”

Ling Feng swept his eyes across the camera system and saw Xia Fei working. “He appears to be concocting some medicine, sir.”

Actually, Thuram had already guessed that Xia Fei would be attempting to brew some medicine the moment he was notified of the young man’s request. It was only after the latter had gone and extracted venom from a six-winged skylord that he could not help but be a little worried. Just what exactly would a medicine that utilized the venom of a six winged skylord do? Thuram simply could not make sense of it.

He made calls to ask those elite pharmacologists back at the headquarters, yet even the most preeminent experts could not believe that there was any medicine that would require a six-winged skylord’s venom. As a result, Thuram sent Ling Feng to observe Xia Fei’s every move.

The video recording was being transmitted to Thuram’s microcomputer, and he watched Xia Fei calmly and confidently go about his business; every move the young man made was organized and composed, evidently demonstrating his decent skills when it came to concocting medicine.

…

Thuram knew nothing of this skill, but with his vast knowledge, he could tell from the way Xia Fei executed his methods that the young man was indubitably skilled both in his technique and knowledge in this particular field, at the very least. There was no way he was a novice at play, for he also showed great dexterity. It was as if each and every move required precise timing, and even the flow at which the solution was being poured into a vial was strictly controlled.

“Xia Fei knows how to concoct medicine?” Thuram muttered to himself.

After a good moment, Thuram instructed Ling Feng. “Keep holding the fort there. Don’t disturb him if there’s nothing important.”

“Understood.” Ling Feng saluted.

Xia Fei was sweating profusely as he worked in the laboratory. Though his heart was anxious, every move he made was methodical. He was handling a very potent toxin, after all, so even the slightest mistake would bring about unpredictable outcomes.

Phantom was nervously staring at Xia Fei from the sidelines. As the solution gradually mixed with liquids of various colors, his face slowly showed some measure of ease.

This medicine was something Phantom had come up out of nowhere, and it had not been tested in terms of efficacy. Phantom was not completely confident of this, which was why he was somewhat worried.

Finally, all seventeen medicinal liquids were completely mixed together, creating an unexpected transformation.

The medicine mixer once again started at a very slow speed, very gently shaking these liquids.

Effervescence slowly rose in the brown liquid, and this was precisely the indication that the medicinal properties were being completely reversed.

Xia Fei stared at that spinning cylindrical canister intently. Once all the bubbles were gone, Xia Fei lightly pushed a button on the machine and the mixer slowly came to a stop.

Taking a hold of that transparent canister, Xia Fei went through the layers of disinfection again, then quickly exited the laboratory.

Ling Feng had long been waiting for Xia Fei outside. He hurriedly took two steps toward the young man. “Brother Xia Fei, did you succeed?”

“Yes.” Xia Fei nodded, but his expression was still as stern as ever. This medicine had not really been tested before, after all, and there was no telling just what effect it would have to its drinker.

“Brother, just what exactly have you concocted there?” Ling Feng could not help but curiously ask.

Xia Fei waved him off. “We’ll talk about it later. Send me to the hospital immediately.”

The hovercar sped through the night, making it past the gates of the hospital. The medication that would decide Qin Mang’s life and death was being clutched tightly by Xia Fei in his hands.