Before Leng Jin Yu could worry any further, Shao Hai stepped forward. "I can bring you there." Anyway, there was nothing he could do to help with Ma Zhi Wu's situation. And there wasn't a chance to talk with Jing Yi right now either. He might as well make sure that the others weren't distracted and help this Shen Qiang out.
Shen Qiang nodded. "Thank you very much." He nodded at the others and then followed Shao Hai out of the palace and over to the Sect Master's peak.
At the same time, Jinde was anxiously twisting his hands. Unrest in the demon realm … It wasn't anything good. To be honest, it wasn't that he was worried about the dragon race though. No, he just couldn't help but think about what this would mean for Jin Ling.
He didn't know the exact details of how Jin Ling had finally managed to become the demon king but he knew that the fight for the throne was never a pretty one. When it was about that, the demons didn't know any mercy. Back in his days, he had seen Jian Heng beat down some delusional competition several times so he knew what it entailed: If you didn't become the winner, then you could only lose your life.
No new ruler would want to have somebody contending against them right at their side the whole time. So there were only two possible outcomes in this situation: Either Jin Ling would continue to be the demon king after winning a bloody fight or he would be the one to lose and lose completely at that.
Even though Jin Ling had almost found him and even though the relationship between them wasn't the best, he still didn't want the latter to happen. No, in his mind, Jin Ling was his precious, beloved child regardless of what happened. How could he want to see him suffer? Actually, he just hoped that Jin Ling was living a good life in the demon realm. If that was the case, he would be happy for him as well. Unfortunately, currently, it didn't look like it.
"Senior …" Nian Hong Fang couldn't help but be anxious either when he saw that Jinde hadn't started yet despite having gathered the final herb. This person was nice enough to have offered his help. He couldn't expect anything. But after having hope for so long now, he couldn't help but panic when the person didn't start immediately. Even if he might not have a right to expect him to do it, he still couldn't help but tentatively ask. "Can … Can you start refining the potion now?"
Jinde was startled out of his thoughts and gave a short nod. "Of course." He once again looked over the herbs, making sure that he had everything in place. Then, he took out one of the herbs that he needed each, pushing the spares away in case he would need them later on.
When he was halfway through, steps sounded from the door and An Bai rushed in, nodding at Qiu Ling and then Xiang Yong before he handed over his refinement equipment.
Jinde took it and then went back to sit down, taking a deep breath to gather his thoughts. He couldn't be distracted while doing this. If his mind wasn't completely there, then it was too likely that things would go wrong. He had to focus.
He closed his eyes for a moment, and then picked up one of the knives, slowly starting to prepare one of the herbs with practiced moves.
An Bai and Zheng Yin looked for a moment and then motioned for the other people to leave the room. This kind of potion was obviously difficult to refine. People who didn't need to be there shouldn't be there in case they did anything that would pull the alchemist out of his thoughts.
Even Qiu Ling finally left the room after pursing his lips. The only ones left were Ma Zhi Wu and Nian Hong Fang who was still sitting at his side, holding his hand, as well as Leng Jin Yu who stayed a few steps away from Jinde, his brows furrowed.
He knew that Jinde had been a renowned alchemist back in the dragon realm. He didn't doubt that his skills were very good either. What he did worry about though was the fact that Jinde had reacted quite strangely to what had happened just now. He wasn't too sure if he was currently in the right mindset to refine anything, not to speak of a potion of this level. He didn't dare to speak up though and thus just stood to the side, watching him work.
One herb after the other was prepared, making a fresh smell spread throughout the Grandelder's palace. Soon, Jinde got up and turned to the cauldron, starting to heat the fire and then slowly adding in one herb after the other.
The smell in the room intensified, making Nian Hong Fang almost heave a sigh of relief but he held back. Every small noise would be a possible distraction. He didn't want to risk that.
Jinde didn't seem to notice any of what was going on and just continued. It had been a long time since he refined something. The last thing should have been … That Amethyst Lightning pill that Qiu Ling had asked him for. And before that, it had been even longer. He couldn't help but feel a little unaccustomed suddenly doing this task. Still, he tried his best.
Adding in the last few herbs, the cauldron slightly rumbled and mist thick with spiritual energy escaped it, diffusing in the room.
Nian Hong Fang glanced at it, feeling a bit regretful that he wouldn't be able to use it to continue healing Ma Zhi Wu's wounds. But waiting a bit longer was worth it if the potion succeeded. In case he distracted that person by giving it a try, that would be a much more terrible result. He just had to wait a few more minutes.
Jinde continued to use his own spiritual energy to stir the potion in the cauldron and finally exhaled, pulling it back to extinguish the fire.
He waited for a moment and then opened the cauldron, using his spiritual energy to guide the potion inside out and into a vial. The liquid was of a dark blue color that sparkled in the sunlight coming through the windows.
Jinde looked at it, his golden brows furrowing tightly behind the veil. This … wasn't quite the desired result. It seemed that his mind really hadn't been quite there.