Chapter 557: Hospitality

The veiled but impressive political prowess took Liam aback, but it failed to distract him from the main issues.

Besides, as unexpected as Rachel’s wits were, Liam had plenty of experience dealing with similar women. The whole beginning of his relationship with Grace had been like that. She had just worn a different persona.

Learning that Uriah and Amber were masters of inscriptions and formations improved Liam’s opinion of the Dark Heaven Tribe even further. The Invincible Oasis and Red Sandstorm probably featured similar benefits, but that didn’t change the fact that Liam had hit the jackpot.

Alchemy was the issue, at least in terms of its ingredients. The southern region sounded perfect for inscriptions, while formations had unclear requirements. Instead, the magical plants’ apparent scarcity would be a heavy blow to Liam’s profession.

’Magical plants aren’t all there is,’ Liam thought. ’But they make up the vast majority of alchemical ingredients.’

Horace Rauret’s education had been so thorough that Liam could plan ways out of that predicament. His inheritance was also an enormous mass of priceless information Liam could review whenever he wanted, but knowledge was no solution.

Liam could find alternatives, but his alchemy would be limited nonetheless. Without magical plants, he basically only had access to a fifth of his usual ingredients.

Still, Liam wasn’t the only one aware of the issue or the possible solutions.

"Big Brother, I took the liberty to compile what we own and the replacements we are aware of," Rachel announced, drawing a green jade from her open skirt and placing it on the table. "If anything is missing, just ask this little Sister."

Liam couldn’t ignore that second invitation. He stored his pipe, reached the table, and seized the green jade, sitting on the woman’s opposite side, as expected of a guest.

Sending Qi into the jade gave Liam access to a detailed list he could explore with his mind. There was even a map of the Great Quiet Desert with various markers.

Apparently, the Great Quiet Desert was split into regions due to its danger level and sheer size. It stretched as far as the previous Outer Circle, and proper forbidden zones were scattered all around.

The Aetacia region was relatively safe, with few magical beasts’ dens and level three creatures at most. Instead, some surrounding areas were completely overrun, with overlords no weaker than the border’s monster.

Nevertheless, with dangers came opportunities. Those forbidden zones had the highest density of precious mines and springs of spirit stones. It was why they were crawling with magical beasts.

The magical beasts themselves were valuable. Almost everything about their bodies was a resource. The southern region even pushed that one step further by enslaving them.

It seemed the southern region’s forces constantly ran expeditions in those forbidden zones, both to collect resources and reduce the packs’ numbers, preventing their expansion.

And Liam would be no stranger to that practice. With a single review of the list, he found his next targets, one that made him scratch off most of his initial worries.

’The desert’s plants will still limit the complementary ingredients at my disposal,’ Liam calculated. ’And I can forget about getting rank 3 ones, but reagents at that level won’t be a problem with these minerals. As for poison, it can’t get better than this.’

It turned out Great Quiet Desert had plenty of predators that relied on poison, all with organs Liam could extract and refine into ingredients. He just had to hunt those at his level to obtain them.

Of course, the limit on complementary ingredients would greatly restrict the range of Liam’s alchemy, but it seemed he could go all out with poison.

Actually, the lack of complementary ingredients would force Liam to make every product even more poisonous. He literally would have no way of watering them down.

’Still,’ Liam thought. ’Since I have no other option ...’

Liam’s fingers itched. He was already supposed to achieve a transformative understanding of alchemical products and, specifically, poisons at the branching stage.

With Liam’s options seemingly limited to poison, he would just immerse himself completely in the field. It was time for him to become a proper poison master, fulfilling his inborn specialization in ways no one else could.

Liam withdrew his attention from the jade, planning to ask questions. Even the big lizards that had defended the Tribe relied on poison, so he wanted to investigate more, but the scene kept his mouth shut.

Sensing it didn’t make seeing it easier to digest. For some reason, Rachel had moved beside Liam and offered him a cup of wine as soon as he stopped studying the jade.

"Big Brother, please try this," Rachel chuckled coyly. "I chose this wine myself."

The glare burrowing into Liam’s nape compelled him to accept. The wine was harsher than the one he had tasted the previous day, but it created an appealing complexity with the opposite pleasantness it left behind.

That wasn’t the only compelling part. Rachel had added a white half-mantle to her top, short pants, and open skirt, covering her left side but creating a starker contrast with what was visible, making the latter more magnetic.

With Rachel’s expectant yet timid expression on top of that, it was literally impossible not to find the experience pleasant. It honestly made Liam understand why brothels offered such a service.

Of course, no matter how much Liam could recognize those appealing traits, he wasn’t charmed. Given what he had heard during the chase and the previous meeting, he believed that to be a political move, a tempting trap to drive him closer to the Tribe.

Liam didn’t smell dishonesty in that stunning woman, but the same had happened with Grace before he memorized all about her, and she had also tricked branching experts back then.

Also, it was hard to appreciate that sensual vibe when Liam felt death looming over him.

"Aren’t you going to express your gratitude to my daughter?" Uriah snorted from the curtain.

"Thank you?" Liam muttered, not forgetting the woman sitting beside him. "It was unique, but good."

A bright smile blossomed on Rachel’s face, prompting her next move. She picked a thumb-sized piece of meat from the refreshments with her chopsticks, elegantly hovering a hand under it while bringing it to Liam’s face.

"Please, taste this," Rachel exclaimed. "It’s supposed to be the perfect pairing for this wine."

Liam was ready to play along with the hospitality. It was what was expected of a guest, especially when coming from the daughter of the Tribe’s leaders.

However, being fed seemed to cross a line, and Liam wouldn’t engage in such dangerous games. "I don’t think this is appropriate or respectful toward my Dao partner."

Liam drew the line, even alluding to his romantic entanglement, but he was at a heavy disadvantage when fighting with words.

"This little Sister is only expressing her gratitude," Rachel announced. "How could she not serve Big Brother after all the troubles he went through to save her?"

’Again with this lie?’ Liam thought.

"Unless," Rachel continued, lowering her gaze, her face souring. "Big Brother considers little Sister unworthy of serving him."

"Do you think my daughter unworthy of you?!" Uriah’s cry immediately arrived, alongside a violent pressure.

Liam’s frame hid Rachel from Uriah, so the latter didn’t see her sticking out her tongue playfully. Amber caught the gesture, but she just smiled and feigned ignorance even after Liam glanced at her.

Since Uriah had intervened in such a manner, Liam bit down on the meat hovering before his face. Rachel immediately cheered, while the opposite happened to Uriah.

"Dark Wanderer," Uriah called, having appeared behind Liam, looking down at him. "How dare you think yourself worthy of being fed by my beautiful flower?!"

Liam blinked at the furious father above him, seeking traces of sanity in Amber, only for her to hide a chuckle behind her hand. Somehow, he didn’t believe the trip would be very pleasant.