Immortal Cage - Chapter 28 Eyeing the Black Serpent Fish
It's unclear whether it was Yu Lie's good luck or bad luck. On the day he started his job, all that was sent over were some ordinary fish and snakes, with mild toxicity that could be easily found in the market. Yu Lie immersed himself in the poison, truly becoming like a butcher, spending the whole day slaughtering snakes and fish, ending up smelling of fishy stench.
Although he was a small leader, unlike the big leaders of the poison chamber, he was not idle. His working hours were the same as the others, only resting for half an hour when ordered by the big leader. As a small leader, Yu Lie was also responsible for the tasks of the entire small chamber, ensuring that the tasks were completed on time and in the right quantity.
If the tasks were not completed as required, the big leader would hold Yu Lie accountable, rather than questioning the specifics of the small chamber. This was why the big leader established small chambers and small leaders, making management easier.
Hence, the big leader granted the small leaders power. As long as they could complete the tasks, the small leaders could resort to means including but not limited to overtime, rushing home, staying in the poison chamber, forcing subordinates, etc.
If the small leaders were ruthless and did not care about the injuries of their subordinates, they could still lead a comfortable life. However, if their subordinates were injured or died, the question of whether there would be enough manpower to replenish them would arise. If there was a shortage of manpower, the big leader and small leaders would have to personally take action, or even disband the small chamber.
Compared to others like Radish Head, Yu Lie's situation as a small leader was relatively better. After adjusting his mindset, he realized that slaughtering snakes and fish could also cultivate a skill, a skill of extracting poison and dissecting meat!
Outside the poison chamber, there wouldn't be as many living creatures or even fierce beast materials for him to practice on. Yu Lie immediately faced this with more enthusiasm.
"In the art of refining, apart from the usual methods of refining plants and minerals, there is also a method of refining blood and flesh. Children who ingest it will possess the power of demonic beasts, which is closely related to the art of refining blood and flesh."
Over the past few days, due to his strong and agile physique, dissecting ordinary living creatures had become a routine for Yu Lie. He pondered, "Perhaps, in the future, I can start with the art of refining blood and flesh and practice the art of refining."
Being in the poison chamber with various living creatures allowed Yu Lie to become familiar with and control the bodies of blood and flesh creatures, laying a good foundation for his future study of blood and flesh refining.
This was similar to how children learning the art of refining plants needed to master the skills of identifying and preparing herbs before moving on to actual alchemy.
One day, finally, the poison chamber received living creatures with spiritual energy for Yu Lie and others to detoxify. They were sent Black Serpent Fish, a kind of spiritual fish unique to Heishui Town, resembling a mud loach with a body covered in dark scales, as thick as an adult's thigh. Despite their fierce nature, their flesh was dense and delicate, with excellent taste and spiritual energy. Apart from being used as refining materials, consuming raw Black Serpent Fish also had great benefits.
In the dining hall of the poison chamber, the cooks often prepared Black Serpent Fish slices for the mid-level children to enjoy.
Radish Head's cutting board was next to Yu Lie's. Upon seeing the Black Serpent Fish brought in, Radish Head did not show the same enthusiasm as Yu Lie but rather a sense of boredom.
Radish Head muttered, "It must be another leader wanting to host a banquet. In that case, take care of it yourself, or let the kitchen staff handle the fish."
Others nearby, like Hu Lao, also grumbled, "A bunch of gluttons, only thinking about eating and drinking!"
This was because the blood of the Black Serpent Fish was poisonous, especially in its gallbladder, where the toxins were most concentrated. If too much blood residue remained, it could cause paralysis and unconsciousness for three days when consumed by ordinary people. If the gallbladder was accidentally ruptured, the entire fish would be ruined, and even a mid-level child consuming it could die on the spot. The larger the Black Serpent Fish, the more potent its toxicity.
Yu Lie, however, was intrigued. This was the first time he had encountered a poisonous substance related to fierce beasts over the past few days. While the toxins he had dealt with before could assist in his cultivation of poison techniques, if he wanted to cultivate "Blood Poison," ordinary poisons would be too slow and inadequate. The toxins of an eighth-grade fierce beast were too intense for Yu Lie, who had not yet completed his Blood Poison cultivation, so it was best to avoid them for now.
Looking at the Black Serpent Fish lying on the sand pile, Yu Lie's face showed interest. The poison level of the Black Serpent Fish was around the eighth or ninth grade, containing spiritual essence but not truly an eighth-grade poison. It was just right for Yu Lie to use it as a substance to advance his "Blood Poison" cultivation.
Without showing any change in expression, Yu Lie said, "Since it's here, let's finish the task quickly so we can go home early."
Upon hearing this, Radish Head, Hu Lao, and others, though muttering, quickly responded, "Alright, Head Yu."
Over the past few days, due to Yu Lie's humble attitude towards slaughtering snakes and fish, without arbitrary demands or arrogance, Hu Lao and the others had shown him genuine respect. Of course, Radish Head played a significant role in this.
As Yu Lie and Radish Head were old acquaintances, with Radish Head's support, Hu Lao and the others found it easier to accept Yu Lie. If it were someone else, even if they were as humble as Yu Lie, it would be almost impossible to integrate so smoothly in just a few days.
Having experience in slaughtering other fish, Yu Lie picked up a sharp knife and attempted to cut open the belly of the Black Serpent Fish, but slipped.
Hiss! The Black Serpent Fish on the wooden stake suddenly swung its head fiercely, its sharp head biting towards Yu Lie's fingers.
Thanks to Yu Lie's quick reflexes, he managed to avoid it lightly.
The Black Serpent Fish couldn't be slaughtered after it died; it had to be slaughtered while alive. Otherwise, the blood would clot in the flesh, rendering the fish useless.
Yu Lie looked up and saw that the others had managed to hold the Black Serpent Fish down and opened its belly smoothly. Although he was learning quickly, his skills were still inferior to those of the experienced fishmongers.
Yu Lie thought for a moment, rolled up his sleeves, discarded the knife, and suddenly his arm squirmed, sharp wolf claws extending from his fingertips.
He used his wolf claws to cut across the fish's belly. The claws were sharp, surpassing ordinary knives and swords, and were more convenient for him to handle.
"Stop!" But the next moment, a sharp knife flew over and struck Yu Lie's cutting board!
It was Hu Lao from across the table who saw Yu Lie's actions, panicked, and trembling. He shouted in alarm and threw the knife in his hand without any other action.
The knife flew towards Yu Lie, whose pupils contracted slightly. Feeling a chill, he heard Hu Lao's alarmed cry and only then raised his eyes, frowning as he looked over.
At that moment, Radish Head also saw Yu Lie's actions and, with a face full of panic, turned pale. "Yu Head, please don't use your hands!"
After confirming that Yu Lie had not cut the fish's belly, Radish Head breathed a sigh of relief and explained, "When detoxifying and removing evil, you must not use your hands for personal gain. You must use a knife, and if the poison is too strong, you must use tongs to handle it from a distance. Otherwise, even a slight cut could be disastrous! Especially with this Black Serpent Fish, if it's difficult to handle, the kitchen staff won't be so shameless as to let us, the poison chamber, handle it."
Radish Head hesitated for a moment and said, "Newcomers to the poison chamber often doubt and find it troublesome. Most of those who die here are like that."
Yu Lie suddenly realized. He had thought of using his knowledge of detoxifying poisons and his strong physique to try it out. But considering that the rules of the poison chamber were written in blood, one rule could cost several lives. He immediately realized he had been careless.
If he continued to be careless in the future, even with a bronze wine cup in hand, he might end up losing his life. The previous head of the poison chamber had died this way.
Feeling a chill down his spine, Yu Lie quickly thanked Radish Head and Hu Lao.
Seeing that Yu Lie could take advice, Hu Lao, with a simple smile, walked over to Yu Lie, picked up his own knife, and stood on Yu Lie's cutting board, skillfully but slowly preparing the Black Serpent Fish:
"Head has just arrived not long ago, so let me handle it for you today. Head, watch and learn."
Yu Lie did not insist, and he earnestly thanked Hu Lao.
Scaling, gutting, extracting gallbladder, removing organs... after a series of steps, even with Hu Lao's skill, it took a good two cups of tea's time.
Finally, from near the gills of the Black Serpent Fish, Hu Lao picked out a piece of fish meat the size of a fingernail and, without hesitation, put it in his mouth to chew.
He was testing for poison. The gills of the Black Serpent Fish were the most poisonous part after the gallbladder, and if not handled well, the fish meat near the gills would retain the most toxic blood.
Chewing, Hu Lao's face, usually bitter, showed a rare hint of joy.
Watching this, Radish Head shook his head and muttered, "We work ourselves to exhaustion, risking our lives, just to have a taste of this small piece during a poison test. I wonder how much those leaders enjoy."
Yu Lie was slightly surprised.
But after a day of hard work, when he finally finished preparing the first Black Serpent Fish and tasted the fish meat the next day, his face lit up.
He discovered that even the small piece of fish meat the size of a fingernail could invigorate his body, as if he had taken a bite of ginseng!
If he could regularly consume Black Serpent Fish and use its poison for himself, Yu Lie could not only quickly advance in his Blood Poison cultivation but also digest and transform faster, becoming more robust.
This was a spiritual fish close to a fierce beast!
Yu Lie spent his days contemplating and subtly trying to find ways to gain more benefits in the poison chamber.
Radish Head, Hu Lao, and the others found Yu Lie's actions strange but didn't find them unusual. They had all been through the same process, only to accept their fate later on.
After some subtle attempts, Yu Lie fully realized why the poison chamber was considered a lowly position among the lower ranks, as there was indeed no room for personal gain.
To prevent people in the poison chamber from profiting, rare items like the Black Serpent Fish required the surrender of the gallbladder, gills, scales, and even the whole fish if it was ruined.
Yu Lie saw this situation and furrowed his brows, realizing, "It seems that the people in the poison chamber are not fools. But in this case, even if I have a bronze wine cup, it will be difficult to profit."
That evening, a turning point emerged.
As it was impossible to finish work on time, everyone decided to stop focusing solely on their tasks and engage in casual conversation.
Hu Lao suddenly whispered, "The Black Serpent Fish is inherently evil. Some of the most skilled fishermen in town have a secret method. They use prepared Black Serpent Fish meat as bait, and the better their detoxification skills, the more accurate their catch!"
"I've helped them prepare a few times, but the damage caused by preparing this fish may be too great. Even for me, it's difficult..."
Yu Lie listened quietly, his face calm but his heart suddenly elated.