The Golden Witch and Cui Shen swiftly made their way through the humid swamp. Lady Ouyang trailed them like a shadow. Most of the time she stayed far behind, but on some occasions she would speed around them at a wide berth to stay ahead for a while, only to then circle back to her original position.


    Cui Shen was keeping his eyes peeled for the herbs they needed and safeguarded them both from the countless poisonous threats lurking in the bog. Keeping track of the old woman''s movements was a tall order even to someone undistracted, so he remained oblivious to her activities.


    Only the Golden Witch was aware of her bizarre movements, and yet she showed no signs of awareness, paranoid that it could reveal her special ability.


    Cui Shen frowned, yet again sharply changing course. "Things have changed considerably since I''ve been here last. The beasts have made a mess of my usual gathering spots."


    The woman rolled her eyes in frustration. It was not because of what Cui Shen had said, but because she knew that the one responsible for his confusion was no beast at all, and her inability to do anything about the trickery at hand irritated her greatly.


    By noon, they had not gathered even half the ingredients they required.


    Cui Shen suddenly stopped. "There it is." He nodded at a patch of grass.


    The Golden Witch approached with a sickle in hand. "Do I cut it like this?" She asked, demonstratively brushing the tool against the plant.


    "No, that part needs to remain whole. You should cut from here, like this." Cui Shen guided.


    Lady Ouyang, meanwhile, had neared and sat down by a tree to watch them work.


    Cui Shen''s dark eyes darted along the grass patch; despite the painfully stale swamp air, the plants were shifting. He spotted a bright red toad lurking beneath the vegetation.


    "Get back!" He exclaimed with sudden urgency, not only leaping to his feet, but dragging the golden haired woman along with him. The toad croaked, spewing a clear liquid from its mouth. It traveled almost two full meters, and would have hit one of them had they tarried for a moment more.


    More croaking erupted throughout the patch of grass, revealing that the toad was not alone.


    "Bad luck." Cui Shen sighed. "Looks like, while I was gone, they made themselves a nest here."


    The Golden Witch glanced back suspiciously at the old woman observing them. Though she had been intending to remain seemingly oblivious to the antics of their spectator, a sarcastic remark slipped past her lips before she knew it. "Bad luck, huh..."


    Lady Ouyang''s wrinkled face remained impassive, but a peculiar glint in her eyes granted her stony features the illusion of a smile.


    "Disturbing the grass alerts the snake, as they say." The old woman smugly quoted a saying.


    The younger woman pried her golden eyes away before she gave in to the temptation to respond in kind.


    "We need to find another place." Cui Shen said.


    "Let''s just get some rocks and kill those frogs." The Golden Witch suggested.


    "Their secretions must have already tainted the plants. We have to move on."


    The Golden Witch frowned so deeply that it very nearly turned into a pout. "You told me this has never taken you longer than a day. It''s already past noon and we''ve only gathered 2 of the 8 herbs we need."


    "We''ve been unlucky every step of the way. In all likelihood we''re not getting this done today."


    Her long white sleeves flickered as she waved her hands in frustration.


    "Keep it together." Cui Shen sternly said. In contrast to the golden haired girl, he was the very picture of patience. "You won''t amount to much of a poisoner if you lose your temper over every hurdle."


    But his words seemed to only make her angrier. Nevertheless, she broiled in silence. Cui Shen began to lead the way again.


    By the time the sun had begun to set, they gathered only 5 out of 8 herbs.


    "We''ll have to come back tomorrow." Cui Shen said.


    "I can still keep going." The Golden Witch insisted.


    "Just how do you intend to navigate this place in the dark?" He asked. She looked like she was about to reply, but a glance at the old lady caused her to still her tongue.


    Her unwillingness almost palpable, she allowed Cui Shen to lead her back to the Ouyang estate.


    By the time they arrived, it was completely dark. Ling Ling, lantern in hand, greeted them with a deep bow. She treated them all to a late dinner, and the three wordlessly retired for the night. Bai Guo was already fast asleep by the time they arrived, overwhelmed by his restless vigil the night before.


    At first light the next morning, they set off again. The remaining ingredients had finally been obtained by the time the sun had reached its zenith. Cui Shen produced a foldable, miniature wooden table, a mortar and pestle, and a variety of flasks and pouches.


    "Watch carefully. Here''s how you make the Body Dissolving Incense." Cui Shen then began the process. Some of the herbs he reduced to fine powder; others he boiled or distilled, and some he turned into a paste. Though the plants were few, the process had turned out to be rather complex.


    Her golden eyes observed with the utmost focus. She seldom even blinked. She hadn''t uttered a word throughout the entire process, and although Cui Shen tried to be as thorough as possible with his explanations, her silence left him with the sneaking suspicion that she hadn''t understood much of anything.


    A few hours later, his efforts resulted in just a pinch of nondescript white powder. "When exposed to high temperatures, the resulting vapors produce no trace, and are immediately fatal. However, it will just burn up in an open flame, so don''t expose it directly. You''ll understand why I won''t be giving a demonstration."


    "That''s it?" Was the first question from the woman''s mouth.


    Cui Shen nodded. "You can produce as much as you need if you have the ingredients, but the ratios are exact, so keep that in mind."


    "I have to ask, how exactly did you use this stuff in combat?" She asked. "It seems impractical to warm it up during a fight. And besides, where did you store it?"


    "True, it would be impractical." Cui Shen closed his eyes as he explained. "You may recall the bell that once used to be chained to the hilt of my sword. That was, in fact, where I had kept the incense. During battle, I used my internal energy to channel the heat generated by sword clashes into the burner. This way I could make sure that the poison would begin its work only when I needed it without distracting myself during a battle."


    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    "That''s quite well thought out." The Golden Witch couldn''t help but admire. "I have only one more question - how do you survive exposure to it?"


    "In medicine, it has been observed that consistent overuse lessens the effects of medicinal drugs. Fundamentally, poison and medicine are two sides of the same coin. Therefore, lady Ouyang had theorized that constant exposure to a particular poison may likewise reduce its effects. She used my body to prove her hypothesis. Long term exposure to a diluted variant of the Body Dissolving Incense has, for the most part, immunized me to its effects."


    "But in the end, that was still poison running through your body..." She muttered, her yellow eyes downcast.


    "Yes. Needless to say, it is not without adverse effects." Cui Shen concluded.


    After a pause, the Golden Witch asked, "Is there anything else?"


    Cui Shen scooped up the end product into a small pouch. "Next, I would like you to try making it yourself."


    "There''s no need. I''ve memorized the process." She stated with relentless confidence.


    Her words dumbfounded not just Cui Shen, but the old woman observing their work.


    "...We need to make sure of that." He tried to explain.


    "Is there nothing else you can teach me?" The Golden Witch continued, her impatience growing.


    Cui Shen frowned ever so slightly. "There''s no point in beginning the next step until you''ve solidified your knowledge here."


    A brief chuckle erupted behind them. They found lady Ouyang wearing a small, crooked smirk.


    "Though this incense was designed to be so simple that even this simpleton could create it," The old woman mocked. "If the poisoner''s arts were as easy as you seem to believe, it wouldn''t be something worth calling an ''art'' at all. You frog in a well, you speak far more boldly than I can permit. How about we put your confidence to the test? Are you willing to make another bet?"


    As the golden eyes glared at her, lady Ouyang continued. "If you can recreate the Body Dissolving Incense by dusk tomorrow, I will give you a hint for producing the antidote to my Five Venoms. If you fail, then you will imbibe a single poison of my choosing."


    Cui Shen saw the woman was about to speak and rushed to intervene. "Don''t let her provoke you. You might have gotten used to picking up martial arts with ease, but this is a completely different skillset. It was not so long ago that you couldn''t even tell berries apart."


    The mention of berries made her turn red up to the very ears.


    But shame hadn''t had the effect Cui Shen desired.


    "I accept." The Golden Witch proclaimed.


    "And of course, that roach over there can''t assist you." Lady Ouyang clarified.


    "Of course." She brushed a hand through her blonde hair. "Cui Shen, you stay here. I''ll be needing your alchemical set very soon."


    Cui Shen watched her go, confusion on his face.


    Lady Ouyang stood up. As the Golden Witch made to pass her by, the tall woman made a derisive remark. "Perhaps you should remain here too, madam Ouyang. It would be inconvenient for me to wait for you."


    Her grey brows had barely had time enough to furrow before the Golden Witch had taken off like a yellow bolt of lightning. The old woman''s eyes widened and she hurried to pursue. But it was to little avail - she could only catch a distant glimpse of the Witch''s white robe billowing behind the golden woman like a cape, and soon lost sight of her altogether.


    Lady Ouyang''s only saving grace was that she knew where her challenger was headed. But whenever she arrived at the places that Cui Shen had brought them to before, she would find the patches of grass already harvested beyond what they had been previously, or the golden haired woman rushed in the moment she arrived. The strangeness of it all left her mystified and agitated.


    If she were to take what she was witnessing at face value, then her guest''s speed was simply absurd. But then again, so it appeared to be. Though she had been tempted to believe in some sort of ploy, a trick, reality seemed grim and straightforward.


    But unbeknownst to her, the Golden Witch had in fact deceived her. To prevent the old woman from sabotaging her harvest, she had never strayed too far and stalked her just out of her sight with her supernatural sense, arriving wherever lady Ouyang had been intending to go.


    At the eighth herb, lady Ouyang had once again arrived second.


    The Golden Witch walked past her. She very theatrically rolled her yellow eyes.


    "Well, what did I say? Now I''ll have to wait." She lamented sarcastically before dashing off once more.


    Lady Ouyang hadn''t budged from her spot. Her face was unflinching, but a furious storm raged in her green eyes. As some bitterness had finally slipped past her mask of stone, she turned around and continued the forlorn chase.


    They had soon reunited by Cui Shen''s arranged alchemical set. The Golden Witch had been waiting with her long arms crossed.


    The blonde woman kneeled before the tiny table and set to work. The sun had set during the process, and she was forced to finish the task in almost complete darkness, with only the miniature flame she used for heating shedding a very dim light on her workplace.


    Another pinch of white powder had soon been produced.


    "Well? Shall we test it out?" The Golden Witch asked, bringing the flame dangerously close.


    "There''s no need." Lady Ouyang approached, dabbed her finger into the powder, and brought it to her tongue. She brushed off the specks that remained on her digit, and hissed through gritted teeth. "It''s correct."


    The Golden Witch stood up. "Perhaps you weren''t aware, lady Ouyang, but I can replicate a martial art just by seeing it once. It doesn''t matter to me if it''s demonstrated in person, illustrated on a wall, or written about in a book. Did you really think some flasks and grasses would give me pause? I think the two of you need to start taking this more seriously."


    Even Cui Shen hadn''t managed to escape the venting of her ire. He offered a rare smile. But it quickly faded as he glanced at the unmoving, kneeling figure of his master.


    The old woman grimly broke her silence. "The poison that Cui Shen''s Body Dissolving Incense had been derived from consists of 54 ingredients."


    The Golden Witch seemed rather satisfied with the hint. "So it is based on the same formula. And an exact number of ingredients narrows it down quite a bit..."


    And although she hadn''t said it, she found the number to be rather daunting. And if the title of the Five Venoms Devil held true, it was only one of five parts.


    The challenge was just beginning.