D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

Can jumped in place, dropping the snow she’d been relocating with Lily. Well… saying ‘relocating’ was more of a technical truth. It’d been a few hours since Yang had spoken her mind. Kat and Lily had hang around doing nothing for a bit… and then decided to make snowmen. Currently they were trying to make a whole snowman family. They’d failed twice to make anything good, but succeeded once in a Lily sized snowman, and were now working on a larger second one.

Kat slowly turned to the source of the sound that startled her, Xuena. Kat had been rather focused on having fun with Lily in the snow and well… *That’s a weird ass question isn’t it?*

[Yeah no complaints from me. I… I think it makes sense but… weird…]

*Agreed. That being said… system is there a reason I shouldn’t?*

User Kat is being requested to provide Entity Xuena with blood for use in Alchemy. This course of action is not considered advisable. Any ability derived from User Kat’s blood will require taking in sufficient Demonic Energy to power it resulting in horrific mutations and loss of sanity.

That’s not a big surprise. “Just double checking… but what do you want it for?” asked Kat despite her confidence in Xuena’s answer.

“You have a really powerful regeneration factor and if I can have some of your blood, freely given of course, that should drastically increase the power of the pill I’m working on. I don’t need tooo much. Especially for someone that can regenerate. Though… I wouldn’t be opposed to more. I’m sure I could figure something else useful with it!” explained Xuena.

Kat nodded but tried to play up the absurdity. “Right… right… so… on the one hand, I understand the desire for potent regeneration, it is very nice… counterpoint. It relies on heavily corrupting demonic energy that WILL horrible mutate your flesh and mind into a twisted version of yourself with no sense of self.”

.....

“Hmmm…” *Oh God. Xuena is actually still thinking about it.* “So… when you say heavily corrupting…” Kat glanced over at Yang with a ‘Yang help, your science gremlin is doing mad science things’. Now, despite the relative lack of familiarity between Yang and Kat, they did know each other decently well. Perhaps more important, Yang knew Xuena REALLY well. So the message managed to make it across. Yang stopped her partial cultivation and started walking over. “Is that something you think could be mitigated with sanity inducers?

“Xuena…” started Kat before trailing off… *Right so… I admit I was being a little silly before, and Yang told me not to surprise Xuena… but I felt like I started with a fairly blatant warning and a dash of humour. If that isn’t taking care… I don’t know what is!*

[You were just trying to mess with her though.]

*Well yes, but I did also warn her of the dangers. Just because she is trying to warn that part doesn’t mean my warning was any less explicit.*

[You made it sound like something that potentially isn’t so bad. Perhaps even insinuated that you’re already effected by it. I don’t really know why you’re surprised it turned out like this. She was covered in worm guts naked in the snow just a few hours back. Well, I don’t know when she changed. Wait actually…] Lily looked up from where she was compacting some snow to see… Xuena. Naked and covered in blood. [Never mind she’s still naked and covered in worm guts. Makes MY point even more blatant. Maybe try and calm her down a bit?]

“… Xuena it’s a permanent change that destroys your humanity in the process. Sanity inducers are not going to help soul deep corruption,” insisted Kat.

Xuena just got a gleam in her eye. “I don’t see how that changes anything. Cultivation helps improve our souls after all and I know that demonic cultivators exist. Sure it’s probably not using actual demon blood, but that just means I can figure out my own special techniques!”

“Do you really want to be a demonic cultivator?” asked Kat hoping that alone would be enough. She should have known better.

“Not particularly but I have a real demon in front of me who seems willing to donate blood. The reason you’re hesitating isn’t because you don’t want to give blood, just that you’re afraid of the consequences if you do. Well, I’ll just have to do some testing to figure some things out,” said Xuena with a gleam in her eye.

“I’d really rather you didn’t Xuena,” said Yang firmly. “This is dangerous, and I know it excites you but it just isn’t safe,”

Xuena just waved off her friend’s concerns. “You think everything is unsafe Yang. This really could be my one and only chance for a big break,” Yang couldn’t help but scoff at that, “well it COULD. I mean, how many demons have been summoned in the last hundred years since all the demon summoning sects were wiped out?”

Yang grumbled under her breath, none of it was proper words, so Xuena pouted and gave the best puppy dog eyes she could, aimed directly at Yang. “What were you saying,”

Yang groaned and answered, “Fine. As far as I know the answer is one, or two. Depending on how you count things. Kat is, as far as I know, the only demon to have been summoned but she’s been summoned twice, both by Xiang.”

“See, see. That’s pretty rare right? Demons don’t just grow on trees you know!” insisted Xuena.

*Lily? Ideas?*

[I’d just point out she can’t research anything else if she goes insane. Maybe point out how much knowledge she’d loose in the transition even if it did work?]

Yeah that sounds promising. I’ll go with that. “Xuena,” Kat said sharply to return the ice cultivator’s attention to her. “I want you to think about what you’re really asking. You are risking your mind with these sorts of thoughts. Even if you succeed, what if you start to think you’re fine. Don’t bother with the sanity inducers at all or take more demon blood just because it seemed like a good idea at the time? You’d slowly lose yourself…

Kat raised herself up slightly, so that she could properly look down on Xuena, “Think of it. All that knowledge, all that intellect… slowly slipping through your fingers and draining away because you wanted a bit of extra power. Can you imagine? Think of just how dumb it might make you…”

“Yeah, it could make you dumber than Xiang!” chipped in Yang. Kat rolled her eyes at that as soon as Xuena turned around to look at Yang in surprise. Xuena started to look between Yang and Kat rapidly as she took in the statement before pouting.

“So… no super demon pills?” asked Xuena slowly.

“No super demon pills,” said Yang softly.

*Question… just how toxic is my blood exactly?*

User Kat’s blood isn’t inherently toxic as the Demonic Energy likes to bond itself to a demon’s body. What Demonic Energy is in blood tends not to leak out even if it’s splattered somewhere or ingested making it relatively safe. However, use of it as a crafting regent strips those protections.

*Good. I’d hate to think I’m a paper cut away from hurting Sylvie or someone else I like.*

Xuena sighed. “I guess I’ll just have to settle for healing my wounds, upgrading my cultivation rank… and growing a second heart. A shame really…”

“Wait hold up… what was that third thing” snapped Yang.

“Growing a second heart?” repeated Xuena innocently.

“Xuena… what did we agree about extra organs…” complained Yang.

“Not to add anything with even the slightest chance of causing complications?” offered Xuena as what she saw as an acceptable answer.

“No it wasn’t! We agreed to no additional organs until Rank 5 and you know how to properly fuse them with the body,” said Yang.

“That doesn’t seem like something I’d agree to…” mumbled Xuena.

“You had no choice. You’d just managed to destroy your eye in an explosion and in exchange for helping you mix everything to heal it up properly and not telling your parents you agreed not to add any additional organs till Rank 5,” said Yang.

“Wait… no… wasn’t that just extra eyes?” asked Xuena slowly.

“Nope, I specified ORGANS” said Yang firmly.

“Huh… I kinda feel like that has to be cheating…” grumbled Xuena.

*You know Lily… I’m getting the strange feeling that Xuena didn’t use that rare ingredient to heal Xiang out of the goodness of her heart so much as she healed Xiang as an EXCUSE to use that rare ingredient and only get a mild punishment from her parents.*

[You know Kat… I’m starting to think exactly the same thing. Funny coincidence that.]

*Do you think Yang knows?*

[I think she probably knows or at the very least suspects that to be the case. Xiang… I doubt he has any idea. Probably hasn’t spent enough time around Xuena yet…]

*I’m wonder if she really was better off kidnapped. Safer certainly…*

[Perhaps…]