Transcending the Magic Era: The Supreme Female Archmage

"By the way, General Jimo, why were you being hunted down before? Did you discover something?" Chu Qiuchi asked curiously.

Ji Mohan's expression immediately turned serious, and his eyes narrowed. "Indeed, there has been a significant discovery." As he spoke, he took out a bottle of blood-red potion from his mental space. The bottle was crystal clear, and the liquid inside emitted an unusual luster under the dim light.

"While investigating the movements of the mutated beastmen, I accidentally discovered an underground cave. Inside, I saw many mutated beastmen that looked like a different creature, locked in huge cages. They must all be experimental subjects."

He paused, his expression growing even more serious. "And on the table next to those cages, there was this potion. I suspect it's the key factor that caused the beastmen to mutate, so I just grabbed a bottle."

Chu Qiuchi's eyes widened in shock: "An underground cave? A mutation experiment? My goodness!" She pointed to the vial of potion and asked with a complicated expression, "And then? You took this, and they started hunting you down?"

Ji Mohan gave a wry smile and nodded: "Yes, that bottle was tampered with, probably with something for tracking. Not long after I took it, they discovered my whereabouts. You all know what happened next, I was chased all the way and almost lost my life. Luckily, I realized it later and switched the bottle, otherwise I would have really been in trouble this time."

Chu Qiuchi frowned, staring thoughtfully at the bottle of bright red potion: "I wonder why they're researching this potion. What benefit would it bring them? Would it make them stronger?"

Ji Mohan nodded, his expression grave: "They should become even stronger. The monsters I saw in the underground caves that had turned into something unrecognizable, the aura they exuded was indeed far beyond that of ordinary beastmen. However..." He frowned even more deeply as he said this, "Most of them have lost their minds and become completely out of control."

Chu Qiuchi gasped in shock: "Become stronger, but the price is turning into a monster and losing your mind? This... isn't this self-destruction?! What are they trying to do?!"

Ji Mohan snorted coldly, a glint of cold light flashing in his eyes: "Those monsters that have lost their minds are probably just failed experiments. But those who are chasing me—" He paused, his eyes growing even colder, "are very likely their success stories. Those guys are far faster and stronger than ordinary beastmen, and the key is that they are all still sane."

Chu Qiuchi felt a chill run down his spine and couldn't help but swallow hard. He muttered, "If they can really use this thing to mass-produce even more powerful mutated magical beasts, wouldn't we be in big trouble? Those monsters alone are enough to give us a hard time, not to mention those that have succeeded."

Ji Moyu, who had been listening quietly, finally spoke up, "Judging from the current situation, the effects of this potion are quite obvious. But it has a key problem—not every beastman can successfully mutate. It seems that they probably haven't mastered a completely stable mutation method yet."

“That’s right.” Ji Mohan nodded in agreement. “So we must hurry up and study the ingredients of this potion to find a way to counter it. As long as we can counter this potion, we can find a way to curb the mutation of the beast race, and even weaken their combat power.”

Just then, Chu Qiuchi seemed to remember something, raised an eyebrow, and suddenly interjected, "Hey, that's not right! When we went to pick you up, we talked to Long Yueze about the people who were chasing you, but he seemed to have no idea who they were, and he didn't even know about the mutated beast race."

Ji Mohan frowned slightly, looking at Chu Qiuchi with a deep gaze: "Are you sure what he said is true?"

Chu Qiuchi paused for a moment, then pursed his lips and softened his tone slightly: "Long Yueze's attitude at the time didn't seem like he was lying. He really did look clueless about these mutated beast races."

Ji Moyu said coldly, "Perhaps he is just pretending not to know."

Hearing this, Chu Qiuchi rolled his eyes at Ji Moyu with a helpless expression.

Ji Mohan pondered for a moment, "That's also possible. The various beast races aren't necessarily completely united. This mutation experiment might just be a secret operation by a few individual beast races. During my investigation, I didn't find any mutated beast races outside."

Upon hearing this, Chu Qiuchi nodded, but was still somewhat puzzled: "If that's the case, then it's alright, the situation isn't too bad. However, aren't they worried about other races finding out about this? After all, daring to use their own kind as experimental subjects is just too crazy."

Ji Mohan said in a deep voice, "The complexity within the Beast Race is no less than that of our Human Race. While the various races may appear united on the surface, there are likely ongoing struggles and power struggles among them. In short, I will report this matter to His Majesty immediately. As for who is behind this potion and whether it was orchestrated by certain forces within the Beast Race, we need to investigate further. The next decision will depend on His Majesty's decision."

Ji Moyu continued, "In any case, this potion is the most important clue we currently have, and it must be sent to Fran City as soon as possible so that alchemists can analyze its components."

Chu Qiuchi nodded upon hearing this, but couldn't help muttering to himself, "I never expected that the beast race would have such powerful alchemists! I've never heard of the beast race knowing alchemy before."

Upon hearing this, Ji Mohan's previously calm expression faltered slightly, as if he had been touched by something. He paused for a moment, then asked urgently, "Qiu Chi, what did you just say?"

Chu Qiuchi was startled by his reaction and scratched his head, somewhat at a loss: "Me? I just... I didn't say anything."

Ji Mohan's gaze was fixed on her, his tone carrying a hint of pressure: "No, you just said that the beast race doesn't have any powerful alchemists, right?"

Chu Qiuchi was a little stunned by his question. Looking at his serious yet subtly excited expression, she nodded blankly: "Yes, I was just saying it casually. After all, I've never heard of beastmen knowing alchemy. Aren't alchemy usually the spirit race and humans?"

"You've really reminded me! The beastmen don't have alchemists. So, the mastermind behind this potion... might not be the beastmen themselves! Could it be—"

His voice suddenly turned cold, and his gaze sharpened: "Are there alchemists from the human or spirit race colluding with the beast race?!"

Chu Qiuchi's eyes widened, clearly not expecting that his casual remark would lead to such a shocking speculation: "This...this is too outrageous! Why would human or spirit alchemists help the beast race research mutation potions? What are they after?"

Ji Mohan's eyes grew colder, and his voice was low: "For profit, for power, what wouldn't they do?" He paused, his brows furrowed, as if deep in thought. "If that's really the case, then sending this bottle of medicine back... we can't be completely at ease."