Chapter 96: The Soul Blood from the Void

Black Rooster Demon's fractured soul drifted into the body he had long prepared for himself. For a heartbeat, confusion flickered in his eyes.

Where is my Core? It is gone!

Scanning his surroundings, he caught sight of a lone Foundation Establishment cultivator. The man watched him quietly. Suspicion crept into Black Roosters Demon’s gaze.

"Despite my final soul strike, a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator remains unscathed?" he muttered, eyes narrowing. "You must be carrying a treasure that shields the soul!"

That thought sent a surge of elation through him.

Heaven shows mercy!

To survive such a disaster, surely fortune awaits!

Nine Nascent Souls had joined forces to besiege him. His escape, feigning death and all, had left his soul in tatters.

His final soul strike had been devastating to those in close proximity. The nine Nascent Souls had borne the brunt of it. The cultivators around Lord Zuyuan were struck down next. Mid-stage Core Formation cultivators had fallen unconscious. Yet, this Foundation Establishment brat stood unharmed.

That could only mean one thing: a treasure of immense power guarded the man's soul, perhaps even a supreme treasure. If he seized it and found a quiet place to heal and cultivate, it could greatly increase his odds of surviving the Violet Palace Tribulation.

How could he not be ecstatic? He glared at Qi Yuan the way a starving man leered at a feast.

Qi Yuan, on the other hand, studied him with mild puzzlement.

"So you're the one who got blasted awake by a fart," he said dryly. "Figures your brain's not working right."

He hefted the vegetable knife and stepped forward.

"Impudent!" Black Rooster Demon snarled, fury flashing through his gaze. "Even wounded, I will not be insulted by a Foundation Establishment cretin!"

He wove his hands through a series of signs, summoning Dao techniques to bind Qi Yuan in place. Qi Yuan was faster. The knife descended in one swift, brutal stroke.

Crack.

The knife seemed to cut through flesh, cleaving straight through Black Rooster Demon's soul.

"Impossible!" he screamed, face twisting in agony as his gloating expression shattered.

The pain was like being torn apart from within. This wasn't prey. This was a demon wearing a human face.

Before he could even think, Qi Yuan's knife came down again, shattering what remained of the Black Rooster Demon's soul. Lord Zuyuan's body dropped to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

Qi Yuan blinked, wary. "He's not gonna get farted awake again, right?"

His gaze drifted to something hovering beside the fallen body. A droplet of deep crimson light, suspended in midair.

He focused, and information surfaced before his eyes:

[Soul Blood – Origin: The Great Void. A drop of divine blood once lost in the Great Shang, seized by the Black Rooster Demon. When merged into the soul, it plants a seed that may one day bloom into a soul artifact. The stronger the seed, the stronger the artifact. Even after death, one may revive through this seed.]

Qi Yuan's eyes widened. "So that was just a seed? That Lord Zuyuan I just chopped up was him all long?"

A grin spread across his face.

"Well, well... What a lucky find." He chuckled quietly. "Old Rooster, you're not my enemy, you're my white moonlight. My shining white moonlight, brighter than even Po Lang! This blood... It's Soul Blood from the Great Void itself. What a treasure!"

Soul artifacts were so rare even the mighty Great Shang likely had none. And this one wasn't just any soul artifact, it grew stronger over time.

Without hesitation, Qi Yuan swallowed the drop. At once, he felt it merge with his own soul. It was a living pulse of blood that was quietly beating within. Able to be detached at any moment, it could parasitize something or someone.

"If I let this attach to a Yang Spirit cultivator..." he mused, "would that make the Yang Spirit my soul artifact?"

The thought thrilled him, but he quickly dismissed it. Too risky, and not to mention, absurd.

"No... I'll find something suitable. Something worthy of becoming my soul artifact."

With that, he turned away. The matter was done and it was time to leave. His gaze fell on Old Liu, still lying unconscious.

"Well, since you let me leave first earlier, I'll return the favor," Qi Yuan muttered.

A flick of his wrist, and Old Liu's limp body floated up behind him. Just then, a message echoed through Qi Yuan's jade slip. It was Lord Withered Tree's voice.

"

Black Rooster Demon has been slain. The nine of us will recuperate in the Ten-Thousand Demon Cavern for four days. How does it fare on your side

?"

Qi Yuan replied swiftly.

"Handled. Killed a Core Formation cultivator."

Silence lingered for a long moment.

Then came the old man's measured response.

"Four days later, I will come to Seven-Colored Peak to find you."

"Understood."

Qi Yuan carried Liu out of the cavern.

Outside, eleven of the thirteen Core Formation cultivators emerged. Their leader glanced at Qi Yuan in mild surprise, especially when he saw Old Liu unconscious behind him.

"This matter ends here," the man said. "But for now, no one must speak of the Black Rooster Demon's death."

With that, he turned into a streak of light and vanished. The others followed suit.

Qi Yuan looked down at Old Liu and sighed. "Guess I'll have to deliver you home... Bloodless City, right?"

He remembered the place he'd passed through when destroying the Black Mountain Sect, even shared a spirit ship with a talkative, charming young lady.

***

Half a day later, Qi Yuan sat in a quiet courtyard. His eyes were slightly widened in surprise.

The very same lady from that spirit ship journey. He hadn't expected to see her again. She turned out to be Old Liu's daughter.

"I've returned your father," Qi Yuan said, voice roughened and altered. Changing his tone was the easiest disguise of all.

"Thank you, Senior," said Liu Piao, bowing deeply, gratitude welling in her heart.

If some unscrupulous cultivator had found her father in that state, he would have been stripped of everything. A comatose Core Formation cultivator was a treasure trove to the greedy. Yet, this stranger had returned him safely. How could she not be moved?

Just then, hurried footsteps echoed. "Grandfather! Grandfather!"

A young woman in a white gown ran in, her brow beaded with sweat. Duan Qianrou was anxious and breathless.

"Your grandfather hasn't woken yet," Liu Piao said softly, relief flooding her eyes. "This senior brought him back."

Only then did Duan Qianrou truly look at Qi Yuan. He wore a mask and his face was hidden.

"Senior, you saved my grandfather from peril," she said, bowing low. "I have nothing worthy of your grace. I only have this small token. Please, accept it."

She offered a storage pouch filled to the brim with blood crystals. Qi Yuan didn't refuse. As he accepted them, a warmth pulsed from his chest, where Little Bride's tattoo was etched into his skin.

He paused, thoughtful.

Could these blood crystals be useful to her?

"It's nothing," he said lightly. "Just a small favor. He's safe now, I'll take my leave."

Qi Yuan was in a hurry to leave, he had to see what use this blood crystal had for Little Bride. Why had the mark of Little Bride on his chest burned?

Before Duan Qianrou could say a word, Qi Yuan turned into a streak of light and vanished.

***

Not long after, in a quiet, deserted stretch of land, he summoned Little Bride and drew out the blood crystal. It wasn't large, yet clear and lustrous. The color was akin to a pomegranate seed, but far deeper. A vivid, pulsing crimson.

The moment Little Bride saw it, a small wooden plaque slipped from her sleeve. It was a face lit up with pure delight.

"You like it?" Qi Yuan smiled. "It's yours."

From within her sleeve, Little Bride delicately picked up a blood crystal. No one knew how much time passed, but soon, the crystal had vanished completely. Little Bride seemed positively gleeful, her eyes sparkled with life.

Seeing her so happy, Qi Yuan couldn't help but smile as well. The heaviness in his chest eased a little.

"Did you eat it?" he asked, surprised.

He had never thought Little Bride even needed to eat. Yet somehow, she did.

"I've got plenty more if you want them," Qi Yuan said, taking out a few more blood crystals and handing them to her.

He watched as she slowly absorbed them, and a prompt flickered in his eyes.

[Blood Crystal. Comparable in effect to a low-grade spirit stone]

He grinned. "Do you like them that much? Fine. When I see the sect master, I'll find an excuse to take over the blood crystal mines of Bloodless City. Let them dig for you. You'll never run out again."

After all, why buy what he could simply take? The king of Great Shang, Dong Xian, was his junior brother, he could afford to be a little arrogant.

***

Days later, in Bloodless City...

Qianrou's eyes glistened with relief as Liu Guan stirred. "Grandfather, you're awake?”

"I..." he murmured, confused, then memories flooded back.

The sight of that young Foundation Establishment cultivator slicing apart Lord Zuyuan's Core with a single swing. Then came Black Rooster Demon’s soul attack, and finally, darkness.

"Who brought me back?" he asked.

"A masked cultivator," Qianrou said. "Didn't seem very old, nor very powerful."

"Was it him?" Liu Guan's eyes widened. "Where is he now?"

"He left four days ago."

A trace of loss crossed the old man's face.

"Grandfather, who is he?" Qianrou asked, noticing his unease.

"He is..." Liu Guan exhaled slowly, awe filling his voice. "A true peerless genius. Even the ten geniuses of Great Shang are nothing before him. I saw it with my own eyes, he shattered a late-stage Core Formation cultivator's core with a single strike."

"What?!" Qianrou gasped, covering her lips in disbelief.

A Foundation Establishment cultivator defeating a late-stage Core Formation? That's impossible!

"Yes...," Liu Guan said firmly. "The only pity is that he feared his identity might be exposed and never gave me his name. Piao'er, Qianrou, this matter must remain secret. No word of it must spread."

Both women nodded solemnly.

"Father, I will keep this a secret."

"Yes, Grandfather. I understand the importance of this."

Still, Qianrou couldn't help but wonder. "Grandfather, could he be someone famous? Ji Boying of the Demonic Desire Sect? Kang Fulu of the Divine Radiance Sect? Zhao Jiujian of Floating Mountain?"

Liu Guan frowned. "When the Black Mountain Sect was wiped out, some claimed the killer was either a Core Formation cultivator in disguise, or a Foundation Establishment cultivator. If that's true..."

The implication struck them both silent. If it was the same man, things would make sense.

"Foundation Establishment?"

Qianrou suddenly remembered the young man her mother had chatted so warmly with on the spirit ship. Later, she'd even seen him descending the mountain near Black Mountain Sect, asking her for directions. Her heart skipped.

"Mother," she whispered. "Don't you think the man who brought Grandfather back looked familiar?"

"

Huh

?" Liu Piao blinked, momentarily dazed.

"When you come back from Mountain Nan," Duan Qianrou continued urgently, "you mentioned chatting at length with a young cultivator, you even wanted to introduce him to me. That same day, the Black Mountain Sect was wiped out!"

"Are you saying they're the same person?" Liu Piao's eyes widened as the meaning sank in.

Was it her imagination or the power of suggestion? Now that her daughter had said it, she felt the man who brought her father home indeed bore some resemblance.

Even the way he spoke—wild, whimsical at times—was strangely alike.

***

Four days passed.

Qi Yuan had returned to Seven-Colored Peak. Half the blood crystals were already gone, devoured by Little Bride. Her appearance hadn't changed much, but when she fused with him, the blood-red armor gleamed with greater strength and resilience than before.

Qi Yuan could feel it. His strikes hit harder, his defenses thicker, it was a pleasant surprise indeed. Moreover, Little Bride seemed to have developed quite the fondness for blood crystals, treating them like snacks.

Qi Yuan couldn't help but chuckle to himself. Once the sect master returned, he'd have him buy out all of Bloodless City and seize every last mine while he was at it. When it came to Little Bride, there was only one rule in his heart: spoil her.

He wasn't some overbearing young master from a romance tale, but he certainly knew how to pamper his wife, especially one like Little Bride.

Someone said in a calm, aged voice, breaking his reverie, "Qi Yuan."

Outside his wooden house, Lord Withered Tree descended, his expression a tangle of emotions. It was complex, yet faintly tinged with expectation.

"Please come in, Sect Master," Qi Yuan said.

Lord Withered Tree pushed open the door and stepped inside. His gaze briefly flicked to Little Bride, before returning to Qi Yuan. "You've already slain a Core Formation cultivator. That means you've passed my trial."

"Then tell me, Sect Master, what is this opportunity you've been keeping from me?" Qi Yuan asked, his tone impatient. He was eager to grow stronger.

"I am not, in truth, from Great Shang," Lord Withered Tree said slowly. "I come from the Eastern Lands. I’m hoping that you will take my place in the Eastern Lands' Heaven's Chosen Contest."