Devouring All the Worldly Smoke and Fire

The neighborhood at night became lively. The lights from the ambulance and police cars intertwined, drawing many residents downstairs to watch.

Personnel responsible for testing knocked on the doors of neighbors in Building 9, going door-to-door to check if they had been contaminated.

No need to ask, the surrounding people could guess who had the incident.

"It's Old Man Zhao, right? It's definitely him. His place stinks worse than shit. If he doesn't give birth to demons, who will?"

"It really is. The fourth floor is sealed off. Luckily, the neighbors across the hall are on the night shift and haven't returned, otherwise, how scary would that be?"

"Yeah, I told him so many times, but he never changed. Now look, someone's come to his door. He's probably going to suffer."

"He won't suffer anymore. My upstairs neighbor went down to take a look just now. There was nothing inside."

A person who had just finished their examination and was going downstairs said, "Old Man Zhao is probably gone."

Everyone sighed again.

The entire neighborhood had heard about Old Man Zhao's eccentricities. The man was indeed detestable and overbearing, but he hadn't caused any major trouble. When it came to life and death, they all seemed a bit more forgiving.

But some people were anxious, wishing they could scatter Old Man Zhao's ashes.

Li Haihua and Liu Qingxia, while cursing Old Man Zhao, rushed to the hospital. Upon seeing Li Ye flipping through his phone on the hospital bed, Liu Qingxia's eyes instantly turned red.

He didn't encounter any demons during his night run, but he encountered one at his doorstep!

However, before they could speak, Li Ye, lying on the bed, put down his phone and smiled, "I just need to finish these two bags of IV fluids. It's nothing serious."

His parents breathed a sigh of relief.

Liu Qingxia cursed, "That damned Zhao bastard! He's not leaving anyone in peace even after death!"

"Xiao Ye, why are you staying here?" Li Haihua glanced around the ward and asked.

Their hearts had been in their mouths just now because Li Ye was in a single room, and they were afraid something had happened to him.

"The government arranged it. They said I did a good deed and there will be a reward later."

Li Ye chuckled, "Mom, I'm hungry."

"Okay, Mom will go buy you something. Old Li, you go ask the doctor again to see if Xiao Ye is really fine."

After his parents left the ward, Li Ye picked up his phone again, looking at the information he had just searched for regarding the Five Plagues Ghosts.

The ward was a single room with excellent amenities. Li Ye didn't have to pay for this part; Huang Qingyi had arranged it.

As for Huang Qingyi, he was also receiving treatment. They could discuss things tomorrow.

Li Ye really didn't want to discuss anything today. His attention was focused on the Five Plagues Ghosts and the Authority he had obtained.

Li Ye had killed a god!

The information online was varied, and mostly inaccurate, but Li Ye wasn't an academic. He could still find some relevant records.

The Five Plagues Ghosts were demons that affected food, but they were born from everyday items like rice, oil, sugar, vinegar, and chopsticks.

This was also why they were rare. These daily necessities had to become moldy, and people had to continue using them for such demons to be born.

Let alone in modern society, it was difficult to find them even in ancient times. If these things got moldy, people wouldn't throw them away and would continue using them. If you don't get plagued, who will?

The Five Plagues Ghosts first appeared alongside the Flame Emperor. The recorded "Red Emperor's Scripture for Subduing Plagues" tells the story of how the ancient powerful figure Shen Nong taught ancient people to cook and eat using cauldrons, thereby preventing demons.

This was quite similar to the strange prophecy Li Ye had heard.

As for the Five Plagues Ghosts, Li Ye found a record that stated from ancient times until the Sui Dynasty, they were all referred to as the Five Plagues Gods!

And the Authority he obtained...

"Xiao Ye, I brought you preserved egg and lean meat congee. Eat this first. Mom will make you something when we get home."

His parents came in at this time, their faces visibly more relaxed.

They had asked the doctor, and it was indeed the mildest form of contamination, equivalent to a common cold. Li Ye, being a martial artist, could go home after just two bags of IV fluids.

Li Haihua placed the small table on the bed, Liu Qingxia arranged the congee, and picked up a spoon, ready to feed him.

"I'm just getting an IV drip, it's not that serious."

Li Ye took the spoon, scooped some congee, and put it in his mouth.

It was bought from outside, using the simplest ingredients. But now, Li Ye didn't care what it was, as long as it was food. He wanted to verify something.

After a spoonful of congee entered his stomach, Li Ye immediately felt a difference.

He could precisely sense his Blood Essence increasing, even if it was a minuscule, almost negligible improvement.

The Authority, 'Qi Devourer', the power Li Ye had obtained, meant to consume all worldly sustenance.

Its manifestation was the ability to eat food, and everything consumed could be fed back to oneself.

And this capacity was limitless!

In today's world, eating is very important for martial arts training. One cannot train if they don't eat enough, and the effectiveness of training is also poor if the food is not good.

People with poor aptitude have to spend a lot of money to buy top-quality ingredients and supplements, supplemented by better training methods to strengthen their Blood Essence.

However, humans have a limit to how much they can eat, and they cannot absorb everything.

Li Ye's family certainly didn't have the money to buy those high-end ingredients that cost tens of thousands. But now, he didn't have to worry about that.

The Authority granted him the power to fully absorb the essence of food. Regardless of the quality of the ingredients, as long as it was edible, it could increase his Blood Essence.

The only condition was that the food had to be prepared before it could have this effect.

This was information he immediately understood after gaining the Authority, and he was now just verifying it.

He had previously worried about never feeling full, but now, after eating, he realized he had been overthinking it.

He could still feel the food he ate; he would still get hungry and feel full under normal circumstances.

Seeing Li Ye quickly finish a bowl of porridge, Liu Qingxia said, "Xiao Ye, don't go on your night runs anymore. Are you afraid you won't encounter any Demons? Mom knows you know a lot, but knowing a lot is useless. A scholar arguing with a soldier can't make himself understood. Demons aren't something you can solve just by knowing a lot."

Li Haihua chimed in, "Knowledge can't be a substitute for weapons. The country will handle the Demons, so you just focus on practicing martial arts. Once you've mastered martial arts, you can deal with Demons however you want."

"I won't anymore," Li Ye nodded.

His night runs were just to consolidate his strength, but now that he had the Authority, what was there to consolidate?

He just needed to push forward!

He quickly finished two bottles of water, completed his discharge procedures, and went home with his parents.

Building 9 was still sealed off. To be extra cautious, everyone in the entire complex had their doors knocked on for testing to see if anyone was infected or contaminated.

After Li Ye returned home, Liu Qingxia opened the refrigerator and went into the kitchen to make a late-night snack.

The snack was naturally simple. In just ten minutes, Liu Qingxia had brought it to the table.

"Clean up after yourself, and get to bed early. You have school tomorrow."

With that, his parents returned to their bedroom.

The scare had exhausted them too, and they still had to go to work the next day.

The late-night snack was simple: a bacon sandwich, a bowl of oatmeal with milk, and a bowl of steamed egg custard. Li Ye devoured it in no time, feeling his Blood Essence increase, and smiled with satisfaction.

Although it wasn't the world-ending Authority he had once imagined, it was still pretty good.

In a sense, he wasn't afraid of getting sick, because the Qi Devourer could even absorb the diseased energy from food.

Theoretically, as long as the quantity was sufficient, Li Ye could eat garbage and still break through the Dragon Gate.

And what the Authority brought was also the very direct sensation of Blood Essence increasing, allowing him to know his progress.

Blood Essence couldn't be quantified. Just like the strength of everyone's cultivation, one knows best how it feels, though the outward strength might differ.

There was no standard for the Blood Essence needed to leap the Dragon Gate. If one's Blood Essence was abundant, they leaped; if it wasn't, they didn't.

But now, with the Authority, Li Ye could directly feel his Blood Essence and know where he stood, and when he would be able to make his Blood Essence surge and break through the Dragon Gate.

If the standard for his Blood Essence to surge was 100, then his current level was probably 80, and it was difficult to increase, unless he spent a lot of money on tonics to force it up.

Under normal circumstances, there would be no possibility of his Blood Essence surging. His previous decision not to practice martial arts was correct; practicing for another year would have been a waste.

But now that he had obtained the Authority, everything was completely different.

The preserved egg and lean meat congee he ate at the hospital had increased it by 0.001 according to his own quantification standard. The late-night snack tonight had increased it by 0.002.

So, his current Blood Essence had reached 80.003.

He didn't even need to practice martial arts to improve; just eating was enough!