But just as Shen Fan focused and continued reading, his brows furrowed deeply.
"This cultivation art... is actually a demonic art!"
Shen Fan suddenly raised his head, his eyes filled with disbelief.
Then he lowered his head again and examined it carefully.
When he saw that spine-chilling line of content, he inadvertently swallowed.
Blood Spirit Qi, burn qi and blood, use blood to replenish blood, making qi and blood even more abundant. Human blood is best, demon blood second...
In other words, by the end of cultivation, the best material for condensing Blood Spirit Qi was no longer qi-and-blood herbs or pills, but human blood!
As he continued flipping through it, the Blood Spirit Unification Art actually recorded a blood-sucking technique called the Blood Sucking Art!
From the initial stage onward, this technique involved directly drinking blood to replenish oneself. Later, it could be paired with movement techniques to break necks and suck blood.
The method was as bizarre and terrifying as a vampire.
It even said that if one found it too bloody, one could cultivate the Blood Sucking Art to the great mastery realm. At that point, one could suck blood from afar and make people explode to death.
After studying it for a while, shock appeared in Shen Fan's bewildered eyes, and he could not help but curse aloud:
"Damn it, Mu Xingtian had me cultivate a demonic art!"
Shen Fan truly could not understand what Mu Xingtian's purpose was in doing this.
The first half of the Blood Spirit Unification Art truly did not reveal it to be a demonic art.
It was merely a somewhat profound body-tempering cultivation art!
Yet no one could have imagined that Shen Fan had actually completed it.
"Whatever! As long as it can increase my strength, what does it matter whether it's a demonic art or not? If it gets discovered later, I'll just sell Mu Xingtian out, won't I?"
Shen Fan thought to himself.
"But although I don't know what Mu Xingtian intends by doing this, he ultimately wants me to grow stronger so he can use me. Now that I know that old bastard means me no good, I need to tread carefully and act cautiously. So I can't advance too quickly in cultivating Blood Spirit Qi, lest he notice!"
"I wonder whether the Treasure Gathering Universe Bowl can conceal divine soul detection, and whether it can also hide the aura of my cultivation?"
With that thought in mind, Shen Fan immediately began trying.
In his mind, the Treasure Gathering Universe Bowl emitted a faint golden light that enveloped his dantian.
The next moment, Shen Fan's aura vanished without a trace.
"It actually... really works!"
Shen Fan tried controlling the Treasure Gathering Universe Bowl.
The Treasure Gathering Universe Bowl also gave off a docile aura.
Under Shen Fan's control...
First level of the Qi Refining Stage, second level of the Qi Refining Stage...
First level of the Blood Refining Stage, second level of the Blood Refining Stage...
The levels of the two systems could actually be hidden and switched at will.
Thinking of this, Shen Fan immediately fixed his cultivation at the first level of the Blood Refining Stage.
Then he fixed it at the third level of the Qi Refining Stage.
This way, no one would become suspicious.
He just did not know whether the Treasure Gathering Universe Bowl's aura-concealment could be detected by the divine sense of a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator.
But when he recalled Mu Xingtian using the Soul Searching Technique on him...
It should be able to do so.
"Since the Treasure Gathering Universe Bowl can even complete incomplete cultivation arts, then the Nine Nether Corpse Refinement Art should be no problem either, right?"
At that thought, the Nine Nether Corpse Refinement Art's unique and eerie feedback cultivation method surfaced in Shen Fan's mind.
A wave of urgency immediately surged within him, and he could not wait to refine another corpse puppet to lend him a helping hand in cultivation.
The Nine Nether Corpse Refinement Art had been given to him by Old Man Duan, but unfortunately, it only contained the first three layers.
If he could complete it and begin cultivating it, his cultivation would surely rise to a higher level.
With that in mind, Shen Fan immediately took action. He took out paper and brush, then wrote down every single word of the Nine Nether Corpse Refinement Art that had been burned from memory.
Afterward, he carefully placed this copied cultivation art into the Treasure Gathering Universe Bowl and waited quietly in eager anticipation.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Just after Shen Fan finished copying the cultivation art and placed it into the bowl, the door of the Waste Elixir Chamber was suddenly pounded violently.
Before Shen Fan could rise to open it, the battered wooden door was kicked open with a vicious blow.
Outside the door, sunlight spilled down as a graceful figure appeared in the doorway. She stood slightly sideways, one hand on her waist while the other fanned away the dust before her in disgust.
When she saw Shen Fan approach, she put on an imperious air and ordered, "Can the incinerator be started today?"
Shen Fan was slightly stunned. Then, seeing her blue dress, he immediately recognized that she was from the inner sect.
"Reporting to Senior Sister, the incinerator is activated once every three days. According to the schedule, it will not be activated until tomorrow." Shen Fan clasped his hands and bowed as he answered respectfully.
"Don't call me Senior Sister, you lowly Miscellaneous Disciples!" The Inner Sect Disciple wore a disgusted expression, her tone full of contempt.
Then she said in an unquestionable tone, "Take me to see the condition of the incinerator!"
"Yes!" Shen Fan ignored her insult, turned around, and opened the storage room above the incinerator.
A wave of scorching sulfurous air rushed toward them, making the female inner sect disciple cover her mouth as her brows drew together.
The instant the storage room was opened, the rotten stench of discarded pills, waste materials, and residue surged forth like a tide, forcing her to retreat again and again.
Yet she seemed deeply concerned about whether something she needed was inside. Enduring the foul smell, she walked to the entrance and ordered Shen Fan, "You, dig through this pile of trash and let me take a look!"
Shen Fan did not dare resist. He could only pick up a shovel and begin digging through it in earnest.
Apparently unable to find what she needed, the female disciple leaned her head in and glanced at the mountain ravine above. After confirming there was nothing missing, she left the Waste Elixir Chamber without looking back.
Shen Fan watched her leave, unable to keep himself from feeling puzzled.
"Could that little bitch be sick in the head?" Shen Fan muttered inwardly.
Inner Sect Disciples would never come to this Waste Elixir Chamber unless she had accidentally dropped something useful from Elixir Forging Peak or the Spirit Herb Department above.
That was why she had lowered herself to come here and search, only to find nothing after all her efforts.
"Boom—!"
Not long after the female disciple left, Shen Fan suddenly heard a tremendous crash from the storage room, as though something heavy had struck the ground.
The sound was exactly the same as when the Golden Silk Monkey demon beast's corpse had been thrown down last time. Clearly, something with considerable weight had fallen.
Seeing this, Shen Fan thought of the female inner sect disciple who had just left, and a suspicion immediately rose in his heart.
He immediately bolted the door from within, then carefully opened the storage room and entered once more.
When he focused his eyes, Shen Fan's eyes immediately widened.
There lay another Inner Sect Disciple in blue robes, around seventeen or eighteen years old. Covered in blood and dressed in tattered clothes, she lay among discarded pills and residue, barely clinging to life.
"Senior Sister?"
Shen Fan immediately stepped forward, helped the Inner Sect Disciple up, and quickly carried her out of the storage room.
Looking closer, he saw that the girl's blue dress had been slashed apart by a sharp sword. Wounds deep enough to expose bone bled profusely, soaking her dress and sticking it to her flesh.
"Save... save me!"
After saying that, her head tilted to one side, and she fainted in Shen Fan's arms.
Before you continue