Blood Shadow Technique, Uncle-Master Xuan Sha

After drinking half a bowl of Spirit Liquid, the female corpse puppet revealed a satisfied expression.

Her skin, which had turned pale from bloodletting, slowly regained its color.

Watching this, Li Yan stroked his chin and pondered, "She can turn such yin-evil substances into blood after drinking them. This corpse puppet truly is extraordinary."

"Forget it. I'll study it slowly in the future."

Su Mo, the corpse puppet, had spilled Dead Embryo Blood all over the ground earlier, and Li Yan had no intention of wasting it.

He took out a candle and lit it, letting his shadow fall across that pool of blood. After securing the candle, Li Yan began cultivating according to the Su Family's secret scroll.

His ten fingers formed a Blood Lotus Hand Seal as he calmed his mind.

"Shadow draws blood, blood feeds shadow; dead embryo coils around the roots and draws within the soul."

As Li Yan chanted the incantation and used his blood qi to guide the pool of Dead Embryo Blood on the ground, the system's voice rang out in his mind.

[Detected that the host is cultivating an utmost evil art. Side effects are being reversed!]

The cultivation process was incomparably long. He needed to imagine his shadow as a part of his own body before he could induce it to devour the blood.

Li Yan stared intently at the shadow on the ground, his nerves taut.

The female corpse, Su Mo, quietly stood guard beside him. Time passed second by second; the candle flame swayed, and wax tears rolled down in streams along the candle's body.

The corpse puppet did not disturb Li Yan's cultivation. She simply remained by his side.

When the blood on the ground was nearly dry, she took the initiative to step forward and add more corpse blood.

Visible to the naked eye, Li Yan's shadow began to emit a faint golden glow.

The cave dwelling was tranquil and peaceful, but within Broken Sword Valley, the situation was a wholly different sight.

Old Daoist Xuanwang had been lying in wait here with his disciples for nearly ten hours.

Those ten hours had already worn away Xuan Wang's patience.

"Why hasn't that damned traitorous disciple come out yet?"

"Pity the Tracking Restriction I placed on him has been blocked by this mist."

Old Ghost Xuan Wang paced back and forth at the entrance to Broken Sword Valley.

He did not believe Li Yan would not come out. He did not believe Li Yan could hide in there forever.

At his side, Senior Disciple Brother Mingshan cautiously spoke up. "Master, could Li Yan have already died inside?"

Second Senior Sister Mingyue echoed him as well.

"Yes, Master. Broken Sword Valley is fraught with danger, and this mist can even interfere with our Spiritual Sense. We can only see ten or twenty paces ahead."

Faced with the doubts raised by his two personal disciples, Xuan Wang snorted and flicked his sleeve.

"He isn't dead!"

"If he were dead, this Soul Lamp would certainly have gone out."

The old Daoist took out a Soul Lamp with Li Yan's name engraved upon it.

"Moreover, that brat hasn't triggered any formation traps, nor has he been besieged by the corpse horde. That is clearly abnormal."

"He must have some secret on him. As long as I figure out that secret, I'll be able to come and go freely in Broken Sword Valley!"

Xuan Wang was no fool. Everything extraordinary Li Yan had displayed proved that he could see all things within the mist and was unaffected by its restrictions.

With that being the case, Xuan Wang could not let Li Yan escape all the more. He had to block the exit of Broken Sword Valley and wait for Li Yan to walk into the net himself.

Seeing how stubborn his master was, determined to capture Li Yan no matter what,

Senior Disciple Brother spoke again. "Master, what if Li Yan climbs up the cliff walls and leaves?"

"Climb the cliff walls? Ha!"

Xuan Wang seemed to have heard the greatest joke in the world as he pointed at the cliffs on either side.

"Do you know what is buried within those cliff walls?"

"They are the remains of ancient cultivators! If you dare climb them, just wait to be dragged inside!"

The old Daoist raised his lamp, and only then did the disciples see twisted faces embedded in the stone walls.

Hiss!

Everyone recoiled in terror, never imagining that Broken Sword Valley was packed with so many corpses.

"These stone walls are the ancient Changyuan, the old city walls of the Demon Sect Holy Land."

"Ancient records state that countless cultivators fell here in those years. After death, their corpses were mixed directly with bricks and stuffed into the walls one by one!"

"What you see as cliff walls are actually formation walls built by ancient cultivators."

Upon hearing their master's explanation, the disciples could not help imagining just how brutal that battle had been.

The dead, and enemies with only half a breath left, were all buried together within the walls, forged into towering ramparts imbued with immortal power.

Now, as time had shifted and the ages changed, those old ramparts were covered in moss and crawling with vines.

If someone pulled aside the green vines, they would see despairing, terrifying faces upon the stone walls.

These ancient relic ramparts had been filled with the corpses of cultivators mixed with stone!

Just as Xuan Wang was explaining the history of this place to his disciples, a round of applause came from afar.

"Junior Brother Xuan Wang, what refined taste!"

"You still have the leisure to tell stories here with your disciples."

Xuan Wang's ears twitched slightly as he heard a familiar voice.

The cross-eyed old Daoist frowned and snorted. "Xuan Sha, you dare follow me?"

When Senior Disciple Brother and Second Senior Sister saw the newcomer emerge from the mist, they both cupped their hands in greeting.

"Greetings, Uncle-Master Xuan Sha."

The Daoist who emerged from the mist was utterly different from Old Ghost Xuan Wang.

Xuan Wang was a hunched, sleazy old Daoist, while Xuan Sha was a burly man with a full beard, his entire body exuding bandit-like air.

He looked less like a Daoist and more like a bandit impersonating one.

Moreover, Xuan Sha did not stand on ceremony at all. He strode up and threw an arm around Old Ghost Xuan Wang's shoulders.

"Junior Brother! What do you mean, following you? Must we be so distant with each other?"

"What's yours and what's mine? It all belongs to everyone!"

Xuan Sha let out a hearty laugh, his thick arm nearly strangling Old Ghost Xuan Wang.

Old Ghost Xuan Wang snorted irritably, but this burly Uncle-Master Xuan Sha smiled sinisterly.

"I heard everything you just said from outside."

Old Ghost Xuan Wang's eyes widened as he pointed at him. "You! What kind of skill is hiding in the mist and eavesdropping?"

"Eh, Junior Brother, that is not quite right!"

"That traitorous disciple of yours, Li Yan, can move through Broken Sword Valley without hindrance. If we join forces and capture him, wouldn't that be..."

Hearing Uncle-Master Xuan Sha's suggestion, Old Ghost Xuan Wang became slightly interested. "Oh?"

"As long as we catch Li Yan, we can have him lead us in exploring Broken Sword Valley. You and I split the treasures in its depths fifty-fifty."

"And as for your Senior Brother, I brought back a group of Two-legged Sheep from outside the mountain, to have them track Li Yan for us."

As he spoke, Xuan Sha snapped his fingers, and a large group of people emerged from the mist behind him.

Uncle-Master Xuan Sha's disciples were escorting a huge group of "Two-legged Sheep."

The so-called Two-legged Sheep were actually innocent commoners, brought here after being affixed with talismanic charms.

The commoners' eyes were vacant, white talismans pasted onto their foreheads. At the sound of the Daoists shaking their bells, they hopped forward like zombies.

Ding-ling-ling~ Ding-ling-ling!

The commoners hopped forward to the bell's chimes, spreading out to scout the way ahead.

When the ringing of bells reached the cave dwelling, Li Yan suddenly opened his eyes.

"Where did those bells come from? It's probably another disturbance caused by Old Ghost Xuan Wang."

"Looks like that old ghost won't rest until he finds me."

Li Yan rose to his feet and looked at his shadow.

At that moment, the shadow beneath his feet emitted a golden glow of yang energy.

The Blood Shadow Technique had entered the beginning stage; its form had taken shape!