Meridian opening was within arm's reach.
Everything else could be ignored. His gaze locked firmly onto Dragon Tiger Vajra Skill. First, he had to raise his cultivation and crush his opponents with overwhelming strength. That was the right path.
System upgrade.
80 Assistance Points consumed
100
300 Assistance Points consumed in total
[Dragon Tiger Vajra Skill] peak of the later stage.
"Meridian Mirror" third layer
The moment the "prefix" appeared, an invisible force enveloped his entire body. It was as if countless hammers were pounding him inside and out, over and over in an endless cycle.
At that moment, he felt his body changing rapidly under the pounding. His strength, stamina, explosive power, and defense were all increasing at an incredibly exaggerated rate.
Through the changes within his body, Su Ye understood even more clearly what it meant to be a body cultivator. Body cultivators did not cultivate true qi or the spirit. They relied on a body tempered day after day, forging sinew and bone until they could contend with the heroes of the world.
He could clearly feel his blood burning like fire as it passed through his heart. With every circulation, it grew a little thicker. When this blood, heavy as mercury, flowed through his whole body, it was as if his flesh had awakened.
The critical point arrived, and his body underwent a world-shaking transformation. He grew several inches taller, his muscles taut and ready to call upon his full strength at any moment. The blood inside him, too, was no ordinary blood—it surged like a flood, swirling around his body.
"This is Qi and Blood Power."
When a body cultivator's blood grew as heavy as mercury, it underwent a qualitative change. Qi and blood circulated within and around the body, not only restoring stamina and healing injuries, but also erupting beyond the body like a beacon of blood-smoke, amplifying one's combat power.
But there was far too little Qi and Blood Power in his body. It was more than enough to heal his injuries, but he could forget about producing a blood-smoke beacon.
The strange sensation slowly faded. At that moment, Su Ye felt as if a primordial beast were crouched inside him, and he had more strength than he knew what to do with.
A terrifying glint flashed in his eyes.
"I'll take all these Demonic Beasts."
Seeing that he still had Assistance Points left, he moved without hesitation to the Martial Arts section.
System upgrade
8 Assistance Points consumed. [Black Fiend Saber Technique] raised from Great Success to Perfection.
18 Assistance Points consumed. [Flowing Dragon Steps] raised from Minor Success to Perfection.
The panel now read:
Host: Su Ye Realm: Body Tempering Layer Five Cultivation Methods: [Body Tempering Initial Giải · Mortal Grade High Rank] Fifth Layer [Dragon Tiger Body Forging Technique · Yellow Grade High Rank] (Peak of the later stage) Martial Arts: [Black Fiend Saber Technique · Mortal Grade Middle Rank] (Perfection) [Mountain Splitting Saber Technique · Unranked] Perfection Movement Technique: [Flowing Dragon Steps · Mortal Grade Middle Rank] (Perfection) Assistance Points: 44
Apart from Dragon Tiger Body Forging Technique, which had yet to reach Perfection, all his other Martial Arts had reached their limits and could go no further. With that, this round of upgrades was finally complete.
He closed the system interface and took a moment to adjust to his surging strength before turning back to the craggy boulder. Big Black had already finished tending to himself. His severed wing had been reattached at the stump.
No wonder the bird had carried its severed wing while fleeing. It actually knew how to set bones. The wound was still a bloody mess, though, and the wing looked as if it had merely been stuck back on. It could hardly flap it at all.
"Boss, why do you look taller?" Big Black craned his neck and stepped closer, curiosity written all over his face.
"How's your wing?" Su Ye answered with a question of his own.
"It's back on. Give it a few more days, and it should be as good as new. This is my own bone-setting secret technique. My brothers used to break their arms and legs all the time, and I was the one who put them back together."
Big Black shook his head. "You learn to be a doctor after being sick for a long time."
But he didn't know that the Demonic Beasts he'd treated had all ended up with one arm longer than the other, or with strange ways of walking.
Su Ye looked at the bloodied wing but said nothing. He gestured for Big Black to lead him to Hu Dang.
"Boss, are you planning to take care of that Hu Dang..."
Big Black, walking ahead, turned back and made a throat-slitting gesture with his wing. Su Ye paid him no mind and continued following him. Then he asked, "Tell me about the Corpse Demon Cult."
He had heard a few stories about the Corpse Demon Cult, but the information had all come from hearsay passed around by his predecessor. It couldn't be trusted; even the little he'd heard was mostly made-up nonsense.
He had noticed that whenever Big Black mentioned the Corpse Demon Cult, a trace of fear crossed his face. It made Su Ye all the more curious.
Big Black seemed to recall something unpleasant. He glanced around and lowered his voice. "Thirty years ago, the Corpse Demon Cult breached Yunhuang Prefecture, leaving a million corpses and countless walking dead in its wake. Blood flowed for three thousand miles, and millions of fertile acres turned into a boundless land of poisonous miasma."
"Boss, have you heard about this?"
Su Ye nodded slightly. He had heard a little about it. Supposedly, the territory of Yunhuang Prefecture had become more than just a poisonous wasteland. It had also given rise to many evil spirits.
The incident had caused a huge uproar, and the Great Xia court had been furious. Emperor Xia Wu issued dozens of imperial edicts to hunt them down.
A million soldiers marched out. The Demon Suppression Division and the Heaven Monitoring Division joined forces, and in just half a month, they had searched all thirteen prefectures in the territory.
More than eighty percent of the Corpse Demon Cult's people had died in that battle, from its higher-ups to its lowest followers. Only a few escaped into Demonic Beast territory and avoided being wiped out.
Big Black paused, then continued. "That so-called cult leader was hung from the city wall of Yunhuang Prefecture, and he's still there to this day."
"But the elders in my clan say there's more to it. The one hung on the wall was just some unlucky bastard. Nobody's ever seen the real cult leader."
As if to confirm something, Su Ye cut in. "Are you sure those people in the county town really belong to the Corpse Demon Cult?"
Big Black answered with certainty. "Absolutely. The Corpse Demon Cult members look obviously different from ordinary people. I saw them with my own eyes."
Su Ye gradually understood. To raise their cultivation quickly, these people went to terrifying lengths, refining themselves into zombie bodies.
By drinking their fill of blood every day, they could rapidly grow stronger. Naturally, the stronger the owner of the blood, the better its effects.
Though they had zombie bodies, they could still keep their minds clear, and their lifespans were extraordinarily long. They said even an ordinary Corpse Demon could live for several hundred years.
Such a heaven-defying method came with drawbacks: a minor tribulation every ten years, and a major tribulation every hundred.
During the ten-year tribulation, baleful energy invaded the soul. If they endured it, they could enjoy another ten years of carefree life; if they failed, they became mindless zombies.
The hundred-year tribulation was a punishment from Heaven: a lightning tribulation they could withstand only with their physical bodies. Most members of the Corpse Demon Cult died in this tribulation.
After learning about the Corpse Demon Cult, Su Ye asked, "Do you know how many of them came this time, how strong they are, and where they're hiding now?"
"Well, I only flew over the county town at the time. I didn't take a close look, so I'm not sure about their numbers or their exact location."
Big Black urged him, "Boss, let's deal with Hu Dang and then get out of here. The Corpse Demon Cult isn't something we can handle."
Su Ye glanced at the crow in front of him. His voice was low and hard, his emotions impossible to read. "We'll deal with Hu Dang first, then find that Tiger Demon. As for the Corpse Demon Cult, we'll talk about it later."
Big Black whipped around, astonishment on his face. "Boss, weren't we only dealing with Hu Dang?"
"Just lead the way."
Su Ye urged him on, then explained no further.
The man and bird picked their way through the dense forest, stumbling over roots and rocks. Suddenly, a shout rang out. Su Ye's ears twitched, and he raised a hand to signal Big Black to stop.
"Wait here. I'll be right back."
Big Black looked confused. "Boss, what happened?"
"Just wait for me."
With that, Su Ye leapt onto a treetop and vanished into the night in a few bounds.
Outside the forest, a young man looked around, shouting from time to time, "Lord Su, are you there?"
"Lord Su!"
"What are you looking for me about?"
Su Ye leapt down from a tree branch. The young man before him was Liu Baotian's second son, Liu Zhengyuan. Seeing the anxiety on his face and realizing he had come all this way to find him, Su Ye guessed something had happened again in Kaoshan Town.
The sudden voice startled Liu Zhengyuan. When he saw who it was, he let down his guard and hurriedly said, "My lord, Huang Qianqing has returned to town with a bald man!"
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