Spiritual Blood

Perhaps due to his severe injuries, Xia Fengshe closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep after drinking the water.

Watching the numbers on his chest, Ou Yanling's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly.

A curse Monster!

An invisible Monster, it primarily uses curses to kill. Those cursed will see blood-red characters appear on their chests.

Those who reach three hundred will die from the curse, their essence and blood then flowing into the Monster's main body.

This kind of Monster, much like the Fairy Flower Monster, doesn't need its main body to kill. It can grow rapidly relying solely on curses.

If it infiltrates a large settlement and isn't found and eliminated in time, it will quickly advance by feeding on a large amount of essence and blood.

"If it's a curse Monster, then it's a bit troublesome."

Ou Yanling's delicate eyebrows knitted together for a moment, but then smoothed out.

"For now, let's deal with this immediate problem."

Under her gaze, the blood-red characters on Xia Fengshe's chest had already begun to increase.

He himself was injured and unconscious, a passive state of "sleeping." Yet, the blood-red numbers continued to increase steadily and slowly.

"Brother Xia."

Ou Yanling called out to him softly, trying to wake him. Some Monster curses have trigger conditions, such as the curse Monster, which activates when the person is asleep and hears a knock or other sounds.

Once the sound reaches three hundred, the curse will take effect.

At this point, if the person remains awake, they can temporarily delay the curse's outbreak.

Her voice was light, but it was enough to wake an ordinary sleeping person.

However, Xia Fengshe, injured and unconscious, was clearly not among them.

Walking closer, Ou Yanling pursed her lips and shouted, "Xia Fengshe, stop sleeping, get up quickly."

At the same time, she placed her hand on his shoulder and shook him vigorously.

It was no use.

Xia Fengshe remained unconscious, like a quiet, burly man.

"I knew it..." Ou Yanling stared intently at Xia Fengshe's plump, fleshy face. "You wouldn't curse me, would you? Right? Brother Xia?"

She raised her hand and slapped him hard.

"Slap!"

"Slap!"

"Slap!"

Five minutes later, Ou Yanling's hands were red. She rubbed them vigorously, looking at Xia Fengshe's swollen, bruised, and blackened face.

Her expression was calm, but there was a hint of amusement in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Xia Fengshe, I really did my best."

"I've tolerated your bad temper all the way here."

"Consider this interest. You still owe me..."

After speaking, she looked at the numbers on Xia Fengshe's chest, which were still faintly pulsing. "It's not easy to find a silly giant. I'll save you this once."

She took out a small knife, made a light incision, creating a small wound. With a flick of her finger, a drop of blood landed precisely on Xia Fengshe's chest.

This drop of blood was crystal clear, looking like a ruby, possessing a natural beauty.

As the blood left her body, Ou Yanling's face suddenly turned pale.

The blood dripped onto Xia Fengshe's chest.

The next moment, it was as if a hot iron had been plunged into water, with continuous sizzling sounds. Streams of black energy emerged from his chest, and the blood-red light on his chest began to dim.

Ou Yanling's blood seemed to contain a peculiar power that could break the Monster's curse.

Finally, the blood disappeared, and the blood-red light on Xia Fengshe's chest became extremely faint, but still visible.

She checked carefully. The blood-red numbers still existed and were increasing.

However, the speed had slowed down considerably.

"At this rate, Xia Fengshe should be able to hold on for three days.

It won't even take three days. This guy has such a robust physique, he'll probably wake up tomorrow morning."

"If the Monster can't kill him tonight, it'll be good to wear this guy down. Hmm... three days without sleep, just thinking about it is good."

Ou Yanling walked out of the room with light steps. There was an empty room next door. She lay on the bed, her eyes clear.

"However, with a Blood Refining Realm martial artist taking action, the most likely outcome is that the Monster will be killed tonight."

"I haven't reached the Body Refining Realm yet. My spiritual blood hasn't matured, so it's best to just run if I encounter a high-level Monster."

"But." She looked towards the next room, as if she could see Xia Fengshe's pig-head-like swollen face through the wall. "I didn't let a Bone Refining martial artist die. Otherwise, with the essence and blood of another Bone Refining realm martial artist, that Monster might have advanced."

She concluded, "I guess I helped too."

Under the Brightness Gathering Talisman, the light was gentle.

Jiang Yan and Shan Renhu stood together, warily scanning their surroundings, never letting their guard down for a moment.

His long sword had long been unsheathed, held tightly in his hand. In his left hand, a mid-grade Blazing Flames Talisman was pinched between his fingers. As for his previous Blazing Flames Talisman, he kept it in his embrace, unused.

The Blazing Flames Talisman had been used multiple times, its talismanic energy dwindling. Tonight was a special situation. If a Monster appeared and he had to use the Blazing Flames Talisman again, it would be dire if its energy ran out while fighting the Monster.

Therefore, Jiang Yan didn't even consider it and directly used the mid-grade Blazing Flames Talisman.

This was the safer option.

"Brother Shan, you absolutely must not relax tonight. I heard from Lord Ning that before annihilating the Monster, he would use some method to pre-accumulate the talismanic energy of the Talisman Soldiers."

"During this period, the defensive capabilities of the Talisman Soldiers will be weakened, increasing the possibility of other Monster sneaking in."

"In other words, we are very likely to encounter Monster tonight."

Suddenly remembering how they often encountered Monster when on patrol with Shan Renhu.

Jiang Yan's expression darkened slightly.

"How could I forget this? Should I stay away from Old Shan now?"

He thought to himself.

At this moment, rustle, rustle.

Footsteps sounded in the darkness.

Jiang Yan's ears twitched. He turned, his sword tip shifting to rest horizontally across his chest in a defensive posture.

"Who?"

He asked in a deep voice.

One, two, three, four, five.

Jiang Yan counted silently. He decided that if there was no response by the count of five, he would immediately... retreat.

He couldn't just charge in and hack away. What if it was a person? What if it was a Monster... that he couldn't defeat?

Fleeing first, no, retreating first was also a form of self-protection.

Fortunately, all his actions were just simulations in his mind. Just as he finished asking, the figure in the darkness immediately responded loudly.

Clearly, he also knew that approaching like this would arouse suspicion.

He stopped about five or six meters away from Jiang Yan. This distance was just right, for both of them.

Jiang Yan lowered his long sword, its tip angled forward.

Under the light, he carefully observed the other person.

The other was just an ordinary man with thick eyebrows and large eyes.

"Brothers of Yuyang Village, I am ordered by Lord Ning to inform everyone that the Talisman Soldiers will accelerate their talismanic energy accumulation further. During this time, the defensive power of the Talisman Soldiers will dissipate."

"At that time, please be vigilant."

His expression was grim. "The Monster will definitely get in."

Further accumulation of talismanic energy, dissipation of defensive power.

In other words, to eliminate the Monster lurking within the village, all the power of the Talisman Soldiers was being concentrated.

Without the defense of the Talisman Soldiers, how could they resist the Monster?

Qingshan Village had a large population, bustling with life and a surging aura of vitality, a veritable feast for Monster.

Jiang Yan froze. If this continued, not only would the patrol team's pressure skyrocket, but some special Monster would inevitably find a way to enter the village and feast.

Qingshan Village would surely suffer heavy casualties.

PS: ... You know what I want... Recommendation votes.