Taking Interest

After repeatedly checking the burly man's physical condition and the state of the Blood Infant in the Divine Court, and communicating with the system, Li Fan can now say with certainty that the Blood Infant has truly filled the last gap in his damage output.

Actually, if it were merely a blood infant born from the inheritance of a god, it might not be that terrifying; at most, it would just be a special form of primordial spirit transformation. But with the system's puppet added, it becomes an unsolvable, top-tier predator for beings like Nascent Soul Stage spirits.

According to the system, the God's source code, like a codebook, directly links the primordial spirits of cultivators in this world with the system's information flow. Thus, the system can directly package the special software package for network electronic warfare in another world into a primordial spirit technique and download it directly to Li Fan's puppet.

The hardest part of many things is taking the first step. If even one anthill on a dam is breached, floodwaters can pour in.

Of course, the Blood Infant is still in its early 1.0 prototype version and has many flaws.

For example, when it invades the primordial spirit of other cultivators, it doesn't do anything extra. After parasitizing them, it directly destroys and modifies them, rewriting their primordial spirit. For instance, it can transform a two-headed wolf into a blood infant just like itself, thereby controlling the other's body. In reality, it doesn't destroy the other's primordial spirit, but merely flips it over.

In other words, it's as if the Blood Infant is a split personality, controlling the body, but the burly man's spirit or consciousness is suppressed, like a god trapped in a jar, only to be controlled and devoured by the Blood Infant, unable to escape.

The potential danger is that the opponent, with the strength of their primordial spirit and Dao heart, could regain control of their body and even suppress the Blood Infant again. However, it seems that the burly man currently lacks the ability to escape. It appears that the nightmarish experience with the God Lord has completely destroyed his will to resist. Now, the burly man's Dao heart has crumbled, leaving him at the mercy of the Blood Infant. Once his primordial spirit is completely decomposed and absorbed, his physical body will naturally die.

However, being at the Nascent Soul Stage level, the Blood Infant indicated that it would take approximately three hours to fully digest it.

If getting infected means certain death, then it can't be used as a means of controlling people for now. Let's see what upgrades and patches the system can provide in the future.

So Li Fan left the puppet there to digest its contents, then turned back to pick up the bag the big man had tied up and check on Gu Panpan's condition.

As soon as the bag was untied, a unique fragrance wafted out. Li Fan sniffed and looked at the beautiful woman in his arms, her red lips slightly parted and her pearly teeth half-revealed. She was soft and gentle in his arms, and he couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion. A warm feeling spread across his body.

'Warning: Host poisoning detected. Do you wish to use the Qiongqi Hundred Bone Fan's effect to cure the poison?'

Oh, so it was poisoning. I thought it was something else... wait, that barbarian seemed like a straightforward, tough guy, right? Why did he resort to such elaborate methods? Poisoning him?

Li Fan glanced at Gu Panpan's condition and, sure enough, not only the sword pellet, but also her hairpins, gold rings, red ribbons, and other magical treasures had been snatched away. Her hair was disheveled, and she looked quite disheveled. Fortunately, she wasn't seriously injured; she had only suffered a broken arm, a hand chop to the neck with obvious bruises on her skin, and scratches on her wrists. That sweaty man was definitely not the type to show mercy to women.

However, she was already a Golden Core cultivator, yet she was injured like this by Nascent Soul Stage cultivator's meddling. It seemed her body refinement skills were lacking, and her body was too delicate. Li Fan then took Gu Panpan's pulse and used his Dao Breath to probe her injuries.

"Hmm, the aptitude is not bad, it should be at least Rank 3..."

Her Dao Breath was quite pure; the Ziwei True Qi within her Sanjiao Inner Landscape was incomparably refined. She'd probably been in seclusion at the mountain gate for the past few years, receiving a considerable amount of Heavenly Treasure. No wonder she could form her core so quickly. However, what's strange is that she really was poisoned, and the poisonous gas was concentrated in her throat, nose, and mouth. There seemed to be no trace of poison in her wounds or abdomen. How did she get poisoned?

Li Fan glanced at the burly man beside him. The Blood Infant, with whom he shared a spiritual connection, handed Li Fan a storage ornament made of wolf fangs and even released the seal.

As expected, aside from the stolen magical artifacts, everything else was junk. The cultivation techniques, Cultivation Method, and maps were all in foreign languages, incomprehensible to me. There were various materials and coins, as well as a two-headed wolf bone statue, presumably for meditation and cultivation. But it seems there was no antidote...

Oh! I get it! There's definitely no antidote. This just triggered that kind of plot you often see in novels, where a female character is poisoned and injured, and she's getting treatment!

According to tradition, shouldn't we first strip her naked, then caress her back for a while until the aura is right? That would mean, "I've researched your poison, and it's that legendary 'miracle drug,' incurable. The only solution is dual cultivation." As the male protagonist of this book, although I'm a gentleman, I can't just stand by and watch you perish, can I? So, I'll take the loss and offer my body to aid your cultivation. Come on, girl, prepare to be challenged! Hehehe...

Then, in the instant that Li Fan was lost in thought, he suddenly felt Gu Panpan's pulse at his fingertips. It suddenly pounded violently a few times, but was forcibly suppressed. He immediately understood what was happening.

Oh, this little girl is quite shrewd. She woke up a long time ago, probably because she put poison in her mouth herself, and was probably thinking of fighting to the death to survive. But when she saw the big man who had casually caught her treating Li Fan as respectfully as a dog, she didn't dare to fight anymore and could only continue to pretend to be unconscious.

Hehe, since I saved someone's life this time, I don't need to repay her with anything. I'll just take some magic treasures as interest. Yes, look, Jianwan has been borrowing it for so long, it's only reasonable to take some interest, isn't it? Hehe, let her remember the dangers of this world and learn a lesson.

Li Fan then chuckled strangely, reaching out to pinch Gu Panpan's cheek, "Little beauty~~ After we deal with the busybodies, I'll... hehehe~~"

Then he deliberately created an opening, giving Gu Panpan a chance to escape, and led his burly men to the other side of the land temple to interrogate the three terrified bystanders.

Of course they were terrified. From the perspective of the three frozen in place, all they saw was this bald man stroking the chest muscles of the Nascent Soul Stage level giant for a while, then pulling out a girl who was clearly being kidnapped from his cloth bag and pinching her face for a while... Well, this demon is bisexual and indiscriminate in his lust. We're doomed...

"Hey, you three! What are your names! Where are you going! What are you doing! Explain yourself in three sentences! Otherwise, I'll 'snap' your heads off! You hear me!"

Li Fan released the pressure points on the three men.

The Golden Core cultivator who had been slapped twice immediately knelt down and kowtowed, "I am Yang Yan. My father is Yang Biao, the military Jiedushi of the Jinglue Army. The Gao family of the Heavenly Soldiers Army broke their alliance and oath. Taking advantage of my father's Northern Expedition, they suddenly led their troops to launch a sneak attack and seize my military town. Therefore, I have fled to seek help! Senior, your supernatural powers are unparalleled. I hope you can lend my Yang Family a hand. Once my father reclaims the military town, there will be a great reward..."

"That's more than three sentences!" Li Fan was too lazy to help these warlords fight for their family property, so he slapped him unconscious.

The other two remained silent, but Li Fan wasn't about to let them off the hook. He pointed and said, "What's the plot like on your side? Tell me."

Yes, it was them. The two knights were women. They were masked and armed with swords. They were all dressed as Jianghu people. They looked like spies and spies. The one who broke his thigh could no longer hold on and was about to faint.

The other man dared not remain silent. He glanced at the young master Yang who had been slapped unconscious, and said hesitantly, "We are scouts from the Hengye Army. We discovered that a regional military governor has rebelled, so we urgently reported to the commander."

Another round of infighting among the regional warlords. These warlords really never have a moment's rest. But are they really 'spies'...?

"My name is Gu Panpan, and I'm a local rogue cultivator from Weizhou."

Li Fan frowned and turned around. He saw that Gu Panpan neither ran away nor pretended. She smiled sweetly, stood up, and bowed, saying, "Master, your supernatural powers are vast and your cultivation is unfathomable. Panpan wishes to become your disciple and serve you, sir."

This little girl, she had a chance but didn't run away. She's courting a tiger for its skin; she's got some nerve...

Li Fan smiled at her, and with a thought, the Blood Infant indicated that it had received the message. It then manipulated the Barbarian Nascent Soul Stage, which burst out of the house in a flash. Gu Panpan was clearly startled and trembled, and it seemed that she was not as calm as she appeared.

Li Fan ignored her and waited for a while. Then, Blood Infant grabbed a Nascent Soul Stage man who was a Nascent Soul cultivator. This man was probably an old general from a regional military command. He only had one arm, which was probably severed in his early years. He still managed to kill two pursuers, but he seemed to have been ambushed and was defeated by Blood Infant with a single punch. Blood Infant knocked him unconscious and captured him.

Seeing the old man brought before her, the female spy visibly tensed up. Li Fan smiled at her, "I'll give you another chance; rephrase your words."

Seeing that she couldn't hide it from the immortal, the female scout gritted her teeth and knelt on the ground, saying, "I am Xiao Tou Xiao San, a scout of the Hengye Army. This is my adoptive father, Xiao Tou. This... is Miss Xu Family, the commander of the Hengye Army. Miss Xu was married off to a southern vassal state as a hostage. We were ordered by the Lady of Jie Town to protect her closely. Because the three southern vassal states rebelled and surrendered to Gao Xing, we were ordered to rescue Miss Xu."

As expected, if the only purpose was to convey urgent military intelligence, wouldn't it have been enough for the Fake Nascent Soul cultivator to escape? Why bother covering for him, and why would Xiao San come back to rescue him? However...

"Vote and you're Gao Xing? Vote for whom and you're so Gao Xing?"

"Gao Xing is the head of the Gao family clan and the military Jiedushi of the Heavenly Soldiers Army," Gu Panpan interjected. "He is the biggest and strongest warlord in Gen Province."

Oh, Gao Xing...

"What's his connection to the Gundam on Wangwu Mountain?" Li Fan asked curiously.

"Gao Da... that's a distant relative of his." Gu Panpan glanced at Li Fan, not daring to be too presumptuous, and explained, "The Gao family was originally a warlord of the Gen Country. Their ancestor was the nephew of the Yuan Kingdom's ruler. After the destruction of the imperial clan, they became the branch with the purest bloodline in Hebei, and they have always had a deep relationship with Wangwu Mountain."

Gao Xing was originally a military leader recommended by the vassal troops. Later, he claimed to be a long-lost descendant of the Gao clan, and by tracing his ancestry, he gained the support of Wangwu Mountain and became the commander of the Heavenly Soldiers Army. He was a wise and resourceful ruler who excelled in both military and political affairs. He not only governed his army strictly and was deeply respected by his generals, but also promoted people based on their talents regardless of their social status. Today, the Heavenly Soldiers Army is powerful and has a wealth of talented people under its command. It has also gained the respect and allegiance of many northern Hu Barbarians tribes.

In addition, Hou Gu, the traitorous general who was easily defeated and driven out by Gao Jiezhen, has now turned Zhen Country upside down. Therefore, Wangwu Mountain... the entire cultivation world of Gen Province praises Gao Gong for his great talent and strategy, calling him a wise ruler. Wangwu Mountain has entrusted him with the command of the four major armies: Weiwu, Tianbing, Qingyi, Kelan.

Among the forty-eight garrison armies, Lord Gao enjoyed extremely high prestige. Many military commanders and leaders from various regions felt that they could serve Lord Gao as their lord and restore the Gen Country. "

Holy crap, that's awesome! Ending the chaos and restoring order to the land?

But then again, this is the perfect dictator selected through warlord conflicts, strongman politics, and real-world warfare.

It seems that although Gen Province has been plagued by war and warlords for many years, when the whole world entered a more chaotic and dark period, even Wangwu Mountain began to make moves. These local warlords were quite perceptive and knew that if they wanted to survive, they had to gather their forces together and unite under a wise ruler. This would not only allow them to protect themselves, but they might also be able to seize opportunities to compete for the fate of the Central Plains.

Li Fan understood, then looked at the three men and said, "You heard that? Lord Gao is going to rebuild the Gen Country of Gen. You, the generals and the Hengye army, shouldn't try to stop him. The chaos should end soon. Why don't you just surrender?"

Yang Yan was still unconscious. Xiao San hesitated for a moment and said, "This matter... is not something we can decide."

Li Fan understood what she meant. Xiao San's "we" didn't refer to them, the spies, but to the Xu Family, the Hengye Army. Even then, their words didn't carry weight. After all, these warlords and military leaders were merely proxies; there were other Xuanmen families with interests behind them.

With the world in chaos, the Three Palaces have no time to interfere in Hebei. Wangwu Mountain's attitude is quite clear: handing over all the heavy troops of the four armies to Gao Xing is probably to raise the banner of the Gao family, unify the Ten Jiedu of Hebei, and rebuild the Gen Country.

It seems this Northern Expedition of Shuofang is a showdown Jiedushi. If the negotiations fail, war will likely break out.

"This land is so beautiful, it has attracted countless heroes to bow down before it..."

Li Fan shook his head, copied a line to show off, then squatted down to check the young lady's injuries on the ground. He said to Xiao San, "Your young lady has a fracture. I just stopped the bleeding for her. It's not a serious injury. Here's some wound medicine for you. You can take care of it yourself. Here's the old man back. Oh, and this so-called second-generation rich kid from the military family, take him too. Anyway, you have a common enemy, so fight together."

Xiao San was stunned, unable to figure out what kind of trick this demon was playing.

Li Fan ignored them and turned to look at Gu Panpan, "I gave you a chance and you didn't take it. Do you really want to become my disciple? It's not easy to get the true teachings of Wangwu Mountain. I advise you to think twice."

Gu Panpan couldn't help but roll her eyes. Judging from her expression, she probably wanted to say, "Didn't you send people to kidnap me? And you're pinching my cheek!" Of course, this girl was cunning; she held back on the surface and smiled ingratiatingly.

"Thank you for your leniency, senior. I knew you were just joking with me. I don't know what I did to offend you. I apologize. Could you please return my things? They're just things for girls to use, and I'm sure you wouldn't want them..."

Li Fan laughed heartily, "Little girl, don't be too greedy. You're not capable enough, yet you're carrying such a treasure—you're just asking for trouble. I saved your life, do you know that? And you're asking me for a small token of my gratitude?"

Gu Panpan feigned tears, looking pitiful, "But, but, those were all lent to me by Master and my uncles for protection. If I lose them, Master will blame Panpan, senior..."

Li Fan laughed at her, "What's it to me? I only let you go out of respect for Wangwu Mountain. What more do you want? These treasures are mine now. If you're so capable, take them back. If not, go home and find your parents."

Gu Panpan was speechless. Crying was useless, and she didn't dare to scold. She was so angry that her eyebrows stood on end, and she could only stare blankly and stomp her feet.

Li Fan ignored her and flew away with the Blood Infant. When he passed the caravan, he remembered that there were still monsters following them, so he casually took out Gu Panpan's magical treasures from his storage wolf tooth necklace and tested them.

The power of the sword pellet goes without saying. The red ribbon, the gold ring, and the hairpin are all low-grade magic treasures of the Golden Core realm. Although they cannot unleash their original power due to the seal of Wangwu Mountain, they are still quite useful as bricks to throw at people. In the blink of an eye, they are filled with dazzling light and have turned a bunch of monsters into minced meat.

Hmm, not bad. That Li Wugou will definitely like it. Maybe if she's happy, she can get Li Fan to study the tattoo on her back again, and maybe she can even get another divine book. Perfect.