Living Alchemy!

In the scene, after a flash of light, Xue Beng, the fourth prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, appeared out of thin air in an ornate room.

The room was exquisitely furnished.

The floor was covered in soft carpets made from demonic beast fur, while jade lamps emitting a gentle glow hung on the surrounding walls.

A faint fragrance also lingered in the air.

Most eye-catching of all was a massive white jade pool in the center of the room.

The pool was filled with a dark crimson liquid that gave off wisps of steam.

The moment Xue Beng landed, the surroundings left him momentarily stunned.

He looked around and found that, unlike the others before him, he had not appeared in some desolate wilderness, nor had he encountered any terrifying demonic beasts.

Instead, it seemed as though he had arrived at the private bathhouse of some great noble.

"Hahaha!"

After his brief surprise, Xue Beng could not help laughing smugly.

"Looks like this prince truly has the best luck!"

He straightened the luxurious brocade robe that marked his royal status, his face full of arrogant pride.

He had seen Shi Nian being instantly killed by the venomous flood dragon earlier.

Yet he was not afraid in the slightest. Instead, he thought Shi Nian had simply been unlucky, insisting on going to that so-called Chaotic Star Sea.

But he, Xue Beng, was a prince of the Heaven Dou Empire and possessed the fortune of royalty.

How could the heavens possibly make him suffer like that?

"It seems this should be the estate of some wealthy person in the mortal world."

Xue Beng walked to the side of the white jade pool, sniffed the faint fragrance, and nodded in satisfaction.

"This water looks so red. It must have some precious medicinal herbs steeped in it for bathing."

"These cultivators really know how to enjoy themselves."

As he spoke, Xue Beng reached out, intending to test the temperature of the dark crimson liquid.

Meanwhile, outside the heavenly curtain.

Within the imperial palace of the Heaven Dou Empire.

Seeing Xue Beng's surroundings, Emperor Xue Ye secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"It seems Xue Beng's luck is not bad. He was teleported to a relatively safe place."

Gradually, a trace of anticipation flashed through Emperor Xue Ye's clouded eyes.

As long as he was safe, that was enough.

As long as he survived in this world, with Xue Beng's status as a prince, if he casually befriended a few local cultivators, perhaps he might obtain the body-seizing secret technique or life-extending pills that Emperor Xue Ye had long dreamed of.

Seeing this, the surrounding ministers immediately began flattering him.

"His Highness the Fourth Prince is blessed by heaven and shall surely turn misfortune into fortune in the cultivation world, bringing supreme opportunities back to the empire!"

"Exactly! When that time comes, Your Majesty will surely attain immortality!"

"Congratulations, Your Majesty! Congratulations!"

However, just as the ruler and ministers of the Heaven Dou Empire all thought Xue Beng's luck was incredible, Xue Beng's finger in the scene touched the dark crimson liquid.

In an instant, a bone-piercing chill spread from his fingertip throughout his entire body!

"Hiss!"

Xue Beng sucked in a sharp breath and violently pulled his hand back.

Then he lowered his head and looked again.

How was this some medicinal bathwater?

The white jade pool was clearly filled with incredibly viscous fresh blood!

Moreover, after his finger had stirred it just now, the blood in the pool seemed to churn.

The next second, a pale skull with tangled hair actually floated up from the bottom of the blood, its hollow eye sockets staring straight at Xue Beng's face!

"Ah!"

Xue Beng's legs went weak with fright, and he collapsed onto the ground on his backside.

The ghastly pale skull bobbed up and down in the blood, its hollow eye sockets seeming to stare at the fallen Xue Beng.

"W-what kind of ghostly place is this?!"

Xue Beng's voice trembled with tears as he scrambled backward on all fours.

Just now, he had thought that dark red liquid was some precious medicinal bath.

Only now did he see clearly—the thick consistency, the pungent stench of blood. It was unmistakably an entire pool of human blood!

And judging by the size of the pool, who knew how many people had to be killed to fill this white jade basin.

Outside the scene, in the Heaven Dou Empire's imperial palace.

The atmosphere in the grand hall dropped to freezing point in an instant.

The ministers who had been flattering Xue Beng moments ago all shut their mouths, their faces turning pale.

Emperor Xue Ye felt his blood surge in his chest, nearly coughing up a mouthful of blood.

Just moments ago, he had been fantasizing about Xue Beng meeting some great master within that estate and returning with an immortal pill that could extend his life.

But who could have imagined that this was no blessed immortal abode? It was clearly a devil's den that devoured people whole!

"Th-This is an evil cultivator!"

In the corner of the hall, Poison Douluo Dugu Bo spoke with a frown.

He usually used poison himself, and his methods of killing could not exactly be called gentle.

But at the sight of that pool brimming with blood and skulls, his stomach churned as well.

"Your Majesty, I fear the Fourth Prince is unlikely to survive this."

Dugu Bo sighed.

Emperor Xue Ye gripped the armrests of his dragon throne tightly, veins bulging one after another across the backs of his hands.

Of course he knew his son was unlikely to survive.

But that was his own flesh and blood, and all he could do was sit here and watch helplessly through a screen of light.

Spirit Hall, Papal Hall.

As Bibi Dong watched the blood pool in the light screen, a flicker of disgust crossed her eyes.

"Using the blood of ordinary people to aid cultivation."

"How is that any different from those people in Slaughter City?"

Yue Guan pinched his chin as he carefully examined the arrangements around the blood pool.

"Your Holiness, the difference is substantial."

Yue Guan pointed at the faintly glowing red patterns along the edge of the blood pool.

"The people of Slaughter City mostly just drink human blood. Their methods are extremely crude."

"But look at this cultivator from that cultivation world."

"He specifically built such an enormous jade pool and carved complex formations around it."

"What does that indicate?"

Yue Guan swallowed, his voice turning somewhat grave.

"It indicates that using human blood for cultivation has already developed into a complete and mature system in that world."

"They have specialized cultivation techniques, specialized formations, and even tools specifically used to refine blood."

Hearing Yue Guan's analysis, the upper ranks in the hall all felt a chill run down their spines.

Drinking human blood was not something particularly acceptable on Douluo Continent.

Yet in the cultivation world, such monstrous methods seemed to be merely a routine means of increasing one's strength.

At that moment, Gui Mei stepped out of the shadows and said in a hoarse voice:

"Yue Guan is right. They do not see ordinary people as their own kind at all, only as materials."

"Earlier, that Elder Wu deceived people in order to possess their bodies. Now this one is directly using blood to build a pool."

"This cultivation world is the true law of the jungle."

Meanwhile, at Shrek Academy.

Tang San watched the light screen, his brows furrowing into a tight knot.

In his previous life at the Tang Sect, he had known hundreds of methods for killing people.

But this was also his first time seeing killing treated like gathering materials—done so openly and systematically.

"Is this the dark side of the cultivation world?"

Tang San silently weighed it in his heart.

Earlier, Elder Wu had used taking disciples as a pretext for body possession.

But this place simply used human lives to fill a blood pool.

"Fatty, do you still want to go to the cultivation world and seize opportunities?"

Dai Mubai turned to glance at Ma Hongjun.

Ma Hongjun shook his head like a rattle drum.

"Not going, not going. I wouldn't go even if you beat me to death."

"This place is too damn creepy. I'm scared that if I go, even this fat on my body will be rendered into oil to fuel lanterns."

Yu Xiaogang stood at the front without saying a word.

He had realized that his theories simply did not hold up in this world of cultivation, so he chose to keep his mouth shut.

In the scene at that moment, Xue Beng was still backing away across the ground.

Just then, a wall at the far end of the room suddenly split open down the middle.

A gust of chilling wind swept through as a young man in a blood-red robe, his face pale as paper, emerged from the hidden doorway.

The young man held a black jade bottle in his hand, as though he had just finished refining something.

The moment he stepped out, he saw Xue Beng sitting sprawled on the ground.

The blood-robed young man froze for a moment, then frowned slightly.

"No spiritual energy fluctuations. A mortal?"

The young man looked around at the surrounding walls in confusion.

"This Blood Spirit Array was personally set up by the Patriarch. Even Foundation Establishment cultivators cannot enter it. How did a mortal like you break in?"

Hearing the young man's words, Xue Beng seemed to have seized a lifeline.

He hurriedly climbed to his feet, brushed the dust from his clothes, and forcibly put on the airs of a prince.

"I... I don't care what kind of place this is!"

"I am Xue Beng, the Fourth Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire!"

"If you dare lay a finger on me, my imperial father will definitely flatten this estate of yours!"

Xue Beng shouted loudly as three soul rings—two yellow and one purple—rose beneath his feet.

The phantom of a white swan appeared behind him.

The soul power of a level thirty-five Soul Elder erupted, seemingly giving him a little confidence.

Seeing this, the ministers of the Heaven Dou Empire could not help covering their faces.

"Idiot!"

Emperor Xue Ye was so furious that he slammed a hand against his armrest.

Faced with an evil cultivator who killed without batting an eye, instead of quickly begging for mercy or finding a way to escape, he actually dared to put on the airs of a prince?

He even invoked the empire to threaten the man?

Sure enough, the blood-robed young man showed no fear at the sight of the soul rings beneath Xue Beng's feet. Instead, he looked rather interested.

"Interesting."

"This energy is neither spiritual energy nor the inner force of martial artists."

"And that phantom bird you summoned is actually attached directly to your soul?"

The blood-robed young man stroked his chin as though appraising a rare commodity.

"Perfect."

"The Blood Spirit Pill the Patriarch ordered me to refine is still missing one main medicinal catalyst."

"I was wondering where to catch a few strong men trained in martial arts. Since a mortal like you delivered yourself to my doorstep, and you even possess such strange energy within your body—"

"You should make the medicine even more effective."

With that, the blood-robed young man raised his right hand and grabbed at Xue Beng through the air.

Whoosh!

In an instant, a blood-red claw materialized out of thin air, crossing more than ten meters in a flash before clamping directly around Xue Beng's throat.

Xue Beng's voice cut off abruptly.

It was as though he had been caught in an iron vise. His feet left the ground as he was forcibly lifted into the air.

No matter how he struck at the bloody claw shadow, or even attacked it with his third soul skill, it was all useless.

The attack power of a Soul Elder was not even enough to scratch the magical power condensed by a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"Let... let me go..."

Xue Beng's face was bright red, his legs kicking wildly in midair.

But the blood-robed young man did not even spare him a glance. With a casual flick of his hand—

Thud!

Xue Beng was thrown directly into the white jade pool filled with blood and skulls.

In an instant, the dark-red bloody water submerged his head.

The pungent stench of blood rushed through his nose and mouth into his windpipe, making him struggle and thrash violently in the pool.

The skulls bobbing in the water had their hollow eye sockets aimed right at his face, as though mocking him.

"Help, glug glug..."

Xue Beng had just tried to cry for help when blood flooded into his mouth.

The young man in the blood-colored robe walked to the edge of the pool and rapidly formed hand seals.

Streams of red incantations shot into the formation surrounding the pool.

In an instant, the blood throughout the pool began to boil violently, churning and bubbling.

Before long, streams of pure blood essence were stripped from the pool water and gathered in midair, forming a fist-sized sphere of blood.

Meanwhile, Xue Beng, trapped at the center of the blood pool, was suffering torment beyond imagination.

Through the heavenly curtain, everyone on Douluo Continent could see it clearly.

After coming into contact with the boiling blood, Xue Beng's skin began to rot away over large areas.

Not only was the soul power in his body unable to protect him, it instead became nourishment for the blood pool.

It seeped out through those festering wounds bit by bit, gathering into the blood sphere hovering in the air.

"No... Father... save me..."

Xue Beng howled in agony within the blood pool, clawing wildly at the air with both hands.

All his hair had fallen out, and more than half the flesh on his face had melted away, exposing ghastly white bone.

Heaven Dou Empire Imperial Palace.

Watching his son, now utterly unrecognizable, struggle painfully in the bloody water on the light screen, Emperor Xue Ye could no longer bear to watch.

Although he had previously considered sacrificing Xue Beng, that had only been on the condition that Xue Beng could bring back the secret art of immortality.

Now, his own flesh and blood was being thrown into a blood pool by an evil cultivator and boiled alive into a pill before the eyes of the entire continent.

The combined visual and psychological blow directly shattered Emperor Xue Ye's mental defenses.

"Xue Beng, my imperial son..."

Emperor Xue Ye's lips trembled as two streams of aged tears ran from the corners of his eyes.

The ministers below in the hall were equally grief-stricken.

A dignified imperial prince, a figure who could command the wind and rain across Douluo Continent.

Yet in that world of immortal cultivation, he did not even qualify to be cannon fodder, and was directly refined as medicinal material.

What a tragedy.

Meanwhile, at Shrek Academy.

Oscar covered his eyes, utterly unable to keep watching the scene on the light screen.

"Too horrible... boiling someone alive into a pill..."

Although Tang San also disliked a wastrel like Xue Beng, this manner of death had surpassed even his understanding of cruelty.

On the screen, Xue Beng's struggles grew weaker and weaker.

More than half his body had melted away in the boiling blood, leaving only a shattered skeleton that twitched faintly.

The young man in the blood-colored robe stopped forming hand seals and beckoned with one hand.

The blood sphere in midair instantly compressed, becoming a thumb-sized blood-colored pill that gave off a strange, exotic fragrance.

The young man placed the pill into a black jade vial and patted the vial with satisfaction.

"Not bad. Although the energy within this mortal is strange, his vitality is quite vigorous. The quality of this Blood Spirit Pill is unexpectedly excellent."

As for the skeleton that had completely sunk to the bottom of the blood pool, he did not spare it a second glance.

[Level 35 Soul Elder Xue Beng has died.]

[Cause of death: Accidentally entered the secret chamber of an evil cultivator from the Spirit Taming Sect.]

[Used as the main humanoid ingredient and thrown into the Blood Spirit Array for live pill refinement.]

[Survival time: fifteen minutes.]

The heavenly curtain's announcement sounded right on cue.

Upon hearing it, Emperor Xue Ye finally could not withstand the tremendous blow.

His eyes rolled back, and he fainted directly on the dragon throne.

"Your Majesty!"

The great hall immediately descended into chaos.

Yet the heavenly curtain's display did not stop because of the turmoil in the Heaven Dou Empire. Instead, the scene shifted once more.

[Current live view locked on: Beast Academy, Level 30 quasi-Soul Elder, Meng Yiran.]