Life Essence, Blood Demon Pill, Blood Demon Desire Woman

Xu Qing carefully savored this state, feeling the sensation as the mysteries of Eight Extremities Fist flowed through his mind. Eight Extremities Fist was originally just an ordinary combat style.

Now.

With Xu Qing's continuous upgrades, Eight Extremities Fist, having reached LV7, had undergone a world-shattering transformation, evolving into an extremely profound martial art that integrated both combat and body refinement methods.

Furthermore.

Upon its complete mastery, it had propelled Xu Qing to the pinnacle of Dark Force.

This meant.

If Xu Qing could advance further.

He would reach the level of 'Transforming Force'.

"Hoo..."

Xu Qing exhaled, his breath now sharp as an arrow, and his physical condition had long since undergone a complete metamorphosis.

"Upgrade Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking."

Clang!

The next moment.

After familiarizing himself with LV7 Eight Extremities Fist and the strength of the Dark Force pinnacle, Xu Qing's mind stirred, and he began upgrading Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking.

The Omni-Codex flickered with luminescence.

Countless sword cries seemed to echo in his ears.

Vaguely.

Xu Qing saw countless miniature figures wielding swords practicing Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking before his eyes, transforming into a torrent that surged into his mind.

Boom!

His mind trembled.

At this moment.

Xu Qing's consciousness felt as if it had entered a mysterious space where the passage of time was imperceptible; millennia felt like an instant, and an instant felt like millennia.

Therefore.

Xu Qing continuously practiced Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking, deducing its secrets.

Gradually.

Following Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking, he deduced the Fourteenth Sword Strike of Life-Taking.

Crack!

Xu Qing opened his eyes. All sorts of insights, mysteries, and profound truths flooded into his mind, deepening his understanding of Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking.

[Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking LV2: 1/60 (This was originally an extremely exquisite sword technique, consisting of thirteen strikes, each containing 108 variations. It emphasizes speed, accuracy, and ferocity. Simultaneously, each strike carries an extremely malevolent aura, representing a sword style of death and destruction. Through deduction and evolution, it has preliminarily led to the Fourteenth Sword Strike of Life-Taking, named: Sword of Death.)]

"Fourteenth Sword Strike of Life-Taking."

Xu Qing awoke. He didn't practice Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking but continued to comprehend the Fourteenth Sword Strike of Life-Taking. With Xu Qing's current cultivation, he couldn't unleash the Fourteenth Sword Strike of Life-Taking at all. Even if he could, he would undoubtedly be completely drained.

Moreover.

Each of the Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking contained 108 variations, while the preliminarily deduced Fourteenth Sword Strike of Life-Taking only had 36 variations, far from complete.

"It's already very strong."

Xu Qing mused, "If I could reach the level of Transforming Force and exert all my strength, I might be able to use this Fourteenth Sword Strike of Life-Taking."

An hour later.

Xu Qing adjusted his state.

"Upgrade evil ghost mask."

Xu Qing said.

Boom!

The Omni-Codex once again flickered with luminescence, and the evil ghost mask in Xu Qing's hand also began to change. It felt as if Xu Qing was witnessing the mask's reforging.

It was the same temple, the same eerie and dim environment, the same shaman whose appearance was unclear, and the same bloody scene.

And this time.

Xu Qing saw that the raw materials for crafting the evil ghost mask were no longer animal skins and flesh but living humans. Special techniques were used to ensure the living people didn't die, and then their entire skin was peeled off whole.

A total of nine complete human skins were required.

Therefore.

Nine living people were needed.

Additionally.

The blood, flesh, internal organs, and bones of the living people were all raw materials for refining the evil ghost mask. They were processed using special techniques to become ink and pigments for drawing runes.

Unconsciously.

The evil ghost mask had been successfully crafted. Nine complete human skins, the flesh and bones of nine living people, combined with the shaman's special refining techniques, finally brought the evil ghost mask into existence.

Not only that.

After the evil ghost mask was completed, it backfired on the shaman, swallowing her soul into the mask. It then merged with the resentful souls of the nine unfortunate victims, transforming into an evil spirit.

Hum!

Xu Qing looked at the evil ghost mask in his hand again. It had undergone a significant change. It had become a transparent mask. When worn, he couldn't feel anything and couldn't see anything.

In other words.

As long as Xu Qing didn't awaken the power contained within the evil ghost mask, it would be as if he was wearing nothing at all.

[Evil Ghost Mask LV9: 402/2560 (This is a terrifying mask containing an evil spirit, a bizarre mask refined by a shaman who worshipped ghosts and gods using nine living people. The mask devoured the shaman's soul and merged with the resentful souls of nine living people, ultimately transforming into a shamanistic evil spirit. This granted the evil ghost mask a strange sentience, allowing it to not only disguise appearances and alter auras, but also to change one's body and form, and even summon the shamanistic evil spirit.)]

"It can already change my body and form."

Xu Qing's expression was filled with joy.

After a moment of thought.

Xu Qing took off the mask. Wearing such a mask openly in public, if he encountered a powerful individual, it would be troublesome.

Therefore.

He should try not to wear this mask when going out during the day. He would only wear it when absolutely necessary, and then awaken the power of the evil ghost mask.

There was no need to wear a mask all day long.

Alternatively, he could wear it while sleeping at night, which would help increase the evil ghost mask's experience points.

On the other side.

Because the Ye family feared the Azure Hawk Martial Arts School, Xu Qing was no longer targeted by the Ye family's death squads or ambushed. Instead, he experienced six very peaceful days.

However.

Xu Qing had no intention of letting the matter rest.

Moreover.

Ye Yi had been investigating the whereabouts of that sword master for days but had found no clues. That sword master had only made two actual appearances, and each time they vanished without a trace, making it impossible to investigate.

The scene shifted.

Ye Family Mansion.

In the underground chamber.

Three people gathered.

Directly in front of them.

A blood pool came into view. The blood pool had a diameter of one hundred meters, and in the center of the blood pool stood a blood-black furnace.

Hum! Hum!

Beneath the blood-black furnace, streams of blood flames burned, enveloping the base of the furnace and forging and refining something.

Upon closer inspection.

There were blood-colored patterns along the edge of the blood pool. These patterns intertwined, forming a special blood array that emanated a bloody and eerie aura.

Additionally.

A large lid covered the blood-black furnace in the center of the blood pool. Three thick, massive chains were wrapped around the lid, extending outwards. The other ends of the chains were embedded in the walls of the underground chamber.

Moreover.

The large, thick chains also bore dense blood-colored patterns, like blood-red runes, exuding a bloody and eerie aura.

"How much longer?"

At this moment.

The white-haired old man standing in the middle gazed intently. His face was aged, much of his white hair had fallen out, and his face was covered in age spots. His body was hunched, and he was nearing the end of his life.

"Hehe..."

The slender woman on the left chuckled softly. "Old Master Ye, it was originally supposed to take only three days, but some time ago, we lost quite a few Corpse Ghouls, and even several Black-haired Zombies were slain. This slowed down our collection of 'life essence'."

"They're truly meddling busybodies."

Old Master Ye struck the ground fiercely with his cane several times. "My life is not comparable to the lives of those commoners. I merely wished to live another ten years, and yet so many people are interfering?!"

"Old Master Ye."

Suddenly.

The burly middle-aged man on the right, draped in a black cloak, took a deep breath and said calmly, "We are running out of time."

"The Corpse Ghoul incident has been ongoing for so long, yet the Yamen Agency still hasn't thoroughly investigated it. And with the number of deceased civilians increasing, the county magistrate is likely planning to mobilize the Demon Extermination Agency."

"When that happens..."

The man in the black cloak left the rest unsaid.

"So, what do you suggest we do?"

Old Master Ye shouted, "You were the ones who approached me back then. I truly don't want to die, I truly want to live another ten years, and I truly want to refine the 'Blood Demon Pill'."

"But."

"It's been a full half-year now, a whole half-year, and the 'Blood Demon Pill' still isn't ready. You said it would be ready within a month!"

"Furthermore."

"The various powers in the outer city are already subtly targeting our Ye Family."

"Old Master Ye, please rest assured."

The woman with the graceful figure chuckled, "We've actually been prepared for a long time. Tonight, we will release all the Corpse Ghouls and Zombies."

"At that time."

"We'll have enough 'life essence' to refine the 'Blood Demon Pill' for you in a single night. And after you take the Blood Demon Pill, you can extend your life by another ten years."

"What?!"

Old Master Ye's eyes widened. "Are you... are you insane?!"

"Hee hee hee..."

The woman with the graceful figure's laughter turned sharp. "Why would we be insane? Old Master Ye! Everything we're doing is for you."

Swoosh...

Gulp... Gulp... Gulp...

Suddenly.

As the woman with the graceful figure formed a series of hand seals, the blood pool before them began to boil, and the heads of Corpse Ghouls and Zombies emerged from the depths.

There were a great many of them.

And.

There were a total of nine such blood pools established in the outer city of Qingbei Town, utilizing the Ye Family's influence. One was built in the secret chamber beneath Kaiyuan Tower.

The other seven were hidden within the Ye Family's major businesses, concealed by their operations.

"!!!"

Seeing this scene, Old Master Ye felt a chill run through his body. He suddenly came to his senses, looking at the woman with the graceful figure in horror, and asked in a startled voice, "Who... who exactly are you?!"

"You were never refining the Blood Demon Pill. You've been lying to me all along."

At this moment.

Old Master Ye finally understood.

Unfortunately.

It was too late.

"Blood Demon Desire Woman, Qing Lian."

The woman with the graceful figure still spoke with a playful tone.

Puff!

Blood splattered.

The burly man in the black cloak turned Old Master Ye into a bloody pulp with a single palm strike. He then looked at the graceful woman and said, "Junior Sister, hurry up."

"The reason those people from the Demon Extermination Agency have held back until now is because they want you to escalate things further. That way, they can claim greater credit."

"They discovered the Ye Family's activities a month and a half ago."