Green-Tier Methods, Blood Slaves Sacrificed to the Sword

Lu Hao looked at the line of green text on the system panel—"Advanced Black Tiger Golden Saber Method"—and felt a flicker of delight. He had been an old hand at games in his previous life, so he naturally knew what green lettering meant.

White methods were the lowest tier, while green ranked a level higher. He just did not know whether blue, purple, and orange existed above green.

If it could be fused all the way upward, what rank would this Black Tiger Method eventually become? He found himself looking forward to it.

What left him somewhat dumbfounded was that when he looked at the "Advanced Black Tiger Golden Blade Art," its moves were no different from the "Black Tiger Golden Saber Method." Only the names of the moves had turned green.

Lu Hao hesitated for a moment, then still assumed his stance and began practicing.

As he drilled the moves, he found that guiding Blood Essence through his meridians required greater force.

After completing one round of the Black Tiger Golden Saber Blood Essence Formula, Lu Hao was soaked through with sweat, as if he had just been drenched by a downpour. He took several ragged breaths. Every muscle and bone in his body ached, as though someone had beaten him viciously with a club.

Lu Hao looked at the panel.

[Skill: Black Tiger Golden Saber Blood Essence Formula (Green · Beginner)]

[Progress: 3/100]

[Blood Essence in Body: 29/30]

A sharp gleam flashed through Lu Hao's eyes.

A green-tier method truly was different.

Previously, practicing the Black Tiger Golden Saber Blood Essence Formula only gained him one point of proficiency per round.

Now that it had been upgraded to green, a single round actually gained him two points of proficiency while consuming only one unit of Blood Essence. His training efficiency had doubled, yet the consumption was about the same as before.

He practiced another round of the Black Tiger Hand-Saber Art. It likewise consumed one unit of Blood Essence and gained him two points of proficiency.

A green method was already this formidable. If it could rise another tier, would it not become even more powerful?

Thinking this, Lu Hao left the training room and went to the storeroom, where he pulled out another Golden Blade Method. Unfortunately, when he picked up that Golden Blade Method, the system panel did not react at all. He tried several more books, but the result was the same.

After thinking it over, Lu Hao roughly understood. It seemed that methods already equipped could not be equipped again, nor could they be used as fusion materials.

Having figured it out, Lu Hao stopped wasting thought on it. He returned to the training room and continued practicing the Blood Essence Formula and the Hand-Saber Art.

His most urgent task now was to raise these two methods to Minor Mastery as quickly as possible.

Lu Hao did not know when Zhou Zhenbei would come knocking, but every bit his strength increased gave him one more chance to survive.

Meanwhile, in the underground secret chamber of the Mighty Escort Bureau.

Diao Xiaolin held a longsword, his eyes faintly carrying a layer of pale red radiance. He was practicing the moves depicted in the Blood Fiend Sword Art. His sword attacks were swift and vicious.

At that moment, Yu Wei pushed open the door and entered, carrying someone in one hand.

It was a vagrant, clad in tattered clothes and filthy from head to toe, giving off a sour stench. His eyes were deeply sunken from hunger.

Yu Wei dragged the vagrant inside by the back of his collar. The man trembled uncontrollably, his eyes filled with terror.

Yu Wei shoved the vagrant toward Diao Xiaolin. The vagrant fell to the ground and writhed incessantly.

Yu Wei looked at Diao Xiaolin. "Xiaolin, I have brought you today's blood slave for your sword sacrifice."

Diao Xiaolin nodded at Yu Wei and walked toward the vagrant with his sword in hand.

Yu Wei continued, "If the Blood Fiend Sword Art is not used to sacrifice the sword with the fresh blood of living humans or beasts, its progress will stagnate. At times, one may even suffer a backlash from Killing Intent."

He paused. "Your comprehension is exceptional. Once you sacrifice the sword again, you will surely break through the Martial Apprentice threshold and condense Blood Essence."

As his words fell, Diao Xiaolin's blade had already slit open the vagrant's throat.

Strangely, the vagrant's blood did not spray out. Instead, as though drawn by some invisible force, it flowed backward along the blade toward the hilt.

When the blood reached Diao Xiaolin's hand gripping the sword, it suddenly began to steam. Great billows of dark-red blood qi surged up and burrowed into his body through the pores of his palm.

Diao Xiaolin's body shuddered violently, and his eyes abruptly widened.

After entering his body, that blood qi rapidly surged through his meridians toward his limbs and bones.

The whites of Diao Xiaolin's eyes changed from a faint trace of blood-red to deep crimson in an instant. Veins bulged across his neck and forehead.

After the mass of blood qi circulated through his body, it was condensed into a wisp of pure Qi-Blood and ultimately gathered in his dantian.

The nine wisps of Qi-Blood in his dantian began compressing toward it after being catalyzed by that trace of incoming Qi-Blood.

"Ah...!" Diao Xiaolin threw back his head. The agonizing pain throughout his body made him howl uncontrollably, pale bloody vapor escaping from his mouth at the same time.

After about the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the blood-red color in Diao Xiaolin's eyes slowly faded.

By then, the nine wisps of Qi-Blood within his body had merged from nine into one, compressed into a droplet of dark-red liquid.

Diao Xiaolin had crossed the Martial Apprentice threshold and become a Lower Bright Force Martial Artist.

As for the vagrant on the ground, his skin had shriveled and drained of all color. He had already become a dried corpse.

Once Diao Xiaolin's aura had calmed somewhat, Yu Wei took out a small porcelain bottle from his robes and handed it over.

"There are three Blood Fiend Pills inside."

"They are refined from the blood of living people, supplemented by several Killing Intent herbs. They are excellent pills for Bright Force Martial Artists who practice the Blood Fiend Art to replenish Blood Essence. If your Blood Essence is depleted, taking one will restore it immediately. It can even temporarily double your Blood Essence for the duration of a quarter-hour."

He paused.

"But you can only take one at a time. If you take two at once, your Blood Essence can surge fourfold, but there is a fifty percent chance that you will explode and die. If you take all three together, even an Upper-Grade Bright Force Martial Artist will explode in an instant."

Diao Xiaolin opened the porcelain bottle. The moment he removed the stopper, a foul stench mixed with the smell of blood rushed into his nose, making him frown.

He looked into the bottle and saw three ink-black pills, each about the size of a soybean.

After looking them over, he replaced the stopper and tucked the Blood Fiend Pills into his robes.

Diao Xiaolin looked at Yu Wei.

"Thank you, Uncle Yu, for granting me the Blood Fiend Sword Art and the Blood Fiend Pills, and for bringing me a blood slave every day to sacrifice to my sword. If I face Lu Hao again now, I need only one move to stab him dead beneath my blade."

Yu Wei smiled faintly.

"Rest well for a few days. You have consumed a great deal physically from practicing the Blood Fiend Sword Art lately. Your father will return in another two days. Do you want to wait until he returns before seeking Lu Hao for revenge?"

"No need. I have already stepped into the realm of Martial Artists. Killing Lu Hao will be like killing an ant. I can avenge my mother myself!"

Diao Xiaolin desperately wanted to prove his capabilities to Diao Xiada.

Yu Wei nodded in satisfaction and called toward the door, "Wu Yi, Han Ce!"

As his words fell, two sturdy men entered from outside.

Yu Wei looked at them.

"Wait two days, until Xiaolin's body has recovered to its best condition. Then the two of you will accompany Xiaolin and kill Lu Hao."

He paused. "Leave Lu Hao for Xiaolin to deal with personally. You only need to handle the ordinary members of the Black Tiger Gang."

Diao Xiaolin cupped his fist toward Yu Wei. "Thank you, Uncle Yu!"

After Yu Wei and the two men left, Diao Xiaolin looked at the longsword in his hand and said softly, "Lu Hao, I will use your blood to sacrifice my sword!"

A layer of blood-red color coated his eyes once more.