The Mastermind Appears, Yu Xiaogang's Mad Obsession (3)

Just then, a series of heavy, rhythmic footsteps echoed from the passageway outside the stone chamber.

An old man dressed in a wide black robe, exuding a strong stench of blood, slowly entered the stone chamber. This man was the true mastermind behind all these evil experiments, known as the "Blood Demon," Bai Tu.

"Enough, what's all the noise about?" Bai Tu's voice was hoarse and grating, like fingernails scraping against glass.

Yu Xiaogang and Yu Tianheng fell silent at the same time, instinctively feeling fear towards this old monster.

Bai Tu walked up to Yu Xiaogang, looking down at him with a dangerous red glint in his eyes. "Yu Xiaogang, you'd better explain yourself clearly. Why are you so fixated on that rabbit that's the transformed form of Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast? Do you know how much risk I've taken because of your inexplicable intuition?"

Despite the excruciating pain, Yu Xiaogang reached for the notebook on the table, densely covered with bizarre formulas, and gasped, "Old Bai, this isn't some random intuition. It's the result of my meticulous calculations. The rabbit's blood isn't absolutely necessary, but it's definitely the most perfect and suitable material available right now."

Bai Tu frowned, clearly uninterested in this theoretical nonsense.

Like a madman, Yu Xiaogang pointed to the information in his notebook and quickly explained, "Look, why did our experiments with the blood of ordinary Soul Masters always explode? Because the attribute differences were too great. Fire attribute, Poison-type, Beast Martial Soul, Tool Martial Soul... Sheer Force fusing these things together would inevitably result in extremely violent conflicts. The last time I suffered such a terrible backlash, my lower body was almost paralyzed, was because of this fatal flaw."

Yu Tianheng, standing to the side, suddenly added in a low voice, "It was indeed quite intense; it almost made you infertile."

Yu Xiaogang suddenly turned his head, glaring at him with bloodshot eyes. "Yu Tianheng, if you don't speak, no one will think you're mute,"

Bai Tu's eyes turned cold, and a terrifying pressure emanated from him, causing the two to shut their mouths again.

Yu Xiaogang swallowed hard, reorganizing his words: "But that Xiao Wu, the Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast in human form, is completely different. She is extremely special. She possesses complete human meridians, which means that her blood can perfectly match our human cultivation techniques. At the same time, deep within her blood lies a vast life essence that far exceeds that of ordinary human Soul Masters by tens of millions of times."

Yu Xiaogang became increasingly excited as he spoke, his eyes even flashing with a morbid light. "What does this mean? This blood, which possesses both human attributes and immense vitality, can very likely serve as an extremely stable 'neutralizing core' during our blood-qi fusion. It can act like a sponge, temporarily absorbing and stabilizing the intense conflicts between different attributes,"

Bai Tu narrowed his eyes; he understood the theory. "Are you sure this will work?"

Yu Xiaogang paused for a moment, then gritted his teeth. "I'm only 60% sure."

"Only 60%? You want me to provoke the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect just for this 60% chance?" Bai Tu's eyes flashed with murderous intent.

"Sixty percent is already very high," Yu Xiaogang hurriedly defended, his voice sharp. "This kind of forbidden research across species has never been attempted by anyone on the entire continent. If you give me even a vial of that rabbit's blood, even just a tiny drop, I can use reverse engineering to push the success rate up to eighty or even ninety percent."

Bai Tu fell silent. Only a faint candlelight flickered in the stone chamber.

After a moment, Bai Tu asked coldly, "But now we've alerted her. What if we can't get her blood?"

Yu Xiaogang also fell silent. The stone chamber was dark, and his face was mostly hidden in shadow, appearing distorted and ferocious. After a long while, he slowly raised his head and said in an extremely calm yet chilling tone, "Then let's continue trying. If we don't have Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts, we'll make up for the lack of quality with quantity. We'll use more samples."

Bai Tu asked with great interest, "Oh? Where did the sample come from?"

Yu Xiaogang raised his eyelids. Those eyes, which years ago always liked to pretend to be rational, restrained, and full of wisdom at the Shrek Academy, had now completely succumbed, leaving only a morbid obsession with achieving one's goals by any means necessary.

"Soul Masters. Soul Beasts. Even... ordinary people." Yu Xiaogang's voice was like a viper's hiss. "If a few hundred don't work, then a few thousand; if a few thousand don't work, then tens of thousands. As long as we kill enough and draw enough blood, we can always find substitutes and eventually find the right fusion formula."

Yu Tianheng clenched his fist tightly, his brows furrowing slightly. "Yu Xiaogang, do you know how many people will die?"

Yu Xiaogang turned his head and looked at his nephew expressionlessly. "Tian Heng, you're too soft-hearted. Scientific progress and research always require someone to pay the price. It's their honor to die for me in proving the greatest theory in the Martial Soul world."

"Science?" Yu Tianheng stared intently at him, feeling for the first time that this originally sacred word sounded disgusting and nauseating coming from the mouth of Yu Xiaogang, who wasn't even a human being.

Bai Tu suddenly let out a strange, cackling laugh, "Very good, very good. I love your ruthless answer. How can someone who aspires to great things be held back by the lives of ants?"

Yu Tianheng didn't say anything more, but simply turned his face away.

Bai Tu suddenly stopped laughing, his sinister gaze falling on Yu Tianheng: "Tian Heng, I ask you, besides that transformed rabbit, who else in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is a special target that we should pay attention to?"

Yu Tianheng fell silent, his lips pressed tightly together.

Bai Tu stepped forward, his terrifying pressure bearing down on Yu Tianheng: "I'll let you speak,"

Despite the pressure, Yu Tianheng finally gritted his teeth and spoke, "Dugu Yan, the granddaughter of Poison Douluo. She originally had extremely troublesome Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison in her body, but it was later neutralized, and now her bloodline is very special."

"Oh? Your ex-lover." Bai Tu let out a meaningful chuckle.

Yu Tianheng's eyes instantly turned icy cold. "This is just objective information; she has nothing to do with what we're about to do."

"Unrelated?" Bai Tu seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world. "Boy, now that you've followed your uncle onto this blood-paved road, do you think anyone on this road can remain unscathed and completely uninvolved?"

Yu Tianheng's fingers slowly tightened, his knuckles turning white from the force. But he knew he couldn't refute it, and could only close his eyes in pain.

Bai Tu ignored him and turned to walk to the huge map hanging on the wall.

Yu Xiaogang leaned out from under the table and asked anxiously, "Elder Bai, what should we do next? Should we continue sending high-ranking assassins to infiltrate the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"

"No." Bai Tu picked up a sharp dagger and drew a huge red X on the map marking the perimeter of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. "Cease all surveillance and operations near the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."

Yu Xiaogang was taken aback. "Why? Don't we want that excellent medicinal ingredient anymore?"

Bai Tu looked at him like he was an incurable idiot. "Yu Xiaogang, is your brain really filled with shit? Today's events have completely alarmed them. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect now not only has two Titled Douluo protecting the sect, but even that poison expert Dugu Bo is stationed there. Sending people to their lair now isn't called taking blood, it's called lining up to deliver your heads."

Yu Xiaogang opened his mouth, wanting to refute, but found that he couldn't utter a single word.

Holding a dagger, Bai Tu slowly moved south along the territory of the Heaven Dou Empire on the map, leaving a long mark. Finally, the tip of the dagger heavily embedded itself in a blank area representing wilderness and mountains, far from Heaven Dou City.

"No one can be a coward forever, hiding in the sect's protective shield," Bai Tu's voice was icy cold. "Especially a proud and arrogant genius like Ling Yun, he will absolutely not swallow this insult."

Yu Tianheng raised his head and looked at the map.

Bai Tu turned around, his eyes flashing with the predatory glint of a hunter eyeing its prey, and said calmly, "Sooner or later, they will leave the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's territory and go to the outside world. All we have to do is wait."

"Once they've completely left the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's protection area and reached the wilderness, we'll lay a trap, take her blood, and then kill that brat named Ling Yun along with them."

Late at night. In Ling Yun's private courtyard at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

Ling Yun sat quietly alone on the mahogany chair by the window. The cool moonlight shone on the table, illuminating the slender, extremely vicious black blood-drawing needle.

Xiao Wu had finished washing up and came out of the inner room wearing a thin nightgown and a thick coat. She saw Ling Yun still sitting there and went over to him.

"Still not asleep? Still looking at this broken needle?" Xiao Wu asked softly.

"Hmm, just browsing." Ling Yun didn't even look up.

Xiao Wu pulled up a chair and sat down next to him, asking with some concern, "Brother Yun, do you think they'll launch another sneak attack outside the sect tomorrow?"

Ling Yun shook his head decisively. "No."

"Why?"

"To put it bluntly, it's because the other side isn't stupid." Ling Yun extended two slender fingers and picked up the finely crafted Black Needle. "The six scouts they sent out this time were all wiped out without even making a ripple. Unless the person behind this is completely out of their mind, they would never be foolish enough to make a move on the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's territory again. That would be pure suicide."

As he spoke, Ling Yun tightened his fingers slightly.

"Click."

With a crisp crack, the vicious Black Needle, supposedly forged from Hundred-Refined Steel and capable of instantly extracting a person's life essence, was snapped in two by Ling Yun.

"If they don't come here, where will they choose to make their move?" Xiao Wu frowned deeply.

Ling Yun raised his head and looked out the window.

In the distance, the majestic gate of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was completely hidden in the thick darkness of the night, like a lurking beast. And further away lay the long road leading to Heaven Dou City and the vast world of the entire Douluo Continent.

Ling Yun was silent for two seconds, a glint of light flashing in his eyes. "They will choose... when we have to leave the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's protection because of some extremely important matter, and have to go out into the wilderness."

Xiao Wu's expression instantly turned serious; she knew that meant a real battle and danger.

But just then, Ling Yun suddenly chuckled softly, a smile that carried a hint of ease and even a touch of anticipation.

"But actually, this is pretty good."

"What's so great about it? We've been targeted by a bunch of lunatics lurking in the shadows!" Xiao Wu exclaimed, her eyes wide with confusion.

Ling Yun casually tossed the two broken needles into an empty box on the table like trash, making a crisp sound.

"The good thing is, after all the trouble they've caused today, we at least have a clear understanding of what these cowardly guys really want."

Ling Yun slowly stood up and walked to the window. The night wind blew his clothes, and a chilling sharpness gradually gathered in his black eyes, becoming cold to the bone.

"Xiao Wu, you must remember, in this world, as long as you clearly understand what a person or a force's ultimate greed and goals are—"

Ling Yun looked at the swaying shadows of the trees outside the window, his voice low and iron-like. "Then we'll be able to predict accurately, like a prophet, which direction his next claw will extend."

Outside the window, the night wind suddenly picked up, rustling the trees like a prelude to Hurricane.

Ling Yun stood with his hands behind his back, a deathly smile playing on his lips, "They want to play hunter and prey game? Then we'll play along to the very end."