He had never expected that absorbing the essence blood this time would do little for his body, while the Essence Reaping Art, which he had barely practiced and had progressed painfully slowly, would quietly make a massive leap.
"Since the Essence Reaping Art improved, this poison resistance must have come from the blood-baleful energy inside me?"
Zhao Er carefully sensed the state of his body. There was indeed an additional current of sinister, baleful energy, but the yin qi had masked it, so he had failed to notice it earlier. Now that he examined it, however, he detected a change in the yin toxin within him.
"This yin toxin seems to have grown stronger..."
Zhao Er assessed it. Overall, this was a good thing. At least the essence blood had not gone to waste. Its effects roughly equaled several consecutive days of arduous cultivation, and it had strengthened the yin toxin within him as well.
"Grrr~~"
Just then, Zhao Er's stomach began to growl.
With no time to worry about anything else, Zhao Er picked up the variant beast meat slowly roasting beside the fire. After tearing off a small strip and handing it to White Marten, he began wolfing it down.
"Mmm~ delicious!"
The moment the variant beast meat entered his mouth, Zhao Er's eyes lit up, and he dug in with great mouthfuls.
The Rockhide Tiger's meat was not as tender as that of other variant beasts, but it had a better chew. Most importantly, it contained more energy. Though it could not compare to the essence blood, it was still highly nourishing.
Zhao Er proceeded to eat his fill right there. He even roasted and packed some meat to take with him before reluctantly abandoning the remainder. Then he checked his bearings again, shouldered his belongings, and