Wraith Beast Blood Food

The arrival of a new neighbor gave Su Changsheng an immediate sense of urgency.

He continued staying home, cultivating, and making runes.

He even cut his daily four hours of rest down to around two. The demon race had abundant energy anyway; going a few days without rest would not cause any immediate problems.

As his proficient-level Breathing Technique gradually circulated and grew increasingly practiced, Su Changsheng's Realm Experience rose like a boat on a rising tide.

Seventy... eighty... a hundred...

His cultivation advanced day by day.

During daylight hours, supplemented by blood food, his Breathing Technique became even more efficient. He could now convert it into three points of Realm Experience in roughly two hours.

By that calculation, after deducting the time spent making runes, eating, and sleeping, Su Changsheng could gain around 25 points of Realm Experience each day.

His cultivation increased at an unbelievable speed every moment. Beyond that, his cells filled with vitality, his demon power steadily swelled, his blood energy rose, and his entire Yao Body rapidly grew stronger.

The speed of that growth was almost addictive.

Unfortunately, his consumption of blood food also kept increasing. Over the last few days, to control how quickly he burned through his food and keep himself from going bankrupt, Su Changsheng had no choice but to painfully cut back on his daytime breathing practice.

"There's still too little food!"

"And this low-grade blood food doesn't contain much energy. If only I had some spiritual treasures or Wraith Beast blood food."

Su Changsheng stopped cultivating, looked at the little food remaining in his home, and sighed.

He had to go to the Yao Market to trade for blood food again!

Through several days of hard work, he had stockpiled around fifteen Concealment Runes. Aside from keeping three to five for emergencies, he planned to trade the rest away gradually, in separate batches.

That would let him obtain enough food.

The Half-Demon Grounds grew increasingly chaotic, and the Black Tiger Yao still had not appeared. Su Changsheng needed more blood food to reach the level three half-demon stage as soon as possible. Only then could he weather this crisis safely.

But he could not rush yet.

The more he rushed, the more likely he was to make a mistake.

Today was the last day of the month. He simply stopped cultivating, hid everything that needed hiding, and waited quietly at home for the Black Tiger Yao to come collect his dues.

Yet darkness fell.

And the Black Tiger Yao still did not appear.

Still, the wait had not been entirely fruitless. At nightfall, Su Changsheng sensed a faint, icy chill flash past around his house. It was unmistakably the aura of the Black Tiger Yao's Wailing Ghost.

As expected, that tiger demon isn't dead. He's even recreated the Wailing Ghosts he lost. He might already have recovered completely.

But why is he staying hidden? The Half-Demon Grounds are getting more and more chaotic, yet he turns a blind eye. There shouldn't be any benefit in that for him. So... what exactly is that cunning, vicious demon plotting?

Su Changsheng betrayed nothing, acting as though he had not noticed the chilling aura. Questions kept piling up in his mind, however. No matter how he looked at it, the Black Tiger Yao's behavior was far too abnormal.

"No, I can't wait any longer."

"Tomorrow, I'll go to the Yao Market and trade all my Concealment Talismans for blood food."

Su Changsheng decided to act the next day. After all, the Wailing Ghost had already inspected this place and was unlikely to return anytime soon. He could go to the Yao Market without worry.

He had to bring back blood food as soon as possible, break through to level three half-demon, and build a safe haven. He had to hold his fate in his own hands.

Heavy snow had arrived suddenly in the middle of the previous night.

It announced the fierce return of snowy weather after a lull of more than ten days.

The temperature continued to fall.

Outside, it was now cold enough for thrown water to freeze into ice. Su Changsheng estimated the temperature was at least thirty or forty degrees below zero.

His tail was practically freezing off.

The extreme cold made him increasingly sluggish, exhausted, and sleepy. The instinct to hibernate kept surging into his mind.

It was too cold. With insufficient food, even a half-demon could not avoid being influenced by the instincts etched deep into his bloodline.

But he could not sleep!

He still had so much to do.

Disguised as the Fire-Element Half-Demon White Snake once again and carrying his spiked club, Su Changsheng stepped into the morning sunlight and vanished into a world of ice and snow.

The bitter wind cut deep, freezing him to his demonic core.

There were relatively few demons at the Yao Market early in the morning, and only seven or eight stalls.

Three of them were already selling blood food, though. Their owners all looked travel-worn, and some still had blood on them, as though they had just returned from hunting in the Wilderness.

Su Changsheng spotted an "old acquaintance."

That Eagle Yao!

The first trade of his demonic life had been with this Eagle Yao. That rat meat really had tasted good, leaving a lingering fragrance on his lips and tongue and an endless savory aftertaste.

Whatever the Eagle Yao's character might be, he did not seem to have too many little schemes. He was a decent trading partner.

During several later trades, Su Changsheng had assumed other appearances and specifically looked for this Eagle Yao, but unfortunately had never found him.

But today...

Wasn't this a lucky coincidence!

"Do you still have rat demon meat?"

A cool voice suddenly sounded beside the Eagle Yao's ear. He froze briefly, apparently not expecting business so early today.

"You?"

The Eagle Yao looked surprised. The half-demon white snake before him had left quite an impression—an especially deep one, in fact.

Normally, they had only traded once. Why would that have left such a deep impression?

As it turned out, the Eagle Yao had run into danger during a hunt in the Wilderness a few days earlier. It was precisely those two Concealment Runes that had allowed him to narrowly escape disaster.

The demon power within those two Concealment Runes flowed smoothly, forming a seamless whole. They worked better than other Concealment Runes, concealing his aura for nearly eight full hours and allowing him to survive by a stroke of luck.

"Concealment Runes of the same quality as last time?"

The Eagle Yao forcibly suppressed his excitement, glanced around, and asked in a lowered voice.

Su Changsheng nodded.

"Two?"

This time, however, Su Changsheng only watched the Eagle Yao quietly. His expression remained calm, and he gave no answer.

Something stirred in the Eagle Yao's mind. He looked down at his stall and gritted his teeth, then simply stopped selling. He packed everything into a hide sack, slung it onto his back, and looked at Su Changsheng. "Come on. Let's talk over by the Spirit Plant Shop."

The Spirit Plant Shop was a stall operated by a Great Yao. No demon dared cause trouble there, so demons generally preferred to conduct important trades nearby.

As long as they paid some blood food, the Spirit Plant Shop's stallkeeper would turn a blind eye rather than drive them away.

After all, they were all working demons. There was no shame in earning a little on the side.

The two demons paid ten jin of blood food in total, then chose a spot near the back left of the Spirit Plant Shop's stall and began talking.

The Spirit Plant Shop's stallkeeper even brought them a bamboo tube of hot water, grandly calling it "spirit tea." Su Changsheng could practically feel black lines forming across his forehead.

A rip-off. A goddamn rip-off!

Ten jin of blood food for a pot of hot water. The stallkeeper really had the nerve.

Luckily, he was not the one paying!

Young Master Eagle was footing the entire bill.

"I won't hide it from you. I really don't have any rat demon meat left. But I have something better. Want to take a look?"

The Eagle Yao spoke mysteriously.

"Something better?"

Su Changsheng raised an eyebrow and examined the Eagle Yao closely. The latter's feathers were rather disheveled, crisscrossed with numerous bite marks. There was also a faint aura about him—strange, evil, and somehow discordant.

The aura of a Wraith Beast!

Did he encounter a Wraith Beast in the Wilderness and get contaminated by its aura? So he must have used those two Concealment Runes!

Various thoughts flitted through Su Changsheng's mind, and in an instant he had a plan. He said evenly, "Enough wasted words. If you have something good, take it out and let me see. You must have tried those two Concealment Runes already. They worked well, didn't they?"

After all, his Concealment Rune crafting had been close to the Skilled Level back then. Naturally, the resulting runes were stronger than those made by ordinary demons. Su Changsheng knew that much.

"All right!"

Eagle Yao hesitated for a long time before finally giving a soft sigh. Then he took a fist-sized wooden box from his hide sack.

He opened it just a crack, revealing an eyeball floating inside without support. Threads of an incomparably eerie aura seeped out through the gap.

A Wraith Eye-Wraith Beast blood food!