Piaohua Palace, deep within the Ten Thousand Beast Blood Pool.
Lin Chen sat cross-legged in the center of the blood pool, the dark red water rising to his chest. The water boiled and rolled, every drop containing violent demonic beast essence blood that constantly eroded his skin, emitting faint "hiss" sounds of corrosion. He circulated the Primordial Spirit Devouring Art, forcibly drawing the spiritual power from the blood water into his body to repair his shattered meridians. Every circulation of spiritual power felt like millions of steel needles piercing through his meridians, the pain reaching his bones.
[System: Host is in heavy injury recovery period. Estimated full repair time: 72 hours.]
[Warning: Overdraft weakened state has not ended, all attributes -30%]
This was already the seventh day of Lin Chen's closed-door cultivation in the blood pool. For seven days, besides circulating his technique to heal, he had been sorting through his spoils of war. In Chu Tianxiong's storage bag, there were over a hundred thousand top-grade spirit stones alone, mountains of various heaven-and-earth treasures, and even three "YuanYing Breaking Pills"—supreme treasures for breaking through to the YuanYing Stage. Besides these, there was also a yellowed ancient book with the four characters "Tianxuan Secret Records" written on its cover, recording Tianxuan Sect's core techniques and secrets.
"Brother, are you alright?" Lin Ying's worried voice came from the pool's edge, carrying a trace of weakness.
Lin Chen opened his eyes and saw his sister's small pale face—obviously, the Beast Blessing from that day had cost her greatly. "I'm fine, but you shouldn't be here while you're still in a weakened state."
"I'm worried about you." Lin Ying crouched by the pool's edge, her small hand propping up her cheek, "The Palace Lord said your injuries were so severe this time that you'd need at least half a month to recover. She also said... she also said that if you died, there'd be no one left to kill Tianxuan Sect elders for her."
Lin Chen smiled bitterly. Not only were his injuries severe, the aftereffects of his Killing Intent overdraft had made his cultivation stagnate during this period. But the gains were also enormous—the System rewards, the devoured souls of three YuanYing elders, and Chu Tianxiong's lifetime collection had allowed him to faintly touch the barrier of the YuanYing Stage.
[System Alert: Host has absorbed 900 points of pure spiritual power, YuanYing Breaking Pills × 3. Current cultivation: Golden Core Stage Great Perfection!]
[Warning: Killing Intent overdraft state not resolved, temporarily unable to break through to YuanYing Stage!]
[Warning: Kill Intent overdraft state not resolved, temporarily unable to break through to YuanYing Stage!]
[System Recommendation: Complete the main quest "Annihilate Tianxuan Sect" to resolve overdraft state and trigger YuanYing Tribulation!]
"Just one more opportunity." Lin Chen murmured to himself, a trace of bloody light flashing in his eyes.
At this moment, a white figure drifted down—it was Meng Qingcheng. Today she wasn't wearing that gorgeous palace attire, but rather a simple white long dress, her hair casually coiled up, lacking some of her authoritative bearing and possessing a bit more of a cold, otherworldly aura.
"Palace Lord." Lin Chen nodded slightly, his tone holding less guard and more respect.
Meng Qingcheng didn't speak, only quietly looking at Lin Chen in the blood pool, a trace of complexity flashing in her beautiful eyes. After a long while, she finally spoke, her voice carrying a rare gentleness: "Do you know why I was willing to offend Tianxuan Sect to save you?"
Lin Chen lifted his gaze, his eyes profound: "Because I'm valuable."
"Correct." Meng Qingcheng didn't conceal it, "But that's not all."
She sat down by the pool's edge, her white dress stained with some blood water, but she didn't mind at all, as if this filth didn't exist in her eyes: "A thousand years ago, my Piaohua Palace was also the number one great sect in the Canglan Realm, commanding thousands of female cultivators—how glorious. At that time, my master and the Chaos Green Lotus Holy Mother were close friends. The two of them once joined hands to explore an ancient secret realm, from which they brought out two cultivation methods: the Chaos Beast-Taming True Solution and the Primordial Spirit Devouring Art. Later, the Holy Mother fell, and my master was besieged and killed by several major powers while protecting her legacy, even her soul was shattered. From that moment on, I swore that I would guard the Holy Mother's legacy until her reincarnation appeared."
She turned her head, her gaze landing on Lin Ying, her eyes becoming gentle: "Your sister is the Holy Mother's reincarnation. Her Chaos Green Lotus Mark is the best proof. And you..." she stared intently at Lin Chen with a scrutinous and expectant look, "That power of yours which can make Tianxuan Sect elders disappear into thin air, forcibly raise battle power, and counter-kill in desperate situations... has countless connections with a certain supreme treasure my master brought out from the secret realm back then. That supreme treasure is called the 'Slaughter Palace,' rumored to be the legacy object of an ancient Slaughter God. I saved you both to repay a debt and as an investment. I'm betting that you can grow strong enough to protect the Holy Mother's reincarnation."
Lin Chen was silent for a moment, then grinned: "The Palace Lord is indeed an honest person."
"Honest people live long." Meng Qingcheng stood up, blood water dripping from her white skirt, creating ripples on the pool's surface, "Your injuries still need three more days to fully heal. During these three days, rest and recover with peace of mind. After three days, I will send you to Tianxuan Sect's mountain gate."
"The Palace Lord will go with me?"
"No." Meng Qingcheng shook her head, a trace of coldness appearing on her peerlessly beautiful face, "You will go alone. The remaining evil of Tianxuan Sect must be annihilated. This is your Dao, and also your tribulation. If you don't even have this much bloodlust, you don't deserve a sister with the Chaos Green Lotus Mark. Moreover..."
She paused, her voice becoming low: "Behind Tianxuan Sect stands an even greater power. If you can't even destroy a small Tianxuan Sect, how will you face those true colossi?"
[Ding! Main quest triggered: Annihilate Tianxuan Sect!]
[Quest Description: Although Tianxuan Sect suffered heavy damage, its mountain gate foundation remains intact. If you don't pull out weeds by the roots, the spring wind will revive them. Host must annihilate Tianxuan Sect within one month, otherwise your Dao heart will be unstable and you will never be able to break through to the YuanYing Stage!]
[Quest Rewards: Killing Intent Points max +5000, unlock Slaughter God "Asura Slaughter God·Cao Cao" complete form, obtain "Sect Annihilator" title!]
A bloody light flashed in Lin Chen's eyes, his killing intent piercing: "Rest assured, Palace Lord, I, Lin Chen, have never known what it means to be soft-hearted."
---
Ten days later.
Lin Chen's injuries were fully healed after quiet cultivation in the blood pool, his cultivation stably stopping at Golden Core Stage Great Perfection, just one step away from breaking through to YuanYing. He broke through the water's surface, steam rising from his body, the Thunder-Patterned Core slowly rotating in his dantian, emitting an aura several times stronger than before. The originally dim Golden Core now shone brilliantly, the thunder patterns on its surface even denser, faintly showing signs of transforming into an infant.
"Brother, you've come out of seclusion!" Lin Ying ran over excitedly, her small face rosy, clearly having recovered well these past few days.
Lin Chen was startled: "Your weakened state..."
"It's been fine for a long time!" Lin Ying's smile was like a flower, "These days I've not been idle. I took Little Bai and the others to the back mountains for training, killed over a dozen third-stage demonic beasts, and even picked up a fourth-stage beast core! I also encountered a heavily injured fourth-stage demonic beast 'Fiery Demon Wolf,' and I subdued it with my beast-taming mark. Now it's very obedient!"
[System: Lin Ying's cultivation has advanced to Peak Qi Gathering Stage!]
[Beast Blessing duration extended to 15 minutes!]
[Bond Enhancement: Silver Moon Wolf King and Fiery Demon Wolf loyalty breakthrough 90, can perform combined technique "Silver Flame Double Fiends"!]
Lin Chen patted her head, a trace of relief flashing in his eyes: "Not bad, but you're not allowed to take risks alone next time."
"I know!" Lin Ying stuck out her tongue, then suddenly lowered her voice and said mysteriously, "Brother, I heard... there's been some big movement at Emei Palace recently."
"What kind of movement?"
"Their Saintess, Luo Jiayan, is reportedly going to hold the 'Lotus Saint Ceremony' on the fifteenth of next month, widely inviting female cultivators from the Canglan Realm to attend, even female cultivators from other continents have received invitations." Lin Ying blinked, "Brother, haven't you been searching for clues about the lotus mark? This is an opportunity. And I also found out that during the Lotus Saint Ceremony, Luo Jiayan will publicly display Emei Palace's palace-guarding treasure—the 'Chaos Green Lotus Platform'!"
A stirring rose in Lin Chen's heart, a brilliant light flashing in his eyes. Chaos Green Lotus Platform... Lotus Saint Ceremony... Luo Jiayan... Su Qingyao...
Connecting all these clues together, he faintly sensed that he was getting closer and closer to the truth. That Chaos Green Lotus Platform was very likely of the same origin as the mark between Lin Ying's brows!
"Alright, then we'll go to Emei Palace first." Lin Chen made his decision, "But before that..."
He looked up toward the direction of Tianxuan Sect, a trace of icy killing intent flashing in his eyes, blood light flickering in the depths of his pupils.
"We'll annihilate Tianxuan Sect first. This so-called righteous sect should have been removed from the Canglan Realm long ago."
[Ding! Lin Ying provided important intelligence, triggering hidden clues!]
[Probability of resonance between Chaos Green Lotus Platform and Host's sister's mark: 87%!]
[System Recommendation: Immediately proceed to Emei Palace, but must first complete main quest "Annihilate Tianxuan Sect," otherwise Dao heart will be unstable and final resonance cannot be triggered!]
[End of Chapter 23]