Translator: CinderTL
Following the Narrator's prompt, Feng Qi's gaze locked onto the mysterious statue standing nearby.
The statue, roughly a meter tall, resembled a Goat-Headed Demon, its forehead etched with a hexagram array centered around a blood-red rune crystal.
The Narrator never offered meaningless hints. Clearly, killing the life force within the statue would grant him an unexpected ability.
Before acting, Feng Qi glanced toward the entrance. Little Black had already engaged the Goat-Headed Demons in battle.
Little Black's most terrifying trait was its virtually indestructible body. Any damaged area would instantly vaporize, then reform to its original state, making it invincible against any opponent.
Feng Qi had initially believed Little Black's ability countered only physical damage. But now, witnessing its vaporous form effortlessly absorb the flames spewed by the Goat-Headed Demons, he realized the full extent of its horror.
Regardless of the type of damage, Little Black possessed a countermeasure.
This overwhelming power sent chills down his spine, leaving him utterly at a loss for how to counter it.
While the Goat-Headed Demons swarmed Little Black, Feng Qi crept toward the mysterious statue.
Reaching the statue, he took a deep breath and abruptly swung his fist, smashing it into the statue's head.
His fist collided with the rune crystal embedded in the mysterious statue's forehead, causing crimson ripples to spread across its surface. Far from shattering the statue, the force of the impact sent him staggering several steps backward.
Undeterred, he lunged forward again, aiming another punch at the statue's head.
This time, before his fist could even approach the statue, he felt a transparent barrier materialize, blocking contact.
Simultaneously, the statue's eyes snapped open, twin beams of scarlet light erupting from its pupils. The metallic sheen vanished, replaced by blood-red flesh rippling with muscle striations.
Feng Qi stared in disbelief.
He realized he'd been tricked by the Narrator—he'd clearly bitten off more than he could chew.
But just as he prepared to flee, the statue seemed to shut down abruptly. The crimson light in its eyes faded, and the metallic sheen returned to its surface.
Please trust me. Even a tiger wouldn't devour its own cub. I wouldn't harm you.
Feng Qi: ...
"What now?"
Keep attacking! The life force within that statue is incredibly weak. It can't possibly retaliate!
Hearing this, Feng Qi gritted his teeth and threw another punch at the mysterious statue.
One strike, two strikes, three strikes... Under his relentless assault, the newly formed muscles on his right arm were torn apart, exposing the stark white bone beneath.
Despite the searing pain, he didn't stop, continuing to swing his fist with all his might.
Finally, a crack appeared on the surface of the mysterious statue. The fissure rapidly spread across its entire body, causing the statue to crumble into pieces.
Before him lay a pulsating, blood-red fleshy sphere, resembling a beating heart. Through its tangled network of blood vessels, he could faintly discern a curled-up, slumbering figure within.
Without hesitation, he seized the sphere in his hand and squeezed with all his strength.
The sphere shattered, splattering a clear liquid across his face. Inside, the tiny creature writhed and let out a feeble cry.
Its voice was so faint that it was completely drowned out by the din of little black's battle against the Goat-Headed Demons.
Glancing at the Goat-Headed Demons still swarming little black, Feng Qi didn't hesitate. He clenched his fist again, crushing the blood-red lifeform into a pulpy mess, extinguishing the Special Domain Creature's life.
Immediately, a crimson mist rose from the creature's remains and surged into his body.
Absorbing this vital energy felt like drinking ice-cold soda on a scorching summer day—a wave of invigorating relief washed over him. Flesh buds rapidly sprouted across his skin, and his shattered muscles began to regenerate with each pulsating growth.
He could clearly sense his strength tier undergoing a transformation.
As his body transformed, he noticed his previously withered and decaying heart had been reactivated. The putrid gray surface gradually shifted to a vibrant pink, and its beating grew stronger.
Summoning his status panel, he discovered he had gained another prefix title:
Blood Source · Nightmare · Resilience (Level 2) · Robust Living Dead: Feng Qi
Strength Tier: Black Iron-Lower Tier
Prefix Title: Robust: Increases physical strength by 20% and enhances self-healing capabilities.
Resilience LV3: Increases muscle resilience by 3%.
Nightmare (Non-Upgradeable Prefix Title): Allows intrusion into consciousness to read targets' memories. Specific effects depend on the user's mental strength. The ability associated with this prefix title will improve as the user's mental strength increases.
Blood Source (Non-Upgradeable Prefix Title): Condenses a Blood Core within the heart, dramatically improving its operational efficiency. This ability can also be activated to instantly drain the Blood Core's energy and the user's own blood essence, granting a burst of combat power. The effectiveness of this ability will increase with the user's blood essence strength.
Bloodline: Human (Primary)
Bloodline Evolution Points: 235/1000
Prefix Title Milestones:
Robust (Upgradeable):
Second Milestone Progress: 37%
Resilience LV3 (Upgradeable): 51%
This prefix title ability differed from all the others he had acquired.
Robust and Resilience were passive abilities, while Nightmare required active release. Blood Source, however, could function both passively and actively.
With each heartbeat, he could feel a surging vitality within him.
By gently focusing his consciousness, he could abruptly accelerate his heart rate, like pressing the accelerator pedal in a car.
During his experimentation, his consciousness suddenly pierced into his heart.
In an instant, an astonishing phenomenon occurred.
His heart rate tripled instantly and continued to accelerate, drawing surging vitality from his heart and spreading it throughout his body.
The flesh buds on his skin rapidly grew, fueled by this power, transforming Feng Qi from a skeletal form into a two-meter-tall humanoid muscle monster.
Clenching his fist, he could clearly feel the surging power coursing through his body.
Damn, you've evolved into a total muscle freak! This ability really suits you!
Hearing the Narrator's sarcastic remark, Feng Qi couldn't help but roll his eyes.
At the same time, he sensed his internal blood energy rapidly depleting.
Realizing this state couldn't be sustained for long, he turned toward the distant entrance, determined to seize this opportunity to break free.
Having made his decision, he took a deep breath and surged toward the entrance.
The sudden burst of power from his legs left a deep crater in the ground as he shot forward like a cannonball, each stride propelling him several meters.
Just as he was about to enter the crimson cave, a Goat-Headed Demon, sent flying by little black, crashed down in front of him, blocking his path.
"Fuck you!"
Feng Qi immediately launched a kick, his right leg muscles hardening instantly as he sent the demon flying. He then leaped into the crimson cave.
Staying here meant death whether little black won or lost. Escaping while in his transformed state was the only logical choice.
He sprinted through the crimson tunnel until he finally emerged from the cave.
The cave entrance was about ten meters above the ground, but without hesitation, he leaped down.
His body accelerated rapidly during the fall, crashing into the ground with a violent impact. Debris scattered as a two-meter-wide, spiderweb-cracked crater formed beneath his feet.
Yet Feng Qi, empowered by the Blood Source state, felt no discomfort as he landed steadily.
Oh ho! Impressive! The muscular form truly suits you best. Focus your evolution in this direction from now on.
"Pah!"
Hearing the Narrator's snide remarks, he couldn't help but roll his eyes.
Compared to the "nightmare" ability, which he still didn't know how to unleash, he had already mastered the activation method for the Blood Source ability through experimentation.
Realizing he had gained a remarkably powerful enhancement ability, he felt a surge of satisfaction.
He looked up at the Blood Moon in the sky, confirmed his location, and decisively strode eastward.
In Blood Source mode, his strength and speed were multiplied, and even his physical defenses were significantly enhanced. The wind howled past his ears as he ran, each step leaving a deep crater in the ground.
But this state didn't last long. Soon, his muscles began to disintegrate, dissolving into crimson mist that scattered with the wind, and he reverted from his muscular form back to his normal appearance.
As the Blood Source state completely dissipated, a wave of weakness washed over him.
It wasn't that he had become weaker after leaving Blood Source mode. After all, the primary energy consumption came from the Blood Core in his heart, not from his own body.
It was simply that he had grown accustomed to the overwhelming power of the Blood Source Amplification, and the sudden loss of that ability left him feeling disoriented.
"My body feels completely drained. It's... uncomfortable."
Tsk tsk tsk, kidney deficiency at such a young age? Pathetic.
"Shut up! I wake up with a rock-hard erection every day!" he retorted, glaring at the Narrator's mockery.
Where's the proof? Seeing is believing, hearing is deceiving.
Feng Qi: ...
Suddenly, a question occurred to me: the abilities you gained in the Dream Realm can be brought back to reality. This means you can also use the Blood Source Ability in the real world. But what would happen if you used it here?
He froze, startled by the Narrator's words.
After careful consideration, he shuddered, a chill creeping into his heart.
The Blood Source Ability draws power from the Blood Core within the heart, granting the user an instantaneous physical boost.
After using the Blood Core Ability, his heart would revert to its withered, decayed state, and even the enhanced muscle striations on his body would vanish.
According to the Narrator, using this ability in reality could have irreversible consequences.
In the real world, he would likely be drained instantly. After a brief period of enhanced strength, he would transform into the living dead state he experienced in the Dream Realm—or perhaps even die outright.
While a mere skeleton was enough for survival in the Dream Realm, the same might not hold true in reality.
"Narrator, if I entered the living dead state in reality, would I die?"
Excellent question! I can only tell you that truth is always revealed through practice. So, why not give it a try? What if you don't die?
"But what if I die?"
I'll have Suction Cup cry at your grave.
Feng Qi: ...
Mentally flipping off the Narrator, he formed a hypothesis.
Logically, since the Dream Realm mirrored reality, any strength gains he achieved there should synchronize with his real-world body. Therefore, even if the Blood Source Ability drained him completely, he shouldn't die.
Another piece of evidence supporting this was that his real-world body had become uniquely specialized, incapable of further strengthening through conventional cultivation. His only path to advancement lay in slaughtering enemies within the Dream Realm.
This indirectly confirmed that his real-world body was now connected to the Dream Realm.
Reading ten thousand books is no substitute for traveling ten thousand miles. No amount of theorizing can replace practical experience. Warrior, give it a try.
Feng Qi: ...
Though the theory seemed sound, he had no intention of testing it.
If his hypothesis proved wrong, he would instantly die when the Blood Source Ability ended.
After glancing up at the Blood Moon, he continued eastward, his gaze sweeping the surroundings with heightened vigilance.
Until he secured the Body-Protecting Suction Cup, he couldn't afford to take any more risks. After all, the future database still held countless unexplored entries.
He needed time, and the Suction Cup was his guarantee of staying alive long enough to use it.
(End of the Chapter)