Xie An was staring intently at the woman inside the shrine when he suddenly heard Yu He announce she had found a treasure plant. He was overjoyed and quickly glanced behind him. He saw Yu He, her hair already soaked, excitedly waving a white "lotus root" at him from afar.
Yu He wanted to bring the treasure plant ashore to show Xie An, but Xie An didn't want her going back and forth into the water, so he said, "Just throw it up here."
"Master, catch! I'll go dig up a few more," Yu He tossed the treasure plant to Xie An's side, then, clutching the spirit tablet, she continued to dive back into the water to dig for more treasure plants…
Xie An picked up the white "lotus root." It felt quite heavy in his hand and looked just like a lotus root on the outside. However, after breaking it open, he discovered that the inside was entirely blood-red, even the lotus root fibers that were pulled out were blood-red.
Although it looked a bit frightening, Xie An, who had been taking martial arts supplements for a long time, could feel that the blood lotus root contained an extremely rich life essence.
It was more than ten times better than the Five Viscera Essence Soup and the Blood Infusion Realm Essence Soup.
Xie An activated his Qi perception and clearly saw the life essence radiating from the blood lotus root was exceptionally pure.
It didn't seem poisonous.
If he were outside, even if Xie An obtained a treasure plant, he would need to find professional pharmacists and veteran martial artists to inquire about its origin. If he couldn't get any information, he would also find some small animals to test it first. Only after it was proven harmless would he dare to consume it.
But here, conditions were limited, and there were only two living people, Yu He and Xie An.
Xie An could only rely on his past experience to judge its color, aroma, and taste.
In the past, Xie An and Yu He had been drinking water from the cold pond without any problems, so Xie An felt that this blood lotus root should be non-toxic. Out of caution, he still licked the lotus root fiber first.
Even if it was poisonous, a lick wouldn't be fatal.
At first, it felt sticky, like candy.
Tasting it further, it stimulated saliva production and had a sweet taste.
He felt much more energetic.
It was delicious.
Xie An increased his consumption and ate a lotus root fiber.
The taste was quite good.
After eating it, a surge of energy was immediately released, lingering in his stomach, giving it a considerable satisfaction. Xie An then circulated the heat within his body and felt no discomfort.
Following that, Xie An gradually increased his consumption.
After repeated verification, there were no problems.
Xie An couldn't resist his hunger any longer and began to devour it.
So delicious!
It was like eating a sticky tomato, except the bloody color was a bit unsettling.
But it didn't matter, he'd just treat it as eating a dragon fruit.
After eating half of it, Xie An stopped. He planned to leave the rest for Yu He, in case she didn't dig up any more treasure plants… At least she wouldn't go hungry.
Even with half a blood lotus root, Xie An's stomach was extremely satisfied.
It was more filling than eating several roasted geese.
Xie An burped, his stomach, which had been hungry for two days, was now four or five parts full.
Only those who had truly experienced life-and-death hunger knew how blissful a meal could be.
So comfortable.
Xie An's originally exhausted body immediately regained its vigor. He immediately focused his gaze on the woman inside the shrine.
The vitality had increased by another point compared to before.
Indeed, the woman was reviving!
"Kao Hui Haiming, Chen Gong, Bi Jin Old Madam."
The old man's surname was Chen, and the wife's surname was Jin… Why were they enshrined by the High Priest and Li Changchun?
Were they really the High Priest's parents?
Then Xie An thought of the three names on the bronze bell: He Nanfeng, Li Changchun, Guang Chanzi.
What was the connection between these people?
Ultimately, because there was too little information to refer to, Xie An couldn't make a judgment.
Just then, a sound of water came from behind him.
It was Yu He, holding three treasure plants, emerging from the water. She excitedly came to the shore, "Master, I dug up three more. Eh, why did you eat it…?"
Xie An retracted his gaze from the woman and comforted her, "Master was too hungry, so I ate a couple of bites first. It's quite delicious, Yu He, try it quickly."
Yu He stared at Xie An, her eyes red.
Xie An knew that the treasure plant might have side effects, and Yu He naturally knew that too.
She had planned to eat it first, as if to test for poison for Xie An, but Xie An had taken the lead. Seeing the half-eaten blood lotus root beside Xie An, Yu He quickly understood… She was very moved.
In the end, Yu He didn't say anything, but heavily "Mmm"-ed. Then, she picked up a blood lotus root and ate it voraciously. The more she ate, the more energetic she became, and she quickly devoured a treasure plant completely.
She handed the remaining treasure plants to Xie An, "These two, and the half one beside Master, are all for Master to eat."
Xie An knew that if he didn't divide them up… Yu He wouldn't eat happily.
He took a treasure plant, along with the half he had eaten, for himself, and the other one for Yu He.
"Half for each of us, let's eat our fill first."
Yu He couldn't resist, so she agreed.
The two famished people frantically gnawed on the blood lotus root. They weren't very presentable to begin with, and they didn't care about appearances as they ate. They stared at each other, making each other laugh.
The laughter here seemed particularly warm.
After each eating two blood lotus roots, they both became full of energy.
The blessing effect brought by the treasure plant was very obvious, enough to sustain them for a long time. It was much more filling than ordinary refined rice. Moreover, their bodies were also extremely well nourished.
If they were to consume it long-term, Xie An felt… even their bones would be improved to some extent.
It was simply a rare and precious medicine.
Yu He was also extremely satisfied, "I heard in books that some lotus flowers growing in special places will undergo some kind of transformation, and then become some kind of rare treasure plant. This blood-colored lotus root should be one of them. Our luck is really good."
Just a moment ago, Yu He was worried about starving to death here.
In the next second, not only was she full, but she also obtained a treasure plant.
This luck… was unmatched.
Xie An was also much relieved.
Although they were still trapped, at least they didn't need to worry about starving to death.
The problem was… there was a terrifying woman who was reviving.
Xie An didn't tell Yu He that the woman in the shrine was reviving, but instead asked about other things, "By the way, how much of that treasure plant is there underwater?"
Yu He gestured with her hand as she replied, "This treasure plant is very big, a full six or seven meters tall, it seems to have transformed into a lotus flower tree. The main trunk is as thick as a person can embrace. There are many blood-colored lotus roots within the roots. If we eat one together each day, we can eat for two years."
Two years…
If it was all given to one person, it would be enough to eat for four years.
This gave Xie An great confidence.
He slowly voiced his thoughts, "Yu He, now there is something I must tell you—my cultivation of the Life Nurturing Skill has reached a certain level, and my Qi perception is extraordinary. I can feel the Qi of the woman in the shrine. In the beginning, this woman didn't have any vitality, but now… there is already a little vitality in her body. And the vitality is getting more and more…"
Yu He was shocked to hear this, "Master is saying… this woman is waking up?"
"Yes. This woman was born in the third year of Tianbao and died in the three hundred and third year of Tianbao, exactly three hundred years of life. It can be seen that this Jin Old Madam was a martial arts grandmaster in her lifetime. Her corpse has remained in this ice sculpture shrine for a hundred years without decaying. If she revives, I'm afraid we will both be doomed. After all, we also caused trouble for the Corpse Refining Hall, so it seems impossible that this Jin Old Madam would let us go."
Yu He lowered her head, the excitement she had felt from finding the treasure plant instantly dissipating. She bit her lip, thinking in her heart: If that time really comes, I will let Master go first.
Xie An didn't know what Yu He was thinking, and continued, "In order to seize a glimmer of hope, I need to do something. I may go into seclusion for several years. As for the outcome, I don't know. If… during that time the woman revives, Yu He, don't worry about me, find a chance to survive on your own. If the woman doesn't revive, please stay by my side. You can eat the treasure plant underwater all by yourself, don't worry about me."
Yu He suddenly raised her head, her eyes red, "Master…"
Xie An interrupted, "There isn't much time left. If this woman revives any more, I'm afraid I won't be able to do anything."
Yu He knew the matter was important, so she didn't hesitate any longer and agreed with a bite, "Master, rest assured, Yu He will definitely protect you by your side. Even if this woman really revives, Yu He will not abandon Master."
Xie An sighed inwardly, but he also knew that he couldn't change Yu He's decision, so he didn't say anything more.
Huff!
Xie An sat down cross-legged, took a deep breath, and cleared all distractions from his mind.
The Dao amulet in my mind was trembling slightly, emitting a white light, as if sensing its master's will, it began to become restless and greedy, like a prehistoric beast seeing the most delicious food.
More than seven thousand wisps of death energy were clearly present on that woman.
Previously, when Xie An absorbed ninety-some wisps of death energy, he felt a splitting headache and was quite uncomfortable.
Xie An judged that, at his current level, absorbing about a hundred wisps at a time was pretty much his limit.
More than that, and he would fall into a long sleep.
The risk of death should be nonexistent.
After all, the Dao amulet was his cheat, it wouldn't harm him.
If the cheat could absorb it, there would be no problem, just that he would need to retreat and sleep for a long time.
Of course, absorbing less would naturally be less risky.
The problem was that this woman was detestable, constantly reviving, with more and more life energy on her body.
If he absorbed too little and couldn't stop the woman from reviving… what would be the point?
Since he was doing it, he might as well go all the way.
One shot was better.
That way, he could maximize the probability of stopping the woman's revival.
Having made up his mind, Xie An no longer hesitated.
Buzz!
The Dao amulet suddenly trembled violently, and a line of text appeared.
【Detected 7,600 wisps of death energy. Absorbable… Absorb?】
Xie An thought:
Absorb!
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【Longevity fate is growing…】
【Current fusion: 】
Seeing the numbers jumping before his eyes, Xie An felt his heartbeat accelerating wildly.
Before, only the hundredths place was jumping.
Now, the tenths place had actually jumped, increasing to 8 in one go!
Terrifying!
Seven thousand six hundred wisps, absorbed directly.
No tug-of-war?
That's not reasonable.
Or was the Longevity fate awesome? Or did the collapse of the ancestral hall cause all the glass containers holding the hearts to be smashed?
No matter what, it was a great thing.
Next, he just needed to spend a few years in slumber, adapting to the new fusion level.
Xie An felt that his Bright Jade Skill… might directly reach the eighteenth or nineteenth level…
More importantly, having sucked all the death energy from this old hag Jin in one go, this woman shouldn't be able to revive, right?
The next moment—
Rumble!
Xie An's mind suddenly vibrated violently, his head ached, his mind was dizzy, and he became unclear.
Gradually… Xie An once again felt his spirit blurred, and when he regained clarity, Xie An unexpectedly appeared next to the Dao amulet.
The erected Dao amulet seemed to be much larger than last time, and Xie An stood under the Dao amulet, like insignificant dust.
He looked up and saw the countless patterns and runes on the Dao amulet, as well as the scarlet giant eye in the center.
After the last incident, Xie An had specifically studied the structure of talismans.
Talismans originated from the ancient worship of natural divine power, inspired by insect script and seal script.
They are mainly used to summon gods and impeach ghosts, subdue demons and suppress evil, and cure diseases and eliminate disasters.
By drawing talismans and chanting spells, they communicate between people and gods to achieve various supernatural effects.
A typical talisman is divided into several main parts: the talisman head, the talisman belly, the talisman guts, the talisman feet, and the edict.
Since talismans are things made by the Daoist sect, the talisman head is generally three hooks, representing the Three Pure Ones.
Of course, there are other variants, but they all represent the enshrined guardian deity or ancestor.
In general, the talisman head is the leading beginning of the talisman, which is extremely important.
The talisman belly is the main part of the talisman, responsible for describing the specific function of the talisman, similar to the human abdomen and stomach.
The talisman guts are the core of the talisman, similar to a person's liver and gallbladder, and common talisman guts include "罡 Seal", "御", "井", etc.
The talisman feet are the ending part of the talisman, and some can replace the talisman guts.
The edict means command, representing the instructions of the gods, and is usually written upside down.
But the Dao amulet in front of him was different from the Dao amulets Xie An knew: ordinary Dao amulets imitate a person's head, belly, and feet, in order and methodically.
But the Dao amulet in front of him extended from the surroundings to the inside, as if all the runes were to enshrine the scarlet giant eye in the center.
Very strange.
I don't know if it's because Xie An's knowledge is insufficient, or for other reasons…
This was an independent space, Xie An wanted to go out but couldn't, so he could only circle around the Dao amulet.
He wanted to climb up the Dao amulet to take a closer look, but he couldn't climb up.
Trapped!?
"It wasn't easy to get in here once, I have to figure out something before I leave."
Soon, Xie An gave up.
There was no way to study it.
Unless he went to find a Dao amulet expert to consult in the future, there might be some possibility.
But what can be determined is—his golden finger is not that simple.
It doesn't even feel like an ordinary transmigrator's cheat.
That's right…
Find a Dao amulet expert to consult… then he would have to record all the runes and the details of the scarlet giant eye in his heart, and if he could draw it after leaving this place, and then ask someone… it would be convenient.
Thinking of this, Xie An found that he could still do something.
Then he would stare at the Dao amulet and try to record all the details of the Dao amulet in his heart…
…
Time flies.
The aftermath of the Lian Shi Tang stronghold had long been completed.
The camp tents here had also been dismantled and removed, and the soldiers, yamen runners, and Demon Suppression Guards who had stayed here had long left.
The burned houses had also been eroded by wind and rain, and weeds had grown back in them.
In the forbidden area of the cemetery, the original red coffin was piled with rubble, and suddenly a movement came from under the rubble.
Crack!
The rubble was moved away by a mysterious force.
Then, a fair right hand stretched out from the rubble. The fingers were slender and the nails were long, indicating that it was a woman's hand.
Soon, another hand also stretched out.
A woman wearing a dark gold embroidered phoenix robe and a gold hairpin on her head climbed out of the rubble.
She stood on the ruins, graceful and radiant.
But the next moment, perhaps because she came into contact with the surrounding air and sunlight, the woman's skin visibly shriveled and aged.
The original delicate skin immediately became full of wrinkles, like a hundred-year-old withered old woman.
Especially the changes in the face were even more frightening.
The lips were chapped and wrinkled, the eye sockets were sunken, leaving only a wrinkled human skin pasted on the skull, which was extremely scary.
The woman seemed to feel this change, looking at her shriveled and blackened hands, and then using her hands to touch her face.
"Ah!"
The woman screamed hysterically: "Damn thief, damn it! This palace has been in suspended animation for a hundred years, nourishing my life with corpse energy for a hundred years, so that my face can stay young forever.
Just need to gather ten thousand strands of corpse energy, and this palace can condense a spiritual root and embark on the path of cultivation.
I didn't expect that all the corpse energy would be taken away by a thief in one day. Hateful!"
"But I can't see, I can't see, I can't hear, I've lost my power, I've lost my perception. I can only crawl out little by little from the secret passage below the shrine."
"This palace is too difficult… I need to drink blood, blood…"
The woman quickly stumbled around the cemetery, entered the Dayin Mountain forest, and suddenly a tiger pounced on her, pinning the woman to the ground, instinctively biting the woman's neck.
The tiger was very happy, holding the woman down with its paws while biting the woman's neck.
The tiger was experienced, and once the woman stopped breathing, it could enjoy the delicious food.
This had been the case for many years.
But today… something was wrong.
The tiger felt… why was its brain becoming more and more blurred?
Before long, the tiger "woo-owled" and fell to the ground, foaming at the mouth and twitching its limbs.
Obviously, it was poisoned, and to be able to poison a tiger like this instantly, it was a rare and potent poison.
"Blood, blood…"
The woman trembled as she got up, bit the tiger's neck, and sucked blood.
Soon, the tiger quickly shriveled and turned into a mummy.
And the wrinkles on the woman's skin smoothed out a bit, and she also became fuller.
But she still couldn't open her eyes, and still couldn't hear.
"It's more comfortable, I need to continue drinking blood, preferably human blood, the blood of newborn babies.
I was sucked dry of eight thousand wisps of corpse energy, I must have encountered an amazing expert.
I need to leave here quickly, drink enough human blood, and then make a long-term plan!"
The woman spoke as she stumbled down the mountain…
A dark gold robe fluttered in the wind.
