Chapter 125 - 106: Serving the Master’s Bath
Something was blocking her.
Du raised her head and saw two ethereal Spirits slowly materializing before her.
It was the Blue Venerable and the Red Venerable.
Du stared at the two Venerables in horror, completely unaware of what had just happened.
The Red Venerable’s face was pale. "What a powerful Dao. We almost didn’t make it back."
The Blue Venerable also sighed in relief. "Fortunately, she hasn’t learned our race’s Secret Technique, nor does she know we can be reborn once through our Spirits. We’ll let her have those two bodies. Now, we need to find a place to mend our own."
When Du had left the World Tree, the Blue Venerable and the Red Venerable had each placed a sliver of their Spirit on her, ensuring they would have another chance if they were defeated.
"It’s too late. If we slowly mend our bodies to recover our Dao Realm, it would take several years at least. We don’t have that kind of time. The Celestial Dao Title is about to be bestowed."
The Red Venerable shook his head and looked at Du. "You have served us well. When the time comes, we will collect your Thought and allow you to become an Immortal Spirit."
Du asked blankly, "Red Venerable?"
Before she could react, a massive Snake Spirit emerged from the Red Venerable’s hand and devoured her in a single bite.
The Blue Venerable frowned but said nothing.
The Red Venerable gritted his teeth. "We have to destroy that Lifebound Spirit! Otherwise, her status as a member of the Royal Family is far too conspicuous."
"Find the Blood Race?"
"Yes. The Blood Race will never pass up Royal Blood. Only by consuming her Royal Blood will they be qualified to accept the title."
The Blood Race was a race that hid within the Blood Marsh of the canyon.
A few days later, the Red Venerable and the Blue Venerable, their forms nearly shattered, arrived at the Blood Marsh.
「In their memory.」
The air here had always been thick with the intermingled stench of rot and gore, so heavy you could practically wring blood from it. Below, in the Red Glow Swamp, bubbles would slowly rise from the viscous slurry. When they burst, they made a muffled, sucking sound, releasing an even more potent reek.
The Blood Race’s nest lay beneath this suffocating, crimson ooze, like an enormous beehive.
They never saw the sun. Their bodies were soft and boneless, shaped like leeches magnified countless times over. A layer of slime covered their smooth skin, and they made almost no sound as they moved. Their heads had no distinct facial features—only a sucker-like maw composed of countless tiny tentacles that constantly opened and closed. They were a nauseating sight, surviving by feeding on the blood of other races.
It was precisely because of these behaviors that the Blood Race had always been one of the most reviled races in the Ancient Cultivation Realm.
But the Blood Marsh before them now was different from their memory.
The viscous Blood Marsh had dried up, and even the swarms of insects that once filled the air were gone.
The Blue Venerable said in disbelief, "What happened here? Was the Blood Race wiped out?"
The Red Venerable said flatly, "No. The Blood Race did this themselves. They devoured one of my royals, then gathered the Thoughts of all their clansmen into a single body to accept the Celestial Dao Title."
There are Ten Thousand Races in the world.
The strongest of each race can be granted a title by the Celestial Dao, allowing them to ascend to Yao Guang.
But just because a title is offered doesn’t mean anyone can accept it.
The reason for this is actually quite simple to understand.
The title bestowed by the Celestial Dao isn’t so much a position in Yao Guang as it is a token for Entering Yao Guang. It allows those with the requisite power to truly master a Dao and step into the Yao Guang realm.
But to enter Yao Guang, one must at least reach the peak of the Sixth Realm Kai Yang. Otherwise, the title is useless.
There are many weak races in this world.
The weakest is the Human Race, followed by the Blood Race.
The strongest members of these two races are barely in the Fourth Realm. Even if the Celestial Dao granted them a title, they would be unable to bear it.
Thus, the Xue Empress of the Blood Race devised a plan: gather all the bodies of the Blood Race, fuse the power of the entire race, and create a single aggregate being capable of accepting the title.
The Red Venerable continued, "Over the past few years, every member of the Blood Race returned to the Blood Marsh and became..."
His voice had barely faded.
When a figure cloaked entirely in black robes emerged from the Blood Marsh.
The black-robed figure let out a guttural roar.
It was a sound that was deeply unsettling to hear.
The aggregate of the Blood Race.
If Xue Yanluo were here, he would have recognized this aggregate’s identity.
The Blood Demon.
The Blood Demon, one of the yet-to-be-fully-formed Three Thousand Great Demons.
The Red Venerable said flatly, "The royal from our previous deal—the one who escaped—has returned. You will consume that royal’s Lifebound Spirit for us. In return, I will grant you another ten years’ worth of the World Tree’s Water of Life."
The black-robed Blood Race creature moved forward, though it didn’t walk on two legs. Instead, it slithered, writhing across the ground.
It came to a stop before the Red Venerable and roared again.
The Red Venerable was slightly surprised. "You say you can kill her? Impossible. She’s far too strong. You only need to kill her Lifebound Spirit. Nothing else is requi—"
The Blood Demon roared again.
The Red Venerable frowned. "We certainly won’t fight you for the Royal Blood. If you truly have the ability, then go and devour her yourself."
Though they didn’t know why, the Blood Race had a natural suppressive effect on the Lifebound Spirits of the Royal Family. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have enlisted the Blood Race’s help when they rebelled against the Royal Family in the past.
The black-robed Blood Demon made no further sound. Instead, it dropped to the ground in an exceptionally bizarre manner and, like a great worm, slowly slithered away, leaving a long, bloody trail in its wake.
The Blue Venerable looked at the Red Venerable. "Can it really do it? Its aura is only at the Sixth Realm... If you and I were at our peak, we could kill it with ease."
’An aggregate formed from the combined strength of a weak race is still just an insect that a Spirit Race expert could crush at will.’
The Red Venerable shook his head. "It only needs to devour the Lifebound Spirit. That’s all. We’re going to the Stone Race. They still owe us a favor, and it’s time they repaid it."
In this era, the Stone Race was an extremely formidable race. Water, fire, blades, and spears could scarcely harm them.
Before long, the Red Venerable and the Blue Venerable arrived at a valley filled with rock formations.
With a low RUMBLE, stones began to reassemble, converging into a headless giant. The giant dully knocked against the canyon wall, the impacts echoing as a form of speech.
If Lu Changyuan had been there, he would have found the headless giant remarkably familiar.
Because this was Luo.
Luo, as he was in life.