40: Chapter 40 Aurora Illusionary Sounds. The Traitor of Blue Star

[Your Barbarian Blood Breathing Technique has reached LV6! Strength +6, Endurance +6!]

As the notification appeared, Tang Long felt a silent explosion erupt in his heart. Explosive power surged through his body with his blood like a tidal wave.

At this moment, both his strength and endurance had reached 31 points!

He clenched his fist and threw a punch. The tree wall, nearly half a meter thick, was directly cracked open.

Charging up a Heavy Strike, he threw another punch. The tree limb was instantly blasted open with a hole the size of a ball, debris flying out through the hole with the strong wind.

Tang Long couldn't help but reveal a pleasantly surprised smile on his face.

This was truly an unexpected harvest. He hadn't anticipated that the blood spirit stone would be so effective.

Barbarian Blood had reached level six. Although Qi Manipulation still wasn't increasing much, it no longer decreased the more he practiced like before.

Therefore, the progress of the Aurora Breathing Method was completely preserved.

Speaking of the Aurora Breathing Method, there was another pleasant surprise. The ice spirit stone and spirit residue Tang Long had obtained from the two Bounty Hunters had smoothly raised Aurora to LV3, and he directly comprehended the special skill, Aurora Phantom Sound!

[Aurora Phantom Sound LV1: Creates a resonant hallucination using psychic energy, sound, and mental power to plunge the target into a hallucinatory state. The skill only works on targets with lower mental power than the user. The effect and duration are influenced by the difference in mental power and cultivation realm between both parties.]

The description of this special skill was quite vague, making it impossible to test its specific effects for now.

But judging from Ming Meier's previous use, its general function was obvious.

Based on his experience with Barbarian Blood, Tang Long had thought this special skill would also require reaching level four to comprehend. He hadn't expected it to appear at level three.

Turning back, he glanced at Lu Pingan in the pit. Sure enough, the old man was still inside, without any suspicious movements. However, he was applying something to that tiger spine, its purpose unknown.

Looking at the sky, it was already getting late. Tang Long went directly outside the pit and knocked on the wooden cover.

Lu Pingan quickly crawled out, his face beaming with delight, "Young man, you're here!"

Tang Long's gaze shifted to the tiger spine bone he was carrying on his shoulder. "Why are you bringing that thing?"

"Little Tiger is currently delirious. He needs this to recover."

Tang Long narrowed his eyes but didn't ask further, gesturing for him to follow.

Arriving outside the camp, Tang Long used Fire Eye to scout and quickly located the positions of the two Bounty Hunters.

However, when he saw the tiger-headed, human-bodied Lu Xiaohu, he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.

He tossed a Detection skill at him and was even more shocked.

[Lu Xiaohu: Barbarian Blood. Ancestral Regression {Incomplete}, ???]

[Realm: Qi Manipulation, Second Stage]

[Health: 2158/5887]

[Health Regeneration: 200/hour]

[Psychic Energy: 455/503]

[Attributes: Strength 15, Agility 16, Spirit 11, Endurance 17, Charm 8, Psychic 24, Legendary 6]

[Cultivation Method: Barbarian Blood Breathing Technique LV4]

[Special Skill: Barbarian Blood Tyrant Body LV1]

This youth named Lu Xiaohu actually practiced the Barbarian Blood Breathing Technique as well, and like him, had cultivated the Tyrant Body.

Most crucially, the youth's tiger-headed, human-bodied appearance immediately reminded him of a game character.

The later era of the Seven Hetero-blood Kings, the Blood Tiger King!

That Blood Tiger King's real name was Lu Hu. In the era of the Seven Kings, he was known as a walking natural disaster, an extremely insane individual.

According to the original timeline, roughly over a decade later, he would gain prominence by assassinating the emperor of the Dongyu Kingdom. For a considerable period, he became a terrifying assassin, with dozens of emperors and kings from various countries falling to his hand, and countless princes and ministers beyond count.

The Hetero-blood Assassin Group he led and the later Heterogeneous Allied Army naturally became the common enemies of Blue Star's humans.

Under the joint suppression campaigns of the four great nations, this allied army instead grew increasingly powerful, stirring up a bloody storm. Even until Blue Star invaded Earth, this Hetero-blood war had not completely subsided.

Lu Xiaohu's current appearance was very similar to the Blood Tiger King's transformed form, and their names only differed by a single character.

Could such a coincidence exist in the world?

Was there also some special relationship between him and Man Hai?

Combined with this youth possessing the Legendary attribute, powerful vitality and recovery abilities, and the triggering of this quest, Tang Long was at least seventy percent certain he was the future Tiger King.

If his speculation was true, things were about to get interesting.

Tang Long had been worrying. What he needed to do in the future was destined to be grand, dangerous, and undoubtedly difficult. Yet, he was alone and isolated; even if he were made of iron, he couldn't forge many nails. Even when players logged in later, how much strength he could borrow from them was still unknown.

However, Lu Xiaohu's appearance suddenly opened a new line of thought for him.

The many factions on Blue Star weren't a monolithic block. Why couldn't he win over and utilize a portion of them?

For example, could this young, wild, and currently endangered Blood Tiger King before him be recruited into his own team?

If possible, this Blue Star rebel, this apocalyptic troublemaker, would undoubtedly hold significant importance in the future.

Even if it ultimately failed, investing in him now still held considerable value.

From a species perspective, the Hetero-blood Species were an intermediate group. On one end were Blue Star humans, and on the other end... were countless heterogeneous races from the heavenly change realms. Investing in Lu Xiaohu would at least be very helpful for future dealings with the Hetero-blood race.

However, Old Man Lu was probably hiding a lot.

Lu Xiaohu's incomplete Ancestral Regression state quickly reminded Tang Long of other things.

Within the Hetero-blood Species, there were also differences in bloodline.

The lowest-class Hetero-blood Species could only be considered humanoid creatures, unable to shed their beastly nature, with most even having low intelligence.

The more common ones, while having intelligence similar to ordinary humans, still had obvious physiological defects.

Moving up, the elites among the Hetero-blood not only tended towards perfection in all aspects but could also mutate and awaken innate talents and abilities.

Those with purer bloodlines could awaken even more powerful ancestral powers, hence being called King's Blood.

The Hetero-blood Kings were, without exception, powerhouses who had awakened the King's Blood.

But awakening the King's Blood required not only exceptional personal talent but also the assistance of certain rituals.

Based on his comprehensive judgment, the ritual Lu Pingan mentioned earlier for Lu Xiaohu must be the Ancestral Regression ritual. And the tiger spine bone Lu Pingan carried should be the sacrificial offering.

In the game, Tang Long had completed a quest helping the Stone Ape King awaken his King's Blood.

During that process, the Stone Ape King would become exceptionally frenzied and powerful.

The conditions for completing the quest were either to defeat the Stone Ape King or to let the Stone Ape King kill to his heart's content.

Back then, their gaming guild had literally filled the quest with their lives.

Was this old guy Lu Pingan deliberately trying to harm him, to make him a stepping stone for his grandson's awakening?

However, Tang Long quickly realized something was off.

If Lu Pingan knew this ritual required killing, he should have arranged for some ordinary people, not come looking for him. Otherwise, Lu Xiaohu might be in mortal danger.

So, he probably simply didn't know how to successfully complete the ritual.

Thinking for a moment, he suddenly asked, "Do you know someone named Man Hai?"

Lu Pingan was taken aback by the question. "Who?"

"A friend of mine. Someone who looks like a rhinoceros, about three meters tall. He also practices the Barbarian Blood Breathing Technique. And just like your grandson, he has also cultivated the Barbarian Blood Tyrant Body."

As Tang Long spoke, he turned around. Lu Pingan's eyes, however, revealed immense shock and fear.

"You... how do you know these things?"

Tang Long sneered, "I also know that the Ancestral Regression ritual for the King's Blood requires unleashing ferocity. You hoped I would also die by his hand, right?"

Lu Pingan trembled all over, waving his hands repeatedly. "No! I didn't mean to harm you!"

"Xiaohu's mother passed away too suddenly on her deathbed. She didn't finish her last words at all. I simply don't know how to complete the ritual!"

"I'm old and crippled, unable to care for him in the wild anymore. I just want him to take on a human form so I can take him to the city for a stable life."

"Xiaohu is still so young. How could he possibly be a match for you? Even if I wanted him to kill someone, I wouldn't seek out a strong person like you!"

Hearing Lu Pingan's defense, Tang Long basically confirmed his own speculation.

However, after a moment's thought, he directly used Aurora Phantom Sound, coldly asking again, "I'll give you one last chance. You'd better tell me everything to avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings."

Lu Pingan's pupils trembled, and he hurriedly spilled everything like beans from a bamboo tube.

Actually, he hadn't hidden much, only a part concerning Lu Xiaohu's true identity.