271: Chapter 271 Blood-Red Eyes!

After a martial artist breaks through to the Middle Rank, they usually embark on one of three mainstream cultivation paths based on their own talent, inheritance, and choices:

The first is Qi Refinement! Cultivating True Qi to harness the power of heaven and earth and manifest thousands of divine abilities, it is the most widely spread and most complete mainstream path.

The second is Body Refinement! Seeking nothing from the outside, it focuses on developing the human body's own infinite potential. Using blood and qi as a foundation to temper the physical body, it pursues the ultimate in power, speed, and defense. Achieving physical sainthood and rebirth from a single drop of blood, it is the path of the hegemon, supreme in its hardness and strength.

The third is spirit Refinement! Tempering mental will, condensing the divine soul, and manipulating telekinetic power, it is eerie, unpredictable, and impossible to guard against. It is the mysterious and rare path of the unorthodox.

Among the myriad races in the world, due to limitations in talent, inheritance, and environment, over ninety percent of races and martial artists choose the path of Qi Refinement.

Less than ten percent of races take the path of Body Refinement, usually due to their naturally powerful physiques or special inheritances.

As for the path of spirit Refinement, because its requirements for mental talent are perversely demanding, it is something only less than one percent of races or peerless geniuses can touch.

And the Indestructible Blood Demon Scripture that Qin Yan had just obtained was a legacy that could be considered top-tier and most overbearing even within the path of Body Refinement!

When cultivated to the realm of Major Achievement, one could forge the "Indestructible Blood Demon Body"; as long as a single drop of blood remained, one could be reborn, undying and indestructible;

One could condense "Blood Demon War Puppets" with heaven-shaking combat power, and even more so, master the origin of blood to manifest a sea of blood;

Devouring the essence blood of all things to supplement one's own...

Various descriptions depicted a peerless and overbearing path of Body Refinement that reached the heavens, centered on the self!

However, while the path of Body Refinement was powerful, it was also arduous.

It required not only top-tier cultivation techniques but also a matching... physical talent!

Even if an ordinary martial artist obtained a top-tier Body Refinement technique, if they lacked the corresponding special constitution or foundation and forced their cultivation, they would get half the result with twice the effort, and might even damage their origin.

But now...

Qin Yan used "inner vision" to observe the "Blood Demon Nest" above his heart, which was woven of black and red, slowly rotating and emitting mysterious fluctuations.

This was his talent!

It was the foundation and key for him to step onto the supreme path of Body Refinement!

“The path of Body Refinement, huh...”

Qin Yan felt the Blood Demon Nest in his body slowly operating, continuously refining the wisps of blood qi he had just absorbed and integrating them into his skin. Feeling the slight sense of strengthening, a flash of determination and anticipation crossed his eyes.

The first step for a body cultivator was not to directly pursue a surge in strength, but to return to the furnace for reconstruction and solidify the foundation!

Using the obtained Body Refinement technique, he would perform a thorough, deeper level of tempering and polishing on the foundation laid during the previous three Lower Ranks.

This was to make it truly, theoretically "flawless"!

Only with a solid foundation could one withstand the impact of more violent Body Refinement power later on and successfully step into the fourth realm—the Five Viscera Realm, opening a new chapter in physical cultivation!

The Blood Boat jolted slightly as it pulled up to the opposite bank of the blood river.

The voyage was over, and the blood-light shield began to slowly dissipate.

Qin Yan knew it was time for this blood river voyage to end.

He could only stand up and, without hesitation, leap down, landing steadily on the solid ground of the blood river's opposite bank.

Before leaving, he took away the small clump of pure essence blood qi that Xiao Hei had randomly gathered when he was "angry," merging it with the blood qi condensed from the Blood Spirit he had killed.

Although it was far inferior to that supreme grade blood pill, the amount of this small clump of blood qi was enough to condense a High Grade blood pill!

Standing on solid ground, Qin Yan did not immediately move away from the blood river.

Instead, he turned around and looked back at that crimson celestial river suspended in mid-air, surging incessantly.

“Isn't the blood river itself a perfect ‘resource treasury’ for me to cultivate the Indestructible Blood Demon Scripture?”

Qin Yan pondered in his heart.

This unending blood river was an inexhaustible resource treasury for him.

Thinking of this, he sat down cross-legged, facing the suspended, flowing crimson river. With a calm mind, he began to operate the Indestructible Blood Demon Scripture.

As the technique was activated, the Blood Demon Nest followed suit, rotating slowly and emitting a faint red and black halo.

An invisible suction was generated from the nest, beginning to draw in the blood qi of the blood river.

However, very quickly, Qin Yan's brow furrowed tightly, and a hint of confusion and solemnity appeared on his face.

Something was wrong!

No matter how he activated the technique, the blood river in front of him seemed like an airtight wall, without the slightest reaction!

Forget about easily stripping away wisps of pure blood qi like he did on the Spirit Boat; even the weakest fluctuation of blood qi could not be successfully pulled over!

Not only that, when he focused all his attention on trying to establish a connection with the blood river, he felt as if the entire blood river had "come alive."

And there was a feeling of being watched!

If it weren't for his "Blood Demon Nest" having an extraordinary sensitivity to the aura of blood, and the fact that the gaze didn't seem to restrain its own vast, abyss-like aura,

He probably wouldn't have sensed this terrifying gaze at all!

“Does this blood river... have a ‘master’? Or does some kind of will exist?”

Qin Yan's heart shook violently, instantly understanding why he couldn't extract blood qi.

Deep within this seemingly ownerless treasure land, some unimaginable ancient existence was likely slumbering!

He had no doubt that if he continued to try, he would likely invite a great horror!

Without any hesitation, Qin Yan immediately stopped the operation of the technique.

Then, with extremely light steps, he backed away inch by inch, increasing the distance from the riverbank.

It wasn't until he had retreated more than ten zhang that the cold sensation of being watched, which felt like needles on his back, slowly receded like a tide.

Qin Yan didn't dare look back, let alone stay any longer.

He turned around and sped away in the direction away from the blood river without looking back!

...

After Qin Yan left, in the deepest part of that vast, bottomless blood river, amidst eternal darkness and viscosity,

A massive eye, which almost occupied a portion of the riverbed and was composed entirely of the purest, most ancient blood-color, slowly "turned" and looked in the direction Qin Yan had left.

In that eye, there was no emotion, only endless vicissitudes.

A silent sigh, as if spanning across eternal time, echoed quietly at the bottom of the absolute silence of the river:

“What era is it now...”

As the sigh fell, the giant blood-colored eye slowly closed, disappearing once again into the endless crimson and darkness, as if it had never appeared.

...

After reaching a safe distance from the blood river, Qin Yan truly breathed a sigh of relief, his back having broken out in a layer of cold sweat.

“What on earth was that... such a terrifying aura!”