95: The Black Wind Relics and the Mystery of the "Blood Crystal"

The departure of the envoy Mu Feng was like lifting a heavy stone from everyone's hearts; the atmosphere in the entire Lijian Valley relaxed instantly.

Although Wen Youyi repeatedly emphasized not to let their guard down, after that ubiquitous "feeling of being watched" vanished, everyone felt much more at ease while working and Cultivating.

Taking advantage of this rare "window of opportunity," the development of the Mutual Aid Society entered a golden age.

The "ark" network was expanding steadily, covering most of Lijian Valley, and core members could now Cultivate in a "pure" Spiritual Qi environment almost around the clock.

The ten Disciples of the "Internal Testing Group" were progressing rapidly, mastering the improved "Hibernating Dragon Art" with increasing proficiency, and were faintly becoming the new backbone of the War Hall and the Research Hall.

Meanwhile, Wen Youyi continued to bury himself in perfecting his "Star Language" System.

He was already able to use this unique fluctuation to transmit some simple phrases and instructions.

Although it was still far from real-time chatting, it was more than enough for issuing warnings and transmitting key information during critical moments.

Just as everything was proceeding according to plan, an unexpected "gift" arrived at their doorstep.

On this day, while Zhao Iron Pillar was leading a few War Hall Disciples on a routine patrol of the newly designated forest area under Lijian Valley's jurisdiction, they encountered several panicked, ragged-looking Cultivators in a remote mountain stream.

As soon as the other party saw the Mutual Aid Society insignia on Zhao Iron Pillar and his men, they acted as if they had seen their saviors, rushing over to kowtow.

"Senior Brothers, save us! We were originally Loose Cultivators near Black Wind Mountain who were abducted by the Blood Fiend Cult to serve as forced labor, but we managed to escape during the chaos a few days ago!" the middle-aged man leading them cried out, tearfully pleading.

It turned out that after Bloody Fierce was executed, the Blood Fiend Cult had collapsed, and these enslaved Loose Cultivators and Mortal laborers had taken the opportunity to escape.

Most people had fled for their own lives, but these few had heard of the Mutual Aid Society's reputation and knew that Lijian Valley was nearby, so they risked coming to seek refuge.

Wang Wu and Senior Brother Li carefully verified their identities and confirmed that they were merely Loose Cultivators with low cultivation and clean backgrounds, not remnants of the Blood Fiend Cult.

Following the rules set by Wen Youyi, those who wished to stay could be accepted as peripheral members after an assessment, while those who wanted to leave would be given some travel expenses and Medicinal Pills.

The Loose Cultivators were extremely grateful and all expressed their willingness to stay.

Among them, the leading middle-aged man, named Hou San, mysteriously approached Wang Wu, who was in charge of reception, and presented an object tightly wrapped in a tattered cloth.

"Senior Brother Wang, this is something I secretly hid in the Blood Fiend Cult's mine. Those murderous bastards call it a "blood crystal" and guard it extremely closely.

I felt it might be a treasure and dared not keep it for myself, so I specially present it to your esteemed society as a token of my gratitude," Hou San said in a low voice.

Wang Wu took the object; it felt cold and heavy in his hand.

Unwrapping the tattered cloth, he saw a crystal the size of a pigeon egg.

It was dark red all over, and inside, it seemed as if viscous blood was slowly flowing.

A thick scent of blood and a pure wave of energy were emitted simultaneously.

Wang Wu's expression changed slightly, and he immediately handed the object to Wen Youyi.

Wen Youyi held the so-called "blood crystal" and examined it carefully, his brow gradually furrowing.

The energy contained within this crystal was indeed pure, far exceeding that of an ordinary Low-Grade Spirit Stone, but the lingering stench of blood and resentment within it made one extremely uncomfortable.

"Senior Brother Zhang, what do you think?" Wen Youyi handed the blood crystal to Senior Brother Zhang, who was beside him.

Senior Brother Zhang fiddled with various detection Magical Artifacts for a long time, his expression becoming increasingly grave.

"The energy reaction is very strong, but the structure is very strange. It doesn't look naturally formed, but rather... forcibly refined and condensed using some kind of evil technique.

Moreover, besides energy, it seems to be mixed with a large amount of... life essence and fragments of resentment."

Wen Youyi's heart stirred as he recalled the Blood Fiend Cult's insane blood sacrifices and the "Heart Demon cultivation" mentioned by that "Co-frequency Person."

Could it be that this "blood crystal" was a concentrated version of the "nutrients" the Blood Fiend Cult offered to "Those Above"?

Or perhaps "Those Above" had bestowed a Cultivation Technique upon them, allowing them to efficiently produce these "nutrients"?

He attempted to probe the blood crystal with a trace of extremely faint Mental Energy.

In an instant, countless chaotic, painful, and desperate roars and fragmented images flooded into his mind!

These were the most extreme negative emotions of the living beings sacrificed before their deaths!

At the same time, a pure yet strongly corrosive and seductive energy attempted to backlash along his Mental Energy!

Wen Youyi let out a muffled groan and immediately severed the connection, his face turning somewhat pale.

"What an evil thing!" He felt lingering fear.

This "blood crystal" was simply a mixed poison of negative emotions and life force!

If an ordinary Cultivator were to absorb it, they would likely immediately develop Heart Demons and become a monster that only knew how to kill.

However, for "Those Above," who relied on the "Heart Demon System" to harvest negative emotions, this was indeed a top-tier "supplement."

"This thing cannot be kept; it is too dangerous," Wang Wu said in a deep voice.

Wen Youyi, however, shook his head, a thoughtful light flickering in his eyes.

"No, perhaps... we can make use of waste."

He looked at the dark red crystal, and a bold idea emerged.

"Think about it, the energy reaction of this thing is very strong, right?" Wen Youyi asked.

Senior Brother Zhang nodded.

"Indeed, in terms of energy intensity alone, it is comparable to a Mid-Grade Spirit Stone, but its attributes are too unorthodox and evil."

"Energy is energy." A trace of cunning flashed in Wen Youyi's eyes.

"The key lies in how to use it. What does our "ark" network lack the most right now? A stable and powerful energy source!

The energy provided by those abandoned mine nodes underground is too weak."

Everyone was stunned, then immediately understood what he meant, and they all gasped.

"Boss, you... you want to use this evil thing to power the "ark"?" Zhao Iron Pillar's eyes widened like copper bells.

"Not direct power," Wen Youyi explained.

"We can try to design a "purification" or "conversion" device, just like... a sewage treatment plant.

We filter out all the messy negative emotions and life Impurities inside this "blood crystal," extract only the purest energy part, and inject it into the "ark" network!"

This idea was truly unconstrained!

To take the "poisonous grain" refined by evil Cultivators and offered to "Those Above," and use it to charge their own "independent network"?

This operation was practically stealing food from "Heaven's" own rice bowl!

Senior Brother Zhang initially thought it was absurd, but after thinking about it carefully, his eyes slowly lit up.

"Theoretically... it seems feasible!

Although the energy structure of this blood crystal is evil, its core energy essence is still a mutated form of Spiritual Qi.

If we can find a way to strip away those negative attributes..."

The Disciples of the Research Hall became immediately excited; this was another highly challenging new project!

"Of course, this is extremely dangerous, so we must be cautious, and even more cautious!" Wen Youyi warned sternly.

"The Research Hall will first conduct theoretical deductions and small-scale isolation experiments.

Without absolute certainty, no physical energy injection is allowed!"

After arranging the research direction for the "blood crystal," Wen Youyi looked at the dark red crystal, his thoughts churning.

The destruction of the Blood Fiend Cult did not seem to have ended the channels for "Those Above" to collect "nutrients."

The appearance of this "blood crystal," on the contrary, revealed another aspect of how this "harvesting System" operated—supporting agents to efficiently produce specific "nutrients."

Then, besides the Blood Fiend Cult, how many such "agents" were there on this land?

Their "ark," in the future, would likely have to fight not only the intangible "spirit net" but also these forces that were spread across the land, acting as accomplices to evil.

The road ahead remained long and perilous.

(End of Chapter)