2: Chapter 2 Blood-Eyed Floating Pagoda Sutra

"No!"

"It's still not enough..."

Wu Li endured the excruciating pain.

He desperately urged the Demon Power within his body to guide that rampaging Spiritual Qi.

His cultivation at the Peak of the Qi Ling Realm might sound decent, but it was merely the stage where one could just begin to breathe in and out. The meager Demon Power within his body was like a small stream trying to block a flood in the face of this Spiritual Qi; it was completely useless.

The Spiritual Qi surged wantonly through his Meridians, leaving this aged body riddled with holes.

If this continued, his body would explode before he could even achieve a Breakthrough.

Countless thoughts flashed through Wu Li's mind. The cultivation experience from his past life spun frantically at this moment, but all those experiences were based on the Human Race's cultivation system, which was completely different from that of the Yao Race.

The paths of the Meridians were different, the methods of circulating Spiritual Qi were different, and even the location of the Dantian was not the same.

"It has to work, even if it seems impossible."

"I'll just have to try!"

Wu Li gritted his teeth. At that very moment, deep within the memories of his past life, a long-sealed door was suddenly flung open.

"Blood Eye Pagoda Sutra."

It was not a Cultivation Technique of this world, but an Evil Path Legacy that Wu Li had accidentally obtained from an Ancient Tomb during the Age of Dharma Decline.

The era of that Ancient Tomb could no longer be verified. There were no remains inside the tomb. Along with this sutra, there was a broken jade tablet engraved with over three thousand characters of the cultivation mantra.

The Age of Dharma Decline.

The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi had dried up, making any Cultivation Technique useless.

The Blood Eye Pagoda Sutra was different.

It did not rely on external Spiritual Qi.

Instead, it excavated the body's own potential, or used the essence blood of others as a guide to forcefully open the Blood Pupil. By using the Blood Pupil, one could break through illusions, absorb all techniques, and shatter shackles.

In the Age of Dharma Decline, Wu Li, who had later gone down a twisted path, practiced the Blood Eye Pagoda Sutra for decades and even touched the threshold of the Nascent Soul Realm.

Unfortunately, he was ultimately still missing that one step.

But now...

The mantra of the sutra appeared in Wu Li's mind word by word, as clear as if it were carved into his bones.

Wu Li instinctively began to circulate the mantra.

"Floating Life Pagoda, my eyes have no end; use blood to sacrifice to the eyes, use the eyes to devour life; floating life has ten thousand forms, floating life is the final path..."

Wu Li recited it silently in his heart. The three thousand-plus characters of the mantra seemed to come alive, each character dancing in his mind with an eerie rhythm.

He had practiced this sutra for decades in his past life and knew it by heart, but this was the first time he was circulating it with a Yao body.

The Meridians of the Yao Race were completely different from those of the Human Race.

The Meridians of the Human Race were like rivers, with traceable paths, whereas the Meridians of the Yao Race were more like tree roots—disorderly and chaotic, yet secretly conforming to a certain natural law.

Once this sutra was recited, a Blood Eye Shadow faintly appeared above Wu Li's head. Subsequently, a great power bolstered the Demon Power within Wu Li, which then rapidly transformed into streaks of blood-colored light, merging with the Spiritual Qi of the Vermilion Fruit...

"Boom!"

The Spiritual Qi and Bloodline Power erupted simultaneously. His grey, withered feathers fell off inch by inch, and new black feathers emerged like ink, shimmering with a dark red luster.

The claw marks on his left wing healed as if they had never been there, his body size surged, and his claws became as sharp as hooks. Within a few breaths, a dying old crow had transformed into a Tier 1 Demonic Beast with black feathers like iron and red-glinting eyes.

Success.

Wu Li opened his eyes, a red glint flashing and vanishing within his pupils.

He looked down at his brand-new body and let out a raspy laugh.

"I don't have to die again."

Wu Li stood on the withered branch, his new black feathers trembling slightly in the wind.

"Hm?"

At this moment, Wu Li slowly raised his bird head and looked around.

The area around the withered tree was packed densely with crows that had gathered at some point.

Pairs of pitch-black eyes stared at him. These crows had been waiting for Wu Li's body to turn completely cold so they could swarm in and peck at his flesh.

But now...

Desolate Ridge, your king has returned!

"Insolence!"

A red glint flashed in Wu Li's pupils.

"Caw!!"

A hoarse crow cry erupted from the depths of his throat, carrying the pressure of a Tier 1 Demonic Beast and the eerie Aura unique to the Blood Eye Pagoda Sutra, spreading outwards like ripples.

His Aura exploded outward with a boom.

The few small crows closest to him seemed to have been slapped by an invisible hand; they squawked, flapped their wings, and scrambled backward in a panic.

"Caw, caw, caw~~"

Amidst the panicked cawing, dozens of crows scattered. Some dove into the holes of the withered tree, some flew to higher branches, and some fled Desolate Ridge entirely.

In the blink of an eye, the area around the nest was completely empty.

Only Wu Li remained.

He withdrew his Aura, tilted his head, and watched the fleeing figures, letting out a raspy laugh.

"Refreshing!"

Desolate Ridge quieted down once again. Wu Li crouched on the withered branch, his new black feathers folding slightly in the wind.

In this life and the last, this was the first time he had experienced such satisfaction.

In the Age of Dharma Decline, he had gone from a leader of the Righteous Path, admired by all, to an Evil Path Cultivator who was like a rat crossing the street, hiding and unable to see the light of day.

But now it was different.

Although he had been Reborn as a Yao, there was now a glimmer of a chance for immortality.

He looked down at himself: black feathers like iron, claws like hooks, Demon Power flowing smoothly within his body, and the dark red light deep in his demon belly stable and powerful.

A Tier 1 Demonic Beast, while only equivalent to the Qi Refining Realm of Human Race Cultivators, was enough for the very bottom of the bottom in Wanhui Mountain.

At least...

He was no longer a piece of trash waiting to die.

"Parting the clouds to see the light..."

Wu Li raised his head and looked at the grey sky.

The sky of Desolate Ridge was always grey, but as he looked at it now, he actually felt a hint of brightness shining through that grey.

He suddenly laughed.

A crow's smile probably didn't look very good, but he truly wanted to smile.

Afterwards, Wu Li came back to his senses and looked again at the remaining Vermilion Fruit in the corner of the nest.

Wu Li stared at it for a long time.

One Vermilion Fruit had allowed him to break through from the Peak of the Qi Ling Realm to Tier 1.

Another one would definitely lead to another improvement.

But Wu Li did not intend to eat it at this moment.

When Wu Li's soul traveled here, he brought with him not only the memories of his past life but also the method of transcendence within the Blood Eye Pagoda Sutra.

This method could pry into Karma.

Exchange the cause for the effect.

Simply put, it was a method of sacrifice to exchange for prying into Karma. Wu Li had just felt when circulating the Blood Eye Pagoda Sutra that this talent of his should still be present.

Since that was the case...

"This Vermilion Fruit should be enough to activate the talent."

Wu Li crouched down, stretched out his right claw, and pressed it onto the Vermilion Fruit.

The Vermilion Fruit was icy cold.

The texture felt like holding a piece of warm, smooth red jade.

Wu Li took a deep breath, his Demon Power began to circulate, and the mass of dark red light deep within his Dantian suddenly pulsed.

The mantra of the Blood Eye Pagoda Sutra resonated in his heart. The Demon Power transformed into streaks of blood-colored light, surged out from his Dantian, flowed along the Meridians to his claw, and seeped into the Vermilion Fruit.

A layer of pale red light appeared on the surface of the Vermilion Fruit, and Wu Li's eyes suddenly turned scarlet.

"Seek good fortune and avoid calamity, pry into the cause and explore the effect!"

Wu Li whispered.

The moment his voice fell, the Vermilion Fruit under his claw trembled violently.

That layer of pale red light suddenly became scorching, as if it had been ignited. The red light surged, enveloping the entire Vermilion Fruit and directly dissolving it.

At the same time, three pieces of information appeared in Wu Li's mind as if carved by a knife.

[First: Minor Calamity]

[Thirty miles east of Desolate Ridge, there is an Ape Cave. Hidden inside is a century-old fleeceflower root. This item can help you stabilize your Foundation, saving you thirty years of bitter cultivation. Obtaining it will turn the outcome into Minor Good Fortune.]

[Second: Great Calamity]

[Deep in Wanhui Mountain, there is an old Yao demon who has been entrenched for many years. Its Lifespan is coming to an end, its temperament has changed drastically, and it is bloodthirsty. It is frantically devouring all living creatures around it, attempting to extend its life with blood and flesh.]

[Third: Minor Calamity]

[That Old Fox Demon is unwilling to accept that the Vermilion Fruit was stolen and has reported the matter to a vanguard under the old Yao demon. Within tomorrow, a Yao General will definitely come to Desolate Ridge to investigate. Please be prepared, or flee in advance.]

The scarlet color in Wu Li's eyes slowly faded.

He crouched on the withered branch, motionless, like a black sculpture.

"Minor Calamity... Great Calamity... Minor Calamity..."

Wu Li repeated these three pieces of information in a low voice.

A century-old fleeceflower root is a good thing.

But the premise is that he can successfully obtain it.

"The Great Calamity can be ignored; I won't be wandering in front of that old Yao demon."

"As for the remaining Minor Calamity..."

"Old Fox..."

"Heh, you're still unwilling to give up? Once I take the fleeceflower root and survive this crisis, I'll kill you, you son of a bitch."