Xu Erniu truly lived up to her reputation, her methods were astounding. Zhang Chen was no ordinary person either, and he instantly noticed that Xu Erniu's plant-nurturing technique bore traces of the "flower opening in an instant".
This technique could be used on plants, and naturally, it could also be used on people.
"With such wonderful Divine Techniques, after you master them, you're actually thinking of eating fruit? If you were to use this to cultivate Spirit Medicine, it would be even more fitting with your alchemy." Zhang Chen said.
Upon hearing this, Xu Erniu shook her head: "Eating fruit is more important!"
The two chatted for a while, then Xu Erniu left with a face full of enthusiasm, leaving Zhang Chen staring blankly at the seeds on the table. His face was not filled with happiness, but rather a sense of worry.
"I only hope Xu Erniu gains understanding of the Inverted Yin and Yang soon, perhaps there would be a chance to reverse Heaven and Earth." Zhang Chen sighed deeply, his voice filled with a tinge of helplessness.
The next day, Zhang Chen went to visit the Ancestral Master of Longevity, only to see that the Ancestral Master was still sharpening his sword. The Treasure Sword sparkled with celestial light, being sharpened quickly and brightly.
The Ancestral Master showed no expression regarding Zhang Chen's emergence, simply nodding to signal Zhang Chen to leave, then continuing to sharpen the sword alone.
Zhang Chen walked out of the Ancestral Master's abode, then made his way back to his own residence, beginning to ponder his strategic plans for the next decade. "First, I have to enhance the level of the Blood Transformation Divine Saber. But to boost its power requires endless slaughter. Where should I find targets for slaughter?"
Zhang Chen felt somewhat lost; trapped in the corner of the Five Villages Temple, where was the chance to go down the mountain and wreak havoc in the Spiritual World?
"Perhaps I can use Xiu Liu to practice my blade and kill for me." Zhang Chen thought of Xiu Liu, but then immediately dismissed it. The Blood Transformation Divine Saber was infused with demonic nature, which Xiu Liu couldn't possibly handle.
He also considered tossing the Blood Transformation Divine Saber on the road, seizing the opportunity to place it in the hands of Five Villages Temple's disciples, but then remembered all the disciples were cooped up in the mountain cultivating, where was there the chance to wage widespread slaughter?
"Forget it, I'll lie low for now and wait until the Innate Peacock emerges." Zhang Chen mused to himself.
However, Zhang Chen's plans to nurture the Blood Transformation Divine Saber soon found a turning point, as the Taiping Dao's grand array, which was a mortal enemy to Five Villages Temple, made use of the Power of the Earth Veins against each other. With the passing of several patriarchs, Taiping Dao quickly sensed something amiss.
Taiping Dao chose to support the Demon Race; all Taiping Dao cultivators were exotic forms, while Five Villages Temple bet on the Human Race, comprised solely of human origins. Taiping Dao practiced Universal Education, welcoming even the Demon Race without rejection.
At this moment, at the foot of Five Villages Temple, a Fox Demon assumed its original form, squatting inside a tree hollow, its eyes staring towards the temple's gate with a hint of suspicion: "Is the news true? Did the Ancestral Master of Longevity really fall out with the others?"
"Reporting to the ancestor, this was witnessed by that little earthworm. The Longevity Thief Dao slapped Monk Hai Chan into the array with a single palm and developed animosities with various mighty beings, planting the seeds of suspicion." At this moment, a loach drilled out from underground, appearing golden, as if it was a species entirely cast in gold, not at all ugly.
"These fellows are extremely cunning, should they attempt inside-outside collusion to secretly plot against us, it would not bode well. More probing is needed." The White Fox stroked its chin with a paw: "I'll report to the Crow King, letting him take the first move to test Five Villages Temple's current strength."
As Zhang Chen pondered how to sacrificially refine the Blood Transformation Divine Saber, the next day, a hurried bell rang, pealing thirty-six times, resounding throughout the entire Five Villages Temple. Upon hearing those thirty-six bells, Zhang Chen's eyes revealed a hint of surprise: "Could something urgent have happened?"
He quickly set aside his work and made his way to the preaching hall, where the disciples formed neatly by rank as the Ancestral Master sat sternly on the lectern: "Taiping Dao commands an army of a hundred thousand demons heading south, invading our Five Villages Temple territory, exterminating three of our human kingdoms, resulting in rivers of blood flowing down the mountain. Our Taiping Dao also lost over a dozen disciples due to being unable to separate from the Earth Vein and have unfortunately met their demise."
Upon hearing this, the hall was in an uproar, but the Ancestral Master declared: "This feud and hatred, Five Villages Temple absolutely cannot let it go unavenged. Chen Zhou, Sun Lane, you two lead eight disciples and go down the mountain to confront those Taiping Dao demons."
Two Ninth Grade disciples stood up, bowed respectfully: "We will obey."
This hasty gathering concluded, with the Ancestral Master vanishing from the platform, and the disciples dispersing.
Zhang Chen walked the path back, with various thoughts flickering: "Times are changing, with Taiping Dao driving the Demon Race to invade, which might distract the Longevity Thief Dao's attention. Should the Longevity Thief Dao suffer a severe blow, it would be excellent. Moreover, perhaps my Blood Transformation Divine Saber can be sent down the mountain; if I could cultivate the saber with demon blood, who knows how powerful my Blood Transformation Divine Saber might become."
But how should I send the Blood Transformation Divine Saber out?
After much thought, Zhang Chen did come up with a method, and so he activated the Blood Dao to sense Xiu Liu's whereabouts, quickly discovering that Xiu Liu was a thousand miles away.
After contemplating for a while, Zhang Chen directly summoned Xiu Liu.
Xiu Liu, practicing Blood God Scripture, couldn't escape Zhang Chen's grasp, and within a day, had crossed a thousand miles and arrived at the foot of Qingcheng Mountain.
The powerful aura atop Qingcheng Mountain was like an ocean; Xiu Liu hid at the foot of the mountain, too afraid to climb, while Zhang Chen quietly crept down the mountain and saw Xiu Liu standing upright under a big tree, just like a tall Cyan Pine.
"Young Master!"
Hearing Zhang Chen's footsteps, Xiu Liu hurriedly turned to look at Zhang Chen and respectfully bowed.
"Your cultivation progress is impressive; you've actually stepped into the eighth stage." Zhang Chen glanced at Xiu Liu, immediately discerning his details.
Xiu Liu's cultivation was seen through by Zhang Chen at a glance, and he instinctively lowered his head further, speaking humbly, "Young Master, what orders do you have for me?"
"I have a task for you." Zhang Chen extended his palm, revealing the Blood Transformation Divine Saber, thin as a cicada's wing: "Taiping Dao is leading a demon army to invade the human race, and masters from the Five Villages Temple will descend to provide aid. You take this treasured saber, create a Blood Puppet, and assassinate the cultivators from Five Villages Temple. After faking your death, deliver this saber into the hands of a cultivator from the temple."
Xiu Liu gazed at the Blood Transformation Divine Saber, and for a moment, his eyes turned red, feeling his own blood boiling. The saber held a fatal attraction to him, making him desperately want to seize it.
Zhang Chen took in Xiu Liu's demeanor and, with a smile, asked, "Want it?"
"I do!" Xiu Liu replied without hesitation, feeling the longing from his bloodline: "I can't understand, such a Divine Object, why send it to the disciples of Five Villages Temple?"
"This saber is not something you can control. If you forcibly wield it, you will become its puppet in three to five years. This saber needs to be nourished with blood; the more it kills, the stronger it becomes. That's why I want you to deliver it to a cultivator from Five Villages Temple, to use the living beings down the mountain to sacrifice to the saber." Zhang Chen explained to Xiu Liu.
Xiu Liu's pupils shrank upon hearing this: The more it kills, the stronger it becomes? What kind of Divine Artifact is this?
"Of course, if you don't believe me, just take it and use it. I don't care who has the saber, as long as it appears on the battlefield between Taiping Dao and Five Villages Temple, and someone uses it for slaughter." Zhang Chen saw Xiu Liu's reluctance and spoke with a smile.
"I would like to try, willing to relieve Young Master's worries. At worst, I'll abandon this body and possess the generals of the human camp, then enter the battlefield to sacrifice the saber for you." Xiu Liu knelt, his eyes filled with determination.
Zhang Chen nodded and placed the saber in front of Xiu Liu: "You cultivate the Blood God Child, this saber comes from the same source as you. If you kill a strong practitioner, the saber will extract the essence of their blood and nourish you in return. If you're not afraid of becoming a puppet of the Blood Transformation Divine Saber, then take it to the battlefield."
After speaking, Zhang Chen transformed into water droplets, seeping into the ground and leaving, while Xiu Liu stood on the battlefield, his gaze passionate as he looked at the saber in his hand, his eyes burning with intensity.
As for the backlash of becoming a puppet of the Blood Transformation Divine Saber?
He believed Zhang Chen must have a way to save him.
Xiu Liu descended the mountain, while Zhang Chen remained to continue his cultivation, hiding within Five Villages Temple to comprehend the Five Elements Escape Technique and search for the secret technique to the next realm on the Immortal Path.
Unfortunately, the Ancestral Master's teachings on the Earth Vein Dao did not resonate with Zhang Chen's path of Qi Cultivation.
"Could it be that I'm cultivating a different Dao?" Zhang Chen pondered silently.
As the battle erupted down the mountain, Zhang Chen's Crystal Core began to tremble, and from within the Eleventh-Grade Lotus, blood-red springs started gushing furiously, with a flow rate ten times the previous, making Zhang Chen's heart race with alarm, yet he also had an inexplicable realization: "Within my blood-colored Crystal Core flows the essence of the Sea of Blood, capable of gathering the blood of all living beings on earth. With every great battle that erupts, my Sea of Blood will, upon the death of living beings, collect their blood essence and integrate it into itself."
The war below was tense; by the first year, Zhang Chen's Sea of Blood had replenished its previous consumption, and the cracks on his Crystal Core had begun to heal.
By the second year, more disciples descended the mountain, and Zhang Chen's Sea of Blood began to expand.
The Lotus blossomed within the Sea of Blood, radiant and splendid, expanding the lotus pond, with several Ninth-Grade Lotuses blooming, exuding a fragrant aroma.
In the third year
Waves surged in the Sea of Blood, and upon Zhang Chen's Eleventh-Grade Blood-Red Lotus Platform, a lotus seed formed, transforming into a Blood Spring, spouting more blood.
By the fourth year, half of the disciples at Five Villages Temple had diminished, the entire mountain becoming desolate, even the Ancestral Master ceasing his teachings and entering seclusion.
Zhang Chen observed the increasingly flourishing Blood Lotuses in the Sea of Blood, his eyes filled with heaviness: "How many living beings must die down the mountain!"