Chapter 1792: Granting You an Opportunity, Do You Want It

Counting Ma Shangsi, none of the individuals Lu Ye had previously bestowed his precious blood upon had failed.

This was undoubtedly a bit unusual.

Although Ma Shangsi, Xiang Yin, and the others were all cultivators at the late Moonfall Realm, the dangers involved in refining sacred blood should not be significantly related to cultivation level. This process was about developing and enhancing one's own vampire bloodline.

Lu Ye vaguely had an idea: his precious blood might be somewhat different from true vampire sacred blood. This distinction could significantly reduce the risks that needed to be borne during the refining process.

The reason for this conjecture, of course, was the Talent Tree.

During his own refining of vampire sacred blood, the Talent Tree incinerated everything detrimental to him, leaving only what posed no threat.

Therefore, the precious blood he condensed was naturally very different from sacred blood.

While both could activate the vampire bloodline, his precious blood was undoubtedly much less lethal.

If true sacred blood was a potent poison, his precious blood, though toxic, was not as strong, which meant the Blood Attendants faced less risk when refining it.

Of course, this was just his conjecture, and whether it was true remained to be verified.

It was also possible that Xiang Yin and these first-generation vampires were different from ordinary vampires; their status as first-generation vampires allowed them to withstand greater dangers during the refining process.

But regardless of the possibility, it was good news for Lu Ye.

A short while later, Xiang Yin and the others returned together.

Zhou Ran and Wang Taisheng's gazes towards Lu Ye were noticeably different from before. Previously, they had only submitted due to the suppression of Lu Ye's sacred aura; now, it was true submission.

"Revered Master..." Xiang Yin looked at Lu Ye with anticipation, almost reminding him not to break his promise.

Lu Ye ignored her and turned to Xuan Yu: "Can you truly refine another drop?"

Xuan Yu replied cautiously: "Our sisters are willing to go all out and will not fail your expectations, Revered Master!"

Lu Ye pondered for a moment, then flicked his fingers, bestowing his last two drops of precious blood. He also wanted to know if his conjecture was correct.

The Snow Clan sisters each received a drop of precious blood and happily ran off to refine it.

Lu Ye sat upright, spreading his divine sense to observe, and the continuous screams of Xuan Yu and her sister reached his ears.

Although the process was arduous, the outcome was good. After most of a day, Xuan Yu and her sister successfully refined the precious blood. Aside from being somewhat disheveled, there were no major issues.

At this point, Lu Ye finally confirmed one thing: his precious blood was different from true vampire sacred blood; its lethality was much lower than sacred blood.

This was undoubtedly good news, as it meant he could confidently gather more people. Although there weren't many scattered cultivators left in this realm, every additional person was beneficial, and anyone who joined him could quickly enhance their sacred aura, undoubtedly playing a significant role in future confrontations with Sacred Blood Peak.

After two days of rest, Lu Ye dispatched Xiang Yin and the other three. Their mission was to search for scattered cultivators and bring them back.

Lu Ye himself remained at Black Prison Cliff, refining his own precious blood.

He originally had five drops of precious blood, which he had fully consumed in the preceding days. He could only condense new ones. Condensing precious blood was not an easy task; even with his increased cultivation, it would still take over half a month to condense a single drop. Moreover, the condensation of each drop significantly depleted his own foundation, requiring a large amount of resources to replenish.

While in the midst of condensing, Lu Ye suddenly slowly opened his eyes. The next moment, he stood up, and void spirit patterns quickly outlined beneath his feet. As a flash of light appeared, his figure vanished.

A hundred miles from Listening Snow Peak, a figure lay quietly in wait, observing the flattened peak with a puzzled expression.

Some time ago, Sacred Blood Peak received news that a newcomer had arrived in this realm. This person's sacred aura was unprecedentedly powerful and terrifying. Coincidentally, two Snow Clan members from Listening Snow Peak wished to defect to Sacred Blood Peak and thus revealed the newcomer's whereabouts.

Sacred Blood Peak naturally dared not delay. Immediately, a late Moonfall Realm cultivator was dispatched by Li Tian, carrying a red talisman to assassinate the newcomer. At that time, if Li Tian hadn't been occupied with other important matters and unable to leave, he would have even prepared to come in person to meet this newcomer.

However, that late Moonfall Realm cultivator quickly lost contact with Sacred Blood Peak, making it almost certain they had died.

This greatly unsettled Sacred Blood Peak, so they naturally had to send another person to investigate the situation.

This ghost cultivator was dispatched for this very reason. However, after an investigation, he was very confused, completely unaware of what had happened to his late Moonfall Realm companion.

The red talisman must have been activated; otherwise, Listening Snow Peak would not have disappeared without reason. Moreover, the location where Listening Snow Peak vanished indeed retained traces of the red talisman's activation.

Logically speaking, no cultivator should be able to withstand the power of the red talisman, let alone someone who was only at the mid-Moonfall Realm.

So what happened to his companion?

He thought of the Snow Clan member who had leaked information to Sacred Blood Peak. Now, to get a clear understanding of the situation, he probably had no choice but to find that Snow Clan member and question them directly.

Having made up his mind, the ghost cultivator prepared to leave the area. However, as he turned, he suddenly felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, freezing on the spot.

In the sky not far away, a figure stood suspended, calmly looking in his direction.

The ghost cultivator was greatly alarmed. He hadn't even noticed the other party approaching earlier! There was only one possible explanation for this: the other party was even more skilled in stealth than he was.

Upon closer inspection: a young man in his twenties, a long saber at his waist, a tight-fitting black and white robe, and mid-Moonfall Realm cultivation. The ghost cultivator immediately knew the identity of the newcomer.

It was clearly the newcomer mentioned by the Snow Clan!

As the ghost cultivator's thoughts raced, Lu Ye simply stared calmly in the direction where he was lurking. This ghost cultivator had considerable skill in stealth; even with his Insight Spirit Pattern activated, Lu Ye could only discern vague traces and not his true form.

As early as when he led Xiang Yin and the others away from Listening Snow Peak to Black Prison Cliff, Lu Ye knew that Sacred Blood Peak would certainly send someone to investigate the situation here.

So, at that time, he had left a Talent Tree clone here to monitor the surroundings.

The ghost cultivator's arrival was silent. If he hadn't leaked a trace of spiritual energy fluctuation while investigating Listening Snow Peak, the Talent Tree clone might not have detected him.

As Lu Ye observed, he noticed the ghost cultivator remained motionless, seemingly naively believing that Lu Ye looking in that direction was merely a coincidence and that his presence hadn't been discovered.

Lu Ye stepped forward, blood mist emanating from his body and surging violently ahead.

In an instant, a sea of blood stretched across, enveloping the surrounding space.

The ghost cultivator was about to use an escape technique to leave the moment Lu Ye made a move. However, the terrifying suppression of the sacred aura caused his spiritual energy to abruptly stagnate, and by the time he regained his senses, he was already engulfed by the sea of blood.

He let out a cry of "Ah!", his eyes wide with terror and trembling violently.

Although he had long heard from the Snow Clan member at Listening Snow Peak that the newcomer's sacred aura was extraordinarily potent, that was mere hearsay. Experiencing it firsthand now, he realized its intensity far surpassed his understanding.

Under the suppression of the other party's sacred aura, he felt like a rabbit encountering a tiger—only able to shiver, his limbs weak, completely unable to muster the courage to resist.

Within the dense sea of blood, a figure slowly approached him.

The ghost cultivator bit his tongue, finally mustering all his strength. He fiercely thrust his short blade forward, and as his spiritual energy burst forth, even the sea of blood was torn open.

However, this desperate strike had no effect. Lu Ye's long saber swept down, not only blocking his short blade but also severing both his arms.

The ghost cultivator stumbled backward, enduring the pain, sweat beading on his forehead. As he watched the figure slowly approaching him, he knew his chances were grim.

A moment later, the sea of blood dissipated. Lu Ye, carrying the ghost cultivator who had completely lost the strength to resist, flew towards Black Prison Cliff.

Suddenly, more than half a month passed. Inside the cave dwelling, Lu Ye opened his eyes.

After more than half a month of effort, he had finally condensed another drop of precious blood. It was truly not easy.

He immediately got up and walked to the side.

He soon arrived in a room where two figures sat. One was the ghost cultivator he had captured earlier.

The severed arms of the ghost cultivator had already been reattached. Lu Ye had no intention of restraining him; only the Talent Tree clone was guarding the room.

The ghost cultivator likely knew he couldn't escape, so he had remained quiet during this time. However, he was still uneasy, unsure of Lu Ye's true intentions.

He had repeatedly questioned the Talent Tree clone, but the clone had given him no response whatsoever.

Seeing Lu Ye's main body enter, the ghost cultivator looked at the clone, then at Lu Ye, and finally asked, "What exactly do you want to do?"

Not killing him, nor releasing him, was truly agonizing.

"I'll bestow upon you an opportunity. Do you want it?" Lu Ye asked, looking at him.

The ghost cultivator frowned: "What do you mean?"

Lu Ye flicked his finger, and the freshly condensed precious blood flew towards the man: "Refine it, and you'll know."

The ghost cultivator suspiciously eyed the precious blood floating before him, instinctively feeling that it wasn't something good. Yet, the powerful sacred aura contained within the drop of blood greatly enticed him.

"What is this?" the ghost cultivator asked.

"Refine it. You have no other choice!" Lu Ye's voice was calm as still water.

Upon hearing this, the ghost cultivator was immediately discouraged. As the saying goes, "I am the fish, he is the chopping board"; he truly had no choice. He vaguely guessed that this was likely a method for the other party to control him, so there shouldn't be too much risk in refining it. If the other party truly wanted to kill him, they wouldn't have brought him back in the first place.

He took a deep look at Lu Ye, gritted his teeth, and seized the precious blood.

The next instant, he felt as if the drop of precious blood had become a living thing, permeating into his flesh and blood.

A scream rang out...

Lu Ye stepped aside, quietly waiting and observing.

After a full half-day, when the golden light dissipated, the ghost cultivator lay prostrate on the ground, drenched in sweat, his body twitching slightly. He looked disheveled but was, after all, alive.

Lu Ye became even more certain that his previous conjecture about the precious blood was correct. Otherwise, there was no way to explain why all the vampires who refined his precious blood had survived.