Chapter 1827: Kill Me Then

It was understandable why the Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator had such a thought. Only a Saint Venerable of their race could condense Precious Blood. He himself was a Saint Venerable, yet the Precious Blood he condensed could never contain such intense sacredness. Compared to the blood Lu Ye was condensing at that moment, his own Precious Blood was like a firefly compared to the sun, containing extremely faint sacredness.

The emergence of a Realm Lord from Fangcun Mountain was already astonishing; he never imagined this Realm Lord would also be a member of his own race!

However, Lu Ye's appearance bore no resemblance to a pure Blood Race member; he simply looked human…

Suppressing his doubt and shock, he stared coldly at Lu Ye. "Wishful thinking!" he declared.

Regardless of this human's true nature, the fact remained that he had killed members of their race, making him an undeniable enemy. The cultivator understood the consequences of refining such a drop of Precious Blood, so he naturally wouldn't allow Lu Ye to have his way.

Moreover, as he finished speaking, his entire aura suddenly turned dangerous, causing the surrounding Sun-Exposure cultivators to stiffen.

The Blood Race's Blood Explosion Art was renowned. It was a desperate secret technique, a self-detonation art with immense and unparalleled power. Even though this Sun-Exposure cultivator was currently sealed by several spiritual talismans and had been greatly depleted in the recent battle, he could still unleash the Blood Explosion Art if he could muster even a trace of vital blood energy.

Many mini-human cultivators had suffered significant losses from this secret technique in earlier battles.

Xia Yingyue was about to move in for the kill when she saw Lu Ye reach out and pinch the Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator's mouth. With a nonchalant expression, he said, "What nonsense!"

With a flick of his finger, he sent his Precious Blood into the cultivator's mouth.

The rapidly escalating dangerous aura abruptly ceased. The Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator immediately clutched his own neck, seemingly trying to prevent the Precious Blood from going down, then instinctively jammed two fingers into his mouth to try and dislodge it.

But it was too late.

A scream suddenly erupted as a faint golden light enveloped him. Even after being severely wounded from the earlier siege by several mini-human Sun-Exposure cultivators, this Blood Race member had not displayed any weakness. Yet now, he seemed to be enduring the most excruciating torture imaginable, causing the watching mini-human Sun-Exposure cultivators to feel deeply disturbed.

For a Sun-Exposure cultivator to experience such torment, the pain must have been extraordinary…

The battle was drawing to a close. With the Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivators in retreat, the remaining Blood Race cultivators trapped in the realm lost all will to fight. They were cornered, pursued, and intercepted by the mini-human cultivators, suffering devastating casualties.

The Xiangyin sisters distinguished themselves. Their potent sacredness proved far more effective against the Blood Race than that of ordinary Moon-Glow cultivators. Leading a squad of mini-human Moon-Glows into the fray, their pervasive sacredness suppressed the enemies, leaving them utterly incapable of retaliation.

The Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator was currently undergoing the painful process of body tempering by the Precious Blood, which would last for some time. Lu Ye remained to observe, with Su Yuqing and Xia Yingyue standing guard nearby. The other Sun-Exposure cultivators dispersed, either to clear the battlefield or to eliminate the remaining Blood Race forces.

In less than an hour, the previously tumultuous realm settled into peace.

"My Lord!" the Xiangyin sisters exclaimed as they returned, covered in blood but looking remarkably well. Xiangyin held a mass of bloody material in her hands, within which several noticeably distinct drops of fresh blood floated. "This was gathered while clearing the battlefield," she explained.

This was undoubtedly the Saint Blood left behind by the deceased Blood Race members.

According to Lu Ye's conjecture, Saint Blood was essentially the Blood Ancestor's own blood. However, because the Blood Ancestor was immensely powerful, even her ordinary blood possessed incredible abilities, such as bestowing sacredness upon Blood Race members. While the refining process was fraught with danger, successful completion elevated one to a position of profound superiority within the Blood Race, earning the title of Saint Venerable.

Upon a Saint Venerable's death, their Saint Blood would remain fully preserved. Should another Blood Race member acquire it, they could seek an opportunity to refine it.

This was how the Blood Race's Saint Venerables had been passed down through generations. Otherwise, with the Blood Ancestor long deceased, there would have been no Saint Blood left for the Blood Race.

In this battle alone, two Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivators were killed, and one was captured. These three were undoubtedly Saint Venerables, and Saint Blood remained after their demise.

Furthermore, several Moon-Glow cultivators were also Saint Venerables. The Xiangyin sisters collected all this Saint Blood, which was a treasure to the Blood Race but no less than poison to other races.

Lu Ye reached out, took the drops of Saint Blood, and immediately channeled his power to refine them.

Xiangyin watched with profound envy. Due to the Blood Race power within her, she instinctively yearned for this Saint Blood. However, she knew that refining Saint Blood casually could be life-threatening. The best way to enhance her own sacredness was, in fact, to request Lu Ye's Precious Blood.

Lu Ye's Precious Blood was considerably safer to refine, and its effects were nearly identical to Saint Blood.

Xiangyin decided that after this, she would find an opportunity to bring it up with Lu Ye. After all, she and her sister had rendered meritorious service this time, and such contributions deserved a reward…

"And this," Xuanyu added, presenting a storage ring.

Lu Ye took the ring, opened it, and saw it was filled with Blood Race Blood Crystals. He casually tossed it back.

"Thank you, My Lord," Xuanyu said, clasping the storage ring and expressing her gratitude respectfully.

Blood Race members possessed Blood Crystals within them, akin to demon cores in demonic beasts. While these were useless to ordinary cultivators, fellow Blood Race members could refine them like spirit jade to augment their own power, achieving even better results than refining spirit jade.

In essence, Blood Crystals served as a highly specialized cultivation resource for the Blood Race.

"My Lord, my sister and I captured a Blood Race member, thinking he might be useful to you," Xiangyin added. After speaking, she glanced at the Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator who was still refining the Precious Blood and hesitantly asked, "Or should I go kill that Blood Race member now?"

The decision to capture Blood Race cultivators alive, rather than killing them, was primarily inspired by their previous confrontation with Sacred Blood Peak in the Core World.

Lu Ye had previously used Precious Blood to plant many operatives within Sacred Blood Peak, who contributed significantly to the final battle.

Xiangyin hadn't anticipated that their Lord would target a Sun-Exposure cultivator this time. In comparison, the Blood Race member her sister and she had captured seemed utterly insignificant.

"No hurry," Lu Ye said, shaking his head. The situation here still needed to be observed; keeping that Blood Race member might yet serve some purpose.

Xiangyin said no more and stood quietly to the side.

"The process seems quite perilous. Will this fellow survive?" Xia Yingyue, standing shoulder to shoulder with Su Yuqing and overseeing the situation to guard against unforeseen events, had been observing the Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator. Noticing his aura rapidly weakening, she couldn't help but ask.

Su Yuqing shook her head, unable to confirm.

Xiangyin smiled and began, "My Lady, you may not know, but our Lord's Precious Blood is unique. While refining it involves torment, as long as one's will is sufficiently firm, there's no life-threatening danger. It's quite different from Saint Blood in the conventional sense!"

Her elder sister, Xuanyu, nodded vigorously beside her, confirming this.

Xia Yingyue glanced at the sisters. "I've long heard that the Snow Race is as pure as snow and like spirits of the snow. Seeing them today, the reputation is well-deserved," she remarked. Then, she turned and sent a telepathic message to Su Yuqing: "Keep a close eye on these two sisters."

Su Yuqing looked bewildered. "Guard against what?" she asked.

Xia Yingyue retorted exasperatedly, "Your young Dao Companion is full of youthful vigor and passion. These two sisters are both of peerless beauty with distinct temperaments, and they seem quite smitten with your Dao Companion. What do you think you should guard against?"

Su Yuqing was caught between laughter and tears, momentarily unsure how to respond.

On reflection, she had never actually questioned Lu Ye about matters of romance. She merely sensed that he was quite experienced in such affairs, certainly no novice.

As for the Xiangyin sisters, she didn't believe it was necessary to be cautious. They were Lu Ye's Blood Servants, absolutely obedient to his every command. If Lu Ye had truly entertained any intentions, the sisters would have long since lost their purity.

In fact, Su Yuqing had known from her first glance that the sisters remained pure.

The Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator ultimately survived. As the golden light enveloping him gradually dispersed and his figure became visible, he lay sprawled on the ground like a dead fish, drenched in sweat.

His weakened state was due to his powers still being sealed.

Lu Ye stood a short distance away, frowning as he observed. After a moment, he sighed and turned to Xia Yingyue. "Sister Xia, kill him!" he commanded.

A drop of hard-earned Precious Blood had been wasted! Yet, it wasn't entirely fruitless. At the very least, Lu Ye learned that even if the Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator refined his Precious Blood, his control over him would not be absolute.

It wasn't that he had no control at all; in fact, if Lu Ye commanded him to complete ordinary tasks, there would be no issue.

However, Lu Ye could sense that this Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator's submission to him was incomplete. From time to time, rebellious thoughts would surface from the depths of his mind.

This was completely different from the Blood Servants he had previously subdued. Whether it was the Xiangyin sisters or Ma Shangsi, those Blood Servants were truly obedient to his every command, without any thought of resistance, genuinely treating him as heaven, as earth, as a true deity.

However, the Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator before him was different. This was undoubtedly a consequence of their significant disparity in power; the opponent's cultivation was far superior to his, so even after refining Lu Ye's Precious Blood, some rebellious thoughts persisted in his mind.

Lu Ye naturally dared not keep such a Blood Servant; they could prove fatal at a critical moment.

At Lu Ye's words, the rebellious sentiments in the heart of the Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator, who was weakened to the point of collapse, intensified. His gaze at Lu Ye even flickered with a hint of hatred, though it was swiftly replaced by pleading. Yet, it failed to move Lu Ye in the slightest.

Xia Yingyue, a decisive woman, stepped forward and slammed a palm onto the Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivator's head, completely shattering his skull with the force of the blow.

The headless corpse slumped limply to the ground, blood gushing forth.

The Xiangyin sisters quickly approached. One skillfully extracted the glistening Blood Crystals from the opponent's remains, carefully putting them away like treasures. The other guided the flow of blood, drawing out the drop of Saint Blood, which she then handed to Lu Ye for processing.

By the end of this battle, no fewer than three Blood Race Sun-Exposure cultivators had fallen, with countless more below the Sun-Exposure realm. It was, undoubtedly, a crushing defeat.