Chapter 249: Dragon Vein Baptism, Yinming Demon Dragon Technique

If the blood mist hadn't obscured his view, Wang Yu would have seen numerous dark fissures appearing in the sky, from which faint blood mist seeped out.

This time, there was no black power blocking them.

Meanwhile, outside, Yin Ghost Mountain also began to emit blood mist from the ground, an anomaly that no one had yet noticed.

Inside the Heaven Soul Sect's secret realm, Wang Yu watched as the Blood Corpse Giant was struck by black lightning, transforming into a short, squat figure. Its hundreds-of-meters-tall physique seemed a thing of the past, and most of its Blood Demon power was gone.

In this state, 99% of its power had been lost; even a random Foundation Establishment cultivator could easily subdue it. It roared and charged at Wang Yu, who knocked it down with a kick and firmly pinned its chest with his foot.

He reached out and retrieved the dragon-shadowed pearl. The moment his true essence touched it, information, as if a gift from heaven and earth, surged into his mind. It was the method for using a Dragon Vein treasure, explaining how even someone not skilled in artifact refining could forge it into a Natal Artifact.

"So that's how it is." The Blood Corpse Giant, lacking sentience, instinctively contaminated it with Blood Demon power, using the wrong method and not understanding the proper way to use this Dragon Vein treasure.

Wang Yu unceremoniously put it away, then had Snowy Jade bring Takishita Yiran over. With the Heavenly King Life-Preserving Pill, her condition had stabilized. However, having suffered two severe injuries in less than a year, it would take a long time for her to recover this time, and Wang Yu didn't have many good solutions.

He completely sealed the Blood Corpse Giant within an ice coffin. Only then did he put away Takishita Yiran's formation flags, jump down into the fissure where the Blood Corpse Giant had emerged, seal it with black ice, and then set up his own set of second-tier formation flags.

The two people and one fox headed towards the location where the Dragon Vein's tail had just been discovered. Pushing aside the piled-up earth, a long golden qi dragon appeared before their eyes. The flowing, shimmering qi emitted sparkling points of light, much like a river of stars.

"I found you!" The reward after an adventure was always the most exciting moment.

Wang Yu, carrying Snowy Jade and the unconscious Takishita Yiran, entered the Dragon Vein, heading towards its head. Utilizing a Dragon Vein wasn't limited to refining it; one could also receive a Dragon Vein baptism, gaining immense benefits as if blessed.

This third-tier Dragon Vein had been hidden here for many years. Although its Dragon Vein treasure had been taken, its inherent power remained abundant and strong, enough for three Dragon Vein baptisms. After a few hundred years, once the Dragon Vein absorbed enough energy from the earth, it could bestow another baptism. This action would impede the Dragon Vein's growth, but Wang Yu had no intention of permanently occupying it; receiving even one baptism was an immense stroke of luck.

After traveling through the dragon-like underground passage for most of a day, Wang Yu was still unable to reach the Dragon Vein's head, so he first recovered his state. The significant blood loss could be quickly replenished by the Dragon Spine. However, damage to his vital essence would take longer to recover from. Fortunately, his cultivation limit wasn't reduced, as cultivating to the peak of Body Refinement Second-tier was no easy feat for him.

Two days later, at the end of the Dragon Vein, a true dragon's head, composed of golden qi and starlight, appeared before Wang Yu's eyes. Snowy Jade, beside him, yelped a few times, displaying intense curiosity.

"You're lucky." Rubbing the fox's head and seeing no sign of Takishita Yiran waking up, Wang Yu began communicating with the Dragon Vein according to the records in the Earth Mother Sutra. He couldn't wait to reap the rewards.

Soon after, the Dragon Vein let out a resounding roar, and large amounts of golden qi converged into three brilliant golden pearls, which floated into the foreheads of Wang Yu, Takishita Yiran, and Snowy Jade, respectively, leaving a dragon-shadowed mark on each of their foreheads.

At that moment, Snowy Jade whimpered, prompting Wang Yu to take out the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Bed. It eagerly jumped onto it, wrapping its body with its three tails, like a fluffy giant cocoon.

While Takishita Yiran remained unconscious, her internal injuries rapidly healed. Within a few breaths, her breathing became long and steady, and array patterns emerged from her forehead. They outlined a sphere of runes, and her body sat up cross-legged, entering a mysterious state.

Wang Yu's experience was the most peculiar. His consciousness ascended, as if detaching from his body. A vast amount of inspiration continuously flooded his mind, all related to the Yin-Nether Demonic Flood Dragon Art. He watched his body move; his Dragon Spine continuously clicked and clacked. His physique, which had already reached its cultivation limit, further improved under the Dragon Vein baptism.

The Yin-Nether Demonic Flood Dragon, formed from his vital essence, continuously circled around him. This second-tier body refinement technique had originally been placed in a slot to be derived towards the third-tier. Over the years, it had progressed by about one-third. Wang Yu's inspiration surged endlessly from it.

The Yin-Nether Demonic Flood Dragon's form began to change: its single horn split into new dragon horns, its scales became finer and smoother, its whiskers grew, and the ice-blue lines along its sides extended into mysterious patterns. Its back swelled, and slender bone spurs erected like a hedgehog's quills, yet could retract like mane. Its four legs below its belly branched into four claws, exuding multiple layers of profound majesty with every leap.

To Wang Yu, this seemed to happen in just a moment. In reality, time flowed much faster than he imagined; three years quietly passed since he began receiving the Dragon Vein baptism. The dragon-shadowed mark on his forehead had vanished, and this body refinement technique had also reached the peak of the third tier.

"—The Yin-Nether Demonic Dragon Art!"

The moment he opened his eyes, Wang Yu was deep in thought. His vital essence had transformed from a flood dragon to a true dragon, not only completing all the profound mysteries of the cultivation technique but also adding many ingenious ideas that had flashed through his mind during the Dragon Vein baptism.

"True bloodline artifact refining diagrams, physical divine abilities, combat techniques... they were all completed." Was this the intended effect of a Dragon Vein baptism? However, as he pondered this, the Dragon Vein had already vanished from his sight. It might have left long ago, but Wang Yu, immersed in his enlightenment, had never noticed.

The birth of the Yin-Nether Demonic Dragon Art meant he had "exploited a bug" again; after its completion, the placement slot could forcibly deduce it to the fourth tier. One must remember, this art was originally only first-tier. It had ascended entirely through various fortuitous encounters. Such opportunities were truly extraordinary, to the point that no one would believe it if he told them.

The Yin-Nether Demonic Dragon Art also became the first third-tier cultivation technique in his possession. Before he could delve into its physical divine abilities, true bloodline artifacts, combat techniques, and so on, Takishita Yiran and Snowy Jade also simultaneously concluded their baptismal transformation.

The sphere of runes formed by the former abruptly dispersed. Her essence, qi, and spirit reached their peak. Although her cultivation realm was still at the peak of Foundation Establishment, she exuded a completely different aura. Even without the aid of a Core-Forming spiritual item, she seemed confident in forming a Golden Core. This was the power of a third-tier Dragon Vein baptism. After experiencing it, one couldn't help but imagine what a baptism from an even stronger Dragon Vein would be like.

Snowy Jade's situation was particularly special. Its strength hadn't increased, but the baptism seemed to have purified its bloodline, elevating it from a high-grade to infinitely close to an Earth-grade bloodline. It gained an improvement in innate talent and absorbed some of the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Bed's power, resulting in many new blue patterns appearing on its body. It wouldn't be long before it could break through to the peak of the second-tier mid-stage (sixth level).

"Woo~"

"Wang Yu." Rubbing Snowy Jade's face and putting it into his spirit beast bag, Takishita Yiran walked over, her expression full of curiosity.

"The Dragon Vein baptism is over? How much time has passed?"

"Three years." Speaking of which, his face was also filled with complex emotions.

"Let's talk as we walk." He truthfully recounted what had happened after Takishita Yiran lost consciousness. As for the Dragon Vein treasure, he didn't need to say anything; she could guess it was in his possession—a strange understanding existed between them.

The two walked back along the passage where the Dragon Vein had been. Takishita Yiran's face was filled with regret: "It's truly a pity for a geomancer not to have seen the Dragon Vein in its complete form."

"After bestowing the blessing, the Dragon Vein left. I don't know where it went, but it should still be somewhere in this Heaven Soul Sect secret realm."

"It's gone." Takishita Yiran shook her head and explained to a puzzled Wang Yu. "A Dragon Vein is almost one of the rarest opportunities under heaven. As long as you don't use geomancy secret arts to restrain it, once its true form is seen by someone, it will leave. Space cannot obstruct it either. The Dragon Vein will go into a deep slumber underground, or in an uninhabited place, waiting to be discovered again countless years later."

Only then did Wang Yu understand that he had been mistaken earlier. No wonder Takishita Yiran was willing to risk her life to activate the Nether Tiger Prison-Suppressing Formation. After the Blood Corpse Giant gave up on restraining it, she knew this was the only chance!

"Thank you."

"Hm?" Takishita Yiran suddenly bowed towards Wang Yu.

"Thank you for still being willing to let me receive the Dragon Vein baptism after I fell unconscious."

"This was your contribution, and I, Wang, keep my word. Besides, without you, I might not have been a match for the Blood Corpse Giant."

Next, both fell silent, contemplating what to do next.

A moment later, reaching the bottom of the great fissure, after dismantling the formation, the black ice had already been severely damaged by the Blood Corpses. Wang Yu flew out first, his violent Yin-cold true essence rapidly spreading. It transformed the surrounding thousand meters into an icy hell. All the Blood Corpses moving nearby were frozen solid. Takishita Yiran also flew out after him.

She asked, "What should we do next?" She clearly seemed to regard Wang Yu as her main support.

He pondered: "Let's continue searching for the Heaven Soul Sect's scripture pavilion. These Blood Corpses possess strange powers, but they were all once Heaven Soul Sect disciples. They might have disciple tokens, elder tokens, or other forms of identification on them, which could be quite helpful. However... deep within this ruin, there might still be beings like the Blood Corpse Giant, or even stronger blood monsters. Before that, we could cultivate for a while to improve our strength."

The method was good, but implementing it would be somewhat difficult. Takishita Yiran's main benefit from the Dragon Vein baptism was the significant aid to Core Formation. She was confident she could break through without a Core-Forming spiritual item. But problems arose: she wasn't very confident about the Core Formation lightning tribulation. Her past life as a rogue cultivator had been too impoverished; she didn't even have a third-tier magic artifact, let alone a treasure to avoid tribulations. Her cultivation couldn't advance any further, so when she stated her dilemma, Wang Yu took out twelve formation flags, which were precisely the Heaven's Heart Dispersing Lightning Tribulation-Avoiding Treasure Formation.

"You can borrow this item. With your formation master skills, you should be able to utilize it perfectly. Also, I have a Lightning Corpse that is about to break through to the third tier. I can let it try first. After the Lightning Corpse and you are done using it, I will also attempt to break through."