Elder Ghost carried the immobilized Zhu Ju deep into the cave and threw him onto a stone platform.

Zhu Ju’s eyes darted around, and his expression changed slightly at the sight before him.

The Blood-Stealing Curse!

He saw that the surface beneath him was covered in dense, bizarre patterns, with a dark red liquid flowing within them.

Blood!

No wonder the reek of blood was so pungent.

The scene before him was so familiar—it was the very same Blood-Stealing Curse array from the Red Blood Sect’s hideout that night.

’Are they going to use me to replace Ye Liuyun, stealing my Cultivation and Talent to fix Dugu Ming’s flaws and heal his fatal wounds at the same time?’

’Is the Blood-Stealing Curse real?’

Zhu Ju’s thoughts raced:

’It’s most likely real. It might even be able to save Dugu Ming, otherwise Elder Ghost wouldn’t be so desperate.’

’Heh...’

’Too bad they picked the wrong person. My Martial Arts Talent isn’t even average—I’m barely not a fool. The so-called Golden Flesh and Jade Bone was Acquired, not innate. Even if they steal my Talent, it’ll probably be useless.’

’But...’

’I don’t want to die yet!’

Just then, Elder Ghost carried Dugu Ming in, placing him carefully on the other platform.

The pattern of the Blood-Stealing Curse resembled a Tai Chi Diagram, with two nodes for Yin and Yang, perfectly sized for a person to lie on.

"Hmm..."

After a moment of deliberation, Elder Ghost flashed to Zhu Ju’s side, his ten fingers a blur of afterimages as they moved.

"Ugh!"

Zhu Ju grunted as he felt the Restriction that had just begun to loosen solidify once more, now with several new layers added.

Now, he could hardly even move his eyes.

And that wasn’t all.

CRACK... CRACK...

Elder Ghost pressed down with both hands, directly breaking Zhu Ju’s wrists and ankles to ensure he was completely immobilized. If he hadn’t been afraid of affecting the Blood-Stealing Curse, he would have crippled Zhu Ju outright.

"Young Master."

Only then did Elder Ghost nod and speak:

"This old servant has already sealed Zhu’s Qi Blood with the Five Ghosts Lock Chain. Now, I will have him help you achieve a supreme foundation."

"Hurry!"

Dugu Ming’s face was flushed with excitement as he urged loudly, ignoring his injuries:

"Do it now!"

"Yes," Elder Ghost replied.

"Young Master, remember to guard your heart and mind. No living person should be present while the Blood-Stealing Curse is active. This old servant will wait outside."

As he spoke, without any apparent movement from him, the bizarre patterns on the ground began to glow faintly. The slowly flowing blood within them seemed to come alive, accelerating its pace as a faint, bloody Qi began to spread.

SWOOSH!

Elder Ghost’s expression changed slightly. He flashed out of the Blood-Stealing Curse’s range and bolted from the cave as if something terrifying were chasing him.

For a time, only Dugu Ming and Zhu Ju remained in the cave.

Zhu Ju lay motionless on the ground. He checked his escape route back to the Main World and, after confirming it was clear, let out a sigh of relief.

’The Five Ghosts Lock Chain...’

Elder Ghost’s methods were indeed extraordinary, but upon closer inspection, the binding technique was akin to tying knots in his Qi Blood.

It used Zhu Ju’s own Qi Blood to form several dead knots, obstructing its circulation and rendering his body limp and powerless. It didn’t leave behind any foreign energy.

If he could untie the dead knots, he could break the Restriction.

However, the Martial Arts of this world were primarily based on Qi Blood. Even if one knew how, it would take a long time to circulate the tiny amount of available Qi Blood and gradually build up enough power to break the seal. By then, the Blood-Stealing Curse would have long since been completed.

Unless...

an external force stimulated the Qi Blood!

But with no one here to help, Elder Ghost naturally saw this as an unsolvable predicament. He never imagined that someone in this world cultivated an alternative form of Martial Arts.

THUMP!

THUMP!

The Strength hidden deep within his Skin and Flesh, Tendons and Bones, and Vital Organs acted like a weak electric current, stimulating his heart to beat.

Zhu Ju’s previously stagnant and sealed Qi Blood began to regain its vitality, gathering into a current that surged toward the knots.

Time passed slowly.

At a certain moment, Zhu Ju’s stiff body suddenly relaxed.

"Ngh!"

He then slammed his arm against the ground, forcibly resetting his wrist.

"Ugh..."

The sharp pain made his forehead break out in sweat, but at least he could now make simple movements with his hands and feet. He slowly pushed himself up.

Huh?

Dugu Ming, who had been waiting with his eyes closed, heard the noise and opened them. His eyes flew wide in an instant.

"You..."

THUD!

Zhu Ju walked over and immediately gave him an elbow strike, hitting him squarely in the temple and knocking him out cold.

"Villains die from monologuing, so let’s skip the chit-chat."

He muttered to himself and looked around.

At some point, the faint bloody Qi had thickened into a dense, crimson fog that filled the area, making it impossible to get one’s bearings.

Zhu Ju tried to walk out, but after a few steps, he found himself right back where he started.

A ghost wall?

This Blood-Stealing Curse really is insidious!

A flicker in his eyes, Zhu Ju looked down at the unconscious Dugu Ming at his feet. A ruthless glint appeared in his gaze.

"Heaven offers a gift, and to refuse it is to invite calamity."

"Time to take a gamble!"

"The worst that can happen is I go back."

He picked up the unconscious Dugu Ming, tossed him onto the opposite platform, and sat down cross-legged.

The blood-red fog grew thicker and thicker, until he couldn’t see his hand in front of his face.

Wisps of fog followed his breaths, entering Zhu Ju’s body and transforming into a warm current that surged through his limbs and bones.

Hmm?

This feeling was somewhat similar to taking a Body Tempering Medicine.

Before Zhu Ju could savor it, the influx of blood-red fog into his body suddenly intensified, and the weak, warm current became a tidal wave.

Several times stronger?

No!

It was ten, a hundred times more potent than the Great Medicine he usually took!

Ngh...

With no time to think, Zhu Ju grunted and instinctively began to circulate the Thirteen Body Refinement.

Great Medicine Body Tempering depended on the Physical Body’s endurance, but this warm current seemed to pour in without limit, causing his Thirteen Body Refinement to advance by leaps and bounds.

BOOM!

The ringing of Tendons and Bones!

The thunderous roar of tigers and leopards!

...

In just a few short moments, the Third Realm of External Training for the Thirteen Body Refinement, the Vital Organ Realm, had already reached the Realm of Perfection.

The External Training Third Realm,

achieved!

With the completion of the Vital Organ Realm, his physique grew even stronger, and the Qi Blood within him surged.

And this was far from the end.

"Ugh..."

Rampant energy wreaked havoc inside him, even seeping into his bone marrow, blood membranes, and other indescribable depths.

The progress of his Thirteen Body Refinement Cultivation continued to soar.

His Blood Marrow boiled!

The External Training Fourth Realm, the Blood Marrow Realm.

The Blood Marrow Realm, which would have originally taken ten years or even longer for someone with Zhu Ju’s Talent to cultivate to Perfection, was now advancing at an astonishing speed with the help of the blood-red fog.

At some unknown point, the wrists and ankles that Elder Ghost had broken had already healed, as good as new.

It wasn’t just his Body Refining Hard Skill; his progress in Qi Blood Martial Arts was also skyrocketing.

THUD!

Zhu Ju stomped the ground, his limbs flailing wildly as the Qi Blood in his body completed the Body Tempering at a visible rate.

And then he took the next step.

Gui Cang!

The so-called Gui Cang was a Realm where one’s Qi Blood reached Perfection and overflowed, surging out like wolf smoke and condensing into a tangible form outside the body.

At this stage, the externalized Qi Blood was like Inner Qi; it could strengthen and fortify the body, switch between hard and soft, and allow one to perform impossible feats.

Pure Yang Qi Technique!

The Wuh Family’s Pure Yang Qi Technique was far from the top-tier arts in this world, but it had its own merits. For instance, it focused on accumulating one’s foundation, so that once one achieved the Gui Cang Realm, the sheer abundance of their Qi Blood would far surpass that of their peers.

BOOM!

RUMBLE...

As Zhu Ju struck out with his palm, wave after wave of violent, Powerful Qi from his Qi Blood surged forth, reaching several meters away.

The hard mountain rock was pulverized into dust, which trickled down.

An unknown amount of time passed.

HUFF... HUFF...

Zhu Ju was drenched in sweat, panting for breath. His long hair, soaked, hung in matted clumps down his cheeks.

Looking at the scene now, the blood-red fog had completely dissipated. Where Dugu Ming had been, only a dry skeleton remained, which disintegrated into ash when the wind blew.

"Is it real?" Zhu Ju lifted his hands, his expression shifting as he stared at his palms. "The Blood-Stealing Curse is real!"

In that short span of time, his Cultivation had skyrocketed. He was more than halfway through the External Training Fourth Realm, and his Qi Blood Martial Arts had entered the Gui Cang Realm. There seemed to be other changes within his body as well, though they were not yet clear.

It was equivalent to directly plundering Dugu Ming’s Cultivation, and without any ill effects. It was even more domineering than the Star Absorption Technique—simply unbelievable.

"Young Master!"

At that moment, a middle-aged man rushed into the cave. He froze upon seeing the scene:

"How can it be you?"

SWOOSH!

Zhu Ju stomped his foot and instantly appeared in front of the man, reaching out with a grappling technique.

This was the very same Red Blood Sect member who had saved Dugu Ming that night, and also a shot-caller on Flower Street.

’Xu Qing, was it?’ 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

CRACK!

Zhu Ju had intended to capture him, but he hadn’t expected his own strength to be so great. He had crushed the man’s hand bones directly.

"Ah!"

Xu Qing shrieked. With a flick of his wrist, a Soft Sword shot out from his sleeve, striking at Zhu Ju’s throat like a venomous snake.

Zhu Ju instinctively swung his arm, batting the Soft Sword away, and followed up with a punch. Xu Qing’s chest caved in as he fell to the ground, deader than dead.

"This..."

His sudden surge in Cultivation had made him unable to control his strength for a moment. Zhu Ju opened his mouth, about to say something, when a sharp blast of Powerful Qi suddenly appeared behind him.

Turning Stone-Throwing Form!

Mountain Shattering!

Almost without thinking, Zhu Ju instinctively executed the Mixed Element Iron Hand, colliding with the person behind him.

BANG!

Powerful Qi flared.

Zhu Ju’s body swayed, but the person behind him was sent stumbling backward until they hit the stone wall.

"Zhu Ju!"

Elder Ghost gritted his teeth.

"I’ll kill you!"

Zhu Ju raised an eyebrow, a strange smile on his face.

"I’m afraid you don’t have what it takes."

’A Grandmaster Gui Cang?’

Now,

so am I!