Chapter 43: Amethyst Crystal

The night in the mountains was more lively than the day, with exceptionally bright stars, the mountains appearing even more majestic in the dark, and the whimpers of small beasts riding the wind, high and low, sometimes faint, sometimes clear.

Under the moonlight, the winding river looked like a silver ribbon, its shimmering light as if the wide sleeves of a graceful dancer. It seemed as though the earth had shed its stern grandeur from the day, now dancing gracefully between the clouds and the heavens.

Qianye finally found the time to admire the scenery of these mountains beyond just the terrain. He dashed through the wind at high speed until the sky began to lighten on the horizon.

At dawn, the Taihang Mountains were shrouded in a thin mist. This area had already left the plateau, and the dominant tree species were no longer twisted, knotted shrubs and sparse needlewood forests. The base of the mountain was covered with lush grass.

Turning his head, Qianye could still vaguely see the entire landscape of Jihuo Plain—a massive, deep red land rising towards the sky, then sharply descending, like the head of the reaper’s scythe that had harvested countless lives.

Over the next two days, Qianye traveled by day and hid by night. He did not directly enter the territory of the Zhao Clan but instead followed the mountainous border, preparing to enter near Yinzhou City to avoid checkpoints as much as possible.

At first, everything went smoothly, but as he got closer to his destination, Qianye felt something was amiss, as if a pair of eyes were watching him from the shadows.

He was certain that this feeling of being watched had only recently appeared; it wasn’t there when he was in the mountains. Especially after crossing the Shuoyang Highway, the feeling became more pronounced. The Shuoyang Highway was the main artery for human transportation in the northwest and the largest and longest highway in all of the Western Continent, almost connecting most of the cities within the Zhao Clan’s territory.

Wilderness and mountains had always been Qianye’s domain. After sensing the anomaly, he continued at a normal pace, subtly changing his route, turning and twisting through the undulating mountains.

After a full day, the vague sense of being watched never ceased. At this point, Qianye was almost certain that whoever was following him was targeting him specifically. If it were just a random traveler, they wouldn’t follow him through such strange and varied terrain.

However, despite changing his methods multiple times, Qianye couldn’t detect the tracker’s trail, which piqued his interest. “Looks like a skilled one, interesting indeed.”

At dusk, Qianye stopped by a clear stream, washed his face, and leisurely began to catch and cook fish. While he appeared relaxed, he was pondering the identity of the stalker.

As the leader of both the Yellow Springs and Red Scorpion, Qianye seldom encountered opponents stronger than himself in the mountains and wilderness. This time, even with his deliberate attempts, the stalker managed to remain completely undetected, indicating that their strength surpassed his. The tracker was not only an expert but likely had natural talents in stealth and tracking.

Who was it? What was their purpose?

After some thought, Qianye found the situation complex but difficult to pinpoint. Though he was not afraid, he hoped to resolve this issue before entering the Zhao Clan’s territory.

In reality, Qianye was eager for the opponent to reveal themselves. He was confident that if he could avoid the initial assault, he would control the ensuing battle. Throughout the day, he had set several traps, but no attack came. It seemed the tracker was extremely cautious, not showing up even though Qianye was in less than optimal condition, with his injuries not fully healed.

Was the tracker waiting for a foolproof opportunity, or did they have companions?

If the former, it was understandable; experts in ambushes often had exceptional patience. Even Qianye, during Red Scorpion missions, had stayed hidden for days, waiting for the perfect shot.

If the latter, it was not good news.

After resting and eating, Qianye turned back to the mountains, choosing to camp halfway up a solitary peak. Narrow spaces like caves, while easy to defend, offered more opportunities for an experienced assassin, especially if they had special weapons.

Qianye posed a choice to the tracker.

He set up his defenses and traps, then began to refine the blood essence he had obtained from Zalun. Although Qianye hadn’t directly fought Zalun, the escape had nearly drained his primordial energy and blood qi, and the long sprint had left hidden injuries. With a major threat looming, he needed to recover quickly.

The Mystic Chapter began to circulate, transforming the vast blood essence into a vortex, slowly purifying it, leaving only the purest dark primal energy. Qianye’s blood qi began to consume the dark primal energy, growing steadily.

When the cycle was complete, a common blood qi advanced to the second stage, the dark gold blood qi grew slightly, and the purple blood qi, after days of nourishment, reached the threshold for the third stage.

At this point, the dark primal energy in Qianye’s body was entirely consumed, but the purple blood qi was still unsatisfied, moving restlessly.

Qianye hesitated, then took out the blood crystal containing purple blood qi and held it in his hand. As he began to absorb it, the crystal exploded, sending a massive surge of blood essence into his body, including several strands of purple blood qi. The total amount of blood essence was almost equivalent to a third of a vampire viscount’s entire blood essence.

Qianye was surprised by the amount of blood qi contained in such a small crystal, but the next moment, he was shocked!

The few strands of purple blood qi, upon entering Qianye’s body, did not get pulled into the vortex of dark primal energy created by the Mystic Chapter. Instead, they moved on their own, traveling along the blood vessels to near the heart, where they immediately devoured a strand of common blood qi that had yet to advance.

These purple blood qi were alive?!

Qianye was greatly startled. Fortunately, his own purple blood qi immediately sprang into action, entangling one of the foreign purple blood qi and engaging in a fierce struggle. The dark gold blood qi was even fiercer, blocking three of the foreign purple blood qi, while the remaining second-stage common blood qi joined together to fight the last strand of purple blood qi.

In an instant, Qianye’s body became a battlefield, with over a dozen different blood qi fighting to the death.

Qianye’s own purple blood qi, already at the second stage, quickly gained the upper hand against the first-stage intruders. Before long, it tore them apart piece by piece and began to devour them.

Even outnumbered, the dark gold blood qi held its ground, even starting to focus its attacks on one of the intruding purple blood qi, tearing it apart bit by bit. It was only a matter of time before this intruding purple blood qi would be completely consumed.

The common blood qi, despite having a seven-to-one advantage and all being second-stage, only managed to maintain the upper hand. Their attacks inflicted minimal damage on the purple blood qi, which, in turn, caused significant harm with each strike.

This battle of blood qi revealed to Qianye the true principles behind previously vague concepts such as blood poison, bloodline suppression, and the initial embrace of progeny. He also understood why the blood race placed such importance on innate abilities and bloodlines.

Blood qi was the source of the blood race’s dark power, and the gap in strength between different stages was so vast that numbers alone could not compensate. Other dark races, although expressing their power differently, likely faced similar situations.

By comparison, humans had a more balanced system. Even with the greatest natural talent, without substantial resources and extraordinary effort, it was difficult to fully realize one’s potential.

This difference gave more room for growth, allowing those with average talent but great diligence and luck to eventually surpass those born into noble families or with extraordinary gifts.

This might be the fundamental difference between humans and the dark races, and between the Dawn and Eternal Night factions.

Understanding this, Qianye did not sit idly by and let the blood qi battle play out. The foreign purple blood qi was also dark primal energy. He chose a primordial energy node far from the battlefield and used the Song Ancient Scroll’s Radiance Chapter to condense a drop of pure dawn primal energy, then fiercely struck one of the foreign purple blood qi.

The targeted purple blood qi, already engaged with the dark gold blood qi, was severely injured and nearly split in two. The dark gold blood qi’s wings vibrated, instantly pouncing and tearing it in half.

Qianye repeated the process, striking another purple blood qi.

With two foreign purple blood qi severely wounded, the tide of battle shifted rapidly, and soon, they were all annihilated.

The dark gold blood qi, having devoured two foreign purple blood qi, lost interest and retreated to rest. The purple blood qi, which was on the brink of advancement, remained ravenous, devouring the remaining three foreign purple blood qi before retreating to its rune, settling down.

To Qianye’s surprise, the numerous common blood qi received nothing. Even the foreign purple blood qi they had struggled to injure was ultimately consumed by the purple blood qi. They only managed to share a few scraps.

This was the law of the Eternal Night faction—always the strong first, even at the microscopic level. After the dark gold and purple blood qi were sated, it was the turn of the common blood qi. Without suitable sustenance, the common blood qi would also be devoured.

Qianye’s inner world gradually calmed, and outside the cave, the first light of dawn appeared, signaling a new day.

He finally understood why Zalun carried the special blood crystal without using it. The vampire viscount clearly knew its properties; without a source blood or a higher-ranking elder nearby, he risked being overwhelmed.

Thus, the purple blood qi signified a lineage far stronger than that of the Baien clan’s viscount.

Not far from the cave, Qianye felt the same sense of being watched. He merely smirked and continued on his way.

His movements now seemed a bit stiff and awkward, a result of the evolution of the vampire’s physical abilities after the purple blood qi advanced. Internally, countless tissues were dying off, while new ones rapidly grew.

Like every bodily transformation, coordination would take time to rebuild, and Qianye’s combat ability would be affected if he fought now.

This was another opportunity presented to the lurking observer.

In the distant wilderness, atop a dense canopy of a tall tree, a shadow flickered among the branches and leaves.

Watching Qianye dash down the rolling hills, the shadow sneered, “A night of cultivation and you’re hurt to this extent? You expect me to believe that? Your acting skills are lacking. You’re not fooling me, kid!”