The night was quiet, but the forest was alive with subtle energy Lin Yuan could feel. Every leaf, every shadow, every heartbeat of the surrounding creatures resonated with the Blood Core pulsing inside him.
Since his first soul absorption, his senses had sharpened. Colors seemed brighter, sounds clearer, and faint traces of spiritual energy now glimmered in the dark like stars.
The Blood Demon Scripture was teaching him, guiding him, reshaping him.
He crouched beside a stream, tracing the movement of water with his mind. The currents swirled around him,
reacting to his aura. He reached out with his senses, feeling the life forces in the trees, in the insects, even in the stones.
Everything has energy. Everything can feed me.
A rustle made him freeze.
Three cultivators from a nearby minor sect stepped into the clearing, faces twisted with suspicion and fear.
"You… the heretic prodigy? We've been sent to capture you!" one shouted.
Lin Yuan's crimson eyes glowed faintly. Sent to stop me…
how amusing.
He rose, letting the Blood Core within him hum. His aura expanded. The cultivators flinched.
He's different he feels wrong.
Before they could react,
Lin Yuan moved. Faster than the eye could follow, he struck. A red blur sliced through the first man's arm, severing it cleanly.
Blood sprayed, feeding the swirling aura around him. The others tried to attack together, but he anticipated every move.
One by one, they fell. Limbs shattered. Cultivation cores ruptured. Their fear, their struggle,
everything they poured into resisting him only made his power stronger.
The forest was silent once more, save for the drip of blood onto the leaves. Lin Yuan looked down at his hands, crimson-stained, and smiled faintly.
"The stronger they fight, the more they feed me. The more they fear, the sharper I become."
He lifted his head and surveyed the horizon. The world outside this sect is full of fools. Full of prey. And I… I will devour it all.