Stronger with Crimson Modifier

Chapter 185 - 183: Refining God Phantom

A few moments later, the commotion inside vanished without a trace.

The tightly shut wooden door was pushed open from within, and Hu Qi strode out.

Behind him, light streamed through the gap in the doorway, illuminating the scene inside.

However, the room was now completely empty. The only proof that the Lower-Rank Black Blood Species had ever been there were a few scattered drops of black blood in the corner and the faint, lingering scent of blood in the air.

At that moment, Hu Qi looked up, his gaze fixed on a certain point in the sky.

There, the wind and clouds churned violently, like a roaring Giant Dragon writhing and dancing.

Masses of roiling dark clouds, like crashing ocean waves, battered the firmament.

The cries of swords and the roars of savage beasts echoed, deafeningly loud, as if they would pierce one’s eardrums.

Overlapping rumbles and tremors sounded like a Celestial God beating a war drum, shaking one to the very soul.

Clearly, such a huge commotion meant that the Black Blood Species had already engaged Wu Yu and Changzhu.

Hu Qi was not the least bit surprised by this.

His expression was calm, like the surface of a placid lake.

He did not rush over immediately.

With a light leap, he landed on the rooftop like a graceful bird.

Then, the aura of Black Stone—the one he had faked using the Twisted Light—erupted from him like a pitch-black pillar of smoke shooting into the sky.

The aura seemed to pierce the heavens, causing the surrounding air to tremble. It was like a boulder had been thrown into a calm lake, sending out ripples in every direction.

"I am Black Stone! All Black Blood Species in Black Stone City, come to me at once!"

A deep voice boomed.

At this moment, Hu Qi was still in the guise of Black Stone.

Upon hearing this voice, all the Black Blood Species in Black Stone City began to move.

The many Blood Slaves and Lower-Rank Black Blood Species, who had been terrified by the aftershocks of the distant battle, now seemed to have found their backbone.

Figures flickered, turning into dark shadows that rapidly converged from all directions.

"Lord Black Stone! What is going on?"

After most of them had arrived, a Black Blood Species from within the crowd cautiously asked.

However, before he could even finish his sentence, his head exploded on the spot, as if struck by an unimaginably heavy blow.

The next moment, a wave of red light swept over them, like a tide reaping lives.

The remaining Blood Slaves and Lower-Rank Black Blood Species had no time to react.

Once they were enveloped by it, they were utterly devoured by the Gorging Realm.

Modification Points +21 (1%).

Modification Points +18 (96%).

...

As he walked, he watched the continuously increasing Modification Points on his panel.

The smile on Hu Qi’s face grew wider.

Suddenly, a tile fell from the eaves of a nearby roof, shattering with a soft CRACK.

Immediately after, the ground and buildings began to shake as if in an earthquake.

Hu Qi jerked his head up to look.

He saw the dark clouds in the distant sky churning and then scattering.

A dazzling white light shot into the sky, as brilliant as the sun and impossible to look at directly.

At the same time, a powerful and terrifying pressure swept over everything like a tidal wave.

Even from such a great distance, he could clearly feel the suffocating oppression.

’Could it be a Refining God Venerable?’

A strange glint flashed in Hu Qi’s eyes.

This aura was so powerful that it actually gave him a faint sense of danger.

It must be known that the Three-Eyed Primordial Snake Spirit Devouring Map he cultivated was stacked with over thirty Inheritance Secret Martial Arts.

Combined with the physical enhancements from his Three-Eyed Primordial Snake Bloodline and the plunder of his Spirit Devouring Talent, his strength had reached a terrifying level.

As a Qi Dao Grandmaster of the same rank, Li Fengtian of the Sealed Wolf Sect had been beaten to death by his bare hands.

Not to mention, his strength had increased again since then, making him countless times stronger than before.

Yet even so, he could still sense danger from it.

The only possibility was a Refining God Venerable—a being who had surpassed the rank of Qi Dao Grandmaster and broken through the body’s third Divine Treasure, the Celestial Heart Divine Treasure.

Now, he also understood the source of the dangerous aura he had sensed from the pair earlier.

’As expected of disciples from the Seven Upper-tier Schools, I suppose?’

’But even a Refining God Venerable wouldn’t dare enter the Inner Earth World so openly. It must just be a measure left on those two. It just goes to show that the Seven Upper-tier Schools are truly different from the Middle-tier Schools. This is what you call foundation.’

"As I thought, it was the right move to use the Black Blood Species to force out this trump card of theirs..." Hu Qi muttered to himself.

...

Half a minute ago, just after Changzhu and Wu Yu had left the vicinity of Black Stone City, they were blocked by a gaunt Middle-Rank Black Blood Species with two bat-like wings on its back.

This Middle-Rank Black Blood Species was extremely fast and had easily caught up to the pair.

Even among the current Middle-Rank Black Blood Species, its strength was in the top tier.

However, facing the combined attacks of Wu Yu and Changzhu, it was beaten until it coughed up blood and its body began to break apart.

Normally, facing two such powerful opponents, it might have chosen to avoid a direct confrontation.

After all, no matter how good the meal, its own life was more important.

But things were different now; it wasn’t alone.

Its injuries only spurred its ferocity, and it launched a reckless, frenzied assault on Changzhu.

This brief delay allowed seven other Middle-Rank Black Blood Species to arrive.

"These two meals have some tricks up their sleeves! Let’s team up and devour them!"

The Middle-Rank Black Blood Species that had lost a wing gave a savage grin, roared, and lunged forward.

The other Middle-Rank Black Blood Species did the same, immediately surrounding the two humans.

One or two would have been manageable, but with eight Middle-Rank Black Blood Species attacking in concert, even someone as powerful as them were, in the end, only Qi Dao Grandmasters.

After just a few exchanges, they were in a sorry state, covered in numerous wounds.

A wound deep enough to show bone appeared on Wu Yu’s chest. It had a greenish tinge, clearly poisoned.

Nearby, Changzhu swung her Giant Sword in an impenetrable defense, its momentum as fierce as a raging storm.

She took a sharp step forward, her Giant Sword slashing toward a Black Blood Species with a dazzling, cold glint.

The Black Blood Species hastily raised its arms to block, but the force of Changzhu’s strike was too ferocious, and it sliced straight through them.

The Black Blood Species let out a pained howl as blood gushed out like a fountain.

But at that very moment, a massive wolf’s head suddenly appeared to the side and clamped its jaws down on Changzhu’s left arm.

CRUNCH! Before Changzhu could react, the wolf’s head tore her left arm clean off.

Changzhu let out a muffled grunt, slashing with her sword to force the wolf’s head back.

Although their desperate counterattacks managed to inflict significant injuries on several of the Black Blood Species, as Middle-Rank Black Blood Species, their Recovery Power was already absurdly high.

As long as they weren’t killed instantly, they could recover quickly.

With her right arm, Changzhu swept her sword out, forcing back two more attacking Middle-Rank Black Blood Species.

At the same time, the force of the impact caused blood to trickle from her nose and mouth.

"It seems we won’t be able to leave this place alive today without using the measures our masters left us."

At this, Wu Yu’s expression turned grim as he spoke in a low voice.

His expression was as dark as a storm cloud, and his eyes were filled with gravity.

"I’ll hold them off in a moment. Junior Sister Changzhu, you go first."

Though he said this, he made no move to act.

"Senior Brother Wu, let me do it!"

Changzhu, her eyes warily scanning her surroundings, completely missed the true intention behind Wu Yu’s words.

Her gaze was as sharp as a hawk’s, fixed on the surrounding Black Blood Species, not daring to relax for an instant.

As she spoke, she reached up, tore a pendant from her neck, and clutched it in her palm.

The pendant was a Small White Jade Sword, completely translucent.

As Changzhu held it, the seemingly dull White Jade Sword Tip easily pierced the skin of her palm, despite her being a Qi Dao Grandmaster.

Crimson blood seeped out, as vivid as a blooming rose.

The moment the blood from the wound touched the originally white sword, it was instantly absorbed.

VMMMM!

The next moment, a melodious sword cry echoed between heaven and earth.

The sound was as clear as celestial music, as if it could pierce straight through one’s soul.

A beam of white sword light suddenly erupted, shooting straight into the heavens.

The sword light coalesced, forming the hundred-meter-tall figure of a middle-aged man in white robes, holding a Longsword and bearing a scholarly face.

The instant he appeared, an overwhelming pressure washed over the area, causing the surrounding space to seemingly tear and twist.

Seeing this, the Middle-Rank Black Blood Species, who had been wearing mocking expressions just moments before, felt a stinging pain as if they were being sliced by a thousand tiny swords. Their faces changed dramatically.

"Hm? ...This aura... it’s one of those Refining God Venerables from the surface."

Their faces instantly turned deathly pale, their eyes filled with terror and shock.

As Middle-Rank Black Blood Species, their knowledge and access to information were naturally far beyond that of ordinary Lower-Rank Black Blood Species and Blood Slaves.

They immediately recognized the identity of this middle-aged man’s phantom.

A Refining God Venerable! That was an existence comparable to their Lord Food Master—something they could never hope to stop.

At this moment, they completely ignored the top-grade meal right in front of them. One by one, their figures transformed into streaks of Flowing Light as they fled into the distance.

"Master, I beg for your aid!"

Changzhu paid no mind to the fleeing Middle-Rank Black Blood Species.

A deep hatred surfaced in her eyes.

As she spoke, she coughed up blood, the crimson liquid staining her white clothes a shocking sight.

This was a protective talisman her master had given her, containing a portion of a Refining God Venerable’s power.

Creating a protective item of this level was no easy task, even for a Refining God Venerable.

It was only to be used as a last resort.

Yet now, it had been wasted in a place like this.

Her heart was filled with resentment and fury.

The phantom of the scholarly man said nothing, only nodding slightly.

Then, his gaze slowly turned to the fleeing Black Blood Species, his eyes revealing a hint of indifference.

He let out a cold snort, a sound like a clap of thunder that shook the void.

The eight fleeing Middle-Rank Black Blood Species were struck as if by a heavy blow. Their figures paused for a fraction of a second, as though bound in place by an invisible force.

At that moment, the man swept the Longsword in his hand.

The Longsword traced a graceful arc through the air, instantly transforming into a terrifying beam of sword light that spanned tens of thousands of meters.

The sword light was so dazzling it seemed capable of illuminating the entire world.

Wherever the light passed, the void tore and twisted as if it could not withstand such immense power.

The fearsome bodies of the Middle-Rank Black Blood Species—bodies that could pierce refined iron with their bare hands and were comparable to cast special alloys—were like fragile pieces of paper before this Sword Energy, tearing at the slightest touch.

The power of this single strike of Sword Energy was bone-chilling.

Under the impact of the Sword Energy, the bodies of the Black Blood Species were instantly ripped apart, sending blood and viscera flying everywhere.

A few unlucky ones were even struck directly in the head.

Their consciousness and souls were annihilated by the Sword Energy, and they died on the spot.

...

The very instant the phantom of the scholarly man in white appeared in the Inner Earth World, deep within a vast palace in the center of the Dense Forest Realm, a figure in black robes sat upon a massive throne.

The next moment, the robed figure’s eyes snapped open, and it lifted its head.

In the dim light filtering down from the palace’s glazed dome, one could faintly make out a face covered in dark green scales and a pair of eyes that glowed with a bloody light.

A tyrannical glint flashed in its eyes.

"A Refining God from the surface? How dare you run wild in my Dense Forest Realm!"