Zhang Xiaofan looked at the pearl for a while, and his breathing gradually calmed down. However, apart from noticing that its color and brightness had changed slightly, he couldnt see anything else unusual, so he put it back on his chest. He turned to look at Tian Linger beside him, only to see that she was still unconscious, but her face had regained some color, and her condition had improved a lot.

  He picked up the amber silk, took a closer look, this was his first time looking at the treasure so closely, but felt soft to the touch, very comfortable, thinking of Tian Lingers elegant figure flying in the air earlier, a wave of envy rose in his heart.

  He looked for a while, his hands also learned from Tian Lingers gestures and shouted: "Rise!"

  The amber-colored silk was like a dead snake, neither straight nor moving.

  "Hee hee hee", but it was just that grey monkey covering its belly with its hands, falling to the ground, laughing uncontrollably.

  Zhang Xiaofan glared at it, but having just gone through thick and thin with this monkey, he felt a few points of affection. The bit of hostility from before had all vanished. He stuck out his tongue and made a face at the monkey, ignoring it, and placed the amber-colored silk beside Tian Lingers body, his gaze following to look at the pond in the empty space.

  Its a small pool, not large in scope, with no visible source, probably formed by an underground spring. The water quality in the pool is emerald green, and its hard to tell how deep it is from here. On the west side of the pool, there is a gap, and the pool water flows out from there, converging into a small stream that winds its way away.

  In the center of the pool, there was a heap of rough stones of varying sizes and shapes, with only a small portion exposed above the water surface. Among the rocks, a short black rod was inserted at an angle, about one foot above the water surface, while the rest was submerged in the water, its entire body pitch-black, making it impossible to discern what material it was made of, looking very unsightly.

  Zhang Xiaofan didnt think much of it, just feeling that this place was strange and abnormal, and its better to leave early. However, Tian Linger, who had calmed down beside him, was still unconscious and couldnt be woken up no matter how he called her. In comparison, the gray gibbon was extremely spirited, touching its ears and scratching its cheeks, catching fleas and itching, unable to stay still for a moment. From time to time, it would climb up the tree, picking some wild fruits from somewhere unknown, throwing two of them to Zhang Xiaofan, then sitting down on the ground with a thud, eating with relish.

  Zhang Xiaofan took a bite of the wild fruit, but it was sweet and juicy, and he couldnt help but feel a strong desire to eat. He had been chasing after Tian Linger since early morning, and now it was almost noon, and he hadnt drunk a drop of water or eaten anything, so he was already very hungry. In just three or two mouthfuls, he ate one whole fruit, and was about to pick up another when he suddenly shook his head and gently placed it beside Tian Linger.

  Wild fruit filled his stomach, and Zhang Xiaofans hunger pangs eased a bit. His spirits also lifted somewhat. He stood up, stretched his waist, and looked around, but all he saw were ancient trees towering above, a small stream babbling along, the scenery was quite picturesque, who would have thought it would be so strange.

  Just then, Zhang Xiaofan suddenly felt a heat in his chest, and after a moment, he heard a few dull sounds like "crack crack crack", as if something was shattering. He was shocked and quickly took out the pearl from his chest, and was frightened to see that the entire pearl was emitting a strong blue light, with a fierce blue gas inside, violently colliding against the walls of the pearl, while the "卐" character true words that were restraining it were becoming increasingly weak and dim.

  Zhang Xiaofan had no idea that this seemingly ordinary pearl was actually the infamous "Blood-Drinking Pearl", a notorious object of terror. The origin of this pearl is unknown, but it has an unusual property: it feeds on the vital energy and blood of living beings. If any living creature approaches it, it will be sucked dry of its vital energy and blood in an instant, leaving behind only an empty shell. This is truly a terrifying evil object. Over a thousand years ago, this pearl was obtained by the dark elder of the demonic sect, Hei Xin Lao Ren, who refined it into a magical treasure using its ability to absorb vital energy and blood. For a time, he went on a rampage, killing countless righteous cultivators, his name striking fear into the hearts of all. Later, it became one of the four treasures of the demonic sect. After Hei Xin Lao Rens death, the pearl disappeared without a trace, its whereabouts unknown to this day.

  The monk Puzhi of Tianyin Temple coincidentally discovered this evil pearl thirty years ago in the Western Swamp, where within a radius of ten miles, there were only white bones and no living creatures, as if all life had been extinguished. The grievances and resentment filled the air. Moved by compassion, Puzhi used Buddhist methods to collect the pearl and every night, he would use the Buddhist secret method of subduing demons on it, suppressing its evil power. For thirty years, he never stopped, and at the same time, he used the Buddhist treasure "Jade Rosary" to purify the air and counteract the bloodthirsty evil thoughts. Finally, he was able to suppress this evil spirit, tightly binding it within the pearl, where it could not escape under the layers of Buddhist power.

  Unexpectedly, in the battle at Cao Miao Village, Pu Zhi was severely injured by a mysterious black-clad man and was on the verge of collapse. Although the black-clad man also escaped with injuries, Pu Zhi knew that he had not been fatally wounded and suspected that his opponent was determined to obtain the "Xue Xue Pearl". After taking the "Three-Day Death Pill", which could only prolong his life for three days, Pu Zhi made a bold move and handed the pearl over to Zhang Xiao Fan, instructing him not to show it to anyone. When he had the chance, he threw himself off a deep cliff, possibly harming some innocent lives, but this was still much better than falling into the hands of that evil person.

  It was just Puzhis misfortune that Zhang Xiaofan remembered his kindness and kept this ominous object as a memento. Without Puzhis Buddhist restraint and the calming aura of the jade rosary, the malevolent energy began to erode the seal gradually. However, Tianyin Temples demon-suppressing formation was not to be underestimated; although it had lost its master, it remained loyal to its duty and suppressed the evil energy for three whole years. But as time passed, it eventually became unable to withstand, growing weaker and weaker, until today, when it seemed on the verge of being broken by the Blood-Drinking Pearls malevolent energy, which would then wreak havoc on humanity.

  Zhang Xiaofan didnt know about all the twists and turns, but he had a bad feeling in his heart. During the battle at Cao Miao Temple that year, when Pu Zhi was fighting the black-clad man with magic, the "卐" true words appeared many times, and although Zhang Xiaofan was young, he remembered it very deeply. At this moment, seeing the increasingly critical situation of the pearl, his heart was anxious, and with a fierce determination, he grasped the pearl tightly in his palm and activated his shallow "Mahayana Prajna Paramita", pouring it into the pearl.

  The two were originally from the same source, and the "卐" true words on the Blood Pearl actually lit up a lot, but before Zhang Xiaofan could smile, they dimmed again in an instant. At the same time, a cold air invaded his body, and in an instant, half of Zhang Xiaofans body became numb.

  Next to him, the gray gibbon suddenly saw Zhang Xiaofans face reveal a painful expression, with a large amount of dark energy on his face. He let out two anxious "squeaks". But Zhang Xiaofan couldnt care about that now, he only felt that all the vital energy in his body was flowing backwards, all towards the strange bead on his right hand. And the Great Brahma within him was no match for this icy cold energy, at this moment his entire bodys meridians were convulsing in severe pain, the suffering unbearable.

  He could no longer bear it, stumbled a few steps back, and suddenly his whole body shook again. A familiar feeling of nausea surged up, rushing to his five organs. It was him who inadvertently stepped into that empty space again, but this time, there was no warmth to resist it.

  That grey monkey was in a great hurry, "squeak squeak squeak" calling non-stop, but no matter what it didnt dare to step into the empty space again.

  Zhang Xiaofans soul was in a state of great turmoil, he didnt know what to do, but felt his body alternating between cold and heat, like thousands of ants gnawing at him, feeling nauseous and wanting to vomit, yet there was nothing to throw up. It was truly a fate worse than death. His consciousness gradually became blurry, stumbling forward, yet completely unaware that he had walked in the wrong direction, only feeling his strength slowly disappearing bit by bit.

  His whole body trembled, his limbs were weak, and his legs softened, causing him to collapse onto the ground. At this moment, he had already reached the edge of the water pool, using his last bit of energy to activate the Taiji Xuanqing Dao, barely drawing in some heavenly spiritual energy into his body. Once inside, it transformed into a great Brahman-like energy, which slightly alleviated his pain. However, only an instant later, it vanished into nothingness. Zhang Xiaofan no longer cared about anything else and struggled to hold on, able to catch his breath for just a moment. The icy cold energy was simply too overwhelming, accompanied by a strange, nauseating sensation that nearly turned his internal organs upside down, surging up to his brain. Stars flashed before his eyes, his breathing was disordered, and suddenly, he felt a sweetness in his throat. With a loud "whoosh", a large mouthful of fresh blood spurted out, and he almost fainted.

  At this moment, a muffled sound was heard, and in an instant, the sky seemed to darken. The Blood Devouring Bead emitted a strong blue light, and the entire bead turned blue. A faint golden light flashed by, and the Buddhist mantra of "卐" was completely shattered. Zhang Xiaofans body was immediately enveloped in a blue aura, like a bloodthirsty demon, reborn once again.

  However, the strange thing has not ended yet. Almost at the same time as Qingqi regained his freedom, a loud noise came from the middle of the pond, and in an instant, the wind rose and the clouds surged. The broken stones in the pond shot out in all directions, making a crashing sound. The emerald green water of the pond suddenly became turbulent, surrounding the center and spinning rapidly without stopping, forming a huge whirlpool. And from the whirlpool, a black gas slowly emerged through the gaps between the waves, about two feet long, neither gold nor iron, with a fierce and evil aura, rushing towards him.

  Zhang Xiaofan let out a loud cry and fell backwards, the Blood Devouring Bead seemed to be stuck to his palm, unable to shake it off. Amidst this, he faintly saw a faint blood color slowly flowing from Zhang Xiaofans body into the bead.

  A loud whoosh, amidst the sound of waves, that dark short rod suddenly shot out and charged towards the cyan light flashing Blood Devouring Bead. A moment later, a deafening crash, two extremely evil objects collided, Zhang Xiaofan was like he had received a massive shock, his entire body was shaken upwards by over ten feet, on the empty ground below him, an enormous crater was also blasted out by this powerful force.

  Zhang Xiaofan fell back to the ground, his seven orifices bleeding, his head dizzy and his eyes blurred, but the pain in his body seemed to have eased a bit. He only felt that everything before him was blood-red, and his eyes were also bleeding. He rubbed his eyes hard with his hand, and saw that the strange black rod had struck the Blood Devouring Bead, with black energy flowing out continuously, attacking forward. The Blood Devouring Bead seemed to have a spiritual nature, knowing it was a great enemy, and withdrew its green energy to resist with all its might. The two sides were evenly matched, and the cold and nauseous feeling on Zhang Xiaofans body gradually dissipated.

  Zhang Xiaofan panted heavily, his soul still shaken, and subconsciously shook his hands, but the two strange objects seemed to be a part of his palms, unable to shake off. The black air and green light continued to fight ceaselessly.

  Zhang Xiaofan was terrified in his heart, only wanting to get as far away from these two strange things as possible. He used all his strength to climb up, but before he could take a step, he felt dizzy and his whole body swayed, his legs weak and powerless. His body tilted to one side, and he fell to the ground again. In front of him, the green bead and black stick were entwined in a fierce battle, seemingly enjoying themselves, but the black air was rising, appearing to have the upper hand.

  It only took a moment, and the black air surged in, the green light retreating section by section, seemingly powerless to resist. At this time, Zhang Xiaofan suddenly felt a sharp pain in his palm, and when he looked down, his heart almost jumped out of his mouth. He saw that on the back of his hand, around the spot where the Blood-Drinking Pearl was attached, bright red blood was seeping out of his skin, flowing endlessly, gradually forming a large drop of blood.

  Zhang Xiaofans body shook, his face lost all its blood color, and at the same time, the Blood Devouring Bead was bathed in blood droplets, suddenly bursting forth with a powerful green light, launching a fierce counterattack, not only turning the tide of battle around but also gradually suppressing the dark energy.

  As the blood seeping from his hands grew more and more, Zhang Xiaofan gradually lost consciousness. The bright red blood surged up, flowing to the junction of the black short rod and the Blood Devouring Bead, where it stopped moving, despite the green light and black air still clashing fiercely. After a moment, it seeped into this place, slowly dyeing the part where the tip of the rod and the bead touched into red.

  A faint scent of blood wafted through the air.

  As time passed, the red color deepened, and later it was almost dripping with freshness. For some reason, the originally entangled cyan light and black air all dimmed down, and from their original repulsive and struggling appearance, they gradually merged into a harmonious whole.

  It wasnt until much later that this strange transformation finally came to an end, the black rod and green bead completely losing their luster, merging with each other, making a "click" sound as they fell from Zhang Xiaofans hand while he was unconscious, landing on the ground.

  ※※※

  "Xiao Fan! Xiao Fan! Young Master!..." A series of urgent calls echoed in Zhang Xiaofans ears.

  His mind was a mess, and he only felt an intense pain in his head, as if even opening his eyes had used up all his energy. Tian Lingers anxious face, with a hint of panic, seemed to be both far and near, slowly becoming clear before his eyes. He moved his lips, and softly called out: "Shi Jie."

  Tian Linger was overjoyed and said: "Xiao Fan, youre awake?"

  Zhang Xiaofan forced a smile and said, "Im fine, Shifu."

  Tian Linger helped him sit up, and Zhang Xiaofans first glance was at his own palm. He saw that the skin on the right palm was completely intact, except for being a bit pale, there was nothing unusual about it. He stared blankly for a moment, but in his heart, he clearly remembered that just now, his palm had gushed out a large amount of fresh blood, so how could there not be even a single trace left?

  Was it just a nightmare?

  "Xiao Fan." Tian Linger saw that he sat up and was dazed, his soul not at peace, and looked worried, so she pushed him gently.

  Zhang Xiaofan woke up with a start, intending to tell her about the strange occurrence just now, but for a moment he didnt know where to begin. He felt that this matter was too bizarre, and even he himself was suspicious and uncertain. He hesitated for a moment before finally saying: "N-nothing, Shifu."

  Tian Linger finally put her mind at ease, but when she woke up, she saw that the sky was already dark, and she was lying under a large pine tree. Her junior brother, however, was lying motionless on the empty ground far away. She was frightened in her heart and quickly ran to Zhang Xiaofans side, fortunately waking him up after a moment.

  At this time, Tian Linger looked around and said to Zhang Xiaofan: "Junior brother, it seems that there is something strange here. Lets leave as soon as possible. Ill ask my mother to come over tomorrow and take a look."

  Zhang Xiaofan nodded, just about to get up, when he suddenly felt a severe pain all over his body, dizziness and blurred vision. If it wasnt for Tian Lingers quick reaction in supporting him, he would have fallen again.

  Tian Linger saw that his face was deathly pale, not a hint of blood color could be seen, and she was truly worried. She carefully helped him up, Zhang Xiao Fan composed himself, looked at his body again, didnt see any wounds, then said: "Master sister, I just feel a bit dizzy, its nothing serious."

  Tian Linger took another close look and nodded: "Then lets hurry back, its getting dark, Im afraid Father, Mother and the other senior brothers are all worried."

  "Yes."

  Tian Linger took a deep breath, checked her body all over and found nothing unusual, wondering to herself why she had fainted for no reason. Following that, with a wave of her hand, a red light flashed, "Amber Brocade" whizzed out.

  Tian Linger was about to take Zhang Xiaofan up when they suddenly heard a "squeaking" sound coming from the side. The two of them turned their heads to look, and found that the gray-haired monkey was standing beside them, grinning at them with its mouth wide open, holding a short black rod in its hand that was about two feet long and made of some unknown material.

  ※※※

  In front of the quiet hall, Tian Bu Yi paced back and forth, his brow furrowed, a hint of anxiety on his face. This morning, his daughter had gone up to the rear mountain with that useless Seventh Disciple to play at cutting bamboo, but until now, there was no sign of them returning. Su Rou had gone out early to search for them, and now each of the disciples had been sent out one after another by him, but on the Great Bamboo Peak, there was no sign of them, and the surrounding area was rugged terrain with dense forests, making it as difficult to find two people as finding a needle in the ocean.

  He was anxious, when suddenly a loud noise came from the sky, Tian Bu Yi looked up to see Su Rou bringing back two little ghosts. Looking at Tian Ling Er and the others, they seemed to be fine, but on Zhang Xiao Fans shoulder, there was actually a gray-haired monkey, who knew where it came from.

  The field was finally at ease, but the anger on his face did not retreat. Zhang Xiaofan looked at his master with two eyes, his heart was hairy, he didnt dare to move, and his head was lowered to his chest. The gray monkey was particularly mischievous, stretching its hand into Zhang Xiaofans hair to scratch and grab, as if it wanted to find a few lice there.

  Tian Linger put away the amber silk, and out of the corner of her eye saw her father standing in front of the hall with a furious face. She turned her eyes a few times, smiled brightly, and looked innocent and lovely to the extreme. She skipped and jumped to Tian Bu Yis side, pulled his hand and said: "Dad, were back."

  Tian hummed and said, "Where did he go?"

  Tian Linger smiled and said, "Xiao Fan was bullied by a monkey when he was cutting bamboo. I went to catch it to help Xiao Fan get revenge." As she spoke, she pointed in Zhang Xiaofans direction.

  The grey monkey on Zhang Xiaofans shoulder was startled, and it let out two "squeaks" in this direction, making an angry face, then scratched its head, and again focused its attention on Zhang Xiaofans head.

  Tian Linger made a face at it, and then roughly told the story of their pursuit all over again. "Later, when we were chasing after it in the valley, I suddenly felt a wave of nausea, and before I knew it, I had fainted. When I came to, I saw that Xiao Fan was also lying on the ground, unconscious. Fortunately, neither of us was injured. By the time we were ready to head back, I noticed that the monkey seemed particularly attached to Xiao Fan, so I brought it back with us."

  Tian didnt knit his brow, turned to his wife and said: "Whats going on?"

  Su Ru shook her head and said, "When I found the two of them on the back mountain, I went down to check and didnt find anything unusual. I think its probably because Ling Ers cultivation is not enough, and she insisted on bringing Xiao Fan and the others with her on the amber jade cloud, so they ran out of energy in the end."

  Tian Linger pouted and said: "Mother, what are you talking nonsense about? Im not insufficient in my cultivation. Xiao Fan, tell her, isnt that right?"

  "Yes, yes, yes!" Zhang Xiaofan hastily replied.

  Tian didnt bother to look at Zhang Xiaofan, and coldly said: "As a disciple of Qingyun Gate, you were actually bullied by a monkey. If this gets out, Ill lose all face because of you."

  Zhang Xiaofans face turned red, he didnt dare make a sound, and hung his head low.

  Su Rou walked over and pulled Tian Lingers hand, softly saying: "You havent eaten all day, are you hungry?"

  Tian Linger stuck out her tongue and smiled: "Im so hungry, Mother!"

  Su Rou glared at her and dragged her towards the kitchen, saying: "Youre so young but youre already so mischievous!"

  Zhang Xiaofan also felt hungry in his stomach at this moment, but in front of Tian Naiyi, he didnt dare to move. He listened as Su Rou and Tian Linger went far away, but his master was still motionless. He secretly raised his eyes and saw that the hall was empty, with no one left. Tian Naiyi had unknowingly walked away, probably thinking in his heart that this stupid disciple was a waste of energy.

  Zhang Xiaofan was momentarily stunned, standing still for a long time, until his stomach growled with hunger. He then turned around, but subconsciously didnt want to head towards the kitchen, instead walking towards his own room.

  Back in the room, he closed the door tightly. The gray monkey on his shoulder looked around and let out a "squeak" as if it knew it was home. It jumped down from his shoulder, ran to the bed in three or four strides, bounced up and down, grabbed the pillow and swung it wildly, overjoyed.

  Zhang Xiaofan looked at the gray monkey, a hint of a smile appeared on his mouth, but was immediately suppressed by his hunger. He sat down beside the table, poured himself a cup of cold water that had been left overnight from the teapot, and drank it down.

  A chill ran down his spine.

  He sat for a while, then reached into his pocket and pulled out an object, which was that ugly short rod. At this moment, the bead given to him by Pu Zhi had been tightly connected with the unknown short rod, and even the color had changed to a dark blue-black color, with a dark red at the joint, as if it were congealed blood stains, not only ugly, but also somewhat nauseating.

  He gazed for a moment, then suddenly let out a bitter laugh, and with a forceful flick of his wrist, he flung the short rod towards the wall. The rod hit the wall with a loud crash, and then fell to the ground, landing in a corner of the room.

  That grey monkey was startled, looked up at Zhang Xiaofan, and didnt know why he was in a bad mood. Zhang Xiaofan sighed, took off his shoes and got into bed, covering himself with the quilt and fell asleep. The monkey touched its head, bewildered.

  That night, Zhang Xiaofan tossed and turned, his stomach growling with hunger, until late at night, he finally fell asleep in a daze.