Chapter 2: Four Spirit Blood

Midwife Si Po Po pulled him excitedly towards the village and smiled, "Stop looking around, come quickly, today is your big day! Village chief, Master Ma, come out!"

A bonfire was lit in the village, and the village chief was carried out on a stretcher by someone. He said in a deep voice, "Have all four spirits been found?"

"They have all been found."

One-armed Master Ma dragged a large snake several yards long, bluish-green in color, still alive, emitting a foul odor. However, it was held by Master Ma with one hand, unable to move.

The mute blacksmith brought a large bird, which was even taller than the mute himself, but its wings and feet were bound. As the bird struggled, sparks of fire flew out from its feathers, crackling and frightening.

The blind man brought a giant turtle, larger than a tabletop. This turtle had lived for who knows how many years, with its shell turned golden yellow. Its four limbs were retracted inside the shell, occasionally a claw would stealthily poke out. Qin Mule saw that when the claw emerged from the shell, water vapor would form beneath it, as if it could lift the golden turtle and escape on a misty path.

However, the golden turtle was hooked through the nostrils by the blind man with a fishing hook, unable to escape.

"Qinglong, Baihu, Zhuque, Xuanwu. Although it's impossible to obtain the blood of these four spirits, using the Green Serpent, Iron-Boned Tiger, Thunderbird, and Golden Turtle as substitutes, we can still refine some spiritual blood, enough for our use."

The village chief nodded towards the butcher in the village, who grinned and crawled forward on both hands. He was a man with only his upper body remaining; his waist and everything below it had been severed cleanly.

Four jars were placed in front of the Green Serpent, Iron-Boned Tiger, Thunderbird, and Golden Turtle. The butcher, one by one, used a knife to let the blood flow from these fierce beasts. Before long, the blood of the four prey had completely drained.

"Pharmacist," the village chief said.

The village's pharmacist stepped forward. He had no face; his skin seemed to have been cut off, along with his nose and half of his upper and lower lips. He was the most hideous and terrifying person in the village, but Qin Mule felt that the pharmacist was the kindest person to him in the village.

The pharmacist came forward and took out four peculiar red leaves, each with a white insect egg on it. The pharmacist placed one leaf in each jar, and the eggs hatched, with the silkworms clinging to the leaves, drinking the blood.

These silkworms grew rapidly with the wind, the more blood they drank, the larger their bodies became. Soon, the blood in the four jars was completely consumed, leaving behind one plump and large worm in each jar.

The pharmacist sprinkled white crystalline foam, resembling salt, into the jars. Qin Mule observed in astonishment as the four plump worms rapidly shrank in size.

After a while, the pharmacist picked up the four worms, each only the size of a palm. He took out four white porcelain cups and squeezed one worm forcefully. The worm squeaked, and a cup of amber-like translucent plasma flowed from its mouth.

The pharmacist followed the procedure and squeezed out the blood from the other three worms' bodies. He placed the four cups in front of Qin Mule and shook his head, saying, "After all, these are not real spirit beasts. This is the amount of spiritual blood that can be extracted."

"Mule, the human body contains seven great treasures: Ling Tai, Wu Yao, **, Qi Xing, Tian Ren, Sheng Si, and Shen Qiao. These seven treasures are naturally sealed, like hidden treasures. Therefore, they are called the Seven Divine Treasures."

The village chief's voice carried a certain level of authority. Under the flickering light of the bonfire, his face alternated between brightness and darkness. He said in a deep voice, "The Seven Divine Treasures are in a sealed state and need to be opened by martial artists themselves. The barriers that hinder martial artists from opening the Divine Treasures are the Walls: Ling Tai Wall, Wu Yao Wall, ** Wall, Qi Xing Wall, Tian Ren Wall, Sheng Si Wall, and Shen Qiao Wall. The process of breaking through these seven walls is called Breaking the Wall."

One-armed Master Ma gently stroked Qin Mule's head and smiled, "If you can't break the wall, you cannot cultivate. Some people are blessed by heaven, and as soon as they are born, their Ling Tai Wall is broken, naturally opening the Ling Tai Divine Treasure. This kind of physique is called Ling Body, naturally blessed by gods, and they are potential cultivators. People with Ling Bodies have talents far superior to ordinary people and find it easier to cultivate. Ling Tai has four attributes, and thus there are four types of Ling Bodies: Qinglong Ling Body, Baihu Ling Body, Zhuque Ling Body, and Xuanwu Ling Body. To check whether you have a Ling Body, you need the blood of these four spirits."

The pharmacist said, "If you have a Qinglong Ling Body and drink the blood of the Green Dragon, it will activate the Qi of the Qinglong. Master Ma is a Qinglong Ling Body."

One-armed Master Ma untied his clothes and stood bare-chested in front of Qin Mule. He turned around, facing away from him, and shouted lowly.

Qin Mule immediately saw a green aura appearing behind Master Ma, extending from his tailbone to the back of his head. The green aura gradually transformed into a green dragon, with scales and whiskers clearly visible. One dragon claw extended to Master Ma's one arm, and two dragon claws coiled around his legs.

"This is the Qinglong Ling Body."

One-armed Master Ma put on his clothes again. "Si Granny is a Baihu Ling Body."

Si Po Po glared at him and said, "I'm not taking off my clothes for you old ghosts. I'll show Qin Mule my manifestation with Qi."

Her body trembled slightly, and a faint tiger roar came from behind her. A white tiger, nearly ten feet long, appeared vaguely behind her.

"All the people in the village have Ling Bodies. We were once glorious, but now we're just a group of old and useless old folks."

Si Po Po smiled and said, "We crippled old folks can't offer you much, but these four cups of the four spirit blood are the materials to activate your Ling Body. If you have a Baihu Ling Body, drinking the Baihu blood will activate the Baihu Qi in your Ling Tai. The same goes for Zhuque Ling Body and Xuanwu Ling Body."

"Drink it."

The village chief, Si Po Po, and others looked at Qin Mule eagerly, showing anticipation on their faces.

Qin Mule's heart was pounding. Although he had been given many strange things during his time learning medicine and herbology with the pharmacist, nothing was as peculiar as this.

He picked up a white porcelain cup containing scorching hot spiritual blood. It was a cup of Vermilion Bird blood. Qin Mule drank it in one gulp, feeling a fiery sensation rushing down his throat and spreading throughout his body. He felt as if a raging fire had ignited within him, causing his blood to boil.

After a while, the burning sensation subsided.

"Mute, is he a Zhuque Ling Body?" the village chief asked.

The mute blacksmith shook his head.

The village chief said, "Qin Mule, continue."

Qin Mule pressed the second white porcelain cup to his lips. It contained White Tiger blood. Drinking it felt like consuming copper juice mixed with iron slag—astringent and painful. After entering his body, the pain spread throughout his entire being. Soon, the pain disappeared.

"Not a Baihu Ling Body," Si Po Po shook her head with some disappointment.

"Qin Mule, the third cup," the village chief said in a deep voice.

Qin Mule drank the third cup of Green Dragon blood extracted by the big green snake. This cup of blood made his muscles and blood vessels swell and throb, causing discomfort in his internal organs. However, the swelling sensation quickly disappeared.

Master Ma's expression turned disappointed as he shook his head. "Not a Qinglong Ling Body."

"In that case, it must be a Xuanwu Ling Body," the pharmacist said, showing a rare smile, his face becoming even more sinister.

Qin Mule drank the last cup of Xuanwu blood, and it made his body feel light, as if immersed in river water. However, this sensation also quickly disappeared.

"He is not a Xuanwu Ling Body either," the pharmacist shook his head.

The villagers around the bonfire fell silent. The butcher spoke, "So, he's just an ordinary person."

Si Po Po suddenly burst into tears, chokingly saying, "We're all old and useless. If we die, he won't survive. This place is so dangerous, he won't last a day..."

Qin Mule held her hand and whispered, "Granny, don't cry. Granny and grandpa are good people, and they won't die..."

"Good people? Hehe..."

Master Ma chuckled self-deprecatingly and said, "We, these useless people, have been pushed to Da Xu and barely survived until now. Da Xu is too dangerous, and without us, Mule would indeed have a hard time surviving. We should send him out of Da Xu; it's much safer outside..."

The butcher said coldly, "If we send him out, our enemies will find us, and we'll all die. He will also be implicated and die."

Silence fell over Canglao Village once again. Suddenly, the village chief spoke up, "Alright."

Granny Si Po Po was puzzled. "Alright for what?"

The village chief smiled and said, "I mean his physique is good, he's a promising seed."

The butcher, the pharmacist, and others were all taken aback, not understanding his meaning. The village chief laughed and said, "I think Mule might possess a different physique, a Domineering Body that combines the strengths of the Four Great Bodies!"

"Domineering Body?" Si Po Po and the others looked confused. They were seasoned individuals, but they had never heard of the Domineering Body.

"Yes, the Domineering Body," the village chief confirmed.

He continued, "Ordinary spiritual blood is unlikely to awaken the Domineering Body. It requires gathering the true blood of the Four Great Spirit Beasts to bring forth the Domineering Body. The Four Great Spirit Beasts may not be found in Da Xu, but their descendants can be found. Keep capturing fierce tigers and large snakes, refining their blood, and drinking it abundantly. Naturally, it will awaken his Domineering Body."

The village chief commanded great respect, and the elderly men and women in the village, who were missing limbs and incapacitated, were delighted to hear this. Granny Si Po Po laughed and said, "Tomorrow, I'll accompany the lame guy to catch a tiger too! Mule, get some rest early, you'll be drinking spiritual blood tomorrow!"

The crowd dispersed, and the pharmacist and the mute blacksmith accompanied the village chief back to his room. The mute blacksmith left, but the pharmacist stayed behind and whispered, "There has never been a Domineering Body."

The village chief nodded. "I made it up. If I didn't say so, the people in the village would find it hard to survive."

The pharmacist was taken aback. The villagers of Canglao Village all had their own backgrounds but were forced to enter Da Xu and end up in Canglao Village. They had grievances against the heavens, the earth, and the world, with heavy resentment. Being able to survive until now, it must be said that Qin Mule also played a part.

It was the arrival of this healthy little child that dispelled the resentment in everyone's hearts. They raised Qin Mule, treating him as their own closest kin. Qin Mule upheld the fragile hearts of the villagers of Canglao Village.

If the villagers were to know that Qin Mule had an ordinary physique and couldn't survive in Da Xu on his own, these people might lose control, and who knows what they would do.

The pharmacist remained expressionless and said, "But you can't hide it forever. Sooner or later, we will all die and only Qin Mule will be left."

"So, don't tell him that he has never possessed the Domineering Body. Never tell him."

The village chief said in a deep voice, "Let him believe that he is the unique Domineering Body!"

The pharmacist was taken aback and carefully examined the village chief's face. In the dim light of the oil lamp, the village chief's face appeared particularly charming. He smiled and said, "I want to see if an ordinary person, driven by unparalleled belief, can transcend the ordinary and do things that even we spiritual beings cannot do! Perhaps in the future, he really can forge a path where the mortal body becomes the Domineering Body!"

The pharmacist was stunned. "The mortal body becomes the Domineering Body?"

The village chief nodded firmly. "With belief, the mortal body becomes the Domineering Body!"