The Empress placed her hand on Li Yao's back, channeling her energy as she concentrated on refining her blood. In her mind, she reflected that unlocking the Human Emperor bloodline wasn't particularly difficult, at least in theory. Being human already provided the foundation necessary to access this lineage. The second requirent was more specific—one needed to be recognized as the official heir to the imperial throne and receive imperial essence from the current emperor.
"Even though I died and the empire fell with ," the Empress thought, "I never chose an official heir, so I remain the Human Emperor still. This allows to appoint an heir now."
[Get ready] the Empress instructed.
Li Yao focused her energy, preparing to circulate the bloodline essence that would soon enter her system. Her breathing steadied as she entered a state of perfect concentration.
The Empress continued her internal assessnt. "At my peak, I could easily produce pure blood level essence. But with my soul rely at the adult stage, I cannot regenerate my imperial body." Despite this limitation, she knew she could still produce bloodline essence—albeit at the half-blood level. It wasn't ideal, but it would suffice for now.
Gathering her soul energy, the Empress channeled everything she had into Li Yao. In the next mont, the blood essence began forming, materializing through sheer soul power. Li Yao responded instantly, circulating the essence throughout her ridians, allowing it to infuse her blood with imperial might. The essence flowed through her veins, transforming her ordinary blood into sothing extraordinary—the legendary Human Emperor bloodline.
After several complete circulations, Li Yao finally relaxed, having successfully refined all the bloodline essence. Half the blood flowing within her now carried the essence of the Human Emperor.
The Empress released her grip, her spiritual form visibly dimr than before.
[I've exhausted most of my energy to condense the bloodline essence] she explained, her silhouette becoming increasingly transparent. [I'll be resting for a while] she added before fading completely from view.
Li Yao nodded in understanding as she rose to her feet. "I should also get back to work," she declared, stretching her arms and legs.
Her expression then sharpened. "Why don't you show yourselves?" she called out to the seemingly empty forest. "How long are you going to stay hidden?"
"Kekeke," a mocking laugh broke the silence as a middle-aged man erged from behind a tree. "I didn't expect you to use a cloning technique to guard yourself. No wonder we couldn't notice anyone else around."
More figures appeared, materializing from various hiding spots until they surrounded Li Yao completely. The cultivators' eyes were filled with malicious intent.
"But it seems you've exhausted your energy and can't use it anymore," the leader continued, his lips curling into a predatory smile. "What a pity."
"We could've had so fun together," another added, running his tongue along the edge of his knife. "I've never seen such a realistic looking clone."
"Clone? Are they talking about the Empress?" Li Yao wondered briefly. It didn't matter—these fools had delivered themselves right to her doorstep.
"I was wondering how to test my power after my breakthrough," she said, an evil smile spreading across her face. "You guys have co at just the right ti." Her posture shifted subtly, ready to spring into action. "Co at together. No need to waste ti."
Li Yao's thoughts raced with excitent. She had already been capable of facing a Golden Core peak cultivator before her breakthrough. Now, with her special core, special physique, and special bloodline, just how much stronger had she beco? Could she match a Nascent Soul realm expert? The prospect thrilled her to the core.
The ten cultivators exchanged glances before breaking into unified laughter.
"Boss, did you hear that? She said we should go together," one man chortled.
"Hahaha, I've never heard such a funny thing..." another began, but his laughter died abruptly as Li Yao materialized before him. With a simple twist of her hands, she rotated his head completely backward.
A heavy silence fell over the group as the man's lifeless body crumpled to the ground.
"One down, nine to go," Li Yao announced, turning to face the remaining n whose confident expressions had suddenly evaporated.
...
The boss tore through the forest at breakneck speed, his lungs burning with each desperate breath. "Why is this happening?" he gasped between ragged inhales. What should have been a simple ambush of a lone rogue cultivator had transford into a nightmare beyond comprehension.
They had rely wanted to steal resources from soone who had just completed their breakthrough—an easy target, or so they thought.
A piercing scream shattered the forest's silence, sending ice through his veins. The horrifying sound ca from sowhere ahead, prompting him to imdiately pivot and sprint in the opposite direction. His mind raced frantically, trying to make sense of this catastrophe. How could such a monster exist in this world? She had just broken through to the Golden Core stage, yet she slaughtered cultivators who had been in that realm for centuries as if they were nothing more than insects.
His legs wobbled with exhaustion as he finally slowed, leaning against a massive tree trunk for support. Sweat drenched his robes, his chest heaving with exertion. Through the forest canopy, he spotted one of his companions attempting to escape by air.
"Idiot, you're totally exposed up there," he thought, though he dared not make a sound to warn his fellow cultivator.
In the next heartbeat, lightning streaked down from the sky with terrifying precision, piercing through the flying cultivator. The flash was blinding, and when the boss could see again, only a charred, smoking husk remained, falling lifelessly through the branches.
The boss pressed himself tighter against the tree, forcing his breathing to slow despite the panic clawing at his throat. "It's fine," he reassured himself, fingers clutching the concealnt talisman tucked inside his robes. "I've used the concealnt talisman. I should be fine."
Cautiously, he peered around the edge of the tree, scanning for any sign of pursuit. The forest seed eerily quiet now—no sounds of battle, no screams, no running footsteps. Nothing. Perhaps he had finally escaped the nightmare. Relief washed over him as he leaned back against the tree, releasing a deep, shuddering sigh.
That mont of relief was short-lived however. A sudden, inexplicable chill spread through his body, freezing him in place. So primal instinct made him slowly tilt his head upward, where his worst fears materialized before his eyes.
There she was—the monster—hanging upside down from a branch directly above him. A young girl with a face that would have been beautiful if not for the unnatural gleam in her eyes and the blood spattering her cheeks. She studied him with the casual interest of a child examining an insect before crushing it.
He tried to scream, but terror had sealed his lips shut. His body trembled uncontrollably as their eyes t, his filled with horror, hers with predatory amusent.
"That's nine down," she said, her voice chillingly playful. "Wanna guess what number you are?"
The boss couldn't respond, couldn't even blink as he stared into the face of death itself.
"Mmh, don't want to guess? Well, that's no fun," she pouted, as if genuinely disappointed by his lack of participation.
With a casual motion, she reached down and twisted his head, snapping his neck with ease. His body registered no pain—only the distant awareness of sothing fundantal breaking before darkness claid him.
Li Yao dropped gracefully from the tree, landing beside the crumpled corpse. She touched her flushed cheeks, the thrill of combat still warming her skin despite the ease of her victory. Looking down at the fallen cultivator, she delivered a contemptuous kick.
"Trash! Not even worth a warm-up," she muttered.
As his body rolled from the impact, sothing fell from his robes—a parchnt that unfurled slightly as it hit the ground. Li Yao's expression shifted, the bloodlust receding as curiosity took its place. She approached and picked up what appeared to be a map.
"A map?" she wondered aloud, turning it over in her hands.
As she examined the markings, her eyes widened in recognition. Both the Lotus Jade Palace and the Iron Spirit Mountain were clearly marked, with routes and positions indicated in ticulous detail. The realization struck her, these n were from the Wuming Cult. And from the looks of it, they were rely reinforcents. The main forces had likely already reached their destinations.
"I need to return imdiately," she whispered, all thoughts of further enjoynt forgotten as she gathered her energy and launched herself skyward.
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