Biochemical Martial Arts: Supreme Heavenly Venerate

About an hour ago, just as Lin Rui had gone to meet Meng Weiyun, Lin Xi followed Zhou An and the Wang couple into a cavern beneath the main residence of the Zhou family.

To Lin Xi's astonishment, she discovered that the cavern was built with iron-hard stones, each with a width of ten feet and a length of thirty feet. Moreover, embedded within the interior walls was a layer of Yuan-suppressing stones.

Given the specifications of the cavern, it could easily serve as a top-grade prison, and it was even more secure than the jails of large cities.

If they, as beings of different races, were imprisoned here, their cries would go unanswered by the heavens and unheeded by the earth.

However, the air inside the cavern was very fresh, perhaps due to good ventilation or some other reasons, and it was not at all damp or muggy.

Yet, a chill lingered in Lin Xi's heart, knowing that the two 'grandparents' in front of her were demons, and both were beings beyond the realm of a fifth-level Martial Cultivator.

They could lose control at any moment and devour her.

These demons had already devoured Zhou Yunxi.

In their eyes, the deceased Zhou Yunxi was just a piece of flesh, not their granddaughter, which showed what state of mind they were in.

"Our Zhou family possesses two heritage artifacts, one of which is called the 'Blood Refining Mirror.' It is a fifth-level Magic Artifact that exceeds the imperial tier, and it is also the origin of our Zhou family," Zhou An explained as he brought Lin Xi towards the first room while unlocking the heavy door. "Though this artifact is of lower rank, it possesses immense utility! It can be used to reflect upon oneself, aiding in the refinement of bloodline powers, and it can also disrupt the enemy's bloodlines during combat, causing their strength to drastically decline.

However, you should avoid using it in battle, for the primary purpose of the 'Blood Refining Mirror' is to refine one's bloodline. The reason our Zhou family has risen from merchant status to having three generations of imperial scholars is all thanks to this artifact."

He had already opened the room, which was a small space about twenty feet in length, with only a rosewood stand inside.

Atop the rosewood stand was a mirror about the size of three adult palms, a dark golden color all over, with its edges engraved with numerous blood-red patterns.

Lin Xi's pupils slightly constricted as she thought to herself, does the Zhou family really own such a divine object?

Aiding in the refinement of bloodline powers—isn't that equivalent to the effects of a bloodline-strengthening serum used by those with different races? And it can be used an infinite number of times.

No wonder the Zhou family rose rapidly, with three of its four generations reaching the ranks of the imperial scholars.

Although this artifact is only of the fifth level, its value is definitely beyond that of a seventh-level Magic Artifact!

Not using it in battle is the right choice—who would be willing to use such a treasure for fighting?

At this moment, Mrs. Wang's eyes were cold as she let out a light snort, "To possess such a treasure and yet fall into the brink of danger, husband, you are useless."

Zhou An didn't argue back. Looking at the mirror, his eyes were filled with pain, regret, and helplessness.

The Zhou family had such a treasure at hand, and yet Zhou An's cultivation was only at the late stage of the fourth level. In the end, he was forced to rely on the mirror and undergo demonic transformation, truly a disgrace to his ancestors!

This was all because his Primordial Spirit talent was too poor and his will too weak to withstand the pain of bloodline refining. Otherwise, how could the Zhou family have fallen to its current state?

Zhou An walked up to the stand, took out an oddly-made dark red pouch from his sleeve, and placed the mirror inside it.

"This is the very foundation of our Zhou family, from now on, you will carry this item on your person and keep it with you at all times!"

Strangely enough, the 'Blood Mirror' originally exhibited strong fluctuations of vital energy, but as soon as Zhou An placed the precious mirror into the bag, no more aether elements leaked out.

"Next is the second heirloom of our Zhou family."

Zhou An then led the way, taking Lin Xi to the door of the second room, his eyes growing more complex, "This was once the object upon which generations of my family pinned their hopes, expecting to rely on it to establish an everlasting noble house. Unfortunately, now its value has diminished, and it can no longer be used. How you choose to deal with it in the future, well, that's up to you—"

Lin Xi's eyes expressed confusion and intense curiosity.

Not until Zhou An unlocked the complex door and pushed it open did Lin Xi's pupils slightly dilate, "Is this, a War Dragon?"

She had thought there would be a small room behind the door, but when it opened, Lin Xi saw a gigantic crimson 'War Dragon' skull within.

"This is our family's inherited War Dragon, the 'Undying Heart Dragon'."

Zhou An, while advancing, explained with a strained voice, "Nurtured with blood and care by three generations, with the hope that it might become a guardian like the 'Protectorate War Dragon,' sheltering our lineage for eternity. Alas, alas—"

Behind that door was a small stone platform with three sides open to the air, and Zhou An walked to the edge of the platform and looked down, "Zhou Rang, he nearly succeeded. This Undying Heart Dragon already possessed sovereign-level bloodlines, only a hair's breadth away from ascending to the eighth realm. After Zhou Rang's death, it even managed to travel hundreds of thousands of miles on its own, break through many encirclements, and return to Wang City from Luo Jing all by itself."

Zhou Rang was indeed the name of his eldest son, who had served as a fourth-rank Imperial Censor in the imperial court before being sentenced to death by the emperor.

Lin Xi also walked to the edge of the platform and looked down.

Below was a grand underground vault, its length and width both stretching to a colossal ten zhang, while the sunken space was seven zhang deep. Together with the three-zhang high space above the platform, it was altogether ten zhang in height.

The seven-zhang tall War Dragon sat slumped on a rough-hewn stone chair, with its head level with the platform.

There was also a six-and-a-half-zhang-high by three-zhang-wide tunnel beside it, leading to an unknown destination. The size of the tunnel just allowed the War Dragon to pass through.

However, the 'dragon' in Lin Xi's view, entirely crimson with dark gold trim, was in a deathly still state.

Its body was incomplete, having only one hand, one foot, and most of its heart and innards removed. There was also a hole in the center of its brow.

For a 'War Dragon,' these injuries were severe, but not fatal.

Yet the surface of this 'Undying Heart Dragon' showed no signs of life whatsoever.

"It could have survived, but, but our Zhou family no longer has anyone who can become its master, no one to provide it with the life essence it needs, not even the merest trace of life essence necessary to preserve its life," said Zhou An, his facial muscles stiff as he gave a wry smile tinged with self-mockery, "Three generations of effort, gone in an instant."

At these words, Lin Xi frowned, "It's still alive, just in a deep slumber."

She thought she had just seen a flicker of light within the deep blue pupils of the War Dragon that had opened its eyes.

Clearly, the dragon still possessed consciousness and was responding to changes in the outside world.

Lin Xi's eyes revealed surprise, as she had heard about the Tianji Star people worshipping the same war dragon for several generations.

The advantage was that they didn't have to experience the process of dragon molting and transformation, both of which were extremely dangerous realms, and a slight mishap could lead to grotesque mutations of flesh and blood resulting in death.

Even if one survived by chance, they would become an existence like a demonic dragon, and the one in Wang City County was likely the product of a failed dragon transformation.

In Tianji Star, not every demonic creature qualifies to be called 'dragon'; that demonic dragon was exceptionally strong in both vitality and power among the same realm demonic creatures.

The disadvantage of inheriting the same war dragon over several generations was that it could lead to spiritual contamination of the war dragon, causing a continuous decline in combat power, and the Martial Cultivator's potential could also be capped.

However, the 'Undying Heart Dragon' in front of Lin Xi was clearly different; the Zhou family had somehow managed to keep the will of the dragon highly pure.

——This could be seen from the color of the war dragon.

The best war dragons were those with a pure color, and it was even better if they could be embellished with gold, dark gold, or purple gold metallic patterns.

Lin Xi suddenly thought of the Zhou family's reputation as 'three generations of loyal and good', and her heart came to a realization.

"Is it alive?"

Zhou An paused for a moment upon hearing this, then regained his composure, "There's nothing we can do, we can't save it."

Bearing a war dragon not only consumed a lot of qi and blood, but also suppressed the person's soul, leading to soul depletion.

Especially the 'Undying Heart Dragon', which was ranked as a seventh realm super emperor, even a fifth realm Martial Cultivator couldn't bear it; they would either be drained dry, dying from exhaustion of their lifespan, or die from soul depletion.

All the more for this dragon, which was innately craving for nourishment from blood essence and was eager to restore itself.

Zhou An then placed the key in Lin Xi's hand, "You have the 'Blood Refining Mirror' with you. If you survive in the future, you can undergo dragon transformation by yourself. As for this 'Undying Heart Dragon', you can deal with it as you see fit, just don't let it fall into the hands of the Burning Saber Sect. They want its dragon source essence. The 'Undying Heart Dragon' has been with our family for 200 years, we should give it a proper end."

Lin Xi understood Zhou An's meaning.

The Zhou family had supported the 'Undying Heart Dragon' for generations, essentially sacrificing themselves with the hope of raising it to a nation-protecting war dragon with great strength and spirituality.

However, for her, awakening herself seemed more profitable, with greater potential, without having to persist with the 'Undying Heart Dragon' like the Zhou family predecessors.

And after all, even if this dragon was saved, its power would drop to the sixth realm and be worthless.

However——

Lin Xi suddenly clenched her fist, concealing the unusual luster that appeared in her eyes.

To ordinary people, giving up this war dragon was the best option, but she was different.

Having one war dragon already, she couldn't undergo dragon transformation again.

As for the burden——

Lin Xi looked at her hand, gazing at the blue veins that emerged on her fair skin.

Being imbued with the source essence, she should be able to bear it, right?

This was just a super emperor war dragon that had declined to the sixth realm, nothing compared to her own dragon which was truly deadly.

As her cultivation improved, Lin Xi had unlocked more and more memories recently.

She knew that since she had returned to the path of Martial Cultivator, she was doomed to die in the next few years anyway, so the life span loss of a few days from bearing this war dragon did not make much difference.

On the contrary, possessing this dragon might better help her uncover the truth behind her brother's 'death', or protect her brother so he could reach greater heights and survive on his own.

Lin Xi suddenly ran down from the stone steps next to her and came before the statue of the 'Undying Heart Dragon'.

"Xi'er!" Zhou An initially didn't understand what Lin Xi was about to do until he saw her suddenly force her wrist open with her fingertips and splatter her blood onto the 'Undying Heart Dragon'.

That blood was instantly absorbed by the body of the 'Undying Heart Dragon', vanishing without a trace.

Zhou An frowned slightly, then returned to calm.

Lin Xi's actions were reckless, but there was no need to worry.

Refining a war dragon left by predecessors was not a simple matter, it would take at least several months of consistent effort.

The 'Undying Heart Dragon' inheritance of the Zhou family, in particular, required a complete set of Secret Techniques to work together.

Lin Xi's bit of blood was nowhere near awakening the consciousness of the 'Undying Heart Dragon'.

"Let's go!" Wang's family, carrying a lantern, turned around, "We'll go to the next room." Continue your adventure at My Virtual Library Empire

Although the Zhou family only had two heirloom artifacts, there were still other treasures stored away.

Their family had only become a family of officials four generations ago, but they had gone through seven generations of management before that, and their accumulated wealth was substantial.

Lin Xi looked up at the colossal war dragon for a moment, then obediently followed behind the Zhou elders, leaving the room.

She already had the key and could come over at any time in the future. There was no rush for the moment.

It was not long after the door closed behind them with a heavy 'clang', that the 'Undying Heart Dragon' slumped on the stone chair started to gather a hint of azure luster in its pupils.

It let out a low moan, both abrupt and surprised.

If its three deceased masters were to be resurrected at this moment, they would be able to discern the meaning of its moaning.

"Abyssal source essence——"