"Boom!"
A sudden clap of thunder echoed inside his brain.
His vital energy and blood surged, burning fiercely.
In Xiao Guizi's perception, he was like an erupting volcano, his vital energy flooding everything like molten lava.
It was unbearably hot!
Was this Blood Energy Pill really this potent?
He kept circulating his vital energy, converting the searing heat into internal strength.
Yet the paltry amount of vital energy he circulated through the Blood Shadow Divine Art was merely a drop in the bucket, entirely useless.
Before he knew it, he had stripped off all his clothes.
He staggered blindly around the courtyard like a headless fly, his fingernails clawing bloody trails all over his body.
"It's too hot!"
His brain was burning too.
His mind felt like boiling lava.
Xiao Guizi had lost all control.
Cold Palace.
Gu Xinchao pressed his lips together.
As expected...
There were no good people in the imperial palace.
Though the silencing may have been delayed, it had come in the end.
The Blood Energy Pill Xiao Guizi had swallowed was probably far from orthodox; it was most likely laced with something else.
Something that would cause one's vital energy to spin out of control.
Something that would burn a man alive from the inside out with his own blood.
"Thud!"
With a muffled groan, Xiao Guizi fell backward.
He crawled desperately across the ground, making his way all the way to the veranda—most likely intending to crawl toward Wu Dafu.
Yet by the time he reached the veranda, he had run out of strength.
He couldn't manage to crawl up onto the wooden platform.
He struggled and rolled onto his back.
"Blech!"
He opened his mouth and spewed a mouthful of bright crimson blood.
Frothy blood filled his mouth, gushing out in a steady stream.
Xiao Guizi's head lolled to one side, resting limply against his shoulder as all breath left him. Yet his eyes remained wide open, staring unblinkingly at the tangerine sunset and, far off in the distance, at the soaring Tongtian Tower atop the peak of the Eight Sceneries Mountain.
Dead?
Indeed, he was dead!
The Demon Seed went quiet, as if falling into a deep slumber, and Gu Xinchao could no longer observe the world through Xiao Guizi's perspective.
At this, he felt a brief pang of regret.
Yet that regret dissipated almost instantly.
Energy!
An incomparably pure and immense torrent of energy poured down from the void.
Like a gentle rain, it fell entirely upon him.
After a few breaths, the entire process came to an end, fading into nothingness.
Once it was over, Gu Xinchao's body underwent a heaven-shaking transformation. He clenched his fist, feeling that a single punch now would pack a force of at least two to three hundred catties.
Energy circulated throughout his entire body, strengthening his skin, flesh, bones, and internal organs.
So that was it...
The moment a host died, their energy would be transmitted back by the Demon Seed and absorbed by him, serving as a one-time bounty.
Xiao Guizi had been at the Organ Refining Realm (Early).
Which meant that he himself was now at the Organ Refining Realm (Early).
An infant at the Organ Refining Realm (Early).
Not even a month old.
Terrifying beyond belief!
...
"Squeak!"
The door slowly opened.
Wu Dafu walked out of the room, his back hunched, exhaustion evident in every line of his body.
He stood on the veranda, right beside Xiao Guizi's corpse, and looked down at that face with its unclosed eyes, letting out a soft sigh.
"Child, don't blame your godfather for being ruthless..."
"Could you have survived after doing something like that?"
"Let alone you, even your godfather doesn't know how much longer he has to live!"
With that, he leaned down.
He reached out, intending to close Xiao Guizi's eyelids so he wouldn't die with eternal regret, but halfway through the motion, he stopped.
He straightened up, his face devoid of any lingering softness.
In the imperial palace, the greatest taboo was the genuine display of human emotion.
Even when entirely alone, one had to keep up appearances and reveal nothing.
This was the first rule of survival.
Wu Dafu understood this all too well.
Then, he left.
Before long, Wu Dafu returned with someone in tow.
"Xiaobao, your older brother Xiao Guizi suffered a deviation while training and tragically perished. Take him to Dingfu Village and have the people there arrange a burial for him..."
"Here is ten taels of silver; take it to smooth things over."
Wu Dafu said to the eunuch named Xiaobao.
This person was about the same age as Xiao Guizi, around sixteen or seventeen, with a pale complexion and fairly handsome features. The only problem was his gaze—it was somewhat vacant and lacked alertness, commonly known as being simple-minded, which dragged down his overall appearance.
"Oh!"
He replied foolishly.
Then, he turned his head to look at the deceased Xiao Guizi, his expression still blank and unchanging.
He showed neither sorrow nor curiosity; corpses and the like seemed to be a common sight to him.
"Sigh!"
Wu Dafu sighed.
"Xiaobao, a man must never be impatient in life. If you walk too fast without watching your step, you're bound to step in dog shit..."
"Oh!"
Xiaobao blinked and gave a simple acknowledgment.
There was no telling whether he had grasped the subtext or not.
"Silly boy!"
"Blessed are the simple-minded!"
Wu Dafu chuckled, letting out a soft sigh.
"Go on!"
"Close your older brother Xiao Guizi's eyes so he doesn't die with lingering grievances..."
He waved his hand, looking listless.
"Mm."
Xiaobao nodded and bent down.
He reached out, placing his hand on Xiao Guizi's face, and closed his eyelids.
The very instant Xiaobao touched Xiao Guizi's corpse, Gu Xinchao felt a jolt of awareness, and the previously dormant Demon Seed stirred to life once more.
Formless Heavenly Demon Wondrous Transformation.
Initiated.
The Demon Seed silently entered Xiaobao's Consciousness Sea, instantly merging with his soul.
Xiaobao remained entirely oblivious to this.
He muttered inwardly to himself.
"Big Brother Xiao Guizi, have a safe journey. Though I don't know why you lost your life, I suppose you got what you wished for and died a worthy death..."
"When your seventh-day death rites arrive, I'll burn a stick of incense for you!"
Though he looked foolish on the outside, Xiaobao's inner monologue was extraordinarily rich.
He looked like a pig on the outside.
While singing a tune on the inside.
That described this fellow to a T.
Interesting!
Gu Xinchao smiled.
He had every reason to be satisfied.
This Demon Seed had found a new host.
Moreover, because his own strength had increased and he had stepped into the Body Tempering Realm, a brand-new Demon Seed had split off within his soul.
At that moment, it was suspended quietly inside his Consciousness Sea.
Now, he possessed two Demon Seeds.
In the future, as his strength grew, even more Demon Seeds would split off.
What if every single Demon Seed found a host, and those hosts kept courting death for various reasons?
Even if they didn't die, using the Demon Seed to lure them into bitter and diligent cultivation, constantly feeding energy back to him, would work just as well.
Just thinking about it made him happy!
"Giggle..."
Gu Xinchao couldn't help letting out a chuckle.
"My boy, what's making you so happy?"
"Is it because of Mommy?"
Noble Consort Lan looked down at the giggling Gu Xinchao and smiled softly as well.
As she smiled, a deep dimple appeared at the corner of her left lip, making her look exceptionally pretty, though the smile vanished almost as quickly as it came.
She furrowed her brows, a flash of pain crossing her face.
Gu Xinchao looked up at her, reigning in his laughter.
"I must have eaten something bad..."
Noble Consort Lan muttered.
"My boy, lie down nicely..."
"Mommy will be right back."
With that, she picked up the cotton quilt from the couch and folded it along the edge of the bed to prevent Gu Xinchao from rolling off.
There was really no need for that, though!
A newborn baby couldn't roll over yet.
As soon as Noble Consort Lan left, Gu Xinchao wanted to sit up.
Suddenly, a woman wearing a red dress appeared directly above the bed, suspended face-down and parallel to the mattress.
Her face was pale, and bloody scratches flickered in and out of existence upon it.
Her black hair hung down, swaying in the air like aquatic weeds, descending toward Gu Xinchao as if to wrap him up entirely.
Pushing people too far!
Gu Xinchao clenched his tiny fists.