Crow Immortal
Chapter 27: Beginning Blood Refinement

Inside the stone hut, Elder Li first whispered to Han Yu the cultivation method for the Breath-Concealing Art and the techniques for sound transmission. Then, gritting his teeth slightly, he condensed a drop of essence blood and handed it to Han Yu.

"The true Blood Refinement Technique is ultimately a cultivation method that cannot be recorded on ordinary paper. This is the only way I can teach you."

"You can either just sense the technique or conveniently refine my essence blood as well."

Han Yu shook his head slightly: "I'll just sense the technique. Please keep your essence blood for now, fellow Daoist."

The true Blood Refinement Formula required guiding the body's blood energy to form a blood rune at the Danzhong acupoint, establishing the cycle for the Blood Refinement First Layer. The construction of the blood rune, the cycle path, and the rune's position—without proper guidance, success would be impossible.

Once achieved, it would greatly enhance one's physical resilience and blood energy. Moreover, with sufficient essence blood, most bodily injuries could be healed.

Han Yu memorized this method, feeling a faint joy rising within him.

Wasn't this the perfect choice for his Spirit Refining Technique cultivation? He happened to have no shortage of essence blood to replenish himself and heal injuries!

After imparting the technique, Elder Li's face turned sallow, his eyes carrying a trace of relief. "Alright, young one, it's all done now."

Elder Li waved his hand: "Don't thank me. This marks the end of our connection."

"If you later tread the demonic path, don't mention my name. If you follow the righteous path, don't adopt the habits of demonic cultivators—I became one out of necessity, not something you should emulate."

With that, Elder Li turned and left, his figure gradually fading into the night.

Han Yu gazed at his departing direction, lost in thought for a long time.

The next morning, Han Yu made his usual rounds inspecting the Spirit Fields, glancing across at Elder Li who had also risen.

Elder Li wore a stern expression, acting as if they were strangers.

Han Yu didn't greet him either, returning to his hut to cultivate after completing his inspection.

After finishing the process of refining the Mystic Heart Fruit's medicinal power into spiritual energy, Han Yu began carefully studying the secret Spirit Refining Technique and Blood Refinement Technique.

If all went well, he would soon attempt to use this secret technique to refine one of his spiritual roots, upgrading from four roots to three, thereby increasing his cultivation speed and potential.

As he was examining the techniques carefully, footsteps sounded outside his stone hut.

"Junior Brother Han, are you there?"

Han Yu put away his belongings and opened the door to see Liu Lan: "Senior Sister Liu, did you need something?"

Liu Lan said: "I wanted to ask you something—have you seen Senior Brother Zhang today?"

Zhang Shan...

Han Yu's expression remained unchanged: "I haven't seen Senior Brother Zhang."

Liu Lan didn't think much of it, muttering: "How strange, where could he have gone so early? I'll ask elsewhere."

From her words, Han Yu realized Liu Lan didn't know about Zhang Shan's excursion yesterday and thought he had just gone out this morning.

"Is it urgent, Senior Sister Liu? Can't it wait until he returns?"

Liu Lan looked somewhat frustrated: "I've run out of spirit rice for cultivation. Senior Brother Zhang promised to give me some today, but he's nowhere to be found."

Han Yu didn't respond further.

Among all the menial disciples at the Spirit Fields, aside from Zhang Shan who had ulterior motives in befriending Liu Lan and was willing to share precious cultivation resources with her, no one else would willingly give away their resources.

Han Yu wouldn't do such things, and even the kind Senior Brother Sun Kang wouldn't either.

Now that Liu Lan was short on cultivation resources, she naturally came looking for Zhang Shan.

This was presumably exactly what Zhang Shan—the hidden Spirit Beast Sect disciple—had wanted. What Zhang Shan couldn't have anticipated was dying so quickly, becoming cultivation resources for Elder Li.

After Liu Lan left, Han Yu returned to his hut to continue cultivating.

He replicated two drops of essence blood to increase the blood energy for his Blood Refinement Technique. After refining them, he noticed his total essence blood had increased to eleven drops, completely saturating his blood energy capacity. It was now time to practice the true Blood Refinement Formula's blood rune condensation and cycle method.

However, Han Yu didn't rush to begin. Instead, he started cultivating the Breath-Concealing Art.

When reaching the Blood Refinement First Layer without the Breath-Concealing Art to conceal it, one would emit a bloody scent for three days and nights.

Han Yu needed to master this spell first before attempting the breakthrough.

Learning the Breath-Concealing Art wasn't difficult for Han Yu, as he had already mastered Wind Riding and Water Control to an extremely proficient level and was at the Qi Refining Second Layer.

With this foundation, learning other spells came more easily.

Within two hours, Han Yu had grasped the basics of the Breath-Concealing Art and was pleasantly surprised to discover that while its primary purpose was concealing traces of Blood Refinement cultivation, it could also mask his Qi Refining cultivation level.

Simply put, it allowed him to more naturally disguise his Qi Refining Second Layer as the First Layer.

This provided Han Yu with an additional layer of protection.

Normally, Qi Refining cultivators who didn't actively release their cultivation wouldn't have their exact level discerned unless encountering Foundation Establishment experts or those with specific detection spells.

Now with the Breath-Concealing Art, even when actively releasing his cultivation, Han Yu could disguise himself as Qi Refining First Layer, making it even harder to see through him.

That night, under a high moon and dark winds, the Spirit Fields were silent.

After waiting for Senior Sister Wei to return from Steward Wang's place, when the night grew deepest and quietest, Han Yu began cultivating the true Blood Refinement Formula.

All his essence blood concentrated at the Danzhong acupoint, his mind roaring, hands and feet turning icy.

Then this essence blood naturally condensed into a blood rune bearing a twisted pattern, symbolizing achievement of the Blood Refinement First Layer.

Immediately, the blood rune circulated blood energy throughout his body.

Han Yu felt his mind, hands, and feet gradually recover. First he felt "alive again," then increasingly filled with blood energy, vitality, and vigor—at least twice as strong as before.

Feeling the increase in bodily vitality and the ability to use essence blood to heal injuries and replenish losses, Han Yu knew the obstacles to cultivating the Spirit Refining Technique were gone.

From this day onward, he could practice the Spirit Refining Technique to improve his spiritual root qualifications.

After also practicing the sound transmission technique, as it was already late, Han Yu decided to rest and gather his energy to begin cultivating the Spirit Refining Technique in optimal condition the next day.

The next morning, checking his reflection in clear water, Han Yu was puzzled to find his hair remained jet black, unlike Elder Li's red strands.

Elder Li, after cultivating the Blood Refinement Technique, frequently experienced bloodthirsty impulses. After reaching Blood Refinement First Layer, he appeared somewhat younger, but red strands grew among his white hair, forcing him to now wear either a hat or headband.

Han Yu had always refined his own essence blood without such sensations or red hair growth.

How strange.

Going out in the morning for his usual Spirit Fields inspection, he saw seven or eight menial disciples including Sun Kang, Liu Lan, Elder Li, and Senior Sister Wei gathered together talking.

"Last night I really saw the light in Senior Brother Zhang's room... Who would have thought he'd make such a decision!" Sun Kang sighed.

Senior Sister Wei said: "What could he do? With Senior Brother Zhang's five spiritual roots and years stuck below Qi Refining Fourth Layer, it's easy to fall into despair."

"If not for losing all hope, he wouldn't have given his spirit rice to Junior Sister Liu. Clearly he had abandoned hope for cultivation."

Liu Lan clutched a yellow piece of paper with writing, her eyes teary and expression lost.

Only after approaching did Han Yu learn that Zhang Shan had returned once last night, leaving this note saying he was going out to seek his fortune with no set return date.