Xia Zhi gently rubbed the blood-red badge in his hand.
He already had an item related to it himself.
[Embrace of the Vampire]
Quality: Platinum
Type: Special Equipment
Traits: Lifesteal, Alluring
Effect: Heals 20% of damage dealt; allows conversion between HP and MP.
Hidden Effect: +10% Charm; Charm effectiveness on the opposite sex is doubled.
It was a pair of sharp fangs.
Vampires, after all, are known as the Blood Clan.
So, this item could also be called [Vampire's Bite].
Xia Zhi pondered for a moment, then lightly gripped the blood-red badge and chose to transform.
A cold energy surged from the badge into his palm and flowed through his entire body.
Raising his hand, Xia Zhi summoned a water mirror before him, reflecting his current appearance.
Compared to before the transformation, not much had changed. Only his previously dull gray eyes had regained their sight and turned into a pair of mesmerizing crimson pupils.
He opened his mouth in front of the mirror—his teeth hadn't sharpened.
Only when needed would those sharp fangs emerge.
He then checked his skill panel, which now displayed a slew of new abilities.
These weren't elemental spells, but special blood-based magic.
[Bloodline Surge], [Rebirth of Flesh and Blood], [Curse of Blood], [Blood Pact], [Bloodshadow Pursuit], [Bloodpierce Blade], [Bloodkin Transformation], [Bloodbeast Summon]...
Xia Zhi was particularly intrigued by two of them: [Rebirth of Flesh and Blood] and [Curse of Blood].
For an ordinary vampire, [Rebirth of Flesh and Blood] merely granted rapid regeneration.
But Xia Zhi had many Light-based healing spells that could accomplish the same.
However, if cast using divine power, [Rebirth of Flesh and Blood: Divine] would undergo a terrifying transformation—it could regenerate the entire body from a single drop of blood.
Of course, this came at a cost. After such a rebirth, one's strength would drastically diminish, possibly even losing a tier in rank.
For Xia Zhi himself, this skill wasn't particularly useful as a life-saving measure—after all, he had [Revival Coins].
But using this skill creatively… now that had potential.
For instance: Demon God remnants.
Xia Zhi fell into deep thought.
So-called Demon God remnants referred to the remains of fallen Demon Gods—their leftover flesh and blood.
Using these as the foundation for [Rebirth of Flesh and Blood: Divine]... could it bring them back?
When he summoned his cousin's soul at the Ley Line Rift, he sensed many powerful souls buried within the ley lines—likely the fallen losers of the Archon War.
In other words, glittering diamond-tier treasure chests buried underground—precious mineral deposits.
If he wanted to mine them later, he'd need to prepare in advance.
By using [Soul-Summoning Banner] and [Soul-Guiding Banner] to call forth their souls, most would likely be weakened like his cousin, dropped to the Gold tier.
He couldn't possibly give each one a [Soul-Nurturing Pendant] and wait for them to slowly recover. That's where [Divine Rebirth of Flesh and Blood] could come in handy.
The other skill, [Curse of Blood], used an opponent's blood as a medium to place a curse.
Among the dark spells Xia Zhi had recently learned, many were curse-based, but most were combat-oriented—inflicting various debuffs.
But [Curse of Blood] was different. Its application was far more subtle—many victims wouldn't even realize they were cursed or who had cursed them.
And if cast with divine power, its effect would also evolve.
[Divine Curse of Blood]: Requires a sample of the target's blood. Inflicts a curse that permanently reduces one random stat by 1 point. This negative effect doubles every day.
A god-tier assassination tool, to say the least.
After reviewing these two skills, Xia Zhi canceled the [Vampire Progenitor] transformation. He'd explore the other abilities later.
While the [Luck Potion] was still active, he needed to get back to his original plan.
He opened his inventory and located a pink-blue hollow orb.
[Intertwined Fate].
He then opened the Evolution menu, placed the orb inside, and tapped the evolve button.
The system prompt chimed:
"Do you wish to evolve [Intertwined Fate]? This is a Platinum-tier item. Current success rate is 10%. Cost: 1000 points."
"Yes."
1000 points vanished in an instant.
A beam of light flashed.
"Evolution successful. [Intertwined Fate] has been upgraded to Diamond-tier."
Success on the first try.
Xia Zhi examined the new item info:
[Intertwined Fate]
Quality: Diamond
Type: One-time Use Item
Traits: Destiny, Bond, Eternity
Effect: Select the most compatible individual in the current world and forge a deep fate bond. The bond is unaffected by the rules of the current world.
Hidden Effect: The higher the user's tier, the higher the tier of the selected individual.
Recyclable: 10,000 points
Compared to before, its appearance remained unchanged—still the same pink-blue hollow orb.
But a new trait, [Eternity], had been added.
The effect now included the line: "The bond with the chosen individual is unaffected by the rules of the current world."
The hidden effect remained the same.
From Xia Zhi's experience, the more concise an item's description, the more powerful its actual effect.
This was a Diamond-tier one-time use item—on par with Prismatic-tier permanent items.
He took it out and held it in his hand.
And chose to use it.
The orb radiated a brilliant light.
Just like the last time he used [Intertwined Fate], the world around him shifted, morphing into a dazzling starry sky.
The orb's light grew brighter, then shot out as a golden meteor, streaking across the sky and lighting up a beautiful constellation.
Thanks to the astrology skills he had learned from Mona, Xia Zhi recognized the constellation at a glance.
[Chanting Throne].
At the same time, the system's voice echoed in his mind:
"[Intertwined Fate] used successfully. Bonded individual acquired—Furina (Focalors)."
Xia Zhi nodded slightly. As expected, the Hydro Archon, Furina.
Once the selection ended, the starry sky dimmed, leaving only the illuminated Chanting Throne constellation floating before him.
Its gentle starlight bathed Xia Zhi's body.
The system's voice echoed again.
"Do you wish to enter Furina's Corridor of Fate?"
Xia Zhi blinked in surprise.
Last time, when he bonded with Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, the system didn't present this prompt—his mind had simply been flooded with visions of her fate.
Was this because [Intertwined Fate] had evolved to Diamond-tier?
Xia Zhi thought for a moment.
"Yes."
Upon confirmation, a wave of vertigo washed over him.
The next moment, he found himself standing in a familiar room.
Familiar bed. Familiar wardrobe. Familiar mirror. Familiar bathroom...