"That's a hellhound. A demonic beast that lives inside the inner sect… what is it doing outside here? Did it run away?"
Jang Yue thought as he instinctively locked into a stance.
Why am I not running away? Am I not afraid?
He wondered while circling around the beast.
In fact, he couldn't explain his emotions. Ever since he arrived in the cultivation world, it was as if something had taken root inside him, he no longer felt any kind of fear and could act however he liked.
He was slowly changing into another version of himself he didn't know existed.
However, there was still one fear hidden deep inside his bones: the fear of death. Nobody in this world would willingly die, unless they were poor or had suffered to the point that death was the only escape.
The hellhound quickly bared its fangs at Jang Yue. Its teeth ignited in flames, and the fire shot from its jaws directly at him.
But one of Jang Yue's innate weaknesses was fire.
He quickly rolled to his left, dodging the flames.
The hellhound continued its series of attacks. It spat fire as if it were nothing; the flames grazed Jang Yue's skin, and even these tiny scratches left painful dents.
His heart throbbed as the hellhound relentlessly spit fire, until it seemed exhausted.
Then the hellhound lunged forward jaggedly, its legs trembling from weakness.
Luckily for Jang Yue, he was empowered by the full moon, filling him with strength to fight his enemy.
He quickly opened his hand, and his nails grew longer as they should. He shot his right hand straight at the hellhound's neck.
Suddenly, the hellhound retreated, trying to flee.
Smelling blood, Jang Yue could not resist. He chased the hellhound at full speed. After a while, he jumped and thrust his fingers into its neck, decapitating it.
Without wasting a moment, his teeth grew longer, and he sank them into the hellhound's body, drinking as much blood as possible.
The blood tasted like sugar, igniting his taste buds with sensations he hadn't experienced in years.
"Why does it taste like human blood?" he muttered as he continued drinking.
Then suddenly, something happened.
[Bing!]
A translucent screen appeared in front of Jang Yue. Red petals, no bigger than grains of rice, began to react inside his body. He could feel that the blood he was drinking was slowly awakening something deep within him.
[Conditions… Have been met for the Blood Appraisal Function.]
Jang Yue slowly wiped his mouth and muttered,
"Blood Appraisal?"
Before he could finish, a crimson translucent screen appeared right in front of him. Its words were vivid:
[Name: Jang Yue]
[Age: 17/134]
[Species: Vampire]
[Bloodline: Lesser Blood]
[Lineage: None]
[Cultivation Realm: Not Eligible]
[Martial Techniques: None]
[Divine Abilities: None]
[Flaws: Solar Polarity, Flames, Holy Energy]
[Traits: Demonic Heart, Lunar Amplification, Blood Absorption, Blood Appraisal Petals, Low Blood Manipulation]
[Currently Absorbing Demonic Beast Blood: 28% chance of getting addicted]
Jang Yue understood what "being addicted" meant. He didn't want to become dependent on blood, yet he didn't want to remain weak forever.
[(Note: Absorbing demonic beast blood can be used to create Blood Roots.)]
"Blood Roots? What is that?"
With common sense, he understood what solar polarity was, but what were Blood Appraisal Petals? He had never heard of them before.
Did all vampires have this ability?
Certainly not—otherwise, his mother would have told him back on Earth.
Maybe it was because he drank the hellhound's blood. That was probably the closest explanation.
But what exactly was a Blood Root?
Suddenly, the Appraisal System responded, as if reading his thoughts, through the crimson translucent screen:
[(You may choose to rename it if you want. 'Blood Roots' is a term I invented for the vampire cultivation path. It extracts blood from spiritual and demonic beasts, using it to form an engine that allows you to absorb spiritual energy and Qi.)]
[(I have prepared an aperture where Blood Roots can be stored for cultivation. Only six can be stored at a time according to my analysis. They will grow according to the demonic beast blood absorbed. However, chances of addiction still exist.)]
Jang Yue jumped to his feet in excitement. Not only had he gained an appraisal assistant, but the opportunity for cultivation was now evident.
His goal of creating his vampire lineage didn't seem impossible anymore. If he progressed through the realms, he had read in the book he was given that his lifespan would increase as well.
Eternal life was still a long journey, but he rejoiced.
"Heavens… gods… whoever you are, thank you…"
Suddenly, he clicked on [Demonic Heart] to check its info.
[(With a Demonic Heart, you can absorb Heavenly Tribulations into your Blood Roots and may comprehend Divine Abilities from it. You're resistant to heart demons and Dao Heart oaths.)]
[(With a Demonic Heart, you're a top-notch genius for all kinds of demonic martial arts.)]
With this statement, Jang Yue finally remembered what Gu Changsheng's father had said:
"He has a Demonic Heart, as if he was born to become a demonic cultivator… However, he lacks the major requirements to become a cultivator. He lacks spirit roots, and even spirit root pills won't work on him."
Thinking about it now, just from drinking that blood, he felt stronger. However, he was obliged to ask:
"Heh! Hello… what should I call you? System?"
[Yes]
[You may call me Blood Assistant, or (BA) for short.]
"Okay, BA. How do I create Blood Roots?"
[About that… I have no idea. But I know it's possible.]
That made no sense at all.
At this point, Jang Yue began to question his sanity. Was this real? Or was it the effect of drinking hellhound blood? Did it contain some poisonous effect that made him think he had a golden finger?
What did it mean that it didn't know how to create Blood Roots when it came up with the idea in the first place?
Then suddenly, Jang Yue had an idea: he could research how spirit roots worked in the first place.
If he could do that, creating Blood Roots wouldn't be a problem.
But there was a problem.
If he fought people the next day, he wouldn't have enough sect points to enter the sect's Demonic Library. Everything just became more complicated.
"Alright, I have to take the first step and avoid fights after I finish chores. I should visit the library and stay there until I find something about spirit roots."
Then he called again for the Blood Assistant, but it had no response, as if it had never been there in the first place.
"Ha! That must have been an illusion," he concluded.
But now that illusion had given him an idea. He had to find out how spirit roots operate so he could create a replica suitable for himself.
However, if BA was real, maybe it just wanted Jang Yue to discover it himself.
Whatever the case, Jang Yue was determined to become a cultivator.
Looking around, the hellhound that had been full of vitality was now a dried corpse. He hadn't even realized how much blood he had drunk.
"I wish I knew where to find more of this beast. Otherwise, I might be punished for killing a creature from the inner sect," he muttered while standing and staring at the moon.
In a simple sentence, the moon was beautiful. Its radiating glow could be seen almost everywhere Jang Yue laid his eyes. A gentle smile appeared on his face as he remembered what his mother had told him:
"Yue, you're my moon. Always remember to shine bright no matter where you find yourself."
Too bad she wasn't here to see the beauty of the moon like he did.
With that, he sighed and ran back to his hut. After all, tomorrow was going to be a long day.
***
The next morning, the hot sun hung brightly in the sky, radiating its beautiful yellow glow.
The Central Continent burst brightly as the wind danced past its citizens with joy.
Jang Yue slowly got up from his wooden bed.
He quickly prepared himself and rushed out to the spirit farm, led by the treasurer or the alchemist pavilion Elder, of the Infinite Demon Sect, Elder Meng.
Elder Meng was dressed in farming clothes and had arrived earlier than all the workers combined. His passion for taking care of spiritual herbs was extraordinary.
"Good morning, Elder," Jang Yue greeted with a bow.
"Ha! My youngest vampire, you're early today. Come and help me with this Grade One plant."
Jang Yue did not reveal his plans to Elder Meng.
However, what if he asked Elder Meng about spirit roots instead of going to the library?
Elder Meng was a treasurer and in charge of the Alchemy Pavilion for the entire sect. Surely he must know something.
This wasn't part of the plan, but anything that could help him save sect points was worth doing.
Jang Yue summoned his courage and asked respectfully,
"Elder, can you please educate me on what spirit roots really are?"