Deep into the night, the snow mountain was exceptionally cold.
But the Ancient Demon Clan members were utterly unaffected. Many even lay shirtless on the snow, feeling the chill of the accumulating frost.
The sight of goose-feather snow drifting from the sky filled them with endless wonder. They caught the falling flakes in their hands, chattering excitedly.
Everything outside was incredibly novel to them.
Yang Kai sat cross-legged in a corner, refining and absorbing the spiritual energy left behind by those who had died in the recent battle, claiming their insights into the Martial Dao and Heavenly Dao for himself.
"My Lord." Li Rong approached and called softly.
Yang Kai opened his eyes and looked up. "What is it?"
"I've found something very strange."
"What is it?"
Li Rong hurriedly handed over the object in her hands.
The moment Yang Kai took it, he felt an unusual sensation. He stared, startled, at the irregular, fist-sized stone that was entirely crimson red in his palm.
His eyesight was quite sharp these days, and his knowledge of the world's rare treasures and spiritual herbs had grown from his alchemy practice.
Yet he still couldn't identify this stone.
It was a deep red color, felt damp to the touch as if just pulled from water, but no liquid clung to his hand.
What felt most peculiar to Yang Kai was that inside this stone, a surge of powerful, vital blood force was pulsating.
If one listened closely, one could even hear the sound of flowing water from within.
A thick, bloody scent filled his nostrils.
"Where did you find this?" Yang Kai asked, puzzled.
"In that spatial ring the man just gave me."
She was referring to Zhang Ao.
Yang Kai's expression tightened. "You can't recognize what this is?"
Li Rong shook her head slowly. "Perhaps Commander Hua Mo can. He is the oldest among our people..." As she spoke, she sent out a thread of spiritual sense.
Hearing her call, several of the Ancient Demon Clan's commanders gathered around.
The crimson stone passed through several pairs of hands. Each shook their head, having never seen such a bizarre stone. Like Yang Kai, they were highly curious about the thick, bloody smell, as if the stone contained a vast amount of blood.
"Holy Lord... might I also take a look?" Wu Jie suddenly spoke up.
Yang Kai tossed the strange stone over casually.
Wu Jie caught it, examined it carefully, then a thread of True Yuan burst from his fingertip. It seemed to create a peculiar attractive force. Under that pull, a stream of dark red blood was drawn out from within the crimson stone.
Seeing this, the Ancient Demon Clan commanders' eyes widened in shock.
Wu Jie nodded slightly and handed the stone back. "If this old Wu is not mistaken, this should be a Blood Essence Stone!"
"Blood Essence Stone?" Yang Kai frowned. Li Rong and the others also looked like they had never heard the name.
"So the things Zhang Ao said before dying might have been true..." Wu Jie murmured thoughtfully. "I had thought he was deliberately trying to distract the Holy Lord, hoping to make some secret move."
"You mean, what he said about the Starry Sky?"
"Precisely." Wu Jie nodded solemnly. "Because this Blood Essence Stone is not a product of the Profound Continent. It comes from the Starry Sky!"
A sharp light flashed in Yang Kai's eyes!
The Starry Sky was a legend on this continent. No one had ever truly reached it.
Last time, Yang Kai and Zhai Yao had actually traveled through the Thousand-Year Demon Flower to spend a year in the Starry Sky. But it was vast and boundless, and he hadn't explored much. After breaking through to the Transcendence Realm, he had immediately returned.
"Does the Holy Lord know that unique items from the Starry Sky often appear on the continent?"
"Of course." Yang Kai nodded. "And I've seen them."
Back at the Thunder Light Divine Sect, Du Wan had produced a strange stone from the Starry Sky to resist the Wind Eye's soul-blasting force, though that stone had shattered afterward.
"Most of these unique items are strange stones, probably drifting through the Starry Sky before accidentally falling here. Some are useless, just ordinary rocks, but others are priceless—this Blood Essence Stone is one of them!"
"How do you know all this?" Yang Kai asked curiously.
Wu Jie shrugged. "I used to know someone who owned a stone like this. Though his was smaller than this one."
"What is its use?"
"Why not try pouring some True Yuan into it, Holy Lord? You'll understand its purpose once you try!" Wu Jie smiled enigmatically.
Yang Kai asked no more questions. Gripping the Blood Essence Stone, he poured his True Yuan into it wildly.