"Evo lve." Shi Feng clicked confirm without hesitation.
He had no idea what use evolving the Blood Refining Stone into the Blood Refining Crystal would have, but it had taken so long to accumulate the Blood Refining energy that it couldn't possibly be a common item. Otherwise, the Nine-Headed Demon Serpent wouldn't have dropped it.
The black cube in Shi Feng's hand immediately began to disintegrate, transforming into a blood-red, semi-transparent crystal ball. Inside the crystal ball, crimson liquid flowed, and every single drop brimmed with powerful life force.
"How can it contain such dense life energy!"
Shi Feng could clearly feel the life force contained in the crimson liquid—it was only slightly inferior to Water of Life.
But Water of Life was a legendary treasure. A single drop could heal a crippled NPC, and if accumulated in sufficient quantities, it could even resurrect dead NPCs.
Yet now, the blood-red crystal ball held more than a dozen drops of crimson liquid that rivaled Water of Life in potency.
"What exactly is this?" Shi Feng couldn't help but open the Blood Refining Crystal's attribute panel with growing curiosity.
Blood Refining Crystal — Dark Gold-grade item. Absorbs the life force of powerful monsters killed by the player. Every 100 points of Blood Qi accumulated produces one drop of Life Essence. Can store up to 1,000 drops of Life Essence. Each drop rapidly restores a player's stamina and mental energy for two hours. (Current quantity: 12/1,000).
"So this is what the Blood Refining Crystal truly does?" After reading the attribute description, Shi Feng was stunned.
In the Divine Realm, everyone knew that stamina and mental energy could only be recovered through rest. Players couldn't grind monsters or fight indefinitely—they needed to alternate between periods of combat and periods of rest.
There were some recovery items, like gourmet food and outdoor tents, but those could only be used outside of combat.
Shi Feng did know of a few items that could restore stamina and mental energy during battle. But obtaining such items was extraordinarily difficult.
Water of Life, for instance, could also restore stamina and mental energy, but using it to let guild members grind continuously wasn't just a matter of luxury—it was something no guild could ever afford. Other similar items were priced comparably. They were extremely hard to come by, and even if a major guild threw its full weight behind the effort, it could barely cover a handful of elite players, used either for leveling up or to push through outdoor quest chains when stamina ran dry.
Shi Feng hadn't expected the Nine-Headed Demon Serpent's drop to be this incredible.
With the Blood Refining Crystal, he could fight non-stop without pausing to rest and recover stamina and mental energy. The time saved would give him a massive edge over other players.
The only drawback was that the accumulation process was slow. Under normal circumstances, it could only support two or three players fighting without interruption. If it could sustain an entire guild's main raid team, that would be almost unbelievable.
"Now that I have the Blood Refining Crystal, it can save me a lot of time."
Shi Feng's white-blade combat style consumed significantly more stamina and mental energy than normal fighting, and the Blood Refining Warriors inside the Blood Refining passage weren't easy opponents. In the heat of intense battle, stamina and mental energy drain would multiply further. The Life Essence from the Blood Refining Crystal was exactly what he needed.
Shi Feng tipped out a drop of Life Essence and drank it in one gulp.
Instantly, a wave of comfort spread through his entire body. The fatigue from continuous battle evaporated, and his thoughts grew sharp and clear.
"What a wonderful thing."
Shi Feng had originally planned to fight for a while longer before taking a rest. Now it seemed he no longer needed to stop—he could keep fighting indefinitely.
After more than a day of battle, Shi Feng had become thoroughly proficient at handling four Blood Refining Warriors simultaneously. His swordsmanship grew sharper and more decisive with every exchange. In the midst of combat, he continuously discarded unnecessary attacking techniques, pursuing only efficiency. His sword speed grew faster and faster, cutting down Blood Refining Warriors with the fewest possible strikes.
Previously, Shi Feng had never concerned himself with such things. As long as the monster was dead, that was all that mattered—why worry about how much effort it took?