"Heh. Did you really think I don't know the truth about you, Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan? If I still fell for your tricks, then I, Yang Xiao, might as well be dead."
With a cold smile, Yang Xiao's consciousness instantly returned to his body.
The Bloodthirsty Sword before him began to tremble nonstop. A smile touched his lips. "This little fellow can't wait, can he?"
The next moment, as if in response, the blade of the Bloodthirsty Sword trembled even more violently.
"Alright, I'll let you two merge."
He couldn't waste any more time. There was still much to do: subdue the arrogant Golden-winged Roc, continue exploring Celestial Poison's Land of Inheritance, and comprehend the Time Secret Patterns on the final three layers of the Inheritance Tower.
All of these tasks would take a great deal of time, but they were all necessary.
Fortunately, this was the Northern Wilderness Sword Mansion.
Especially here on the 3rd Layer.
The flow of time here was a thousand times slower than in the outside world.
One day outside was a thousand days here.
A thousand days.
That was more than enough time to finish everything.
So Yang Xiao thought.
His attention then returned to the Blood-Colored Broken Sword in his hand.
This sword had been forged from Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan, but it was mixed with too many other metals.
While those metals and materials might be considered precious in the Celestial Cloud Region, to Yang Xiao, they were nothing but impuritiesātrash.
His Bloodthirsty Sword, on the other hand, was forged entirely from Black Obsidian Goldāa rare, evolving metal that could be continuously compressed and upgraded. Integrating the Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan into it would be no problem at all.
Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan was also a very special metal; you could even call it a life form. Compared to Black Obsidian Gold, which could only have its density increased, Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan was a far more precious material.
With this substance, one could forge a Spiritual Artifact by mixing in just about anything.
Just like the Evil Sword from before.
Moreover, Yang Xiao knew full well that back in Ancient Times, every Blood Sacrifice Technique was created by Great Powers who were attempting to imitate the creature known as Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan.
In other words, the Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan was a life form that naturally embodied the power of devouring.
Once it was integrated into the Bloodthirsty Sword, the Spirit Weapon would finally possess the potential to evolve into a Divine Artifact, or even a Dominator's Weapon. This was a material that Yang Xiao, for all his power in his first life, had never managed to obtain.
Even in his second life, despite his noble status as the Flame Emperor's son, he had never possessed it either.
But now, he did.
This was why Yang Xiao felt it was his greatest gain in the Northern Wilderness Sword Mansion, second only to the Time Secret Pattern.
A future Dominator's Weapon.
Tsk, tsk. The very thought was exhilarating.
With that thought, Yang Xiao channeled the True Greater Yang Fire from his hand. The crudely forged Blood-Colored Broken Sword was quickly refined, shrinking smaller and smaller.
In the end, only a small metallic chunk emitting a celestial cyan glow remained.
Upon closer inspection, one would see that the chunk's entire surface was covered in a dense network of natural patterns.
"The Devouring Secret Pattern!"
Yang Xiao's expression flickered.
He felt an urge to probe its depths.
But he quickly suppressed the thought.
'The Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan is a creature born with the Heart of Devouring. Explore it with my current strength? That's just asking for death.'
'I'll have to wait until I'm at least a Demigod... no, even a True God wouldn't be safe. I'd probably have to become a Great Emperor before I'm qualified to even touch this thing.'
In a past life, Yang Xiao had witnessed a reckless Divine King who, after obtaining a piece of Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan, had foolishly attempted to comprehend the Devouring Secret Pattern within it.
In the end...
He himself became nourishment for the piece of Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan, even though he had already erased its consciousness.
This gave rise to a new Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan possessing the power of a Divine King.
And in doing so, it triggered a great catastrophe in the Ancient Era.
'I should first merge it into the Bloodthirsty Sword and let Little Blood's consciousness take control.'
With this thought, Yang Xiao acted.
He carefully merged the consciousness-less Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan into the eagerly vibrating Bloodthirsty Sword. As they combined, the entire sword flashed brilliantly.
Its devouring property, originally born from the Blood Sacrifice, instantly evolved.
At the same time, its grade began to rise.
'Hmm, it'll need some time to merge. I'll absorb it into my body to nurture it for a while. Who knows, maybe after Little Blood finishes merging with the Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan, it will jump straight to the level of an Upper-Grade Spirit Weapon.'
At this thought, Yang Xiao let out a cackle.
He had certainly seen his fair share of treasures in this life.
Lu Fangliang's Purple Flame Dragon Spear and the Heaven-Fighting Divine Palace he carried were both treasures of a much higher grade than the Bloodthirsty Sword.
However...
Yang Xiao knew full well that at his current power level, the best weapon was the one most suited to him. And right now, that was a Spirit Weapon.
Take Lu Fangliang, for example. He possessed a Treasure Weapon but could hardly unleash any of its true power.
'What good is something like that?'
Then there was the Heaven-Fighting Divine Palace.
Once Hanx Ziye left, the thing would become practically useless to him.
So naturally, Yang Xiao felt his own Bloodthirsty Sword was far more important.
After observing it for a while, Yang Xiao confirmed that the Bloodthirsty Sword's fusion was progressing normally, with no signs of any residual consciousness from the Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan.
He began to head out.
In his mind, he weighed his options. 'Should I comprehend the Time Secret Pattern first, or should I go check on that Celestial Poison fellow's place and see what he left behind?'
To be honest, he was more eager to explore what Celestial Poison had left behind.
But that place was also extremely dangerous.
If he could first increase his strengthāfor instance, by mastering the Time Secret Pattern to its limit, the Ninth Layer, or even forming the Heart of Timeāhe would be far more confident exploring the Poison King Valley again.
But just then...
His brow suddenly furrowed.
Because in his Sea of Consciousness, a profoundly mysterious-looking altar had just stirred.
Immediately, Yang Xiao's consciousness descended upon it.
He activated the Array within.
A humanoid figure of light...
Appeared on the altar.
It was none other than that mischievous-looking fellow, Yang Lin.
He looked incredibly pleased with himself.
In his hand, he held a strange orb covered in a dense mass of small, eye-like things that were blinking incessantly.
It was a deeply unsettling sight.
"Big Brother, get to the 1st Layer, quick! Your little brother here just did something amazing for you!"
With that, the figure vanished.
Yang Xiao frowned.
'That guy... What did he find? And he has to be so cryptic about it!'
Still, the next moment, he activated the small altar. A flash of pale golden light streamed past, and he vanished from the 3rd Layer.
This altar...
Was the very Core of the entire Northern Wilderness Sword Mansion.
The Space-Time Altar left behind by the Northern Wilderness Divine King.