'This is it!'
Xian Tiandi grabbed the jade bottle from the altar with trembling hands. His fingers shook slightly, though whether from cold or excitement he could not tell. His fingers were still wet and cold from the lake.
Next to the jade bottle was the vial of Phoenix Tears that had just been revealed from the hidden compartment. He picked that up too with his other hand.
The vial was warm to the touch. The red liquid inside glowed with an intense light that pulsed rhythmically like a heartbeat.
He uncorked the vial carefully and poured the Phoenix Tears into the jade bottle with the golden pill. His hands steadied as he focused completely.
The moment the red liquid touched the pill, a visible reaction began immediately.
The combination turned bright gold with red streaks swirling through it in complex patterns.
It looked alive, moving on its own inside the bottle. Small bubbles rose to the surface.
Energy radiated from the mixture.
Xian Tiandi brought the bottle to his lips without hesitation. He hesitated for just one second as doubt flickered through his mind.
Then he pushed it aside and drank everything in one gulp.
'Plot Amour, I choose you.'
The liquid was hot going down his throat, almost burning. It tasted metallic and sweet at the same time. He swallowed it all, not leaving a single drop.
For a moment, nothing happened. The world was quiet. He stood there waiting, wondering if it had worked.
Then pain exploded through his entire body without warning. It was devastating, unlike anything he had ever felt in either of his lives. The intensity was beyond description.
He collapsed onto the altar immediately, his legs giving out. His muscles spasmed violently and completely out of his control. His back arched painfully.
His fingers clawed at the stone surface of the altar, scraping against it. His teeth clenched together so hard his jaw ached.
It felt like his blood was boiling and freezing at the same time. The sensations contradicted each other impossibly.
Every cell in his body screamed in agony. His Spirit Blood was being destroyed at the cellular level, torn apart completely by the pill's energy.
Then it began rebuilding immediately, reconstructing itself into something new and different.
Golden and red light burst from his skin in waves, illuminating the entire cave with bright flashes. The light reflected off the water and walls.
The spirit watched with eyes growing wider and wider. Shock filled his transparent face.
"You truly have Dual Physique!" he exclaimed loudly, his voice echoing.
"Impossible! This is—"
His words cut off suddenly mid-sentence. His form began dissipating rapidly, fading away much faster than before.
The time had come for him to disappear completely.
But instead of accepting his fate peacefully, something unexpected happened.
Something changed in the spirit's expression dramatically.
Shock transformed into sudden greed. His kind eyes became hungry and desperate.
The warmth disappeared, replaced by naked desire.
"Supreme Grade Spirit Blood!" the spirit shouted, his voice taking on a different quality.
"This is my chance for rebirth! I don't have to die!"
The spirit lunged forward with shocking speed that contradicted his fading form. His remnant consciousness attacked without hesitation, attempting to possess Xian Tiandi's body and take over his soul completely.
The ghostly form dove straight into Xian Tiandi's chest, merging with his physical body forcefully.
*Swoosh!*
But something went wrong immediately and catastrophically.
The moment the spirit entered his body and tried to take control, Xian Tiandi's Earth soul acted as an unmovable anchor deep within. It was like hitting a solid wall at full speed.
The foreign spirit could not merge with it at all. The two souls were fundamentally incompatible, coming from different worlds entirely.
Instead of possession, something else happened that neither expected.
The Supreme Grade Spirit Blood that was forming reacted violently to the invasion.
It recognized the spirit as a threat, an intruder trying to harm its host.
The bloodline's instinct activated. It began absorbing the remnant spirit completely and automatically.
The spirit was being treated as energy to be consumed, fuel for the transformation still happening in Xian Tiandi's body.
The old man's face twisted in horror and disbelief. "No! What is happening?" he screamed desperately. "Stop! STOP!"
But there was no stopping it now. The process was automatic and irreversible. His consciousness dissolved piece by piece, breaking apart like smoke in wind.
Everything the Sovereign had learned and mastered in his long life began flowing into Xian Tiandi like a massive flood.
Memories rushed in rapidly. Knowledge transferred forcefully. Techniques, insights, experiences, understanding—all of it poured into Xian Tiandi's mind in an overwhelming torrent that threatened to drown his consciousness.
When the absorption finally ended completely, Xian Tiandi gasped for air desperately. His body stopped convulsing and went limp.
The pain from the transformation was fading now, becoming bearable instead of agonizing. He lay on the altar completely exhausted, unable to move.
Sweat covered his entire body in a thick layer. His robes were soaked through with both water from the lake and perspiration from the ordeal.
But his mind was overwhelmed with new information flooding in.
Complete knowledge of Medicine and Alchemy filled his thoughts like books opening.
Blacksmithing techniques for crafting weapons and artifacts appeared clearly in his understanding.
Array formation methods were now understood as if he had studied them for decades.
Talisman creation processes made perfect sense.
Countless cultivation techniques ranging from mortal realms all the way up to the Lower Immortal World Realms Peak were now his to use.
He sat up slowly, his body shaking from exhaustion.
His eyes were wide with disbelief and growing joy. "This... this is far beyond what the novel described." His voice came out hoarse.
He placed his hand on his face like a certain character from fiction in his past and started laughing despite his exhaustion.
The sound echoed through the cave repeatedly. His gamble had paid off beyond his wildest expectations and dreams.
"Hahaha! This confirms it!"
"I have the greatest cheat of all!"
"Plot Amour!"
Then he noticed something important and urgent, "Nani?"
The formation array carved into the cave walls was glowing brightly with spiritual light
But it was also flickering and becoming unstable. It was breaking down rapidly, its energy dispersing into the air.
Dense spiritual energy filled the entire space around him. It was so thick he could almost see it with his eyes, like mist made of pure power.
Xian Tiandi's mind worked quickly despite his exhaustion. 'This energy is dispersing,' he thought urgently.
'If I don't cultivate here immediately, it will all be wasted. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity.'
He looked at his trembling hands, turning them over. He could feel the Supreme Grade Spirit Blood pulsing through his veins with incredible power.
Each pulse sent energy through his body. But he was still only at Blood Awakening Realm, just beginning.
He was at the very beginning of cultivation despite his upgraded bloodline.
With this much spiritual energy available and his newfound knowledge, he could advance rapidly through multiple levels.
He forced himself to sit cross-legged on the altar despite his body's protests.
His muscles ached and his body wanted rest. But he ignored all of it with iron will. He closed his eyes and focused inward on his cultivation. "I need to cultivate in seclusion here. This opportunity cannot be wasted."
He began circulating the cultivation technique that had appeared in his mind from the absorbed memories.
The method was clear and precise, practiced by Sovereign Tian Xu for thousands of years.
He started absorbing the dense spiritual energy surrounding him, pulling it into his body through his meridians.
His Supreme Grade Spirit Blood drank it in eagerly like a desert drinking rain.