"Why! Why can you use Liu Lu's Poison Spirit!" Dan Ji's face was filled with disbelief; she knew she had been poisoned.
It was that damned Soul-Separating Beauty again, sealing all of her Acupoints.
The young man, however, shook his head and did not answer.
How could he possibly use the Soul-Separating Beauty, a dignified Earth Spirit?
It was merely the Qingxin Pill that Rose had spat out.
As soon as Dan Ji told him that Liu Lu had sealed her with a special Poison Spirit, he thought of the Qingxin Pill.
In his previous life, he had seen Liu Lu use that purple Imperial Spirit to refine a venom, which she then used to make Qingxin Pills. After the several Protectors consumed them, they became like statues, unable to move, and even less able to use their Imperial Spirits.
This perfectly matched Dan Ji's description of the "strange Imperial Spirit that sealed Acupoints."
So, he plotted to obtain a Qingxin Pill.
However, using this Poison Spirit was clearly a significant drain on Liu Lu, and the number of Qingxin Pills was limited. Each Protector had one, and it would be as difficult as ascending to the heavens for him to steal one by fishing in troubled waters.
Therefore, in this life, he had planned with Rose in advance, having her pretend to take the Qingxin Pill and then spit it out, thus obtaining the key to sealing Dan Ji.
Everything was just a setup; from beginning to end, his goal was to Seal Dan Ji along with everything else, to be the oriole behind the mantis.
From the first time he described the Hundred Flowers Token to Dan Ji, he had already begun to plan such a scheme.
At this moment, the so-called "Hundred Flowers Token" in Dan Ji's hand was merely a crude imitation he had carved from his own bones.
And on the bone, connected to a Blood Filament Spirit, was the mechanism to allow this bone, upon the injection of spiritual power, to activate a Bone Spike Spirit, causing bone spikes to erupt and inject the Qingxin Pill's venom from the token into Dan Ji's body.
That's why he deliberately swallowed the token into his abdomen, then provoked Dan Ji to snatch it.
When he swallowed it, the token was already entangled with his intestines, which served to conceal the Blood Filament Spirit connected to the token.
When the Bone Spike Spirit was about to be activated, he let out a loud shout, attracting Dan Ji's attention for a moment. As he had guessed, Dan Ji had almost no sense of pain.
Even after the Bone Spike Spirit had pierced her hand for a long time, and the venom was completely injected, her attention was still on Changqing.
He had gambled correctly; otherwise, if Dan Ji had noticed, or had resolutely severed her arm as soon as the Bone Spike Spirit was triggered, it would have been a different outcome.
The young man stood up with a sigh of relief, ignoring the large gash in his abdomen, and grabbed one of Dan Ji's feet, saying coldly.
"No need to struggle. I will send you back to where you belong. You can stay in that Blood Pool obediently, sealed for another few hundred or thousand years."
"And you don't need to threaten me with what you'll do when you get out. I am alone, with no ties, so come at me if you dare."
With that, he grabbed Dan Ji's foot and dragged her towards Liu Lu's Immortal Cave.
Dan Ji was furious. She had not been in such a desperate situation for many years, nor had she suffered such a great humiliation. Her mind raced, thinking of countermeasures.
What should she do?
Sever her head to survive?
No, her Qi and blood were depleted at the moment. If she forcibly severed her head, although she wouldn't die, her recovery would be slow. The time it took to recover would be enough for Changqing to inject poison into her body a hundred times over.
She didn't know that Changqing only had one Qingxin Pill, so she naturally abandoned the idea of severing her head to survive.
Although her Qi and blood were depleted, she still had a trace of spiritual power within her. The Soul-Separating Beauty couldn't Seal her six viscera and eight bowels, and she still had three Imperial Spirits in the Blood Sea Organ, Earth Palace Viscera, and Heavenly Spirit that she could use.
Within the Heavenly Spirit was the Blood Sea Other Shore Spirit, her innate Imperial Spirit, with Heaven-Defying effects. It allowed the user's flesh and blood to regenerate infinitely and ceaselessly. Even if her Qi and blood were depleted, she would still be immortal, though her recovery would be slow. It was also her trump card for repeatedly daring to sever her head to survive, but it was of little use now.
Within the Blood Sea Organ was the Blood Refinement Transformation Spirit, her strongest offensive killer move, but it required a large amount of Qi and spiritual power to activate, so it couldn't be used either.
Only within the Earth Palace Viscera was a Red Blood Boiling Spirit, which consumed Qi and spiritual power to greatly increase the user's strength for a short period. If forcibly activated with insufficient Qi and blood, the cost would be damage to the Origin.
This was also one of her trump cards often used when fighting for her life.
After she was ambushed by Liu Lu, Liu Lu, under the guidance of the Hundred Flowers Remnant Soul, built a large formation specifically to Seal her. Countless steel wires passed between her six viscera and eight bowels, sealing these three Imperial Spirits of hers, otherwise, she couldn't have been trapped for so long.
The Blood Sea Organ, Earth Palace Viscera, and Heavenly Spirit were internal organs, not Acupoints. As long as specific Acupoints were used, these three organs could be sealed, rendering the Imperial Spirits within them unusable.
The Hundred Flowers Remnant Soul was left by an Evil Saint-Grade expert from a hundred thousand years ago, so it was not surprising that he had such abilities. However, Changqing did not know how to Seal these three locations, which gave Dan Ji a chance to counterattack.
"Although I am now at the end of my rope, this brat is only at the Second Level of the Moment Realm in Cultivation. As long as I activate the Red Blood Boiling Spirit, he will definitely not be my opponent. Although it will damage my Origin and make my future Cultivation path difficult, it's still better than being sealed for another few decades."
Thinking of this, Dan Ji held her breath and concentrated, using the last trace of spiritual power in her body to activate the Red Blood Boiling Spirit.
With a "poof," a mouthful of fresh blood spurted out. Dan Ji's face became paler, her already snow-white hair gained an even more ashen hue, and her red pupils deepened in color. This was the result of a backlash, damaging her Origin, clearly not the first time she had done this.
Changqing felt a sudden heaviness in his hand. Dan Ji, who had been light enough to drag easily, was now like a mountain, unmovable.
He looked back and met a pair of blood-red eyes filled with murderous intent.
A great force came from his hand, and Changqing's wrist snapped with a 'crack,' twisting completely around.
And Dan Ji's foot in his hand had already broken free, so fast that he hadn't even seen it clearly.
A blur flashed before his eyes. Before Changqing could react, he was kicked away by Dan Ji.
"Cough, cough." He coughed up a mouthful of blood and struggled to get up from the ground.
Dan Ji stood before him, her eyes cold, no longer showing the previous mockery or playfulness, as if looking at a dead man.
"Lingyu Changqing, you are a worthy opponent."
She twisted her wrist, then gripped Changqing's neck with one hand, lifting him up.
"You won beautifully, and your planning was exceptionally clever. I have lived for over three hundred years and have never seen a junior with your talent. If you were not an Innate Spiritual Body, which is excellent blood material for my Cultivation, perhaps I would truly consider taking you as a disciple."
"What a pity, you were ultimately one step short. You only knew that the Soul-Separating Beauty could Seal Acupoints, but you forgot what your master taught you: the six viscera and eight bowels cannot be sealed by the Soul-Separating Beauty."
"In this world, strength is supreme, but you always fantasized about a python swallowing an elephant, an ant trying to shake a tree. In the end, you are destined to fail."
"However, to force me to this extent with a mere Cultivation at the Second Level of the Moment Realm, you can be proud."
She tightened her grip, preparing to twist Changqing's neck directly, but then paused.
Only because she didn't understand why, at this moment, Changqing's face showed no despair or helplessness as she had expected, but was expressionless.
She had intended to calmly deal with Changqing, but why was he wearing that expression? How could he be so calm?
Was he not afraid of death? Or did he still have a hidden move?
"No, that can't be. What other hidden moves could a mere Second Level of the Moment Realm have? He's probably just naturally expressionless, or bluffing."
As she was lost in thought, Changqing slowly spoke.
"You must be at the end of your strength, right? The Imperial Spirits in your Acupoints can't be used, yet you can still unleash such power. Let me guess, this is your last resort?"
"You're right, in this world, strength is supreme. I indeed have limited experience, only having seen Liu Lu's strength. However, judging by the force of your attack on me, at this moment, you seem to be even weaker than her."
He smiled leisurely, as if everything was under control, and said faintly.
"It seems I've won."