Beiyan Chapter Eighteen: The Bloodline Curse

After killing the mid-stage cultivator, the two entered the stronghold, walking one after the other. Mo Hao kept his head bowed, pretending to be Tanya’s attendant. The guards along the way found Mo Hao somewhat suspicious and reached out to stop them.

“Miss, who is this person?”

“This is my newly acquired servant. Is there a problem?” Tanya replied, shooting the guard a sharp glance. The guard muttered under his breath but stepped aside upon meeting Tanya’s stare. Though she was valued by Xiao Huan, to these guards, she was nothing, holding no real status.

They arrived at Xiao Huan’s quarters. Mo Hao suppressed his entire aura, appearing no different from a mere mortal. Tanya stepped forward and knocked on the door, but no sound came from within. She called out,

“Master, your disciple has urgent matters to report!”

With a creak, the door was opened from inside. Tanya led Mo Hao in. The sight before them was lavish and resplendent, in stark contrast to the outside huts. Yet, the room was filled with an unpleasant odor. Mo Hao quickly held his breath; Xiao Huan was known as a master of poisons, and the stench in the air was certainly problematic.

In the center of the hall stood a jade pedestal, upon which Xiao Huan sat cross-legged. Tanya stopped about ten feet away and bowed deeply to him. Mo Hao followed suit, mimicking the gesture.

Only then did Xiao Huan open his eyes, glancing at Tanya before his gaze suddenly sharpened and turned toward Mo Hao.

“Who let you in here?”

Mo Hao immediately pretended to be frightened and dropped to the floor. Tanya’s eyes shifted quickly.

“Master, this time I have two matters to report, one of which involves this servant.”

Xiao Huan frowned.

“Oh? You rushed here from Yue City in such haste? What happened?”

Mo Hao listened carefully to their conversation, concentrating the power of the Cold Tung Sword in his dantian. The outcome hinged on this moment—once Xiao Huan’s mind faltered, a single strike would be fatal.

He had already planned: his cultivation was only comparable to the late stage of the Qi Gathering realm. A direct confrontation with Xiao Huan was uncertain. If the attack failed, he would not engage in prolonged combat. Earlier, he had examined a bell and found a teleportation talisman inside, capable of whisking him and Tanya dozens of miles away.

But he would only use it as a last resort. A single teleportation talisman could sell for dozens of spirit stones. Though consumable, it was an excellent lifesaving tool, usable once with the aid of spiritual power.

“Master, the Grandmaster was killed by five disciples from the Glazed Palace at Phoenix Tower!”

Xiao Huan, who had been calmly seated on the jade pedestal, suddenly leapt down, glaring at Tanya.

“What did you say? Is the news true?”

At that moment, Mo Hao, lying on the side, summoned the Cold Tung Sword from his dantian and, at a speed barely visible to the naked eye, thrust it toward Xiao Huan’s dantian. Xiao Huan was still lost in thought over his slain backer, never expecting Mo Hao to be a cultivator, let alone aiming for a lethal strike. Sensing danger, he hastily summoned his artifact. But his normally sturdy low-grade artifact shattered like fragile paper under Mo Hao’s attack.

Mo Hao gambled all his spiritual power on this one strike—the Heart Expansion Sword Technique. Even an unprepared half-step Foundation Establishment cultivator would be wounded, let alone a late-stage cultivator in a state of mental distraction. In a single blow, Mo Hao pierced through Xiao Huan’s dantian and shattered his internal artifact.

Xiao Huan collapsed to the side. Mo Hao, pale from the power drain of the Heart Expansion Sword Technique, pulled out restorative pills from his bag and swallowed them greedily.

“Who exactly are you?” Xiao Huan shouted hysterically.

Mo Hao ignored him, focusing on his cultivation to restore his spiritual power using the Pure Origin Technique. The rest was up to Tanya. Yet he couldn’t fully trust her; clutching the teleportation talisman tightly, he knew he could escape instantly if she turned against him.

Tanya summoned a flying sword and formed hand seals. Though only an early-stage cultivator, Xiao Huan’s spiritual power was now drained. Though his dantian was destroyed, with time and medicinal herbs, he could partially recover his power. A swift and decisive strike was necessary.

Mo Hao intended to finish everything thoroughly. Even if Tanya refrained from attacking, he still kept a reserve of Flame Art power. Suddenly, Tanya’s body crackled with lightning as she channeled all her electric power into the flying sword, slashing toward Xiao Huan.

“Die!” Tanya shouted, her voice heavy with hatred and regret, as if unwilling to slay Xiao Huan so easily.

Knowing his end was near, Xiao Huan’s eyes widened as he threw two small jade bottles with all his remaining strength. Mo Hao immediately smelled a burnt scent—the result of Tanya’s lightning technique.

But Mo Hao noticed that before dying, Xiao Huan had released two tiny snakes, each about the thickness of a little finger, from the bottles. The snakes seemed to obey commands and lunged at Mo Hao. Alarmed, Mo Hao hurried to activate the teleportation talisman.

Yet, the snakes were already upon him. Their speed nearly outpaced the talisman’s activation. Mo Hao considered summoning his Five Elements defensive artifact to block them but found that despite swallowing many restorative pills, he hadn’t fully refined their power and lacked the essence to activate the artifact. Sweat beaded on his forehead.

Suddenly, his vision darkened. Tanya flashed forward to shield him. Thanks to her defense, the talisman’s light surged. Mo Hao grasped Tanya’s fair arm with one hand and reached for Xiao Huan’s bag with the other. Instantly, both vanished without a trace from Xiao Huan’s chamber.

Ten miles away, in a field of crops, a young man and woman lay sprawled. It was Mo Hao and Tanya, escaped from the Ten Thousand Poisons Stronghold using the teleportation talisman. Mo Hao quickly rose to check Tanya and found two pinprick-sized wounds on her lotus-like arm, oozing black blood.

Most of his restorative pills had been absorbed. Mo Hao helped Tanya up, pressing his hands to her back to infuse her with spiritual power. Yet, the black blood voraciously consumed the power—a strange and sinister toxin. He hadn’t expected the venom carried by those snakes to be so insidious and potent, directly assaulting the meridians despite the influx of spiritual power.

Helpless, Mo Hao recalled hearing that in martial circles, toxins could be expelled by suction. Resolutely, he grasped Tanya’s arm and began sucking the poison out mouthful by mouthful, until the blood he drew turned bright red. Only then did he stop, feeling a numbness in his mouth. Hastily, he expelled the toxins from his mouth using spiritual power.

Mo Hao looked at Tanya and noticed her black veil had vanished without his noticing.

Curious, he studied Tanya. Always veiled, her true face was unknown. Now, pale from blood loss, her features were striking—delicate eyebrows, tightly closed eyes, a proud jade nose, and lips devoid of color yet somehow lending her an alluring charm despite the youthful innocence.

Among all the women Mo Hao had encountered, none could rival her elegance, not even within the Virtual Sword Sect. Perhaps only the Foundation Establishment senior uncle could match her, yet his face was marred by a long scar, diminishing his handsomeness. Tanya, however, gave Mo Hao the impression of surpassing even him.

Mo Hao was stunned by her exquisite features, as if a celestial maiden had descended from the heavens. Suddenly, Tanya coughed and slowly opened her eyes. Mo Hao, lost in admiration, met her gaze. Tanya shot him a glare, instinctively touching her face and realizing the veil was gone. Alarmed, she retreated, holding her flying sword defensively before her.

Mo Hao quickly looked away, feeling embarrassed. Tanya glanced around, checked herself, then looked back at him.

Breaking the silence, Mo Hao said,

“Um... thank you for blocking those two snakes’ attack for me.”

Tanya suddenly recalled something and hurriedly looked at her aching right arm.

“Did you help me suck out the poison?”

Mo Hao nodded awkwardly.

“But not with spiritual power—by mouth!”

Tanya noticed saliva near the wound and hastily wiped it away with her clothes, fuming,

“You—”

“If I hadn’t sucked out the poison, what else could I have done? The spiritual power couldn’t purge it at all. The venom was about to reach your heart. And no, I didn’t take advantage of you,” Mo Hao said cheekily, leaving Tanya helpless.

“You’re a mid-stage cultivator, and I’m early-stage. But do you know why Xiao Huan kept me by his side?”

Mo Hao knew she was wary of his intentions and was now trying to negotiate. He said nothing and shook his head.

“You must know I possess the Mysterious Thunder Spiritual Vein.”

Mo Hao narrowed his eyes. As he suspected, Tanya’s spiritual vein was extraordinary—the Mysterious Thunder Vein. It was said that when cultivators advanced to the Core Formation stage, the heavens would rage and punish them for defying fate. But those with the Mysterious Thunder Vein were favored by the heavens; though their ascensions angered the heavens, the thunderpunishments were far less severe. Some Foundation Establishment or even Core Formation cultivators would seek out a Mysterious Thunder Vein cultivator for joint cultivation to ease heavenly punishments, increasing their breakthrough success by over twenty percent.

Mo Hao was intrigued. The Mysterious Thunder Vein cultivator was one in ten thousand.

“Are you not afraid to reveal your identity as a Mysterious Thunder Vein cultivator to me?” he asked.

“I’m willing to let you place a binding seal on me, as repayment for helping to kill that despicable Xiao Huan!” Tanya declared.

Mo Hao nodded. Though he came on a mission, he didn’t want to explain much. Tanya must have known she wouldn’t help kill Xiao Huan without reason. He had also learned such binding seals from Master Xuan Fengzi, though mostly realm seals.

Mo Hao belonged to the Five Elements vein, cultivating slower than others, so those seals were of limited use to him. He made Tanya draw a drop of fresh blood, then did the same himself. Forming hand seals, he pointed at his blood, which enveloped Tanya’s blood. Clasping his hands, he formed a sword-shaped finger and touched the girl’s forehead with a blue light carrying the two drops of blood. Tanya did not resist; the blood seemed to merge and vanish.

This was a bloodline binding seal. The sealed individual could not harbor ill thoughts toward its master, and the master could sense the person’s location anywhere. Though less oppressive than other seals that shackled power and cultivation, it was an insurance. If the girl’s cultivation surpassed Mo Hao’s greatly, other seals might fail, but not the bloodline seal. However, it required the target’s mind to be open for success.

After casting the seal, Mo Hao nodded.

“You may leave now.”

Tanya looked at Mo Hao.

“Thank you for helping me expel the poison. But I have nowhere to go. Will you accompany me back to my hometown? Afterwards, I’m willing to follow you.”

“What? That’s not possible, I...” Mo Hao was flustered. He couldn’t just travel around with a woman, especially having to return to the Virtual Sword Sect. Yet, looking into Tanya’s large, clear eyes and her fairy-like delicate face, he sighed and reluctantly nodded.

Without further words, the girl curled up in the field to cultivate the Pure Origin Technique, restoring her spiritual power to full.

Mo Hao stretched comfortably and glanced at Tanya, who was now crouched. Evening was falling, and the air grew chilly. He took a sheepskin blanket from his bag and gently covered her. Listening to her soft breathing, Mo Hao knew Tanya was truly exhausted. He smiled wryly, shook his head helplessly, and used spiritual power to protect them both as they drifted into sleep.

The next morning, Mo Hao awoke abruptly as something pinched his nose. He was startled to find Tanya holding his nose. Seeing his embarrassed expression, she smiled.

“You were sleeping so deeply, I couldn’t wake you any other way!”

Tanya looked playful. Mo Hao found it odd but, considering she was only a young girl newly entering the world like himself, he felt a sense of shared hardship. Tanya returned the sheepskin blanket to him. The two exchanged smiles before flying toward Yue City on their swords.