Chapter 82: The Source of Moonlight and the Blood Pill (New Book—Please Subscribe)

Night.

With Yi Shen’s relentless firepower, the number of monsters gradually dwindled, leaving only a handful of elite monsters. These elites were far more troublesome than the lesser ones—their defenses were at least three times higher. Yi Shen could even sense them communicating, devising tactics and strategies. Occasionally, he’d have to pull back to avoid being struck by their coordinated attacks.

Fortunately, Yi Shen still held absolute superiority.

He systematically picked off the monsters one by one.

By the time only three elemental elites and two gargoyles remained, they began to show signs of retreat. Yi Shen pursued them for two or three kilometers before finally hunting them down one after another.

[Ding, you have slain a Moonlight Elemental Elite, Experience +2092]
[Ding, you have slain a Moonlight Gargoyle Elite, Experience +1791]

Yi Shen was now level 41, requiring a full million experience points for the next level. Yet tonight, each elite monster yielded him around 2,000 experience, and even the ordinary monsters gave six to seven hundred points each.

The wave of monsters had brought his experience bar up by nearly four percent!

Of course, at this stage, level-ups didn’t mean as much to Yi Shen as they once had. Thanks to an abundance of resources, the attribute points he gained from research far exceeded those earned from leveling up.

A glance at his system panel revealed that his current attributes, even just on paper, rivaled or surpassed those of explorers in their fifties.

With the battlefield cleared, Yi Shen naturally began to collect the spoils.

Though scattered monsters still trickled into the area, the defensive line was no longer under serious threat.

Once he’d gathered everything, Yi Shen sorted through his haul.

The monsters hadn’t dropped much equipment or skill books. Instead, most of the loot was something called “Moonlight Shard” and “Moonlight Source.”

The shards, dropped by the lesser monsters, were C-grade materials. The Moonlight Source, dropped by elites, was already B-grade.

Yi Shen had noticed before that Moonlight Shards yielded a generous amount of research points, but when he dismantled the Moonlight Sources, each one provided nearly fifty research points!

Normally, the more you researched a single material or type, the fewer attribute and research points you’d gain over time. Yet, despite acquiring a fair number of Moonlight Shards and Moonlight Sources recently, Yi Shen found that the returns had barely diminished.

It seemed that even the Heart of the Magus, deep within him, regarded these materials with great anticipation—the value of researching them was even higher than expected.

Research points could not only upgrade the Heart of the Magus, but also improve skills. At this stage, skill upgrades had become the greatest drain on Yi Shen’s research points.

Thanks to this period of intensive study, his Heart of the Magus had already reached level 4.

At level 4, the Heart of the Magus didn’t grant any new special effects, just a defensive shield skill. To reach level 5, however, he would need a staggering 100,000 research points—a process he’d thought would take ages. But the emergence of these Moonlight Shards offered him a new opportunity.

If he could continue hunting these creatures from the Land of Moonlight and harvesting research points, most of his skills could soon see another round of upgrades.

Aside from the Moonlight Sources, while collecting spoils, Yi Shen also noticed an odd item.

It had dropped from that special rogue.

Initially, Yi Shen assumed the man was just a troublemaker sent from Anqing. It was only while clearing the field that he realized this was actually Fan Xidiao, who had once, along with Anqing, retreated to Peach Blossom Dock’s secondary lines.

Yi Shen hadn’t found much information on Fan Xidiao—mostly scraps from years past.

He hadn’t expected the man to stoop to such deeds, attacking members of his own guild.

The item dropped from him was called “Blood Pellet.”

[Blood Pellet (C): Using this will grant 1,000 experience points, and a permanent increase to some attributes]
[Blood Pellet (B): Using this will grant 5,000 experience points, and a permanent increase to some attributes]

There were two grades, both providing experience and attribute points.

To be honest, Yi Shen had researched many items lately, but aside from his own spell research, this was his first time encountering something that could directly grant both experience and attributes!

He took a Blood Pellet from his inventory—it was no larger than a thumb.

The B-grade pellet was even more vividly crimson than the C-grade, translucent and glowing with an alluring red light, etched with strange patterns inside.

[Ding, you have used a Blood Pellet. You have gained 1,000 experience points. Strength +10, Agility +8, Intelligence +8, Endurance +8, Willpower +6.]

Yi Shen experimentally consumed a C-grade Blood Pellet.

The system panel immediately displayed the experience and attribute gains.

He was still wondering how Fan Xidiao had come to possess such a treasure, when the next instant, he felt a peculiar energy surge through his body!

This power quickly invaded every corner of his being, filling him with an urge to kill—his vision tinged with a crimson hue.

Nowhere in the system description had it mentioned such pronounced side effects.

Yet the emotional upheaval was far more significant than the attribute boost itself!

But then, almost at once, an icy chill welled up from deep within him.

This chill, with overwhelming force, swept away the crimson sensation, and Yi Shen’s state returned to normal.

He wiped a bit of blood from his nose, only to realize it didn’t feel like his own—it seemed to be residual matter expelled from the Blood Pellet.

These abrupt changes left Yi Shen frowning deeply.

There was something clearly abnormal about these Blood Pellets.

And the icy power within him was, in all likelihood, related to his connection with the Heart of the Magus.

“Anqing must be hiding a lot more than he lets on.”

Yi Shen thought of the Blood Butcher, of the red shadow his mother had mentioned during the great battle at Peach Blossom Dock, and of the peculiar rogue before him. It felt as though he’d finally seized hold of a crucial thread.

(End of chapter)