Magic: Reincarnate from high-voltage electricity at the start, level up independently.

The moment she heard that sound, a strong, fishy stench hit her, making Tang Xiaoran frown, close her eyes, and hurriedly raise her hand to cover her mouth and nose.

After a few moments, once she had adjusted, she cautiously opened her eyes.

"Wanwan..."

Tang Xiaoran instinctively reached for Xu Wan's sleeve, but her fingers grasped at empty air. Her heart tightened, and she turned her head to look, only to find that the person beside her was already empty.

"What are you still standing there for?"

Xu Wan's voice came from inside the sushi restaurant. She stood beside a flickering white candle, its cold light flashing and drifting in the wind, her voice ethereal and distant.

"...Here it comes."

Tang Xiaoran took a deep breath, silently bolstering her courage, and stepped across the threshold of the sushi restaurant.

The moment she stepped through the door, a strange sense of dizziness surged into her mind. She looked back at the alley she had come from, and it seemed to grow even more sinister and dark, as if countless prying eyes were lurking in the shadows, waiting for a chance to drag her away and devour her.

"Welcome back, my two little guests."

A cold, wooden voice suddenly rang out from behind the counter.

"what!"

Tang Xiaoran screamed in fright, only to be horrified to discover that there was a person lying on the armchair.

The man was dressed in a full set of blue funeral clothes, with two long feathers in the style of the Monkey King from the opera troupe stuck on his head. His face was as pale as paper, but he had two thick patches of rouge on his face and bright red lipstick on his lips, making him look eerily creepy.

He slowly rose from the armchair, stiffly moving to Tang Xiaoran's side, his flat voice carrying a hint of deliberate apology: "Sorry, I startled the little guest again."

"N-nothing..."

Tang Xiaoran swallowed hard, not daring to look up. She would never forget that eerie appearance; the first time she visited, she had almost fainted from fright.

She rushed to Xu Wan's side and grabbed her arm tightly, only then finding a sliver of security.

"Can you take a look at this and tell me what I think?" Xu Wan pointed to the table in front of her.

"I'm not watching!"

Tang Xiaoran shook her head vigorously, burying her head and resolutely refusing.

Without even looking, it was obvious that there must be something bloody and terrifying on the table.

The strong, pungent smell of blood had already filled my nostrils.

"Fine, don't bother looking then." Xu Wan pouted and picked up the items on the plate to examine them.

It was an eye the size of a fist, steaming with wisps of heat, as if it had just been gouged out of a living body.

"Young customer, you have a good eye." The funeral shop owner spoke slowly. "This is our newly arrived beef eye sashimi. Eating it will grant you unexpected power."

"Like what?" Xu Wan looked up at him.

"The outcome is unpredictable; you'll only know after you've eaten," the owner said indifferently, sitting back in his armchair. "Guests can choose for themselves; if you like something, you can take it away."

"Okay." Xu Wan nodded gently.

She knew the rules of this strange sushi restaurant: each person was limited to one plate of sushi per month, and the price was fixed at three copper coins per plate.

When Xu Wan first came here, she immediately took a liking to the signature pork sashimi dish. Since she didn't have any coins, she took out three hundred yuan and gave it to the owner.

The other party refused to accept it, returned it, and said, "I'm sorry, sir, this shop only accepts copper coins."

However, that time, the boss agreed to let her pay on credit, telling her she could pay later when she came back.

Fortunately, copper coins are not a rare commodity; they are easy to find at the seafood market if you are really looking for them.

Xu Wan brought a whole bunch of stuff with her pockets this time.

"Let me take another look."

She put the cow's eye back in its place and glanced at the other strange ingredients on the table.

The kidneys, spleen, stomach, intestines, and even the intact skull were all covered in fresh blood, as if they had just been picked.

She remembered that when she first ate at this restaurant, she felt nauseous and disgusted, but afterwards she found the taste unforgettable. Sometimes, when she was restless, she would even lose her focus on cultivation and just want to come back and taste it again.

Xu Wan's gaze finally settled on a plate of sashimi, and she couldn't help but swallow slightly.

She gave up the pork sashimi she had been longing for, and also put aside the beef eye that she was somewhat interested in; at this moment, all she wanted to do was eat this one thing.

Behind the counter, a dull, cold voice rang out again: "This is a cow's heart. Eating it can stabilize one's Dao heart and strengthen one's original intentions and convictions."

He paused, then slowly added, "I've noticed that you've been quite restless lately, your resolve has wavered, and you've even nearly gone mad with demonic possession. This plate of beef heart sashimi is just what suits you."

"You could actually see all that?" Xu Wan asked, surprised. "Are you talking about the time I went berserk at the Demon Hunting Bureau in Dachang City?"

Since waking up in the treatment room, she has heard many people talking about her sudden madness and loss of control, but she herself has no memory of it and refuses to believe it.

"No," the boss denied directly, his hoarse voice carrying an eerie quality. "The world is full of illusions and truths. You've merely glimpsed a truth that ordinary people can't see. How can you claim to have gone mad?"

"I'm referring to the distractions in your mind today."

Upon hearing this, Xu Wan instantly understood.

What the other person was talking about was the inexplicable concern and romantic fantasies they had developed for Chu Ge that day.

She mocked herself inwardly. She was devoted to the pursuit of Tao and should have cut off worldly desires. Why was she so attached to Chu Ge?

Thinking wildly about romantic entanglements is the true loss of one's moral compass and a genuine case of going astray!

"Boss," Xu Wan suddenly said urgently, "do you know why my Dao heart is in such turmoil?"

She was completely puzzled. Could it be that she had spent too much time with Tang Xiaoran and had been influenced by her love-struck mind, thus disrupting her original intention of cultivation?

"because……"

The boss's voice suddenly trailed off, gradually fading into the cold air.

The next second, a ferocious and piercing roar suddenly exploded in the two women's ears:

"It's because unclean blood has seeped into your body! That blood doesn't belong to you at all!"

"ah--!!!"

Tang Xiaoran was so frightened by the sudden roar that she trembled all over, her eyes tightly shut, her body shaking uncontrollably, and only the thought of escaping remained in her mind.

Two cold, heavy hands placed on the shoulders of the two girls. The boss leaned down, whispering in Xu Wan's ear, his breath dripping with chilling coldness, "Little guest, do you understand now?"

"Impurious blood has entered my body..."

Xu Wan murmured softly, her eyes filled with confusion. Suddenly, a vague memory flooded her mind—

Back in the tunnel, she was severely injured by the electric shock blueberry. As she lay dying and unconscious, she vaguely remembered someone bending down and feeding her warm blood.

At that time, only Chu Ge was by her side.

Suddenly everything became clear.

"I see..." Xu Wan's eyes narrowed as she finally understood the cause and effect. "No wonder I couldn't help but want to get close to her, want to be with her, and keep thinking about her for no reason... It's all because of that strange blood!"

He realized that his Daoist mind had indeed been disturbed by that guy.

Chu Ge, you vixen!

She looked up at the shop owner, her expression incredibly serious: "Is it true that if I eat this cow's heart, I can sever all distracting thoughts, solidify my Dao heart, and never again entertain these absurd fantasies?"

"That's right, young guest has a very high level of comprehension." The boss's lips curled into a strange smile as he slowly released his grip and turned back to sit in the armchair.

"it is good."

Xu Wan immediately pulled out six copper coins from her pocket and slammed them heavily on the table. "Boss, I'll take this plate of beef heart."

After saying that, she picked up the cow's heart, which was larger than her own head, and opened her mouth to bite into it, swallowing large mouthfuls of raw flesh and blood.

From behind the counter, a faint, eerie laugh drifted out intermittently: "Eat...eat more...the more you eat, the stronger your resolve will become..."

A chilling laugh echoed through the shop, but Tang Xiaoran remained oblivious, her eyes tightly shut and trembling. Only Xu Wan was engrossed in her meal.

Ten minutes later.

Xu Wan put down her empty plate, wiped the bloodstains from the corner of her mouth, and let out a satisfied burp: "I never expected that this beef heart sashimi would suit my taste so well."

She murmured to herself, feeling her heart pounding more steadily and firmly in her chest, a glint of light flashing in her eyes: "I can clearly feel my Dao heart becoming more and more stable, and I'm one step closer to the Great Dao that will dominate all ages!"

All the entanglements and distractions that had arisen for Chu Ge today were now cast aside, leaving only the unwavering path of seeking the Dao in his heart.

"Thank you for your guidance and understanding today, boss. If I become an Emperor someday and rule over all ages, I will repay you for this karmic debt."

Xu Wan sincerely thanked her, then pulled up the still fearful Tang Xiaoran and turned to leave the eerie sushi restaurant.

Woo-wah-woo-wah—

Two figures disappeared into the depths of the dark, secluded alley, the mournful cawing of crows shattering the silence.

The white paper lanterns at the entrance of the sushi restaurant swayed gently in the cold wind, the wooden door creaked and slowly closed, and the flickering candlelight instantly dimmed and went out.

At the end of the alley, the eerie sushi shop vanished into thin air, as if it had never existed.

……

In the distant, chaotic void.

A small house made of blue bricks floats silently in the void, isolated from the world. Two pale white paper lanterns hang at the door, casting a faint, cold light.

The table inside the small house was filled with various kinds of bloody food with a strong yin energy, and evil spirits swirled around it.

Six copper coins lay quietly beside the empty beef heart plate.

The strangely dressed funeral shopkeeper slowly rose from his armchair, walked to the table, and grabbed the six copper coins.

He suddenly tilted his head back, his mouth torn open all the way to his waist, revealing a mouthful of sharp, menacing teeth, and swallowed all six copper coins.

"Hehe...delicious...hehehe..."

"What a... wonderful taste..."