A Compendium of One Hundred Demons: My Path to Immortality in a World of Demons and Monsters

With a wave of his bone staff, the ancient shaman Guza sent three beams of green light shooting toward Xu Yuan like venomous snakes. Wherever the green light passed, the vegetation withered instantly, leaving three charred marks on the ground.

Xu Yuan tried to dodge, but the movement was slowed by his injuries. A green light grazed his right leg, instantly corroding a large hole in his trousers, and a burning pain shot through his skin.

"Uh..." Xu Yuan groaned, almost falling over.

On the city wall, Chen Hanchuan roared, "Balloons! Fire!"

The last crossbow bolt pierced the air, heading straight for the Guza Shaman. Tuotuo Buhua rushed out from the side, sweeping his mace and deflecting the bolt.

But this obstruction also gave Xu Yuan a chance to catch his breath. He gritted his teeth, poured all the remaining blood and energy in his body into his legs, and pushed the [Mountain and Forest Traverse] ability to its limit. He shot towards the city gate like an arrow.

Thirty zhang, twenty zhang, ten zhang...

Upon seeing this, the shaman Guza's eyes flashed with madness. He then bit his tongue, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the bone staff, and the skull immediately shone with a brilliant green light.

"With my lifeblood as a sacrifice, may ten thousand demons haunt me—Go!!!"

The green light transformed into countless hideous ghost faces, shrieking as they lunged at Xu Yuan.

These ghostly faces are formless and intangible, yet they can erode the soul. If an ordinary person is entangled by them, at best their soul will be damaged and they will become an idiot, and at worst their soul will be scattered on the spot.

Xu Yuan felt a chilling wind behind his head, and a needle-like pain pierced his soul.

In the critical moment, the black iron piece in his arms suddenly became hot, and a cool aura emanated from his body, forming an invisible barrier behind him.

The ghost face crashed into the barrier, emitting a shrill scream, but it couldn't advance an inch.

Upon seeing this, the shaman Guza was filled with horror and exclaimed, "A spirit artifact protecting you?! Who are you?!"

Xu Yuan did not answer. Taking this opportunity, he rushed to the city wall. Several ropes had already been lowered from the top of the wall. He grabbed one of them, and the Qingyang garrison pulled him up with all their might.

Tuotuo Buhua wanted to pursue and stop him, but arrows rained down from the city walls, forcing him to retreat.

Guza Shaman wanted to cast another spell, but stimulated by the aura of the black iron piece, black blood gushed out again from the severed arm that had been sealed. His aura weakened rapidly, and he finally collapsed.

"Shaman!" Tuotuo Buhua rushed forward to help him, only to see that Guza Shaman's face was ashen and he was barely breathing, clearly having no strength left to fight tonight.

"Toghtok Bukha! Besiege the city! I will offer a blood sacrifice to this city to avenge the loss of my arm!"

Tuotuo Buhua's expression was grave: "Shaman, your injury..."

"I won't die!" The shaman Guza gritted his teeth, using witchcraft to seal the wound and stop the bleeding again. His eyes were filled with resentful bitterness. "Send out the order: withdraw the troops and reorganize. Siege the city for three days! During these three days, no one is allowed to leave the city! I will sacrifice all the lives of the city to summon the Eternal Heaven!"

Upon hearing this, Tuotuo Buhua felt a chill run down his spine, realizing that the old shaman had truly gone mad.

The blood sacrifice ritual was a heinous crime, taboo even on the grasslands, but he couldn't care less about anything else at this moment.

"withdraw!"

The Xiongnu army retreated like a tide, leaving behind only a mess and piles of burned grain.

This night raid resulted in no casualties among the Qingyang defenders!

Xu Yuan single-handedly broke this seemingly inescapable situation, giving Qingyang County a precious respite.

When he was pulled onto the city wall, he almost fainted as soon as he landed.

Shen Qingyi quickly stepped forward to support him, took his pulse, and her expression immediately changed: "He's depleted of qi and blood, his meridians are damaged, and he's also poisoned by a shaman... Quick, take him to a clinic!"

Chen Hanchuan immediately ordered: "The entire army should be on alert, taking turns to rest. Instruct the medical officers to spare no effort to save Brother Xu!"

As Xu Yuan was carried off the city wall, he barely opened his eyes. Seeing Shen Qingyi's worried face, he forced a smile: "I have fulfilled my mission..."

After saying that, he was so exhausted that he completely lost consciousness.

Looking at his pale face and blood-stained clothes, Shen Qingyi felt a pang of sorrow and gritted her teeth, saying, "Uncle Fu, go back to the manor and fetch the 'Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Pill'!"

Uncle Fu's expression changed, and he hesitated for a moment. "Miss, that's what Master left for you to save your life..."

"Go quickly!"

Shen Qingyi's voice was calm yet firm.

………………

As night deepened, Qingyang County temporarily returned to calm.

But everyone knows that beneath this calm lies an even bigger storm to come.

The Xiongnu army will surely avenge the loss of the arm of the ancient shaman with blood.

Xu Yuan, however, began a new round of transformation while in a coma.

The Hungry Ghost Compendium was operating at full power, frantically devouring the remaining shamanic poison and battlefield aura within its body, as well as the various mixed energies it had absorbed during the life-or-death struggle.

[Absorbing the shaman's poison... Transforming...]

[Absorbing battlefield malevolent energy... Refining in progress...]

[High-level elixir detected... Analyzing...]

What Xu Yuan didn't know was that the Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Pill that Shen Qingyi had made him take was slowly dissolving, transforming into the purest energy to nourish his body and soul.

A life-or-death transformation is quietly underway.

Meanwhile, outside Qingyang County, in the Xiongnu camp, inside the tent of the ancient shaman Guza, preparations for a bloody sacrifice had already begun.

Even with his years of experience in battle, Tuotuo Buhua felt uneasy under the evil and resentful aura of the Guza shaman.

The blood sacrifice three days from now will be a true catastrophe!

Xu Yuan remained unconscious for a full day and night.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw the simple roof of the clinic and smelled a complex mixture of herbs and blood.

The tingling sensation from his left shoulder and right leg instantly brought him back to his senses, but then a surge of rich qi and blood flowed from his dantian, rapidly nourishing his parched meridians.

He's actually reached the ninth level of Blood Refinement!

Xu Yuan was startled. Just as he was about to explore the reason for the breakthrough, Shen Qingyi's voice came from beside him.

"You're awake."

Xu Yuan turned his head and saw that she was sitting on a wooden stool by the bed, holding a bowl of medicine soup in her hands. Her pretty face showed signs of fatigue, indicating that she had not slept all night.

"Miss Shen..." Xu Yuan tried to sit up, but Shen Qingyi held him down.

"Don't move, you're badly injured." She handed over the medicinal soup. "The Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Pill has stabilized your injuries, but the effects need time to dissipate. This is a tonic to strengthen your body and replenish your vital energy; drink it while it's hot."

Xu Yuan accepted it without hesitation and drank it all in one gulp.

The herbal decoction was bitter, but it turned into a warm current after entering the stomach, which made me feel much more comfortable.

"How is the battle going?" he asked first.

Shen Qingyi's expression was solemn: "After the Xiongnu retreated, they did not attack again, but scouts reported that they had surrounded the entire Qingyang County and built an altar in the camp. Although the shaman lost an arm, he stabilized his injury with secret methods and is performing rituals in front of the altar day and night."

"The altar..." Xu Yuan recalled the ancient shaman's final, venomous gaze, and his heart sank. "Any speculations?"

"General Chen judges that the other party intends to perform a blood sacrifice." Shen Qingyi's expression was solemn. "According to ancient records, a blood sacrifice takes three days to complete, but Lord Xiao sent word that the reinforcements from the prefectural city will not arrive until at least five days later."

A full two-day time difference!

This means that Qingyang County must withstand the blood sacrifice attack of the ancient shaman on its own before it can possibly receive reinforcements.