Demon Blood, Maiden Vail

Lin Yuan finished his meal slowly, chewing without appetite. His heart still held the weight of the that day she takes easily soul stone.

> *"I'll apologize to her… just a few words. That's all."*

He looked around—but **Lady Qingxiuan was gone**.

> *"Already left…?"*

He sat back, silence blooming like a bruise in his chest.

> *"Another regret… just like all the others."*

But there was no time to linger. He turned his focus to healing. Now he understood that **true recovery wasn't just pills and rest**—it was peace of spirit, clarity of intent. And sleep.

He went to bed early.

For the first time in weeks, **Lady Mingyan** didn't come to drag him off for training.

> *"Holiday?"* he blinked, surprised.

He took it as a sign—and decided to visit the refugees.

Walking toward the spirit ship, he found nearly **three hundred and fifty women** waiting for him together—**elderly cultivators**, wounded survivors, and villagers who had traveled from the broken outer regions.

When they saw him, many stood.

Some bowed. Some **touched his arm** gently in thanks. A few **touched his head** like a blessing. One or two even **hugged him like a grandson**.

And he accepted it with grace—**until one didn't let go**.

A **middle-aged woman**, wearing a plain white dress, **clutched him tightly**—too tightly.

At first, Lin Yuan thought she was overwhelmed with emotion. But her hand trembled oddly along his waist, and her breath felt wrong. Her fingers pressed into his back. There was no **respect**, no warmth in the way she held him.

It made his blood run cold.

> *"Let go,"* he whispered.

But she didn't. She leaned in.

He **stepped back sharply**, heart thudding—not in desire, but in **violation**.

> *"No… this isn't… this isn't right…"*

Something in his chest **cracked**.

He turned—and **ran**.

---

Into the Alleys – Then Darkness

His head spun. The road blurred beneath his feet. **Why? Why now?**

> *"I did something good. I just came to say goodbye. Why she have to hug me like that?"*

His chest tightened.

> *"Am I getting nightmares just for trying to help people?"*

Suddenly—**shouts**.

**Five men** blocked the end of the alley. Laughing. Drunk. Qi flickering around them.

Cultivators.

Lin Yuan blinked. **Bandits? Cultivator thugs?**

Before he could move, one of them called out:

> "So you're the soft little Taiyin girl they're all fussing over."

Then, **a sixth figure appeared**.

The others backed up.

He was taller, broader—and stronger.

**The boss had come first.**

Lin Yuan's mind screamed: *It's not supposed to go like this. The weakest come first. Then the stronger ones.*

> *"Why the boss?"*

He felt cornered.

> *"Mom... what do I do...?"*

The man raised his hand. "Let's see what you have been protecting so dearly—"

And that's when **Lin Yuan moved**.

No time to think. No time to speak.

His hand flashed.

**Moonlight Sword Slash.**

Silver-white energy ripped through the alley.

**One strike.**

**The boss fell, lifeless.**

Dead.

Just like that.

The others froze—then fled.

Lin Yuan stood shaking. The sword vanished from his hand. Blood soaked into the cobblestones.

He looked down at the corpse.

> *"I… killed him."*

He had killed before—**beasts**, **monsters**.

But never a man.

Never like this.

He lifted the body—numb—placed it inside his **beast pouch**.

Then he ran.

Ran to the only place that felt like shelter.

To His Mother

He stumbled into the courtyard where **Lady Mingyan** often trained.

She wasn't there.

He dropped to his knees.

> "I killed him," he whispered. "I killed a human."

> "He was going to hurt me… but…"

His voice broke.

He hugged himself.

> *"Why does it feel like I lost?"*

No tears fell.

But inside him, something had cracked open.

A part that could never go back to who he was yesterday.

The wind outside howled faintly. Lin Yuan lay curled on the floor of his quiet room, arms wrapped tightly around himself. His face was pale, soaked in cold sweat. Shadows clung to the corners of his eyes, haunted by the first human life he'd taken.

He had killed beasts. He had faced assassins. But this was different.

> *A man with a name, a voice, a body... and blood that now stained Lin Yuan's hands.*

When **Lady Mingyan** finally arrived, she found him shivering, his spiritual robe torn at the sleeves, dark rings under his eyes. He didn't speak. He didn't need to. She saw everything written in the curve of his shoulders and the stiffness of his breath.

Without a word, she walked over and crouched down beside him. Her fingertips brushed his forehead—hot with spiritual exhaustion and fear.

She gently lifted him.

Moments later, Lin Yuan found himself lowered into a wide **spirit-forged iron barrel**, filled nearly to the brim with steaming **ox blood**—a thick, heavy mixture laced with faint red-gold qi.

> "What is this?" he asked weakly, blinking through the mist.

**Lady Mingyan** stood above him, arms crossed, her gaze softer than usual.

> "This is what mortal warriors use to strengthen their bones and meridians. The blood of ten peak-oxen, heated and infused with fire herbs."

> "You've eaten the meat like a cultivator. But now, absorb the blood... like a warrior."

She looked at him deeply.

> "You fear death. That's normal."

> "But I think what you really fear… is *wasting the life* you've been given."

Lin Yuan's eyes trembled.

The warmth of the blood seeped into his skin, saturating his flesh, soaking into the smallest veins. He felt it—**the pain**, but also **the power**. His muscles twitched, then flexed. His heart pounded harder.

The scent of iron and spirit herbs filled his nose. The air grew thick with his breath.

> *"I don't want to be weak."*

> *"I don't want to die meaningless."*

The blood churned slightly, reacting to his qi. His **demonic bloodline** stirred. His **moonlight essence** flickered faintly along his arms.

Lady Mingyan knelt beside the barrel and gently rested a hand on its edge.

> "Let the fear sink with the blood. Let the strength rise with the pain."

She stood and left him alone.

Inside the barrel, Lin Yuan gritted his teeth, fists clenching beneath the surface.

He whispered to himself:

> "I will survive. I will protect her. Even if I carry nightmares... I will become stronger."

And in that blood-drenched silence, the path of his body refinement truly began.

--