Immortality Cultivation: I Can increase My Stats Using Clansmen's Qi-Blood

This raised Luo Chen's alertness to the maximum.

"Something's not right."

Luo Chen whispered to Qing Shuang as he reached for the sword hilt at his waist.

Qing Shuang also sensed something strange in the air. She nodded and silently stood up, aligning herself with Luo Chen.

"Let's go and take a look," Luo Chen suggested.

They cautiously approached the source of the sound, making every effort not to make any noise with each step.

As they got closer, the eerie sound became clearer, seemingly emerging from the other side of the valley.

"Be careful, it might be a trap," Qing Shuang whispered a warning.

Luo Chen nodded, using the tip of his sword to gently part the bushes in front. A deserted village appeared before them.

The village houses were in ruins, seemingly abandoned for a long time, yet a few dim lights flickered within.

"Why would there be people here?" Qing Shuang asked in confusion.

"I don't know, but it's definitely no good," Luo Chen replied as a gut feeling told him there was something dangerous hidden in this place.

They continued forward and arrived at the village center.

There, they saw a group of raggedly dressed people huddled by a fire, their eyes hollow, as if they had lost their souls.

"These people..." Qing Shuang's voice carried a hint of tremor.

"They are controlled by some power," Luo Chen asserted, his sharp gaze sweeping the surroundings in an attempt to locate the source of control.

Suddenly, a sinister voice sounded behind them: "You shouldn't have come here."

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang quickly turned around, seeing a man in a black robe standing behind them, wearing an eerie smile.

"Who are you?" Luo Chen asked sternly.

"Who I am is not important. What matters is that you have stepped into my domain," the man in the black robe spoke dismissively.

"What have you done?" Qing Shuang glared at the man, sensing the suffering in the people.

"I merely let them experience true fear," the man in black bragged with a smile.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang exchanged a glance, knowing they must stop this evil presence.

Luo Chen drew his longsword, pointing it at the man, while Qing Shuang began to gather spiritual power within.

"Come, show me what you can do," the man in black taunted.

The battle was about to erupt.

Luo Chen's swordsmanship was incredibly fierce, each strike carrying a sound like slicing through air, while Qing Shuang's spiritual power attacks poured upon the man like a storm.

However, the man in black seemed indifferent to their attacks, an invisible barrier around him blocking all assaults.

"You're too weak," the man in black mocked.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang felt their hearts sink.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang knew they needed to change their strategy.

Luo Chen sheathed his longsword, took a deep breath, and commenced adjusting his breath and inner strength.

Qing Shuang also stopped gathering spiritual power, choosing instead to softly recite ancient curses.

"Do you think this will defeat me?" the man in black said disdainfully, though a flicker of caution crossed his eyes.

Luo Chen didn't answer, closing his eyes to focus all his attention on the sword tip.

The sword tip began to tremble slightly, emitting a low humming sound.

Qing Shuang's chant grew louder as a light azure glow enveloped her, coalescing into a massive orb.

"Luo Chen, are you ready?" Qing Shuang asked softly.

Luo Chen opened his eyes, a glimmer of determination in them. "Ready."

Qing Shuang launched the orb towards Luo Chen, tracing a beautiful arc through the air. Luo Chen reached out, the orb landing steadibly on his sword tip.

The radiance at the sword tip suddenly turned blindingly bright. Luo Chen shouted as he pointed the sword tip at the man in black.

"Break!" Luo Chen yelled, the light shooting towards the man in black like a lightning bolt.

The man in black's expression changed; he hadn't expected Luo Chen and Qing Shuang to unleash such a powerful joint skill.

He hurriedly marshaled all his strength, attempting to form a stronger barrier before him.

However, the joint skill of Luo Chen and Qing Shuang was too powerful; the light penetrated the barrier and struck the man directly.

The man in black let out a horrific scream, his body trembling violently before gradually dissolving into the air.

With the disappearance of the man in black, those who had been controlled began to regain their senses.

They stared blankly around, unsure of what had happened.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang breathed a sigh of relief, knowing the crisis had been averted.

They approached the people, helping them return to living a normal life.

"Thank you, we don't know how to repay you," said an elderly man who seemed to be the village chief, filled with gratitude.

Luo Chen smiled and shook his head. "We don't need repayment. As long as you're safe, that's the greatest thanks to us."

"By the way, there's something I feel I ought to tell you."

"Besides this area, there are several other places nearby that are just like this,"

The village elder's words made Luo Chen and Qing Shuang tense, realizing this might not be an isolated incident but part of a larger conspiracy.

"Can you elaborate?" Qing Shuang gently inquired.

The elder sighed and began to narrate: "Recently, strange things have happened in some villages around us. People disappear without a trace, or end up like us, controlled by some unknown force. We tried to find the cause, but to no avail."

Luo Chen furrowed his brow, sensing the severity of the matter far exceeded their expectations.

"We will definitely investigate this thoroughly, but for now, you need to leave this place and find somewhere safe to take refuge."

"We have nowhere to go," the elder's voice was tinged with helplessness and despair.

Qing Shuang looked at these helpless people, her heart filled with sympathy.

"Luo Chen, we can't just leave them like this."

Luo Chen nodded, knowing Qing Shuang was right.

"Alright, let's help them find a safe place first, then we'll investigate these matters."

So, Luo Chen and Qing Shuang led the villagers, traversing the desolate valley to a safer small town.

There, they arranged temporary accommodations for the villagers and ensured their basic living needs were met.

"Wait for us here, we'll solve this problem as quickly as we can," Luo Chen assured the villagers.

"Thank you, Luo Chen and Qing Shuang," the villagers expressed their gratitude.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang set off on their journey again, deciding to first investigate the nearest village where anomalies had occurred.

"What do you think could be the cause?" Qing Shuang asked as they walked.

"I'm not sure either, but these things are happening too frequently to be a coincidence," Luo Chen answered.

They arrived at the second village, finding it in the same condition as the first village.

The houses were dilapidated, and the villagers' eyes were vacant, appearing to be controlled by some force.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang carefully navigated the village, attempting to find the source of control over the villagers.

They discovered that whenever night fell, a chilling aura would spread throughout the village.

"It seems we'll need to wait until night to find clues," Luo Chen said.

As night deepened, Luo Chen and Qing Shuang hid in the shadows, waiting quietly.

Sure enough, when the night was quiet, the chilling aura reappeared, even more intense than before.

They followed this aura to the village's central square.

There, they saw a strange ritual taking place, with several black-robed individuals gathering around a massive altar, chanting continuously.

"What are they doing?" Qing Shuang asked in a low voice.

"It looks like some sort of dark magic," Luo Chen replied, a flicker of anger in his eyes.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang decided to wait for the right moment, knowing rushing in would only alert the enemies.