Chapter 2 The Rain

The heavy rain came and went quickly.

The sky had just begun to brighten when the wind stopped, the rain ceased, and the dark clouds dispersed.

But the Yun family, soaked to the bone within the abandoned manor, felt a cloud of dread settle over them. They stared at the manor gate, which was no more, and knew that with their skills, they could escape it in a single step.

The reason they hesitated was not because Yun Qian'er remained inside the house, but because of the white-boned demon standing in the corner of the manor.

Inside, Yun Qian'er stood delicately by the corner of the table, her fingers twisting nervously, barely daring to breathe.

An Qisheng sat opposite Yan Xiake.

On the wooden table were a dozen exquisitely crafted and sturdy medicine bottles.

"These are the herbs that old emperor uses for longevity?"

An Qisheng examined the medicine bottles and his expression gradually grew serious.

"Father, Father left behind only these. I truly don't know..."

Yun Qian'er said softly, unconsciously moving to the side, away from the half-grown yellow dog licking its paws.

This seemingly chubby and docile yellow dog could sever a person's neck with a single paw strike. Li Hua’s blood had splattered all over her, leaving her traumatized.

"These things don't seem to have anything extraordinary about them..."

Yan Xiake was also very curious, but no matter how he looked, he couldn't discern anything special about them.

However, he didn't believe these items were ordinary. Since the Da Dao Ji era, the imperial heaven realm had been unable to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth without talismans. Without being able to draw on the essence of heaven and earth, one's lifespan could not exceed a hundred years. This was practically the decree of heaven.

The fact that the old emperor could extend his lifespan with these herbs meant they couldn't possibly be ordinary.

"These things indeed have nothing extraordinary about them. They're not rare, and one could even say they're very common. There's plenty of them everywhere..."

An Qisheng said slowly.

"Everywhere?"

Yan Xiake was stunned. How could that be?

If they were truly so common, would an old eunuch skilled in sorcery bring such elites from so far away for such meager materials?

"Yes, very common, very ordinary."

A cold glint flashed deep in An Qisheng's eyes.

"What these bottles contain is children's heart blood, young men's bone marrow fluid, and soul-nourishing liquid extracted from the spirits of youths..."

His mental power and divine intent were extremely powerful. When he took control of this body, he had already understood the structure of the human body in this world. No matter how you refine it or change it, you can't hide it from his perception.

However, he had not expected that the emperor of a nation could be so ruthless.

These bottles and jars were small, but from the subtle differences in their aura, he could tell that these small bottles and jars contained the blood and marrow of at least a hundred people!

Bang!

Yan Xiake's expression changed drastically, and he stood up abruptly, almost knocking over the table and chairs. "Impossible! How could this be?!"

Not only him, but Yun Qian'er was also terrified.

She looked at the bottles and jars as if she were seeing ghosts.

"How could it be like this? How could it be like this?"

Yan Xiake's face was extremely unsightly, and a huge wave rose in his heart.

The current emperor was using human blood, marrow, and souls to extend his life. What an unbelievable thing!

Legend had it that the current emperor was over a hundred years old and still youthful because he took 'immortal pills' every day. If he was swallowing such 'immortal pills' every day, then how many people would have to die?

Buzz~

An Qisheng didn't say much. He flicked his finger.

With the force spreading, one of the red porcelain bottles instantly shattered. As the pale blue, crystalline liquid splashed, An Qisheng flicked another finger.

Ah~

A shrill, desperate wail exploded in the hearts of the three people simultaneously.

It wasn't just one sound, but countless waves superimposed upon each other, exploding at once!

It was the last wisp of will left behind by the souls.

Yun Qian'er collapsed to the ground, her face pale and her body trembling.

Yan Xiake's face twitched, and his eyes revealed an unbelievable expression.

"How could it be?"

"Why couldn't it be?"

An Qisheng's eyes flickered.

In Yan Xiake's original trajectory, he was chased down countless times by the imperial court for various reasons. He might have thought it was because he had killed an imperial official.

In fact, it was because he had obtained these bottles and jars.

"An emperor of a nation, a supreme being above hundreds of millions of people, how could he, how could he be like this?"

Yan Xiake's heart turned cold.

This was treating the people of the world as cattle and sheep, no, as livestock.

"For the sake of longevity, what couldn't be done?"

An Qisheng smiled coldly.

The higher one's position, the more one cared about the words 'long life'. This principle was universal in all realms.

Ordinary people who lived difficult and painful lives craved the next life more than they desired longevity.

If you told a slave who toiled day and night like an animal about longevity, he might kill you on the spot.

But high officials were different, and the emperor was even more different.

They enjoyed the offerings of the people and enslaved millions to satisfy themselves. How unwilling would they be when death approached?

Just like the current emperor of the Great Qing Dynasty, the words he left behind when he was on the verge of dying from illness a hundred years ago.

'I really want to live another three hundred years!'

How could a lifetime of glory compare to ten thousand years of glory?

"Longevity..."

Yan Xiake's body trembled as he looked at the bottles and jars on the table and suddenly roared in anger.

"To hell with longevity!"

Zheng~

The sword light flashed and disappeared.

An extremely sharp sword aura swept across, destroying all the bottles and jars in that row!

Yun Qian'er looked up.

She saw Yan Xiake standing with his sword, his clothes moving without wind, his face grave, his eyes filled with killing intent, as if he wanted to devour someone.

"Damn emperor! Damn emperor!"

Yan Xiake looked at An Qisheng, clasped his sword, and bid farewell.

"Yun Jiegao is not the only one collecting herbs for that damn emperor. I want to see if those officials are all like Yun Jiegao... bastards!"

Yan Xiake spat out the last two words through gritted teeth.

After saying that, without waiting for An Qisheng to reply or even glancing at Yun Qian'er, he flicked his sleeves and left, his long sword humming like a dragon as he strode away. His murderous aura frightened the Yun family in the courtyard, turning their faces ashen.

"Brother Yan!"

Yun Qian'er chased after him, her face pale and trembling. Just as she was about to step out of the gate, she was suddenly grabbed by the head and lifted up by the white-boned demon.

"Stop!"

The Yun family roared angrily, but they dared not approach.

"Enough!"

An Qisheng said calmly, easily suppressing the shouts of the crowd.

Sitting in the house, he looked indifferently at the Yun family.

"Now, it's time to talk about your affairs."

What Yun Jiegao did couldn't have been flawless. Moreover, he couldn't trust outsiders to do such a thing.

For such a secret matter, he would naturally need to let his 'own people', whose lives and fortunes were tied to his, do it.

Yun Qian'er was unaware, but that didn't mean that everyone in the Yun family present was.

Unaware.

Taking human blood, marrow, and souls, whether as the principal offender or an accomplice, was a heinous crime!