Chapter 27: Drawing Talismans with Blood, Ranked One Hundred

The system was completely dumbfounded.

【Ningning, what are you doing?!】

This wasn’t right. Even if someone was grieving their dead Dao companion, the host would never resort to self-harm! Why was there blood now?

Summoning evil talismans… blood… Ahhh! That clever brain of his seemed to have figured it out!

Ye Qingning let her blood drip freely, even thinking it wasn’t enough. She clenched her bleeding palm harder.

She also explained to the system, “A cultivator’s blood contains spiritual energy and life force. It’s extremely tempting to all sorts of demons and malevolent spirits.”

“In our past life, you followed me to the Land of Blood Fiends. That place became eerie and haunted precisely because of the mass slaughter that occurred there. So much blood soaked the soil that it gave rise to endless wicked entities.”

“Just now, I attached a Talisman of Summoning Evil and Gathering Malice to this ghost-attracting locust tree. Now, combined with the scent of blood imbued with spiritual power, I’m sure it’ll draw in the nearby evil spirits very quickly.”

Using just the Summoning Talisman could indeed attract malevolent beings—it was just too slow.

This alley was deserted for now, but since she’d snuck out of the Yu Manor in the middle of the night, who knew if other disciples weren’t out in the city slaying demons too?

If she wasted too much time here, she might run into someone else. That’s why she needed to end this quickly.

Suddenly, a chilling wind rose out of nowhere.

The temperature around her plummeted, a cold wind howled like it was roaring up from the depths of the earth, sweeping countless fallen leaves into the sky.

Something had clearly been disturbed.

All of a sudden, a sharp, piercing caw echoed across the night. A flock of crows burst forth from an unknown direction, circling above the treetops, their cries growing shriller and more mournful—as if warning that something ominous had just been summoned.

The system widened its big, sparkly Kazilan eyes and shouted:
【Ningning! The talisman is glowing! You really did attract the wandering evil spirits nearby!】

Ye Qingning nodded, naturally having noticed the strange changes around her.

“My points are too low. If I don’t attract and clear monsters, how else am I supposed to get enough points to climb the rankings? Don’t worry, I can handle this.”

The system answered with awe, outright calling its host a mad lad.

Not only had she snuck out of the manor in the dead of night, she even used a Summoning Talisman and her own blood to lure all the nearby spirits—intending to wipe them out in one go. So brutal! So hardcore!

Of course, she had to go all out. Only by entering the inner sect and becoming a core or personal disciple could she stand out from the masses and earn a foothold within the sect.

Otherwise, when the ancient secret realm in the Penglai Sea opened, what would she use to prevent the calamity from her previous life? If she didn’t have the status and authority, no one would believe her even if she told them the secret realm was going to collapse.

That’s precisely why her Ningning was giving it her all. With real authority, she could change the future. She couldn’t let the entire Penglai Sect perish again.

As for that dog-lotus Ye Hanyue, she was probably dying to see the host drop dead. There was no way Ningning would let her have her way.

Very soon, both host and system saw waves of swirling black mist converging from all directions, quickly surrounding Ye Qingning beneath the locust tree.

The rustling of leaves, the wails of infants, hoarse, cackling laughter that sounded like ghosts howling—all of it echoed in rapid succession.

“Hahaha! This is the place! This is the smell! Her blood smells amazing! It’s been so long since I’ve smelled something so sweet! Don’t fight me for it!”

“Idiot! What are you rushing for?! Can’t you see she offered the blood herself? Are you blind or just brainless?”

“Exactly! Rushing will only spoil it! Be careful—this might be a trap!”

“Can’t you read?! It’s ‘hot tofu,’ not ‘rotten tofu’! But come on, with so many seductive ghost freaks here, are we really scared of one little girl? I just wonder if that tender flesh of hers is enough for all of us!”

“You’re the ghost freak! Your whole family are ghost freaks! You filthy dead thing! That flesh is mine—don’t even think about taking a bite!”

“Wuwuwu—Don’t eat her! Don’t eat her! She looks like my mom! Kill her and keep her corpse! The corpse is mine—mine! With it, my mom can always be with me again!”

Ye Qingning’s temples throbbed—what kind of nonsense was this? And since when could you randomly recognize someone as your mom? She had no such good son, thank you very much.

She truly feared for these evil spirits’ intelligence levels.

Unfortunately, she had already used up all her Suppression Talismans back at the Yu Manor, and currently had none left to deal with these spirits.

But she could draw new ones on the spot.

It was now midnight—the hour when yang fades and yin rises, when spiritual energy was at its peak. Talismans drawn at this time would carry the strongest power.

In the next second, she bit the tip of her left finger and raised her hand to draw a talisman in the air with her blood.

The talisman she drew was a Suppression Talisman.

“Stop squabbling! Look at what she’s doing!” A sharp-eyed ghost spotted Ye Qingning’s movement and shrieked in a harsh voice.

The horde of ghosts finally sensed something was off. They screeched and lunged toward her, claws bared.

【Ningning, watch out!】

Ye Qingning sped up. She wasn’t some great talisman master who could draw runes with a wave of her hand, summoning the elements with just intent.

But she knew that talismans drawn with fingertip blood—or even heart’s blood—could unleash tremendous power.

She had no pre-made talismans on her, so this was her first time trying to draw one with her own blood. She was curious to see just how powerful this method could be.

The ghosts howled, and the sinister aura lashed out like tangible tendrils, rapidly closing in on her. Their gaping maws were already inches away.

At the last possible moment, the final stroke of the Suppression Talisman was completed.

The crimson blood-drawn talisman flickered with a faint red glow, as if imbued with life. The moment it was finished, the evil aura receded.

Time seemed to freeze. Just a second ago, the ghosts were still clamoring to tear her apart. Now, they stood frozen as if someone had pressed pause—all of them too afraid to take even a single step closer.

“No good! This little brat knows Daoist arts! Run! Run!”

“Aaaahhh! It’s a trap! I told you to be careful! You brain-dead fools never listen! RUN——!”

One ghost screamed and bolted, and the mass of spirits scattered in every direction.

But it was too late.

The Suppression Talisman burst with dazzling golden light, illuminating the entire night sky.

Under its glow, the evil spirits were immobilized, unable to flee or even move.

Their shadowy forms—condensed from dark, evil energy—dissolved in the golden light like snow under a blazing sun, accompanied by piercing, anguished howls before vanishing completely.

The alley fell silent once more. All the summoned spirits had been exterminated, the eerie atmosphere completely gone, leaving behind only peace and quiet.

Ye Qingning wiped the cold sweat from her forehead—she had definitely been nervous while drawing that talisman.

She also marveled at how powerful a blood-drawn Suppression Talisman could be—it had exceeded all her expectations.

What surprised her even more was that she had broken through from peak Foundation Establishment to the Great Perfection stage during the battle—completely unexpected.

At the same time, the familiar assessment notification sounded in her ear:

【You have exterminated 29 evil spirits. Gained 200 assessment points. Your current total is 440 points. Rank: 100. Keep up the good work!】