Demonic Insanity

Ling Yun stepped into the hidden cave nestled deep within the mountains. A ghostly silence filled the cavern, broken only by the soft dripping of water echoing through the darkness. At the far end, luminous plants shimmered beneath the water's surface, their glow resembling stars trapped in the depths.

He sat by the water's edge, steadying his breath. A moment later, he began the alchemy.

With careful movements, he retrieved a small vial from within his robes, extracting three drops of essence blood. With a slight motion of his fingers, his spiritual energy flowed forth, suspending the droplets in midair.

"Now, I need to merge these three essences..."

Blood techniques were intricate and perilous. The slightest mistake could disrupt one's cultivation or even lead to death. He cleared his mind of distractions. A moment later, his eyes ignited with a violet radiance as he initiated the refinement process.

Delving into each essence, he examined their Qi, meticulously analyzing their differences. Slowly, he guided his spiritual consciousness into their depths, seizing control over them, preparing them for fusion.

But this method had a grave flaw—it deepened his karmic burden.

Karma dictated the severity of a tribulation upon reaching a higher realm. The heavier the karma, the more terrifying the calamity. And Ling Yun's karma... was monstrous. If he didn't find a way to escape it, sooner or later, it would claim him.

Having no options, he was walking the demonic path now. The curse of the Dao and the heavens had barred him from the righteous way. Fate itself pushed him toward damnation—just as it had in his previous life.

The Path Of A Heavenly Demon.

After merging the three drops of blood—an easy feat due to the relatively low level of cultivation involved—he directed them into his Sea of Consciousness. But to his surprise, they resisted. Not only did they refuse to integrate with his body, but they actively fought against absorption.

Ling Yun's expression darkened. He tried multiple methods, but with his spiritual power suppressed, none succeeded. Soon, the essence began to wither, its vitality fading away.

"I won't allow it!!!"

With unwavering resolve, he unleashed another technique—one capable of altering the very nature of the essence.

Reincarnation of the Blood Buddha.

The fused blood trembled violently. Within its depths, a tiny embryo began to take shape, growing rapidly until it formed a complete body. But it remained motionless. No sign of life flickered within it.

It simply lay there, trapped in an eternal slumber...

"The Blood Buddha requires a will. Without it, it falls into eternal slumber."

The Blood Buddha was a mysterious and terrifying technique, a trump card that Blood Demons wielded in battles of life and death. If they perished on the battlefield, this technique allowed them to escape—by seizing another's body and taking it as their own.

But Ling Yun had no need for such demonic methods. He had found something far beyond that—a forbidden art that granted him passage back into the cycle of reincarnation.

Still, the Blood Buddha wasn't limited to mere possession. It could serve as an autonomous warrior—one that could act without his direct intervention, carrying out tasks on its own.

Of course, the Blood Buddha before him was only at the second layer of the Qi Realm. Even so, it could be strengthened—with rare spiritual materials, more essence blood, or even through sacrifice. But the real challenge wasn't its power—it was the will required to control it.

Ling Yun's will wasn't strong enough to divide his mind and fully subjugate the Blood Buddha. He had suppressed his soul, and in doing so, he had weakened his own will as well.

That left only one option—he needed to borrow the will of another.

But this method was dangerous. Danger aside, Who would willingly give up their life to become a mere puppet for a demon?

Ling Yun fell into silence, his thoughts drifting.

"Maybe I could force Jing to do it?"

"Perhaps a beggar or an orphan, someone who's already given up on life, could serve this role?"

"What if I take in a disciple, mold their mind, and bind their will with enslavement techniques?"

Countless possibilities emerged in his mind, yet none offered a clear answer. Every path led to more questions, more uncertainty.

Hours paased and by the time he stepped out of the cave, dawn had arrived. The darkness had fled from the sky, and the stars had been swallowed by the golden light of the rising sun.

Ling Yun smiled.

Though he had failed to refine the essence blood and advance his cultivation, he had gained something else—the Blood Buddha.

And one day, it might prove invaluable.