Chapter 52: Corpse-Worm Blood Bait Soup

Just from the rising tone of his voice, it was obvious that Zhou You was ninety-nine percent insincere about becoming a disciple.

The old Daoist’s head, however, did not care. It directed Zhou You to pick up the other two heads.

“As you can see, both of these skulls are already empty. One contains a demon, the other contains a ghost. They happen to make an excellent poison when combined.”

“First, the dead infant yin fetus. It was transformed from my brain matter. You may cut open its organs and obtain one portion each of yin heart, yin liver, yin gallbladder, and yin lung. Discard everything else, then grind those things into powder.”

“Second, the ring-headed centipede. This thing devoured everything inside my brain, leaving only an eye and a tongue behind for communication. Break open its shell and take its flesh.”

“Then take one qian of each and mix them together.”

“Next...”

“...”

“...”

A few minutes later, a thoroughly bizarre concoction appeared before Zhou You.

From its appearance, it looked like a pile of sludge. Yet in another sense it seemed liquid. The whole thing was black as ink, and every so often it would ripple like a living creature.

The old Daoist nodded noncommittally.

“Not bad. For a beginner, it’s enough to count as passable. When many of my disciples first did this, let alone preparing it correctly, it was already impressive if they weren’t frightened into madness. So...”

He jerked his chin toward the bowl.

“...Drink half of it first.”

The self-satisfied expression on Zhou You’s face immediately froze.

Pointing at the thing that looked suspicious from every possible angle, he turned and demanded,

“Seriously, Master? No matter how I look at it, this doesn’t seem like something meant for human consumption. And my memory isn’t so bad that I’d forget what happened a few minutes ago. Weren’t we talking about using this to poison that pig-headed monster? Why has it suddenly become something I’m supposed to taste first?”

The old Daoist merely smiled.

“Only after it’s fully prepared does it become poison. Before that, it’s merely a medicinal broth. Your body is too weak, and your hand still has a hole punched clean through it. Even if you escape this place, you probably won’t make it very far. This old Daoist is nothing but a head now, and I’m still counting on you to sew me back onto my body. Naturally, I need to find a way to give you a little more ability.”

“So, obedient disciple, be good and drink it.”

The old Daoist’s face was smiling, and his tone sounded like that of an elder coaxing a disobedient child into taking medicine.

Yet there was no amusement whatsoever in his eyes.

Only the coldness with which one might regard a corpse.

His meaning was perfectly clear.

Drink it, and the discussion could continue.

Refuse, and they would part ways. The old Daoist would remain here as a decoration while someone else blindly searched for an escape route.

So what should he do?

Zhou You pondered for a while. In the end, he shrugged, picked up the bowl, and cautiously took a sip.

There was no strange flavor.

The texture, however, was horrifying beyond description.

It felt as though countless worms had been crushed into pulp and mixed together, with the occasional half-dead one still struggling inside his mouth.

Suppressing his disgust, Zhou You followed the old Daoist’s instructions and poured half the bowl into his stomach.

The next instant, the System’s notification sounded beside his ear.

“Dear player, you have consumed the cursed object: Corpse-Worm Blood Bait Soup.”

“Your wound recovery speed has increased, and you have gained a certain degree of resistance to Grand Duke Jupiter flesh and all similar items, including flesh-growth, living ginseng, Bone-Melting Paste, and others.”

“You have received the curse: Taro Caterpillar Transformation.”

“You are involuntarily transforming toward certain twisted forms. Please find a solution as soon as possible before you become a complete monster.”

“You have passed the first stage of the Qi Refinement method: medicinal ingestion.”

The cultivation of Yunjing Dao ordinarily begins with consuming yin substances, but never with something hastily mixed together like this, a concoction that has not even entered an alchemical furnace.

Only after seeing Zhou You drink the mixture did a trace of genuine satisfaction appear on the old man’s face.

“Excellent, excellent. Disciple, you truly possess resolve. Drinking this means you have entered the gates of our Yunjing Dao. Unfortunately, the materials here are incomplete, and this thing was mixed together in haste, leaving many flaws. But don’t worry. As soon as you escort your master back up the mountain, I can immediately refine another batch of pills for you. Not only will it make up for the deficiencies, but I can also formally accept you as my direct senior disciple.”

Zhou You said nothing and merely stared at the old Daoist’s face.

Does this guy genuinely mean that, or is he planning to use it as leverage against me?

A moment later, however, he shook his head.

Forget it. It makes no difference either way. I only need to clear the game.

Setting down the bowl, Zhou You coughed lightly and said,

“Master, is all of your cultivation this creepy? Do newcomers always have to eat something like this?”

To his surprise, the old Daoist frowned and asked in confusion,

“What are you talking about? Isn’t everyone like this? Our Yunjing Dao is already considered relatively mild. We merely consume yin substances. Those famous sects often attach fierce ghosts and demons to themselves. As for things like eating infants, refining corpse oil, and building blood-sacrifice towers from severed heads, such practices are everywhere. What’s so surprising about that?”

Zhou You froze.

He suddenly remembered that the old monk had once told him the same thing.

“Isn’t Buddhism always like this?”

At the time, he had assumed the monk was deliberately concealing something.

But now it seemed...

Every cultivation system in this scenario appeared to be strange and horrifying in one way or another.

Seeing the suspicion on the old Daoist’s face, Zhou You knew this was not the time for further questions.

He simply committed the matter to memory and said,

“Then, Master, I’ve already drunk the stuff as instructed. What do we do next?”

The old Daoist replied,

“...Under normal circumstances, I should teach you some introductory formulas. But there’s no time for that now. Here, pick up my head and aim my neck toward that bowl.”

Zhou You did as instructed.

Then he saw the head shake violently.

Pain gradually appeared on the old Daoist’s face.

Then, as though forcibly squeezed from shriveled blood vessels, a drop of mud-like blood slowly dripped from the severed neck.

The moment it fell into the bowl,

Sizzle.

The roiling black liquid suddenly became calm.

Then it gradually lost its color, becoming clear and transparent.

Only faintly could one see shadowy shapes like insects emerging within the bowl before vanishing without a trace.

Only then did the old Daoist let out a sigh of relief.

“Pour this over that pig’s head. Then wait for the monster to eat it. After we’ve dealt with the creature, I’ll tell you how to get out.”

Zhou You obediently sprinkled the liquid evenly over it.

However, while looking at the still glossy pig’s head, he seemed to remember something and casually asked,

“By the way, Master, I just remembered something. Earlier I saw plenty of human corpses in the room. It could survive simply by eating corpses. Why go through all the trouble of turning people into pigs before eating them?”

The old Daoist laughed.

“Listen to yourself. Human flesh isn’t nearly as rich or delicious as pork. The flavor doesn’t even compare. Who would be crazy enough to ignore pork and chew on living humans instead? Those corpses are all chopped up and used for meatballs. Only things created through Animal Transformation are worth the pig-headed monster’s effort to carefully cook into proper dishes.”

Zhou You glanced at the old Daoist and nodded thoughtfully.

“I see.”

“Disciple has learned something.”