Chapter 208: Outdated Knowledge Base

Eternal Purity calmly spoke. "The Scripture of Evil, Dragonblood Race-Conversion Art, Cellular Viralization, and the Blood Demon Style: Infinite Self-Devouring Art you developed have all benefited me greatly. From the ancient cultivation methods you taught me, I recently derived a secret art perfectly suited to you. Consider it my return gift."

She tapped a finger against the center of Yu Xian's forehead. A secret art appeared within Yu Xian's mind. It was not a cultivation method, but something closer to a special art, one tailor-made for him.

Yu Xian knew this could not be a coincidence. Eternal Purity had definitely anticipated everything long ago and prepared this gift for him.

Primordial Blood Pact was a secret art performed using the Primordial Pureblood within him as its medium. Eternal Purity had not exaggerated. This secret art truly incorporated the strengths of the Scripture of Evil, Dragonblood Race-Conversion Art, Cellular Viralization, Blood Demon Style: Infinite Self-Devouring Art, and several other cultivation methods.

Once someone accepted a Primordial Blood Pact refined through this secret art, they would become part of his lineage. The two would form a symbiotic relationship, with him as the primary partner and the other as the subordinate.

He could supply energy to rapidly unlock the other party's innate bloodline abilities, which would allow him to bypass their Bloodline Gene Lock and obtain their abilities. They could also perform joint techniques together, producing an effect greater than the sum of their individual strengths.

Put simply, either of them could transform into blood and fuse into the other's body. They could also assume a half-beast form that possessed all the advantages of both parties.

Yu Xian closed his eyes and extracted a drop of blood from his heart. Following the secret art Eternal Purity had transmitted to him, he slowly infused his mental energy into it and constructed the secret-art imprint. The blood circulated from his heart throughout his entire body, gradually transforming into a drop of pure black blood.

It flowed into his dantian and absorbed both his True Will and True Crimson Energy. Slowly, the blood ceased to resemble blood at all and instead became like a black pearl.

Yu Xian opened his eyes, and the "black pearl" immediately appeared in his hand. This was the Primordial Blood Pact. Any creature that consumed it would enter a symbiotic relationship with him. They would prosper and suffer together.

Yu Xian looked at Little Nora and clearly explained the Primordial Blood Pact. Then he smiled. "Now make your choice. You can become my companion, or you can continue living in this world. I'll respect whichever choice you make."

At first, Little Nora hesitated and even quietly retreated a step. However, the moment he saw Eternal Purity standing beside Yu Xian, his eyes lit up, and he answered loudly, "I... I choose to go with you."

He could tell that Yu Xian was at Star rank, yet he could not discern Eternal Purity's strength at all. Did that not mean Eternal Purity was even stronger than his ancestor? With such a powerful expert around, Little Nora considered another possibility: Yu Xian could have come from an immensely powerful Blood Race.

Countless vampires existed throughout the myriad worlds, and their strength and influence varied. Some Blood Races were so powerful that they intimidated countless worlds. Others were treated like rats in the street, chased from place to place by a handful of demon hunters and forced to hide in sewers and similar places.

Little Nora was certain Yu Xian belonged to the former. Joining him would be the same as gaining the backing of an enormously powerful faction.

The Garuda Race was indeed fairly renowned throughout the myriad worlds, and pureblood Garudas in particular were famous far and wide. However, ever since the progenitor of the Garuda Race disappeared, they had been steadily declining. Their enemies, the pureblood Dragon Race, were especially ruthless in suppressing them. Whenever the members of the two races encountered each other, a brutal battle to the death was inevitable.

Over time, with no leader to unite them, the Garuda Race gradually fractured. This was also why Little Nora's parents had placed him in such a remote little world fragment. The outside world was far too dangerous, and young Garudas were simply too likely to die before reaching adulthood.

Yu Xian smiled. "Then I hope we get along well from now on!"

He tossed the Primordial Blood Pact toward Little Nora. Little Nora opened his beak and swallowed the pearl in one gulp. A red light flashed through his eyes, and red radiance swiftly enveloped him.

"Fusion!"

Yu Xian likewise began radiating red light. The moment the two red lights touched, the enormous Little Nora transformed into red light and fused into Yu Xian. Hard golden feathers sprouted across Yu Xian's body, a pair of enormous wings emerged from his back, and a black ring appeared on his chest.

Little Nora's voice sounded inside Yu Xian's mind. "Big Brother, is this what fusion feels like? I feel really sleepy."

Yu Xian smiled. "Don't call me Big Brother anymore. Just call me... Big Bro. We're part of the same whole now. So, let's go!"

The wings on his back beat once, sending him soaring into the sky. He was nearly one-third faster than before.

Little Nora excitedly cried, "I'm flying! I can fly now!"

Flying headlong into the wind, Yu Xian laughed. "This is nothing yet. Let's try out the Garuda Race's abilities."

However, just as he prepared to use Little Nora's abilities, his expression stiffened. Little Nora did not possess a single special ability. His only advantage seemed to be his extremely tough feathers. If he absolutely had to name another, it would be his enormous appetite.

Yu Xian stopped in midair and asked in disbelief, "Auntie, Little Nora hasn't unlocked even one of his innate abilities?"

Eternal Purity smiled. "For a Garuda, one hundred years is equivalent to one human year, and they do not reach adulthood until the age of eighteen hundred. Little Nora is only eight years old, so he is comparable to a human infant just a few days after birth. What abilities were you expecting him to have?"

Yu Xian incredulously asked, "Can he survive long enough to reach adulthood?"

Eternal Purity chuckled. "Garudas are hardly worth eating. Unless they encounter hostile dragons, they have a fairly good chance of surviving. At present, roughly forty percent of Garudas reach adulthood."

Yu Xian and Little Nora exclaimed in unison, "That's so low!"

Little Nora's head popped out from Yu Xian's shoulder. "We're that easy to kill? But my inherited knowledge says we have a ninety-percent chance of reaching adulthood!"

Eternal Purity laughed. "That was a very, very long time ago. Your database needs an update."

Little Nora looked as though he had been struck by lightning. His database was already outdated. He turned to Yu Xian. "Big Bro, do humans still surf the web these days?"

Yu Xian was utterly confused. "What do you mean, 'surf the web'?"

Refusing to give up, Little Nora asked, "Then did Tang Sanzang ever successfully reach the Western Heaven?"[1]

Yu Xian could not help retorting, "Is there something wrong with your knowledge base?"

Tears welled in Little Nora's eyes. "Then, Big Bro... did Romeo and Juliet finally live happily ever after? One was a werewolf, and the other a vampire. So, wouldn't their child be a monster?"

The corner of Yu Xian's mouth twitched. "Auntie was right. Your knowledge base does need an update."

Little Nora looked at Yu Xian, then at Eternal Purity, before bursting into tears. He felt as though his world had collapsed. So much of what he had learned was already out of date.

1. Western Heaven refers to the destination of Tang Sanzang’s pilgrimage in the Chinese classic Journey to the West, where he travels to obtain Buddhist scriptures. In the story, it is associated with India and the realm of the Buddha. ☜