Chapter 37

"A boring trick!"

"Watching the curse turn into a black mouse again and lunge at him, Mu Yi curled his lips. These guys are sore losers, wanting to move house and take revenge even after death."

"Sooner or later I'll send those old monsters down to join them."

"Huh?"

"Just as Mu Yi despised these monsters for their lack of quality, a large clump of blue soul and a speck of red soul floated atop the big gray mouse's corpse."

"Dungeon prompt: You have obtained the current special currency—red soul. You can spend the currency in relevant places to exchange for goods."

"Looking at the red soul in his hand, Mu Yi felt a bit confused. He hadn't seen any exchange option related to red souls in Boundless Venerable's exchange table either. What is this thing used for?"

"The mysteries within the dungeon grew ever more numerous, but Mu Yi felt that the more he came into contact with things, the closer he got to the truth."

"When Mu Yi lifted the big gray mouse back, everyone's faces showed an expression of admiration."

"Although they had witnessed Mu Yi's strength, when he brought back a clearly refined house immortal, they were still shocked."

'"Boss Mu! What is this?" Li Tian asked, unable to hold back even though he had already guessed.'

'"Court house immortals are just a bunch of low‑life beasts!" Mu Yi waved his hand, signaling Li Tian not to make a fuss.'

"He now feels a bit regretful; back then he was in a hurry and didn't bring back the corpse of that yellow weasel spirit."

"Just now, looking at the big gray mouse's corpse, he suddenly felt a surge of inspiration to get creative."

"Blood‑activating soup is an idealist product; whether medicinal herbs or a heart, they are merely raw materials. What truly turns them into blood‑activating soup is the idealist will that decides it. If so, could he develop it himself?"

"After all, even with identical ingredients and cooking methods, the final blood‑activating soup varies in quality, and their effects differ vastly."

"Relying on others is worse than relying on oneself; this broken dungeon has too many troubles, so he also had to rack his brains to find ways to boost his combat power and ensure his survival."

"To enhance the effect of the willpower check, Mu Yi took out a bottle of blood‑activating soup and drank it first."

Then he took out all the remaining invigorating blood soup and handed it to everyone.

"Distribute this; it's a special potion—each person takes a sip, it will restore stamina and strengthen qi and blood. Tomorrow we'll speed up and leave this place!"

Although they were doubtful about the murky color and strange taste of the liquid in the bottle, seeing Mu Yi drink the invigorating blood soup without changing expression, they had no further doubts.

"Tomorrow you two carry this up; once we're settled, I'll brew a new batch of potion!"

Although there was no recipe, Mu Yi still confidently told everyone that he would make a potion from the corpse of the big gray rat.

Warfare is deception; only by deceiving oneself can one deceive others.

Early the next morning, a group drank the potion; just as Mu Yi had expected, with him leading the troops and not informing them of side effects, all those who drank the invigorating blood soup passed the willpower check and gained the status of invigorating qi and nourishing blood.

Seeing the energetic crowd, Mu Yi's understanding of military yin-yang deepened another level.

Praying to gods and buddhas is merely a matter of faith; as long as the soldiers can believe, even acting as a god or buddha seems not impossible.

Vaguely, he thought of battle formations, which seemed to be about linking everyone's strength together.

Gather the strength of all beings?

Mu Yi thought of the spirit bomb, also of incense faith, and of the so-called national destiny; these things ultimately seem inseparable from 'people'.

The tangled clues led nowhere; Mu Yi walked forward while sinking into thought.

As they headed south, the snowflakes drifting between heaven and earth became finer; the farther from the Forbidden City, the lesser the effect—this was no empty talk.

"Put in some effort, there's cooking smoke ahead—looks like a town; brothers, you can rest well today!" Lin Jie shouted excitedly; they had finally escaped the sky-full of snow.

Mu Yi said nothing, merely continuing to ponder; his rebellious path starting from zero was fraught with difficulty.

"Hehehe~" a seductive laugh rang out.

Mu Yi abruptly lifted his head, discovering that the surroundings had turned pitch dark, while ahead lights were lit.

Li Tian, Lin Jie, and the others had all vanished; before him remained only a lit cottage with its door open.

"Come in, young master!" the seductive voice sounded again.

Mu Yi's mouth twitched; he steeled himself and walked forward, not killing him outright but pulling him into this space—apparently communication was still possible, at least to first see what was going on.

Entering the cottage, a bewitching, seductive woman lay on a bed, her light-blue robe exposing much skin, holding a long-stemmed pipe burning faint smoke.

Mu Yi inexplicably felt that the light smoke resembled the incense scent he had encountered when seeking the Dao in temples and observatories.

"Young master, would you be willing to make a deal with me?" the innkeeper gazed at Mu Yi with a beaming smile, her scarlet eyes brimming with myriad charms.

"Don't worry, I only want your blue and red souls!"

Before Mu Yi could speak, the innkeeper's next sentence dispelled his worries.

But this did not relieve Mu Yi; instead it weighed heavier—having one's heart laid bare is hardly a good thing.

Mu Yi gathered his spirit, striving to calm his emotions.

"What can I gain?" Mu Yi knew that hiding anything before this person who could see through hearts was pointless, so he bluntly asked.

"Young master, what do you want?" accompanied by the innkeeper's seductive words, a list appeared before Mu Yi, displayed via the integrated network transcription.

【Narrow Gap Pawnshop Exchange List】

1. Condensing Qi Grass:

Quality: Pale Gold

Type: Holy Item

Effect: After consumption, it can increase the speed of condensing energy, obtain the power of condensing qi blades, and when the body's energy is lacking, the speed of condensing energy becomes faster.

2. Blood Lingzhi:

Quality: Pale Gold

Type: Holy Item

Effect: After consumption, it can increase the speed of qi and blood transport, enhance bodily functions; after all energy is expended, it can greatly enhance bodily functions, greatly strengthen your combat power.

3. Pearl:

Quality: Pale Gold

Type: Holy Item

Effect: Inputting energy can activate a defensive shield; the shield automatically absorbs energy to maintain itself, and after being broken it requires one natural day to reabsorb energy.

4. Mechanism Wheel Cannon:

Quality: Light Gold

Type: Relic

Effect: After inputting energy it auto‑recharges, and can release 15 energy projectiles toward the attack direction, dealing fixed damage; the projectiles can ricochet between enemy clusters.

5. ……

6. ……