Chapter 848: Peifeng's Admirers (1)

Blood Prison Mountain, in its extremely deep part.

Blood qi surged, turbid waves rolled, a blood-colored river rushed past; in the river water several zhang deep, oddly shaped jagged stones could be vaguely seen.

Along the riverbank, metal pillars as thick as water jars were driven deep into the boulders, each pillar attached to hundreds of iron chains as thin as a little finger, the chains studded with barbs, and blood-colored runes faintly visible.

Such metal pillars covered the stony riverbank densely, stretching beyond sight.

Countless thin iron chains extended into the river water, still violently trembling.

Through the water came a piercing metallic clatter 'ding-ding', chaotic and shrill to the extreme, dense as rain.

Suddenly, a red light flashed on an iron chain, the chain tightened, then rapidly pulled back.

Accompanied by a shrill whistle, a stark-naked sturdy man, holding a set of chisel tools in his left hand and clutching a boulder-sized crimson ore in his arms, was hauled back ashore by the iron chain.

The sturdy man flung himself face-down on the shore, gasping for breath.

The thin metal chains split into three at the end; two passed through his shoulder blades, the third tightly wound around his neck. Barbs tore at his flesh, drawing blood drop by drop from deep within his skin.

The blood-red water was filled with a strange corrosive force; the sturdy man's skin was covered in white ulcers, and blood continually seeped out from within.

On the man's wrist hung an ordinary metal plate engraved with the title 'General of some unit of the Sui Chao border army', and etched upon it was a strange demon sigil whose runic light flickered, protecting the plate from corrosion by the blood-red water.

On the man's forehead, like a brand on livestock, a palm-sized 'slave' character was carved deep into his flesh and bone, etched deep into the bone itself.

"This river contains nothing but blood-pattern steel—excellent material for forging weapons," said Xueyu, standing on a large stone by the river, watching the sturdy man struggle back from the water and collapse, gasping on the shore.

Several not-yet-fully-human little demons, retaining some beastly traits in head, limbs, or body and tail, shambled over, lifted the ore from the sturdy man's hand, and dropped before him a black lump of salted meat with salt granules stuck to it.

"Eat quickly, go back in the water… do you still think this is your commander's residence? Heh, we still need two thousand jin—hurry up." A little demon with a leopard's head and a leopard tail swaggered, kicked the sturdy man on the head, and said triumphantly.

"Weapons forged from blood-pattern steel cause wounds that bleed continuously unless one is of the Divine Manifestation Realm, whose divine body differs from ordinary mortals and can expel the corrosive force faster; even a peak Body Cultivator of the Fetal Storage Realm would risk death from persistent blood loss."

Xueyu crossed her arms, chuckling: "Little sis, the innate yin wind and evil qi of Blood Prison Mountain rushes to the heavens; there's nothing else special here, just this blood-pattern steel that lets me trade for food, clothing, grain, and pills."

Nodding happily, Xueyu said: "But these days you've done me a great favor—capturing so many Sui Chao soldiers alive and selling them brings in a tidy sum. Heck, these past two years we can live more comfortably."

The Western Demon Country's social structure resembles primitive beast tribes; clans rely on instinct, smaller clans attach to larger ones, larger clans attach to the greatest, and through fighting and scrambling they demarcate their territories.

Here the economic model is basically nonexistent—no fixed equivalents, no fixed production relations, still at a extremely primitive barter stage.

Xueyu certainly made a good profit this time.

Peifeng led the great and little demons of Blood Prison Mountain, cooperating with several giant demon chieftains, and captured countless Sui Chao soldiers whose retreat had been cut off.

Now the several giant demon chieftains of the northwestern Western Demon Country are expanding outward, seizing vast tracts of land and lacking labor slaves; these trained, sturdy, endurance-capable Sui Chao soldiers thus become the ideal choice.

So Xueyu seized the opportunity, trading with those giant demon chieftains for mountains of primordial crystals, countless medicinal herbs and food, countless swords, spears, and halberds—indeed she turned a tidy profit.

With these, the standing regular army of Blood Prison Mountain could expand from its current thirty-odd thousand to more than tenfold.

Xueyu couldn't help but be pleased.

Peifeng stood beside Xueyu, watching the iron pillars' lights flicker, watching the once Sui Chao soldiers gasp as they struggled out of the water; as soon as they emerged they flopped on the shore, panting, exchanging chunks of blood-pattern steel ore for lumps of salted meat, big or small, at the little demons' whim.

"Do you and Sui Chao have a grudge?" Peifeng asked Xueyu, gazing at those Sui Chao soldiers.

Those identity plates marking the slaves' status could be well protected by demon sigils; Peifeng doubted Xueyu could shield those Sui Chao soldiers in the blood-water.

Clearly, they intend to mistreat these unfortunate Sui Chao troops with this river water on purpose.

"Of course there is," Xueyu replied after a moment's silence, lifting her gaze to the drifting blood-colored clouds in the sky.

"The Western Demon Country is harsh to survive in; all races basically act on instinct." Xueyu said calmly: "My true form is a Bloodthirsty Blood Peacock, and moreover an innate demon born of heaven and earth. However, I seem congenitally deficient—actually a bad egg; when hatched my true form was extremely weak, utterly unable to survive."

"My foster mother was a dove that hadn't even fully transformed."

"She didn't know where she picked up my egg, but she expended tremendous effort to hatch me; when I had no combat strength at all, she didn't know how many snakes, insects, rats, and ants she fought off to protect me."

Xueyu lowered her head, swung her right hand, and a blood-red whip lashed out from her fingertips, striking a Sui Chao commander heavily.

That blow was immensely heavy, nearly cleaving the commander's body in two.

Xueyu said coldly: "Once I grow a little, my bloodline power stirs, giving me some self-defense; then my foster mother vanished..."

"Later I discovered that the Sui Chao Crown Prince Fengrong loves fine food. To celebrate the birth of his great-grandson, he held a grand feast, one bowl of which was soup made from a ten-thousand-year-old dove."

"My foster mother was captured by a great demon and sold to Fengrong."

"The price was merely a set of Spirit Weapon–grade armor finely crafted by Sui Chao."