Chapter Twenty-Two: One More Big Score

Xiao Wenzi had not deliberately chosen the caravan heading toward Kaoshan Town; he simply wanted to get far away from Nanshan City, and his arrival here was pure coincidence.

At least he was now safely away from danger. This place, nestled beside the great mountains, offered him a chance: once he figured out a way to acquire some System Coins, he would head straight into the depths of the mountains to find a secluded spot for cultivation, unafraid of being discovered by any cultivator.

“These fellows live such carefree lives. In that case, tonight, you shall contribute a bit of fresh blood.”

Adventurers lived on the edge, their natures wild and fierce. They were fond of gambling and the pleasures of the flesh. Xiao Wenzi had decided to collect some mortal blood and was particularly attentive to such places.

Taking advantage of nightfall, he slipped into one of the brightly lit brothels, thick with the scent of powder and rouge. Instantly drawn by the lively scene within, he resolved to go all in tonight.

His current form was scarcely different from that of an ordinary mosquito, so none of the adventurers—drinking, carousing, their arms draped around girls—noticed anything amiss.

As the hours passed, some drank themselves into a stupor, while others seized the chance to steal away with a companion for a more intimate rest.

Waiting for the perfect moment, Xiao Wenzi tore open a window lattice and flew into a room where the candle had just been snuffed out.

The couple inside were engaged in unspeakable acts. Silently gliding to the bedside, Xiao Wenzi channeled his demon spirit power into wings and forelimbs, seized a fire iron from the table, and slowly approached the man.

Once within reach, he swung the fire iron with all his strength, bringing it down hard on the back of the man's neck.

With a thud, thanks to the extraordinary Blood Spirit Technique he had cultivated to the pinnacle of the first tier of the Demon Qi Realm, Xiao Wenzi’s strength now matched that of a late-stage second-tier cultivator—far beyond any of these mere martial artists who had yet to attain the innate stage. The unsuspecting man collapsed without a sound.

A dull thump in the darkness startled the woman, who found the man atop her suddenly limp and motionless. She struggled to push him off, but just as she tried to speak, a sharp pain struck her forehead, and she fainted as well.

He did not waste his precious demon spirit power just for sport. Tossing the fire iron aside, Xiao Wenzi flew to the two figures and, targeting their blood vessels, began to feed.

Half an hour later, having exchanged the blood for several hundred ordinary System Coins, Xiao Wenzi slipped from the room in search of his next target.

He repeated the process. In every room heavy with the scent of cosmetics he visited, the men and women left sprawled on the beds would wake with itching welts, their energies depleted—clear signs of excessive blood loss.

“About time to go,” he thought.

As night faded and dawn began to brighten the eastern sky, Xiao Wenzi ceased his feeding and left the brothel, flying toward the outskirts of town.

“Damn it! My hand—who did this to me?”

“No—my face! How could it be like this…”

Suddenly, anguished, piercing screams rang out from the once-quiet upper floors. Each cry more desperate than the last, as the victims roused from unconsciousness and could not accept their swollen, disfigured appearances.

Having spent System Coins on Demon Spirit Dew to restore his cultivation, Xiao Wenzi was now flyi