Unknown Territory, Unknown City.
In a particular grand residence which hosted a celebration.
Inside the luxurious and lavish Banquet Hall which was wide enough to contain more than 1,000 people at once. Chandeliers hung high, lit with candles on each petal. Numerous tables carried food on top of it, waiting for people to take a sumptuous part in it.
Some of the food was eaten...
However, the people in this residence were coughing blood all over the surface while their skin displayed signs of withering as well as puss seeping out of tumors that formed all over their bodies.
Horrifying screams echoed, bringing despair and hatred into the banquet hall.
The family in this residence was supposed to celebrate their ancestor’s birthday, but tragically, events didn’t occur according to their plan.
Except for two people who didn’t belong to this family, almost all of them who belonged to this family were collapsed while coughing out blood, their vitality waning out.
Only one person other than the two people was able to stay conscious and ignore the effects of the poison.
It was none other than the ancestor of the said family.
The ancestor kneeled while trying to dissipate the effects of the poison but was held down by another power that seemed to have an advantage over him, over his soul to be exact.
"Why!? Who are you!? When have we offended you!?" The ancestor’s face contorted in torment as he screamed in grieving throes.
The family he had nurtured painstakingly for over 1,000 years was dead, no, was going to die soon from the deadly poison.
He could see them writhing on the floor, their expressions filled with pain.
He saw one of the women looking at him for help, her lips moving ’save me, save me’ but no sound was heard.
Blood kept leaking out from the woman’s mouth, her eyes innocent and pure, invoking one’s desire to protect.
Suddenly, her body twitched as her face contorted. Her eyes which were pure shot a venomous gaze at the ancestor as if she were cursing him for eternity.
The ancestor who saw it clenched his teeth as he tried to stand up, trying to escape but the astounding pressure of the soul force left him reeling into the abyss.
His crooked eyes turned to look over the two women in front of him, who were solely responsible for the tragedy that occurred here. The gaze in their eyes told him that disaster was imminent for him.
Resentment filled his heart as he spat out, "Bitches!"
A woman in red hair frowned when her brows narrowed. Her eyes looked devilishly charming but her looks were covered behind a veil. Her curves were ample, not big or small.
She held a sword in her hands that radiated a fiery undulations, trying to unveil its majesticness, but seeing that there was no use for it, she kept it inside her spatial ring.
She panned her gaze towards her side and spoke in a confused tone, "Why did we use poison?"
A white-haired woman stood by the side, her gaze cold and serene as if what was happening in front of her didn’t seem wrong. It didn’t faze her, unlike the red-haired woman who didn’t like the sight in front of her, indulging herself in complex feelings.
Her pale lips moved, "It’s better if I don’t taint my hands with the blood of these scums who pose to be a family when all they do is depraved acts."
An icy smile broke out in her face but was hidden by a veil, "Besides, using poison in a banquet seems to get people to poison themselves, how convenient."
Her gaze suddenly changed, the expression in her face contorted before she turned back and walked towards a grand chair which was designed like a throne.
That was where the ancestor sat, and beside the grand chair was a table.
The white-haired woman stood before the table and cast her gaze over to the medium-sized jade box that was placed on top of the table.
She extended her hand, grasped it with her palms as she opened it.
Blinding light shone before the radiance disappeared.
Sitting in the jade box was a palm-sized triangular-shaped colorless crystal.
Her facial expression contorted again before an icy smile lit up her face, "We got what we came here for..."
"You did this all to get a High-Level Spirit Stone Fragment!?" The ancestor spat out these words with an incredulous expression on his face. His mind was reeling in disbelief.
Although it was an item that he acquired through illegal means like blackmail, stealing it from a rich casanova with a high background, he was willing to exchange it for a high price.
However, he was thorough with his methods. He had gotten the item by forcing the casanova to sell the High-Level Spirit Stone Fragment through auction.
If he could trade this piece of spirit stone fragment for the lives of his entire family, he felt he would’ve given it without hesitation. However, the reality could be different.
If he wasn’t poisoned, maybe he could’ve relied on a despicable method to turn the tides around by using the lives of his family as a sacrifice.
The white-haired woman panned her gaze towards the ancestor, "Who told you that this is a High-Level Spirit Stone Fragment?"
The white-haired woman suddenly grasped the object in her hands and shook it while imbuing her ice-cold energy.
The palm-sized triangular-shaped crystal visibly contorted before it changed into a white semi-gaseous state, tentacles wringing out as it tried to escape the white-haired woman’s grasp.
Its outgrowth did nothing to the one who held it in place. It could be seen that the item possessed no offensive capabilities.
"Hundred Shaped Wistful Cloud..." The white woman smiled as she explained, "Having the ability to change shapes as its name indicates, it rather tries to escape from the moment it is born through the congregation of heaven and earth energy in the atmosphere."
The ancestor went tongue-tied as he absentmindedly uttered, "An ingredient?"
"A King Grade Ingredient indeed, which can also be used to concoct Emperor Grade Treasures."
The ancestor’s heart trembled as he temporarily forgot about his own situation in desire. He couldn’t help but ask, "What are its uses?"
The white-haired woman smiled and didn’t explain its properties but rather the result, "When directly consumed, it can help one breakthrough to Supreme Soul Stage."
The ancestor’s heart almost stopped! Greed filled his eyes as he looked at the magnificent ingredient with bloodshot eyes.
He had such a treasure but didn’t know about it!?
"Of course, the prerequisite for one is to be at the Sixth Stage in Soul Forging Cultivation; Peak-Level of Mature Soul Stage, just like I am..."
The white-haired woman waved her free hand, making the ancestor experience immense pressure on his soul.
Without being able to circulate energy, he lost control of the flow of energy traversing in his meridians and instantly failed to suppress the poison.
The poison simultaneously erupted!
*Pui!*
The ancestor spat a mouthful of blood as he collapsed, his body twitching from immense pain. He tried to escape with his soul body since he had an Elder Soul Stage Cultivation but failed due to the immense pressure cast by the white-haired woman.
His gaze was filled with horror, no longer throwing his greedy eyes over to the Hundred Shaped Wistful Cloud. He simultaneously circulated his Peak-Level Law Dominion Cultivation but failed to curb the poison haunting his body.
Soon, tumors formed and exploded, spreading puss which created more tumors as it kept repeating the cycle.
The red-haired woman looked at this morbid sight, her gaze moving away in disgust and pity.