My talent panel can be increased

Ye Mingqiu spoke softly, his eyes beneath the blue face and fangs fixed on the blood-red butcher, showing no sign of letting his guard down and simultaneously spreading his senses to avoid a sneak attack.

The other Crimson Hermits, pierced by the Blood Spear, would soon have their boiling blood drained and turn into black fragments. But this guy, whose power had been drained by the Blood Spear for so long, could still speak.

Could it be because he has primordial blood in his body?

Is raw blood more valuable than boiled blood?

"Yes, I've gone mad. I've been frantically researching source blood and the human body as the Crimson Hermit, trying to develop even stronger power from source blood and become the Crimson Butcher."

The Crimson Butcher laughed, relaxed and carefree, as if he weren't currently pierced through the chest, but rather enjoying afternoon tea.

Its lips curled up slightly as it said, "You know what? Right now, I'm in pain, but also very happy. The feeling of having my source blood power stripped away makes me feel like I'm gradually returning to my former self, back to my original form. It's just... a little sleepy."

"Then go to sleep."

"Alright."

The Crimson Butcher's body gradually changed, from strong to withered, and his red-glowing muscles gradually dimmed and turned black. The power of the source blood was indeed strong, but it also had its limits. If it was continuously drained for too long, he would also die.

But

If I weren't the one fighting, and there were no Blood Spears, how could they fight and how could they win?

A question arose in Ye Mingqiu's mind.

As the Crimson Butcher previously stated, there are materials in this world that can counteract blood energy. The principle behind this counteracting effect should be different from my Blood Spear, but it should still be able to kill the Crimson Shadows, otherwise the Crimson Shadows would never hide in the dark corners of human society.

"Behind the door, in the core power area, are the research materials I've collected over the years, which you can dispose of as you see fit."

The Crimson Butcher left his final words, and the crimson light on his body completely dissipated, turning into a pitch-black stone, like a monster sculpture carved by an artist, sitting quietly.

"Crack!"

Ye Mingqiu pulled out the blood spear, and his vigilance finally eased slightly. Only a dead opponent is the best opponent and the most worthy of respect.

The next moment, a powerful force full of vitality surged from the blood spear, flowing into his body through his arm that was tightly gripping the spear, and into every part of his body, bringing an incomparably comfortable feeling.

[Note: The Blood Spear has replenished you with pure life energy, increasing your maximum health by 50.]

It actually has this effect?

It seems I need to hunt down as many Crimson Hermits with Source Blood as possible in the future!

Immediately afterwards, Ye Mingqiu turned and walked towards the power core area.

The environment inside was cleaner than I had imagined, filled with all sorts of bottles and jars, as well as petri dishes containing various cells, monster limbs, and unconscious life forms—all kinds of life forms, including many experimental subjects that violated moral principles.

Ye Mingqiu found a work table with all sorts of documents on it. He casually picked up a notebook and discovered that it was actually a prop that could be directly incorporated into the spirit world space.

[Hint: You have obtained the Crimson Butcher's Experiment Notes]

It seems that the Blood Butcher's experiments were indeed valuable, a fact acknowledged even by the spirit world.

To show respect for his opponent, Ye Mingqiu chose to put everything that could be recognized as a useful tool by the spirit world into his storage space. These were all the culmination of the Blood Butcher's life's work and could not be wasted.

"Ok?"

Ye Mingqiu turned to look at a photo glued together on the table. The photo showed a short-haired girl. He flipped it over and saw a line of crooked words.

Dad will always love you

Chapter 47 Crimson Supreme

Ye Mingqiu's hand trembled slightly as a scene suddenly came to mind.

The Blood Butcher went berserk during the experiment, destroying everything in his path and tearing up his daughter's photo. However, in his monstrous state, he also retained some of his father's will, forcibly piecing the photo back together and writing a line of words in a crooked hand.

Is that really the case?

Probably. His handwriting was very neat; he would never write such distorted characters under normal circumstances. He was a worthy opponent.

My family.

Ye Mingqiu felt a little disappointed, but he quickly processed the feeling. After all, he had long been used to being alone.

After collecting his spoils, he left.

The next morning, at the coffee shop

Ye Mingqiu arrived at the coffee shop with the fresh air after the rain, smiled and waved to the manager, saying, "Good afternoon, manager. I've brought money with me today."

"welcome."

The old shopkeeper said with a smile.

"A macchiato."

Ye Mingqiu went to a corner of the coffee shop to enjoy the peaceful atmosphere. He had been fighting all night and was a little sleepy in the morning. He wanted to have a cup of coffee to refresh himself so that he could be more energetic for the next mission.

His money came from the Crimson Butcher. Although the other party was a Crimson Hermit, the Crimson Hermit was a blood-red monster hidden among humans. Since he had to hide, he had to deal with other people, and he needed to have the most basic money.

More importantly, the experiments conducted by the Crimson Butcher required a lot of money. Without money, he simply couldn't buy so much experimental equipment, let alone conduct the experiments.

Moreover, most of the equipment this guy bought wasn't proper experimental instruments, so it couldn't be traded online and had to be done in cash. As a result, Ye Mingqiu seized a lot of cash from the other party's laboratory.

"Ah~"

Ye Mingqiu stretched lazily. He had spent a lot of energy reading through those research materials all night, but he had also gained a lot in return.

First, the Crimson Hermits are a product of humans acquiring blood power. The source of blood power is boiling blood, which originates from source blood, and source blood comes from the Crimson Supreme.

According to legend, the Crimson Sovereign has existed since ancient times. He once ruled the world and regarded all living beings in the world as food.

Then, a hero was born. He wielded a sharp sword and killed the Crimson Supreme, slicing its body into more than 1800 tiny fragments. Boiling blood scattered everywhere, and the source blood was devoured by various living beings.

But in reality, the Crimson Supreme did not die. He resurrected from a tiny blood clot and incorporated his will into Boiling Blood and Source Blood, making it necessary for every being who obtains Boiling Blood and Source Blood to feed on humans.

This is not food necessary for life, but rather a curse from the Crimson Sovereign upon humanity, an endless hatred for that human hero.

And all the original blood in this world was born from that time.

The Crimson Supreme, "killed" by the hero, has since hidden himself in the human world, no longer making a fuss, silently accumulating power to control the Crimson Hermits, reclaim the Source Blood, or reclaim the Crimson Hermits who possess the Source Blood.

According to unofficial historical records, to this day, the Crimson Supreme has still not fully recovered from the sword wound left on him by the hero, so he dares not act rashly, and even if he does, he cannot unleash his full power.

I don't know if it's true or not.

Ye Mingqiu already knew a lot of information, but the second part of the mission was still not completed.

This isn't because we haven't gathered enough intelligence, but because the mission deadline hasn't passed yet, and the reward pool can continue to accumulate. There's no need to rush to submit it. If we can get more intelligence in the remaining time, we might be able to reap even more benefits.

[Mission completion: 256%]

[Task Status: Ready to Submit and Complete]

Besides the experimental data, he also obtained a bronze treasure chest after killing the Crimson Butcher. Unfortunately, he'd been having bad luck lately, and only got [something else] from it.

A packet of salt

Ye Mingqiu was so angry that he almost threw the salt on the ground. Logically speaking, when a level 1 player fights a level 3 player, there should be an extra drop rate bonus when opening treasure chests, which would increase the chance of getting good items. However, the problem was that his luck was just too bad. Even with the bonus, he only got one bag of salt.

He looked at the piles of personal belongings in his storage space and fell into deep thought.

Was my unboxing result really that bad?

Fortunately, there's a safety net after killing the Crimson Butcher: the Crimson Butcher's Bone Blade.

[Bone Blade]

Rank: First Rank

Quality: Silver

Category: Greatsword

Attack power: 22-26

Equipment requirement: Strength 20

Weapon characteristics:

① Overbearing: When using this weapon to attack, if your strength is greater than your opponent's, you will deal an additional 20% penetration damage.

②Destruction: The attack itself has a destructive attribute.

Description: A weapon crafted from the remains of an unknown creature, its material is incredibly tough and possesses immense destructive power. Perhaps, it has other uses besides being a weapon.

It is an extremely powerful weapon, with offensive capabilities even surpassing the Blood Spear, because it possesses destructive properties, making it significantly more destructive, while the Blood Spear excels at enhancing survivability.

Ye Mingqiu suspected that the white bone battle blade might be the bone from the Blood Supreme's prime.

The Crimson Butcher once mentioned in his notes that he obtained the Bone Blade during a double-cross, and that even the Crimson Supreme was unaware of its existence (he believed this). However, it is uncertain whether the Crimson Supreme actually knew.

Perhaps the Crimson Supreme knew, but didn't care, or perhaps he didn't know.

In short, this weapon is far from simple, and it's best to use it sparingly within this world, otherwise it might pose a greater risk if discovered by the Blood Supreme's subordinates.

"Crack!"

A crisp sound of the door opening rang out, and a familiar face entered the coffee shop. It was Changfeng. He glanced at Ye Mingqiu sitting in the corner, and his expression changed noticeably.

He suspected that Ye Mingqiu was the monster with the blue face and fangs, but he didn't dare to confirm it.

"Hey, good morning~"

Ye Mingqiu smiled and waved to him, as happy as if he were seeing an old classmate.

Good morning.

On the other hand, Changfeng was not so happy. Although he felt that Ye Mingqiu might not be that blue-faced, fanged monster, after all, the other party claimed to be a mage and even used magic, he couldn't gamble on such things when there was a probability involved.

If you win the bet, you get nothing; if you lose, you lose your life. Only a brainless person would gamble with their life!

How was your outing yesterday?

"It's okay, that's all."

"Oh."

Ye Mingqiu nodded, then asked, "Then why did you come to this store again? Is it because you like it? Or is there some other reason?"

His smile was bright and sunny, but in Changfeng's eyes it seemed terrifying, like a devil smiling at him. He appeared to be all smiles on the surface, but in the next second he might be devoured without even a bone fragment left.

Changfeng took a deep breath and replied with a smile, "I chose this shop for our date because my friend likes coffee. There's no particular reason."

"Ow~"

Ye Mingqiu nodded.

So there were other "friends" too!

Chapter 48 Blue Demon

Soon after, the coffee shop door was pushed open, and a girl blowing bubble gum and carrying a huge bag walked into the coffee shop, looking around. Her short silver-gray hair was exactly the same as the girl in the photo.

Ye Mingqiu, sitting in the back corner, felt a slight tremor in his pupils. If he wasn't mistaken, this was the daughter in the blood-red butcher's photo.

Although he felt apologetic, he didn't regret it. After all, humans and the Crimson Butchers were two naturally hostile camps, and the Crimson Butcher wasn't a good person either; the things in his lab were the best proof of that.

Ye Mingqiu may feel guilty, but he will never repent because of this, nor will he become soft-hearted because of it.

The silver-haired girl's gaze swept across the entire store, finally locking onto a certain figure—a boy dressed like a student, namely Changfeng.

A slight smile played on her lips as she walked straight to Changfeng, pulled out a chair, sat down, and asked, "Do you have any additional information about Qinggui?"

Aoki?

A new Red Hermit?

Ye Mingqiu's gaze shifted, but compared to Qing Gui's identity, he was more concerned that this girl actually asked Chang Feng for information directly in the coffee shop. Sure enough, this coffee shop was not simple.

He had a feeling something was wrong before. The coffee shop was located in a very remote area, far from the city center. In a world where the Red Hidden Ones were rampant, it was undoubtedly a very dangerous thing to set up a coffee shop in such a place.

More importantly, it was a rainy night when Ye Mingqiu arrived, and he worked until nearly 11 p.m., and the boss hadn't closed the shop even then, which was obviously very unusual.

If the boss were an ordinary person, he should leave work early and go home to avoid being attacked by the Red Shadows.

"Isn't it inappropriate to just talk like this?"

Changfeng's lips twitched. The guy who looked like Qinggui himself was sitting behind him drinking coffee. How could he dare to talk about the other person in front of him? What if something happened?

"It's okay, it's just a game character. If you agree on the terms, I'll give you item rewards."

The silver-haired girl crossed her legs and leaned back casually, blowing her bubble gum bigger. Her earrings with white flame patterns shimmered in the sunlight, seemingly possessing some special power.