"Moonlight!"
The huge Ironwing Bird let out a piercing screech, far clearer than in previous dreams. Now, its form could be seen vividly.
But this dream was different. Suspended in the air was an enormous drop of golden blood— the essence blood of the Ironwing Bird.
The Ironwing Bird that had been relentlessly chasing Su Yu suddenly seemed drawn toward it.
In the next moment, the bird's eyes glanced at the golden blood with a hint of confusion.
Very soon, it gave up the chase and flew toward the glowing drop in the void.
The Ironwing Bird flew faster and faster, and in the blink of an eye, it reached the golden blood. With a sharp cry, it swallowed the essence blood whole.
Boom!
At that instant, the Ironwing Bird blazed like a golden sun, its body erupting with dazzling light that illuminated the entire dreamscape.
Su Yu watched expectantly. What would happen next?
The essence blood really had an effect!
Just as he was thinking this, the Ironwing Bird suddenly began to grow larger and larger, as if it was about to explode.
Su Yu's face changed.
Sure enough— with a deafening roar, the dream began to collapse. The Ironwing Bird shattered into countless golden sparks, vanishing from the dream in the blink of an eye. Su Yu was blasted apart as well, his form scattered in pieces.
At the final moment of the dream, a massive book appeared suddenly, blotting out the sky.
The book rapidly flipped through its pages. Most were blank and white, but soon a page glowed as the golden sparks of the Ironwing Bird merged into it, instantly illuminating the page. A vivid image of the Ironwing Bird appeared.
The dream ended there. Su Yu awoke suddenly.
...
"Hss!"
Pain—his head felt like it was splitting apart, his whole body aching as if he had truly been blown to pieces.
Su Yu opened his eyes.
His gaze flickered uncertainly. The dream had been unlocked.
At this moment, a faint, hazy book appeared in his mind.
The same book from the dream!
"Dreams turning into reality…"
Su Yu's expression grew serious. After so many years, breaking the dream should be a cause for joy—but why had it become real?
That book, which had absorbed the golden sparks of the Ironwing Bird, now truly appeared in his mind.
Was it just a phantom? Or was there really a book embedded in his consciousness?
Su Yu studied the book in his mind and willed it to flip its pages. Soon, it landed on the page lit up by the Ironwing Bird's light.
Ironwing Bird (Thousand-Pound Tier, Level 7):
Racial Skills: Rend Level 1 (Essence Blood Activated), Ironwing Slash (Essence Blood Activated)
Basic Origin Technique: Energy Absorption (Essence Blood Activated)
Only these few lines—and not even in human language, but in the script of the Ironwing Bird race.
If Su Yu hadn't studied it, he wouldn't understand a word.
"Thousand-Pound Tier... racial skills, basic technique…"
Su Yu frowned. What kind of book was this?
"Essence Blood Activated" seemed to mean he needed to continue absorbing essence blood to activate... activate what exactly?
Skills?
Thousand-Pound Tier must refer to the grade of the essence blood he had absorbed. That part was easy to understand.
But what about the rest?
Su Yu's mind raced. "Could it be that with enough essence blood, I can unlock the Ironwing Bird's skills?"
"Could I actually use them?"
"If I can, what strength would they have? That of an Origin Tier cultivator like me, or the full power of a Thousand-Pound Tier beast?"
"How long would the effect last? Would there be side effects?"
"And this book… where did it come from?"
His eyes flickered. The dream had started more than ten years ago—was the book really in his mind all that time?
Who put it there?
Was there some kind of conspiracy?
Among the myriad great races of the multiverse, some were cunning and sinister. Humans had been victims before—many powerful cultivators were secretly sabotaged, corrupted by outside influence, led astray and eventually became disciples of the Ten-Thousand-Race Cult.
Su Yu couldn't help but wonder.
"But… among hundreds of billions of humans, I'm just an ordinary person. Why would anyone waste more than a decade scheming around me?"
He remained puzzled, but a stirring excitement began to grow.
Should he try it?
Besides, the book felt incredibly thick. Only one page had been unlocked—did that mean there were more to open?
Just as he thought this, he suddenly felt a faint ripple—a subtle pulse coming from the book's pages.
Not words, but something like a spiritual explanation.
"It can be unlocked—as long as it's a race I've dreamed of and I find their essence blood. But since I'm only Origin Tier, I must consider my body's limits when consuming essence blood…"
Su Yu understood. That burning, exploding pain was because he had consumed essence blood from a Thousand-Pound Tier Level 7 Ironwing Bird.
If it had been essence blood from a Ten-Thousand-Stone Tier beast, he might have died.
"I understand now!"
He whispered to himself, slowly piecing it together. Every dream over the years represented a race.
This book didn't mean the Ironwing Bird's essence blood was special. It meant any essence blood from a race he dreamed of could unlock its page.
But he hadn't recognized those creatures before, and being only Origin Tier Level 3, how could he dare to consume essence blood?
If he hadn't figured this out, he wouldn't have risked it.
One wrong move could mean death.
"Basic Origin Technique… Energy Absorption…"
Su Yu didn't dwell on it longer.
Then he remembered the last line. The Energy Absorption Technique was the Ironwing Bird's basic cultivation method—its only function was to absorb some of the world's vital energy.
"Energy Absorption Technique... Essence Blood Activated?"
His eyes flickered with curiosity. "Could it mean I can use essence blood to activate this technique and absorb energy?"
"But as an Origin Tier cultivator, I can't actively absorb energy, only passively wait for my body to refine it."
He didn't pay much attention to the racial skills—Rend and Ironwing Slash were just basic abilities of the Ironwing Bird. Humans had their own similar skills. The "Essence Blood Activated" probably just meant Su Yu could learn these skills or reach the strength level of a Thousand-Pound Tier bird, but he wasn't too concerned about that.
What really caught his interest was the Energy Absorption Technique—also activated by essence blood. What was that about?
Below the Thousand-Pound Tier, humans couldn't actively absorb energy. The "Kaiyuan Technique" (Opening Origin Technique) only helped humans gather a bit more energy around them, allowing for longer passive refinement and slightly better effects.
"Energy Absorption Technique…"
Suddenly, Su Yu felt a surge of excitement he couldn't contain. If he could unlock this Energy Absorption Technique, did that mean an Origin Tier cultivator like himself could actively absorb energy?
The long grind through the nine levels of Origin Tier was mainly because they couldn't actively guide energy into their bodies—the human body lacked a connected meridian system to do so.
But what if he could actively absorb energy?
"However… the consequences are uncertain!"
"What would happen if I absorbed energy actively? How much essence blood would I need to activate it? If just one drop, how long would it last?"
"What about the efficiency?"
"This stuff is expensive—50,000 per drop. If one drop only lasts a few minutes, it wouldn't be worth wasting the money."
Countless thoughts flashed through his mind. Plus, unlocking other race pages required essence blood too. Where could he get so much?
Overwhelmed by all the tangled possibilities, Su Yu felt his head spinning.
"Maybe… I should experiment!"
"Also, where exactly did this thing come from? Should I ask my teacher?"
He quickly rejected the idea.
Even if this was planted by someone, the teachers weren't powerful enough to know about it. It wasn't something they could access. This had lasted over ten years without anyone noticing. Forget about Thousand-Pound or Ten-Thousand-Stone Tiers, even Sky-Soaring Tier cultivators might not know.
"Daydreaming won't get me anywhere. The best way is to try."
Just as he was thinking this, a loud bang came from the door!
Next moment, Chen Hao waved his schoolbag fiercely, shouting, "I've already informed the Wind-Patrol Hall! If you're not afraid to die, keep staying! There are strong cultivators upstairs and downstairs. Get lost!"
"…"
Su Yu froze.
Chen Hao swung his schoolbag in the air, yelling, and soon voices stirred upstairs and downstairs.
"What's going on?"
"Are the beasts of the Ten-Thousand-Race Cult here?"
"How dare they!"
"Surround them!"
"…"
Snapping out of his daze, Su Yu quickly shouted, "It's nothing, nothing! Uncle Zhou, Chen Hao and I are just joking, sorry, sorry!"
Soon, an elderly man flew over, holding a kitchen knife. He pushed aside Chen Hao blocking the door, saw Su Yu was fine, and sighed in relief.
"I thought the beasts of the Ten-Thousand-Race Cult had arrived. Your dad just left, be careful. Call us if anything happens!"
Then he gave Chen Hao a hard smack on the head.
"Damn it, who told you to shout? Don't shout if it's nothing. If the Ten-Thousand-Race Cult really showed up and we didn't take it seriously, wouldn't that get people killed?"
The old man was angry—but not at Su Yu, at Chen Hao.
"Chen family brat, if you pull a false alarm again, I'll have your dad drag you downstairs, strip you naked, and hang you up for a beating!"
Chen Hao grimaced, trying to explain it wasn't him.
It was Su Yu!
That guy suddenly sent him a message telling him to break in. Could Chen Hao not think the worst?
So unfair!
Su Yu got up, still feeling some pain, but luckily most of the essence blood's power had been absorbed by the book in his mind. He only felt soreness, no real injury.
Without wasting time, he apologized. Uncle Zhou looked relieved, then gave Chen Hao another whack on the head.
Look at you—why are you so different from Su Yu?
Such a fool!
Chen Hao felt like crying but couldn't.
Su Yu gave a bitter smile and quickly asked, "Did you really notify the Wind-Patrol Hall?"
"No, just bluffing!"
Chen Hao was annoyed. He didn't even know if there was a real incident. Why would he notify the Wind-Patrol Hall?
"That's good."
Su Yu breathed easier.
Chen Hao scowled, "Good? What's good about it? Why did you send me that message? I thought you were in trouble!"
At this moment, the elders and old ladies upstairs and downstairs, seeing it was nothing, gradually dispersed.
Su Yu relaxed, pulled Chen Hao inside, and closed the door.
"I was feeling a little dizzy earlier, afraid I'd faint, that's why I sent you a message. Didn't I tell you to knock first?"
"Oh, are you okay now?"
Chen Hao no longer pressed, sounding worried.
"Could it be hunger? Since Uncle Su left, you haven't been eating?"
"Why don't you come eat at my place sometimes? My dad asked me to invite you before, but I was worried you'd feel embarrassed."
Su Yu couldn't help but laugh. Was he really going to starve himself?
But it was touching. Although Chen Hao was naggy and a little crazy, he cared about his friend.
"I'm fine. Just practiced the 'Kaiyuan Technique' too long last night, felt unwell this morning. It's better now."
"That's good!"
Chen Hao relaxed and quickly added, "Are you going to school today? If not… you could call your teacher, say you're sick, and I'll go with you to the clinic. You could ask me to get you a leave."
"…"
All the warmth Su Yu had just felt vanished.
This guy was hopeless!
He didn't dare skip class but suggested he get a leave for him.
"Get lost!"
He laughed and scolded, then thought for a moment.
"No leave today. I'm going to school. I actually have something to do at the academy."
"You're going too?"
Chen Hao looked confused.
"You change your mind so much! Didn't want to go before, now you do? Are all smart people so fickle?"
Su Yu ignored him.
He planned to search the academy for some way to get Ironwing Bird essence blood—or other essence blood—that was affordable.
Summer Trading Company was too greedy!
One drop cost 50,000. That little money he had left wasn't even enough to cover the cracks between his teeth.