I, a prison guard in the Heavenly Prison, secretly became invincible thanks to the system.

Chapter 425 The Origin of the Bloodstone

On the vast sea.

The small boat successfully sailed back to Hongdao Island.

This is a true island; from a distance, whether it's the sandy beaches and reefs along the coast or the towering mountains inside the island, everything is a dark red.

Thanks to the story given by Qingmian, Ye Kang did not arouse suspicion. On the contrary, he told the story vividly, which made Xu Xun and Chu Yan'er listen attentively.

Standing on the deck, he exclaimed in surprise, "So Red Island really is red!"

Chu Yan'er, who was standing to the side, covered her mouth and smiled, saying, "That's natural. However, the red color of Red Island is not naturally formed, but rather it was created by human intervention."

"I would like to hear the details." Ye Kang cupped his hands and looked at Chu Yan'er.

The latter said, "This place was nameless at first. It just so happened that three families discovered at the same time that there was a very small spirit crystal mine on the island, so they settled here. Originally, it was only for mining spirit crystals, but by chance, someone also dug up another extremely precious mineral, Bloodstone."

In Ye Kang's mind, the Spirit Green Face used his vast knowledge to explain to Ye Kang: "Blood Radiance Stone is a precious refining material, and the best grade is often used to forge Grandmaster-level weapons."

Ye Kang's eyebrows twitched, revealing a look of surprise: "So that's how it is! Bloodstone is actually a specialty of Red Island!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Xun, who was standing to the side, was clearly a little proud and laughed, "Brother Liu, you flatter me. The Blood Shark Palace's Blood Radiance Stone is of much higher quality than the one produced on our Red Island. We are just trying to make a living."

Even so, Xu Xun's pride was still evident, after all, families that could control mines were very rare.

Chu Yan'er continued, "Although Bloodstone is good, there are great drawbacks to mining it. The Bloodstone's malevolent energy in the vein is extremely domineering and will spread to the surrounding areas."

She gazed at Red Island with a worried expression and said, "So all this red stuff in front of us is actually malevolent energy. If you stay here for too long, you will be tainted by it and go mad."

As soon as she finished speaking, her loyal servant Chu San sighed and said, "Young Miss, you are still young. You don't need to worry about these things."

Chu Yan'er smiled bitterly: "I don't care, it's just that Father told me all this. His life or death is still unknown, I..."

"What! What happened to your father?!" Ye Kang exclaimed in surprise.

Chu Yan'er shook her head: "It's a family matter, I can't say more."

"I understand. Now that we've arrived at the port, I'll take my leave. Thank you all for the fine wine."

Ye Kang didn't mince words; if he didn't want to talk about it, fine.

Xu Xun frowned: "Brother Liu, aren't you coming to the Xu family as a guest?"

Ye Kang laughed heartily: "I, Liu, prefer to appreciate local customs and traditions. I will definitely pay you a visit in a few days!"

"That's fine then. But I must remind you, Brother Liu, that the Beishan mine is a top secret place. You must not wander over there."

"Thank you very much, Brother Xu. I will remember this!"

Ye Kang nodded, clasped his hands in a salute, and then leaped off the ship and walked into the port city ahead.

Hongdao Port was originally a transit point for trading ores and other goods between Hongdao and outsiders, and over time it evolved into a port city.

This place is also an important stop in the Coral Islands, and many top sects' passenger ships pass through here, making it a very prosperous place.

As Ye Kang entered Zhengcheng, a faint aura of bloodlust wafted into his ears and nose.

This must be the malevolent energy within the Bloodstone vein, Ye Kang couldn't help but wonder.

"Qingmian, why is the Bloodstone Mine so filled with malevolent energy?"

“My lord does not know that it is not that the Bloodstone came first and then the evil energy came first, but rather that the evil energy came first and then the Bloodstone came into existence.”

"Oh?"

"Qingmian was well-read and knew many secrets of the human and fox races. It is said that the Bloodstone can only be born in places where evil energy gathers, and can only be formed by using evil energy as nourishment."

"No wonder, the mortals here don't look very healthy."

Ye Kang's eyes flickered slightly. The mortals passing by in front of him mostly had skin with a hint of murderous red, making them easy to distinguish.

With the constant presence of malevolent energy in their bodies, it's conceivable that the lifespan of ordinary people here would not exceed fifty.

Sure enough, after walking around, Ye Kang didn't see any elderly mortals over fifty years old on the street.

After wandering around for a couple more times, he randomly found an inn and checked in.

The shop owner was an honest and kind martial artist who had only just opened his third shop.

Just as Ye Kang was about to eat something, the shopkeeper brought the food and drinks into the room.

"Honored guest, these are the specialties of our shop. We hope you won't find them lacking."

Ye Kang's expression was strange: "I didn't order it?"

The shopkeeper respectfully replied, "This is our shop's rule: whenever we encounter a distinguished guest whose cultivation level is higher than mine, we must serve them a special dish and wine."

"I see, thank you very much."

"No need for thanks, honored guest. Please hear me out again. It's best not to go out for a stroll after nightfall."

"Why is that?" Ye Kang immediately became interested.

The shopkeeper didn't mince words, saying directly, "I see this is your first time visiting Red Island, sir. You may not know this, but the evil energy here is too strong, and strange things inevitably happen at night. To be honest, since my little shop opened, four wandering cultivators have disappeared in the middle of the night, their whereabouts unknown..."

The shopkeeper sighed, his expression showing some hesitation.

Ye Kang's heart skipped a beat, but on the surface he said nonchalantly, "Shopkeeper, you're joking. I think Hongdao is a place of outstanding people and beautiful scenery. How could such a strange thing happen? You're exaggerating."

"Believe it or not, ever since these strange things happened, whenever I encounter unfamiliar wandering cultivators, I remind them of this. If they don't mind, they can just take it as a joke. I'll take my leave now."

The shopkeeper shook his head and left the room.

Ye Kang smiled and started eating.

The specialty dishes and drinks tasted pretty good, but the portions were too small.

After Ye Kang had eaten and drunk his fill, he waited until late at night, then put on a blue sea robe, disappeared into the darkness, and climbed out the window.

Something strange is bound to happen. Otherwise, how could it have attracted the assassins of the Mad Wave Society?

……

the other side.

The Xu family mansion, one of the three major families of Hongdao.

Xu Xun abandoned his elegant gentleman persona from the daytime and began singing and dancing in the room. Several dancers swayed their hips, making him laugh continuously.

Behind him, the burly guard whispered, "Young master, should we make a move against Liu Ci today?"

Xu Xun rolled his eyes at him: "Can you beat him?"

The guard's expression froze: "We can't beat them, but we have many retainers in the manor. We can just send out a few more Nine-Leaf experts."

"Forget it. Although Liu Ci really annoyed me by daring to refuse my invitation, his strength is undeniable, so it's best not to cause any more trouble at this juncture."

"Does the young master mean to release him?"

"Release him? Since he's not from the Loose Cultivator Alliance, he's just a lone ghost without any backing. We'll just keep him for a few more days."

"Your Highness is wise."

"Compared to this, haven't you found Chu Dayou yet?"

"The patriarch has already sent out many people, but there's still no news."

"That's strange. Could it be that the assassins from the Mad Wave Society really failed?"

Xu Xun tapped his fingers on the tea table, a hint of anxiety appearing on his face.