Wang Ming heard Chu Jingling's scream, and his gaze snapped from the man back to her. His eyes widened in horror at the scene in front of him which seemd to come out of a Lovecraft horror story.

The skin on Chu Jingling's left arm had started to peel off automatically, revealing the mass of flesh beneath. Her left hand swelled, a few blood vessels burst, and then her entire arm began to turn black.

"Hey, Chu Jingling, are you alright?" Wang Ming asked as he hurried over to her side.

"Does it look like I'm fine, you idiot?" Chu Jingling cursed as she grimaced at her left arm. She wanted to puke and gritted her teeth as mind-numbing pain shot through her arm. If she was not used to pain like those spoiled heirs then she would have already fainted by now.

'System, what the hell is going on with her?' Wang Ming asked hurriedly as he watched Chu Jingling's dire condition.

[System Message: It's the side effect of the Empty Bloodline Physique. She has a few minutes left to consume the blood essence, or her entire body will transform into the same grotesque appearance. After she consumes the blood essence, she will change her race and return to normal.]

Wang Ming blinked a few times before he turned his head to look at the two remaining altars which were still accessable.

"Damn, where do you think you're going?" Chu Jingling shouted when she saw the leader of the Black Church move deeper towards the altar and vanish from their sight. She was about to rush forward, but Wang Ming held her back, which made her glare at him.

"Do you think you can get past the barrier? Your attack was useless. And don't you think you have something more important to do than chasing after him?" Wang Ming asked with a raised eyebrow, ignoring her glare.

"Damn," she cursed, but knew Wang Ming was right. She could feel a crisis brewing within her body, she could feel it that she was about to lose control of her body soon if nothing is done soon. Just as she was about to run toward the altar, one of her thighs also transformed into grotesque mass of flesh, making her stumble and flinch in pain.

"Just tell me which one you want to head to, I'll carry you there," Wang Ming said as he picked her up like a sack.

"Can't you carry me more gently?" Chu Jingling grumbled at Wang Ming's roguish way of carrying her, then looked at one of the two remaining altars and pointed. "Take me to that one."

Wang Ming followed her finger and saw her pointing toward the one with the white fangs symbols. He nodded and leaped in that direction.

After a few minutes, they arrived in front of the altar.

"Put me down; only one person can enter each altar," Chu Jingling said, and Wang Ming obliged and out her down on the ground.

Woosh

As soon as Chu Jingling took a step forward, a golden barrier erupted, separating them. Chu Jingling gritted her teeth to push down the pain and limped forward.

"Hmm, there's one more altar. I should go and take that blood essence too," Wang Ming mumbled as he also headed toward the last altar, which had a pair of wings as a symbol.

---

The leader of the Black Church arrived in front of a small lectern, where a small vial of black liquid floated above it.

"This is it," the leader whispered, his breathing slightly hurried as his eyes locked onto the vial. With trembling hands, he grasped it carefully.

He opened the lid, and black, malicious smoke rose from the tube. He had the urge to drink directly from the vial but restrained himself from acting on his urges.

"Not now. First, let's go back to the base where it's safe, then I will consume it" the leader mumbled as he closed the vial and put it into his space ring.

---

"Hah... f-finally," Chu Jingling's eyes were bloodshot as she mustered all her strength and arrived in front of the lectern, where a vial filled with crimson blood rested.

By the time she arrived, her entire body—except for her face and the wrist of her hand—had transformed into a grotesque mass of flesh. She walked forward, leaving a trail of blood behind, even bits of her flesh on the ground, she went forward and grabbed the vial. Without hesitation, she opened it and consumed the blood essence directly.

As soon as the blood essence touched her tongue, she felt a cool sensation spread through her body. The parts that had transformed were soon covered by a white light as her body returned to normal slowly.

"Sigh... I arrived just in time; otherwise..." She shuddered at the thought of what would have happened to her if she had been any later. She had no problem dying, but she knew that if she failed, she would have transformed into a mindless creature of rotten flesh—a thought that made her want to puke.

---

Wang Ming also arrived in front of a vial, but unlike the others, the blood in his vial was golden in color.

'Soul Eyes,' Wang Ming activated his technique, and the details appeared on the screen:

[Dragon Blood Essence]

[Rank: Divine]

[Description: The blood essence of one of the most powerful holy beasts under the heavens]

'Dragon!!!' Wang Ming exclaimed when he saw which beast it belonged to and was surprised.

"Well, I don't mind changing my race to a dragon. Even in the novels I read in my past life, many protagonists changed their race to dragons since they're too OP," Wang Ming mumbled and then frowned. "But still, I need to get the Empty Bloodline Physique first after I accumulate enough points. Sigh, so many things I want to buy, I genuinely hesitant which one should I buy first from the system shop"

Wang Ming shook his head, grabbed the vial, and put it into his storage ring.