"M-my blood, you say?" Shu He backed away a single step as he observed his Senior Sister, her entire atmosphere had changed like a flip had been switched which worried Shu He, he used his <
Na Xue took a steady step towards him before stumbling slightly "Oh… right…" she covered her eyes as she steadied her breathing before removing her hand, her eyes had returned to the pale green that they normally were for a split second, but an impulse shook her as they dyed themselves a deep scarlet once more "Ah, it's no good" she murmured.
"Senior Sister, what's happening to you?" Shu He asked once more. 'It seems that she's still sane at least, but what exactly is going on?' he though to himself as he kept his guard up.
"I'll explain later…" she took another step towards him "But for now, please, can I have some of your blood?" the sensual undertone had once again returned to her voice, Shu He felt her words drift into his ears like a velvet charm; He was all the more alert.
"Even if you're my Senior Sister, giving you my blood… it's…" Shu He was wary of anything to do with offering blood since he has come to a deeper understanding of rituals and oaths, blood was a currency that was not to be given lightly.
"I won't harm you, please…" She pushed on closer to him, but he wasn't risking anything as his Qi began flowing to his legs as he prepared to run, he didn't want to do anything reckless.
Yet before he got a chance to leave, a voice came booming from the distance.
"Do it Shu He, she won't cause you any harm!" A familiar voice entered his ears as his thoughts spun.
"Oh fine!" Since the owner of the voice said so, Shu He decided to go along with it- He pulled out a knife from his robes as he gently pierced the tip of his index finger until a few drops of blood stuck to the tip of the blade before he held it out in front of him.
Na Xue paused as her two scarlet eyes fixated on the scant liquid the laid upon the blade's tip, there was something odd however, whilst blood was normally red… this blood was bronze in colour.
Shu He saw this and was immediately confused.
'That is my blood, right?' he questioned himself as he glanced at the fingertip it came from, it looked normal… too normal. It had already healed.
Granted, it was only a small cut, but It had already closed up!
'Cultivators have stronger, faster cellular regeneration, but that would have taken a couple minutes to heal at least… it has barely been two seconds!' His eyes shined as he attributed this affect to the Nine Heaven's Divine Body which he had started learning.
'Truly a divine technique!' He was distracted, thinking about the potential of his body, when Na Xue closed her lips around the tip of the blade he was holding out, taking in all the blood on it causing Shu He to shiver slightly.
He found it downright creepy to see another person drink his blood.
An audible gulp was heard as Na Xue's eyes closed, her Qi flow suddenly pulsated strongly as Shu He could visible see her complexion improve over a few seconds flabbergasting him.
"Good grief, how shameful, showing yourself like that to a Junior" The owner of the voice from before strolled over shaking his head of long white hair, it was of course Elder Bai who frowned as he looked at Na Xue's state.
"Elder Bai… just what is happening?" Shu He questioned, if it was anyone else he wouldn't have thrown caution to the wind but at the very least he trusted Elder Bai, even if he wasn't the most reliable Elder.
"Nothing that you should be concerned about, normally, but…" He walked over to Shu He and gestured to him to show his knife, which he did, Elder Bai then sniffed it as his eyes narrowed. "You really can't help but show me interesting things, Shu He".
Shu He sighed "What is it this time?" he knew the drill, there was a caveat to his recent transformation he wasn't aware of.
"Well, let's wait a minute first" As he glanced at Na Xue who was still silent with her eyes closed shut; They waited for 5 minutes before her eyelids gently opened revealing her grass green eyes that sparkled with renewed light, her skin that was pale before regained a semblance of its pinkness, though she still seemed off.
She then glanced between Shu He and Elder Bai before a blush overtook her face as she crouched down, covering her face with her hands "Oh heavens, I actually did that didn't I? In front of Shu He as well?! Please let this be a dream!" she began murmuring to herself.
'So she CAN get embarrassed' Shu He averted his eyes to his Senior Sister's plight.
"Go and get dressed and come join us in the sanctuary building, I think Shu He deserves an explanation" he said to Na Xue who meekly nodded before he turned to Shu He and chuckled "Nothing is ever quiet when you're around, you came to pick 'that' up right? It's ready, so let's have a quick chat first, alright?".
…
"Here, Senior Sister, Elder Bai, Shu He" Three cups of tea were placed in front of them by a young man with spiky brown hair and a grin on his face, this was Yao Hu of course the third new member, he stared at Na Xue with deep respect as she returned his stare with a simple smile.
"That's all for now Yao Hu, get back to work" Elder Bai ordered as the young man responded with a "Yes!" before marching away, closing the door behind him.
"He really does respect you deeply, Senior Sister" Shu He murmured causing Na Xue to sigh.
"You know Junior Brother, I've realised I'm the type that's weak to admiration… it's tiring" She leaned on the table now fully clothed in the sect's robes for the first time in a while.
"It's not bad having another potential core disciple in the division, even if he's a bit obsessive" Elder Bai sipped the tea as he spoke "It's a bit bitter…" he murmured afterwards. "Now then, do you want to tell Shu He, or shall I?" he asked Na Xue.
"I'll do it" She said resolutely, downing the tea before turning towards Shu He with a slightly nervous look on her face.
'Is it really that big of a secret?' Shu He wondered to himself as he began drinking, his expression turning sour as he placed the tea back down 'I think Yao Hu needs to work on his tea making skills…'
"Do you remember how I didn't want to show you my technique before?".
'So it's about that' Shu He realised as he nodded.
"The truth is, it isn't exactly right to call it a technique, it's not something that can be learned… it's something called a Bloodline Technique" She began to explain which immediately caused Shu He to ask –
"You mean like a Spirit Animal? But Senior Sister you're not one… nor are you a lifeblood cultivator" Shu He asked, he could clearly see that Na Xue didn't possess something that was vital to both those things – a Spirit Heart.
"You can tell?" She looked at him with surprise "That's right, me and my clan are human cultivators, yet we have a Bloodline Technique, do you know how that's possible?".
Shu He lent on his hand as he paused to think.
'Some major clans like the Bai, Jin and Huo clan have a natural bloodline affinity for special elements and have developed special techniques to bring that to fruition, but that's not what this is… in that case, it must be…'
"Were one or more of your ancestors Spirit Animals?" was the conclusion he reached.
Elder Bai chuckled "You realise the implication of what you just said, right Shu He?".
Shu He nodded "That Spirit Animals and Humans can produce offspring, right? Normally it would be unthinkable… animals and humans can't mate, their genetics are incompatible, even among animals crossbreeding isn't easy… but spirit animals aren't the same, they naturally need to cross breed in order to produce offspring so by a stretch, those that reach the 'Evolved' stage and attain a transformation would be able to mate with a human…" he began listing his thoughts for the other two to hear.
"Ahahaha, you are correct but did you need to say all that, we do have a girl in our presence you know?" Elder Bai laughed as he pointed towards Na Xue who was burying her head in her hands while blushing.
One of Shu He's eyebrows shot up as he asked with confusion "Why are you embarrassed; you walk around naked normally!".
"This and that are different! I need to do that for my bloodline technique!" She replied, flustered "Let's move on! Yes! My ancestor was a spirit animal, but it wasn't just a normal animal it was a Chimera".
"Chimera? Like, the lion bodied, goat headed, and snake tailed kind of Chimera?" He asked out of curiosity; his knowledge was based on myths from his old world, he hadn't come across a Chimera in the books of this world yet.
"I don't know the specific one you're talking about" She shook her head "But a chimera is a type of spirit animal that absorbs the bloodline from other spirit animals, transforming its body with the absorbed bloodline… it's a unique spirit beast that's rarely seen, our family is the last remnants of the last one to exist".
"Her kind are referred to as 'Chimera Blood' because of their uniqueness" Elder Bai chimed in.
"When you say they absorb the bloodline… is that why you're usually naked? Sleeping on the Lunaflame Ursa like that…"
"That's right, it's harmless to the animal to do that since we only siphon low amounts of the bloodline, so it recovers at the same speed we take it…" She lifted her hand and with the sound of cracking and ripping, her thin limb turned in to a thick, furred claw that faintly glowed with blue flames.
"Wow" was the only thing Shu He could say, the transformation was similar but more visceral than Shu Xue's transformation, but it certainly left an impact. A moment later her hand morphed back to normal as she swayed a little.
"Don't push yourself, you're still weak" Elder Bai warned as she regained her balance.
"Are you weak because of this technique then?" Shu He asked.
"That's right, our bloodline is a mix of every bloodline we've absorbed and when we use that technique we ignite it, it will naturally recover over time, but the best way Is contact with other species… or…" she turned away, stuttering her words.
Shu He quickly realised where he words were going and linked it to what just happened "Consumption…" he murmured causing her to nod.
Shu He leaned back and sighed "So my blood is helpful to restore your bloodline's power?".
"B-but, this makes no sense! I've interacted with you since we've returned and I didn't have the same reaction, so why today…?" Na Xue asked with confusion, she looked to Elder Bai as if he could answer her.
Elder Bai grinned "I'm sure Shu He can answer that one, if he wants to, this isn't the first time he's caused such a thing after all"
'This old bastard, he's talking about the events with my Gold Qi, but this is entirely different' Shu He cursed in his head.
"If all she needs is a powerful bloodline, then why don't you help her Elder Bai, you're a powerful spirit beast after all" He struck back with a question.
"I don't want to" He admitted easily leaving Shu He dumbfounded.
"Huh? Why?!"
"You're still young, not understanding something like this… or maybe you're just too naïve? There are two ways for a chimera to heal their bloodline, one is consumption in which they devour their prey whole… the other holds and entirely different significance" Elder Bai held his index finger up and wagged it as he explained.
"What do you…?" Shu He frowned in confusion before shock filled his expression "You mean?!"
"It's intercourse, or an exchange of bloodline between partners, this significance is buried deep in to a Chimera's bloodline".
Shu He glanced at Na Xue who had turned beet red as he covered his own face 'Is that why she's been so embarrassed?!'
"That- It- You were the one who told me to do it!" He complained, pointing this out.
"True, but you could have still refused" The white haired elder happily shrugged "It helps me as well honestly".
"Huh, what do you mean?" Shu He was beginning to get the feeling that something was wrong here as he observed the glee in Elder Bai's face.
"You should know I'm one of the few Evolved spirit beasts in existence here, the Chimera Blood clan seeks out our species as partners to strengthen their bloodline, but we are few in existence; Do you think it's a coincidence that she's here in this sect, in this division?".
A bombshell hit Shu He as he put two and two together, glancing at Na Xue who had begun to turn to a normal colour as she glanced between her fingers at the conversation between the two.
"She was sent… to become your…" he didn't finish the sentence as he began to feel faint, this was all too much too soon.
"Yes, but as I said, I refuse" Elder Bai took a sip "I already have a partner after all".
"Huh… you do?" Shu He rubbed his forehead as he asked weakly.
"Yes, but she's dead. I won't take another ever again".
""…""
A sombre tone overtook the room as silence hit like a tonne of bricks.
'What a fucking mess'.