Mutation

It should have been said that the sudden mutation occurred within Ye Zhen's body.

At the instant the Phantom Snake King breathed its last, the Mirage Dragon Pearl, which had lain silent against Ye Zhen's chest like a dead object, suddenly jolted and blazed with light.

An overwhelmingly powerful suction force suddenly surged from within the Mirage Dragon Pearl First Layer Space. The moment it emerged, the Phantom Snake King's essence, qi, spirit, and even its vast blood vitality—all visibly—rushed into Ye Zhen's body like roaring waves of blood.

At that moment, Ye Zhen's body—or rather, the Mirage Dragon Pearl—was like a black hole, madly devouring all the power of the Phantom Snake King that had just died.

This devouring force appeared with savage suddenness and swallowed with astonishing speed. In barely the blink of an eye, the Phantom Snake King, which had been over fifteen meters long and as thick as an adult man, had become as thin as a sheet of paper, leaving only an empty snakeskin spread flat on the ground.

The immense power of the Phantom Snake King that had been devoured into Ye Zhen's body was drawn almost entirely into the Mirage Dragon Pearl First Layer Space in the first instant.

However, for the Phantom Snake King's power to be drawn from outside into the Mirage Dragon Pearl within Ye Zhen's body, it ultimately had to pass through Ye Zhen's meridians. And that power was immensely vast, especially its blood vitality—an ocean beyond measure.

During this process, an extremely tiny wisp of the Phantom Snake King's blood vitality remained in Ye Zhen's meridians.

That wisp of blood vitality was minuscule compared to the Phantom Snake King itself, but even a single elephant hair was several times thicker than a mosquito's leg.

This wisp of the Phantom Snake King's blood vitality was not quite so exaggerated, but in an instant, that pure blood vitality filled every one of Ye Zhen's meridians, threatening to burst them apart.

At once, Ye Zhen's face turned crimson from that lingering wisp of aura. He did not even dare inspect what change had occurred to the Mirage Dragon Pearl. Sitting cross-legged where he was, he frantically began circulating the Essence Blood Origin Body Art.

At this moment, Ye Zhen knew only one thing: if he could not refine that lingering wisp of the Phantom Snake King's blood vitality within his body, he might very well explode and die.

The blood vitality vortex within his dantian began spinning wildly, refining the blood vitality. The massive influx caused the blood vitality within the vortex to become incomparably dense, almost tangible.

When the blood vitality vortex in his dantian condensed to the limit, it suddenly trembled. A crystal-clear drop of liquid fell from the bottom of the vortex into his dantian.

"True Essence—I actually condensed a drop of True Essence directly!"

Ye Zhen's shock was beyond words. That single wisp of blood vitality had actually allowed him to skip the process of Essence Condensation and Origin Gathering and directly condense a drop of True Essence.

One drop!

Two drops!

Three drops!

The wisp of the Phantom Snake King's blood vitality lingering in Ye Zhen's meridians allowed him to condense a full three drops of True Essence before gradually settling down.

Once the crimson blood vitality faded from his face, Ye Zhen's complexion returned to normal, and he slowly opened his eyes.

With a thought, a thin layer of azure True Essence abruptly surged over Ye Zhen's fist. Though this layer of azure True Essence was extremely thin, Ye Zhen could sense the terrifying explosive power contained within it.

Blood Refining Fifth Level!

In the span of a moment, Ye Zhen's cultivation had broken through from the Blood Refining Fourth Level to the Blood Refining Fifth Level, directly skipping the stage of Marrow Cleansing and Body Tempering. The thought made Ye Zhen frown.

The Marrow Cleansing and Body Tempering process during the Blood Refining Fourth Level was an exceptionally important stage in cultivation. The more thoroughly one cleansed the marrow and tempered the body at this stage, the easier future breakthroughs would become, and the purer the True Essence one condensed would be.

If Marrow Cleansing and Body Tempering was not thorough enough, whether advancing from the Blood Refining Realm into the True Essence Realm or from the True Essence Realm into a higher realm, one would be more likely to encounter enormous bottlenecks.

Ye Zhen did not know whether this situation was good or bad.

"I can only ask Instructor Liao after I return."

Ye Zhen's attention soon shifted to the changes within his body. Just moments ago, the Mirage Dragon Pearl against his chest had been as scorching hot as a boiled egg.

However, that scorching sensation lasted only an instant. The moment all the Phantom Snake King's power was swallowed, the Mirage Dragon Pearl fell silent once more.

Yet with a thought from Ye Zhen, he still sensed an obvious change.

Previously, Ye Zhen had needed to sink his consciousness into the Mirage Dragon Pearl to sense its First Layer Space. But now, with only the slightest movement of his thoughts, the Mirage Dragon Pearl seemed to establish an incomparably close connection with him and immediately appeared in his mind.

But what shocked Ye Zhen the most was the Phantom Snake King!

A lifelike Phantom Snake King was raising its head and hissing within the Mirage Dragon Pearl's First Layer Space. Its vivid appearance nearly made Ye Zhen jump in fright, as though another Phantom Snake King had arrived.

The instant he focused his attention on the Phantom Snake King within the Mirage Dragon Pearl, an indescribably strange sensation rose in Ye Zhen's heart.

Ye Zhen's body seemed to twist involuntarily like a snake. If an outsider had been watching, they would have discovered that the subtle sway of Ye Zhen's body was no different from a snake's slithering.

The only three drops of True Essence in his dantian stirred slightly, then quickly settled again. Ye Zhen vaguely sensed that when he focused on the Phantom Snake King within the Mirage Dragon Pearl First Layer Space, some wondrous change seemed about to occur.

Yet this wondrous change did not occur because Ye Zhen's strength was insufficient.

Even so, an indescribable sensation flashed through Ye Zhen's heart. Many things he had previously failed to understand suddenly became clear, as though lightning had torn open the truth.

Ye Zhen moved, abruptly crouching into a snake-like posture before springing out in an instant.

Snake-Wandering Steps: Snake Springing Grass!

Whoosh!

A piercing whistle tore through the air. Ye Zhen's vision blurred, and his body had already appeared atop a large tree.

Hiss!

The moment he turned back, Ye Zhen sucked in a cold breath.

Thirty meters!

At least thirty meters!

That Snake Springing Grass move had launched him at least thirty meters.

According to the Snake-Wandering Steps manual, once Snake-Wandering Steps had been cultivated to its peak, a single spring could cover twenty or thirty meters in an instant.

"Ha!"

Just as Ye Zhen turned around, a Phantom Snake lying in ambush in the tree suddenly shot toward him. Two sharp venomous fangs snapped at Ye Zhen.

A Phantom Snake was a Human-tier Low Grade Monster Beast. Not only was its venom ferocious, but the force of its impact alone amounted to several thousand jin. Whether he was bitten or struck by that attack, Ye Zhen would die on the spot.

Hearing the vicious rush of wind, Ye Zhen's body moved instinctively. Like a swimming snake, he evaded the Phantom Snake's bite. As it flew past him, the Phantom Snake flicked its tail and viciously lashed at Ye Zhen's shoulder.

Smack!

The Phantom Snake's tail struck Ye Zhen squarely on the shoulder. Yet at the moment of impact, Ye Zhen's shoulder twisted several times in a bizarre, snake-like motion, instantly shedding more than half the tremendous force. Ye Zhen's body did not even sway.

Slippery Snake Style of Snake-Wandering Steps.

The next moment, Ye Zhen crouched and sprang. Though he moved later, he arrived first, instantly catching up to the Phantom Snake that had just passed him. True Essence surged forth as he struck directly at the Phantom Snake's vital point.

Thud!

The Phantom Snake's body immediately went limp and fell to the ground.

Ye Zhen stared blankly at the Phantom Snake on the ground, then looked over his own body. He crouched, sprang again, and shot thirty meters away in an instant.

"The Snake Springing Grass and Slippery Snake Style I'd failed to master after half a month of hard training—I mastered them just like that? And the moment I did, they were already at the pinnacle? Then if I..." Ye Zhen examined his own body with a face full of astonishment, while an utterly absurd thought rose in his heart, waiting to be tested.

Without question, Ye Zhen understood that his newfound mastery of snake techniques was likely related to the Phantom Snake King within the Mirage Dragon Pearl First Layer Space.

The Phantom Snake King that existed within the Mirage Dragon Pearl First Layer Space had caused this change. Moreover, Ye Zhen vaguely sensed that the changes brought by that Phantom Snake King were likely not limited to this.

Because Ye Zhen had clearly felt that when he focused on the Phantom Snake King, a wondrous change had been about to occur within his body, only to fail because his cultivation was insufficient.

If he wanted to know what that change was, he could only wait until his cultivation improved and explore it slowly in the future.

Steadying himself, Ye Zhen walked toward the snakeskin left behind by the Phantom Snake King. The Phantom Snake King's skin was absolutely a treasure, especially such a complete snakeskin. Calling it worth a thousand gold was an understatement.

"Ye Zhen, did you know all along that it would turn out like that?"

Fairy Caiyi's voice suddenly sounded behind him. The instant Ye Zhen turned around, he saw Fairy Caiyi walking toward him, though her originally fair and lovely face had now turned pink.

Suddenly, the shy pinkness on Fairy Caiyi's lovely face changed, and she shot toward Ye Zhen like lightning.