After confirming, Chen Yuan processed the massive corpse of the demon serpent while carefully contemplating his newly achieved Major Accomplishment in the Skin Grinding Realm.
With a slight shift of his thoughts and surging vital energy, the grey-black, rock-like sheen on the surface of his skin grew increasingly distinct. When touched by hand, it emitted a startling sense of toughness and roughness, as though it were truly covered in a layer of hard stone.
If ordinary swords and sabers slashed against it, leaving even a white mark would likely prove difficult.
His strength, speed, and reaction time rose accordingly, and the vital energy surging within his body rushed like a river, far beyond what the Minor Accomplishment stage could match.
So this is the Stone Skin Realm... Truly wondrous.
Joy filled Chen Yuan's heart.
He experimented with the Mist Manipulation divine ability once more.
With a flick of his mind, the mist generated faster, spread wider, and lasted longer.
In particular, that newly comprehended Mist Burst technique, though consuming a massive amount of energy, possessed extremely strong instantaneous interference and destructive power, rendering it a fine hidden card.
This demon serpent was a treasure from head to toe.
Its scale armor was tough, serving as top-tier material for crafting leather armor; its snake gallbladder was massive, containing pure demonic power that could enter medicines or refine pills to boost vital energy.
Its poisonous fangs were sharp and venomous, capable of being polished into daggers or arrowheads; its snake tendons were resilient, acting as premium materials for making bowstrings; even the snake meat contained rich vital energy, making it a great tonic for martial artists.
He carefully segmented the materials with the Cold Ripple Blade, removing the most valuable parts one by one and storing them inside the Scarab Fish Secret Pouch.
Fortunately, the internal space of the secret pouch remained quite sufficient; otherwise, containing this big fellow would have truly proven impossible.
After finishing all this, he carefully surveyed this accidental "sanctuary."
This was a concealed river beach located downstream of the underground river, which seemed rarely visited by anyone.
Walking in the direction of the light, he indeed discovered a narrow fissure leading to the surface.
Cramming out to the surface, the sunlight dazzled his eyes.
After identifying the direction, Chen Yuan found that this place was already the outer area of the Black Wind Ravine, making it relatively safe.
He did not immediately return to the county town. Instead, he found a secluded spot, carefully washed himself, changed into a clean set of garments, and confirmed that no excessive traces of battle remained on his body before calmly walking toward the county town.
Upon returning to Lin Hai County town, the afternoon had already arrived.
The city gates remained bustling and noisy, with no one aware that this seemingly ordinary youth had just undergone a life-and-death struggle and reaped massive gains.
Chen Yuan first made a trip to the County yamen Geological Inspectorate to submit the mission.
He only simply reported that a powerful ferocious beast truly existed deep inside the Black Wind Ravine, which had triggered a small earthquake and unusual sounds, without mentioning the specific battle process or the Golden Scale Fruit affair.
Bearing his bountiful harvest, Chen Yuan returned to the Blackwater Martial Arts School. Not long after he entered the Listening Tide Courtyard, someone knocked on the courtyard gate.
"Junior Disciple Brother! You've finally returned!"
Wang Meng's loud voice carried in from afar. He pushed the door open and walked in, a look of excitement plastered across his face. "I heard you accepted a mission to explore the Black Wind Ravine? How was it? You didn't encounter any trouble, did you?"
Chen Yuan smiled and poured him a cup of water. "It was all right. I ran into a small setback, but it's already resolved."
Wang Meng looked him up and down a few times, suddenly uttering an "oh" sound, and heavily patted Chen Yuan's shoulder with his cattail-leaf-like hand. "Good lad! Your aura has solidified so much, your skin and membranes are taut, and your brilliance is restrained within... You've... broken through? You reached the Major Accomplishment of Skin Grinding?!"
Chen Yuan had not deliberately concealed his aura, so getting seen through came as no surprise. He nodded and said, "I fortuitously made a breakthrough."
"Good! Too good!" Wang Meng acted even happier than if he had broken through himself, heavily punching Chen Yuan's chest and producing a dull, muffled sound.
"Tsk tsk, this skin and membrane feels just like stone! You've trained it really well. How long has it been? Less than three months since entry, right? People truly infuriate others!"
After lamenting for a while, Wang Meng suddenly leaned in closer, lowering his voice with a mysterious smile on his face. "Junior Disciple Brother, you broke through at just the right time. There's a good gig going. Do you want to go gain some experience with Senior Disciple Brother?"
"Oh? What good gig?" Chen Yuan felt a shred of curiosity, but having just experienced life and death, he did not plan on immediately taking on a new mission.
"An escort mission!" Wang Meng beamed with radiant delight.
"Sihai Shipping Company has a batch of important goods that need to be escorted to 'Tian Nan City' in the prefecture city. The pay is generous, and they specifically named the martial arts school to send experts to escort them."
"The one leading the team is an Iron Changing Realm Head Escort from the shipping company, and Senior Disciple Brother Li Wei is going as well. They're still lacking a few Skin Grinding Realm experts to anchor the formation. Junior Disciple Sister Sun and I have both signed up, and your strength is sufficient. You should come along!"
"Go to the prefecture city?" A ripple stirred in Chen Yuan's heart once more.
Tian Nan Prefecture City was a major place far more prosperous than Lin Hai County by tenfold. It served as the political, economic, and martial arts center of the entire Tian Nan Prefecture. Ever since crossing over, he had not yet left the scope of Lin Hai County, so yearning naturally grew within his heart.
"Right!" Wang Meng said excitedly. "This is a rare opportunity. Not only can you earn a bountiful reward, but more importantly, you can go to the prefecture city to broaden your horizons!"
"I heard that any good thing you can imagine is in the markets over there—cultivation techniques, medicinal pills, Divine Weapons and Sharp Tools. As long as you have money, you can even buy graded treasures."
"Moreover, the martial arts atmosphere in the prefecture city is far more flourishing than in our small county town. Masters are as numerous as clouds. Who knows, you might even get to see experts of the Tendon Changing Realm or even the Bone Forging Realm spar against each other!"
He endlessly described the prosperity and opportunities of the prefecture city, his eyes brimming with yearning. "We can't just hole up in a tiny place like Lin Hai County our whole lives, can we?"
"A man's ambitions lie across the world. Sooner or later, he has to go to a bigger stage. This escort mission is an absolute springboard; going to familiarize yourself with the environment first will definitely be immensely beneficial for the future!"
Chen Yuan found himself somewhat moved by his words.
Indeed, the resources of Lin Hai County were limited. If he wanted to improve faster, moving toward a broader stage would naturally be a better choice. Furthermore, escort missions were relatively safe, and there were experts leading the team...
"Senior Disciple Brother, when does this mission depart? How long will it take?" Chen Yuan asked.
"We set out early the morning three days from now. If the journey goes smoothly, we should reach Tian Nan City in about seven or eight days. We'll stay in the prefecture city for two or three days to unload the cargo and settle accounts, and then head back. It'll take around half a month in total."
Wang Meng hurriedly said, "How about it? Let's go together! We'll have someone to look out for each other on the road, and Junior Disciple Sister Sun is going too. The three of us can keep each other company."
Chen Yuan pondered for a moment. Time-wise, there was no issue at all. He had just broken through, so resting for two days and going to the prefecture city to broaden his horizons sounded quite decent.
"All right, in that case, I'll go to the prefecture city with Senior Disciple Brother and Senior Disciple Sister to experience it!" Chen Yuan made his decision.
"That's great!" Wang Meng was overjoyed. "I knew Junior Disciple Brother was a straightforward person. I'm going to tell Senior Disciple Brother Li Wei and the shipping company right now to lock in the spot. You get a good rest and prepare yourself. Gather at the dock the morning after tomorrow."
Wang Meng departed in a bustling flurry, evidently going to settle the matter of the spot.
Chen Yuan stood in the courtyard, his gaze looking toward the distance as though he could pierce through layers of obstruction to see that prosperous prefecture city named "Tian Nan."
The prefecture city... He wondered what kind of scenery awaited him there.
He touched the Scarab Fish Secret Pouch in his bosom, which contained the demon serpent materials and the merit points and silver he had accumulated in the martial arts school.
Perhaps he could trade them in the prefecture city's markets for cultivation resources better suited to his current stage.
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