Deep inside the abandoned factory lay the corner where Lin Xiao had made his shelter.
The heavy smell of rust, motor oil, and damp mold formed the eternal backdrop here.
The only "light source" was the dim, wavering miner's lamp in the corner, wired to a discarded car battery. It cast huge, distorted shadows across the oil-stained walls.
Lin Xiao sat cross-legged with his back against the cold, scratched metal wall. Under the continued nourishment of the Su family's Jade Marrow Muscle Growth Powder, the wounds on his right shoulder and back sent waves of deep, bone-pricking itchiness through him—the sign that flesh was struggling to grow.
But at this moment, all his senses and every ounce of his will were locked onto the several unremarkable, even ugly stones on the floor before him.
Five stones.
They varied in size. The largest was no more than the size of a fist, while the smallest was only as big as an egg.
Their surfaces were pitted and covered in gray-black stone crust and dirt. They had no luster, resembling ordinary stones picked up beside a river.
Only by drawing close could one faintly sense the extremely weak, mixed, chaotic energy fluctuations beneath the crust, like the intermittent breathing of a dying person.
These were the low-grade Energy Stone shares from Wild Dog Mine that he had fought to reclaim with his life—the "essence" of the first mining output.
Shabby. Pathetic.
Compared with the price he had paid, they were practically worthless.
Source Energy Points: -2.23!
Within his mind, that dusky blue light screen had fallen into utter, dead darkness.
It no longer flickered or fluctuated, like polar permafrost that had been completely frozen over, its depths filled with spiderweb-like cracks.
The warning of core depletion had long since faded into silence. In its place was an absolute, suffocating sense of emptiness.
His soul seemed hollowed out, leaving only a cold, heavy shell. Every breath tugged at an excruciating pain that originated deep within his consciousness and was empty to the extreme.
Against the backdrop of his depleted soul, his physical injuries were magnified without limit. Every heartbeat struck his fragile nerves like a heavy hammer.
The danger of the black market, the humiliation at the auction, the devastating consequences of forcibly overdrawing his core to interfere with Ah Qi's terminal... Everything had been for these few stones!
Lin Xiao extended his left hand.
The joints of this hand were sharply defined, but now it trembled faintly, the fingertips icy cold.
He picked up the smallest Energy Stone. It felt heavy, rough, and cold, carrying the earthy smell unique to an underground mine.
He did not hesitate.
He closed his eyes and pressed all his remaining consciousness, like the most devout pilgrim, toward that dead, cracked ice field—the dusky blue light screen deep within his mind!
Target locked: low-grade Energy Stone (ID: YD-1) Low-purity, high-impurity raw energy aggregate with mixed attributes detected... Estimated energy extraction and conversion efficiency: extremely low... Core guidance required... Force absorption? Warning! Current core is on the verge of collapse! Forcibly guiding an external energy impact carries the risk of complete annihilation!
The cold notification was as faint as a guttering candle in the wind, heavy with the sensation of impending death.
"Absorb!" Lin Xiao's will, like a dying beast, released a soundless roar in the desert of his soul!
There was no way back!
He could only use this chaotic energy to strike at and fill that bottomless abyss of depletion!
Buzz—!
The instant he confirmed his intent, that dead, cracked blue light screen suddenly began to tremble violently!
It was as though a sleeping giant had been forcibly awakened and let out a pained, furious roar!
A faint, chaotic energy current, coarse as grit, was painfully extracted from the low-grade Energy Stone in Lin Xiao's palm. It flowed backward along the meridians in his arm!
The energy was filthy and chaotic. It carried the weight of earth and stone, the sharpness of metal, and even a trace of cold resentment. It was like countless rusted steel needles stabbing viciously into his already battered meridians, where energy flowed with difficulty!
"Urgh!" Lin Xiao grunted, and his body gave a violent shudder!
Cold sweat the size of beans instantly covered his forehead!
The pain of his meridians being forcibly torn apart, mixed with the hollow feeling of soul depletion, nearly made him lose consciousness!
The stone crust on the Energy Stone in his left palm visibly turned gray and dull. It lost its luster and finally cracked apart with a snap, breaking into several lifeless fragments of ordinary stone!
Low-grade Energy Stone (YD-1) absorption complete... Energy conversion rate: 11.2%... Source Energy Points obtained: +0.3... Source Energy Points: -2.23 + 0.3 = -1.93!
A warm current so faint it could almost be ignored seeped with difficulty into that depleted ice field, like a wisp of water vapor emerging from a desert.
The black lines on the light screen, resembling abyssal cracks, seemed to close by the tiniest, most negligible sliver...
The dead cold of the core seemed to melt by the slightest amount under that weak heat!
It worked! But it was far too slow! Far too weak!
Lin Xiao panted violently. Sweat soaked through his tattered clothes and clung sticky to his wounds.
He looked at the dull fragments in his palm. There was not the slightest hesitation in his eyes—only deeper madness!
He grabbed another, slightly larger low-grade Energy Stone!
Absorb!
Buzz—!
The familiar tearing pain swept through his entire body again!
His meridians felt as though they were being rubbed repeatedly with coarse sandpaper! His soul was being forcibly dragged apart!
Crack!
The second stone shattered!
Source Energy Points obtained: +0.5! Source Energy Points: -1.93 + 0.5 = -1.43!
The warm current grew slightly stronger. On the depleted ice field, it was as though an extremely faint glow flickered once deep within the cracks!
Still not enough! Far from enough!
The third stone!
Absorb!
Pain! Tearing! The wail of his soul!
Crack!
Source Energy Points obtained: +0.5! Source Energy Points: -1.43 + 0.5 = -0.93!
This time, the warm current rushing in was noticeably stronger!
The dead light screen in his mind was like an icy lake disturbed by a thrown stone. With immense difficulty, a faint ripple spread across it.
The despairing desolation at the core was like solid ice pierced by a tiny hole. A thread of extremely weak yet genuine "vitality" began to struggle back to life.
The countless black cracks seemed to be closing just a little faster!
Lin Xiao's breathing grew heavier. His body spasmed faintly from the pain and energy impact, but his eyes shone with astonishing brightness!
It was like seeing the faint light of dawn in an endless night!
The fourth stone! The largest one!
He lifted the fist-sized stone in both hands, sensing the relatively more "concentrated" chaotic energy within.
This time, he did not passively endure it. He actively guided it!
His will, like a ravenous Taotie, seized it fiercely!
Boom—!
An even more violent, chaotic torrent of energy surged into his meridians!
The pain it brought doubled as well!
Lin Xiao clenched his teeth so hard that his gums began to bleed!
Every muscle in his body trembled uncontrollably, while the veins beneath his skin bulged like horned dragons!
Crack-crack!
The large Energy Stone rapidly split and disintegrated!
Source Energy Points obtained: +0.5! Source Energy Points: -0.93 + 0.5 = -0.43!
The warm current became a stream!
Across the depleted ice field, the cracks closed at a speed visible to the naked eye!
That dusky blue light screen was finally no longer a stretch of dead darkness. Instead, it struggled to light up with the faintest threads of blue radiance!
It was still dim, and cracks still covered it, but the light itself represented the hope of "life"!
The heart-pounding, destructive wail from the core completely subsided!
In its place was an extremely faint yet unyielding sense of "pulsation"!
Like the first beat of a heart after resuscitation!
The last stone!
Lin Xiao snatched up the final egg-sized low-grade Energy Stone, his eyes burning with an almost sacred light!
This was not taking. It was celebration!
A celebration of new life crawling back from the edge of hell!
Absorb! Energy surged inward!
The pain remained, but now it carried a sense of "fullness"!
Under the violent energy's scouring, the stagnant places in his meridians caused by depletion were like waterways forcibly dredged open. Though it hurt terribly, it brought a long-lost sense of "flow."
Crack!
The last stone turned to powder!
Source Energy Points obtained: +0.33! Source Energy Points: -0.43 + 0.33 = -0.1!
Buzz—!
A warm current far clearer and more mellow than before surged into the depths of his soul like sweet spring water!
The blue light screen in his mind suddenly brightened for an instant!
Though it remained cracked, the cracks seemed coated in flowing light. They were no longer sinister and terrifying, but resembled mysterious patterns instead!
The faint yet steadfast pulsation at the core became clear and powerful!
A long-lost, solid feeling of "existence" itself flooded Lin Xiao like a warm tide!
Warning lifted! Core depletion greatly alleviated! Stability restored above the critical safety line! Source Energy Points: -0.1 (minor overdraft)! Core functions partially restored! Basic scanning and low-energy modification (below 0.1 points) may be used with caution!
The notification still carried a trace of weakness, but it was no longer the dying wail of someone on the verge of death. It was more like the whisper of someone recovering from a serious illness.
It was over.
The five unremarkable low-grade stones had become scraps and dust scattered across the ground.
Lin Xiao slowly let out a long breath.
The breath was deep and lingering, as though the gloom, despair, and excruciating pain that had weighed on his chest for days had all been expelled with it.
He remained seated cross-legged, but his entire bearing had already undergone a earth-shaking transformation!
His face was still pale from blood loss, but the deathly waxen gray had faded. In its place was a warm, jade-like luster.
The cold sweat at his temples vanished, and his tightly furrowed brows relaxed.
His back, previously bent slightly from pain and depletion, was now straight as a ramrod, like a green pine standing tall after snowfall, carrying a resilience and composure stripped of all superficiality.
The eyes once filled with blood vessels from optimization and overdrawing had cleared considerably. They were deep, bright, and sharp, like cold stars wiped clean of dust, once again radiating a restrained yet intimidating brilliance!
The most obvious change was the aura surrounding him.
Before, it had been one of decline and depletion, like a guttering candle in the wind.
Now, a condensed, deep, earth-heavy aura naturally emanated from within him, long and substantial!
Though its strength remained at the threshold of a One-Star Martial Artist, its solidity and inner vitality far surpassed what they had been before!
It was as though he had been reborn!
The True Qi of the Surging Waves Art, previously sluggish as a stream because of his chaotic, depleted meridians, now began to flow slowly yet firmly through his restored meridians like a spring river thawing.
Carrying the lingering strength and endurance of water, it nourished his damaged muscles, bones, and flesh.
The terrifying claw wounds on his right shoulder and back, deep enough to expose bone, sent waves of cool, refreshing itchiness through him under the dual nourishment of the Jade Marrow Muscle Growth Powder and his newly restored True Qi. Their healing speed had clearly accelerated!
Strength!
The long-lost sensation of strength once again filled every limb and bone!
Though he was nowhere near his peak, the feeling of escaping that bottomless depletion and regaining control of his own strength nearly made Lin Xiao throw back his head and roar!
He slowly raised his left hand, spreading all five fingers before gradually clenching them.
His knuckles cracked sharply, and a strength far beyond what he had possessed earlier gathered between his fingers.
It was no longer the trembling weakness of before, but solid strength filled with control!
"Heh..." A low laugh escaped Lin Xiao's throat.
It was not wild joy, but the deep emotion of surviving a catastrophe and seeing the clouds part to reveal the sun, carrying a trace of icy killing intent.
Scarface Qiang... Ah Qi... the Blood Wolf Gang...
And the Shadow Alliance hidden in the darkness, the one that left behind the mark of the eyeless eye...
The pain and despair you inflicted—I, Lin Xiao, will repay a hundredfold!
His gaze fell on the pile of shattered Energy Stone remains before him, his eyes sharp as blades.
This absorption had allowed him to escape the most dangerous state of depletion, but it had also exposed a huge problem—the conversion efficiency of low-grade Energy Stones was far too low! They contained too many impurities!
The absorption process was agonizing and fraught with hidden dangers!
The -0.1 minor overdraft remained a latent threat. The cracks in his core had not vanished completely, and it needed continued energy nourishment.
He had to find a higher-quality source of energy!
He had to repair his core as quickly as possible! He had to become stronger!
Outside the factory, the dead silence of the abandoned industrial district was shattered by the distant roar of motorcycle engines, like beasts howling.
The sound was frantic and violent, carrying undisguised killing intent. It was rapidly approaching from afar, heading straight toward the abandoned factory where Lin Xiao was hiding!
Amid the roar of the engine came several arrogant whistles and the clanging of metal.
Scarface Qiang!
Lin Xiao's ears twitched slightly. His enhanced hearing clearly picked up that familiar, hoarse roar—like sandpaper scraping against rusted iron—mixed in with the engine noise.
"Search! Find that little bastard and drag him out for me! I'm going to chop him into pieces and feed him to the dogs!"
Scarface Qiang's furious roar carried through the night wind, filled with rage and madness!
Clearly, Ah Qi's failure at the "Weasel's Den" and the terminal's bizarre destruction had completely enraged this wounded beast!
A cold glint flashed through Lin Xiao's eyes, and the corner of his mouth curved into a cold, cruel smile.
Just in time.
He slowly rose to his feet, his movements steady and powerful, no longer showing the weakness from before.
He walked over to a pile of discarded oil drums and rusted steel frames in the corner. His gaze swept across the twisted metal and lingering chemical stains.
In his mind, the deep-blue light screen still bore cracks, but its glow was stable, and the core pulsed with firm, powerful beats.
Environmental scan initiated... Target: discarded oil drums (flammable residue), rusted load-bearing steel frame (structural weak points), suspended pipeline (loose connection points)... Modifiable item: ... Slightly adjust the stress concentration coefficient at point G of the rusted steel frame (+5%)... Source Energy Points required: 0.05...
The notification sound was clear and steady.
Lin Xiao felt the power flowing through his body once more. He felt the modifier's core in his mind come alive again, and sensed the murderous commotion outside the factory drawing closer and closer.
He slowly rolled his neck, and his joints gave a crisp crack.
The wound on the back of his right shoulder sent a faint sting through him with the movement, but it felt more like a reminder before battle than a restraint.
"Scarface Qiang..." Lin Xiao muttered, his voice like cold metal scraping against metal. "This time, it's my turn... to prepare a 'grand gift' for you."
His figure blurred like a leopard melting into the shadows, silently disappearing into the intricate steel jungle deep within the abandoned factory.
Only the Energy Stone fragments scattered across the ground remained, along with the faint ripples of resurgent power still lingering in the air.
Outside the factory, the motorcycles' glaring headlights drew closer and closer, like beasts' pupils tearing through the darkness, accompanied by Scarface Qiang's savage roar and his lackeys' shouts.
A new hunt was about to unfold amid these steel ruins.
Only this time, the roles of hunter and prey had quietly changed without a sound.
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