After leaving the Black Market, Yan Kui didn't hurry back to the inn.
He found a secluded, abandoned residence and, after making sure no one was around, carefully pulled the Mysterious Bone Fragment from his robes.
The fragment was grayish white, only about the size of his palm, with jagged edges, as if a small piece had broken off some giant beast's skeleton. Several ancient, indistinct Runes were carved into it, flickering in and out of sight beneath the moonlight as it emanated an air of desolation and weight.
"So this is what resonated with the system..."
Holding the fragment, Yan Kui could clearly feel the Blood Qi in his body stirring.
The Iron Cloth Shirt and Savage Boar Ramming Technique in particular seemed to have encountered a power of the same origin, and their circulation suddenly sped up.
"System, scan it."
[Analyzing...]
[High-dimensional energy residue detected.]
[Analysis complete: This is a fragment (bone inscriptions) of the Heaven Shaking God-Demon Record, a treasured inheritance of the Ancient Body Cultivation Sect, the Heaven Shaking Sect.]
[Hint: It contains a trace of God-Demon Intent, which can serve as the core catalyst for merging Cultivation Techniques, greatly increasing the success rate and quality of the result.]
"Heaven Shaking Sect? God-Demon Record?"
Yan Kui's eyes flashed with brilliance.
He'd never heard of this sect, but its name alone made it sound extraordinary. Any sect that dared call itself "Heaven Shaking" had to possess the means to contend with the heavens and earth.
What's more, the system had rated it a "core catalyst."
That meant the bone fragment wasn't merely a dead object. It was a key—a key to unlocking the door to a higher level of body cultivation!
"With this, I might be able to take my Crimson Extreme Golden Body plan even further."
Yan Kui's heart burned with excitement.
Originally, he'd only planned to merge a few Mortal Hard Skills and forge an ordinary "golden body." But now that he had this trace of God-Demon Intent, his ambition swelled in turn.
"I'll put it away for now."
He solemnly tucked the fragment close to his body. It wasn't time to merge it yet; he still lacked enough Mortal Hard Skills to serve as a foundation.
Next came the harvest.
Yan Kui laid the other two items he'd picked up at the Black Market before him.
A pitch-black inkstone and a leg bone that glimmered with lightning.
"Ink Flood Dragon Bone Inkstone, Thunder Tiger Leg Bone."
In the eyes of cultivators, these two items might have been nothing more than materials for crafting artifacts. But to Yan Kui, they were pure experience points.
"Devour!"
He picked up the Thunder Tiger Leg Bone first.
Clenching his hand, he crushed the hard tiger bone into powder with a crack.
A violent surge of lightning energy flowed through his palm and into his body.
Since he'd already devoured Lei Ao's Thunder Rhinoceros Bloodline, this energy not only failed to harm him, but resonated faintly with the bloodline within him, leaving his entire body tingling pleasantly.
[Devoured Thunder Tiger Leg Bone (Foundation Establishment Realm Demonic Beast remains), Origin Power: +2.5]
Next came the main event: the Ink Flood Dragon Bone Inkstone.
The inkstone might not have looked like much, but it held a trace of Ink Flood Dragon Essence Blood. Flood dragons were second only to true dragons. Even a single drop of their essence blood held far more energy than a Thunder Tiger's.
"Break!"
Gathering Blood Qi at his fingertip, Yan Kui jabbed hard at the center of the inkstone.
"Roar—!"
For a moment, it seemed that a dragon's roar exploded beside his ear.
The inkstone shattered. A drop of blood, black as ink and heavy as mercury, floated in the air, radiating a fearsome pressure.
Yan Kui held out his palm and enclosed it in his grasp.
"System, devour it!"
Crimson light burst from his palm and instantly enveloped the drop of essence blood.
In the next moment, the blood transformed into a tiny, unruly Ink Flood Dragon, still struggling and roaring.
Yet before the might of the Crimson Modifier, its resistance was utterly futile.
The crimson light turned slowly like a millstone, crushing the tiny Ink Flood Dragon in an instant and reducing it to the purest stream of energy. The energy flowed along the meridians in Yan Kui's arm and fused into every part of his body without the slightest obstruction.
There was no pain, no clash.
It was as easy and natural as drinking water.
"Whew—"
"What powerful energy!"
He wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at the panel.
[Essence plunder complete.]
[Devoured Ink Flood Dragon Essence Blood (incomplete); extracted the "corrosion" trait and fused it into the blood.]
[Origin Power: +5.5]
Added to the 57.5 he'd had left before.
[Current Origin Power: 65.5!]
"65.5 points!"
Yan Kui clenched his fist, feeling the seemingly endless power within him.
This fortune was enough for him to learn every hard skill in Tianwu City and merge them into an astonishing divine technique.
"Dawn's breaking."
Yan Kui looked toward the pale light spreading beyond the window.
A new day had begun.
For the various martial arts schools in Tianwu City, today might have been no different from any other.
But for Yan Kui, it was the starting point of his path as the Gym Crashing Demon.
"First target... the Golden Bell Sect."
He recalled the intelligence he'd gathered at the Black Market.
The Golden Bell Sect was one of Tianwu City's three major hard-skill schools. Renowned for its defenses, it boasted: "With one Golden Bell Shield, the body is impervious to blades and spears."
"Let's see whose body's harder."
Yan Kui grinned, baring a row of gleaming white teeth.
"I hope yours can stand up to my fists."
He pushed open the rickety wooden door and strode outside.
Sunlight fell across his massive, fearsome frame, casting a long shadow behind him. Like a vicious beast about to pounce on its prey, he charged into the flock of sheep.
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