Hundred Bones Body Forging Technique, A Home in the Swamp

The moment the technique advanced, a profound sense of clarity surged through Chen Yan's divine sense, reaching deep into his soul.

Every meridian and essential tenet of the Hundred Bones Body Forging Technique became as clear as if they had been carved into his very bones and blood.

The core of this technique was never to strengthen a single point in isolation; rather, it used "Bone Tempering" as its foundation, then followed an "outside-in" progression to permeate and polish the hundred bones of the entire body layer by layer.

If one were to categorize the stages of this technique, the first and most fundamental was the Bone Tempering Realm.

This realm was dedicated solely to honing the bones and bone marrow!

As Chen Yan circulated the technique, he could faintly perceive the hematopoiesis in his marrow growing stronger, and even the density of his bones slowly increasing.

If he continued to cultivate this way, his bones would eventually become as hard as divine weapons, making it difficult for even ordinary martial arts to inflict the slightest injury.

As the source of essence and blood, the bone marrow would also grow increasingly abundant with each tempering, laying the most solid foundation for all future cultivation.

After Bone Tempering came the path from the outside in, leading to the second stage: the Muscle Forging Realm.

The "forging" here referred to the musculature of the entire body.

This realm was no longer limited to the bones; it channeled the tempering force into the muscle fibers beneath the skin and flesh, meticulously polishing every inch of tissue like a blacksmith working iron.

As he delved deeper, his skin and flesh would become increasingly firm without losing flexibility.

When ordinary strikes landed on him, the force would largely be dissipated by his muscles.

Conversely, when he threw a punch or a kick, his muscles would erupt with power far exceeding that of his peers, truly achieving the state of "skin and flesh like armor, fists and feet like hammers."

Exploring deeper still, one reached the third stage: the Organ Nourishing Realm.

Once the bones were hard enough and the muscles resilient enough, the power of the technique would penetrate the skin and flesh to seep into the internal organs, nourishing them with a gentle yet persistent force.

So, this technique progresses layer by layer—first fortifying the exterior, then nourishing the interior.

Chen Yan understood clearly.

He could vaguely sense that these three realms were merely the foundation of the Hundred Bones Body Forging Technique.

Perhaps in the future, there would be even more profound realms that could fully integrate the power of the marrow, muscles, and organs, truly achieving the state of "Hundred Bones as One, Body as a Furnace!"

For now, however, he would focus on mastering these three realms.

Chen Yan quietly split his divine sense into two strands; one began to practice the Hundred Bones Body Forging Technique.

Every breath he took carried a faint whistling sound, and a rhythmic "creak, creak" echoed from within his joints.

It was as if a weapon that had long gone unpolished was regaining its resilience and strength under the infusion of energy, with not a hint of stiffness in his movements.

The other strand of his consciousness activated the power of "Godly Movement."

He lifted his feet lightly, and his figure swept forward like a willow catkin. When he landed, he didn't even stir the dust, keeping a steady, consistent distance behind the modified pickup truck.

Meanwhile, his primary focus had already sunk deep into his body, intently observing his dantian.

At this sight, Chen Yan's divine sense faltered.

Where his dantian should have been a rounded vessel, it was now mostly empty, replaced by a vast, gray sea of energy.

This sea of energy had no clear boundaries; the gray mist flowed and roiled within like a living creature.

At times it gathered into a mass, at others it scattered into thin wisps, following no discernible pattern, yet it exuded a heaviness that felt primordial.

He focused his divine sense to observe more closely and soon discovered an even more bizarre phenomenon!

The remnants of his essence and blood were being slowly entangled by the gray mist...

Threads of bright red blood were wrapped and dragged by the mist, gradually dissolving into the gray mass.

The originally pure gray mist began to glow with a faint red light due to the absorption of his blood...

Like a fire fed with fuel, its circulation speed increased significantly.

In Chen Yan's perception, this gray mist wasn't just mixing with his blood; it was treating his blood as nutrients, devouring it to grow stronger while quietly assimilating every inch of space within his dantian.

In the mere ten minutes since he had awakened, the gray mist had already spread from a single wisp to occupy nearly one-tenth of his dantian.

At this rate, it would take at most another hour and a half for the entire dantian to be completely overtaken by this gray mist.

There is no doubt that this change is related to the Chaos Dao Body!

Chen Yan's divine sense was tinged with excitement.

Chaos was the origin from which all things in the universe were formed. If he could use this substance to reconstruct his dantian or even reshape his physical body...

Wouldn't his foundation be ten streets ahead of other cultivators from the very start?

As this thought emerged, the corners of Chen Yan's mouth couldn't help but curl upward, and the rhythm of his technique circulation quickened.

What made his heart burn even more was a premonition that arose within him as the mist spread—the moment his dantian was fully reconstructed would be the moment he broke through to the first stage of his profession!

Earlier, when Chen Yan had risen from the ground, he had felt as if the gray mist possessed a spirit, actively supporting him according to his will.

Not to mention, it had later manifested into a set of clothing based on his intent.

If that's the case, this gray mist is Chaos Qi? Then this clothing on me... is the Chaos Garment?

Chen Yan raised an eyebrow, his divine sense subconsciously sweeping over the combat attire he wore.

He could clearly feel a restrained resilience hidden within the fabric formed by the gray mist; if it encountered an attack, it might even be able to automatically deflect the force.

He suddenly recalled the system's original description of the Chaos Dao Body—"Evolve all things, shatter all laws."

This Chaos Qi could evolve into clothing according to his thoughts; wasn't that exactly the power of "evolving all things"?

Although it was different from his [Image Projection Scroll]...

The [Image Projection Scroll] required drawing before manifestation, needing ink as a medium and spiritual power to bring it to life.

Yet, the Chaos Qi took shape directly with his thoughts, appearing even more primordial.

Both carried the implication of "creation," sharing a certain similarity in their ingenuity.

Qiu Yashuang gripped the steering wheel of the modified pickup, the tires crushing through ankle-deep mud and splashing up sheets of dark brown sludge.

The wasteland that had once been relatively flat had long since vanished, leaving only a swamp reeking of rot before her eyes.

Withered yellow weeds floated on the water's surface, and occasionally, bubbles could be seen slowly rising from the muddy depths.

She tapped the brake, the vehicle's speed gradually slowing, and she turned to shout toward the back:

"Hey! There's no proper road in this dump, can you still keep up? If you can't, just get in the car!"

"It's fine." Chen Yan's voice came from behind the vehicle, clear and without the slightest hint of breathlessness.

The tips of his toes tapped lightly against a piece of deadwood protruding from the water, his figure vaulting through the air with that single point of leverage, landing the next second on another patch of firmer mud.

The near-perfect state of his Godly Movement had long since freed him from the constraints of terrain.

Even in the soft swamp, he could find points of leverage, his footsteps landing without a trace of hesitation. Not even a speck of mud touched his pant cuffs as he remained steadily behind the pickup.

After the pickup drove another few dozen meters, Chen Yan raised his eyes to gaze into the distance, his vision cutting through the hazy water vapor to land on the scene a hundred meters ahead.

It was a high, reddish-brown wall, constructed from heavy stones, extending infinitely along the edge of the swamp toward both sides.

Only at the very edge of his vision did it slowly curve backward, vaguely revealing a trend of encirclement, as if it intended to completely wall off this area.

Chen Yan activated his Eye of Insight, discovering a stark contrast between the old and new bricks of the wall...

Most of the brick surfaces were mottled and dilapidated, the gaps stuffed with black-brown silt, and in some places, the bricks had even cracked to reveal the grayish-brown interior, clearly showing their age.

Every few meters, several bright, new bricks were embedded within.

The brick surfaces were smooth, and even the cement in the gaps still held a faint grayish-white hue; one look told him they had been fired and laid within the last year, as if they had just undergone repairs.

Dense barbed wire was strung along the top of the wall and several meters outside it.

Behind the wire fence stood a group of guards.

Qiu Jiu poked his head out: "Uncle Zhou! We're back!"