9.9 Yuan Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill

The Blood Moon hung low, casting the western alleyway of the old town district in a deep crimson, like a solidified blood scab.

A pervasive chill permeated the air, thick with a stagnant deadness.

Fang Gang sprinted, his newly awakened strength propelling him at speeds far beyond normal, the rushing wind whistling past his ears.

But the inky black, yin-marked line on his right arm, like a cold, venomous snake, continuously crept upwards, the stinging pain and bone-deep chill a constant reminder—time was of the essence!

"Old town district, west alley, Rookie Station... Arrived!"

Fang Gang abruptly halted, stopping before a dilapidated convenience store at the alley entrance, its faded sign barely visible.

The lettering on the sign, "Convenient Supermarket & Rookie Station," was illegible.

The shop's door was half-open, a dim, yellow incandescent bulb illuminating the interior.

An old man named Li, wearing a washed-out white vest and with sparse, grey hair, was dozing behind the counter, a radio crackling with muffled opera.

"Package pickup! 8-5-666!" Fang Gang's voice held a barely perceptible urgency.

Startled awake, Old Man Li glanced at Fang Gang with cloudy eyes and lazily gestured towards a pile of packages resembling a small mountain in the corner: "Find it yourself, the pile on the left starts with 8."

Fang Gang immediately dove in, sifting through the stack of parcels at lightning speed.

The stinging sensation from the yin-marked line on his arm quickened his movements.

"8-5-666... Found it!"

Fang Gang snatched a flat, cheap kraft paper envelope. It felt unnervingly light.

The kraft paper bag was adorned with garish advertisements: "Compendium of Martial Arts Secrets! Nine dollars ninety, free shipping! Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, Nine Yin Manual, Sunflower Manual... Achieve Peak Martial Arts!"

In smaller print at the corner: True Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill (Revised Edition with Illustrations).

A potent smell of cheap ink mingled with the musty odor of paper assaulted his senses.

"Nine ninety... Divine Art?" Fang Gang's lips twitched, but his eyes burned with intensity. He quickly tore open the envelope.

A thin booklet tumbled out.

The cover was a shoddy color print, depicting a muscular monk striking a pose against a backdrop of gleaming Buddhist statues, with crooked, oversized characters proclaiming: Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill (Revised Edition with Illustrations).

The paper was rough and yellowed, its edges curled, exuding the unmistakable vibe of a street vendor's wares.

[Ding! Detected host's contact with 'Martial Arts Technique': Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill (Pirated/Fictional/85% Incomplete).]

[Do you wish to consume 1 Evolution Point to convert it into 'True Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill (Introductory Chapter)'?]

The cold system prompt was like a heavenly chorus!

"Convert!" Fang Gang roared internally, without a shred of hesitation.

[Ding! Consumed 1 Evolution Point! Conversion successful!]

[Acquired: True Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill (Introductory Chapter)!]

[Technique Traits: Basic immense strength, vigorous blood and qi, initial condensation of Dragon-Elephant power (weak), possesses weak Yang energy (certainly suppresses Yin evil).]

A stream of profound information surged into Fang Gang's mind!

Gone were the gaudy, imagined descriptions on the cover; instead, clear, concise methods for cultivating power flooded his consciousness.

How to circulate blood and qi, how to temper tendons, bones, skin, and sinew, how to sense and condense that faint trace of Dragon-Elephant power! Though merely introductory, it possessed an ancient, profound sense of authenticity!

Almost simultaneously as the technique's information poured in, Fang Gang felt the inky black yin-marked line on his arm convulse violently!

It was as if it had been seared by an invisible flame!

Though it still clung tenaciously, the bone-deep, chilling sensation was momentarily suppressed by the nascent, weak yet incredibly pure Yang blood and qi within him!

"It's effective!" Fang Gang rejoiced inwardly! Those nine ninety were absolutely worth it!

He immediately checked the system panel:

Host: Fang Gang

Realm: Skin Refining Realm (Initial) [Mortal → Skin Refining!]

Strength: 11.7 → 12.0 (Beyond Normal)

Physique: 5.8 → 6.0 (Iron-Hard Body)

Agility: 5.9 (Swift as a startled rabbit)

Spirit: 1.1 (Resilient)

Available Evolution Points: 14.6 (15.6 - 1)

Technique: True Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill (Introductory Chapter 0/100)

Martial Skills: None

Status: Yin Energy Erosion (Moderate)

His realm had advanced! From mortal to the first stage of body refinement—the initial stage of the Skin Refining Realm!

Strength and physique had increased slightly once more! More importantly, the Technique slot was no longer empty!

"Upgrade Technique!"

Fang Gang didn't hesitate at all. Looking at the remaining 14.6 evolution points, his eyes flashed with brilliance. "Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill, boost it for me!"

[Ding! Consumed 10 evolution points! True Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill upgraded to 'Minor Accomplishment' (10/500)!]

Boom!

A more violent surge of heat exploded within his body than when he had previously boosted his stats!

This time, the heat wasn't just washing over his muscles and bones. Instead, it felt like it followed a specific trajectory, like countless tiny, scalding hammers relentlessly pounding his skin and fascia!

A heavy, profound sense of power, imbued with an ancient, wild aura, sprouted from the depths of his marrow!

Rip! Fang Gang's cheap T-shirt instantly tore apart, revealing bulging muscle lines beneath!

A faint, yet tangible, bronze sheen spread across his skin, as if coated in a thin layer of copper powder!

A weak but real sense of power, like the roar of a colossal elephant, faintly echoed around him!

He instinctively clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking like popping beans! Power! More condensed, more ferocious power surged through his muscles!

[Ding! True Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill (Minor Accomplishment)!]

[Effects: Strength +0.5, Constitution +0.5! Dragon-Elephant Might (Weak) stabilized, Qi and Blood like a small furnace (Enhanced suppression of Yin and Evil), Skin initially toughened (Can resist ordinary knife cuts).]

The system panel refreshed again:

Realm: Skin Refining Realm (Mid-stage)!

Strength: 12.0 → 12.5 (Initial Elephant Awakening)

Constitution: 6.0 → 6.5 (Initial Bronze Skin)

Skill: True Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill (Minor Accomplishment 10/500)

Usable Evolution Points: 4.6

Mid-stage Skin Refining Realm! Strength and Constitution increased again! Skin tough as oxhide!

Fang Gang couldn't help but let out a low roar, smashing a half-section of red brick piled in a corner of the abandoned wall with his fist!

The brick shattered instantly, exploding into dust! His fist was unharmed, not even a white mark on his skin!

"Hiss..." Old Man Li, dozing behind the counter, was thoroughly startled by the commotion. He gasped, his cloudy old eyes filled with shock and a trace of indescribable fear as he looked at Fang Gang's inhuman strength and bronze skin.

He instinctively shrunk back, his gaze sweeping over Fang Gang's clenched fists. It seemed to casually drift over the ink-black Yin line revealed beneath his rolled-up sleeve, which had already spread to the middle of his forearm.

Old Man Li's pupils constricted violently, as if he had seen something extremely terrifying. His face instantly turned ashen, his lips trembling. He wanted to say something but forced himself to hold back, lowering his head and daring not to look again.

Lost in the joy of his surging strength, Fang Gang didn't notice Old Man Li's odd behavior.

He felt the surging Qi and Blood within him and the new, heavy Dragon-Elephant Might, his confidence soaring to unprecedented heights.

"Still 4.6 points left..." Fang Gang looked at the "(Minor Accomplishment 10/500)" behind the skill bar, realizing that these few evolution points were far from enough to reach the next stage.

"Constitution! Add 4 more points to Constitution!" he decided instantly. A stronger physique was the foundation for withstanding evil entities!

[Ding! Consumed 4 evolution points! Constitution +4! Current Constitution: 10.5 (Bronze Skin, Iron Bones)!]

Realm: Skin Refining Realm (Late-stage)!

A more substantial warm current flowed into his limbs and bones, muscle fibers seemingly tempered with refined steel once more, bone density increasing. His body's defense and endurance instantly rose to a new level!

The bronze sheen on his skin became more pronounced, faintly exuding a metallic texture.

[Usable Evolution Points: 0.6]

Strength: 12.5 (Initial Elephant Awakening)

Constitution: 10.5 (Bronze Skin, Iron Bones) → Late-stage Skin Refining!

Agility: 5.9 (Agile as a startled rabbit)

Spirit: 1.1 (Resilient)

Feeling the surging power and his indestructible physique, a fierce glint appeared in Fang Gang's eyes.

He abruptly turned his head, gazing towards the edge of the city at the silhouette of the funeral home, which resembled a crouching behemoth under the Blood Moon.

The Yin line on his arm seemed to sense his killing intent, transmitting another wave of sharp pain, as if issuing a warning, or perhaps a provocation.

"The thing in the funeral home..."

Fang Gang clenched his fists, his knuckles emitting a heart-stopping crackling sound. Qi and Blood surged beneath his bronze skin, with a faint, low elephant roar echoing, "You wait for me!"

He needed to fight! He needed evolution points! More than that, he needed to... completely eliminate this damned thing on his arm! The funeral home was his hunting ground!

Just as he turned to leave the post station and return to that dangerous place, the ink-black Yin line on his arm writhed violently without warning!

An icy chill, far colder and more malicious than before, as if capable of freezing the soul, erupted from the Yin line, like countless ice needles, fiercely stabbing into the core of his freshly reinforced, Qi-and-Blood-rich internal organs!

"Urgh!" Fang Gang grunted, cold sweat instantly breaking out on his forehead, his body swaying involuntarily.

This backlash from the Yin line was fiercer than any previous instance! It was resisting, or rather, it was thoroughly enraged by Fang Gang's strengthened Qi and Blood!

[Warning! Unknown Yin Energy Erosion intensifying! Impacting host's internal organs! Threat level increased!]

[Recommendation: Immediately clear the source or seek stronger Yang-attribute skills/energy to suppress!]

The system's alarm sounded with unprecedented urgency.

Fang Gang gritted his teeth, forcefully circulating the minor-accomplishment Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill within his body. The scorching qi and blood were like the flames of a furnace, wildly clashing against the erupting yin cold!

The two forces battled fiercely within him, bringing a tearing pain.

He stared fixedly in the direction of the funeral home, his eyes as fierce as a wounded beast.

"It seems… the 'main course' inside can't wait!"

"Perfect, I'm starving too!"

Fang Gang stopped lingering. Enduring the internal agony and the clash of ice and fire, he strode forward, charging resolutely once more towards the dark funeral home shrouded by the Blood Moon! This time, he would take the initiative!

In the night wind, the ink-black yin line on his arm, contrasted against his bronze skin, appeared particularly ferocious and jarring.