The black-cloaked man's raised sleeve froze in midair. He turned to look at the "charred corpse" on the ground, his brows lifting slightly.
Beneath the flaking, charred skin, a section of bone gleamed white as jade. A fine web of blood-red vessels covered it, yet not a scrap of flesh clung to it.
Then a series of cracking sounds rang out. The charred skin peeled away from the "corpse," revealing an entire skeleton beneath, a particularly chilling sight.
"There wasn't the slightest trace of life just now. This..." the black-cloaked man murmured, momentarily stunned.
As he spoke, the charred corpse's jaw suddenly began to move, opening and closing slightly as though it were chewing something.
A ball of azure light lit up in its throat, and a rich surge of spiritual energy from heaven and earth immediately radiated from its body.
"The fruit..." Bai Ling huddled in on herself and wrinkled her nose, catching a familiar scent.
What Shen Luo was chewing, despite his charred, corpse-like appearance, was none other than a Spirit Tangerine.
The Taiyi Thunder Tribulation had been even harder to withstand than he had expected. Although he had drawn in lightning little by little, gradually allowing his body to adapt, the instant the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Formation was breached, his flesh had still failed to withstand it and had nearly collapsed.
At that critical moment, he had pushed the Great Dissection Technique to its utmost limit, yet even that could not keep his body intact. Almost every time he finished repairing it, it would be torn apart again within a few breaths.
He could not pause for even an instant. If he relaxed and allowed the Thunder Pool to truly flood his consciousness sea and destroy his dantian and organs, all his efforts over so long would vanish