A solution

Bright moonlight shone, frost-white radiance filling the sky.

Under cover of night, Lin Fan quickly slipped out of the Heavenly Immortal Academy. He knew he had alarmed many people tonight and could not linger here. If someone cornered him at the door, he would be in danger.

Still, his gains this time had been immense. He had finally reached what was generally considered the Blood Shifting Extreme Realm—one hundred thousand jin of strength in a single arm. For now, he no longer needed to soak in the Tribulation-Transcending Divine Lotus Pool.

At the same time, he had discovered that he had awakened an extraordinary physique. He could transform into a little golden figure, sacred and sturdy, greatly strengthening his flesh. It was somewhat like the legendary Indestructible Golden Body.

This truly was an unexpected delight!

"Huh? Where did little brother Ye Xian go? He didn't run off, did he?" Feng Wu exclaimed, feeling puzzled.

She searched the Immortal Pool for a long time but never found any sign of Ye Xian.

That left her feeling rather disappointed. Their fight had been reaching its climax, and they had not yet decided a winner. They had only exchanged blows at close quarters and had yet to use any divine abilities or Precious Arts.

Her fighting spirit had soared after she finally encountered an evenly matched opponent, only for him to slip away just like that.

"Hehe, you can't escape. I'll definitely find you!" A determined light flickered in little Feng Wu's eyes, which brimmed with fighting spirit and resolve.

As far as she was concerned, as long as he was a disciple of the academy, she would definitely be able to find him.

If necessary, she could ask the dean for help. She was a First Generation inheritor, after all, and her standing was far from low.

Yet after several days of searching, Feng Wu was still disappointed.

There was simply no little boy named Ye Xian in the academy. Even the elders surnamed Ye stated that they had no such descendant and were neither concealing nor sheltering anyone.

"Who exactly is he?" Little Feng Wu could not help sinking into thought.

She had developed a keen interest in this mysterious girl. She had reached the Extreme Realm more than a year earlier than she had. That was truly remarkable.

It made her understand that beyond every mountain stood another mountain, and beyond every expert stood someone greater. There were still many freaks in the world whose talents were outrageously strong and whose cultivation progressed at astonishing speed.

What the world considered the limit was not their Extreme Realm.

By the time Lin Fan returned to the dilapidated mountain gate, dawn was nearly breaking.

Golden morning light glimmered from beyond the distant mountains, sharply contrasting with the starry night like a scene of yin and yang exchanging places.

"Dao Master! You're out of seclusion?" To his surprise, Lin Fan saw that Qi Daolin, who had spent more than half a year in seclusion, had emerged. He stood at the mountain gate as though waiting.

Because of Lin Fan's Supreme Bone, the old man had become engrossed in research and had not shown his face for a long time. He had merely tossed Lin Fan a pile of Bone Scriptures and left him to cultivate on his own.

"Why are you back so early today, brat? That's not like you." Qi Daolin looked him over as he asked.

"Naturally, I came back because I made a breakthrough." Brimming with pride, Lin Fan grinned boastfully. "I've reached that Extreme Realm you told me about!"

"Good. Keep working hard, but don't rush to break through to the next realm. Your goal should be to surpass the Extreme Realm, until you feel spent and can make no further progress!" Qi Daolin offered rare praise, delight showing on his face.

This was a little earlier than he had expected. Almost no one could reach the Blood Shifting Extreme Realm faster than this boy, who was only a little over five.

"Dao Master, have you found a way to stop my Supreme Bone from assimilating the Precious Arts I cast?" Lin Fan asked anxiously. This matter weighed heavily on his mind.

It was not that his innate divine technique was inadequate.

Though it was a healing ability, it was outrageously powerful. Its ability to heal injuries alone was formidable: as long as he was not killed instantly and still had a breath left, he could recover to his peak in an instant. It practically rivaled divine pills and Treasure Medicines, with a built-in mana-restoring effect.

Beyond that, it could assimilate other people's Precious Arts and transform them into healing arts brimming with vitality. No matter how powerful the attack, it would be reduced to nothing.

However, it had one enormous flaw: the Precious Arts he cast himself would also be assimilated, becoming healing arts that dealt no damage.

If that were all, he could have accepted it. As long as his opponent's Precious Arts also failed and everyone had to fight with their bodies, Lin Fan was confident he would not lose.

Yet his innate supreme technique could not be used repeatedly in quick succession. That meant he would have to close in and finish his future battles quickly, rather than letting them drag on.

Once he gave an enemy time to catch their breath, he would be forced onto the defensive. It was even more troublesome than the limitations facing body cultivators and creatures with immunity to magical power.

"Well..." At his words, Qi Daolin looked troubled.

He had searched through all the Bone Scriptures but had never found any similar records of the assimilating runes on Lin Fan's bone. Even after all this time studying them, he still had no clue.

Those runes were domineering and ran contrary to the existing profound principles of the laws. They could forcibly transform other runes and bring them into unity, making them immensely powerful.

They resembled Dao patterns from another system, entirely different from those of the present era. Like the difference between Immortal Ancient methods and Current Era Methods, they were two completely different kinds of symbols.

One look at his expression told Lin Fan that the old man had certainly failed to find a solution. Dejected, he asked, "Is there really no way?"

He did not want to become a healer who could only follow the path of attaining sainthood through the flesh. He would be at far too great a disadvantage against ranged attacks.

"Actually... there is one way." Qi Daolin hesitated, unwilling to tell him about this method and let him attempt it.

"What is it? Hurry and tell me, Dao Master." Lin Fan's eyes lit up, as though he had glimpsed a ray of hope.

Unable to bear it, Qi Daolin sighed and said, "Since the root of the problem lies in that bone of yours, removing it would be the most direct solution. But the process is extremely dangerous. One careless mistake could destroy your Dao foundation and leave you crippled, or even endanger your life."

It was the only method he could think of, and it carried considerable danger.

"Remove the Supreme Bone?" Lin Fan pondered it, well aware of how perilous the process would be. This bone far surpassed his other bones and flesh in importance, second only to the head that housed his soul.

But he remembered that the Milk Baby had nearly died precisely because his Supreme Bone had been removed. He had only survived because he was the protagonist and hard to kill. Let anyone else try it, and they really would die!

Even so, he was genuinely tempted. He did entertain the idea, unwilling to remain shackled by this bone for the rest of his life.

Moreover, Lin Fan knew very well that as long as he survived, the Supreme Bone that regenerated would be stronger. Like a withered tree greeting spring, it would grow ever more vigorously, achieving transformation and sublimation.

"You must be cautious with this method. You're still too young. It would be best to wait until you become a god and gather more heavenly treasures before removing it. Only then will it be safe," Qi Daolin reminded him, warning him not to attempt it lightly.

After a living being became a god, their life underwent a profound transformation, and severed limbs could regrow.

Upon reaching the Heavenly God Realm, they could even reconstruct their flesh as long as their primordial spirit remained intact.

By then, losing a Supreme Bone would no longer harm them.

Of course, Lin Fan was still very far from becoming a god. It would be impossible within at least the next ten years, so he would have to wait a long time.

"Dao Master, I understand!" Lin Fan also understood that not everyone was a heaven-favored protagonist. Playing it safe was always better.

In these early stages, his body was strong enough for physical combat, and he had also awakened the Indestructible Golden Body. For the time being, he still had no fear of any opponent.

At worst, I'll find a way to gain immunity to magical power too. By alternating between the two, I could still sweep through every enemy! Lin Fan thought to himself.

Having joined the Supreme Dao Arena, he was destined to have no peace. He had no choice but to grow stronger and increase his strength, or he could look forward to being hunted every day, scurrying away like a rat with his hands over his head.