The instant the enormous golden cocoon took shape, Xu Qing felt as though he had returned to the womb, wrapped in an extremely warm, gentle liquid energy.
Seemingly boundless, pure life force flooded into his body. Every part of him was enveloped in a faint radiance of interwoven azure and gold.
Xu Qing felt every cell and every inch of his skin cheering, greedily absorbing the pure power of life flowing from the Gold of Life.
Moreover, Xu Qing could sense another force within his body besides that immense life force, as though the two were inseparable partners.
The meridians throughout his body grew more elastic, his internal organs were nourished and became tougher, and his bones hardened. His entire body was undergoing a transformation that remade him down to his very bones.
Fine golden dragon scales appeared across his body, a pair of golden dragon horns grew from his forehead, and his tailbone slowly lengthened under the other force's remodeling.
After the life force's remodeling, magnificent patterns formed from countless strange golden lines appeared on his bones, while his blood and muscles shone with a faint golden light.
Time slowly passed, and another half month went by in the blink of an eye.
Parallel Earth, the steel fortress.
The fortress gates stood wide open, yet not a single zombie or mutated animal could be seen outside.
Inside the fortress, the enormous golden cocoon remained still in midair, suspended by countless golden threads like a spiderweb.
Above the enormous cocoon, a phantom Five-Clawed Golden Dragon kept silent guard.
That day, a faint light suddenly shone on the cocoon's surface. A fine crack quietly appeared, and brilliant golden light streamed through it.
Immediately afterward, the cracks spread rapidly, densely covering the entire enormous cocoon.
The cracks grew ever more numerous and tightly packed.
At last, the enormous golden cocoon shattered completely, fully exposing Xu Qing's figure to the air.
He was enveloped within the phantom Five-Clawed Golden Dragon. The dragon phantom roared furiously at the sky, then carried him straight through the ceiling and up into the air. The golden dragon phantom dissolved into countless golden motes that slowly dispersed, while Xu Qing remained quietly suspended upright in midair.
The next moment, the blood and Qi throughout his body surged and gathered wildly, and dazzling golden light spread from him.
A magnificent Soul Ring formed entirely of pure golden energy slowly rose from his body, and a terrifying, immense pulse of power swept through the entire fortress.
The Five-Clawed Golden Dragon behind him gave off a faint golden glow, as though it had come alive.
Fine golden dragon scales still covered his chest, and a pair of golden dragon horns remained on his forehead.
He slowly opened his eyes, faint golden light flowing within them.
Xu Qing looked bewildered as he surveyed his surroundings in confusion.
But the next instant, he suddenly felt chilly all over.
He looked down!
Holy crap! Where did my clothes go?!
And why the hell am I up in the air?
Xu Qing jolted and instantly panicked. His limbs flailed wildly in the air, and he immediately lost his balance, falling straight down. The Soul Ring behind him, along with his dragon scales and horns, returned to his body on their own.
Fuck!
Aah-
A scream rang out in the air.
With a thunderous crash, an enormous crater was smashed into the ground, sending rubble and dust flying in every direction.
Xu Qing lay at the bottom of the crater, feeling the dull ache coming from his body, then slowly braced himself against the ground and climbed to his feet.
He examined his body in astonishment. Despite falling from such a height, he was completely unscathed, though it still hurt, of course.
Hiss~
Xu Qing sucked in a breath of cold air, then quickly looked down at himself. His body's contours were clean and flowing, his muscles evenly proportioned and firm, without a trace of excess fat. What...?
This is my body?
He hurriedly shook his head and suppressed his surprise. This was hardly the time to worry about his physique.
He still had no clothes on!
Xu Qing immediately began rummaging through the surrounding ruins. He soon found the clothes he had stored earlier and quickly dressed himself.
Only after getting dressed did he slowly calm down and look up to survey the devastated fortress.
"My home!"
The fortress's alloy gates had long since been utterly destroyed, and the outer walls were covered in dense cracks, dents, and mottled marks.
Fortunately, he had specially reinforced it beforehand. The walls as a whole had not collapsed, and the damage was still manageable.
The rooms inside were badly damaged, especially the top-floor ceiling, where he had just punched a huge hole all the way through.
Bright sunlight poured through the enormous hole overhead, falling directly on him.
Xu Qing sighed. He could only find himself a new home.
As for rebuilding one himself, he did not have that much time. Besides, why not use one that was already there?
He had never expected the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon inside him to exert its power on its own!
Still, Xu Qing felt it had been well worth it. At least he was completely fine, and his Soul Power seemed to have broken through as well.
Level 20. Yes, after this, Xu Qing's cultivation had jumped straight to level 20. He only needed to condense another Soul Ring to break through to Soul Grandmaster.
Moreover, Xu Qing felt he was strong as hell now.
After settling his mood, Xu Qing began packing up.
Before long, however, Xu Qing saw the changes in himself in a broken mirror.
His appearance had not changed much, but his originally jet-black short hair and pupils had turned golden, giving off a faint glow in the sunlight.
What...?
Why have my hair and eyes turned like this?
Xu Qing only examined himself for a while before his excitement faded. Moving was more important.
He put everything that was still usable into the storage ring Gu Yuena had given him.
He focused on sensing it and was surprised to discover that the ring had a full hundred cubic meters of storage space, an enormous capacity that could easily hold all the supplies in the rooms.
A short while later, after sorting out all the useful items, he dug his large machete out of the ruins and gripped it in one hand.
The moment his fingertips touched the blade, Xu Qing clearly sensed that the machete felt far lighter than before.
He casually swung it twice. Its formerly comfortable feel had vanished completely; instead, it felt exceptionally light.
Clearly, after these transformations that remade him down to his bones, his physical strength had been greatly enhanced.
"Looks like it's time for a new weapon."
Xu Qing murmured to himself, though he would have to make do with it for now.
He sheathed the large machete and secured it behind him. After one final glance at the ruined steel fortress, he turned and walked out of his patch of ruins.
Countless blades of Blue Silver Grass grew outside the fortress, their leaves swaying in the breeze.
After leaving the fortress, Xu Qing's journey went very smoothly. He actually did not encounter a single zombie.
He scratched his head in puzzlement but did not dwell on it. This would save him quite a bit of time anyway.
Before long, Xu Qing found a detached villa.
The villa's exterior bore obvious signs of human alterations and reinforcement. It was not hard to guess that someone had probably stayed here for a long time after the apocalypse began.
Xu Qing drew the large machete from behind his back, chopped through the lock, pried open the gate, and slowly walked into the small courtyard. He entered the villa, scanning his surroundings with extreme vigilance.
Quite a few cigarette butts littered the living room floor, along with piles of instant noodle bowls and traces of leftover food. Many other places also showed signs of people having lived there.
He followed the hallways and carefully inspected the entire villa, confirming that no zombies or mutated creatures were hiding inside.
Afterward, Xu Qing locked the entrance securely and briefly tidied up the living room.
He planned to make this place his second shelter.