Chapter 330: Reacquiring the Jiaolong Inner Elixir and Dragon Heart Stone

A breakthrough in divine sense is unlike other advancements; it happens in an instant. The progression from late-third-tier to peak-tier is a gradual increase. However, a true minor realm breakthrough is a small transformation. Strictly speaking, this was an upgrade from the 'ninth level' to the peak. The difference was inherently small.

Wang Yu consumed it on the spot. The Ancient Soul Art circulated to refine it, and within moments, his divine sense quietly increased, with the total growing by about one-fifth. After that, it would be fourth-tier divine sense. Again, it would require painstaking effort, which would be perfect for refining the effects of the large quantity of spiritual medicines he had recently consumed.

To achieve a breakthrough, Wang Yu believed that, besides relying on rare treasures and elixirs, he might also seize the opportunity presented by a cultivation technique breakthrough. As a top-tier fourth-grade divine sense cultivation method, Wang Yu had been cultivating the Ancient Soul Art for quite some time, but it was still only at the minor achievement stage. If he could cultivate it to the major achievement stage, leveraging the profundity of the technique, he might be able to grasp the opportunity for a breakthrough. Conservatively, it would still take another five or six years. That was not a long time.

After sorting things out, Wang Yu, feeling even more energized, turned his gaze towards the Flood Dragon Cave.

Demonic beasts are different from humans. Unless they form a clan, the lairs of solitary demonic beasts are usually quite crude, serving merely as places for them to sleep and burrow. They are not arranged with the intricate complexity of human cultivators' cave dwellings. Since this flood dragon had lived and died in Drunken Immortal Lake, its lair was even simpler. After several checks, Wang Yu activated his spiritual energy shield and plunged in.

The so-called Flood Dragon Cave was merely a long, dark passage. The rock walls of the passage looked as if they had been polished, appearing exceptionally smooth. One could imagine a flood dragon once rubbing against the rock walls, easing its muscles and bones.

After advancing only a few tens of meters, Wang Yu stopped. Embedded in the rock crevices were numerous flood dragon scales, each roughly half a palm in size, displaying a unique fan-and-triangle shape, more akin to fish scales. He went closer and pulled them off. Wang Yu was both a little disappointed and relieved. Judging by the state of the scales, this Flood Dragon Cave was at least nearly a thousand years old. Its power during its lifetime had, at most, reached the third-tier and had not touched the fourth-tier; otherwise, these scales would not look this way.

“As expected, fourth-tier opportunities are not easily stumbled upon.”

Shaking his head, he cast away his greedy thoughts. After continuing for several hundred meters, an even more vast cavern came into view. It was a primitive cave dwelling spanning about a thousand mu, not particularly large, just enough for a flood dragon's body to move comfortably, and devoid of any restrictive spells or formations.

Upon a divine sense scan, the most conspicuous opportunity here was coiled on a stone platform in the very center: a flood dragon skeleton over a hundred meters long. This size indicated that its strength during its lifetime had been at least mid-third-tier.

“It seems to be a flood dragon of superior bloodline, but perhaps it struggled.”

However, dragon bones and scales were excellent materials for crafting artifacts, suitable for refining into the Demonic Dragon Armor, a bloodline true artifact that served as his natal true artifact for body tempering. Wang Yu had incorporated a third-tier dragon vein treasure, so refining dragon-attribute materials would only accelerate its growth. Most crucially, as the place where the flood dragon had passed away, intense dragon malevolence permeated the dragon corpse. This was precisely one of the body-tempering trials he had always lacked. Such concentrated dragon malevolence, if left for the cultivation panel to generate, would likely take over a decade to accumulate this much. The cultivation panel was excellent in all aspects, except that it only provided a small amount of feedback each day. It also could not provide the massive amount of spiritual energy required for a major realm breakthrough; it followed a path of gradual accumulation, not instant success.

“Utilizing the dragon malevolence accumulated here as a resource, combined with the body-tempering resources I possess, I can certainly advance my physical body to the late-third-tier body-tempering stage.”

After observing for a moment, Wang Yu discovered a dragon pearl in the middle section of the flood dragon skeleton. More precisely, it was a flood dragon inner core, an item he had once obtained before. It had a miraculous effect on the advancement of the Yin Nether Demonic Dragon Art. However, he had traded that previous one to Yu Tangtang in exchange for two Foundation Establishment spiritual materials. From his current perspective, the total value of that trade was a loss, but for him at the time, it had been an immense gain! It had allowed him to establish his foundation without delay, and even laid the groundwork for his dual spiritual root aptitude.

This third-tier flood dragon inner core was also an excellent aid for him to enhance his body-tempering cultivation. These gains alone were already substantial. But Wang Yu still hadn't forgotten his previous speculation.

“The posture of this dragon skeleton is quite similar to that of the Blood-Bearded Carp. This indicates that treasures capable of bloodline evolution certainly exist, though I'm unsure if this is a one-time opportunity…”

Thinking this to himself, he repeatedly searched the Flood Dragon Cave with his divine sense but found nothing. As he frowned in thought, a flash of inspiration suddenly struck him, reminding him of how the Peach Ghost Mother had found this Flood Dragon Cave.

With a thought, the Yellow Springs Grand Hand Seal was unleashed. It quickly transformed into a muddy current, sweeping inch by inch through the entire Flood Dragon Cave. As expected, a smile appeared on Wang Yu's face as he ran to a corner of the Flood Dragon Cave. The Yellow Springs Hand Seal tore through an invisible barrier, revealing clusters of nine-inch-long spiritual grasses shaped like small dragons. There were nine plants in total, all rooted on a single stone. His extensive knowledge immediately allowed Wang Yu to identify the origin of this spiritual medicine.

“Dragon Shadow Grass?!”

This treasure could enhance the bloodline concentration of dragon-species demonic beasts, though its compatibility was a bit low, making it unsuitable for the Three-Tailed Snow Fox. However, the stone where the Dragon Shadow Grass was rooted was a true treasure. Wang Yu took the entire thing. That seemingly ordinary stone was actually a petrified dragon heart with an outer layer of stony skin. The quality of the Dragon Shadow Grass that grew from it depended entirely on the cultivation level of the dragon heart's former owner. If he was lucky, he could extract some essence from it. It required refinement with fire using specific techniques to extract its benefits, making it more valuable than the Dragon Shadow Grass itself. The former owner of this Flood Dragon Cave, valuing the Dragon Shadow Grass but not developing the Dragon Heart Stone itself, was actually limited by their knowledge. If it could continuously grow Dragon Shadow Grass, for a flood dragon, it was already a considerable opportunity. Therefore, it couldn't be said to be wrong.

“Ah, ignorance is truly bliss~”

Wang Yu was very satisfied with these gains. Both the Dragon Shadow Grass and the Dragon Heart Stone could be refined using the Yin Nether Demonic Dragon Art to strengthen the foundation of his own dragon spine. How far he could go in the future depended entirely on how solid his foundation was. The deeper his foundation, the stronger his physical body would become. Body refiners walk the path of gods and demons, which is distinct from the orthodox immortal path, and it suited him perfectly.

After putting all his gains into the Sea Heart Ring, Wang Yu considered for a moment. He first returned to the temporary lake-bottom cave dwelling he had previously opened and moved the Profound Ice Bed, Snow Jade, and Yellow Springs Skeleton to the Flood Dragon Cave. He effectively usurped the lair, immediately beginning to cultivate using the dragon malevolence derived from the flood dragon's corpse and skeleton. He had refined very little of this type of malevolence, and upon first contact, he immediately felt its benefits.

If refining the body with Grand Yin Moon Malevolence felt like placing his body in acid, dissolving inch by inch, allowing it to penetrate every corner of his body, undergoing a persistent, erosive tempering, then dragon malevolence was like grand, sweeping warfare, giving him a 'thrill' of being constantly pierced by weapons. That feeling of soreness so intense it took his breath away became intensely exhilarating when he pushed harder to refine it. It was like scratching a mosquito bite; after the pleasure, it would be a bloody mess, both painful and satisfying. Wang Yu felt that he had trained himself to this point. After all, he was beginning to find pleasure in pain that most people could barely imagine. Of course, it was also possible that his personality was evolving towards something... twisted.

With ample resources, Wang Yu continuously refined the dragon malevolence. The flood dragon scales he had acquired upon entering were all refined into his Demonic Dragon Armor. And this dragon skeleton, each time a section of its bones’ dragon malevolence was absorbed, was also given to the dragon armor for absorption. He truly utilized every bit, wasting nothing! Each time a tier of dragon bone was integrated, the already black-golden Demonic Dragon Armor gained an additional stark white bone pattern, and a rib-like piece of armor grew on its side, gradually perfecting it. It gradually gained a demonic dragon might, getting closer to becoming a top-grade true artifact. Meanwhile, the growth rate of his divine marrow reached a new high, almost filling half of his dragon spine. This characteristic, similar to the Golden Core realm, was both a manifestation of his cultivation achievements and a source of power. Every bit of increase was proof of Wang Yu's strength improvement.

Dragon Blood Secret Medicine, Blood Dates, Dragon Blood Essence, Dragon Shadow Grass. He alternated between these four resources, almost turning himself into a medicine pot. He then accelerated their digestion with the nearly perfected Demonic Dragon Fist, pushing his progress speed to the extreme limit he could endure. He was improving every moment!

In the silent Flood Dragon Cave, after an unknown number of years, dragon roars echoed once more. The commotion was absorbed by the formation flags and did not propagate outwards.

Time flowed by, month after month.

In the Desolate Blood Plains, near the eastern side, Zhuo Shouyun and his group of nine, escorting Ding Ming whose nine orifices were sealed, arrived near the Demonic Human Cave. The Twin Sisters of the Secluded Valley were respectfully awaiting them there. Upon seeing Zhuo Shouyun, they quickly stepped forward.

“Young Master Yun, Wang Yu indeed appeared in our Feng Clan’s demonic human breeding ground several months ago. All three peak Golden Core uncles of the Feng Clan who were previously stationed in the Blood Abyss died at his hands.”

“It was indeed him.”

Zhuo Shouyun's eyes narrowed slightly, and he spoke without ceremony. “Copy a portion of your memories of your encounter with him for me; not a single detail can be overlooked.”

The two sisters exchanged a hesitant glance, but ultimately nodded. The Feng Clan's status was high, only below the three clans. However, this did not mean their status was comparable to Zhuo Shouyun’s. Not directly searching their souls was already a lenient approach, so there was no reason to refuse.

After Zhuo Shouyun finished viewing their memories, he also felt puzzled. However, he was not constrained by common sense, and his understanding of Wang Yu was greater than that of the twin sisters.

“A top-grade Yellow Springs Dao magical treasure, the Yellow Springs Grand Hand Seal at the Great Achievement stage, and that killing fist art used against Lu Chenzhou also seems to have reached perfection. This person is truly extraordinary.”

Through the memory footage, he almost recognized all of Wang Yu's frequently used methods. At this moment, Long Xingyun, with his arms crossed, spoke.

“Young Master, isn't this person a Cold Blood Peak cultivator? How could he not cultivate ice-attribute divine abilities? Is he intentionally concealing his strength to lull us into a false sense of security…?”

Zhuo Shouyun nodded. “That’s possible. It’s not necessarily intentional concealment; he couldn’t have foreseen this. It’s simply that those useless individuals weren't strong enough to make him use his full power. The inheritance of the Yellow Springs Grand Hand Seal should have been compensation he received from the incident where the Holy Offering was seized, back when he was the Lord of Guiling City. If we count from that time, his ice-attribute divine abilities might not necessarily be stronger than these two, especially since he only broke through to the Golden Core stage ten years ago.”

“So that’s how it is.”