24: Body Refining

After settling the bee colony and spiritual plants, Lin Feng's true closed-door cultivation officially began.

Every morning, he would unfailingly arrive at the eastern reef area.

His Sea of Consciousness stirred, and the Gather Beast Divine Ability was activated! Divine Power -1!

An invisible fluctuation spread out.

Before long, the sea churned, and a 'Unicorn Ironback Shark' with a body like an ox, covered in dark green scales, a single horn on its head, and an aura that had reached the Peak of Qi Cultivation stage seven layer, broke through the waves!

Its pea-sized eyes flickered with a brutal red light, and it opened its massive, fanged maw, bringing a strongfishy wind as it fiercely rammed towards Lin Feng on the reef! Its ferocity was monstrous!

“Good timing!” Lin Feng’s eyes narrowed, completely fearless.

The passive Demon Slayer was instantly activated, and an aura that restrained evil Yao Beasts permeated his body.

He did not immediately use the newly acquired demon binding hook, but instead let out a low shout and began to circulate the Rock Body Tempering Art!

The sparse spiritual Qi within his body surged along a specific route, stimulating his muscles, bones, and skin.

He activated Treading Wave Step under his feet, his body not retreating but advancing, meeting the ferocious shark head with a punch!

The punch wind howled, his muscles tensed like iron, and a faint, almost imperceptible bronze luster subtly appeared beneath his skin!

“Bang!”

A dull, drum-like roar exploded!

Lin Feng’s fist slammed heavily onto the Unicorn Ironback Shark’s slimy snout!

A powerful force surged through him, his body shook violently, the reef under his feet cracked inch by inch, and he was sent flying backward, his Qi and blood churning, and a tearing pain came from his arm!

The Unicorn Ironback Shark was not feeling well either; the scales on its hard snout shattered, bleeding profusely, and it let out a pained roar, its massive body momentarily stagnating in the sea.

The restraint of the passive Demon Slayer, coupled with the initial achievement of the Rock Body Tempering Art's defense, actually allowed him to withstand a direct charge from a Qi Refinement Late Stage Yao Beast without suffering severe injuries!

Lin Feng’s Battle Intent grew even stronger!

He stabilized his body, and the fenshui sword unsheathed with a clang, its faint blue Sword Qi, accompanied by a faint golden glow, darted out like a spitting viper, aiming for the shark's relatively vulnerable eye!

The reef area instantly transformed into a brutal battlefield!

Sword Qi crisscrossed, waves surged, and the roars of Yao Beasts and the clash of metal resounded incessantly.

Lin Feng pushed his movement technique to its limit, dodging and weaving among the slippery reefs, sometimes using his fists and feet to directly counter the Yao Beast's immense strength, tempering his Physical Body; sometimes using the fenshui sword for tricky attacks, creating wounds; the newly acquired demon binding hook also achieved remarkable success, its faint blue hook rope appearing and disappearing like a ghost, once it hooked the shark's fin or tail, the powerful restraining force would instantly slow its movements, creating a fatal opportunity for Lin Feng!

This struggle lasted for nearly an hour.

When Lin Feng seized an opening, the demon binding hook firmly snagged the shark's caudal fin, and the fenshui sword, imbued with the sharp edge of Demon Slayer, pierced through its wide-open mouth, directly into its brain, the fierce Qi Refinement Late Stage sea Yao Beast finally collapsed with a crash.

A wisp of faint green energy, far purer and thicker than before, rose from the shark's corpse and entered Lin Feng's glabella!

“Boom!”

A pure and overbearing torrent of energy instantly rushed into his limbs and bones!

A part of it was guided by the Qi Refining Art, impacting the barrier of Qi Cultivation stage six layer; another part spontaneously merged into his muscles, bones, and flesh!

Lin Feng clearly felt his Dantian Qi Sea churning and expanding, just a hair's breadth away from a Breakthrough!

What surprised him even more was that the essence of the demonic power that had merged into his flesh was being rapidly absorbed and transformed by the Rock Body Tempering Art, like an invisible forging hammer, repeatedly pounding his skin, muscles, and bones!

The soreness and pain from directly confronting the Yao Beast quickly receded, replaced by a comfortable sensation of surging strength and enhanced defense!

“Indeed! The energy feedback from Demon Slayer also has a miraculous effect on Body Refining!” Lin Feng realized.

This meant that by hunting Yao Beasts, both his cultivation and Body Refining were progressing rapidly! Efficiency doubled!

He immediately sat down cross-legged, circulating his Cultivation Technique to refine the energy and impact the Bottleneck, while silently comprehending the changes brought about by Body Refining.

Lin Feng's eyes gleamed with golden light; he would try a stronger Yao Beast tomorrow to see the effect.

He hadn't tried finding a Late Stage Yao Beast before, but according to his thoughts, there should be more energy.

Should he try?

In terms of strength, he didn't feel weaker than a Late Stage Yao Beast, and he could also use the Demon Slayer Divine Ability for a one-hit kill.

At most, he would lose a day of Divine Ability recovery, but he wouldn't suffer a loss.

He could give it a try!

...

The next day, Lin Feng came to the seaside again.

Soon, Yao Beasts from the nearby sea area were attracted.

His current targets were no longer the Ironclad Crab or Reefback Turtle of the Qi Refinement Early Stage or Middle Stage, but genuine Qi Cultivation stage nine layer or even Perfection sea Yao Beasts!

“Roar!” A ‘Sea-Covering Lizard Shark’ resembling a shark but with four thick, sharp claws and covered in dark green scales broke through the waves, its fierce Qi Cultivation stage nine layer aura rushing towards him, opening its gaping maw to reveal dagger-like fangs, and fiercely biting at Lin Feng.

Lin Feng's eyes were sharp as an eagle's, and his Treading Wave Step circulated to its extreme, his body sliding sideways like a ghost, easily avoiding the pounce.

At the same time, his fenshui sword unsheathed with a clang from his waist, and the faint blue Sword Qi surged!

Pfft!

The tough scales were torn by the sharp Sword Qi containing the passive Demon Slayer, and blood spurted out.

The Sea-Covering Lizard Shark roared in pain and fury, its massive tail sweeping horizontally, bringing a whistling gust of wind.

Lin Feng's body flashed again, and at the same time, he formed a hand seal with his left hand, and a pre-prepared Ice Spike Talisman shot out, accurately hitting one of its eyes!

The battle was fierce and perilous.

Lin Feng no longer relied on the destructive single strike of the active Demon Slayer, but treated each hunt as a training ground to hone his combat skills, spells, and Talisman coordination.

Qingfeng Slash, Ice Spike Talisman, occasionally interspersed with a Earth Prison Talisman that had reached Minor Achievement to restrict the opponent's movement… He applied his learned attack methods with increasing proficiency and seamlessness.

Finally, the massive body of the Sea-Covering Lizard Shark crashed down.

A wisp of faint green energy, far purer and thicker than before, fed back into his body and was quickly refined.

Lin Feng could clearly feel that this energy not only converged into his Dantian Qi Sea, increasing his spiritual Qi cultivation, but also a small portion of it, like a warm current, dispersed into his limbs and bones, nourishing his muscles, bones, and skin, bringing a slight tingling and a sense of strengthening.

“Indeed! The feedback energy from hunting Advanced Yao Beasts is greater!” Lin Feng was invigorated.

He immediately sat down cross-legged and began to circulate the methods of the basic chapter of the Rock Body Tempering Art.

The Qi and blood within his body surged faster as if guided, actively directing the warm current that tempered his Physical Body, repeatedly flushing and pounding his muscles and bones, solidifying that sense of strengthening.

Day after day, the reef area became Lin Feng’s exclusive hunting ground.

Qi Cultivation stage eight layer ‘Ironline Electric Eels,’ ‘Azure Wave Jellyfish,’ and even the occasional Qi Refinement Perfection ‘Profound Armored Alligator Turtle’ all became targets for him to temper himself.

Every fierce struggle, every energy feedback, combined with the tempering of the Rock Body Tempering Art, allowed his Physical Body to strengthen at an astonishing speed.

...