39: Chapter 39 Let's go, this kid doesn't need protection.

At the peak of the mountain, the atmosphere in front of the water mirror froze.

Elder Xiong and the Tall and Thin Elder remained silent for a long time.

That clean, crisp, and even somewhat effortless sword strike played repeatedly in their minds.

"Old Xiong… This kid… He…" The Tall and Thin Elder's voice was dry.

Elder Xiong did not reply, merely turning off the replay function of the water mirror.

He let out a long breath of turbid air.

"Leave it be."

"From now on, our task is not to protect him."

"It's to keep others from blindly provoking him."

Hearing this, the Tall and Thin Elder deeply agreed.

Just based on that sword strike earlier, the outer region of the Tianyao Mountain Range no longer posed any threat to Zhao Ruoan.

For two Pulse Condensation Realm Elders to run over to "protect" him would be too embarrassing to speak of.

The images in the water mirror continued to flow.

After dealing with the spoils of war and picking the spirit fruit, Zhao Ruoan searched for a secluded and dry cave.

Instead of rushing to Cultivate, he took out a pile of jars, cans, and various tools from his storage ring.

Night fell, and a cluster of warm campfire rose within the cave.

Zhao Ruoan began to tally the harvest of the day.

Aside from the Golden-Eyed Black Demonic Tiger and those two pieces of dark blood spirit fruit, along the way he had also casually picked quite a few Spirit Medicine.

A stalk of "Dragon Saliva Grass," one of the main ingredients for refining Spirit Pills, was fully three hundred years old.

A few clusters of "Cloud-Patterned Mushrooms" could nourish Divine Sense and were the favorites of Alchemists and talisman masters.

There was also a large handful of colorful flowers and plants whose names he didn't know, but which were overflowing with Spiritual Qi; they were all Materials for refining various auxiliary Medicinal Pills.

Any single one of these items taken out casually would be enough to make Outer Sect Disciples break their heads fighting over it.

Yet they were just casually tossed aside by Zhao Ruoan.

This Luck was simply unreasonable.

He cut off the most essential tenderloin of the Golden-Eyed Black Demonic Tiger, using a small knife to trim away the fascia.

Afterwards, he crushed several auxiliary medicines exuding a peculiar fragrance into juice and evenly smeared it over the tiger meat.

The flames licked the chunks of meat, making a "sizzling" sound.

Grease dripped down, stirring up a small cluster of flames; the rich aroma of meat mixed with the fragrance of medicine instantly permeated the entire cave.

Zhao Ruoan did not use a Spell to ripen it quickly, but patiently roasted it.

Soon, the surface of the tiger meat presented an enticing caramel color, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with Spiritual Qi perfectly locked within it.

This wasn't training in the wild; it was clearly a top-tier chef preparing rare ingredients.

He tore off a piece of roasted meat and popped it into his mouth.

The meat was firm and springy to the bite. The massive Qi and blood power it contained had been processed through Spirit Chef techniques, becoming gentle and pure. Sliding down his throat into his belly, it transformed into waves of warm currents surging toward all his limbs and bones.

The Demon Tiger Skill began to circulate on its own.

On the surface of Zhao Ruoan's skin, faint black demonic patterns vaguely emerged. As the Qi and blood poured in, the demonic patterns flickered on and off, as if breathing.

With a piece of meat down his belly, he felt that his Physical Body strength had increased.

This effect was even stronger than his own bitter Cultivation for a day.

By eating, one could grow stronger.

And eating such top-tier deliciousness at that.

This method of Cultivating was simply too unpretentious.

After finishing an entire piece of tiger meat weighing several catties, Zhao Ruoan felt warm all over, every cell filled with power.

He did not stop, taking out those two pieces of dark blood spirit fruit.

The fruit was not large, and beneath its dark red skin, blood seemed to be flowing slowly.

He swallowed one of them in a single bite.

Boom!

A pure Qi and blood power, more than ten times greater than that of the tiger meat, exploded violently within his body.

That power was incomparably violent, like a surging magma, frantically scouring his Meridians, bones, and flesh.

Zhao Ruoan let out a muffled groan, the surface of his body instantly turning crimson, and his blue veins bulging like coiling dragons.

The circulation speed of the Demon Tiger Skill soared to the extreme.

The black demonic patterns on his body surface became incomparably clear, even beginning to interweave and spread, forming a ferocious and ancient demonic tiger totem.

Crack! Crack!

The bones inside his body emitted a series of crisp cracking sounds, as if being repeatedly hammered by a giant hammer and then reshaped.

This process was incomparably painful; ordinary Cultivators would probably have long since passed out.

Yet Zhao Ruoan tightly guarded his spiritual platform's clarity, guiding that violent power to temper his Physical Body over and over again.

I don't know how much time passed, but that violent power was finally completely absorbed.

He slowly opened his eyes and let out a long breath of turbid air carrying a bloody smell.

Demon Tiger Skill, fourth layer!

It's done!

He lowered his head to look at his body; his skin had returned to its normal color, but that demonic tiger totem had faded beneath his skin.

He could feel that every corner of his body contained explosive power.

He stood up, walked over to the stone wall of the cave, and casually threw a punch.

He did not use a shred of Spiritual Qi, relying purely on Physical Body strength.

Bang.

A muffled sound rang out.

The hard rock wall was blasted by him into a half-meter-deep humanoid pit with smooth edges.

This destructive power…

Zhao Ruoan estimated that with just his Physical Body alone right now, he could probably match wits with an Early Stage Spirit Sea Realm Cultivator.

Even if ordinary Spirit Sea Realm Cultivators blasted Spells onto his body, whether they could break his defense would be a question.

He contentedly ate the other piece of dark blood spirit fruit as well.

This time, although the Physical Body's enhancement was not as heaven-shaking as the first time, it still made his Foundation even more stable, raising his strength by another notch.

…

Over the next few days, Zhao Ruoan pushed all the way deeper into the mountain range.

The grades of the Yao Beasts encountered along the way became increasingly higher, and Spirit Gathering Realm and Pulse Condensation Realm Yao Beasts began to appear frequently.

But without exception, they all became souls under Zhao Ruoan's sword, as well as Materials in his storage ring.

What was even more outrageous was his Luck.

On the third day, in a pool beneath a waterfall, he fished out a head-sized piece of "Cold Marrow Jade Crystal."

On the fifth day, to avoid the rain, he crawled into a tree hole, only to find a nest of "Purple-Veined Blood Ganoderma" growing inside.

On the seventh day…

On the mountain peak, the two Elders responsible for monitoring were already numb.

"Old Xiong, pinch me. Am I dreaming?" The Tall and Thin Elder pointed at the water mirror where Zhao Ruoan was pulling a sparkling Yao Beast egg out of the nest of a Middle Stage Pulse Condensation Realm Yao Beast that had just been instantly killed, his voice trembling.

"What kind of divine Luck is this?"

"The things he has looted over the past few days add up to almost tens of thousands of Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, right? I don't even have that much from my salary over several years!"

Elder Xiong's face was also twitching.

Having lived for several hundred years, he had never seen someone with such Heaven-Defying Luck.

This kid wasn't here for trial training; he was clearly here to restock goods, the kind where the heavens chased after him to feed him meals.

Right at this moment, the communication Jade Slip at Elder Xiong's waist suddenly lit up.

With a sweep of his Divine Sense, his brows furrowed.

"What is it?" the Tall and Thin Elder asked.

"A few reckless squads barged into the territory of Pulse Condensation Realm Yao Beasts, got besieged, and are asking for help," Elder Xiong said in a deep voice.

As soon as his voice fell, the Tall and Thin Elder's Jade Slip also lit up.

"My side is the same. Another wave of people seems to have triggered some ancient Restriction and is trapped."

The two looked at each other.

They looked at Zhao Ruoan, who was leisurely and unfathomably strong in the water mirror.

Then they thought of those crying rookies of Disciples who could kick the bucket at any moment.

The choice didn't seem difficult to make.

"You go to the eastern group, and I'll go to the western one," Elder Xiong said decisively.

"This kid… No need to mind him?"

"Mind him? If he doesn't go looking for trouble with others right now, those people should burn high incense," Elder Xiong snorted, his figure flashing as he turned into a streak of light and vanished into the horizon.

The Tall and Thin Elder also gave a wry smile and flew off in another direction.

In the mountain range.

Just as Zhao Ruoan crossed a mountain ridge and prepared to continue exploring deeper, his footsteps suddenly halted.

He cocked his ear to listen.

From the dense forest not far ahead came bursts of violent energy fluctuations and the sound of weapons clashing.

Intermingled with them were the angry roars of Yao Beasts and the shouts of humans.

That commotion was rapidly approaching his location.