185: Bone Forging Peak

At the summit of Bone Forging Peak, the gravity had increased to an inconceivable tenfold.

The moment Chen Linsheng stepped onto the summit platform, he felt his entire skeletal structure groan, and every inch of his muscle seemed to be crushed by invisible mountains.

But his spine remained straight, and the pale gold "Golden Garment" Qi membrane flowed incessantly over his body, forcefully resisting the heavy pressure that was enough to crush an ordinary Dragon Tendon Realm Martial Artist.

The platform was vast, spanning about a hundred yards, with a ground paved in dark red crystals that emitted an orange-red glow from their cracks. In the center of the platform stood a fire giant five yards tall.

The giant was composed entirely of dark red lava stone, with white-hot magma flowing at its joints. Its eyes were two swirling masses of flame, and it held a massive hammer formed from solidified lava. Every swing brought a violent heatwave and the heavy sound of wind; wherever the hammer fell, the crystal ground shattered, sending stone fragments flying.

Six people were already entangled in combat with the giant.

The most conspicuous was Xiao Zhan. The Yanling Saber in his hand now radiated a bright Saber-Astral that was almost tangible, each slash leaving a lingering trail of frost in the air. When the Saber-Astral collided with the fire giant's lava armor, it made a piercing "chi-chi" sound, and white mist billowed. His movements remained agile even under tenfold gravity, his saber techniques were rigorous, and his offense and defense were well-balanced; he was clearly the main force pinning down the giant from the front.

On the left, the young Shaman from the Northern Desert Wolf Clan was sitting cross-legged on the ground, his hands forming seals as he chanted ancient and obscure incantations.

Three red fire crystals floated before him, flickering in sync with his incantations, drawing the fire-element Origin Qi from the platform's ley lines and transforming it into red chains that bound the giant's legs and left arm, restricting its movements.

However, the young Shaman's face was pale, and cold sweat dripped from his forehead, showing that he was under immense strain.

The battle on the right was far more peculiar.

Two ordinary-looking Martial Artists dressed in brownish-gray tight-fitting clothes were moving with a flickering, ghostly Movement Technique.

They did not clash head-on with the giant, but instead focused on weak points such as the giant's joint connections and the flames in its eye sockets. Poisoned short spikes and flying needles were shot out from time to time, sinister and cunning.

They were the two hidden agents of the White Lotus Sect—at this moment, they made no attempt to hide their identities, and faint lotus patterns were visible on their sleeves.

There were three others: a scholar in green robes from Tingtao Academy, writing runes in the air with a jade brush as clear Qi transformed into a barrier to block the aftershocks; a young female swordswoman from the Qiushui Sword Sect, her sword light like snow as she assisted Xiao Zhan's attack; and a lone Martial Artist wielding a thick-backed mountain-cleaving saber, whose style was fierce but who spat blood and retreated under a horizontal sweep from the giant, barely holding on.

Chen Linsheng's arrival did not attract much attention—under the fire giant's violent attacks, no one dared to be distracted.

But his keen perception immediately captured the key point:

The fire giant's core was located three inches to the left of the center of its chest. There was a fist-sized, nearly pure white incandescent light pulsing slowly beneath the lava shell, like a second heart. Every time the giant swung its hammer or exhaled fire, that white light would brighten a notch.

At the same time, he also "saw" seven faint energy nodes hidden deep within the patterns of the crystal platform beneath the giant's feet, vaguely forming a fragmented array. These nodes resonated with the giant's core.

"Seven nodes... corresponding to the Seven Stars? If disturbed simultaneously, its defense might be briefly weakened." Chen Linsheng's thoughts raced as his Crane Ape Illusory Wind Steps quietly unfolded beneath his feet.

Under tenfold gravity, this Movement Technique was no longer as light as the wind, but gained a bit of the heavy precision of an ancient ape climbing a cliff. He was like a shadow merging into the battlefield, dodging a massive hammer strike from the giant—the wind of the hammer brushed past him, and the scorching heatwave caused his Golden Garment Qi membrane to ripple slightly.

He did not immediately join the frontal battle, but instead circled the edge of the platform, his palms striking the ground from time to time.

Each time a palm fell, a wisp of refined Primordial Qi was precisely vibrated into the underground energy nodes through the crystal cracks. The strength of his palms varied, sometimes hard and sometimes soft, like plucking zither strings.

At the first node, the faint light flickered.

The giant's movements seemed to stagger for a fraction of a second.

Xiao Zhan immediately noticed, and his saber momentum grew even faster, a refined Saber-Astral slashing directly at the giant's neck, forcing it to tilt its head to block.

The second and third nodes were disturbed in succession.

A hint of disharmony appeared in the pulsing frequency of the white core light in the giant's chest.

The two hidden agents of the White Lotus Sect exchanged a look, and one of them suddenly threw three ink-black diamond-shaped darts directly at Chen Linsheng's back! Before the darts arrived, a fishy-sweet scent wafted over, clearly indicating they were coated in lethal poison.

As if he had eyes in the back of his head, Chen Linsheng's body spun like a top. The three poison darts grazed his clothes and struck the ground, actually corroding three small, sizzling pits. He didn't even look at the two of them and continued moving toward the fourth node.

"Kill this kid first!" one of the agents barked. The two of them actually abandoned their attack on the giant for the moment and lunged at Chen Linsheng from the left and right. Their movements were like ghosts, their short spikes carrying a ghostly blue cold light.

Chen Linsheng snorted coldly and finally stopped his footsteps.

Facing the short spike thrust from the left, he neither dodged nor avoided it. He raised his left palm, and pale gold air currents swirled and condensed between his fingers—Mountain Suppressing Seal: Suppressing the Mountain! Only this time, the palm seal was retracted before it was released, suddenly vibrating an inch before the short spike reached him!

"Buzz!"

The air rippled like the surface of water, spreading a circle of pale gold ripples.

The agent felt as if the short spike in his hand had entered thick glue; its speed dropped abruptly, and a heavy counter-force traveled up his arm. His expression changed, and he wanted to pull back and retreat, but it was already too late.

Chen Linsheng's right fist had already arrived, its surface pale gold with the faint phantom of a mountain—the "Mountain Collapse," a preliminary Fusion of the Mountain Suppressing Seal and Python Dragon Strength!