163: Chapter 163 Counting money until your hands cramp, this is life.

The night was deep and quiet.

In the corridor outside the intensive care ward, only a few eternal lamps emitted a faint, cold light.

Occasionally, a patrolling Disciple would pass by, moving on tiptoe, fearful of disturbing the great hero inside who had "bled dry for the Sect."

Gu Yan sat cross-legged on the cold jade bed and flicked his finger gently.

A stream of spiritual power hit the door latch, and with a "click," it locked.

Immediately after, he pulled out three sound-isolation talismans and stuck them on the window, the door crack, and the ventilation opening respectively.

After finishing all this, he let out a long breath, as if he had unloaded a heavy burden.

"Clatter—"

He picked up three Storage Pouches and two storage rings, turned them mouth-down, and gave them a vigorous shake.

There were no flashy golden special effects, only the dull thud of heavy objects hitting the bed.

In the blink of an eye, the wide cold jade bed was piled high with all sorts of miscellaneous things.

Spirit Stones, jade boxes, weapons, Ore, and even some unknown animal skins and bones were jumbled together, emitting a scent mixed with medicinal fragrance, rust, and the smell of old times.

This was Gu Yan's entire harvest from the past few days.

Lin Canghai's entire net worth, the selected supplies from the Lin family's secret treasury, and the loot he had scavenged like a locust from the underground palace in the Fallen Demon Valley.

"System, give me an estimate."

Gu Yan casually picked up a fist-sized piece of "Red Flame Refined Copper" and weighed it in his hand, as if it were a brick.

[Scanning...]

[Beep beep beep—Data overflow!]

[Cash flow (Mid-Grade Spirit Stone): 120,000.]

[Fixed assets (Magic Treasure, Materials, Medicinal Pill): Equivalent to 380,000.]

[Total asset valuation: 500,000 Mid-Grade Spirit Stone (premium fluctuation ±5%).]

[Congratulations to the host! Your current net worth has exceeded the century-long savings of an ordinary Nascent Soul Elder of the Yunlan Sect. If you don't spend it recklessly, it's enough for you to lie on a pile of Spirit Stones and idle away for three hundred years.]

Looking at that number, Gu Yan felt no wild joy; he just calmly picked up a spirit fruit and took a bite.

"500,000 is indeed not a small amount."

"But it's still far from enough to fill my bottomless pit."

There are four elements of cultivation: wealth, companion, method, and land. He now had the land (Qingyun Peak), the companion (Jiang Wanrou), and the wealth (Lin family legacy).

The only thing missing was the method.

His "Wild Tyrant Body" had been stuck at the Peak of the second level for a long time.

Although his Physical Body was formidable, facing the bombardment of a Golden Core Cultivator's Magic Treasure, he still had to rely on "cheats" like the "soul-shattering knuckles" to hold on.

To truly possess the capital to defy and kill a Golden Core, he had to break through to the third level—Copper Skin and Iron Bones, immune to water and fire.

"Activate 'Bloodline Furnace'."

Gu Yan threw the "blood-drinking mad blade" that had already snapped into two pieces in front of him.

[Received! New feature section activated!]

In Gu Yan's field of vision, a massive, illusory furnace burning with black-red flames appeared.

That fire was no ordinary fire, but a fire of rules condensed from countless blood-evil runes.

He grabbed the Lifebound Treasure that once belonged to Lin Canghai and threw it into the illusion without hesitation.

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—

A teeth-grinding sound of corrosion rang out.

That fierce weapon, which had once drunk the blood of countless people, lasted only three breaths in the furnace before melting into a pool of red molten iron, then evaporating, leaving behind only a wisp of dark red airflow as thin as a strand of hair.

[Recycling successful.]

[Obtained: Rank 3 Blood Evil Essence x1.]

[Evaluation: Although it's a useless blade, it was refined by a Golden Core Cultivator for a hundred years, so the foundation is still there.]

"Continue."

Gu Yan remained expressionless and started the inventory-clearing mode.

Those Low Grade Magical Artifacts scavenged from the Lin family that he couldn't use; those broken Materials picked up in the Fallen Demon Valley that were precious but he couldn't use directly; and even a few damaged armors stripped from dead bodies.

Throw them all in.

The furnace roared, and the black fire rolled.

That night, Gu Yan was like an emotionless trash incinerator worker.

At the other end of the furnace, drops of dark red liquid, pure to the extreme, were condensing.

That was the "Blood Essence," with all Impurities removed, retaining only the essence of energy.

Until the sky turned white at dawn, more than half of the miscellaneous items on the bed were gone.

In Gu Yan's hand, there was an extra bottle of dark red liquid.

Only ten drops.

But the energy contained in each drop was enough to burst an ordinary Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator.

"Ten drops of Blood Essence, plus these…"

Gu Yan grabbed those few stalks of "Dragon Blood Grass" and "Star Sand" he had gotten from the secret treasury.

"Enough."

He took a deep breath, adjusted his sitting posture, and sat with his five centers facing the sky.

Without hesitation, he tilted his head back and poured that bottle of Blood Essence into his mouth, then immediately stuffed the three stalks of Dragon Blood Grass in like chewing a green onion, chewing them vigorously.

Bitter. Astringent. And a hint of a rusty taste.

Gulp. He swallowed.

Boom!

This time, it was not a warm current, but magma.

Gu Yan's skin instantly turned crimson, like a boiled shrimp.

The blood vessels in his body bulged, outlining a gruesome blood-colored totem on his bronze-colored skin.

"Urgh…"

Gu Yan let out a muffled groan, his teeth clenched tightly, and the veins on his forehead throbbed.

Pain.

The pain was as if someone were smashing his bones inch by inch and then pouring molten iron over them.

Every muscle was tearing, and every cell was wailing.

But he did not move.

He clung tightly to a glimmer of clarity in his consciousness, guiding that violent energy to wash over his spine.

Crack. Crack.

The sound of bones cracking rang out densely in the quiet ward.

His skin began to crack, black dead skin fell off, revealing the new skin underneath, which had a faint metallic luster.

This was not ordinary skin, but a "Tyrant Body" that had been recast by Blood Essence, fused with the medicinal power of Star Sand and Dragon Blood Grass.

One hour. Two hours.

Until the noon sunlight shone on the bed through the window lattice.

Gu Yan opened his eyes abruptly.

Hum! The air trembled.

He did not use any spiritual power; just the action of clenching his fist caused the air in his palm to be instantly compressed, emitting a loud bang.

[Ding! Congratulations to the host!]

["Wild Tyrant Body" broke through to the third level!]

[Current Physical Body strength: Difficult to be injured by a Low Grade Spiritual Artifact.]

[Cultivation level improved synchronously: Foundation Establishment Stage Level 6 (skipped levels achieved).]

[Evaluation: Now, even if you stand still and let a Foundation Establishment Stage Peak Cultivator hit you, it would only break a bit of skin. An Early Golden Core Stage Cultivator would find it hard to cause you fatal damage without using their Lifebound Treasure.]

Gu Yan stood up and stretched his limbs.

The scars on his body that he had intentionally left for the sake of acting had now completely disappeared, not even leaving a mark.

His skin was as delicate as a freshly peeled egg, but only he knew what kind of explosive power was contained beneath this layer of skin.

"Hoo…"

Gu Yan exhaled a breath of turbid Qi, the airflow like an arrow, actually leaving a shallow white dot on the wall three meters away.

He walked to the window and pushed it open.

Fresh air rushed in, blowing away the medicinal smell and the stench of blood in the room.

"Beep, beep."

The sound-transmission jade talisman placed on the bedside table suddenly lit up with a red light.

Gu Yan picked up the jade talisman and input a stream of spiritual power.

Jiang Wanrou's voice, slightly tired but unable to hide her excitement, came through:

"Gu Yan, that group with Little Sword God Ye Gucheng has been spinning in the 'confusion Formation' for three hours. Just now, a True Disciple couldn't hold back and used his Flying Sword to slash wildly, triggering the 'spirit-draining Formation.' Now, that group of them has had 30% of their spiritual power drained."

"What about Little Sword God Ye Gucheng?" Gu Yan asked.

"He is still holding on, but he is reaching his limit. Just now I heard him cursing."

Gu Yan smiled.

He looked in the direction of Qingyun Peak, as if he could see that arrogant Little Sword God in white, currently in a disheveled state, rolling in the mud.

"Don't be in a hurry to let them go."

Gu Yan picked up a spirit fruit from the table, wiped it, and took a bite, juice spilling everywhere.

"The timing isn't right yet."

"Wait until they are too hungry to curse, or…" A glint flashed in Gu Yan's eyes, "or until someone comes knocking with a ransom, then throw them out."

"But the Peak Master of Wan Jian Peak seems to have already headed that way…" Jiang Wanrou said with some concern.

"Let him go."

Gu Yan turned around and lay back down on that comfortable cold jade bed, pulling the blanket over himself.

"Perfect, we can scam the old one too."

"Remember, we are the victims. They trespassed on private property and triggered the 'vicious' Formation left by the Lin family. We are just recovering from our injuries and know nothing."

He hung up the transmission.

Gu Yan closed his eyes, a comfortable arc curling at the corners of his mouth.

This kind of life, lying down and making money while incidentally stepping on people, is indeed much more comfortable than fighting and killing in Baifeng City.

"System, play a tune."

"I want that song 'Good Luck Comes'."