91: Yin Soul Wood

Gao De confirmed the Black Water Profound Serpent was dead, but he did not immediately collect the loot.

He hovered in mid-air, his cold gaze sweeping across the chaotic, mud-churning Black Mud Swamp below caused by the great battle.

This Old Snake had entrenched itself here for many years, cunning and cautious; its lair might well contain accumulated treasures or hidden secrets.

Since he had already slain this beast, he naturally had to turn its lair upside down to eliminate any future trouble and see if there were any pleasant surprises.

Rashly delving into an unfamiliar, dangerous place was not the act of a wise person, but with the powerful enemy now removed, it was the perfect opportunity for a thorough investigation.

He circulated his Demonic Power, and his vast Divine Sense swept through every inch of the swamp like mercury pouring onto the ground, especially in areas where the Demonic Qi was densest and the mud was thickest and deepest.

A moment later, his gaze narrowed, locking onto a mud puddle in the southeast corner of the swamp, partially obscured by several withered, strange trees and bubbling with black gas.

The residual Demonic Qi there was the purest, and there seemed to be a hollow structure beneath the mud puddle.

"This is it."

With a thought, the purple scale earth-shaking armor flickered with light, protecting his entire body.

He did not dive directly into the filthy mud puddle but instead swung the thunder fang formation-breaking halberd, drawing upon the Power of Thunder.

"Crack!"

Several thick purple electric snakes roared into the mud puddle; the violent Power of Thunder instantly electrolyzed and pushed aside the viscous mud, clearing a path straight to the bottom of the pool and revealing a corroded, pitted rock entrance.

The entrance exuded a thick, fishy, and cold aura, but any Restriction that might have existed there had clearly disintegrated under the previous thunder bombardment.

Gao De was bold due to his great skill; surrounded by the Purple Lightning Thunder Aura, he isolated himself from the filth and potential poisonous gas, flashing into the cave.

The interior of the cave was quite spacious but dark and damp, with thick, black liquid hanging from the four walls.

Deep in the cave, piles of pale beast bones lay scattered, among which were not a few remains of Cultivators or Yao Beasts that still flickered with faint spiritual light—all "trophies" hunted by this Black Water Profound Serpent over the years.

Gao De's Divine Sense swept over these bones; most had already lost their Spiritual Qi and were of little value.

He continued to explore inward and, in the deepest part of the cave, discovered a slightly drier stone platform.

On the stone platform, in addition to a few Yin-attribute Spirit Stones of decent quality but not top-tier, there were scattered fragments of broken Magical Artifacts and a tattered Storage Pouch made of some kind of beast skin, emanating faint spatial fluctuations.

Gao De picked up the Storage Pouch and forcibly broke through the already weak Restriction on it with his Divine Sense.

The space inside was small, containing only a few items: a small pile of about a hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones; several bottles of Medicinal Pill that had long expired or even turned into poison; and a Jade Slip recording some crude Water Escape technique, of limited value.

"It seems that although this Old Snake was fierce, its net worth was quite average."

Gao De felt slightly disappointed and was about to put these things away when his gaze was suddenly drawn to an inconspicuous, seemingly naturally formed crack in the corner of the stone platform.

The crack was covered in thick grime, but he keenly sensed a trace of extremely faint, pure Yin Qi, distinct from the cold Demonic Qi of the snake demon, seeping out from within.

With a flick of his finger, a tiny spark of electricity shot out, precisely stripping away the grime outside the crack.

Inside, hidden away, was a piece of withered wood about an arm's length, pitch black all over, yet faintly emitting a metallic luster and a cool touch.

"This is... yin soul wood?"

A trace of surprise flashed in Gao De's eyes.

This wood was not a living thing but a special spiritual material formed after a thousand years of gestation in an extremely Yin place, absorbing the Qi of yin souls; it was an auxiliary material for refining certain Yin-attribute Magic Treasure or nourishing Divine Soul-type Medicinal Pill, quite rare.

The Black Water Profound Serpent's attributes leaned towards Yin-poison, so it was not strange that it could find this item, though it seemed it had not been able to make full use of it.

"Better than nothing."

Gao De put away this piece of yin soul wood; it was useless to him personally, but it might be useful when trading with other Cultivators in the future.

After a careful search to confirm there were no omissions, Gao De exited the snake lair and returned to the corpse of the Black Water Profound Serpent.

He collected the Yao Beast core, scales, and other loot.

He circulated his Demonic Power and grabbed through the air, and an invisible force forcibly dragged the massive snake corpse out of the swamp, suspending it in mid-air.

His Divine Sense had already carefully swept over the snake corpse, confirming that its vitality had been completely extinguished and no lingering soul or strange Restriction remained.

First, he precisely split the snake's head and took out a fist-sized Yao Beast core, pitch black all over, yet faintly flowing with dark blue poison light and residual Demonic Power.

This Early Third-Rank Yao Beast core was of great value; whether used for Alchemy, Artifact Refining, or directly absorbing its essence, it was of great benefit to cultivation.

Next, his gaze fell on the relatively intact snake scales, which flickered with a black, glossy luster.

These scales had astonishing defensive power and were excellent Materials for refining defensive Magical Artifact.

He swung the thunder fang formation-breaking halberd, carefully peeling them off, and collected a full hundred high-quality snake scales.

Finally, he did not let go of the fangs containing the intense snake venom, nor a section of the toughest snake tendon.

These were all good Materials for Artifact Refining or medicinal use.

After collecting all the loot, Gao De did not linger.

He activated his Lightning Evasion, transformed into a purple bolt of lightning, and quickly left the Black Mud Swamp, which was still permeated with fishy and deathly auras.

On the way back to the Deep Pool Water Mansion, Gao De flew while ruminating on the battle just now.

"The defense of the purple scale earth-shaking armor is indeed formidable; the poisonous mud and poisonous mist could barely shake it, and taking the tail whip head-on only made my blood and Qi slightly tremble. With this armor protecting me, I will have much more confidence when facing Cultivators or Yao Kings of the same rank in the future."

"The thunder fang formation-breaking halberd is even sharper, with excellent armor-piercing capabilities, and can perfectly conduct my Power of Thunder. Especially that 'Thunder Seed Subterranean Lead' technique, combined with the battle halberd, is truly a Sharp Weapon for group battles and cross-rank challenges, striking at people invisibly!"

"However, driving these two natal Yao artifacts consumes a considerable amount of Demonic Power and mental energy. Especially when maintaining high-intensity defense and attack simultaneously, if my Foundation were not quite solid, it would be difficult to sustain. It seems that improving my cultivation remains the fundamental key."

After this battle, Gao De had a clearer understanding of his own strength and his two new Magic Treasure, and his confidence increased significantly.

Returning to the Water Mansion, he handed the Black Water Profound Serpent's Yao Beast core and some Materials to Turtle Three Thousand for storage, instructing him to keep them properly, as they might be of great use in the future.

He himself entered the quiet room again, on one hand to recover from the consumption of the battle, and on the other, to begin more deeply nurturing and refining the two natal Yao artifacts, making their connection with him closer, as if they were extensions of his own arms.

Just as Gao De was digesting his gains and consolidating his strength in the Water Mansion, the news of him single-handedly slaying the Black Water Profound Serpent spread like wildfire.

The Black Mud Swamp was not completely isolated from the world; the intense fluctuations of the battle at that time, as well as the Black Water Profound Serpent's shrill, dying scream and the purple thunder light that soared into the sky, were ultimately perceived by some nearby Cultivators or Yao Race.

The news first circulated on a small scale and then spread rapidly through the Heavenly Secret Realm.

"Shock! The Black Mud Swamp hegemon, Black Water Profound Serpent, has been slain! Suspected to be the work of the 'Purple Lightning' Flood Dragon King!"

"Pure thunder aura remained at the scene, the swamp was purified on a large scale, the snake's shadow is gone, suspected to have been hunted!"

"'Purple Lightning' strength evaluation upgraded! Possesses powerful attack and defense Magic Treasure, tactics are strange, suspected of mastering some powerful thunder method!"

This news dropped another stone among the various factions that were already paying extra attention to "Purple Lightning" Gao De due to the Green Wave Sect incident.

Within the Green Wave Sect, after True Person Qing Bo heard the report, his expression became even gloomier; he felt fortunate that he had chosen to hold his ground, and his wariness of Gao De deepened another layer.

Other Yao Kings on the edge of the Yunmeng Great Marsh, especially those with strength comparable to the Black Water Profound Serpent or with old grudges, had their attitudes change subtly upon hearing this news about the newly risen, ruthless "Purple Lightning" Flood Dragon King.

Some became more awestruck, while others plotted in secret, thinking about whether to befriend or distance themselves.

Even the eyes and ears of some ancient existences deep in the Yunmeng Great Marsh seemed to have begun to turn their gaze towards the direction of Dongting Lake due to these successive reports.

Labels like "Purple Lightning Flood Dragon," "Dragon Prince," and "Consecutive Slayer of Powerful Enemies" stacked together were enough to attract deeper attention.

Gao De did not know the waves caused by his test of the blade, or rather, even if he did, he would not care very much.

He adhered to his own principles: be fearful when weak, and do not be greedy after gaining. Before possessing sufficient strength, act cautiously; after gaining benefits, remain clear-headed and do not covet more empty fame.

His current goal was very clear: completely digest these gains, further improve his strength, while closely monitoring the movements of the Qianjiang Dragon King, and look for opportunities to continue exploring the Dragon Palace Secret Passage or collect Materials needed for the next step of refining his natal Yao artifacts.

With a storm brewing, only by gripping the halberd in his hand and fortifying the armor on his body could he stabilize himself and forge ahead in this chaotic situation where waves were gradually rising.