101: Chapter 101 Second Level of Bone Refinement

Pain!

Intense pain that penetrated deep into the Soul!

The periosteum was torn by thunder, and the bone marrow boiled in the collision of extreme yin and extreme yang.

Gu Shen's body trembled violently, and countless cracks appeared on the black ice armor, oozing wisps of blood mixed with black Impurities.

But like an iron tower, he remained firmly nailed to the spot, without making a sound.

The overbearing nature of the Bone Refining Art lay in forcibly transforming this destructive power into the foundation for rebirth.

Under the repeated forging of the thunder, the Impurities in the dark golden bones were completely removed, becoming increasingly crystal clear.

Wisps of ghostly blue thunder patterns began to slowly spread and imprint themselves on the surface of the bones.

This was an extremely long and cruel process of transformation.

Two days later.

Deep within the abandoned mine, it was deathly silent.

Crack.

The thick layer of black ice covering Gu Shen's body suddenly shattered into a pile of ice shards.

Gu Shen slowly opened his eyes, and two rays of tangible, ghostly blue electric light flashed and vanished in the dim mine.

He stood up, and the bones throughout his entire body emitted a ringing sound like muffled thunder.

Gu Shen did not activate any magic power; he simply clenched his right fist casually and punched the incredibly hard Yin iron Ore vein beside him.

Bang!

A dull explosion sounded.

The Yin iron Ore, which could withstand the Flying Sword of a Low Grade Magical Artifact, was smashed to pieces by a single punch as if it were fragile tofu!

At the point of impact, there even remained a trace of charred lightning aura.

"Bone Refining Art second level, Thunder Bone formed!"

A burst of wild joy erupted in the depths of Gu Shen's eyes.

His physical strength had soared several times more than when he was at the Great Perfection of the first level!

Every movement carried the deterrence of thunder.

Now, even without using any defensive Spells, relying solely on this iron skeleton imprinted with thunder patterns, he dared to withstand the full-force strike of a Qi Refining 9th Layer Cultivator!

More importantly, once the Thunder Bone was formed, his affinity for thunder-type Spells reached a terrifying level.

When he cast the thunder pattern gold-slaying blade again, its power would be multiplied.

Gu Shen took a bottle of pure water from his Storage Ring, washed off the bloodstains on his body, and changed into a clean, grey-black Loose Cultivator robe.

With his strength greatly improved, Gu Shen's state of mind became increasingly cold and steady.

"I will not enter the trap at the Black Sand Market. But I must have this white bone yang key."

Gu Shen quickly sorted through the idle chatter from various walks of life he had heard in the tavern in the Outer City of Yunze Immortal City in his mind.

News in the Cultivation World is often hidden in the most inconspicuous corners.

He remembered someone mentioning that the underground transactions in the Black Sand Market were mostly controlled by a local Loose Cultivator force called the "Quicksand Gang."

And the Quicksand Gang's material transit and disposal of stolen goods must pass through a border town three hundred miles away called "Luoyan City," where Mortals and Cultivators lived together.

"Wei Lingfeng wants me to go to the Black Sand Market and be a living target. I refuse to go."

A cold arc curved at the corner of Gu Shen's mouth. "The Blood Fiend Sect's secret agents must have already surrounded the Black Sand Market tightly. The person holding the yang key, as long as they are not stupid, would never dare to stay in the market for long and would definitely try every means to transfer it out through the Quicksand Gang's secret paths."

"Go to Luoyan City. Cut off the source and be the oriole hiding in the shadows."

Gu Shen lowered his bamboo hat, and Thousand Faces made another slight adjustment, transforming him into a middle-aged Loose Cultivator with a gloomy face and a scar at the corner of his eye.

He kicked away the giant rock blocking the mine cave, and the dark light on his shadow shoes swirled.

His figure flashed and merged into the vast night on the outskirts of Baiyin Mountain, speeding towards Luoyan City.

The wilderness was vast, and the night wind rolled the withered yellow grass.

Gu Shen sped silently through the forest.

The dark golden Thunder Bone lay dormant beneath his skin and flesh; every exertion of force possessed the power of a thousand jun, yet he did not crush a single withered leaf on the ground.

After the Bone Refining Art reached Major Achievement at the second level, his control over his Physical Body had reached a Transcendent state.

As the morning light faintly appeared, the outline of a grey-yellow city emerged on the horizon.

Luoyan City.

A border town in the extreme west of the Great Yu Cultivation World.

The Spiritual Qi here was thin, and Mortals and low-level Loose Cultivators lived together.

It was a place where dragons and snakes were mixed, a den of filth and vice.

It was also a throat thoroughfare for goods entering and leaving the Black Sand Market.

The city walls were built of rough grey rock and were covered in blemishes.

Outside the city gate, there was a long line to enter the city.

Most were merchant caravans driving Mortal pack horses, interspersed with a few low-level Loose Cultivators with gloomy expressions.

Gu Shen lowered his bamboo hat.

Under the disguise of Thousand Faces, he was now a middle-aged Loose Cultivator with a gloomy face and a scar at the corner of his eye.

His cultivation was firmly suppressed at the Peak of Qi Refinement Level 6.

Such cultivation, in a border town like Luoyan City, could be considered quite capable, enough to deter petty thieves without attracting the wariness of major forces.

It was Gu Shen's turn.

"City entry fee, one Low-Grade Spirit Stone."

The green-clothed Cultivator guarding the city did not raise his eyelids, his voice cold and indifferent.

Gu Shen took out a Low-Grade Spirit Stone from his Storage Pouch with an expressionless face and tossed it over.

He took a wooden pass and strode into the city.

The streets inside the city were muddy, and on both sides were mostly Mortal taverns, inns, and blacksmith shops.

Occasionally, there were a few simple shops selling low-level Talismans and Bigu Pills.

Gu Shen did not wander around the streets.

The most well-informed places for gathering news in the Cultivation World are always the taverns where people from all walks of life gather.

He found a three-story wooden building in the east of the city called "Yellow Sand Inn" and chose a corner seat by the window on the ground floor.

He ordered a pot of the lowest-quality Spirit tea and drank it alone, slowly.

"Crab, activate microwave eavesdropping. Block out Mortals, only detect Cultivators."

Gu Shen thought silently in his heart.

The Crab, which had transformed back into a black iron button at his collar, trembled slightly.

"Understood, Master."

The Crab's dry, monotonous electronic voice transmitted through his collarbone into his eardrums. "Targets without Spiritual Qi fluctuations have been filtered out. There are three groups of Cultivators on the second floor, with magic power fluctuations between Qi Refining Stage 4 and Qi Refinement Level 6."

Gu Shen held his teacup, his Divine Sense hidden and not released, relying entirely on the Crab's physical vibration frequency to capture the whispers upstairs.

A moment later, a deliberately lowered conversation was restored and transmitted into his ears by the Crab.

"Have you heard? Deputy Gang Leader Li Kun of the Quicksand Gang brought people into the city quietly last night. They rented out the large mansion next to the City Lord's Mansion overnight."

"Li Kun? Isn't he the one who guards the underground black market of the Black Sand Market all year round? Why did he suddenly run back to Luoyan City?"

"Something happened at the Black Sand Market! For some reason, the Blood Fiend Sect's secret agents flooded into the Black Sand Market like mad dogs, searching everyone they saw, seemingly looking for some important item. Several merchants in the market have been killed, and people are panicked. The Quicksand Gang is struggling to hold their ground there."

"So that's it. No wonder the Quicksand Gang widely distributed hero invitations in the city early this morning, recruiting capable Loose Cultivators at Level 5 Qi Refining or higher."

"What are they recruiting people for? Are they going to fight the Blood Fiend Sect at the Black Sand Market?"

"Fight? My ass! The Quicksand Gang doesn't have the guts for that. I heard that Li Kun returned this time because he accepted a 'Red Escort.' He needs to escort a batch of extremely troublesome goods out of Luoyan City, avoiding the Blood Fiend Sect's blockade. The price offered is extremely high: fifty Low-Grade Spirit Stones per person, plus a bottle of barrier-breaking pill!"