11: Thunder Corpse Claw·Initial Formation

The cold rain, like fine silver needles, pierced through the dense, damp, and cold canopy of the back mountain, mercilessly pricking Mo Yuan's exposed skin.

He stumbled, each step sinking deep into the mud, leaving heavy and messy footprints that were quickly washed away and smoothed over by the torrential rain that followed.

The dull pain in his chest and abdomen was like a maggot clinging to bone; every breath tugged at his tattered internal organs, bringing a tearing spasm.

Deep within his Dantian, the nascent purple Lei Linggen (Thunder Spiritual Root) light core was dim to the extreme, like a flickering candle in the wind; each weak pulsation brought an intense pain, as if countless invisible steel needles were pricking his entire body's meridians, reminding him of his body's impending exhaustion.

Behind him, the Red Copper Ant King's massive body moved like a shifting mountain, its heavy red copper limbs striking the muddy ground with each step, creating huge splashes and deep pits.

The dark red blood light lingering on its body hissed in the cold rainwater, steaming with wisps of white vapor carrying the smell of sulfur and blood; its lava-like compound eyes scanned the dark forest shrouded in rain, occasionally emitting a low roar, like muffled thunder, full of chaotic and violent aura.

Six scythe-armed ant guards, like silent gray specters, stalked soundlessly beside the Ant King; rainwater gathered and flowed over their cold carapaces, and the chaotic red light in their compound eyes flickered in and out of sight in the rainy night.

Supple Bone Rabbit's figure pressed close to Mo Yuan's side; her large gray rabbit ears were wet with rain, drooping softly, clinging tightly to her silver-gray hair.

Her face was pale to the point of transparency, her ruby-like eyes filled with exhaustion and lingering shock; her small body trembled slightly in the cold rain, and each step seemed unusually unsteady.

Last night's overloaded instant corpse-throwing, combined with the mental exertion of scouting and tracking just now, had almost completely drained all of her newly born power.

The fluctuations coming from the Soul link were as faint as a thread that could break at any moment, conveying deep weakness and an instinctive worry for her master's condition.

Cold rainwater streamed down from his forehead, blurring Mo Yuan's vision.

He clenched his teeth, a thick scent of blood filling his gums, forcefully supporting his already overdrawn body, trudging with difficulty towards the temporary refuge of the Stone Crevice.

Every part of his body screamed in protest, and his consciousness, under the dual assault of intense pain and cold, was like a flickering candle in the wind, threatening to extinguish at any moment.

Just then—

Screech—!

A piercing sound, like a red-hot branding iron plunged into ice water, erupted from Mo Yuan's left arm without warning!

Mo Yuan's body stiffened abruptly, his steps halted, and all color instantly drained from his face!

Excruciating pain! An unprecedented, Soul-tearing agony, like billions of red-hot steel needles, suddenly stabbed out from deep within the Demonic Silver Hand!

This pain far surpassed the previous Corpse Poison backlash, carrying a destructive burning sensation and a cold tearing feeling, instantly sweeping over half of his body!

“Ugh ah—!” Mo Yuan could no longer suppress it, letting out a scream of pain suppressed to the extreme; his body trembled violently, his left hand uncontrollably clenching the muscles above his left arm, his knuckles turning white from the force!

The Demonic Silver Hand, which covered his forearm, was undergoing an astonishing transformation!

The originally deep and dull silver-gray metal surface, as if ignited from within by an invisible flame, suddenly became scorching hot and crimson!

The dark, twisted blood vessel patterns covering it, stimulated by the high temperature and intense pain, twisted and pulsed wildly like living things!

Emitting a “sizzle sizzle sizzle” sound, like oil burning!

Even more terrifyingly, the already dim purple Lei Linggen (Thunder Spiritual Root) light core deep within his Dantian, stimulated by this extreme pain originating from within the Demonic Silver Hand, erupted with its last stubborn ray of light, like an enraged Thunder God!

Buzz!

A faint but exceptionally pure pale purple Thunder Spiritual Power, vibrant with life, shot out from his Dantian like a summoned Dragon, instantly flowing along the meridians of his arm, surging madly towards the source of the intense pain—the Demonic Silver Hand!

The pale purple thunder light violently clashed with the scorching red metal within the Demonic Silver Hand, the wildly twisting dark patterns, and the bone-piercing, heart-wrenching chilling Corpse Poison Death Qi!

Hiss—!!!

An even more piercing and violent reaction erupted!

Mo Yuan's left arm seemed to have become a terrifying battlefield!

The pale purple thunder light, like countless tiny electric snakes, frantically drilled into the scorching metal and twisting dark patterns, engaging in a silent yet brutal struggle, Devour, and Fusion with the gray-black Corpse Poison Death Qi that clung like maggots to bone!

The intense pain, like a tidal wave, repeatedly assaulted Mo Yuan's nerves, making his vision blur and almost causing him to faint!

He could clearly “introspect” that within the Demonic Silver Hand, the previously distinct Corpse Poison Death Qi and the newly Awakened Thunder Spiritual Power, under the catalysis of the Demonic Silver Hand as a special “container” and extreme pain, were forcibly undergoing Fusion and transformation in an almost violent manner!

Supple Bone Rabbit trembled all over, startled by Mo Yuan's sudden drastic change; her large rabbit ears instantly stood straight up, her ruby eyes filled with terror and worry: “Mas…Master!”

She instinctively wanted to approach and help him.

“Don't come closer!” Mo Yuan squeezed out a few words from between his clenched teeth, his voice hoarse and distorted, carrying an undeniable command.

He stared intently at his Demonic Silver Hand, which was like a red-hot branding iron, with thunder light and Corpse Qi fiercely battling within it; large beads of cold sweat mixed with cold rainwater streamed down his distorted cheeks like tiny rivulets.

Just as the intense pain reached its peak and his consciousness began to blur—

Buzz!!!

The violent energy conflict within the Demonic Silver Hand seemed to reach a critical point!

All the crimson high temperature, all the twisted dark patterns, all the gray-black Death Qi, all the pale purple thunder light… suddenly collapsed inward and condensed!

The silver-gray metal covering his forearm, as if having undergone a tempering and Rebirth, instantly became deeper and more restrained in color, its surface flowing with a cold and tough metallic luster!

Those originally twisted and coiled dark blood vessel patterns had now completely changed their form, as if branded by thunder!

They transformed into winding, profound, strange patterns that shimmered with a faint yet pure purple thunder light!

These thunder patterns, as if alive, slowly flowed and flickered on the deep silver-gray metallic base, emitting a contradictory aura that was cold, destructive, yet carried a hint of strange vitality!

Sizzle sizzle sizzle…

Dense, jumping silver electric arcs, as if gaining new life, no longer leaped chaotically but, like docile fish, spontaneously wrapped around the fingertips, knuckles, and the metal surface covering the forearm of the Demonic Silver Hand!

The electric arcs were no longer simply silver-white; at their core, wisps of a purer, deeper gray-black airflow, thoroughly purified by the thunder, perfectly intertwined and fused with the silver-white electric arcs, like a tamed evil Dragon!

Silver-gray and purple-black intertwined, destruction and death coexisted!

The intense pain rapidly receded like a tide!

In its place was an unprecedented sense of cold and powerful strength!

It was as if this hand was no longer a binding shackle, but a… fierce weapon born for slaughter!

The Thunder Corpse Claw!

The Demonic Silver Hand, catalyzed by the nascent Thunder Spiritual Power, completed its first evolution!

Mo Yuan slowly raised his transformed left hand; his five fingers slowly opened and closed in the cold rain.

Silver-gray metal covered his palm and forearm, with profound purple thunder patterns flowing over it, and wisps of silver-white electric arcs intertwined with gray-black airflow leaped and flickered between his fingers.

Each flicker of an electric arc brought a subtle distortion of the air and a soft “crackling” sound.

A cold, sharp pressure, imbued with an aura of destruction and death, silently spread out.

Power! A sense of power far exceeding before filled his left arm!

He even felt that the refined steel, which previously required the Ant King's huge mandibles to snap, could now perhaps be torn apart with this hand!

“Roar?” The Ant King also seemed to sense the dangerous aura emanating from its master, completely different from its own bloody ferocity but equally perilous; its lava-like compound eyes turned towards Mo Yuan, conveying a hint of confusion and instinctive vigilance.

Supple Bone Rabbit's small face turned pale with fright from the cold, destructive aura; her large rabbit ears pressed tightly against the back of her head, and she subconsciously took half a step back, her ruby eyes filled with awe.

Mo Yuan looked at the transformed Thunder Corpse Claw, feeling the terrifying power contained within it, and his cold, sharp gaze pierced through the rain, directed towards the Stone Crevice.

His body's weakness remained, but a stronger flame ignited in his heart.

With this Thunder Corpse Claw, plus the sequence squad… his chances of survival had increased by one!

He no longer delayed, forcefully suppressing the surge of power from the nascent Thunder Corpse Claw and the deep fatigue in his body, and let out a low shout: “Go!”

He took the lead, accelerating towards the Stone Crevice.

His steps, though still heavy, now carried a cold determination.

Cold rainwater washed over the mud of the back mountain.

When Mo Yuan, with his sequence squad, finally reached the entrance of the Stone Crevice, half-hidden by vines and strange rocks, his taut nerves finally relaxed slightly.

However, just as he was about to push aside the vines and enter the Stone Crevice—

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Two extremely faint, yet unusually sharp, whooshing sounds, like venomous snakes flicking their tongues, shot out without warning from the dense bushes shrouded in the rain curtain to their side and rear!

The targets were not Mo Yuan, but the Red Copper Ant King beside him, which was like a lava fortress!

They were two blowdarts, completely black, only finger-thick, with tips shimmering with a faint blue cold light!

Their speed was lightning-fast, their angles incredibly tricky, aiming directly for the Ant King's relatively vulnerable compound eyes and joint connections!

The arrows were clearly poisoned with a fast-acting, fatal venom!

An ambush! And an extremely sinister one, targeting the Ant King's weak points!

“Roar!” Furious rage instantly erupted in the Ant King's lava-like compound eyes!

Its massive body twisted sharply, its battering ram-like mandibles sweeping with a foul wind towards the incoming blowdarts!

However, the blowdarts were too fast and the angles too tricky; its mandibles only managed to knock away one of them!

Pfft!

The other black blowdart accurately embedded itself in the gap of the carapace connecting the Ant King's left foreleg to its massive body!

Although much of its force was blocked by the heavy red copper carapace, preventing deep penetration, the faint blue venom instantly stained it, emitting a “sizzling” corrosive sound!

“Aow—!” The Ant King let out a roar mixed with intense pain and fury!

The faint blue venom was clearly extremely potent, instantly corroding the carapace and causing intense numbness and burning pain!

Its massive body suddenly trembled, and its movements were momentarily delayed!

"Attack! Now!" A cold, owl-like voice echoed from the bushes!

Swish! Swish!

Two ghostly figures, like shadows merging with the rain, suddenly darted out from the bushes!

Their speed was incredibly fast, far surpassing that of Wang Mazi's group earlier!

The person on the left was short and agile, wearing a tight black wetsuit, with a black cloth covering his face, revealing only a pair of triangular eyes that gleamed with cunning and ferocity. In his hands, two poisoned snake-shaped daggers, like fangs, silently aimed at the Ant King's side abdomen, which was slightly stiff due to the poison, seeking the gaps in its carapace!

His movements were swift and vicious, clearly the work of a master assassin!

The person on the right was burly, also masked, with bulging muscles on his exposed arms, covered in eerie blue-black tattoos.

He wore a pair of spiked steel gauntlets on his hands, and with a low roar, he charged like a wild bull. His heavy iron fists, carrying a strong wind that tore through the rain, smashed fiercely at the Ant King's relatively fragile hind leg joints, which supported its massive body!

The force was so great that it subtly brought forth the sound of wind and thunder!

The timing was absolutely perfect! The coordination was seamless!

One used poison for restraint, one was responsible for armor-piercing strong attacks, and one targeted the joint weaknesses!

The objective was clear—first, disable this most threatening Red Copper Ant King!

These were definitely the elites of the Black Wind Stronghold!

They were clearly not here to avenge Wang Mazi, but rather were attracted by the 'ironclad evidence' of the frame-up last night and the bloody commotion in this area, coming to investigate or even… seize the 'extraordinary treasure'!

Their ruthlessness and experience far surpassed Wang Mazi's disorganized rabble!

"Courting death!" Mo Juren's eyes instantly erupted with cold killing intent!

His newly evolved Thunder Corpse Claw needed a whetstone!

He didn't hesitate for a moment! His severely injured body unleashed its last reserves of strength, and he shot forward like an arrow from a bow—not retreating, but charging fiercely towards the two ambushers!

His target was directly the burly man who was swinging his spiked gauntlet, smashing fiercely at the Ant King's hind leg joints!

"Hm?!" The burly man clearly didn't expect Mo Juren to advance instead of retreat, and with such speed!

His iron fist, aimed at the Ant King, continued its trajectory, and a sneer flashed in his remaining single eye (only one eye was visible through the mask). His other left hand, also wearing a spiked gauntlet, shot out like a venomous Dragon emerging from the sea, bringing with it a fierce wind, and punched fiercely towards Mo Juren's chest!

He intended to blast this overestimating 'old fellow' to death with one punch!

The punch carried a biting wind! The spikes gleamed with cold light! It seemed poised to pierce Mo Juren's thin chest!

At this lightning-fast moment—

Mo Juren's left hand, wrapped in silver-gray electric arcs and inscribed with purple thunder patterns—the Thunder Corpse Claw—shot out like a hunting viper, striking first despite moving later!

His five fingers spread, not dodging, and with a cold, destructive aura, he precisely grabbed at the incoming spiked steel gauntlet!

Zzzzzzt—!!!

A harsh, metal-tearing sound, like a hot knife through butter, accompanied by teeth-grinding electrical crackles, exploded!

Under the burly man's single eye, filled with shock and disbelief, his spiked gauntlet, forged from steel and capable of splitting stone, instantly met its nemesis upon contact with the Thunder Corpse Claw!

The silver-white electric arcs, entwined with gray-black Qi flow, instantly erupted!

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle!

The steel gauntlet, like fragile clay, instantly twisted, deformed, and melted under the dual erosion of the violent thunder power and the cold Death Qi!

The thick fingers encased within were like being thrown into an invisible meat grinder, with blood and flesh flying and bones shattering amidst the dazzling electric light and 'crackling' sounds of bone fracture!

"Aargh—!!!" The burly man let out a distorted, shrill scream!

Excruciating pain instantly overwhelmed his nerves!

However, this was just the beginning!

Mo Juren's Thunder Corpse Claw continued its momentum, like the Grim Reaper's scythe. After destroying the gauntlet and hand, it stretched forward abruptly, carrying dripping blood and leaping electric arcs!

Pfft!

Five cold, metallic fingers, wrapped in gray-black electric arcs, like five red-hot daggers, plunged fiercely into the burly man's muscular chest, which was gaping open from the intense pain!

Zzzzzzt—!

An even more terrifying sound erupted!

Violent thunder power instantly surged into the burly man's body, wildly circulating and exploding!

The gray-black corpse poison Death Qi, like maggots clinging to bone, instantly corroded his flesh and internal organs!

The burly man's scream abruptly ceased!

His massive body stiffened abruptly, as if all strength had been drained from him!

His single eye was filled with extreme pain, fear, and disbelief!

He looked down at the five terrifying blood holes in his chest, which were gurgling with charred black smoke and whose flesh edges were rapidly withering and carbonizing. Then he looked at Mo Juren's eyes, which were as cold as ice and devoid of any human emotion.

"You…" He uttered a broken syllable from his throat.

Boom!

Mo Juren's Thunder Corpse Claw suddenly pulled outwards!

Pfft!

Accompanied by a chilling sound of flesh tearing and the crisp snap of bones, a huge heart, still faintly beating but entangled with gray-black corpse Qi and covered with charred black electric marks, was forcibly ripped from the burly man's chest cavity!

Blood gushed out like a fountain!

The last flicker of light in the burly man's eyes completely extinguished, and his massive body crashed to the ground like a collapsing mountain, splashing a large amount of muddy water!

Instant kill! Absolute crushing defeat!

This bloody, violent scene, like a demon god descending, instantly stunned everyone!

The short assassin, who was still stabbing the Ant King's side abdomen with his snake-shaped dagger, suddenly froze!

His triangular eyes were filled with indescribable horror!

His companion, 'Iron Fist' Barbarian Bull, known for his strength, was actually… disemboweled by that 'Mo Juren,' who looked severely injured and on the verge of death, using that strange hand?!

Fear, like a cold viper, instantly tightened around his heart!

What mission, what extraordinary treasure, all were thrown to the winds!

He let out a strange cry, like a startled rabbit, no longer daring to linger for a moment. His figure suddenly retreated rapidly, intending to escape into the rain!

"Want to leave?" Mo Juren's cold voice was like a death sentence.

He didn't even look at the burly man's corpse on the ground. The blood and broken meat clinging to the Thunder Corpse Claw rapidly turned to ashes in the leaping electric arcs.

He suddenly turned, his left arm like a fully drawn bowstring, and swung fiercely towards the fleeing figure of the short assassin!

Zzzzzzt—!

A silver-purple electric arc, condensed as if solid, entwined with wisps of gray-black Qi flow, shot out from the fingertips of the Thunder Corpse Claw like the kiss of a venomous snake tearing through the night sky!

Speed! Beyond the limits of vision!

The short assassin didn't even have time to make any evasive movements, only feeling a numbness in his back!

Pfft!

The silver-purple electric arc precisely pierced his back, exiting through his front chest!

Bringing out a spray of blood mist mixed with charred flesh and organ fragments!

The short assassin's body suddenly stiffened, and his forward momentum abruptly ceased.

He looked down, disbelievingly at the terrifying Run through wound on his chest, which was the size of a bowl, with charred and carbonized edges, and a messy interior.

A trace of gray-black corpse Qi, like maggots clinging to bone, rapidly spread along the wound. His skin visibly turned blue-black and withered.

"Uh…" He made an unintelligible gurgling sound in his throat, and his body, as if its bones had been removed, softly fell into the cold mud, twitching a few times before becoming completely still.

In just a few breaths, two elite assassins from the Black Wind Stronghold, one disemboweled, one pierced through, were all executed!

The cold rain mercilessly washed over the two corpses on the ground, diluting the heavy smell of blood.

The Ant King's movements, delayed by the poison, also recovered, and it let out a low roar full of ferocity at the corpses on the ground.

Supple Bone Rabbit hid behind Mo Juren, her large rabbit ears trembling slightly. Her ruby-like eyes looked at Mo Juren's Thunder Corpse Claw, which was not stained with a drop of blood and was wrapped in destructive electric arcs, filled with deep awe.

Mo Juren slowly retracted his left hand, the electric arcs leaping on the Thunder Corpse Claw gradually subsided, but the cold, destructive aura became more restrained and profound.

He didn't even look at the corpses on the ground, turned, pushed aside the vines, and was the first to walk into the temporarily safe Stone Crevice.

The sequence team followed closely.

Inside the Stone Crevice, it was still cold and damp, but it was isolated from the harsh wind and bitter rain outside.

Mo Juren leaned against the cold stone wall, slowly sliding to the ground, breathing heavily.

The continuous battles and the use of the Thunder Corpse Claw once again drained the last bit of potential from this body.

Although the Thunder Corpse Claw was powerful, the burden on his spirit and body was equally immense.

He closed his eyes wearily, feeling the cold yet powerful sensation in his left arm, as if holding a poisoned dagger in the darkness.

However, just as his mind settled slightly, preparing to meditate and recover—

Outside the Stone Crevice, about a hundred feet away from his hiding place, deep within the dense canopy of a huge ancient tree.

Han Li's figure, like the most perfect shadow, silently merged behind a thick branch.

Rainwater dripped from the fringe of hair on his forehead, but his eyes, calm as a deep pool, were as sharp as if they had penetrated layers of rain and distance, accurately fixed on the direction of the Stone Crevice entrance Mo Juren had just entered.

In his hand, he was holding a small metal fragment with dark red bloodstains on its edge and half of a ferocious skull-wolf head emblem engraved on it—it was precisely the waist token fragment that Supple Bone Rabbit had 'lost' in Wang Mazi's courtyard last night, used to frame the Black Wind Stronghold!

Han Li's gaze slowly moved between the waist token fragment and the entrance of the Stone Crevice, which emitted a faint bloody and fierce aura.

There was no expression on his ordinary face, but deep in his eyes, there was an unprecedented solemnity, inquiry, and a hint of… cold understanding.

Inside the Stone Crevice, Mo Juren suddenly opened his eyes. An inexplicable chill, as if being stared at by a venomous snake, instantly crawled up his spine.

He subconsciously looked towards the entrance of the Stone Crevice. Beyond the cold rain, there was only a heavy darkness.

But that feeling of being watched, like a thorn in his back, lingered.

Han Li… he must be watching!