Two days later.
Jiang Chen sat cross-legged in his residence as qi circulated ceaselessly through his dantian in steady cycles. Sweat poured from his temples, soaking into the collar of his robe. In each palm he gripped a dim spirit stone, its surface already riddled with cracks.
The final traces of essence were drawn out and forced into his body, surging through his meridians like a raging tide as they intertwined and gathered before slamming again and again into the walls of his dantian.
A muffled bam echoed deep within his dantian. It was as though an obstruction had shattered, his body shivered violently, and a surge of pure energy erupted through his veins.
The breakthrough was complete.
The sixth layer of Qi Condensation!
Jiang Chen exhaled deeply. He could clearly feel the raw unrestrained power coiling through his meridians. Tasting the sweetness of power rising in his body, a faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
It was satisfaction as fleeting as a spring breeze. The cost of this advancement had consumed every last spirit stone he possessed.
The effort had been grueling and the price steep. Even so, the reward was undeniable. The ability to command a far greater volume of qi, this unmistakable surge of strength made every struggle worthwhile.
"Spirit stones.." Jiang Chen muttered under his breath.
Lifting his head as the morning sun spilled through the window, illuminating the wooden floorboards and the scattered remnants of used spirit stones. His gaze hardened. He needed more.
His eyes flicked to the Myriad Strength Tiger's corpse, divided neatly into sections.
'How I wish I could refine a totem of this beast,' he thought wishfully. 'But it is truly a pity. I have neither the resources to refine it nor the ability to preserve the flesh and blood for future use. The best outcome now is to sell its blood and flesh. Hopefully, it will earn some spirit stones, or maybe I can exchange it for some materials.'
He reached out and brushed his fingers lightly across the exposed bones. They were cold to tough, thier surface rough, and occasionally fluctuated with residual vital energy. These bones were the true treasure. They were the core ingredient for this time's Hexagonal Bone-Seizing Formation.
With it, Jiang Chen would leap to a plane far beyond his current physical limits and could showcase the strength of an peak-level rank one Myriad Strength Tiger.
Fortunately, all the materials for the formation had already been prepared long ago. Only spirit stones were lacking, as the formation required a steady influx of energy to function.
With nothing left to spare, Jiang Chen had no choice but to earn them.
Over the next week and a half, he threw himself into missions.
His advancement to the sixth layer of Qi Condensation made second-order missions more manageable, but they were still far from effortless.
Each mission carried a high level of risk. It demanded careful planning, precise control of his Qi, and at times, sudden improvisation when beasts or traps appeared where they should not. On one such occasion, a target he had tracked for days was suddenly intercepted by a rogue fire wolf pack. Flames lit the forest as fangs and claws closed in, forcing Jiang Chen to retreat without hesitation. One misstep and death would have been certain.
Despite these setbacks and hardships, he prevailed where most other cultivators of his level could not. Naturally, each of these victories came with bruises hidden beneath his robes, exhaustion in his limbs, and a subtle thrill of overcoming death.
After carefully accounting for traps, movement talismans, and healing pills, he netted a total of sixty-seven spirit stones.
Trading the Myriad Strength Tiger's flesh and blood in the market earned him another twenty-two spirit stones, bringing his total to eighty-nine.
When he exited the mission hall, Wen Shan accompanied him to the entrance, wearing his usual courteous smile.
As Jiang Chen walked away, Wen Shan's expression slowly changed. "Uncle did not misjudge him. Jiang Chen truly has the skill to complete second-order missions back to back. Though there was one hiccup, it is natural to fail at times. Investing in him was not a mistake..."
"Good! I have roped him into the faction. Now I must inform Senior Brother Sun of his abilities and have him issue tasks directly. Let Jiang Chen prove himself as worthy subordinate. Slowly, I will take credit for introducing him and bolster my standing in the faction and the mission hall. Father will have no choice but to acknowledge my capabilities. Perhaps I can even request a high-grade treasure. Hehe. No matter, this Jiang Chen will be of great use."
With his intentions quietly set, Wen Shan returned to his desk and began writing a letter.
---
Jiang Chen walked through the bustling market, the afternoon sun warm on his shoulders. Spirit stones were secured in his bag of holding. He paused for a moment, inhaling the mingled scents of pine, incense, and roasting meat, letting his body absorb the calm of the world before returning to his residence.
Hours later, he began setting up the Hexagonal Bone-Seizing Formation.
Though it was his first time constructing a formation, time was on his side.
Every rune, node, and line was meticulously cross-referenced against the Flesh Devouring God Scripture in his consciousness.
Mistakes were made frequently.
Lines misaligned, nodes slightly off, materials improperly positioned or placed in the wrong portions at times, but each mistake was corrected with painstaking care. Every adjustment cost mental and physical energy.
Six hours passed.
The six-sided formation was complete. Faint green energy lines glowed softly, converging at the center, resonating with latent power. Jiang Chen paused, drawing a deep breath to steady his body and mind.
From his bag of holding, he retrieved a small talisman, its surface painted with clouds that shifted in color like ink upon water. The Mind-Clouding Talisman. Purchased for twenty-four spirit stones, it could block divine sense and resist minor physical attacks of Qi Condensation cultivators.
He placed the talisman a meter away from the formation and infused it with spiritual essence. Circling the Hexagonal Bone-Seizing Formation, the talisman gradually expanded, forming a glowing ring. Once fully extended, Jiang Chen fed a trace of his divine sense into it.
A golden brilliance escaped from it. The painted clouds came alive, rising and merging into a translucent dome that sealed the formation within.
Jiang Chen expressionlessly studied the dome. Satisfied, he stepped into the formation.
It was time.
Jiang Chen stood at the center of the Hexagonal Bone-Seizing Formation, breathing slowly as he placed spirit stones into each of the six nodes. Seven spirit stones per side. He left the remaining 23 spirit stones beside him, just in case.
As the last spirit stone was set, his mind suddenly recalled a line recorded in the bone refinement section of the Flesh Devouring God Scripture.
Do not faint.
His gaze hardened.
He sat down cross-legged at the heart of the formation and pressed his palm onto the core rune. Qi surged out of him without restraint.
The spirit stones ignited all at once.
Buzzz-!
A low buzzing instantly filled the air, like countless insects vibrating inside his skull. Formation lines lit up across the floor, green at first, then darkening and thickening, as if soaked in blood. The spirit stones burned rapidly, essence flooding inward, compressed toward the center like a collapsing tide.
Jiang Chen had barely finished circulating his spiritual essence when, from the center of the formation, two thin threads burst forth without warning.
They pierced into his face with deadly precision, slipping into the narrow gaps beside his eyes.
Blood spilled instantly, tracing thin crimson lines down his cheeks. Jiang Chen's body jerked, breath tearing from his throat.
The threads looked fragile and delicate, but they were anything but that. It felt like metal wires had been jammed into his eye sockets.
They burrowed inward like centipedes, sliding through flesh and bone, wrapping around his spine. Jiang Chen felt them coil slowly, like predators savoring prey.
And just when it seemed he could adjust to this pain, the threads tightened.
Sharp cracks echoed inside him.
Every single bone in his body was being crushed by these threads.
Pain.
Agonizing pain exploded within him.
His fists cenched so tightly his nails dug into his palms. And heavy grunts escaped his lips.
The hell was only beginning.
Jiang Chen's vision blurred as a horrifying sensation overtook him. Within those fractured and cracked bone surfaces, countless tiny bone fragments morphed into tiny spiders.
Thousands upon thousands of them, formed of pale bone and infused with violent beast qi injected by the formation.
They crawled through his ribs, his limbs, his skull. They gnawed, stitched, and burrowed.
Every movement sent lightning through his nerves. His jaw trembled violently as his teeth ground together. He wanted to scream.
The urge was overwhelming.
But..
He did not.
He bit down until blood filled his mouth.
The talisman was not soundproof. He could not allow the sect to notice.
The buzzing deepened, drowning his senses, and the ground beneath him suddenly split open.
Bony arms rose from below.
One by one they grasped him without mercy. Ankles. Knees. Thighs. Waist. Chest. Shoulders. Neck. Wrists. Fingers. They dragged him backward and forced him flat, spine arched unnaturally, suspending him as if laid upon a bed of nails.
With his back facing the ceiling, two larger skeletal hands manifested above him.
These were coated in a viscous dark liquid that steamed yellow gas upon contact with air.
They seized his shoulders.
Then they tore.
Skin split open from the base of his neck down along his spine. Flesh peeled apart. Jiang Chen's vision went white. His soul shook violently, teetering at the edge of collapse.
'Endure!'
'Must not faint!'
'Pain... It's merely pain..'
Eyes bloodshot and ruthlessly determined, Jiang Chen clung to consciousness with sheer will.
Blood flowed freely as the skeletal hands forced his back open, exposing bone and writhing spiders beneath. The gooey liquid poured into the wound, seeping into the marrow. It burned hotter than fire, like molten metal poured directly into his body.
At the six nodes of the formation, the materials began to rise.
First came the Myriad Strength Tiger Bones.
Massive in frame, faintly bronze, carved with natural beast patterns. They hovered at the center, radiating a tyrannical aura. This was the core material. The true foundation of this refinement.
Around them followed secondary materials. Tiger femur fragments. Beast marrow crystals. Black iron bone sand. Blood-soaked spirit copper filings. Hardened sinew essence. Refined marrow resin.
One by one, they floated into the air.
The Myriad Strength Tiger Bones shattered into thousands of glowing fragments, each carrying the ferocious will of a wild beast.
They entered his body through the torn spine, through pores, through bone itself. The spiders surged forward, devouring and merging the fragments greedily, weaving them directly into his skeletal structure. His bones screamed as they were reforged, strengthened, and reshaped, using the Myriad Strength Tiger Bones as the backbone.
The gooey liquid followed, coating every bone like molten steel poured over a blade, tempering every inch of his skeleton.
Each breath felt like swallowing knives. His meridians spasmed violently as Qi was forced to circulate faster and faster.
Time lost meaning.
Spirit stones shattered one after another.
When the final spirit stone cracked, the formation trembled.
The threads withdrew.
The spiders seamlessly merged into the skeletal structure.
The bony arms crumbled into dust.
Jiang Chen collapsed onto the wooden floor, gasping silently, his body slick with blood and sweat. Slowly, painfully, his back sealed itself shut, skin knitting together, leaving behind faint dark lines that vanished as Qi flowed.
He lay there for a long while.
Then he moved.
Jiang Chen pushed himself upright and stood.
He raised a finger and flicked it outward.
The Mind-Clouding hemisphere shuddered, then shattered into drifting mist.
He stepped out of the circle.
Naked.
Blood-bathed.
Exhaustion weighed on him, deep and bone-deep. His body swayed unsteadily, vision swimming, and he knew that if he relaxed even a fraction, he would collapse where he stood.
But the oppressive might of a peak-level rank one beast was impossible to miss.
The refinement was a success.