Martial Arts: My talent multiplier increased

Day 5 of the Secret Realm. Noon.

The deepest part of the underground forest.

A large crowd gathered in front of a towering mountain wall that seemed to reach the sky.

There were probably twenty or thirty independent cultivators and martial artists from small factions.

No one dared to get too close.

Because directly below the cliff, stood eight people dressed in black armor and short coats.

Blackstone City, the Zhou family.

Shi Potian stood at the front, shirtless. The grayish-white bone patterns on his back gleamed with a deathly aura under the cold light.

He didn't look at the trembling rogue cultivators behind him.

He was looking at the stone gate in front of him.

It was noon.

A muffled mechanical clanging sound came from deep within the stone gate.

The ground began to shake.

It wasn't the kind of vibration caused by a monster trampling; it was the entire mountain shifting.

The massive stone gate caved inwards and slowly opened to the sides.

A stale, ancient stench, mixed with an extremely bloody smell, wafted out from the crack in the door.

A dark golden light shone through the gap.

The crowd began to stir.

Someone couldn't help but take half a step forward.

Shi Potian did not turn back.

He simply stomped his right foot on the ground.

"boom."

A layer of grayish-white energy exploded along the ground and swept backward.

The rogue cultivator at the very front who took a step forward instantly exploded into two clouds of blood mist below his knees.

The screams shattered the silence of the forest.

The commotion abruptly ceased. More than twenty people simultaneously retreated three zhang (approximately 10 meters).

Shi Potian strode into the passageway.

Seven bodyguards followed closely behind.

The figure disappeared into the dark golden light.

Sixty feet away from the main gate, there was a pile of rocks covered with vines.

Fang Yuan stood in front of the crevice between two giant rocks.

He drew his dagger and cut the vines. He kicked away the rubble stuck in the crevice.

A crack, just wide enough for one person to pass sideways, was revealed.

The old servant stood at the back, his withered eyelids twitching.

Despite being at the peak of the Bone Refining Realm and having decades of experience, he couldn't see the crack here.

How did this kid find this secret passage so accurately from dozens of feet away?

The old servant looked at Lin Qingxue.

Lin Qingxue's expression remained aloof. But her gaze lingered on Fang Yuan's profile for a moment.

Fang Yuan did not explain.

He was the first to squeeze into the crack by turning sideways.

The passage is extremely narrow. The rock walls on both sides exhibit irregular faults, clearly not carved by human hands, but rather fissures torn open by tectonic shifts.

Extending upwards.

It took the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

The rock wall in front disappeared, and the view suddenly opened up.

Fang Yuan stopped in his tracks.

He stood on a naturally formed stone ridge, suspended in mid-air.

below.

A massive, suffocating underground cavern.

The walls of the cave are inlaid with countless dark gold runes. The runes flicker on and off, as if they are breathing.

In the very center of the cave is a hexagonal black stone platform.

A fist-sized liquid sphere floated above the stone platform.

Dark gold. The surface is covered with extremely intricate blood-red patterns.

It has no heat. But just one look at it will force your heart rate to be skewed.

The essence and blood of the Beast God.

Tie Meng lay on the edge of the rock ridge, his breathing becoming heavy.

Lin Qingxue's hands tightened slightly inside her sleeves.

Fang Yuan did not look at the drop of blood.

His gaze fell around the stone platform.

Dozens of huge stone sculptures are arranged in a certain pattern around the stone platform.

Some resemble tigers, while others look like pythons.

The surface is covered with a thick layer of grayish-white stone skin.

This is not a statue.

Fang Yuan's doubled divine soul perception network detected extremely faint signs of life the moment it came into contact with the stone skin.

The living seal of an ancient monster.

The exit of the passageway directly ahead. Footsteps approached.

Shi Potian led his men into the cave.

The dark golden light shone on the bone patterns on his back.

He saw the blood essence on the stone platform.

Without pausing, he walked straight toward the stone platform.

Twelve feet.

Ten zhang (approximately 33 meters).

Eight feet.

The moment Shi Potian stepped into a distance of eight zhang from the stone platform.

The tiger-shaped stone sculpture closest to him suddenly had two crimson flames blazing in its eye sockets.

"Click."

A crack appeared on the surface of the stone.

Immediately afterwards, cracks spread across his entire body like a spider web.

"Bang!"

The half-foot-thick stone shell shattered. The fragments flew in all directions like projectiles.

A giant tiger, over three zhang long and covered in dark yellow rock armor, stood up.

There was no roaring.

Only one kind of overwhelming pressure swept out, making one's knees go weak.

Early stage of the Refining Realm.

Ancient ferocious beast.

The old servant gasped as he stood on the stone ridge.

Even he, a cultivator at the Refining Realm who had suppressed his cultivation level, felt his blood and qi involuntarily stagnate for a moment when he sensed that fierce aura.

Shi Potian stopped in his tracks.

He was facing a rock-armored tiger that was several times his size.

No refund.

The Rock Armor Tiger suddenly exerted force with its hind legs. Its massive body transformed into a dark yellow afterimage, accompanied by a sonic boom that tore through the air, as it charged straight at Shi Potian.

Shi Potian tucked his right fist into his waist.

The thigh muscles swelled instantly, stretching the trouser legs tightly.

Throw a punch.

Rift Mountain Fist.

"boom!"

There were no fancy techniques. Just pure, violent impact.

The grayish-white energy clashed violently with the Rock Armor Tiger's sharp claws in mid-air.

The shockwave, visible to the naked eye, spread out from the bottom of the cave.

Several nearby stone sculptures swayed slightly from the impact.

The Rock Tiger's massive body froze in mid-air, then slid back five steps uncontrollably.

A large section of the rock armor on his chest shattered, revealing dark red flesh underneath.

But it didn't die.

The pain only fueled the beast's ferocity. It let out a deafening roar and pounced again.

Shi Potian's feet plowed two deep furrows in the ground.

He shook his numb right hand.

"You two, come and help."

Without turning his head, Shi Potian roared, "The rest of you, guard the outer perimeter. Anyone who dares to approach, kill them."

The four guards immediately dispersed.

Two rushed forward and restrained the Rock Armor Tiger from both sides.

The other two drew their weapons and blocked the only way to the stone platform, one on the left and one on the right.

On the stone ridge.

Fang Yuan crouched in the shadows.

The mental simulation was running wildly.

Shi Potian was entangled by a demonic beast at the Refining Realm. This was the best-case scenario in the plan.

The Rock Armor Tiger has extremely strong defense. If Shi Potian wants to kill it, he must use the extreme burst of the Rift Mountain Fist continuously.

The consumption of physical strength and energy is enormous.

The two bodyguards on the perimeter are the key to breaking the deadlock.

Fang Yuan turned his head and looked at Tie Meng.

Tie Meng had already tightened his dented iron arm guards to their limit.

Fang Yuan raised his right hand and extended three fingers.

Pointing to the guard on the lower right.

Tie Meng nodded. The blood vessels in his eyes were bloodshot and almost black.

Fang Yuan's gaze shifted to the old servant.

"The one on the left is yours. Let's finish this quickly."

The old servant snorted coldly. "I don't need you to teach me how to do things."

Lin Qingxue looked at Fang Yuan.

"I'm going to get the essence blood."

"No way," Fang Yuan said directly.

Lin Qingxue frowned.

Fang Yuan didn't look at her. His gaze was fixed on the stone platform in the center of the cave.

The doubled divine soul perception network penetrated the array protection on the surface of the stone platform in that instant.

They touched something under the stone platform.

It was just a fleeting moment.

Fang Yuan's brain felt like it had been stabbed hard by a red-hot iron needle.

The sensor network collapsed on the spot.

Out of focus.

This is the first time this has happened since the Divine Soul Talent was unlocked.

The area beneath the stone platform is not solid.

There is a separate, deep space inside.

The aura emanating from it was more than ten times more concentrated than that of the Rock Armor Tiger at the early stage of the Refining Realm above.

The feeling was like a colossal creature sleeping at the bottom of the sea, which could crush everyone with a single turn.

The essence of the Beast God was a lure.

The real danger lies below.

Fang Yuan's fingers slowly scraped across the rough surface of the stone ridge. His fingernails were filled with stone chips.

"You mustn't touch the essence blood." Fang Yuan's voice was low but extremely firm. "At least not now."

Lin Qingxue stared at him. "The reason."

"There is a living creature under the stone platform."

The old servant's expression changed. "How could someone at the mid-stage of Bone Refinement possibly sense what's beneath the stone platform?"

Fang Yuan did not answer.

A scream came from below.

One of the guards restraining the Rock Tiger was unable to dodge in time and was struck by the tiger's tail. Half of his body was shattered, and he fell into a corner like a broken sack.

Shi Potian roared and punched both fists at once, striking the Rock Armor Tiger's neck.

The battle has reached a fever pitch.

Fang Yuan stood up.

He drew the short knife from his waist.

"Brother Tie, sir. Clear the area as planned."

"We won't steal your life essence." Fang Yuan looked at Shi Potian, who was fighting below.

"We'll intercept them."

Tie Meng's lips curled into a cruel smile. He leaped directly off the rock ridge.

The old servant glanced at Lin Qingxue, and seeing her nod, he slid down into the shadows like a gray night bird.

Fang Yuan did not move.

He stood on high ground, watching the chaotic battle at the bottom of the cave.

The blade of the short sword in his right hand reflected the drop of dark golden blood on the stone platform.

From the black rock crevice at the base of the stone platform, a wisp of extremely fine red smoke seeped out silently.

The red smoke clung to the ground, as if it were alive, slowly creeping towards Shi Potian's heels.