Chapter 35: Bone Tempered to the Marrow; Jade Bones Achieved!

Mount Wu bristled with thorns that snagged and tore at Liu Hongluan's clothes as she moved forward with Long Fei on her back. Her pale skin was traced with fine red scratches, but she paid them no mind.

Drip, drip.

Long Fei was unconscious, and blood kept dripping steadily from his wounds. Liu Hongluan couldn't even afford to set him down and stop the bleeding, as the moment she halted, the Ghost Mask would surely catch up from behind.

"Stay with me, Brother Fei... Hold on..." she murmured in a shaky voice, tears trickling down her cheeks.

Before losing consciousness, Long Fei had told her to leave him behind and not to seek out Lu Changsheng. But given his critical condition, who else could she even turn to?

Despite his serious injuries, Long Fei had clashed with the Ghost Mask head-on, trying to buy enough time for Liu Hongluan to reach Mount Wu. But the Ghost Mask remained on their trail, stalking them like a relentless shadow.

Having drawn the map of Mount Wu's depths, Liu Hongluan vividly remembered where the iceberg was supposed to be. Now, she could only pray that Lu Changsheng was still somewhere within. Otherwise, neither she nor Long Fei would survive.

The Ghost Mask was trailing her closely. In truth, he could have overtaken her at any time, but he chose instead to hang back. His purpose was obvious: to uncover the martial artist who had aided Long Fei in killing Shen Lun.

"So the one who killed Shen Lun is hiding deep within Mount Wu? Without this woman, I might never have found him. Go on then, run. Hurry and seek out whoever you rely on. When the time comes, I won't have to waste time investigating—I'll capture all of you in one sweep," the Ghost Mask murmured under his breath.

Indeed, his goal was to capture them all at once. He wasn’t even concerned about the one who had killed Shen Lun. After all, he had never faced anyone below the Divine Strength Realm who could pose a threat to him. Not even Long Fei, in his prime as the Slayer's Saber, would have been much of a threat.

Shen Lun had followed him in the first place only to beg for help against Long Fei. Yet at the time, the Ghost Mask had been in seclusion, attempting to break through to the Divine Strength Realm, and had not made time for it.

The deeper Liu Hongluan pressed into Mount Wu, the colder the air became. Having carried Long Fei on her back all the way here, her strength was nearly spent. Though she herself was also a martial artist, she was only at the Bone Tempering Stage, so her endurance was nowhere near that of those who had refined their organs. She had only managed to carry Long Fei this far through sheer grit.

At last, just as exhaustion threatened to overwhelm her, a sudden chill coursed through her. Not far ahead, there was the towering iceberg.

"It's here... It really is the iceberg..." Her voice quavered with joy, her heart leaping at the sight. Perhaps Lu Changsheng was still there—and if he was, there was hope.

With newfound strength, she staggered forward with Long Fei on her back, making her way toward the towering mass of ice step by step.

***

Great Sun Bone Tempering: Perfection. Perception +5.

A line of small characters appeared before Lu Changsheng's eyes.

"

Hm

? So this is actually a fifth-tier Bone Tempering art. The six I practiced before were only at the fourth tier. Now I've completed seven Bone Tempering arts, and in just half a month..."

Lu Changsheng was momentarily astonished by his progress, but then recalled that his Perception had already surpassed 300 points. Naturally, ordinary Bone Tempering arts were no longer complex to him; a brief moment of contemplation was enough to grasp their essence.

Once he had grasped the essence of the martial art, cultivating it required nothing more than pouring energy into it—hardly difficult for him. Besides, he had brought with him an ample supply of the Nine Treasures Bone Tempering Concoction, so energy was never a concern.

Ultimately, he had pushed all seven Bone Tempering arts to perfection in just half a month. But even so, he still hadn't managed to temper his bones to the marrow and achieve the Jade Bones.

"Still lacking a little. Even if I have no more Bone Tempering arts, I still have the Nine-Character Thunder Chant. With that alone, the results should still be excellent."

With that thought, Lu Changsheng resolved to try once more. He proceeded to perform the Nine-Character Thunder Chant.

"Lin!"

As he uttered the Nine Syllables, the sound reverberated through every bone in his body. The outer and inner layers of his bones vibrated, shaken by the force of the Nine-Character Thunder Chant.

Once, twice, thrice... Lu Changsheng fully immersed himself in the rhythm of the chant. He felt as though his sight pierced into the depths of his bones, where something wondrous stirred faintly within.

The marrow!

Boom!

After some time, the syllable "Zhe" struck like a hammer, breaking through a barrier deep within his bones. The chant's vibrations surged directly into the bone marrow, and searing agony instantly flooded his body—the kind of pain that seemed to reach into one's soul. Even with his unyielding will, Lu Changsheng struggled to endure it. He immediately snapped out of that strange state of perception.

"Tempered... to the marrow!"

In that instant, Lu Changsheng understood what had happened—the Nine-Character Thunder Chant had tempered his bones down to the marrow.

The marrow was the very core of the bone, and it was also responsible for producing blood. Though vital, it was fragile beyond measure, so delicate that even the slightest force could harm it. However, Lu Changsheng felt nothing but unbound joy, for he had just achieved the highest level of Bone Tempering. At once, he spread his senses through his entire skeleton. Sure enough, his bones were gradually transforming, shining with a faint jade-like glow.

These were true Jade Bones. Just like that, he had achieved them.

His bones had become incredibly hard, and with this transformation, every part of his physique advanced in great strides—strength, reflexes, and beyond. Even his Deathflash had advanced greatly in speed and power.

Afterward, Lu Changsheng summoned his status panel to check his condition.

[Status Panel]

Host: Lu Changsheng

Perception: 367 (Full of Potential)

[Skills]

Great Sun Bone Tempering: Perfection

Nine-Character Thunder Chant: Adept

Lu Changsheng studied the numbers on his status panel and saw his Perception had already risen to 367. Now, the 400 mark was within reach.

Such progress stemmed from his relentless training and his mastery of the seven Bone Tempering arts. Perhaps it was also this surge in Perception that had allowed him to elevate the Nine-Character Thunder Chant to Adept.

"After replacing the blood, my physical strength had already soared. Now, with my bones tempered to the marrow, my body is even stronger. The next stage is Organ Refinement."

Lu Changsheng did not dwell on his newfound power. With both Blood Replacement and Jade Bones, he could hardly imagine anyone below the Divine Strength Realm standing against him. What mattered most now was to advance in his martial training and strive to reach the Divine Strength Realm as quickly as possible.

"Alright, time to leave Mount Wu..."

He was thoroughly satisfied with his journey. He had remained deep within the mountain for a month and a half, and in that relatively short time, he had achieved the Jade Bones. Now that Organ Refinement was his next goal, there was no longer any need to stay in this frigid place.

Bang...

Just then, a faint noise echoed from outside the cave.

"Is someone here?" Lu Changsheng's heart stirred.

Few ever ventured this deep into Mount Wu, for the cold was unbearable. During his stay here, he hadn't seen even one person.

Whoosh...

Lu Changsheng slipped silently out of the cave.