Chapter 597: The Fifth Immortal Bone

He hadn’t expected someone to actually be willing to sell a Three Immortal Corpse Toad. Even the Gu Immortal Race itself had only a few, which were only ever bestowed upon figures of high status like the Clan Leader, the High Priest, or the Saint Heir.

This mysterious seller was, nine times out of ten, a high-ranking member of the Gu Immortal Race. Otherwise, with a single thought, the Three Immortal Corpse Toad would have exploded into a cloud of corpse qi, never having the chance to fall into an outsider’s hands.

That was why he wasn’t surprised by the seller’s asking price. The Three Immortal Corpse Toad was worth that much.

And this was without it going to a large-scale auction. Otherwise, with some advance hype to build up the atmosphere, it would have likely fetched a sky-high price.

What surprised him was that the Demon Abyss Workshop was so resourceful. After finding the Three Immortal Corpse Toad, they were also able to produce a Nascent Soul Pill and Tribulation Crossing Secret Treasures.

With that kind of capability, it was no wonder they could profit from both the seller and the buyer.

“The Nascent Soul Pill is valued at ten Top-Grade Spirit Stones, and the Tribulation Crossing Secret Treasure is valued at six. We’ve already shown this to the consignor, and he is very satisfied. After deducting the deposit, Senior only needs to pay another fifteen Top-Grade Spirit Stones to immediately receive one Three Immortal Corpse Toad.”

The Ghost Cultivator’s lips moved, his words emerging ice-cold and devoid of any emotional fluctuation.

Fifteen Top-Grade Spirit Stones, spoken from his mouth as if they were fifteen ordinary Spirit Stones.

Bai Zichen winced. The price definitely included a premium, but what could he do? The Demon Abyss Workshop controlled the supply channel.

The person from the Gu Immortal Race was likely at Core Formation Perfection. In his quest for the Nascent Soul Pill and the Tribulation Crossing Secret Treasures, he was willing to sell the Three Immortal Corpse Toad at a discount, as long as he could obtain those two items as quickly and safely as possible.

And Bai Zichen was just as determined to obtain the Three Immortal Corpse Toad; it was the final poisonous component needed for his Hundred Poison Green Scale Bone.

If he gave up now, wouldn’t all the time and effort he’d invested so far be for nothing?

The sunk cost alone wouldn’t allow him to get off one stop before the final destination.

Therefore, for the sake of the Three Immortal Corpse Toad, he was willing to pay a bit of a premium.

Besides, even in a Super Sect, the two treasures for reaching Nascent Soul weren’t something you could get just by asking. Without going through the Demon Abyss Workshop, they were truly difficult to obtain on short notice.

On the surface, the Hundred Poison Green Scale Bone certainly didn’t seem worth so much effort.

Immunity to all poisons sounded impressive, but in reality, purchasing a Detoxification Spiritual Treasure could achieve a similar effect.

It would also save him the time and effort of refining an Immortal Bone himself.

If it weren’t for the legendary origins of the Nine Heavens Bone Forging Techniques, which made him believe this Body Refining Technique couldn’t be so simple in its later stages, he would have…

…long since skipped the seemingly useless Immortal Bones and, following his own inclinations, focused only on cultivating the ones with the highest practical use.

“I don’t have enough Spirit Stones on me. See how much this Spiritual Treasure can cover…”

Bai Zichen thought for a moment. He had many good things hidden away in his personal Realm, but some he needed to keep for himself, and others were not suitable to be revealed directly.

After some consideration, he took out a black gold long spear. With a SHUNK, he stabbed it into the ground. Demon Flames flowed from it, melting a deep pit.

It was precisely the Low-Grade Spiritual Treasure he had obtained from Ao Zhe: the Coiling Dragon Black Gold Spear.

The war between the Human and Demon Races had erupted, and the Ao Family’s Elder Dragon had already occupied the Eastern Domain. At this point, revealing that he had been the one to kill Ao Zhe wasn’t a huge problem anymore.

Besides, here in the Black Market, the bamboo hat was one layer of concealment, and his transformed physical body was another.

Even if someone recognized the Spiritual Treasure’s origin, it would be extremely difficult to trace it back to him.

“The Demon Flame burns others, but the wielder must also endure its heat… However, its attack power is close to that of a Mid-Grade Spiritual Treasure, which compensates for its flaw.”

The person in charge from the Demon Abyss Workshop reached out and grabbed the spear’s shaft. A sound like water hitting hot oil erupted—SIZZLE, CRACKLE.

His Daoist Robe was instantly burned away, revealing a hand like a chicken’s claw. Black scorch marks were left on the grayish-white finger bones.

“Senior, it’s still not enough… The Coiling Dragon Black Gold Spear, right? It’s worth eight Top-Grade Spirit Stones at most. You’re still short six.”

Bai Zichen took out a pile of Dragon Scales and the loot from two full storage bags before he finally made up the difference.

He looked at the Three Immortal Corpse Toad. It was smaller than his palm and had three heads: the left was emerald green, the right was jet black, and the one in the middle was a vibrant, multicolored pattern.

It was contained in a Jade Box covered with Talismans. The moment he opened it, a sickeningly sweet and rank odor wafted out, and a poisonous mist corroded a ring around the box’s edge.

This little thing had just cost him nearly half the loot he had accumulated over the years in the Central Domain. And he had robbed the Hundred Skills Sect’s Secret Vault and killed many Nascent Soul enemies.

He ignored the Demon Abyss Workshop’s Ghost Cultivator’s attempts to curry favor and walked out with the Three Immortal Corpse Toad.

Their efficiency was certainly impressive, but their blade was just as sharp.

With all nine hundred and ninety-nine poisonous components gathered, the next step according to the Nine Heavens Bone Forging Techniques was to grind them all into a fine powder and absorb them completely into his body.

The entire process lasted one hundred days. Throughout, the color of the bone in his left forearm constantly shifted.

The properties of these nine hundred and ninety-nine poisons covered basically every toxin in the Cultivation Realm. One could say that this forearm bone was now the ultimate poison.

Only at this point did the true refinement of the Immortal Bone begin.

With each passing day, a patch of the multicolored pattern on the bone would fade and gradually disappear.

After another three months of non-stop Refinement, the entire bone returned to its original, normal color, showing no signs of any poison.

At the same time, the texture of the forearm bone became even more warm and lustrous, like jade, and it even began to emit a faint glow.

When a flash of emerald light burst forth, illuminating the land for miles, it signaled the true completion of the Hundred Poison Green Scale Bone.

However, since he was inside the Star Palace Secret Realm, no outsiders were able to witness this strange phenomenon.

The moment the Hundred Poison Green Scale Bone was refined, it immediately formed a mysterious connection with his other Immortal Bones, greeting them in a way that Bai Zichen could not comprehend.

First was the newly forged bone in his left arm: the Hundred Poison Green Scale Bone, which granted immunity to all the world’s strange poisons.

Next, the shoulder bone: the Celestial Might Star Bone, which could resist all Spiritual Sense Attacks and Primordial Spirit Techniques, so long as the opponent’s Cultivation was not a full major Realm higher than his.

Then, the skull: the Sun Element Copper Bone, which strengthened his physical body and made him fearless against Celestial Fire.

And the sternum: the Immortal Cave True Bone, which had the same effect as the Demon Race’s Immortal Body.

When all four Immortal Bones were gathered, it felt as if a current of electricity passed through Bai Zichen’s entire body, making his hair stand on end.

The bones in the four locations of his body resonated with one another, and from now on, they could borrow strength from each other.

For example, take the Immortal Cave True Bone. If Bai Zichen were ever gravely injured, he could save himself at the cost of self-destructing an Immortal Bone.

Afterward, he would have to follow the original steps and cultivate it all over again.

But now that the four Immortal Bones had established a connection, the other three could lend their power to the Immortal Cave True Bone, ensuring it wouldn’t have to pay the ultimate price of complete destruction.

‘Since refining four Immortal Bones grants extra wondrous abilities, then the true face of this Body Refining Technique will only be revealed to me when I have all seven!’

Bai Zichen breathed a sigh of relief. Although he had paid a great price, it had at least proven that his theory was correct.

The next logical goal was naturally to refine his spine and forge the Formless Sword Bone.

This Immortal Bone required Nascent Soul Cultivation and had no requirements for Heaven and Earth Spiritual Materials, with only one prerequisite: one must have reached the Sword Light Splitting Realm.

He now met the conditions, so he could put it on his agenda.

The Formless Sword Bone would not only allow his Sword Light to be concealed, making it truly formless and traceless—an effect that no so-called Formless Sword could ever achieve.

Moreover, the cultivation progress of his current Basic Cultivation Technique, the Cave Profound Godslaying Sword Scripture, was related to the Sword Bone.

Regardless of whether it was Innate or Acquired, as long as one possessed a Sword Bone, their cultivation speed would increase by another ten percent.

Composing himself, Bai Zichen left the Star Palace Secret Realm and headed straight for the Northern Domain.

A few days after he left, four Cultivators descended together upon the place where he had been. After searching the area to no avail, one of them took out a Token and activated it, but there was still no response.

“Chen Ze, how accurate is your information? We’ve been running all over the place with you for years, and it’s been a dead end every time… Is your information wrong, or are you deliberately hiding things, trying to keep us from contacting Junior Martial Uncle Li?”

All four were Core Formation Cultivators. One of them was indeed Chen Ze, the successor of the Fish Dragon Sect’s Yuanming Lineage.

The identities of the other three were obvious as well—they were from the other main lineages of the Fish Dragon Sect’s five.

Years ago in the Eastern Domain, Bai Zichen, using the identity of Li Hansi, had made an agreement with Chen Ze to seek him out and explore the Outer Sea Immortal Mansion together.

His original plan had been to set out only after he became strong enough to protect himself in the Outer Sea.

He hadn’t expected the war between the two races to break out, so the matter naturally fell through.

Poor Chen Ze had waited for a long time in the Eastern Domain. When the Demon Beast army attacked, he was lucky to escape quickly and had finally managed to make his way to the Central Domain.

After meeting up with the successors from the other lineages, his main task became searching for Li Hansi’s whereabouts.

He knew that Li Hansi had been in the Central Domain for his Cultivation, and with the war between the two races starting, it was even more unlikely that he would leave for a more dangerous place.