Fierce Yuan Qi surged outward with the force of his fist strike. Yang Kai made contact and immediately withdrew, nimbly drifting backward to dodge the great serpent's sweeping tail.
The serpent twisted around, poised to lunge, when the spot where Yang Kai had struck suddenly erupted with three muffled booms. In plain view, the chunk of flesh bulged outward, and scorching True Yang Energy detonated inside it, tearing the skin and flesh apart until fresh blood poured forth.
The great serpent writhed in pain. Its body, over ten zhang long, thrashed like a cracked whip across the mountaintop, churning up a thick cloud of dust.
Yang Kai frowned. He realized he had somewhat overestimated this creature's strength.
When he'd first seen something this massive, he'd assumed it was at least a fifth or sixth-stage demon beast. Yet a single blow had already wounded it.
It wasn't fifth or sixth-stage at all — fourth-stage at best, equivalent to a Separation-Union Realm martial artist.
All that impressive size and appearance, wasted.
Now that he had a read on the situation, Yang Kai shifted his feet and struck again while the serpent was still tumbling. The creature's thrashing intensified, but it clearly wasn't content to simply lie there and die. Its long tail whipped around with a piercing whoosh, sweeping horizontally toward Yang Kai's waist.
Without his movement technique to assist him, this attack might have posed real trouble. But with the footwork, dodging something like this was practically effortless.
When the strike missed, the serpent flicked its forked tongue and spat out a cloud of crimson mist. Had Yang Kai not dodged quickly, he would have been engulfed head-on.
Yang Kai's expression was grim. He wasn't afraid of the serpent itself — only that poisonous mist was somewhat troublesome. And even then, only somewhat. Hold his breath, avoid being wrapped in the mist, and the creature couldn't so much as scratch him.
While Yang Kai battled the serpent outside, Earth Demon, wrapped around the Soul-Shattering awl, had charged into the serpent's belly and was far from idle. Though the strength Earth Demon could currently exert wasn't much, any living creature's insides were inherently fragile. The Soul-Shattering awl, however dull it might be, was still a weapon.
Before long, the serpent's interior was riddled with wounds. The excruciating pain made it impossible for the creature to keep fighting Yang Kai. Its long body curled and uncurled, bucked and rolled across the mountaintop.
Yang Kai watched with cold detachment. There was no need for him to strike again.
The serpent wasn't particularly strong, but its vitality was extraordinarily robust. Earth Demon spent a full half-hour tearing away inside it before the creature finally ceased struggling and died on the ground.
The serpent's belly rippled. Earth Demon, still wrapped around the Soul-Shattering awl, emerged and floated before Yang Kai. The two regarded each other blankly for a long moment, neither speaking.
"Young Master… next time something like this comes up, give this old servant a heads-up, would you? So at least we can prepare ourselves." Earth Demon felt quite aggrieved — being unceremoniously tossed into a demon beast's mouth without warning. If the one thrown in had been anyone with a weaker constitution, they'd have been scared out of their wits.
"Mm." Yang Kai nodded earnestly.
Earth Demon said nothing more.
But Yang Kai spoke up: "Don't you find this demon beast somewhat strange?"
"How so?" Earth Demon asked cautiously.
" Its strength… is too low! At least far lower than I expected!"
Earth Demon chuckled. "Young Master, this great serpent only turned out this way because it swallowed a Blood Condensing Pearl. It never had any real skill to begin with. Besides, have you spotted any traces of demon beasts along the way here?"
Yang Kai shook his head.
"Exactly. This creature was probably nothing more than an ordinary small snake. It swallowed a Blood Condensing Pearl and, by sheer luck, didn't die — and instead grew into a demon beast. You could say it's the only demon beast in this entire place."
"An ordinary snake turned into something this enormous?" Yang Kai's face showed genuine shock. "Impressive."
His thoughts turned, and a hint of excitement crept in. "If a small snake can swallow one, then I should be able to as well, right?"
"Nothing in this world is absolute. If the Young Master has any reservations, you could start by testing it with this beast's inner core."
"Good idea." Yang Kai nodded.
He approached the great serpent, split open its body, and extracted the inner core.
The core was also blood-red, though only the size of a pigeon's egg. Inside it still lingered residual energy from the Blood Condensing Pearl.
He instructed Earth Demon to stand guard. Yang Kai wiped the inner core on his clothes and popped it directly into his mouth, swallowing it whole.
The True Yang Technique activated, and Yang Kai quickly felt a surge of energy dissolve in his abdomen, rushing directly into his flesh. Interspersed within it was a great deal of sinister aura.
This must be the lingering aura of the devil who had perished here.
In an instant, Yang Kai's entire body flushed a vivid, blood-like crimson. He looked positively drenched in malevolence.
Though his appearance was fearsome, there was in truth little actual danger. Yang Kai felt only a slight jolt to his mind before steadying himself. The True Yang Energy flowing through his meridians was the natural bane of such sinister auras — he had nothing to fear.
Under the circulation of the True Yang Technique, the sinister aura was gradually incinerated, leaving only pure essence behind.
The essence obtained this time was not of the yang attribute, so it didn't condense into Yang Liquid. Yet strangely, neither was it absorbed by the Proud Bone Golden Body. Instead, it settled directly into Yang Kai's flesh, making every cell in his body hum with delight and every inch of muscle ripple with vitality.
A single inner core took Yang Kai an entire day to gradually refine. When he finally opened his eyes, they flashed like lightning. He felt that his entire being was somehow different.
It wasn't a boost in strength, nor a leap in mental cultivation. It was a transformation of his body — far more robust than before refining the core. The churning blood and qi within him harbored a surging power, as though he could tear open the heavens with his bare hands without even drawing on Yuan Qi.
"Young Master, how do you feel?" Earth Demon asked with concern.
"Decent. So the Blood Condensing Pearl's primary function is body enhancement?"