Deep within a secret chamber at the base of Tianxiao Sect's peak, Yang Kai unleashed the True Yang Energy within his body, condensing it into True Yang Fire and directing it at the skeletal remains of the Bone Race creature.
Chu Lingxiao and the four elders stood nearby watching in silence, wariness written across their faces.
Yang Kai's True Yang Fire was no ordinary flame. It was the crystallization of his entire cultivation—incredibly refined and potent, able to burn through almost anything.
The Bone Race creature, bound by demon-sealing chains and various Artifacts, lay perfectly still, as though it had truly perished.
But the murderous aura emanating from within its body only grew denser.
Hiss, hiss, hiss...
Sharp crackling sounds echoed through the chamber without cease. Visibly, the creature's skeleton and the meridians clinging to its bones were being gradually incinerated to ash.
Suddenly, two orbs of emerald light blazed to life in the creature's eye sockets—like two sinister eyes, or two flickering ghost-fires, wavering unsteadily.
The increasingly violent murderous aura erupted with a deafening boom.
"ROAR..." An enraged bellow suddenly radiated from the Bone Race creature's Divine Sense, piercing into each person's spiritual sea. Everyone could clearly feel its defiance and madness, and woven into the roar was a mysterious Divine Sense attack that sent waves of instability through the minds of all present except Chu Lingxiao.
Everyone's expression changed drastically. Yang Kai immediately intensified his output of True Yang Energy.
Crack, crack, crack. The skeleton crumbled bit by bit, turning to ash.
Within the eye sockets, the violently flickering ghost-fire rapidly dimmed, soon losing all luster.
After the time it took an incense stick to burn, all that remained was a pile of pitch-black powder.
The group exchanged glances, momentarily at a loss for words.
"He really wasn't dead... What incredible vitality!" Fei Yu exclaimed, her face pale with lingering fear.
"With nothing but a skeleton left, how could it possibly survive?" Cang Yan found it equally hard to believe.
"Perhaps he was always just a skeleton—with no flesh or blood to begin with—or perhaps the skeleton itself was the essence of his life..." Yang Kai mused thoughtfully.
"You mean, little martial nephew, that as long as the skeleton isn't destroyed, he cannot die?"
"Mm." Yang Kai nodded. "Regardless, this race is completely different from any known race on the continent. And extremely dangerous. If we encounter one in the future, we must not let our guard down."
"Don't worry. If I ever run into one again, I'll grind his bones to dust." Li Wan clenched his teeth in silent resolve.
"Are there really such eerie creatures on this continent?" Chu Lingxiao's brow was furrowed deeply. With his vast experience and knowledge, had Yang Kai not happened to come by today, he still would never have managed to identify the origins of this Bone Race creature he'd casually captured.
When he had first gone to the snow mountain to investigate, following the trail of the murderous aura, he had discovered this skeleton buried under a hundred zhang of snow. Sensing something unusual about it, he had simply brought it back.
Fortunately, he had the foresight to seal it here.
"However, ever since that day, I've felt that something about this world has changed," Chu Lingxiao said gravely.
"The Ancestor means..." Yang Kai regarded him with suspicion.
Chu Lingxiao was silent for a moment before speaking. "Your cultivation isn't high enough to perceive it clearly, but I believe everyone on this continent who has reached the third layer of the Saint Realm shares my feeling. The world seems clearer than before. At night, many stars that were once invisible can now be seen."
Yang Kai's expression shifted.
"I don't know why this is happening. But it seems the world is about to change." Chu Lingxiao let out a long, melancholic sigh.
The four elders' bodies trembled slightly, finally understanding why, ever since that day, the Ancestor had often left his seclusion chamber at night to gaze up at the starry sky.
They had never known why the Ancestor was engaging in such peculiar behavior. They had assumed he was trying to comprehend the Great Dao. Only now, hearing his words, did they realize he had noticed something unusual and was observing it carefully.
Yang Kai stayed at Tianxiao Sect for two more days before returning to the Nine Heavens Holy Land with Ling Taixu and Su Mu.
Before their departure, the Ancestor admonished them again and again—in the future, they must be absolutely careful. If they ever encountered another creature as strange as the Bone Race, they must inform him at once.
Yang Kai agreed readily.
Along the way, Yang Kai remained silent, lost in thought.
Ling Taixu noticed his distraction and asked, "Did something happen?"
Yang Kai nodded and recounted the matter of the Bone Race creature. Ling Taixu's expression shifted slightly, but he couldn't offer much insight. After all, he hadn't been on the Tongxuan Continent for long—he didn't even know how vast this world was, let alone anything about the Bone Race.
Back in the Great Han, they hadn't even known of the Demon Race or the Monster Race.
They had assumed that among all sentient beings in the world, only humanity existed.
It wasn't until they came to the Tongxuan Continent that they realized how narrow their understanding had been.
"Don't worry, Grandmaster. When the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up." Yang Kai chuckled, feeling considerably lighter. He turned to Su Mu and grinned. "What good stuff did you get? You've been grinning from ear to ear this whole time."
Su Mu chuckled gleefully and produced a Universe Bag, presenting it like a treasure. "Look—this is what the Ancestor gave me!"
"A Universe Bag!" Yang Kai nodded approvingly. "Do you know how to use it?"
"Of course I do! The Ancestor and several of the elders also gave me quite a few Artifacts, martial technique manuals, and whatnot—all stored inside." Su Mu held the Universe Bag reverently against his chest and gave it a gentle pat.
"Since they've given you so many things, you must make good use of them. Don't let down the Ancestor and those elders' expectations." Ling Taixu counseled earnestly.