Chapter 117: Eighth Level of Qi Refining

The moment Gu Changqing landed on the city wall, the human skin covering the soldiers around him began to split and peel away, revealing the flesh-and-blood monsters beneath, which lunged directly at him.

Their speed was significantly faster than that of ordinary monsters; it was evident that these soldiers had been martial artists in life, far surpassing the capabilities of common men.

Gu Changqing collided with their ranks, moving like a tiger into a flock of sheep. The soldiers suffered broken bones and shattered sinews, either slamming into the battlements or being sent crashing into one another.

His Child-Mother Yin-Yang Swords plunged into the crowd, instantly sending flesh and severed limbs flying. Subsequently, a river of blood surged over them, causing the monstrous soldiers to dissolve and transform into strands of vital essence.

As Gu Changqing pressed his assault, the entire city seemed to have been stirred like a hornet’s nest. Accompanied by a chorus of incessant roars, the monsters throughout the city began to move.

Countless creatures, their raw flesh exposed, emerged onto the streets and rooftops, surging toward Gu Changqing like an endless, rolling tide. Both the streets and the rooftops were nearly swallowed by the swarm, a sea of shadowy figures rushing forward under the moonlight.

Gu Changqing spread his arms, a brilliant smile on his face. After summoning the Tortoise-Snake Bagua Lamp, the river of blood transformed into countless crimson threads that flew toward the oncoming swarm.

The leading wave of monsters was ensnared by these threads while still two hundred meters away. However, the threads did not merely halt their advance; they burrowed into their mouths and nostrils, rapidly liquefying everything within their bodies.

Each monster that reached the foot of the wall collapsed into a puddle of blood. This was precisely why Gu Changqing had chosen the wall; the Tortoise-Snake Bagua Lamp consumed spirit stones, and his stones did not come from thin air—they were earned through his own arduous toil.

Though he earned much, he had also paid a high price in sweat and struggle. The wall stood over ten meters high, with the nearest buildings more than twenty meters away—a chasm for the monsters to bridge.

Vast mounds of white bones rained down, quickly piling into a mountain of remains. The Child-Mother Yin-Yang Swords dove into the bone pile, causing it to collapse instantly before carving through the monster horde, sending countless creatures tumbling from the rooftops with their legs severed.

***

Far away, on a tower at the corner of the city wall, Yan Hao listened to the relentless howling and watched the city, which surged like a turbulent sea in a storm. He felt a chill run down his spine.

Such monsters were nothing to him; he could wipe them out with a wave of his hand. But there were simply too many of them, a dense, uncountable mass pouring through every street and over every roof toward Gu Changqing.

"Is he going to be alright?" Even knowing Gu Changqing’s unique abilities, the scene before him made him uneasy.

"Probably," Gao Wenxin replied calmly.

Standing nearby were three other figures—Level Six Awakened guards. One of them held a camera, as Gu Changqing’s rapid growth and mysterious abilities had been a subject of concern.

The three men felt their scalps prickle as they watched the wave of monsters. Yet, Gu Changqing stood firm, a cliff against which the tide crashed, only to shatter into spray.

"His ability isn't just controlling blood," one of them remarked. The other two didn't even bother to respond to such an obvious observation. If his power were merely blood control, he wouldn't be worth them traveling here in the middle of the night to watch.

"He's absorbing them..." a young man said after a long silence, his brow furrowed.

"Absorbing? Not just corroding?" the others asked in surprise.

"When those monsters hit the ground, only white bones remain; the flesh is gone. It looks like corrosion, but if it were just corrosion, he couldn't sustain it for so long. It has to be absorption!"

"He dissolves them into blood and then absorbs it! He must be using it to replenish his Qi. I suspect he’s even using it to enhance his own strength—otherwise, there's no way to explain his rate of growth." As the young man spoke, a sense of dread took hold of him.

If the man’s power was truly as he suspected, it was terrifying: growing stronger through slaughter and consumption.

"There’s never been an awakening ability like this before," another muttered, though he cut himself off, immediately refuting his own words. "Just because it hasn't appeared doesn't mean it doesn't exist!"

He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. The subject's growth speed already spoke volumes.

"If this is true, it’s horrifying! Especially since his strength doesn't rely solely on his awakened power. If it were just an ability, many attributes could counter him. But his fist techniques are equally terrifying. The reports from Ji Yan say that facing his strikes feels like encountering something impossible to resist or evade."

"He likely has attained the intent of the fist!"

"And such a person joined the Chongming organization... and was actually allowed to grow this powerful..."

This was why their hearts felt heavy, weighed down by a boulder of fear. With this ability to grow rapidly, combined with the mastery of fist intent, and now consuming the hundreds of thousands of monsters in this city... it was impossible to imagine what he might become.

***

The mountain of bones before the wall, constantly rising and being smashed apart, was a harrowing sight that stirred dark thoughts in the three observers. If they didn't find a way to act, this man would soon be unstoppable. They decided that during the upcoming exploration of Danyang Mountain, they would see if they could find an opportunity to eliminate him. If not, they would have to report the situation regarding Gu Changqing to Chen Daoling immediately.

***

Gu Changqing was completely oblivious to the others in the distance. There were simply too many monsters; they kept surging toward him, eventually trampling over one another to leap onto the wall.

As one batch jumped, the next used their bodies as stepping stones. The first batch would fall to the base of the wall and turn into blood. Since these monsters felt no pain and knew no fear, more and more of them used this method to scale the wall.

Meanwhile, the Child-Mother Yin-Yang Swords returned to Gu Changqing’s side, hacking through the surrounding monsters. Even so, the spiritual energy within the Tortoise-Snake Bagua Lamp was rapidly depleting.

Gu Changqing tossed a handful of spirit stones into the lamp, instantly replenishing the energy. Simultaneously, endless blood essence flowed into his body, making his internal energy increasingly dense and converting it into spiritual Qi.

Gradually, the rate of his internal Qi growth slowed, as if hitting a bottleneck. Yet, within moments, the barrier shattered.

"Eighth Layer of Qi Refining!"

The pathways for his spiritual energy expanded once more. A ravenous hunger erupted from every cell in his body, as if he had been starving for days. However, as the blood essence continued to pour in, the hunger was soon satiated.

Just as Gu Changqing was relishing the thrill of his rapid growth, several monsters trampled over the corpses of their kin and leapt onto the ramparts. Their long swords, blades, and halberds descended upon him.

"Get lost!" Gu Changqing laughed, swinging his arm. The monsters were struck as if by a giant cauldron, their bones shattering as they were sent flying back onto the rooftops. They smashed through the tiles and walls, crashing into the ground below and turning into a puddle of flesh, within which countless insects crawled and writhed.