Under such an assault, even a Martial Saint, caught completely off guard, would be instantly frozen into dust, with no time to circulate their True Essence for resistance. After all, while Martial Saints are powerful, their physical bodies remain just that—human bodies. Without the protection of True Essence, the physical form of a Martial God is even less resilient than that of a fifth-level Warrior.

However, Ye Jingyu was different; he had cultivated the Chaos Body. While this frigid energy could harm him, it would not instantly shatter him to powder. Or rather, even if he were reduced to dust, as long as his spirit remained intact, given sufficient time, he could reassemble his body—this was the true definition of immortality.

Coupled with the rapid absorption by the Water Aperture within him, Ye Jingyu’s body quickly stabilized. The chilling energy, potent enough to kill a Martial Saint, was entirely consumed by his Water Aperture. Ye Jingyu immediately felt a small cluster of bluish-water mist appear in the previously empty Water Aperture, much like a single cup of water suddenly appearing in a vast pond.

Though small, it was infinitely better than the former vacancy. As this mist formed, the Water Aperture began to circulate ceaselessly, drawing Water Spirit Qi from the void. Although the growth seemed agonizingly slow—the mist barely visible to the eye—Ye Jingyu knew that perseverance would eventually lead to the condensation of a Water-attributed Golden Core.

Of course, if he encountered ten thousand more bursts of this chilling energy, he might just condense that Golden Core directly... The Water Chill Qi was completely absorbed by Ye Jingyu, and the ice surrounding the Cold Pool rapidly fractured. At this moment, cracks were beginning to spiderweb across Ni Bo’s body atop the pool.

Though he was the descendant of the primeval beast Bo and the Qilin, possessing superb innate talent, his cultivation period was still short; he simply could not contend with the giant Flood Dragon, an ancient beast that had cultivated for a thousand years. Just as Ni Bo was about to be torn to shreds by the Flood Dragon, a figure shot up from the surface of the Cold Pool. "Demon Devouring Universe..." Seeing Ni Bo on the verge of disintegration, Ye Jingyu held nothing back, unleashing a direct strike from the Martial Arts Codex.

In an instant, a Demon God manifested behind Ye Jingyu. Accompanying his punch, it charged directly toward the Flood Dragon’s head. The Demon God opened its massive maw, radiating infinite pressure as it slammed toward the beast.

The Flood Dragon was utterly shaken. It never imagined Ye Jingyu could survive its Water Chill Qi, let alone possess such devastating combat power. Its mind in turmoil, it abandoned its attack on Ni Bo and attempted to flee toward the mountain forest.

But Ye Jingyu's punch was too fast, too swift. Especially the phantom Demon God, which lunged at the Flood Dragon’s head, unleashing a terrifying force that exploded above the beast’s skull. Its sturdy single horn could not withstand the immense power and shattered completely.

Its scales ruptured piece by piece, like breaking glass. Then followed its flesh and bone. In the blink of an eye, the Flood Dragon’s locomotive-sized head disintegrated entirely.

Golden blood sprayed everywhere, and multi-hued brain matter splattered across the edges of the Cold Pool. A pale blue bead shot out from its carcass, attempting to flee into the distance. Ye Jingyu recognized this as the essence of the Flood Dragon’s life force and was unwilling to let it escape.

With a single grasp toward the void, he snatched it and, without a second thought, swallowed it whole. His internal Water Aperture began to spin furiously once more. The immense energy contained within the thousand-year-old Flood Dragon's Inner Elixir—energy potent enough to shatter several mountains—was being rapidly decomposed and absorbed by the Water Aperture.

Ye Jingyu barely registered the sensation; the colossal energy was utterly consumed by the Aperture. Immediately, he felt the cup-sized pool of water mist within the Aperture swell to the size of a washbasin. While the increase was substantial, compared to an entire pond, it remained infinitesimally small.

To think that the Inner Elixir of a thousand-year Flood Dragon yielded such a meager amount of Water Spirit Qi—how many thousands of Flood Dragons, perhaps even Saint-level ones, would he need to kill to condense a true Golden Core? Feeling as if his Water Aperture were a bottomless pit, Ye Jingyu was once again overcome with the urge to curse the progenitor of this cultivation method. How long would it truly take him to form a single Golden Core?

And just how powerful would that Core be once formed? Ye Jingyu dared not contemplate it further. The power of one Water-attributed Golden Core alone would equal the strength of at least a thousand Water-attributed Saint-level Flood Dragons.

If the nine Cores were to converge and then shatter simultaneously, the resulting power would be terrifying beyond measure. Could his physical body even endure it? To transform, to truly transform...

Cursing the creator of this technique vehemently in his mind once more, Ye Jingyu slowly opened his eyes. He saw Ni Bo’s limp body on the ground and felt a sudden jolt of alarm. He rushed over instantly.

The Reincarnation Eye at his brow scanned Ni Bo’s entire form like light, revealing that most of its meridians were torn, and its physical body was nearing total collapse. Worry gripped his heart. Such severe injuries—what could he possibly do?

He was skilled at killing, but saving someone? What resources did he possess for healing? "Cave...

cave... inside..." Ni Bo weakly lifted its head. Seeing that Ye Jingyu had obliterated the Flood Dragon with a single strike, a flicker of delight crossed its eyes.

However, its body was too weak; it managed only those few words before completely passing out. Ye Jingyu paused for a moment, then suddenly remembered the curtained cavern Ni Bo had just ducked into. Ignoring the Flood Dragon’s massive corpse, he scooped up Ni Bo’s large body and bolted toward the waterfall.

The moment he plunged through the cascade, Ye Jingyu was met by a blast of hot air. Looking around, he saw a massive cavern, easily the size of three or four football fields. Within the cave was a huge pool of magma, its fiery red surface flowing constantly.

The temperature here was several times that of the outside. Witnessing this, Ye Jingyu was deeply astonished. Outside was biting cold, yet inside this cave, searing heat overwhelmed him—it was utterly unbelievable.

"Put me down..." Ni Bo suddenly awoke at this moment and spoke again. Ye Jingyu understood immediately. He placed Ni Bo directly into the surging pool of magma.

Instantly, a ball of flame enveloped Ni Bo’s entire form, and streams of intensely powerful Fire Spirit Qi flooded into its body, rapidly repairing the damage. Seeing this, Ye Jingyu suddenly guessed that Ni Bo’s father might have been a Fire Qilin... Sensing the dense, almost viscous Fire Spirit Qi surrounding him, the Fire Aperture in Ye Jingyu’s chest also began to spin.

It started absorbing the ambient Fire Spirit Qi without needing Ye Jingyu’s conscious control. Ye Jingyu was startled by this development, but quickly settled into a cross-legged position, meditating quietly to cultivate. (Some friends mentioned there was no update; in fact, there is an update every day.

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