Chapter 97

After this battle, although Xu Dong and his two companions were all injured, the results were extremely glorious —

All twenty-four red-eyed wind wolves were completely slaughtered without a single one left!

The ground was covered with wolf corpses, and the scene was extremely bloody.

Yang Guang plopped down on the ground, not even caring about the thick blood, and panted heavily: "I'm exhausted, I almost couldn't hold on."

If we really talk about it, the key to winning this battle was Yang Guang's role in absorbing damage. In the definition of online games, this is called a tank (MT). With such a tank shielding them from the wind and rain, the damage output of Qidao could be guaranteed. As for Xu Dong, he was more adept at penetrating deep into the enemy ranks.

Hearing his heavy breathing, Qidao gave him a smile for the first time, "I'll have to look at you differently this time."

Yang Guang's face turned red for the first time, and he scratched his head, grinning foolishly.

As for Xu Dong, he was busy cleaning up the battlefield. Damn, the fur of the red-eyed wind wolves, used to make the Cyclone Set, sells for 104 gold coins. With twenty-four red-eyed wind wolf corpses here, who knows how many Cyclone Sets could be made. Xu Dong, who had seen the effects of both internal and external equipment, changed his attitude and became extremely eager, hoping to get more materials to sell for money, so he could buy the Wind Wolf Leggings worth 2,000 gold coins. Whether he could use them or not, he wanted to buy them first.

After Yang Guang and Qidao caught their breath, they also helped to harvest the fur. Soon, the wolf skins were piled up. Yang Guang was a bit worried, "Boss Dong... Do you want the materials from the Tusked Boars? The materials from the Spirit Birds, you want those too, right? And these red-eyed wind wolf materials, I guess you won't give up on them either? Now the problem is, we only have three people, and if we carry these materials..."

But before he could finish, he noticed that the materials from the red-eyed wind wolves suddenly disappeared. Not only the materials from the red-eyed wind wolves, but even the materials from the Tusked Boars and Spirit Birds, which were piled together, also vanished without a trace under Xu Dong's hands, as if by magic.

Both of them stared with wide eyes, "Where did the materials go?"

"Don't worry about it, they won't be lost," Xu Dong said while busy with his work, not even looking up. "I hope you two can keep this secret for me."

Xu Dong had carefully considered before revealing the secret of his storage space at this moment.

Firstly, Yang Guang's use of the Thorn Sword and Shield of Protection was itself a sign of honesty. Since others could be honest, why couldn't he? Besides, no one could take his storage space.

Secondly, Xu Dong needed money, so he needed materials.

Yang Guang and Qidao were slightly stunned, exchanged a glance, and although they didn't understand what the secret was, they could feel the weight in Xu Dong's tone and nodded in agreement.

When all the wolf corpses were piled up, Xu Dong hesitated for a moment and then revealed another secret, "Actually, I can't cultivate the power of the Blood and Flesh Armor. The only way I can increase its power is through this..."

He raised his hand, and from the tips of his fingers, covered by the Cang Mang Ancient Armor, five root-like tendrils, like sprouting plants, emerged. He pursed his lips and activated the Devour skill, and the tendrils instantly drilled into the twenty-four wolf corpses.

A strange sound of a large amount of life energy being absorbed echoed, and the wolf corpses visibly lost their fresh color.

The two were already amazed by Xu Dong's ability to collect materials, and now seeing such a miraculous scene, they were even more speechless.

A large amount of life energy entered his body, churning and boiling, flowing through his veins to his entire body. Xu Dong's face turned as red as if he were drunk.

He watched as his Blood and Flesh Armor power increased at a rocket-like speed, from twenty-two all the way to seventy!

At first, the influx of Blood and Flesh Armor power was gentle and comfortable, but as it continued, this gentle feeling gradually turned into a fierce burning sensation.

It felt as if countless flames were burning all over his body, every inch of skin, every bone, every organ, causing excruciating pain, making his expression twist.

Xu Dong was startled, "Oh no, did I absorb too much at once and overfill myself?!"

But Qidao had a solution, "Quickly practice the Fierce Tiger Stance, use its method to strengthen your muscles and bones, and solidify your foundation!"

This woke Xu Dong from his daze, and he immediately performed the Tiger Pounce Strike, leaping and striking a tree trunk with one claw!

Rustle, large pieces of bark tore off and were crushed by the immense force.

Tiger Pounce Strike, second strike! Xu Dong struck again without stopping, performing another Tiger Pounce Strike.

Third strike!

Fourth strike!

Fifth strike!

He seemed to transform into a frenzied tiger, wildly attacking the surrounding trees, like a human logging machine. After five Tiger Pounce Strikes, one of the thick old trees was snapped in half at the waist.

After the fifth strike, Xu Dong's momentum changed, and a tiger roar emerged from his throat.

Tiger Crouch Strike!

Another five strikes!

Continuously performing the first two stances of the Fierce Tiger Stance, the burning sensation in Xu Dong's body indeed decreased. This feeling was like the surging Blood and Flesh Armor power turning into a raging fire, burning through his skin, muscles, bones, and organs, then merging with them, making his body stronger and more resilient.

The Blood and Flesh Armor power in his body began to slowly decrease, not disappearing but merging into his body.

Gradually, Xu Dong's eyes became vacant, but his movements became more fluid. The transition between Tiger Pounce Strike and Tiger Crouch Strike, from initially being clumsy, gradually became more complete and natural, eventually becoming a sight to behold.

"This is... the ultimate state of cultivation, the Void State!" Yang Guang was extremely surprised, "Is Boss Dong a messenger of Mondo? First, the strange storage ability, then the bizarre method of cultivating Blood and Flesh Armor power, and now he can enter this coveted state! Truly a monster!"

Cultivating in the Void State is ten to a hundred times more efficient than in a normal state, and it is rare and hard to come by.

Xu Dong had once entered this Void State while practicing his steps on the Despair Road. If Yang Guang knew this, his eyes would probably pop out.

Xu Dong didn't know about Yang Guang and Qidao's surprise. He was now calm and pure, like a piece of crystal, completely transparent and smooth. He was immersed in the joy of practicing the Fierce Tiger Stance, and because his Blood and Flesh Armor power was full, he felt no fatigue at all. His understanding of the Fierce Tiger Stance improved rapidly, surpassing even Yang Buqu's understanding.

Suddenly, a movement flashed in his mind.

Coiling Tiger Whip Strike!

Xu Dong had practiced this move before, but he had never felt a sense of mastery. Therefore, he rarely used it in actual combat. Now, as this movement flashed in his mind, he subconsciously performed it.

He suddenly bent his knees slightly, leaned forward, and feinted a strike. At the moment his claws emerged, he shifted his strength and suddenly kicked out with one foot, sweeping it out sharply. This sudden movement was like a tiger pouncing on its prey, missing, and then striking again with its claws, followed by a powerful tail whip.

The movement was secretive, and the force was fierce!

Xu Dong's Coiling Tiger Whip Strike struck the tree trunk, and with a bang, wood chips flew, leaving a leg-shaped mark on the surface, which was both shocking and powerful!

Hmm? Xu Dong was slightly puzzled, feeling a surge of pain in his leg. The Void State was also broken.

Although the strength was there, he felt that his muscles couldn't withstand the powerful force. Thinking about this, Xu Dong couldn't help but sigh, "Unfortunately, I can't use the Blood and Flesh Armor power, otherwise, the Coiling Tiger Whip Strike would definitely be perfected, and the power of the Fierce Tiger Stance would be at least doubled."

Only then did Xu Dong realize that it was already getting dark. He was slightly surprised, first checking his Blood and Flesh Armor power, which showed 250. Then he carefully sensed his body and was pleasantly surprised to find that his physical attributes, without any equipment, had almost reached the mid-level of a two-star Awakened.

Once the Cang Mang Ancient Armor was activated, his physical attributes would likely stand at the peak of the two-star level, barely able to match a three-star Awakened.

He then turned to look at the two people squatting on the ground, "How long have I been practicing?"

Qidao shook his head and smiled, "Not that long."

But Yang Guang, standing beside him, was speechless, "It's already been three hours, and you say it's not that long?"

Three hours? Xu Dong felt a bit embarrassed, not realizing he had lost track of time while practicing.

After tidying up, the three people and the dog set off easily and chose to camp in a mountain hollow.

The group continued along the predetermined route, advancing deeper into the Ghost Forest, constantly slaughtering red-eyed wind wolves. The strength of the three people improved.

Qidao, of course, didn't need to be mentioned. His heavy sword, which was already easy to wield, could slaughter wolves like dogs with a single swing, and his muscle and bone strengthening method also steadily improved.

As for Yang Guang, his shield and sword skills were rarely used in actual combat, and many aspects were still unfamiliar. However, through constant battles with the red-eyed wind wolves, his skills gradually gained a more aggressive flavor, and his shield and sword skills improved day by day.

As for Xu Dong, he was probably the one with the most terrifying improvement rate among the three. Not only did his physical attributes without equipment improve steadily, but his strength and agility also reached the peak of a two-star Awakened. Moreover, his Blood and Flesh Armor power was only ten points away from the three-star level, which was 300.

However, what puzzled Xu Dong was that, in this situation, no matter how he used the Devour skill, his Blood and Flesh Armor power remained unchanged. It was only then that he suddenly realized it might be because his innate skills, Quick Step and Insight, had not reached 100% proficiency!

At this point, except for Insight and Devour, the proficiency of Strong and Quick Step had both reached 98%, just a little short.

Understanding the problem, Xu Dong remained calm and systematically improved his proficiency.

He had thought that this improvement would come with a skill upgrade mission.

He carefully considered it, and the only explanation seemed to be that the change in the Devour skill gave it the ability to self-grow and self-improve the Blood and Flesh Armor power, which was equivalent to the difficulty of a skill upgrade mission, thus replacing the skill upgrade mission...

Finally, after eleven days since the start of the assessment, the three people finally arrived at the outskirts of the Ghost Canyon. Passing through the Ghost Canyon, they would reach the central part of the Ghost Forest. Not far from the Ghost Canyon, a large number of green-eyed wind wolves were stationed, and the Starlight Grass grew in the green-eyed wind wolf lair.

Unexpectedly, the three people encountered another group of examinees at this place and time.