Gazing at the mummified remains of the magical beast that had appeared in the room, Xiao Yan let out a faint smile. With a swift movement, he leaped off the bed and walked over to the mummy, his eyes slowly scanning up and down. The corpse of this magical beast, due to the exceedingly long time since its death, had shriveled and dried up, making it hard for Xiao Yan to discern from its appearance just what kind of creature it had been. However, he was not particularly interested in identifying the monster itself. What piqued his interest was the pair of jade bone wings, which could be used to fashion a set of Heavenly Wild Goose Nine Travel Wings of great quality.
Shifting his feet, Xiao Yan paused by the pair of jade bone wings, each about two or three meters wide. He crouched down and ran a hand lightly over the bone wings. To the touch, they were icy cold, but amidst the chill, there was a hint of warmth. It was hard to fathom that after so many years, these mummified remains could still emit heat.
The jade bone wings were slightly translucent, allowing Xiao Yan to clearly see with his naked eye the strange energy swirling within like floating spirits.
“Clang! Clang!”
Tapping gently on the jade bone wings, the solid feel under his fingers made Xiao Yan nod in satisfaction. Then, narrowing his eyes, he extended his spiritual force through his fingers, subtly directing it into the bone wings. As his spiritual force carefully entered the wings, an intense and brilliant light suddenly burst forth. Xiao Yan’s soul felt as if it had been sucked into a maelstrom, and the harsh pull instantly tore his spiritual force apart.
Xiao Yan’s slightly narrowed eyes flew open, and he quickly withdrew his fingers as if he had been shocked. A residual dread colored his gaze as he stared at the jade bone wings. He was surprised to find that within these wings lay such a violent wind-attribute energy. What surprised him even more was that along with the wind, there was also a distinct hint of blazing heat. These two entirely different attributes coexisted perfectly within the wings, a truly remarkable phenomenon.
“Just as expected of a near-seventh tier beast. Even after so many years, so much terrifyingly ferocious energy can still be stored within its wings. If I use these to forge the Heavenly Wild Goose Nine Travel Wings, the outcome will likely surpass my expectations.”
Xiao Yan licked his lips, his dark eyes gradually kindling with fire. This time, he might have found a treasure. The few pills he had traded for them were worth it; even if there was only rotten flesh inside the mummy, the pair of jade bone wings alone justified the value.
Rubbing his hands, Xiao Yan once again examined the mummy. A sharp sword flickered into his hand, covered in a greenish flame that spread across the blade, enveloping it in a layer of heat, causing it to give off a small cloud of white mist.
“Swish!”
Holding the sword, Xiao Yan stabbed fiercely at the spot where the jade bone wings joined the mummy’s body. Surprisingly, there was no resistance. The dried skin of the magical beast was as soft as tofu, and the sword easily pierced through.
Seeing this, Xiao Yan sighed in mild disappointment. The mummy’s skin had apparently lost all its resilience to the ravages of time, shattering his hopes of using it to make armor.
He grasped the hilt tightly and began cutting away the dried flesh beneath the base of the jade bone wings, revealing a layer of strangely white, bloodless muscle.
Although he was surprised that the mummy’s flesh had managed to persist for so long without rotting, upon close inspection, he shook his head in disappointment. There was no trace of any energy in the meat, and it was a mystery how it had lasted so long, possibly due to the protective layer of skin.
Xiao Yan carefully cut two large holes in the back of the mummy and then removed the jade bone wings, placing them to the side. The jade bone wings did not dim after being separated from the body, which was a relief to Xiao Yan. He was worried that they would turn to dust once detached, but those worries were unfounded.
After removing the wings, Xiao Yan probed into the two holes, a pungent sour smell assaulting his senses, nearly choking him, and forcing him to hold his breath.
Pulling back, Xiao Yan hesitated, then gritted his teeth. “I don’t believe that something as large as this has nothing worthwhile inside.”
With that, he struck the mummy again, leaving several deep gashes. The fine, thread-like cuts soon widened, splitting the mummy apart, revealing its white, bloodless flesh.
As the mummy was completely cut open, a strong, acidic smell permeated the air. Upon contact with the ceiling, the acidity caused a hissing sound, and before Xiao Yan’s eyes, the ceiling corroded, forming a massive hole through which he could see the crescent moon above.
When the stench finally dissipated, Xiao Yan marveled, then cautiously approached the dissected mummy. His eyes scanned the mummified remains, only to find it filled with only white, bloodless flesh, and not a single bone or organ.
“Could it all have been corroded by the acid? But why is the flesh still intact?” Frowning, Xiao Yan muttered, puzzled. After a moment, he still had no answers.
“Damn it, even if the acid could corrode bones and organs, what about the core? That’s where the beast stores its energy. It can’t be destroyed, too?”
Scowling, Xiao Yan slashed at the white flesh, especially the head, but again, he found nothing but more pale, bloodless flesh. The brain cavity was empty, lacking even a shred of tissue, let alone the core.
“All this, and the mummy only had the pair of jade bone wings?” Frustrated, Xiao Yan cut further, but still found nothing. He reluctantly threw down the sword, muttering a curse.
“Ah, forget it. At least the jade bone wings are worth the effort. If there’s nothing else, so be it.”
Just as he was about to clean up, a young, clear voice suddenly echoed in the room.
“Doing such disgusting things in the middle of the night?”
Hearing the familiar voice, Xiao Yan was startled. He looked up and saw Zi Yan, perched on the damaged roof, swaying her legs and peering at him with a pouting face.
“What are you doing on the roof in the middle of the night when you should be sleeping?”
Zi Yan rolled her eyes and hopped down, then kicked the mummy pieces, saying, “So, this is where the smell was coming from.”
Leaning back in his chair, Xiao Yan said, “If you’re interested, take them. I just wonder if the meat, after so many years, is still edible.”
Ignoring Xiao Yan’s comment, Zi Yan’s eyes, like gemstones, scanned the mummy, a faint purple light swirling around.
With the purple light surrounding her, Zi Yan suddenly picked up the fallen sword and, under Xiao Yan’s stunned gaze, cut off the ten white claws from the mummy, laying them carefully on the table.
“What are you doing? Do you need these?”
Picking up one of the claws, Xiao Yan gave it a gentle squeeze, and it collapsed like soft clay, showing no hardness. He sighed in frustration.
Zi Yan, usually indifferent, now seemed excited, urging, “Can you use your unique flame to burn these things?”
Pausing for a moment, Xiao Yan, seeing Zi Yan’s urgency, didn’t waste any time. He flicked his fingers, and a green flame appeared, enveloping one of the white claws.
As the flame burned, the sight astounded Xiao Yan. The once-soft claw, under the heat, did not turn to ash, but instead shrank and changed color, from white to a blue-red hue. The tip of the claw shimmered with a chilling gleam, barely visible in the flame.
Xiao Yan watched in amazement as the claw, after about ten minutes, transformed into a bluish-red, sharp, bone fragment. The blending of blue and red gave the impression of a fusion of wind and fire, radiating a hot, roaring energy. This miraculous transformation left Xiao Yan stunned. Who would have thought that the substance hidden within could change so drastically?
Could it be that the essence of the mummy was not as worthless as he had thought? If so, perhaps the mummy was not as useless as he had assumed.
His eyes lit with renewed excitement, and he turned his gaze to the white, bloodless flesh.
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