Endless Winter: My Camp Infinite Upgrades

Chapter 466 The Azure-Eyed Fire Lion, Battle Royale and Advancement, Angry Counterattack, and the Trial's Transformation

boom!
Fifteen kilometers deep in the Blood Miasma Plain, beneath a crimson mountain about four or five hundred meters high, a black figure suddenly swooped down from mid-air, using his body to directly blast open a hole in the mountain wall, quickly escaping inside, and not forgetting to swing his sword to shake the snow on the mountain, completely burying the entrance.

"Cough cough cough..."

Inside the pitch-black cave, Xia Hong coughed more than a dozen times, spitting out five or six mouthfuls of blood before his breathing gradually calmed down.

His face turned ashen. He hurriedly took out a golden, round pill from his yellow mustard bag and swallowed it. Then, he quickly summoned the Enlightenment Lotus Platform, sat cross-legged, and began to close his eyes to heal his injuries.

"What on earth is that thing?!"

While healing his injuries, Xia Hong remained vigilant, keeping his mind focused on the outside of the cave. After several dozen breaths, when he sensed that no one was approaching, he relaxed slightly. His pupils showed both lingering fear and intense anger.

"With a strength of a hundred jun, aside from the Yin-Yang Mirror's techniques which cannot be copied, everything else in its martial arts, including the Shattering Star Sword, is the same as mine. Neither Fire Condensing Oil nor Yellow Candles have any effect on it. How did that monster manage to achieve this...?"

Looking at the more than twenty wounds on his body, Xia Hong still felt lingering fear as he recalled the more than one hour that he had been chased by the fake Xia Hong and the five people led by Fan Qinghu.

At the critical moment, he had no choice but to flee to the depths of the Blood Miasma Plains to the south, but he didn't just blindly rush in.

Compared to the five people who were fake Xia Hong, the depths of the Blood Miasma Plains were obviously much more dangerous. If they rushed in recklessly, they would probably die an even more miserable death in the end.

Therefore, Xia Hong only slightly changed direction to the south, and tried his best to deal with the five people who were actually Xia Hong for more than an hour while ensuring safety.

As a result of his maneuvering, the five men caught up with him time and time again, which is how he got the more than twenty scars on his body.

While maneuvering, he also kept adjusting his angle to the south. As he spent more and more time dealing with the five people, he was helplessly forced to go deeper and deeper into the Blood Miasma Plain.

"Are they too afraid to pursue us now, or have they already achieved their goal?"

While Xia Hong closed his eyes and focused on regulating his breathing, he never relaxed his perception of the outside world. He pondered for a moment, his face still solemn.

As his injuries began to heal rapidly, his expression gradually relaxed.

The Sacred Vein Pill is currently the most precious level-six pill in the Great Xia Dynasty. Even if all the meridians in the body are broken, one pill can restore them to their original state. Strictly speaking, its effects have far exceeded the scope of healing. It belongs to the category of divine pills that can be used to save lives and help cripples restore their cultivation.

Currently, the entire Great Xia Dynasty does not produce many, and each one is extremely precious. Xia Hong only brought 10 with him on this trip. Last year, when he was seriously injured by General Black Wind in the Bone-Eating Path, he only used one.

This time, he had taken one pill while being chased, and another one after entering the cave, making a total of two pills.
The five-fold cultivation boost from the Enlightenment Lotus Platform also made his healing efficiency far exceed that of ordinary people. Although less than a hundred breaths had passed since he entered the cave, his injuries had already healed by seventy or eighty percent.

"I know nothing about the miasma zone, so I can't move around recklessly anymore..."

Xia Hong opened his eyes. Even though everything outside the cave seemed calm to him, his expression remained extremely somber.

This wasn't his first time exploring unfamiliar territory. Even though he had just been chased by five people and was in grave danger, he remembered the general location and time.

"From the time I entered the plains until now, it has been less than three hours. I am currently at a depth of 15 kilometers in the miasma zone, more than 50 kilometers southwest of Caiqiu District 21. I should be not far from Chencang!"

Within the miasma zone, the sky was obscured, and everything was blood-red. There was no distinction between day and night, black and white. Xia Hong could only remember the passage of time by feeling. The chase he had just experienced was too dangerous. He was able to remember so much thanks to the exploration experience he had accumulated in his early years. Otherwise, anyone else would have lost their bearings long ago.

"It's dangerous to go anywhere now, no rush, ee..."

sizzle...

After a moment of contemplation, Xia Hong suddenly heard a slight sound from within his body. His expression froze for a moment, and a hint of excitement rose in his pupils.

"It's those three blood jade beads I just swallowed..."

It is the flesh and blood beneath the skin that is rapidly disintegrating and reorganizing!

The effects of those three blood jade beads were very strong. Xia Hong had already felt it when he took them before, but at that time he didn't have time to calm down and cultivate, so he could only let them work on their own.

But at this moment, the already strong effect was amplified several times over.

No, it should be dozens of times!
Xia Hong looked down at the lotus platform where he was sitting cross-legged, and instantly realized what was going on. His face lit up with joy, but also with a hint of suspicion.

"No, no, the Enlightenment Lotus Platform only provides a five-fold increase in cultivation, but the Blood Jade Bead's effect is far more than five times; there are other reasons..."

After racking his brains for more than ten breaths without finding a solution, Xia Hong simply put the puzzle out of his mind and quickly activated the energy of the Blood Jade Pearl to help his body reorganize.

He absorbed all the energy from the three blood jade beads in less than twenty breaths. After absorbing it, Xia Hong's expression suddenly froze, and then his face was full of surprise.

"10 manes increased my strength by 0.1 jin. Am I right?"

After the initial shock, Xia Hong clenched his fist and sensed his strength again, confirming that his power had indeed increased so much. His face was instantly filled with ecstasy. Then, as if remembering something, he quickly took out a blood-red crystal from his yellow mustard bag.

This was something that flew out from the shattered bones of an Iron-Bone Corpse Demon that was accidentally killed in the Roman Flower Sea.

The color of the Blood Jade Crystal is almost identical to that of the Blood Jade Bead, and their size is also about the size of a fingernail. The only difference between the two is their shape: one is crystalline, similar to crystal; the other is round, like a pill.

"Since they're from the same source, they must be used in the same way!"

Xia Hong observed for a moment, then swallowed the Blood Jade Crystal.
boom…………

As the crystal entered the abdomen, a surge of immense energy exploded forth, rapidly spreading throughout the body. It flowed through almost every part, including the skin, flesh, meridians, and internal organs, before finally slowly penetrating into the bones.

During this process, Xia Hong's face had already turned red, because when the crystal energy flowed through various parts and organs of his body, a terrifying tearing sensation surged into his sea of ​​consciousness, almost causing him to faint from the pain.

Xia Hong clenched his fists tightly. Although his whole body was trembling, he still didn't utter a sound. Even now, he still kept half of his attention on the situation outside the cave.

His talent far surpasses that of ordinary people, so the pain he endured during the three processes of reshaping the skin, regenerating flesh and blood, and tempering bones was several times or even ten times stronger than that of normal people. To this day, his nerves' ability to withstand pain is far beyond that of ordinary people.

As the crystalline energy surged into his bones, his six-zhang-tall dark red skeletal form slowly emerged behind him. The blood-red meridians around the skeletal form were clearly visible, and compared to when he had just broken through, it was obviously getting closer and closer to being fully formed.

"Heh...heh..."

Xia Hong's Burning Bones grew many mysterious patterns resembling molten lava. As crystalline energy seeped into his bone marrow, those molten lava patterns seemed to be infused with new energy and began to emit a strong light.

The bursts of intense light clearly caused Xia Hong immense pain, causing him to let out suppressed, low roars. However, amidst these continuous roars, his dark red bones became increasingly textured; to be precise, the original dark red color was transforming into a bright red.

"The Blood Jade Beads repair defects in the flesh and blood, while the Blood Jade Crystals target defects in the skeletal system. Both are for enhancing one's foundation... this..."

In less than a hundred breaths, Xia Hong had completely absorbed the blood jade crystal. As the exhilaration subsided, he came to his senses, first uttering a soft murmur of surprise, then clenching his fist to sense it before his pupils suddenly contracted:
"I lifted about 0.3 jun at once, so I now have... 48 jun?"

Xia Hong was extremely sensitive to his own strength. Before entering the Blood Miasma Plains, his strength was 47 jun. So, the 3 drops of Blood Jade Beads and 1 piece of Blood Jade Crystal accumulated to increase his strength by nearly half a jun.
"Killing the Frost Beast yields Blood Jade Beads, killing the Iron-Bone Corpse Demon yields Blood Jade Crystals, so wouldn't killing the Copper-Bone Corpse Demon bring even better rewards?"

If there are bronze bones, then will there be silver bones, gold bones, and so on...?

Xia Hong's expression suddenly froze, and he quickly suppressed his unrealistic thoughts.

He had seen the four bronze-bone corpse demons in the Roman Flower Sea before. Their strength was basically around 30 jun. The key was that those corpse demons had extremely outstanding defensive capabilities, liked to move in groups, and could also cooperate with monsters. They were not easy to deal with. If bronze-bone level was like this, even if there were silver-bone or even gold-bone corpse demons, they would not be something he could deal with now.

Even so, Xia Hong's pupils were still filled with fervor.

"As long as I have a large number of Blood Jade Beads and Blood Jade Crystals to quickly repair the defects in my flesh and bones, I can continue to strengthen my foundation. All of this foundation will be converted into my strength. In other words, without needing to break through my cultivation level, my strength will also usher in a new era..."

Buzz!
A low-frequency vibration came from underground, abruptly stopping the burning passion in Xia Hong's heart. He looked down sharply and immediately realized what was happening. A look of deep horror suddenly appeared on his face. He abruptly stood up, put away the lotus platform, and rushed towards the cave entrance for his life.

boom………………

"what!"

A column of molten lava of extremely high temperature suddenly erupted from the ground, instantly filling the cave. The raging blue flames shot into the sky and burned the entire mountaintop to ashes in a short time.

Xia Hong did not escape from the cave entrance on his own initiative. The blue lava was moving too fast. He had just reached the cave entrance when he was hit by the lava, and then his whole body instantly caught fire and was thrown straight to the snow hundreds of meters away.

boom…………

When Xia Hong was struck by the pillar of fire, he let out a violent scream. His screams only stopped when he hit the snow. When he got up, his clothes were tattered and his whole body was burning. His skin was almost completely gone, and his whole body was charred black.

He suppressed the pain of his skin and flesh being burned by the flames, quickly activated his skeletal energy to expel the flames from his body, and then turned his head to look at the cave he had just been in, his pupils filled with horror.

"Plop..."

Where else are there caves?
Xia Hong remembered clearly that the cave was just below a snow-capped mountain over 400 meters high, but now, not only was the cave gone, but the snow-capped mountain itself had also disappeared from his sight.

It didn't disappear; the snow-capped mountain was instantly evaporated, its altitude dropping by more than half. The remaining half was also shrouded in blue flames and was rapidly decreasing at a visible speed.

I'm afraid it won't even take a hundred breaths before it's completely razed to the ground.

Behind the high mountain, amidst the blood-red miasma, a colossal creature had appeared out of nowhere.

Its body was covered with a layer of light blue mane, its shoulder height was a hundred feet, and its body length was at least two hundred feet. When it stood still, it looked like a giant mountain, which made people tremble with fear.

Its neck and back are covered with long, reddish-blue manes.

No, those weren't manes, but flowing blue-red flames. Those flames emitted a strong light, bright enough to pierce through the miasma, encircling its enormous head like a terrifying blazing sun rising from the blood miasma.
Its four jet-black claws, firmly gripping the ground, were constantly emitting bluish-red flames. Not to mention the snow, even the dust and stones on the ground were being continuously burned and evaporated, emitting thick smoke. It gave the impression that its enormous body was floating in mid-air, as if it were riding the clouds.

What's most chilling are its pair of vertical, bluish-gold eyes. There's not a trace of beastly madness in them, only boundless indifference and penetrating insight. They're staring intently at Xia Hong, displaying both murderous intent and a hint of mockery.

"Fire element, Five Elements Realm, Beast King..."

Xia Hong instantly recalled these three words. He looked up at the enormous thing in front of him. His first reaction was not fear, but panic, which caused him to feel inexplicably dry-mouthed.

If Xia Hong had to find a comparison among familiar things, the first thing that came to mind was the lion from his previous life. But this Five Elements Realm Beast King in front of him, apart from having a somewhat similar overall outline, did not have any characteristics of a lion at all.

"Suanni, the Blue-Eyed Fire Suanni, this name is more appropriate!"

Xia Hong quickly found a title from his limited knowledge to describe the Five Elements Realm Beast King before him.

Of the nine sons of the dragon, the one that most resembles the lion is the Suanni.

The name "Blue-Eyed Fire Lion" is fitting for it!

"roar………………"

Xia Hong had a bitter expression on his face at the moment, so naming the Beast King was a way of finding joy in hardship.

The fire lion suddenly roared, and a stream of cyan molten lava unexpectedly gushed out from where Xia Hong was standing.

Having learned your lesson the hard way, you're unlikely to repeat it!

The moment the pillar of fire erupted, Xia Hong didn't hesitate at all. He immediately ran towards the west side, fleeing for his life.

Pooh……

"If I get burned again, I'll really be naked!"

Xia Hong spat out a mouthful of blood, looked at his tattered clothes, and quipped with a hint of self-deprecation. He said that he had bought these clothes in Caiqiu, and it was fortunate that they were made with a lot of silver thread. If he had worn ordinary clothes, they would probably have been burned to ashes in that moment.

Of course, the clothes were just a self-deprecating joke!
At this moment, there wasn't a single patch of good skin or flesh on his body. Putting aside the intensity of the flames unleashed by the Suanni, the key point was that when he was struck by the pillar of fire, he clearly sensed that the force was at least eighty jin (a unit of weight).

It should be noted that this pillar of fire was just a casual move by the fire lion, and it might not even be considered a powerful move. Yet, this one move had a force of over eighty jin. How strong must its true strength be?

"This Azure-Eyed Fire Lion should be a Five Elements Realm Beast King with a single Fire element. One strike of its Fire elemental tribulation energy could destroy my entire skin and flesh. A few more strikes and I would be dead for sure. And this is just its tribulation energy technique; its true strength..."

call out…………

Without Xia Hong needing to speculate, the Azure-Eyed Fire Lion gave him no chance to escape. Its enormous body caught up to him in less than ten breaths, and its dark iron claws on its right forelimb suddenly pounced. The blood miasma was instantly ignited by the three claws, creating the visual effect of three cracks being torn open in space.

Clang...

Despite his panic, Xia Hong could only raise the Shattered Star Sword and flip over to defend himself. With a clang, the sword was slapped diagonally and sent flying to the ground.

In the final instant before crashing to the ground, Xia Hong took out his second weapon, the Panlong Staff, from the yellow mustard bag. He braced himself against the ground at an angle, and using the staff's resilience, he bent over and sprang up, desperately suppressing the surging blood and qi in his chest, and continued his frantic, desperate escape to the west.

"At least 30% stronger than me, at least 130... no, 135 jin!"

So, the fake Xia Hong just now didn't give up the chase; he just felt there was no need to continue.

This blue-eyed fire lion is the killer move the opponent has prepared!
Xia Hong's pupils trembled, and his expression turned extremely gloomy after trying to get through. But at this moment, he had no time to think. One after another, the blue molten lava pillars on the ground appeared, and the fire lion behind him was getting closer and closer. He could only frantically continue to flee in the northwest direction.

To the south lies the depths of the Blood Miasma Plain, and to the east lies back into Caiqiu District 21. He can only flee northwest to see if he can escape the Blood Miasma Plain.

"There's another way..."

Xia Hong was now at full strength, his left eye flashing as he constantly scanned his surroundings. He saw that the molten lava pillars he had dodged had inadvertently killed many high-level cold beasts, and even beast kings. A ruthless glint flashed across his face.

"Let's see how long you can keep being so fierce!"

He turned his head to look at the fire lion chasing after him, let out a cold laugh, and then turned and fled towards the ground, his target being the slain beast kings and high-level cold beasts.

"Saves me the trouble of doing it myself!"

The fire pillars summoned by the Fire Lion were mostly over five or six meters in diameter. Not to mention the hidden high-level Blood Frost Beasts, even the Beast King was instantly melted. Xia Hong didn't care about the Blood Jade Beads and Blood Jade Crystals scattered all over the ground. He just picked them up casually and stuffed them into his mouth without hiding them.

call out…………

However, after doing this twice, it immediately aroused the anger of the fire lion behind. It clearly understood Xia Hong's behavior, and with its hind legs leaping into the air, it aimed at the third area where Xia Hong was about to fall, and transformed into a giant blue-red fireball, arriving in an instant.

However, Xia Hong hadn't expected to succeed so easily the third time. He had already swallowed the blood jade crystal he had just obtained, and before he could even catch a glimpse of the towering flames approaching, he had already raised the Shattering Star Sword.

laugh…………

He retreated to dodge, then flipped in mid-air to gather strength, and the Shattered Star Sword returned straight along its original path, leaving behind a sharp sword blade hundreds of meters long.

The sword's edge was filled with countless starlight, instantly slicing through the blood miasma and heading straight for the pupil of the Azure-Eyed Fire Lion.

Heaven-Slaying Sword Technique!

After Xia Hong came to Caiqiu, he stole a martial art from Cai Yunzhou, the city lord of Qinghua City. However, unlike Cai Yunzhou's version, the one he was using now was the most perfect version. Combined with his long fist power-generating routine, the power could be increased by 50%.

With a base strength of 48 jun, amplified by 50% from both the sacred runes and martial arts, Xia Hong had already unleashed his strongest power, reaching a staggering 98 jun. Without considering his battle body and golden physique, in terms of sheer strength, he was only 2 jun away from the weakest Tribulation Realm expert.

"Roar…………"

However, faced with such a sword strike, the Azure-Eyed Fire Lion showed no fear whatsoever. On the contrary, Xia Hong's unexpected resistance seemed to further ignite its anger.

Without dodging or avoiding, it raised its head and roared. Along the path of Xia Hong's hundreds of swords flying towards it, pillars of blue molten lava and fire immediately rose up, attempting to completely deflect or block the force of Xia Hong's swords in mid-air.

Boom... Unfortunately, the Heaven-Slaying Sword Technique is inherently a fast sword technique. No matter how strong the Suanni is, it is nothing short of a pipe dream to think that it can block it at such a critical moment.

"call…………"

The Beast King still couldn't speak human language, but its emotional expressions were already not much different from those of humans. Realizing that it couldn't block Xia Hong's sword, the Suanni snorted out two streams of blue fire from its nostrils, and a cold smile appeared on its face. Then it took a deep breath and opened its blood-red maw to face the oncoming sword.

"roar………………"

A giant pillar of azure molten lava, about five zhang in diameter, suddenly spewed out from the depths of the Suanni's throat. As soon as the molten lava emerged, the raging azure flames vaporized the miasma along its path, burning out billowing smoke.

The speed of that molten lava pillar was even faster than Xia Hong's sword!

If the blue molten lava pillar that had just erupted from the ground was still within Xia Hong's ability to defend against, then the pillar of fire spewing from the mouth of the Suanni at this moment completely disarmed him of any will to resist.

Moreover, it wasn't just molten lava pillars!
laugh…………

The moment the sword clashed with the pillar of fire, Xia Hong's eyes flashed with a chaotic light. He saw the flames quickly engulf his entire body. Without the slightest hesitation, he drew his sword and turned to run.

"Azure flames, molten lava, power—and that's not all. The roar of this Suanni can also disturb one's mind. We can't fight it, we simply can't fight it. Luckily, before coming to Caiqiu last year, Mu Dong forged this Shattering Star Sword. Otherwise, if it were a weapon of 100,000 forging level, it would probably have been melted by the azure flames on the first hit..."

Xia Hong dashed westward dozens of meters in an instant. Seeing that the tip of the Shattered Star Sword in his hand was slightly melting, his pupils were filled with horror. He completely gave up the idea of ​​continuing to fight this Suanni.

"My skin is almost completely gone. My flesh and blood can only withstand three or four more blows at most. If the bones are damaged, I won't have a chance!"

As Xia Hong ran, he reached into the yellow mustard bag. A glint flashed in his left eye, but his expression hesitated. However, he quickly realized something. After clenching his fist and sensing the power, his pupils revealed a look of wild joy.

"The fire of the Suanni can accelerate my absorption of the Blood Jade Bead and Blood Jade Crystal. No, no, it's not the fire of the Suanni, it should be the fire elemental energy that helps me absorb them."

It can't kill me, and it can even help me absorb the Blood Jade Beads and Blood Jade Crystals!

Xia Hong ignored the charred remains on his body, realizing that his bones were not yet damaged and that most of his injuries were concentrated on his flesh and skin. A look of madness flashed in his eyes as he took his hand out of the yellow mustard bag and continued to flee westward.

"Bear with it a little longer, and only say it as a last resort!"

He pulled out the yellow mustard pouch, held a golden, round pill in his hand, swallowed it directly, roughly sensed the surrounding area, and then ran towards the area with the highest density of cold beasts with a cold look in his eyes.

"We still have six Saint Vein Pills left. At worst, we can use them all up inside and improve our strength. Maybe then we'll have a chance to escape!"

Visibility in the Blood Miasma Plains is low, but the perception range is still over 300 meters. The Azure-Eyed Fire Lion is not good at speed. Although Xia Hong could never shake it off, he could still barely escape.

The Sacred Vein Pill continuously repaired his injuries. As soon as he felt he had recovered enough, he changed course and landed, risking a blow from the Suanni, grabbing a handful of Blood Jade Beads and Blood Jade Crystals and stuffing them directly into his stomach.

The man and the beast, one fleeing and the other chasing, began to entangle in the outer area of ​​the Blood Miasma Plain. Xia Hong did not keep fleeing westward. In order to grab the Blood Jade Beads and Blood Jade Crystals on the ground, he changed his route and landed from time to time. When he was sure of his safety, he and the Fire Suanni started to circle around.

“48.5……49……49.3……49.7……50……”

There is no distinction between day and night in the Blood Miasma Plain. Despite his numerous injuries, Xia Hong eventually lost track of how long he had endured. He gritted his teeth and, with sheer grit, repeated the entire process over and over again.

With the help of the fire elemental energy of the Fire Lion, the large amount of blood jade beads and blood jade crystals that he had swallowed were continuously refined. His flesh and bone defects were also being rapidly repaired. His clothes were long gone, and he was completely naked. Although he was black and looked like a charcoal, the expression on his face became more and more excited, and the panic in his pupils gradually subsided.

"Roar…………"

Unlike him, the Azure-Eyed Fire Lion, unable to catch up after a long chase, became increasingly agitated. It clearly realized that Xia Hong was leading it in circles, and its roars became more and more frequent.

Bang bang bang bang…………

Xia Hong continued to run forward for a long time when suddenly a sound like a mountain collapsing and the earth splitting came from all directions. He looked up and around, his expression suddenly froze, and his pupils immediately filled with deep horror.

Dozens of beast king-level Suanni, each forty or fifty feet long, were rushing in from the west and north, while the blue-eyed Suanni was relentlessly pursuing from the east. He was suddenly forced to leave only one path.

call…………

Without hesitation, Xia Hong plunged headlong into the depths of the south side.

No matter how dangerous the situation, nothing is more important than saving your life!
Judging by the shenni's numbers, once surrounded, they are doomed.

"Roar…………"

After summoning its horde, the Azure-Eyed Fire Lion stopped releasing azure molten lava pillars at will. Instead, it roared and gave a few commands, and the dozens of beast king-level lions immediately bypassed it from the east and west sides and continued to chase after Xia Hong.

The Fire Lion also accelerated, continuing to chase Xia Hong deeper into the area, while a chilling aura rose from its two cyan-gold pupils.

The speed of the beast king-level Suanni was still far inferior to that of Xia Hong, so surrounding him would not be so easy.

Xia Hong ran south for five or six kilometers, and after realizing this, he immediately changed course and continued to turn west, trying to escape the encirclement.

boom…………

However, the Blue-Eyed Fire Lion didn't give him a chance at all.

Every time Xia Hong was about to break out of the encirclement, a pillar of cyan lava fire would shoot up from the front, forcing him to change course and continue south.

“52……53……54……55…………”

After an unknown amount of time, Xia Hong felt as if his body was about to burst from the Blood Jade Beads and Blood Jade Crystals. He hadn't fought the Fire Suanni for a long time and was only relying on his senses to estimate his power increase.

“56……57……58……59……60……61……”

Thanks to the potent effects of the Sacred Vein Pill, Xia Hong's injuries remained confined to his flesh and skin. His meridians kept breaking and healing, repeating this process over and over again.

But the elixir is ultimately finite!

He only had nine Sacred Vein Pills left when he entered the Blood Miasma Plains. He used two more during the chase in the Roman Flower Sea, leaving him with only seven in total. He didn't know how long it took to use those seven pills. In short, he used them whenever he felt his injuries were about to give out, until they were all used up.

"71 jin, the bone structure is still a little short of perfection..."

Reaching into the yellow mustard bag once more, Xia Hong retrieved the bottle containing the Sacred Vein Pill, shook it gently twice, and hearing no sound, frowned and threw the bottle away.

His flesh and blood had long since reached a perfect state, and he had stopped using the Blood Jade Beads a long time ago. Currently, only his bones still had defects, so he only used Blood Jade Crystals.

He could sense that his bones were only one step away from perfection.

But at this crucial moment, the Sacred Vein Pill is gone!
“71 Jun, under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t say I’d kill it, but I certainly wouldn’t be forced to this point. But now…”

Xia Hong turned his head to look at the Azure-Eyed Fire Lion that was still relentlessly pursuing him, clenched his fists, and his face was full of fury.

His strength has improved, but his current condition is terrible.

Having taken so many Sacred Meridian Pills in succession, his meridians were already overburdened. Now that the Sacred Meridian Pills had stopped, the aftereffects immediately appeared. Moreover, his injuries had been ongoing for a long time and were no longer limited to his skin and flesh. Cracks had appeared in the bones of his back, chest, abdomen, and side waist.

How bad was their condition?
He's so bad at it that he can't even use his martial arts properly!
"Even with the Holy Mark, I can only unleash a maximum of 106 jin of power, which is still not enough to fight it. If I turn back to confront it head-on now, I will surely die if I fall behind..."

Xia Hong gritted his teeth and continued running. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Azure-Eyed Fire Lion still relentlessly pursuing him, as well as dozens of Beast King-level Lions in the distance. His anger surged.

"I've been on the run for at least two months, and this beast is determined to kill me. Are all Five Elements Realm Beast Kings this stubborn?"

Although he had completely lost track of time, Xia Hong could still roughly sense that this battle royale had lasted for at least two months, meaning that Cai Qiu's group of disciples' trials were almost over.

This blue-eyed fire lion is so persistent in its pursuit of him.

That's absolutely incredible!
call…………

As Xia Hong was inwardly cursing the Fire Lion, a cyan hurricane suddenly flew towards his face, interrupting his train of thought. His expression changed drastically, and without hesitation, he reached into his yellow mustard bag and quickly took out a pill.

The pill was milky white inside, with a ring of fiery red patterns resembling magma on the outside, radiating intense heat.

Xia Hong swallowed the pill without even thinking.

The moment the pill entered his stomach, Xia Hong's originally charred face instantly turned crimson, and the molten lava patterns on his bones suddenly emitted a burst of intense light.

The light was so intense that it pierced through flesh and skin. His charred body surface instantly developed countless cracks of intense light, making it appear from a distance as if his body was on the verge of shattering.

Of course, that's not actually the case!
As the cracks appeared, it was as if something within Xia Hong's body had been awakened. Not only did his previously listless aura suddenly recover, but his momentum even continued to rise.

106...116...126...136...

If someone could see through Xia Hong's current strength, they would find that his basic strength was increasing wildly, from the original 106 jun to nearly 160 jun in an instant.

"You beast...you beast...you actually forced me to this point. Ten years to metabolize the poison, twenty years to slow down my cultivation speed, you've got guts, you've got guts, you've got guts..."

Xia Hong was already completely naked at this moment, but his entire body was charred black, and even his hair and eyebrows were gone, making it difficult to recognize his original form.

Of course, he had no time to care about his image at this moment. After taking the Bone Burning Pill, he felt his strength rapidly increase to 160 jun. He turned his head to look at the Azure-Eyed Fire Lion that had caught up behind him. There was no joy on his face, his tone was full of anger and resentment, and his pupils were filled with overwhelming killing intent.

He's been running around for so long, but the bottom line is he just doesn't want to use the Bone-Burning Pill.

The impact of ten years of elixirs metabolizing and the subsequent twenty years of cultivation speed on him is self-evident.

He would never use it unless absolutely necessary, even if it meant dying.

Having lived in the Ice Abyss for over ten years, I've experienced such dangerous situations before.

The problem is, this is the first time he's ever suffered such a huge loss!
Xia Hong suddenly turned his head and looked at the sky to the south. A three-headed wolf-shaped beast king, whose size was similar to that of a Suanni and whose body was covered with a blue mane, stood in the air with its four limbs stepping on the blue wind. The killing intent in its eyes did not diminish at all.

Wind belongs to Wood, and Wood is the Beast King of the Five Elements Realm!
While the Blue-Eyed Fire Lion was certainly hateful, the final straw that broke the camel's back was the three-headed wolf king that had just appeared before them.

If it weren't for this three-headed wolf king, he would have been confident he could hold out for a while and wouldn't have chosen to take the Bone Burning Pill. What if there was a chance to escape?

But now, it's too late to say anything!

"Die to me..."

With a roar, Xia Hong leaped backward, gathering his strength. The surge of power he had just unleashed poured out in an instant. His sword suddenly slashed through the blood-red sky, drawing a dazzling galaxy of sword energy in mid-air, reaching the face of the three-headed wolf king's head in the middle almost instantly.

Heaven-Slaying Sword Technique!

The three-headed wolf king clearly hadn't expected the Star River Sword Qi to be so fast. Its three pupils suddenly contracted, and its enormous body vanished into thin air in an instant.

Wind belongs to the element of wood, so speed is naturally what these three wolf kings excel at.

However, Xia Hong's current strength is far beyond what the Wolf King can match!
As if he had anticipated the Beast King's move, Xia Hong's Star River Sword Qi did not stop at all, but flew straight forward for another mile.

call out…………

The starry sword energy stretched for a thousand meters, cutting through the blood-red miasma, and penetrated straight for more than a mile before encountering a slight obstruction.

*Pfft... Crack...*

Flesh and blood tore apart, bones shattered, and crisp sounds rang out one after another. The three-headed wolf king's body froze at the end of the sword energy, while Xia Hong, holding the Shattering Star Sword, had already stood behind the beast king's head.

"With a strength of 240 jun, even an ordinary second-stage Tribulation Realm cultivator wouldn't be a match for me. You, a mere single-stage Five Elements Realm Beast King, dare to overturn the heavens!"

boom…………

Xia Hong's cold laugh was synchronized with the sound of the three-headed wolf king's body crashing to the ground. The blue-eyed fire lion, which was a kilometer away to the south, along with the dozens of beast king lions it brought, suddenly contracted its pupils and its entire beast face froze.

call…………

The Azure-Eyed Fire Lion froze for less than half a breath before quickly turning and fleeing to the east. The remaining dozens of beast kings didn't even have time to react.

call out…………

The result of his slow reaction was that he was hit by the shattering divine light that Xia Hong kept shooting from his left eye. His body cracked rapidly, his life force was cut off, and he collapsed to the ground with a thud.

"You like chasing, don't you? Run, now you want to run? I'll let you run. You only have three days. I don't have much time to waste on you. Die!"

Xia Hong's tone was chilling. He ignored the few remaining Beast King-level Suanni that had escaped and leaped forward, chasing straight after the Azure-Eyed Fire Suanni. The killing intent in his pupils was almost tangible.

The Bone Burning Pill only lasts for three days. Since it has been used, its effects should be maximized. Just leave some time to escape the Blood Miasma Plains, and use the rest of the time to hunt down the Beast Kings in the miasma zone.

It must not be taken again for ten years; the cultivation speed will slow down for the next twenty years.

Thinking of these two points, Xia Hong was filled with rage. In his eyes, the fleeing Azure-Eyed Fire Lion was already a dead body.

………………

We will leave aside Xia Hong's situation in the miasma zone for now.

On the tenth day of the eleventh month of the 297th year of the Caiqiu calendar, at night...
The tenth day of the trial.

In the snow-covered forest on the west side of the Caiqiu Trial Area, the cold wind howled, and not a single living person could be seen in sight. The ground, trees, rocks, mountains, and everything else seemed to be completely frozen. Even the blood-red miasma in the air appeared thinner than before due to the addition of a touch of frost.

On the west side of a mountain, a dozen young people were frantically fleeing.

"Su Xing'er, hurry up, the cold beast is catching up soon."

"Su Jing, this is too slow. If it's this slow, we're all going to die."

"The cold wave is getting stronger and stronger. If we can't find a cave to hide in soon, we're going to die."

…………

Their escape formation was quite interesting. They were divided into four groups: one woman and three men, each holding a yellow candle, with the others clustered around the four women. They looked extremely tense, wanting to speed up but not daring to, and could only urge the four women holding the yellow candles to go faster.

The four people holding yellow candles were none other than Su Xing'er and her three siblings.

Su Xing'er stood at the front, with Cai Shiqin next to her, and three other girls whose eyes kept glancing at the yellow candle in her hand, their eyes clearly filled with greed.

"There's a cave over there, quickly hide inside!"

Su Xing'er had noticed the three girls' eyes long ago, but her expression was unusually serious at the moment, clearly afraid of something else. She frantically searched for cover at the foot of the mountain and finally saw a cave entrance blocked by dry branches. She immediately exclaimed and warned everyone to hide in the cave.

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately looked in the direction she pointed and found a cave on the side. Their eyes were filled with ecstatic joy, and they quickly surrounded the four siblings holding yellow candles and ran towards the cave.

(End of this chapter)