Infinite Puzzle City

Chapter 901 Taking Everything and Making Nothing
After Xiao Ran took out the severed tail of the Nine-Lives Flood Dragon, she made the skin into a soft armor for the dragon, but she didn't know how to handle the dragon meat, so she gave it to Wu Man.

After that, Wu Man carefully preserved the meat and never even considered eating it.

Wu Man also knew that once this top-quality ingredient was used, there would be one less available. If its full potential couldn't be realized, using it carelessly would only waste the ingredient.

But things are different now. Wu Man is now a B-level professional, and her cooking skills are far superior to what they used to be. In addition, this time it involves ginseng essence and Xiao Ran's flesh and blood. If the dragon meat is not brought out, this dish will not be perfect.

Wu Man held the dragon meat in her hands and kneaded it for a while, then suddenly reached out and pulled, and the dragon meat was suddenly stretched into strands of noodles.

With a pull, a flick, and a tug, the strands of dough went from ten to a hundred, then a thousand, and a lump of dragon meat was actually torn into strands of dough.

All that's left is for the noodles to be put into the pot.

"boom--!!!"

It was as if stars had fallen into a furnace, or as if an ancient beast had broken free of its shackles! The chaotic thunderclouds and inverted galaxy brewing inside the True Flavor Cauldron were instantly ignited and detonated!
A beam of brilliant golden light, beyond description, accompanied by a deafening dragon's roar, shot into the sky from the mouth of the cauldron!

The beam of light did not shoot straight into the sky, but in an instant transformed into a lifelike, majestic, and powerful phantom of a giant golden dragon!

The golden dragon, carrying thunder and fire, soared straight into the sky. Its immense power tore a huge hole in the thick crimson sky above the treasure ship!

The dragon's roar shattered the clouds and pierced through the rocks, carrying the aura of primordial chaos, sweeping across all directions and spreading for thousands of miles!

"It worked! It worked! I never thought it would actually work!"

Wu Man watched the rising dragon shadow, trembling with excitement: "A-grade cursed item, Rising Dragon Noodles, hahaha, Old Xiao, you got your three pounds of blood for nothing!"

Three pounds of blood and a piece of flesh—with Xiao Ran's physical body and blood essence, he himself was a top-tier ingredient.

His body contains the power of dragon might, and with the assistance of ginseng essence, he now possesses dragon flesh as well.

Combined with Wu Man's top-notch culinary skills, she actually managed to create an A-grade dish, a feat that was beyond her usual level.

How could Wu Man not be excited?

But Xiao Ran was not happy at the moment; he glanced around.

Southwest!

Xiao Ran frowned.

A sharp and unparalleled sword light tore through the wind and snow with incredible speed, like a shooting star chasing the moon, carrying a chilling killing intent, its target straight for the treasure ship! Behind the sword light, several figures could be vaguely seen riding the wind closely behind, all of them possessing considerable aura.

These people were nothing like the petty thugs we'd encountered before; they made no attempt to conceal their presence or hide their figures.

Clearly, the other party must have extremely strong confidence in their own strength to dare to do this.

But it's not over yet.

To the north. A thick, impenetrable black cloud rolled in, and from within it came a low, chilling roar, as if a primordial beast was awakening. An aura of savagery, bloodlust, and greed pressed down from afar.

Lu Da suddenly stood up, took out his staff from his spatial storage, stared at the left and right sides of the treasure ship, and cursed, "Cook, stop laughing, you've gotten yourself into big trouble!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Man retorted, "If you have any trouble, you'd better solve it. Otherwise, don't even think about eating my noodles."

After saying that, Wu Man didn't forget to say to Xiao Ran, "Help me hold on for at least another half hour. At this point, it's still a little too hot to finish cooking."

Xiao Ran remained silent, simply standing up and taking out the [Dragon Abyss] from her spatial storage, standing at the bow of the ship.

Sword light cleaved the sky, and dozens of figures hovered on their swords.

The leader was a young man with a grim face, dressed in pale white bone armor, surrounded by a gray-white death aura, and standing on a hideous bone sword made from the spine of some kind of giant beast.

His eyes were arrogant, his gaze greedily fixed on the golden dragon phantom on the True Flavor Cauldron that had not yet completely subsided, and finally settled on Wu Man, who was holding the cauldron.

"Hmph!" The bone-armored youth snorted coldly, his voice like the scraping of metal, harsh and unpleasant to the ear: "I am Baili Xingdou, the young master of the Ten Thousand Bones Sword Tomb. Who are you lowly villains, daring to privately cook the treasure of the True Dragon? How could such a divine object be worthy of your mortal status? Quickly offer the contents of the cauldron to this prince, and perhaps you may be spared a complete corpse!"

"Hand over the divine artifact, and we'll leave you with your corpses intact!"

Behind him, a group of sword cultivators shouted in unison, their swords flashing and forming a sinister sword formation. Deathly aura and sharp energy intertwined, enveloping the treasure ship. The sword formation was like a hundred bones, exuding a chilling killing intent, as if the space itself had been frozen.

Xiao Ran knew the visitors were up to no good, but she never expected them to rob so brazenly and with such imposing manner.

If you didn't know better, you'd think these people were acting on behalf of Heaven to kill evil spirits.

Meanwhile, dark clouds churned to the north, and the phantom of a colossal beast with a single horn and covered in black scales roared within them, sending a stench through the air. Several pairs of greedy, gigantic eyes peered out from the clouds, and a hoarse, grating sound, like sand grinding against stone, rumbled forth:
"You brat, don't even think about hoarding this! This soup contains the essence of dragon essence, brimming with vital energy, and is a supreme tonic! Listen up, everyone on the ship, hand over the dragon soup, and I'll spare your lives. Otherwise, you and the ship will become my bloody feast!"

The two groups, one sinister and fierce, the other tyrannical and brutal, sandwiched the treasure ship in the middle, aggressively pressing forward and treating Xiao Ran and the others as nothing.

Xiao Ran turned to look at Lu Da and asked, "Are you familiar with these two places?"

"I'm not familiar with him. I only know that the guy who looks like a human but isn't is called Tiger Barbarian King. I fought him before, but I lost and got beaten up by him."

Lu Da stared in the direction of the Tiger Barbarian King and tightened his grip on his staff: "Leave this to me. Consider it payment for the meal from me, so that the cook won't complain as if I'm eating for free."

As Lu Da spoke, he couldn't help but glare at Wu Man.

Xiao Ran stood at the bow of the ship, holding the [Dragon Abyss] in his hand. Facing the pressure from the two powerful enemies, his expression was calm as still water, but his eyes were as cold as ice.

"What business is it of yours if my brother cooks a bowl of noodles? You want it?" He paused, then held up the Longyuan in his hand. "Take it if you can!"

"Arrogant!" Baili Xingdou was furious. As the young master of the Ten Thousand Bones Sword Tomb, he had been able to act with impunity in the outer area of ​​Changbai Mountain. How could he have ever been so looked down upon?

"Form the Ten Thousand Bones Immortal-Slaying Formation, capture this fiend, extract his soul and refine his spirit! That cauldron, I want it!"

"Kill!" Dozens of sword cultivators roared in unison, and the sword formation was activated instantly!
Countless pale white bone sword phantoms poured down like a torrential rain, each containing a bone-corroding and soul-destroying deathly sword aura, and a cold locking force wrapped around Xiao Ran, as if to nail him to the spot, piercing his heart with ten thousand swords!
Faced with this overwhelming, sinister, and fierce sword formation, Xiao Ran's eyes flashed with cold light!
"court death!"

Xiao Ran uttered two words, and the Dragon Abyss in his hand hummed and trembled! An invisible and intangible killing aura suddenly erupted.

Xiao Ran suddenly leaped up, and the Dragon Abyss in his hand was instantly activated.

The privilege of execution has been activated.

With a sweep of the blade, a beam of light suddenly cleaved out from the Dragon Abyss.

With Xiao Ran's current strength, and all his attributes having increased dramatically, even if he cannot unleash the true power of the Dragon Abyss, his power is in no way inferior to that of a B-level professional.

Moreover, as an A-grade cursed object, Longyuan already possesses terrifying privileges. Coupled with Xiao Ran's overwhelming advantage in attributes at this moment, the privilege effect is many times greater than before.

A crescent-shaped blade of light slashed down, but the group of sword cultivators paid it no mind.

The sword formation took shape instantly, and hundreds of sword beams covered the entire sky almost like a torrential rain in an instant.

However, to everyone's complete surprise, the instant the blade swept across, a dark red warning appeared before their eyes!
[Warning! You have been successfully targeted by the opponent's special privilege, "Execution"!]

Cursed items cannot be used!
Unable to move!

Unable to use professional skills!
A chilling notification instantly appeared in the minds of every sword cultivator who had formed an array! The once agile and fierce bone sword phantom, which had been drawing upon death energy, suddenly lost its luster and became stiff and lifeless.

All the sword cultivators who had formed an array, including Baili Xingdou, were suddenly frozen in mid-air as if they had been petrified!
The ferocity, murderous intent, and arrogance on their faces froze instantly, replaced by boundless horror and disbelief!
In that instant when their bodies stiffened and their minds trembled,

Xiao Ran made a move!

His figure was like a ghost. With each step he took, it was as if the earth had shrunk to an inch. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of Baili Xingdou!

Baili Xingdou's face turned pale, as if he realized at that moment that he had kicked a hornet's nest.

But he was Baili Xingdou, the young master of the Ten Thousand Bones Sword Tomb. Within the Changbai Snow Region, he didn't believe anyone would dare touch him. "My father is Baili Shenfeng, the master of the Ten Thousand Bones Sword Tomb, the gatekeeper of the Snow Mountain! You dare kill me?!"

"Why don't you dare!"

Baili Xingdou felt a sudden heaviness before his eyes, followed by a dizzying spin.

In a moment of horror, all he saw was his head being held in Xiao Ran's hand.

"Young...Young Master!!"

The sword cultivators who came with them were struck in the chest by an invisible giant hammer, and they all cried out in shock, their eyes almost popping out of their sockets.

"He...he killed the young master!! Fight him to the death!!"

Seeing their young master killed, they were all furious and wished they could tear Xiao Ran to pieces.

Xiao Ran would not give them any chance at all.

Killing Baili Xingdou was just the beginning for him; if he was going to kill, he would eliminate the root of the problem.

After collecting Baili Xingdou's corpse, Xiao Ran suddenly charged into the midst of these sword cultivators.

There were no fancy moves, no dazzling spells, just pure slaughter.

With the added privilege of execution, these sword cultivators were completely rendered helpless targets.

Xiao Ran was like a meat grinder, cutting through the crowd and leaving a trail of heads rolling in the next moment.

Blood flew everywhere.

In an instant, all of these dozens of sword cultivators were slaughtered.

This clean and efficient method surprised even the Tiger Barbarian King, who was still far away and hadn't yet made a move.

But this is not the end.

Suddenly, the image of the Yin Marshal, [Suppressing Calamity Order - Thief], appeared on Xiao Ran's waist and rose up behind him.

With palms open, the privileges of the Ghost Book and the Underworld are activated simultaneously.

Instantly, the yin spirits of these sword cultivators were also taken away.

Until Xiao Ran finally waved his hand and packed all the corpses into the Yin Soldier Gourd, he truly devoured them completely, leaving not even a bone fragment.

Tiger King swallowed hard. He had thought this guy was easy to bully, but he had kicked a rock instead.

But the Tiger King hasn't made a move yet, and as long as he hasn't, there's still room for maneuver.

His eyes darted around, and before Xiao Ran could make a move against him, he quickly said, "Impressive skills. I never expected that I would have such a hero among the younger generation after only three years in the mountains."

One day here is equivalent to one year outside, and three years is equivalent to three years outside. That means that the Tiger Barbarian King in front of us must have been a top expert more than four hundred years ago.

"Ha, Tiger Barbarian King, you can speak so sweetly? This is the first time I've ever seen that. How rare! Hahahaha..."

Lu Da, holding his staff, stood at the bow of the boat and laughed loudly.

Tiger Barbarian King snorted coldly: "Hmph, so it's you, my defeated opponent. You were lucky you ran away last time, otherwise I would have torn your bones apart and made soup from them."

"Bullshit! You bullied me when I was new here, now I'll show you what I'm capable of."

Seeing Lu Da raise his staff and charge at him, Tiger Barbarian King quickly raised his hand: "Wait, I didn't come here to fight you."

"We're not here to fight. That's not what you were shouting just now. Did I mishear you, or did you change your tune, old man?"

“Hey, this place has always been a dog-eat-dog world. Might makes right. Naturally, whoever has the stronger fist gets to listen to them. This brother has the strength, so I naturally wouldn’t dare to fight him. But this Dragon Soup is indeed of great benefit to me, and I can offer my sincerity in exchange.”

Tiger King spoke very bluntly, a point that even Lu Da couldn't refute, just like when he first met Xiao Ran.

Didn't Lu Da chase after Xiao Ran with the intention of killing him just because Xiao Ran peeked at him once?

If Xiao Ran hadn't been his match, do you think Lu Da would have held back?

"How do you want to trade?"

Xiao Ran had already returned to the deck. He looked at the Tiger Barbarian King hiding in the shadows, his eyes penetrating the shadows and directly seeing his body.

Then one could see the true face of the Tiger Barbarian King: an old man with a full head of white hair, his blood and qi withered, clearly indicating that his own blood and qi were severely depleted.

Logically, although he was a figure from four hundred years ago, he could only have lived here for three years at most, so there's no reason for him to have aged so much.

Seeing that Xiao Ran had directly seen through his hidden gloom, Tiger Barbarian King was immediately filled with shock.

How come such a figure suddenly appeared in just four hundred years? He doesn't look that old.
"It seems that you are indeed in great need of this dragon soup, but I wonder what kind of sincerity you can offer."

"That's natural."

Tiger Barbarian King took out a box from his spatial storage and handed it to Xiao Ran: "Since you are traveling on a treasure ship, you should know that the places the treasure ship passes through are not good places. I won't say more. The contents of this box are substantial enough."

As he said this, he threw the box at Xiao Ran.

Xiao Ran reached out and took the box from a distance, but instead of taking it directly in her hand, she carefully opened it from three meters away.

After Xiao Ran saw what was in the box, she slammed it shut and looked at Wu Man, saying, "Give him a bowl."

Upon hearing Xiao Ran speak, Wu Man nodded.

In that instant, the dragon's roar echoed, and then the golden light vanished, and the afterimage of the golden dragon returned to the cauldron.

In an instant, the dark clouds inside the cauldron dispersed, revealing a faint golden light.

Wu Man quickly took out a portion, placed it in a thermos, and then turned around and handed it to Xiao Ran.

Xiao Ran weighed the options: "This should be enough, but I have one small request."

"What are your requirements!"

Tiger King immediately became alert.

"Your blood and energy are so severely depleted, can you tell me what happened?"

Upon hearing Xiao Ran's request, Tiger Barbarian King hesitated for a moment before saying, "I was tricked. Not long ago, a group of outsiders came. We agreed to enter a forbidden area together to retrieve treasure, but they not only broke their promise but also stabbed me in the back, almost killing me there."

The Tiger Barbarian King revealed the secret of his serious injury, which can only be attributed to his carelessness. Fortunately, he always had the habit of keeping a backup plan to save his life.

Therefore, even after suffering heavy losses, the Tiger Barbarian King will still be able to escape unscathed.

"Outsider, who is this group you're talking about?"

Xiao Ran was very curious about the team that Tiger Barbarian King had mentioned.

Sure enough, Tiger Barbarian King said, "This group is very bad. They call themselves the Evergreen Society, and their leader is also a young man. He is about the same age as you, but he is ruthless and extremely cunning. He is the one who attacked me. His name is Su Xinghe."

(End of this chapter)