Chapter 376

Glancing at Zi Yan, Xiao Yan smiled and said, "Want me to cut off a piece for you? I heard your clan eats this."

Instantly, Zi Yan looked at Xiao Yan with utter disgust and grumbled, "What do you take me for? Even if I ate it, I'd want something fresh—this has been dead how long?"

Zi Yan's true form is the Heavenly Ancient Dragon! What's a Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan? Just a snack.

The corpse of the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan filled more than half the room; Xiao Yixian and Ya Fei both recoiled in disgust, shot Xiao Yan a scornful look, and immediately left his room, refusing to stay near him.

It's way too stinky!

But for beasts like Zi Yan and the Lion Kings, this corpse's stench meant nothing—their sense of smell differs from humans'.

"Zi Yan, how do we extract the Magic Core and essence blood?" Xiao Yan, though repulsed by the smell, was desperate to dissect the Heavenly Demon Phoenix corpse—he was eager to craft the Heavenly Goose Nine-Step Wings!

Especially those jade-like Bone Wings, which, under the soft lamplight, reflected a faint luminescence, appearing strangely magnificent.

Zi Yan thought for a moment and said, "First, take down those bone spines. The Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan excels in speed—those spines contain power no weaker than an ordinary Eight-Rank beast."

Xiao Yan nodded, stepped lightly, and halted before the pair of two-to-three-zhang-wide jade Bone Wings. He crouched, gently stroking the wings—the surface was icy cold, yet beneath that chill lingered a faint warmth. Hard to imagine a corpse dead for countless years could still radiate heat.

The jade Bone Wings were slightly translucent, so Xiao Yan could clearly see the strange energy swirling through them like drifting plankton.

Without hesitation, he wrapped his palm in Wind-Rage Dragon Flame, turned his hand into a blade, and with two sharp hisses of scorching Gale Wind, sliced off the bone spines.

Once detached from the body, the jade Bone Wings showed no dimming of luster—this relieved Xiao Yan; he'd feared they'd turn to dust the moment removed. Clearly, his worry was unfounded.

But when Xiao Yan cut into the corpse, a sour, putrid stench made him nearly vomit.

"Are all Heavenly Demon Phoenixes like this?!" Xiao Yan mentally grumbled, his impression of the clan taking a major hit.

Xiao Yan turned to Zi Yan, who was playing with the corpse's claws and fangs, and asked, "Zi Yan, where's the Magic Core and essence blood? You know, right?"

Hearing Xiao Yan's question, Zi Yan extended her small hand, palm open, and grinned sweetly: "One Seven-Grade Pill."

Xiao Yan froze, then laughed bitterly, slapping her palm with a sharp *pop*: "You little brat—you're extorting me!"

Zi Yan snatched her hand back, pouting: "Treat everyone equally! You favor Xiao Yixian!"

"Fine, fine, I owe you—I'll refine one for you when I return to Jia Nan Academy." Xiao Yan was utterly exasperated—he'd been blackmailed!

"Hehehe, you said it," Zi Yan beamed, grinning. "Burn it! The essence blood's in the flesh, the Magic Core's in the head. Burn the flesh first, collect the essence blood, then drip a tiny drop into the head and burn again—the essence blood will absorb the head's energy and coalesce into a Magic Core. But your flame must be fierce—too weak won't work."

Xiao Yan rolled his eyes—he now possessed Nine Infernal Flames; after full fusion, their power should rank just below the top three.

Without further delay, he activated Ten-Thousand Beasts Spiritual Flame and began burning.

As the flames enveloped the corpse, waves of terrifying heat spread, eventually seeping entirely into the beast's body.

With the heat penetrating, the dried-chicken-breast-like flesh began hissing loudly, shrinking slowly within the fire. Soon, the pale white surface vanished, replaced by faint bluish-red hues.

"Huh? This strange effect?" Xiao Yan was startled—he'd used Spirit Realm Soul Force and detected nothing, yet burning triggered this reaction.

Quickly, as Ten-Thousand Beasts Spiritual Flame refined the corpse, a single drop of bluish-red essence blood began to coalesce.

Xiao Yan acted swiftly, pulling a high-quality Jade Bottle from his space ring and catching the drop inside.

Knowing it worked, he diligently continued refining. After great effort, he finally reduced the corpse of the long-dead Heavenly Demon Phoenix to ash, obtaining a small vial of bluish-red essence blood.

"This head's surprisingly heat-resistant." After burning the entire body, only the skull remained intact.

"The Magic Core's inside the head—turn up the heat!" Zi Yan said.

Xiao Yan nodded, no longer holding back—he fused Ten-Thousand Beasts Spiritual Flame, Falling Heart Flame, and Lotus Earth Core Fire. As Ten-Thousand Beasts Glorious Flame erupted, the temperature of the entire space surged again.

The terrifying heat made even the curious Little Lion King drenched in sweat—imagine how intense it was.

At that moment, the blood inside the skull, like a water droplet, slowly swelled, absorbing special energies from the entire brain.

Watching this, Xiao Yan's eyes gleamed with delight—he immediately intensified the temperature of Ten-Thousand Beasts Glorious Flame.

*Jiū!! * Though the essence blood slowly took shape, suddenly a piercing, resonant cry rang out—a bluish-red mist burst from the flames, gradually forming a phoenix-like bird. A terrifying energy pressure radiated from it.

"Oh? Some residual Spiritual Soul still lingers in the head," Xiao Yan sneered. He focused his mind—Spirit Realm Soul Power surged from his body, and black Hun Chains shot from his feet, locking tightly around the bluish-red mist.

At that moment, Space suddenly tore open, and a small black cat appeared.

Mao Wu, like a night cat snatching a bird, pounced and bit—grabbing the bluish-red bird. Terrifying Void Swallowing Flame Earth Sub Flame surged forth. With elegant feline steps, he dragged the "bird" into the Void and began feasting.

"In the end, it's just a Seven Rank Peak beast dead for years—if you were alive, I might respect you a bit," Xiao Yan sneered. A Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan corpse dead countless years dared show off before him?

Soon after Mao Wu dragged the bluish-red mist into the Void, a brilliant flash erupted—lasting only an instant—then slowly faded. When the last glimmer vanished, Xiao Yan opened his eyes, and his gaze froze.

A bluish-red, irregularly shaped Crystal floated motionless in midair. As it rotated slowly, faint bluish-red glimmers radiated out—and even these leaking energy rays caused the surrounding Space to slightly warp.

Staring fixedly at the Crystal, clearly brimming with terrifying energy, Xiao Yan drew a deep breath, his eyes blazing with intense heat.

"Excellent! Truly worthy of a Half-step Eight Rank Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan Magic Core—packed with powerful, pure energy!"

Magic Cores aren't just for refining Elixirs—they're also needed to forge weapons, armor, even golems.

For Xiao Yan, crafting the Heavenly Goose Nine-Step Wings also required a Magic Core.

Flying Dou Techniques are, in essence, flying weapons—only because of their unique crafting method, they're sealed within Scrolls, hence called "Dou Techniques."

When Xiao Yan first used the Purple Cloud Wings, he never trained them seriously—there was no "minor" or "major" mastery; no matter how much he trained, his speed stayed the same.

Seeing Xiao Yan refine a Flying Dou Technique, Zi Yan lost interest and left. Before departing, she reminded him: "Don't forget to refine me a Pill."

Xiao Yan spared no expense refining the Heavenly Goose Nine-Step Wings—how powerful the Flying Dou Technique became depended entirely on the quality of the materials.

The base jade bones came from a Half-step Eight Rank Heavenly Demon Phoenix—if crafted well, the Flying Dou Technique could reach Quasi Heavenly Rank levels.

Not just the jade bones—Xiao Yan also used up most of the small vial of refined Heavenly Demon Phoenix essence blood, and pulled from his space ring various collected Infernal Bones for refining.

Feathers, bone spines, and numerous small wings—all different in shape, yet sharing one trait: each contained some energy. Though not overwhelmingly strong, this energy would greatly enhance the Flying Wings.

Xiao Yan even asked the Lion Kings for some of their purple Crystals that absorbed solar power, adding them to the refining process.

Even with his Cultivation Realm at Eight-Star Demonic Realm and his Soul Force at Spirit Realm, using the fused Three Infernal Flames of Ten-Thousand Beasts Glorious Flame, he still spent an entire day and night.

After a day and night, everything within the Ten-Thousand Beasts Glorious Flame was fully refined into a milky-white liquid, faintly tinged with bluish-red hues.

Xiao Yan's keen Soul Force even sensed a trace of wind and thunder energy.

"Legend says the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan commands wind and thunder—apparently true," Xiao Yan murmured, then began shaping the liquid with his Soul Force into his desired form.

After about half an hour, the milky liquid finally took shape.

Before Xiao Yan appeared a pair of roughly one-zhang-long and wide Bone Wings. Along their edges extended silver spines, about an inch long, faintly wreathed in lightning. Other parts bore varying bluish-red patterns, and most magnificent were the purple gems embedded upon them, radiating gentle warmth—utterly mysterious and magnificent.

If I took these wings out for a flight, they'd draw far too much attention.

Gazing at the formed bone wings, Xiao Yan's eyes flooded with uncontrollable elation; he drew a deep breath, shifted his spirit, and the infernal heat of the Ten Thousand Beasts Glazed Fire surged violently—then instantly retracted.

"Just one step left." Xiao Yan pulled out the half-step Eight Rank Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan Magic Core; as the energy core, it could supply immense power, and with Xiao Yan's Dou Qi added, the explosive speed would become even more terrifying.

Magic Crystal Weapons operate on this principle.

Xiao Yan gently released it, and the crimson-and-amber Magic Core floated slowly to the center of the bone wings—whirr! With a sharp click, it embedded itself firmly into the center of the wings.

BOOM!!! Instantly, a terrifying thunderstorm swept through the entire room—BOOM BOOM BOOM!!! Bolts of lightning shot from the bone wings, obliterating everything in Xiao Yan's room; the tornado ripped up all objects and shattered them completely.

"Good! Excellent, truly excellent!" Xiao Yan licked his lips; he was extremely satisfied with his first crafted Flying Dou Technique.

Only a Dou Technique of this level would actually help Xiao Yan! If it were only Earth-Rank Low-Level, he'd be better off just swallowing pills.

Gazing at the bone wings, Xiao Yan's lips curled in quiet satisfaction; he bit his middle finger, letting a drop of crimson blood fall, finally landing upon the wings.

The moment the blood touched the wings, Xiao Yan swiftly absorbed it, then a brilliant jade-like light erupted—swoosh! —transforming into a beam of light that shot into Xiao Yan's body.

Instantly, searing pain spread from Xiao Yan's back through his entire body; he could feel the bone wings' ferocity and wildness, like a wild horse unwilling to be tamed.

"Hmph!" Xiao Yan let out a cold snort; his shadow beneath his feet writhed again, clumps of ominous black mist began crawling slowly upward from his feet, climbing all the way to his back, as if a black hand gripped the bone wings, as if a pair of demonic Asura eyes watched with predatory intent.

No matter how fierce the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan's bone wings were, they could not match the brutality of the Soul Sovereign's Earth Rank Advanced Grade Soul Technique; soon, under the Asura's gaze, the wings gradually grew still, fully merging into Xiao Yan's body.

"Good of you to submit."

Xiao Yan stomped his foot, crushing the Shen Yuan beneath him; having reached the Spirit Realm Soul, he was gradually gaining control over the Asura Soul-Cutting Technique.

Xiao Yan shifted his spirit, and instantly—sssshh! —broad bone wings glowing with jade light erupted violently from his back; they fluttered slowly as he sensed the wind elemental energy in the surrounding heavens and earth becoming extraordinarily acute. He licked his lips—this time, he'd truly forged a treasure.

"Pity—the materials were still a bit lacking; only Earth Rank Advanced Grade." Xiao Yan still felt a tinge of regret; though the jade bone, essence blood, and Magic Core had all reached half-step Eight Rank, the other materials fell short, failing to reach his ideal state.

Still, Xiao Yan was quite satisfied—he had no other equipment besides the Xuan Heavy Ruler; now he had added a pair of flying bone wings to boost his speed, and he had no complaints.

Glancing at the ruined room, Xiao Yan shook his head; too lazy to tidy up, he left a small pouch of Gold Coins as compensation, and stepped out.

At this moment, Xiao Yixian and the others were already waiting outside; it had been a day and a half since the auction.

"They should've had time to think it over—I hope they're smart enough." Xiao Yan gave a cryptic smile, gazing toward the Sky.

Of course, deep down, he hoped these bone wings would be put to use today!

(End of Chapter)