"Bang!"
A dull thud echoed, and the black bear staggered.
Zhou Yan seized the opportunity and threw another punch.
"Crack!"
This punch directly blew up the black bear's head, turning it into scattered dust.
"Hoo... hoo..."
At this moment, Zhou Yan's face also turned pale.
Although his strength had increased tenfold, reaching five thousand jin, the consumption was still too great.
Merely activating the dragon-shaped tattoo for a short while had drained Zhou Yan's stamina completely, leaving his forehead covered in beads of sweat.
"Hoo... hoo..."
Zhou Yan panted heavily and sat down on the ground.
He was pale and weak, like a candle flame in the wind, on the verge of extinguishing at any moment.
"Huh?"
However, just as Zhou Yan's tension eased slightly, he was surprised to find a ball of ethereal blue flame silently rising beside the black bear's corpse.
The flame then rapidly expanded, condensing into a fist-sized fireball.
"Rumble!"
As the flame continued to burn, this fireball gradually grew into a basketball-sized inferno!
Zhou Yan narrowed his eyes, a look of shock on his face.
He could clearly feel the immense power contained within the fireball.
"Rumble!"
The fireball churned violently, seemingly on the verge of exploding!
At this moment, Zhou Yan noticed that the dragon-shaped mark on the center of his brow, which had been dull and lifeless, was slowly regaining its vitality, emitting wisps of soft golden light.
In the next instant, those golden runes actively leaped into the fireball.
"Crack!"
In an instant, the fireball seemed to ignite, erupting with infinite radiance, like a scorching sun!
"Swish!"
With the descent of this golden light, the entire cave was bathed in a brilliant golden hue.
Zhou Yan's eyes widened abruptly.
He saw the basketball-sized fireball instantly transform into a thumb-sized speck of light, which finally merged into Zhou Yan's forehead and disappeared.
Zhou Yan's physique, however, underwent a profound and mysterious transformation.
"Hmm? What a strange feeling."
At this moment, Zhou Yan frowned and murmured, "My body feels much lighter."
He stood up, walked to the cave wall, and reached out to touch it.
Indeed, the cracks on the large rock had all healed and had become incredibly hard, impossible to damage even with his full strength.
"Could it be that this rock, like the outside, is also a manifestation of a treasure?" Zhou Yan's eyes flickered. "If so, there must be many more treasures in this cave!"
Thinking of this, Zhou Yan's breathing suddenly quickened.
As long as he had enough spirit crystals, Zhou Yan was confident that he could successfully advance to the Qi Condensation realm.
"However, before that, I must lure away those fierce beasts." Zhou Yan exhaled a deep breath, then turned and ran towards the cave entrance.
...
"Rumble~~"
Inside the cave, hundreds of black bears were furiously attacking Zhou Yan, their assaults relentless as they tried to tear him apart.
Alas, no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't get within half a step of Zhou Yan's body.
"Rumble~~"
With a violent tremor, a group of black bears was fleeing madly, scattering in all directions.
Ahead of them was a vast lake.
Water splashed, and waves surged.
A colossal creature rose from the lakebed, stirring up immense waves that blotted out the sky, sweeping towards the black bears.
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
"Squeak!"
Instantly, hundreds of black bears cried out in terror, interspersed with piercing wails, fleeing in a panic, desperate to escape.
This was a giant crocodile, enormous in size, about seven or eight people in circumference, covered in scales and exuding an icy aura.
"Puff!"
It opened its gaping maw and bit down on a black bear, pulling with all its might.
"Crack!"
The black bear's massive head was directly torn off, its blood spraying.
The crocodile's tail swept out, striking another black bear and sending it flying.
At the same time, the crocodile's scales shattered, and dark red blood flowed, dyeing the entire lake crimson.
And on the crocodile's body, a dark red sphere floated in the void, emitting a dense, chilling aura that made even Zhou Yan feel a chill run down his spine.
"This... this is..."
Zhou Yan's eyes widened, his face a picture of stunned disbelief as he gazed at the peculiar sphere.
"Could this be the legendary... Demonic Core?!"
The Demonic Core was the foundation of cultivation for the demon race.
It was said to be the inner core left behind by a powerful demon after its demise.
Such an inner core was a priceless treasure to demon cultivators, sought after even by Foundation Establishment cultivators and even Golden Core transcendent beings.
"If I can get my hands on this inner core, I can quickly advance to the Qi Condensation realm."
Zhou Yan's gaze was burning with intense desire.
"Boom!"
As Zhou Yan was lost in thought, a deafening roar suddenly came from afar. Immediately after, a brilliant green light appeared in the dense forest, like a rainbow piercing the sun, instantly traversing hundreds of meters and streaking towards them.
"Whoosh!"
It was an arrow, whistling through the air, piercing the void, and instantly piercing the chest of a black bear.
The black bear's body instantly splattered with blood, and it fell heavily to the ground, emitting a pained cry.
"Roar~ Roar~ Roar~"
The other black bears, seeing this, became enraged and pounced, intending to snatch the Demonic Core.
"Boom!"
The giant crocodile also counterattacked, raising its massive head and powerfully swinging its tail.
This whip cracked through the air, its force like thunderclaps, sending a black bear flying.
With a dull "bang,"
The black bear's body slammed into the trunk of a tree, shattering it and falling into the lake.
"Splash splash~~"
The lake's surface churned, and the black bear instantly disappeared.
"Hiss~"
The remaining black bears, startled by this, quickly turned and fled for their lives.
"Bang bang bang~"
However, as they turned, they were pulled by an invisible force and crashed into a massive boulder, their heads spinning.
Immediately after, a tall figure swept past them, heading straight for the Demonic Core.
"Whoosh—"
This tall figure was Zhou Yan.
"Roar!"
"Gurgle~"
Seeing Zhou Yan, the black bears' pupils contracted, and without hesitation, they suddenly turned and lunged at Zhou Yan.
"You're seeking death!"