Post-Battle Harvest, Talent: Netherfire Food Refinement!

The night breeze was slightly cool.

In the darkness, shadowy figures roamed the mountains and fields, searching for prey.

The outside world is fraught with danger and peril.

As dawn broke, the spirits sensed the pure yang purple energy rising from the ground, and reluctantly retreated into the depths of the dark tide.

The world has returned to its former vitality.

It was as if everything that happened in Black Mountain Village last night had never happened.

At dawn, the whole village appeared peaceful and serene.

In the Shen family's courtyard.

Shen Yi lay on the ground with a relaxed air.

The smile on his face was impossible to hide, his chest heaving as he greedily inhaled the fresh morning air.

The scene of facing the lantern ghost was still vivid in my mind.

Unexpectedly, this lantern ghost, comparable to the late stage of the Qi and Blood Realm, actually died at his hands!

The binding effect of the Shadow Cage, combined with the slowing effect of the swamp, restricted the Lantern Ghost's mobility by at least 90%!

However, if it were later in the evening, it might be able to break free of its restraints.

Fortunately, at the crucial moment, they accidentally struck the lantern ghost's vital point, thus defeating this powerful monster that had evolved from the lantern ghost!

After a while.

Shen Yi's smile faded slightly as he recalled how his stamina had been depleted like a river bursting its banks when he upgraded the Yin Wood Spear to level 4, nearly causing him to collapse from exhaustion!

Furthermore, the shape of the Yin Wood Spear has undergone significant changes.

The surface of the spear shaft is covered with intricate and mysterious patterns, appearing somewhat rough.

While he was dealing with the Lantern Demon, the Yin Wood Spear seemed to unleash a strange power, which finally destroyed some kind of substance inside the Lantern Demon's body!

Shen Yi's heart stirred slightly, and he became extremely interested in the specific effects of the Level 4 Yin Wood Spear.

However, he is currently in a state of near exhaustion and needs to lie on the ground to recover his energy.

"Big brother, how are you feeling? Are you hurt?" Shen Yuan knelt beside him, her face full of anxiety.

"I'm fine, I'm just exhausted. Let me rest for a while," Shen Yi said weakly.

"Then, brother, I'll go get you some monster meat right now to help you recover your energy!"

Upon hearing this, Shen Yuan immediately left and got up to cook the monster meat for Shen Yi.

After learning that his elder brother was alright, Shen Kun breathed a sigh of relief and turned around to dismantle all the lantern ghosts he had hunted that night into Yin Soul Wood.

They then dragged the lantern ghost's corpse, which had sunk into the swamp, out of the mud.

Looking at the enormous, robust, and broad-shouldered monster lying on the ground before him, which was over two meters tall, he was struck by its presence.

A hint of horror flashed in Shen Kun's eyes.

It wasn't very noticeable last night.

At this moment, they were examining the motionless lantern ghost up close.

He suddenly felt an inexplicable and intense sense of pressure on a spiritual level, as if he could hardly breathe.

It has been confirmed that the Lantern Ghost is indeed dead.

Shen Kun suppressed some of his fear.

Even if the entire hunting team were to face this lantern ghost, they would probably suffer heavy casualties.

It's unbelievable that it died in its own yard!

Shen Kun couldn't help but look back at his older brother lying on the ground, and a feeling of pride welled up in his heart.

This is the all-powerful older brother in his heart who shelters them from the wind and rain!

At this time.

Shen Yi regained some strength and was finally able to get up from the ground.

After barely managing to stand up.

His gaze swept over the courtyard, now a scene of devastation after the war.

Two patches of muddy ground have dried up and cracked.

Information about the marshland came to mind.

[Maze - Level 1]

【Function: Traps Spirits】

【Characteristic: Muddy (white, can slow down spirits)】

【Durability: 3/100】

……

[Maze - Level 1]

【Function: Traps Spirits】

【Characteristic: Muddy (white, can slow down spirits)】

【Durability: 5/100】

……

……

Aside from three swampy areas that were not severely damaged, the other two swampy areas had durability values ​​approaching zero, rendering them useless to the sprites.

Unfortunately, Shen Yi didn't have any swamp soil on hand to upgrade it, so he had to abandon the two swampy areas.

Then he looked around the yard.

The spirit runes on the level 2 wall have become somewhat blurred, and its durability is still 74 despite being eroded by the Lantern Ghost.

In their attempt to defeat the Lantern Demon, they exhausted their Deep Black Arrows, which were easily destroyed by the Lantern Demon.

To produce a new batch of Deep Black Arrows, we need to spend a lot of Yin Soul Wood.

and also.

Yesterday, two level 2 Yin Wood spears and one level 3 Yin Wood spear were also destroyed and reduced to a pile of broken wood.

We need to forge another Yin Wood spear for Shen Kun.

This fierce battle caused him heavy losses!

Even if we kill this lantern-carrying ghost, it probably won't make up for it.

Shen Yi felt a pang of heartache.

I just hope the Lantern Ghost can provide him with something of value.

……

Shen Kun was cleaning up the lantern ghost's corpse.

The lantern ghost resembles a skeleton.

It was made entirely of black wood, and it wore a tattered raincoat. The eerie lantern in its hand had already dimmed.

Shen Kun then realized that the lantern of the Lantern Ghost was connected and fused with its left hand, and was actually an integral part of it.

He picked up the machete, ready to cut open the lantern ghost's corpse.

However, with a "clang," the machete seemed to strike steel, scattering two or three sparks.

Shen Kun was stunned.

So hard?

Fortunately, the Lantern Demon's body wasn't entirely tough, and he quickly dealt with the parts he could cut.

Inside its body, they found a sphere about the size of a longan, and a black heart that had been pierced through.

This jet-black heart had a faint, shimmering, blood-red sheen, making it appear to be no ordinary Yin Soul Wood.

They found that there were only these two things in his body.

Shen Kun had no choice but to give up.

He put the items away, along with the collected Yin Soul Wood, and brought them to his elder brother's side.

"Brother, I found these two items inside the Lantern Ghost, and the Yin Soul Wood I got from hunting the Lantern Ghost last night is also here, a total of two hundred and fifty-three pieces."

Shen Yi remained calm.

He had little hope for the lantern ghost's things and casually took them.

[A rare Tier 1 folk material, 'Soul Nourishing Wood,' has been detected. Collect it?]

The Lantern Ghost's heart was actually a rare material called "Soul-Nourishing Wood".

They had absolutely no idea what Soul-Nourishing Wood was.

Despite over sixty years of development, Heishan Village has actually had very limited exploration of spirits and monsters.

I wonder what this soul-nourishing wood heart of the Lantern Ghost can be used to forge?

After consuming it, the item "[Soul Nourishing Wood*1]" immediately appeared in the collection bar.

"Such a big heart, and it's only considered a unit?"

Shen Yi shook his head slightly.

If he has two units of Soul Nourishing Wood, he can put one unit of Soul Nourishing Wood into the Folk Core to unlock the relevant blueprints.

Let's keep it for now.

It might be able to replace a large amount of Yin Soul Wood to upgrade other items.

Thinking this, a new line of text appeared before Shen Yi's eyes.

[The essence of the special spirit, Lantern Ghost, has been detected. Refine it?]

[Refining the essence has a chance to extract the spirit's own talents, inherited information, and energy!]

The success rate of refining depends on the amount of materials used; the more materials used, the more complete the smelting process.

A portion of the energy will be returned if the smelting fails.

……

"Um!?"

Shen Yi glanced casually at the newly appeared information, and his pupils suddenly contracted.

He actually possessed the ability to refine essence.

It can melt down the essence of the spirit itself!

A surge of intense joy welled up in Shen Yi's heart.

Immediately.

He checked the energy required to refine this essence.

[Required refining materials: 1 Soul Nourishing Wood, 1000 Yin Soul Wood!]

"What?"

So expensive!

Shen Yi looked stunned when he saw the required materials.

He subconsciously glanced at the information in the current collection section.

Materials collected: 785 Shadow Wood, 2 Mist Shadow Stones, 1 Soul Nourishing Wood

Yesterday, the Yin Wood Spear was destroyed by the Lantern Ghost.

Shen Yi had no choice but to reforge two Yin Wood spears.

After a quick calculation, upgrading to level 3 Yin Wood Spear requires 80 Yin Soul Wood.

Upgrading from level 3 to level 4 actually consumed 100 Soul Wood.

Last night, a total of 260 Soul Wood were consumed.

There are only 700+ Soul Wood left, plus the 253 Soul Wood obtained last night.

Shen Yi had just over a thousand pieces of Yin Soul Wood in his hand.

Now that all their buildings and weapons have been damaged to varying degrees, it is absolutely necessary to reserve a certain amount of Yin Soul Wood for repairs.

It seems that refining the essence will have to wait for a while.

Put things away.

Shen Yi devoured all the Yin Soul Wood on the ground, and the number of Yin Soul Wood he collected returned to the thousand mark.

"Brother, the monster meat is ready to stew, hurry up and eat."

Shen Yuan's voice came from the kitchen.

The figure quickly approached, carrying a large bowl of fragrant, richly aromatic meat in both hands, and placed it on the table.

Shen Kun couldn't help but swallow hard; his stomach was growling. He immediately leaned over and said, "I was almost starving, big brother, come quick!"

Shen Yi smiled slightly and was about to go over when he suddenly noticed the corpse of the lantern ghost next to him. Why did it look so much like the material of Yin Soul Wood?

He tried to reach out and place his hand on the skeleton of the lantern ghost.

[Tier 1 Folk Material 'Soul Wood' detected. Collect it?]

I was right!

Shen Yi's eyes lit up.

This really is made of Yin Soul Wood!

His mind stirred slightly.

Collection confirmed!

The next second, the lantern-carrying ghost skeleton in front of him instantly melted away and disappeared into his arm.

[Materials collected: 1728 Shadow Wood]!

Shen Yi was stunned when he saw the number.

The corpse of a lantern ghost actually provided him with 690 units of Soul Wood!?

A restless thought immediately popped into my mind.

More than 1,700 pieces of Yin Soul Wood...

If one were to use a thousand pieces of Yin Soul Wood to refine the essence of the Lantern Ghost.

The remaining seven hundred or so pieces of Yin Soul Wood should be enough for them to repair what they need after the war.

Since we'll have to refine this Lantern Ghost Essence sooner or later, we might as well refine it now and see what unexpected gains it might bring.

Whether it's talent, inherited information, or energy, it's all worthwhile!

He might gain something unexpected that would allow him to improve his strength as soon as possible.

Moreover, if the refining fails, a small portion of the energy will be returned!

Thinking about this...

Shen Yi took out the Lantern Ghost Essence he had just obtained and put it into 1 Soul Nourishing Wood and 1 Yin Soul Wood for refining!

[You have successfully refined the essence of the special spirit, the Lantern Demon, using only the minimum required materials!]

It's done!

Shen Yi's eyes widened slightly.

[You have obtained the [Talent: Netherfire Food Refinement]! Load it?]

It's actually a talent!

Quickly examine the core of the folk customs.

The previously empty talent bar now has a new talent called "Netherfire Food Refinement"!

[Core Controller: Shen Yi]

[Available Talent Slots: 0/1]

[Equippable Talent: Netherfire Food Refinement]

……

Shen Yi did not choose to load it immediately.

Whether giving himself an extra talent is good or bad for him is hard to say.

If his body simply cannot withstand it, or if this talent requires him to transform into a spirit to use, then it will be troublesome.

Let's read the introduction to this talent first.

[Netherfire Refinement (White): You can use Netherfire to refine the food you ingest, allowing you to absorb more of its essence and temper your body!]

There shouldn't be any side effects?

Shen Yi carefully examined every word of this talent and finally felt relieved.

He loaded it onto his body!

boom--

In an instant.

Shen Yi felt a surge of heat within his body, as if a furnace were being scorched by a raging fire; his abdomen was burning hot.

A wisp of heat spread from my abdomen and quickly throughout my body.

The body seemed to be undergoing some kind of subtle transformation.

But soon.

He then felt an unprecedented hunger in his abdomen.

This instantly aroused Shen Yi's intense craving for food, and his eyes turned red with hunger.

"Big brother, come and eat!" Shen Yuan called out when she saw her brother standing there motionless after preparing his bowl and chopsticks.

"They're here!"

Shen Yi responded, startled by his own hot, hoarse voice.

He strode over and sat down.

He picked up the monster meat from the pot, chewed it a few times, and then swallowed it without waiting.

The monster meat was squeezed by the powerful muscles of the throat and esophagus, and instantly turned into a pile of minced meat.

It eventually entered the stomach.

Shen Yi immediately felt an invisible, strange fire burning in his abdomen.

He instantly refined the monster meat he had just eaten into pure energy and quickly transported it to his limbs and bones!

A feeling of satisfaction spread throughout my body.

He hurriedly stuffed large chunks of monster meat into his mouth.

In the blink of an eye, he had eaten four or five pounds!

Shen Kun and Shen Yuan, the brother and sister, were astonished as they watched him devour his food like a hungry wolf.

What's wrong with you today, brother? Your appetite is so terrible!

He had already eaten the amount he would normally eat in two meals, and he was still eating nonstop!

soon.

They saw something unusual about their elder brother's body; his skin turned hot and red, and wisps of steam rose from it!

Intense! Abundant! Surging!

Shen Yi's entire body was now surging with intense heat!

The monster meat was thoroughly processed by the Netherfire Food Refinement talent, which extracted every last bit of nutrition from the monster meat and transformed it all into pure energy, which then frantically nourished the body!

The Qi and blood begin to surge!

Condensation!

However, after a short while, Shen Yi felt an uncomfortable bloating and pain in his body, and immediately realized that he could no longer eat.

"You guys keep eating!"

He left a message and, ignoring his younger siblings' reactions, quickly went to an open space and began practicing the Bull Kung Fu!

His movements became faster and faster, the heat became more and more obvious, and his muscles were taut and bulging, constantly writhing!

"Big brother, are you preparing to break through to the third level of the Qi and Blood Realm?"

Shen Kun was stunned for a moment, then his eyes widened in shock.

This performance was clearly a sign that he was preparing to break through to a higher realm!