"So, you’re saying that the change of epochs caused the cave dwellers’ bodies to degenerate, leaving them in this state of being neither human nor ghost?" Yan Ziqian fell into deep thought, prompted by Su Chen’s speculation and information.
The other team members were mulling it over as well.
Having returned to the new camp, everyone had been briefed on this bombshell of a revelation.
The base camp was peaceful. The Bloodthirsty Fungus, in its desperate final gambit, had naturally overlooked a place so lacking in Rune resources, so it hadn’t suffered any attacks.
But the tranquility of their surroundings did nothing to calm the storm raging in their minds.
"So the Bloodthirsty Fungus obtained this flesh-shaping ability from the legacy of a past civilization... When you think about it that way, it actually makes perfect sense," the usually quiet and reserved Gong Jun sighed.
Judging by the stitched-together flesh, the biochemical modifications, and the resulting cross-species chimeras, it really had nothing to do with the Element system.
The speed of its evolution was on par with a Divine Power; it was literally a new form every day.
It would be reasonable to say it had comprehended and inherited some kind of flesh-based Divine Power.
"I wonder if the murals in the last main nest are related. Maybe other main nests hold more clues," Yu Ziyuan added, her curiosity piqued.
But that was undoubtedly a very dangerous idea.
"There’s a good chance we’d find something, but that ’gift’ is by no means something humanity can get its hands on right now," Yan Ziqian warned.
Having started the discussion, Su Chen listened to what the others had to say.
’If my guess is right, heading deeper into the caves might expose us to more clues about this forbidden flesh-and-blood power.’
Thinking of this, and considering the current state of the sacrificial altar, he simply took out a drone and launched it.
"The altar’s in ruins."
A little over ten minutes later, Su Chen stared at the footage transmitted from the drone, which he controlled with a remote in his hands. Where the altar once stood on the edge of the chasm, now only a pile of collapsed, ruined walls remained.
’This Bloodthirsty Fungus is so petty.’
’In any case, the altar structure seems to reset daily, so he wasn’t in a hurry.’
In the next instant, Su Chen’s eyes narrowed. He’d found the culprit. The drone’s camera slowly panned down, its focus locking onto a protruding ledge on the cliff face below. The corpse of a maned lion chimera was snagged on the edge, half its body hanging over the abyss.
’And there’s a gift.’
Assuming the worst, the creature had clearly tried to jump to its death after destroying the altar, unwilling to let Su Chen get the treasures on its body. But fate, it seemed, had other plans. That protruding rock ledge halfway down had caught its falling body.
"Guess some of your good luck really did rub off on me," Su Chen said to Pang Peng with a laugh.
At that, everyone around them stared, stunned.
"You’ve got to be kidding me!" Pang Peng was completely floored.
Immediately, Su Chen summoned his Ice Bird. After Xiaolin cast Frost Escape, it was enveloped in a high-speed vortex of arctic air and shot off into the distance. The round trip didn’t take long, and soon it returned to spit out a frozen corpse.
The reason its flesh-and-blood body remained intact even after its consciousness had faded was undoubtedly because the Life Driving Core inside was still active.
If the core were to be removed, the flesh would disintegrate in short order.
’Excellent.’
Before it even thawed, Su Chen could already sense a crystalline core within, glowing with the luster of gold foil. It was identical to the one he’d harvested previously.
Last time, absorbing one had allowed him to gain the ’Steel Bones and Iron Flesh’ physical trait, leveraging his body’s foundation.
’I wonder how much of an effect it’ll have if I stack it.’
Soon, a Spirit Marrow Crystal, a portion of Spiritual Dust Sand, and six Gold Element Runes were dissected from the creature’s head.
One of them was a Lv6 Golden Armor Skill, a protection-type Rune that was a perfect fit for Armor Enchantment. Compared to the damage-reflecting Thorn Armor or the offense-to-defense switching lightning shield, this Golden Armor Skill was nigh-impregnable. It offered damage reduction and status immunity, making it one of the sturdiest defensive shields of any Element.
Additionally, there was a Lv5 Vajra Body Rune. It was a physical enhancement Rune, similar to skills like Awakening or Frenzy. Not only would it metallize the user’s skin, but it also powerfully enhanced their flesh, muscles, and bones.
The side effects were not to be taken lightly either; depending on the extent of its use, the user would suffer from sprained ligaments and subcutaneous bruising.
It was worth mentioning that Runes of this type were no longer as resisted as they had been at first. As a last-resort trump card for a sudden power-up, they often had surprisingly effective results.
"Gong Jun, consider this your labor fee." Su Chen mentally grabbed a Lv5 Shaping Skill and a Lv4 Gold Touching Skill and tossed them both to him.
He had no way of absorbing such Runes himself.
Although they had combat applications, they were far more useful for processing materials, so it was naturally best to give them all to Gong Jun.
"Ah..."
Gong Jun was surprised. His personality fit the classic stereotype of an academic prodigy: extremely quiet, reserved, and completely clueless when it came to social etiquette. His eyes couldn’t help but dart toward Yan Ziqian.
After Yan Ziqian gave him a nod, he took a deep breath and said solemnly, "Thank you."
To make better use of his Shaping Skill, Gong Jun had successfully class-changed into a Gilded Warlock. This granted him a considerable metal Resonance effect and an innate fluid-shaping trait, allowing him to more effectively stretch and fold metallic materials.
"Oh, right. Get that Bronze Spear de-rusted and refurbished as soon as possible. And make some more shotgun shells. We’ll need them for exploring the cave tomorrow," Su Chen added without ceremony, laying out the tasks on the spot.
Furthermore, he placed the silver handgun he’d acquired on the table. It was a Colt M1911 he’d taken from the assassin, but it only had five bullets left. They would have to work together to make more ammunition.

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