Zhou Yan let out a cold snort, a chilling killing intent flashing in his eyes. He raised his hand and unleashed a sword strike.
Instantly, the sharp blade erupted with a blinding silver radiance, tearing through the void and descending with deadly force.
"Squelch!"
A massive black bear, the largest of the group, was bisected at the waist. Scarlet blood gushed out like a fountain.
"Bang bang bang~"
At the same time, he parried the attacks of the other black bears and, seizing the opportunity, rapidly closed the encirclement.
In less than half a second, all the black bears were annihilated.
"Hooch~"
Zhou Yan gasped for breath a few times and slowly collapsed onto the ground.
Although he appeared calm on the surface, his heart was still pounding uncontrollably.
"This risky attempt was truly worth it!"
"So, martial skills can actually provide an endless stream of vital energy!"
"And the strength of this giant crocodile was simply terrifying!"
"This is definitely a formidable existence at the Condensing Gang stage!"
Zhou Yan's eyes were filled with excitement.
The Condensing Gang stage was the realm of Foundation Building!
Experts at this level could unleash destructive power with every move.
Especially in such a desolate wilderness, danger was easily encountered.
For one never knew where these powerful demonic beasts might be hiding!
And Zhou Yan could now absorb the demonic cores of such powerful demonic beasts.
This was a grand gift!
Zhou Yan was immensely thrilled.
By merely absorbing this demonic core, he could immediately step into the Condensing Gang realm without fear of his cultivation regressing.
"Hooch~ Hooch~~"
Zhou Yan stared greedily at the demonic core, longing to grasp it immediately.
"Huh? What is this..."
Suddenly, Zhou Yan's gaze fell upon the demonic core, and he froze.
He saw that the demonic core seemed to be enveloped in a faint layer of cyan light, which was protecting it securely.
"Hum hum hum~~"
And at this moment, a peculiar phenomenon suddenly occurred.
The demonic core began to tremble slightly.
With its tremors, the entire demonic core seemed to transform into a heart, beginning to beat.
Zhou Yan's own heart began to resonate with it, its speed involuntarily accelerating with each beat.
This was Zhou Yan's first encounter with such a situation, and he couldn't help but wonder, "Could this demonic core contain some profound pattern, allowing human cultivators to cultivate through it?"
With this thought, Zhou Yan couldn't resist reaching out his right hand and pressing it onto the demonic core.
"Ding~"
A crisp and pleasant clinking sound emanated from his palm.
Zhou Yan listened intently and immediately felt a surge of vast and surging power flowing through his arm into his body.
The vital energy within Zhou Yan's body also became increasingly abundant.
"Haha! As expected!"
Sensing this, Zhou Yan's eyes lit up.
"Since this demonic core can aid cultivation, I'll take it with me first!"
Before he finished speaking, Zhou Yan abruptly stood up, grabbed the demonic core, and prepared to tuck it into his embrace.
However, as soon as he put the demonic core into his pocket, he was surprised to find that his body seemed to stiffen, and he couldn't move his feet at all.
Moreover, the circulation of vital energy within his body had encountered problems, as if it had fallen into a quagmire, its speed significantly reduced.
"Damn it, there's a restriction here!"
Zhou Yan's expression changed, and he quickly tried to circulate his vital energy.
But no matter how hard he tried, it was to no avail.
"Damn it!"
Zhou Yan gritted his teeth.
He had not expected that such a powerful magical restriction would be set up within this secret realm, making the flow of vital energy in this area extremely difficult.
"Hmm?"
However, at this moment, he suddenly noticed a plant.
It was a medicinal herb.
Its leaves were dark green, and a few drops of crystal-clear dew hung on them.
They looked like jade marrow, making one's mouth water.
"Could this be..."
Zhou Yan's eyes lit up.
With his excellent memory, he immediately recognized it as a Ganoderma lucidum, and moreover, one from a thousand-year-old wild ginseng.
Ganoderma lucidum, also known as a ten-thousand-year ginseng, was a precious medicinal ingredient.
Its effects were no less than a hundred-year-old ginseng, and perhaps even superior.
After all, ten-thousand-year-old wild ginseng was only suitable for alchemy.
However, when combined with other medicinal ingredients, it could still be used to refine many potent elixirs.
Zhou Yan clearly recognized Ganoderma lucidum.
Therefore, if he consumed this Ganoderma lucidum, it would undoubtedly accelerate the healing of his injuries.
However, just as Zhou Yan was about to approach, an anomaly occurred.
The once calm swamp suddenly erupted with violent waves.
A python, five to six meters long, suddenly poked its head out of the swamp, its tongue flickering, its ferocious gaze fixed on Zhou Yan.
Immediately after, the python coiled itself and soared into the sky.
The next moment, its body coiled amidst the clouds and mist, its massive form spanning before Zhou Yan.
Its cold, vertical pupils fixed on Zhou Yan, and a bloodthirsty smile appeared on its lips.
This was a venomous snake with dragon blood, possessing formidable strength.
An ordinary person would likely have peed themselves in fear, and even a martial artist at the third stage of Qi Gathering would have to flee in embarrassment.
But for Zhou Yan, this was nothing.
"Swish!"
A purple light flashed in Zhou Yan's eyes, carrying a sharp and intimidating aura.
The dragon-snake trembled, its body instantly tensing up as it warily examined Zhou Yan.
It sensed that the aura emanating from this tiny ant was no weaker than its own.
"Rumble!"
The next moment, the dragon-snake's body suddenly exploded, turning into a cloud of dust and vanishing from sight.
Where its body had exploded, a scale the size of a fist remained, floating in mid-air.
"It's over just like that?"
Zhou Yan was slightly taken aback.
"Hiss hiss!"
At this moment, Zhou Yan sensed several sharp, piercing hisses erupting from the surroundings.
Immediately after, dark figures rushed towards Zhou Yan from all directions.
"Bang!"
Zhou Yan casually waved his hand, and the dark figures all fell to the ground.
These were all dried corpses!
However, their forms were much thinner than those of living people.
"Are these cannibals?"
Zhou Yan frowned.
Cannibals, as their name suggested, were man-eating monsters!
These cannibals were cunning and skilled at camouflage.
Once they lurked near someone or stealthily approached to ambush, they could often deliver a fatal blow.
Moreover, they possessed a special ability to devour blood and enhance their own strength!
This was the most terrifying aspect of cannibals!