The venom of this small snake was extremely potent; one touch would result in instant death.
"Get lost!" Zhou Yan roared, flicking his palm and reaching directly for the black snake.
"Snap!"
The next second, Zhou Yan felt a sharp pain in his wrist. He had been entangled by the black snake.
"As expected of a demon of the Bone Refining realm, its strength is indeed terrifying. Even in death, it has preserved itself for so many years and can still launch an attack," Zhou Yan's gaze turned cold.
He then suddenly exerted force, swinging his arm to shake the black snake to death.
"Screech!"
The next second, the black snake was shaken to death by Zhou Yan, falling to the ground and turning into ash.
However, though the black snake was dead, it left behind a piece of black scale, silver in appearance and incredibly tough.
Zhou Yan picked up the scale and his heart pounded. He could clearly feel the immense energy contained within it.
"This is the scale of a demon from the Bone Refining realm, priceless!" Zhou Yan was overjoyed.
This was a monster beast from the Bone Refining realm, its skin like fine iron, incredibly tough, unpenetrable even by bullets.
Furthermore, a dense aura of energy permeated the scale.
Zhou Yan did not hesitate, directly peeling off the scale and sniffing it.
"This is..."
Zhou Yan's eyes lit up. The scale surprisingly retained an extremely rich fragrance.
"The scent of Dragon's Saliva Flower?" Zhou Yan was greatly shocked.
He hadn't expected this scale to have absorbed the essence of a thousand-year-old Dragon's Saliva Grass.
This was a top-grade medicinal ingredient, usable for refining pills, artifacts, and divine weapons, among other things.
Moreover, Dragon's Saliva Flower was extremely precious and rare, found only within dragon veins, making it incredibly difficult to locate. Even Zhou Yan had only encountered it in ancient texts.
"I didn't expect there to be a Dragon's Saliva Flower here. Excellent, excellent," Zhou Yan laughed heartily.
Dragon's Saliva Flower was a dream elixir for alchemists, priceless and virtually unobtainable in the market.
Legend had it that on the day the Dragon's Saliva Flower matured, a dragon-like phantom would coil around its branches, spraying Dragon's Saliva Liquid, creating a spectacle of divine wonders.
Furthermore, Dragon's Saliva Liquid possessed the effects of cleansing the physical body and undergoing metamorphosis, improving one's constitution, potential, and aptitude. It was one of the rarest treasures in the cultivation world.
However, Dragon's Saliva Flower was extremely scarce. Even in the Southern Ling Domain, it was rarely seen. Every time it appeared, it would incite countless martial artists to fight and kill, resulting in rivers of blood and brutal battles.
"Haha, I've made a fortune this time!" Zhou Yan was extremely excited.
He had originally planned to find a way to enter the ancient tomb again to collect the Dragon's Saliva Flower after leaving. He never expected to stumble upon news of it.
This was an opportunity that came once in a thousand lifetimes!
Zhou Yan immediately took out a talisman from his storage ring and affixed it to his chest. Instantly, his entire aura changed.
"This is... a disguise technique?" Zhou Yan looked astonished. He hadn't expected this storage ring to contain such an item, besides the jade pendant and the bead.
"The disguise technique can alter one's appearance, aura, and voice, but it consumes spirit stones and cannot be maintained for too long," Zhou Yan murmured. He put the storage ring on his left hand and then collected the black snake's corpse into the ring.
"This adventure into the ancient tomb was worth it. This storage ring has solved my urgent need," Zhou Yan was filled with joy.
Storage rings were exclusive equipment for martial artists of the Qi Refining realm, possessing vast interior space. They could even be used to grow various spiritual herbs and ores, making them coveted treasures for any Qi Refining realm martial artist.
"Hmm, something's not right..." Suddenly, Zhou Yan frowned.
The space within the storage ring was now only about ten feet, appearing much smaller.
This storage ring had once had its space sealed by a predecessor, allowing it to accommodate objects up to two meters in size.
Now, this storage ring could only hold objects up to one meter in size.
"No wonder the space inside the storage ring was only a third of its original size when I entered. Its space has been sealed," Zhou Yan shook his head, somewhat disappointed.
"However, finding such a treasure makes this trip worthwhile," Zhou Yan took a deep breath, calming himself.
This storage ring was undoubtedly a priceless treasure.
It could not only store items but, more importantly, conceal one's true identity. Even if enemies saw his face, they wouldn't know who had killed them.
"This mountain range must also contain many spiritual herbs and ores," Zhou Yan muttered, his eyes shining like a miser as he began to search.
In this area, there were many corpses, about a hundred in total, all of them beasts from the Bone Refining realm.
"Hmm? What's wrong?" Suddenly, Zhou Yan frowned, crouched down, and carefully examined the pile of stark white bones.
The hearts of these skeletons had been gouged out, leaving them bloody and horrifying.
"It appears a fierce battle took place here," Zhou Yan narrowed his eyes, thinking to himself, "Perhaps a battle between Bone Refining realm beasts and Qi Refining realm martial artists?"
"There must be something special about this place, otherwise so many beasts wouldn't have gathered here."
"Hmm? This is... Dragon's Saliva Liquid?"
Suddenly, Zhou Yan's expression changed dramatically, his pupils constricting, revealing boundless excitement.
Beside these skeletons, there was a pool of foul-smelling bloodstain.
"This should be the residue of Dragon's Saliva Liquid," Zhou Yan's breathing grew heavy, his gaze fixed on the pool of Dragon's Saliva Liquid with fervent intensity, as if he saw countless treasures.
Dragon's Saliva Liquid was a treasure born from dragon veins, extremely rare. Every drop was priceless, comparable to a thousand-year-old spiritual medicine, and was a sacred medicine for Qi Refining realm martial artists to advance their cultivation.
"This is the essence left by a Bone Refining realm beast," Zhou Yan licked his lips, his heart surging with excitement, eager to swallow the Dragon's Saliva Liquid immediately.
"However, my current strength is too weak to withstand such a powerful medicinal force."
After pondering for a long time, Zhou Yan ultimately restrained himself. He planned to return and ask his father for help in refining pills, using the power of the pills to break through his bottleneck and step into the Condensing Gang realm.
"Swish—"
Zhou Yan took a step forward, quickly moving towards the outside.
He had explored this area earlier but hadn't encountered any flood dragons.
This indicated that he was still far from the flood dragon's lair.
However, as Zhou Yan moved forward rapidly, he suddenly stopped, his brow furrowed, and he looked up at the sky.
In his line of sight, a helicopter was rapidly approaching.
"Rumble~"
The helicopter landed in the forest, and a group of heavily armed soldiers disembarked.
"What are you doing?" Zhou Yan stood behind a large tree and snorted.
"Someone raided the black snake's cave and stole the Dragon's Saliva Liquid. Hurry up and pursue!" several soldiers shouted sternly, their faces filled with anger.
Whoosh~