Hah... hah...

On the riverbank, the stench of blood lingered in the air.

Su Yu stood beside the enormous corpse of the Black Rock Iron-Backed Crocodile, his chest heaving violently.

As the frenzied pounding of his heart gradually subsided, the crimson glow in his eyes receded like a tide. The All Attributes boost from Violent Ape Blood Fury dissipated along with it. Immediately after, a terrifying wave of weakness washed over him, clinging to his very bones.

At this moment, his muscles cried out in agony, his bones creaked, and it felt as if an invisible hand was violently churning his stomach, sending out signals of extreme hunger. His body swayed, on the verge of collapsing at any second.

Su Yu’s face was pale, but he had come prepared.

He pulled a brocade box from his robes and took out the fist-sized, beeswax-colored Earth Yellow Essence.

Without any hesitation, he devoured it in a few bites as if it were a carrot.

BOOM!

When the Earth Yellow Essence entered his stomach, it didn’t erupt with a fiery torrent of heat like the Vermilion Fruit had. Instead, it transformed into a heavy, enduring, and gentle warmth, like the nurturing earth itself.

This warm current slowly sank into his Dantian before spreading through his limbs and torso, like a spring rain nourishing a parched riverbed. The twitching in his muscles was instantly soothed, and the all-consuming hunger was rapidly sated.

Just a moment later, Su Yu’s once-pale face regained its healthy color, and his unsteady steps became firm and powerful once more.

"Good stuff!"

Su Yu clenched his fists, feeling the power refilling his body. A sharp glint flashed in his eyes.

’The Earth Yellow Essence truly lives up to its reputation for replenishing essence and marrow! The last time I used Violent Ape Blood Fury, it took several medicinal pills and thirty pounds of Exotic Beast Meat to recover, and even then I was weak for half a day. This time, with just one piece of the essence, the deficit was completely replenished in a moment! I’m not fully recovered yet, but I can move without any issues!’

...

After recovering for another moment, Su Yu began the pleasant task of looting the bodies for spoils of war.

First was Han Qinhu’s corpse. Although it had been bitten in half by the Black Rock Iron-Backed Crocodile, some of his belongings were fortunately still intact.

Besides a few bottles of healing pills and five hundred-tael silver notes hidden close to his body, the most eye-catching item on Han Qinhu was a package wrapped in layers of oilcloth, kept tucked against his skin.

Su Yu opened the package and found something that looked like a bird’s egg, but it was far from ordinary.

It was about the size of a fist, with a grayish, rock-like texture all over. Its surface was covered with natural, vein-like, dark red patterns. It was heavy in his hand, weighing at least fifty or sixty pounds, yet it was bone-chillingly cold to the touch.

’What is this?’

’It doesn’t look like a real bird’s egg, more like a Stone Egg!’

Su Yu tapped the shell’s surface, which produced a crisp "DING! DING!" sound. Its hardness was comparable to refined iron.

He activated Five Senses Divine and inspected it closely, discovering that the Stone Egg was perfectly sealed without a single crack. Inside was complete silence; he couldn’t sense any life fluctuations, as if it were just a real stone.

’A dead egg? Or a fossil?’

Su Yu’s brow furrowed slightly.

’A profit-driven, roaming Water Bandit like Han Qinhu, who didn’t even carry many silver notes, had kept this Stone Egg so carefully on his person. This thing is probably extraordinary.’

’Whatever. I’ll put it away for now and study it later.’

After stowing the Stone Egg, silver notes, and other items, Su Yu went on to loot the bodies of the regular Water Bandits and search the two treasure ships.

Unfortunately, these Water Bandits had clearly rushed over and weren’t carrying much of value—only a few hundred taels of silver in total. This sum might have been a considerable fortune to his former self, but now it was just pocket change, not even qualifying as a small windfall.

After looting all the bodies, his gaze fell upon the massive Black Rock Iron-Backed Crocodile.

This was an overlord-class Exotic Beast, comparable to a Flesh Refining Realm expert. Its entire body was a treasure trove!

Wielding the Mo Yuan Saber, Su Yu precisely cut into the beast’s chest cavity through the wound he had previously opened on its abdomen. As he peeled back the flesh around the heart, a wave of scorching, acrid stench hit him. With quick hands, Su Yu took out several Jade Bottles and collected the dark red blood that gushed from the heart.

’Crocodile Dragon’s Heart Blood!’

The blood was as thick as paste. As it fell into the bottles, it made a "SIZZLE" sound, and the Jade Bottles instantly became scorching hot. This was an extremely yang treasure, priceless whether consumed directly for Body Tempering or used in pill refinement.

Next, Su Yu began to carve the meat and bone. He only took the prime parts of the Black Rock Iron-Backed Crocodile—the muscle fibers were extremely thick, deep red in color, and each heavy piece contained an explosive amount of Qi and Blood energy.

As for the ordinary parts, the energy was already dissipating rapidly. By the time he could get it back, it would likely have degraded into common beast meat. This was a peculiar trait of such Exotic Beasts—all their Qi and Blood energy would converge in special, essential parts.

’If I eat all of this essence-rich Exotic Beast Meat, my Breakthrough Points will probably skyrocket!’

Finally, with considerable effort, Su Yu managed to extract the entire spine that ran through the Black Rock Iron-Backed Crocodile’s body. The Iron Spine, several dozen feet long, was pitch black, with dark red barbs growing from its joints. When struck with his Mo Yuan Saber, it produced the sound of clashing metal; its hardness far surpassed that of the Mo Yuan Saber itself!

’Excellent material! If I integrate it into the Mo Yuan Saber or forge a suit of form-fitting armor, it would definitely raise my equipment’s grade by another level!’

His Mo Yuan Saber was gradually failing to keep up with his strength. Especially now, after harvesting the Crocodile Dragon’s Heart Blood and so much Exotic Beast Meat, his power was bound to take another leap. Breaking through to the Flesh Refining Realm would be just around the corner!

Upgrading the Mo Yuan Saber would be the perfect way to boost his combat power once again!

After moving all the precious materials onto the treasure ship, Su Yu gazed at the water’s surface, lost in thought once more.

’The "Compendium of Marvels of the Nine Provinces" states: "Where there are heaven-and-earth Exotic Beasts, there will be accompanying rare treasures." This is especially true for the Black Rock Iron-Backed Crocodile, which enjoys eating metal ores and often lairs at ley line nodes or on top of mineral veins.’

’The Black Rock Iron-Backed Crocodile’s lair is likely nearby. There might be another fortuitous opportunity waiting there!’

’But for now, the best plan is to retreat! I’ve killed two waves of Water Bandits from Ghost Mist Island, including their Third Chieftain, Han Qinhu. I don’t know if anyone else will come looking for me. I should lay low for now!’

...

「One hour later, Fog Island.」

RUMBLE—

Three black treasure ships burst through the mist, arriving at the shore with a murderous aura.

Dozens of Water Bandits leaped off the ships. When they saw the scene on the riverbank, they all sucked in a sharp breath of cold air.

The area was a total wreck, littered with broken trees and shattered rocks.

The most horrifying sight was the corpse torn in two—it was Han Qinhu.

This was their Third Chieftain, a man who terrorized the Ten Islands District of the Black Water River and had one foot in the Flesh Refining Realm. Now, his chest was caved in, his death gruesome. He had clearly been smashed to death by some terrifying, overwhelming force.

"The Third... the Third Chieftain is dead?!"

A Water Bandit’s voice trembled, and he could barely keep a grip on his saber.

"Brothers, what do we do? Should we leave someone here to stand guard?"

"Guard my ass!"

"The Third Chieftain is dead! Hurry back and report to the First and Second Chieftains!"

This band of ruthless Water Bandits, who normally killed without batting an eye, were now scared out of their wits by the battlefield Su Yu had left behind. They didn’t even bother to collect the bodies before fleeing in a panic.