Chapter 112: Chapter 111: Crimson Secret Scripture

With a sharp gaze, Ian carefully read through the Crimson Secret Scripture: Furnace Chapter several times before solemnly putting it away.

He walked to a corner and emptied all the stored Blood Essence from his Dimension Bag.

CLATTER!

Countless Blood Essences rolled across the floor—the dark red of the Shadow Pattern Viper, the deep green of the Rotting Swamp Porcupinefish, the earthy yellow of the Stone-Skinned Mountain Demon...

A rich Life Energy formed a dense mist inside the stone room.

"Gaga...!"

A black shadow shot out like lightning from the special pocket on his chest.

Gaga landed beside the pile of Blood Essence, its small eyes wide and round, its dark cyan feathers bristling.

It looked at the mountain-like pile of Blood Essence on the floor, then looked up at Ian, its mismatched gray and cyan eyes filled with shock and... a sense of being wronged.

"Ian! What... what are you doing? Gaga!" Gaga’s voice rang out urgently in his mind.

"These are all my snacks! Why did you dump them all out?"

It flapped its wings, trying to use its small body to shield a few of the brightest Blood Essences in a silly, food-hoarding display.

Ian chuckled, amused. He reached out and ruffled its small head. "Don’t worry, they’re still yours."

"Then why did you pour them out! Gaga!"

Gaga didn’t believe him, using its small claws to pull a Stone-Skinned Mountain Demon Blood Essence toward itself. "I call dibs on this one!"

"I need to use them to practice a Body Refining Technique," Ian explained.

"I can absorb a portion of the Energy in these Blood Essences to temper my body. The remaining essence will still be left for you, and..."

He paused, a sharp glint in his eyes. "Once my body gets stronger, I’ll be able to hunt more powerful Demons and extract better Blood Essence. You’ll only have more and better things to eat."

Gaga tilted its head, its tiny, pea-sized eyes darting back and forth as if weighing its options. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

"Really? Gaga?" It poked a Blood Essence with its small claw.

"You wouldn’t lie to me, would you? I’ve been waiting forever for that Tier One Blood Essence you promised me!"

"I’m not lying this time," Ian said seriously. "The stronger my body is, the safer we’ll be underground, and the more good stuff we can get."

Gaga thought for a few seconds before finally releasing its claw, though its expression was still one of reluctance.

"Fine... you can use them first. But you have to promise that I get what’s left! And you have to pay me back double in the future!"

"Alright, I’ll pay you back double," Ian promised with a smile.

Only then was Gaga reluctantly satisfied. It hopped onto Ian’s shoulder and nuzzled its small head against his cheek.

"Then hurry up and practice! Once you’re done, we’ll go kill more Demons! I want to eat Tier One Blood Essence! Gaga!"

After placating Gaga, Ian took a deep breath and sat down cross-legged.

’Let’s see just how much this "Furnace" can devour!’

He closed his eyes and sank his Spiritual Power into his body. Following the initial Magic Technique from the Furnace Chapter, he outlined a simple conversion structure within his flesh and bones.

The moment the structure formed, Ian felt as if an invisible vortex had appeared inside him, emitting a faint Suction.

He picked up a Blood Essence from a Stone-Skinned Mountain Demon and swallowed it in one gulp.

BOOM!

The instant the Blood Essence entered his body, a scorching, heavy torrent of energy erupted.

The Earth Attribute Life Energy, like molten lava, surged through his limbs and torso along a specific path.

His muscle fibers expanded and contracted slightly, and a faint, tingling itch spread from deep within his bones, as if countless tiny hammers were gently tapping and compacting them.

On his panel, a new line of text quietly appeared: [Furnace Body Tempering Skill: Uninitiated (1/400)]

’Four hundred skill points just to reach the Beginner level. That’s terrifying.’

A smile touched the corners of Ian’s lips, and the excitement in his eyes intensified.

’This is the right path!’

Without further hesitation, he picked up a Blood Essence from a Rotting Swamp Porcupinefish and tossed it into the Furnace.

...

「The Deep Red Royal Court’s outpost in the Seventh War Zone.」

This was a crimson hall deep within a rock stratum. The walls were covered in writhing, vein-like patterns, and the air was thick with the cloying, sweet stench of blood.

In the center of the hall, several Official Wizards in dark red long robes were gathered, the atmosphere heavy and oppressive.

"How long has it been since we lost contact with Barton’s squad?"

A hoarse voice spoke. The speaker’s face was covered in hideous scars; he was the Wizard in charge of operations here, "Blood Scar."

"It has been four days, Sir." A High Level Apprentice knelt on one knee below, his voice trembling.

"The last mission they accepted was to reconnoiter the Stone Forest area east of the Poisonous Mist Rift Valley. According to the plan, they should have returned two days ago at the latest."

"A reconnaissance mission..." Blood Scar’s eyes turned sinister.

"The Stone Forest area is complex, but with Barton’s strength and the support of four High Level Apprentices, they should have been able to escape even if they ran into a pack of Tier One Demons."

Another Wizard with an effeminate face spoke up. "Could they have run into one of the Alliance’s other clean-up squads?"

"Unlikely," Blood Scar said, shaking his head.

"That area isn’t a primary offensive front. Besides... if there was a fight, we would have at least detected energy fluctuations from the battle or received a distress signal."

The hall fell silent. Barton was no ordinary High Level Apprentice.

He was the acknowledged top genius among this batch of Apprentices. He followed the path of Body Refinement, his physical body was formidable, and he had even touched the threshold of Tier One.

The Deep Red Royal Court had invested significant resources in him, seeing him as a strong candidate to become a future Level One or even a Level Two Wizard.

For such a person to vanish without a trace along with his entire squad was just too strange.

"Could it be... they ran into ’the Cleaner’?" the effeminate-looking Wizard said suddenly.

A rumor had been circulating on the front lines recently about a mysterious "Cleaner" who had appeared in certain areas, specializing in hunting lone Demons or small squads of them. His methods were clean and efficient, and his movements were furtive.

Some speculated he was a top genius secretly cultivated by some faction, while others believed him to be a powerful, solitary Wizard.

Blood Scar’s eyes sharpened. "Investigate! Send people to the Stone Forest to conduct a thorough search. I want them found, dead or alive. If they’re dead... bring back the bodies and their Dimension Bags!

Especially Barton’s Dimension Bag. It might contain important items!"

"Yes, Sir!" the Apprentice below hastily replied and quickly withdrew.

Inside the hall, the few Wizards exchanged a look, each seeing the gravity in the others’ eyes.

The War had just begun, and they had already lost a top Apprentice prospect. This was not a good omen.

「One month later.」

Inside the stone room, Ian slowly opened his eyes, a keen light flashing within them for an instant before disappearing.

He stretched his arms. His muscles were more defined, and a faint undercurrent seemed to surge beneath his skin.

Although his [Furnace Body Tempering Skill] was still Uninitiated, after continuously absorbing dozens of Blood Essences, he could clearly feel the subtle strengthening of his physical body. His Power felt more solid, and his bones were tougher.

’It gets slower the further I go.’ Ian glanced at his panel.

[Furnace Body Tempering Skill: Uninitiated (68/400)]

The first few Blood Essences had increased his Skill Level by five or six points each, but the amount had gradually decreased.

Now, absorbing even a high-quality Blood Essence only raised it by one or two points. The amount of resources required was truly terrifying.

However, he hadn’t spent the entire month just practicing the Body Refining Technique.

Half a month ago, his [Eye of Vigilance], through continuous operation, had finally and silently gone through Limit-Breaking again.

[Eye of Vigilance: Limit-Breaking Second Stage (1/3200) (Limit-Breaking Effects: 1. Concealment, 2. True Sight)]

The newly acquired [True Sight] effect allowed the energy eyeball to see through Low Level Illusions and obscure energy disguises.

Although its range was still suppressed by the underground environment, within a hundred meters, ordinary optical concealment and Low Tier Illusion Magic could now hardly escape its detection.

This was basically approaching the power of a Tier One Reconnaissance Witchcraft.

’Combined with Gaga’s Shadow Perception, our reconnaissance is even more reliable now.’