Chapter 1159 - 527: Risks and Rewards_2

He needed to understand the giant bone more deeply, to comprehend what exactly it was suppressing.

As his will became increasingly entwined with the giant bone, that vast and indomitable battle intent enveloped him once again.

But this time, he did not see that brutal primordial war.

His consciousness was drawn into an even deeper, more ancient layer of "memory."

It was an infinite starry sky.

But in the starry sky, there were no stars, only numerous... colossal "tombstones."

Each tombstone emitted a terrifying aura that seemed to freeze space and time. Some were rusty, yet still retained the edge capable of severing myriad worlds like a Broken Sword; others were golden pages of paper with text as if elucidating the ultimate truths of the cosmos; and yet others were dried-up hearts, long devoid of life, whose every unconscious contraction caused ripples in the surrounding void.

And the dragon-elephant leg bone was merely one of the more eye-catching tombstones among them.

This place... was the final graveyard of all worlds!

And at that moment, Xu Ran "saw" them.

At the end of the graveyard, amidst that eternal darkness and void, a few vague, unimaginably gigantic outlines stood silently.

They seemed not to belong to this space-time, their very "existence" there causing all laws and great paths to shy away.

They were the "Guardians!"

Xu Ran’s will tightened abruptly! He wanted to see them clearly.

One of the outlines seemed to perceive his probing.

That outline slowly "lowered" its head.

It was indescribable what kind of "face" it was, seemingly formed by the convergence of billions of galaxies, yet also seemed like a pure "set of rules," devoid of any emotion.

A cold, emotionless will traversed endless space-time, directly descending upon Xu Ran’s consciousness core.

"A new variable... has been born?"

"A combination of Gui Xu... and dragon-elephant?"

"Interesting."

"Follow the contract and guard your ’grave.’ If successful, you’ll have the opportunity to meet the ’Council.’ If you fail..."

The will did not finish speaking, but Xu Ran felt a life-originating terror capable of erasing him completely from existence level...

"Do not attempt to... explore the ’food’ beneath the ’grave’... That is not... something you are qualified to touch as ’root’..."

Boom!

Xu Ran’s consciousness was abruptly bounced back into his body by an irresistible force.

He gasped heavily, the Soul Fire in his eyes flickering violently.

That fleeting glimpse had completely overturned his understanding of this world once again!

The Gravekeeper Council!

They are not merely an organization but rather... a higher-dimensional existence!

And this bone field is not merely a place for suppressing filth.

The "Abyssal Bone Demon" being suppressed was referred to by those existences as... "food"?!

Whose food?

And for feeding whom?!

A terrifying thought uncontrollably arose within Xu Ran’s heart.

This entire bone field, these countless "tombstones" and the suppressed "things," maybe, are just a colossal "farm" beyond imagination?

These so-called monarchs and lords are merely caretakers for the crops soon to mature for those supreme existences?

"Interesting... more and more interesting..."

Not only did Xu Ran not feel fear, but he felt an unprecedented excitement.

Pawns? Farmers?

What does it matter!

As long as he can continue to grow stronger, as long as he possesses the power to overturn the chessboard, a pawn is not necessarily unable to become the chess master!

"Root..."

He chewed on this word, directing his gaze once more towards the land beneath his feet.

The dark red land was already inexorably seeping threads of black mist finer than hair.

The mist seemed to corrode even space, producing a faint sizzling sound.

The awakening of the Abyssal Bone Demon, hastened by the death of the old king and the activation of the dragon-elephant leg bone’s power, accelerated!

The time until eruption may be less than a year!

"Time waits for no one."

A hint of determination flashed in Xu Ran’s eyes.

Without hesitating, he sat cross-legged and took out the "lord-level bone core" of the skeletal monarch he had captured, directly refining it with the "Cosmic Furnace."

Boom!

Pure Origin Power surged into his body, propelling his realm forward significantly on the path of "Minor Achievement in Bone Forging Realm."

"Bone Origin: 13,850 units."

"The ’Primal Dao Bone Scripture’: Minor Achievement in Bone Forging Realm (75%)."

After completing all this, he stood up and walked to the steadily expanding jade white area of the dragon-elephant leg bone.

He reached out with his left hand, gently caressing the bone wall smooth as jade, while his right hand, representing "termination" and "Gui Xu," decisively pressed down into the ominous ground already tainted by black mist and squirming beneath his feet!

"You wish to come out."

"And I, wish to go in."

"Let’s see who will devour whom!"

A cold and domineering voice echoed in the deathly silent battlefield.

Xu Ran’s right hand, the "Cosmic Furnace," shone brilliantly at this moment!

He intended to, with his own strength, proactively delve into the surface of the Abyssal Bone Demon, initiating his mad and grandiose plan of... Refining!

The black Gui Xu force and the tainted black mist erupted into fierce conflict upon contact.

Tss—!

It was akin to a red-hot iron brand pressing into snow.

A war around "devouring" and "Purification" quietly commenced at the foundation of the Dragon-Elephant Domain.

And this was merely the beginning.

A legend of the "Master of Dragon Elephant" was about to be written, starting from this forgotten graveyard. Up ahead was the unfathomable abyss, the lurking danger of the "Gravekeeper Council," and the cruel canvas of the world’s "truth" shrouded in mist.

But Xu Ran’s Dao Heart was steadfast as a rock.

But Xu Ran’s Dao Heart was steadfast as a rock.

The black Gui Xu force and the tainted black mist erupted into fierce conflict upon contact.

Tss—!

It was akin to a red-hot iron brand pressing into snow.

This was a confrontation originating from the conceptual level. The black mist of the Abyssal Bone Demon represented ultimate decay, corruption, and endings, able to corrupt laws and erode everything, dragging all forms into eternal Deathly Silence. However, the "Cosmic Furnace" in Xu Ran’s right arm, with its core "Gui Xu," was a different kind of ending—returning all to the origin, chaos after the collapse of order, a "void" more primordial than death.

The black mist surged madly, attempting to "pollute" Xu Ran’s arm and entire being, assimilating him into the abyss. Yet, the black hand stood like an invincible dam, unwavering against the demonic tide. Wisps of Gui Xu Divine Light spread from its palm like black Lightning, reversely invading the earth.

"Smelt!"

Xu Ran’s will concentrated, driving the furnace.

The dark red land tainted by black mist began to undergo a peculiar transformation beneath his palm. The land did not vanish, but the "demonic nature" and "filth" within were forcibly peeled away and extracted, transforming into the purest black luminescent stream, being devoured by his right arm.

This process was exceedingly dangerous. Every strand of extracted demonic energy carried madness and violence capable of collapsing a Burning Fire Realm warrior’s will, assaulting Xu Ran’s consciousness core. Without the dragon-elephant leg bone’s vast battle intent guarding his core, he might have been overwhelmed by the mental torrent in an instant, turning into a mere killing demon.

Even so, Xu Ran’s Soul Fire flickered uncertainly, under immense pressure.

However, risk and reward are always proportional.