The Dragon Bone’s Secret and the Marrow’s Discovery

To call it a mere stone felt somewhat inaccurate. As Chi Qiu gently caressed the object with her fingers, a thought formed in her mind.

This yellowish-white object, which she tentatively referred to as a stone, possessed a peculiar texture. Its surface felt incredibly warm and smooth to the touch, yet a subtle softness seemed to linger beneath. It was like neither jade nor iron.

“This thing gives me a rather familiar feeling,” Su Hanxing mused, looking down at the stone nestled in Chi Qiu’s palm.

“This should be a bone fragment,” Chi Qiu declared, having picked up the white piece and observed it closely.

“Oh? It really is quite similar,” Su Hanxing remarked, nodding slightly as if a sudden realization had dawned upon him after hearing her words. “It’s a pity this bone fragment is too small; there’s no way to tell what creature it came from,” Su Hanxing continued, taking the fragment from her hand. “Furthermore, I detect not even a wisp of true qi or demonic qi fluctuations on it. It can’t possibly be an ordinary bone, can it?”

Despite his careful examination, his attempts to sense anything from it yielded no results.

“No one would expend so much effort, setting up such a complex Grand Dao seal, just to store an ordinary bone,” Chi Qiu countered, shaking her head. “There must be significant mysteries hidden within this fragment.”

Yet, even with her keen perception of the Grand Dao, she couldn’t detect even the slightest abnormal fluctuation emanating from it.

“I’ll try investigating it with true qi and spiritual power first,” Su Hanxing declared. Seeing Chi Qiu was equally perplexed by the object, his eyes immediately blazed with purple light. He circulated the true qi within his body, simultaneously activating the spiritual power in his sea of consciousness, determined to uncover the mysteries hidden within the fragment.

Chi Qiu did not stop him. Instead, her eyes remained fixed on the bone fragment, scrutinizing every minute detail.

The Tianyan true qi gently lifted the bone fragment into the air. Concurrently, Su Hanxing’s profound and vast spiritual power completely enveloped it, intending to probe every inch of the fragment, both inside and out.

After several tens of breaths, the purple glow in Su Hanxing’s eyes gradually receded, and he simultaneously withdrew his true qi and spiritual power. His brow furrowed slightly as he spoke, his voice slow and deliberate: “This bone fragment is indeed extraordinary. My true qi and spiritual power simply couldn’t penetrate it.”

Upon seeing his tightly furrowed brows, Chi Qiu’s lips curved into a faint, knowing smile. She reached out, taking the bone fragment that still hovered in the air, and spoke with a touch of triumph:

“I know what kind of bone this is.”

“Oh? Little Chi, how do you know?” Su Hanxing asked, slightly startled by her declaration.

“Just now, when you used your true qi and spiritual power to probe the fragment, a hidden power within it resonated momentarily with a power inside both you and me,” Chi Qiu explained, gently tapping Su Hanxing’s chest to indicate the location of that power.

“Such a thing happened, yet I didn’t notice it at all,” Su Hanxing said, a hint of shock in his voice. He had indeed sensed a faint, inexplicable fluctuation emanating from the fragment, but he hadn’t paid any mind to the subtle stirring within his own body.

“It must be that the Yinglong essence blood in your body has some connection to it. I suspect this might be a dragon bone,” Chi Qiu mused. As she spoke, her eyes blazed with golden light, and a familiar power, the Yinglong Divine Power, slowly emanated from her.

This wisp of Yinglong Divine Power, having entered her body, had been carefully nurtured within her sea of consciousness. She rarely deployed it in battle, yet now it was being used to probe the mysterious bone fragment. The wisp of golden energy slowly coiled around the dragon bone. It then adhered to the surface, settling into a profound stillness, its fluctuations ceasing entirely. It was as if intricate golden patterns had spontaneously appeared upon the bone.

Observing this, Chi Qiu remained calm. Through the profound connection between the Yinglong Divine Power and her spiritual consciousness, she could distinctly sense a unique power stirring within the dragon bone, poised to erupt at any moment.

“As expected, this is indeed a dragon bone,” Chi Qiu announced, looking at Su Hanxing with a hint of excitement. The dragon bone in her hand slowly floated upwards, and from within it, a wisp of dark, complex mist began to unfurl. The emanating fluctuation was ancient and noble, subtly concealing a domineering aura within its restraint. Aside from a true dragon, what other entity could possibly possess such an imposing presence?

“To think that an ordinary disciple within the Qingyuan Sect would possess such a treasure… truly astonishing,” Su Hanxing marveled, his gaze fixed on the complex mist as it slowly coalesced and transformed into a dark true dragon before his eyes.

A faint crack echoed.

A soft cracking sound followed, and Chi Qiu’s expression immediately shifted. On the golden-patterned dragon bone, a fissure rapidly expanded. In mere moments, the bone fractured, splitting into two distinct pieces.

“Don’t worry,” Su Hanxing said, offering immediate reassurance.

Chi Qiu nodded quietly, ceasing her movements. Her eyes remained intently fixed on the continuously shattering dragon bone, her fingers trembling almost imperceptibly. The cracks on the dragon bone multiplied, eventually spreading across the entire fragment. With yet another dense burst of complex mist emanating from it, the dragon bone finally shattered completely.

“There’s still something in the mist,” Su Hanxing announced. He quickly sensed an anomaly within the swirling mist and immediately offered a warning.

Hearing his words, Chi Qiu reached out, her hand closing in a grab. Blue and green true qi condensed within her palm, effortlessly repelling the encroaching dark mist. The moment her hand entered the mist, Chi Qiu seized a warm, soft object. Without a moment’s hesitation, she withdrew her hand, pulling the pliant object clear of the swirling vapor.

“What is this?” Chi Qiu murmured, opening her hand. Resting in her palm was a pure white, soft, gelatinous substance, from which faint wisps of ethereal light steamed, giving it an incredibly divine appearance.

“This should be… marrow,” Su Hanxing speculated, leaning in close for a better look. He stroked his chin, pondering for a long moment before offering his guess. “This should be dragon marrow. Legend says it’s a sacred item for tempering the body and cleansing the essence and marrow.” Though widely knowledgeable, items from true dragons were exceedingly rare, prompting his lengthy deliberation.

“Tempering the body? I don’t have a use for that,” Chi Qiu said, picking up the dragon marrow to examine it more closely. She gently shook her head after hearing his explanation, then offered it to him. “It’s yours.”

“You’re quite generous,” Su Hanxing chuckled, momentarily startled when she presented him with the dragon marrow. “This dragon marrow is a priceless treasure, sought after but rarely found. Even this small piece is no less valuable than my Scarlet Dragon Halberd.”

“We found this together, and since it’s more useful to you, it naturally belongs to you,” Chi Qiu replied, her tone remarkably calm. “If we find other good things later, it won’t be too late for me to take them then.” She had been quite surprised to hear that such a small piece of dragon marrow could rival the value of the Scarlet Dragon Halberd, but its monetary worth held no significance for her.

“Then many thanks, Little Chi,” Su Hanxing said, a faint smile playing on his lips as he weighed the dragon marrow in his hand. Her answer had, of course, been exactly as he expected. “I’ll refine and absorb this dragon marrow now, and I ask Little Chi to help me stand guard.”

“You’re going to refine it now?” Chi Qiu asked, tilting her head in mild confusion.

“This dragon marrow is quite troublesome to preserve,” Su Hanxing explained with a hint of helplessness. “If I don’t refine it quickly, it will soon dissipate between heaven and earth.”

“Then you’d best be quick,” Chi Qiu urged, nodding. She circulated her true qi, enveloping the small house to prevent Su Hanxing from causing too much commotion while refining the dragon marrow.

Witnessing this, Su Hanxing immediately sat cross-legged on the ground and began the process of refining the dragon marrow.