C28 The Dead Are Useful!!

After examining the corpse, Chen Guo began to gather the treasures surrounding Hwa Yangzi.

As an Earth Immortal, Hwa Yangzi certainly wasn't destitute. Though Chen Guo didn't find any spatial magic artifacts like a storage bag, there were still several valuable items in his possession.

"Five-Grade Pill Furnace: Increases pill refining success rate by 20%!"

"Yin Yang Fan: Temporarily ignites True Samadhi Fire, boosting pill refining success by an additional 15%!"

"Supreme Sect Pill Recipe: A compendium of the standard pill formulas used by the Supreme Sect."

"Monster Refining Scroll: Documents the traits and vulnerabilities of all demons and monsters encountered by the disciples of the Divine Lord of Salvation."

From these objects, it was clear to Chen Guo that Hwa Yangzi had a penchant for pill refining in his lifetime.

His celestial dwelling was in ruins, suggesting that the truly exceptional treasures were likely gone.

Nonetheless, the remaining artifacts were of great value to Chen Guo, who promptly claimed them all.

Next, Chen Guo turned his attention to the corpses strewn across the ground.

He had already stripped Beginner Village #996 of its resources, but these trial challengers hailed from other Beginner Villages and broader regions.

Though they were deceased, sometimes the dead could be more useful than the living.

And so, Chen Guo methodically searched each body.

"Ding! Copy ability activated. You have duplicated Frank's talent, Charm Human!"

"Charm Human: Enchants humans with lesser mental strength, allowing you to control them for 12 hours. The number of humans you can control simultaneously is determined by your willpower."

Chen Guo struck gold right off the bat, acquiring Frank's formidable talent, Charm Human.

This ability was profoundly fearsome, albeit not on the same rule-based level as Omnipresent Duplication.

Chen Guo was thrilled; he had witnessed firsthand the might of Charm Human. If not for Frank and his wife leveraging it to manipulate expendable fighters into facing death for them, they would have perished miserably at the hands of Hwa Yangzi's puppet.

Alas, Hwa Yangzi, once an Earth Immortal, had fallen victim to such an implacable talent and could only depart with resentment.

"Comrade Frank, you've been a true ally. I've extracted every ounce of value from you, yet you still offer one final contribution!"

Chen Guo marveled at Frank's unwavering loyalty before coldly producing the jasper gourd. With the incantation of the spirit gourd spell, he placed Frank's corpse inside the gourd for refinement.

The idea had just struck him, inspired by the phrase 'bone marrow extraction,' leading him to decide to extract the marrow from Frank's bones.

Frank had been a steadfast ally in life, aiding in battles against monsters. In death, he had bestowed his talents upon Chen Guo, and now, his body was to be refined by the gourd. It was a thorough exploitation of every last ounce of his residual value.

"Refinement successful, you have obtained a fragment of a lesser spirit stone!"

"Lesser spirit stone fragment: Use it to slightly enhance your attributes. It can be combined to create a full lesser spirit stone and is useful in pill refinement and formation setups!"

"Sometimes, the dead prove more useful than the living. Haha, from now on, I'll make full use of every corpse!" Chen Guo was brimming with satisfaction. "By squeezing every last drop from each monster, I'll quickly grow stronger!"

With that thought, Chen Guo employed the gourd to gather up Hwa Yangzi's corpse for refinement.

Hwa Yangzi, a former Earth Immortal, yielded a rich bounty—eight low-grade spirit stones and a Spiritual Essence were produced from the refinement.

Chen Guo used one of the low-grade spirit stones immediately, boosting all his attributes by 50 points—an impressive effect.

He refrained from using the remaining low-grade spirit stones, anticipating their greater utility down the line as he pursued the Path of the Immortals.

The Spiritual Essence, identified by the system as puppet material, made it clear why Hwa Yangzi's puppets seemed so lifelike—they had been imbued with the spirit of a living being!

With a sense of glee, Chen Guo commenced his thorough plundering, digging deep into the earth in his search.

"Ding! Omnipresent Duplication activated. You have copied five points of Charm from Anna!"

"Refinement successful. You have obtained a fragment of a lesser spirit stone!"

"Ding! Omnipresent Duplication activated! You have copied the Primitive Level talent, Shadow Step!"

"Shadow Step: Your movements are as elusive as a shadow, confounding your enemies and making you unpredictable!"

"Refinement successful—you've obtained a Lesser Spirit Stone!"

Chen Guo began by duplicating, and once that was done, he tossed the corpses into the jasper gourd for refinement, determined to extract every last bit of essence from them.

Ultimately, these 23 brothers contributed over 30 attribute points to Chen Guo, along with an Eon-Level talent to Charm Humans, an Eon-Level talent called Death from Above, and a Primitive Level talent known as Shadow Step.

Shadow Step needs no explanation, but Death from Above is a move that can instantly teleport heavy objects into the air, crushing enemies below. In certain situations, it proves incredibly handy.

Moreover, these 23 brothers also yielded several Lesser Spirit Stones through refinement.

All things considered, Chen Guo's haul was substantial.

Yet, Chen Guo's appetite for gain was insatiable. He began scouring the Exquisite Paradise for various spirit herbs, all valuable for pill refinement—it would be a travesty to leave them behind.

Chen Guo left no stone unturned, practically scraping Exquisite Paradise dry, until his Cosmos Bag was nearly bursting at the seams.

"It's time to leave this place!"

With a mere thought, Chen Guo departed Exquisite Paradise and returned to Hua Qing Temple.

The visible monsters of Hua Qing Temple had been thoroughly vanquished by Chen Guo. As for those lurking in the shadows, he couldn't be bothered with them—at least for now.

Leveling up could wait; the survival mission was long complete. More crucial than leveling was mastering his own combat prowess.

At this moment, Chen Guo's status panel had expanded once more—

Name: Chen Guo

Identity: Explorer

Level: 10 - ???

Strength: 387

Agility: 397

Endurance: 345

Spirit: 404

Charm: 260

Talents: Heaven Level Omnipresent Duplication, Eon-Level Flying Thunder God Art, Universe Level Electromagnetic Dominance, Universe Level Charm Human...

Skills: Playing Dead, Spirit Gourd Curse, Concealment Art, Secret Sect Great Seal, Singularity of the Sword, Mount Mao Body Art, Yellow Turban Warrior Art, Heavenly Master's Talismans, Heavenly Demon Whip Art, Myriad Spirits Gu...

Combat Strength: 5,050

Evaluation: Rising Star!

Chen Guo, having surpassed the 5,000 combat strength milestone, was leagues ahead on the global combat strength leaderboard. However, when it came to level rankings, he had slipped from the top 10.

The liver emperor team's relentless combat had left a trail of slain monsters in their wake. At this point, the top ten levels ranged from 12 to 15, and Chen Guo, at level 10, had been left behind, now ranking somewhere in the twenties.

Chen Guo, however, was indifferent to such superficial honors. He briefly surveyed the leaderboard to get a sense of the key players of the moment, then shifted his focus to the newly acquired fifth-grade pill furnace.

He was set on pill refining!

The advantages of pill refining were numerous. For starters, the pills were for his own use, and even the most basic ones had astounding effects, often proving to be life-saving.

Moreover, pills were the ultimate currency. In the Whole Heaven Battlefield, traditional money had no value, and even gold and jewels were considered worthless.

Throughout his journey in these forsaken towns, he encountered plentiful gold and jewels, yet scarcely any trial challengers bothered to collect such items.