Facing the Abyss as a Demon Cultivator

As Chu Xiu focused on the latest text, two pieces of information immediately surged into his mind.

[New Secret Art Unlocked]

[Bone Refinement: Armor]

[Rank: F]

[Quality: Advanced]

[Description: Transform the flesh, blood, and soul of a corpse into nutrients to nourish the bones, using this to create powerful bone armor.]

[Evaluation: As your mastery increases, you can now craft small armor plates that fit the body's structure, even retaining some fur as padding.]

[Get to work! Use others' corpses to form your sturdy defense!]

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[New Technique Unlocked]

[Yin Wind Blade]

[Rank: F]

[Quality: Advanced]

[Description: Channel your inner mana to release a blade formed by Yin wind.]

[Evaluation: Due to its simplicity and practicality, this technique is the most popular among the disciples of the Holy Sect.]

[Compared to an ordinary wind blade, the Yin Wind Blade is more powerful and will scatter into Yin wind upon hitting, depleting the enemy's energy and stamina.]

[However, note that the power of the Yin Wind Blade decreases rapidly with distance, making it unsuitable for long-range attacks.]

[Want to learn stronger, flaw-free techniques? Keep leveling up!]

[The next inheritance will unlock at F-rank Level 2.]

"As expected."

Chu Xiu realized that the true strength of the Demonic Path Heir profession lies in the continuous unlocking of its inheritance! It may not be very powerful in the early stages, but in the later stages, with the entire demonic path inheritance, Chu Xiu would be an all-rounded warrior with no weaknesses!

"And the latest two inheritances are perfect for my current situation—one to enhance my offensive capabilities and one to boost my defensive abilities, giving me more leeway in battles with those unknown monsters!"

Chu Xiu tried to conjure the Yin Wind Blade, and soon, a gray-black wind blade appeared in his palm. Chu Xiu could feel its tremendous power, enough to cut through a small tree as thick as a bowl!

The Abyss's rules allowed him to automatically learn this technique, though his proficiency was at the most basic level. To enhance the power of the Yin Wind Blade, further practice would be necessary.

With this understanding, he dispersed the wind blade in his palm and turned to activate Bone Refinement on the giant moth's corpse.

Immediately, the moth's flesh began to dissolve, and its bones condensed. Chu Xiu even felt the moth's lingering soul being torn apart and burned, merging into its bones.

After a few seconds, as everything settled, a gleaming white chest plate and several bone fragments appeared on the ground, connected by thin leather straps.

With a thought, the bone fragments floated up and fitted perfectly onto his vital areas.

[Shattered Bone Armor]

[Rank: F]

[Quality: Trash]

[Attributes: Protection (1.2), Insulation (0.1), Weight 1.1kg]

[Evaluation: A fragile armor made from an ugly insect.]

[Why do you always find such odd materials?]

[Why not use simple, effective, and readily available materials—like living humans?]

[You are a disgrace to demonic cultivators!]

Great, as always, the evaluations were sarcastic.

Chu Xiu was used to it by now. He examined the armor on his body. It was harder than he expected, like a very light stone, but the protective area was too small.

He turned to Yun Lu, who was staring in shock. "Let's continue."

Time passed, and the sun outside gradually set, casting the ruined city in a golden glow.

It had been three hours since Chu Xiu arrived in this world.

"In about an hour, night will fall."

Looking at the fading sunlight, Chu Xiu spoke softly.

During this time, he and Yun Lu carefully explored down from the higher floors, eventually reaching the eighth floor.

Thanks to Yun Lu's unique talent, they managed to avoid monsters along the way and successfully refined twenty-six dried corpses.

Under Yun Lu's amazed gaze, the bone armor became more complete, eventually reaching a +2 enhancement.

At this point, Chu Xiu was clad in a complete set of bone armor. Pale bone plates covered his joints and vital areas, and he wore a fearsome horned helmet, making him look like a knight from hell.

The current bone armor provided 2.0 protection and covered most of Chu Xiu's body.

However, it now weighed 15.7kg, feeling heavy, and the bone plates clinked together when he moved.

Fortunately, the datafied bone armor could be stored in his storage space and worn only during combat.

Every Abyss participant had an initial storage space, which expanded with their rank.

For F-rank Awakeners, it was about one cubic meter, enough to store the bone armor but not the bone spear.

"The bone armor's enhancement consumes much more than the bone spear."

"Also, after reaching level 1, the experience required to level up doubled, and gaining experience became harder. Absorbing these dried corpses almost gives no experience now."

"To level up, I must kill living creatures!"

"With luck, I might also get equipment and treasures."

Chu Xiu thought to himself.

In the datafied Abyss, killing any creature could result in additional drops, with stronger creatures having higher drop rates.

The most common drop was something called Karma Points, which could directly increase profession experience and even upgrade skills, quickly enhancing the Awakener's combat power. It was a valuable currency in the Abyss and something Chu Xiu urgently wanted.

However, the immediate priority was finding a place to stay for the night. Humans were not good at fighting in the dark.

"There was a resident on the eleventh floor who installed a security door. It's in good condition and spacious, making it a good resting spot."

"The thirteenth floor has a room with a wire mesh. I checked the lock, and it's still in good condition, with acceptable rust levels..."

As Chu Xiu pondered silently, Yun Lu suddenly stopped and tugged at his clothes.

Chu Xiu looked up and made a hand gesture.

[Enemy?]

Yun Lu shook her head and returned a gesture.

[Human!]

Receiving this answer, Chu Xiu was initially stunned, then narrowed his eyes.

He had sensed that there were at least a dozen trial participants in this apartment building.

Along the way, they had found many rooms with signs of being searched.

This apartment building was large, with four stairwells on each floor. The trial participants were well-trained, adept at hiding themselves. Human scent was much weaker than that of other animals, so Yun Lu could only detect them at close range.

This was why, despite their extensive exploration, they hadn't encountered any other trial participants.

After a brief thought, Chu Xiu made a gesture.

[Let's check it out.]

He wanted to hunt those monsters to level up, and more people meant more safety.

But he wasn't sure if the others would be as easy to deal with as Yun Lu.

Soon, under Yun Lu's guidance, Chu Xiu arrived at a half-open door.

With a thought, the complete bone armor appeared on his body.

The next moment, accompanied by creaking sounds, the wooden door slowly opened.

The room was silent, the living room empty, with no obvious places for hiding.

However, Chu Xiu glanced at the crisscrossing footprints on the floor.

He said nothing, just walked in slowly, Yun Lu following close behind, clutching her large iron pot.

Suddenly, a fierce voice rang out:

"Take one more step, and I'll smash your skull."

Yun Lu jumped in fright, instinctively hiding behind Chu Xiu, while he remained calm. "Are you sure you want to attack me with that thing?"

As he spoke, a tall figure appeared from around the corner.

It was a boy over 1.8 meters tall, with acne on his face and a rebellious air. His eyes showed a fierceness beyond his years.

He held a metal baseball bat and eyed Chu Xiu warily.

Seeing Chu Xiu's terrifying bone armor and sharp bone spear, the boy's aura weakened, but he still retorted, "Aren't you afraid of attracting those monsters by fighting here?"

As the two seemed ready to clash, Yun Lu anxiously made hand signs at lightning speed, like casting spells.

[No infighting! No infighting! No infighting!]

But the two remained vigilant, watching each other closely.

In the Abyss, where there were no rules, one could never underestimate the darkness of the human heart. Chu Xiu didn't know if the tall boy would try to kill him for his equipment if he let his guard down.

Even if there was only a one percent chance, he wouldn't relax.

Clearly, the boy felt the same.

As the tension grew, and Yun Lu stood there helplessly, a voice filled with doubt and surprise suddenly came from the left bedroom.

"Chu Xiu?"