When demonic energy flooded Jian Dan's entire body, the chaotic spiritual energy in her meridians did not retreat. Instead, it firmly guarded her dantian.
Her five-colored spiritual roots interlocked, forming a closed loop, with elemental energies cycling in harmony. At the center of this loop was her golden core—now tainted black by the demonic energy, transforming into a demonic core.
Jian Dan knew her body was like a bomb on the verge of explosion. If she disrupted the delicate balance her instincts had established, the consequences would be disastrous. She focused inward, observing her condition.
"Huh? How is this…?"
She noticed something strange—the demonic energy in her meridians was circulating on its own, following a specific pattern. And that pattern matched the "Ice-Skin Jade-Bone Demon Body Art" she had been cultivating.
This revelation struck her: "This isn't just a body-refining technique. Perhaps it was meant to be cultivated with demonic energy all along."
There was no time to hesitate. Gritting her teeth, Jian Dan slowly guided the demonic energy through the "Skin Refining" section of the technique.
Surprisingly, the demonic energy obeyed, flowing smoothly through her meridians as if it had found its true purpose. It began tempering her skin, layer by layer, while the external demonic energy enveloping her body worked in tandem, polishing her flesh like a blacksmith refining steel.
After completing one full cycle, the energy returned to her dantian. The outer layer of chaotic spiritual energy seemed to recognize the refined demonic energy as harmless and allowed it entry. The demonic energy, now docile, settled quietly at the base of her dantian, causing no further disturbances.
Jian Dan let out a breath of relief. "This works. At least they're not fighting anymore."
She pressed on.
For an entire month, she painstakingly refined the demonic energy within her body, finally completing the "Skin Refining" stage of the "Ice-Skin Jade-Bone Devil Body Art".
Her skin was now covered in a layer of grayish impurities, but beneath it, her flesh had transformed—smooth as fine porcelain, with a defensive resilience rivaling that of a magic treasure.
Her dantian, however, had become an anomaly.
Demonic energy and spiritual energy coexisted in perfect separation. At the center of the chaotic spiritual energy floated a slowly rotating demonic core, while the demonic energy cluster held a faint wisp of chaotic qi at its heart. Together, they formed a yin-yang Taiji diagram, hovering above her five-colored spiritual roots and occupying her entire dantian.
When Jian Dan finally opened her eyes, a radiant gleam flashed within them—deeper, sharper, more profound than before. She shook off the impurities coating her body, revealing skin that glowed with an almost supernatural luster.
"The dual tempering of spiritual and demonic energy has elevated my physical body to an entirely new level."
With her crisis resolved, she deactivated her defensive formation and surveyed her surroundings.
This was the same cave where she and Du Yanran had first arrived in the cultivation world in her past life—where they had seized their first fortune. But back then, they had never encountered the demonic Nascent Soul cultivator Mei Ji.
After some thought, Jian Dan understood why.
In her previous life, she and Du Yanran had only discovered the ancient teleportation array in the desert's depths when they were already at the Nascent Soul stage. They had activated it out of curiosity, using the spiritual stones they had painstakingly collected over centuries in the resource-scarce modern world.
The teleportation had been smooth, and they had arrived at this cave unharmed.
But this time, Jian Dan had come alone—and her cultivation was far weaker, barely at the Golden Core stage. Most importantly, she had arrived nearly a century earlier than before. That explained why Mei Ji's Nascent Soul hadn't yet dissipated.
"Was my past life luck, or is this one misfortune?"
Shaking her head, she turned her attention to the cave.
In one corner stood the teleportation platform that had brought her here. The formation lines on its surface were cracked beyond repair, its purpose fulfilled. It would never endure another activation.
Instinctively, Jian Dan flicked a spell at it, intending to destroy it completely. A wisp of black demonic energy shot from her left fingertips—
BOOM!
The platform exploded into dust.
Jian Dan stared at her own slender, jade-like hand in shock.
"…That demonic energy is terrifyingly potent."
But now wasn't the time to dwell on it. She had more pressing matters. Her gaze shifted to the shattered platform's side, where a skeleton sat cross-legged against the wall.
Clad in a black robe embroidered with Manjushahua, the garment was immaculate despite the passage of time—clearly no ordinary treasure. On one skeletal finger rested a black ring: a high-grade storage artifact.
Jian Dan approached and gave the remains a perfunctory bow.
"Senior, my arrival in your cave was both misfortune and opportunity. We bore no grudge, but when you sought to seize my body, I had no choice but to resist. As cultivators, we fight against heaven itself for survival. Given the chance, I will always fight to the end."
"So let's call it even."
Her words might have sounded hypocritical, but she saw no reason for false reverence. Without hesitation, she plucked the ring from the skeleton's finger and took the robe.
The moment the robe was removed, the bones crumbled into white dust.