C9 Blood in His Heart

The Elite Deadly Crocodile Turtle moved with a swiftness unlike its kin, rapidly making its way to the shore.

Jiang Hao was curious about the creature's speed and strength, so he refrained from using his Ice Arrow attack.

As the Deadly Crocodile Turtle reached the shore, Jiang Hao unleashed the Thunderbolt Strike.

Transformed into a living missile, the Deadly Crocodile Turtle leapt into the air.

Then, with the force of a landslide, it plummeted back to earth.

"Boom!"

The ground was left with a massive crater.

The Deadly Crocodile Turtle emerged from the pit, its enormous head colliding with Jiang Hao.

"Puff!"

Jiang Hao was sent flying over ten meters, slamming into a tree and coughing up blood.

His vitality plummeted dangerously.

"That's powerful!"

Jiang Hao wiped the blood from his lips, realizing he may have overestimated himself.

He had wanted to gauge the Deadly Crocodile Turtle's abilities but nearly paid with his life.

The impact had cost Jiang Hao 90% of his health.

"Healing Technique."

Jiang Hao rose to his feet and used the Priest's Healing Technique to restore his health.

Having learned his lesson, Jiang Hao was no longer reckless, denying the Deadly Crocodile Turtle any further opportunities to deploy its skills.

With nimble movements, he closed in on the Deadly Crocodile Turtle, unleashing his full arsenal of Assassin skills.

The creature's body was soon covered in bloody wounds, and in agony, it attempted to unleash a mental shock.

Jiang Hao sprang up, driving his dagger through the upper jaw of the Deadly Crocodile Turtle.

Before the creature could recover, Jiang Hao executed a Swordsman's basic skill, the Sword Wielding Technique.

His sword became a streak of light, ruthlessly striking at the Deadly Crocodile Turtle's neck.

The Deadly Crocodile Turtle was unable to use its Death Charge consecutively, requiring a brief respite between attacks.

Jiang Hao capitalized on this delay, rapidly depleting the creature's health with precise strikes.

Under Jiang Hao's relentless assault, the Deadly Crocodile Turtle's mental shock remained stifled, unable to manifest.

Fuming with rage, the formidable creature glared at Jiang Hao as if he were its mortal enemy.

Jiang Hao hoisted his long sword high and struck at the Death Alligator Turtle once more.

The creature's head soared through the air before tumbling to the ground.

Jiang Hao retreated several steps, vigilantly watching the Elite Death Alligator Turtle as its body began to shrink.

Seconds later, the turtle's form had diminished significantly.

The severed head, previously lopped off, reformed anew.

The Death Alligator Turtle opened its massive jaws, lunging to bite Jiang Hao.

Prepared for such an attack, Jiang Hao easily evaded the strike.

With a swift counterattack, he parried the creature's gaping mouth aside.

Jiang Hao continued his swordplay with practiced ease, chopping at the turtle's neck as if slicing through vegetables.

In its final moments, the Death Alligator Turtle wore an expression of defiance.

It could never have imagined that Jiang Hao would fight so dishonorably.

Aside from allowing it to unleash its Death Charge, Jiang Hao gave it no opportunity to use any other abilities.

The Death Alligator Turtle met its end right there, its body dissolving into light and vanishing, leaving a scatter of resources in its wake.

Jiang Hao gathered the resources while activating the communicator he had intentionally shut off.

Since entering the first stone door, Jiang Hao had kept the device off for two reasons: he wasn't ready to reveal all his cards, and he wanted to avoid the chaotic commands from the family Patriarch.

The Patriarch had previously ordered Jiang Hao to rescue Zhou Yi and the others at any cost.

Yet Zhou Yi, far from being grateful, had confronted Jiang Hao over some trivial gain.

Who knew what other outlandish orders the Patriarch might issue upon witnessing Jiang Hao's adept use of various skills?

Upon reactivating the communicator, the Patriarch of the Jiang Family was dumbfounded by what he saw.

He had assumed Jiang Hao perished inside when the communicator went silent.

Instead, Jiang Hao was very much alive and had amassed a significant haul of resources.

"Jiang Hao, what's happened here?"

The Patriarch of the Jiang Family demanded urgently.

Jiang Hao responded coolly, "I just took down a few Death Alligator Turtles. These are the resources they left behind."

Upon hearing the term "Death Crocodile Turtles," the Jiang Family Patriarch was left utterly dumbfounded, and the onlookers from other nations were similarly struck by a mental paralysis.

The sheer amount of resources that had been dropped indicated that Jiang Hao must have slain a significant number of Death Crocodile Turtles. Traditionally, these creatures were taken down by squads, not individuals. How had Jiang Hao managed it on his own? Could it have been with the aid of his magic staff? That seemed unlikely, though, as the Death Crocodile Turtles were known for their strong resistance to magic, and the mutated monsters within the Magic Building were not typically susceptible to black magic.

"Jiang Hao, where are you going?" the patriarch snapped back to reality after a reminder from an aide, only to realize that Jiang Hao hadn't bothered to collect the resources scattered on the ground. Instead, he continued to walk forward, focused on his own path.

Without breaking stride, Jiang Hao explained, "My storage bag is nearly full. I need to be selective about the resources I gather; I can't just pick up any old junk."

[A citizen of Wrapes sneered, "This guy is way too cocky, dismissing the resources in the Magic Building like they're beneath him." The words dripped with envy.

[You complain about being called a small country, yet you can't accept it!]

[Jiang Hao's survival and resource haul from the Death Crocodile Turtles is proof of his formidable power to overcome them. What's the big deal if he discards some resources?]

[He's got the means to be wasteful. Why does it bother you? If you're capable, do the same!]

The citizens of Blue Star shot back, mocking the Wrapes for their miserly attitudes.

[The entire populace of Gluaphane endorses this statement.]

The Gluaphane, who typically revered the strong, found themselves in rare agreement with the Blue Star citizens.

The Jiang Family Patriarch, too excited to pay attention to the public chat, eagerly inquired, "Jiang Hao, did you just say your storage bag is almost full? How many resources have you collected?"

"I haven't counted. Take a look for yourselves."

Jiang Hao paused to display the treasures within his storage bag through the communication system.

In the next instant, the patriarch spun around, bellowing to those behind him, "Who here is a high-level fabricator?"

Immediately, several individuals of varying ages stepped forward from the crowd.

"Respectfully, Patriarch, we are all senior fabricators who have surpassed Level 100."

The Jiang Family, in contrast to the Zhou and Lu Families, embraced a philosophy of all-around development.

With a solid base of combat professions, the Jiang Family also placed emphasis on cultivating individuals skilled in life-enhancing trades.

"Return to the clan posthaste!"

The Jiang Family patriarch bellowed, "Upon your return, relay my command to unlock the family vault, allowing you to select materials from within."

"Before Jiang Hao emerges from the Selection Gate, you must craft for him a top-tier storage bag."

After a moment's thought, the patriarch added with unease, "Should there be a shortage of materials, purchase them from the auction house or others. If they refuse to sell, or if there's already a deposit paid, offer ten times, no, twenty times the asking price to secure them!"

Jiang Hao had discarded numerous valuable items due to the storage bag's poor quality, causing the patriarch to feel as though he was hemorrhaging from within.