Cultivation is just so scientific! Chapter 1806 - 949: Red Demon (Part 2)

With the aid of top-tier 4th-grade corpse refining materials, a corpse refining array was established. Li Shiming then positioned the remains of the Half-step Great Power Zhao Zhao within the machine room's space, commencing the inscription of the 'Refining Corpse Rune' onto it.

Ninety-nine days later, the Yin Cold Energy within the established corpse refining array reached its zenith.

Inscribed upon the body of the Half-step Great Power Zhao Zhao were a staggering 2.5 billion 'Refining Corpse Runes'. By this point, the process had become exceptionally familiar to him.

He carefully placed Zhao Zhao's body inside the corpse refining array, then positioned himself outside its confines, keenly observing the transformations occurring within.

As the Yin Cold Energy permeated Zhao Zhao's remains, the 'Refining Corpse Runes' began to morph into various rule imprints.

The 'Speed Rule Imprint', 'Power Rule Imprint', and 'Defense Rule Imprint' remained unchanged from previous refinements.

However, a notable divergence emerged as Zhao Zhao's body failed to develop wings, a stark contrast to the Duke of Thunder's transformation.

Zhao Zhao's physique underwent a dramatic expansion, growing from its original stature to a towering three meters. Crimson scales erupted across its skin's surface, a pair of crimson-gold horns emerged from its head, and a sharp, segmented tail sprouted from its backend.

Internally, however, only a single additional imprint manifested: a 'Flame Rule Mark'.

Within Li Shiming's spiritual perception, this 'Flame Rule Mark' exuded immense power, presenting itself as the most potent rule mark he had ever encountered.

This unexpected outcome left him perplexed; he questioned why a mere alteration in the body's inherent attributes would precipitate such a significant mutation in the refined corpse.

When compared to the Duke of Thunder, this particular corpse refinement was conspicuously missing the 'Space Rule Imprint' and the 'Thunder Rule Imprint'. The absence of the 'Space Rule Imprint', in particular, would impose a considerable deficit in the refined corpse's speed capabilities.

It's crucial to remember that even with the 'Thunder Rule Imprint' present in previous iterations, the lightning power it unleashed was still quite restricted.

Of course, this restriction was relative to a Half-step Great Power; the lightning attacks had minimal impact on such formidable beings, serving primarily as supplementary tools in combat.

The decisive factor in battles was consistently the Duke of Thunder's potent close-combat prowess.

Without the crucial assistance of the 'Space Rule Imprint', and thus lacking spatial manipulation abilities, the combat effectiveness of the Duke of Thunder would have been diminished by at least fifty percent.

Li Shiming's brow furrowed slightly, a sense of disappointment washing over him as he began to perceive this experiment as a failure.

Even if this newly refined corpse managed to survive the impending Heavenly Tribulation, its practical utility might be severely limited.

His intention was not to refine a corpse for direct confrontation with Great Cultivators.

This was not a statement of hubris; with his current cultivation base, he could effortlessly contend with any single Great Cultivator, or even a multitude of them.

What he truly required was a refined corpse capable of engaging Half-step Great Powers. A refined corpse devoid of spatial abilities might struggle even to close the distance necessary to engage such a powerful entity, let alone mount an effective fight!

Despite his reservations, he resolutely continued to observe the refining process as the corpse prepared to face the Heavenly Tribulation.

He elected not to interfere with the refined corpse's heavenly tribulation. Having personally witnessed the Duke of Thunder endure its tribulation alone, he understood that if this current refined corpse proved incapable of surviving it, its very existence would be rendered superfluous.

To Li Shiming's surprise, while the nine Heavenly Thunders scorched the refined corpse's entire body, its defensive capabilities proved remarkably superior to that of the Duke of Thunder. After enduring all nine Heavenly Thunders, it sustained only negligible injuries.

This remarkable resilience allowed the energy transduced from the heavenly reward to be allocated more efficiently towards bolstering other aspects of the refined corpse.

His only option was to bring Red Demon to the sea for an ability test. Regardless of the experiment's success, this trial was vital for acquiring invaluable data.

Li Shiming released the Duke of Thunder and gave an order to Red Demon.

During previous trials of the Duke of Thunder, a lack of references meant much of the experimental data was derived from estimation and guesswork.

This time was different; the Duke of Thunder's combat strength had been precisely gauged through its confrontation with the Half-step Great Power, Zhao Zhao.

With the Duke of Thunder serving as a benchmark, Red Demon's exact combat power could be determined.

Red Demon and the Duke of Thunder locked eyes, letting out simultaneous roars. The Duke of Thunder vanished from its position, reappearing instantly beside Red Demon to unleash a punch towards its body.

Red Demon remained stationary, following Li Shiming's directive to assess its defensive capabilities.

With a solid 'bang', the Duke of Thunder's fist connected with Red Demon's chest, causing the latter to sway and involuntarily retreat several steps.

Li Shiming's eyes gleamed. Even though the Duke of Thunder was using only seventy percent of its might, the comparison allowed him to ascertain that Red Demon's defense had reached an elite level.

He issued another command, and the Duke of Thunder escalated its power to eighty percent, striking Red Demon once more.

At the point of impact, Red Demon's crimson scales rippled like water waves across its entire body. This time, it stumbled back only one step.

Then, the Duke of Thunder unleashed its full hundred percent power, sending Red Demon flying back over ten meters, yet sustaining minimal damage.

The vibrant red scales enveloping Red Demon proved exceptionally effective for defense, absorbing a portion of the attacks' force. These scales were remarkably resilient, with the Duke of Thunder's claws merely leaving indentations on their surface.

Breaching the red scales would likely demand dozens of concentrated strikes on the same spot to penetrate their formidable defense, a duration ample for Red Demon to launch multiple counter-attacks.

Red Demon's defensive prowess was undeniably significant, prompting Li Shiming to order it to attack the Duke of Thunder.

As both were his meticulously refined corpses, Li Shiming instructed Red Demon to engage using its fists rather than its sharper claws.

Upon observing the punch, Li Shiming couldn't help but shake his head, sensing that in close-quarters combat, Red Demon's strength was, at best, on par with the Duke of Thunder's.

However, lacking the Duke of Thunder's spatial movement skills, Red Demon would struggle to maintain continuous engagement against Half-step Great Powers, rendering its close-combat effectiveness comparatively weaker.

Finally, Li Shiming commanded Red Demon to unleash a fire-based assault.

This was an ability Red Demon had acquired from the Half-step Great Power, Zhao Zhao. Considering the lightning ability the Duke of Thunder had gained, Li Shiming harbored meager expectations for Red Demon's fire-based technique.

Yet, as Red Demon unleashed the flames, Li Shiming detected an anomaly.

Just as the fire approached the Duke of Thunder, a primal sense of danger triggered an instinctive reaction, causing the Duke of Thunder to vanish instantaneously from its original position.

"So that's how it is; I was mistaken!" Li Shiming exclaimed, observing the fire emanating from Red Demon with a laugh.

The fire projected by Red Demon, imbued with the potent 'Flame Rule Mark', reached a remarkably high echelon among Half-step Great Powers.

Furthermore, fire, by its nature, possessed immense destructive potential, inflicting catastrophic damage.

Based on the potency of Red Demon's fire, it possessed the capability to inflict substantial harm upon the Half-step Great Power Zhao Zhao.

This represented the destructive output of a single fiery attack, implying that one fire assault from Red Demon was equivalent to the cumulative might of several close-range strikes from the Duke of Thunder.

In Li Shiming's assessment, the Duke of Thunder functioned as an assassin, while Red Demon resembled a mage, each possessing unique attributes and roles.