Chapter 311: Chapter 309: Lou Er’s Transformation (Part 1) Its amber eyes were devoid of any emotion, surrounded by a sea of blood-red. Coupled with its bald and hairless features, along with a head full of dense black lines, it looked quite unsettling. Lou Er had a towering build, comparable to a professional basketball center from a past life, exuding a strong sense of oppression. Its skin color had transformed from a deathly pale three years ago to the current mix of white and gray. The third plum blossom mark on its chest was faintly visible, indicating that the next realm of the Iron Corpse was near. Once it breaks through to the Iron Corpse Realm, forming three plum blossom marks, it can autonomously absorb the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, marking a significant transformation. In turn, it can enhance the master’s cultivation speed. Lou Yi saw this and sighed. "Lou Er, Lou Er, don’t blame me. I don’t even have enough contribution points for myself, really can’t spare any to exchange for Star Iron for you." To promote a Spirit Corpse to Iron Corpse, besides the master’s daily nurturing with Spiritual Power, feeding it Star Iron is also one of the ways to accelerate the process. Unfortunately, Star Iron is not cheap; each liang costs ten points of contribution. To achieve significant effects, it’s not something that can be done with just one or two liang, and Lou Yi really couldn’t afford the exchange. Fortunately, Lou Er is an Innate Spirit Corpse, equivalent to a Super Grade Spirit Root among cultivators. Even without the assistance of Star Iron, its transformation speed is far ahead among new disciples’ Lifebound Corpses. In another two or three years, it should be able to transform into an Iron Corpse. Lou Er blinked at him, seemingly indicating it didn’t mind. As Lou Yi’s Lifebound Corpse, Lou Er’s consciousness was not weak. However, the individuality part was very minimal, and with the array restrictions imposed by the Corpse-Driving Sect, there was almost no possibility of betrayal. "Alright, once my contributions are abundant in the future, I won’t forget your share," Lou Yi said, patting Lou Er’s shoulder happily. With nothing better to do, he stood in place, continuing to study the wonders of True Strength. A bright red True Strength emerged from his body, transforming into a dazzling halo that circled around Lou Yi’s arm, looking almost like a toy. Upon seeing the True Strength, Lou Er automatically distanced itself from Lou Yi, evidently wary of it. Yet, its eyes paradoxically revealed a glow of longing. Lou Yi saw this and couldn’t help but laugh: "You still want to touch it? Want to give it a try?" After he spoke, Lou Er seemed startled and retreated two more steps. One of the primary functions of a Lifebound Corpse is to absorb all the yin chill from the Yin Spiritual Qi that the cultivator absorbs. It then transfers the neutralized Spiritual Qi to the cultivator, acting like a filter. Over time, it gradually becomes something of utmost yin. However, Lou Yi’s True Strength possesses qualities of utmost heat and yang, making the two incompatible like water and fire. Lou Yi had tried before to transfer True Strength into Lou Er’s body, similar to transferring Spiritual Qi, but it caused a chaotic aura, making it struggle, and he dared not try again since then. Yet Lou Er seemed to have an extreme longing for the True Strength, which puzzled Lou Yi. Without thinking much, after staying in the fields for several hours, he took Lou Er back to the Disciple Peak. The peak of the Disciple Peak was a scene of clamoring at this time. Almost all the Inner Sect Disciples at the peak were present, along with some unfamiliar faces. "Hit, hit him hard!" "Beat the crap out of that Guan Min guy, I don’t believe no one can beat him!" ’Boom boom boom!’ ’Clang clang clang!’ In a ring drawn with black charcoal circles, two tall, dark gray corpses were locked in fierce combat. Every exchange of blows produced an ear-piercing sound akin to metallic collisions, with even sparks flying, demonstrating the hardness of their bodies. However, the scene seemed a bit one-sided. The slightly smaller corpse was forced to retreat step by step, despite making several counterattacks, all to no avail. In the end, it was forced out of the circle, completely suppressed from start to finish. "Damn, lost again, my silver..." "Ah Fei’s Iron Corpse has been transforming for years now, and even he can’t beat Guan Min. Looks like no one here can win!" In the field, numerous disciples watched a blue-robed male cultivator with grave expressions. This person was tall, with a chin full of stubble, rough skin, looking aged somewhere between his twenties and thirties. He spoke smugly: "Ladies and gentlemen, my Iron Corpse had a remarkable foundation. With my mentor’s help, it’s been tempered through the Thunder Technique, and its strength has exceeded thirty thousand pounds. You might as well give up, why make a big fuss over winning and losing?" While speaking, he emphasized the words ’mentor’ and ’Thunder Technique’, provoking considerable discontent among everyone at Disciple Peak. "Damned, having a mentor is so great, huh? Looking down on people just because you’ve moved up to Wendao Peak?" "I used to help Guan Min back then, and now acting all arrogant like this, just hating myself for being blind back then." "No choice, strength speaks, who made us at Disciple Peak unable to beat him!" Though discontent, the crowd was helpless. Lou Yi stood by quietly observing, piecing together most of the situation based on the surrounding chatter. Guan Min, who came from Wendao Peak, was invited to participate in the corpse battles. But somehow he ended up making indiscreet remarks, provoking everyone. Essentially, he implied that all Inner Sect Disciples remaining at Disciple Peak were incompetent, while the capable ones had all moved to Wendao Peak. Such remarks thoroughly enraged the crowd. The Inner Sect Disciples residing atop Disciple Peak couldn’t refrain from challenging him, but all ended in failure. However, Lou Yi understood that most of what Guan Min said was true. All Outer Disciples of the Corpse-Driving Sect resided at Disciple Peak. After breaking through to the Qi Cultivation Middle Stage, some would be appreciated by elders and taken in as disciples, prompting them to move away from Disciple Peak. Others, with limited potential, remained at Disciple Peak, without elders’ favor, having to tough it out over time. While the reasoning was sound, Guan Min’s straightforward words were somewhat hurtful, causing the outrage. However, these matters had little to do with Lou Yi, who simply watched the drama unfold. At this time, Guan Min continued: "Sigh, can’t stand you all, losing yet refusing to admit it. Fine, I’ll give you another chance, anyone who can beat my Great Bull, I’ll give him a Corpse Storage Bag! But if you lose, you’ll have to give me a treasure of equivalent value." "Hey, no one? Has staying at Disciple Peak dulled your courage? Su Pei, are you coming or not?" The youth with a blade of grass in his mouth, Su Pei, being named, looked displeased yet didn’t act impulsively. He wasn’t foolish, unwilling to hand over treasures to Guan Min for nothing; his Lifebound Corpse had just broken through to Iron Corpse, how could it contend with the opponent? Everyone else’s thoughts mirrored Su Pei’s, as a Corpse Storage Bag valued a hundred contribution points, not a trivial sum. Just as the atmosphere turned a bit awkward, a voice broke the silence: "I’ll do it!" Everyone looked up, surprise etched on their faces. "It’s him, Junior Brother Lou?" "His corpse seems to be an Innate Spirit Corpse, but if I remember right, it’s still some way from being an Iron Corpse?" "Brother Lou may excel at betting on corpses, rarely losing. But battling corpses isn’t the same as betting; it’s not just about having a keen eye. It requires one’s Lifebound Corpse to face off directly, allowing no laxity!" Guan Min from Wendao Peak also furrowed his brows. Yet his worry wasn’t about Lou Yi’s lack of cultivation skill. "This Junior Brother, I’m offering a Corpse Storage Bag, equivalent to a hundred-point contribution. If you want to gamble with me, you need something of equivalent value, right?" "How about this?" Lou Yi smiled, holding up a pink brocade pouch. Palm-sized, exquisitely crafted, it emitted a faint glow under the sun. "A Storage Bag?" ...