Off work.

Go home.

Lock the room.

Feng Mu stood in the middle of the bedroom, focusing his attention on his hand.

In the next second, his palm writhed, and bone-white wrist bones like blades protruded from his palm, with fresh blood dripping down the cracks onto the ground.

Feng Mu controlled the wrist bones, testing the maximum growth distance, which was about 15 centimeters, the length of a short dagger.

"If I hadn't restrained it this afternoon and had completely transformed into a bone person, this distance could have doubled."

Feng Mu understood in his heart but did not regret it at all. Trading underdevelopment for hiding among humans was very worthwhile.

After all, being obviously abnormal at a glance, no matter how strong, is like a rat crossing the street, with a dead-end fate.

On the contrary, hiding and appearing harmless, lurking while waiting for an opportunity, can be endlessly harmful.

"I was originally pure and good, it was the [entry] that led me astray." Feng Mu sighed inwardly.

Feng Mu continued experimenting.

Then the surprises increased; he found that not only could his palm sprout wrist bone blades, but his shoulder could also pierce out a row of bone thorns, his back could thrust out dense bone lumps, and his ribcage could split into jagged bone hooks.

Feng Mu tried them one by one, attempting each without knowing how the form would change when the bone was stimulated in those areas.

At this moment, he became greatly interested in his body, as if exploring and discovering his body's G-spot, his smile gradually turning morbid.

Elbows and knees could thrust out bone spikes with blood-letting grooves.

Toes could kick out five bone hooks like the sharp claws of felines.

Facial bones could cover the face, forming a white mask without features, revealing only a pair of pitch black pupils.

Above,

are all the transformations of the [Iron Eater] at the second tier.

"Each transformation cannot be arbitrarily controlled in terms of form, only slightly controlling length, and moreover, only two parts can be transformed locally at once."

"In other words, if the mask form is maintained all the time, then when using hand blades, foot claws or shoulder thorns cannot be used for attack or defense, and vice versa."

"Except for ten bone fingers that can be controlled flexibly at all times, for other parts to attack or defend, I need to switch as needed, adding gaps in between the switches."

Within his heart, Feng Mu formed an understanding of the skeletal form of the Iron Eater at the second tier; further detailed understanding must be experienced through actual combat.

In summary,

he named this state as the skeletal form.

"If I had let the bones protrude from my body this afternoon, my current form should have been an integration of all the above skeletal forms~"

Feng Mu caressed the cold mask covering his cheek, thinking faintly,

"So to be more precise, my current skeletal form is a castrated version; indeed, a castrated version is better!"

As for the improvement in overall strength, Feng Mu found it hard to make an accurate assessment, but if forced to find a reference, it would be...yesterday's self, I could fight ten.

Having felt the change in strength, he planned the next stage of upgrading.

The panel of the [Iron Eater] second tier was very clear.

At the second tier, two more edibility slots were added compared to the first tier, meaning he could continue to consume two more types of iron metals at this stage.

Two types of iron metals mean ultimately absorbing two traits. Upgrading to the third tier requires filling two edibility slots entirely, doubling the overall experience required.

"Of course, I can also choose the same type of iron for both, ultimately absorbing only one trait, but the likelihood of strengthening the trait is high."

"For example, if a new trait emerges and it's not (white), but another color?"

Feng Mu pondered for a while and wrote down three plans on paper.

First, choose two different types, both not being pig iron. At the completion of the second stage, he would have three traits on him, very likely all basic (white), but usable in combinations, enhancing the arsenal's quantity.

Second, choose pig iron for both, so upon completion of the second stage, only one trait remains on him, but [Molded Embryo] will receive ultimate enhancement, and [Crane Claw Skill] will also undergo terrifying mutation strengthening due to [Molded Embryo]'s improvement.

This strengthens the power of a single weapon, taking an extreme route.

Third, choose two different types, one being pig iron, the other to be decided. Upon completion of the second stage, he would have two traits, and [Molded Embryo] would be strengthened, providing ensured improvement for [Crane Claw Skill] as well.

This option is the most balanced.

Feng Mu personally leaned towards the third option; he couldn't help it. There's an inherent stability in him, not liking partial expertise, preferring hexagonal warriors.

He didn't rush the decision, planning to look around in the next few days, assess what kinds of iron metals he could find, and then decide.

Moreover, more importantly, he had to wait for Ma Bin's progress on his side to confirm whether he needed to reserve an edibility slot for the shard of Nine Nether Evil Iron.

So,

tonight, there was no need to perform Body Forging Exercise, no iron eating, no blood drawing, and the time became unexpectedly free.

Feng Mu, who had been spinning like a gyroscope, suddenly found himself with nothing to do, feeling somewhat unaccustomed.

After finally letting his mind go blank and doing nothing for a bit, he realized it was just past midnight.

Glancing at his phone, he read the text message from Ma Wei, which was similar to yesterday's and contained nothing of much nutritional value, so he ignored it.

"Never mind, I can only sleep."

Before going to bed, Feng Mu took off his tattered bloodstained clothes, rolling them into a ball, planning to burn them with a Calamity Corpse tomorrow.

"Activating skeletal form really costs clothes," Feng Mu thought, "I'll need to bring an extra set of clothes as a backup when I go out in the future."

Lying in bed, his thoughts drifted, at times imagining his villain identity exposed, being hunted everywhere, at times imagining himself mutated into a Calamity Corpse, leading an army of corpses to counterattack the human world.

Then he imagined gathering all the shards of the Nine Nether Evil Iron and ascending to godhood in one step.

Finally, he envisioned the Upper City collapsing and falling, the sky tearing apart, countless members of the extremely evil [Destiny] descending from the sky, kneeling densely at the doorstep, welcoming him back.

His thoughts drifted further and more absurdly, and in a daze, Feng Mu slowly fell asleep.

…..

Black market.

A place that doesn't operate during the day, only opening after the Upper City turns off the lights.

There's said to be a door, but there isn't—just a concentrated stall area, no storefront, no walls; any crack that air can squeeze in is a path people can shuttle through.

Entry is unrestricted, and departure is unblocked.

If one day fences were erected and a door set up, the black market would likely have no one visiting.

From its inception, the black market naturally has a "lawless" trait; there is no law and no order here.

Most who come to trade here wear masks to hide their faces, all coming and going like beasts in human skin.

It's not that they've lost humanity, but that the rules of trade in the black market follow more animalistic systems; the goods are transactions, and the parties involved may also become goods.

Robbery, theft, double cross, and cold stabs from behind are plots continuously staged in the corners.

Zhang Hao had been staying in the black market for many years, always remaining safe and sound, not just because he had some protective brothers, but also because of his trading wares' consistent and low-value nature, rarely attracting prying eyes.

Indeed,

he only purchased one thing in the black market—Black Core.

In most people's eyes, the Black Core is the crystalized ashes left after burning Calamity Corpses, similar to how bones from irradiated individuals may mix with foul-smelling lumps post-cremation.

Medically, they are categorized in the same manner as stones.

The Black Core business had always been conducted low-key and safely, but suddenly, some discrepancies arose these last days, unsettling Zhang Hao's mood…

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.