Ricky had been stuck on the second grade of Bone Reinforcement for quite some time now. He had yet to reach the peak of that level even after several days of practice. However, once he was able to acquire less than a fiftieth of the Great Dragon's rare blood essence, he was able to push himself further into the third grade in just a matter of hours.
According to various studies, the Great Dragon's blood essence was so rare and powerful that it could help warriors like Ricky develop themselves and increase their capabilities in a short span of time.
All that was left to do was for Ricky to strengthen himself and his new-found power in the third grade of Bone Reinforcement. This process was most commonly known as the consolidation process.
It didn't take much time for him to complete the process due to the Great Dragon's blood essence. It only took him four hours to fully consolidate himself in that level.
"The Great Dragon's blood essence surely is an extraordinary artifact! I didn't know I could reach this new level in such a short amount of time!" Ricky exclaimed.
Nevertheless, Ricky was yet to fully consume the power of the Great Dragon's blood essence. He knew the side effects that may occur once he did. Based on his studies about the blood essence's nature, he estimated that at least half of the energy still remained inside his body and that he would reach the fourth grade of Blood Reinforcement once he was able to completely refine and absorb it.
However, he chose not to pursue this idea because he knew that even though the power of the Great Dragon's blood essence would significantly speed up his efforts to level up, it would negatively affect his fighting power. Increasing his level without equally increasing his fighting power would do him no good. He knew that this would only lead to his previous efforts of challenging warriors three levels above him be left in vain.
'I think it's time for me to increase the level of my Nine-degree Body Refining Formula. After all, the Great Dragon itself was considered to be one of the most powerful creatures to walk the face of the Earth. I believe it was also said that its body was the strongest and most fortified among all the other creatures ever created. I should consider myself lucky to have even just a portion of its rare blood, ' he thought to himself. "I should not put my good fortune to waste. If I use the remainder of the Great Dragon's blood essence, I should be able to reach the Seventh Degree of Nine-degree Body Refining Formula!" Ricky murmured to himself.
Without hesitation, he immediately activated his Nine-degree Body Refining Formula in a matter of seconds. And, with the help of his two Supreme Skills, he brought out the Myriad Magic Ice as well as the Incessant Crimson Magma which were stored in his Devourer Zone and used them together. He combined the two initial pieces with the Great Dragon's blood essence as he gathered all the materials needed to start his cultivation. As soon as he was ready, the cultivation started.
This type of cultivation was extremely painful.
The pain this cultivation caused was worse than being bitten by tens of thousands of ants.
As the pro
atter of seconds, the Heaven Melting Fire surged violently into the egg. With every gush, the egg grew bigger and moved more vigorously. Ricky could not help but stay back. He did nothing but watch as he witnessed this extraordinary event.
'I can't believe it. The Fire Dragon Egg is about to break, ' Ricky thought to himself as he was completely astonished.
At this moment, his mind raced with great expectations as well as fear for the creature waiting to be born into life.
He murmured, "Could this be it? Could this be the birth of a new Great Dragon?" He felt excited at this idea.
Ricky watched carefully as the Fire Dragon Egg began to grow larger.
He readied himself for the inevitable explosion that would soon come from the egg's hatching.
However, before he could even prepare, the Fire Dragon Egg hatched and caused an enormous explosion. A gigantic red light flashed across the entire Chaotic Fire Zone. A shock wave so huge emanated from the center of the egg, almost decimating the entire surrounding area.
Ricky hurriedly used his Devourer Zone to withstand the devastating shock wave.
The explosion was so powerful that Ricky could barely stand his ground and defend himself.
Just when he thought he was safe, an ear-splitting sound rang throughout the air again blowing Ricky away with its sheer force.
Ricky immediately got up as he shrugged off dirt from his clothes. Then, another voice started to emerge. "Ha-ha! Finally, after centuries of deep sleep, I have finally returned!" the voice exclaimed.
Surprised, Ricky looked up and saw a long crimson snake flying across the burning Heaven Melting Fire.
Ricky's eyes grew with disappointment.
"What?! What the hell is going on!? Are you kidding me? You call this a Great Dragon?" Ricky exclaimed frustratingly.
The creature he saw had all the features of a snake. Flames covered its entire body as it flew across the air. Clearly, Ricky knew this was not the Great Dragon, much less a regular dragon.
He looked up at the burning sky with great dismay. Ricky clenched his fists and was ready to confront the creature before him.