Chapter 15: Bone-Cleansing Elixir
Instructor Jian Qing’s class didn’t last long—barely an hour—but what she taught left everyone shaken.
Even those from noble families—Bai Yuhao, Liu Xi, and the like—who had seen their share of elite techniques, couldn’t hide the spark of excitement in their eyes when they heard about the military’s secret cultivation methods.
After class, Chen Ning went with the others to the food hall for dinner.
Once the meal was done, the recruits had what the instructors called “free time” before lights out. Of course, “free” only meant they could move around within designated zones.
Chen Ning headed straight to the infirmary.
Old Doctor Fang Zheng had told him to come by today for a dressing change, but between morning drills and classes, he hadn’t had a moment to spare until now.
Fang examined his wounds and frowned.
“You’ve been overexerting yourself,” the old man said. “The stitches tore open in several places.”
Without another word, Fang took up a needle and thread and began re-stitching the wounds—again, with no anesthesia. This time, without the help of blood to numb the pain, the pain was so intense that sweat drenched Chen Ning’s forehead, but he clenched his jaw and didn’t let a sound escape.
When the bandages were finally redone, Fang hooked up an IV drip of antibiotics.
After the infusion, Chen Ning felt much better and was about to leave when Fang tossed him a small, black pill.
“Here, kid. Seeing as we’re cut from the same cloth, take this Bone-Cleansing Elixir. It’ll do wonders for those wounds of yours.”
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TL Note: Bone-Cleansing Elixir (伐骨洗髓丹)
A Metamorphic Pill that rebuilds the user’s body from the inside out, making them stronger, healthier, and more powerful than before.
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Chen Ning caught the pill instinctively, blinking. “The same cloth?” he asked, confused.
Old Fang’s eyes twinkled with mischief. “You skipped the anesthesia,” he said with a grin, showing off his uneven, yellow teeth. “That’s the kind of tough, manly spirit I respect. You remind me of myself when I was young. And you’re clearly just as handsome. We’re the same breed.”
Chen Ning’s expression stiffened.
He looked at the old man’s balding head, the thin wisps of hair clinging to the sides, the deep eye sockets and high cheekbones—and silently thought, There’s no universe where I look like this guy.
Still, the pill was a kind gesture.
Chen Ning thanked him, pocketed the medicine, and left.
Back in the dorm, he took a sip of water and swallowed the pill.
He thought it was just a simple wound medicine. He had no idea that the Bone-Cleansing Elixir was a rare, transformative compound—something that could rebuild the body from the inside out.
The elixir was a secret creation of the Empire’s military.
Like Angel’s Kiss, it was an advanced-grade recovery drug—but where Angel’s Kiss was available to all ordinary soldiers, the Bone-Cleansing Elixir was only reserved for war heroes.
It was said to repair chronic battle injuries, fortify bones and muscles, and push a warrior’s strength to the next level.
But it could only be used once—its transformative effect could never be repeated.
Moments after swallowing it, Chen Ning felt warmth bloom in his abdomen, spreading through his veins.
When it reached his broken ribs beneath the left arm, the pain that had haunted him for days melted into a soothing heat.
His head grew hazy, heavy with sleep, and before he knew it, he had drifted off.
Through the night, he felt a deep warmth coursing through him, sweat steadily beading and rolling down his body.
When he woke, dawn was breaking—it was five in the morning, an hour before the wake-up call.
He had slept for nearly twelve hours straight!
Startled, he noticed something uncomfortable—the stickiness clinging to his skin.
He threw off his blanket, and a foul stench hit him like a truck.
No way… did I wet the bed?!
Panic spiked. If the others found out, he’d never live it down.
He quickly checked—and sighed in relief. It wasn’t urine. His body was coated in a dark, greasy film, pitch-black and reeking.
Without waking anyone, Chen Ning snuck into the showers and scrubbed himself clean.
When he looked in the mirror afterward, even he was stunned.
His skin had regained a healthy glow, his movements felt sharper, faster, lighter. His stamina brimmed like never before. And most shockingly—the pain in his ribs was gone. Fully healed.
He finally understood.
That pill Fang gave him wasn’t some cheap medicine—it had purged the toxins and impurities from his body, healed his wounds, and rebuilt his strength from the inside out.
No wonder it’s called the Bone-Cleansing Elixir, he thought, clenching his fist. The name fits perfectly.
He quickly changed his sheets before the wake-up trumpet sounded, and soon the dorm erupted with the sounds of men getting dressed and boots hitting the floor.
Morning training began as usual—but today, a new task had been added: breaking a ten-centimeter-thick wooden rod with a single kick.
As always, Bai Yuhao was first. His kick cut through the air like a blade, snapping the log clean in two, half of it flying three meters away.
“Excellent,” said Instructor Hawk.
Then came Liu Xi.
After losing his Angel’s Kiss serum to Bai Yuhao yesterday, he could not fully recover from yesterday’s fatigue, looked a little drained, but still managed to crack the log—though it didn’t break completely, only hung by a strip of bark.
“Acceptable. Next.”
Chen Ning stepped forward.
Liu Xi, limping back to the line, snorted in disdain. Let’s see you top that, he thought.
But Chen Ning didn’t even glance his way. He focused, charged—and his kick came down like thunder.
CRACK!
The log split in half, one piece spinning through the air and landing beside Bai Yuhao’s.
The recruits gasped.
“Whoa, that was insane!”
“He’s almost as strong as Bai Yuhao now!”
“When did Chen Ning get this powerful?”
Whispers spread fast.
Someone murmured, “You didn’t hear the rumors? The truth is, Chen Ning has always shown great potential. His poor performance a few days ago was because someone targeted him—they stole his Angel Kiss and poured it into a urinal. It was precisely the loss of that serum that landed him in such a dire state. However, ever since his successful self-redemption and being re-issued a new serum, he has clearly overcome those difficulties and is now back on his feet.””
“What? That’s evil!”
“Keep your voice down—if Liu Xi hears you, you’re done for.”
Liu Xi heard enough.
The furtive glances, the murmurs—they all stoked his rage. His face darkened, his eyes locked on Chen Ning with quiet, murderous hate.
He was convinced that Chen Ning had leaked the story. Combined with the shocking prowess Chen Ning had displayed today, a genuine sense of threat took root in him. Right then, he resolved to find an opportunity to snuff out the threat preemptively, before Chen Ning could truly come into his strength.
Over the next month, Liu Xi kept searching for a chance to strike—but the camp’s security and Chen Ning’s growing vigilance made it impossible.
During that time, the recruits’ transformation was astonishing.
Each could now squat two hundred kilos six hundred times and shatter tree trunks twenty centimeters thick with a single kick.
They had learned dozens of techniques tailored for battling the undead.
But progress came at a brutal price. Of the original thousand recruits, barely two hundred and fifty remained. Every survivor had climbed a mountain of corpses to get this far.
Now, the Azurebird Training Camp shifted its focus from endurance to real combat.
Under Hawk’s lead, Chen Ning and the others ventured into the wild for live exercises.
Their first encounter was a lone Walker. While this undead was usually terrifying enough to frighten away scavengers and the poor, encountering Chen Ning’s team was like a lone mouse confronting a pack of young cats—led by the seasoned Hawk. Consequently, the zombie was thoroughly inspected and tormented by the eager rookies for quite some time before Bai Yuhao finally delivered the killing blow.
Their second was a Level-Two Stiff—faster, stronger, deadlier—but it too fell after a brief, chaotic fight.
The third time, they met a pack of ten Walkers.
The recruits charged in laughing, confident, even teasing the undead for fun.
That arrogance cost them dearly. One of the female recruits, Huang Min—normally one of the best—misjudged a move while showing off and got bitten on the arm.
“Instructor! She’s bitten! What do we do?!”
They laid her down, panic rising. The wound was ugly, blood oozing dark and sluggish.
Hawk arrived with Chen Ning, Bai Yuhao, Liu Xi, and the others in tow.
Huang Min’s face was pale, but she still managed a trembling smile. “Instructor… help me…”
No one truly grasped the gravity of the situation. She was still talking, still alive—how bad could it be?
Hawk knelt, examined the wound, then spoke softly.
“Don’t worry. Close your eyes. I’ll save you.”
She obeyed—trusting him completely.
Then—BANG!
The gunshot echoed through the silent clearing. Huang Min’s body went limp.
Chen Ning’s eyes went wide. “Instructor! What are you doing?!”
Hawk holstered his weapon and looked over the stunned faces before him.
“Let this be ingrained in your minds from this day forward: against the enemy, particularly the undead, be it a lowly Level 1 Walker or a supreme Level 12 Corpse Emperor, you give everything you have. Underestimating your foe is tantamount to forfeiting your own life. And if you’re infected? There are only two outcomes: death, or transformation into a zombie.”
The recruits stared at Huang Min’s body in horrified silence.
The laughter and arrogance from before vanished, replaced by the grim weight of understanding.
That day, they learned a lesson they would never forget—
Never underestimate your enemy. No matter how strong you are.
Because in this cruel world, one small mistake, even the weakest foe could end your life.
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