Chapter 21: Transformation of the Hands

The memory had dispersed but anger still filled Zhen Jin. He felt himself bursting with this emotion.

“Aahhhh!” he bellowed terribly.

I cannot die. How can I fall here‽ I still need to protect my fiance. I will leave this place alive, take control of White Sands City and revive the Bai Zhen family! My knight’s path…how can my journey as a knight end here? the youth raged in his heart.

At this moment, he felt as if his blood was boiling. He felt as if his blood was rushing like a great surging river. It then turned into a torrent that cascaded into his hands. He felt a change beginning to occur. His hands violently swelled, his fingers elongated, and his nails turned into sharp black claws that seemed as hard as iron.

He tried slashing with his claws and with little effort, the spiderweb was torn apart. The claws started heating up and became red hot as if they were branding irons. He did not think about it and instinctively thrust his claws into the spider leader. It was caught off guard when his pair of claws stabbed toward it, and it could not dodge.

Squish! The one-foot-long claws plunged deep into the spider. Zhen Jin broke into a shout and exerted more force, almost pushing his entire hand into the gash. The spider stiffened as if it were struck by lightning.

After a short breath, a copious amount of blood as well milky white brain matter spewed out of the puncture. When other spiders realized their leader, the Silver spider, had died, they fled in haste and chaos.

The two had escaped disaster. Dazed, Zhen Jin drew his hands out of the spider’s roasted innards. He did not know what to make of the transformation of his arms.

His hands had become like those of a gorilla. They had grown several sizes larger and had thick black hair, causing his forearms to appear tiny. From his fingers extended long, sharp claws, still exuding with heat like molten iron straight from a furnace. They resembled the claws of the monkey bear he had defeated.

Wh-what is this‽ While he was still shocked, another transformation started. First, the red hot claws cooled and crumbled to ash and dispersed into the air. His hands then quickly shrunk and returned to their original human form. All of the black hair also fell off, revealing fair human skin.

Zhen Jin suddenly shook. An indescribable feeling of weakness came from the depths of his being. He was not only physically but also mentally exhausted. He felt as if some part of his body was being hollowed out.

Around him, the fires still burned, crackling as they did. Without the claws holding it up, the spider leader’s corpse fell to the ground. It all seemed like a dream.

“My Lord, Lord Zhen Jin!” Zi Di’s shout at first seemed distant but soon became louder and clearer. The urging voice woke Zhen Jin out of his daze.

“Gasp…” the youth took a breath of air. He gritted his teeth and pulled out the spider’s two legs that were still stuck in his back. Blood immediately gushed out.

He took out a potion he was carrying and poured it on his wound. Afterward, he rushed to Zi Di’s side. Although he did not have the dagger, the spider’s legs which were even sharper were sufficient. Using them, he cut open the spiderwebs and rescued Zi Di.

“My Lord, have you awakened your battle qi‽” Zi Di asked with a pleasant surprise.

Zhen Jin’s thoughts were roused. Zi Di was on the ground and I had my back to her so she didn’t see my hands transform. “No. I used the speartip to pierce through the spiderwebs,” he unconsciously lied. The transformation was extremely abnormal. He subconsciously did not want to talk about it as it would cause his fiancée to worry.

“That abominable Huang Zao ran away! We must find him and deal with him!” Zi Di said viciously. If Huang Zao had not fled at such a crucial moment, the two would not have fallen into such a dire situation.

Zhen Jin nodded and was just about to speak when a loud boom sounded. A large burning tree had fallen to the ground. Embers of fire flew everywhere and the fire grew further.

“Let’s leave this place,” said Zhen Jin. Zi Di wanted to bandage his wounds but he stopped her. Although the wounds were deep, they had stopped bleeding. Knowing his remaining stamina, escaping the fire was the highest priority.

“Wait, those are all good things. We shouldn’t leave them behind to burn,” Zi Di said as she pointed to the Silver spider’s carcass, her eyes gleaming bright.

Thus, the two dragged the spider together and escaped the fire. Just after removing themselves to a safe distance, the two heard a muffled buzz. Thereupon, countless fire-venom bee swarms flew into the sea of fire. There were so many of them they almost blotted out the sky.

The numerous fire-venom bees contained the fire that had spread for hundreds of meters and slowly extinguished it. After watching this scene, they did not dare stay near out of fear and rushed through the mountainous hills for several kilometers before stopping to rest and reorganize.

Luckily, they found a satisfactory dwelling at the base of a cliff. For the next three days, Zhen Jin and Zi Di rested here. Using some bodily fluids of the spider, Zi Di concocted an aura potion that feigned the aura of a Silver magic beast which greatly increased the safety of their dwelling.

The miraculous abilities of Zhen Jin’s body were once again displayed: The stab wounds on his back recovered at an astonishing pace. Coupled with Zi Di’s medicines, new flesh had already grown over his wounds in this short period. Zhen Jin had been worried the spider’s legs would contain venom. It did not turn out to be so.

Zi Di had used this time to dismember the spider. Although her work conditions were crude, she still tried her best to harvest usable parts. Using these materials, she concocted several bottles of corrosive agents and adhesive agents. These potions were all basic but because they used high-end materials, their efficacy was worth looking forward to.

Zi Di had said to him with regret, “If our conditions were better, I would have been able to concoct agility potions. It’s a pity that these materials can only be used in such a wasteful way all to concoct these little trinkets.”

Zhen Jin had smiled and consoled her, acknowledging the value of the trinkets she spoke of. Zi Di had used the monkey bear’s blood as well as the cave’s ore to concoct fire accelerants and retardants, both of which proved to play a great role.