Reincarnated as a Divine Tree

Upon hearing this, Chen Tianyu froze for a moment, then instinctively turned his gaze toward Chen Qinghe, who stood not far away holding up a bone with a delighted expression.

Under the glow of the phosphorescent light, the bone gleamed with a crystalline luster—far brighter than the others scattered around.

Judging by its structure and shape, it seemed to be a thigh bone.

When Chen Tianyu took the relatively fresh thighbone from Chen Qinghe's hands, he showed a trace of surprise.

Though the bone felt slightly slick to the touch, its texture was excellent. Most importantly, the material seemed incredibly dense and hard, completely different from the other bones that crumbled underfoot with a single step.

Chen Tianyu gave the bone a few experimental swings, wanting to test just how sturdy it was.

As he swung the bone through the air, Chen Tianyu’s eyes lit up and he couldn't help but say,

"This thing seems capable of transmitting blood and qi."

Hearing this, the other clansmen, who had initially dismissed the bone, turned their surprised gazes toward it.

To confirm his suspicion, Chen Tianyu began channeling his powerful blood and qi into the bone.

Ordinary metal weapons couldn’t transmit such energy effectively. During infusion, much of it dissipates. The better the weapon, the more energy it could retain and transmit, thus increasing its power.

Top-tier weapons could unleash power beyond their limits.

Feeling the bone absorb all the energy he poured into it, Chen Tianyu’s expression grew serious. He continued to increase the intensity of his blood and qi flow.

The more blood and qi infused into the bone, the brighter its phosphorescent glow became. The stronger the energy, the brighter the glow.

Soon, however, they noticed that qi was leaking from the bone, indicating that it could no longer withstand further infusion.

Seeing this, Chen Tianyu stopped immediately and said,

"This item can withstand about ninety percent of my blood and qi. That’s twenty percent more than the Thousand-Forged Long Sword we purchased in Yong’an City! While it may not be top-tier, it definitely qualifies as a high-grade weapon material!"

"If we can find more of these, it could really boost the family."

Upon hearing this, the clansmen, who had been resting, couldn’t sit still any longer. They surged toward the piles of bones, eager to search.

Even though the family had established a blacksmith workshop and their forging skills were steadily improving, soon they would be able to craft Hundred-Fold Tempered Iron Weapons, Hundred-Fold Tempered Iron Weapons could only transmit about thirty percent of a martial artist’s blood and qi. How could they compare to something like this, which was picked up for free?

"I found one too!"

Not far away, Chen Qingmeng raised a radius bone with five fingers still attached. His voice was filled with excitement.

Though he still felt uneasy about the bone, he pushed aside his hesitation because of the potential to strengthen the family.

"I've got one here too! It’s a humerus!"

"I found one as well! A clavicle!"

"This one looks like a tailbone."

"Second Uncle, do you think this skull will work?"

…

After the clansmen searched through the mountain of bones, they laid out more than a dozen bones of various types before them.

These bones came in all shapes and sizes. Among them were human remains and bones from fierce beasts. Yet, they all shared one distinct trait, a crystalline glow as if untouched by the passage of time. Rather than weathering away, they had condensed into their current form.

This was only a portion of what was hidden; many bones remained buried underground, beyond the clansmen's reach.

If they could excavate them all, the family’s harvest would be even greater.

After collecting the bones, Chen Tianyu and his group began conducting experiments.

Each bone was unique, and its ability to transmit blood and qi varied. The most impressive was the humerus, which could withstand the full force of Chen Tianyu’s qi and unleash power beyond its limit, reaching twelvefold strength. Though slightly inferior to a refined weapon, it was considered top-tier among martial materials.

The weakest bone could transmit only about forty percent of an Innate Realm martial artist’s qi, barely qualifying as a standard weapon. Still, this did little to dampen the clansmen’s enthusiasm.

Seeing that the others were eager to continue searching, Chen Tianyu quickly stepped in to stop them.

"That's enough for now. There are far too many bones here for just a few of us to search through. Let's send more clansmen later to continue the excavation."

These words finally made the enthusiastic clansmen stop. After all, their purpose here was exploration, not collection. It would be far more efficient to send others back later to retrieve the items they discovered than to haul everything back themselves.

Still, knowing that treasures lay beneath the bone piles made many of them itch with anticipation. Some couldn’t help but mutter,

"No wonder it’s an ancient ruin—there’s good stuff everywhere."

"Once we finish exploring, we must dig three feet deep and bring it all back to the clan.”

“With weapons like these, our family’s strength will surely rise!"

Hearing these remarks, Chen Tianyu, who was walking at the front, couldn’t help but show a satisfied expression.

Though they hadn’t ventured far into the ruins yet, their findings so far were already impressive. Even Chen Tianyu couldn’t help but marvel inwardly: “No wonder it’s an ancient ruin!”

After a brief moment of joy, Chen Tianyu steadied himself, his expression turning vigilant once more.

The exploration of the ruins had only just begun, and he couldn’t afford to let his guard down. Fortunately, he still had several locust leaves, so retreating wasn't necessary just yet.

After reorganizing their formation, the group set off again.

With the threat of Burial Dust behind them, their pace quickened noticeably. Though they carried glowstones, the deeper they ventured, the dimmer the glow became, making it harder to see what lay ahead.

"Qingyu."

After exiting the area where the Burial Dust grew, Chen Tianyu stopped and called out.

As soon as the words left his mouth, Chen Qingyu appeared at his side. A streak of pale light burst forth from his hand with a surge of blood and qi from within.

It was none other than Frostlike Moonlight.

Since this was the first Profound-tier battle technique the family had acquired, many clansmen had studied it. Though its offensive power was limited, it excelled as a source of illumination.

However, Profound-tier techniques consume a considerable amount of energy, and most of the other clansmen hadn't cultivated theirs deeply enough. The light they produced wasn’t strong enough to pierce the surrounding darkness, only Chen Qingyu had the strength to do so.

From the moment the white light bloomed in the darkness to the instant it faded, it all happened in the blink of an eye.

…

The fleeting scene was etched in the memory of every clansman:

"I saw a bunch of ruined buildings!"

"There was a huge stone over there!"

"This really is an ancient ruin!"

Surprised voices echoed as a brief flash of white light revealed what lay ahead.