Chapter 155: Synthesizing the Bronze Ring Set

[D-grade Bronze Pickaxe: A pickaxe capable of shattering most metal ores, durability 3000/3000]
[Note: Required usage level is Black Iron Tier 3.]

"What?!"
Seeing this description, Ye Da was instantly stunned.
Although the mining pickaxe had leaped two whole grades from F-grade to D-grade, the required usage level had also jumped from no restrictions to Black Iron Tier 3. What a scam!
This requirement wasn't even stated in advance!

Wait!
Seeing that the iron pickaxe had transformed into something Chu Ping could no longer afford to use after the upgrade, Ye Da suddenly wondered...
Would his set of Black Iron gear also undergo the same change?
A knot formed in Ye Da's stomach!
But at this moment...
It was already far too late.

"Clang!"
[Synthesis successful!]
[The Black Iron set has been successfully synthesized into the Bronze Ring Set.]
[S-grade Bronze Ring Set: Physical defense effect +100%, Magical defense effect +50%, Agility +20%, can activate a protective shield once per day.]
[Note: The required wearing level for this ring set is Black Iron Tier 5.]

"What the fuck!"
This time...
Ye Da couldn't even help cursing out loud.
If upgrading the iron pickaxe to a bronze pickaxe required Tier 3 to use, Ye Da could at least figure out a way to level Chu Ping up.
After all, he had previously collected quite a few Tier 2 Macrophage Pitcher Plant beast cores, as well as Tier 3 Magma Crab beast cores.
Yet wearing this Bronze Ring Set...
Actually required Black Iron Tier 5?!
Ye Da hadn't even crossed the threshold of Tier 4 yet; who knew how long it would take him to reach Tier 5!

"Lord Lord, now..." Chu Ping looked at the ring just crafted on the crafting bench, his face turned utterly pale as he guessed certain possibilities, and asked, "What should we do now?"
"What else can we do? Level up, of course!"
Ye Da tossed the Ability Cultivation Guidebook to Zhang雅 and said, "You two take a look at this book first and practice it."
"Here are a few Tier 2 beast cores for your cultivation use."
"I'm going into seclusion to try and break through to Tier 4. Do not disturb me."
"Alright."
Zhang Ya took the book and nodded.

And Chu Ping obediently nodded repeatedly, saying, "Yes, Lord Lord!"

Entering the room,
Ye Da immediately shut the door, then took out several nearly transparent beast cores he had obtained from the magma crabs from his storage backpack.
Ever since he discovered he could directly collect beast cores into his backpack without absorbing them immediately, he had stored all of them inside.
Mainly because he found that some low-tier beast cores were no longer useful to him, and absorbing them directly would be somewhat wasteful.
Therefore, Ye Da planned to collect the low-tier beast cores and see if he could trade them on the marketplace with others for high-tier beast cores or other items.

Later on, however...
After killing the magma crabs, Ye Da had a sudden inspiration: beast cores of different tiers were merely a matter of energy capacity. If he used beast cores of different tiers together...
Could he also rely on the method of accumulating small amounts to break through the bottleneck period?
This was much like...
When the medicinal potency is insufficient, you simply make up for it with a larger dosage.

"Huh?"
When Ye Da pulled the collected beast cores from his storage backpack, he noticed that a shimmering, iridescent film covered the surface of these cores.
This film looked somewhat like vacuum-packed foam; pressing it with a hand revealed a light elasticity, as if a little force would pop it.
And Ye Da had a premonition...
As long as he gently popped this layer of film, these beast cores would be easily absorbed by him, just like the ones he popped before.

"Should I use the big ones first or the small ones?"
Ye Da looked at the five beast cores harvested from the magma crabs before him, pondering slightly!
The beast cores of the magma crabs had a slight reddish tint, likely due to the magma crabs possessing fire attributes.
Although these beast cores were all Tier 3, the ones dropped by the magma crab mother were much larger than those dropped by the smaller magma crabs!
The beast core of the large magma crab was nearly the size of a child's fist.
However, the beast core of the small magma crab was only the size of a dragon's eye.

"Screw hesitating, they're all mine anyway, I'll just use them all together!"
After hesitating for a moment, Ye Da decisively gripped four small magma crab beast cores in his left hand and one large magma crab beast core in his right hand, crushing them all together at the same time!

Instantly...
Two massive surges of energy burst forth from Ye Da's left and right hands, madly rushing into his limbs and bones!
The sensation was akin to suddenly inhaling ten cigarettes.
It was also like suddenly chewing ten ultra-invigorating mint candies; the unbearable, stinging thrill immediately made Ye Da's eyes widen, his toes curl, and he silently screamed out!

The massive energy coursed through his entire body, and Ye Da could even hear the frantic beating of his own heart. This energy was too powerful—so powerful that his heart could barely withstand it!
The majestic energy surged frantically through Ye Da's meridians!
His tiny meridians were violently forced open.
It was the pain of something clearly not wide enough being forcefully jammed inside and on the verge of bursting, causing Ye Da to feel a pain mixed with pleasure!

The joyful part was that this energy was definitely sufficient to blast open the gates of Tier 4!
But the pain was also very real!
Every part of his body ached, aching so much that Ye Da's teeth ground together with a clicking sound, and he even worried whether his teeth might shatter!

Fortunately...
After that surging energy made a round through Ye Da's body, it finally rushed entirely toward the gate in his left leg!

Bang!
A single collision, resembling a giant wave crashing against a barrier.
The previously impregnable gate of Tier 4 instantly turned into a thin layer of paper under this massive energy tidal wave.

Snap.
With a gentle push, the paper tore.
That energy instantly surged like a volcanic eruption, pouring entirely into Ye Da's left leg. The liberating, euphoric sensation was like a volcano that had been suppressed for a long time...
Finally erupting!

So refreshing!
Ye Da let out a long breath; he had finally advanced to the fourth tier!

Ye Da tried covering his left leg with stone skin.
Whether because he had used a bit too many beast cores in one go, half of Ye Da's leg had completely petrified; now only the section above his left knee and below the root of his thigh had not yet fully petrified.
With just a tiny bit more, he would reach the perfection of Tier 4!

What a pity.
Tier 3 beast cores were still lacking.
Were Tier 2 beast cores of any use, he wondered?
Aside from the eight Tier 2 beast cores given to Zhang Ya and Chu Ping, Ye Da still had fifteen Tier 2 beast cores on him, and he intended to try using them.
Although these Tier 2 beast cores wouldn't allow him to break through the Tier 4 gate, using them to expand the coverage of his stone skin should be no problem, right?

Five beast cores in one hand, ten Tier 2 beast cores held between both hands in total.
Ye Da decided to make a bold attempt...
To see if he could reach the peak of Tier 4 in one go!

"Break for me!!!"
Ye Da exerted force with both hands simultaneously, crushing the ten beast cores in his palms!
Two streams of energy instantly burst from his hands, flowing directly into his palms!