Thus, Ryan began frantically digging around the area where he had made his previous discovery, moving like a greedy mole.
Although waste pills had already lost a considerable amount of their medicinal energy, Ryan had never expected to find intact pills in a garbage disposal site in the first place.
Ordinary waste pills, depending on how much energy remained inside them, could be worth anywhere from ten to fifty silver coins each.
In a filthy garbage disposal site like this, they were undoubtedly among the most valuable things a scavenger could find.
Crushing waste pills and mixing them into ordinary livestock feed could strengthen their muscles and bones.
Crushing them and mixing the powder with water before sprinkling it between crop furrows could make crops grow lush and vibrant, greatly increasing their vitality.
Although Ryan had never awakened a Bloodline, identifying waste pills was not particularly difficult.
This was because the Verdant Realm had numerous welfare-oriented Bloodline Institutes that provided free nine-year compulsory education beginning at the age of seven.
Even children from poor and impoverished families could easily enroll.
In addition to teaching basic literacy and simple martial arts, these Welfare Institutes also taught fundamental knowledge about Bloodline Fighters and conducted a large-scale Bloodline Awakening test once every year.
Ryan might never have eaten pork, but he had certainly seen pigs run.
Therefore, identifying waste pills was a piece of cake for him.
Unfortunately, it seemed his luck had already been completely used up.
~Rustle, rustle, rustle~
Ryan searched frantically for another half an hour, digging through one pile after another.
Yet he found nothing.
Gradually, a deep sense of fatigue surged through his body once again.
Because he had been born prematurely and suffered from a chronic illness ever since, Ryan was not short in stature, but his stamina and mental energy were far weaker than those of an ordinary person.
Now, his old ailment of weakness was acting up again.
Ryan quickly shook his groggy head, trying his best to clear his mind and keep himself alert.
He thought to himself, I’ll dig for a little longer, then head home.
However, the warm afternoon sun shone down from above, while a gentle breeze swept across the garbage disposal site.
The combination was far too comfortable.
Fatigue came like a rising tide, rapidly spreading throughout Ryan’s body. His eyelids slowly grew heavier, and before he knew it, his mind became hazy.
He zoned out for a moment.
"Damn... so painful!" Ryan suddenly cried out.
While distracted, he had accidentally cut his right palm on something buried beneath the garbage.
The intense pain shot through him like an electric shock, instantly jolting him fully awake.
Ryan quickly looked down. His entire right palm throbbed painfully. A nasty gash had been carved across his flesh, with some of the skin even curling outward from the wound.
Blood dripped continuously from his palm, and its faint metallic smell rushed into his nose, making him wince and tremble.
"So painful... What on earth did I touch? A knife? How could it be so sharp?"
When Ryan had first started scavenging, his lack of experience often resulted in cuts and bruises on his hands.
After suffering enough injuries, he had become extremely cautious whenever he dug through the garbage. As a result, he rarely injured himself anymore.
Who would have thought that today, merely because he had zoned out for a moment, he would once again end up bleeding?
However, before Ryan could clearly identify the sharp object that had cut his palm...
WHOOSH!
Suddenly, a brilliant white light flashed before his eyes.
Immediately afterward, a blood-red streak shot out from within the garbage pile.
With another sharp "whoosh," it moved like a tiny red snake, strangely drilling straight into Ryan’s right palm.
The distance was far too close, and everything happened far too quickly.
Ryan’s pupils instantly constricted, and his face turned pale with fright.
His nerves barely had time to react.
He only managed to instinctively let out a terrified "Ah!" before stumbling backward.
His footing was unsteady in his panic, and he fell heavily onto the ground.
Even his buttocks hurt from the impact.
’This isn’t good!’ Ryan’s mind raced. ’Did I just dig into a snake’s nest? Is this snake taking revenge for disturbing it?’
He imagined himself being bitten repeatedly and couldn’t help but feel a chill run down his spine.
Yet the pain he expected never came.
Instead, the blood-red streak that had entered his palm had completely disappeared beneath his skin!
Ryan stared in disbelief.
The wound on his palm was still painful, but the flesh that had been turned outward had visibly retracted.
Even more strangely, the blood that had been flowing continuously had suddenly stopped.
Ryan could only feel that some unknown object had drilled into his body.
Apart from a faint chill spreading through the blood vessels of his right arm, he felt no other discomfort.
Yet this only made him even more uneasy.
"What is... what’s happening?" Ryan’s voice trembled.
He had no idea what had just entered his body, nor could he determine whether it was dangerous.
Just as Ryan was utterly horrified and secretly panicking...
<Ding!>
A strange sound suddenly echoed inside his mind, completely interrupting his thoughts.
<Ding!>
[Blood Recognition successful!]
[Ryan Cole, congratulations! You have become the eighth host of the Boundless Creation Furnace!]
[The Boundless Creation Furnace has successfully merged with the host!]
[Current Status: Severely Damaged Boundless Creation Furnace, slowly repairing...]
[Please assist the Artifact Spirit, Host, in repairing the Boundless Creation Furnace as soon as possible!]
[Current Rank Form: First Rank, Iron Creation Furnace]
[Current Rank Unlocked Abilities: Advanced Creation, First Boundless Creation Slot]
Ryan froze.
For several seconds, he simply stared blankly into the distance.
"Blood Recognition?" His gaze slowly shifted toward his injured palm. "So... the thing that cut me just now was this damaged furnace?"
A mixture of surprise and confusion appeared on his face.
He had never imagined that the strange object he had accidentally discovered in the garbage would actually be some kind of powerful artifact.
"Boundless Creation Furnace? Advanced Creation? Boundless Creation Slot?"
Ryan muttered under his breath, completely bewildered.
"What on earth are these things?"
No wonder Ryan felt surprised. He recognized every character in the messages.
But when those characters were combined together, he couldn’t understand what they meant at all.
Ryan sat there, pondering in astonishment, his mind filled with countless questions.
However, at the exact moment the blood-recognition process was completed...
Across the endless sky and through layers upon layers of heavenly light, in a spatial plane an unknown distance away, stood an ancient green mountain that towered more than ten thousand feet into the heavens.
Clouds and mist swirled around its peak.
A man with a pair of horns on his head sat cross-legged atop the summit.
His entire body was enveloped in a hazy, blood-red fog, with dark light continuously flowing through it, making his features impossible to see clearly.
Yet the occasional fluctuations of power emanating from his body caused subtle ripples to spread through the surrounding space.
They silently revealed his terrifying and peerless strength.
Suddenly... An inexplicable and powerful sensation arose in the depths of the man’s heart.
The horned man abruptly opened his eyes.
His pupils were narrow and blood-red, carrying an overwhelming sense of majesty.
He raised his head and stared toward the vast sky, a rare look of astonishment flashing across his indistinct face.
A moment later, he slowly composed himself.
He raised his hand and swiftly formed a strange seal with his index and middle fingers.
Then, with a casual point toward the space before him, an obscure ray of light shot forth.
WHOOSH!
The light flickered like a firefly, appearing and disappearing in an instant.
At the same time, the surrounding space violently distorted.
A crack tore open in the void before rapidly closing and restoring itself as though nothing had happened.
"Master."
A black-clothed man emerged from the void.
He descended silently and knelt respectfully on one knee behind the horned man, his head lowered.
"Kade."
The horned man did not turn around.
However, a rare trace of killing intent seeped into his cold voice.
"The furnace has dared to choose a master again."
His voice was calm, yet the surrounding atmosphere seemed to grow heavier with every word.
"It is located in the extreme eastern direction, but its current spatial plane remains unknown."
The blood-red fog around his body churned faintly.
"Give the order. Search all realms."
His killing intent became increasingly pronounced.
"Find the Creation Furnace. Seize it and show no mercy."
"Yes." Kade’s expression immediately darkened.
He bowed his head respectfully and accepted the command without hesitation.
"Understood, Master."
As his words fell, the light and shadows surrounding his body suddenly twisted.
His figure blurred. In the next instant, he eerily vanished from the mountaintop.
The horned man made no further movements. He merely remained seated atop the ancient green mountain, silently gazing toward the sky.
For a long time, he said nothing. Only within those blood-red pupils did a faint, profound light flicker.
It was impossible to tell what he was thinking.