Naturally, this golden skeleton was the same one that Shun Long had obtained from the core region of the 'King's Palace' in the past.
Back then, even the Northern Sovereign, along with dozens of late-stage Dao Emperors and Sovereign realm experts had all set their sights on this golden skeleton, but regardless of how much they coveted it, they were unable to get their hands on it in the end!
Of course, back then, the aura of the golden skeleton had been so terrifying, that it was powerful enough to deter experts even stronger than the Northern Sovereign from approaching it, let alone Dao Emperors or Sovereign realm cultivators! It was said that even those experts who stood at the true peak of the central region and had long since surpassed the Sovereign realm had tried to seize this skeleton from the depths of the 'King's Palace', but without a fortuitous opportunity, even they were unable to do so.
Ever since he had gotten his hands on the golden skeleton, Shun Long had never had the chance to truly refine it, and had simply stowed it away inside the 'Stone of Time'. However, now that he had chosen to settle down inside the 'City of Immortals', he knew that this was the perfect opportunity for him to do so!
''The corpse of a 9th tribulation body refiner Earth Immortal... This thing is truly no different from a supreme treasure for any cultivator in this mundane world.'' Little Black's clear voice resounded within the foggy space in the 'Stone of Time', as the black dragon's bright azure eyes stared intently at the figure of the golden skeleton in front of him.
Clearly, Little Black could discern the original cultivation of the golden skeleton with just a glance, making it obvious that the skeleton had long since surpassed the Sovereign realm while it was still alive and had entered the Earth Immortal realm a long time ago!
In the central continent, only those figures who had long since unshackled themselves from their mortal coils and had already stepped into the Earth Immortal realm could be considered as true hegemons—experts who were only a step away from becoming true immortals. As for the Northern Sovereign and figures of the same level, although they were just a step away from breaking through to the Earth Immortal realm as well, ultimately, they were unable to truly take that final step!
Inside the foggy space in the 'Stone of Time', even Shun Long had an expectant look in his eyes as he stared at the figure of the golden skeleton and said
''It's a shame that I lost those drops of 'immortal water' from the 'Illusion oasis'. Luckily, the golden skeleton is still more than enough to support my body refinement cultivation to the peak of the 6th stage during the next few years!''
Clearly, after using his 'World Zero' to forcibly turn time backwards, even the drops of 'immortal water' that Shun Long had gathered from the 'Illusion oasis' had ended up disappearing from the 'Stone of Time'.
Shun Long had been planning to use those drops of 'immortal water' to breakthrough to the 6th stage in his body refinement. As long as his 'Monarch's Eternal body' reached the early 6th stage, Shun Long knew that he would be strong enough to kill even early rank 6 magic beasts with his bare hands, without having to use even the slightest bit of his qi. The strength of his fleshly body would reach such a degree, that he would even be able to contend with middle rank 6 magic beasts as well!
As for gold-grade weapons and below, even peak rank 3 gold-grade swords and sabers wouldn't be able to scratch his body by then. Only star-rank weapons and above would be able to threaten him!
Sitting cross-legged on the ground in front of the golden skeleton, Shun Long first took a deep breath and closed his eyes, allowing his mind to clear from any unwanted thoughts, before his right hand stretched outwards, as it finally came in contact with the golden skeleton.
Surprisingly, the golden skeleton's body wasn't cold to the touch, and was actually warm instead, as a wave of heat immediately enveloped Shun Long's palm the moment it came in contact with it, before the figure of the golden skeleton suddenly trembled!
In the next moment, it seemed as if the golden skeleton's figure burst with irrepressible might, as its aura abruptly spread outwards like a dam that was no longer being suppressed, quickly enveloping the entire foggy space within the 'Stone of Time'! The aura of a 9th tribulation Earth Immortal was so oppressive and terrifying, that it was more than enough to suppress any living beings below the immortal realm!
And yet, neither Shun Long, nor Little Black seemed affected by this aura in the slightest, as Little Black continued to sit there unmoving, just a few meters away from the golden skeleton, while a purple-colored flame had already appeared around Shun Long's right palm!
Naturally, this purple-colored flame was none other than Shun Long's own earth flame!
The reason why Shun Long had never tried to refine the golden skeleton before, even after leaving the 'King's Palace' for so long, was merely because he was lacking a sufficiently powerful earth flame to do so!
Although he could borrow the power of the 2 earth flames sealed inside the 'Refinement Hall' of the Holy sect, Shun Long knew that the power he could draw out from those earth flames significantly paled compared to the power of an earth flame that belonged to him alone.
This was the difference between borrowing the power of another's earth flame and truly owning one yourself, allowing a person to truly bring out its true power.
This was why all alchemists and formation masters in the central region, all longed to own an earth flame for themselves!
In the next moment, as the purple-colored earth flame made contact with the golden skeleton, both Shun Long's, and the golden skeleton's figures trembled simultaneously, before a radiant golden light soon filled the entire foggy space inside the 'Stone of Time'.