On an abandoned construction site, Jiang Huai wore a safety helmet and followed behind Yue Qinshan.
Yue Qinshan led him into the unfinished, dilapidated building.
"Teacher Yue, are you sure this is okay?" Jiang Huai asked, looking at the structure of the abandoned building.
"Don't worry. This building was going to be demolished anyway. Even if you destroy it, you'll be doing a great service," Yue Qinshan said, lighting a cigarette and sitting on a nearby step.
"Your situation is special. You're not an awakened one, so I can't train you the way I would train an awakened person."
"But if you keep releasing this power recklessly, one day people will take notice. Jiang Huai, at that point, even I won't be able to protect you."
Jiang Huai understood very well.
Yue Qinshan might have wanted to help him, but more likely, he was concerned about Lu Wanyin.
He feared that if something happened to Jiang Huai, Lu Wanyin would return to being a cold corpse. So even if it was for Lu Wanyin, he would do everything he could to help Jiang Huai.
"Try to break this stone. Remember, don't transform into a beast—just use your current state," Yue Qinshan said, pointing at a half-human-sized granite rock beside Jiang Huai.
Jiang Huai turned and looked at the stone, then clenched his fist and struck it with a heavy punch.
Bang—
The granite shattered.
But neither Jiang Huai nor Yue Qinshan showed any signs of joy.
Because at that moment, the hand Jiang Huai used to punch, and half of his body, were already covered in bones.
To avoid exposing his aura, Jiang Huai immediately suppressed his strength. But just then, his heart suddenly started to race, and an uncontrollable, intense tremor spread throughout his body.
Yue Qinshan noticed Jiang Huai's change.
At this moment, the skeletal bones seemed to forcefully adhere to Jiang Huai's body as if they had their own consciousness.
But Yue Qinshan wasn't worried at all. Instead, he lit another cigarette and observed the changes in Jiang Huai's body.
"Interesting, it seems this kid's strength is related to his state of mind," Yue Qinshan mused.
In the blink of an eye, Jiang Huai's body was completely covered by the bones.
He grew to nearly three meters tall, exuding an aura that kept people at a distance.
The skeletal giant hunched over, its hands and head drooping, resembling a sleeping beast.
"Jiang Huai?" Yue Qinshan began to feel something was wrong. Why wasn't there any response?
He stood up and walked toward Jiang Huai. He noticed that the skeletal giant's back and chest were gently rising and falling, as though it were a beast about to attack.
"Oh, so it's completely under control now?" Yue Qinshan muttered to himself.
Without hesitation, he drew his revolver from his waist.
"I'll give you ten seconds, Jiang Huai. I'll count to ten, and if you don't snap out of it, I'll have to take action."
The skeletal giant still didn't react.
"Damn it, don't let my girl get hurt because of this," Yue Qinshan grumbled.
Without hesitation, he walked over to the skeletal giant.
"You son of a... Wait."
Just as he was about to do something, he suddenly noticed something was off.
The skeletal giant's regular movements didn't seem like it was preparing to strike.
Instead...
Slap—
Yue Qinshan slapped the skeletal giant on the forehead, and the next moment, the skeletal giant suddenly straightened up and took a deep breath.
"Holy crap! Did I fall asleep?" the skeletal giant groaned.
"You can fall asleep just by transforming? You really have some skills!" Yue Qinshan slapped the skeletal giant's shoulder.
The skeletal giant scratched its head, sounding a bit embarrassed. "This power is too overwhelming. I was trying to suppress it, and I guess I got a little tired and dozed off without realizing."
Although it sounded a bit far-fetched, Yue Qinshan was still surprised that Jiang Huai had managed to suppress that power.
After all, the beast's power was Abyss-level, and unless you were the strongest awakened one in the association, Abyss-level was terrifyingly overpowering for anyone else.
If Yue Qinshan hadn't taken some precautions at the construction site, the four major organizations of the association would probably have shown up by now.
Yet, Jiang Huai was able to suppress it with his own will. This likely meant that this power was his own.
"I've noticed something, Teacher Yue," Jiang Huai said.
"What did you notice?" Yue Qinshan asked, scratching his head with the barrel of his revolver.
The skeletal giant's tail, which extended from its spine, slowly coiled around a rock and moved it in front of him.
"Look, Teacher Yue, if it's just the tail, it seems like I can control the force properly."
"Heh, this is interesting," Yue Qinshan leaned closer and carefully looked at the skeletal giant's tail.
However, he noticed that the tail's structure felt a bit different from the bones on the rest of its body.
It seemed like it had been pieced together.
"Is this tail something you were born with?" Yue Qinshan asked.
Jiang Huai gently tossed the stone with his tail, then precisely impaled and shattered it.
"No, this tail appeared after I consumed the core of that beast," Jiang Huai explained.
As soon as he said that, Yue Qinshan's expression visibly changed.
"Teacher Yue, what's wrong?" Jiang Huai asked.
"No, nothing," Yue Qinshan waved his hand.
Beasts that could enhance themselves by absorbing cores weren't unheard of among humans.
During a previous beast tide, a black, anomalous beast that had emerged from a crack almost wiped out the human awakened army.
All defenses crumbled before it.
If it weren't for the sacrifice of the strongest warriors from the major guilds of the association, it would have destroyed humanity's frontline.
That beast was called the "World Ender," and it was known for absorbing the cores of other beasts to grow stronger.
Yue Qinshan put his gun back into its holster and patted Jiang Huai's shoulder.
"Since your tail is so obedient, let's focus on familiarizing yourself with the feeling of controlling it. Then, gradually spread that control to your limbs, and finally your entire body. Don't rush it, Jiang Huai. We still have time—at least, for now."
Jiang Huai nodded, attempting to guide the power within him toward his palm.
But it wasn't easy. This power came suddenly and was extremely domineering.
Although he could suppress the angry emotions after transforming into bones, he found it difficult to truly control this power.
Under Yue Qinshan's guidance, Jiang Huai practiced whenever he wasn't in university, and whenever Lu Wanyin asked, he would say he was working part-time with Yue Qinshan to earn extra money.
"He can't even support himself, and he's going to help you earn extra money?" Yue Qinshan would laugh whenever Jiang Huai mentioned Lu Wanyin's suspicions.
"The little girl doesn't understand anything. She doesn't know how much it costs to raise a daughter. She's just talking without thinking."
After about a week of training, Jiang Huai could now maintain his human form and extend his tail. The tail completely obeyed his will.
If he consumed more beast cores, would Jiang Huai's power grow infinitely?
Now, Yue Qinshan looked at Jiang Huai and suddenly had an idea.
If there was a beast that could grow infinitely and stand on humanity's side, that would be a historic moment.
"Jiang Huai," Yue Qinshan called out.
"What is it, Teacher Yue?" Jiang Huai replied, still trying to make the bones cover just his right fist.
Yue Qinshan looked up, staring at Jiang Huai. "Humanity has experienced countless beast tides. The first one happened so long ago that it's hard to trace. Do you know how many times humanity succeeded?"
Jiang Huai shook his head. "Lu Wanyin never mentioned it."
"We've never truly defeated a beast tide..." Yue Qinshan's voice grew cold.
Jiang Huai froze.
"The cities that were taken by the beast tides, are they still around?" he asked.
Yue Qinshan nodded. "From what I know, beast tides only conduct a one-time cleansing of human cities. They don't occupy them permanently. After the destruction, they retreat back into the cracks, then move on to the next city."
Just like what he had read in the prison records.
Beasts didn't occupy human cities; after the beast tide, they retreated.
"So, Jiang Huai, I'll ask you this question," Yue Qinshan raised his gaze and looked at Jiang Huai.
"If you truly are a beast, would you help humanity fight against the beast tide?"