Mei Qing desperately suppressed the restless little cauldron within him, his mind involuntarily recalling what Zhang Liusun had once told him. The small cauldron carried out by the Cauldron Slave had originally been the very artifact used by Zhang Liusun to house the forcibly separated portion of his Yuan Shen (Primordial Spirit). It was not one he had personally refined, but rather a “child” cauldron—one of the smaller vessels forged during the ancient crafting of the great treasure cauldron by Xu Fu.
Since it was a child cauldron, there must naturally exist a corresponding “mother” cauldron. Zhang Liusun had never explained why he had chosen to use someone else’s artifact for his Yuan Shen. But now that the mother cauldron had appeared, Mei Qing found himself in great distress. The child cauldron inside him seemed on the verge of bursting from his body. If Mei Qing had not fused with the cauldron to form his Yuan Ying (Infant Spirit), and if the cauldron had not become an inseparable part of his being, it would have long since abandoned him and returned to the embrace of its mother.
At this moment, Mei Qing could no longer afford to think of anything else—he was fully occupied with suppressing the child cauldron—when suddenly, the enormous mother cauldron nearby underwent a startling transformation.
The colossal bronze cauldron slowly rose from the sea surface, trailing streams of seawater that cascaded outward, generating swirling vortices and hidden currents in its wake. Gradually, the entire cauldron lifted higher and higher, until its three thick, sturdy legs fully emerged from the sea. Its ancient and solemn form, strange and mysterious engravings, and the aura of vast, primordial power it radiated, all rendered the surrounding scenery pale and colorless by comparison.
Xu Fu, his arms raised high, slowly rotated them, altering his hand seal once more, and loudly chanting an ancient incantation. As his voice rang out, the massive bronze cauldron before him also began to rotate slowly. Along with the rotation of the great cauldron, the small cauldron inside Mei Qing’s body grew calm, resonating with the mother vessel as both began to turn in a mysteriously synchronized rhythm.
Mei Qing, having just managed to suppress the cauldron’s violent stirring moments ago, finally caught his breath. Yet he suddenly sensed the cauldron spinning on its own. Immediately, he turned his Yuan Shen inward to observe what was happening.
In just a short moment, the small cauldron, once nestled in his Zifu (Cinnabar Palace), had grown significantly larger. The purple qi surrounding it had thickened to such an extent that the outline of the cauldron itself was nearly obscured. Inside the cauldron, the golden elixir that had taken the form of an infant stirred violently, as though responding to some distant call, twisting and writhing ceaselessly.
What Mei Qing could not see, however, was that at that very moment, a massive black hand slowly extended from the mouth of the mother cauldron, grasping firmly onto one of its tall, ornate handles.
As soon as the giant hand touched the handle, a clear, metallic clang rang out—sharp, yet strangely light and unresonant.
Inside Mei Qing’s body, his Yuan Ying shuddered violently at the sound.
Mei Qing quickly circulated his Yuan Shen around the Yuan Ying, calming it with the energies of sun and moon, harmonizing the true essences. Yet the Yuan Ying seemed reluctant to obey Mei Qing’s will. Though repeatedly pacified, it remained restless, as though eager to move toward something.
Outside, at the mother cauldron, another massive hand slowly emerged, gripping the other handle. Then, from the rim of the cauldron, a towering dark shadow slowly began to rise.
This shadow slowly straightened itself, revealing itself to be a gigantic humanoid figure. It rose from the cauldron, its form immeasurably larger than the cauldron itself. Its feet stood within the cauldron, the rim barely reaching the joints of its calves.
Once fully revealed, the Yuan Ying within Mei Qing finally began to calm. Yet Mei Qing could still sense that this tranquility was only temporary—his Yuan Ying had not truly returned to its former state. It was merely the absence of external stimulation that had brought about this fragile peace.
Without delay, Mei Qing quickly chanted several protective incantations to stabilize his position, then extended his spiritual senses outward to survey the surroundings—only to be startled.
There, standing atop the mother cauldron, was an enormous bronze figure. It radiated a deep, metallic luster, towering at over ten zhang tall, clad in armor, wearing a warrior’s crown, and wielding a massive sword. Standing upon the black sea, it exuded an imposing, godlike presence, like a war deity descended from the heavens.
Xu Fu laughed wildly, shouting, “Boy, are you impressed now? You should feel honored—few have ever seen the bronze warrior of Great Qin rise in battle. Today, I shall show you the might of my bronze colossus!”
With that, Xu Fu pointed a single palm from afar toward the peak of Jieshi where Mei Qing stood, shouting a series of strange syllables.
As the incantation sounded, the bronze colossus began to move. Though its motions were swift, its sheer size made its movements appear slow to onlookers.
First, the bronze figure slowly turned its head. Its tightly shut eyelids trembled and then slowly opened.
Two beams of golden light shot forth from its eyes, piercing through the misty sea air like twin pillars of light. They swept across the endless black ocean and finally locked onto the direction of Jieshi.
At the moment the bronze figure opened its eyes, Mei Qing felt his Yuan Ying surge with wild activity. Especially when the colossus’s gaze fell upon him, Mei Qing felt as though the figure’s eyes had pierced through his very body, unobstructed, directly striking his Yuan Ying within.
His Yuan Ying seemed to emit a joyful sigh, then grew even more restless. Yet the gaze of the bronze figure carried a strange gentleness that sent a chill down Mei Qing’s spine.
Fortunately, although his Yuan Ying was agitated, it was no longer unstable as before. Mei Qing could still manage to soothe it. Yet inexplicably, as the gaze of the bronze figure fell upon him, Mei Qing felt a sudden, overwhelming sense of dread. A strange urge to flee surged within him, as though he were staring into something deeply terrifying.
At this moment, the bronze figure, under Xu Fu’s command, slowly lifted its left foot. Though the motion appeared slow, it was, in fact, swift. It stepped forward from the cauldron, its massive foot striking the sea surface, sending sprays of water flying in all directions.
Strangely enough, though the figure was made of metal and should have been incredibly heavy, it landed firmly on the water’s surface like solid ground. Though the sea around its foot slightly depressed, it did not sink.
Then the other foot followed, and the figure stood tall and mighty upon the sea. It raised its sword high and let out a piercing, metallic roar.
Then, with a single mighty stride, it leapt toward Jieshi, covering several zhang in a single bound. Its massive armored foot slammed onto the sea, sending waves crashing and roaring outward.
“Bad! Retreat for now—I’ll try to draw it away,” Zhang Liusun said urgently. Upon seeing the bronze figure, he realized that today’s battle would not end in his favor. He had long known that during the Qin dynasty, the empire had gathered all the bronze weapons from across the land and cast them into twelve great bronze warriors. Later, when the location of the thousand-jin foundry and Jieshi was discovered, he realized that Xu Fu had had other plans all along, using the bronze not for warriors, but for crafting cauldrons. Now, seeing this scene unfold, he understood that Xu Fu’s schemes ran deeper than he had imagined—not only had he secretly forged cauldrons, but he had also refined the bronze warriors into magical artifacts. Feeling the killing aura and ancient, accumulated might within the bronze figure, Zhang Liusun realized it had likely developed its own spirit—it was now a true magical treasure.
Still, Zhang Liusun felt fortunate that during their first battle, Xu Fu had not summoned the bronze warrior. Otherwise, he would have surely been defeated.
What Zhang Liusun did not know was that Xu Fu had not summoned the bronze warrior back then not out of concern for damaging Jieshi, but because the warrior required an immense amount of energy to activate. Though Xu Fu’s magical power was formidable, he was not a true immortal, and the bronze warrior was no ordinary tool to wield. During their previous battle, Xu Fu had been in the midst of a crucial cultivation breakthrough, insufficiently prepared to command the bronze warrior, and had thus been forced to retreat in frustration.
Now, fully prepared and having refined the great cauldron and bronze warrior to perfection, Xu Fu had returned for vengeance.
Realizing that direct confrontation was impossible, Zhang Liusun decided to engage in a tactical skirmish while observing for any weaknesses in the bronze warrior. He sent a mental message to Mei Qing, urging him to retreat first. But to his shock, Mei Qing remained unresponsive, as if stunned.
Zhang Liusun was alarmed. Scanning Mei Qing’s body with his spiritual sense, he was astonished to find that Mei Qing’s Yuan Shen had suddenly become abnormally powerful, and his Yuan Ying had grown several times larger in a short time.
At first, Zhang Liusun was stunned. Then, as he realized the cause of Mei Qing’s transformation and considered the likely consequences, his heart was shaken deeply.
Long ago, Zhang Liusun had used the child cauldron as a womb, fusing part of his Yuan Shen into it, intending for the Cauldron Slave to use it to rebuild his physical form. His plan had been to use the ancient cauldron’s spiritual energy for his own rebirth. Moreover, he had calculated that since the cauldron was a child vessel, once his new body was ready and his spirit reunited, he could use the child cauldron’s spirit to locate Xu Fu’s mother cauldron, merging the two for great benefit.
But he had not expected that before his Yuan Shen could reunite with his body, Xu Fu would return seeking revenge, summoning the bronze warrior from the mother cauldron. The bronze warrior appeared to have been forged within the mother cauldron, much like how his Yuan Shen had once resided within the child cauldron. Now, with the mother calling to the child, Mei Qing’s body was likely to be drawn into the mother cauldron and absorbed.
If that happened, not only would his grand plan to forge a new body be ruined, but the portion of his Yuan Shen within Mei Qing would be lost forever—turning his grand scheme into a costly failure.
Just as Zhang Liusun reached this realization, he saw Mei Qing suddenly rise into the air, like a young swallow darting toward the forest, flying straight toward the towering bronze warrior!
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