In a tightly sealed secret chamber, a green stone altar stood about ten feet high, surrounded by over a dozen array flags of various colors, forming a temporary spell formation that emitted a faint spiritual glow. On the altar rested a jade-green bowl resembling an array disk, from which waves of green mist emanated. Within the mist, a blurry infant figure sat cross-legged, seemingly inhaling and exhaling clouds as if practicing some cultivation technique.
At each corner of the chamber, a white-haired elder sat cross-legged, holding a green spell flag. All the flags pointed toward the central bowl, emitting slender streams of green mist that drifted slowly toward it.
This eerie scene resembled a silent painting, frozen in stillness.
After an indeterminate amount of time, the four elders showed signs of exhaustion, while the infant in the green mist appeared slightly more distinct.
“Let’s stop here for today. I truly appreciate the efforts of you three fellow Daoists. In a few more days, Junior Brother Gui should be able to recover on his own. I am deeply grateful,” said a red-haired elder sitting in the northwest corner as he stood up, retracting his spell flag and cupping his hands in salute to the other three.
“Haha! Brother Hun, there’s no need for such courtesy. We’ve known Immortal Gui for a long time. It’s only right that we lend a hand,” replied a clean-shaven, pale-faced elder, returning the gesture.
“Regardless, Junior Brother Gui and I will remember this kindness,” the red-haired elder said sincerely, glancing at the still-meditating infant.
“Brother, there’s no need to be so formal!” another elder chimed in with a smile.
“By the way, while the four of us have been assisting Immortal Gui in repairing his Nascent Soul, has there been any news about that foreigner? It’s hard to believe someone could command tens of thousands of Gold Devouring Beetles. The difficulty of breeding those insects is something we all know well. I arrived late and missed the battle to corner that outsider. Was he truly so terrifying that three Nascent Soul-stage immortals perished?” the red-haired elder asked gravely.
At this, the other three exchanged uneasy glances.
“Terrifying doesn’t even begin to describe him. Aside from controlling the Gold Devouring Beetles, he wielded purple flames and golden lightning. The first group to confront him suffered two injuries and one death in mere moments, mostly due to those two techniques. The golden lightning could trap a cultivator’s Nascent Soul, while the purple flames could annihilate it effortlessly. Even when later immortals encountered him with caution, two more still fell,” the pale-faced elder sighed.
“Not only that, but the foreigner’s magic treasures were extraordinarily powerful. He wielded a set of peculiar flying swords, numbering sixty or seventy, in gold and azure hues, incredibly sharp. Several fellow Daoists’ treasures were sliced in half upon contact. Even stranger, he had wing-like artifacts on his back that allowed him to perform lightning teleportation without incantations, making him impossible to pin down. Brother Hun, don’t laugh, but at one point, six or seven of us surrounded him, yet we were pushed to the brink, drenched in sweat. We even considered retreating. Fortunately, Great Immortal Hu arrived in time and struck him unexpectedly with the ‘Great Five Elements Immortal-Seizing Hand,’ severely wounding him. Yet even then, the foreigner transformed into a bloody shadow and vanished from our encirclement. Our spiritual senses couldn’t detect him at all. Only Great Immortal Hu confirmed he was already hundreds of miles away, but pursuit was impossible by then,” a slightly plump elder recounted, his face still showing traces of fear.
“If this outsider is so formidable, could he be a renowned top-tier cultivator from the Great Jin’s major sects? No wonder Junior Brother Gui, despite mastering the ‘Six Souls Separation Art,’ ended up in such a state,” the red-haired elder muttered, his expression darkening.
“Brother Gui, don’t worry. You know the power of the ‘Great Five Elements Immortal-Seizing Hand.’ Even if he escaped, that strike must have crippled at least half his cultivation. He’s no longer a threat! Moreover, the Holy Maiden is accompanying guests from Great Jin to the nearby Heavenly Blue Sacred Hall for the Spirit Awakening Ceremony. If he truly is from Great Jin, those guests should recognize his bizarre techniques. Once we know his background, dealing with him will be easier. Even if he belongs to a major sect, killing so many of our high-ranking immortals won’t go unpunished by our Great Immortals. And we must uncover how he bred so many Gold Devouring Beetles,” the pale-faced elder said bitterly, likely nursing his own wounds from the battle.
“Let’s hope so. Still, it’s fortunate his beetles were immature. Had they been mature, releasing tens of thousands would have forced even the four Great Immortals to retreat,” the red-haired elder murmured.
The others exchanged wry smiles, well aware of the dread mature Gold Devouring Beetles inspired.
As they lamented, the infant in the green mist suddenly let out a shrill scream, clutching its head and writhing in agony. Its form flickered, on the verge of dispersing.
“Disaster! Fellow Daoists, act quickly!” the red-haired elder shouted in alarm.
The other three hastily reactivated their spell flags, directing four streams of green mist toward the center. Thick fog enveloped the convulsing infant, stabilizing its crumbling form.
Gradually, the screams subsided, and the infant resumed its meditative posture, absorbing the mist.
After an unknown duration, a faint, halting voice emerged from the fog: “Thank… you, fellow Daoists… I’m stable now… you may withdraw.”
Relieved, the elders ceased their efforts. Prolonging the session would have drained their vitality.
“Brother Gui, what happened? Your Nascent Soul was nearly lost!” the pale-faced elder asked urgently.
“Rest… assured, it won’t happen again. My connected Gold Devouring Beetle… was destroyed… affecting my consciousness,” the infant rasped through gritted teeth.
“What? A Gold Devouring Beetle destroyed? How? Their bodies are nearly indestructible in this realm!” the red-haired elder exclaimed.
“Without Brother Gui’s direct control, even mature beetles have vulnerabilities. Certain top-tier demonic arts can attack the soul directly, bypassing physical defenses,” the pale-faced elder reasoned.
“So he’s a demonic cultivator? But most techniques he used earlier didn’t seem demonic,” the thin elder countered.
Silence fell as the elders pondered this contradiction.
…
Meanwhile, far away, Han Li exhaled deeply in his carriage, relieved. After half a month of relentless effort, he had finally extracted the mature Gold Devouring Beetle’s soul and sealed it into a Yin Soul Banner. Surprisingly, the Heron Tribe members outside hadn’t disturbed him once.
Unbeknownst to him, the moment he extracted the soul, he had nearly killed the very person who had caused him so much trouble.
With a wave, black demonic energy coalesced into a small black banner in his hand. The remaining mist formed his second Nascent Soul, clutching a glittering golden insect. The jade box beneath it lay open, its lid and talismans gone.
Han Li examined the banner, then the insect—a foot-long, fanged monstrosity, an enlarged version of his own beetles, now lifeless.
Unfurling the banner, he released a black-green orb containing a miniature, shadowy version of the beetle with blood-red eyes.
“Go!” he commanded. The spectral beetle shot into the corpse, which immediately took flight, circling the second Nascent Soul.
“As expected. Treating it as a demonic corpse works, though its power is diminished. Still formidable. But to control it smoothly, I’ll need to refine the body with demonic energy,” Han Li mused, pleased.
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