Chapter 681: Coin Repair

"That's a familiar voice."

Li Yi heard the voice coming from the other half of the coin and felt a pang of nostalgia; he hadn't heard it in a long time. The residual consciousness within his own half of the coin had quietly fallen silent, likely due to his crossing dimensions using the broken coin.

The other half of the coin held by Wang Hu, however, was clearly better preserved—its residual consciousness still active, not yet extinguished.

"Go see the Bald Daoist."

He flew toward the other section of the defense line, carrying the two broken halves of the coin.

"Where's Wang Hu? You evil bastard, what did you do to Wang Hu?" The broken coin emitted a bronze glow; its lingering soul now showed clear anger, believing Li Yi had killed Wang Hu and taken the coin half.

"Wang Hu challenged me to a duel and lost. Now the coin belongs to me," Li Yi replied. "You're a senior cultivator, even if you're only a remnant soul—you should understand that the other half of the coin is now in my hands."

"Only when the two halves of the coin are reunited do they become useful. Thus, only one of us can possess the remaining half."

Upon hearing this, the remnant soul fell silent instantly. After a moment, it sighed: "You wicked-born creature—you actually defeated Wang Hu? I see no trace of heritage in you. This means my other half of the soul never recognized you, only taught you useless things. Yet you still reached this level? I must commend you."

"Then thank you very much," Li Yi said. "But Wang Hu's heritage isn't impressive either—he couldn't even beat me."

"You're incredibly arrogant. Wang Hu's potential is limitless. He's merely been cultivating for a short time and is overly attached to his physical form, causing his cultivation to become skewed. Otherwise, he would never have lost to you," the coin's remnant sneered.

His words carried a tone of frustration at Wang Hu's failure.

Li Yi said: "He lost. No amount of excuses changes that."

At this moment, he had arrived at the center of Earth's defense line, where a council hall stood alongside other key structures. The three three-flower realm experts—the Bald Daoist, Wu Lao Dao, and Feiyunzi—were stationed here, guarding against the next great demon crossing the border.

Li Yi's arrival was immediately sensed by these three three-flower realm experts.

"Tai Yi, what brings you here?" Wu Lao Dao's voice echoed.

"Senior, I'm here to find the Bald Daoist," Li Yi said.

"Looking for me? Tai Yi, I'm over here." The Bald Daoist's voice followed, and soon a pillar of heart-fire surged into the sky from a building, marking his location.

Li Yi immediately flew toward it.

The unassuming building was, in fact, transformed from a lower-grade Dao artifact.

Inside, the space opened into a vast palace, where a great Yin-Yang Creation Cauldron, exhaling and inhaling chaotic energy, stood in the center. Around it lay various alchemical materials: strange metals, the corpses of great demons, limbs of mythic beings, and fragments of ancient, shattered artifacts.

The Bald Daoist floated in mid-air above the hall, controlling the Yin-Yang Creation Cauldron.

Within the cauldron, deep within the chaotic energy, an object floated—apparently being forged into something unknown.

"Hah! Tai Yi, you've come at the perfect time. How's my alchemy? Still find the Star-Shattered Spear easy to wield? I've acquired a great demon's corpse and plan to forge a Dao artifact." The Bald Daoist said: "I must say, this Yin-Yang Creation Cauldron is far superior to the Heaven-Earth Furnace and Qian-Kun Cauldron once passed down by the Dao Artifact Sect."

"The Yin-Yang Creation Cauldron can elevate the rank of forged artifacts. With my old Heaven-Earth Furnace, the Star-Shattered Spear could only reach lower-grade Dao artifact status. But nurtured by the chaotic energy within this cauldron, it now ranks as mid-grade."

"Truly, no wonder it's one of the Three Sects' heirloom artifacts—the Tianfa Sect's legacy. Its effects are truly miraculous. Without it, even if I sacrificed everything, I couldn't have forged a single Dao artifact during this time," the Bald Daoist said.

In the cultivation world, forging a single Dao artifact typically took years, even decades. Even elders of the Dao Artifact Sect required a full year of preparation to complete one.

The ability to mass-produce them in such a short time is entirely due to the Yin-Yang Creation Cauldron's power.

Li Yi said: "The power of your forged artifacts is unquestionable. I survived the heavenly demons' ambush thanks entirely to this Crimson Feather Purple Gold Armor. With the Star-Shattered Spear added, I could practically walk freely among heavenly demons."

"Glad you like it, Tai Yi," the Bald Daoist chuckled.

"I came to you today for a personal favor," Li Yi added.

"Tai Yi, speak freely—anything within my power, I won't refuse," the Bald Daoist said, his smile fading into seriousness. After all, this was the first time Tai Yi had ever come to him for help.

No matter how difficult, he had to help.

Li Yi now pulled out the two broken halves of the coin: "This artifact is peculiar. I hope you can find a way to repair it."

"Huh?" The Bald Daoist's gaze locked onto the two broken coin halves. He reached out through the air, and the coin halves flew toward him.

Once in hand, he examined them carefully and meticulously.

"A peculiar artifact—like a strange object, emitting an energy field, yet unlike one. It's man-made, and the forging technique is ancient," the Bald Daoist, as an alchemist, analyzed the coin.

He studied it intently, especially the two inscriptions on the coin, which held immense and extraordinary power.

Unfortunately, the coin was broken, causing the power within the inscriptions to leak away.

Even so, the residual power remained extraordinary.

"You wicked-born Earthling, trying to pry into old man's secrets—wait, you're not an Earthling. You're a cultivator? And your realm is three-flower? Your cultivation world was supposed to have entered the End Dharma Age. How is it you still have a three-flower expert alive, and you've crossed dimensions to Earth?"

Suddenly, the broken coin's remnant soul was startled awake by the Bald Daoist.

The Bald Daoist narrowed his eyes slightly: "A remnant soul embedded in the coin? You know of the End Dharma Age and recognize my three-flower aura. Have you been to my world?"

"I've visited many worlds—not just your cultivation world," the remnant soul said.

"So you're another dimensional traveler," the Bald Daoist said.

"Dimensional traveler? I'm no such thing. I am one who shattered the void and ascended." The remnant soul sneered. "You've only blossomed one flower. To speak of shattering the void with you is like playing the lute to a cow. Only the enlightened ones of your world might be worthy to speak with me."

"Hah! Don't try to deceive me with empty words. You're just a remnant soul—I'll erase you with a flick of my finger," the Bald Daoist laughed.

He had cultivated for centuries, endured the End Dharma Age, and crossed dimensions to Earth. His life had seen great rises and falls—how could a remnant soul frighten him?

"Tai Yi, this remnant soul is unusual. Be careful—don't let it deceive you. It has crossed dimensions many times and knows many worlds. If you had less experience, you'd be fooled. In my view, it's best to destroy it," the Bald Daoist added to Li Yi.

Li Yi said: "It's up to you, Daoist. I only hope you can repair this coin as soon as possible."

The Bald Daoist said: "Don't worry, Tai Yi. I'll do my best to repair this artifact—it will just take some time."

"That's fine. Notify me whenever it's done," Li Yi said. "I just feel this coin holds some secrets. If we can uncover them now, it would be ideal."

"If there are secrets, I'll pry them out of that remnant soul—make it speak everything," the Bald Daoist said, clearly confident in his interrogation methods.

After all, alchemy and torturing people were not so different.

Li Yi nodded: "Then I leave it in your hands, Daoist."

"A trivial matter," the Bald Daoist smiled.

After entrusting the coin, Li Yi did not linger to disturb the Bald Daoist's alchemy. He was busy, and he himself needed to find a place to continue his transformation.

As he left, preparing to return to his assigned section of the defense line,

suddenly,

a voice called out to him.

"Li Yi, wait."

He turned to see Xiao Jianguo, the commander of Earth's defense line, flying over with several companions.

"What is it?" Li Yi stopped and asked.

Xiao Jianguo smiled: "Nothing urgent. I just happened to see you. Your performance in the last battle was excellent—you held a long stretch of the line alone and killed several heavenly demons. Such merit deserves proper reward, but you know the defense line just suffered heavy losses, and many matters still need handling. So the reward must be postponed. I hope you don't mind."

"It's fine. I didn't come here for rewards," Li Yi said. "But my posting on the defense line is nearly over—only a few days left. When my term ends, I hope you'll allow me to leave without trouble."

"Of course. I never break my word. But before that, there's another favor I'd like to ask," Xiao Jianguo said.

Li Yi's expression shifted slightly.

Indeed, Xiao Jianguo had no good intentions in calling him.

"What do you need from me?" Li Yi asked.

Xiao Jianguo said seriously: "The Demon God Realm defense line has been silent lately. Our detectors have registered no high-intensity energy signatures. I suspect something is wrong on their side—even no great demons remain. But technology has limits. The best solution is to form a small team to actively investigate."

"We need to test the strength of the Demon God Realm's defenses. Li Yi, your strength is formidable. I want you to join this mission."

Li Yi replied: "Why not send someone who can fight great demons?"

"Those few are injured and incapacitated. Moreover, such powerful figures appearing on the Demon God Realm's side would surely trigger suspicion from other demon kings, causing unnecessary trouble. It's better to send a few experts with strength comparable to heavenly demons—enough to protect themselves without alarming the enemy," Xiao Jianguo explained.

"That makes sense," Li Yi said. "But I'm responsible for the defense line. I probably don't have time for this mission."

"There's some sense to that," Li Yi said. "But I'm responsible for the frontline, so I probably won't have time to take on this mission."

It wasn't fear of danger—he was undergoing transformation and didn't want distractions.

Xiao Jianguo said: "Li Yi, I know you've been focusing on cultivation. Staying on the defense line too long hinders your progress. If you complete this mission, I'll allow you to leave the line. You know, a trip to the Demon God Realm's side takes at most one or two hours. There's some danger, but it'll let you finish your posting early."

Xiao Jianguo said: "Li Yi, I know you've been working hard on your cultivation, and staying on the frontline for too long will hinder your progress. If you complete this mission, I'll allow you to leave the frontline. You know, a trip to the Demon God Realm frontline takes only one or two hours at most. Though there's some danger, it'll let you finish this mission early."

"Ji Wu, Wang Hu, Ai Si—and you. Four in total," Xiao Jianguo said.

Li Yi chuckled: "All experts who can fight heavenly demons. This mission is really throwing down the cards."

"We have no choice. We know nothing about the Demon God Realm's situation, especially after that major battle. We can't be sure of their arrangements. If we can gather key intelligence early, it'll help our future planning," Xiao Jianguo said. "That's why we're taking this mission seriously."

"If there are great demons on their defense line, we four are walking into our graves," Li Yi said.

One of the companions said seriously: "There are absolutely no great demons. Our energy detectors have checked countless times—no great demon energy signatures. Even Wu Yong sensed nothing."

Li Yi's expression changed: "You're that certain? If you're wrong, people will die."

"I'll stake my life on it," the cultivator said earnestly—he was clearly the officer monitoring the Demon God Realm's defense line.

"I also guarantee their defense line has no great demons," Xiao Jianguo added.

Li Yi paused, then said: "If their defense line truly has no great demons, I'll accept this mission. It won't take long, after all. When do we move?"

"In half an hour," Xiao Jianguo said, exhaling in relief.

Li Yi's agreement was best possible. Finding others with combat records against heavenly demons was not easy.

It would be best if Li Yi agreed—finding someone else to join this operation wouldn't be easy, since there aren't many cultivators with a kill record against Heavenly Demons.

(End of chapter)