Chapter 238

In the midst of a hearty, unconstrained laugh, Wei Qiyuan's splendid official robes billowed without wind, and on his slowly raised hands he grasped two clusters of purple, eerie flames.

Facing the mid-Yuan Ying Stage Wei Qiyuan and his arrogant attitude, the four Yuan Ying Cultivators on Xuánmíng's side all had unsightly expressions.

Once one's cultivation base reaches the Yuan Ying Stage, even a mere one minor realm difference brings a huge disparity in strength.

Even if they have an advantage in numbers, it is not so easy to erase that gap.

"Ah—"

The Five Elements Child of the Five Elements Sect sighed and said, "I have long heard that the Wei family of Yunluo Country's Heaven and Earth Devouring Flame Technique is extraordinary and outstanding; today I can only ask for a little instruction."

"Then this Old Ghost Granny will also chip in."

The Old Ghost Granny of the Hundred Ghost Sect also spoke in a deep voice.

Then, the Five Elements Child stretched out a pair of withered hands from his variegated hundred-family robe, holding a small tower flowing with light and splendid colors, appearing quite extraordinary.

The Old Ghost Granny then slightly opened her mouth and spat out a small banner; as she infused it with magic power, the banner quickly expanded, accompanied by rolling yin energy and wails like ghostly howls and wolf cries, turning into a great banner several zhang long.

"The Five Elements Exquisite Tower and the Myriad Soul Banner?"

Seeing this, Wei Qiyuan's expression became slightly more solemn, yet he still smiled and said:

"Just the two of you? That's probably not enough."

"Then add me as well!"

As he spoke, Xuánmíng Old Ancestor traced a gesture in the void, and a jet-black skull appeared before his chest, entwined with deep green, profound flames, looking quite extraordinary.

"Oh?" Seeing this fire, Wei Qiyuan's eyes lit up slightly, "Nine Abyss Corpse Fire, not bad, not bad."

"Hum—"

As four streams of light shot out, the four of them vanished into the platform's boundless darkness.

Only the occasional rumble from afar and some splendid flashes indicated that a battle was taking place.

For a mid-Yuan Ying Stage cultivator to defeat an early-Yuan Ying Stage cultivator is relatively easy, but for a mid-Yuan Ying Stage cultivator to eliminate an early-Yuan Ying Stage cultivator, the difficulty increases exponentially.

Those who can cultivate to the Yuan Ying Stage are all seasoned veterans, each with countless life-preserving methods.

Meanwhile, three early-Yuan Ying Stage cultivators facing a mid-Yuan Ying Stage cultivator can indeed put up a fairly even fight.

On the platform.

Only remained were the Yuan Ying Elder of the Cloud Upper Hall, that "Xingzi", and the Blood Fiend Ancestor.

After Wei Qiyuan and his four companions left, the Yuan Ying Elder of the Cloud Upper Hall dusted off his robes and slowly said, "Xingzi, go fetch the gourd."

As he spoke, his gaze remained fixed on the Blood Fiend Ancestor.

Yet on the Blood Fiend Ancestor's youthful, handsome face appeared a wicked smile, "Feng Peng, it's been hundreds of years since we last met; I didn't expect you to still be a loyal dog of the Cloud Upper Hall."

Facing the Blood Fiend Ancestor's mockery, Feng Peng of the Cloud Upper Hall kept his composure, calmly looking at him, "Blood Fiend, you simply don't understand the importance of the Cloud Upper Hall in the Cloud Upper Realm."

"Tch." The Blood Fiend Ancestor couldn't help but sneer, "Importance? It's merely occupying the largest territory, holding the most resources, secretly balancing the various powers, so that your Cloud Upper Hall remains the hegemon of the Cloud Upper Realm."

Feng Peng shook his head, and before he could speak again, he heard the Blood Fiend Ancestor say, "More talk is useless; let's see the real skill beneath our hands!"

The words fell.

The Blood Fiend Ancestor repeatedly slapped his waist storage bag, and one after another, blood-red puppets appeared before him.

Seeing this, Feng Peng furrowed his brows, "Blood-refined puppets! Initially, the True Lord Star Evolution should have utterly exterminated you, leaving you no chance at all."

"Heh."

Upon hearing the four words "True Lord Star Evolution", the Blood Fiend Ancestor's face showed a meaningful smile; he deeply glanced at "Xingzi", then his ten fingers lightly leapt in the air, and the blood-refined puppets also began to move.

Feng Peng swept up his wide sleeve, and suddenly a small seal appeared in his hand.

"Yellow Flood Dragon Seal!" the Blood Fiend Ancestor's face darkened slightly.

As Feng Peng infused his magic power into the small seal, it seemed to come alive.

"Roar!!"

That small seal transformed into an earth-yellow flood dragon, roaring as it lunged toward the Blood Fiend Ancestor and his blood-refined puppets.

For a moment, the two also reached a stalemate, appearing difficult to decide a winner in a short time.

After Xingzi bowed to Feng Peng, he lifted his foot and walked toward the gourd vine.

Looking at this situation, it seems that after several Yuan Ying Cultivators became entangled in combat, the Jie Dan Stage Xingzi instead turned out to be the final "winner".

And on Xingzi's face, an uncontainable excitement and joy surfaced.

He patted his storage bag.

He took out a silver-white umbrella-shaped magic treasure, as well as an apparently ordinary tool for picking that was made of pure gold.

The commotion on the platform naturally also attracted the attention of Yunhe and Mu Haitang in the secret passage.

Gazing at the distant commotion and at "Xingzi" walking toward the gourd vine, having taken out the prepared item, Mu Haitang said:

"That silvery waterfall flowing is the 'Sunlight Heavy Water', which has the effect of wearing away flesh, blood, essence, and bones; if unprepared and accidentally splashed, lightly it could sever limbs and leave one struggling to survive, severely it could cause flesh to melt away and cause death. Even a magic treasure could have its power drastically reduced upon contact with this water, possibly even being corroded and destroyed."

"And to pick the gourds from the Luotian gourd vine, one must use a pure gold implement; otherwise, even if successfully harvested, its efficacy would be greatly reduced."

"Finally, each person can pick only one gourd at a time; after picking, the 'Luotian Command' on their person will dissipate, transporting them out of the secret realm."

Listening to Mu Haitang's explanation, Yunhe's eyes flickered.

Sunlight Heavy Water?

Although Yunhe kept in mind everything Mu Haitang said, he paid special attention to this "Sunlight Heavy Water".

The reason is simple.

The name, function, and effect of this "Sunlight Heavy Water" reminded him involuntarily of the "Three Yang Heavy Water", which, derived from the Demon Beast Body's Carrying Mountain Technique cultivation method, is a precious water used to temper the body and cultivate; its effect in battle is also to wear away flesh, blood, tendons, and bones.

In order to strengthen the cultivator's body, the Cultivator Body likewise refined the "Three Yang Heavy Water".

However, later the Cultivator Body obtained the "Nine Curves Gourd", which worked better and faster than the Three Yang Heavy Water, and so the refinement of this water gradually fell into disuse.

As for the Demon Beast Body, thanks to the myriad demon beasts of Huanhu Dao helping to gather yang water each day, although it also did not pay much attention, it never ceased.

Nowadays, the Demon Beast Body's Three Yang Heavy Water has already been refined to the seventh transformation level.

Is it possible to refine the "Three Yang Heavy Water" to its highest level, which would be the "Sunlight Heavy Water"?

If so.

The water in that silver waterfall might possibly be taken for one's own use.

Of course, he was just thinking; without any protection or preparation, rash contact might cause his body to give out first.

As Mu Haitang was speaking, the Star Child of the Cloud Upper Palace had already opened his umbrella and arrived beneath the gourd vines.

Although the waterfall had shrunk considerably, it still scattered many silver-white droplets.

The droplets falling on his umbrella actually produced a dull thud like a heavy stone striking, and upon contacting the umbrella surface they left no trace of stickiness, quickly sliding to the ground as if absorbed, and soon vanished.

However, these obviously posed little obstacle to the Star Child.

Then one saw him restraining his excitement, grasping a golden vessel, his gaze falling upon the "gilded ochre gourd".

This was his goal this time.

As long as he could obtain the "gilded ochre gourd" and refine and absorb the vital energy within it, his cultivation base would take a great leap forward, bringing him closer to Nascent Soul.

Moreover, with the accumulations of the Cloud Upper Palace, as a Star Child he only needed to reach perfected Golden Core; he would not need to worry about the Nascent Soul treasure, and could even obtain a Nascent Soul Pill.

This is the foundation of the greatest power in the Cloud Upper Realm.

However.

Just as the Star Child was about to pick the "gilded ochre gourd".

Change arose from within his own side!

In the shadow behind the Star Child.

Suddenly a grayish-white arm, covered in corpse spots and bearing extremely long black claws, thrust out and struck straight at his back heart.

Boom!!

Accompanied by the sound of splashing sparks.

Then one saw a thin energy barrier surrounding the Star Child's body, blocking this sudden sneak attack.

Yet blocking it did not let the Star Child breathe a sigh of relief; instead his face changed drastically.

"A Yuan Ying corpse cultivator!!"

As a Star Child, he had entered this secret realm not only with a Yuan Ying elder ancestor guarding the path, but also carried many treasures on his person; this robe with self-activated protection was one of them.

It could withstand one attack from a Yuan Ying cultivator.

Yet the corpse that had just emerged from his shadow, although the sneak attack failed, had nearly shattered this layer of protection.

This shows that the one who sneak-attacked him was a Yuan Ying corpse!

Among the Yuan Ying cultivators present earlier, only one specialized in controlling corpses—Xuanming Elder Ancestor!

"Xuanming! Are you declaring war on my Cloud Upper Palace?"

Likewise seeing this, Feng Peng's spiritual power surged forth, driving the Yellow Flood to repel the Blood Kui Elder Ancestor, while his eyes widened and he shouted angrily.

"Hmph!"

Faced with Feng Peng's threat using the Cloud Upper Palace, the Yuan Ying corpse merely gave a cold snort; in its dim, whitened eyes a cold light flashed, and it waved its claws, lunging out at extreme speed.

The Star Child's face changed drastically.

He had no choice but to quickly withdraw and retreat, leaving the area of the gourd rack, put away his silver umbrella, and summon a chessboard.

Hastily grabbing a few black and white pieces, his hands fell like flashes of an electric torch, placing the pieces one after another rapidly on the board.

"Star Net Chessboard, activate!"

As he gave a low shout, a hazy vital energy rose on the black and white chessboard.

By relying on this treasure, the merely mid-Golden Core Star Child actually managed to temporarily block the Yuan Ying corpse's attack!

One must know that although Xuanming Elder Ancestor's Yuan Ying corpse seems to have some defects preventing it from exerting true Yuan Ying cultivator-level power, it is still at least stronger than most ordinary false Yuan Ying cultivators.

"This chessboard is at least a top-tier third-rank magical treasure."

Yunhe, who witnessed the whole process, silently clicked his tongue.

Adding the earlier self-protective robe, this Star Child already possessed at least two top-tier third-rank magical treasures.

He estimated that this was probably not the Star Child's full wealth.

However, while feeling amazed, Yunhe's peripheral vision kept falling on Mu Haitang.

The Yuan Ying corpse summoned by Xuanming Elder Ancestor is likely related to the Lingyin Elder Ancestor.

Because when that Yuan Ying corpse appeared, a domineering spiritual awareness fluctuation not belonging to Mu Haitang surged from her body.

"The grudge is indeed considerable."

Xuanming Elder Ancestor not only killed the Lingyin Elder Ancestor, but also imprisoned his soul, forged his Yuan Ying fleshly body; perhaps his Yuan Ying has already been refined into a corpse infant.

Yet Yunhe could not help but admire the Lingyin Elder Ancestor: even in such a state he remained calm and clear-headed, knowing he was no match for Xuanming Elder Ancestor, he chose to first target the relatively weaker and easier-to-deal-with Blood Kui Elder Ancestor.

"When will we make our move?"

This thought had just arisen when he heard the Lingyin Elder Ancestor's voice sound in his ear.

"Young friend Yun, later it will be up to you; if you drop the chain at a critical moment, I also have enough time to inflict heavy damage on your soul! Then humph! Even if you do not die, your soul will suffer great loss, losing the possibility of further cultivation progress."

The words fell.

Yunhe suddenly let out a muffled "uh", his face turned slightly pale, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

Just now, the Lingyin Elder Ancestor used a secret art to mobilize the "Soul-Eating Worms", causing Yunhe's soul and spiritual awareness to feel a stabbing pain.

He understood that this was merely the Lingyin Elder Ancestor's way of warning him; if he had just suddenly detonated the "Soul-Eating Worms", he might truly have suffered heavy damage to his soul and spiritual awareness.

Of course, the premise is that Yunhe himself has not used the electric net woven from heavenly thunder power.

After that "warning", Yunhe now feels confident that before the Lingyin Elder Ancestor fully detonates the "Soul-Eating Worms", he can contract the heavenly thunder power to restrict and even exterminate those worms!

This made him chuckle coldly inside, while on his face he showed a look of panic and shock.

"Senior, rest assured; although I claim to be no good person, I always keep my word—what I say I will do."

"That's fine."

Lingyin Old Ancestor gave a light reply, showing that his attitude toward Yunhe was still satisfactory.

"Just."

However, Yunhe once again sent a voice transmission via his divine sense.

He gritted his teeth, showing a resolute expression, and said in a low voice: "But Senior, should you first give me the 'Union Pill Technique'? Otherwise, I truly cannot guarantee that after you finish your business here, you will still pass on the 'Union Pill Technique' to me, given the restriction of contacting the 'Soul-devouring Worm'."

Upon hearing these words, Lingyin Old Ancestor fell into silence.

And Yunhe tensed his consciousness; should the 'Soul-devouring Worm' show any movement, he would instantly unleash heavenly thunder power to destroy it.

This was Yunhe's gamble.

He was betting that Lingyin Old Ancestor, at this critical moment, would not refuse, for in Lingyin Old Ancestor's view, as long as he controlled the 'Soul-devouring Worm', whether he gave the 'Union Pill Technique' or not made little difference; giving it might even steady Yunhe's mind.

After a while.

Only then did Lingyin Old Ancestor finally speak again:

"Little friend, you have a lot of nerve!"

Yunhe pretended to wipe the sweat from his forehead, chuckling awkwardly: "Senior, I had no choice but to do this."

But he knew in his heart that the matter was settled.

"Hmph!"

As expected, after Lingyin Old Ancestor gave another cold snort, he transmitted the 'Union Pill Technique' via divine sense.

It also included the 'Separation Pill Technique'.

This method isn't actually hard to speak of, but it makes Yunhe want to complain why anyone would create such a 'boring' secret technique.

But once this secret technique is in hand, the subsequent advances and retreats are no longer solely up to Lingyin Old Ancestor.

"You also needn't worry about the 'Soul-devouring Worm'; if it self-destructs, it will also harm me. So as long as you faithfully serve me, I will not treat you unfairly."

The whole family of three has been hit hard; last night I ran a fever of 39.8°C, then today my wife also had a fever of 38°C, and on top of that my daughter's temperature has been fluctuating, the whole family has been hit hard.

Therefore I really can't maintain steady updates; I can only try to keep updating as much as possible, and after this family fever wave passes, I'll think of how to make up for the missing chapters during this period.

Sorry, I bow again; I hope everyone can understand.

(End of chapter)