Chapter 492: A thief! This is a thief!

"Master? Master!" Liu Er exclaimed.

He watched with his own eyes as the demonic cultivator elder transformed into complex, colorful smoke and dissipated on the spot.

Liu Er instinctively reached out to grab him, but grasped only empty air.

Liu Er hurriedly activated various incantations, searching everywhere, but had no success.

"Master couldn't have died, could he?" Liu Er felt a chill in his heart; for a moment, he stood rooted to the spot, at a complete loss.

Soon, he shook his head and muttered to himself, "No, that's impossible. Master's methods are mysterious and profound; how could he easily perish just because of this one instance of guiding me?"

"But it is certain that Master paid a great price this time."

"Sigh! Since he has sacrificed so much for me, I must fulfill my ambitions to repay him!"

After comforting himself, Liu Er finally left the mountain forest, albeit with hesitation.

A moment later, wisps of smoke emerged from thin air and gathered back at the spot.

At first, this smoke was gray-white in color, giving off a feeling of age and weakness. But as the smoke gathered more and more, specks of color gradually appeared within the pale mist, as if it had gained vitality.

The colors quickly became rich and varied, then suddenly condensed and concentrated, transforming back into the demonic cultivator elder.

The elder's face and exposed skin were a mixture of colors, a riot of hues.

After a few breaths, these brilliant colors rapidly dimmed and receded until his skin was no different from an ordinary person's.

The demonic cultivator elder's body shuddered, and he suddenly opened his eyes, like a drowning person rescued onto the shore, finally able to breathe again, or as if he had broken free from a terrifying nightmare and returned to the real world.

"Hoo, hoo, hoo..."

His expression also suddenly became vivid, his face full of shock.

"How is this possible?!"

"I only offered a little guidance, so how could I suffer such a terrifying backlash, triggering my life-saving divine ability—Smoke Mist Escape?"

"This makes no sense!"

The look of shock remained frozen on the demonic cultivator elder's face for a full cup of tea's time before slowly fading away.

The demonic cultivator elder frowned deeply and fell into contemplation: "This is bad."

"When facing those with extraordinary fate and destiny, divination carries an unbearable weight."

"I only considered Little Six before, calculating the cost of guiding him."

"But clearly, this guidance involved a wide scope and interfered with other powerful individuals, which is why I encountered this disaster."

Thinking of this, the demonic cultivator elder's expression became increasingly grave.

He thought of Ning Zhuo first.

"My guidance of Little Six was most disadvantageous to Ning Zhuo."

"Could it be that I suffered this backlash and injury because of him?"

"Hiss..."

"Could it be that Little Six's failure this time wasn't primarily due to the two kingdoms or Mu Lan's luck, but because of Ning Zhuo?!"

Thinking of this, the demonic cultivator elder could no longer sit still.

He immediately stood up, swallowed a spirit pearl, and split his forehead to reveal a bloody eyeball, observing the luck of the Three Generals Camp.

He saw a three-eared ape sitting quietly, eyes closed in meditation, breathing steadily.

The demonic cultivator elder stared at the ape's manifestation, the bloody eyeball on his forehead radiating mysterious light, becoming increasingly dazzling.

The elder's own flesh and blood withered at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Under his unique vision, the three-eared ape gradually enlarged, becoming clearer and clearer.

He observed more secrets.

The three-eared ape's belly was slightly distended, implying that the Three Generals Camp itself was not short of military supplies.

With every breath the three-eared ape took, its belly would sink slightly, and its entire physique would expand slightly—this represented the Three Generals Camp growing stronger every moment.

These were all positive signs.

But the elder was not satisfied with these; he wanted to see more of the essence.

He let out a soft shout, took a deep breath, and his whole body swelled up, turning into a small giant, sitting cross-legged on the ground, crushing the nearby mountains, grass, and trees.

The elder kept his eyes tightly shut, his magic power, spiritual sense, and essence blood consumed crazily to fully boost the blood-red spirit pearl on his forehead.

The spirit pearl eyeball twitched as if in a spasm, sometimes staring straight, sometimes squinting, sometimes circling, sometimes the pupil dilating into countless black dots, the black dots turning into twisted smoke clouds, then suddenly condensing again.

And in the elder's vision, the three-eared ape enlarged again, its body surface becoming transparent to reveal its inner essence.

The ape's interior was very simple.

There was a heart, earthy yellow in color, shaped like a monkey's head, with a sharp face and hairy cheeks, looking depressed. From time to time, the heart would beat, emitting the cry of an ape, the cry revealing a rich sense of anxiety.

The demonic cultivator elder immediately understood: "This is Little Six's fate."

The demonic cultivator elder then looked at the lungs next to it. The lungs were bright red, filled with blood vessels. These blood vessels were not curved; each one stood straight, and there were no smooth curves at the bends.

And with every breath the ape took, the bloody lungs pulsed accordingly.

Most of the pulsing was stable, but there were also chaotic parts.

Whenever there was chaos, the bloody lungs would twitch, and eerie purple light would emerge from the straight blood vessels.

"This is Generals Guan Hong's fate."

"Generals Guan Hong cultivates blood-attribute demonic arts, is naturally arrogant and upright, and his right arm is injured and has not healed, which has become a hidden danger."

Inside the ape's body, there was also a kidney.

This kidney was plump and round, pitch black. The blackness surged, forming waves, the sound of them hitting the shore again and again, shocking like thunder.

"Zhang Hei cultivates water-attribute cultivation methods, his temperament is fierce, and he has quite a bit of family wealth; it indeed matches the symbol of the kidney very well."

"Strange!"

"Where did Ning Zhuo's fate go?"

Inside the ape's body, there were only the heart, lungs, and kidneys; apart from that, there was nothing else.

As for the lack of those soldiers, the demonic cultivator elder could understand—the Three Generals Camp was founded not long ago, and although it had experienced the victory of an ambush battle, it had been targeted recently, not only was morale severely damaged, but many people had also been poached by the Baiyu Camp.

Plus, among these soldiers, the highest cultivation level was only at the Foundation Establishment stage, and there were no Golden Core cultivators at all.

And there were no special Foundation Establishment cultivators like Ning Zhuo, so their strength was not worth looking at.

Therefore, the symbols of these soldiers had always been the ape's body hair, growing outside the body, not the core part of the Three Generals Camp's fate, and were dispensable.

"But Ning Zhuo's combat power has reached the Golden Core level, and he has become the son-in-law of the General's Mansion, the son of a great Ning family, and is even the military advisor of the Three Generals Camp; why is his fate not visible?!"

"Where did it go?"

"Where is it?"

"Come out for me! Come out!!"

The more the demonic cultivator elder couldn't see, the more shocked he became, and his expression became more ferocious.

His originally huge body shrank rapidly like a punctured balloon!

His lifespan was being constantly depleted!

The bloody eyeball on his forehead swelled slightly, as if it were about to burst the eye socket; blood and foul-smelling, viscous yellow liquid mixed together, constantly seeping from the edges of the eye socket.

The intense pain of body and mind began to torture the demonic cultivator elder, adding much agony to his shocked and angry face.

Having paid such a heavy price, he finally gained something.

He saw it!

Vaguely, he saw a shadow in the shape of a left arm.

The arm shadow was not fixed, moving freely inside the ape's body.

It would occasionally sway to the bloody lungs, scoop gently, scoop up countless blood vessels, hold them in its hand, clench into a fist, and the next moment open its palm, but there was nothing in its hand.

It would occasionally come to the black kidney, hook gently, and hook up a large amount of tide water. The arm shadow was like a bottomless pit; the tide water entered the arm, and there wasn't even a sound.

And when it came near the yellow heart, the monkey face on the heart would anxiously emit a sharp cry. But this did not prevent the arm shadow from grabbing.

The left hand opened wide, grabbed a handful, and extracted a large amount of mysterious qi from the earthy yellow heart. The mysterious qi was quickly absorbed by the arm, and the ape's screaming weakened significantly as a result.

Seeing this scene, the demonic cultivator elder was dumbfounded, his anger erupted, and he roared in his heart: "A thief! This is a thief!!"

"So that's how it is, so that's how it is!!" "No wonder Little Six failed, and in the end, Ning Zhuo became Mu Lan's husband."

"This thief Ning Zhuo is stealing Little Six's fate!"

"This is outrageous, simply outrageous!"

"Eliminate him, he must be eliminated!!"

Never before had the demonic cultivator elder's killing intent been so fierce and surging.

He had never hated a person so deeply!

"Ning Zhuo!"

"You are the culprit behind Little Six's failure; eliminate, must eliminate you..."

The demonic cultivator elder's roar stopped abruptly.

In reality, he had already shrunk from a small giant to a dwarf.

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Then, this dwarf was old and decrepit all over, pale as paper.

A gust of wind blew.

The dwarf turned into a puff of light smoke and dissipated with the wind.

By the time the demonic cultivator elder condensed again, the day had turned into night.

"The Smoke Mist Escape divine ability has been triggered again."

"But all of this is worth it."

"I have already seen the truth; I will set up an altar and perform the ritual now, using the Great Curse of Stealing Qi and Returning Fate!"

The demonic cultivator elder's face was full of ferocity.

"Let you, this thief, steal Little Six's fate!"

"In just seven days and seven nights, I will be able to curse you to death, and let your fate and destiny be attached to Little Six, helping his fate become powerful for at least seven years!"

The demonic cultivator elder was full of anger and hatred; he did as he said, immediately moving far away from the Canglin Immortal City, flying to a deserted mountain peak in the distance. After setting up an illusion array, he began to set up the altar and perform the ritual.

And at this very moment, Ning Zhuo had already driven the Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon, traveled through a section of the void, and arrived in a mountain valley, where he began repairs on this mechanical dragon.

The Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon's exterior was severely damaged, especially its dragon scale armor, which had large areas of cracks and destruction.

Ning Zhuo and Sun Lingtong stood side by side.

The latter looked at the large areas of damage and frowned.

And the former had a look of heartache on his face.

Ning Zhuo's love for mechanical creations came from the depths of his heart.

His emotions were complex at this time.

Both worried and excited.

Worried about whether he could repair the Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon, but excited that he could personally lead this restoration, which would surely be a wonderful experience.

Sun Lingtong used his spiritual sense to investigate, his frown deepening.

He sighed in his heart: "Difficult, difficult, difficult!"

"Undoubtedly, repairing the shell of the Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon is a daunting task, requiring not only precise materials but also the application of extremely profound artifact refining methods. Especially to ensure that its armor can be restored to its original hardness and flexibility to cope with future harsh situations."

"Afterward, we have to participate in the great battle and will likely face the pursuit and bombardment of the Nascent Soul powerhouses of the Six Caves Sect again. We cannot afford to suffer losses like last time."

Thinking of this, Sun Lingtong turned his gaze to Ning Zhuo: "Little Zhuo, I'll help you; tell me what to do, and I'll do it!"

Ning Zhuo nodded, his spiritual sense constantly scanning the mechanical dragon, meticulously checking every crack and damage.

The outer armor of the Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon was severely damaged, and in some places, the inner armor was also missing. This situation was more obvious in the latter half of the dragon's body.

"The Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon was made by the Molten Immortal Palace; even the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit only knows that it is so, but doesn't know why it is so."

"I also cannot discern how these dragon scale armor plates were made."

Although Ning Zhuo's Five Elements realm was profound and his artifact refining attainments were very outstanding among his peers, the Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon was at the Nascent Soul level and came from the Molten Immortal Palace, which was too far beyond his level.

Therefore, discerning the original dragon scale armor plates was already beyond his ability in this regard.

"But this does not hinder me from repairing the inner and outer armor."

If one's own strength is insufficient, then use external resources to make up for it.

Piling up high-grade treasures can also break through with brute force!

"It's just..." Ning Zhuo fell into hesitation.

He had already made a move before, purchasing a large amount of treasures from Jin Li.

According to the material reserves he had on hand, there were two options.

One was to use Dragon Scale Iron, combined with Dragon Soul Grass, for combined refining.

The other was to use Spotted Star Tears, Thunder Dragon Horns, and Soaring Cloud Seals to create talismans, using the talismans to connect the magic array and cover the damaged parts of the dragon's body. When the magic array was activated, the talismans would gradually melt and become one.

The reason for Ning Zhuo's hesitation was the cost.

Dragon Scale Iron itself was suitable for the Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon, but it was only a Golden Core level material; Dragon Soul Grass reached the Nascent Soul level, but was rare in quantity.

Therefore, the cost was relatively low.

Although there was only half a drop of Spotted Star Tears, it was a Spirit Transformation level treasure! Thunder Dragon Horns and Soaring Cloud Seals were both at the Nascent Soul level.

If the second method was adopted, the Spotted Star Tears and Thunder Dragon Horns would be completely used up, and there would only be three or four taels of Soaring Cloud Seals left.

The cost of the second maintenance plan was extremely high, more than a hundred times that of the first.

"The first plan is already enough; the second plan is too extravagant. The cost is a hundred times higher, but the additional defense is only twice as much."

"However, war is dangerous. If there is a great battle in the Thousand Peaks Forest in the future, and it's because of this extra two-fold defensive power that we suffer irreparable losses, I will have regrets."

According to Ning Zhuo's cautious temperament, he would often choose the second one.

But the actual situation was complex.

Because after he adopted the first plan, the saved treasures could be fully used in other aspects to add other powers. It didn't necessarily have to be used on the Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon, and it could also improve Ning Zhuo's combat power.

Ning Zhuo was hesitant and did not act arbitrarily, telling Sun Lingtong about the situation.

Sun Lingtong shrugged, expressing his point of view: "Little Zhuo, we have just started maintaining the Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon, and there are still many steps to follow. The Ten Thousand Mile Wandering Dragon is good at escaping and hiding; increasing defense will have little effect."

Ning Zhuo nodded: "Then let's choose the first one..."

Before he finished speaking, his expression changed drastically.

He looked down at the mechanical ring on his finger.

The ring was tightening, implying that he was about to encounter a crisis.

"What could it be?"

"Is it reminding me that choosing the first option is dangerous, and I should choose the second one?"

Ning Zhuo's thoughts flashed like lightning, and he immediately made a decision to use the second plan, even though the cost was very huge.

Three incense sticks of time later.

On the peak of the mountain near Canglin Immortal City, the demonic cultivator elder was setting up an altar and performing the ritual!

The chanting of the Great Curse of Breaking Qi and Returning Fate had reached the first stage.

"Ning Zhuo, Ning Zhuo, little thief with treacherous plots."

"Fate, fate, dark as a shadow hiding in a ghost tower."

"You are strong, I am stronger; just one line stronger, and that is heaven!"

The demonic cultivator elder held a magic sword in one hand on the high platform, shook a bell in the other, and danced.

First-line Small Curse of Breaking Qi!

The demonic cultivator elder's posture suddenly froze, his eyes widened in anger, and he opened his mouth to roar: "Break!"

And at the very moment he made his move, Ning Zhuo's fate suddenly expanded by two points, suppressing the demonic cultivator elder by a line.

Pfft.

The demonic cultivator elder spat out a large mouthful of blood, the curse failed in an instant, and the pain pierced his heart!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 493 =====