Chapter 430: The Sanskrit Seal Opens the Pill in the Box

Xin Yi and Sangmu were locked in a bitter struggle, Chengkai was also caught in an evenly matched battle, and the other Daoist Sect clones were entangled with the Demon Soldiers; everyone was stretched too thin, with absolutely no time to spare for others.

Zhanli took a punch from Shanglu and vanished in an instant, leaving only a trail of dust rising into the air.

Seeing this, the sheltered Zhao Wuyang felt deeply self-reproachful; he hated himself for his lack of foresight and shallow planning, hated himself for being useless, and hated himself even more for his arrogance and recklessness, for otherwise, the situation would not have turned out this way.

Now that he did not know how Zhanli was faring, could it be that he could only sit idly by, unable to do anything?

Just as Zhao Wuyang was filled with regret, a "click" sound came from his chest, accompanied by an unmistakable tinkling sound.

The unusual sensation in his chest caused Zhao Wuyang to suddenly snap back to his senses; he reached into his robe and pulled out a square box.

It was none other than the box Ajin had left for him.

At this moment, the silver seal was slowly dissipating, and the lid of the box had loosened; as the seal faded away completely, waves of strange fragrance wafted toward him.

Zhao Wuyang was utterly baffled, and curiously opened the box; the strange fragrance immediately spread and permeated the air.

Inside the box was a silver Pill, surrounded by golden radiance, and it was from this that the fragrance originated.

Beside the Pill, there was also a folded note.

"If you encounter a dead end, you may take this Pill; the consequences are unknown, proceed with caution."

Lingxiang's handwriting...

That was right, the seal had been redrawn, which clearly meant Lingxiang had opened it, but how could Lingxiang have known the effect of this Pill? And the words between the lines seemed to suggest she had long anticipated he would fall into a desperate situation?

Zhao Wuyang was filled with doubt, but without overthinking it, he picked up the silver Pill and stuffed it into his mouth.

Lingxiang would surely not harm him, and as for the so-called consequences, he would deal with the current predicament first.

In fact, this Pill was the very same kind that Lingxiang had taken when Qingwei Peak suffered its calamity.

Within the Reverse Curve Array at Ding'anju, after Lingxiang took that Immortal-Grade Life-Prolonging Pill, she felt something was amiss, and having seen the catastrophe awaiting Zhao Wuyang in his Qi Pool a hundred days later, she had replaced it with this Pill to prepare for an emergency.

After swallowing the Pill, there was no reaction at first, but gradually, the pain in his body began to diminish rapidly.

Could this Pill be merely for healing? But this would not solve the current predicament.

Just as Zhao Wuyang began to feel suspicious, his skin began to change.

Black spots like ink drops on rice paper began to seep out from his acupuncture points, and dark patterns spread out, connecting as they moved, covering his entire body before long.

It looked terrifying, yet there was not much pain; Zhao Wuyang only felt his whole body growing cold, unable to stop himself from shivering, with numbness spreading through his limbs and bones.

Zhao Wuyang's five senses suddenly became abnormally sharp, his thoughts difficult to concentrate, and he felt as if everything around him had been magnified many times over.

Whatever he heard or saw seemed to have slowed down, and even felt somewhat chaotic and unclear.

Everything became ethereal and illusory.

At the same time, changes were occurring within Zhao Wuyang's Qi Pool.

The old locust tree, which had already set seeds, now sprouted several buds that were quietly blooming.

Only, these few flowers were somewhat different.

Previously, this old locust tree bloomed with white flowers, but these few were so blue they appeared black, which was very strange.

Moreover, the surrounding white flowers were also gradually turning blue under the influence of these flowers.

Looking at the ink-blue stamens, Wangu Qiongcan could only laugh bitterly.

"What a girl, just because I deceived her a little about her background, she actually gives me such a difficult problem."

He was only offering a well-intentioned reminder, why be so petty?

After sighing, Wangu Qiongcan pointed a finger at the old locust tree, and waves of Spirit Qi poured in like a trickling stream, flowing toward every locust flower.

A warm current surged from his chest, spreading throughout his body in an instant, and Zhao Wuyang's mind became clear again, though the dark patterns on his body had not yet receded. These dark patterns were Nether Power.

Back when he was at Yunmeng Marsh, Zhao Wuyang had unknowingly gained the ability to absorb the surrounding Spirit Qi, but it had been forcibly severed by Wangu Qiongcan when he stepped into the Netherworld.

Although Nether Power was powerful, it was extremely cold and yin; how could Zhao Wuyang's mortal flesh withstand it?

But Lingxiang's Pill had forcibly opened the connection between Zhao Wuyang's Qi Pool and the outside world, which was why he had turned into that state just moments ago.

With his mind clear, Zhao Wuyang ignored the changes on his body, drew his sword, formed a hand seal, and chanted.

It was the Demon Extraction Technique.

But as the incantation left his lips, the Soft Sword, which should have been covered in spiritual light, saw its blade turn ink-blue, with specks of starlight within it, just like the midnight sky, gorgeous and mysterious.

However, now was not the time to dwell on these minor details; Zhao Wuyang only glanced at it before charging toward Shanglu.

Since he could not borrow the power of the stars, he would have to rely on himself!

Shanglu raised his fist and pressed step-by-step toward Zhanli, and just as he was about to land a heavy blow, in the moment of crisis, Zhao Wuyang flashed out and blocked between the two with his sword.

Looking at Zhao Wuyang, who was covered in strange markings, Zhanli was very confused, but felt even more worried.

With such a small frame, how could he possibly withstand Shanglu?

Please... you... add to your collection_(!)

Yet, this punch was indeed blocked.

Not only was it blocked, but Zhao Wuyang and Shanglu were actually able to trade blows and struggle against each other.

Zhanli did not hesitate; he rolled away to a safe place, and while meditating to regulate his breath, he kept his eyes on Zhao Wuyang's situation.

The current Zhao Wuyang was vastly different from before; not only could he withstand Shanglu's offensive, but with a turn of his hand, he could actually force Shanglu back with his sword.

To have such a change in such a short time was truly mind-boggling.

Shanglu took a hit from Zhao Wuyang's sword, retreated two steps, and narrowed his eyes.

He had underestimated this brat; it seemed he would have to bring out some real skill.

Shanglu sat cross-legged, waved his long arm, and made a strange gesture in front of his chest; it looked like a Sanskrit Seal, yet it was incomparably eerie.

A series of strange sounds followed, like the sound of some mechanism being assembled; Shanglu floated up, and a Ring Artifact detached from behind him.

The Ring Artifact spun incessantly, with "clang-clang" and "clatter" sounds ringing out endlessly; it was not hard to tell how heavy this mechanism was, weighing at least a hundred pounds.

He never expected this monster to have been carrying it on his back all along!

Crescent-shaped blades rained down like a downpour, shooting rapidly toward Zhao Wuyang; Zhao Wuyang was startled and scrambled to dodge, flashing and shifting, exhausting everything he had ever learned.

Yet, in a moment of carelessness, his shoulder was still wounded.

It turned out that what the mechanism fired were not only blades, but also long nails; these nails were extremely thin, and if one did not pay close attention, they were very difficult to detect.

Zhao Wuyang's shoulder had been pierced by a long nail, and perhaps because the sinews and bones were injured, his left arm hung limp, unable to move in the slightest.

And everything had not yet ended.

The blades and long nails were embedded deep in the ground, but as Shanglu hooked his fingers, they were all retracted back into the mechanism behind him.

Zhao Wuyang, who had never even broken the skin since he was a child, endured the intense pain in his shoulder and dodged another gust of wind and rain.

After a bout of dodging, cold sweat stood out like beads, yet he dared not let his guard down; he braced himself with twelve points of focus, staring intently at Shanglu's movements.

Clearly, Shanglu did not intend to stop either; under the fluctuation of his intent, the mechanism behind him dismantled itself and reassembled, and in no time, it transformed into Nine Giant Crossbows.

There were no arrows on the giant crossbows, yet each one had its bowstring pulled to the limit.

Zhao Wuyang dared not act rashly, holding his breath and focusing his mind, fearing that the slightest distraction would give Shanglu an opportunity to exploit.

Shanglu cast a contemptuous glance and moved his fingers slightly; only a "creak" was heard as invisible arrows shot from the strings, coming with a violent momentum, like thunder and lightning.

What powerful Qi!

Shanglu's intent momentarily rendered Zhao Wuyang unable to move, and the dense arrow-Qi arrived in an instant, submerging him in the blink of an eye.