Chapter 35: Chapter Thirty‑Four: Ruthless and Decisive

A wisp of the feeling of liberation surged into Wu Tie's mind.

This was Broken Bone's final response left for Wu Tie.

Just like an old man who has witnessed countless changes in the winds and clouds, Broken Bone originally resisted and was unwilling to merge with Wu Tie. But when Wu Tie was violently bled by Shi Lingqing and was on the verge of death, Broken Bone made a decision.

He gave up escape, gave up freedom and ease, gave up his own 'independence', and chose to sacrifice himself to fulfill Wu Tie.

Wu Tie still did not know what he was, where he came from, what he had experienced, or why he would appear in the hall of this underground secret realm, being 'guarded' in this way by Niu Yingxiong and eighteen golden skeletons.

Broken Bone left no information proving his identity, only a deep 'long sigh', giving Wu Tie a complex feeling, and then he completely vanished.

He chose to perfectly fuse with the first phalanx of Wu Tie's left index finger.

Wu Tie raised his left hand; because of the Foundation Establishment style and the Foundation Establishment elixir, his skin was fair and tender, nearly translucent. Through the fair skin, the phalanx fused with Broken Bone could be seen, its color much deeper.

This finger gave the sensation of a bruise from a heavy blow that had not yet faded, quite noticeable.

He breathed in large gulps, continuously drawing in the sparkling magical power from the air. His whole body felt warm; new blood was constantly produced in his marrow, swiftly flowing into his withered blood vessels, into his withered viscera, muscles and skin, into every tiny corner of his almost desiccated body.

Wu Tie almost instinctively began cultivating the Foundation Establishment style.

He slowly performed the movements of the Foundation Establishment style, each form flowing smoothly.

His movements were more agile than usual, and also possessed an inexplicable spirituality. If one said that when Wu Tie previously practiced the Foundation Establishment style, he was like a painting behind frosted glass.

Today this hazy frosted glass suddenly shattered, and that painting appeared before his eyes, clear and distinct.

With each move and form, Wu Tie's every action seemed to merge with the surrounding heaven and earth—harmonious, natural, as if he inherently belonged to this realm and was a perfect component of it.

The sparkling energy around him grew denser, turning into visible streams of crystal‑bright light as thick as fingers, continually flowing into Wu Tie's body.

Shi Lingqing lay on the ground, staring blankly at Wu Tie.

Her lips were pallid, she whispered hoarsely: 'Prime Energy… Prime Energy manifestation… to be able to manifest Prime Energy from the void at the Foundation Establishment realm… just how excellent is your talent? Or has your Foundation Establishment method reached a heaven‑defying level?'

Wu Tie could not hear Shi Lingqing's muttering.

His whole body felt extremely comfortable as he practiced the Foundation Establishment style to his current limit.

Six hundred eighty‑two forms!

He easily continued practicing until he reached the six hundred eighty‑second form of the Foundation Establishment style.

Upon reaching the seven hundred twentieth form, Wu Tie only needed to break through it for his internal essence to reach a peak of overflowing abundance, further condensing essence into Foundation Establishment gang qi, breaking through to the second layer of the Foundation Establishment realm.

Before, he could barely manage the four hundred ninety‑third form; after fusing with Broken Bone, his cultivation of the Foundation Establishment style leapt forward, mysteriously surging by a large margin.

Holding a posture similar to an iron plank bridge, leaning back for a full quarter hour, his blood and qi flowed smoothly throughout, every minute corner being washed repeatedly by blood and qi. The newly generated blood was vibrant and stored abundant energy; Wu Tie clearly felt that after the tremendous change, his physical strength had increased greatly.

Especially, the first phalanx of his left index finger was heating up.

The temperature gradually rose, until Wu Tie felt his left index finger as if soaked in boiling water.

Of the 'Prime Energy' that Shi Lingqing spoke of, which he inhaled into his body, about thirty percent was absorbed by this tiny finger bone. Thread by thread, compared to the fresh blood produced by his own marrow, it was slightly more viscous, slightly heavier, and in nature seemed a bit refined plasma, slowly seeping out from this finger bone.

Drop by drop, this fresh plasma merged into the body's great blood circulation.

The blood throughout his body became more vibrant, more full of life, and its nourishing effect increased by roughly more than double.

Wu Tie unconsciously moved his left index finger.

Exquisitely wonderful.

The feedback from his cultivation told Wu Tie that after fusing with Broken Bone, practicing the Foundation Establishment style felt like taking double the Foundation Establishment elixir, and the results were very pleasing.

After maintaining the iron plank bridge leaning‑back posture for a quarter hour, Wu Tie slowly straightened his body. He had reached his limit; the six hundred eighty‑second form of the Foundation Establishment style was the utmost he could now achieve.

Exhaling a mouthful of hot air, his long breath mixed with traces of foul odor; Wu Tie touched the wound on his neck, the cut inflicted by Shi Lingqing's fingernails had vanished, his skin smooth and fair, without a scar.

After seriously moving his body, the Foundation Establishment style had fully stretched every joint and every muscle meridian. Wu Tie closed his eyes to sense his condition, feeling an unprecedented ease throughout his body.

The weakness caused by rapid, massive blood loss had completely disappeared; now his whole body was filled with strength.

He did not even glance at Shi Lingqing, strode out of the hall, and walked to the metal ball formed from the armor that had naturally fallen off his body. He grasped the metal ball with both hands and poured into it the endless essence generated within him.

Fine threads of light lit up on the surface of the metal ball.

The pallid metal ball quickly melted into a pallid liquid that rapidly coated his hands. After a few breaths, the pallid metal liquid enveloped Wu Tie's entire body, and the tight‑fitting armor re‑clad him.

Wu Tie nodded with a smile: 'Old Tie is right—this armor's strength will also be exhausted; I need to replenish its energy from time to time.'

Turning around, Shi Lingqing had already staggered to her feet and was walking out of the hall step by step.

Broken Bone did not inflict any substantive harm on Shi Lingqing.

Broken Bone merely stripped away the portion of life essence that Shi Lingqing had borrowed from Hong Laolao and did not truly belong to her. Shi Lingqing herself suffered no loss; only the suddenly surging power was taken away, leaving her feeling somewhat weak.

However, her ability to act was unaffected.

Moreover, after a few steps, Shi Lingqing's movements were no different from usual, and her breath became calm and peaceful.

Having once possessed power that was not her own, suddenly surged and enough to control Wu Tie's life and death, Shi Lingqing's arrogant demeanor remained deeply etched in Wu Tie's mind. Now, having lost that power, she became tranquil and refined, each of her movements graceful as a painting.

She walked to the sailboat that Hong Laolao had ridden in, rummaged inside for a while, and soon emerged wearing a loosely fitting red robe that was not quite the right size. She jumped off the boat, smiled, and walked toward Wu Tie step by step.

Wu Tie gripped his spear tightly and retreated step by step.

At this moment Shi Lingqing could not harm him, yet it was like an ordinary person seeing a venomous snake—even knowing the snake had its fangs removed, a normal person would still be wary and keep away from such an evil thing.

Wu Tie's mindset was quite normal; Shi Lingqing was far more terrifying than a poisonous snake.

"Miss Shi, I sympathize with your plight," Wu Tie said in a low voice, "but it seems that in this process you also bear great responsibility… in other words, you are not innocent."

Taking a deep breath, Wu Tie donned his mask, and his spear swished to point at Shi Lingqing.

"We have no grudge or enmity, so please leave." Wu Tie glanced at the towering Niu Yingxiong not far away and said softly, "This place is my territory, and it has nothing to do with you."

Shi Lingqing sensed Wu Tie's strong sense of caution and vigilance.

She immediately halted her steps, without hesitation knelt on the ground, and performed the grand five‑prostration salute to Wu Tie.

She seemed to have completely forgotten how, when her power surged earlier, she had pressed Wu Tie to the ground and beaten him, trampling his head with her feet. She now appeared as an entirely different person—delicate and pitiful, fresh and elegant, like a small jasmine flower battered by a violent storm.

"Young master… Lingqing is merely a pitiful young woman; if you let Lingqing go, she will truly have nowhere to bury herself."

Two streams of clear tears trickled down, dropping one by one onto the ground; Shi Lingqing sobbed, "If you do not disdain me, Young Master, I dare to beg you to serve you for the rest of my life in a humble posture."

"Lingqing does not dare to ask for any title; she only wishes to stay by your side, obeying your commands."

"Lingqing may be talentless, but she does have some ability, especially skilled at scheming; Young Master, you will surely become an unparalleled hero in the future, and you will always need some trusted aides to command and dispatch……"

"Apart from a trifling bit of talent, a trifling bit of cleverness usable by the Young Master, Lingqing herself…… If the Young Master is fatigued and weary at heart, Lingqing can also let him enjoy himself……"

"Earlier, when Shi Lingqing's strength surged, she frantically shouted for Wu Tie to become her trusted lackey, a dog-legged henchman to obey her."

"How little time has passed, and after losing her ill-gotten power, she instantly turned into a pitiful little woman, sobbing and begging Wu Tie to take her in."

"Wu Tie stood blankly to the side for a long time."

"He truly couldn't understand how Shi Lingqing could do such a thing."

"Doesn't she have even a shred of shame?"

"How dare Wu Tie take her in?"

"Look at the fates of Wu Lao Da, Luo Lin, Qiao, Ding, Shi Dian, plus Hong Lao Lao and Jiu Zhang Ling, those two great masters…… How could Wu Tie have the gall?"

"\"I won't take you in. This is my territory. I'll give you a bit of time—leave on your own. \" Wu Tie dryly gave Shi Lingqing his final warning, then turned and walked toward Lao Tie."

"Lao Tie lay motionless on the ground, without a breath, like a utter wreck of scrap copper and iron."

"Wu Tie's heart leapt up—after suffering successive heavy blows from Jiu Zhang Ling and the others, could Lao Tie really have been smashed to pieces?"

"Wu Tie sped up and lunged at Lao Tie."

"Suddenly, an immensely powerful, terrifying aura crashed down from the high sky."

"Countless crystal clusters around shattered with a boom; crystal fragments of all sizes flew like countless bullets, striking far away, hitting the intact clusters, emitting incessant piercing impacts and spraying countless sparks."

"Wu Tie felt as if a mountain had smashed down on his head; he let out a muffled groan, his knees went weak and he couldn't stand, and with a 'thud' he knelt on the ground."

"Beside her, Shi Lingqing was even worse off; having lost the power granted by Hong Lao Lao, her own cultivation was truly insignificant. She spat out mouthfuls of blood, lying flat as a sheet of paper, her whole body rigid and unable to move an inch."

"Wu Tie with difficulty lifted his head and gazed upward."

"The bovine hero, long dead for who knows how many years, actually bent down, lowered his head, and looked down upon Wu Tie and the others."

"His huge eyes were like giant lanterns, shooting out two beams of strong light that swiftly swept over Wu Tie, Lao Tie, and Shi Lingqing. His gaze, as if substantive, swept across the hall; the hall exploded in shards, and the last golden skeleton, barely holding together while seated cross-legged on a mat, likewise shattered and collapsed."

"The light pillars spewing from the bovine hero's eyes grew ever fiercer, like two columns of flame sweeping across the earth; wherever they passed, the air violently writhed, raising wave after wave of gale."

"Terrifying power surged from within him; at this moment he seemed to have crossed the merciful river of time, arriving from his blazing peak era into the present, vividly appearing before Wu Tie."

"But after all, he is already dead."

"The dozens of crystal stone spears piercing his chest and abdomen emitted blinding light; waves of destructive aura turned into dim halos that continually spread outward, causing countless crystal fragments to solidify and recondense into whole crystal clusters that fell to the ground."

"Inside the bovine hero's body came a crisp cracking sound."

"Starting from his soles, numerous extremely fine cracks appeared, quickly spreading across his entire body."

"The bovine hero's gaze swept over Lao Tie lying on the ground, paused for a moment, and from his mouth came a clear, unusual curse: 'Damn it!'"

"Lao Tie slowly rose to his feet, his eyes blazing with blood-red light like fire, he lifted his head and stared fixedly at the bovine hero."

"\"Dog-head! \" the bovine hero bared his teeth in a bright smile, then turned his gaze toward Wu Tie."

"The fiery, pillar-like gaze fell upon Wu Tie; he felt his whole body scorching, as if every minute corner were being seen through by the bovine hero's gaze."

"The bovine hero glanced at Wu Tie, then at Lao Tie, nodded with a smile: 'Good, very good.'"

"With a 'crack', the bovine hero's whole body disintegrated, exploding into dark-golden light points that whistled and scattered in all directions."

"At the moment the bovine hero's body disintegrated, the original crystal stone spears within him, as well as the golden lotus that had barely remained intact in the hall, also shattered and collapsed."

"The air filled with a rich fragrance that slowly diffused; a potent essence-blood aura saturated the void, the enormous stone cavern seemed to be melting, countless crystal clusters melted away, and molten scarlet crystal fluid slowly flowed across the ground."

"Shi Lingqing sprang up suddenly, reaching out to grasp the spot where the bovine hero's body had been."

"\"No…… you are mine, you are mine, you must be mine…… how could you……\""

"Wu Tie shouted sternly: \"Do not defile him…… how could he possibly be something you could peek at? \""

"Shi Lingqing stood dazed for a long time, then suddenly laughed."

"\"Defile? I defiled him? I cannot peek at him? \" She turned, haughty as a princess, lifted her chin and gave Wu Tie a sideways glance: \"What do you think you are? Lowly trash…… you men…… each and every one of you are lowly trash. \""

"With a 'keke' strange laugh, Shi Lingqing's eyes suddenly turned completely blood-red; she shrieked, and her whole body abruptly exploded."

"A thread of blood light shot out, heavily striking Wu Tie's forehead; at his brow it formed the deep, bloody characters 'Longevity'."