Chapter 712: Body

Originally, even if the Demon Cult’s leader ascended to the “End Existence,” Li Wei felt the opponent wasn’t utterly invincible—combined with others, they could still injure him and stand a chance in battle.

But now…

When the closed-eyed humanoid shadow of Pan Wu, the Demon Sovereign, appeared, Li Wei sank into utter despair.

At this moment, the only hope he could cling to was his greatest fortune—the Golden Finger.

“Rescue? I’m powerless too…”

Inside the Zhenwu Talisman, Fang Xing sighed softly: “I advise you to send the Zhenwu Talisman away before you die—don’t let it fall into the hands of this End Existence. It’s the only way to preserve a sliver of hope for future martial arts…”

“Senior…”

Li Wei’s expression changed drastically.

At that moment, Wu Kuangtu burst into loud laughter: “Good… I’ve finally met a true opponent worth defeating!”

His muscles swelled, and one acupoint after another exploded—clearly, he had activated a secret technique that ravaged his own body.

Wu Kuangtu roared, his wounds healing rapidly; not only that, his aura surged upward in relentless waves: “Only such a mortal enemy can push my martial art to breakthrough! If I can’t break through, then let me die.”

“Zhenwu—Seven Stars Severing Meridians!”

“Northern Dipper Fist!”

His hands instantly turned pitch black, as if capable of draining all life from the world.

Watching Wu Kuangtu’s movements, Li Wei was profoundly shaken: “Is this… the highest transmission of the Zhenwu lineage?”

He saw Wu Kuangtu’s extraordinary physique—undoubtedly derived from the Zhenwu Holy Body—but it was far more than just the Zhenwu Holy Body!

Wu Kuangtu had already innovated beyond the Zhenwu Holy Body, awakening the deepest secrets of the Zhenwu legacy—the Seven Stars and the Northern Dipper!

The Seven Stars converge as a technique to unleash explosive self-destruction!

The Northern Dipper governs killing, governs death… it is the ultimate killing fist!

Wu Kuangtu was like the mortals of myth who defied gods, daring to swing their fists at divine beings!

Even if the outcome was certain annihilation, he did not hesitate!

Sssssch!

Behind Wu Kuangtu, the Seven Stars of the Northern Dipper blazed, forming a strange mystical bird.

A colossal fist imprint, radiating the bird’s might, struck the Demon Cult’s leader.

Puff!

The Demon Cult’s leader’s face changed; he spat out a mouthful of ink-black

blood.

Behind him, the shadow of Pan Wu, the Demon Sovereign, stirred slightly—then fell utterly still…

Wu Kuangtu’s desperate strike had failed to inflict even the slightest damage upon the shadow of Pan Wu, the Demon Sovereign.

“I am the Master of the End… I shall bring destruction to the world…”

The Demon Cult’s leader murmured, his aura of annihilation spreading; suddenly, he raised his palm.

Behind him, the shadow of Pan Wu, the Demon Sovereign, mirrored the same motion.

The two shadowy arms descended, their pressure surpassing any supreme martial art!

Boom! Boom!

After the two palms struck, Wu Kuangtu and Li Wei were blasted backward, spitting blood; Wu Kuangtu, further ravaged by the backlash of his boosting technique, was on the verge of total combat incapacity.

“So strong…”

Li Wei muttered: “But I cannot die here…”

At that moment, something inside him seemed to shatter.

The long-struggled fusion point between Western knightly Zhidao and Eastern Zhenwu system was suddenly grasped in full clarity.

“East and West united, Armor of Xuanwu—Kill!”

Li Wei leapt upward, his body manifesting the true form of Xuanwu.

The Xuanwu true form roared, its body encased in an indestructible aura armor.

This was the perfect fusion of the Zhenwu lineage and Western knightly Zhidao !

It raised its claws, reaching for the Demon Cult’s leader.

Then…

Boom!

Li Wei was flung back at even greater speed; the armored Xuanwu shattered instantly.

He spat a gout of essence blood, feeling his internal organs shifting out of place.

“Damn… even with another breakthrough, I’m still no match for him?”

Blood trickled from Li Wei’s lips; he finally faced true despair.

At that moment, a voice reached Wu Kuangtu’s ear: “Do you… want to live?”

“Hm?”

Wu Kuangtu’s bones and tendons were shattered, his innards burning—yet his will remained unshaken; a grim smile curled on his lips: “You’re… the spirit of the Zhenwu Talisman? Of course… Master Zhenwu’s notes were never wrong…”

“That little Xun Heihu really…”

Fang Xing fell silent, then continued: “You and this boy are relatively lucky. I refuse to fall into the hands of the Demon Cult’s leader. The only option now is to borrow your body.”

“Borrow my Zhenwu Holy Body? Or do you intend to directly possess me? Martial artists grow ever more astonishing in their methods as they advance—I’ve planted spiritual seeds to influence and enslave other martial artists… you, as the spirit of the Zhenwu Talisman, must be capable of far more, right?”

"Are you borrowing my True Martial Holy Body, or do you intend to directly possess me? The deeper a warrior advances, the more earth-shattering their methods become—I can now plant spiritual seeds to influence and enslave other warriors... you, as the spirit of the True Martial Talisman, must be capable of far more, yes?"

Such mental communication—even ten or eight sentences—lasted only an instant to the outside world.

After all, how swift is the mind’s movement? In the blink of an eye, thousands of words could be spoken.

“You overestimate yourself. Though you possess the Zhenwu Holy Body, you are still far from meeting my standards for a suitable vessel…”

Fang Xing said coldly: “I will only borrow your body to act. Whether you survive afterward—I cannot guarantee it. After all, this ‘container’ of yours is far from sturdy. It may break after just one use.”

Fang Xing said coldly: "I will only borrow your body to act. Whether you survive afterward, I cannot even guarantee... after all, your 'vessel' is far from sturdy—likely broken after just one use."

Wu Kuangtu’s spirit carried a trace of reverence: “Before death, to witness a higher realm of martial art—what a worthy end…”

“Good… you should remember the path of demonic deviation in the Zhenwu Contemplation Method,” Fang Xing chuckled: “Channel the contemplation method to its fullest. See me as your god!”

"Good... you should remember the path to demonic deviation in the True Martial Contemplation Method," Fang Xing chuckled. "Fully activate the contemplation method—see me as your god!"

Outside.

Li Wei watched the Demon Cult’s leader step forward, having been crushed into near-total helplessness.

“Father… Mother… Little sister…”

As death approached, his life flashed before him like a whirlwind.

Alas, no new breakthrough came.

Though breakthroughs often come between life and death.

But Li Wei had already broken through once.

To break through again was utterly impossible.

Every human has limits!

Li Wei merely recalled, and sighed: “My talent… can only take me this far? Well… compared to a lifetime in the slums, my years of experience—even Master Kyle would envy me…”

Though it was a pity to reach only this point, his life held no regrets.

Just as Li Wei prepared to accept death calmly, an unexpected change occurred!

Just as Li Wei prepared to accept death calmly, an unexpected change occurred!

The Zhenwu Talisman hanging from his neck suddenly detached, hurtling at an indescribable speed into Wu Kuangtu’s forehead, merging directly into his flesh and blood.

Wu Kuangtu’s third eye vanished, replaced by a Taiji symbol formed of two fish—one yin, one yang.

He closed his eyes, then opened them again—his gaze and aura were now utterly different.

Even the Demon Cult’s leader paused his advance, a clear look of wariness crossing his face.

Behind him, the shadow of Pan Wu, the Demon Sovereign, trembled—as if about to open its eyes.

Behind him, the spectral shadow of Panwu the Demon Sovereign trembled, as if about to open its eyes.

“Wu Kuangtu” looked down at his own hands.

“So this is what it feels like to possess a body again?”

He murmured, glancing at Li Wei beside him: “Watch closely… true martial art is like this.”

Fang Xing slightly raised his hand, fingers spreading into a palm strike!

Fang Xing slightly raised his hand, fingers spreading into a single palm strike!

The Seven Stars of the Northern Dipper blazed brightly in the heavens!

Streams of starlight converged behind him, forming a celestial sun of indescribable hue—like a galaxy itself!

Within the celestial sun stood a Zhenwu divine form:

Its base was Xuanwu, atop it sat a Daoist, his face faintly resembling Fang Xing’s, who also unleashed a palm strike!

This was—Seven Stars Eternal Celestial Sun!

—Zhenwu Divine Palm!

Boom!

Under this single palm, the Demon Cult’s leader, who had already ascended to the End Existence,

and the shadow of Pan Wu, the Demon Sovereign, faded into oblivion.

The spectral shadow of Panwu the Demon Sovereign faded into oblivion.

"The End... The End..."

"The end of oneself... is also one of the cycles of the End..."

The Demon Cult leader sighed lightly, and his body instantly turned to ash.

But Li Wei strangely felt that some peculiar knowledge had surfaced in his mind.

It was the advancement knowledge beyond the Ninth Rank 'Watcher of the Hidden,' even containing techniques on how to break through and become a First Rank 'Entity of the End'!

"This... the world will now know greater turmoil."

Li Wei sighed inwardly, then turned to the 'Martial Madman': "Elder..."

He had realized: the Martial Madman before him was no longer the Martial Madman—he was the spirit of the True Martial Talisman!

"Hmm, our connection ends here..."

Fang Xing looked up, gazing at the sky revealed after the black sea dissipated: "This body will not collapse for some time yet—I'll use it to do the things I wish to do..."

Outside, night had fallen without notice; the stars blanketed the heavens like a chessboard, densely arrayed, each emitting a cold, clear radiance.

After speaking these words, Fang Xing merely swept his sleeve, and his figure vanished without a trace.

"We respectfully bid farewell to the Elder!"

Li Wei bowed deeply, watching Fang Xing depart; for some reason, a sense of loss settled in his heart.

Immediately, he let out a self-deprecating laugh: 'Such a treasure was never meant for me to keep long... Now that I’ve used the True Martial Talisman to reach the pinnacle of martial arts, and survived the Demon Cult leader’s hand, I can return home to my family—what more could I ask for?'

With this thought, he too felt a great weight lift, and prepared to leave the Island of Death.

What of the World’s First Martial Tournament? The million-coin bounty?

With the Martial Madman dead or gone, and Bai Ying Continent possibly descending into chaos—who would care about such matters now?

"Yet... before his death, the Demon Cult leader seemed to have activated the unique authority of an 'Entity of the End,' spreading poison across the world..."

Thinking of this, Li Wei’s expression turned grave: "I must quickly spread the 'Soul-Corrupting Poison Body Art'... Otherwise, all the common people of the world will become nourishment for the Entity of the End..."

Though his mind held the entire inheritance sequence of the Demon Cult—he was, in essence, the new heir of the Demon Cult.

But Li Wei had no intention whatsoever of walking that path now.

Even though he knew that becoming an Entity of the End would grant nearly infinite lifespan.