Chapter 642: Re-Melting the Xuan Weapon: The Combination of Divine Patterns Is the Divine Prohibition

'Shriek~'

A sharp, piercing cry rang out from the crimson light barrier, as tall as a man; even with tens of thousands of li of the Youjing between them, a ferocious and malevolent aura slammed into their faces.

'No wonder it's a divine relic's remains—if not for the Wan Feng Jian's ability to conceal its aura, this malevolent energy would've torn through the barrier and cursed us from afar.'

Fenghuang'er lightly swayed the Qian Huang Qi to block the ferocious aura piercing through the barrier, focusing her spiritual sense.

Within the barrier, a colossal phoenix stretched across the dark sky, its outstretched wings blotting out the sun and moon, extending beyond sight; it opened its mouth and sucked in, its divine power shaking the entire Youjing within view.

Countless Gui beasts and Gui soldiers were swept upward by the gale, wailing as they vanished into its gaping maw.

'Is this the Blood Phoenix's innate divine art—"Swallow Heaven"? Its might is truly astonishing, but this Blood Phoenix, having lost its Dao and left only a shattered remnant, its Fa Tian shattered by that one, how much of the Ancestral Phoenix's glory remains?'

Fenghuang'er's eyes gleamed brightly, never missing any minute movement of the Blood Phoenix, striving to decipher this supreme divine art originating from the 'Indestructible Divine Phoenix'.

The Indestructible Blood Phoenix, revered by all phoenix clans across the myriad realms as the 'Ancestral Phoenix', was likewise honored by the Fire Phoenix Clan; Fenghuang'er had heard legends of the Indestructible Divine Phoenix since she was a child.

She held profound reverence and longing for that Ancestral Phoenix, ranked among the 'Ten Ancient Evils'.

'Can't make it out.'

Fenghuang'er muttered, yet showed little regret.

Even if there were no Youjing between them, or if one stood directly beneath the Blood Phoenix, no one could learn this supreme divine art with just a single glance.

'Puff!'

Suddenly, Yan Maomao shuddered violently, spitting out a mouthful of reversed blood that struck the deck with a hissing 'chii-chii'.

'Maomao!'

Fenghuang'er's heart leapt; she instantly unfurled the Qian Huang Qi.

'I'm fine.'

Yan Maomao coughed again, wiping the foul blood oozing from her seven orifices, then tapped a finger—stabilizing the violently flickering light barrier:

'No wonder the Blood Phoenix suddenly appeared—it's been drawn to the Ba Fang Miao…'

'Ba Fang Miao?'

Fenghuang'er immediately raised her brows and turned her gaze.

Within the barrier, light and shadow shifted; amid the howling wind, a speck of dust gradually sharpened into focus—then, as the barrier trembled, a humble ancient temple became faintly visible.

'So close, and with the Blood Phoenix's divine power disrupting everything—even with the Wan Feng Jian's protection, a mere glance still shook me… cough, cough—Ba Fang Miao truly lives up to its reputation.'

Yan Maomao swallowed a spiritual pill, slowly rising to her feet; though pale, her expression brimmed with admiration.

'Could it be that Ba Fang Miao is about to emerge again?'

Fenghuang'er's interest surged.

Ba Fang Miao's fame within the Tian Shi Yuan was immense, thanks to its association with Feng Qingcang, the Master of Wu Xian Men, hailed as the closest-to-divinity figure of this age.

'Best not to touch it.'

Yan Maomao's expression turned grave: 'You don't understand, Young Master—Ba Fang Miao has wandered countless tens of thousands of years across the myriad realms without a master because it's tied to an immense karmic debt.'

'Only because this Blood Phoenix, having lost its Dao and its mind, doesn't recognize it. Any other demonic deity who glimpsed Ba Fang Miao would keep far away.'

'Such a massive karmic debt?'

Fenghuang'er's heart jolted; her curiosity deepened.

'Ten thousand years ago, the Master of Guan Di Ge once weighed this Ba Fang Miao, declaring it of exceptionally high rank—not inferior to the Tai Xu Divine Mirror or Heng Tian Scale, yet still merely a broken artifact…'

Yan Maomao's chest rose and fell several times before her injury stabilized; she cut off Fenghuang'er's further questions: 'This karmic debt is too great. You'd be better off not knowing.'

'What about Feng Qingcang?'

Fenghuang'er's gaze flickered: 'They say he gained his earth-shattering cultivation breakthrough from Ba Fang Miao, earning the title of "Closest-to-Divinity in the Three Yuan Realms".'

'Feng Qingcang possesses a divine-demon level talent and carries an earth-shattering breakthrough—surely he long ago met the qualifications to ascend to divinity. Why, then, has he delayed crossing the Divine Tribulation for so long?'

Yan Maomao glanced at her.

'Because of Ba Fang Miao?'

Fenghuang'er's eyelid twitched.

'The Divine Tribulation is the hardest trial since ancient times.'

Yan Maomao sighed; in her youth, she too had failed this tribulation, unable to overcome the young god-blade shadow forged by the tribulation's trial—if not for the Fire Phoenix Clan's rescue, she would've perished long ago.

'Uh…'

Seeing Yan Maomao's reticence, Fenghuang'er dared not press further; instead, she grew eager again:

'If we know Ba Fang Miao is what's drawing the Blood Phoenix, can't we just perform the ritual now?'

'Hmm… better wait until Ba Fang Miao drives off the Blood Phoenix.'

Yan Maomao hesitated slightly, then shook her head.

'What great being could this temple possibly be tied to, to make Maomao so wary?'

Fenghuang'er inwardly shuddered.

Her guardian had once been a famed prodigy of the Three Yuan Realms; had she not suffered calamity, she might have forged a Fa Tian and illuminated all realms.

For her to be so wary—this was rare indeed.

'But if Xuan Daozi and the others have also arrived…'

Fenghuang'er hesitated.

'We'll have to fight eventually. Since ancient times, all who seek to join the Wei Tian Gu Zong have faced this.'

Yan Maomao raised her head calmly, gazing toward the northwest:

'They've arrived!'

'Huh?!'

Fenghuang'er turned.

Far in the distance, within a dark, profound void, divine lights streaked from all directions; a single glance was enough for her to recognize Xuan Daozi's Zi Yun Nian.

And the crimson dragon-boat facing it.

The dragon-boat loomed majestic and sacred, like a living true dragon; atop its dragon head stood a dashing young man clad in crimson dragon armor, spear in hand—Ying Xuanlong, the Daozi of the Crimson Dragon Line of the Poison Dragon Academy!

The two had clearly clashed before, but now they suddenly ceased, standing in tense standoff—not only because they'd spotted the Blood Phoenix, but also because of a massive, leaping golden toad.

The golden toad glowed brilliant gold, mountain-sized; with a single leap, it hurtled from afar like a falling meteor, stirring up clouds of dust.

On its back, a towering figure was faintly visible.

'Ying Xuanlong, Huan Yitong… arrived so fast!'

Fenghuang'er glanced at Xuan Daozi once, then fixed her gaze on the golden toad and the great dragon-boat.

The Tian Li Jiao's influence was subtly greater than the Five Caverns of Tian Shi Yuan, but since it lay outside Tian Shi Yuan, no matter how vast its power, it remained distant.

What she truly feared and valued were the others.

'Fenghuang'er, Ying Xuanlong, Huan Yitong…'

On the Zi Yun Nian, Xuan Daozi, draped in black robes, wore a grim expression; he'd raced here, burning hundreds of millions of yuan coins, yet still arrived a step too late.

'Crimson Dragon Treasure Boat, Great Dream Golden Toad, Wan Feng Jian…'

Scanning his upcoming opponents, Xuan Daozi felt his eyelids twitch violently, teeth grinding:

'All near-Dao treasures.'

He hadn't anticipated having to compete with these heirs for entry into the Wei Tian Gu Zong; besides the guardian sent by his sect, he'd brought nothing.

'Thankfully, I still have…'

His eyes flicked to the bronze bell held by Yu Cang; his expression eased slightly.

Sensing Xuan Daozi's gaze, Yu Long forced a smile, gritting his teeth:

'Fire Phoenix Clan, Poison Dragon Academy, Xuan Chan Academy… this cursed beast has ruined me!'

'Oh no, oh no!'

Sensing the identities of the other factions, Yu Cang already considered retreating; Xuan Daozi merely shot him a cold glance, then turned toward the Blood Phoenix.

If he had a choice, he truly didn't want to fight these local dragons and snakes—but this concerned the Wei Tian Gu Dao Zong; how could he give it up?

'Damn Guan Di Ge for selling false intel—where the hell was that ritual on that damn parchment…'

Thinking of that parchment, his heart twisted in pain.

For that parchment, he lost a hundred-year-trained cadre of Dao soldiers, wasted hundreds of millions of yuan coins, and only summoned a ghostly flame that cracked one corner of his Zi Yun Nian and left his guardian severely wounded to this day.

'Damn Guan Di Ge!'

…

…

Hum~

The Fu Mo Secret Realm continued to violently tremble; waves of terrifying energy nearly pierced through the realm, and even through the Fu Mo Long Shen Dao, Li Yuan felt his heart pound.

Within the Youjing, the Blood Phoenix had ceased its cry, yet invisible spiritual forces still clashed violently.

'Won't Dong Er Shi San act yet?'

Focusing his spiritual sense on the apocalyptic Youjing, Li Yuan grew anxious; with the Blood Phoenix outside, even with the Ba Fang Ling in hand, he dared not teleport into Ba Fang Miao.

To enter Ba Fang Miao, one must first enter the Youjing.

'Dong Er Shi San is essentially a quasi-16th-rank spirit puppet, with Ba Fang Miao as its base—can't it suppress this Blood Phoenix?'

'Or is Dong Er Shi San holding back?'

After a long while, Li Yuan suppressed his thoughts, released his trembling Fu Mo Long Shen Dao, opened his eyes—and saw a dazzling glow of Xuan Bing.

The sun dipped westward, nearing dusk; within the ruined imperial city, the true heirs and elders of various Dao sects labored, excavating the buried imperial treasures.

On the only level plaza, over a dozen broken Yun Xiang Ding were arranged, alongside gold, silver, jade artifacts, scriptures, elixirs, divine weapons, and armor.

In half a day, with the aid of several Dao sects, Pan Wenlong had already subdued the entire imperial capital.

Huh~

A streak of light shot through the sky and landed before the side hall; before Pang Wenlong even arrived, the glow of his xuan weapon filled Li Yuan's vision.

【Two-Color Azure Dragon Armor (Eleventh Rank)】

【Three-Element One-Qi Stake (Eleventh Rank)】

【Great Wilderness Sea-Planking Purple Gold Spear (Eleventh Rank)】

【Great Sun Golden Scale Bell (Eleventh Rank)】

【Great Sun Celestial Mirror (Tenth Rank)】

……

Four complete heavenly destiny xuan weapons, plus several incomplete Great Sun Celestial Mirrors!

"The xuan weapons are all gathered!"

Li Yuan's spirit surged.

At this moment, the Weapon Master Scroll held seven heavenly destiny xuan weapons—including the Rainbow One-Qi Sword, Mystic Whale Hammer, Nourishing Life Furnace, and Sky-Dodging Vessel—plus these four before him, and the Demonic Dragon God Blade in his hand; twelve heavenly destiny xuan weapons were now complete!

Li Yuan stepped forward and bowed deeply.

"Senior Pang."

"I've sent people to gather incense offerings; others have been dispatched to retrieve the incense hidden by the heretical sect's wandering spirits." Pang Wenlong looked weary, wasted no time, and immediately extended his hand to pass over the four xuan weapons and the Great Sun Celestial Mirrors:

"When the Youjing changed, these four xuan weapons also went berserk—but we suppressed them."

"What of the Negative Hall Spirit Turtle and the Crimson Chain?"

Li Yuan took the weapons, his emotions churning—complex, yet more subdued than excited.

In the past, he had expended countless energies to obtain the Split-Sea Mystic Whale Hammer; yet now that all twelve xuan weapons were gathered, he felt no surge of triumph as he'd imagined.

The sudden arrival of the Blood Phoenix had weighed heavily upon him.

"I've sent people to bring them to the front hall."

Pang Wenlong pulled from his sleeve a palm-sized incense vessel—he had forcibly extracted it from the heretical sect's wandering spirits.

"Xuan weapons are easy to find; incense is hard to come by. To fuse all xuan weapons into the Sky-Dodging Vessel, the incense we have is far from enough."

Heavenly destiny xuan weapons were exceedingly precious; now, in the ruins of the imperial city, every Daoist Elder and True Disciple nearby turned their gaze, eyes filled with curiosity and envy.

But Pang Wenlong had handled most of these xuan weapons a thousand years ago; what he now pondered was still their unification.

"One more fused is one more gained."

Li Yuan sighed.

As the holder of the Weapon Master Scroll, his understanding of xuan weapons far surpassed Pang Wenlong's; he knew clearly that only when all twelve xuan weapons merged could the vessel ascend to a Dao Treasure—but the difficulty was obvious.

Ooo~

Li Yuan reached into his robe and withdrew the Sky-Dodging Vessel from the Weapon Master Space; with a light shake, the fist-sized vessel expanded into palace-sized proportions, hovering above the ruins.

Ooo~

In the central chamber of the Sky-Dodging Vessel's eighteen levels, a bronze furnace, over a zhang tall, burned fiercely.

Following Pang Wenlong's guidance, Li Yuan tossed the Great Sun Celestial Mirrors into the furnace; a resonant hum rang out, and the already blazing flames flared even brighter.

This divine weapon, forged a thousand years ago by the entire nation's might, slowly fused and unified within the roaring incense.

Li Yuan felt the divine patterns within the Sky-Dodging Vessel shifting, vibrating, until they finally calmed.

【Great Sun Celestial Mirror (Tenth Rank)】

【……】

【Control Condition: Ninth Level of the Worshiping God Rite, Great Sun Form】

【Control Effect: Eleventh Rank (Xuan): Great Sun God-Slaying】

【Tenth Rank (Purple): Pure Yang Body, Worshiping God Rite Tenth Level】

【Utterly Yang, Great Sun God-Slaying, containing the original Great Sun True Form Diagram (I, II, III) created by Long Mo Dao Ren and preliminarily refined by Pang Wenlong】

……

Though the fused Great Sun Celestial Mirror was no longer a xuan weapon, it had become a quasi-xuan weapon; all its control effects had upgraded, and it now contained Pang Wenlong's lifetime of knowledge.

"The Great Sun True Form Diagram created by Long Mo Dao Ren?"

Li Yuan pondered, then focused his perception.

No additional incense had been added, yet the furnace's temperature had surged tenfold; without his true qi shielding his body, his robes and armor would have burned to ash.

"Still not up to the level of a heavenly destiny xuan weapon."

Pang Wenlong shook his head slightly, yet showed no disappointment; after a brief sensing, his brow relaxed: "Though it hasn't crossed into xuan weapon territory, its heat has multiplied several times—perhaps it will save some incense."

"Even so, the incense deficit remains vast."

Li Yuan reached out and touched the furnace. As master of the Sky-Dodging Vessel, he faintly sensed the elusive "proto-dimension" within the flames, and the Heavenly Fire Three-Flame Seal already fused within it—capable of merging or separating at his will.

"Fusing the second xuan weapon requires double the incense of the first…"

Li Yuan frowned.

It wasn't the doubling that worried him—it was the fear that each subsequent fusion would double again.

"Could there be other secrets to fusing xuan weapons?"

Pang Wenlong caught the implication in his tone and also frowned: "If only we could consult Dong Ershisan…"

"Even if he knew, he wouldn't teach me."

As he spoke, Li Yuan tossed another incense vessel into the furnace; incense surged into the bronze pot, the flames roiling and boiling as he hurled the Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Furnace inside.

Fusing xuan weapons did not interrupt control; the order didn't matter—but Li Yuan instinctively placed offensive and defensive weapons last.

Om~

The Sky-Dodging Vessel shuddered violently; intricate divine patterns erupted, alive and writhing, covering the entire furnace; within, flames roared and heat waves surged.

"Heavenly Fire Three-Flame!"

Having experienced this once before, Li Yuan remained calm; he focused and activated the Sky-Dodging Vessel, summoning the Heavenly Fire Three-Flame Seal, using the flames as a medium to draw the Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Furnace into the proto-dimension within the furnace.

Om om om~

The bronze furnace trembled violently; the entire Sky-Dodging Vessel shook with it.

After a long while, Li Yuan slowly opened his eyes; he had successfully fused the Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Furnace, sharing the same origin, into the Sky-Dodging Vessel.

In his perception, the proto-dimension deep within the furnace pulsed gently, expanding and contracting visibly, like a beating heart.

"The incense needed for fusion doubled again?!"

Before even checking the fused Sky-Dodging Vessel, Li Yuan sensed the incense required for the next fusion; he calculated briefly, and his brow tightened:

"All the incense I carry is barely enough for one more fusion; even with the imperial court's and the heretical sect's incense, I might manage two or three more at most…"

Om~

Li Yuan released his grip.

Waves of dark xuan light spread outward from the furnace, engulfing the entire eighteen-level Sky-Dodging Vessel in an instant.

"What is this?"

Pang Wenlong's gaze sharpened; he opened his Great Sun Divine Eye.

Where the dark xuan light passed, dense, intricate divine patterns flowed and surged, colliding and merging around the furnace.

Finally, as the furnace's flames surged again, the flowing patterns wove into a net and sank back into the vessel.

"These patterns are interweaving—no, more like they're being restructured…"

Pang Wenlong stared intently, committing every detail to memory; after a moment, he stilled his thoughts—only to find Li Yuan still standing, hand touching the furnace, frozen in place.

"Little Li?"

"The fusion went smoothly."

Li Yuan snapped back to awareness, seeing Pang's worried expression, replied: "Fusing three xuan weapons seems to have touched some barrier—this Sky-Dodging Vessel…

has ascended?"

Not "seems"!

Li Yuan's voice hesitated, but his conviction was absolute.

Without doubt—the Sky-Dodging Vessel, now fused with two xuan weapons, was radiating before his eyes a deep, heavy xuan-black glow.

【Sky-Dodging Vessel (Twelfth Rank)】

Though still labeled twelfth rank, the Sky-Dodging Vessel had undergone a transformation beyond recognition in Li Yuan's eyes.

【……Built upon the Split-Sea Star Core, fused with the Three-Flame Star Essence, and shaped by the celestial beast Dragon-Tiger—a supreme spiritual treasure, tainted with the aura of a Dao Treasure, thus possessing latent potential to ascend to Dao Treasure status!】

A spiritual treasure—not a xuan weapon!

Li Yuan's eyes gleamed brightly; the vessel's evolution from weapon to treasure was astonishing.

Had he obtained this before the Tongshi Ball, he might not have understood this change—but since acquiring the Tongshi Ball, his knowledge had expanded immensely.

In the Tian Shi Yuan, divine weapons and magic treasures were fundamentally different.

The reason lay in the divine patterns.

Divine weapons often contained one or more divine patterns; among the higher-grade ones, like the Split-Sea Mystic Whale Hammer and Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Furnace, even incomplete pattern combinations existed.

But magic treasures were different: regardless of material, they contained at least one complete divine pattern combination.

In the Tian Shi Yuan, this was called a Divine Prohibition!

【Control Condition One: None】 (The xuan weapon spirit has already recognized its master)

【Control Earthly Demon Prohibition】

【Control Condition Two: Thirty-Six Superior Magic Powers】

【Control Heavenly Gang Prohibition】

【Can accommodate Five Earthly Spirits Prohibitions, Four Heavenly Spirits Prohibitions】

【Current Prohibitions Contained:】

【Earthly Spirits: Teleportation, Void Storage, Three Pure Fire Essence, Star Dragon-Tiger, Nourishment.】

【Heavenly Spirits: Passage to the Hidden, Vanishing into Emptiness, Dragon-Tiger Convergence, Flame Spirit.】

【Nine Layers of Magical Prohibitions have been consecrated; upper limit: one hundred and eight layers.】

【Consecrated and nurtured with potent magic power until all inner prohibitions of the magic treasure coalesce into one unified layer—this is one layer of vessel prohibition. Repeat this process nine times to achieve nine layers of vessel prohibition.】

"Earthly Spirits, Heavenly Spirits, Prohibitions, Vessel Prohibitions…"

Li Yuan's spirit trembled slightly; some of these he had gathered through the Common Knowledge Sphere, but others remained obscure, filling him with an urgent desire to study and understand them immediately.

Yet he steadied his mind, met with Pang Wenlong at the front hall, and only after the latter departed to make arrangements did he sit cross-legged, silently perceiving the transformed Dun Tian Boat.

【Teleportation: Spatial teleportation—ranging from a hundred li, to a thousand li, to ten thousand li… determined by the amount of magic power applied and the layer of vessel prohibition.】

【Void Storage: Store objects within empty space…】

【Three Pure Fire Essence: Extracted from the fire of heaven, stone, and stars; can smelt all heavenly materials and earthly treasures…】

【Star Dragon-Tiger: A class of celestial beasts from beyond the stars; magic power can be channeled to unleash their destructive power…】

【Nourishment: Through Three Pure Fire Essence and Dragon-Tiger… magic power can be used to warm and nurture oneself, refining flaws and deficiencies, compensating for foundational shortcomings.】

…

The various texts flowed before him like a waterfall.

Li Yuan immersed himself, experiencing the myriad wonders of the transformed Dun Tian Boat—the five Earthly Spirits and four Heavenly Spirits, nine modes of control, all vivid and clear.

Though at first glance they seemed no different from his previous controls, they were vastly more intuitive, and now he understood precisely how to enhance each mode of control.

"Magic power. Vessel prohibition."

After a long while, Li Yuan exhaled deeply, having memorized all the wonders, yet his mind remained highly agitated—the transformed Dun Tian Boat had shown him a deeper, vaster realm of heaven and earth.

"What is born from the principles of Dao manifests as wondrous scenes—these are Spirit Patterns. When Spirit Patterns combine to form prohibitions and become treasures, they become magic treasures!"

Li Yuan organized his insights, cross-referencing them with the information from the Common Knowledge Sphere; many things he had previously failed to understand now gained new clarity and comprehension.

Not only magic treasures and Spirit Prohibitions—but also Dao Entry, True Form Diagrams, the Unity Realm, and magic power!

"Dao Entry cultivation requires harvesting wondrous scenes and absorbing Spirit Patterns. Before, I did not understand—now I see…"

Inside the cabin, Li Yuan paced back and forth, his spirit brimming with excitement; the elevation of his cultivation understanding left him unable to calm down, and looking back, he realized his prior grasp of Dao Entry and Unity had been far too shallow.

"Spirit Patterns are hidden within wondrous scenes, hence the need to harvest them. Spirit Patterns are divided into Earthly and Heavenly Spirits, hence Dao Entry is likewise divided into Earthly and Heavenly Spirits—this means, at least one Earthly Spirit Prohibition and one Heavenly Spirit Prohibition must be acquired as the foundation for entering Unity!"

"By emulating the True Form Diagram to combine Spirit Patterns into prohibitions, using the Three Treasures—essence, qi, and spirit—as catalysts, and uniting the wonders of Earthly and Heavenly Spirit Patterns, true qi can transform into…"

"Magic power!"

(End of Chapter)