Chapter 841
Soul-Locking Copper Coffin, [Gui Water Pearl]
"To refine the [Shangqing Body Shaping Pill] and the [Tianqing Jade Marrow Pill], we need at least a fourth-tier top-grade alchemy master. At that time, we will have to ask the Myriad Manifestations Palace for help."
To create a physical body from scratch, besides a large number of prerequisites, the most important thing is the [Shangqing Body Shaping Pill], whose medicinal effects far exceed those of the [Hundred Treasures Body Shaping Pill] that Xu Yunhe used before.
At that time, I'll inevitably have to use Song Changsheng's name to do him a favor.
He wouldn't want to waste this precious relationship unless he had no other choice.
However, since Su Ding's death, the cultivation world of the Great Qi Dynasty and even the surrounding cultivation worlds have been unable to find a second fourth-level top-grade alchemist. The other cultivation worlds are also struggling to find a way to do so, and can only rely on the Myriad Manifestations Palace.
However, it was all worth it. After his divine soul avatar reshaped his physical body, his cultivation became twice as effective. With the [Heavenly Pure Jade Marrow Pill] as a supplement, and with the power and experience of his "original self" as support, breaking through to the Golden Core stage was only a matter of time.
At that time, Song Changsheng will no longer need to take action personally. His divine soul avatar can perfectly replace him and can even play a surprise role at certain times.
Needless to say, Wu Jie, although he is now a spirit of a weapon, was a Golden Core cultivator in his previous life and a top-grade fourth-level alchemist.
Although his cultivation level cannot be quickly restored, his alchemy skills and experience are still there. With just a little assistance, he can soon start refining fourth-order pills again.
A true Golden Core clan needs not only a sufficient number of powerful figures to govern it, but also a solid and profound foundation, among which the various arts of cultivation play a major role.
Among the myriad arts of cultivation, alchemy, talismans, arrays, and artifacts are the most outstanding. Only those who possess all four can be considered a powerful clan, and they will not need to depend on others in ordinary times.
With Song Changsheng cultivating both array formations and artifacts, and Wu Jie further supplementing his weakness in alchemy, which was the most resource-intensive area, the foundation of the Song clan was basically formed. This was the foundation of a strong clan, and it was better to act quickly than slowly.
"You have made great contributions to the Myriad Manifestations Palace this time. According to what you said, none of the True Lords are ungrateful people, so they should be able to meet this request," Zhuang Yuechan said softly.
Song Changsheng nodded slightly, without saying a word, but held Zhuang Yuechan tightly, unwilling to let go.
Just as the two were enjoying this rare moment of peace and quiet, a deafening roar, like a mountain collapsing, was clearly heard through the barrier set up outside the inn.
"What's that sound?" Song Changsheng frowned slightly. Although the Chaotic Ancient Domain was a disorderly place sandwiched between three cultivation worlds, because there was a Golden Core cultivator in charge of this city, most petty thieves behaved themselves and dared not make any offense.
Therefore, the roar seemed very abrupt.
"It seems that the city has not been affected." Zhuang Yuechan got up from Song Changsheng's arms and walked to the window. Under the night sky, the entire city appeared exceptionally quiet.
"Tuk Tuk Tuk"
A series of knocks sounded on the door.
Song Changsheng scanned the area with his divine sense and discovered it was a waiter from the inn.
"What's the matter?"
The servant respectfully replied, "Reporting to senior, there have been unusual noises outside the city recently. The city lord said it was an earthquake, a normal phenomenon that would not affect the city and would stop in the latter half of the night. Please rest assured, senior."
"Well, back off."
After dealing with the innkeeper, Song Changsheng couldn't help but chuckle and said, "Earthquake? You dare to spout such nonsense? If it were a real earthquake, how could it only happen at night?"
Zhuang Yuechan smiled faintly and said, "The truth is not important. As long as there is a reason and the people of the city are willing to believe it, that's enough."
"Shall we go and find out what's going on?"
Song Changsheng laughed heartily: "You understand me best, my lady. The night is long, so let's go and investigate to see who is playing tricks."
After the two reached an agreement, he took Zhuang Yuechan and merged into the space, leaving the inn silently and sneaking out of the city. The city's defense array was useless in front of Song Changsheng, not even causing a ripple.
"Boom..."
Sounds occasionally drifted from the mountains outside the city. The two followed the sound, and Song Changsheng's vast divine sense surged forth, taking in everything around him.
"It seems that we are not the only two who share the same curiosity."
With just a quick glance, he detected the presence of several cultivators, most of whom were Grand Masters of the Purple Mansion realm, with a few Foundation Establishment cultivators mixed in.
Because they shared the same goal, the group gradually discovered the presence of others. They were still in the exploration phase, and since there were no interests involved, there were no conflicts, so things were relatively harmonious for the time being. They even had the intention to explore together. However, the few Foundation Establishment cultivators did not have the courage to continue.
There are no rules in the Chaotic Ancient Domain. If these few minor cultivators continue, they will either be killed to silence them or become cannon fodder at crucial moments.
Leaving now might save my life.
"A few brats, let them go." A tall, sinister old man said coldly.
"Fellow Daoists, who would like to go first?"
"Hey, you're already playing tricks before you've even seen the treasure. If you ask me, let's have a competition right now. Whoever crawls out of the pile of dead bodies goes to find the treasure."
"Old ghost Songshan, do you really think we're afraid of you?"
"Alright, are you here to find treasure or just to waste time arguing? Time waits for no one."
A cold voice rang out, and everyone immediately fell silent, beginning to follow the sound into the mountains.
“We’re following behind them, and something’s not right.” Song Changsheng narrowed his eyes; he sensed a dangerous atmosphere.
They followed closely behind Songshan Laogui and his group, at arm's length, yet no one noticed them; they were simply watching their surroundings with wary eyes.
These people were clearly well-known in the area. Although it was an unexpected encounter, they got along fairly well, and their conversations could be heard from time to time.
Soon, the conversation between two people in the group caught Song Changsheng's attention.
"Fellow Daoist Li, it's said that cultivators have been frequently disappearing in this area recently. Do you think there's any connection between the two?"
"A rare treasure is truly captivating. Who can say for sure what's going on? The fact that the sound is still there means the item hasn't been taken yet. For you and me, isn't that enough?"
"Do you really believe there are rare treasures here? That city lord was the first to come and investigate. If there were really treasures, would they still be here now?"
"Since Fellow Daoist Li doesn't believe it, why bother getting involved in this mess?" "Hehe." A glint flashed in the eyes of the cultivator surnamed Li, but he said nothing more, his thoughts unknown.
Their conversation ended there, which piqued the curiosity of Song Changsheng and his wife, who were following behind them.
In Song Changsheng's view, this place was full of suspicious points, and one wrong move could cost him his life. The best course of action was to get away from this place, but these people were lining up to jump into the fire pit, which was really puzzling.
"arrive."
A cold voice rang out, and in front of them lay a large pile of mud and rocks mixed with grass and trees. It looked like a collapsed mountain peak, or more accurately, two unrelated mountains that had collided due to some mysterious force.
It was obvious that the loud noise came from here.
Each loud noise caused the ground beneath their feet to tremble violently; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a tectonic earthquake.
But as long as you have the desire to seek the truth, you'll know that this argument is completely untenable.
"What do we do now?" Old Ghost Songshan asked, looking around at everyone.
"Dig a hole and go in to find out what's going on," the tall old man who had spoken earlier replied coldly.
Just as they were about to make their move, Song Changsheng, who was following behind them, keenly sensed a dangerous aura and subtly pulled Zhuang Yuechan back a little by the hand.
The next moment, an incredibly swift black shadow appeared like a ghost in the pitch-black night. Before anyone could react, a withered arm pierced through the chest of a cultivator in the early stage of the Purple Mansion realm, crushing his pounding heart.
His body then shriveled up at a visible speed, as if dehydrated, and collapsed to the ground as a dried-up corpse.
A dignified cultivator of the Purple Mansion realm ended his life without even uttering a scream.
All of this happened in the blink of an eye; apart from Song Changsheng and his wife, almost no one else had time to react.
But their opponents didn't give them time to react. They appeared as swiftly as ghosts, taking the lives of several people in just a few breaths.
They were all cultivators of the Purple Mansion realm, and most of them had made a name for themselves in the Chaotic Ancient Domain. However, in front of that dark figure, they were as fragile as chicks and were easily crushed to death.
"Golden Core... It's a Golden Core cultivator!" Old Ghost Songshan let out a sharp whistle, his face completely devoid of its previous composure, and his figure transformed into a cloud of black mist, fleeing rapidly into the distance.
A flash of eerie light appeared, and the old ghost of Songshan let out a shrill scream. His body, severed in two at the waist, plummeted from mid-air. The powerful vitality and extremely strong will to survive granted by his Purple Mansion cultivation enabled him to crawl with difficulty in the pool of blood.
The dark figure flicked its finger, sending out a beam of light that pierced through his skull, killing him instantly.
In less than half an incense stick's time, all seven Purple Mansion cultivators died, their deaths more tragic than the last.
Song Changsheng and his wife hid in the shadows, quietly watching everything. They were unmoved by the deaths of these people. The person who made the move was a late-stage Golden Core cultivator, which was why he was able to handle it so swiftly and decisively.
These people did not die unjustly.
At this moment, he finally understood why the city lord of the cultivator city had made such a childish conclusion.
That city lord probably knew some of the inside story, but he was only at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm. Although he was considered a powerful figure in the Chaotic Ancient Domain, he was no match for this person. It wasn't that he didn't want to get involved, but that he didn't have the ability to do so, so he could only turn a blind eye.
You can't reason with a damned devil. These people got their hands on rumors from who-knows-where and were blinded by greed. They deserve to die.
Of course, as long as Song Changsheng takes action, he can most likely save everyone except the first unlucky guy. However, doing so would expose his presence, which would be very detrimental to the subsequent operations.
The dark figure clearly hadn't noticed Song Changsheng's presence; he drained the life essence of these fallen cultivators at lightning speed.
Song Changsheng could see clearly that the essence blood was not absorbed by him, but rather entered a flat-mouthed gourd hidden under his sleeve.
With a flick of his sleeve, the dark figure vanished in a flash of light, and all the mummified corpses turned to dust and scattered in the wind.
Finally, he cautiously looked around, and his figure slowly dissipated.
"Where did he go?" Zhuang Yuechan was limited by her cultivation level and couldn't keep up with the other party's speed.
Song Changsheng gestured towards the large pile of mud and rocks and said, "They've gone down there, let's go up and take a look."
As soon as he finished speaking, he immediately used his earth-遁 (earth-遁 is a technique for escaping into the ground) to chase after them, going deep underground. Wisps of yin energy rose from the soil, causing him to frown.
As he delved deeper, the yin energy grew increasingly stronger. Combining this with the other party's actions, he had already formed a rough guess in his mind.
Finally, they broke through the soil and entered a not-so-spacious underground space, where extreme cold instantly enveloped them.
In the center of the underground space, an altar was erected, with eerie blue flames burning on all four sides. Although they were flames, they had no heat whatsoever.
Above the altar was a bronze coffin covered in rust, bound with meteorite iron chains thicker than an adult's arm. The vibrations they had heard earlier came from that bronze coffin, as if something was about to break free.
Above the coffin, a dark blue bead floated, containing abundant power of law, which rippled down and landed on the bronze coffin.
The dark figure who had previously committed the crime now stood with his back to them at the edge of the bronze coffin. He was dressed in a black robe, and in his withered hand he held a scarlet, flat-mouthed gourd, pouring the essence blood inside the gourd into a small hole in the bronze coffin.
"I was wondering why I'd been feeling uneasy. Turns out a little devil followed me in. Your concealment skills are quite good. If the yin energy here hadn't been disturbed, I really wouldn't have been able to find you." The black-robed cultivator said without turning his head, his voice like two rough pieces of tree bark rubbing together.
Seeing that they had been discovered, Song Changsheng stopped hiding and appeared with Zhuang Yuechan. He said in an icy tone, "A natural place of extreme yin, an ancient soul-locking bronze coffin, and the rare [Guiyin Pearl]. I wonder what kind of evil corpse is worth such a huge investment from you."
Meeting any one of the three conditions mentioned above is enough to cultivate a powerful "zombie," and meeting all three conditions simultaneously is simply unimaginable.
Seeing that Song Changsheng had revealed all his secrets, the man in black robes suddenly turned around, his white eyes fixed on him, and said in an icy tone, "You will never have the chance to know."
"That's not certain."
Song Changsheng summoned the [Sword of Startling Beauty] with a flick of his hand, shielding Zhuang Yuechan behind him...
...(End of chapter)