"What grade is this artifact? I can't even tell."
Whether it's a magical implement, a spiritual weapon, or even a higher-tier treasure artifact, their rank becomes apparent once they're activated.
For example, when a spiritual weapon is used, a layer of spiritual light will become visible on its surface. The brighter the glow, the higher the rank, and the greater its spiritual intelligence.
In comparison, magical implements are nothing more than cold, lifeless tools without any spiritual awareness.
Treasure artifacts are a tier above spiritual weapons, and their uniqueness is even more evident when activated because they house a spirit of their own, possessing sentience.
However, the Taiji Diagram in Feng Wuming's hands was strange. When activated, it emitted a bright spiritual light, yet Song Changsheng could not sense the spiritual aura that should accompany it.
For the moment, it was difficult to determine its true grade.
Still, the fact that it had so easily blocked his minor divine power, Mountain-Flipping Seal, meant that in terms of defense alone, it was likely even stronger than his top-grade spiritual weapon, Lu Wu Bell.
This was bad news for Song Changsheng. If even a minor divine power couldn't break through its defense, ordinary attacks would be completely ineffective.
"Do I have to use talismans or activate the Wuchang Slaughter Formation?" Song Changsheng's eyes narrowed. He was furious, but he hadn't lost his composure.
Those two methods were among his most powerful trump cards and had to be used with the utmost caution.
"Song Changsheng," Feng Wuming said coldly, "I take back what I said before. You're not a genius, you're a monster. To have mastered a minor divine power with only mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation, you're likely the first in all of the Great Qi cultivation world."
"But precisely because of that… I absolutely cannot let you live to become a future threat."
"Die!"
As the words fell, Feng Wuming formed a series of seals with his hands. A mysterious symbol appeared behind him, releasing a terrifying pressure that surged toward Song Changsheng.
Though it looked impressive, to Song Changsheng it was nothing but showmanship. With a casual swipe of his Measuring Heaven Ruler through the air, the symbol was split in two and dissolved into specks of light.
Truthfully, while Feng Wuming was an expert at using gu insects, his combat skills and spell mastery were a complete mess. Despite reaching late-stage Foundation Establishment, he couldn't fully utilize its power.
Add to that the fact that he had seized Ling Duanhe's body, only one life-bound gu insect remained on him, and he lacked proper magical tools; his combat power had taken a massive hit.
Even though Song Changsheng was just floating in mid-air, Feng Wuming couldn't break through the defense of Lu Wu Bell. Likewise, unless Song used one of his two remaining trump cards, he couldn't yet breach the defense of the Taiji Diagram either.
"A treasure like this must consume a massive amount of spiritual energy. Let's see what happens when you run out!"
With his mind made up, Song Changsheng's arms trembled as vast amounts of water-element spiritual energy surged around him. Countless water arrows formed in the air, densely packed like a torrential rainstorm, and rained down on Feng Wuming.
He didn't choose to engage in close combat; he wasn't sure whether that Taiji Diagram had offensive capabilities.
The artifact was simply too strange, and Song had no choice but to remain cautious. After all, better safe than sorry.
What he didn't know, however, was that Feng Wuming hadn't refined the artifact at all. The time he had was far too short, and after trying to bind it, he'd discovered in frustration that he couldn't even imprint his soul onto it.
He could only use it at a very basic level, like someone wielding a fully loaded rifle as a blunt club, unable to tap into its true power.
Still, to his surprise, even with such crude usage, the artifact's defense was overwhelming enough to keep him in an invincible position!
Seeing the sky filled with water arrows rushing toward him, Feng Wuming immediately unfurled the Taiji Diagram in front of himself. Every single water arrow was blocked; none of them even caused a ripple.
But before he could breathe a sigh of relief, Song Changsheng's next wave of attacks had already begun.
Feng's eyes narrowed. Song's hands were still forming seals at high speed, and his mouth was chanting incantations with astonishing speed. One spell after another came crashing down like a tidal wave.
Heaven Flame Art, Water Dragon Spell, Fire Rain Technique, Yin-Yang Slash… A relentless barrage of techniques overwhelmed the battlefield, enough to make anyone's scalp go numb.
As Feng Wuming withstood the barrage, a hint of fear crept into his heart. "What kind of monster is this…? How can he cast spells this fast?"
Feeling the rapid drain of spiritual energy within himself, Feng Wuming knew he couldn't just sit and wait to die; he had to either kill Song Changsheng or find a way to escape.
Escape? That was already off the table. He'd tried it once before and was quickly caught. Even though his cultivation had advanced, it hadn't brought a significant speed increase.
And with the depth of hatred Song Changsheng now held for him, there was no chance he would be spared.
So there was only one option left: kill Song Changsheng.
With that in mind, Feng Wuming gritted his teeth and secretly released a blood-colored worm.
This was the last gu insect he had left his life-bound soul gu, directly connected to his spiritual sea.
Back when he self-destructed his physical body, it was through this gu that he transferred his soul, pulling off the ruse of "shedding the cicada's shell."
The insect didn't have much offensive power, but it had one key trait: complete concealment.
It could hide not only from divine sense but even from the naked eye. Its stealth was unmatched. When he first took over Ling Duanhe's body, it was only because of the Taiji Diagram revealing his presence that Ling Duanhe discovered him. Otherwise, it would've been impossible.
He now intended to use this very trait of the soul gu to silently invade Song Changsheng's sea of consciousness. Even if it couldn't kill him outright, it could at least force him to make a mistake.
But this was a dangerous gamble. If the soul gu died, he would lose a crucial trump card for survival in the future.
Still, to kill Song Changsheng, he was willing to risk it all.
Unfortunately, while the plan was sound, reality proved cruel.
The soul gu might be invisible to the naked eye, but Song Changsheng's eyes were anything but ordinary. They combined the powers of the Eye of True Sight and the Insight Technique, a fusion of two ocular arts. Anything infused with spiritual energy, whether object or being, was completely exposed once it entered his field of vision.
Yet, Song Changsheng didn't immediately strike it down. Instead, he realized this might be the perfect opportunity to break the stalemate, though it came with some risk.
As the gu worm approached, he deliberately left a small opening in his defenses.
Feng Wuming took the bait. He immediately commanded the soul gu to pierce through Song's protective spiritual aura. In a flash, it tore a tiny hole in Song's blue robe.
Its mouthparts were bizarre; even the tier-two lower-grade spiritual artifact Golden Thread Robe that Song wore next to his skin couldn't block it. The gu worm burrowed straight through his flesh and into his body.
Song Changsheng let out a muffled grunt. He could feel something swiftly wriggling through his body toward his head.
He immediately began circulating his spiritual power, attempting to force it out.
"Hahaha! Song Changsheng died!!"
Seeing the soul gu successfully infiltrate, Feng Wuming was overjoyed and charged straight at Song Changsheng.
Victory or defeat, this was the moment!
He was close now.
Only a foot away, his ghostly glowing hands were almost upon Song Changsheng's chest, ready to disembowel him.
But then, the panicked expression on Song Changsheng's face suddenly twisted into a strange, chilling smile. He popped something into his mouth.
A wave of ominous foreboding swept over Feng Wuming.
Buzzzzz…
In that instant, a low hum rang out from within Song Changsheng's body, and a faint light began to radiate from his skin.
"Wuchang Slaughter Formation activate!"
A wave of gray sword energy burst from Song Changsheng, its terrifying aura enough to make one's soul tremble.
At such close range, Feng Wuming had no time to activate the Taiji Diagram. He could only fall back on the same trick again, transferring his soul into the soul gu.
In the very next second, his physical body was shredded by the sword energy into nothing. Even the wooden tower behind him was split in half.
"What… what the hell is that thing…?!"
Just as his soul entered the gu worm now inside Song Changsheng's body, Feng Wuming's voice shrieked with panic.
But Song Changsheng had no mind to answer.
That one strike had drained every last drop of spiritual energy from his body. He couldn't even maintain swordflight and fell from mid-air.
Thankfully, his physical body was strong; otherwise, the fall would have turned him into a splattered corpse.
"Your spiritual energy is depleted, hahaha! So that's it… That's it! In that case, I'll just accept this body as a gift."
Though he had just been scared witless, Feng Wuming now grew excited, writhing desperately toward Song Changsheng's sea of consciousness. He desperately needed a powerful new body.
The moment he thought about Song Changsheng's monstrous potential, his soul practically trembled with anticipation.
"You're the one who's going to die!"
As soon as those words fell, Feng Wuming felt the surrounding flesh tighten and squeeze in on him. The overwhelming force left him utterly powerless.
"No!"
In a split second, the soul gu was crushed to death, squeezed apart by the sheer physical power of Song Changsheng's body.
Thanks to years of cultivating the Five Beast Body-Tempering Art, Song Changsheng's physique had grown strong enough to directly challenge spiritual weapons. Against him, the fragile gu worm didn't stand a chance; he only needed to move slightly to destroy it completely.
Sensing that Feng Wuming's presence had completely vanished, Song Changsheng finally let out a long breath. He lay motionless on the blood-soaked ground, quietly waiting for his spiritual energy to recover.
Before activating the array, he had slipped a Return Essence Pill into his mouth. It had now broken apart, releasing its sweet medicinal essence into his limbs and bones. Before long, it would convert into usable spiritual power.
Just then, the sound of approaching footsteps startled him.
There's someone else here?
"Senior Song? Are you alright? Senior Song?"
It was Wu Yan's voice.
But that didn't ease Song Changsheng's wariness. In his current state, even if Wu Yan didn't get close, he could easily finish him off. Fortunately, he had taken the Return Essence Pill in time and recovered a trace of spiritual energy enough to avoid being completely helpless.
"Wu Yan. Why haven't you left yet?" Song Changsheng's voice was calm and unreadable.
"I… I just wanted to see who was trying to kill me. I didn't mean to eavesdrop on your battle, Senior," Wu Yan said hurriedly, waving his hands.
"No matter. I don't blame you." Song Changsheng's gaze stayed fixed on him, not relaxing in the slightest. "I'm a bit worn out. Help me up."
"As you command."
Wu Yan quickly stepped forward and placed Song Changsheng's right arm over his shoulder, helping him up.
"Senior Song, let me help you over to sit down."
"Much appreciated," Song Changsheng nodded calmly. At such a close distance, he could easily crush Wu Yan's skull if he wanted to.
Wu Yan showed no unusual emotions, simply supporting Song Changsheng as they walked toward a nearby boulder.
Just then, Song Changsheng suddenly said, "I'm extremely weak right now. If you chose to kill me, the benefits you'd gain would exceed your imagination."
The words made Wu Yan shudder in fright. He immediately replied, "Senior, you saved more than a dozen of my brothers' lives. I'm still looking for a way to repay your kindness. How could I possibly have such vile thoughts?"
Song Changsheng quietly stared into his eyes. Just when Wu Yan started to feel uneasy under the gaze, Song Changsheng suddenly broke into a smile. "Just kidding. No need to be so tense."
With the help of the Return Essence Pill, Song Changsheng finally regained a bit of spiritual power. He took out the Black Jade Lotus Platform from his storage pouch and sat on it to meditate and recover. Before long, he had stabilized his condition.
Opening his eyes, he exhaled a long breath of turbid air, then looked at Wu Yan, who had been standing respectfully by his side the whole time.
"Let's go take a look."
Just as he stood up, something seemed to cross his mind. He suddenly drew a sharp line across his chest, tearing open a bloody gash.
Then, under Wu Yan's shocked gaze, he reached into the wound and dug out a crushed worm-like creature, tossing it to the ground. The entire process was done without so much as a furrow in his brow.
But that wasn't the end of it. The wound on his chest began to squirm and visibly heal at a speed noticeable to the naked eye. In moments, it had already scabbed over.
"What an astonishing healing ability…"
Wu Yan was nearly dumbfounded. This Senior Song seemed even more formidable than the rumors said.
In the blink of an eye, Song Changsheng had already walked away. Wu Yan hurried to catch up, just in time to see him bending down to pick up a scroll from the ground.
He knew that was the Indestructible Taiji Diagram; even from afar during the battle, he had long been envious of it.
But envy was all he dared to feel. A treasure of this caliber was far beyond his reach, and he had always been very clear on that.
Song Changsheng unrolled the Taiji Diagram. Its surface immediately emitted a soft spiritual glow.
Yet no matter how hard he probed, he couldn't sense any spiritual aura from it, nor determine its exact grade.
Moreover, the material the diagram was made of was completely unfamiliar to him, making him all the more curious about its origins. Still, this was not the time to investigate further.
After storing the Taiji Diagram in his pouch, Song Changsheng looked toward the gorge that resembled a ghostly abyss. His heart felt unbearably heavy.
"Such demonic cultists truly deserve extermination by all."
This was his first time witnessing evil cultivators massacring ordinary people. But he knew in his heart it definitely wouldn't be the last.
"Wu Yan, do me a favor."
"Just say the word, Senior," Wu Yan replied respectfully, already having a faint idea of what Song Changsheng intended to do.
"Help me gather these bodies… let them be laid to rest."
"It shall be done."
As he looked at the somewhat lonely figure before him, Wu Yan suddenly felt a stirring in his heart.
He said nothing, simply bowed silently, then began collecting the corpses.
In the now-silent gorge, the only remaining sounds were the two of them using spells to move the bodies.
Seventy to eighty thousand corpses, even for cultivators like them, it was a massive task that would take a great deal of time.
After over an hour of labor, they had managed to gather barely half of them.
Just then, an extremely faint cry suddenly echoed through the stillness of the gorge, immediately catching Song Changsheng's attention…
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