Chapter 424 - 421: Mismatched Opponent

Chapter 424: Chapter 421: Mismatched Opponent

Ghostly fires flickered and eerie cries echoed. A bleak fog hung in the air under dark, dreary clouds.

The Water Mansion had changed drastically from years past, now truly resembling a scene from the sinister Underworld.

’The Underworld Nether Coffin isn’t all-powerful. The monsters it resurrects still have to abide by the laws of this world. Emerging from the coffin at Core Formation Perfection is already the absolute limit. Trapped inside the Water Mansion with no way to replenish its strength, it’s impossible for it to have reached the Nascent Soul Realm directly.’

Both the notes left behind by the White Bone True Man and the generations of research from the Ghost Spirit Sect proved that the Underworld Nether Coffin lacked the ability to create a Nascent Soul Cultivator out of thin air.

At most, it could erase the Celestial Chasm to the Nascent Soul Realm, allowing for a smooth breakthrough as long as the conditions were met.

This much could be gleaned from the strength of Du Heng’s Outer Body Incarnation; even after using a Secret Technique to intercept the pure Demonic Qi of an Ancient Demon and forge a True Demon Holy Body, it still had to advance step-by-step from the Core Formation Realm.

Of course, it also depended on the strength of the Cultivator who lay inside the Underworld Nether Coffin.

If Bai Zichen himself were to lie in the coffin, have his Sea of Consciousness overwhelmed by a powerful Divine Thought, and become one of the Living Dead...

...with the formidable power of his Five Crystal Glaze Body, he would likely become the most terrifying monster of all.

Even so, Bai Zichen summoned his Supreme Qingwei Sword Box. Like a bright moon hanging in the sky, it added a splash of silver to the dim Water Mansion.

’It hasn’t left the Water Mansion in decades. Is it because its strength is still lacking after just awakening, or is it restricted by the Underworld Nether Coffin and unable to stray too far?’

Bai Zichen walked from the second-floor stone hall toward the Beast Cages as the Moonlight flowed rapidly, spreading out even faster than his Divine Sense.

Wherever the moonlight touched, even a single speck of dust on the ground was presented in his mind with perfect clarity.

Suddenly, a foreign presence intruded upon the placid lake of his mind, sending ripples across its surface.

The hairs on his arms stood on end. His Divine Sense detected nothing amiss; he had only sensed the presence by relying on his twin talents, As Clear as Daylight and Sword Heart Clarity.

’Why have I run into so many opponents lately with Secret Techniques that can block Divine Sense? My own Divine Sense is far stronger than that of my peers. A regular Core Formation Cultivator would be helpless against such an enemy... Thankfully, the Ziwei Dazzling Thunder Sword can still be upgraded. Once it becomes a Tier Five Flying Sword, this talent will serve me well even in the Divinity Transformation Realm!’

Despite his grumbling, Bai Zichen’s hands moved without hesitation. With a single slash, his sword tore through the phantom lurking in the gloom.

POP! With a sound like a bursting bubble, a smooth, humanoid figure slipped out, resembling a constantly shifting puddle of slime.

In an instant, it was hundreds of feet away, coalescing into a humanoid shape. It had no facial features, and its entire body was in a constant state of flux.

’It’s not a White Bone Demon, but a different form entirely... It seems the Underworld Nether Coffin still holds many secrets. I’d wager only those Super Major Sects with legacies stretching back tens of thousands of years, who experienced the era when the Underworld Nether Coffin frequently appeared in the world, would have more detailed records.’

The Moonlight Sword Threads hissed, each strike faster than the last. They flew in a straight line, every thrust taking the shortest possible route to its target.

They moved so fast that by the time the slime monster had let out a meaningless gurgle in Bai Zichen’s direction, dozens of sword marks had already appeared on its body.

In the next instant, its bizarre body shattered into countless pieces.

Don’t be fooled by how it seemed to shatter so easily before the Moon Xuan Sword. In truth, its viscous hide offered better protection than the pelt of a Tier Three Demon Beast.

An ordinary Magical Treasure or Flying Sword would most likely have been deflected, struggling to even pierce its skin.

It had been a while since he had used a Tier Four Flying Sword, and Bai Zichen had almost forgotten the sheer destructive power of the Moon Xuan Sword under the principle of One Sword Breaks Ten Thousand Laws.

The fragments that fell to the ground didn’t die. Instead, they continued to squirm, expanding one by one into new slime monsters.

’Body Splitting Transformation. But its aura has dropped from Core Formation Perfection to Early-Stage Core Formation... A couple more times, and I doubt it will even be able to maintain the Core Formation Realm.’

Bai Zichen took a step, his form flickering as he reappeared almost instantly in front of one of the newly formed slime monsters.

He didn’t use his Flying Sword. He simply threw a punch. The knuckles on his crystalline white fist were perfectly distinct, an almost hypnotic sight that seemed to draw all the attention in the world.

BOOM!

His fist carried traces of the Platinum Glaze Flame. The slime monster before him instantly exploded, its remains burned into a wisp of black smoke by the fire.

’I’m so used to my Flying Sword that I’d almost forgotten my own physical body is already comparable to that of a Nascent Soul Body Cultivator...’

He set to work with both hands, grabbing one slime monster in each and crushing them to pulp with his bare fingers.

’It’s good to stretch my muscles once in a while. Otherwise, on the day I’m forced to rely on my physical strength to save my life, my joints might be so rusty I’ve forgotten how to kill an enemy.’

The Divine Technique, Close as the Palm of Your Hand, Far as the Ends of the Earth, paired with the Five Crystal Glaze Body, was the perfect combination for a Body Cultivator.

Only a body of such immense strength was worthy of being one of his trump cards.

It was what gave him the confidence to stand on equal footing with a Nascent Soul True Monarch, even when he couldn’t use his Qing Emperor Longevity Sword.

Once the slime monsters were touched by the Platinum Glaze Flame, they were burned clean from the inside out, unable to split into any more copies.

Ten breaths later, not a single slime monster remained alive in the Beast Cages.

The mirror-like lake of his mind returned to its placid state. Simultaneously, from every spot where a slime monster had died, wisps of black smoke rose and coalesced into an exquisite, translucent, profound black crystal.

’This is what a monster resurrected from the Underworld Nether Coffin amounts to?’

Bai Zichen was taken aback. All signs indicated that the slime monsters were truly dead, not just feigning death with some Divine Technique.

To be more precise, the wisp of Divine Thought attached to this body had perished. It would only be resurrected again once a new, suitable body was placed in the coffin and had accumulated enough Nether Qi.

What surprised him was that he had made extensive preparations, even resolving to fully unsheathe his Qing Emperor Longevity Sword—which he had kept partially hidden—if the creature proved too difficult to handle.

By drawing his newly advanced Ziwei Dazzling Thunder Sword, he would have two Tier Four Flying Swords at his disposal. He couldn’t imagine any opponent capable of withstanding that.

He never expected to kill it so easily. It felt as if he had prepared for a battle against an equal, only to find that his opponent was all bark and no bite.

’Of course, there is one other possibility... It’s not that the monster was too weak, but that I’ve become too strong...’

A stealth Secret Technique that could deceive the Divine Sense of a Core Formation Perfection Cultivator; a defense comparable to a Tier Three Peak Demon Beast; a Divine Technique that allowed it to split into dozens of bodies after suffering a fatal blow...

Had it faced anyone other than Bai Zichen, even a group of several Core Formation Perfection Cultivators would have been helpless against this monster.

It might even have been able to divide and conquer them, killing them one by one.

Even a weaker Nascent Soul True Monarch could only claim victory, without any guarantee of actually being able to kill the slime monster.

Suffice it to say, comparing Bai Zichen to other Cultivators in the Core Formation Realm was practically an insult.

His sights had always been set higher, on the Nascent Soul True Monarchs.

’This crystal must be condensed Nether Qi. For a certain group of people, it might be a Supreme Treasure beyond their wildest dreams, but for the vast majority of Cultivators, it is a deadly poison.’

After a moment’s thought, Bai Zichen took out a Jade Box, placed the profound black crystal inside, and carefully sealed it with three layers of Forbidden restrictions.

After dealing with the resurrected monster, he descended to the third level and once again laid eyes on the Underworld Nether Coffin.

It was just as it had been before: the lid was open, and the inside was a deep, gloomy void that seemed to connect to some unpredictable darkness.

The only difference was that there was no longer any discernible Spiritual Qi in the air around the Underworld Nether Coffin, creating a unique, null-energy environment.

Knowing that he still lacked the strength to unravel the true mysteries of the Underworld Nether Coffin, he had no choice but to slowly withdraw.

Killing the monster resurrected by the coffin was only treating the symptom, not the root cause.

But as for a permanent solution, he feared that not even a Divinity Transformation Great Power would be capable of providing one.

He resealed the Water Mansion to prevent any unwitting Cultivators from stumbling inside and becoming nourishment for the Underworld Nether Coffin.

Bai Zichen mounted his sword and flew high into the sky, heading straight for Black Mountain.

After being away from his homeland for thirty-six years, he found himself missing his Sect and his old friends.

With this, he had also completed all his preparations for breaking through to the Nascent Soul Realm.

Once he returned, all that remained was to cultivate to Core Formation Perfection. Then, he could begin the process of Shattering his Core and Transforming into a Nascent Soul.

His Sword Light streaked forward, and the Great Wild Marsh was quickly left behind.

Several months later, he finally caught sight of the Northern Domain’s landmark city, Zengguang Immortal City.

Decades had passed, and the city’s residents seemed to have moved on from the memory of the Du Family’s extermination—the image of countless Cultivators’ heads rolling and nearly half the Immortal City’s palaces and buildings collapsing.

Cultivators came and went in an endless stream; business had not declined much compared to the days when the Du Family was in charge.

After all, the new City Lord was a Nascent Soul True Monarch from the Moral Sect. Through his personal connections, he had brought in a large number of specialty products from the Central Domain.

At the same time, by regularly auctioning off some of the Moral Sect’s exclusive Treasures, he had attracted a great deal of traffic. The annual trade volume was conservatively estimated to have recovered to seventy percent of its level during the Du Family’s reign.

’Perhaps I should go into the city and have a look. If I rely solely on my own Cultivation, it might take another twenty years or so to reach the Peak of Late-Stage Core Formation...’

There were only a few types of Elixirs that were effective for Late-Stage Core Formation Cultivators.

Bai Zichen was hoping that under its new ownership, Zengguang Immortal City might offer some Elixirs from the Moral Sect that would have a novel effect on him.

Twenty years was not a short time, but it wasn’t an eternity, either.

If there was a way to shorten that time, he didn’t mind spending some Spirit Stones.

Zengguang Immortal City still had its old layout: an outer city, an inner city, and a core high-tower.

However, True Monarch Yuan Mo’s clan consisted of just over a hundred people, and his disciples and their descendants numbered only a few hundred—nowhere near enough to manage such a massive Immortal City.

Aside from a contingent of Cultivators left behind by Celestial Punishment Peak, Zengguang Immortal City had also begun recruiting Honored Guest Elders on a massive scale.

In the Du Family’s era, Honored Guest Elders of the Immortal City were required to have at least Core Formation Cultivation or a Tier Three Skill.

Now, the requirements had been greatly relaxed; a Foundation Establishment Cultivation was enough, which attracted a large number of Loose Cultivators all at once.

Of course, this inevitably meant the quality of the Immortal City’s personnel was now a mixed bag.

Bai Zichen, in the guise of ’Su Wuming,’ strode through the city gates. He familiarly boarded a Ray Beast and rode it to the inner city.

He casually found a loiterer on the roadside, tossed him two Spirit Stones, and told the man to lead him to the largest auction house in the inner city.

It was then that he was informed of the many strange new rules that had appeared since the Moral Sect took over Zengguang Immortal City.

It was no longer like before, where proving one’s net worth was enough to participate in an auction. Now, one needed a joint recommendation from three or more of the Immortal City’s VIPs just to be eligible.

"Sir, this must be your first visit to the Immortal City in a while, yes? I know of two teahouses frequented by High-Tier Cultivators. That’s the easiest place to find a VIP from the Immortal City to vouch for you."

The young loiterer, who had a Mid-Stage Qi Refining Cultivation, had a sharp eye and immediately gave him the most useful advice.

"Very well. Lead the way."

Bai Zichen gave an indifferent nod. Operating under the guise of ’Su Wuming,’ this was a perfect opportunity to see for himself how Zengguang Immortal City had changed over the years.