txolops Chapter 327 The Current Status of Spirit Beasts
Chapter 327 The Current Status of Spirit Beasts
"My 'Thousand Demon Banner' was originally designed to refine the essence of demonic beasts. Now, after absorbing a massive amount of Yin souls in the Land of Ghostly Resentment and acquiring the false infant ghost king as its main soul, the number of Yin souls and ghosts within the banner has far exceeded that of demonic souls."
"Continuing to call it 'Thousand Demon Banner' would be a misnomer," Luo Ming thought to himself.
"This banner is now gathering souls and spirits, its power growing daily. Perhaps... we should rename it the 'Banner of Ten Thousand Souls'! It would be more fitting and convey a greater sense of grandeur!"
He immediately decided to find a suitable opportunity to refine all the hundreds of Yin spirits sealed in the Ghost Ship, especially the dozen or so Core Formation Yin spirits, and integrate them into the "Ten Thousand Soul Banner," which would surely enhance its power to another level!
As for the Ghost Nether Ship itself, its refining materials and numerous ingenious restrictions are also worth studying carefully, as we might be able to extract many useful information from it.
Having made up his mind, Luo Ming carefully put away the Ghost Nether Boat, continued to take stock of his other gains, and categorized the useful pills, materials, and spirit stones into his storage magic treasure.
Time slipped away quietly as he focused on taking stock, categorizing, and figuring out how to utilize these resources.
……
In the blink of an eye, a month has passed.
The Wind Chaser continued to fly steadily and swiftly in the high sky, with the boundless blue sea below, occasionally dotted with scattered islands like pearls.
Jiang Rufeng was completely focused on controlling the shuttle, not daring to slack off in the slightest. Yuan Yao was still immersed in comprehending the "Nether Phoenix Technique," sometimes frowning, sometimes suddenly realizing something, with a faint, dark aura flowing around her.
Luo Ming sat cross-legged inside the shuttle, diverting a sliver of his mind to observe the outside world, while focusing most of his attention on the "Five Spirit Bracelet" on his wrist, observing the condition of the little ones inside.
First were the Gold-Eating Insects. The tens of thousands of beetles with golden spots on their backs had gathered in the vast space of the Spirit Beast Bracelet to form a huge "insect ball" nearly ten feet in diameter, shimmering with dazzling golden light.
The surface of the insect ball undulated gently, as if it were breathing.
They were digesting the large amount of rare metals, spirit ores, and the essence of the spirit spring that they had previously devoured in the Void Heaven Palace. Their aura was stronger and more violent than before, and the golden spots on their carapaces seemed to have deepened.
Next was the Xuan Turtle, a spirit beast with astonishing defense, which was lying in a corner rich in spiritual energy, its body shrouded in a thick layer of earthy yellow light.
It is currently refining the essence blood of the giant turtle, which was given to it by Qingyi Jushi and further enhanced by him using the "Spirit Gathering Cauldron".
The immense blood energy and earth-attribute bloodline essence contained in the essence blood of the entire giant turtle were being absorbed by the Xuan Turtle little by little. The process was slow, but with each bit absorbed, the dark gold patterns on its shell seemed to brighten a little more, and its aura became slightly heavier.
Luo Ming believed that once he fully refined and absorbed the essence blood, his strength would experience a qualitative leap, and he might even be able to reach the threshold of level seven.
Beside it, the enormous body of the Azure Dragon lay lazily on a small hill made of mid-grade spirit stones, its huge head resting on top of the pile of spirit stones, its eyes slightly closed, emitting even snores, clearly fast asleep.
But the powerful demonic energy within it did not cease; it flowed spontaneously along some mysterious path, constantly tempering its muscles, bones, and flesh. With each breath, a faint blue spiritual light flowed beneath its scales.
This guy eats and sleeps, sleeps and eats, yet his cultivation is steadily improving, and his bloodline power is constantly being stimulated. He truly deserves to be called a top-tier bloodline demon beast, which even Luo Ming finds somewhat enviable.
The progress of the Zhiyang bird is the most obvious.
During its trip to the Void Heaven Palace, it devoured a large number of pure Yin spirits from the Land of Ghosts and absorbed the essence of many fire-attribute monsters from the Lava Road. The intermingling of Yin and Yang brought it immense benefits.
At this moment, it withdrew its usual dazzling crimson-gold light and transformed into a small bird, only about a foot tall, entirely crimson-gold, as if carved from gold and jade, quietly perched on a horizontal branch.
Thanks to the Yin spirits he devoured and refined, his divine soul aura had already reached the level of a seventh-level demon beast, ahead of his physical body!
The intense, fiery power on its body surface flickered intermittently, digesting the fire-attribute demon cores it had devoured on the lava road while simultaneously nourishing its physical body, forming a virtuous cycle.
Luo Ming estimated that, provided there was sufficient spiritual energy and fire-attribute resources, this Zhiyang Bird could reach the peak of level six, just like the Xuan Turtle, and attempt to break through to level seven within twenty years at most.
With its Vermilion Bird bloodline and supernatural power to suppress evil, once it advances to the seventh level, its combat power will definitely be stronger than the Cold Dragon and the Separating Turtle encountered on the Cold Li Platform.
Besides these main spirit beasts, the changes in the other two little guys also delighted Luo Ming.
The thousand-year-old spirit clam's shell glowed with an increasingly warm and restrained luster. Luo Ming carefully examined it with his divine sense and discovered that it was not far from becoming a clam king capable of nurturing the "Mirage Pearl." As the clam shell opened and closed, the natal spirit pearl inside could be vaguely seen flowing with light, displaying extraordinary magnificence.
What puzzled Luo Ming the most was the snow silkworm that had "come back to life" and incorporated a wisp of dry blue ice flame.
Through the connection of their souls, Luo Ming could clearly sense that not only had its soul been fully restored, but it had also undergone a strange transformation due to the integration of the power of the Azure Ice Flame, emitting an astonishing chill aimed at the soul.
Even with Luo Ming's powerful divine sense, comparable to that of an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, he could clearly feel the power of that chill; an ordinary early-stage Core Formation cultivator would definitely not be able to withstand it!
The Snow Silkworm is only at the peak of level four! Luo Ming could hardly imagine how terrifying its chilling power would be after it absorbed the thick layer of blue ice crystals on its body and successfully advanced to level five!
Looking at the little creatures inside the spirit beast bracelet, from their initial weakness or ordinariness, through his nurturing and fortuitous encounters, they gradually grew and transformed. (Read the full text for free, Chapter 327: The Current State of the Spirit Beasts, link: [link missing]). Now, each one possesses extraordinary qualities and immense potential.
A faint, indescribable sense of pride and satisfaction rose in Luo Ming's heart.
The sense of accomplishment from this "cultivation" is in no way inferior to the improvement of one's own cultivation.
"Now, even without using my most treasured magical treasures and secret techniques, these few spirit beasts alone should be enough to sweep through the Core Formation stage, right?" Luo Ming thought to himself, his confidence growing.
Moreover, he possesses a demonic treasure that has just been renamed "Ten Thousand Souls Banner" and whose power has greatly increased, a complete set of magic weapons that can set up the "Eight Gates Golden Light Array" to trap and kill powerful enemies, his own natal magic weapon, and his spiritual strength comparable to that of a Nascent Soul cultivator.
With so many trump cards stacked up, he had a vague feeling of being "half a Nascent Soul cultivator," as if the threshold of the Nascent Soul stage was no longer so unattainable.
"Hmm..." Luo Ming suddenly became alert, his brows furrowed slightly, and he gently shook his head, forcibly suppressing the faint, barely perceptible feeling of "ease" that had just risen in his heart.
"Stay calm, stay calm," he silently told himself.
"Improving one's strength is a good thing, but one must never be complacent, nor underestimate the heroes of the world. The gap between the Nascent Soul stage and the Core Formation stage cannot be completely bridged by a few magic treasures or spirit beasts. True Nascent Soul stage masters have all lived for hundreds or even thousands of years, possessing countless trump cards and terrifyingly rich combat experience!"
"My current resources might allow me to maneuver around unexpectedly for a while, but in a direct confrontation, my chances of victory remain slim in the long run. Only when the Ghost King truly advances to the Nascent Soul stage will he have the strength to truly contend with those old monsters. We are far from being able to rest easy now."
Luo Ming took a deep breath, his eyes regaining their clarity and determination, completely extinguishing any lingering arrogance that had arisen from his immense gains.
Just above a remote sea area about two days' journey from Tianxing City, the shuttle shuddered slightly and slowed down a bit.
"Master, something's wrong." Luo Ming, who was meditating cross-legged, was interrupted by Jiang Rufeng's hushed voice. Jiang Rufeng's sharp eyes were fixed on a certain spot ahead, his expression wary.
Upon hearing this, Luo Ming's eyes snapped open, a glint of divine light flashing within them. Without asking further questions, his powerful divine sense, comparable to that of an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, spread like invisible ripples in the direction Jiang Rufeng indicated, easily covering an area of over twenty miles.
With a sweep of divine sense, the scene on the sea ahead was clearly reflected in his "eyes".
About fifteen or sixteen miles away on the sea, three streaks of light were intertwined, their spiritual light flashing and their energy surging.
Two of the beams of light enveloped two cultivators, one old and one young, dressed in identical dark black robes with the Reverse Star Alliance emblem embroidered on their cuffs.
The old man had a horse-like face and a long beard, with a sinister expression. He controlled a ring-shaped magical artifact that shimmered with black light and constantly spewed out black wind blades. The younger man had a pale face and no beard, with fierce eyes. He drove several pale green flying forks, which flew up and down.
The one being attacked by the two was a cultivator wearing the Star Palace's signature moon-white robe.
The man was pale, his breathing was irregular, and there was still a trace of blood on the corner of his mouth. He was manipulating a flying sword whose golden light was slightly dim, struggling to defend against the combined attack of black wind blades and green flying forks. He was in a sorry state and had obviously fallen into a complete disadvantage, with his magic power greatly depleted.
"Huh?" When Luo Ming's divine sense "clearly saw" the faces of the Star Palace cultivators who were being besieged, a look of surprise appeared on his face.
"Jin Qing? What's he doing here? And in such a disheveled state?"
The man was none other than Jin Qing, a good friend he had recently met in Tianxing City, with whom he had once teamed up to explore ancient cultivation ruins, and with whom he shared a very compatible personality!
At this moment, Jin Qing was inwardly groaning. He desperately channeled his remaining magical power into his golden flying sword to deflect a cunning black wind blade, while simultaneously using his movement skills to dodge the attack of the flying fork.
Several months ago, he and Han Li went to that deserted island to explore the ancient cultivator's cave. As a result, they almost lost their lives there. After escaping back to Tianxing City, he originally wanted to go into seclusion to heal his injuries, but he did not expect that the situation in the inner sea would change suddenly and that the battle between the Star Palace and the Reverse Star Alliance had begun.
Before his injuries had healed, he was assigned a mission to go out on patrol and provide support, and as a result... he ended up getting entangled with the Reverse Star Alliance cultivators and couldn't get rid of them!
"What a run of bad luck!" Jin Qing lamented inwardly. "I almost perished during the last expedition, and now I'm in grave danger on this mission! Am I really going to die here today?"
Feeling his increasingly sluggish magical power within his body, and witnessing his opponent's relentless and increasingly fierce attacks, a sense of despair began to spread in his heart.
Just then, something unexpected happened!
The old man with the horse-like face who had been controlling the "Black Wind Ring" and launching the fiercest attacks seemed to sense something. He suddenly stopped, turned his head abruptly, and his hawk-like gaze shot towards a certain spot nearby.
His face darkened, and he shouted sternly, "Who goes there? Sneaking around like that, get out here!"
Before he finished speaking, he abandoned his attack on Jin Qing without hesitation. The "Black Wind Ring" hovering in mid-air shone brightly with dark light, let out a piercing shriek, and suddenly changed direction, carrying rolling black wind and sharp wind blades, and smashed hard towards the void where he sensed something was wrong!
As the black wind passed, the air hissed, demonstrating its considerable power.
However, the expected collision or human figure did not appear. The black wind ring swept past, its wind blades stirring up the airspace into chaos, but it was as if it had hit empty air, touching nothing at all.
"Hmm?" The horse-faced old man was taken aback, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes. Could it be that he was too nervous and had sensed things wrong?
But the moment that thought crossed his mind, his expression changed drastically! An extremely strong sense of crisis erupted without warning from less than three zhang away from him!