Chapter 472: Chapter 97: The Perfect Body Seizing Container
Li Mo completed the Floating Wind Spirit Pattern in just five days. From initial unfamiliarity, he quickly became adept and effortless in his work.
He Li was even startled to realize that he could no longer comprehend parts of the Spirit Pattern.
He had never encountered an Artifact Refiner like this—someone willing to complicate the Spirit Pattern’s structure by tenfold, just to maximize the Magic Treasure’s power.
This approach entirely contradicted the cultivation philosophy of Zhibai Dao.
Moreover, from start to finish, Li Mo employed multi-tasking techniques to inscribe the patterns, without showing the slightest strain or difficulty.
He Li couldn’t help but think of Zhibai Dao’s innate immortal seed, "Si Rui."
The Array Dao capabilities manifested by Si Rui were unparalleled among Array Repairers, but given its age of over ten thousand years, the impact it left was far less shocking than what Li Mo had achieved.
"He Li, it looks like the Artifact Refining of the Thirteen Immortals isn’t as lacking as you thought."
Dragon Head Residence let out a strange laugh, the veins on his forehead bulging.
He Li did not answer directly, saying instead, "This can’t be explained by common sense. Perhaps some kind of Immortal Body granted him an extraordinary sensitivity to Spirit Patterns."
"In Magic Treasure manipulation, the Thirteen Immortals are undoubtedly inferior to Zhibai Dao disciples."
He Li’s certainty came mainly from the fact that Moving Mountain Island’s refining was under his supervision, during which he intentionally made subtle modifications.
Other cultivators could indeed utilize the island, but operating it as naturally as an extension of one’s body required the Zhibai Dao’s unique Artifact Refiners’ "Marrow Blood Spiritual Power."
"Hah."
Luo Yang snorted coldly, and although Bi Hengguang beside him wanted to retort, he was stopped by a raised hand.
Bi Hengguang had no understanding of Artifact Refining and knew that arguing with He Li on this subject would be pointless.
"Fellow Daoist Luo Yang, it seems the Thirteen Immortals are quite enthusiastic about Artifact Refining; we could invite them to Zhibai Dao in the future to observe our refining process."
Zhibai Dao’s elder "Wang Shoucai," who oversaw Artifact Refining, was still immersed in thoughts about Li Mo’s extraordinary methods of completing the Floating Wind Spirit Pattern, the impossibility of it weighing heavily on his mind. He couldn’t resist chiming in.
"After all, the systems are different. Even if the Thirteen Immortals’ Artifact Refining is advanced enough to teach others, they’d still always gain something from Zhibai Dao."
He Li cast a helpless glance at Wang Shoucai but did not continue speaking further.
With Li Mo’s demonstrated level of Artifact Refining—and considering that Sword Cultivators typically did not rely on external tools—it indicated that the Heavenly Sword Sect had little need for Zhibai Dao.
Luo Yang felt his earlier frustration dissipate entirely.
"We’ll see. I understand the disposition of the Thirteen Immortals. Refining artifacts is just something they occasionally dabble in to pass the time; their focus remains primarily on comprehending the path of the sword."
Luo Yang had investigated Li Mo’s background. Before joining the Heavenly Sword Sect through the Sword Tongue Sect, Li Mo seemed to have operated a black market within small and medium-sized sects.
Not only dealing in Magic Artifacts and Treasures but even in Elixirs, Corpse Wine, and Spirit Talismans.
In Luo Yang’s view, Li Mo showed no particular favoritism toward any area of expertise; he simply possessed extraordinary comprehension and could quickly excel in any discipline he delved into.
Dragon Head Residence let out a hearty laugh.
More than thirty Void Refining Stage Elders were present, though not all fully believed Luo Yang’s words.
Considering the proficiency Li Mo had displayed, he was most likely a master in this field and might have secretly gained significant resource advantages within the Heavenly Sword Sect.
The sect elders at the scene couldn’t help but form a notion in their minds.
The Heavenly Sword Sect had likely been planning this for hundreds of years.
By securing two innate immortal seeds early on—one as the primary and the other as secondary—the combined talent of Yu Xiao and Li Mo would inevitably elevate them to the status of Land Immortals.
The flourishing of the Heavenly Sword Sect seemed inevitable.
He Li kept a close eye on Li Mo’s every move.
The basic structure of the Floating Wind Spirit Pattern had been completed, yet Li Mo occasionally continued refining it, making the pattern increasingly bloated and complex.
Of course, in He Li’s opinion, the bloat was subjective.
In terms of Magic Treasure maneuverability, Moving Mountain Island demonstrated an agility far beyond the other floating isles using ways He Li couldn’t comprehend.
"Could one person from the Thirteen Immortals truly refine Moving Mountain Island?"
Even in Zhibai Dao, forging a massive Magic Treasure like Moving Mountain Island required a Void Refining Stage Elder to lead, supplemented by the cooperation of dozens of disciples over roughly ten years.
What about Li Mo?
If he started from scratch, it was estimated that he could complete it in at most twenty years.
What He Li didn’t realize was that Li Mo’s efficiency in Artifact Refining far exceeded expectations. Even refining the Thunder Residence Sword Shuttle took him only half a year.
"We’ll need to find an opportunity to have Yisheng make a move, at the very least to diminish the Thirteen Immortals’ overwhelming momentum."
The other Void Refining Stage Elders shared similar thoughts.
The disciples they brought to the Demon Cave ranked among the top of their respective branches, but being perpetually overshadowed by innate immortal seeds had taken a toll on their mental state.
It was the perfect chance to use Li Mo’s presence to help reconstruct their Tao Hearts.
Even if they were defeated, as long as it wasn’t a complete loss, it could at least partially repair the damage, benefiting future promotions to the Void Refining stage.
In a sense, being in the same generation as an innate immortal seed was utterly despair-inducing.
Facing a destined ascendant genius, all their efforts seemed trivial. To make matters worse, the two innate immortal seeds were from the same sect.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
Dozens of figures soared through the air from Business Leader City, heading straight for the island.
Three immortal beings participated in the operation, led by Gu Shenzi with Zeng Yin and Qing Tan as support. In the eyes of mortals, they were disciples of the immortal lineages.
Dragon Head Residence clicked his tongue in amazement. "It’s different with the Thirteen Immortals holding the Demon Cave. They can even make the deceitful objects feel threatened. How interesting."
Chen Yun sneered, neck dripping with blood. "Well then, just make sure not to harm the Human Branch in the city, heh heh heh..."
Luo Yang wore an expression of dread.
Although the Ten Thousand Demon Dao repeatedly claimed the Demon Cave was a naturally evolved alternate set of rules, evidence strongly suggested it was tied to the truths of heaven and earth.
The Four Sects were willing to enter the Demon Cave partly to probe the Ten Thousand Demon Dao’s intentions.
Dragon Head Residence grinned. "Luo Yang, the three Void Refining Stages from the immortals are making a move. Don’t you need reinforcements from the Vajra lineage of your Great Sun Sword Tomb?"
"What is a deceitful object worth compared to the Void Refining Stage? Taiyi alone is enough."
Luo Yang cursed silently.
The deceitful objects had clearly taken Li Mo as a threat. Otherwise, the immortal beings usually delayed their movements for days and never initiated attacks so readily.
"If Taiyi lays out defenses for another half a year, the island’s protection could be as unbreakable as iron. But now... it seems they’ll need to use the Externalized Dharma Body to withstand the assault temporarily."
Theoretically, holding a defensive position around the floating island should make it feasible to fend off Void Refining Stage deceitful objects.
After all, so-called immortal beings relied on their conjoined fetuses to perform spells and were inherently limited in cultivation, unable to sustain prolonged engagements. Their abilities resembled those of ancient cultivators—crude and simplistic. Once their cultivation waned, they would retreat immediately.
If not for Luo Yang perceiving the deceitful objects as fundamentally peculiar, he might have suspected they were more like... ancient cultivators sealed within a small world?
"Arrange the array! Demon slaughter!!!"
Gu Shenzi swung his horsetail whisk, and the Taoist children clustered around the Heavenly Sword Sect’s island, each holding a white-whisk horsetail whisk in hand.
The white whisk strands extended, intertwining thousands of threads.
The Great Sun Sword Tomb stood vigilant, with twenty-four individuals maintaining the Nine Curves Chain Formation.
The other four floating islands showed no intention of offering support. Without orders from their elders, the disciples of the Five Sects operated independently of each other.
They cast their gazes toward Li Mo, who seemed lost in thought, as if his mind had wandered to another realm.
Occasionally, Li Mo would refocus, but only to tweak the Spirit Patterns or Array formations, leading many Sword Cultivators to suspect he was experiencing sudden enlightenment.
But now that they were on the brink of a dire confrontation, harboring grievances against Li Mo would only lead them to destruction.
The oppressive aura of the immortal beings continued to escalate. Although the deceitful objects at the Void Refining Stage were somewhat lackluster, the simultaneous emergence of three was more than Divine Separation Stage cultivators could manage.
"Outer Heaven Demons must be eradicated by all."
Gu Shenzi’s expression was grave.
Based on prior experiences with demon invasions, they simply needed to hold out until the event concluded. However, the possibility of encountering a Great Demon made the stakes higher.
Zeng Yin and Qing Tan remained silent, their hands moving in complex gestures as they chanted spells.
"Heaven and Earth rotate, Taiqing Qi fortifies the body, granting an imperishable form, also known as the Taishang Taihao Breathing Method, aligning with the Heavenly Dao..."
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A series of dull thuds echoed through Business Leader City, where a hundred mortals were pulverized into flesh and blood.
With a flick of Qing Tan’s finger, an ethereal stream of celestial energy swept outward like a swirling galaxy, enveloping numerous Taoist children, causing their flesh and bones to expand by an entire size.
The horsetail whisks collided with the floating island, met head-on by dozens of flying swords.
Boom!
The shockwaves battered the surface of the island, though most of the force was absorbed by the Nine Curves Chain Formation.
In an orderly fashion, the Sword Cultivators launched their bound Lifebound Flying Swords in formation, clashing with the Taoist children in bouts of deafening intensity.
The elders were somewhat astonished.
The Great Sun Sword Tomb had previously seemed like an incoherent mess, with distrust fueling disjointed battles. Yet now, cooperation was evident.
They began to doubt the authenticity of Luo Yang’s claims.
Could it be that the Thirteen Immortals truly wielded overwhelming dominance over the Great Sun Sword Tomb? Otherwise, with the temperament of Sword Cultivators, why would they follow commands so willingly?
Compared to the frantically moving Sword Cultivators, Li Mo was undoubtedly much calmer.
Standing atop the floating island, Li Mo remained utterly unshaken by the quaking ground beneath him. His eyes scanned the so-called immortal deceitful objects with interest.
Beside him, Ye Zhuo Daoist stood trembling.
He understood that while the island may have been reinforced, Li Mo’s hold over the Demon Cave was too recent to withstand the force of a Void Refining Stage attack.
"Ye Zhuo, what exactly are the Human Branches?"
Swallowing hard, Ye Zhuo Daoist glanced at the wounded Sword Cultivators engaged in battle and explained, "The so-called immortal deceitful objects refer to mortals in the Demon Cave as Human Branches."
"Human Branches produce conjoined fetuses during childbirth, which can serve as substitutes for corpses in crafting spiritual materials."
"Oh?"
As Li Mo took the conjoined fetus Ye Zhuo handed him, he summoned a Salamander with a flick of his hand.
A massive Salamander appeared on the island, its body nearly a thousand meters in length, exuding a formidable aura of wood attribute Sword Intent.
"Ah."
The Salamander released countless roots, connecting to the Sword Cultivators and replenishing their vitality.
Ye Zhuo Daoist continued to tremble in fear.
Li Mo studied the conjoined fetus with great interest and quickly realized it was far more complex than Ye Zhuo had implied. The fetus wasn’t lifeless at all.
It could grow over time, though it lacked a soul and any form of consciousness.
How to put it...
In the ancient Cultivation World, conjoined fetuses would have been considered the perfect vessel for body seizing.
"Senior Brother, you... might want to be more cautious. The immortal deceitful objects are in the Void Refining Stage, and any small mistake could damage your Magic Treasures."
"What’s there to fear?"
Li Mo clapped Ye Zhuo Daoist on the shoulder, silently waiting for the immortals to strike first.
Before long...
Gu Shenzi groaned, a jade-green pupil emerging from the center of his forehead.
"Open the Orbital Eye!"
Dozens of mortals perished, releasing jade-green pupils that broke free from the flesh, hovering in midair as beams of celestial energy swept across the floating islands.
From Zeng Yin’s forehead appeared a spell inscription, and he carefully ingested an elixir crafted from conjoined fetuses to further empower Gu Shenzi.
The floating island trembled precariously, cracks spreading rapidly across its surface.