Chapter 443: Crafting the Necro Puppet, Dou Zun Expert Qingzhi
"Mo Yu, what should we do now? Should we forcefully break the seal?" Xiao Yixian asked, her gaze fixed on the frozen Ice Valley where Qingzhi was battling the Sky-Cold Qi.
No one had anticipated things would escalate to this point. The Sky-Cold Qi, one of the most famous rare items on the continent, was indeed not easy to capture.
Hearing this, Mo Yu frowned, just about to respond when a message suddenly transmitted directly into his mind.
"What's wrong?" Xiao Yixian asked curiously, noticing Mo Yu's expression change.
"It's Qingzhi. He's telling us to wait and watch. He's confident that he can devour the Sky-Cold Qi. If we break the seal from the outside, the Sky-Cold Qi might escape," Mo Yu sighed, gazing at the entirely frozen Ice Valley in front of them.
At this point, they found themselves in a difficult situation. While Qingzhi had some confidence, the Sky-Cold Qi was not an ordinary object. If Qingzhi failed and the Sky-Cold Qi devoured the Ice Spirit Silver Lightning instead, things would get much worse.
The Sky-Cold Qi was already half a step into the Dou Zun (Battle Sovereign) realm. If it absorbed the Ice Spirit Silver Lightning, it would certainly break through and become a fully fledged entity. At that point, even Mo Yu would have no choice but to flee.
"So, are we just going to wait here?" Xiao Yixian noticed the worry in Mo Yu's eyes and asked with concern.
"We wait! We wait until Qingzhi comes out," Mo Yu said. At this point, he had no choice but to place his bet on Qingzhi, hoping that he could indeed devour the Sky-Cold Qi.
After all, Qingzhi wasn't a mindless puppet but had a certain level of intelligence. If he was confident, Mo Yu decided to trust him. Forcing their way into the frozen valley would be safer, but if the Sky-Cold Qi escaped, finding it again in the vast cold region would be nearly impossible.
Having made the decision, Mo Yu, Xiao Yixian, and the Black Bat King set up camp outside the frozen Ice Valley, waiting for the outcome of the battle between the Ice Spirit Silver Lightning and the Sky-Cold Qi. No one knew how long it would take or who would emerge victorious. All they could do was wait.
Inside an ice cave, Mo Yu, with nothing to do, waved his hand, and the corpse of the Qingjian Elder from the Myriad Sword Pavilion, frozen in ice, appeared. The elder had been at the peak of the Dou Zong (Battle Ancestor) realm. After killing him, Mo Yu had kept the body in storage.
Now that he had some free time, a memory of the "Necro Puppet" crafting technique flashed through Mo Yu's mind. After a moment's thought, he nodded to himself. He waved his hand, and an invisible force lifted the corpse into the air.
Xiao Yixian, watching from the side, gazed at Mo Yu curiously. She always found him doing something mysterious, like a treasure trove waiting to be discovered.
Mo Yu's hand moved, and a crimson lightning flame appeared, engulfing the corpse. The terrifying heat from the flames quickly melted away the ice covering the body.
"Black Lotus Soul Flame, appear!" Mo Yu commanded coldly, and a thread of black, lotus-shaped soul energy emerged from his brow, floating toward the corpse.
Crafting a Necro Puppet required this crucial step—splitting the soul. However, it was incredibly dangerous since the soul was an essential part of the human body. Any mistakes could lead to severe backlash. This was why, despite their power, no one dared to mass-produce Necro Puppets. Losing too much soul power would result in devastating consequences.
However, with the help of the Black Lotus Soul Flame, Mo Yu could minimize the loss of his soul power.
After completing this step, Mo Yu turned to the Black Bat King and said, "Black Bat, give me some of your essence blood."
The Black Bat King hesitated for a moment but then nodded. Opening his mouth, he released a stream of dark purple blood, radiating a wild, violent energy.
Mo Yu waved his hand, causing the essence blood to splash onto the corpse wrapped in lightning flames. As soon as the blood touched the body, it began to sizzle, and the skin of the corpse started to rot.
Despite this strange change, Mo Yu remained calm, increasing the heat of the Vermillion Bird Heavenly Flame.
As the flame's temperature rose, the essence blood on the body began to seep into the skin, and the originally pale corpse gradually regained vitality, with its skin and muscles slowly rejuvenating under the influence of the blood.
The frozen Ice Valley became filled with waves of heat, causing the icy mist in the air to evaporate and disappear.
Time passed unnoticed…
At the mouth of the Ice Valley, a broad tunnel stretched for several meters. Xiao Yixian sat cross-legged on a nearby ice wall, the Black Bat King standing vigilantly beside her.
"How many days has it been now?" Xiao Yixian asked, her chin resting on her hand as she gazed toward the Ice Valley. Nothing had changed in the past few days, and she wondered how the situation inside was progressing.
"It's been six days, Miss," the Black Bat King replied respectfully.
"Six days already? That was fast," Xiao Yixian muttered. But just as she finished, her expression suddenly shifted. Cold killing intent flickered in her eyes as she stood up, her body radiating a deadly aura.
The Black Bat King also tensed, his gaze locked on the entrance to the valley. In the distance, vague white figures could be seen approaching.
"You must be the Calamity Poison Lady."
As the figures neared, an old, raspy voice drifted over from afar, landing in Xiao Yixian's ears.
She didn't bother to respond, her beautiful eyes flashing coldly. With a wave of her hand, a surge of grayish-purple Dou Qi, like two massive pythons, snaked around her body, coiling protectively.
Not long after the old voice echoed, the space at the mouth of the valley rippled, and a hunched figure, leaning on a snake-headed cane, appeared before Xiao Yixian and the Black Bat King.
As the elderly figure appeared, the sound of rustling wind followed, and dozens of white-cloaked figures landed silently behind him.
The moment they arrived, an oppressive killing intent spread through the air, dispersing the cold around them.
When Xiao Yixian saw the old man with the snake-headed cane, her pupils shrank slightly. Her hand clenched into a fist as she spoke in a cold voice.
"A peak Dou Zong? The Ice River Valley sure went all out."
The old man chuckled, his gaze cold as he said, "Hehe, I am Elder Tianshe. It's no surprise that the Ice River Valley would send me after the infamous Calamity Poison Lady. According to the rules of our valley, anyone who kills one of our elders must be captured and subjected to the harshest punishment."
Tianshe's narrow eyes glanced at Xiao Yixian perched above the valley entrance. His voice was calm but carried an undertone of indifference.
"Tianshe Elder?" Xiao Yixian murmured, her expression shifting slightly. Even though she had not been in the Central Plains for long, she had heard of this man.
It was said that not only was this old man powerful, but he had also mastered the Ice River Valley's Ice Sovereign Technique to an extreme degree. Ordinary Dou Zong experts couldn't last ten rounds against him.
Each time he fought, Tianshe left no survivors. His fearsome Ice Sovereign Technique allowed him to freeze his enemies into lifelike ice statues, instilling terror wherever he went. His brutal reputation was well known across the Central Plains.
Xiao Yixian hadn't expected Ice River Valley to send such a dangerous figure after her.
"Is it just the two of you? Surely you can't have killed all of our elders with just your strength. Bring out whoever is behind you," Tianshe sneered.
The Black Bat King, though powerful, was little more than a strong ant in his eyes.
"Damn you! If you want to see our master, you'll have to get through me first!" The Black Bat King roared.
With that, the Black Bat King stomped the ground and charged at Tianshe with ferocious speed.
Seeing this, Xiao Yixian quickly followed, two grayish-purple Dou Qi pythons shooting from her palm, cutting through the air toward Tianshe.
Tianshe turned to the army of white-cloaked figures behind him. "Surround the valley! Don't let anyone escape!"
With a cold laugh, Tianshe stepped into the air, his snake-headed cane tapping lightly on the void. Glancing at Xiao Yixian and the Black Bat King, he smirked.
"Today, no one in this valley will leave alive."
With that, he eyed the charging Black Bat King and let out a mocking chuckle. His dry hand clenched into a fist, and the space in front of the Black Bat King twisted strangely, solidifying into a wall.
"Boom!"
The Black Bat King smashed into the space wall, the impact rebounding with force. The backlash knocked him flying backward.
Casually repelling the Black Bat King, Tianshe raised his shriveled hand and gestured toward Xiao Yixian, sending a massive palm of cold energy hurtling toward her. The icy palm crushed the grayish-purple Dou Qi pythons with a squeeze, shattering them into countless specks of light.
With the pythons destroyed, the giant palm reached Xiao Yixian in a flash, ready to strike her down.
Feeling the overwhelming cold energy, Xiao Yixian's face turned pale. Even her Dou Qi was slowing down under the intense freezing power.
"Such powerful Ice Sovereign Technique!"
Her expression grew serious as she quickly summoned a surge of dense grayish-purple Dou Qi, forming a barrier above her.
"Boom!"
The icy palm smashed into her defensive Dou Qi, and the terrifying cold energy caused frost to spread over her barrier. The palm continued to crush through her defense, shattering it completely.
"Ahh!"
Xiao Yixian spat blood as the energy struck her, sending her flying backward like a kite with a broken string. Her body crashed into the side of the valley, cracks spreading along the ice wall.
With just one exchange, Xiao Yixian had been overwhelmed.
Tianshe chuckled coldly and was about to follow up when a massive figure charged at him once more. The Black Bat King had transformed into his beast form, wings flapping as he slashed his huge claws at Tianshe.
Sensing the wind pressure from the Black Bat King's attack, Tianshe's eyes gleamed with disdain. To him, a mere seventh-rank magical beast was nothing more than a brute.
As icy energy gathered around Tianshe's arm, it condensed into an ice gauntlet. With a smirk, he threw a punch.
"Boom!"
The ice fist collided with the Black Bat King's claw, sending shards of ice flying. Tianshe's arm then twisted in a serpentine motion, deflecting the force of the Black Bat King's attack back at him.
With a muffled thud, a deep fist imprint was left on the Black Bat King's chest. If it weren't for his beastly resilience, this punch alone would have ended his life.
Even so, the Black Bat King was sent crashing into the ice wall, embedding himself deeply.
"Is that all?"
Tianshe glanced at Xiao Yixian and the Black Bat King with a smirk, tapping his cane lightly against the air.
"You're far weaker than the previous Calamity Poison Body. Surrender and return to Ice River Valley with me. Perhaps you'll survive. Otherwise, your fate will be just like the others."
Xiao Yixian wiped the blood from her lips, her face cold. She began to activate the seal on her Calamity Poison Body when a voice suddenly echoed from within the valley.
"I don't think returning to Ice River Valley is necessary. This Cold Stream Valley looks like a good burial ground. It's a suitable resting place for your old bones."
Tianshe's smile slowly faded, his eyes narrowing as he turned to look toward the valley entrance. There, three figures emerged from the mist, walking toward him.
Tianshe's gaze lingered on the young man leading the group before shifting to the golden-eyed man beside him, whose expression was as cold as ice. Then Tianshe's face twisted in shock.
"Dou Zun?"
His voice trembled, disbelief and terror filling the air, causing the atmosphere to freeze over.
(End of Chapter)
Friends, if you want to read chapters in advance, subscribe to my patreon.
Read 20 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Cortez10