Seeking Immortality in a Bizarre World-Chapter 544 - 539 Mech Bizarre Puppet? Pay Your Debts!_1
The Insect External Incarnation’s Spiritual Power was disrupted, making it difficult to cast spells and Divine Skills—a situation it had never encountered before. Fortunately, communicating with the Heaven and Earth Mountain and Sea Pearl posed no problem.
With just a thought, a colossal figure emerged in an instant, completely enveloping it. This was a tortoise-like creature as tall as a hundred zhang, its carapace shimmering gold and grey, crisscrossed with patterns, and covered in seemingly intricate and indescribable secret runes. This was not a living Magical Beast, but a Mechanism Puppet. What was most astonishing was the aura of the Mechanism Puppet, comparable to Virtual Refining Stage Completion.
The Black Scissors and the Bronze Gong, two Life-bound Magic Treasures, smashed down towards the Insect External Incarnation—or more precisely, were now descending upon the massive tortoise puppet. Before they even came close, their speed slowed as if affected by an invisible force, and they dropped onto the turtle shell like toys. The two Divine Transformation-grade Magic Treasures landed slowly, leaving not a single mark on the turtle’s shell.
HUM!
The Black Scissors and the Bronze Gong were sent flying, their light dimming as the invisible force damaged them. The tall, thin Cultivator and the short, stout Cultivator controlling the treasures turned deathly pale as if struck by lightning. Life-bound Magic Treasures and Cultivators shared a profound connection; they prospered or suffered together. Unavoidably, both Cultivators were severely injured.
Sixth Rank Puppets?! they thought, utterly shocked upon seeing the massive tortoise puppet, especially since it was a top-tier Sixth Rank Puppet. How could this person possess such a powerful Sixth Rank Puppet?! A traveling disciple from a Great Sect? To be able to produce such a treasure, they must be no ordinary person; only a Cultivator with a profound background could manage it. There was no doubt; they had really messed with the wrong person this time!
They wanted to recall their Life-bound Magic Treasures and make a hasty retreat. However, their treasures had just been heavily damaged and were now affected by the tortoise puppet’s slowing power, their movements sluggish and unsteady, like a drunkard. Realizing the situation was dire, they abandoned any thought of their Life-bound Magic Treasures and resolutely activated their Escape Lights, fleeing into the distance. Alas, the power of the Thornback Tortoise Puppet had already affected them, reducing their escape speed to at most a third of its normal rate.
At that moment, Jia Ren had a realization, thinking of the Slow Bizarre he had captured before. If I crafted Bizarre Talismans or Mysterious Instruments and paired them with puppets, I could control them remotely without being affected by the power of Bizarre Demons. This is the correct way to use Mysterious Instruments! The Lifespan Hex Wheel has a decent effect on reducing lifespan, but it has one fatal flaw: it’s only at the level of a Magic Artifact, its material quality is poor, and it’s extremely vulnerable to destruction. If it could be linked with a puppet, offering a strong outer shell for protection, controlling the puppet would achieve the effect of maneuvering a Mysterious Instrument. Moreover, if I added an ’on/off’ switch, it wouldn’t affect me when not in use, ensuring the Mysterious Instrument inside the puppet remained inactive. Thus, the puppet would become a ’mech,’ and the Mysterious Instrument would become a module for loading abilities, paired with different Mysterious Instruments. As long as I maintain control over the puppet’s core and ensure that the control isn’t corrupted by bizarre powers, there are no hidden dangers in its operation. Once an army of Bizarre Puppets is formed, their power will be terrifying! Jia Ren’s eyes gleamed brightly; this new avenue of development opened the doors to a new world for him.
The two fleeing fellows didn’t realize they had inadvertently made a significant contribution; they were still running for their lives. The short, stout Cultivator’s body expanded, transforming into a hundred-zhang mountain of flesh, his limbs and head retracting into his body until he became a large, rolling sphere of meat. The tall, thin Cultivator’s body became paper-thin, clinging to the sphere as Spiritual Power continuously poured into the flesh ball. The meatball bounced from the ground, rolling rapidly towards the horizon, gaining speed as it went, on the verge of escaping the area affected by the Thornback Tortoise Puppet’s slowing influence.
"And now?"
With a wave of the Insect External Incarnation’s hand, five tall puppets appeared. Two were gold-grey, created with Golden Dragon Scales as their core, part of the Absolute Gold Series Puppet. One was a first-generation Massive Mountain Puppet. The second was the Mountain Tortoise Puppet, a new puppet born from the concepts of the first-generation Massive Mountain Puppet and a Second-Generation Ultimate Gold Puppet. It combined the strengths of both, its abilities surpassing their mere combination. Three puppets were greenish-black, made with Water Qilin Scales as their core, part of the Origin Water Series Puppet. One resembled a massive water snake, named the Greedy Spirit Snake; its primary function was to absorb Spiritual Power, and it possessed a Spell-Devouring characteristic—once affected by it, the Spiritual Power consumption for casting spells and Divine Skills would increase manifold. The second was a lizard-like puppet called the Clear Change Puppet, skilled in transformation and damage absorption; it could change its form, act in disguise, and excelled at absorbing damage. The last one, shaped like a giant python, was the Greedy Change Python. It combined the essence of the first-generation Origin Water Series, creating a Second-Generation Origin Water Puppet, possessing the abilities of spirit absorption, transformation, and damage absorption, with even more formidable power.
Six puppets now stood arrayed, including the initial Thornback Tortoise Puppet, each emitting a Sixth Rank aura, completely encircling the two men. Coincidentally, the meatball crashed directly into the Greedy Change Python. A powerful surge of Spiritual Power struck the python, yet its body didn’t even shake as it effortlessly absorbed the damage. Instead, the two Cultivators were sent flying, their Divine Skill broken, and they reverted to their original forms.
Six Void Refining Level puppets? What in the world is this?!!! As they regained their senses, they felt the slowing power intensify again. Their Spiritual Power leaked out unceasingly, as if from an open faucet. With our power diminishing and its growing, how could we possibly escape?
"Senior, spare our lives! We mean no harm to you, Senior!" the two cried out. They knew that escaping from six Void Refining Level puppets was a fool’s dream. Their only hope for survival was to beg this person for mercy. They didn’t believe that someone who could deploy six peak Void Refining Level puppets was merely a Divinity Transformation Stage Cultivator; he had to be at least at the Void Refining Level, and quite possibly even in the Body Integration Realm. It seems we left the house without consulting the almanac today; our luck is truly abysmal.
At this critical juncture of life and death, their minds were still clear enough. They knelt on the ground, continuously begging the Insect External Incarnation for mercy. The six Void Refining Level puppets hadn’t moved. The Insect External Incarnation stood atop the Mountain Tortoise Puppet, looking down at the two.
"Do you really think I’ve lived all these years for nothing? As if I couldn’t see through your petty schemes!" it said. "What method did you use to restrict my Spiritual Power just now?" The Insect External Incarnation didn’t kill them immediately, choosing instead to gather information. It didn’t know what ability they had used; if it wasn’t a spell or Divine Skill, the Corpse-Eating Bizarre Pill wouldn’t yield the desired information.
The two exchanged a glance, and the tall, thin Cultivator hurriedly said, "We were just a bit greedy. This Divine Skill is called ’Debt Repayment.’"
"Anyone who has financial dealings, or transactions involving Spirit Stones and cultivation resources with us—we can use this Divine Skill to temporarily restrain them."
The Insect External Incarnation saw the flickering in their eyes and knew their response wasn’t entirely truthful. It pointed at the tall, thin Cultivator. The next moment, a black awl of light pierced through the Cultivator’s body. His flesh and blood dissolved, leaving only an empty human skin on the ground.
Bone-Eating Corpse Awl! This was a Divine Skill obtained from the Seven Fiends Temple, a formidable technique of the Corpse Sha path. Its power was originally average, but after absorbing a large amount of True Dragon Evil, its might became astonishing, surpassing even the Seven Killing Sha Sword.
"I possess methods to discern lies," the Insect External Incarnation stated coldly. "Since you dared to deceive me, I’ll send you on your way first." Jia Ren had always loathed Bizarre Cultivators who resorted to robbery and murder. There was no prior grievance between them, yet he had been targeted. If not for his strength, he would have been the one to die this day.
Witnessing his companion being effortlessly killed by a Demonic Path technique exuding powerful Evil Qi completely shattered the short, stout Cultivator’s last shred of hope. His face turned a ghastly pale, and he hurriedly revealed everything he knew: "I work for the Hidden Cultivation Sect, searching for Divinity Transformation Stage or higher Cultivators for them. Living ones fetch the highest price; dead ones are half. This time... I was supposed to deceive you and lead you to them..."
"The ’Debt Repayment’ Divine Skill was given to us by the Hidden Cultivation Sect. After every successful job, we’re rewarded with cultivation resources and numerous treasures..."
Hidden Cultivation Sect? Jia Ren pondered. Specifically searching for Divinity Transformation Stage or higher Cultivators, and they want them alive? Why is that? What is their purpose in doing this?
"What kind of sect is this Hidden Cultivation Sect? Why have I never heard of it?" Jia Ren had been with the Lingbao Sect for many years. Their commerce spread across the Mysterious Realm, and information flowed freely through their Sect Disciples stationed everywhere. He had never heard of the Hidden Cultivation Sect and was unclear about its standing. Of course, he couldn’t rule out the possibility that his own rank within the Lingbao Sect was too low to access such information.
The short, stout Cultivator was already terrified out of his wits. Afraid that Jia Ren possessed a lie-detecting Divine Skill, he didn’t dare utter a single falsehood. "The location of the Hidden Cultivation Sect is unknown, or perhaps they don’t have a fixed base at all. They’ve always recruited Divinity Transformation Stage Bizarre Cultivators and Demon Cultivators to work for them. We could only make contact through Stewards."
The Insect External Incarnation listened quietly, then thought of the Debt Repayment Divine Skill again and asked, "Surely the abilities of this Divine Skill aren’t limited to just that." It carefully sensed its body, only to discover that its Cultivation Level had decreased slightly. Although the reduction wasn’t much, the weakening of its cultivation was an undeniable fact.
"The larger the debt a Cultivator owed us, the larger the ’Debt Seed’ of the Debt Repayment Divine Skill would become," the man explained. "Once detonated, it can plunder the debtor’s Cultivation Level. My brother and I suspect that many of the gambling houses in the Tianlan Marine Domain Market show traces of the Hidden Cultivation Association. You might be able to find clues there."
The Debt Repayment Divine Skill gave Jia Ren a sense of familiarity. That’s it... the Golden Scale Wind-Riding Technique! Their commonality was the granting of boons. One focused on a steady, long-term approach that wouldn’t negatively impact the ’potential dragons’ being invested in, leading to mutual success. In contrast, the Debt Repayment Divine Skill was far more extreme and domineering: debts were repaid with one’s Cultivation Level—a plundering of cultivation, making it akin to a Demonic Path technique. The difference was that one was used on the weak, while the other targeted High-Order Cultivators—the higher their Cultivation Level, the better. That the Hidden Cultivation Association possessed such techniques yet remained so discrete and understated was a testament to their unique capabilities.
"I will copy this Debt Repayment Divine Skill for you on a Jade Slip," the short, stout Cultivator said, emphasizing its power, hoping to use it as a bargaining chip to save his own life. "I only ask that you spare me."
The Insect External Incarnation remained non-committal, offering no response.
The short, stout Cultivator, thinking it had agreed, hurriedly took out a blank Jade Slip and began to inscribe it. Halfway through this action, he suddenly froze. Blood flowed from his seven orifices, and his Spiritual Power began to dissipate at an alarming rate.
Seeing this abnormal behavior, the Insect External Incarnation instantly felt its hair stand on end, a chilling sensation washing over it as if targeted by a venomous snake. It quickly ducked behind one of the puppets.
"Debt Repayment! The debt must be collected!"
An unknown voice rang out. The short, stout Cultivator exploded into a shower of flesh and blood, scattering across the ground with the wind.
