The First Immortal of Destiny-Chapter 473: Bloody Battle with the Corpse Spirit_1
Gai Yin, the Unnamed Heavenly Monarch, in his lifetime, had mastered an impressive divine Skill, "Snatch Soul." By feeding on the brain essence and souls of cultivators, he could steal some of their insights into cultivation and skills to nourish himself. His advancement to the Divine Bridge Realm was undoubtedly related to this divine Skill! Moreover, supported by this Skill, he reached a very high level in various fields.
Many records from the era when the Unnamed Heavenly Monarch was alive had been destroyed, so Shen Mo wasn’t entirely sure about the situation in the Red Flame Zone at that time and didn’t pass judgment on his actions. But Shen Mo knew that the Heavenly Monarch was by no means a kind-hearted person during his lifetime. The previous excuse used by the Ghost Corpse School—that the Heavenly Monarch was kind-hearted and thus did not set up a world-ending array in his tomb—simply did not hold water.
The biggest threat in the tomb was actually the evil spirit of the corpse born from his remains. By creating challenges involving all aspects of the cultivation world, it ensured that cultivators from the Red Flame Country were all drawn here! Then, when the Corpse Spirit emerged from the coffin, everyone became its nutrients, allowing it to upgrade its abilities in all aspects. After all, thousands of years had passed. Many aspects of knowledge, experience, and insights from the old era had changed significantly. For example, many spiritual medicines needed for Alchemy had become extinct. The cultivation world had found alternatives, leading to new and improved elixir recipes. By using the divine Skill "Snatch Soul" to completely devour the essence of experts in all fields, the Corpse Spirit—regarded by the Unnamed Heavenly Monarch as his "second life" or "the one to inherit his mantle"—would surely progress even further on the Immortal Path! Perhaps, it could even surpass the achievements of the Heavenly Monarch during his lifetime. In short, this tomb was likely prepared for the Corpse Spirit. The cultivators gathered here were carefully selected by the Heavenly Monarch as nourishment!
「...」
Shen Mo quickly exchanged views with Yuxin Sword Master, Chou Jiuyian, and the others through his Divine Sense. Although such conclusions seemed somewhat absurd, they did explain the current situation. The experts quickly agreed on their next course of action.
"CLANG!"
Yuxin Sword Master attacked again. His powerful sword Qi swept towards the Corpse Spirit like an overwhelming force! The others did not fall behind. The Giant Corpse Master commanded his Ghoul to grow into a ten-zhang-tall giant. Holding a ghost headed saber as large as a city gate, it hacked towards the Corpse Spirit. Elder Chu Zhen of the Profound Moon School threw a Moon Wheel, showering the area with large patches of moonlight. As for Shen Mo, he summoned his seven Big Dipper Dao Swords and, amidst roaring sounds, set up a deadly Sword Array!
Only Chou Jiuyian of the Seven Stars Altar did not continue to attack the Corpse Spirit. Instead, he retreated to a distance. He took out various magic artifacts from his Universe Bag and began to set up a magic altar!
Although the cultivation method attainments of this evil spirit of the corpse couldn’t compare to the Heavenly Monarch’s peak, its early-stage Class IV Realm was genuine. Utilizing dense Corpse Qi to perform swordplay and magic, it neutralized all attacks from Shen Mo and the others!
In the next instant, it threw its iron sword. The weapon transformed into over a hundred thousand sword phantoms, almost filling the entire tomb. Shen Mo had seen the afterimage of the Heavenly Monarch exhibit this technique when he was solving the challenge of the Sword Washing Pool. However, at that time, the residual image only possessed a Cultivation Realm equivalent to the middle-stage Spirit Sea. Now, the Corpse Spirit was a genuine Class IV powerhouse. When it executed the technique, even if it didn’t capture its true essence, the killing power still reached a terrifying level!
Faced with the myriad of attacking swords, Shen Mo dared not delay. He repeatedly waved his Sword Light, desperately trying to disperse the sword phantoms assailing him. At the same time, he shook the Soul Refining Flag, summoning peak Class III Demon Soul Generals to form a solid wall before him. They continuously used various Skills to counterattack the Corpse Spirit. His remaining heads and arms unleashed an array of Palm techniques. Overlapping Wall Palms defended him, while dense waves of attacking phantoms rushed towards the evil spirit of the corpse.
Shen Mo was faring relatively well. He had equipped his Destiny [Uncommon Victory] early on, which had already been upgraded to Purple quality. Whether it was swordplay or magic, both were enhanced by a mystical power that strongly restrained evil beings. Thus, even when facing the full might of the Corpse Spirit, he could maintain a balance between offense and defense.
The situations of Yuxin Sword Master, the Giant Corpse Master, and Chu Zhen, however, were dire. After the Corpse Spirit unleashed its full power, these few top-notch experts, second only to those in the Golden Core Realm, were all gravely injured.
The sword Qi and Immortal Law Yuxin Sword Master used for defense were utterly shattered by the iron sword. In an instant, a dragon formed from countless sword phantoms slammed him into the ground. The soil and rocks surrounding the tomb were extremely firm. Despite this, Yuxin Sword Master still created a huge crater where he impacted the ground. He was unable to rise for a moment and could only retrieve his ultimate life-saving talisman, which transformed into a pitch-black bell to protect him!
The Giant Corpse Master’s Ghoul was also covered in horrifying wounds. Its left leg was even completely severed, turning it into a one-legged giant. It could only protect the Giant Corpse Master, struggling to evade the Corpse Spirit’s attacks—a pitiful sight indeed!
Elder Chu Zhen fared no better. He was sprayed by Corpse Qi from the Corpse Spirit, and his exposed skin turned a deathly iron-cyan, making him resemble an ancient female corpse recently exhumed. The Moon Wheel he had deployed also appeared dim and lackluster.
All the experts were injured. Only Shen Mo, thanks to the effects of his Destiny [Uncommon Victory], barely managed to hold the line. Chou Jiuyian of the Seven Stars Altar, having retreated far away earlier and avoided engaging the Corpse Spirit, was also unharmed.
The next moment, the hollow eyes of the Corpse Spirit glanced towards the Deputy Sect Master of the Seven Stars Altar.
"Not good!" A hint of gloom flashed in Shen Mo’s eyes. He immediately swung the Demon Slaying Sword, unleashing several streams of Universe Sword Qi in quick succession. Moreover, utilizing his Three-headed Six-armed state, he launched a barrage of Palm attacks. Techniques like the Horn Palm, Neck Palm, Ghost Palm, Well Palm, Dipper Palm, Stride Palm, and others manifested as phantoms of ancient exotic beasts, continuously bombarding the Corpse Spirit. Powerful Demon Soul Generals like the Serpent-Eel Heavenly Demon, the Ghost Bride, Master Hong Jue, and the Gold Piercing Ghost also stood by Shen Mo, unleashing their respective Innate Divine Abilities against the evil spirit of the corpse before them. Shen Mo alone generated a terrifying momentum equivalent to dozens of cultivators attacking in unison!
His actions were intended to attract the Corpse Spirit’s attention, preventing it from interrupting Chou Jiuyian’s preparations.
Just moments ago, after everyone exchanged messages via Divine Sense, they concluded that with their current strength, subduing this evil spirit of the corpse would be incredibly difficult. Thus, they decided to request aid from their sects. Due to the ongoing demon disaster, most of the Golden Core Realm patriarchs of the Five Great Sects were unable to disengage for extended periods. However, mobilizing three to five Golden Core Realm patriarchs from the various Heavenly Demon battlefields for a short period was feasible. What Chou Jiuyian was setting up was a small Teleportation Altar. This altar possessed the miraculous ability to connect with other Teleportation Arrays and was a well-guarded secret of the Seven Stars Altar.
And Shen Mo and the others had already transmitted the situation here back to their respective sects using Sound Transmission Talismans.
They had only one objective: to hold back the Heavenly Monarch’s Corpse Spirit, preventing it from slaughtering the cultivators and escaping the tomb!
But now, this evil spirit of the corpse seemed to have sensed something. It ignored the injured Yuxin Sword Master and the others, intending to attack Chou Jiuyian, who was still setting up the magic altar.
In such a case, Shen Mo could not let it have its way!
