Chapter 103: Chapter 102: Spirit Gathering Skill
Taoist Yi Hong raised his Familiar Copper Rod. Magical Spiritual Qi gathered on it, forming a small vortex at its tip. Seeing this, the big man’s expression changed drastically, and his eyes instantly turned bloodshot.
The next moment, the big man’s body swelled by a third, bursting his black vest. In an instant, he had transformed into a great black bear over three meters tall, and he swiped a paw at Taoist Yi Hong.
Taoist Yi Hong twirled his copper rod and slapped it against the black bear’s paw.
BANG!
Following the massive sound, the black bear’s paw was torn open, flesh and blood flying. But its entire body also climbed out from the ground. It spread its arms, opened its massive, bloody maw, and lunged at Taoist Yi Hong.
Taoist Yi Hong flew back in retreat and, with a smooth motion, swung his rod at the black bear’s head, knocking it aside.
After just two moves, Taoist Yi Hong had a clear understanding of the situation.
’No wonder the big man hadn’t transformed to fight earlier. Although his strength was a third greater after reverting to his black bear form, his agility and coordination were worse than in his human body. He couldn’t even hold a weapon.’
’Strictly speaking, while his true form looked more ferocious and had greater explosive power—perhaps suitable for a battlefield—it wasn’t suited for one-on-one combat. His overall combat effectiveness might actually be lower than in his human form.’
’That was why the three demons had been fighting in their human forms earlier.’
Just then, a yellow afterimage shot forward. It was the yellow-haired man who had been sent flying earlier, now transformed back into a leopard. He lunged with a foul gust of wind, shouting, "Second Young Master, run!"
Seeing Taoist Yi Hong’s Familiar Copper Rod sweeping toward him, the leopard ducked, evading the force of the swing, and tried to bite Taoist Yi Hong’s leg. But it failed to anticipate Taoist Yi Hong twisting downward with the momentum, the tip of his rod striking the leopard’s waist.
THWACK!
The leopard was smashed to the ground by the blow. Taoist Yi Hong then used the force to pivot and once again swept his rod into the side of the black bear’s face.
Taoist Yi Hong unleashed his full Magical Power. The more he fought, the smoother his movements became, and the stronger he grew. His combat strength was a third greater than before. As he waxed and the bear waned, the black bear was left with almost no strength to fight back.
"Stop!" the black bear wailed. "If you dare kill me, my Father King will not let you go!"
Taoist Yi Hong’s rod stopped three inches from the black bear’s head. "What is your Father King’s level of Dao Practice?"
The black bear’s eyes lit up, sensing an opportunity. "My Father King has five hundred years of Dao Practice! His Magical Power is profound, and his strength is limitless! In all of Changping Prefecture, besides the Golden Wind Divine King, no one is my Father King’s match!"
"Besides my Father King, I also have two uncles, each with three to four hundred years of Cultivation. They are known as the Three Extremes, and their might terrorizes Changping Prefecture!"
Taoist Yi Hong looked back at Gu Zhao, who simply nodded. "As long as they don’t all come at once, it’s just a feeding strategy."
After killing the Bian Ancestor, Gu Zhao and Taoist Yan Song had made further progress. Now, with the addition of a fresh force like Taoist Yi Hong, they had the strength to surround and kill anyone short of the Golden Wind Divine King, who could fly through the sky and use Earth Escape.
As long as there wasn’t a qualitative gap in Cultivation and their Talismans could effectively harm their opponents, they were confident of victory.
Hearing Gu Zhao’s words, Taoist Yi Hong’s Familiar Copper Rod fell twice without the slightest hesitation.
One black bear, one leopard, one gray wolf.
Taoist Yi Hong also felt the satisfying thrill of the Evil Qi being credited to him, rapidly boosting his Cultivation. He felt refreshed and full of energy, eager to go find a few more harmful demons to deal with.
It had to be said, cheats like "diligence compensates for a lack of talent" and a progress bar were truly user-friendly!
After finishing off the three demons, Taoist Yi Hong looked up and saw several hundred bandits huddled at the mountain stronghold’s gate, trembling and looking at his group with terror.
Taoist Yi Hong revealed a slight smile, and the hundreds of bandits cried out as one, retreating back into the stronghold with a great RUSH.
...
What followed was simple.
They entered the stronghold and dealt with the bandits. At the same time, they learned that this was just a gathering place for the combat-capable bandits; there were many other strongholds on Cuiluo Mountain that housed the old, weak, women, and children.
So, Taoist Yi Hong took charge. He identified the truly wicked and irredeemably evil among them, crippled their Martial Arts, and had them escorted to Xiuyue County. The rest were given some travel money and sent home.
The few who were left with nowhere to go were brought back to Cui Mountain Village to help build the Daluo Palace. In the future, they would serve as the Daluo Palace’s Firework Taoists, responsible for laundry, cooking, gatekeeping, and cleaning.
Upon learning that Mages were responsible for the matter on Cuiluo Mountain, the Xiuyue County Yamen didn’t make a fuss. They didn’t ask a single question they weren’t supposed to, promptly accepted the bandits, and simply reported the matter to the Court to receive a commendation.
「A few days later」
After all these matters were settled, the group once again gathered leisurely in the small courtyard for a meal, taking the opportunity to discuss serious business.
"That black bear was the second son of the great king of Three Extremes Mountain. His father king sent him to Cuiluo Mountain to recruit troops."
Taoist Yi Hong said, "His disappearance might not be a problem in the short term, but if there’s no news for a long time, Three Extremes Mountain will definitely send someone to investigate. The Daluo Palace is at the foot of Cuiluo Mountain, so we’ll inevitably be suspected and targeted out of anger."
Taoist Yan Song chimed in with a smile, "If one comes, we’ll kill one. If two come, we’ll kill the pair."
Three Extremes Mountain had operated in Changping Prefecture for decades, even centuries. Besides the Three Extremes, they had many Little Demons and Monsters, as well as defensive traps. With their small numbers, it wasn’t a good idea for the group to attack them at their home base.
However, if the enemy came to Cuiluo Mountain alone, they wouldn’t be afraid. With telepathy through their Sea of Consciousness, they could return at any time to ensure any invaders were left behind for good.
As long as they could take down one more, Three Extremes Mountain would no longer be a threat. And as soon as one of them broke through to five hundred years of Dao Practice, it would be time to take down the Golden Wind Divine Sect.
"Speaking of which, shouldn’t we set up some defenses for our Daluo Palace?"
Taoist Yan Song pointed to the Daluo Palace on the back mountain and asked Gu Zhao, "In web novels, don’t they always have some kind of Mountain Protection Array? Even the Bian Ancestor had a Restriction set up when he was refining his Primordial Pearl."
Gu Zhao threw up his hands in resignation. "The scriptures I studied didn’t include how to set up Arrays. Did yours?"
Taoist Yan Song and Taoist Yi Hong looked at each other, dismayed. Of course, the scriptures they had studied didn’t have any either.
"The Zhengyi Dao has more miscellaneous knowledge than the Quanzhen Dao. Could we adapt some Talismans and Magic?" Taoist Yi Hong asked. "Like the Five Thunders Talisman or the Shangqing Great Forbidden Dragon Binding Talisman?"
Gu Zhao nodded. "I’ll look into it."
Zhuo Qingyan suddenly spoke up. "I’ve never seen a Shangqing Great Forbidden Dragon Binding Talisman, but I did get a Great Dragon-locking Talisman from the Silk Embroideress before."
Everyone turned to look at Zhuo Qingyan.
"The Great Dragon-locking Talisman uses Spiritual Qi as its framework to create a void cage, but like water without a source, it’s easily broken," Zhuo Qingyan said. "If we could inscribe it on metal or stone and supplement it with a Spirit Gathering Technique, couldn’t it be made into a Magical Artifact?"
Gu Zhao couldn’t help but ask, "You know a Spirit Gathering Technique?"
Zhuo Qingyan nodded and said softly, "I was confined to my old home for over thirty years and never went out. I needed Yin Qi for my Cultivation, so I came to comprehend a Spirit Gathering Skill. It might not be that powerful, but it’s more than enough for my own use."
Taoist Yan Song laughed. "You were confined to your old home for thirty years, yet you’ve already attained over a hundred years of Dao Practice. The Yin Qi in the Zhuo Family Mansion could even drift out into the alleyways during the day. It’s clear that this Spirit Gathering Skill of yours is extraordinary."
Gu Zhao rubbed his hands together. "Can you teach it to me?"
Gu Zhao’s bluntness actually pleased Zhuo Qingyan. She nodded lightly and smiled. "Of course."
