Chapter 137: The Superior Yin Pearl, a Cursed Effigy
Xiao Nanfeng's eyes flashed open in his physical body. He had been startled awake.
"It can't be! The superior yin pearl's a cursed effigy too?!"
He had been preparing to use the black lotus to seal the copper avatar when it was sent flying by the superior yin pearl's sudden appearance.
"Impossible. I must be mistaken. How could the superior yin pearl be a cursed effigy?" Xiao Nanfeng forced himself to remain calm as he closed his eyes once more and returned to his mindscape.
Within it, he found that the superior yin pearl, which had remained inert and aloof all this time, had already torn off the copper avatar's left arm and swallowed it.
"Damn it, what kind of cursed effigy is this? It can even seal my cursed spiritual power? I'll destroy you!" the copper avatar howled.
Xiao Nanfeng: ...
Even the cursed king was calling it a cursed effigy; he couldn't lie to himself any longer.
The superior yin pearl chased furiously after the copper avatar, its canines biting down on its thigh.
"Argh!" the copper avatar howled, jumping up in pain.
It used its remaining right fist to strike at the superior yin pearl, penetrating it and hitting its core.
"What?!" the copper avatar cried out.
No, he hadn't penetrated it—a second mouth had appeared on the superior yin pearl's surface and bit down on the copper avatar. The superior yin pearl had two mouths?
"No!" the copper avatar cried out.
The superior yin pearl's two mouths ground the copper avatar's fist and thigh into mush, then swallowed them.
The copper avatar had freed itself at the cost of a hand, an arm, and a leg.
"Damn it! Launching a sneak attack on me while I'm weak? Just you wait. Once my main body's spiritual avatar gets here, you'll be destroyed!" The disabled copper avatar fled toward the exit of Xiao Nanfeng's mindscape, where the '卍' symbol from a Buddhist talisman was slowly spinning, as though blocking the copper avatar's way.
"Break!" The copper avatar smashed into the talisman with its head, but the superior yin pearl got there first. It flashed before the talisman, opening its mouth wide and biting down on the copper avatar's head.
"No! Scram!" The copper avatar desperately struck the superior yin pearl with the stump of its remaining arm, barely freeing itself at the cost of half its head.
The superior yin pearl continued to give chase even as the copper avatar screamed and fled.
Xiao Nanfeng watched the sight in silence. The superior yin pearl really was a cursed effigy, after all. He couldn't help but feel conflicted. He hadn't even managed to convince Madam Rouge to leave him alone, and the beast in his storage ring was still rampaging. Now, he found out that he had yet another cursed effigy in his midst. What was he to do?
Just then, Xiao Nafneng discovered that the black lotus was floating near the entrance to his mindscape after being knocked aside by the superior yin pearl.
"There's still the black lotus, at least. I have one ordinary treasure," Xiao Nanfeng sighed in relief.
The next moment, the black lotus began to devour the golden talisman inscribed with a 卍 character.
Xiao Nanfeng: ...
This talisman was a treasure that Emperor Wei had been preparing for many years, and it surely had a significant amount of strength. However, how in the world could the black lotus be devouring it?
It rapidly consumed the talisman whole. Concentrated black smoke wafted from it, as though it had grown far stronger than before. It seemed poised to fly toward the superior yin pearl and fight for scraps of the copper avatar's ruined body.
"Black lotus, don't scare me, will you? You can't be a cursed effigy too!" Xiao Nanfeng's heart was thumping.
The black lotus trembled for a while before finally settling down.
"Thank goodness. It looks like the black lotus is normal, after all!" Xiao Nanfeng breathed out in relief.
With the superior yin pearl in his mindscape, the half-eaten copper avatar surely wouldn't be able to escape from its clutches.
Xiao Nanfeng was silent for a moment. He wanted to establish a safeguard against the superior yin pearl, but he was hardly strong enough to do so. If the superior yin pearl wanted to harm him, it could have done so at any time—so there had to be some reason it wasn't.
"There's too little information at the moment. I can't guess what the superior yin pearl's objective is—forget it, I'll just research it slowly in the future." Xiao Nanfeng smiled wryly, then opened his eyes in reality. He walked up toward Yu'er.
Although Emperor Wei had told him that the Red Emperor had given Yu'er protections against such possession, he still felt obligated to check up on her. He manifested the black lotus in reality, then held it up against Yu'er's mindscape.
The black lotus quickly absorbed the golden talisman as Xiao Nanfeng spurred it forward to investigate what lay within.
Yu'er's mindscape had a stellar lake in it, over which hung a red, misty cloud that was tangling up a copper avatar. However, the red cloud seemed to be no match for the copper avatar, and was about to be torn to pieces.
"Go!" Xiao Nanfeng urged.
The black lotus floated up to the copper avatar before a black cloud began to billow from it.
"What's this?" The copper avatar frowned at the black lotus before attacking it and sending it flying.
The black lotus was forced back by the copper avatar's assault. Despite Xiao Nanfeng furiously infusing spiritual power into the black lotus, it was unable to hold back the copper avatar.
"This is too slow." Xiao Nanfeng frowned.
He lowered his head and touched his mindscape to Yu'er's. Billowing spiritual power passed from his mindscape into hers at the fastest possible speed.
The black lotus surged. Its power grew stronger, and slowly began to hold the copper avatar back.
"Do you think this treasure will be enough to save her? I think not!" The copper avatar grinned maliciously.
It flew out of Yu'er's mindscape and headed straight for Xiao Nanfeng's, intending to destroy his will first.
The black lotus immediately surged with potent black smoke that tangled around the copper avatar, as though unwilling to let it flee so easily.
"You won't be able to hold me back. Hah!" the copper avatar roared.
It tore aside the black air, rushed out of Yu'er's forehead, and entered Xiao Nanfeng's.
Xiao Nanfeng: ...
By then, the superior yin pearl had just finished consuming the first copper avatar whole. It was happily belching superior yin frost when another copper avatar appeared within Xiao Nanfeng's mindscape.
The superior yin pearl paused, unable to believe its good luck. More food! It flashed over to the second copper avatar.
"What's this?!" the copper avatar cried.
Before it could react, the superior yin pearl had bitten down on its arm and tore it off.
"A cursed effigy? What sort of cursed effigy is it? Damn it!" the copper avatar shouted.
The superior yin pearl, vibrating with excitement, blocked the copper avatar's way out and began to hunt it down.
The copper avatar glanced at the superior yin pearl in shock. It was far more dangerous than the black lotus it had escaped.
Xiao Nanfeng was frowning at what was happening within his mindscape, not having expected this resolution. He extracted the black lotus and removed himself from Yu'er's mindscape. As he did so, she suddenly opened her eyes.
"Ah!" Yu'er cried out.
She and Xiao Nanfeng's foreheads were touching, their eyes meeting. Considering how close they were, she instinctively pushed Xiao Nanfeng away.
"It's me! Senior Sister, are you awake?" Xiao Nanfeng stood up.
Upon seeing that it was Xiao Nanfeng, Yu'er blushed red. She pursed her lips. "Nanfeng? Were you taking advantage of me?"
"I had no choice, Senior Sister. Are you alright?" Xiao Nanfeng hurriedly explained himself.
"I've been following my master's instructions to condense a defensive red cloud with spiritual power. I was never unconscious, but if not for you, I might have been unable to resist the copper avatar's incursion." Yu'er shuddered.
"As long as you're alright." Xiao Nanfeng smiled in relief.
"No, not just yet. The defensive red cloud hasn't dissipated yet, and if I don't do anything about it now, it might explode. I'll have to remain in my mindscape a while longer."
"I'll check up on everyone else, then."
Yu'er nodded, then closed her eyes again.
Xiao Nanfeng walked up to the Lady Arclight, devouring the golden talisman with his black lotus, then sending it into her mindscape.
The Lady Arclight's stellar lake was far larger than Yu'er's, and there was plenty of white mist over it that was tangling up the copper avatar. She was in a far better situation, but wouldn't be able to hold out for much longer either.
"Elder, it's me, Nanfeng! I'll take care of it!" Xiao Nanfeng sent the Lady Arclight a mental transmission.
With a hum, the black lotus appeared above the copper avatar's head, then began to surge with black smoke, sealing its actions.
"Nanfeng, this particular avatar is very strong. Be careful," the Lady Arclight transmitted back.
"Don't worry. My black lotus will be able to hold it at bay."
The Lady Arclight discovered that Xiao Nanfeng was right; it really had been able to do so. She quickly relaxed.
"Nanfeng, how do you have so much spiritual power? And how are you sending so much spiritual power into my mindscape so quickly?" Shocked, the Lady Arclight subconsciously opened her eyes, then immediately shut them again. She was so embarrassed that a wave of red flooded her head. So that was how he was doing it!
"I apologize, Elder, but the situation called for it," Xiao Nanfeng replied.
The Lady Arclight pressed her lips tightly together.
"A cultivator at Stellar Lake, and one at Lunar Deluge? Even when I'm about to kill you, the two of you are still playing at being a couple? Die!" the copper avatar howled.
It dragged the black lotus out of the Lady Arclight's mindscape and into Xiao Nanfeng's.
Xiao Nanfeng immediately got up. The Lady Arclight opened her eyes again in worry. "Did that copper avatar end up in your mindscape?"
Xiao Nanfeng closed his eyes and inspected his mindscape with a strange frown. He quickly shook his head. "I'm alright, Elder. Don't worry."
"But your black lotus won't be able to withstand the copper avatar for long!"
"Trust me, I'm fine," Xiao Nanfeng promised.
After the Lady Arclight prodded him to her satisfaction, she nodded. "Alright. I need to return to my mindscape to scatter that white cloud above my stellar lake."
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