Chapter 96: A Desperate Struggle to Revitalize the Cultivation World (96% complete)
The power of the Sacred Thunderfire Talisman lies not only in its ability to deliver a fatal blow, but also in its capacity to trap enemies within a thunderfire array, launching a continuous barrage of attacks.
Fang Hong tried to break the formation, burning one talisman after another while fighting with Shen Suqi, but the Thunderfire Formation remained unmoved.
Is a Saint-grade talisman really that powerful?
He tried to deduce all the possible locations that could be the core of the formation. As a fellow talisman cultivator, his formation skills were not weak, and he indeed found a breakthrough point. However, after he made his move, although the Thunderfire Formation was weakened by three points, it was still fierce.
He suddenly realized something and looked sharply at Shen Suqi.
"You're the core of the formation?!" he exclaimed in astonishment.
Shen Suqi was disappointed. She had wanted to wear him down a bit more, but she hadn't expected to be seen through so quickly. The old man was not easy to fool, so she simply shrugged and admitted it directly: "Yes, besides the talisman you know, I also drew four other auxiliary ones. You can try to find the other three array eyes, but... I won't give you that chance."
Thinking of the Painted Skin, which was almost completely devoid of material, she felt both heartache and relief. This old man was indeed difficult to deal with. The Thunderfire Talisman, which had been transformed through the tribulation, might not have been enough to restrain him. The Painted Skin was a timely help; otherwise, she would either have to owe the system points and delay her graduation or frantically try and fail to consistently create a Saint-grade talisman.
Fang Hong was secretly furious. He had originally intended to use his cultivation level to suppress her and wear her down, but now it seemed that it was hard to say who would benefit in the end.
He waved his sleeve to block the blast of air, and made up his mind.
Originally, the plan was not to use that move unless absolutely necessary, but fortunately, the scene inside the Thunderfire Array could not be seen from the outside.
The sword intent that the Xuan Tian Sword Sect Master had lent him in his dantian seemed to sense his thoughts. It surged violently within his body and, as he feigned to wave a talisman, escaped from his body, converging into a dazzling white light that roared out.
The sword intent was incredibly fast, slashing straight at Shen Suqi's throat. Fang Hong also seized the opportunity to attack her.
Shen Suqi was unsteady on her feet. It was already difficult enough for her to withstand the full force of a high-level swordsman's attack, and she also had to guard against Fang Hong's sneak attack.
Just then, a sword intent also burst forth from her body. The sword intent, imbued with the will of its master, was immature yet incredibly sharp.
"You think you're the only one who knows how to exploit loopholes?"
Outsiders are not allowed to assist under the constraints of the laws, but sword intent is a special exception, and it is clear that the other party had the same idea as her.
The two sword lights collided, producing a piercing clang. Although the sword intent left by Xu Lingyou was not yet fully developed, it was more than enough to restrain the sword for a few breaths, and managed to deflect the originally fatal sword trajectory.
A white light grazed her left shoulder, splattering a trail of blood. She clutched her left shoulder and staggered backward, blood seeping from between her fingers, staining half of her clothes red.
The lingering power of the sword intent swept across the surroundings, causing the lightning and fire barrier to ripple slightly.
Shen Suqi quickly realized that she couldn't afford to waste any more time.
Ignoring her injuries, she flipped her wrist, and spiritual energy flowed from her fingertips, causing more than a dozen talismans to ignite and transform into flames that rushed towards the other side.
Fang Hong swiftly waved his sleeve, and spiritual energy condensed into a barrier that completely engulfed the flames.
Another string of explosive talismans exploded beside Shen Suqi. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him. Fang Hong must have emptied the Holy Prayer Palace's inventory. The lowest-grade talismans he sold were all top-grade spirit talismans.
Not daring to slacken, she raised her hand to defend herself, her hair flying in the turbulent air. The ribbon was lifted by the wind and brushed past her lips. Her eyes sharpened, she opened her mouth, bit the silk, and gently pulled, breaking the ribbon into three pieces.
Three pieces of silk spread out in the wind, and just as they were about to be swept into the airflow, they suddenly swelled into tiny figures as tall as a person.
Fang Hong sneered: "I was prepared for this."
How could he not be prepared for a trick he had seen five years ago?
Three nascent soul clones separated from his body and stood in front of the three silk figures.
He was full of confidence, but then he saw the little silk figure suddenly raise its head as if it had a spirit.
Fang Hong, who was locked in combat with Shen Suqi, suddenly felt a tremor in his heart—
The left clone was pierced through the chest by the silk doll within three moves, and the protective aura of the right clone was annihilated into ashes in a single exchange. Only the stronger clone in the middle still had a fighting chance.
"How is this possible..." His pupils shrank abruptly as he took a direct hit from a wind blade, and a metallic taste immediately rose in his throat.
The three silk figures were surrounded by surging spiritual energy, exuding the same oppressive aura as their original forms.
Shen Suqi grinned. After their exchange, she too had several wounds, but even so, she couldn't resist a sarcastic remark: "Please, five years ago I could use this as a trump card, how could it only be equivalent to a Nascent Soul clone? The essence of the Mirror Image Talisman has never been about separating the clone, but about replicating it."
Fang Hong had this misconception because she was weaker when she used this technique five years ago, and the mirror image could not replicate her strength one-to-one.
She has kept this skill a secret all these years, rarely revealing it to others, and it has indeed proven remarkably effective.
Three silk figures stood guard around the main body, forming a killing formation identical to Shen Suqi's. Fang Hong finally realized what he had overlooked.
He thought the headband was some kind of magical artifact, but it turned out to be a kind of rune.
A Nascent Soul clone weakens the original body's strength, but a mirror image does not. His clone couldn't even last ten moves without the protection of a spirit talisman.
"So you're not worthy. As a talisman cultivator, you don't even think about the runes when you see another talisman cultivator's methods." Shen Suqi said sarcastically, slowly directing the little people to attack, while she quickly tilted her head back and gulped down a bottle of pills. "I've eaten my offerings for so many years, I don't want you to spit them out. You should just obediently give up your position and commit suicide."
Fang Hong felt a dizzy sensation.
It's only been five years! Not fifty or five hundred years! Is Heaven going to destroy him?!
No! Shen Suqi dares to provoke him before he has even fully grown his wings. This young man is arrogant and conceited. This is not how he should live!
He won't lose; he still has a trump card up his sleeve.
He forced himself to calm down from his rage, stared coldly at Shen Suqi, and gathered a wisp of spiritual energy in his palm again.
Just as Shen Suqi was about to engage in battle, she sensed something was amiss. This spiritual energy seemed profound, but its killing intent was actually not strong. She instinctively had her clone stand in front of her, but unexpectedly, the clone shattered instantly upon being struck.
How is that possible?
Her heart sank slightly. Realizing something was wrong, it was too late. She felt a chilling aura rushing towards her face.
Fang Hong was delighted. He mixed a wisp of demonic energy into the spiritual energy. The demonic energy was formless and intangible, and even with her keen senses, she could not discern its form.
He spent half his life studying it before he could barely control it, and he didn't believe she could resist the demonic invasion while she was unaware of it.
At the critical moment, Shen Suqi no longer hesitated and took out a book from her storage space.
The pages moved without wind, and a sharp sword shadow emerged from the book, precisely slashing at the unseen demonic energy.
The two forces competed fiercely, eventually canceling each other out and annihilating each other.
Shen Suqi took a half step back, still shaken, a wave of fear washing over her.
Fortunately, before she left, Jiang Yun gave her a treasure, saying it was a book from the Hehuan Sect Master ten thousand years ago. He activated an attack from it, which could have killed a Nascent Soul cultivator, but it had been used once before, so the attack was weakened.
Unexpectedly, it came in handy at this time.
She grasped something from her chaotic thoughts: "Demonic energy?! You're insane! You dare to resort to such underhanded tricks!"
Fang Hong's smug expression froze, turning into disbelief: "Whose sword intent was that? No, it wasn't sword intent, it was a sword shadow condensed from spiritual energy!"
Neither of them answered the other's question, but their expressions visibly turned serious.
Fang Hong's plan failed, and he became even more wary of Shen Suxi.
Countless talismans swirled around him, flashing on and off, some used to resist the continuous power of the thunder and fire talisman array, while the rest attacked her.
The attacks took on a different style, becoming increasingly fierce.
Shen Suqi's eyes flashed. These talismans carried a familiar aura; they were learned by Fang Hong from the fragmentary Dao Ancestor talisman manual passed down from the Holy Prayer Palace.
Fang Hong was a talisman cultivator with superb strength. In his youth, his talent far surpassed that of ordinary people. However, after years of focusing on his career, he was not skilled in actual combat and lacked the ruthlessness to fight to the death.
Fortunately, she was good at taking all-or-nothing gambles.
Thinking of this, she suddenly broke into a bright smile and bit her fingertip hard.
Crushing the crimson blood droplets, she said, word by word, "Didn't you want the Dao Ancestor's talismanic techniques? I'll teach you."
Using her fingers as a pen and blood as ink, she resolutely poured out all her spiritual power.
Fang Hong saw her movements clearly, and his face turned icy.
It's a blood sacrifice technique!
He immediately tore up more talismans in an attempt to hinder her actions.
However, Shen Suqi was prepared. Before he knew it, an array appeared beneath his feet, binding him firmly in place.
The Thunderfire Talisman Array couldn't harm him, and he couldn't break free for the time being.
Shen Suqi laughed freely.
I already said, her Taoist name is very practical.
Gaining a moment to catch her breath, she immediately began to write.
With the first stroke, her face turned pale.
With the third stroke, blood trickled from the corner of her lips.
The fifth stroke caused her internal organs to ache terribly from the backlash.
With the tenth stroke, all her meridians felt as if they were being violently churning by an invisible hand, the intense pain causing her to tremble uncontrollably.
But her smile grew increasingly intense, even bordering on madness.
She was well aware of the price that blood sacrifice would have to pay.
Five strokes are fine, ten strokes are harmful, and more than ten strokes are life-threatening!
But she didn't stop. She resolutely made her eleventh move. The difference in their skill levels was obvious. All she could do was take the initiative and risk everything, betting that Fang Hong couldn't do it.
Five years ago, she mastered the three-stroke eulogy. Five years later, under Langdu's guidance, she has mastered the knack and can write up to the tenth stroke.
Today is her first attempt to break through the eleventh stroke.
Since everything began with the art of blood sacrifice, she will end with the art of blood sacrifice.
Fang Hong's face drained of color, and he cried out in terror, "Are you crazy! Stop it!"
He possessed a fragment of the rune manual. Although the copy was incomplete, he had also studied the art of blood sacrifice and even mastered the twelfth stroke. His years of cultivation far exceeded those of Shen Suqi, and his foundation was much more solid. If he were willing to risk his life, he might be able to interrupt or even counterattack in time.
But... he couldn't bear to part with it.
What's burning is a real hundred years of lifespan! It's the foundation for the path to immortality! Didn't this madwoman ever consider what would happen if she couldn't break through her cultivation level and her lifespan burned out without those hundred years? What if she was just one step away from the Tribulation Transcending stage but was struggling with her limited time left?
Cultivators seek power and longevity; how could they destroy their own foundation for cultivation?
In the brief moment of his hesitation, Shen Suqi had already completed the eleventh eulogy.
Fang Hong hurriedly threw out all the talismans he held, as if they were burning his hands. The talismans hung in a row in the air, facing the blood-red sacrificial text.
Shen Suqi's face was pale but her gaze was firm, and the eleven strokes of the sacrificial text gradually formed a devouring force.
Alarm bells rang in Fang Hong's mind. He had no more time to think. Before the talisman was completely swallowed up, he had no choice but to draw his finger and offer blood as a sacrifice, adding to the blood sacrifice technique.
He was extremely annoyed. He should have used the blood sacrifice technique from the beginning. Shen Suqi's skills were immature and he was no match for him in terms of skill level!
His writing was far more skillful than Shen Suqi's, but he paused for a moment on the eleventh stroke before gritting his teeth and continuing to write.
Shen Suqi shouted loudly, and the eulogy written with her life suddenly burst forth with a destructive aura.
The boundless spiritual energy rippled outwards, causing the heavens and earth to resonate and hum.
Fang Hong's eyes were bloodshot with rage. He could only watch helplessly as the blood-red sacrificial inscription pierced through his limbs. He screamed in agony as his meridians reversed and his spiritual energy became chaotic.
He underestimated her in the end; if he didn't fight her with all his might, he would surely die!
A ruthless glint flashed in Fang Hong's eyes as he poured all his remaining spiritual energy into the twelfth stroke.
Outside the Thunderfire Formation, Su Xiaoyao and the others worked together to build a barrier, which protected the still-shaken Sword Sect disciples.
"Damn, I should have retreated a few more hills," Su Xiaoyao said, still shaken.
Shen Suqi had mentioned beforehand that Fang Hong also possessed a fragment of the Dao Ancestor's runes and might have learned the art of blood sacrifice. However, Fang Hong was extremely afraid of death, and she was betting that he wouldn't dare to write more than ten strokes directly. Therefore, she was prepared to strike first.
She knew that the Dao Ancestor's method was powerful, but she did not expect the residual power of the blood sacrifice technique to be so astonishing.
Su Xiaoyao couldn't help but worry about her friend.
No matter how bad Fang Hong is, he is still a Nascent Soul cultivator, while Shen Suqi is still far inferior in strength, even with thorough preparations.
On second thought, she realized that it was impossible. How could Shen Suqi possibly lose? She could outsmart her opponent to death.
Another deafening explosion rang out, and the Thunderfire Array shattered completely, turning into countless streams of fire that fell into the mountains.
Around Kunpeng Mountain, countless onlookers gazed intently, their eyes fixed on the billowing smoke and dust.
Su Xiaoyao pursed her lips tightly. The shock caused by the collapse of the barrier prevented divine sense from penetrating, and they could only rely on their naked eyes to penetrate the dust and fog.
Finally, the smoke and dust were dispersed by the breeze, and a blurry outline gradually appeared.
Su Xiaoyao was overjoyed and was about to go forward, but her heart sank when she saw the figure clearly.
Just then, Fang Hong's figure staggered forward uncontrollably, falling straight down like a puppet with its strings cut.
Behind him, a tall, slender woman gracefully retracted her foot that had been stepping forward.
She stood there, her clothes soaked in blood, their original color unrecognizable, and her hair stained with mottled blood, clinging to her pale cheeks.
However, her disheveled appearance could not conceal her arrogance.
She tidied her stray hairs, her hoarse voice clearly reaching everyone present.
"Let me reintroduce myself. Standing before you is the number one talisman cultivator in the world, the only creator of sacred-grade talismans in a thousand years, the leader of the new era, and the current Palace Master of the Holy Prayer Palace, the Pure, Tranquil, and Void-Stabilizing Dao Lord—Shen Suqi!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
