Chapter 1242: Myriad-Form Talisman
Chapter 1242: Myriad-Form Talisman
The Blood-Boiling Evil Flower was a rare devilish flower and had no real benefit for forming a Spiritual Infant.
If there had truly been Blood Grass, he could have harvested it, refined it into pills, and helped his disciples form their Spiritual Infants. Why would he have gone to such trouble to scheme for a Spiritual Infant Talisman Puppet?
Dongyang Bo sighed inwardly. He could not help but admire how Daoist Chongyi and the red-haired grandmaster had trained their disciples.
After the red-haired grandmaster's death, the Chunyang Sect had fallen apart. But the two Spiritual Infant cultivators of the Taiyi Core Sect had cultivated together since childhood and shared a deep bond. There was no way they would repeat that mistake.
With the right timing, favorable conditions, and unity among people, the Taiyi Core Sect was destined to rise! Daoist Chongyi could die without regret.
In the current age, the Divine Transformation Realm remained visible yet unattainable, while the path to immortality had become nothing more than an illusion. For countless years, no one had ever reached it. It existed only in legend.
All immortal cultivators understood that the path had long since been severed. Longevity was merely a beautiful wish.
Returning to reality, immortal cultivators only lived a few years longer than mortals. Mortals were like morning fungi, unaware of the cycles of dusk and dawn. They themselves were no more than summer cicadas, whose entire lives ended with autumn.
Under such circumstances, unless one truly embraced purity and detachment, who would not wish to leave some mark upon the world, to prove they had once existed?
Mortals pursued fame, wealth, and achievement, hoping to leave their names in history. Cultivators, on the other hand, sought the continuation of their Dao Lineage, ensuring successors would carry it forward.
Moreover, Dongyang Bo had once sworn before his master’s coffin to restore Shaohua Mountain.
To experience the soul imprints within the Spiritual Infant Talisman Puppet and comprehend the Spiritual Infant Realm was a lengthy process. Even those with exceptional talent required at least forty-nine days.
Yet the Spirit-Stabilizing Jade contained only a single breath of azure spiritual qi. Once used, it would be destroyed and could not sustain such a long process.
After obtaining the Spirit-Stabilizing Jade, Gong Liangyu could only use it to control the Spiritual Infant Talisman Puppet in treasure hunting.
When Blood Lake opened, Dongyang Bo knew his opportunity had arrived. Blood Lake was the most dangerous forbidden ground within Endless Valley. Even Spiritual Infant cultivators could not guarantee their safety.
If it had been someone upright like Iron Crown, he might have hesitated, fearing the loss of his sect’s supreme treasure and the disaster it would bring. But Gong Liangyu had always thought highly of himself. If he entered Blood Lake in search of a herb, he would certainly bring the Spiritual Infant Talisman Puppet with him.
That would allow Dongyang Bo to capture him without a trace, seize the puppet, and later, amid the chaos, even swallow up Shangyuan Tranquility Palace. It was not impossible.
Iron Crown had simply misjudged character and planted the seeds of this calamity. Of course, whether Dongyang Bo had secretly pushed things along remained uncertain.
Gong Liangyu was a clever man. With only a few words, he had already deduced most of Dongyang Bo’s scheme.
Their exchange had occurred through spiritual consciousness and had taken no more than an instant. Once Gong Liangyu understood Dongyang Bo’s intentions, he was horrified.
Since Dongyang Bo had come for the Spiritual Infant Talisman Puppet and had already laid a trap here, waiting for him to walk into it, how could he possibly lack countermeasures?
The Spiritual Infant Talisman Puppet responded to Gong Liangyu’s summons and moved to protect its master. Just as it was about to withdraw from beside the Blood Grass, the blood mist beneath suddenly surged, shooting out streaks of mysterious light.
The illusion of the Blood Grass shattered completely. This illusion had been set up by Dongyang Bo using a treasure as bait. It was not flawless, nor was it particularly sophisticated.
But Gong Liangyu’s cultivation was inferior, and with countless blood shadows surrounding him and the azure spiritual qi running out, he had no time to examine it carefully.
Dongyang Bo had planned everything in advance.
Whoosh... The yin wind grew fiercer.
From within the blood mist, tens of thousands of radiant lights suddenly shot out, forming a vortex. A phantom array rose from below. At its center hovered a jade bottle, its mouth aimed directly at the puppet, emitting an endless pulling force.
Once caught by the suction, the Spiritual Infant Talisman Puppet’s speed dropped drastically, as if it had sunk into mud, unable to move even an inch.
The puppet roared. As an evil puppet infused with countless soul fragments, it was extremely violent and refused to be restrained. Its entire body lit up as innumerable talismanic projections erupted forth.
Images of mountains, stones, water, fire, lightning, and ancient trees filled the air, dazzling like fireworks as they burst from the puppet and slammed into the array.
Gong Liangyu grew anxious and urged it repeatedly. The puppet’s attacks caused the jade bottle to tremble violently and the array to shake, yet the suction remained relentless. For a time, it could not break free.
Worse still, Dongyang Bo formed a hand seal. The Vajra Bangle above his head rang out with a crisp metallic sound, splitting off a tangible phantom that descended toward the puppet.
Roar! The phantom contracted, its binding force squeezing the puppet until its body creaked.
Its body was tough and felt no pain, yet it sensed that it was being captured. Enraged, it roared again and launched even more frenzied counterattacks.
But Dongyang Bo had prepared for this long ago and had specifically chosen an array that restrained Spiritual Infant Talisman Puppets. There was no way it could escape so easily.
Most of the power from the puppet’s talismans was swallowed by the jade bottle. It only continued to tremble, and no one knew when it might finally burst.
Seeing this, Gong Liangyu felt bitterness fill his mouth. He knew the situation was lost. Retrieving the puppet was no longer possible. The sect’s treasured inheritance would be lost in his hands.
At this point, he could only try to save his own life. Having committed such a deed, Dongyang Bo had chosen this place precisely to eliminate him and prevent future trouble.
The moment this thought crossed his mind, Gong Liangyu saw the cold killing intent flare in Dongyang Bo’s eyes.
He no longer hoped for mercy. Decisive by nature, he hardened his heart and without hesitation detonated his Heavenly Blade Talisman!
The talisman exploded, forcing back the surrounding blood shadows and barely opening a path.
A Jiao phantom roared from his body as he activated the Nine-Dragon Heavenly Chariot Talisman with all his strength. At the same time, he sacrificed a sect heirloom astra that specialized in enhancing evasion speed. His speed surged, rivaling that of an ordinary Spiritual Infant cultivator.
Unfortunately, before Dongyang Bo, it was still not enough.
He had just begun to move when a blinding white light filled his vision. A terrifying binding force descended from above, and even the blood in his body seemed to stop flowing. Only then did he realize the vast gap between himself and a middle-stage Spiritual Infant cultivator.
He struggled with everything he had, but all his methods were useless. The Vajra Bangle easily neutralized them.
He suddenly struck his own chest with his backhand. Golden light burst from his palm. It was a golden talisman.
Crack! Gong Liangyu’s body shattered instantly, splitting into countless streams of golden light. Faint Buddhist chants echoed as the light scattered in all directions. Even the Vajra Bangle could not restrain it.
This was his strongest evasion technique.
Faced with this sudden change, Dongyang Bo did not panic. Instead, he sneered. "The Myriad-Form Talisman of Shangyuan Tranquility Palace truly lives up to its reputation as a supreme life-saving technique. In another place, I might not have been able to stop you. Unfortunately, this talisman originates from the Buddhist path. Righteous and evil oppose each other, and this is a land of evil and filth, perfectly suited to counter it."
Before his words had even finished, the evil energy surged. Countless blood shadows went mad and devoured the golden light, swallowing it completely in an instant.
The talisman shattered on the spot. Gong Liangyu tumbled out in a miserable state, his face pale.
The Myriad-Form Talisman was extremely difficult to restrict. Dongyang Bo had lured him here precisely because he feared this technique and worried Gong Liangyu might escape.
Now that the talisman had been broken, Dongyang Bo calmly pointed a finger at him.