The soul of a cultivator is fragile. Even when reaching the Nascent Soul realm, the soul is still the most vulnerable part of a cultivator's body.
Blood energy, on the other hand, is a powerful tool that restrains the soul in the human body.
Of course, “fragile” is relative.
For a Nascent Soul cultivator, their soul can destroy a Qi Refining or Foundation Establishment cultivator's soul with a mere thought.
However, when facing a Golden Core cultivator, the Nascent Soul cultivator’s soul is not so easily dealt with.
At this moment, Wei Tu had broken through the third stage of his body refinement realm. His blood energy was now at the third stage, strong enough to suppress “Master Shentu's” soul.
Body refiners, aside from “soul cultivators,” are among the hardest to be possessed by others.
Breaking through in battle is indeed a dangerous affair, and one misstep could cost a cultivator their life.
But the battle for body-snatching often occurs in an instant, and it takes place within the cultivator's body... making the danger of a breakthrough significantly lower.
Things were progressing even more smoothly than Wei Tu had expected.The dark infant of “Master Shentu” didn’t seem to be a Nascent Soul, but rather a “ghostly being” existing between the Nascent Soul and soul realms, lacking the protection of the Nascent Soul's body during the possession attempt.
When this ghost infant’s palm touched Wei Tu’s forehead, it immediately began to move, trying to burrow into his sea of consciousness.
However, at this moment, Wei Tu’s body refinement had broken through to the third stage. The surging blood energy flowing from his body instantly burned the ghost infant, causing it to shriek in agony.
The black aura surrounding it rapidly dimmed, and its size shrank by nearly a third.
At the same time, the Wind-Cleaving Eagle that was circling around Wei Tu opened its mouth and sprayed a cluster of Profound Nether Yin Fire at him.
Wei Tu was multitasking, commanding his third-stage blood energy to surround and attack the ghost infant while also controlling the Profound Nether Yin Fire, directing it into his body to protect his sea of consciousness.
Although he hadn’t fully trained in the Profound Nether Yin Fire due to time constraints, by relying on the techniques from the Profound Nether Yin Fire manual, he could still use it for a short period.
Additionally, the Profound Nether Yin Fire controlled by the Wind-Cleaving Eagle was only at the Foundation Establishment level. Since Wei Tu’s body was already at the quasi-third stage, even without the manual to control the spiritual flame, the Profound Nether Yin Fire posed little threat to him.
However, things were different when it came to the ghost infant of “Master Shentu.”
This fire was extremely cold and yin in nature.
It was also a powerful tool to restrain souls.
“Profound Nether Yin Fire?” The ghost infant, standing outside Wei Tu’s sea of consciousness, recognized the ethereal blue flames spat out by the Wind-Cleaving Eagle when it was chasing after the gray light group.
“I should have dealt with that Wind-Cleaving Eagle first. The flame it released was the Profound Nether Yin Fire,” the ghost infant cursed inwardly.
Previously, when it clashed with Wei Tu, the battle had been too brief. With Wei Tu using so many techniques, the ghost infant hadn’t had time to analyze what kind of spiritual flame was released by the Wind-Cleaving Eagle when it interrupted the gray light group.
Judging only by the color, there were many spiritual flames in the cultivation world that resembled Profound Nether Yin Fire, but none of them were as potent.
Realizing this, the ghost infant grew enraged—had Wei Tu not intercepted the gray light group, it would have merged with that part of the soul and avoided this mistake.
“Fortunately, I still have this armor,” the ghost infant muttered as it began to activate the silver armor it wore.
The silver armor gleamed brilliantly, emitting a dazzling silver light that fully protected the ghost infant.
Yet, the ghost infant still felt it wasn’t enough. With a slap to its chest, it pulled out a ball of dense ghostly energy and sprayed it onto the silver armor.
The silver armor’s glow intensified once more, blinding and radiant, like a silver sun.
Now fully prepared, the ghost infant, which had shrunk by about a third in size, charged directly toward Wei Tu’s sea of consciousness.
At the moment of collision, the Profound Nether Yin Fire protecting Wei Tu’s sea of consciousness immediately burned the ghost infant, causing layers of frost to form on its body. The ghostly energy it emitted rapidly weakened.
“Enter!” The ghost infant performed another hand seal, discarding part of its small leg, using a secret technique to quickly pass through the Profound Nether Yin Fire and reach Wei Tu’s sea of consciousness.
“Superior mid-grade spiritual root, not bad,” the ghost infant relaxed once it entered Wei Tu’s sea of consciousness. It scanned the surroundings, displaying an expression of mild interest.
Inside the sea of consciousness was a small world glowing with yellow and green colors. At the center of this small world stood a massive root vein that passed from heaven to earth.
This root vein was also yellow and green, with more green than yellow.
This was the spiritual root that every cultivator possessed.
“Fellow Daoist, please come out. It’s time for our final battle,” the ghost infant said as it gazed at the small world before it, chuckling.
Once inside the sea of consciousness, Wei Tu’s defensive methods, whether it was his third-stage blood energy or the Profound Nether Yin Fire, were rendered useless.
He could only rely on his soul to fight to the death.
The ghost infant still had full confidence in the strength of its own soul.
Although it was no longer in the prime state it had been in when Master Shentu was alive, it was still confident it could deal with a Golden Core cultivator.
Wei Tu’s soul within the sea of consciousness remained silent. He controlled his spiritual sense inside his sea of consciousness and began to inscribe talismans.
“Talismans? You’re showing off in front of me. I was a fourth-stage talisman master in my past life,” the ghost infant sneered when it found the hiding spot of Wei Tu’s soul. After observing Wei Tu’s actions, it mocked him with disdain.
But as soon as it spoke, it froze for a moment. It realized it couldn’t summon a single talisman-making method in its mind at that moment.
“Seal!” Wei Tu’s soul gleamed with cold light. He quickly inscribed several talismans and hurled them toward the ghost infant.
The Soul-Sealing Talisman was the only talisman Wei Tu could inscribe without needing talisman paper.
In other words, this talisman could also be used as an attack against the soul within the sea of consciousness.
Red talismans surged toward the ghost infant under Wei Tu’s control.
The sea of consciousness was Wei Tu’s domain. Everything inside was under his command.
Thus, inside the sea of consciousness, the power of Wei Tu’s “Soul-Sealing Talismans” was greatly amplified.
The ghost infant’s expression changed slightly upon seeing the talismans. It once again activated the silver armor surrounding its body to block the Soul-Sealing Talismans’ attack.
Once the talismans ceased, the ghost infant’s movements froze noticeably.
One by one, the talismans sealed away the power in the ghost infant’s body.
“Five Ghosts Soul Devouring Art!” The ghost infant roared in anger when it saw this, chanting several incantations. Its body began to transform as its limbs split into separate ghostly heads.
These four ghostly heads detached from its body, each about the same size as the ghost infant.
These four ghost heads were completely unaffected by the Soul-Sealing Talismans that Wei Tu had cast earlier.
The four ghost heads, surrounded by cold winds, opened their sharp-toothed mouths and lunged toward Wei Tu’s position.
Wei Tu, seeing this, wasn’t worried. He continued to draw talismans, preparing to seal these four ghost heads with another round of Soul-Sealing Talismans.
But unexpectedly, the ghost heads moved erratically, speeding several times faster than the Soul-Sealing Talismans. By the time the talismans arrived, the ghost heads had already vanished.
After several exchanges, the four ghost heads neared Wei Tu’s soul. Each opened its mouth wide and tried to bite down.
At this critical moment, Wei Tu abandoned drawing the Soul-Sealing Talismans. He focused his dan power, preparing to fight back against these four ghost heads.
However.
Just as one of the ghost heads took a bite from Wei Tu’s soul, a golden light suddenly burst from his soul, piercing through the ghost head and completely obliterating it.
This shocking scene even caught Wei Tu by surprise.
“Golden Purple Destiny!” Upon seeing this golden light, Wei Tu immediately recognized the familiar power it contained.
The remaining three ghost heads didn’t even have time to react before being obliterated one by one by three golden lights that surged from Wei Tu’s body.
“What?” The ghost infant, who had been planning to take over Wei Tu’s body, was stunned upon seeing this.
The Five Ghosts Soul Devouring Art was his trump card for body-snatching. Now that this technique had failed, he no longer had the power to attempt another body snatch on Wei Tu.
Instead, he now had to worry about Wei Tu attacking him again.
After splitting into four ghost heads, the ghost infant’s power had drastically diminished.
With the Golden Purple Destiny as his shield, Wei Tu had no more concerns. He leaped forward, transforming into a green light ball, and charged at the ghost infant.
Having witnessed what just happened, Wei Tu had already made his judgment.
Although he couldn’t actively wield the power of the Golden Purple Destiny to attack the ghost infant, as long as the ghost infant dared to retaliate, it would be targeted by the Golden Purple Destiny, just like the four ghost heads, being wiped out in an instant.
The ghost infant, already suppressed by Wei Tu’s Soul-Sealing Talismans, had its body frozen. After using the Five Ghosts Soul Devouring Art, its strength had significantly decreased.
Of course, the most critical issue was that the ghost infant had no clue what kind of power was behind the golden light that had just emerged from Wei Tu’s body.
Thus, when the ghost infant saw Wei Tu charging at it, fear appeared in its eyes. It tried to break free and flee.
But—
It was all too late.
After entering the sea of consciousness, Wei Tu's defensive techniques—whether it was his third-stage blood energy or the Profound Nether Yin Fire—became ineffective.
He could only rely on his soul to fight for survival.
The ghost infant was still confident in the strength of its own soul.
Although it was no longer in the prime state it had been in when Master Shentu was alive, it still felt it could deal with a Golden Core cultivator.
Wei Tu’s soul, within the sea of consciousness, remained silent. He controlled his spiritual sense inside his sea of consciousness and began to inscribe talismans.
“Talismans? You're showing off in front of me. I was a fourth-stage talisman master in my past life,” the ghost infant sneered when it found the hiding spot of Wei Tu's soul. Upon seeing Wei Tu's actions, it scoffed dismissively.
But as soon as it spoke, it froze for a moment. It realized that it couldn’t summon a single talisman-making method in its mind at that moment.
“Seal!” Wei Tu's soul gleamed with cold light. He quickly inscribed several talismans and hurled them toward the ghost infant.
The Soul-Sealing Talisman was the only talisman Wei Tu could inscribe without needing talisman paper.
In other words, this talisman could also be used as an attack against the soul within the sea of consciousness.
Red talismans surged toward the ghost infant under Wei Tu’s control.
The sea of consciousness was Wei Tu’s domain. Everything inside was under his command.
Thus, inside the sea of consciousness, the power of Wei Tu’s “Soul-Sealing Talismans” was greatly amplified.
The ghost infant’s expression changed slightly upon seeing the talismans. It once again activated the silver armor surrounding its body to block the Soul-Sealing Talismans’ attack.
Once the talismans ceased, the ghost infant’s movements froze noticeably.
One by one, the talismans sealed away the power in the ghost infant’s body.
“Five Ghosts Soul Devouring Art!” The ghost infant roared in anger when it saw this, chanting several incantations. Its body began to transform as its limbs split into separate ghostly heads.
These four ghostly heads detached from its body, each about the same size as the ghost infant.
These four ghost heads were completely unaffected by the Soul-Sealing Talismans that Wei Tu had cast earlier.
The four ghost heads, surrounded by cold winds, opened their sharp-toothed mouths and lunged toward Wei Tu’s position.
Wei Tu, seeing this, wasn’t worried. He continued to draw talismans, preparing to seal these four ghost heads with another round of Soul-Sealing Talismans.
But unexpectedly, the ghost heads moved erratically, speeding several times faster than the Soul-Sealing Talismans. By the time the talismans arrived, the ghost heads had already vanished.
After several exchanges, the four ghost heads neared Wei Tu’s soul. Each opened its mouth wide and tried to bite down.
At this critical moment, Wei Tu abandoned drawing the Soul-Sealing Talismans. He focused his dan power, preparing to fight back against these four ghost heads.
However.
Just as one of the ghost heads took a bite from Wei Tu’s soul, a golden light suddenly burst from his soul, piercing through the ghost head and completely obliterating it.
This shocking scene even caught Wei Tu by surprise.
“Golden Purple Destiny!” Upon seeing this golden light, Wei Tu immediately recognized the familiar power it contained.
The remaining three ghost heads didn’t even have time to react before being obliterated one by one by three golden lights that surged from Wei Tu’s body.
“What?” The ghost infant, who had been planning to take over Wei Tu’s body, was stunned upon seeing this.
The Five Ghosts Soul Devouring Art was his trump card for body-snatching. Now that this technique had failed, he no longer had the power to attempt another body snatch on Wei Tu.
Instead, he now had to worry about Wei Tu attacking him again.
After splitting into four ghost heads, the ghost infant’s power had drastically diminished.
With the Golden Purple Destiny as his shield, Wei Tu had no more concerns. He leaped forward, transforming into a green light ball, and charged at the ghost infant.
Having witnessed what just happened, Wei Tu had already made his judgment.
Although he couldn’t actively wield the power of the Golden Purple Destiny to attack the ghost infant, as long as the ghost infant dared to retaliate, it would be targeted by the Golden Purple Destiny, just like the four ghost heads, being wiped out in an instant.
The ghost infant, already suppressed by Wei Tu’s Soul-Sealing Talismans, had its body frozen. After using the Five Ghosts Soul Devouring Art, its strength had significantly decreased.
Of course, the most critical issue was that the ghost infant had no clue what kind of power was behind the golden light that had just emerged from Wei Tu’s body.
Thus, when the ghost infant saw Wei Tu charging at it, fear appeared in its eyes. It tried to break free and flee.
But—
It was all too late.
After the ghost infant's death.
Its red jade ring and silver armor dropped, floating inside Wei Tu’s sea of consciousness.
However, Wei Tu, at this moment, had no interest in dealing with these spoils. He quickly refocused his attention, returning his focus to his breakthrough in physical cultivation.
Breaking through cultivation was risky, and having broken through during battle, despite the brief exchange of souls, it had still posed a certain risk.
Fortunately, before entering the cave, Wei Tu had already cultivated his “True Demonic Refinement Art” to the Minor Accomplishment stage, and the “True Seal of Demon Power” helped him control the power inside his body to a certain extent.
After settling the blood energy that had exploded during the battle against the ghost infant, Wei Tu began to steadily focus on his cultivation breakthrough.
Pieces of dark golden-colored scales appeared from his chest as he broke through his cultivation, protecting his heart veins.
These scales, known as “Demon Scales,” were a physical transformation that appeared once a cultivator had reached Minor Accomplishment in the “True Demonic Refinement Art.”
Time passed slowly.
One day, two days.
Months passed.
Wei Tu’s blood energy surged, and the rolling demon energy that emerged from his body transformed into a set of scales that floated on his body.
“At 211 years old, both my body and cultivation have reached the Golden Core level.”
Wei Tu waved his arm, and the immense strength of his body caused the cave floor to tremble slightly.
“Not in a rush, continue cultivating.”
Wei Tu shook his head, settled his mind, and closed his eyes again, continuing to cultivate the “True Demonic Refinement Art.”
At this point, although Wei Tu had broken through to the third stage in physical cultivation, his body had not fully transformed yet.
Once the transformation was complete.
He would be a true third-stage physical cultivator.
Time passed quickly.
Two years went by.
Inside the cave, Wei Tu had finally completed the transformation of his body. He opened his eyes and glanced at the spirit stone powder that had been reduced to dust around him. A look of pain appeared on his face.
The cave in the Blood Slaughter Sea had only a second-stage concentration of spiritual energy, not reaching the third stage. So, when he broke through to the third stage of physical cultivation, he had to use several spirit stones to meet his cultivation needs.
“Of course, if the spiritual energy level had been higher than the third stage, it wouldn’t have been a good thing.”
Wei Tu smiled at the corner of his mouth.
He had determined that the strength of “Master Shentu” was weaker than when he was at his prime due to the concentration of spiritual energy in this cave.
Thus, if the spiritual energy in the cave had been too high, Master Shentu's strength would not have been as “weak” as before.
Wei Tu stood up, took the “Silver Armor” and “Red Jade Ring” from his sea of consciousness, and began to carefully evaluate the gains and losses from this encounter with the “Body-Snatching Danger.”
The “Silver Armor” was called the “Armor of Primordial Silver” and was a legendary soul-protecting treasure used to guard the cultivator's soul.
Just this “Armor of Primordial Silver” was a priceless treasure. Even at an auction, even Nascent Soul cultivators would compete fiercely for it.
The other item, the “Red Jade Ring.”
From the memories he devoured from the ghost infant, Wei Tu learned that this was a storage ring commonly used by high-level cultivators.
High-level cultivators never had their storage bags taken by others without being able to exert their full strength.
Storage rings could be worn on the hand or kept on a Nascent Soul cultivator.
“However, this item bears the magical seal left by Master Shentu. With my cultivation, it will take considerable effort to erase this seal.”
Wei Tu ran his fingers over the Red Jade Ring, then moved toward Master Shentu’s corpse.
High-level cultivators typically possessed more than one storage magical item.
During his battle with the ghost infant, Wei Tu devoured part of the ghost infant’s soul and also obtained part of its memories.
He knew that Master Shentu also had another storage bag hidden on him.