Chapter 682: The Caged Beast's Struggle, Breaking the Soul with Black Nails

Chapter 682: The Caged Beast's Struggle, Breaking the Soul with Black Nails

The backup array arranged by the Essence Refinement True Monarch was extremely intricate.

As long as the Great Year's main body remained alive, the Soul-Hooking and Spirit-Nailing Array would not cease.

This was because the array's power originated from the vast vitality within the Great Year's flesh, and by borrowing this power, it nailed the Great Year's spirit in place.

Just hearing about this method was mind-boggling.

It was akin to using the Great Year's flesh as a prison, trapping its spirit, and thus, becoming a prison itself, hooking and nailing the soul!

Under normal circumstances, it was impossible for Core Formation Cultivators like Luo Chen to break through this array.

But!

The Great Year, who had suffered from its spirit being trapped for many years, had come up with a solution.

As long as the main body's power was weakened, the might of the Soul-Hooking and Spirit-Nailing Array would also be diminished.

At that time, with internal and external coordination, the main body's spirit would be transferred to Ding Yi's incarnation, and the Soul-Hooking and Spirit-Nailing Grand Array would break on its own due to the loss of its target.

After that, by retrieving the main body and merging the spirits, the plan of escaping like a golden cicada shedding its shell would be complete!

After the Great Year proposed this idea, it gained recognition from Luo Chen and the others.

The array, which was formed by the Great Year's main body containing terrifying vitality, would also be defeated due to the source of its power being the Great Year's main body.

Now, what Luo Chen and the others needed to do was figure out how to weaken the power of the Great Year's flesh.

For this, the Great Year had prepared for many years and had already thought of a countermeasure.

"This Thirty-Six Golden Altar Rebirth Array is the most effective method to restrain my wood-attributed flesh. As long as we proceed slowly, like a blunt knife cutting flesh, and with the cooperation of my incarnation, we will surely reach the point where my spirit can break free."

The Great Year spoke calmly.

Behind him, the Lord of Cloudsoaring Cave was walking on a golden altar, activating the array.

At the core of the array, there were even lower-grade treasures serving as suppression objects.

In total, there were thirty-six treasures! Even if they were only lower-grade, this method was astonishing enough, as they were all metal-attributed or contained metal-attributed lower-grade treasures!

Not only that, but before entering the array, the Great Year also gave the Lord of Cloudsoaring Cave an upper-grade spirit stone from a storage bag and several metal-attributed supreme-grade spirit stones.

For this day, he had meticulously planned for three hundred years!

Before the grand array was fully activated, Luo Chen had the leisure to marvel at this grand method and ask for details.

"Would Ding Yi be willing to spend his savings like this?"

With his eyes closed, the Great Year muttered, "Of course, he's not willing. He's always thinking about breaking free from my residual obsession. Buying the Dust-Suppressing Pill from you was just a futile struggle."

"However, how many people in this world can resist my temptation?"

Luo Chen was surprised, "Temptation?"

The Great Year smiled slightly, "Yes, the name of the Great Year's spiritual medicine has spread throughout the cultivation world. It's said to have the power of creation, bringing the dead back to life and turning bones into flesh. Of course, this rumor is a bit exaggerated, but the terrifying vitality contained within my main body is genuine and has accumulated by being imbued with the power of the wood-attributed law."

"In truth, Ding Yi came to the Demon Annihilation Land not just to solve the influence of my residual obsession. He actually covets my main body, wanting to refine it into a spiritual medicine that can impact the Nascent Soul stage."

Luo Chen was astonished.

But looking at the white flesh ball in front of him, which seemed like frozen meat, he couldn't help but believe it.

He could sense that the thing indeed contained an immeasurable and terrifying vitality, even surpassing his Primordial Four-Stage body by many times!

Wood-attributed law power? Luo Chen muttered.

At this moment, the Thirty-Six Golden Altar Rebirth Array was ready.

With a low shout from the Lord of Cloudsoaring Cave, a golden light rose and enveloped the Great Year's main body.

Among the Five Elements, metal overcomes wood.

As the array suppressed it, the Great Year's main body immediately tried to resist.

But the residual obsession on Ding Yi's body issued a command, forcibly suppressing the main body's resistance.

Whoosh!

The golden light descended, and the white flesh ball trembled, its aura instantly weakening.

Visibly, a piece of flesh was separated.

The Golden Altar Rebirth Array took effect.

Seizing this opportunity, Luo Chen's eyes shone with spiritual light as he stared intently at the Great Year's main body.

Observing the changes in the Soul-Hooking and Spirit-Nailing Array.

It seemed to have weakened...

"Not enough!"

"Lord, please continue!"

The Great Year shouted.

Without hesitation, the Lord of Cloudsoaring Cave continued to activate another Golden Altar Rebirth Array.

Under his control, golden lights rose and fell, constantly falling on the Great Year's main body.

To suppress the main body, the residual obsession also exerted its full strength, its face becoming increasingly hideous.

Luo Chen had been observing this scene, paying more attention to the array.

With his focus, he vaguely glimpsed a bit of the essence of this array.

"The Heavenforge Demonic Lord extracted the Great Year's vitality, transforming it into seven illusory rusty golden nails, nailing down the Great Year's seven souls."

"Then, using the body as a prison, it trapped its three spirits."

"Thus, a perfect array was formed."

"Can I also set up a similar array?"

Luo Chen's thoughts fluctuated, and with his understanding of arrays, he tried to apply what he had learned and perhaps gain some insight, even if it was just the basics.

But the result left him somewhat discouraged.

He had no idea how to transform the substantial essence and vitality of the flesh into intangible spiritual power.

He couldn't condense those illusory golden nails.

Perhaps Han Zhan could?

He shared this guess with Han Zhan, who gave him an answer.

"I can't do this kind of transformation from substance to non-substance either. It involves the use of laws, and even if the Great Year itself assisted and used a method to eradicate the root of the array, without understanding the essence of power, you wouldn't have even a chance to break this array."

"However, this array has given me some inspiration..."

Luo Chen was curious, "What inspiration?"

Han Zhan chuckled, "Inspiration is called inspiration because it hasn't been put into practice yet. I also don't know if it's right or wrong, so how can I tell you?"

"How about you, do you want to replicate this array?"

Luo Chen said, "How dare I?"

Han Zhan didn't think deeply about it but said, "In my opinion, this method is an application of the essence of power. Even if we low-level cultivators can't understand the essence of power, we can use tools to achieve similar effects, even if we only understand the 'what' and not the 'how'."

It was a bit vague.

But the current Luo Chen was no longer the same as the past, a clueless Qi Refinement stage junior cultivator. He vaguely understood what Han Zhan was saying.

Tools...

"Is the treasure you mentioned similar to the Rotten Axe Chess Soul-type treasure?"

"You're pretty smart." Han Zhan praised, then said, "However, such treasures are rare in the world. Even my Luoyun Sect, proficient in the art of soul cultivation, lacks such items. That's also why my Soul Splitting Technique has yet to reach its full potential."

To cultivate the Soul Splitting Technique to its peak, one needs a soul-type treasure.

Luo Chen noted down this information.

Then, he reflected on himself.

Soul-type treasures were indeed rare, especially those of the defensive type.

However, soul-type treasures for attack were occasionally seen in the cultivation world, even if their grades weren't particularly high.

As it happened, he had one such item.

"If I can learn the essence of the Soul Hooking and Spirit Binding Array and use it with external aid, I should be able to replace the Mirror Flower and Water Moon illusion technique."

Mirror Flower and Water Moon was powerful, capable of making opponents unknowingly fall into its trap during battle.

But once this technique was turned against the user, the consequences were dire.

Hence, Luo Chen rarely used this technique in cross-tier battles unless absolutely necessary.

In battles against peers at the Golden Core stage, his other means were more than enough to overwhelm his opponents.

Over time, this hard-earned technique, which was rooted in his eyes, gradually became less useful.

If he could find a replacement, especially one that used external aid and wouldn't backfire on him, it would make up for Luo Chen's shortcomings in soul attacks.

With this in mind, Luo Chen observed with meticulous detail.

His spiritual eyes didn't blink, and they even felt dry.

Time passed slowly.

In the Demon Abyss cave), thirty-six Golden Altar Rebirth Arrays had already been activated, and they were draining the life force from the three Golden Essence Spirit Stones in Mo Yun Cave Master's hand.

On Tai Sui's side, the changes were even more apparent.

His body was in a state of disintegration, with four of the seven nails already dissipated, and the remaining three becoming more and more ethereal, clearly about to fall.

The lingering remnant of Tai Sui occupying Ding Yi's body was like a flickering candle in the wind, bent over and crawling.

Large beads of sweat dripped from his face, shattering into pieces as they hit the ground.

One could imagine how challenging it was for the remnant to resist the suppression of the main body.

Hum...

As another golden nail dissipated, Tai Sui grunted and said, "Azure Sun Demon Lord, you should get ready over there."

"Mm."

The response was a simple "Mm."

Tai Sui didn't say more but roared and pinched a spiritual technique.

The next moment, clusters of spiritual mushrooms and green moss flew into the cave from outside, gathering on his body.

These were the powers Tai Sui had forcibly split from his main body over the past thousand years to reduce the burden of suppression.

Now, they gathered on Ding Yi's body as backup power.

"Eh?"

Luo Chen exclaimed softly, and his protective barrier flickered with spiritual light.

Some tiny, invisible things seemed to hover outside.

Just then, Tai Sui's voice came again.

"Don't resist; those are also the powers I split from my body. When you activate the Spirit Blocking Great Array later, you might be attacked by the Soul Hooking and Spirit Binding Array. With this power, you won't be recognized as an enemy."

Luo Chen hesitated.

Tai Sui spoke softly, "This is a battle between me and it. Outsiders who interfere might get hurt; it's better if you have my aura on you."

Luo Chen pursed his lips and opened his protective barrier, allowing the invisible things to attach to his body.

As his divine consciousness spread, he saw countless tiny particles.

Spores?

As this thought emerged, Luo Chen's attention was drawn to Mo Yun Cave Master's actions.

Another Golden Altar Rebirth Array had been activated!

...

Time flew by, and the last Golden Altar Rebirth Array in the cave lit up, marking the end of this operation.

Tai Sui was full of anticipation.

He could feel that the power of the Soul Hooking and Spirit Binding Array had been reduced to its lowest point.

Even though his physical body was shattered, his long-dormant soul was gradually awakening.

Just one more step!

Suddenly, Mo Yun Cave Master didn't release his pinch.

"At this point, you should give me the method to enter the inheritance site, right?"

Tai Sui seemed to have expected this and wasn't too surprised, only showing a moment of anger.

"You're really impatient."

Then, he transmitted his voice.

Luo Chen watched this scene without paying much attention because it was his turn next. Whether he could isolate the pursuit of the Soul Hooking and Spirit Binding Array depended on his Spirit Blocking Great Array.

After hearing what Tai Sui said, Mo Yun Cave Master's face showed uncertainty.

"Inside the Dragon Origin Magic? Are you trying to deceive me? That place is very dangerous; I can sense it even without entering."

These words were not transmitted but asked directly.

Even Luo Chen heard them clearly.

Tai Sui spoke solemnly, "As long as you follow the method I taught you and activate the treasure you prepared earlier, you can enter the inheritance site without any obstacles. Don't worry; I won't deceive you."

Mo Yun Cave Master hesitated for a moment, but his eyes gradually became firm.

"I believe an existence like you won't use this to deceive me."

After saying this, he executed the spiritual technique in his hand.

The next moment, a golden axe appeared and slashed down.

There was no movement, but in the hearts of the three, they seemed to hear a crisp cracking sound.

The last ethereal nail shattered.

"Azure Sun, quick!"

Tai Sui roared and pointed at his forehead.

Instantly, a gust of wind blew through the cave.

A substantial-like soul slowly floated out of the shattered Tai Sui's body.

With its appearance came a rustling sound.

Ethereal chains with hooks were pulling at the massive soul.

The massive soul flew out, moving extremely slowly, and headed towards Ding Yi's body.

Wherever it passed, the ethereal hooked chains dragged it, making its steps unsteady.

Luo Chen watched this scene, and he couldn't help but swallow.

The soul of a fifth-stage Tai Sui had already reached this level, and even its ethereal soul showed signs of solidification.

Astonishment lasted only for a moment.

The Soul-Blocking Great Array had already been activated.

Under his control, the array enveloped the Great Year's soul like a filter, gradually removing the weak and feeble hooks that had lost their abundant life force, one by one.

The vast soul slowly advanced, gradually freeing itself from its shackles.

Finally, after breaking free from the Soul-Blocking Great Array, it merged with Ding Yi's body with great difficulty.

Almost at the moment of fusion, the central cave where the Great Year's shattered body lay on the ground, flashed with green light, and within the blink of an eye, it had returned to its original state.

It seemed that the damage caused by the Thirty-Six Golden Altar Rebirth Array was nothing more than a drizzle to him.

At this moment, Luo Chen's face changed slightly.

His body also flashed with the same green light.

It was the power of the Great Year that had attached to his body before.

"What do you mean by this?!"

Luo Chen exclaimed in anger.

The Great Year turned a deaf ear, keeping his eyes closed as if adjusting to his new body.

At the cave entrance, the pale-faced Lord of Cloudsoaring Cave glanced at the two of them and then rushed out without a word.

He didn't even turn back!

After he left, the Great Year slowly opened his eyes, and his greedy gaze fell on Luo Chen.

"Even after years of training, Ding Yi's body is still too weak to bear my vast soul. And before leaving the Demon Annihilation Land, I couldn't even merge with my original body."

"Your body, a wild beast's physique, is obviously better, even the best vessel."

"Fellow Daoist, I'll take it!"

As he spoke, he slowly raised his finger towards Luo Chen.

However, before he could activate the green light, Luo Chen's body sprouted clusters of blue flames.

The faint green light, under the blue flames, was like dry wood meeting a raging fire, instantly igniting.

In the flickering light, the red robe turned into black armor.

Luo Chen's eyes turned cold, and he abruptly stood up, punching out.

"Do you think I have no precautions against you, Luo?"

In an instant, the cave was filled with howling wind and thunder.

The two were already very close, separated by only a dozen or so feet.

Within this distance, the power of Luo Chen's physical body was fully unleashed.

Just one punch.

Boom!

The Great Year was blasted back, like a torn sack, slamming into the cave wall.

A large hole appeared in his chest and abdomen.

Luo Chen slowly retracted his hand, grabbing a Golden Core and gently squeezing it.

Crack!

Ding Yi's Golden Core, cultivated for hundreds of years, suddenly shattered.

Pure spiritual power gushed out, forming a surging wave of energy within the cave.

For a normal person, this single strike would have been fatal, even for a Nascent Soul-stage cultivator.

However.

The Great Year, floating in the air, merely glanced at the hole in his chest and abdomen, then shook his head.

"Why bother? It's just a caged beast's struggle!"

At this moment, a sharp sword ringing sounded.

Seven streams of killing intent emerged from Luo Chen's saber case behind him, flying out like meteors.

Seeing this, the Great Year sneered.

"Such a lowly method, even more shallow, is this a case of showing off in front of the master?"

However, in the next moment, his face changed.

The seven streams of killing intent, within the surging energy, crisscrossed, forming a sword array.

The sword array, with its sharp killing intent and crisscrossing sword energy, was incredibly powerful.

This was definitely not one of Luo Chen's techniques!

He clearly remembered that the previous times Luo Chen had used this flying sword treasure, and its power was quite ordinary.

But now.

Could it be the method of the other person hidden within Luo Chen's body?

Suddenly, he clenched his teeth in anger.

The sword array wasn't aimed at him, but instead, it was heading towards his original body.

"Stop!"

A furious shout, and the Great Year staggered forward.

But after rushing forward for a short distance, he realized something was wrong.

Attacking him was only a means to save his original body.

As expected, the sword array turned back and covered the Great Year's fat body.

In an instant, blood and flesh flew, revealing white bones.

"I've underestimated you!"

The Great Year gritted his teeth, and with his hands pressed together, he opened a green umbrella.

He could feel that the power of this sword array was immense, not inferior to any Nascent Soul-stage cultivator's methods.

Even if his original body faced it directly, he would have to be extremely cautious, let alone his newly merged incarnation.

Amidst the surging energy, a black light tore through the air.

"Hmph!"

The Great Year snorted, exhaling a breath, and the black light instantly slowed down, revealing its form in mid-air.

It was a black nail.

A nail?

The Great Year's body trembled, and he instinctively felt uncomfortable.

At this moment, Luo Chen burst out from the surging energy, his five fingers spread out, transforming into a flesh palm.

One palm pressed down on... the black nail.

With the support of terrifying power, the black nail broke through layer after layer of resistance, and in an instant, it landed on the Great Year's forehead.

"Ahhhhh!"

The shrill howl almost shattered eardrums.

Luo Chen coldly snorted, withdrew, and didn't have the intention to completely eradicate his opponent.

The Great Year's soul was too vast, and this inferior black nail might not be able to thoroughly kill him.

Taking advantage of the fact that the opponent could only control a portion of Ding Yi's power for a short time, temporarily suppressing him was enough.

In his hand, he touched something.

Cold and soft.

A spiritual light flashed, and the object disappeared from its original location.

"Fellow Daoist, I'll take your body."

"No need to see you out!"

Before he finished speaking, Luo Chen had already rushed out of the cave, and before leaving, he slapped the cave with his palm, causing it to collapse.

After he left, boulders rolled, and a large number of stones fell, completely burying the cave.

After a few breaths.

Bang!

A loud noise, and the Great Year stepped out of the smoke and dust, the black nail on his forehead had been pushed out by a third.

His face, dark and gloomy, was now filled with anger.

His original body had been taken away! He had set his sights on Luo Chen's wild beast physique, and the other party had also set their sights on his Great Year's body, cultivated for tens of thousands of years.

The so-called oath and promise had already ended when his soul broke free.

Now, it was a loss on both sides.

He reached out, gripping the black nail, and slowly pulled it out.

"Ah..."

The continuous painful cries finally stopped, and the black nail fell to the ground with a clang.

Looking at the deep abyss, dark and without a trace of daylight, the Great Year roared:

"You can't escape!"

With a thought, the originally dark and gloomy abyss suddenly glowed with green light.

That was the power he had divided and spread throughout the entire Demon Annihilation Land over the past few hundred years.

The Azure Sun Demon King was still in the jar!

...

In the depths of the abyss, a figure soared into the sky.

Luo Chen's face lit up with joy.

He got it!

Finally, he had obtained the Five-stage Great Year.

The Great Year coveted his Primordial Beast body, and he couldn't help but have similar thoughts. Along the way, the Great Year had repeatedly tested him, even going too far, but he endured it all, for the sake of this moment.

As for the battle, there were surprises, but the outcome was as expected.

Back in the Blazing Hell, he had sensed that the Great Year seemed to dislike that environment.

In other words, the Fire Spirit had a strong restraining effect on the Great Year.

Luo Chen had originally planned to use all his Prosper-Doom True Flame to battle the Great Year, but after observing the Soul-Hooking Nail Spirit Array, he had another idea.

Soul-Breaking Nail!

This treasure was bestowed upon him by the Great Elder Helian Yun of the Lianyun Merchant Alliance during the Great Snow Mountain battle.

At that time, the Great Elder had consecutively unleashed the Break-Qi, Break-Armor, and Break-Soul black nails.

After the battle, Luo Chen naturally obtained the corresponding spoils of war.

During subsequent battles, the Break-Qi and Break-Armor nails were both damaged beyond repair, and the Soul-Breaking Nail was also put away by Luo Chen.

This time, Luo Chen's luck was with him, and using a method similar to the Soul-Hooking Nail Spirit Array, he struck the Great Year's divine soul, achieving an unexpected effect and thus gaining the time needed to collect the Great Year's flesh.

"You should be grateful that his power has been continuously divided over the past few hundred years, and Ding Yi's Golden Core was destroyed by you. Otherwise, even with my help, you would have likely failed."

Han Zhan's voice echoed in his ears.

Luo Chen burst into hearty laughter, "If he hadn't revealed such a weak state, I wouldn't have had such evil thoughts. Now that it's done, let's get out of here!"

Amidst his laughter, Luo Chen's wings trembled, and he flew off even faster.

...

After an incense stick's worth of time.

Luo Chen's face turned gloomy as he dove into the depths of the abyss, his previous smile replaced by the full activation of the array.

Han Zhan smiled bitterly, "Such an existence, how could it be so easy to deal with? You should have thought of this earlier."

Luo Chen remained silent, and a green flame enveloped his body.

Sizzle!

On his arm, the mushroom that had just grown was instantly turned to ashes.

Just then, as he was about to fly out of the abyss, a giant mushroom appeared out of nowhere, blocking his path.

The mushroom was powerful, but Luo Chen, with all his strength, was not afraid.

However, after destroying that mushroom, small mushrooms started growing on his body.

These mushrooms were absorbing his spiritual power.

If not for the restraining effect of the Prosper-Doom True Flame, Luo Chen might have become a mushroom man himself.

And such existences began to appear both inside and outside the abyss.

Luo Chen understood that these things were likely the power that the Great Year had divided and spread over the past few hundred years, similar to the lingering thoughts on Ding Yi's body.

These divided powers of the Great Year were not strong enough to be uncontrollable, but that mysterious power...

Could it be the so-called fundamental law force?

But wasn't it said that ordinary wood and stone spirits, even if they reached the fifth stage, couldn't utilize the fundamental law force within them?

Another mushroom sprouted from his head.

Luo Chen waved his hand, and a blue flame enveloped him, emitting a strange fragrance.

If given enough time, he was confident that he could eliminate this power with his enhanced Prosper-Doom True Flame.

But what he lacked right now was time.

"I can't keep fighting these guys; killing them doesn't work, and it only makes my spiritual power weaker."

Han Zhan asked, "Then how do you plan to leave this abyss?"

Luo Chen's gaze swept the surroundings.

At the top of the cliff, countless Great Year clones were gathering, and if the Great Year's divine soul commanded them, those clones would surely become even more formidable.

And at the bottom of the abyss...

Luo Chen took only a glance before quickly averting his eyes.

Finally, he looked towards the towering spiritual energy tornado that connected heaven and earth.

He gritted his teeth and turned his head in another direction.

But after the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, several green lights flew over, and faint voices emerged.

"You can't escape, you can't escape!"

"Give it back, give my body back to me!"

Facing these weak clones, comparable to Golden Core Cultivators, and strong ones, even rivaling fourth-stage Fire Spirits, Luo Chen was forced to retreat.

He wasn't afraid of a direct confrontation, even if it was a Nascent Soul Cultivator; he dared to fight them now.

But that kind of existence, once attached, would be like bone-boring maggots, drawing out not only his spiritual power but even his essence blood, and he didn't want to have anything to do with them.

"You bastards!"

Luo Chen cursed under his breath and rushed towards the towering spiritual energy tornado.

Han Zhan watched silently, his heart murmuring, "Perhaps this was the decision your subconscious mind hoped for."

...

After a few breaths.

The Great Year, controlling his plump body, arrived outside the spiritual energy tornado.

His robe flapped in the raging wind, and the flesh on his face trembled continuously.

"Damn, he really went in!"

Cursing, the Great Year fell into a predicament of being unable to advance or retreat.

Finally, he looked around and saw that the number of green lights had increased to several hundred.

"To leave the Demon Annihilation Land, I can only pass through Bright Heaven."

"The Soul-Hooking Nail Spirit Array is gone, and without the attraction of the original body, the True Lord's seals shouldn't be triggered again."

"Let's try it!"

Gritting his teeth, the Great Year opened his mouth.

The next moment, the several hundred green lights began to gather towards him.

His body, like an inflated balloon, started to wildly expand.

The cavity in his chest and abdomen, which Luo Chen had struck, gradually filled with flesh and blood.

His aura also began to rise incessantly, and in the blink of an eye, it surpassed the Golden Core stage, reaching the early, mid, and even the peak of the mid Nascent Soul stage.

But at the last step, he couldn't break through no matter what.

The Great Year cursed softly again and then cautiously stepped into the tornado.

The spiritual energy swept him around, and after a few rounds, the Great Year's figure completely disappeared.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end