https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-687-Cleansing-the-Soul-The-Old-Immortal-at-the-Sea-s-Edge/12942665/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-689-Demon-Transformation-Monster-Transformation-and-Human-Transformation/12942667/
Chapter 688: Puppet Capital, The Simplest Challenge
Chapter 688: Puppet Capital, The Simplest Challenge
"I am Sea Corner Heavenly Mother, greetings, fellow cultivator!" The old woman spoke, and with her words, she abruptly made a move, pointing and flicking her finger towards Luo Chen.
A faint light suddenly appeared.
As straightforward as she was, she directly decided to eliminate her competitor.
Just at that moment, when the faint light approached within a few feet of Luo Chen, it suddenly vanished without a trace.
It disappeared silently, without a sound or any disturbance.
"What?!"
The old woman exclaimed in surprise, seemingly not expecting this outcome.
Luo Chen also let out a surprised exclamation.
"Huh..."
Within the Pill World, that weak voice appeared once more.
"Within the Pill World, only the Pill Dao shall endure. Do not dare to create disputes, harbor murderous intent, or you will be punished!"
The rumbling voice echoed through the mountains and clouds, and despite its weakness and depth, the killing intent within it was unmistakable.
Under this voice, Sea Corner Heavenly Mother's face turned ugly.
Luo Chen, on the other hand, smiled.
When he saw his opponent earlier, he was on full alert and had already prepared for battle.
Especially when he saw the strange attack she unleashed, its speed and the immense power it contained, he knew it was not something a Core Formation Cultivator could display.
If they were to fight, he would undoubtedly face a tough battle.
But he never expected that this realm would have such restrictions.
Indeed, the Pill World is a place of Pill Dao inheritance, and all competitions are held through Pill Dao assessments. How could they be so reckless as to engage in fighting and killing?
He smiled slightly, "Sea Corner Heavenly Mother? Before we met, you mistakenly gave me the bamboo slips, and now you dare to make a move so rashly. Tsk, tsk, a generation of Demon King, and this is how you conduct yourself?"
Sea Corner Heavenly Mother looked at Luo Chen without any emotion, her thoughts unreadable.
The next moment, a booming sound rang out, and Luo Chen's figure suddenly appeared beside her, the wind raging as he spoke with ridicule.
"A beast is still a beast, even in human form, it doesn't change its barbaric nature of devouring raw meat, and its wild and reckless ways."
"You!"
Luo Chen shook his head and walked past her with long strides, heading straight for the center of this realm.
Behind him, Sea Corner Heavenly Mother held her medicine basket, her expression turning from emotionless to a deep shade of blue.
She, Sea Corner Heavenly Mother, was one of the top figures in the Northern Sea Demon Race. Even though her cultivation realm wasn't particularly high, all Demon Kings of the same level had to show her respect.
It could even be said that some Nascent Soul True Men of the human race maintained good relations with her in private.
All of this was because she was skilled in pill refining.
Undoubtedly, she was a master-level figure in the Pill Dao of the Northern Sea.
No one knew how many years had passed since someone had been so disrespectful to her and spoken so arrogantly.
If it were in the outside world, she wouldn't even need to take action herself. With a single order, there would be plenty of people willing to deal with this junior on her behalf.
It was just a pity that there was a stronger force suppressing them within the Pill World...
A stronger force...
The old woman suddenly let out a cold laugh.
"Human brat, how dare you be so rude. Do you really think you can rely on the rules of this place to protect you for your entire life?"
Luo Chen's steps halted.
Without turning back, his tone was filled with absolute confidence.
"I only took three years to catch up to your progress of several years. I believe that even if there are other challenges ahead, my speed of breaking through will surpass yours. This inheritance, Luo will claim it!"
"As for who will prevail outside of this place, that remains to be seen."
"Sea Corner Heavenly Mother, you should first consider whether you can pass the assessment and leave this place of inheritance!"
After saying this, he didn't linger any further and left leisurely.
That powerful confidence seemed to linger in the air.
The old woman's cold laughter faded, and as she watched Luo Chen's departing figure, her expression shifted between surprise and uncertainty, her face constantly changing.
...
Not long after, in a dense forest of black soil, Luo Chen walked calmly, his face filled with contemplation.
"Sea Corner Heavenly Mother, it's this demon!"
He knew this name from a random glance at the intelligence database of the Ten Thousand Immortals Assembly.
This demon had an extremely renowned reputation in the Northern Sea Cultivation World! She was a master-level pill refining figure, and even though she was only at the early Nascent Soul stage, she held a high position within the demon race.
Not only that, but she was also one of the few demons who had indirect connections with the major human sects.
It was said that once, during a human Pill Dao grand gathering, she even personally participated. Even after her identity was discovered, she left calmly.
Her influence was so great that it transcended the distinction between humans and demons.
For such an existence, if Luo Chen had encountered her normally, he would have to be very careful.
Even if he didn't try to curry favor, he wouldn't offend her so blatantly, let alone mock her as he had just done.
The reason he did this was actually very simple.
With the inheritance at stake, they were all enemies.
Since there were rules restricting the use of force in this realm, he decided to use the sharpness of his words to disrupt her cultivation path.
As for the effect?
"It should be effective, right?"
Luo Chen muttered to himself, still not entirely sure.
At the level of an Incarnated Demon Cultivator, they were no longer shallow-minded beasts with limited spiritual intelligence. They were almost indistinguishable from the Nascent Soul True Men of the human race.
One could say that even if their schemes weren't as deep as the ocean, they wouldn't be easily swayed by a few words.
But in Luo Chen's opinion, no matter how good-tempered or deep their schemes were, if they were criticized in their area of expertise, they wouldn't be able to remain calm.
Among the people Luo Chen had met in the past, whether it was Huang Hezi from Green Pill Valley or Meng Changshou from the Medicine King Sect, if you said their cultivation realm wasn't high, they would just smile and not care. But if you said their pill refining skills were lacking, they would truly get angry.
Another example was the recently familiar Lord of Cloudsoaring Cave; usually, he was fine, but as soon as it involved matters like artifact refining and casting, his emotions would become completely different.
Sea Corner Heavenly Mother, despite her advanced age, didn't seem to have a very high cultivation realm, which showed that she had devoted most of her energy to the path of pill refining.
By criticizing her in this way, it was impossible for her not to be affected.
Especially since a part of what he said was true!
He, Luo Chen, had indeed caught up to her progress in just two years and had reached the third challenge!
If he continued like this, surpassing Sea Corner Heavenly Mother was only a matter of time.
Luo Chen didn't believe that she could remain as calm as Mount Tai in the face of such a straightforward truth.
"Disrupting her heart will naturally grant me some advantage, even if it's only temporary, it will buy me some time."
Luo Chen muttered, his gaze falling upon the black forest filled with demonic energy.
The fruits that grew on the spiritual trees here were unfamiliar to him, something he had never seen or heard of before.
And the sinister demonic energy that filled the air further confirmed his previous guess.
It was highly likely that this third challenge was related to the Demon Race.
This time, it might be even more challenging than the previous two gates.
...
In a world filled with towering trees and a forest of mechanical gears, the sound of "clank, clank, clank" echoed everywhere.
From a bird's-eye view, countless lifeless creatures could be vaguely seen in the mechanical city.
This place was the Puppet Capital!
Suddenly, a gigantic bird soared into the sky from within the capital, stirring up countless winds and clouds.
Reaching an extreme height, its wings spread wide, and its body gradually slowed down.
In its lively eyes, there was nothing but joy.
"Haha, this puppet technique is so perfectly suited for me!"
Within two years, Han Zhan had broken through nine gates and conquered the third Puppet Capital.
At this moment, the Nascent Soul he controlled was a towering figure, reaching the initial stage of the Nascent Soul realm!
This was already the strongest puppet he could create when he still had his physical body.
"I wonder how Luo Chen is doing?"
The peculiar, mechanical-like giant bird circled above the Puppet Capital, and below, numerous wooden birds of the same design but different sizes flew up, forming a circle around him.
After muttering about Luo Chen for a while, Han Zhan rode the giant bird and controlled the flock, flying towards a more distant place.
Several days later.
An even more majestic iron city came into view.
Han Zhan rode the giant bird, his gaze scanning the grand city below.
Unlike the previous capital filled with countless puppets, this time, there was only a majestic figure crawling in the center of the city.
Its body was silver-white, and its hair was like blades.
On its forehead, a large 'King' character seemed to pierce through one's heart.
Upon seeing this, Han Zhan's heart trembled involuntarily.
"Could it be that this time, I'm required to create a puppet that can defeat a White Tiger puppet comparable to the late Nascent Soul stage?"
"How is that even possible?"
...
Swords, spears, halberds, axes, hooks, forks, cudgels, whips, hammers, and claws...
This was the world of weapons.
Or rather, this was like a graveyard for all kinds of weapons.
When the breeze blew, the sounds of killing and slaughter resonated, echoing clearly.
If a high-level cultivator were here, their heart would undoubtedly be stirred.
This was because the weapons stuck in the ground and scattered everywhere were all rare and exquisite treasures rarely seen in the outside world.
From low-level magical tools to high-level magical treasures, and even true artifacts, could be seen everywhere.
How could one not be dazzled by this sight?
Beneath a towering Iron Mountain.
A middle-aged man with a refined and elegant demeanor was currently wearing a sweatshirt and vigorously wielding a hammer in front of him.
In front of him, an iron sword was taking shape.
"I'm using an ancient method to forge this sword, and perhaps I can pass the test and ascend another mountain!"
As he hammered the sword, the middle-aged man's thoughts became slightly complicated.
"I wonder how Shao Shang and Xiao Lian are doing?"
"The words of the powerful Li are not entirely true. He only said that there is a Spirit Sculpting Holy Spring inside the inheritance site but didn't mention that there are over ten different inheritances."
"I wonder if the paths that Shao Shang and Xiao Lian chose are dangerous..."
Just as he was deep in thought, his heart suddenly stirred.
He stopped his movements and looked towards the direction he came from.
Someone was climbing Battlefield Mountain!
"It's that Mo Yun boy!"
With the means he had left behind, the middle-aged man instantly knew who the pursuer was.
Thinking of the other party, the man's expression turned gloomy.
"This person's name contains the word 'Yun', which conflicts with my name, Gu Feiyun. Now, we're competing for the same inheritance, facing off against each other."
"Based on the low-grade magical treasure he forged according to the requirements of the test, I can't afford to delay any longer."
"But..."
He looked towards the Iron Mountain behind him, as if seeing through it to the even taller Battlefield Mountains beyond.
"This is only the third gate, and it already involves high-grade magical treasures. If I want to obtain the true inheritance, do I have to forge a true artifact or even a spirit treasure?"
Thinking of the difficult road ahead, Gu Feiyun's heart became more anxious.
"There are three thousand two hundred demon tribes, and seven or eight body refiners. All they seek is the ancient demon body."
"The ancient demons stand tall and mighty, treading upon mountains and rivers... the foundation of all things, arising from the most humble beginnings..."
In the study, Luo Chen closed his eyes, skillfully studying the test.
On the first read, he was delighted to find that this gate might be the simplest of the three for him.
The pill he needed to refine was a body-strengthening pill! Moreover, it wasn't of high grade, just a bit complicated.
It extended in three directions: skin, bones, and blood.
Just like the previous two gates, there was no specific pill formula, but Luo Chen's over a hundred years of essence spirit body tempering made him adept in this path.
With his Ancient Fourth Stage physique, he could take a top-down approach and deduce the low-grade body-strengthening pill.
The only thing he needed to consider was probably making the pills suitable for the demon race's body.
Luo Chen didn't understand the demon race, nor had he ever seen a demon's body.
But he believed that the answers were hidden within those bamboo slips in the study!
Next, he just needed to read through those bamboo slips, collect the ingredients, deduce the pill formula, and refine the pill.
"This time, I've finally encountered something simple!"
Luo Chen murmured.
But immediately, he put away his smile.
He clearly remembered that when he first arrived, Haijiao Tianlao was collecting herbs.
This indicated that she had likely already reached further than him.
"I can't afford to delay."
Without hesitation, he stepped into the bookshelves, immersing himself in the ocean of knowledge.
Soon after.
An old woman in a colorful green dress returned to the study, looking at the young man holding bamboo slips and eagerly absorbing knowledge about the alchemy path with a resentful expression.
"How arrogant of this youngster! Does he think he can pass the tests set by ancient cultivators so easily?"
"I don't know how you got through the first two gates, but this third gate will leave you helpless and clueless."
With complicated thoughts in her mind, Haijiao Tianlao turned and left the room.
She had already deduced a new pill formula and collected the ingredients. This time, she was sure to succeed!
When the time came, she would definitely pass this gate before him!
Not only would she secure the inheritance, but after leaving, she would also catch this fellow named Azure Sun Demon Lord and make him suffer, repaying him for his previous offense!
(End of Chapter)
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