NABC Chapter 32: Jade Decree - Binding Spirits and Dispersing Souls!
Chapter 32: Jade Decree - Binding Spirits and Dispersing Souls!
The massive carcass of the Thunder-Patterned Python lay sprawled on the ground, like a lifeless, dark blue mountain ridge.
Xuan Tianyi dragged his weary body slowly to the enormous head that, even in death, remained ferocious and terrifying, and squatted down.
The drizzle dampened his hair and clothes, but he was oblivious, his gaze calmly fixed on the gradually fading pale golden vertical pupils.
As Yan Jun and Liu Ruyan walked towards the Thunder Pool, preparing to pick the Seven-Leaf Thunder Spirit Flower, Xuan Tianyi's right hand was already hovering above the cold, slippery brow of the python's head.
He was not mourning or examining, but waiting, waiting for that brief moment when the purest demonic spirit had died completely but had not yet completely dissipated into the world.
With eyes slightly closed, his consciousness sank entirely into his sea of consciousness.
Jade Decree: Binding Spirits and Sending Away Souls.
Xuan Tianyi focused his mind on the jade token, carefully sensing the profound mysteries it contained.
This technique is neither a direct attack nor a defensive enhancement, but a profound method involving soul contracts and the control of the soul.
With his current cultivation level, it would have been absolutely impossible for him to touch this path, but by relying on the true meaning of the law of the jade token transformed from the hexagrams of the Book of Changes, he was able to forcibly and barely exert its superficial aspects.
"Now!"
Xuan Tianyi sensed that the powerful soul originating from the Star Sea Realm demon beast within the Thunder Pattern Python's corpse was rapidly dissipating, and if it was not stopped soon, it would completely return to the world.
He suddenly opened his eyes, and a faint golden contract rune flashed in the depths of his pupils.
He formed an ancient and profound hand seal in front of his chest—not a martial arts hand seal, but a seal that directly communicates with the "Spirit Binding and Soul Dispatch" jade token and invokes the laws of the soul!
"Jade Decree - Binding Spirits and Dispersing Souls - Summon!"
The deep and majestic chanting echoed on the soul level. Xuan Tianyi poured all his remaining spiritual power and the trace of contract and Daoist inspiration from the jade token into the hand seal, and pointed it at the center of the thunder-patterned python's brow from a distance!
hum-
The void trembled!
An invisible ripple, touching the very soul, spread out from Xuan Tianyi's fingertips!
"roar--!!!"
The next instant, a roar of a soul filled with violence, resentment, pain and endless ferocity suddenly burst out from the body of the Thunder-Patterned Python!
The roar did not travel through the air, but directly affected the consciousness of the three people present!
"Who?!"
Liu Ruyan, who was carefully picking the Seven-Leaf Thunder Spirit Flower, trembled and almost dropped the jade knife in her hand.
Her sea of consciousness felt as if it had been struck by a heavy hammer. A pressure originating from the soul level descended suddenly. The thunderous and violent intent contained within, along with the resentment and obsession of the Star Sea Realm demon beast before its death, shook her soul, and her face turned pale instantly!
"hiss--!"
Yan Jun also let out a muffled groan, his burly body swaying slightly, and the greatsword in his hand slammed into the ground with a clang to stabilize himself.
His Star Sea Realm cultivation level gave him strong resistance to attacks on the soul, but this unexpected roar, which directly affected his soul, still made his blood surge and his mind buzz.
He turned around abruptly, his large, coppery eyes fixed on the direction of Xuan Tianyi and the corpse of the Thunder-Patterned Python, his face filled with shock and vigilance.
"This is... a manifestation of the soul? What is Tianyi doing?"
Before their horrified eyes, above the corpse of the Thunder-Patterned Python, the air twisted violently, and a hideous python-shaped phantom, more than two zhang long and entirely composed of pale blue lightning and pitch-black resentment, was twisting, struggling and manifesting wildly!
This is the lingering demonic soul of the Thunder-Patterned Python!
However, this soul body was translucent light purple, and its aura had dropped from the fourth level of the Star Sea Realm in its previous life to around the second level of the Star Sea Realm.
Although it is not as solid and powerful as it was in life, the residual pressure of the Star Sea Realm, the lightning attribute, and the overwhelming ferocity within it still make people tremble.
The demonic phantom's vertical pupils, composed entirely of soul power, stared intently at Xuan Tianyi, filled with the most primal desire for destruction, as if it wanted to drag him into an abyss where his soul would be scattered.
The demonic soul struggled, actually drawing upon the remaining lightning power within the corpse. Fine arcs of electricity leaped across the body, merging with the soul's shadow, making it more solid and causing it to struggle even more violently.
It even opened its illusory giant mouth, as if to bite Xuan Tianyi. The fluctuations of soul power swept through like a storm, impacting Xuan Tianyi's mind.
Xuan Tianyi was the first to be hit. His face turned ashen, his body swayed, and fine blood trickled from his seven orifices!
After all, he was only at the Body Tempering Realm. Although his spiritual power was nourished by the "Eight Scenery Mystic Life Lamp," its quantity and quality were far inferior to the remnant soul of a Star Sea Realm demon beast. At this moment, when he was directly subjected to the counterattack and pressure of its soul, he was like a candle in the wind, and his sea of consciousness was in excruciating pain, as if it was about to explode.
But his eyes remained cold and calm, showing no sign of backing down.
The hand seal remained unchanged; instead, he frantically poured his last bit of spiritual energy into it, uttering a low shout that sounded like the clash of metal, carrying an undeniable power of law:
"Your physical body is gone, your soul is adrift, yet you still dare to wreak havoc!"
"Following the true meaning of the hexagram, restraining your remaining spirit, and using the contract for its application!"
"town!"
As he uttered the last word "镇" (zhen, meaning "suppress"), a dazzling golden light suddenly shone from between Xuan Tianyi's eyebrows!
Within that golden light, a complex contract rune could be faintly seen flowing, which was the manifestation of the core essence of the "Binding Spirits and Dispelling Souls" jade token!
At the same time, between his hands that were forming a hand seal, a pale golden light shone brightly, and countless intricate and profound pale golden chain phantoms, composed of the power of soul laws, appeared out of thin air. As if they had a life of their own, they quickly wrapped around the struggling and roaring Thunder Pattern Python demon soul!
"Roar—!"
The demonic soul let out an even more shrill and venomous roar, twisting wildly as pale blue soul power and black resentment erupted, attempting to shatter these Daoist chains.
The collision of the two generated silent ripples of soul power, causing Yan Jun and Liu Ruyan, who were far away, to feel a stinging pain in their souls once again. They had no choice but to circulate their cultivation techniques to protect their sea of consciousness, and their hearts were filled with great horror.
They now understood that Xuan Tianyi was using some kind of secret method to forcibly imprison the soul of this Star Sea Realm demon beast!
Such methods are simply unheard of!
The pale golden chains flickered erratically under the frenzied resistance of the demon soul. Xuan Tianyi's body trembled even more violently, and more blood flowed from his mouth and nose, but his eyes were sharp as knives as he desperately maintained the hand seals and the output of his spiritual power.
"Since I can sever your physical body, I can also suppress your soul! Disperse!"
He suddenly bit his tongue, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the hand seal!
As the essence blood merged in, the pale golden chains suddenly shone brightly, becoming more solid and tightly bound together. They began to forcefully penetrate and imprint themselves into the demon soul's phantom, like branding!
The demon's struggle abruptly halted, and in its illusory eyes, violence and resentment were replaced by a trace of bewilderment and forced obedience.
The pale golden chains completely merged into its soul, transforming into countless tiny contract runes that covered the soul's body.
The spirit has been successfully captured!
hiss……
The struggle of the soul came to an abrupt end.
That was the power of the laws that touched upon imprisonment and contracts—it began to forcibly assimilate its soul.
Struggle, twisting, anger and resentment...
Ultimately, all negative emotions were forcibly suppressed, replaced by a sense of awe and submission that came from the depths of the soul.
The enormous, pale purple python soul slowly lowered its ferocious head, bowing respectfully to Xuan Tianyi.
Xuan Tianyi relaxed and began to cough violently, but his hand seals changed from "Restrain" to "Accept".
"receive!"
The illusory image of the Thunder-Patterned Python, which had been completely bound by the pale golden contract runes and had become docile, let out a low hiss.
It then suddenly contracted and condensed, eventually transforming into a fist-sized, deep blue stream of light containing thunder and soul power. With a "whoosh," it entered Xuan Tianyi's brow with lightning speed!
"Tianyi!" Liu Ruyan exclaimed in surprise, and moved to step forward.
The possession of a demonic beast's soul is extremely dangerous and can easily backfire on the host's soul!
"It's alright!" Xuan Tianyi raised his hand to stop him, his voice weak but firm.
He closed his eyes, focused his mind, and looked inward at himself.
After the wisp of deep blue light entered his brow, it did not impact his sea of consciousness. Instead, guided by the "Spirit Binding and Soul Dispatch" jade token, it directly entered the token's interior.
There, at the core of the Jade Token, there was a newly opened, hazy space, only a foot in diameter.
In the center of the space, a complex pale gold master contract rune slowly rotated, emitting fluctuations of maintenance and constraint.
The deep blue light entered this "Spirit Contract Space," like a weary bird returning to its nest, slowly circling around the main contract rune. The fluctuations of soul power gradually stabilized and were no longer violent.
Xuan Tianyi's body trembled slightly.
A cool yet powerful soul force seemed to flow into him through some unseen connection, merging with the Eight Scenery Mystic Life Lamp in his sea of consciousness, transforming into wisps of lamp oil that fell down to strengthen his spirit.
Worth it!
Another trump card for survival!
After doing all this, Xuan Tianyi finally let out a long sigh of relief, his body swaying as he almost collapsed to the ground.
This time, the imprisonment of the Star Sea Realm demon soul consumed even more of his mental energy than the previous battle. If he hadn't used the Jade Token Law to cheat, and if the Thunder Pattern Python hadn't just died and its soul was in its weakest and most dissipated state, there would have been no way he could have succeeded.
But he did it in the end.
"Kid, are you...are you alright?"
Yan Jun strode over, his face filled with surprise and uncertainty. He wanted to reach out and help him but hesitated. The ferocity of the demonic soul and the methods Xuan Tianyi had used had truly made him feel uneasy.
Liu Ruyan also walked quickly closer, her clear and cold eyes carefully examining Xuan Tianyi, paying particular attention to his brow and eyes. Seeing that although he was tired and weak, his eyes were clear, and his soul fluctuations were weak but stable, with no signs of being devoured by the demon soul, she was slightly relieved, but the look of inquiry in her eyes became even stronger.
More and more secrets are being revealed about this boy.
"I'm fine, Uncle Yan, Miss Liu."
Xuan Tianyi forced a smile, wiped the blood from his mouth and nose, took out an ordinary nourishing pill and swallowed it. He felt the stinging pain in his sea of consciousness ease slightly.
"It's just that the consumption was a bit high. I've already used a secret technique to restrain and seal this demonic soul, so it can't cause any trouble now, but it can still be of some help in the future."
He did not explain "binding spirits and sending souls" and "spirit space" in detail, and Yan Jun and Liu Ruyan tacitly did not ask further.
Everyone has their own opportunities and secrets, and excessive prying is not the way for allies to get along.
As long as it is confirmed that Xuan Tianyi is unharmed and that his methods will not harm our side, it is acceptable.
"It's good that you're alright."
Yan Jun breathed a sigh of relief and patted Xuan Tianyi's shoulder heavily.
"Next time you do something this scary, give me a heads-up beforehand, or my heart can't take it."
The center of the island returned to silence, except for the still surging Thunder Pool, where silver-blue lightning flickered and emitted a low "buzzing" sound, illuminating the three survivors.
"Phew...it's finally...resolved."
Yan Jun let out a long breath, his voice a little hoarse, carrying the fatigue of the fierce battle and a hint of barely perceptible relaxation.
His gaze, filled with complex emotions, fell upon Xuan Tianyi, who stood tall despite his weakened state. This seemingly handsome young man had displayed a multitude of skills today—accurate divination, opening secret realms, mysterious chains, a fatal blow, and the ability to control souls…
It repeatedly overturned his understanding.
This is no ordinary Body Tempering Realm martial artist; he cannot even be simply described as a "genius."
"Tianyi, how are your injuries? That chain spell must have had quite a backlash, right?"
Liu Ruyan sheathed her longsword, her cool gaze falling on Xuan Tianyi's pale face, her tone carrying a hint of concern.
Her clothes were torn at the shoulder by the aftershocks of the previous battle, revealing a small patch of fair skin and a faint bloodstain, but she didn't care at all, she was more concerned about Xuan Tianyi's condition.
After all, if it weren't for his miraculous chain restraints, the three of them would have had to pay a much higher price to kill the Thunder-Patterned Python, and might even have failed.
Xuan Tianyi shook his head, his gaze sweeping over Yan Jun and Liu Ruyan, finally settling on the harvest that was suspended in mid-air between the three of them, temporarily supported by Liu Ruyan's star power.
"A slight tremor, I'll recover after a short rest. Thank you for your concern, Miss Liu."
His voice was steady, revealing little emotion, but his gaze was sharply focused on the shimmering, ethereal object.
The Seven-Leaf Thunder Spirit Flower floated quietly, its seven long, narrow leaves unfurling in a deep purplish-blue hue. The natural silver-white lightning patterns on the leaves seemed to move slowly as if they were alive.
Each flicker of light caused the surrounding space to distort slightly, radiating a pure and powerful thunderous vitality.
At the center of the cluster of seven leaves, the purplish-gold bud, though not yet fully open, already exudes a spiritual light and emits a unique fragrance. Just smelling it makes one feel refreshed and relieves hidden wounds.
What's even more captivating is that beneath the flowers and leaves, four fruits, each the size of a longan, perfectly round and resembling carvings of the finest amethyst, float on the water.
The peel is almost transparent, and strands of silvery-purple lightning liquid can be seen flowing inside, emitting lightning energy fluctuations that are far more violent yet purer than those of the flowers and leaves. The deep humming sound seems to contain thunder within.
Beside them, in several jade bottles that Liu Ruyan had taken out to hold the thunder slurry from the Thunder Pool, a viscous, silvery-purple liquid was gently swaying.
Each tiny ripple explodes with fine electric sparks. Although the energy contained within is not as pure as that of the Thunder Spirit Fruit, it is more abundant and equally valuable.
"This thing is called the Seven-Leaf Thunder Spirit Flower, which is an extremely rare spiritual plant of the heaven and earth, recorded in ancient books."
Liu Ruyan took a deep breath, forcibly calming her emotions that were somewhat agitated by the presence of the spiritual flower. She pointed to the leaf with veins that seemed to have molten gold flowing through it, and her clear, cold voice carried a hint of barely perceptible excitement.
"Within its flowers and leaves lies the purest and most refined life force of thunder. In particular, these seven leaves are an excellent medicine for nourishing the soul, strengthening the spirit, dispelling evil from the soul, and suppressing inner demons."
For those whose souls are damaged, or those who cultivate special techniques or secret arts that place extremely high demands on the soul, it has immeasurable value.
Her gaze shifted to the four lightning-encrusted fruits beneath the flower, and she continued:
"And this Thunder Spirit Fruit is a powerful and potent medicine that can temper the body, boost blood and qi, and enhance the cultivation of blood and qi and star power. Its medicinal properties are extremely strong. Ordinary cultivators need to supplement it with other mild medicines or have a master protect them to refine it step by step."
If taken directly, one must endure excruciating pain, like thunder striking the body and cleansing the marrow, but the effects are also the most significant and direct, greatly benefiting one's foundation.
"As for this thunder-infused liquid,"
Liu Ruyan finally looked at the jade bottles.
"Although its effects are far less potent than those of the Thunder Spirit Fruit, it has the advantage of being plentiful and relatively mild. It is an invaluable product for daily body tempering and bone strengthening, or as a catalyst when cultivating thunder-based techniques. Long-term use can solidify the foundation and subtly improve physical constitution."
The three sat around the gradually cooling corpse of the Thunder-Patterned Python, facing a rich spoil that would make even Star Sea Realm cultivators envious. A subtle silence fell over the scene.
How to allocate resources not only tests each other's character and tacit understanding, but also concerns the trust and cooperation that will follow.
Xuan Tianyi broke the silence first. His gaze swept over the seven Thunder Spirit Leaves, then he looked at Liu Ruyan and said sincerely:
"Miss Liu, since these leaves are crucial to your healing of old injuries, I won't take them. You can discuss the distribution with Brother Yan. I'll take some Thunder Essence Water and one or two Thunder Spirit Fruits for my body tempering cultivation, that will be enough."
He wasn't just being generous.
He was able to discover and enter this secret realm thanks to his divination skills and the concept of "destiny determined by cause and effect," which truly deserves great credit.
However, in the end, Yan Jun and Liu Ruyan bore the brunt of the pressure in slaying the Thunder-Patterned Python, especially Liu Ruyan, whose old injuries seemed to have been aggravated as a result.
If the two hadn't confronted each other head-on, he probably would have perished in the python's belly long ago, let alone obtained the spiritual materials.
It is true that the world of cultivation is a dog-eat-dog world, but knowing when to advance and retreat, and understanding gains and losses, is also a way to long-term success.