Arrogant at First, Obsequious at Last, Refined to Death

"Boy, where are you? What do you want?"

When the Plague Old Man saw Lu Qing suddenly appear, he immediately recognized that the other party was a manifestation of Divine Soul Power.

His expression changed drastically, and his heart sank.

Knowing that my guess has probably come true.

This place truly is a Spirit Artifact Space.

Moreover, it is Spirit Artifact Space controlled by Lu Qing.

Otherwise, given his level of cultivation, he wouldn't be able to unleash such a profound Divine Ability as the transformation of his soul into form.

"Nothing much, you Plague Old Ghost. Didn't you boast before that I couldn't do anything to you?"

So, can you guess where we are right now?

Lu Qing looked at the Plague Gourd with a leisurely air.

"There's no need to play tricks. This place is simply another Spirit Artifact Space."

The Plague Old Man sneered.

Now that he knows he can't fool Lu Qing, he's too lazy to keep up the pretense.

"Boy, your luck is heaven-defying. You're only a minor Qi Refining Realm, yet you can wield two Spirit Artifact on your own."

However, such intense Destiny Fortune cannot last long; it is like oil burning in a raging fire.

Be careful, lest you one day die a violent death and fall into an abyss of no return!

"No need for you to trouble yourself, old ghost," Lu Qing said calmly. "Since you've guessed that this is another Spirit Artifact Space, why don't you guess again which Spirit Artifact's space this is?"

"No matter what kind of Spirit Artifact it is, it cannot do anything to my Plague Gourd!" the Plague Old Man said coldly. "Boy, I advise you not to waste your energy anymore."

If you really want to know about ancient times, you might consider my suggestion.

If you release me, I will not only tell you about ancient times, but also impart unparalleled Divine Ability to you.

Achieving the Golden Core, entering the Primordial Spirit, and even becoming an immortal or ancestor will all be within reach in the future!

"What arrogance! Becoming an immortal and an ancestor, Plague Old Ghost? How come I didn't know you had such Divine Ability? Back then, in front of the righteous immortal sects, you were nothing more than a rat crossing the street."

They usually only dare to hide in the shadows and not show off.

You've only gained some fame because of your broken gourd.

How dare they speak so arrogantly now? They're truly shameless!

Just as the Plague Old Man was about to try to fool Lu Qing again, a mocking voice rang out from all around.

"Who?!"

The Plague Old Man was greatly alarmed. Someone knew so much about his origins; they must be a contemporary of him.

Could it be the person behind Lu Qing?

The Plague Old Man, quickly realized a possibility.

Then, the next moment, he saw a majestic middle-aged man wearing a dazzling fire robe and with two horns on his head appear in front of Lu Qing.

With this person's appearance, the restlessness in the surrounding space was amplified once again.

It was as if the king of space had arrived.

"You are the Artifact Spirit of this Spirit Artifact Space!"

As fellow Artifact Spirit, the Plague Old Man immediately discerned the true nature of "Flame".

He felt an even greater sense of unease.

The aura emanating from "Yan" was significantly stronger than his.

This indicates that the Artifact Spirit's recovery was much faster than his, and even its essence was stronger than his.

And then there's Lu Qing...

The Plague Old Man, suddenly felt a chill in his heart.

"What, are you scared now?"

"Yan" seemed to sense the Plague Old Man's emotions and sneered.

"Plague Old Ghost, I didn't expect you to be so ruthless. In order to survive the Five Signs of Decay Great Calamity Decay of Heaven and Man, you actually possessed the Artifact Spirit of your own natal Spirit Artifact and managed to survive."

However, although you successfully possessed the body, your True Spirit must have been greatly damaged.

Now that I'm trapped here, it won't be long before my True Spirit collapses, and I won't even be qualified to enter the cycle of reincarnation!

The Plague Old Man's expression suddenly changed drastically.

What he feared most was that Lu Qing would find out about this, but he never expected that "Yan" would see right through him.

However, he still pretended to be calm and said coldly, "Is that so? How could a mere Artifact Spirit Divine Ability you possibly know about my divine powers?"

If you say that my True Spirit is about to collapse, then let's wait and see.

"Let's see if I, the true self, will perish after being trapped here for thousands of years!"

"Plague Old Ghost, you don't need to put on airs here. I'll ask you one more time: are you willing to open your mind and let me imprint my soul mark on your True Spirit?"

Lu Qing said coldly.

"Don't even think about it, brat. You think you can make me submit to a mere Qi Refining Realm like you?"

An ant like you, I could have wiped out countless of you with a single breath back then.

"You dare to dream of refining the True Spirit of a Nascent Soul Great Power? You're utterly ignorant of your own limitations!"

"Very good." Lu Qing said no more, his figure dissipating into the Spirit Artifact Space, leaving only one sentence echoing within. "'Yan', make your move, refine him to death!"

Hearing Lu Qing call him by his name, Yan felt a chill run down his spine.

But it inexplicably couldn't muster any anger; it only felt a chill lingering in its heart.

They didn't dare to be careless in their movements. With a wave of their hand, endless flames were generated out of thin air in the spiritual energy space.

Its own form shifted, transforming into a fire dragon that coiled around the Plague Gourd.

"Li Fire Dragon, you are the Li Fire Sect Cauldron of the Li Fire Cauldron!"

Upon seeing the Li Fire Dragon that "Yan" had transformed into, the Plague Old Man finally understood that he was in the space of that Spirit Artifact.

In the Ancient Cultivation Era, he had no dealings with the Li Fire Sect, which is why he didn't recognize the aura of "Yan".

However, the Li Fire Cauldron of the Li Fire Sect is still quite famous in the entire Cultivation World.

One of the signature features of the Fire Li Fire Cauldron is its attack method of spewing Li Fire Dragon that sweep across all directions.

Seeing the form that "Flame" had manifested, the Plague Old Man knew perfectly well that he was trapped inside this magical Spirit Artifact.

This made the Plague Old Man somewhat tremble.

The Li Fire Cauldron is the Li Fire Sect's most prized spiritual Spirit Artifact, and its grade is among the Middle-Grade Spirit Artifact.

It is a level higher than his Plague Gourd.

Most importantly, the Li Fire Cauldron is renowned for its ability to refine things.

Especially weapon crafting and alchemy.

It was thanks to this that the Li Fire Sect was able to continuously refine high-grade magic weapons and pills, thus securing a place in the Cultivation World.

To find himself in the Spirit Artifact Space of this monstrous thing was the worst possible news for the Plague Old Man.

If I had known, I wouldn't have provoked that kid like that.

A pang of regret flashed through the Plague Old Man.

Unfortunately, it's too late to regret it now.

Seeing the Li Fire Dragon that "Yan" had transformed into coiling around him, he had no choice but to shrink back and hide in the deepest part of the Plague Gourd.

He hoped that his spiritual Spirit Artifact could withstand the refining power of the Li Fire Cauldron.

The Plague Gourd was created by him through a chance encounter with a piece of strange iron.

It possesses a strange ability that even he cannot fathom, which may be able to protect him.

Powerful flames surrounded the Plague Gourd, and the Li Fire Dragon, the embodiment of "Yan," was tightly coiled around it.

However, half an hour passed, and the Plague Gourd did not change at all, as if the surrounding flames did not exist.

"How is that possible?"

Yan's eyes revealed a hint of disbelief.

Although it is currently damaged and has not yet recovered, its power is far less than that of its peak period.

But this Plague Gourd is clearly even more damaged than the original.

Despite being Middle-Grade Spirit Artifact, it was still impossible to refine! "There's something strange about this broken gourd!"

The thought had barely crossed Yan's mind when Lu Qing's voice came from above.

"Senior Yan, how is he?"

A hint of embarrassment flashed in Yan's eyes, but he still told the truth, "This Plague Gourd seems a bit strange. I can't refine it for a while."

"What should we do then?"

There was no emotion in Lu Qing's words.

But Yan felt a strange tightness in his heart.

It thought for a moment and said, "My True Spirit has not fully recovered, and I don't have much power to use. I'm afraid I won't be able to deal with this Plague Gourd in a short time. I need your help."

"Alright!" Lu Qing immediately agreed. "I will use the great formation in this cave to help you refine this old ghost to death!"

As soon as he finished speaking, "Yan" felt a powerful array force reinforcing the Li Fire Cauldron.

At the same time, a surge of spiritual energy flowed into the cauldron.

It immediately perked up and, without hesitation, absorbed all the spiritual energy.

The next moment, the body in the Spirit Artifact Space suddenly swelled up.

He swallowed the Plague Gourd whole, his body spiraled up, and endless firepower seeped into the Plague Gourd.

The Plague Old Man hiding deep inside the gourd was secretly pleased, seeing that "Yan" couldn't do anything to him.

Unexpectedly, the aura of "Yan" suddenly surged more than tenfold.

His eyes widened suddenly, and he looked incredulous. "How is this possible!"

At the same time, his mind raced, and he used the remaining Divine Soul Power to activate the power of the Plague Gourd to resist it.

However, all of this was in vain, as the flames refining the flames with all their might.

White flames continuously seeped into the Plague Gourd.

The layers of restrictions that the Plague Old Man had painstakingly crafted in the gourd were destroyed one by one, and the gray Plague Qi was completely burned away, slowly spreading deeper into the gourd.

No matter how hard the Plague Old Man tried, he could not stop it.

"No!"

As the white flames relentlessly encroached upon the space where his True Spirit was hidden, the Plague Old Man revealed a look of terror.

His soul suddenly emitted a violent fluctuation. "Young master, I surrender! I am willing to release my True Spirit and submit to you!"

The white flames that were about to burn the True Spirit of the Plague Old Man suddenly stopped.

"Yan" also looked up at the sky above.

The Plague Old Man breathed a sigh of relief.

However, the next moment, Lu Qing's cold voice came from above. "Too late, you Plague Old Ghost. I gave you a chance, but you didn't cherish it. 'Yan,' refine him for me!"

This sentence not only startled Yan, but also greatly alarmed the Plague Old Man.

He quickly shouted, "Master, it was all a misunderstanding. I was just being mean and shouldn't have provoked you like that."

This old servant knows he was wrong, and begs his master to forgive him this time.

"From now on, this old servant will certainly serve his master wholeheartedly and be of utmost loyalty!"

In order to survive, the Plague Old Man abandoned all sense of shame and directly addressed Lu Qing as his master, referring to himself as his old servant.

His humble and obsequious attitude left Yan speechless.

It knew that these people of the demonic path were always cunning, deceitful, and shameless.

But no one expected that a former Nascent Primordial Spirit cultivator would be so shameless in order to save his life.

However, what Yan didn't expect was...

Despite the Plague Old Ghost's humble and pleading attitude, Lu Qing remained unmoved.

He coldly said, "'Yan,' didn't you hear what I said? Refine him!"

Hearing Lu Qing's tone, it became even more intense.

"Yan" realized that this person was truly determined to refine the old Plague Old Ghost to death.

Instead of simply intimidating him and forcing him to submit.

Sensing the dissatisfaction in Lu Qing's tone, "Yan" dared not be negligent and immediately urged the flames to spread towards the Plague Old Man.

No! Don't!

The Plague Old Man never expected that even after lowering himself so much, Lu Qing would still try to kill him.

He hurriedly shouted, "Master, this old servant truly knows his mistake. Please give this old servant another chance to become your most loyal servant! Moreover, if you refine me to death, the Plague Gourd's grade will drop and turn into a treasure."

This is a tremendous loss for you, Master. I urge you to reconsider!

Unfortunately, his pleas for mercy received no response from Lu Qing.

While Lu Qing remained silent, "Yan" propelled the white flames and finally broke through the space where the Plague Old Man was hiding.

The white flames, exuding a terrifying aura, were closing in on his True Spirit inch by inch.

The Plague Old Man finally despaired.

His face showed a look of madness.

"You little beast, if you want me dead, then let's all die together!"

Having said that, his mind raced, wanting to detonate the core restriction within the Plague Gourd, thus self-destructing the Spirit Artifact and perishing together with Lu Qing.

However, when he tried to penetrate the core restrictions, he found that he could no longer activate the power of the Plague Gourd.

"Want to self-destruct?"

The resounding sound of "Yan" echoed deep within the gourd.

"Plague Old Ghost, if you had detonated the restriction from the beginning, perhaps I wouldn't have been able to stop you."

But you were too afraid of death. My flames almost burned you to death before you thought of self-destructing.

"You really think my power is just for show? Prepare to die!"

As he spoke, numerous white flames that had penetrated deep into the gourd rushed toward the True Spirit of the Plague Old Man.

"No!!!"

The Plague Old Man, whose True Spirit was already weak, could hardly withstand the burning of such terrifying flames containing a trace of the power of rules.

Without even the slightest strength to resist, he was instantly incinerated, reduced to nothingness.

After the Plague Old Man's True Spirit was killed, "Yan" immediately spat out the Plague Gourd from its belly and withdrew all the flames.

Without the Artifact Spirit's control and restraints, the Plague Gourd's grade dropped.

If it doesn't withdraw its power, this Spirit Artifact will be completely destroyed.

Lu Qing's figure reappeared in the Spirit Artifact Space.

"Young master, this is a gourd Spirit Artifact left behind by that Plague Old Ghost."

"Yan" handed the Plague Gourd in his hand to Lu Qing.

Even the way they addressed him was changed; they no longer called Lu Qing "boy".

Lu Qing took the gourd. At this moment, the Plague Gourd was no longer half a person's height, but had become the size of a palm, which could be held with just one hand.

"Young master, this gourd seems rather strange. Even my flames couldn't do anything to it for the time being. There must be something else going on."