Giant Scallop

The final battle has ended.

Although three days had passed, Xiao Chen still witnessed all sorts of human beings along the way when he returned to Universal Salvation Temple.

Many Buddhist Sect disciples wore expressions of sorrow, clearly still immersed in grief.

The Sea Race ' desperate gamble came far too suddenly.

There were dozens of low-level disciples who were crushed to death under the Nautilus.

Nearly two hundred others were killed in the chaos of battle or were injured by the aftershocks.

However, many Buddhist Sect disciples also had a noticeably refreshed look in their eyes.

Whether it was the encouragement of victory or the joy of surviving, I don't know.

By the way, at this time, several large ships of the Daoist Sect had also docked at the White Jade Pier.

In contrast, many Daoist Sect disciples had beaming smiles on their faces.

They gathered in small groups around the island's perimeter, gazing at the Sea Race Great Demon on the open ground along the shore.

Others waved Memory Stone to record these precious moments.

"Layman Xiao, please rest here for a while."

Zen Master Fa Zhao led Xiao Chen to a well-preserved side hall. "My fellow disciples are all quite busy right now, so let's tentatively meet at You Hour tonight."

"Most of the other True Lord have also returned."

"They should all be resting in those six small courtyards next door and behind now."

"If Layman Xiao has nothing urgent, this humble monk must go and help him."

Xiao Chen shook his head. "Of course I'm fine. You just go ahead and do your work. See you at You Hour."

Now that the great battle has just ended, there must be a huge amount of things to deal with.

Especially with the Abbot's position at Universal Salvation Temple now vacant, there's no one to lead the way, so it's understandable that they're overwhelmed with work.

Xiao Chen, on the other hand, had it much easier.

He had neither apprentices nor subordinates; as long as he took care of himself, his whole family would be well taken care of.

"Phew, it's finally over."

Xiao Chen casually found a chair and sat down, mentally estimating the time. "Just this trip alone has taken almost half a year."

Time really flies!

"I wonder what the situation is like over there now."

According to what Shattered Gold True Monarch said before, it takes about six months to a year to customize Complete Fusion Spirit Tool.

Xiao Chen had initially thought the crafting process would take a little too long.

The result was that it took more than half a year to accomplish just one important task.

This is assuming everything goes relatively smoothly; if there's any slight delay along the way, it's not impossible for it to take a full year.

"As one's cultivation level increases, time really does seem to fly by faster and faster."

Xiao Chen sighed, "No wonder when I said earlier that time flies, Iron Fan True Monarch said that we would gradually get used to it in a few years."

There's no need for a few years at all.

He now truly understood why the other True Lord often measured their affairs in years.

It turns out that for Nascent Soul Cultivator, a year really isn't much.

Fortunately, the spiritual materials have now been collected to a sufficient extent.

Xiao Chen plans to find an opportunity to trade with them in a couple of days, and then he can consider going to the New Cultivation World to customize a second Complete Fusion Spirit Tool.

"Hey, isn't there something else I need to say?"

Xiao Chen suddenly remembered that he seemed to have a business deal to do with the Rebellious Immortal Alliance.

I took a 30% deposit to purchase the goods, but I was busy fighting the Sea Race, and more than half a year has passed, so I still haven't had time to send the goods back.

If this were a legitimate business, it would be considered an accident.

"Hmm, it's not a big problem, they don't have anywhere else to trade anyway."

Since he was in a near-monopoly business, Xiao Chen wasn't worried at all that the delay would affect future sales. "It's just that I'll have to make a couple more trips this time."

The reason I thought of making two extra trips wasn't to compensate the Rebellious Immortal Alliance.

Rather, it was because they wanted to earn more Spirit Stone through trading.

Firstly, it was used to cover the enormous expense of acquiring a second Custom Spirit Tool.

Secondly, I also want to accumulate some savings so I can see if I can find another opportunity to buy a few good items similar to the Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone.

Then Xiao Chen took the opportunity to review the actions of the past six months.

Before I knew it, it was getting late.

Before long, it was early You Hour.

He didn't need anyone to come and invite him; he walked out of the side hall on his own.

Just then, they saw Qian Shu True Monarch and Iron Fan True Monarch walking together, seemingly having just come from the small courtyard at the back.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries...

They then arrived together in front of the Great Hero Hall.

Buddhist Sect disciples had already brought out tables and chairs and set out tea Fruit Plate.

They even brought in several huge screens from who-knows-where to surround and cover up the severely damaged buildings, such as the Bodhi Altar.

Although it smacks of self-deception to some extent.

But at least when people sit down to talk, they won't look up and see ruins.

According to tradition, we should have gone directly to the Great Hero Hall.

It demonstrates sufficient respect, and the interior is also very well preserved.

However, considering the previous situations of Zhang Shouquan and Xiao Chen...

Ultimately, Purified Dust Zen Master, who was in charge of the temporary scheduling, insisted on moving the location outside the Great Hero Hall, even though it was a bit more troublesome.

Soon, Xiao Chen and the others had taken their seats in turn.

However, the Zen Master from Universal Salvation Temple did not arrive for a long time, and no one knew what had gone wrong.

At the same time, both Gang Yuan True Monarch and Zhang Shouquan were nowhere to be found.

Even Han Chuan True Monarch didn't know where his senior brother had gone.

I waited for about half an hour.

Only then did everyone see Purified Dust Zen Master rushing over.

Upon meeting everyone, he immediately apologized, "I'm so sorry to have kept you all waiting."

"Previously, my fellow disciples and I were handling some important matters within the temple, and we were all so busy that we neglected our time."

"Please wait a moment, we'll be right there."

Before he could finish speaking, he saw Zen Master Jing Chi arrive with Gang Yuan True Monarch and Zhang Shouquan.

He also started by apologizing. "I'm so sorry, I was busy dealing with the Array Foundation and didn't keep track of the time properly, I've kept everyone waiting."

Judging from their appearance, the three of them are probably repairing the Array Foundation together.

To be honest, this surprised Xiao Chen somewhat.

The threat from the Sea Race has been eliminated, so why would Universal Salvation Temple allow 'outsiders' to participate in the repair of the grand formation?

Keep in mind that time is no longer a constraint.

Shouldn't something this important be handled privately, behind closed doors?

Out of curiosity, Xiao Chen took advantage of the waiting time to quietly ask Gang Yuan True Monarch a question.

Only then did I realize that Universal Salvation Temple had actually considered refusing at first.

The plan is for Zen Master Jing Chi to lead his Direct Disciple to be solely responsible for repairing the great formation.

However, at Zhang Shouquan's enthusiastic suggestion, considering the severity of the damage and the large number of Array Foundation that needed to be repaired,

Furthermore, since Gang Yuan True Monarch and Zhang Shouquan had already participated in repairing the Array Foundation, there seemed to be no need to keep it a secret from them.

So he didn't refuse their help any further.

Of course, both parties agreed that what followed was simply helping out.

Their responsibilities were limited to repairing Normal Array Foundation; they did not involve repairing the Core Array Foundation or participating in the subsequent re-laying of the array.

"Oh, that's what happened."

Xiao Chen immediately understood upon hearing this.

On the contrary, Han Chuan True Monarch to the side, was quite surprised upon hearing this; "I really didn't expect Daoist Zhang to be so willing to help others."

He had previously suspected that the other party might have come to Universal Salvation Temple with the intention of stealing his skills.

I never expected they would actually come to help.

Even though the decisive battle was already over, they were still willing to participate in the repair of the Array Foundation free of charge.

Zhang Shouquan blushed slightly upon hearing the praise.

He cleared his throat and said modestly, "Well, it's just a small favor. It's not dirty or strenuous work anyway, so I'll help if I can."

He wasn't being helpful; he simply wanted to stay and reinforce what he had learned over the past two weeks.

Although both parties agreed that he could only participate in repairing Normal Array Foundation.

However, this way he could continue to use those fourth-tier spirit ores for training without charge.

The key point is that Zhang Shouquan is a rogue cultivator.

He had neither accumulated any fourth-tier spirit ore nor possessed a Fourth-tier Grand Array of his own.

Even after returning to the Heavenly Dipper Sect, Gang Yuan True Monarch was still able to maintain his sect's Mountain Protecting Grand Array.

You can use the fourth-tier spirit ore in your own warehouse to review what you've learned before.

However, once Zhang Shouquan leaves Universal Salvation Temple, he will no longer have the means to handle the physical objects for some time to come.

Gang Yuan True Monarch and the others were all cultivators from sects, and they didn't think about the issue of spirit mines for the time being.

So they continued to wait on the sidelines, exchanging polite words and taking turns praising him.

On the contrary, Xiao Chen, who was also a rogue cultivator, vaguely guessed the truth from Zhang Shouquan's slightly unnatural reaction.

It seems that although the other party has broken through to the Nascent Soul, they are still not very wealthy.

Could this be an opportunity?

If I need anything in the future, I might be able to hire Zhang Shouquan for a high price.

For example, in places like the Vast Sea Secret Realm in the future, as well as other similar places.

Just as Xiao Chen was pondering, another series of hurried footsteps approached.

Zen Master Jing Hua and the others finally all arrived.

The first step, of course, was an apology. "I'm so sorry to have taken up so much of everyone's time."

Then came a round of introductions.

The main purpose is to explain the identities of the Newly Promoted True Monarch and let them get to know each other.

Then they began to discuss the main topic of tonight's gathering, with Purified Dust Zen Master taking the lead in explaining.

He stepped to a screen and waved his hand.

The Buddhist scriptures that were originally on the screen suddenly disappeared, and then a detailed sea chart slowly appeared.

The map also includes markers of different colors.

"Please look at this map, everyone. This shows the current situation on the North Front!"

Purified Dust Zen Master pointed to the series of red dots above. "According to the routine contact eleven days ago, the Sea Race have deployed at least seven Great Demon in the north."

They are roughly divided into two parts.

"One group consisted of four Great Demon, along with a Giant Scallop, who blocked the Lotus Flower Temple and the Ink Barrier Sect here."

"Another group consists of three Great Demon, who are entrenched around Hui Ming Temple, carrying out blockades and harassment."

As he explained, the nautical chart on the screen was split in two from the center, becoming two more detailed diagrams.

Purified Dust Zen Master continued, "The previous agreement was to contact each other every two weeks."

"So it's not time to contact them yet, and they haven't received news of our great victory."

"However, in this way, the Sea Race should also have been kept in the dark."

"Considering some short-sighted traitors, I believe that asynchronous messaging is the best option."

Purified Dust Zen Master waved his hand again, guiding the two diagrams to merge back into one.

Then he drew two encirclement circles with his hand. "If we can seize the opportunity within these four days, we can split our forces into two groups and encircle these seven Sea Race Great Demon."

"There is a great chance of achieving a perfect annihilation battle."

"And we now have a relatively sufficient number of people to accomplish this!"

"Of course, considering the coordination issue, my fellow disciples and I all believe that it would be best for us to take charge of rescuing Hui Ming Temple."

"Then I'll trouble you lay Buddhists to deal with those four Great Demon and that Giant Scallop."

In fact, given the current situation...

It's practically like we're already discussing who gets the loot in advance.

However, the reason why Purified Dust Zen Master proposed this distribution plan was that he deliberately chose the side with fewer Great Demon.

The main reason is manpower considerations.

After all, Universal Salvation Temple can only send out a maximum of five Zen Master.

Even if they could launch a pincer attack with Lotus Flower Temple and Ink Barrier Sect, it would be difficult to guarantee that they could perfectly intercept those four Great Demon.

It's also difficult to guarantee that no one will be injured or killed by Giant Scallop.

As the saying goes, "Don't bite off more than you can chew."

Why not just choose one that's easier?

In this way, since Buddhist Sect had taken the initiative to back down, Daoist Sect naturally had no objections.

"Of course, participation in this operation is not mandatory."

Zen Master Jing Chi Jingchi asked, "If any layperson is preoccupied with other matters and cannot make it to the North Front, that is perfectly fine."

"It's just that we should have mentioned it in advance so that everyone could make the arrangements."

He had barely finished speaking when Zhang Shouquan spoke up first, "I won't go north."

"I'm not afraid to admit it, fellow Daoists and masters, but after truly fighting against the Sea Race Great Demon, I've come to a deep realization that I still have many shortcomings."

"Having just broken through to the Nascent Soul, the time has been short, and the accumulation of experience is clearly insufficient."

"Therefore, I won't go and cause trouble for everyone."

Zhang Shouquan now only wants to stay at Universal Salvation Temple to help with the Array Foundation.

Firstly, he had no emotional ties with Great Powers, and he had absolutely no desire to continue fighting for the sake of Human Race.

If, during the hunt, Sea Race Great Demon were to break through the encirclement and injure oneself, it would be a complete loss.

It would be better to stay and continue studying array formations.

Secondly, Zhang Shouquan didn't want to work with Xiao Chen anymore; being with that guy was never going to end well.

Don't be fooled by the fact that we seem to have won this decisive battle.

It should be noted that he was assigned to the far left of the right side, less than a hundred feet away from the Bodhi Altar in the center.

If His Venerable One had trembled even slightly during the attack, he would probably be lying in bed recovering by now.

Therefore, let alone going to the North Front together.

Even though they had previously agreed to work together to investigate the Heaven and Earth Phenomenon, Zhang Shouquan was no longer planning to participate.

In short—cherish life, stay away from Xiao Chen.

However, apart from him, none of the other cultivators expressed their unwillingness to go.

Even Zen Master Ting Hai of Awakening Sea Temple hesitated for several breaths.

However, considering how others would perceive it, he ultimately remained silent.

We've weathered many storms, so what's one more final battle?

He needs to be more proactive now so he can have more say in front of others later.

They divided up the seven Great Demon and the Giant Scallop in advance and agreed to set off to provide support early the next morning.

Everyone then dispersed to rest.

"Tsk, so many people and only four Great Demon and one scallop, it feels a bit insufficient."

Xiao Chen returned to the side hall and felt that the overall number of Sea Race Great Demon was still a bit small. "In the blink of an eye, there are only these last few left."

"Why didn't we bring more back then?"

Without this most convenient method, he really didn't know where to go to collect fourth-tier spiritual materials in the future.

Thinking about it this way, Xiao Chen actually felt a strange sense of reluctance.

If only another group of Fourth-Order great demon could come.

Of course, Xiao Chen quickly dismissed this strange and absurd idea.

For the sake of the peace of the Compassion Sea, it's best to prevent such incidents from happening again.

Early the next morning.

The group boarded the spirit ship and set off together for the North Front to provide reinforcements.

In the end, only Zen Master Jing Chi remained at Universal Salvation Temple to repair the formation with Zhang Shouquan.

All remaining personnel were mobilized to ensure a flawless final battle.

This will bring a perfect end to this disaster that lasted for more than three years, affected the entire Compassion Sea, and caused millions of monks to be displaced.

Given the Human Race's all-out effort and exceptional attention to this matter.

The actual combat itself was rather uninteresting.

Almost exactly as expected, the overall performance was overwhelming.

Those seven-headed Sea Race Great Demon weren't particularly strong to begin with, and when faced with an attack from several times their size, they were truly unable to fight back or escape.

As for that Giant Scallop, it was indeed quite fierce.

In particular, its incredibly sturdy carapace glowed with an earthy-yellow spiritual light after being infused with Demonic Essence.

Even when faced with a barrage of attacks from more than ten True Lord, they held out for quite some time.

It's practically a moving city wall!

However, the problem with Giant Scallop is that their enormous size makes them extremely slow to move.

It is no exaggeration to say that none of the Nascent Soul True Lord present who had mastered the Fourth-Order Escape Technique were slower than it.

You can easily follow behind it and wear it down from a distance using Law Technique.

After fleeing and resisting for about five hours...

The Giant Scallop finally exhausted its Demonic Essence, and its spiritual light was forced to dim.

"Wait, stop fighting!"

Xiao Chen quickly channeled his true energy and shouted, "Everyone, let's work together to reduce the damage of the Law Technique! We can't damage such valuable spiritual materials!"

Since arriving on the North Front, Xiao Chen had been mostly just going through the motions in the previous battles.

The main reason was that the Human Race had a numerical advantage of nearly three times, so he really had no room to perform.

But at this moment, he suddenly perked up.

Xiao Chen had witnessed firsthand just how resilient that Giant Scallop was.

Even before the fight was over, he was already thinking about how he could use this shell as the main material to forge a Defensive Type Complete Fusion Spirit Tool.

Imagine, more than ten True Lord chased and attacked it for several hours, but they still couldn't break it.

If it were further strengthened through the Fusion Artifact Refining Technique, its sturdiness would be unimaginable.

I'm afraid that if any True Lord could possess such a Custom Spirit Tool, they would be able to Incarnate Crab and roam freely within the fourth tier.

Therefore, Xiao Chen spoke up in time to stop everyone.

I was afraid of accidentally breaking the seashell.

Fortunately, the dozen or so Human True Lord present were all willing to give him face upon hearing this.

They actually stopped attacking and then voluntarily reduced the destructive power of their Law Technique.

Following Xiao Chen's instructions, they began to slowly weaken the Giant Scallop.

It can only be said that, thanks to the series of victories and battle reports before, Xiao Chen has already gained considerable weight in everyone's minds.

"Very good, that's it!"

"Hold on, it's about to give out!"

"Please hang in there a little longer, everyone. I'll treat you all to drinks after we're done!"

Another three hours passed quickly.

The Giant Scallop looked very weak, but it was able to stubbornly resist thanks to its sturdy shell.

This even made Xiao Chen suspicious.

Is it because the shell is too sturdy, or is it actually just putting on an act for everyone?

More importantly, this was after such a long period of attrition and stalemate.

The true essence of the Human True Lord is also running low.

If the floodwaters continue to be released, things might change later.

"Daoist Xiao, how about we just let it go?"

Iron Fan True Monarch sensed something was wrong. "If this continues, it might get away."

"Besides, with a shell this big, even if it's slightly damaged, it shouldn't be a problem."

They could guess that Xiao Chen was consciously collecting defensive spiritual materials, half of which were for crafting Custom Spirit Tool such as shields.

After all, he had previously selected a large number of defensive spiritual materials in the Shallow Sky Sea.

However, in the eyes of Iron Fan True Monarch...

Such a large scallop; the shells left behind are enough to make several shields.

It doesn't matter if part of it is damaged.

"No, let's try a little longer."

Xiao Chen was a little reluctant. "Let me try a few more times!"

He had been attacking with the Azure Wave Piercing Bone Needle, but unfortunately the effect was not ideal.

That damned shell always manages to keep all three Flying Needle out.

Seeing that he couldn't get anywhere, Xiao Chen simply took out a Purple-Gold Bodhi Fruit and swallowed it.

There was no other meaning behind it; I just wanted to use the enhanced comprehension effect to see if I could achieve a breakthrough in battle.

If he could master the Azure Wave Piercing Bone Needle to a minor level, he might be able to pry open the seashell.

Unfortunately, this idea is clearly unrealistic.

Breakthroughs in the heat of battle are rare occurrences; they're not as easy as they seem.

The Purple-Gold Bodhi Fruit can enhance one's understanding, but it cannot lead to sudden Sudden Comprehension.

Otherwise, it wouldn't be Fourth-Order Spirit Fruit, but Fifth-Order Spirit Fruit or even Immortal Fruit.

However, this thing does indeed make a cultivator's mind more agile and their thinking faster.

Therefore, although Xiao Chen did not break through in the face of battle, he suddenly remembered something good.

If you use this tool, you should have a chance to pry open the shell!

With that in mind, he immediately rushed forward, directly pulling out the Giant Fang from the Giant Scallop to try it out.

The Giant Scallop would not tolerate such provocation.

So, after Xiao Chen approached, she unusually opened her shell and swallowed him whole!