The Sixty-Eighth Palm: A Tough Nut

"Scythe of Judgment? That's a pretty good name. It even sounds like Madara's scythe."

Li Qing thought to himself.

The moment the handle of the Scythe of Judgment fell into his hand, Li Qing felt a warm power flow from the scythe.

He felt that wherever he wanted the Scythe of Judgment to go, it would go.

The weapon moved with his will—that was probably how it worked.

"Because I used too much power during the fusion just now, I need to rest for a while. For now, properly familiarize yourself with the changes in your scythe."

At that moment, Ling Wu's voice suddenly rang out in Li Qing's mind.

"Yes, Senior."

Although Ling Wu had become the spirit of his scythe, Li Qing still did not dare act presumptuously. He still needed to show the proper respect.

But then, Li Qing suddenly realized a serious problem.

Would Ling Wu discover his God Eye System?

Forget it. He would think about that later.

"How is Senior Ling Wu?"

Liu Lin walked over and asked.

"Senior Ling Wu overexerted himself and is resting now."

Liu Lin nodded and looked around.

"Alright. You should first get a feel for the changes in your martial soul. I need to clean up this Tumbled Stone Forest."

"Mm."

After that, Liu Lin successfully transformed into a Black Rock miner and began his mining journey.

Li Qing ran his index finger along the scythe's handle.

In addition to the blood-red patterns on the handle and blade of the Scythe of Judgment, there were now streaks of golden patterns.

They added a hint of mystery to the Scythe of Judgment.

"Hm? Is there something else down here?"

Li Qing slid his hand farther down the handle. At about a quarter of the way from the bottom, he suddenly touched a small bump, something like a button.

Li Qing immediately pressed it with his index finger.

"Click, click, click, click... Whoosh..."

A series of chain-rattling sounds suddenly rang out. Accompanied by the friction of the chains, the Scythe of Judgment actually split into two at the button, with transparent golden chains continuously emerging from the gap.

These chains were clearly the chains formed from the golden runes Ling Wu had summoned earlier when sealing the Abyss passage.

Li Qing tugged hard. Though the chains looked transparent and extremely fragile, even after using all his strength, he could not make them deform in the slightest.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

Li Qing swung it a few times, and the blade tore through the air.

"Interesting."

A smile inexplicably appeared at the corner of Li Qing's mouth. He was as delighted as a fool.

This should have been the greatest change to the Scythe of Judgment—at least in its weapon form.

Other than that, the most obvious change Li Qing felt was its weight.

Compared to the Scythe of Severance, the Scythe of Judgment had a much larger blade and a longer handle.

The Scythe of Severance had once counted as a medium weapon, but now it could be considered a long weapon.

Li Qing held it horizontally before himself and struck what he believed was an imposing pose.

He nodded in satisfaction.

"Not bad. It suits my peerless looks perfectly."

After indulging in his own vanity, Li Qing summoned his character panel in his mind.

He needed to check the attributes of the Scythe of Judgment.

Character: Li Qing

Soul Power Level: 27

Mental Power: Soul Ancestor level

Martial Soul: Scythe of Judgment (Upgradeable)

Note: The Scythe of Judgment is derived from the divine weapon Scythe of Judgment forged by Indra in the world of Naruto. The Scythe of Judgment possesses an extremely powerful armor-piercing ability and can even break through a fully manifested Susanoo.

Li Qing could not help but stare in astonishment. The sharpness of the Scythe of Judgment was truly formidable.

However, at present, he was unable to wield such fearsome power from the Scythe of Judgment.

Li Qing continued reading.

Note: The Scythe of Judgment has inherited all attributes of the Scythe of Severance, and the Severance attribute has evolved into the Judgment attribute.

Judgment attribute: Can sever tangible objects and intangible things alike.

Seeing this, Li Qing was somewhat confused, so he asked the System in his mind.

"System, what does 'intangible things' refer to?"

"Ding. Please explore on your own, Host."

Fine. Li Qing was starting to suspect that he had a fake System. Sometimes, no matter what he asked, it simply would not tell him.

But what else could Li Qing do?

"Judgment attribute? Sever intangible things?"

Li Qing stroked his chin and fell into thought.

Could it sever souls?

Ling Ren's Book of the Dead could specifically purify the resentment of the dead, and Ling Wu's martial soul was also the Book of the Dead. By all logic, they should be similar.

Or could it be...

Gravitational fields and magnetic fields, the source of countless problems that had tormented students for years and cost them who knew how much hair?

Those invisible yet real "fields"?

If that were the case...

Li Qing could not help but laugh, grinning like a fool whose family had struck it rich.

"Forget it. I'll figure it out gradually later."

Li Qing put away the silly grin on his face and the Scythe of Judgment in his hand, then turned to look at Liu Lin, who was clearing away the stones.

No matter what, he had not forgotten his original purpose.

To obtain this Black Rock and make Soul Tools.

It was perfect that these rocks had all been blasted apart. Li Qing could easily store and carry them away with his Storage Ring.

Li Qing walked over to Liu Lin.

"Uncle Liu, let me help you move these rocks. It'll be dawn soon, and neither of us has rested all night. If we work together, we can finish faster and go back to rest earlier."

Seeing the sincere expression on Li Qing's face, Liu Lin could not help but nod.

Liu Lin patted Li Qing on the shoulder.

"Alright. I'll handle this side, and you handle that side. Then gather all these broken stones near the sealing array and cover it up..."

Liu Lin casually marked out the area Li Qing was responsible for and explained the precautions.

"Alright, I understand, Uncle Liu."

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Qing dashed off in a flash.

Liu Lin stood with his hands on his hips, watching the unusually enthusiastic Li Qing. A gratified smile appeared on his face.

"Good. Not only is he talented in cultivation, but he's so polite too. This boy is bound to achieve great things in the future!"

At that moment, Li Qing naturally had no idea what Liu Lin was thinking. But even if he had known...

He would not have felt the slightest bit embarrassed. It could not be helped—his skin had gotten a little thicker from all his usual exercise...

Thus, while moving stones, Li Qing also picked out some smaller pieces and stored them in his Storage Soul Tool.

Two birds with one stone!

An hour later, because the area Liu Lin had assigned to Li Qing was relatively small, he finished moving all the stones within his section first.

Then he went to the area around the array and selected several larger rocks, moving them aside.

"Hey, Li Qing, what are you doing?"

Liu Lin walked over with two huge boulders on his shoulder and asked in confusion.

"Uncle Liu, I'm trying again to see whether my scythe can split these rocks."

As he spoke, Li Qing summoned the Scythe of Severance.

"Hehe, you want to split this Black Rock at your current level? I think you should forget it."

Liu Lin shook his head. Based on his understanding of how hard these rocks were, even a Soul Ancestor's full-strength strike would absolutely not shatter them.

"Alright, then watch closely, Uncle Liu."

Boom, boom~

Liu Lin dropped the two massive rocks from his shoulders, then plopped down on one of them.

"Fine. Let's see how you're going to split these rocks open today."

"You got it!"

Li Qing rolled his neck, his eyes gleaming.

"Ha!"

Li Qing shouted. His calves exploded with strength, launching his body high into the air as the scythe in his hand slashed down with a whoosh.

The blade passed over the black stone pillar, scattering sparks everywhere.

Yet Li Qing's powerful strike only left a white mark on the stone pillars.

"Oh? So this is what you wanted me to see?"

Liu Lin snorted and mocked Li Qing.

"Don't rush, Uncle Liu. Just watch. I'll definitely cut it open today."

"Forget it." Liu Lin stood up and brushed the dust from his clothes. "I'd better keep moving these rocks."

"Alright then."

There really was no point in Liu Lin staying here. After that attack, Li Qing knew that he had encountered a tough nut this time.