Genius, Just Meeting His Threshold

"Not bad. In any case, be careful and keep a low profile. If something happens, use that Life Spirit Talisman of yours to awaken This Seat."

Cang Wu said softly, then prepared to sink into silence and begin recovering his soul.

Unlike Little Marten, as the Lord of Devourment, Cang Wu's greatest strength lay in the Devouring Power. He could freely absorb the energy of heaven and earth to repair himself.

Seeing this, Lin Dong's face tightened with urgency, and he quickly spoke up.

"Senior Cang Wu, is there anything I can do for you?"

"You have a good heart. If possible, find me a strand of Yin Yang Qi."

Cang Wu chuckled lightly at this. It seemed Lin Dong truly had an excellent nature, which made it worth the effort he had spent bestowing such rewards upon him.

"Yin Yang Qi? Senior, are you planning to condense a physical body?"

Little Marten was startled once again. Even knowing the identity of this great being before him, every time the other spoke, Little Marten found his understanding shaken.

Because every single time the other opened his mouth, Little Marten felt his own cognition crumble.

"Indeed. However, This Seat cannot help you right now."

Cang Wu nodded lightly in response. Little Marten felt a slight regret but was not surprised, as he had never held much hope to begin with.

For one, helping someone else forge a physical body was far too difficult. For another, Cang Wu was currently a remnant soul—though his methods were countless, his power was ultimately limited.

"Senior, rest assured. I will remember this."

Lin Dong nodded firmly. Then, as if recalling something, he scratched his head and gave a dry laugh.

"By the way, Senior, there's one more thing. Could I ask for your help?"

"Speak. What is it?"

Cang Wu replied softly. Lin Dong laughed somewhat awkwardly before laying out the current predicament the Lin Clan faced, adding in a lower voice.

"Senior Cang Wu, that Wei Tong may be nothing in your eyes, but to this junior, he is still quite troublesome. So I hope you can guide me through this difficulty."

"You mean to say that with your current strength, you cannot handle a mere Lesser Perfection of the Yuan Dan Realm?"

Cang Wu shook his head as he spoke, letting out a light sigh with a hint of disappointment. Lin Dong was taken aback and asked instinctively.

"Junior is merely at the mid stage of the Heavenly Yuan Realm and a One-Seal Talisman Master. How could I possibly deal with that Wei Tong?"

"You were able to kill Gu Ying, a Two-Seal Talisman Master, earlier. That shows your Spiritual Power foundation is solid. Yet with a Talisman Master's methods, you still can't handle a cultivator at the Lesser Perfection of the Yuan Dan Realm? It seems This Seat truly must give you some guidance. Otherwise, if you go out like this, This Seat's face will likely be disgraced by you."

Cang Wu snorted lightly. Seeing that Lin Dong and Little Marten still did not believe him, he couldn't help but chuckle and asked with a smile.

"You don't believe me? Do you know why This Seat was accepted as a disciple by our teacher back then?"

How could Lin Dong possibly know such things? He shook his head vigorously. He did not even know who Ancestor Fu was. Little Marten knew a little, but only a little—nothing more.

Taking a deep breath, Cang Wu recalled those bygone days and could not help but smile.

In the ancient era, the path of Primal Energy had developed fairly well, with many experts emerging. But Cang Wu was merely a rogue cultivator—no background, no guidance, and no access to good martial arts.

At that time, the Talisman Master lineage passed down from Ancestor Fu had just begun to rise and was still in an exploratory stage. The Seal Condensation Method was crude and simple, barely functional for cultivation.

Though the nascent path of the Talisman Master was quite wondrous, few valued the immature methods of Talisman Master cultivation. As a result, no one paid it much attention, allowing the Seal Condensation Method to spread widely. This was how Cang Wu was fortunate enough to step onto the path of the Talisman Master.

As for being noticed and taken in as a disciple by Ancestor Fu, and then bestowed with an Ancestral Talisman, it was because of a certain battle. When Cang Wu was fighting someone, Ancestor Fu happened to pass by.

In that battle, Cang Wu's strength was roughly similar to Lin Dong's current level, though his cultivation was slightly higher.

His Spiritual Power was also at the One-Seal Talisman Master level. In terms of Primal Energy, Cang Wu was on the verge of uniting Yin and Yang to condense a Yuan Dan. However, he had gotten into a dispute over a spiritual herb. His opponent's cultivation was precisely at the Lesser Perfection of the Yuan Dan Realm.

At that time, Cang Wu relied on his astonishing combat talent and the peculiar nature of a Talisman Master's Spiritual Power to completely suppress that Lesser Perfection Yuan Dan Realm expert throughout the entire battle.

As for Primal Energy, to Cang Wu back then, it was merely supplementary. Since he could not learn advanced martial arts, he simply abandoned them altogether and fought using pure combat techniques.

After all, even a Lesser Perfection Yuan Dan Realm expert could not withstand a Talisman Master's attacks head-on. Even a Heavenly Yuan Realm cultivator's strike would inflict severe injuries if taken directly.

Spiritual Power attacks were tricky to defend against, and close-range Primal Energy attacks also required defense. Everything had to be guarded against. Even if the opponent occasionally counterattacked, the blows lacked much power and could be fully endured through Spiritual Power and Primal Energy.

It was that battle that made Ancestor Fu see Cang Wu as a prodigy. He took him in as a disciple on the spot and let him choose one of the Eight Great Ancestral Talismans.

Cang Wu's combat style was forged from that time onward, especially after he mastered the Devouring Ancestral Talisman.

Under normal circumstances, Cang Wu disliked using so-called ultimate moves—too troublesome. In the time it took to execute one, he could have struck dozens or even hundreds of times.

"Though your cultivation is slightly inferior to This Seat's, and your comprehension is a bit lacking, with the might of your Life Spirit Talisman, you only need to use your strengths to attack your opponent's weaknesses, supplemented by close-quarters Primal Energy combat, to easily suppress your foe."

After finishing, Cang Wu began to guide Lin Dong, his tone casual and effortless.

But after hearing this, Lin Dong gave an awkward smile, lacking confidence.

That was a Lesser Perfection of the Yuan Dan Realm expert!

Not even Little Marten was confident, unless he had his Heavenly Demon Sable true body. Crossing realms in battle was never that simple.

Yet, upon second thought, Little Marten let it go. He might be a genius of the Heavenly Demon Sable Clan, but a genius like him barely reached the threshold to be noticed by the figure before him.

After all, if everyone could do it, there would not be only one Lord of Devourment in the world.

In truth, Lin Dong wanted to say: You, Senior, are a peerless genius. I am just a lucky kid who stumbled upon the Ancestral Stone. How could I compare to you?

If you can beat them and suppress them the whole way, that does not mean I can too.

As if sensing something, Cang Wu let out a sigh and spoke softly.

"Enough. This Seat recalls that within this Ancestral Stone, there is a Spirit Grinding Mill. On it are some insights This Seat left behind during my early cultivation. You, kid, should take a good look and temper your Spiritual Power in the process. If you still cannot face the enemy by then, awaken This Seat."

With that, Cang Wu waved his hand. Lin Dong and Little Marten felt their vision shift, and they found themselves before two enormous white grinding mills.