Inside the main hall of Biyou Palace.
A strange, awkward tension mingled with the smell of blood in the air.
Sect Master Tongtian watched the scene before him, the corner of his mouth twitching furiously.
"Zhao Gongming, that brat..."
"He actually has a trick like this?"
"He can ignore Duo Bao's defenses and force damage through?"
Meanwhile, Daoist Duo Bao, who had been sent flying by the sword, staggered back to his feet.
Though his chest was stained with blood and his face had gone pale,
as the Interception Sect's Senior Disciple Brother, Duo Bao's stubborn streak had kicked in.
He casually wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his eyes hardening.
"I refuse to accept this!"
"I don't believe this crooked, unorthodox sword technique can keep breaking through my defenses forever!"
"Junior Sister, keep going!"
Golden Spirit Holy Mother had gotten into the rhythm of swinging her sword.
The thrill of landing critical hits with every strike was downright addictive.
Without another word, she struck that classic pose and roared again.
"If we're brothers, come and chop me!!"
She unleashed several more sword strikes in succession.
Daoist Duo Bao was like a red ball, knocked this way and that by the blows.
One string after another of bright red "-99999" effects appeared above his head,
popping out like firecrackers during the New Year.
A short while later,
Daoist Duo Bao was covered in blood, his robes stained red.
He looked like a bloody gourd that had just been fished out of a pool of blood.
"Senior Disciple Brother, stop fighting!"
Holy Mother Wudang and Holy Mother Guiling simply couldn't bear to watch any longer.
They hurried forward to stop Duo Bao, who was still trying to tough it out.
"You're covered in blood! If you keep fighting, someone's going to die!"
Daoist Duo Bao panted heavily and waved a hand, his face full of defiance.
"It's fine!"
"This magic treasure looks scary, but all it does is make me spit up a little blood."
"I haven't seen any substantial damage to my origin!"
"My health bar's huge. I can take it!"
However,
Sect Master Tongtian, seated high on his cloud bed, shook his head, his expression turning grave.
"Duo Bao, you're wrong."
"You're a Golden Immortal at the peak, with an exceptional foundation and blood energy as vast as the sea."
"Of course you think these injuries are nothing."
"But try looking at it from another angle."
"What if the person wielding the sword were facing an ordinary Golden Immortal in the late stage?"
"Each strike forcibly takes away a fixed amount of blood energy."
"Ten strikes? A hundred?"
"Even a Taiyi Golden Immortal would eventually be worn down and killed if they kept getting hacked like this!"
"That is... the horror of true damage!"
Hearing their master's analysis,
Duo Bao, Wudang, and Gui Ling finally understood.
They all drew in a sharp breath.
That was true!
It ignored defense and forcibly drained your health.
It was a shameless tactic that could wear someone down to death!
"Still..."
Sect Master Tongtian looked at the flashy sword in Golden Spirit's hand and couldn't help complaining.
"Why is this magic treasure so absurd?"
"And why do you have to shout 'Zhazha Hui' or whatever? What does that even mean?"
Golden Spirit Holy Mother hurried to explain on Zhao Gongming's behalf.
"Master, Junior Brother Gongming said..."
"The Heavenly Dao is impartial; every gain comes with a loss."
"Since the magic treasure possesses a heaven-defying Conceptual Grade property,"
"it must also bear the corresponding karmic price."
"That embarrassing slogan is the price."
As she spoke, Golden Spirit Holy Mother seemed to remember something and added,
"Actually, this one isn't so bad."
"Master, you didn't see the sword Junior Sister Bixiao had earlier..."
"It made Cihang kneel in front of everyone and call him 'Unfilial Son'!"
"What?!"
Sect Master Tongtian and the other direct disciples were shocked all over again.
"Cihang? Kneeling to Bixiao? Calling him 'Unfilial Son'?"
Sect Master Tongtian's eyes widened, his face alight with gossip.
"Could Gongming and Bixiao really have something going on?"
"Otherwise, why would he forge a magic treasure like something out of a family drama?"
Golden Spirit Holy Mother gave an odd look and spread her hands.
"Master, that was all the magic treasure's doing."
"But, well..."
"I do think Junior Brother Gongming and the Three Xiaos are rather close."
"That atmosphere between them, tsk, tsk, tsk."
Hearing this, Sect Master Tongtian not only didn't get angry,
he eagerly rubbed his hands together and chuckled.
"Close is good! As long as they're close!"
"I've been wanting a grand-disciple to dote on for ages."
"Better to keep good things in the family!"
"Looks like I'll have to have a good talk with Gongming one of these days and ask when he plans to make it official."
At that, the four direct disciples exchanged glances.
Master, aren't you focusing on the wrong thing?
Meanwhile, inside Zhao Gongming's cave abode.
[ Ding! Congratulations, host! ] [ Golden Spirit Holy Mother used the Dragon Slaying Sword to defeat Daoist Duo Bao! ] [ Critical-hit reward triggered! Congratulations, host, you have obtained the divine ability: Samadhi True Fire! ]
A source of true fire suddenly merged into Zhao Gongming's body.
Zhao Gongming opened his mouth and spat out a blaze of Samadhi True Fire.
"Samadhi True Fire!"
Zhao Gongming's eyes shone with delight.
It was one of the Primordial Era's top divine flames.
In later generations, the Bull Demon King's son, Red Boy, had relied on Samadhi True Fire to give Sun Wukong a hard time despite being at only a modest level of cultivation.
That alone showed just how terrifying the flame's power was.
Water couldn't extinguish it, and earth couldn't smother it.
It was a top-tier divine ability for alchemy, artifact forging, and combat!
"With the Nine Dragon Cauldron and Samadhi True Fire to help me, the Dao of Artifacts really will be an invincible path from here on."
Zhao Gongming was happily playing with the flame in his hand.
Just then,
knock, knock, knock!
A hurried, hesitant knock came from outside the cave abode.
"Who is it... knocking on my window?"
Zhao Gongming put away the flame and waved his hand to undo the restriction.
The door slowly opened.
The moment he saw who was there, he froze on the spot.
The visitor wore white robes and had a fair face, with tear tracks still lingering at the corners of his eyes.
It was Cihang, the Chan Sect's direct disciple who had suffered a spectacular Social Death earlier.
"Holy crap!"
Zhao Gongming instinctively took a step back, quietly circulating his magic power.
"Senior Brother Cihang, I know you might not be willing to accept what happened."
"But this is the Interception Sect's territory, and I'm the Senior Disciple Brother of the Interception Sect's Outer Sect. Don't make me call for help, okay?"
To be honest, Zhao Gongming felt a little uneasy.
If he'd simply beaten Cihang into submission, that would've been one thing.
But the price of that Social Death had been so steep that it was hard not to suspect Cihang had come for revenge.
Unexpectedly, Cihang didn't look like he wanted to fight at all.
Instead, he wore a pitiful, aggrieved expression.
He stamped his foot lightly and spoke in a soft, sweet voice.
"Junior Brother, a loss is a loss, but... I don't want the nickname 'Little Nanliang.'"
Cihang lifted his head, his big, watery eyes fixed on Zhao Gongming.
"Junior Brother, that magic treasure you forged is really amazing. I want one too."
"Please, could you forge a magic treasure for me?"
"Pretty please, Junior Brother~~(*╹▽╹*)"
Zhao Gongming: "???"
Looking at Cihang, who seemed to have been possessed by Little Nanliang,
Zhao Gongming felt his scalp go numb, and goosebumps covered his skin.
Wasn't there...
something wrong with this script?!
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