Cloud Sky Venerable

"Hello? Hello? Moon Soul? Can you hear me? It's me, the Pharmacist, I've come to save you. Make a sound if you hear me."

Upon discovering that the connection between the Moon Soul Divine Sense seemed to be blocked by the Magic Treasure, but the sound could still be transmitted, Li Fan tried to manipulate 'Seventh Sister' to call out.

"Ha! You think you can fool me with this kind of low-level illusion?! Your shrill voice sounds like a woman's! If you're going to pretend, at least do it properly! Bah!"

Li Fan, "..."

The rabbit is so grumpy! Well, he probably wouldn't have imagined it either. A dignified Divine Transformation Spirit, wielding the groundbreaking Tai Sha Flying Sword, personally forged by Xuan Tian, and a true disciple of Bei Chen, could actually fail so miserably, getting caught by a golden wine cup. If word gets out, it'll be a huge disgrace to our Sword Sect... But seriously, what is this thing anyway?

Of course, although Li Fan's current level in the Five Arts is not yet at the point where he can squander resources and forge treasures at will, he has memorized a considerable amount of the basic theories of weapon forging and those papers and exercises, accumulating a substantial amount of knowledge. Therefore, Li Fan can at least recognize that this is a jia, an ancient wine vessel and weapon, and its shape indicates that it is from the Ancient Immortal Palace era.

However, it is obvious that this magic weapon does not possess 'spirit', and the inscriptions and runes are not from the currently popular Xuanmen weapon-making system. It should be from a much more ancient era, from the Ancient Immortal Palace, or even from an ancient Daoist sect.

The Xuanmen (mystical sect) refines artifacts by cultivating their 'spirit', blurring the lines between the 'human soul' and the 'artifact spirit.' The intelligence of various magical artifact spirits surpasses even the general systems of the other world. For example, someone as unruly as the Moon Soul might find it difficult to fake failing the Turing test.

Of course, the system's development is mainly due to historical reasons, such as robot rebellions, which has led to deliberate restrictions on the development of artificial intelligence and a shift towards cloud-based networking, uploading intelligence, and digitizing personality data. If the company puts its mind to it, breaking through the singularity should be a piece of cake.

This golden vessel is different from the Magic Treasure of the Xuanmen sect, which use talismans and seals to make Daoist magic effective. It relies more on the power of the material itself. For example, the gold used to make this Magic Treasure is not an ordinary gold ingot, but contains a great deal of resentment. It seems that it was not originally shaped like this, or that it was made from a piece cut from a shrine or demon statue.

In other words, this wine vessel is more akin to Heavenly Treasure or an ancient magical beast than a man-made object.

Of course, since it's already been crafted into the shape of a golden goblet, the design concept is still easy to understand. The phoenix-shaped pillars on the top cover represent yin and yang, and the two phoenixes constantly breathe in and out, presumably automatically communicating with the true energy of the Taiji Realm, regulating yin and yang, and using the power of the 'gold' itself to wear down and fuse the substances trapped inside the goblet, refining and restoring them into yin and yang breaths, and finally harmonizing them into primordial energy. It can even be further flavored to brew something like primordial immortal wine, and with the addition of some elixirs and miraculous medicines, it can be consumed by immortals in large quantities to increase their cultivation.

In fact, the Xuanmen sect is the most powerful in refining external Heavenly Treasure to aid cultivation. They have even perfected their craftsmanship to an extreme degree. All sects have long used standardized alchemy furnaces, and the size and hardness of the refined pills are strictly regulated. Their production efficiency can be described as industrialized.

But people can't take drugs with every meal. Food and drink Magic Treasure are still quite common, and the practice of using celestial cuisine and wine to supplement cultivation methods remains popular among the wealthy.

What distinguishes this golden goblet from ordinary dining Magic Treasure is the beast head on its handle. The beast's face is blurred, making it impossible to discern whether it's a lion or a dog. However, Li Fan, possessing Gu Guan Method, can discern a peculiar aura swirling around the handle—a gray energy he's never seen before. He can't analyze it yet, so he'll use the system to record it. He can observe that this gray energy permeates and fills the entire vessel, clearly not from the Three Great Sects, and even somewhat unlike anything from the Demon Race. Perhaps it's the original form before the goblet was created.

The eerie gray cursed power, centered on the beast-face pattern, coiled and blocked inside the vessel like hemp rope—no, intestines—just like a complete meridian system. In this way, it had a mouth, nose, face, feet, intestines, and belly. Although this golden vessel lacked 'spirit,' it was more like a 'living thing' than ordinary magical artifacts.

Li Fan tried to probe with his Divine Sense and found that the Sword Child's clone was bound by these incantations. Since the Microdust Avatar was refined by Taiji Qiankun, most of it had been dissolved into a mess, and most of it had begun to turn into primordial energy. Meanwhile, Yue Po used the Sword Light to shield the Sword Child's clone as she flew around in the cup, trying to find a way to escape.

It didn't seem to be flying around like a headless fly. Clearly, the Moon Soul was being interfered with by the curse, or at least lost its sense of direction. Following the trail of those gray lines, it circled around inside the vessel, but couldn't directly collide with the bottle, nor could it find a way out of the bottle's opening. It was likely that even its Divine Sense had been sealed off.

No wonder the Moon Soul had such an ominous sign. Trapped in the Magic Treasure by the nameless curse power, unable to escape, it will eventually have its Dao power worn down, its blade gradually eroded and transformed into primordial energy. Although this is a long process, and the Golden Jade doesn't seem to have a strong ability to digest evil energy, who knows if the sword seal will be damaged, causing the sword pellet to be sealed? In that case, it will truly become someone else's sword pellet.

Li Fan tried to manipulate 'Seventh Sister' to remove the talisman on the mouth of the vessel, but found that it was completely impossible to remove. This 'Seventh Sister' did not cultivate her body, and her strength was insufficient. If she did not know the mental cultivation method, she would need at least the power of the Transformation Stage to break the seal.

However, revealing his true form would definitely alert the Jade Dragon Guards at the entrance, and a fight would likely break out, resulting in the massacre of his entire family. He had just accomplished the great feat of assassinating the 'Emperor,' and if he were to cause another major disturbance, attracting the attention of the surrounding elders would be a minor issue compared to being targeted by the powerful figures of the Three Great Sects. After all, the Three Heavens Mixed Yuan Palace wasn't a direct descendant of the Three Great Sects, yet it had managed to establish itself in the heart of the Central Plains Jingji. It certainly wasn't just about bedroom skills; it might also have connections and a large group of powerful figures protecting it.

Fortunately, since Li Fan could understand the principle of this golden cup, it was not difficult to crack. So he manipulated the puppet, and with varying degrees of lightness and heave, he struck the mouth of the bottle and the mouth of the phoenix bird with his fingers.

"So annoying! So annoying! So annoying! What's with all the banging? It's so noisy! So noisy! So noisy!"

"Sigh, what an idiot! Stop babbling! Sword Boy can't hold on any longer. Quickly follow the sound and escape! Don't you even remember the Needle-Threading Sword technique?"

"Huh? It really is medicine... Waaaaah..."

Yuepo realized she had lost face, but as a disciple of the Sword Sect, Li Fan's words quickly revealed the solution.

Although this curse power could even confuse the spatial perception of Divine Transformation spirit, it didn't actually create a spatial rift to seal the sword pellet. After all, in order to refine the Primordial Qi, it was still necessary to regulate Yin and Yang through the columnar air vent. Therefore, the sound still transmitted inside and outside the golden vessel. Now that the Moon Divine Sense was interfered with by the golden vessel, it was probably unable to perceive the outside world because of the Primordial Qi Fourth Department around. However, as long as the six senses, including hearing, could still be used, things would be easier.

It is important to know that in ancient times, when disciples of the Sword Sect first entered the sect, they had to practice the "Threading the Needle Sword Technique." This was not to make them mend their own clothes, but rather to ensure that even when their Divine Sense senses had not been developed or their senses were sealed, they could still use their swordsmanship to retaliate.

Therefore, the test, which involved scattering needles into the wind to strike them, wasn't actually that difficult. After all, the elders of the Sword Sect came to pass on their teachings, not to torment people. So, when throwing the needles, they didn't throw them one by one, but rather flung them out at once to teach you to locate sounds and train your spatial positioning abilities.

Incidentally, Li Fan hadn't taught Asha this move, since her comprehension was a bit low and she probably wouldn't be able to learn it. But Yuepo was personally trained by Xuan Tian, so she was definitely trained according to the ancient methods. Now, Li Fan was using his finger strength to create such obvious "ding ding ding" and "dang dang dang" signals, indicating it was in easy mode. So Yuepo immediately reacted, and after a moment's sensing, she abandoned her sword attendant clone, transformed into a streak of purple light, and followed the sound's guidance, avoiding a tangled mess of detours, successfully escaping from the phoenix's mouth.

As soon as Yuepo was freed, she immediately communicated with Li Fan's primordial spirit, and darted into the puppet's mouth, hiding under its tongue. Li Fan did not hesitate either. When Yuepo was freed, the talisman on the golden vessel lit up, indicating that the expert who captured Yuepo had already noticed. He also tested the golden vessel and found it to be as heavy as a thousand pounds, clearly indicating that it could not be stolen even with the spell applied. He immediately seized the time to escape from the Sanxiao Palace.

"Huh? Wait a minute, Seventh Sister, aren't you going to take any treasures? Then what are you here for?"

But the gatekeeper, Yulong, was quite a troublemaker; he coiled up again to block the way and peer inside.

Li Fan was about to casually dismiss him with a "Get lost, you lickspittle!" when Yue Po, as if impatient, pounced out in a flash. With a flash of purple lightning, she severed the horns from the jade dragon's head right in front of it. Then, with a series of Sword Light strikes, she spun wildly against the dragon's scales, slicing the jade dragon into pieces, which then shattered into pieces on the ground.

The spirit within the jade dragon was greatly surprised, never expecting that "Seventh Sister" would have such a murderous intent. It gathered its true spirit on the dragon pearl and tried to escape, but was overtaken by the Moon Soul and crashed into it, shattering it into countless stardust and perishing on the spot.

Wow, Moon Spirit, why are you so fierce?

"Ugh! That old bastard attacked me while I was recovering! I won't be satisfied until he's dead and his life is extinguished!!"

Good grief, Yuepo's got a temper. But then again, if Li Fan hadn't come to her rescue, she would have almost perished. It seems everyone's first solo journey through the martial world hasn't been going well... except for Amao...

Let Yuepo vent her anger and seek revenge. She's definitely in cahoots with the Three Immortals Sect anyway, so she'll have a pretext to attack. Li Fan just needs to avoid revealing himself. Besides, in this day and age, someone actually dares to steal from the Sword Sect! Shouldn't they think things through before acting? Isn't this just courting death?

So as you can see, this time it was others who forced their Sword Sect to lash out.

Then Li Fan extended more than a dozen black hands from the shadows. One pair grabbed 'Seventh Sister's' calves, and a dense Daoist force flowed from the Foot Shaoyin Kidney Meridian through the twelve regular meridians, converging in her uterus and connecting to her Yang Sea. Several other hands, like black snakes and shadows, climbed up 'Seventh Sister's' abdomen, groin, and spine, pressing on her Shen Ting, internal organs, and Qi Acupoints, holding her in his palms like a puppet on strings. As for her original Nascent Soul Stage, he simply tore it out and discarded it, letting her dissolve on her own.

Thus, under the manipulation and infusion of Dao power by these unseen forces, the dazed 'Seventh Sister' suffered a seizure. The Yin and Yang Qi and the Primordial Qi within her body, under Li Fan's personal assistance and regulation, were transformed into the pure sword Qi of the Northern Star. Her entire being was refined like a 'sword boy,' and her Qi Sea was developed as a sheath for her sword. At the same time, her body was covered by Tai Su dust, and soon a Microdust Avatar shell covered the outer shell.

Yuepo knew that Li Fan had tacitly approved her revenge. She flew back into the mouth of the "Seventh Sister Sword Boy" and went straight to the spiritual platform to occupy the heart palace of the divine court. As a result, the "Seventh Sister Sword Boy" was suddenly shaken again. Her rolled-up white eyes turned around, and a purple light flashed in her eyes. Her dust shell also transformed and changed shape, and finally transformed into the False Moon primordial spirit body of Yuepo.

Yes, the first sword attendant Li Fan gave to Yuepo was actually an unfinished product. This is the true sword attendant forging. A person's essence and blood are needed to nourish the sword inside the shell before it can become the true form of a sword spirit!

"Killing a few to vent our anger is enough; destroying their primordial spirits is going too far," Li Fan suggested from the shadows.

"Ah--!"

Whether Yuepo heard her or not, she roared and rushed out of the treasure vault, only to be met by two men and a woman. She opened her mouth and unleashed a beam of Sword Light, instantly blasting the three of them into pieces.

The inner disciples of Sanxiao Palace were also caught off guard. They never expected a madman to suddenly appear from within their own sect. However, these people were all at the Nascent Soul stage. Caught off guard by the attack, they immediately sent their Nascent Souls flying out of their bodies to escape for their lives.

Yuepo suppressed his anger and didn't focus on killing the Nascent Soul Stage. Instead, he simply waved his hand, transforming the emitted False Moon Great Fiend Sword Light into two purple swords in his hands. He then searched the palace and the house, slashing and stabbing anyone he encountered.

It's a pity that the disciples of the Three Heavens Mixed Yuan Palace specialize in cultivation and weapon crafting, and are perhaps also quite proficient in bedroom combat, but are not good at battle formations and sword fights. Now, in the heart of their own sect, within their sect's protective formation, how could they possibly be on guard? Some were listening to scriptures, some were refining treasures, and some were discussing the Dao, and most of them were killed before they could even react.

One by one, Yue Po rushed into the hall, severing limbs, beheading, disemboweling, and breaking spines, killing dozens of people in succession, until all the disciples and cultivators of the Three Mountains were instantly reincarnated.

"What kind of demonic path is this! Invading my immortal sect! Killing my disciples!"

The elders who were in seclusion in the back mountain to protect the sect were also alarmed by this sudden killing. With a roar, a large blue stone seal transformed into a mountain, broke through the hall, and smashed down on Yue Po!

But with the Sword Child's physical body at her disposal and Li Fan secretly assisting her, Yue Po could unleash the power of Divine Transformation Realm cultivator. What was there to fear?

It tilted its head back, opened its mouth, and spat out the sword pellet, slamming it into the large blue stone seal with a deafening crash! The shockwave of magical power rippled outwards like waves, causing all the Outer Sect Disciple to tremble in their lungs and cough up blood from their mouths and noses!

"W-what! It's actually a Nascent Divine Transformation...!"

"Taiyin Sword Rainbow!!"

Moon Soul opened its mouth and retrieved the sword pellet, then crossed its two purple swords, its figure flashed, transforming into a streak of purple light, breaking through the exploding Fourth Department falling fragments of the great seal, its sword rainbow piercing straight into the clouds, and striking at the Divine Lord hiding in a patch of blue clouds!

"Sword, Sword Rainbow!"

The surrounding disciples cried out in alarm, but the divine lord had no time to comment. He hastily fled in a flash of light, but he was clearly not a master of the Xuanmen sect. His Dao technique was a beat too slow, and the purple sword rainbow shattered his protective azure cloud in one fell swoop, slicing him in two at the shoulder! His shattered Dao body fell from the sky!

"Ah! Lord Bixiao!" "Heavens! Lord Bixiao has disintegrated!"

Seeing their sect elder die in a single move, the disciples of the Three Immortals were utterly devastated, their worldviews collapsed, and their fighting spirit crumbled on the spot, causing them to scatter and flee.

"This is garbage? It's not this one?"

Li Fan had wanted to see what the Sanxiao Palace was capable of, to see if they could subdue the Moon Soul. He hadn't expected them to be so weak? Was it just their powerful magic weapons? Or had this Divine Transformation's tribulation come to an end?

"Huff... huff... not this one. It's an old ghost with white hair!"

After all, the Dharma Body Sword Child was made by a Nascent Soul cultivator, and Seventh Sister didn't actually have the abilities of the Xuanmen sect; she was already out of breath after using a powerful move like Sword Rainbow just once.

"Oh, that's the one?"

As expected, the experts from the Three Immortals sensed that Yue Po had escaped. They hadn't gone far, and they rushed back immediately. Sure enough, they were enveloped in auspicious clouds of white, blue, and red, revealing three divine lights gathered in the clouds, with clouds and rosy hues covering their heads and adorned with pearl necklaces, all of them being Nascent Divine Transformation cultivators in their prime.

The one in the center was a handsome young man with white hair, white eyebrows, white eyes, and a white robe. Well, to be fair, he was quite handsome, so Li Fan didn't go into too much detail. Anyway, he was second only to the God Lord. At first glance, his aura was also very strong. Even compared to the old Xuanmen that Li Fan encountered in the Jingji, he could be ranked in the top five. Of course, cultivation level doesn't mean much; it depends on the skill of the Daoist techniques and secret manuals. However, with this kind of presence, he must be the white-haired old ghost that Yue Po mentioned.

To Li Fan's surprise, the other two Divine Transformation cultivators were surprisingly subdued, nestled close to the handsome white-haired man. One was reclining, and the other was kneeling. They were two female cultivators dressed in blue and red bodices and skirts, with only thin cloud-like garments covering their private parts.

Wow, even in the Sanxiao Palace, this kind of combination is quite rare.

"Huh? You actually escaped my Chaos Golden Phoenix Jug on your own? Good! As expected of the treasure I've set my sights on! I've taken a liking to you! Come and be mine!"

Cloud Sky Venerable raised his hand, brushed aside his bangs, and smiled wickedly.

Li Fan's mood has soured a bit.

Oh, is it some kind of primordial spirit attack...?

"Oh my! Cloud Sky Venerable! Cloud Sky Venerable!"

"The Celestial Venerable is so handsome! The Celestial Venerable is so cool! I love the Celestial Venerable so much!"

The disciples of the Sanxiao Palace on the mountain immediately regained their morale, resurrected on the spot, summoned their colorful clouds, and released colorful neon lights to cheer for their beloved Heavenly Venerable. Even the Nascent Soul Stage cultivators didn't hurry to reincarnate, but returned to form various shapes, looking like LED light bulbs...

Li Fan was speechless. What kind of domineering CEO persona is this? Why is the style of this sect so different from the Three Great Sects? Has he been poisoned too...?

Yuepo trembled with rage, "Damn you! I'll kill you!"

Before the words were even finished, the Moon Soul transformed into a sword rainbow, striking down directly at the Cloud Sky Venerable!

Who would have thought that those two goddesses, who looked like mere ornaments with dazed eyes as if half asleep, were actually already extremely wary of the 'new competitor'. Seeing the Sword Light coming, they attacked simultaneously!

One of them drew a whisk from behind his back, while the other took out a ruyi scepter from his hip. One was green and the other was red, and two beams of precious light shone forth. Together, they knocked the purple light of the sword rainbow to the side!

"You vile woman! How dare you harm my master! Die—!"*2