God of War Catalog

The majestic power of the Nascent Soul covered him, binding Yu Shier like iron chains. He struggled with all his might, but it was futile.

Yu Shier hurriedly said, "Gu Mo... let's make a deal. Save the people of the Fire Spirit Race, and I'll tell you about a crisis that could lead to the destruction of Gan Country, and the secrets of patterns!"

Gu Mo asked suspiciously, "You know the secrets of patterns?"

Yu Shier said, "Old Ghost Qi... well, the Old Undying you call him, is an old monster who has lived for many years. Because he was suppressed for a long time, his heart has become very pathological. He enjoys toying with the human world and likes to play various roles to satisfy his peculiar desires.

But this person is extremely arrogant and conceited. He considers himself the Heavenly Dao, believing everything in the world is under his control. Therefore, in the hundreds of years we've known each other, I've learned many secrets from him, including the secrets of patterns."

Yu Shier looked up at Gu Mo and said solemnly, "Gu Mo, the reason I wholeheartedly served Old Ghost Qi all my life wasn't because he controlled my Nascent Soul and could take my life at any time, but because he gave me hope, allowing me to save the Fire Spirit Race and lift their curse.

You won't let me go now, and I don't ask you to. Of course, Old Ghost Qi won't come to save me either. After I researched a method to control the Kirin Power for him, I became dispensable in his eyes.

Gu Mo, will you make this deal?"

Gu Mo asked, "How can I help the Fire Spirit Race?"

Yu Shier said joyfully, "It's very simple. I've already created a martial art technique called the Great Devouring Spirit Hand. It's similar in principle to the Taotie Divine Skill in the martial world, but more refined. The Taotie Divine Skill absorbs others' internal energy for one's own use, while my Great Devouring Spirit Hand absorbs the essence of the sun and moon. A cultivator's Dantian will be boundless.

With your Realm, you can learn it just by looking at it. I also have a Kirin Bone that I spent a hundred years carving. By using that Kirin Bone as a medium to perform the Great Devouring Spirit Hand, you can draw out the Kirin's spiritual energy from the bodies of the Fire Spirit Race. From then on, they will become Ordinary People and will no longer suffer the torment of the curse for generations.

Furthermore, that Kirin Bone is an extraordinary treasure. After absorbing the spiritual energy of the Fire Spirit Race, it will be useless to Ordinary People. However, it is a great opportunity for your good friend Ye Jinglan. The concentration of Kirin Power in his body is not very high, but if he refines that Kirin Bone, he can definitely advance to a higher level. If one day he can comprehend the secrets of patterns, he might even become the new Kirin in the world."

Gu Mo pondered for a moment and asked, "Where are the items?"

"Thank you, thank you, Gu Mo!" Yu Shier said excitedly, "The Kirin Bone and the Great Devouring Spirit Hand manual are in the ghost city beneath Chang'an City. There's a place called Corpse Cocoon Cave. You previously purged the ghost city twice. The first time, you killed Smiling Buddha, Thousand-Faced Actor, and others among the Ten Great Evildoers in Corpse Cocoon Cave. At that time, when they were being pursued by you, they were preparing to jump into the abyss next to the Corpse Cocoon Cave market town, but you intercepted them. I have been in Corpse Cocoon Cave all along."

Gu Mo's pupils contracted slightly. "So, you were watching in secret when I was fighting there?"

"More than that," Yu Shier said. "I even disguised myself as a minion and interacted with you. One time, I even helped you and Ye Jinglan by rowing the boat."

Gu Mo's eyes twitched slightly.

With his strength back then, if he had fought Yu Shier, let alone winning, surviving would have been a good outcome.

Come to think of it, the most dangerous moment of his life was one he hadn't even noticed.

Yu Shier continued, "I've placed the Kirin Bone and the Great Devouring Spirit Hand manual in the abyss. You'll see my residence when you go down. However, there are many poisonous creatures and Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasures inside, as well as my insights from studying medical arts over the years. As far as I know, your Medical Skill and Poisonous art are not low. If you're interested, you can take those things for your own use."

Gu Mo nodded slightly and asked, "What about the secrets of patterns?"

Yu Shier said, "It's just the direction beyond the Ascension Realm. To surpass the Ascension Realm, you need to find a way to comprehend the patterns of the world's operation, which means tracing back to the source. For example, for the Five Elements power, you need to sense the patterns of the Five Elements power operating in the world. For instance, the Ancestral Fire of the Fire Kirin is the pattern of fire's operation in the world. Patterns cannot kill, so you cannot touch them. Old Ghost Qi also controls patterns, so he can pull the Ancestral Fire into his patterns to trap and seal it.

In short, it all boils down to essence. You can transform into a dragon, but you can only have its divine charm without its form, because you haven't found the essence of a dragon. Your dragon doesn't follow the patterns of heaven and earth."

Gu Mo asked with some doubt, "Since you know the mysteries of patterns, haven't you explored them over the past few hundred years?"

"How could I not have?" Yu Shier said. "But Old Ghost Qi placed a restriction on my Nascent Soul. Every move I make is under his surveillance. He can even sense my consciousness, so my exploration was destined to be futile."

Gu Mo asked again, "Okay, then tell me, what is the crisis in Gan Country?"

"It's Old Ghost Qi's game," Yu Shier said. "When you were using your domain just now, you also felt that my domain relied on the Void Array. I placed a Poison Bead in the Void Array. This Poison Bead condenses all the poisons in the world into the Source of Ultimate Poison, which can even poison the Nascent Soul.

But when it was being made, Old Ghost Qi suddenly had a whim and asked me to make two. I kept one for myself, and he took the other to play a game. He forged a treasure map and scattered it across various countries, creating false legends to incite disputes in the martial arts world and stir up a majestic treasure hunt war.

He hid that Poison Bead in Chang'an City, but I don't know exactly where. However, his purpose is not just this. The latter part of his plan is to have someone detonate the Poison Bead after finding it, turning the entire Chang'an City into a poisoned city, where everyone will perish. Then, it will become an unsolvable mystery in history, leading to more stories.

And he, many years later, will adopt a new identity as a martial arts youth to lead the world in uncovering the secret and starting a new legend in the martial arts world. He has played this kind of game many times, always playing different roles. How many identities does he have? I'm afraid even he doesn't know."

Gu Mo's brow twitched.

Qi Miaoxuan definitely had a wanted criminal identity, but according to the system's rules, it could only be recorded if he knew the other party's wanted criminal identity.

Just like the Grand Manager back then, the system recorded the Grand Manager as a wanted criminal, but when the Grand Manager appeared before Gu Mo with the identity of Eastern Border Teacher, the system would not record Eastern Border Teacher as a wanted criminal.

"It seems I still need to find Qi Miaoxuan's alias!"

Gu Mo thought to himself, while also looking forward to what level of wanted criminal Qi Miaoxuan's alias would be.

Gu Mo asked, "What's the deal with that treasure map?"

Yu Shier said, "This matter is actually somewhat related to you. You killed the Worship Moon Sect Master Ye Nantian and many Worship Moon Sect masters in Jiang Kingdom, causing the Worship Moon Sect to almost fall apart overnight and fall into internal chaos.

It was at this time that Old Ghost Qi inserted a treasure map into the Worship Moon Sect, disguised as the martial arts inheritance of a Worship Moon Sect Master named Tie Hanshan from two hundred years ago. He fabricated a legend that if one collected all eight parts of the treasure map, they could find the Cold Mountain Treasury, which contained not only riches equal to a country but also invincible martial arts and the world's most powerful divine weapons."

Gu Mo chuckled. This indeed had the strong feel of a martial arts legend. The martial arts world was never short of similar legends, and each such legend would be accompanied by one bloody storm after another.

Just then, A system prompt suddenly sounded in Gu Mo's mind:

[New target detected]

[Wanted Target - Tie Hanshan?]

[Mission Level - Nine Stars]

[Mission Reward - Max Level Sacred Heart Art]

Seeing the Sacred Heart Art, Gu Mo felt it was a perfect match. The reward for killing an ancient monster who had lived for thousands of years was a martial art created by an ancient monster who had lived for thousands of years.

The Sacred Heart Art was a martial art that transcended the level of martial arts, possessing the abilities of immortality and resurrection. It included the moves of the Sacred Heart Four Tribulations and the Sacred Heart Four Arts, which also transcended the level of martial arts.

Additionally, it possessed special abilities such as Heavenly Palace Phantom, Seven Absolute Realms, Ascend Freely Step, and Sea Embracing Sacred Heart Incantation, etc.

As for the question mark behind Tie Hanshan, Gu Mo understood it was because the system detected that Qi Miaoxuan had more than one alias as a wanted criminal besides Tie Hanshan. Otherwise, based solely on the crimes Tie Hanshan committed back then, he would only be rated a Seven-Star, at most, just like Ye Nantian.

After all, the system's evaluation of wanted levels doesn't solely reference strength and cultivation. It more heavily considers the impact and severity of the crimes committed by the wanted criminal.

Some people commit many evil deeds in secret, but because no one knows about them, they don't meet the criteria for being wanted and aren't even recorded.

"Do you have anything else to say?" Gu Mo asked.

Yu Shier shook his head slightly and said, "Thank... thank you..."

Gu Mo chuckled, "You really trust me!"

Yu Shier replied, "Gu Mo has never broken his word. Your character is beyond question in this entire world."

Gu Mo placed one hand on the sword hilt and said, "In that case, Yu Shier, you should die!"

As the words fell, Gu Mo drew the Grand Void Sword. Gu Mo's berserk Nascent Soul power attached itself to streaks of Sword Qi. In that instant, Yu Shier's Nascent Soul was split, turning into wisps of nothingness and disappearing.

And in that very instant, A prompt sounded in Gu Mo's mind:

[Killed Eight-Star Wanted Criminal]

[Received Star Reward - Max Level God of War Catalog]

[Do you wish to receive?]

Gu Mo muttered, "This should be the weakest among the Thirteen Taboos!"

Strictly speaking, Yu Shier was certainly not weak. After all, he had a Nascent Soul at the Ascension Realm plus terrifying poison. However, compared to the existences within the Thirteen Taboos, he was definitely considered weak.

Even Jiang Ruoxu, another of the Thirteen Taboos, was estimated by Gu Mo to be stronger than Yu Shier.

This was because, according to what the Red Clothes and Zither Player understood, Jiang Ruoxu had definitely also reached the Ascension Realm. His Realm would not be lower than Yu Shier's. However, Jiang Ruoxu's combat will and ability were very strong, whereas Yu Shier's combat consciousness was not strong. He mainly relied on poison, and in a head-on battle, he would definitely not compare to Jiang Ruoxu.

However, Although Yu Shier was at the bottom in terms of combat power among the Thirteen Taboos, his wanted level was very high. After all, this guy had been responsible for several massacre incidents and had caused countless plagues.

Immediately, Gu Mo chose to receive the God of War Catalog.

At that instant, he suddenly felt his Sea of Consciousness roar, like billions of thunderclaps exploding simultaneously in the Depths of the Soul.

It wasn't pain, but a sense of exhilarating freedom as a restraint shattered.

His consciousness, like a Kun Peng breaking free from its cage, instantly pierced through the limits of his Physical Body.

The city beneath his feet abruptly shrank to dust, the sea of clouds churned like cotton balls piled by a child, and the Earth's Veins manifested in his consciousness—the Earth Veins of crimson magma surging, the Spiritual Hubs where green Spiritual Energy converged, mountains and rivers pulsing like the blood vessels of deities.

With a "poof," he seemed to break through a certain glazed Curtain.

Space-time twisted before his eyes into spiraling ribbons of light, billions of Stars flickering in his Pupils like breaths.

The Stars of the heavens exploded with blinding red light. This wasn't vision, but a "perception"—he "saw" the violent rhythm of fusion within the sun, "heard" the gravitational collapse before a galaxy's explosion, and even "touched" the residual warmth of the universe's creation contained within interstellar dust.

His consciousness, like an unbridled horse, trampled and shattered galactic arms.

Nebulae flowed like rivers of Peacock Blue light at his "fingertips," the black hole vortex of Sagittarius radiated an inscrutable mystery that devoured all. This wasn't darkness, but the ultimate destination of all light and color.

He saw countless "selves" in parallel universes.

"So that's how it is..."

At this moment, Gu Mo suddenly understood the Pattern that Yu Shier and Qi Miaoxuan spoke of.

The God of War Catalog, forty-nine pictures, each containing a Martial Arts Principle, which are the forty-nine ways the world operates, meaning forty-nine martial arts concepts that can reach the Ascension Realm. Any one of them is a supreme principle of the world, and if all forty-nine are fused, it surpasses the Ascension Realm, allowing one to comprehend the Pattern of the world's operation.

"Heaven and Earth are not benevolent; they treat all things as straw dogs!"

At this moment, The Pattern Gu Mo comprehended was this overarching principle.

The meaning of this sentence is not the half-baked understanding of Heaven and Earth being indifferent, cold, and ruthless, but rather that Heaven and Earth are objective. They are neither intentionally benevolent nor intentionally cruel; they treat all things equally, without distinction between closeness or distance, nobility or lowliness.

Therefore, At this moment, Gu Mo also saw the Pattern.

The next instant, The domain formed by Gu Mo dissipated. The He Xu Ancient City, which had already been battered and overturned, reappeared, with raging fires burning everywhere within the city.

Gu Mo quickly raised his hand, using the Wind and Rain Summoning technique from the Dragon God Skill to bring down heavy rain. He then activated his Ice Power, and in just a moment, extinguished the great fire in the city.

At this moment, There were many corpses and injured people in the city, some were soldiers from the army, and some were from the Fire Spirit Race.

Immediately, Gu Mo transmitted a message to Ye Jinglan outside the city, asking him to bring his troops in.

A while later, the army entered the city once more. Ye Jinglan ran at the forefront, flying to Gu Mo's side, and hurriedly asked, "Brother Gu, what's the situation?"

Gu Mo said, "The Fire Kirin is dead, the Plague God is dead, and that old undying Qi Miaoxuan ran off with the Fire Kirin's corpse!"

"Caw!"

Ye Jinglan was completely bewildered.

"I'll explain slowly later," Gu Mo said. "First, you take your men and quickly go search the city's property. As for the Fire Spirit Race, don't harm them."

"No problem."

Immediately, Ye Jinglan led his team to search the city for treasures and to find the injured.

Gu Mo, on the other hand, used his spiritual sense and quickly found Yu Shijiu.

Yu Shijiu was lucky. Although he was severely injured, he was still alive.

Previously, all the Fire Spirit Race members had been manipulated by the Fire Kirin into charging the military formation. Although they succeeded, more than half of them were killed. Now, only a little over a hundred survived.

However, the Fire Spirit Race had a unique advantage. As long as their death wasn't instantaneous, they could heal themselves even from mortal wounds.

After the Fire Kirin was killed, They recovered from their berserk state and each ran back to Fire Spirit Village.

However, the Void Array was now severely damaged. Although Fire Spirit Village still existed between reality and illusion, it no longer had much concealment. Therefore, the more than one hundred surviving Fire Spirit Race members were all standing at the village entrance, extremely tense, holding various weapons in their hands.

Gu Mo took a step forward, Arriving in Fire Spirit Village.

Upon seeing Gu Mo, Yu Shijiu breathed a slight sigh of relief and asked, "Great Hero Gu, is there still a way to live for us Fire Spirit Race?"

Gu Mo smiled slightly and said, "I know the history of the Fire Spirit Race. Your ancestor was a great person, and your Fire Spirit Race has made contributions to the human world. I've come now to tell you that if you can repair the Void Array, please do so.

Yu Shier entrusted me with helping your Fire Spirit Race lift the curse before he died. I will come soon. During this time, you should discuss amongst yourselves. Those who wish to have the curse lifted, I will help them then. At the same time, I can also help you find a place to live, so that you can live like ordinary people from now on."

Yu Shijiu knelt before Gu Mo with a thud and kowtowed fiercely, "Thank you, Great Hero Gu! Our Fire Spirit Race will never forget this kindness!"

"You don't need to remember my kindness," Gu Mo said. "Shijiu, I am helping your Fire Spirit Race because I have a deal with Yu Shier. So, you and the members of the Fire Spirit Race should not feel indebted to me. You owe me nothing."

Gu Mo slightly raised his hand and pulled Yu Shijiu up, saying, "Shijiu, from now on, you can pursue your own life!"

After speaking, Gu Mo turned and left, returning to He Xu Ancient City.

Ye Jinglan was leading the army in searching for treasures within the ancient city, while Gu Mo, standing on his Grand Void Flying Sword, flew towards Chang'an City. He once again entered the Underground Ghost City with practiced ease, went to the Corpse Cocoon Cave, and found Yu Shier's residence.

Inside, it was indeed as Yu Shier had said, filled with many Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasures, priceless, along with various kinds of poisons, extremely numerous.

However, Gu Mo couldn't take them all at once, so he only took the Kirin Bone and the Great Devouring Spirit Hand manual. Then, he left a strand of his Nascent Soul power to seal Yu Shier's residence before rushing back to Mobei via flying sword without delay.

On the way back, Gu Mo, flying through the void, began to examine the Great Devouring Spirit Hand manual.

Indeed, as Yu Shier had said, with Gu Mo's current Martial Dao Realm, he could learn this martial art just by looking at it.

Afterwards, Gu Mo did not return to He Xu Ancient City immediately but went to the Mobei Six Doors.

Currently, the Thousand Household Commander of the Mobei Six Doors was Chen Xiuyuan. He had been forcefully promoted by Zhuo Qingfeng before he left. Chen Xiuyuan was originally just a General Banner in the Mobei Six Doors. He was lucky when Gu Mo came to Mobei; Zhuo Qingfeng arranged for him to be Gu Mo's guide. He followed Gu Mo for a period, accumulated many great merits, and rose straight to prominence. He was already over fifty and was experiencing a late bloomer's success.

Gu Mo found Chen Xiuyuan and asked him to find an uninhabited village to arrange for the Fire Spirit Race people.

Such uninhabited villages were very common in Mobei. Chen Xiuyuan quickly found a suitable one and personally led his men to make the arrangements.

Immediately after, Gu Mo returned to He Xu Ancient City.

Three days later, The area where He Xu Ancient City was located was once again engulfed in yellow sand, with sandstorms raging. He Xu Ancient City slowly sank into the ground and disappeared.

On a distant hillside, Ye Jinglan and Gu Mo stood together. Beside them, the army was slowly departing, with carriages forming a long line, indicating that Ye Jinglan's search for treasures in He Xu Ancient City had been very successful.

Ye Jinglan looked at the gradually disappearing He Xu Ancient City and said, "The Void Array has been destroyed. I'm afraid that after sinking this time, the He Xu Ruins will never reappear, right?"

Gu Mo said, "It shouldn't have appeared in the first place. Every time it appeared, it caused quite a stir. Moreover, the treasures inside have already been completely plundered. Whether it appears again or not doesn't hold much significance."

A smile appeared on Ye Jinglan's face. "We haven't failed His Majesty's trust. The treasures found in He Xu Ancient City this time are enough to support the frontline's consumption for at least half a year, allowing the people of the country to catch their breath."

"They won't be able to catch their breath," Gu Mo shook his head slightly. "As long as the war doesn't stop, the taxation will always keep the people from straightening their backs."

Ye Jinglan fell silent for a moment.

Gu Mo held out a foot-long, bowl-thick, crystal clear bone and offered it to Ye Jinglan. "This is a Kirin Spine Bone. You see, these past few days, I've transferred all the Spiritual Energy from the Fire Spirit Race members into this bone. If you spend some time refining it, it should help you reach a higher level."

Ye Jinglan took the Kirin Bone and said, "I won't be polite. I partnered with Qi Miaoxuan precisely to pursue strength. I really can't refuse this."

Gu Mo smiled slightly. "Remember to come find me for a fight later."

Ye Jinglan's mouth twitched. "Do you have to? I just looked at the world from a well, and you're still holding onto it, bringing it up to mock me whenever you get the chance?"

Gu Mo teased, "Isn't this fulfilling your wish to spar with me?"

"I feel like you just want an excuse to beat me up."

Ye Jinglan pouted. He now understood completely. His strength was indeed considerable, but it was ultimately mortal power. Gu Mo and Qi Miaoxuan, on the other hand, were on a completely different level. Talking about sparring was just asking for a beating.

"Hey,"

Ye Jinglan said, "It seems like some of the Fire Spirit Race members didn't come out?"

Gu Mo nodded. "There are over a dozen, all over a hundred years old. They don't want to face the world, and they're too old. If they release their Spiritual Energy, they probably won't live more than a few days."

Ye Jinglan said softly, "Do you think the Fire Spirit Race members will regret this choice in the future? After all, if they become Ordinary Persons, they'll get sick, and their Lifespan will shorten."

"Don't Know," Gu Mo shook his head. "But Yu Shijiu definitely won't regret it!"

"That kid," Ye Jinglan let out a light laugh. "He'll definitely become a top Swordsman in the future."

Gu Mo said, "He'll be in a real mess for a while. The Fire Spirit Race has always been isolated. Their minds are Pure, and they don't understand anything about the outside world, like children. Yu Shijiu will have his hands full!"

Ye Jinglan grinned, but there was also a hint of worry in his brows. "I'm a little worried. Did that Old Guy Qi Miaoxuan do something to me!"

Gu Mo said, "Don't worry, he didn't."

"So sure? Is he afraid I'll find out?"

"No, he doesn't think much of you."

Ye Jinglan: "..."

Gu Mo smiled, his Pupils contracted slightly. "What I want to know now is whether that Old Guy managed to contend with the Azure Dragon Remnant Soul within him?"

"Dragon Soul?" Ye Jinglan asked in Doubt.

Gu Mo said, "Earlier, White Jade Capital mistook me for the Azure Dragon Remnant Soul. And when I fought Qi Miaoxuan, there was Dragon Might emanating from that saber. It's basically safe to assume that Qi Miaoxuan is a servant of that Dragon Soul. He probably wasn't convinced, so he schemed to use the Fire Kirin's power to counter the Azure Dragon, a slave devouring his master!"