The Ziqi Sect Without Hands or Legs

Li Mo had no intention of following the clay sculpture's guidance deeper into Corpse Mountain. Instead, he relied on the breath-concealing property of his Leakless Body to remain where he was.

With the protection of the Tattooed Beast, he could ensure there were no blind spots in his field of vision, moving silently and unseen through the abandoned mine cave.

After a moment, the Ghost Tiger returned with a bloodstained Storage Bag in its mouth, clearly having reaped a rich harvest. The Viper Society was now forever buried within the secret realm.

Li Mo examined the Storage Bag.

Xu Guangcheng had collected over a hundred Low-grade Spirit Materials, along with two Mid-grade Spirit Materials and a large number of modified corpses.

The corpses varied in age and condition. He hadn't expected Xu Guangcheng to have such a twisted hobby.

At the bottom of the Storage Bag, Li Mo found several boxes of Spell Bone Scrolls. However, the spells recorded on them were too incomplete. Only the "Snake Belly Jade Blood Heart Sutra," which the Viper Society primarily cultivated, was relatively intact.

He had no interest whatsoever in the Snake Belly Jade Blood Heart Sutra. This technique likely shared the same origin as the A Hui Possession Curse, only it was far more extreme.

On the other hand, Xu Guangcheng's cultivation method, the "Hidden Moon Dipper Secret Method," was somewhat interesting.

The Hidden Moon Dipper Secret Method emphasized performing the Circulation Cycle under the cover of night, allowing one to easily enter a state of cultivation.

However, since it was ultimately a Rogue Cultivator's technique, the Hidden Moon Dipper Secret Method only had the first three layers of the Childhood Stage. The rest were cobbled together from various sources. That Xu Guangcheng had managed to cultivate it to the fourth layer was simply a matter of good fortune.

Li Mo's mind stirred slightly, and the Hidden Moon Dipper Secret Method appeared on the surface of his Primal Dao Seed.

The Primal Dao Seed digested the technique, its rotation speed increasing slightly. The Nourishing Origin Fundamental Scripture seemed to gain some minor improvements, better than nothing.

To the Dao Seed, an incomplete technique was almost entirely devoid of nourishment.

Li Mo shook his head. He would still have to find an opportunity to switch cultivation methods. No matter how much the Nourishing Origin Fundamental Scripture was perfected, it could never break free from its framework.

After looting all the resources, he tossed the miscellaneous items into a corner of the mine cave.

Without realizing it, Li Mo had already reached a depth of nearly three thousand meters. The branching paths he encountered grew fewer, and the temperature gradually became damp and cold.

He looked around. If he wanted to go deeper, he would likely need to start excavating the rock wall.

From the throbbing sensation emanating from the Book of Fortune, he could tell that the secret of Corpse Mountain was nearby. The Mother Ghost Head could also vaguely sense the presence of the Child Ghost Head.

Li Mo stepped back half a meter, intending to have the Ghost Tiger do the digging.

But as he turned his head, a Yin wind brushed against his face.

The Salamander let out a terrified cry, the tender sprout on its head trembling constantly as it released life force to protect Li Mo's body.

At some point, the narrow mine cave had suddenly opened up into a vast space. Thick fog shrouded the area, and in the distance, the faint outline of a temple could be seen.

The temple was low and squat, its courtyard covered in green tiles. Sturdy pine trees were lush with greenery.

[No temple exists within the mine cave]

Li Mo licked his lips. If his guess was correct, this was the source of the Book of Fortune's disturbance.

Contain Toxin and Digest Poison was still usable, which put him somewhat at ease. However, the Metal Toxin in the air was clearly growing stronger.

Li Mo headed toward the temple. The Ghost Tiger, alert, crept along the shadows of the wall, slipping through the temple gate first to scout for danger.

According to the information relayed by the Ghost Tiger, the temple was bustling with activity.

Li Mo arrived at the temple gate. Through the Mother Ghost Head, he could sense that the missing cultivators were inside the temple and, for now, still alive.

Hiss, hiss, hiss...

The Book of Fortune flipped its pages, stopping after the ninth blank page.

On the final page of the Book of Fortune, countless fleshy tendrils began to grow. In just a few breaths, they formed a blank residual page the size of a fingernail.

The tenth page of the Book of Fortune had inexplicably been conceived.

Li Mo stood outside the temple for a moment. The tenth page continued to fill in partially, but its growth had already slowed considerably.

He pushed open the temple gate.

A sour stench rushed toward him. The temple was filled with Metal-Earth attribute Spiritual Qi.

On the vast open ground, hundreds of clay sculptures, dressed in cotton and linen clothes, stood motionless, reenacting a scene of worshippers offering incense.

Every time Li Mo shifted his gaze, the clay sculptures in his blind spots would change their poses. However, they completely lacked the aggression of the clay sculptures within Corpse Mountain.

Since he hadn't revealed his Primordial Acquired Dao Body, the clay sculptures maintained their specific rules.

Amid his astonishment, Li Mo realized that the clay sculptures were imitating something.

He had the Ghost Tiger and the Salamander fix their gazes on the majority of the clay sculptures in the main hall of the temple, avoiding looking at the ones in the corner that were tending to the fields.

Li Mo then began to blink rapidly.

Because of the blinking, he lost sight of the clay sculptures several times per breath. The clay sculptures seemed to come alive, actually starting to sow seeds and hoe the ground.

It was like a stop-motion animation—by blinking, he made the clay sculptures' movements flow together.

The Tattooed Beast turned its head away, and the lifeless temple burst into vitality.

The clay sculptures busied themselves within the temple. The pungent smell of incense filled the air. Their behavior was identical to that of the worshippers in the towns.

Li Mo arrived at the main hall of the temple and discovered that the material composing the main hall was actually secreted by Gold Devouring Insects, and the interior was filled with maggots.

The chanting of the Armor Spell came from within.

"Heaven and Earth Mysterious Origin, Ten Thousand Qi Root, Vast Cultivation of Countless Kalpas, Attest My Divine Power."

"Inside and Outside the Three Realms, only the Dao..."

Li Mo looked up at the plaque above the main hall, which bore the three characters "Fortune Furnace"—the place where disciples of the Ziqi Sect practiced their Spells.

The hall was resplendent inside, and at its very center stood a golden statue with no arms or legs. It should have been the Ziqi Sect's founder, the "Golden Light Hermit," though Li Mo had no idea why all its limbs had been removed.

Beneath the golden statue sat an old man with white hair. He too had no arms or legs. Seeing Li Mo, he spoke joyfully: "Dao friend, have you come to cultivate the Armor Spell?"

"Old sir, may I ask your Dao name?"

The old man's head pointed toward the side wall of the main hall as he said: "Dao friend, have you come to cultivate the Armor Spell?"

"Is this the Ziqi Sect?"

"Dao friend, have you come to cultivate the Armor Spell?"

The old man kept repeating himself. Metallic patches spread across his face, and his rotting, festering flesh gave off a smell of rust.

"Dao friend, have you come to cultivate the Armor Spell?!!"

His words carried a hint of threat, and he muttered the details of the Armor Spell under his breath.

Li Mo followed the direction the old man had indicated. On the walls flanking the main hall were densely packed statues, all without arms or legs.

At first glance, the statues seemed to be made of metal, but their chests and abdomens rose and fell faintly.

Li Mo immediately recognized several two-headed statues—they were clearly the Rogue Cultivators who had previously explored Corpse Mountain, now trapped deep within the Temple.

Yet they seemed perfectly content. Their cultivation was visibly increasing, and a few had already reached a bottleneck at their current realm.

Li Mo found it deeply absurd.

What exactly was the origin of the Armor Spell? And why did the Ziqi Sect worship human husks?

The old man's spine made a sound like bones grinding together as he crawled forward in a twisted posture. Then, from a crack splitting open on his back, a half-meter-long Gold Devouring Insect slowly crawled out.

Li Mo could either agree or immediately withdraw from the Temple.

He prepared to use Contain Toxin and Digest Poison to leave, while letting the aura of his Primordial Acquired Dao Body leak out. The old man instantly froze.

The old man retreated to his original spot and resumed chanting the Armor Spell.

Li Mo warily exited the main hall and waited outside the Temple for the blank page to finish gestating.

He now noticed that the new blank page was revealing dark golden patterns, though he had no idea what use they would be for imprinting organs.

[These two days are critical—Seeking Follow-up Reads!!!!]