Undying Willow Puppet

Chen Lingxi was about to ask another question when he suddenly frowned, as if he had sensed something.

His gaze fell on Xi Mu, and after a moment's thought, he suddenly used the [Qi Observation] technique!

Under the Qi Observation Method, Qi surged and flowed. Chen Lingxi looked around...

"Um?"

He suddenly stared at Xi Mu's fingers.

It was then observed that wisps of unique spiritual energy emanated from the finger that had just Xi Mu the Hongdong Bag, drifting and disappearing out of the cave.

The spiritual energy was extremely faint and subtle. If he hadn't cultivated the Six-Qi True Method and was highly sensitive to such strange energy, he probably wouldn't have been able to detect it at all.

It emanated silently from the tip of Xi Mu's right index finger, like an invisible thread being pulled by an unseen hand, drifting towards the outside of the cave.

"What's this?"

Chen Lingxi's expression changed slightly.

He naturally knew where this subtle Qi came from.

When he was looting Xi Mu's belongings, Xi Mu had used the last wisp of spiritual energy to open the Hongdong Bag.

At the time, he didn't pay attention, thinking it was just ordinary spiritual energy circulation. But now it seems that Xi Mu did something tampering with the Hongdong Bag.

He only realized it at this point.

"The spiritual energy dissipated... This is very likely some kind of communication method."

Chen Lingxi pondered this in her heart.

The spiritual energy had already drifted out of the cave and disappeared into the churning clouds outside, then vanished without a trace.

Chen Lingxi suddenly turned her head, her gaze falling on Xi Mu.

"Are you using spiritual energy to send a message?" His voice was icy.

Xi Mu lay on the ground, a barely perceptible hint of panic flashing in his eyes.

"No... I never..." His voice trailed off. "How could I... have the strength to deliver a message? Fellow Daoist... Fellow Daoist, please understand..."

Chen Lingxi didn't speak, she just looked at him quietly.

The coldness in those eyes deepened.

Xi Mu felt a chill run down her spine under his gaze.

He never expected that this humble native from the Qi-Less Realm would be able to detect that wisp of spiritual energy fluctuation as thin as a hair.

Chen Lingxi pondered for a few moments, his mind racing.

So, to whom was this message sent?

The other two members of the Xi Family, Xi Yuan, or perhaps Xi Yu?

Or perhaps disciples from other sects who have connections with the Xi Family?

Chen Lingxi squinted her eyes.

"Regardless of who Xi Mu to, that person is very likely to have received it..."

Xi Mu sensed the murderous intent in Chen Lingxi's eyes, and his heart sank.

The killing intent was undisguised, like a cheetah lurking in the shadows, coldly scrutinizing him and weighing whether to kill him or not.

"Fellow Daoist!" Xi Mu's voice suddenly rose several decibels. "Fellow Daoist! I... I still have value! I know all the secrets of the Great World! I am willing to tell you everything! I... I will definitely tell you everything I know!"

"That spirit..."

He spoke very quickly, struggling to lift his head as he spoke, staring intently at Chen Lingxi with his dull eyes, trying to find a glimmer of hope in Chen Lingxi's expression.

"That spiritual energy was merely something the Hongdong Bag prevented from flowing out spontaneously; Non-Self intention. Brother Dao spared my life, and I swear on my Dao heart that I will never again be your enemy, never again..."

Before he could finish speaking, he saw Chen Lingxi's gaze.

The killing intent in those calm eyes had subsided.

Xi Mu felt slightly relieved.

But right now.

The azure light of the Azure Edge Method emanated from Chen Lingxi's fingertips!

The azure light illuminated the dim cave, like an extremely thin and cold azure lightning bolt, silently slicing through the air and piercing Xi Mu's brow.

laugh.

A very soft, faint sound.

Xi Mu's body trembled violently, and his dull, lifeless eyes widened abruptly, bulging out...

The Azure Edge Method was rapidly taking away all the remaining life force he had left!

Xi Mu's eyes were filled with horror and disbelief, as if he had never expected Chen Lingxi to be so decisive.

"Que Star..."

Just as consciousness began to blur...

He suddenly thought about his entire life.

The Xi Family Que Ten Stars, ten large and ten Great World bodies, four hundred and thirty-seven Cave Heaven, and twelve secret realms.

He was born into the main branch of the Xi Family and was expected to achieve great things from a young age.

He possessed exceptional talent among the many disciples of the Xi Family, capable of the Dao Foundation Realm and becoming a true Dao Foundation Realm cultivator. With a great fortuitous opportunity, he might even ascend to the Golden Grotto.

However, in the path of cultivation, only by reaching the Cauldron-Seizing Realm can one obtain greater fortuitous opportunity, become a true figure, and thus be of greater value to the clan.

The phrase "Cauldron-Seizing Realm" became like a demon, deepening his obsession.

Later, when this Qi-Less Grotto-Heaven was discovered, he believed it represented a great fortuitous opportunity for him.

Cauldron Vessel and the great fortuitous opportunity allows one to Dao Foundation Perfection Stage and even reach the Golden Grotto, becoming a true True Person!

That is why he felt compelled to abandon his physical body in the Great World, paying the price of damaging his foundation, and taking a huge risk to come to this Qi-Less Realm.

Upon entering the Qi-Less Realm, one realizes that the Cauldron Vessel within this Cave Heaven must be extraordinary. The figures who have come from various sects and schools are all top-notch geniuses, not to mention Xi Yu, a member of the same clan.

He vaguely felt powerless... and sensed that such a great fortuitous opportunity might be out of his reach.

But he never imagined... that he would die at the hands of a local cultivator who shouldn't have appeared at all.

An indigenous person from the Qi-Less Realm.

A lowly being who had never even heard of the Great Mysterious Golden Grotto, and who knew nothing about the Great World.

A self-taught cultivator who Fourth Floor of Qi Circulation cultivation.

"In a moment of carelessness, I died at the hands of such a person..."

Xi Mu's eyes were unfocused, and life was slowly draining away from him, like the receding tide.

But a thought was swirling wildly in his mind, and his hatred grew increasingly frenzied.

He thought to himself, "Thank goodness, I won't die alone."

Xi Mu thought this, the glimmer of light in her eyes finally went out completely.

Xi Mu died.

Chen Lingxi looked down at Xi Mu's corpse; the spiritual energy on the corpse's fingers was dissipating.

It eventually vanished completely into the dim light of the cave, leaving no trace.

"But I wonder... if anyone received Xi Mu's message."

Chen Lingxi withdrew her gaze, shook her head slightly to stop thinking about it, and then a thought stirred in her mind.

Suddenly, something appeared in his hand.

It was a willow branch, withered and rotten like wood, its trunk covered with dense fine lines, like a piece of dead wood that had been eroded by wind and sand in the wasteland for countless years, showing no sign of life.

"The Undying Willow Branch"

"Place it into the mouth of a corpse, repair the body, and obtain the Undying Willow Puppet."

Chen Lingxi looked at Xi Mu.

This cultivator Qi Circulation Sixth Floor and possesses many secret techniques passed down by the Xi Family...

"If I could refine this person into Undying Willow Branch... my combat power would greatly increase."

Without further hesitation, he squatted down, reached out and pried open Xi Mu's jaw, placing the withered Undying Willow Branch into Xi Mu's mouth.

The moment the willow branch entered his mouth, a faint green light emanated from deep within it, lingered on its surface for a moment, and then sank into Xi Mu's corpse, disappearing without a trace.

Immediately afterwards, Chen Lingxi released her grip, took a step back, and quietly looked at Xi Mu's corpse.

Time passed little by little.

Chen Lingxi stood motionless, her gaze fixed on Xi Mu's corpse.

After a long while, Chen Lingxi's eyes suddenly flickered...

The horrifying wounds on Xi Mu's corpse began to slowly heal.

The severed arm and leg, not far away, were suddenly drawn by a strange force and flew through the air.

The incisions at the severed arms and legs were as smooth as a mirror, yet now countless tiny granulation tissues were sprouting from them.

The granulation tissue grew at a visible rate, reshaping the bones, veins, and skin, and reattaching the severed arm.

The incision at the site of the severed leg is undergoing the same changes.

His severed arm was reattached, his severed leg grew back, and even the hole in his chest pierced by the Spiritual Arrow, as well as the wound he sustained during the attack on Consort Chun, were gradually healing.

What surprised him even more was that there was spiritual energy slowly circulating within Xi Mu's body.

Chen Lingxi grew increasingly alarmed as she looked at the screen.

The ashen, lifeless look on Xi Mu's skin gradually faded away.

About an hour later, Xi Mu's body suddenly trembled violently, and his eyes snapped open!

"He's alive?"

Chen Lingxi took two steps back, his Qi and Blood and qi surging, and the Gold-Slaughtering Saber was already quietly in his hand.

But he soon discovered that this "resurrected" Xi Mu did not attack him; his eyes were simply staring straight at the cave ceiling, his pupils unmoving.

Chen Lingxi sheathed his sword, stepped forward to examine Xi Mu closely, and then tentatively channeled his spiritual energy into Xi Mu's body.

But as soon as the spiritual energy Xi Mu's body, his expression suddenly changed.

In his spiritual perception, the condition of Xi Mu's body was completely different from what it had been just now.

The Undying Willow Branch merged into Xi Mu's Xi Mu, completely restoring his cultivation. His Qi Sea surged, and his spiritual energy was abundant, making him appear as if he were at his peak!

In particular, the Undying Willow Branch actually took root in Xi Mu's closed Qi Sea.

"So mysterious!"

Chen Lingxi withdrew his spiritual energy and exhaled a long breath of turbid air.

At the same time, he sensed that a new line had appeared in his mind, connecting his mind with the Undying Willow Puppet before him.

With a slight thought, he sensed the strange thread and issued commands to the Undying Willow Puppet.

"Spells!"

The moment his thought crossed his mind, Xi Mu was moved.

The movement was as fluid as when he was alive; he raised his right hand, and his newly grown arm made a loose clenching motion in the air!

The mist within a few feet around him was violently stirred up as if by an invisible giant hand, and in an instant, it condensed into an ice blade three feet long in his palm.

After the ice blade, the surging mist outside the cave rushed into the cave like rivers flowing into the sea, condensing in layers around the ice blade. In just a few breaths, the three-foot-long ice blade had transformed into an ice knife more than ten feet long.

The blade exuded a chilling aura, freezing the air within a radius of several feet into a faint white mist.

"Cut!"

Chen Lingxi's mind stirred again, and she slashed horizontally with her ice blade, cutting out of the cave and shattering a sea of clouds. Spiritual energy overflowed, and her power was terrifying.

Silence returned to the cave.

Chen Lingxi a sigh of relief.

He gazed at the Undying Willow Puppet before him, his eyes filled with delight, and murmured to himself, "The Undying Willow Puppet... the Qi Circulation Sixth Floor!"

Qi Circulation Sixth Floor...

Lin Suri, Lu Baizhong, Ying Chi, and the cultivator surnamed Na Chao are all at this level.

Each of them possesses a lineage of masters, secret Law Treasure, and numerous methods, stirring up trouble in this Cave Heaven and regarding the beings of the Qi-Less Realm as mere ants.

Now, he also possesses the combat power of a Qi Circulation Sixth Floor.

Although it is merely a puppet, lacking the intelligence and adaptability of a cultivator, in terms of sheer killing power, this Undying Willow Puppet is by no means inferior to any cultivator at the Qi Circulation Sixth Floor.

Chen Lingxi was overjoyed.

He stood up, walked to the edge of the cave, parted the old vines, and looked out at the surging sea of clouds.

It was nearly dusk.

After the sun sank behind the western mountains, the remaining afterglow dyed the clouds on the horizon a dark gold, like a flame about to be extinguished, making its last struggle at the edge of the sky.

The sea of clouds surged slowly in the twilight, like an endless gray ocean, its waves rising and falling silently, swallowing the distant and nearby mountains behind its heavy curtain.

"With this puppet, I am no longer a lamb that needs to hide its head and tail and be slaughtered at will."

He whispered to himself.

He then looked around again. "Xi Mu has most likely already sent a message that we can't stay on Inlaid Gold Mountain any longer; we need to find another place."

After washing up Inlaid Gold Mountain, Chen Lingxi traveled for a long time and finally found another cave on another mountain, Bridge Mechanism Mountain.

This cave is not as secluded as the Inlaid Gold Mountain Cave, but it is larger.

He sat cross-legged in the cave and reached out to retrieve the many treasures from Xi Mu.

They took out all the jade boxes, stone caskets, and wooden boxes of various sizes and arranged them neatly in front of him.

Three jade boxes, two stone boxes, and one wooden box.

The jade box is warm and smooth like jade, the stone box is ancient and heavy, and the wooden box subtly exudes a sense of spirituality.

"I've come to see just how profound the accumulation of knowledge of a reincarnated cultivator of the Great World truly is, after more than twenty winters and summers."