Chapter 185: Chapter 74: A Duel? No, It’s Testing Magic

Wang Ping was merely surprised to hear this, and he subconsciously looked toward Batu.

HISS.

Yu Lian let out an instinctive hiss, her body expanding as she coiled around Wang Ping. She then sent a warning through his Spirit Sea: ’That blockhead’s soul has suddenly become very active.’

Wang Ping didn’t even need Yu Lian’s reminder. As he looked at Batu, his consciousness, which had been like a pool of stagnant water, suddenly erupted with intense killing intent. Twisted, tentacle-like objects made of black threads began to seep from his skin.

"Fellow Daoist, don’t misunderstand. I just want you to know the problems you’ll face after fusing with them. Suppression can provide temporary stability, but he needs to vent every so often. Otherwise, the only other option is to enter Death Seclusion."

Fire Box’s gaze swept past Yu Lian before he met Wang Ping’s eyes calmly. "If we team up, we just need to beat him into submission or let him vent until he’s spent."

"Very well..."

Wang Ping agreed readily, a cryptic smile appearing on his face. ’This is a good chance to test the wonders of this Outer Realm Demon.’

Yu Lian spoke in human tongue, "What happens if we slip up and kill him?"

"Then we can only blame it on his bad luck!"

...

「On a lone island south of Shang’an Prefecture.」

The island’s only peak was now glowing red-hot. Tiny black tentacles writhed within the lingering flames, their surfaces covered in fine barbs.

However, these barbs were illusory—phantoms formed by a peculiar consciousness out of some strange energy.

On a nearby beach, Fire Box’s consciousness rapidly coalesced within the scorching flames. After his form appeared, the fire on his body continued to flicker wildly. He tried his best to control the flames and disperse them, but they refused to obey his command. This was the state of a Second Realm Fire Cultivator who could no longer maintain their Fire Transformation.

TSSSS...

A wave carrying Water Spirit Qi crashed over Fire Box, extinguishing the flames on his body. But the force of it also slammed him down to the seabed. When he finally resurfaced, he had a completely baffled look on his face.

"You’re welcome!" Yu Lian’s voice called from above, but her gaze was fixed on the center of the island.

At that moment, the center of the island was overrun with foot-thick Thorny Vines. They thrashed about, churning up the earth across half the island. A figure wreathed in scorching flames and wielding a pitch-black Longsword was lunging and stabbing within the encircled area, desperately trying to break free.

This person was, of course, Batu. His emotions were running high, though they were mostly negative—confusion, rage, irritability, hatred, and the like.

Driven by these negative emotions, Batu became extremely aggressive and seemed to possess an inexhaustible supply of energy.

"You bunch of bastards... Who do you think you’re talking to... What the fuck are you looking at... You idiot..."

The words tumbling from Batu’s mouth hadn’t stopped for a moment, and not a single one formed a complete sentence.

These were all the emotions he normally suppressed, now bursting forth all at once. With every phrase he spat, the Longsword in his hand swung, slicing through great swathes of Thorny Vines.

But in the time it took him to turn, even more Thorny Vines would close in.

WHAP.

A Thorny Vine finally landed a blow, whipping Batu across the back and extinguishing a good portion of the flames there.

"You worthless trash..."

Batu roared in fury, spinning around to find the culprit who had struck him. The sight of Thorny Vines everywhere drove him into another frenzy. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"The flames will burn away your sins!"

The persona he was channeling was clearly different this time, likely a fragment of a fire spirit’s consciousness. Following his roar, his body actually began to undergo Fire Transformation, just like a Fire Cultivator. The pitch-black Longsword at his side seemed to melt, merging with the scorching flames until the two were one.

High above, Wang Ping raised an eyebrow at the sight. A flicker of interest crossed his face as he flashed to one side, his form gradually becoming illusory.

BOOM.

Just then, flames shot toward the heavens, dyeing most of the sky crimson. The Thorny Vines in the island’s center were almost completely incinerated.

A pitch-black energy darted about within the flames, carried along by the Spiritual Qi. Wang Ping, who was just about to use his Water Moon Bell to test the illusion, felt his soul affected by this Spiritual Qi, and he fell into a momentary trance.

The moment of stupor passed, but a greater spiritual assault was about to invade his mind. At the critical moment, Yu Lian’s consciousness linked with his, allowing him to react instantly. He almost instinctively converted all the surrounding Spiritual Qi into that of the Wood Spirit and used a Spirit Gathering Array to create a vacuum around himself.

By this time, a completely enraged Batu had already charged right up to him. The searing heat that rolled off him was so intense that even Wang Ping, protected by his Armor Talisman, felt his skin prickle.

SHIING.

A pitch-black Longsword shot out of the flames, slashing down toward Wang Ping’s chest.

CLANG.

As the Longsword clashed with the Armor Talisman’s barrier of light, Wang Ping gave a light wave of his hand, releasing all of his Golden Armor Soldiers. His figure then turned illusory, just before the pitch-black Longsword sliced it in two.

"You are like ants..."

His strike hitting nothing but air, Batu’s rage was stoked even further. The sky-filling flames trembled violently as countless pitch-black Longswords shot out, slashing wildly at the illusion before him.

Hidden from sight, Wang Ping simply watched with cold eyes, occasionally directing the Golden Armor Soldiers to attack and keeping Batu in a sorry state.

’Illusions really are the most useful tool for dealing with someone who’s lost their mind!’

"If you had upgraded the Purgatory Banner, you could have imprisoned his soul in its current state with just a single stream of True Essence."

Tongyu Taoist appeared at Wang Ping’s side, using the illusion for cover.

Wang Ping remained silent. He hadn’t upgraded the Purgatory Banner immediately upon his return because he had been debating whether to use the Blood Pill to refine a better puppet or to upgrade the banner instead.

’Judging from this battle, upgrading the Purgatory Banner seems like the most practical option. But refining a usable puppet would yield the greatest long-term benefits.’

’Take Zi Hong, for example. Even though I’ve never been to the Southeast Islands, he has already gathered basic intelligence on the region for me.’

’And while Zi Hong’s strength is currently stuck at the Foundation Establishment Stage, his physical body is comparable to a Second Realm Cultivator’s.’

「Ten minutes later.」

Batu’s attacks began to weaken. Seizing the opportunity he’d been waiting for, Wang Ping commanded his Golden Armor Soldiers to gather the vast Wood Spirit Qi. They formed an attack that pierced through the flames and knocked Batu’s consciousness down to the island’s surface.

As Batu’s consciousness fell, so did a sky full of thorn vine seeds. Under the watchful eyes of the twenty Golden Armor Soldiers, his consciousness was thoroughly shredded by the Wood Spirit Qi. He was unable to maintain his Fire Transformation state and reverted to his original form, looking even more pathetic than Fire Box had earlier.

Yu Lian treated him to a tour of the seabed as well, though his was a bit more... special. When he finally got up, his body was covered in blisters caused by the corrosive Water Spirit Qi.

’I still wanted to try out the Curse Talisman!’ Wang Ping said to Yu Lian in his Spirit Sea.

’His soul is already on the verge of shattering. If you hit him with a Curse Talisman now, he’ll probably lose control for good.’

As she replied, Yu Lian landed on Wang Ping’s shoulder.