Chapter 413 - 379: Void Spirit Stone

Elixirs were divided into the Qi Sea Level and the Spirit Level.

The Qi Sea Level was further divided into six grades: Low, Mid, High, Peerless, Perfect, and Supreme.

Spirit Level Elixirs were divided into eight grades: Low, Mid, High, Peerless, Holy, Emperor, Celestial, and Dao.

All the elixirs Nie Yun had encountered before were of the Qi Sea Level. Even the strongest among them were only Supreme-grade—he had never come across a Spirit Level Elixir.

Spirit Level Elixirs had already developed their own Spiritual Wisdom. The most powerful ones could even take human form and cleanse themselves of their Pill Qi, becoming completely indistinguishable from humans!

Although these elixirs hadn't reached the stage of taking human form, they were still Low-grade Spirit Level Elixirs. Their medicinal fragrance alone could greatly invigorate a person, allowing them to fight for three days and three nights without their True Qi running dry.

'Such a treasure actually exists in a place like this?'

The sight was so tempting that Nie Yun had half a mind to charge in, fight everyone, and claim the elixirs for himself!

'Calm down! Even on the Floating Heaven Continent, only the larger Sects have the ability to refine Low-grade Spirit Level Elixirs. The Qi Sea Continent is just one of the countless islands under the Floating Heaven Continent's control. It's impossible for something so precious to be here. Celestial Eye Talent, observe closely!'

Forcibly suppressing the impulse to rush over and snatch them, Nie Yun took a deep breath as his Celestial Eye Talent activated once more.

The Floating Heaven Continent was vast and boundless; even the Nie Yun of his past life hadn't known its true size. The continent ruled over innumerable islands, and in its eyes, the Qi Sea Continent was merely one of the larger ones. How could a place like this possibly have Spirit Level Elixirs?

Refining Spirit Level Elixirs required the use of Creation Qi, an energy that didn't exist on the entire Qi Sea Continent. How could any be successfully refined here!

There was clearly more to this than met the eye. He had been on the back foot ever since entering the Lingxi Celestial Palace, and he couldn't afford to act rashly now.

A golden light flickered in his eyes as he carefully examined the Spirit-Grade Elixirs. As expected, he soon discovered something amiss.

'It's just an illusion created by an array! And the Array Base is actually a Void Spirit Stone?'

As expected of a top-ten talent, the Celestial Eye allowed Nie Yun to see the truth after a few moments of observation. The Spirit-Grade Elixirs were exquisitely lifelike, almost impossible to distinguish by their appearance or aura, but they were, in fact, nothing more than a sophisticated Blinding Technique!

Once he knew it was a Blinding Technique, Nie Yun lost all interest in competing with the others. However, when he saw that the Array Base for this Blinding Array was made of exceedingly rare Void Spirit Stones, his excitement flared once more.

Void Spirit Stones were an unparalleled treasure for array formations. Much like how Profound Iron was used for forging weapons, adding even a small amount could drastically increase the quality of an entire array.

No wonder this array's illusion was so convincing that not even Secret Realm Powerhouses could see through it. It was using these stones as its Array Base!

These stones were extremely precious even on the Floating Heaven Continent, priceless and nearly impossible to find. Many Major Sects hoarded them to build their Sect Protection Arrays, and they were almost never sold on the open market. He never expected to see them here.

He examined them carefully, using both his Blood Pupil Talent and Tracking Talent to confirm his findings. Once he was certain they were indeed Void Spirit Stones, Nie Yun let out a long cry and strode into the hall.

"Mu Jie, is that you? Perfect timing! Now, die!"

Hearing the cry and seeing that the newcomer was "Mu Jie," Mu Shang let out a gleeful shout and charged straight at him.

It seemed Mu Shang and Mu Jie had a long-standing feud, though Nie Yun had no idea what it was about.

His body coiled like a bow, and he pounced like a leopard that had spotted its prey. As Mu Shang attacked, his surging Mana formed a massive dome of light that completely enveloped Nie Yun.

"Hmph!"

Seeing the ferocity of the attack, which seemed to carry the intent of mutual destruction, Nie Yun took a step back to avoid the brunt of it and thrust his palm forward.

"Die!"

Mu Shang hadn't expected "Mu Jie" to dodge such a ferocious attack. He spun in mid-air, his fingers curled like talons as he met Nie Yun's palm head-on.

In his mind, their strengths were comparable. Attacking from above, he had the momentum of a pouncing predator. He believed he was far superior in both aura and condition, certain he could defeat or even kill his opponent.

"You don't know your place!"

With a cold snort, Nie Yun's muscles tensed. He didn't even use his Mana, instead channeling his Powerful Qi to instantly augment his fist!

POW!

Fist met palm.

PFFT!

With a dull thud, Mu Shang, who had been attacking from above, was sent flying backward like a kite with a broken string. He crashed heavily to the ground, the bones in his arm completely shattered, his breathing shallow as he lay on the verge of death.

With his True Qi controlled by a Spirit-Level soul, Nie Yun could fight even a Primordial Saint Realm powerhouse, let alone a mere cultivator at the Early-Stage Magical Power Realm.

"How can he be so strong?"

"This is impossible…"

The other three were stunned by what they had just witnessed.

Their strength was comparable to Mu Shang's; otherwise, they wouldn't have been fighting for so long without a clear winner. The fact that Mu Shang was beaten half to death with a single punch proved that this newcomer was on a completely different level.

They had all grown up together; shouldn't their strengths be about the same? How had Mu Jie's power suddenly skyrocketed like this?

"Mu Jie must have been hiding his strength! If we team up, we still have a chance. Otherwise, we'll all die here! Let's attack together!"

Suddenly, one of the young men seemed to come to a realization and roared. With a flick of the Iron Fan in his hand, his Mana formed currents of air that seemed to slice through space as they shot viciously toward Nie Yun.

"Right, let's attack together!"

The remaining two weren't fools. They knew they stood no chance if they were singled out, so they each unleashed their most powerful treasures and attacked Nie Yun.

"Teaming up is a good idea, but it's still useless!"

Facing the trio's storm-like barrage, Nie Yun chuckled. Instead of retreating, he advanced, thrusting his hand forward. His immense Soul Power, infused with True Qi, materialized in the air as a giant hand.

The giant hand simply squeezed.

RUMBLE!

The sky full of attacks instantly dissipated, as if they had never existed.

"The three of us combined can't beat him? I don't believe it…"

"This is absolutely impossible…"

The three of them couldn't believe their combined attack hadn't even breached his defense. Their faces changed in unison, and with sharp cries, their Mana surged as fresh waves of energy washed over Nie Yun once more.

"Stubborn fools. Since you insist, you can join Mu Shang!"

With a cold snort, Nie Yun decided to stop wasting time. His palm clenched and released, and his arm became a phantom, striking three times in quick succession.

THUD! THUD! THUD!

The three most famous prodigies of the Ancient City didn't even see how the young man moved before an excruciating pain tore through their chests. Their vision went black, and they dropped to the ground with a series of thuds, motionless as corpses.

Cultivators at the Early-Stage Magical Power Realm were just that. No matter how many of them there were, they were no match for a Primordial Saint Stage powerhouse. For someone like Nie Yun, who could defeat even Primordial Saint Realm masters, dealing with these three was as easy as slicing melons. In a single move, they were all on the ground, hovering between life and death.

Though it was unclear if they would live or die, it was obvious that even if they survived, they would be crippled for life.

Once a fight began, one could not show mercy. This principle was ingrained deep in Nie Yun's bones. He would never show misguided compassion and bring trouble upon himself. Besides, these people had wanted to kill him first. They were hardly good people, so he felt no guilt in dealing with them, even if it meant killing them.

Under the gaze of his Celestial Eye, the Blinding Array's flaws were quickly exposed. Nie Yun spread his fingers, grabbed forward, and snatched the Void Spirit Stones that served as the Array Base into his palm.

There were nine of them in total, each the size of a walnut and pulsating with dense Spiritual Qi.

"Good stuff!"

With a flick of his wrist, he put the items into his Storage Dantian.

WHOOSH!

As soon as the Void Spirit Stones were taken, the Illusion Realm in the hall vanished. In its place was a pitch-black tunnel extending straight ahead, stretching so far that not even his Celestial Eye could see its end.

"Congratulations. You have passed the final trial through your own perseverance and wisdom. Now, follow this tunnel to its end. There, you will meet me, receive my acknowledgment, and become the champion of this contest!"

The moment the Illusion Realm vanished, the ancient voice sounded once more.

Nie Yun took a deep breath.

Hearing the voice's instructions, Nie Yun took a deep breath. With a flick of his wrist, the Profound Jade Sword appeared in his hand. At the same time, with a mere thought, he loaded the Demon Saint Ancient Corpse with one hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones.

Although the ancient voice's words sounded flawless, as if it were truly searching for an heir, it had, in reality, laid one trap after another. If not for his Celestial Eye Talent, the Nine Nether Cold Pearl, and his Blood Pupil Talent, he would have been a corpse by now.

It was best to be cautious.

Once prepared, Nie Yun slowly entered the tunnel. It was completely different from the previous corridor—it was narrow, with no murals, and the walls were bare and black.

It was the same black stone that even his Celestial Eye could not penetrate.

He proceeded cautiously and quickly reached the end without any further incident.

At the end of the tunnel was a huge spring, over which hung a single, glistening droplet that emitted a powerful, exhilarating aura.

Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water!

"This is the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring? Have you been the one speaking to me all this time?" Seeing that the massive spring looked no different from an inanimate object, Nie Yun couldn't help but feel puzzled.

"That's right, it was I who spoke to you! After all these years, you are the first person capable of communicating with me! If I'm not mistaken, you must be a Beast Tamer!"

The spring rumbled, and the ancient voice continued to speak.

This time, the voice was in the form of sound waves, not a mental message transmitted directly into his mind.

"That's right, I am a Beast Tamer," Nie Yun nodded.

"Beast Tamers are masters of the living, capable of taming any Demon Beast. Although I am merely a spring, I have lived long enough to gain my own Spiritual Wisdom, making me similar to a Demon Beast. That is why you are able to communicate with me using Beast Taming Qi!" the spring rumbled.

"I see," Nie Yun nodded.

Spiritual Medicines could gain Spiritual Wisdom and flee on their own after a thousand years. This spring had existed since the Ancient Era, for who knew how many tens of thousands of years; it wasn't strange at all for it to have developed sentience.

There were tens of thousands of special talents in the world, all in accordance with the Heaven and Earth Dao, but those that allowed one to communicate with Spiritual Objects were few and far between.

The most famous was the Beast Language Master, who could form Beast Language Qi to naturally communicate with Spirit Beasts and Spiritual Objects. Another was the Beast Tamer!

A Beast Tamer could subdue a Demon Pet and use Beast Taming Qi to communicate with it.

Although the spring hadn't become his Spirit Beast or Spiritual Object, as long as there was a mutual understanding and it didn't resist, communication was still possible.