Inside the quiet room, dark-gold flames flickered continuously. The surging radiance completely submerged Wang Ping, stacking so heavily that his human silhouette was no longer visible.
Seeing this, Nun You constantly shifted her hand seals.
As a result, the surrounding talismanic scripts seemed to come alive. Illuminated by the blazing light, they twisted and danced, resembling dragons and snakes baring their fangs and brandishing their claws.
On the other side, within the endless radiance, Wang Ping had only one remaining sensation—pain. The agony of the roaring fire burning his body took deep root within him, even turning him numb. Behind him, the Six Desires Primal Heaven Demon fell to one knee, its charred skin unable to shed any further.
【Armor Shedding】 had its limits.
After all, it was merely an innate ability of the Six Desires Primal Heaven Demon, not a true spiritual art. How could it withstand the spiritual fire Nun You had painstakingly prepared?
I must endure.
Despite the excruciating pain, Wang Ping’s mind remained clear. If he used 【Qi Ward】 right now, he was confident he could hold on for a few more hours.
But—he couldn’t use it.
I can’t explain where I learned 【Qi Ward】. Even if I use it, it won’t turn the tables. It will only alert the enemy and accomplish nothing.
It seemed this life was coming to an end.
Wang Ping was already somewhat resigning himself to fate. Yet, at that moment, Nun You outside the formation suddenly opened her beautiful eyes, furrowed her brow, and looked at him.
“Where is the resentment?”
“You finally embarked on the path of immortality, only for me to suddenly refine you into a sspiritual artifact. Your hope turned into despair, yet you harbor no resentment after falling this far?”
Nun You was bewildered.
However, her primary concern was worry. “This won’t do. Without resentment, the chance of this 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】 advancing to a high-grade artifact will drop.”
Thinking of this, the hand seals Nun You formed changed immediately. Almost simultaneously, Wang Ping sensed the shift in the formation. From the surrounding dark-gold radiance, bizarre and grotesquely shaped illusory entities drilled out, swarming directly into his glabella.
“Ugh!”
Wang Ping grunted, overlapping illusions appearing before his eyes. He recognized these illusory entities. “It’s the demons… Crap, what is she trying to do?”
Demons, also known as Wandering Souls or Yin Ghosts.
As the name implied, they were born from the earth’s turbid yin qi. They were formless and intangible, yet they delighted in the living. Possessing the ability to invade the sea of consciousness, they devoured a cultivator’s seven emotions and six desires.
Ordinary cultivators feared them greatly.
Because these demons were both ferocious and formless, they had very few natural predators. Since they specifically targeted the sea of consciousness, they were impossible to defend against; a slight lapse in focus would result in contamination.
Once infected, at best, one’s temperament would drastically alter; at worst, they would go mad and die.
Right now, for instance, as a horde of demons flooded his sea of consciousness, Wang Ping’s mind uncontrollably surfaced countless scenes and memories of the past.
His impoverished childhood in Northern Liao, his youthful ambition to surpass everyone and join the Royal Court, galloping freely on horseback across the plains as a young man, learning about cultivation in his middle age and seeking the immortal path for eternal life, and finally, the despair of discovering he lacked a spirit root…
“…Huh?”
No, this wasn’t him.
Looking at the entirely unfamiliar parents, children, lovers, and teachers before him, Wang Ping suddenly jolted awake. This is… a flashback of my predecessor’s memories!
Right, that poisonous woman wants my resentment!
The so-called resentment naturally stemmed from his predecessor’s bitter memories of failing to attain the immortal path. But that was his predecessor’s problem; what did it have to do with him, Wang Ping?
Sever it! I must sever it!
With that in mind, Wang Ping immediately reined in his thoughts, pushing his predecessor’s memories to the forefront. He allowed the demons to weave through them, provoking the resentment within those memories. Before long, his predecessor’s memories gradually grew fragmented, the sea of consciousness shattered along with them, and a thick resentment slowly drifted up.
“I hate this!”
“Heaven and earth are unfair! Why can’t I cultivate? I refuse to accept this…”
“Poisonous woman, I won’t let you off even as a ghost!”
“I refuse to submit!”
As his predecessor’s memories continuously shattered, the resentment grew heavier and heavier, even manifesting into echoes resembling the wails of ghosts and howling of wolves. This was his predecessor’s final lingering trace.
“It’s done!”
Outside the formation, Nun You finally revealed a satisfied smile. Forming hand seals, she chanted, “Using resentment as flesh and skin, hatred as sinews and bones, and the six desires as internal organs…”
“The Heavenly Demon descends!”
As her voice fell, all the resentment surged backward, completely extracting the demons that had rushed into Wang Ping’s body. They intertwined, transforming into a fluttering banner surface.
Then, under Nun You’s nervous gaze, the dark-gold radiance on the banner flickered alternately several times before finally coalescing into a figure.
Green-faced with exposed fangs, crimson hair, and golden pupils.
Looking closely, its appearance was seventy to eighty percent similar to Wang Ping’s, yet it integrated the traits of the Six Desires Primal Heaven Demon. Only its eyes were dull and devoid of sentience.
However, this suited Nun You perfectly. After all, draining all of his memories and converting them into resentment was partly to elevate the spiritual artifact’s grade, but also to prevent the newly forged 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon King】 from retaining any consciousness. Otherwise, what if it turned on its master at a crucial moment?
“This is just right.”
Nun You nodded. Reaching out, she grasped the dark-gold radiating 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】 in her hand and swung it forcefully.
In an instant, bleak winds billowed.
Whoosh, whoosh!
Six hundred and sixty demons shrieked in unison, swarming together like troops, with Wang Ping as their commanding general. With his every movement, the demons followed closely.
The next second, all phenomena dissipated.
Like a flock of birds returning to their nest, the demons flooded into the banner. Wang Ping’s figure rapidly faded, ultimately turning into a ferocious ghost face in the very center of the banner.
“A high-grade spiritual artifact… It really succeeded!”
Holding the banner, Nun You inspected it for a moment, an unusual look crossing her face. “What a treasure. The resentment is drawn but not released; once unleashed, it will certainly strike with the force of a thunderbolt!”
“It seems I can’t use it lightly.”
Nun You carefully stowed the banner, calculating internally, Every bit of resentment used is a bit permanently gone. Furthermore, its first use will undoubtedly yield the greatest power.
Deployed correctly, it can completely turn defeat into victory.
Having made up her mind, Nun You decided to treat this 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】 as her trump card, reserving it strictly for critical moments.
She could already picture the scene.
Just as she and an enemy fought to a bitter standstill, she would suddenly whip out the 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】, unleashing countless Yin soldiers and ghost generals from within.
It even housed a heavily resentful Six Desires Heavenly Demon King.
Who could resist that?
By then, her opponent’s expression would surely be a sight to behold.
…
Inside the 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】.
The Six Desires Heavenly Demon King abruptly opened its eyes. The memories and consciousness belonging to Wang Ping’s main body rapidly surfaced, restoring life to its originally dull gaze.
I survived…
Wang Ping blinked, his heart brimming with pleasant surprise. To be honest, he had expected to die instantly just like last time and was already prepared to return to Great Shun to act tough.
Yet, he didn’t die.
Not only did he survive, but he had also become the artifact spirit of the 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】. Wang Ping could clearly feel his current degree of control over the spiritual artifact.
Having said that, when Wang Ping attempted to command the 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】 to move slightly, he acutely detected another oppressive force within the artifact. It was Nun You’s spiritual power and spiritual sense. If he actually made a move, she would likely notice something was amiss immediately.
I still have to endure.
I must endure until Nun You reaches the end of her rope and no longer has the strength to suppress me. That will be my chance to turn against her and settle the score.
With this in mind, Wang Ping concealed his consciousness once more.
The next second, his vision spun, and he found he had detached from the Six Desires Heavenly Demon King’s body, returning to the 【Morgue】.
“This is…”
Wang Ping looked around in bewilderment, only to see the towering book before him suddenly flip open. The pages rustled, finally stopping on the first scripture scroll, 【Otherworldly Heavenly Demon】.
An additional line of text had impressively appeared on this scroll.
【Detected that the book’s master has actively anchored an identity in the ‘Immortal Sect’. Upon subsequent entries into this world, the book’s master can voluntarily choose to anchor this identity.】
【Anchored Identity: Six Desires Heavenly Demon King】
Simply put, he no longer had to worry about randomly spawning as a Lishi or human material when visiting the immortal sect in the future. Instead, he could start directly as an artifact spirit.
Of course, this wouldn’t restrict him from starting with a random identity if he chose to.
“But… what’s the difference?”
Wang Ping frowned deeply. After pondering for a moment, his eyes suddenly lit up. “Speaking of which, if I become an artifact spirit, will I still be restricted by spirit roots?”
Theoretically speaking, probably not.
From this angle, as long as he picked a good master and clung to their coattails, ensuring the 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】 continuously evolved…
Did that mean there was hope for the Great Dao?
At this thought, Wang Ping’s brows immediately smoothed out. As expected, human capability had its limits after all. If he wanted to cultivate to immortality, he had to stop being human!
Moreover, anchoring an identity offered another advantage.
“As long as I want to, I can activate 【Otherworldly Heavenly Demon】 right now and proactively resurrect to start over. After all, strictly speaking, I’m already dead.”
This was a crucial function.
“True, I successfully deceived Nun You this time, but that was mainly because her own capabilities were lacking, so she failed to discover my consciousness.”
“But in the future, if I truly latch onto an expert, the higher their cultivation, the more profound their methods for refining the 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】 will be. By then, I might not be as lucky. However, with this function, I can simply choose to withdraw during the refinement process.”
“That way, the Six Desires Heavenly Demon King bears all the suffering.”
“Once they finish refining, I can return to reap the rewards. Letting the Six Desires Heavenly Demon King carry the burden for me, while I avoid the agony of being forged.”
Excellent, very excellent!
Wang Ping nodded in satisfaction, then actively exited the 【Morgue】. Having luckily survived, he didn’t plan on resurrecting and leaving just yet.
“Let’s set a small goal first.”
“You Xuexin—first I’ll kill this damn poisonous woman, then extract her soul and refine it into my Banner Slave, torturing her a thousand times over!”
Wang Ping gritted his teeth.
That said, he hadn’t lost his mind. He knew very well that a rash betrayal meant seeking death. He chose to stay because he spotted an opportunity.
That poisonous woman still has to escort the 【Five Thieves’ Heaven-Stealing Myriad Transformation Divine Talisman】. That process is definitely dangerous. The reason she was willing to go into debt just to forge me into a spiritual artifact ahead of time was surely to prepare for this escort mission. In other words, there’s a high chance she’ll land herself in peril.
This was his opening.
“I’ll let you be smug for a few days…”
Hiding within the 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】, Wang Ping’s gaze pierced through the ferocious ghost face on the banner, staring sinisterly at Nun You, who was currently attempting to refine him.
…
“Strange.”
Weighing the 【Six Desires Heavenly Demon Banner】 in her hand, You Xuexin felt confused. Why did her refinement of this spiritual artifact feel somewhat sluggish and obstructed?
Could it be because its grade was too high?
It wasn’t impossible. After all, she had yet to survive the Heavenly Tribulation and forge a divine ability. Though she had mastered quite a few spiritual arts, the quality of her spiritual power still fell slightly short.
“Whatever, it’s just a transitional item anyway.”
You Xuexin shook her head. The might of this spiritual artifact was decent, but once she forged a divine ability, it wouldn’t be able to keep up. It was destined to be discarded sooner or later.
Treating it as a one-time trump card was perfect.
Expending any more effort wouldn’t be worth it.
With that thought, You Xuexin shifted her gaze toward the 【Five Thieves’ Heaven-Stealing Myriad Transformation Divine Talisman】 in the center of the room. A trace of infatuation suddenly flashed through her beautiful eyes.
“An immortal method…”
When she explained it to Wang Ping earlier, she was merely speaking casually. She glossed over many details, and the facts she stated contained significant discrepancies.
The simplest point was that the rogue cultivators who practiced the 【Five Thieves’ Heaven-Stealing Myriad Transformation Divine Talisman】 weren’t all immortal sect disciples who failed to inherit true legacies. Some, like herself, were true disciples who eventually became rogue cultivators simply because they coveted this supreme technique that towered above all others in the immortal sects.
One must know, that 【Heaven-Stealing Thief】 hadn’t even reached the stage of “Refining Qi”!
Yet despite that, in the massive immortal sect, with so many Qi Refiners, Cultivators, and even Immortals, they surprisingly failed to kill this outcast.
With such capability, how could he be ordinary?
If one really got down to it, the 【Heaven-Stealing Thief】’s personal talent and aptitude were certainly part of the reason, but the greater factor lay in the cultivation method he practiced.
This technique was the fundamental reason rogue cultivators swarmed toward it.
“…Why don’t I take a look as well?”
Imperceptibly, You Xuexin’s thoughts grew increasingly obsessed. Her eyes hazy, she stepped toward the jade slip and slowly injected her spiritual sense and power into it.
Instantly, light bloomed.
Unlike other jade slips, this 【Five Thieves’ Heaven-Stealing Myriad Transformation Divine Talisman】 seemed eager for everyone to see it, directly manifesting its contents externally.
Thanks to this, Wang Ping saw it too.
“I pass down this method today, known as: Heaven holds five thieves, governing myriad transformations. He who witnesses them thrives; he who steals from them rules as king… The five thieves are: Life, Matter, Time, Merit, and Spirit!”
“The Thief of Life can steal life force and primal qi.”
“The Thief of Matter can seize external objects.”
“The Thief of Time can snatch fragments of time.”
“The Thief of Merit can usurp identities and achievements.”
“The Thief of Spirit can alter knowledge and memories.”
“With all five thieves united, steal the secrets of heaven and earth, seize the qi of the universe. Thus, it is the 【Five Thieves’ Heaven-Stealing Method】. Without needing a True Spirit Root, one can still reap the fruit of Refining Qi and entering the Dao!”
Reading the final sentence, Wang Ping’s eyes lit up brilliantly.
However, at that exact moment, the previously mesmerized You Xuexin jolted awake. She violently stumbled backward, her pretty face a mix of shock and rage as she furiously rebuked:
“Wicked sorcery!”
Before her voice fell, a sharp sword cry abruptly rang out.
In an instant, the jade slip that had been radiating brightly to manifest the technique’s contents dimmed. As if suffering a heavy blow, it fell into complete silence.