Chapter 2130: Another Old Monster
After the spirit body swallowed the human body, the crowd immediately noticed that the spirit body began to develop clear facial features. Hands, feet—everything transformed into human form, completely replacing the other and incarnating as a human.
However, a hint of terrifying and eerie strangeness gleamed in this person's eyes, as if he possessed supreme intelligence by nature. His gaze swept over the crowd, and a cold smile curled at the corner of his mouth. He said, "I have inherited everything from him. From now on, I am him. But of course, the difference is that I will be your king. Everyone in the Heavenly Array Mysterious Mansion, remember this well."
This deep voice carried a chilling authority, as if he himself was a lofty king. His body still stood atop the dragon-python's head, overlooking everyone.
His gaze slowly turned and landed on Yang Xiao. "Where is the cauldron?"
Yang Xiao's eyes narrowed. The cauldron?
Before Yang Xiao had entered the depths of the cave, Lin Feng and the ancient cauldron had already disappeared. All he had seen was a single corpse. How could there be a cauldron there?
"King, the cauldron is not on him. It swallowed the soul of a martial cultivator and has disappeared somewhere," the dragon-python said at that moment, its voice cold. The spirit body's eyes narrowed slightly, and then the dragon-python looked at Yang Xiao and said, "Hand over that person's body for the king to see."
Yang Xiao's expression stiffened. He found the situation rather awkward. This person had originally been a genius of the Heavenly Array Mysterious Mansion on par with himself, but now, having been devoured by the Heaven-Born Array Artificer, he was addressed as king by the dragon-python, exuding immense pride.
However, the ever-cautious Yang Xiao naturally would not defy the other's words. He took out Lin Feng's body. The spirit body glanced at it, his expression calm. The dragon-python moved forward, coiled around Lin Feng's body, and brought it before the spirit body, saying, "My king, this is the man. His soul was swallowed by the cauldron, leaving only a physical body."
"Mm." The spirit body nodded slightly. Then, before him, a tearing gale struck toward the body. But the body remained indestructible, producing a sound of collision. The spirit body's pupils contracted. "What a sturdy physical body. What a pity. It could have been another vessel for me. But having a Heaven-Born Array Spirit Body is also fine."
Just then, in the distance, the sound of a cauldron hummed. The spirit body's gaze sharpened, turning toward the precious cauldron. A smile flickered in his eyes, and he thought to himself, "Good fellow, after following me for so many years, you still recognize your way back."
Lin Feng did not know what the spirit body was thinking. At that moment, his gaze was fixed on his own body. But he was deeply frustrated. With so many powerful experts watching, he, having transformed into a cauldron, could only float obediently in the void.
"Ten Thousand Transformations Precious Cauldron, return," the spirit body called out to the cauldron. Lin Feng was startled. Since he was calling the cauldron, it should be directed at him. Could it be that this person was the cauldron's master in his past life?
Lin Feng's body drifted slowly, coming to the spirit body's side. The spirit body smiled slightly, then turned his gaze to the crowd and said, "Although I am an Array Spirit Body born from heaven and earth, since I have inherited a human body and become your king, you need not worry too much. I will make the Heavenly Array Mysterious Mansion the strongest existence."
"Born from heaven and earth, the king of the Heavenly Array Mysterious Mansion?" Lin Feng recalled what he had seen and heard along the way and began to piece together some conclusions.
"Alright, all of you may disperse. I will choose a palace for myself," the spirit body said again. Then, the dragon-python stepped forward, drifting toward a certain direction. The crowd scattered one by one, leaving only a few powerful mansion masters following him. They noticed that the dragon body had chosen a king's palace in the Qian Mansion, making them wonder—had this fellow truly inherited the memories of the one he devoured?
Lin Feng followed the spirit body into the palace. Although his body was still there, he dared not act rashly. The dragon-python's aura was terrifyingly powerful, and he had no idea how strong it truly was.
Inside the palace, the spirit body's gaze swept in all directions. Instantly, the void roared, and array light interwove. The entire vast palace was enveloped by formations, sealing off everything. Only then did his gaze slowly return. His eerie eyes glanced at the surrounding guardian array beasts and said, "From now on, this is my palace. Go and guard it for me."
Those guardian array beasts seemed extremely obedient, following his orders and moving to various positions around the palace. Only the dragon-python remained, tossing Lin Feng's physical body to the ground, much to Lin Feng's annoyance.
"Good fellow, how many tens of thousands of years has it been? You've been guarding me all this time. You've worked hard," the spirit body said, patting the lowered head of the dragon-python with a faint smile. The dragon-python flicked its tongue, acting very human-like, and replied, "Master, this is what I should do. Fortunately, after waiting so many years, I have finally seen this day. My king has returned."
Lin Feng's heart trembled upon hearing their conversation. Was this Heaven-Born Array Artificer truly born from heaven and earth?
He knew he had just heard some secrets.
"Mm. In the past, I could not break through my constraints and willingly fell. From then on, I used arrays to nurture myself, creating this Heaven-Born Array Artificer. In this life, I will surely shatter the old constraints and step into a realm never before achieved." A terrifying kingly light flashed in the spirit body's eyes, as if he were a born king. Tens of thousands of years ago, he had already been a king-level figure.
"Array Artificer?" Lin Feng was deeply shaken. Another monster had appeared. The Heavenly Soul Saint was an ancient saint, but he had suffered a great injury. This person, however, had willingly reincarnated and nurtured himself with arrays for countless years, achieving a heaven-born array body. His potential was unimaginable. Just moments ago, with a single glance, he had carved a grand formation, enveloping the entire palace.
At that moment, the spirit body's gaze fell on the ancient cauldron. He smiled and said, "So many years have passed, Ten Thousand Transformations Precious Cauldron, my strongest weapon of the past. You have lost all your former glory, becoming so dim and lackluster."
As he spoke, he reached out and stroked the cauldron's body. Lines of patterns interwove, and instantly, the patterns on the Ten Thousand Transformations Precious Cauldron seemed to light up. A terrifying aura spread out, reaching an extreme intensity. Lin Feng felt as if his soul power was being drained dry. This aura made his soul suffocate.
"A cauldron used by an Array Artificer as an emperor weapon?" Many thoughts surged through Lin Feng's mind. He felt that this body of his might be a terrifying treasure. But he had never figured out how to use it because he had been passively refined, not actively refining it. He lacked that ability. Moreover, he had not had time to understand the cauldron before coming to find his physical body. Now, hearing the other's words, it seemed that this cauldron had existed tens of thousands of years ago and was a fearsome treasure.
"Dragon-python, do you have any emperor weapons on you?" the spirit body asked the dragon-python beside him. The dragon-python's massive head nodded slightly, then it opened its mouth and spat out several sharp weapons. They were all emperor weapons, but it seemed to treat them like ordinary objects, casually stored inside its body.
The spirit body tossed these emperor weapons into the precious cauldron and then smiled, saying, "After so many years, you have even lost the remnants of my consciousness. It seems I fell very thoroughly. Since you have forgotten your abilities, I will help you refine them."
As he spoke, the spirit body's hand remained on the cauldron. Instantly, many light patterns on the cauldron interwove, radiating dazzling light of terrifying intensity. Lin Feng felt a violent tremor, as if his soul power was being completely drained, used to melt the emperor weapons.
Because Lin Feng could barely endure it, the cauldron trembled violently, causing the spirit body to frown. "Sigh. It seems I need to refine you anew. You have become so weak. Where is your former kingly might?"
As he spoke, the light blazed even brighter. Lin Feng cursed inwardly. His soul power was being consumed at a terrifying rate. Fortunately, the pain did not last too long. The emperor weapons were completely melted and merged into his body—into the cauldron itself. Lin Feng was left speechless.
This body of his could even melt emperor weapons. How terrifying was that? It was definitely a high-level emperor weapon, perhaps even a seventh or eighth-grade one.
He would have to study what other powerful abilities this body possessed. He already knew about the Death Sound and the soul-devouring and soul-refining powers.
The spirit body tapped the cauldron a few times and then smiled, saying, "Wait. I will bring you back to glory. In the next few days, I will first stabilize this physical body. Then I will refine you anew and merge with you. After that, we can go seize the title of number one in the Nine Heavens."
With that, the spirit body laughed heartily and walked toward the depths of the palace. But the dragon-python did not leave. It coiled on the ground, and Lin Feng's body was left there as well.
This made Lin Feng curse inwardly. If the dragon-python did not leave, how could he dare make a move?
Right now, Lin Feng did not know if he could use all his strength to separate his soul from the cauldron and return to his physical body. Although the cauldron was powerful, becoming a weapon was impossible. Moreover, in a few days, that monstrous spirit body would refine him again and would likely discover something. He had to leave before then.
PS: Seven chapters updated today, but I still haven't cleared the debt. Frustrating. Still owe one chapter. To make up for it, I'm giving a big welfare to our Martial God brothers. I've uploaded some photos of female readers of Martial God on WeChat. Real ones, no fakes. As for how to find them, that's up to you. Easy, hehe. If you can't find them, self-reflect. WeChat ID: jingwuhen888.