Volume VI: The Return of the Monarch God to the Shattered Continent Chapter 5: The Longevity-Bestowing Pearl of Settled Qi

Yan Congxu looked completely indifferent. He turned his head to ask Yan Donglai, "Where did you find this kid? He’s got a big mouth! Looking at his wet-behind-the-ears appearance, I doubt he’s even seen a dead body before!"

Yan Donglai glared at him, but Congxu continued to provoke Yusheng with a disdainful gaze.

Yusheng replied, unhurried and unbothered, "Whether or not I have seen a dead body has no necessary connection to my age. I admit I am young, but when the Sun-Worshipping Cult slaughtered the city of Jingchu, I witnessed it with my own eyes."

"I have heard a little about that matter as well. My condolences, Young Master Yu." Yan Donglai stood up and bowed to Yusheng.

"The men of the Yu clan are noble. I heard that from your father the King down to the common people, not a single one surrendered," Yan Congxu added with admiration.

"If I hadn't promised my father to deliver the clan's sacred relic, the Mirror of Illusory Annihilation, to the Cloud-Top Heavenly Palace, I would have perished alongside those scum of the Dark-Fiend clan long ago," Yusheng said, his eyes burning with rage.

"You can give me the Mirror of Illusory Annihilation now," Zhuohua said to Yusheng.

Yusheng shook his head stubbornly. "No. Although I know you are Lord Zhuohua, I must hand the mirror to you within the Cloud-Top Heavenly Palace. This is what I promised my father."

"Heh! You’re a stubborn brat. You have the makings of a fierce soldier. So, tell me, how should this battle be fought?" Yan Congxu asked.

"The Flying Immortal-Detention Formation!" Yusheng said with a hint of pride.

"The Flying Immortal-Detention Formation?" the other three asked in unison.

"That's right! The biggest problem with the Immortal-Detention Formation used by the armies of the Seven Immortal-Descendant Clans is that while it is very powerful on the ground, the air has always been its weak point," Yusheng said, standing up to explain to the group.

"That is because the targets are usually experts who have passed the Heavenly Tribulation. The key is to control the opponent within the formation as quickly as possible," Yan Congxu interjected.

"Therefore, if the opponent’s strength is too great or they possess artifacts that enhance speed, the effectiveness of the Immortal-Detention Formation is greatly reduced, isn't it?" Yusheng threw the question directly back at Yan Congxu.

The dark-faced Yan Congxu nodded helplessly and said, "There is also the fact that if the opponent also forms a formation, the casualties will surely be high, and there is no guarantee they can be contained."

"That is why I devised this formation—to move the Immortal-Detention Formation into the sky and trap the opponents from above."

"You mean to say that by moving it into the sky, you can counter the enemy's large-scale military formations?" Yan Congxu asked, sounding skeptical.

"Exactly! Striking from above makes it much harder for the enemy to form their ranks successfully, and the large shields used to trap them will not be countered by the crossbow bolts shot by their own men." As Yusheng said this, he fixed his gaze on Zhuohua’s face.

"So, you need many massive shields and many soldiers capable of traversing the air?" Zhuohua asked, looking at him with a smile.

Yusheng nodded.

"Ridiculous! According to you, we would need to make shields at least ten feet high, let alone anything else. It is common knowledge that those who can traverse the air must at least be at the Spirit Realm level. If I have that many Spirit Realm experts, why would I need such a formation? I would just lead them in and slaughter the enemy to the last man!" Yan Congxu’s hot temper flared up again, and he scoffed at Yusheng’s proposal.

"Perhaps! If we could control the opponent's Golden Qi conversion without using large shields, it really would be a way to win against a superior force," Zhuohua said thoughtfully.

"Without large shields? If we don't use large shields, what do we use to restrict their Qi? Our mouths?" Yan Congxu never looked at who he was speaking to when he got excited.

"Congxu, control yourself," Yan Donglai urged, looking anxious.

"I can try this. But before that, I need some materials." After saying this, Zhuohua looked at Yan Donglai.

"Whatever materials the Lord requires, I will do my utmost to obtain them," Yan Donglai replied respectfully.

"Top-grade Heavenly Silkworm silk—as much as possible. It would be best if you could also find materials for high-quality Qi-Stabilizing Orbs," Zhuohua said.

"I shall attend to it immediately! Furthermore, I will gather the Spirit Realm experts in the army to see how many we have." Yan Donglai bowed and withdrew.

"Does the Lord have a new artifact? An artifact that can restrict an opponent's Qi?" Yusheng looked at Zhuohua with some confusion.

Zhuohua smiled without answering, neither confirming nor denying.

Seeing the strange expressions on their faces, Yan Congxu thought they probably had something to say that wasn't meant for his ears. He cupped his hands and said, "Lord, I shall take my leave now to help my uncle look for those Spirit Realm experts." With that, he exited the council chamber.

"So... you have a new move?" Yusheng watched Yan Congxu’s retreating back and continued to guess.

"Everything depends on whether Yan Donglai can find the things I need," Zhuohua said.

"I have one Qi-Stabilizing Orb; there is no need to look for one," Yusheng said, pulling a dark red, glowing orb from his robes.

"A ninth-grade Immortal-class orb. Where did you get this?" Zhuohua was somewhat excited; after all, since losing his Linghua, this was the first time he had seen an orb of such quality.

"It was my father's. When I was about to leave, he stuffed a package into my hands. Besides the mirror, there was this orb," Yusheng replied, feeling somewhat melancholic.

"Since it's such a fine orb, why don't you use it yourself?" Zhuohua shifted his gaze away from the orb.

"I have no use for it. As I said before, my body is too weak; I cannot even practice the entry-level mental techniques of the Xuanhuang. Giving this orb to me would be a waste, and it might even burden my body," Yusheng’s tone became even more melancholy.

"This is something your father left you. It would be a pity to just give it away like this!"

"It doesn't matter. Memories are in the heart and will not be hindered by objects. If this orb can serve its purpose, I believe my father would approve of my decision. So, can you tell me what your new move is now?" Yusheng held the orb in his palm, the dark red light swirling within the pristine white surface.

"Although I have simulated this in my consciousness, it has never been successful in reality. Therefore, you must not tell a third person besides the two of us," Zhuohua said to Yusheng solemnly.

Yusheng nodded naturally, his expression calm. "I naturally won't tell anyone. I intend to be your assistant!"

"Assistant? What kind of assistant?" Zhuohua was slightly surprised.

"You need so much Heavenly Silkworm silk; you must be making an artifact with excellent flexibility, likely related to the Qi-Stabilizing Orb. Although I don't know what it is, I want to learn—I want to learn how to be a master craftsman from you." Yusheng moved the orb closer to Zhuohua.

Zhuohua found the child quite interesting. Although he did not speak much, he always hit the mark when he did. A desire to cultivate him truly began to grow in his heart.

"Since ancient times, our Xuanhuang Immortal-Descendant clan’s fighting style has been to use Qi for both attack and defense. Generating true Qi relies on the internal Qi-Stabilizing Orb to convert Golden-Sun Essence. This fighting style has two fatal weaknesses. First, it is highly dependent on Golden-Sun Essence; although high-grade Qi-Stabilizing Orbs can store vast amounts of true Qi, they will eventually run out. Second, this method of relying entirely on Qi energy to strike from the outside does not necessarily break an opponent's defense. The War of the Gods is a good example; back then, many of the Xuanhuang’s God-tier experts could not shatter the hard outer shells of the Dark-Fiend clan’s experts. It was time-consuming, strenuous, and yielded half the results for double the effort," Zhuohua explained to Yusheng.

"So we relied on numbers and level suppression. My father told me about that."

"Correct. But we still lost miserably, didn't we? So, I am attempting to change this fighting style. I have discovered that when we compress a Qi-Stabilizing Orb indefinitely, it becomes a 'Qi-Vortex Abyss.' This abyss will swallow all objects in its vicinity, causing itself to expand continuously."

"Wouldn't that eventually swallow the caster, and even the entire void, the entire nothingness?" Yusheng interrupted.

"Not so," Zhuohua waved his hand, denying his claim. "Generally, a mortal-grade Qi-Stabilizing Orb has a limited efficiency in converting Golden-Sun Essence. If it is compressed into a Qi-Vortex Abyss, the destruction it can cause is also limited, roughly equivalent to the sum of the Qi it can generate."

"Then what happens after this Qi-Vortex Abyss is filled with true Qi?" Yusheng pressed.

"It will undergo a violent explosion, and then create a new Moon-Brightness Stone," Zhuohua paused, then continued, "However, I will use the Heavenly Silkworm silk and other materials to create an artifact that can control this vortex, allowing it to be governed by human consciousness."

"Controlled by a person? Why do that?" Yusheng asked, puzzled.

"Because I will place this vortex inside my own body to replace the Qi-Stabilizing Orb. The endless Qi that the vortex absorbs will provide the energy I need for battle. And in this world, the most relentless and inexhaustible thing is Qi," Zhuohua said with a touch of pride.

Yusheng’s eyes shifted slightly, and he immediately understood the mystery. "In other words, with this Qi-Vortex Abyss, it is equivalent to having an infinite source of true Qi."

"You are truly brilliant!" Zhuohua looked at the young man in green with great satisfaction.

"Following that logic, the grade of the compressed Qi-Stabilizing Orb directly affects the initial absorption capacity of the Qi-Vortex Abyss." Thinking this, Yusheng immediately shoved the orb into Zhuohua’s hand. "Take it, quickly use it to make your Qi-Vortex Abyss. The sooner we finish it, the sooner we can crush the scum outside the city, and the sooner I can avenge my people and my country."