The hot wind that had been stirred up gradually dissipated within the gaping space, and the fluttering golden threads hung down, revealing their full form in Yu Ci's hands.
This was a simple yet exquisitely crafted Golden Green Palace Cord, several feet longer than the Hook Rope, devoid of any adornments save for the thousands of tassels that hung from both ends. These were the golden threads that had gently struck the top of the Ghost Beasts, giving off a faint green light. They were the result of the transformation of two Curved Hooks.
In that fragmented piece of information, Yu Ci had seen one of the dignitaries wearing this Palace Tassel around his waist. This was also the origin of his Divine Light activation.
He had long known that this object was extraordinary, but this Hook Rope was different from other Magical Instruments. He didn't even know if it could be considered a Magical Instrument. After his battle with Nan Songzi, he had tried various methods over the past few months to Refine the Hook Rope, but to no avail. He simply couldn't find a way to start.
Now he finally understood that this object still had another layer of transformation, and unlocking this transformation was no easy task.
Just now, Yu Ci had activated the Divine Light due to the fragmented images, confirming the form of the object, clarifying his goal, and in an instant, his Aura converged, and his Vital essence poured into the Hook Rope like a deity entering a bottomless pit. All the changes were completed in an instant, flawlessly. But none of these were the most important.
The most crucial opportunity did not lie within Yu Ci himself, but within the burning Illusion Power of Rakshasa in the space he was in.
In that moment, Yu Ci clearly felt that he had borrowed the overflowing Illusion Power of Rakshasa from this place. Even though it was only a very faint trace, it was the key factor in unlocking the new form of the Hook Rope.
Yu Ci closed his eyes to sense his surroundings. At this moment, there was no trace of the Illusion Power of Rakshasa within him. His body had merely served as a conduit between the Illusion Power of Rakshasa and the Hook Rope. However, this process had inevitably left a trace.
The changes in Aura involved were too complex, and Yu Ci needed to sort them out properly, but not now. Heaven knows if the Ghost Beasts would return after being scared away. He was not confident that he could activate the strange power of the Palace Tassel again.
Just as he was about to leave, Yu Ci suddenly felt something strange about his body.
It was then that he remembered that after being suppressed by the Black Tide, his clothes had been destroyed and he was in an indecent state. In his haste, he could not find anything to cover his body, so he had to wrap the glowing red gauze around his waist and use the Hook Rope, which was the Palace Tassel, to tie it, barely serving as a cover.
The Golden-Green Tassels hit his legs, giving him a strange feeling.
Shaking his head, he looked around. Some of his belongings had fallen to the ground during his evasion. Now, he saw that the Divine Bronze Mirror was unscathed, which was not surprising. The fact that the True Purple Smoke Warm Jade on his chest was preserved was a pleasant surprise. It seemed that the purple gas it emitted had dissolved some of the pressure. As for the Pure Yang Talisman Sword, it already had some cracks, but there was nothing he could do about that.
The Storage Ring in his hand had broken, with about seventy percent of the items inside being damaged. Fortunately, the most crucial few had withstood the intense pressure of the Black Tide and survived. Besides the Red Veil and Palace Tassel on his waist, there was also the Tao Scripture Master Three Treasure Seal he had been refining for many days nearby.
This seal was made from Beidou Stone and had already undergone four layers of refinement using the "Heavenly Gang and Earthly Sha refining method". At this point, it was already emitting a faint light. With two more layers, it could reach the standard of "Refinement", at which point it could be absorbed into the body for constant nourishment, making the process much less troublesome than it currently was.
Sighing, Yu Ci, a male, held the Dharma Seal in his hand and continued his search.
Soon, he spotted something: a demonic creature's skull, crafted through special techniques. It was only the size of a fist, with bared teeth and bulging forehead, its eyes blood-red, appearing rather ferocious. Yu Ci remembered that this demonic creature's skull was obtained from the leader of a group of swindlers in a dilapidated temple on a desolate mountain on his first journey to Sky Rift Valley. He had forgotten the name of the man who pretended to be an immortal, only knowing that he was later beheaded by him.
Seeing this bizarre object again, Yu Ci felt a sense of nostalgia and surprise that it had survived under such pressure.
Unfortunately, even the toughest objects have their limits. Under the intense pressure, several thin cracks had formed on its surface.
Next to it, however, was an intact object, small and exquisite, shimmering with a cold light. It was a small sword about an inch long. Yu Ci had a deep impression of it because it was the spoils of war he had obtained from his first formidable opponent, Yan Daoist, after breaking through the Three Barriers of the Mundane and advancing to the Nature-Connecting stage.
The small sword could cut through iron like mud, but its size was too small, even a baby couldn't grip the hilt. A while ago, when Yu Ci was practicing the method of Refinement, he had tried to use it for practice, but to no avail, suggesting that it was not a Magical Instrument.
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The blade of the small sword was too sharp to hold. After some thought, Yu Ci simply inserted it into the newly formed crack in the demonic creature's skull. It wasn't a perfect fit, but it was secure, with the hilt stuck on the outside. In this way, the combination of the two created a rather unique shape.
After a brief tidying up, Yu Ci didn't delay any longer and quickly left.
**********
It was the tenth day after Yu Ci had scared off the Ghost Beasts, and he was still wandering in the Sky Rift Valley.
It wasn't that he didn't want to leave. He had long grown tired of this place, shrouded in mist, heavy with moisture, and riddled with danger. But the reality he had to face was: he simply couldn't find his way back!
Ten days had passed, and he was still circling the vicinity.
After flying for nearly ten hours, the Ghost Beasts had finally landed here. Judging by their speed, even with some detours, they must have strayed far from the eastern shore of Sky Rift Valley. In other words, where Yu Ci was, was a "lonely island" suspended in the Clouds sea. To cross this vast Clouds sea without the ability to fly was out of the question.
In the shoes of another, they would likely have crumbled by now. Yu Ci too had his moments of despair, but after one cycle of the sun rising and setting, his reason and courage returned to him.
He was far from the end of his rope.
At noon, shrouded by layers of mist, Yu Ci could not see the sun, but the rare bright daylight allowed him to make judgments with ease.
He sat atop a mountain, looking up into the depths of the fog.
Within this sea of clouds, about seven or eight mountain peaks hung high, their bases unknown, only their majestic bodies arranged within the mist. This place was about a hundred miles from the gaping void of the day, and this hundred miles was fraught with extreme difficulty.
There were no ready-made paths between the mountains. Perhaps there would be if he descended another hundred or so miles, but dealing with the more ferocious birds of prey and even demons in the depths of Sky Rift Valley was clearly unrealistic. Yu Ci relied on his Godspeed Talisman, which allowed him to briefly float and tread on the void. After roughly estimating the distance, he moved between the mountains, and after several near-death experiences, he finally arrived here.
Looking eastward from here, he could no longer see the shadow of any mountains. He chose to believe that this was the closest place to the eastern shore of Sky Rift Valley in this "isolated mountain range."
Except for the vicinity of the mountain where the gaping void was located, where all traces of birds, beasts, and vegetation had disappeared, the surrounding mountains were teeming with life. This proved that this place was indeed far from the eastern shore of the canyon, and the circle of species had not been devastated by the cold wave of Sky Rift Valley.
Here, ferocious birds of prey roamed and hunted, or became prey themselves. Yu Ci killed a beast, skinned it, and used its hide as a replacement for his Red Veil, and also made a rudimentary bundle to carry things like the Tao Scripture Master Three Treasure Seal, making him much more at ease.
Besides, he had another prey!
He whistled sharply, and a dark shadow circled down from the mist, its wings stirring up a strong wind, causing a great commotion.
It was a rather ugly large bird. Its wings spanned nearly nine feet, and its body was big, but its head was small and resembled the face of an owl.
This large bird was captured alive six days ago by Yu Ci, who had expended tremendous effort to ambush and trap it. Since then, Yu Ci had poured most of his energy into it.
Yu Ci wasn't just idly playing with the bird. After long consideration, he thought of it as a way to cross the boundless sea of clouds.
Everything was based on the "Soul Feeding Method" taught to him by Xie Yan.
In Cliff City, Xie Yan taught him the "Soul Feeding Method," asking him to nourish the Fish-Dragon with his own Primordial Qi to preserve its quality, so as to facilitate the trade of the Golden Bone Jade Disc. Due to various changes, the trade fell through, and the Fish-Dragon's quality plummeted, almost costing it its life. But by some strange twist of fate, Yu Ci ended up with a pet of extraordinary spirit.
Riding on the Ghost Beasts, Yu Ci was unable to summon the Fish-Dragon in his haste. If it weren't for this, with the creature's agility and exceptional long-distance scouting abilities, the past few days would have been much easier.
At present, Yu Ci was considering raising this large bird to be like the Fish-Dragon. If not entirely obedient, at least it could understand his commands. Then he could ride on its back and traverse the vast Cloud Sea.
It seemed like a fanciful idea, but Yu Ci had seen the Blood Eagle tamed by the Thousands Spirits Sect. It could carry people and goods with no difficulty. Combined with his experience raising the Fish-Dragon, he felt at least fifty percent confident.
The only problem was that unlike the Fish-Dragon, which naturally absorbed and digested human Primordial Qi, Yu Ci had to manually feed the bird with the Primordial Qi he cultivated using the Soul Feeding Method. He also had to massage and knead the bird, which kept him busy for five days. Finally, the creature began to understand his commands. Today, when he let it fly, he was indeed successful.
“A few more days, even if there's some risk, I can't worry about it.”
His urgency was not only due to his eagerness to return home, but also the more imminent threat. Four days ago, Yu Ci had started to faintly hear roars from a distance. Such powerful cries, like thunder rumbling in a great marsh, stirring up dark currents, could only come from Ghost Beasts.
If the Ghost Beasts returned, Yu Ci would have no way to handle them.
As he was thinking, the large bird suddenly trembled in the midst of the clouds. It had spotted an extremely fat python on the ground.
This bird was fond of swallowing snakes whole, and having flown for half the day, how could it let such a delicacy escape from under its gaze? The weakness of the Soul Feeding Method's foundation was exposed without a doubt. At this moment, instinct overrode command, and the bird spread its wings, breaking free from Yu Ci's control, and pursued its prey.
Yu Ci cursed under his breath, but having worked hard for several days, he couldn't let his efforts go to waste. He began to strengthen his command control, deepening his connection with the bird, and then chased after it without touching the ground.
After circling around the mountains for a while, Yu Ci finally found the bird, which was trying to open its hooked beak to enjoy its meal. Shaking his head, Yu Ci soothed the bird slightly, looked around, and saw that the place was quiet with strange rocks and lush vegetation. He walked up the mountain to find a higher place for the next experiment. But after only a few steps, his expression changed, and he lowered his head, his pace remaining unchanged.
Six steps, seven steps, eight steps!
From behind the shadows of the trees and rocks, a black figure suddenly sprang up, rushing towards him with a strange roar. But what met it was a Flame Sword Blade.
The Sword Energy buzzed, and the black figure was cut in half. Amid the splashing of dirty blood, Yu Ci's face was slightly cold. The figure was ugly, and its aura was clearly that of a Demon?
***********