Chapter 341: Fusion Shadow Secret Technique

The Patriarch of the Vajra Sect felt very nervous and, while distressed, noticed a hint of expectation in Xu Qing's gaze towards the vortex where Little Shadow was.

The Patriarch recalled that Xu Qing had never looked at him with such an expression.

This caused the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect to struggle intensely internally.

Finally, lightning sparked in his eyes. Having pushed himself to the absolute limit, he completely lost himself and resolved to fight for it.

He then abruptly looked at Xu Qing.

"Master, please give me those mirrors."

Although the Patriarch's words were conveyed through divine sense, Xu Qing clearly sensed the determination and madness within them.

Xu Qing glanced at the Patriarch and, with a wave of his hand, sent out all the mirrors, large and small, that he had acquired from the Nether Spirit Venerable.

Without hesitation, the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect directed his black iron skewer straight at the mirrors. It instantly pierced one, and with a single draw, faint screams emanated from the shattered mirror, as if an artifact spirit was being devoured by the Patriarch.

Xu Qing had previously examined these so-called artifact spirits and knew they were not complete; they were merely fragments of consciousness, far from truly becoming artifact spirits.

He then devoured the second, third, and fourth. In the blink of an eye, the Patriarch had consumed seventy percent of the mirror consciousnesses. Lightning permeated around him, as if his entire being was about to assimilate with it, and continuous roars escaped his mouth.

Xu Qing was somewhat surprised by this sight; he felt the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect was truly risking everything.

In reality, this was already the Patriarch's limit; he could barely devour any more.

He also had no confidence in achieving a breakthrough.

Yet, sensing Xu Qing's attention, the Patriarch felt it was all worth it.

Just then, the fluctuations from the vortex where Shadow resided suddenly intensified. Faint, non-human roars emanated from within, sounds that vibrated the soul.

Xu Qing gazed intently.

The Patriarch of the Vajra Sect was silent, his gaze fixed on the remaining mirrors. His breathing quickened, his eyes reddened, and with a roar, he charged forward.

He had to devour them, even if he couldn't.

The moment he thought that if he failed to advance while Shadow succeeded, he would surely be disregarded. Being disregarded would lead to being bullied by Shadow, and being bullied would leave him powerless to resist. Powerless, he could easily be secretly eliminated, or if not, thrown out as cannon fodder by Xu the Demon. Even if not cannon fodder, his weakness would lead to him being harmed or captured by opponents, ultimately resulting in Xu the Demon ending his life with a single thought.

Failure meant death; success meant life.

With these thoughts swirling in his mind, the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect went completely insane.

The moment he went mad, the same transformation occurred with Little Shadow. More terrifying fluctuations emanated from within the vortex, and as the low growls intensified, a shadowy mass vaguely rose from within.

The shadow was square and pitch-black, resembling a black square pillar.

It slowly emerged within the vortex, and with every inch it appeared, the roars grew more piercing, and the strange energy pouring in from all directions became denser, as if Shadow was struggling with all its might.

After this process continued for a full four hours, with an endless influx of strange energy, the vortex let out an earth-shattering roar before suddenly dissipating.

As it dissipated, a colossal, incredibly clear shadow appeared on the wall!

Xu Qing was visibly moved.

It was a vertical, elongated black shadow, wrapped with coils of gray cloth stained with black blood, exuding an ominous and eerie aura.

Although the black shadow appeared flat against the wall, it gave Xu Qing a three-dimensional sensation, as if it were a black coffin!

This was the first time he had felt such a presence from Shadow; even when it previously advanced to become a tree shadow, there had been no such transformation. Only now was it different.

If Shadow's previous manifestation was like a painting, its current form seemed as though something had stepped right out of the canvas.

Xu Qing felt this very clearly. Moreover, a remarkable fluctuation emanated from this black coffin-like shadow, akin to a Heavenly Palace Golden Core.

What made Xu Qing's eyes gleam even more was the sudden appearance of eyes on this black coffin-like shadow.

Countless eyes, densely packed, all with unwavering pupils.

It was impossible to count how many permeated every part of this coffin-like shadow, with even more appearing within the eyes themselves.

Now open, all the eyes revealed extreme indifference, bearing a certain resemblance to the eyes of deities Xu Qing had encountered before.

It was as if all beings were low-level existences in their sight, their life levels vastly different, like heaven and earth.

Especially that condescending gaze made Xu Qing's eyes emanate an even colder chill. "Looking for death again?" Xu Qing said indifferently.

As soon as the words left his mouth, the coffin-like shadow trembled violently, as if deeply ingrained memories had resurfaced. Its newly acquired arrogant demeanor instantly crumbled, and the next moment, all the eyes on the coffin-like shadow instinctively exuded an ingratiating expression.

"Ma...ster...I...obedient..."

"Still can't speak complete sentences after advancing? What good are you?!" Xu Qing's expression remained calm, but his eyes grew even colder. As purple light emanated from his body, the poison pill of his Third Heavenly Palace subtly pulsed.

In an instant, Shadow trembled even more intensely, all its eyes showing terror. It nervously transmitted stammering fluctuations once more.

"I...strong...useful..."

"Useful for what?" Xu Qing inquired.

In an instant, the cloth strips fell from Shadow's body, flying towards Xu Qing and finally hovering before him.

Xu Qing glanced at them.

"Forbidden...drained dry..."

Xu Qing frowned and instinctively looked at the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect, but the Patriarch, having just devoured all the mirror artifact spirits, was trembling and unable to translate.

So Xu Qing spoke indifferently.

"I don't understand."

Shadow immediately grew anxious, trembling even more as it simply separated some shadows and began drawing. The drawing depicted Xu Qing's figure giving an item to a small bowing sapling in front of him.

Xu Qing looked at the drawing and remembered.

He recalled giving a forbidden fragment to Shadow, and now looking at the cloth strips, he was somewhat surprised.

"After you absorbed the strange energy inside, the fragment became this?"

The coffin-shaped Shadow immediately swayed, as if shaking its head.

Xu Qing frowned again. Shadow, realizing, blinked rapidly, conveying emotion.

"Forgot...hate Vajra...yes..."

Xu Qing looked at the gray cloth strip before him, observing the many areas stained with black blood. It felt like a strip torn from a burial shroud.

Yet, there was no foul smell whatsoever.

This struck Xu Qing as peculiar. After taking it into his hand, his eyes narrowed, and he released his grip, looking at his palm.

His palm bore many tiny wounds, as if the strip had thorns and would prick him when held.

As for its specific use, Xu Qing still needed to research it, so he put it away and looked at Shadow.

"Is that all?"

Seeing Xu Qing's dissatisfaction, Shadow grew nervous and hastily transmitted fluctuations.

"Merge...transform...ultimate..."

As Shadow spoke, the lid of its coffin-like body suddenly opened with a series of grating, piercing sounds, slowly revealing a pitch-black interior.

"Master...enter..." Shadow offered ingratiatingly.

Xu Qing narrowed his eyes and gave Shadow a deep look.

After pondering, he sneered inwardly. Even if Shadow had advanced, he was confident he could suppress it. Therefore, if it showed any defiance, he would not keep it any longer.

He then stood up and stepped directly into the coffin. As he entered, the lid slowly closed.

The moment it sealed tightly, Shadow's body trembled, and countless eyes simultaneously closed. In an instant, its form seemed to liquefy, collapsing inward and continuously shrinking, revealing Xu Qing's body.

This body, however, was covered by Shadow, completely black. Xu Qing's eyes suddenly opened, revealing a strong sense of shock.

He lowered his head to examine his body. With a mere flicker, his speed surpassed anything before, and he punched the massive wall.

The entire wall instantly turned to dust, its residual force still reverberating, until a massive hole, a thousand zhang long, appeared before Xu Qing.

Xu Qing's mind reeled. This wasn't his full power; it was a punch after holding back.

But to achieve such a degree, it was something his previous physical body could not have done.

Xu Qing's breathing quickened slightly as he looked inward at himself.

He could feel that his current self, whether in defense, speed, or strength, had reached an incredibly astonishing level.

Inside his body, it was pitch-black; he couldn't see his Heavenly Palace, his cultivation, or his magical power. Everything seemed to have vanished at this moment.

Their disappearance was exchanged for his astonishing physical strength.

As Xu Qing pondered, his mind stirred, and the blackness outside his body instantly contracted, revealing his original skin. All the black shadows then gathered at his glabella.

There, a black vertical eye formed, its eyeball moving independently.

"This must be a secret technique from Shadow's advancement, allowing it to merge with me," Xu Qing murmured. He raised his hand to form a hand seal, but no magical art was cast.

"After merging, my magical arts disappear, making me a pure body cultivator, though my poison is still usable. The formidable physical strength feels like it surpasses Four-Palace combat power, likely reaching the Five-Palace level, a pure physical Five-Palace, which is extremely terrifying."

Waves of emotion still surged in Xu Qing's heart. He could feel that since leaving Spirit Suppression Mountain, his strength had undergone a monumental transformation.

This was a result of his long-term accumulation, a breakthrough occurring after all his past efforts reached a certain threshold.

After re-examining his current state, Xu Qing's mind stirred, and the black eye on his glabella spread throughout his body, then continued to dissipate outwards, reforming into the black coffin.

The coffin lid then opened, and Xu Qing stepped out.

With a wave of his hand, black Dark Soul Fire appeared, and the Heavenly Palaces within his body returned to normal. This made Xu Qing even more certain that the technique Shadow gained after advancing was a fusion secret art.

"Not bad!" Xu Qing nodded, his eyes showing appreciation.

Seeing Xu Qing satisfied, Shadow grew excited.

"Master...I...be obedient...later..."

Shadow hastily expressed itself, using the knowledge it had learned from the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect. It was both very happy and completely relieved, so it then looked with challenge and disdain at the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect, who was still trembling and suffering.