Chapter 454: 冥灵 Blood Wing Lamp

Dense universal power surged in ceaselessly, like a tide. At this moment, the firmament twisted, and the sky seemed to transform into a sea of spiritual energy.

The ancient Heavenly Dao within the rift, its extended large hand moved again at this moment, gradually pulling the Ten-Gut Tree into the rift and continuously absorbing it. Xu Qing, the Captain, and the others also slowly approached the rift.

The beneficiaries were not just Xu Qing and the Captain; Ning Yan and Qing Qiu, though not gaining as much as the two of them, also benefited greatly, their cultivation bases fluctuating within their bodies. As for Xu Qing, his emotions churned at this moment as he sensed his Sixth Heavenly Palace.

This Sixth Heavenly Palace was entirely golden. Deep within it, under the Heavenly Dao's presence, a vast ocean formed within the palace, with Azure Dragons swimming and emitting waves of Dao charm. It was truly extraordinary!

The surrounding universal power continued to surge in. Xu Qing's heart pounded rapidly, and a strong desire arose within him, prompting him to immediately absorb and begin shaping his Seventh Heavenly Palace. After more than ten breaths, Xu Qing suddenly looked up, his eyes shining brightly. His Sixth Heavenly Palace had fully formed, and now his Seventh Heavenly Palace was also largely complete: seventy, eighty, even ninety percent formed...

The next moment, as Xu Qing took a deep breath, his Seventh Heavenly Palace manifested directly to ninety-nine percent completion. "The Guardian for this Heavenly Palace," Xu Qing's mind raced. The Emperor's Sword had been cultivated for too short a time and was currently unsuitable. The Grand Azure Saber was also not qualified enough. The Ghostly Dao Seizing Art was special; though called a cultivation method, it was more akin to a divine ability, different from the Golden Crow Refining All Spirits technique, and also not suitable.

As for the black iron stick and the shadow, Xu Qing immediately dismissed them the moment the thought arose. Although both were incredibly obedient under his control, Xu Qing still didn't fully trust them deep down, let alone use them to guard a Heavenly Palace. Though he had fragments of magical artifacts in his storage bag that could serve as external guardians, they ultimately lacked something.

"The purple crystal could work, but it's the most core existence within me, and I know too little about it to lightly decide to use it." "Besides that, there's actually one more item that could serve as a guardian!" As Xu Qing's mind raced through possibilities, he no longer hesitated. He immediately activated the Ghost Emperor Mountain within his Sea of Consciousness and moved it into the Seventh Heavenly Palace. The moment it integrated, the Seventh Heavenly Palace violently trembled and shook. The arrival of the Ghost Emperor Mountain actually caused the Seventh Heavenly Palace to reject it.

Xu Qing's eyes narrowed. He had encountered similar repulsion before. That was when the Poison Ban Pill was integrating. At that time, because the Poison Ban Pill's toxicity was too fierce, integration required time, and his goal was to survive until the integration was complete. Only after enduring various torments and pains did he finally succeed in placing the Poison Ban Pill into a Heavenly Palace. As for the Purple Moon, Golden Crow, and Azure Dragon, there was no similar repulsion. Xu Qing understood that although the Purple Moon had an extremely high status, it had ultimately been plundered by him and completely belonged to him, just like the Golden Crow and Azure Dragon, so there was no repulsion.

However, though the Ghost Emperor Mountain was also formed through his own comprehension, it was ultimately an imitation, belonging in part to an external object and not entirely to himself. Given this, it was not surprising for repulsion to occur when he attempted to place it within a Heavenly Palace and fully integrate it with himself.

A cold glint flashed in Xu Qing's eyes. He opened his mouth wide and inhaled sharply, and immediately, the vast universal power around him surged madly, entering the Seventh Heavenly Palace to reinforce it and increase its strength for integrating the Ghost Emperor Mountain. The next moment, the Ghost Emperor Mountain trembled, slowly overlapping with the Seventh Heavenly Palace. This process was not very fast, but neither was it as slow as the Poison Ban Pill's integration. Especially now, with the universal power surrounding Xu Qing being incredibly dense, he had a continuous source of assistance.

Time flowed by. As the Ten-Gut Tree continuously integrated into the firmament's rift, the Ghost Emperor Mountain's integration also proceeded: thirty, fifty, seventy percent. Xu Qing sat cross-legged, his right hand gripping a nearby branch tightly to stabilize his body. He then manipulated all his pores to open, and with an abdominal contraction, he inhaled again, causing waves of universal power to immediately surge around him.

Finally, after thirty breaths, the Ghost Emperor Mountain completely merged with the Seventh Heavenly Palace. As a roar echoed in Xu Qing's mind, the Seventh Heavenly Palace fully formed. Its appearance was not that of a palace, but more like a temple. Inside the temple, the Ghost Emperor sat cross-legged, with two long blades behind him and a Primordial Abyssal Pillar on his lap. His eyes were closed, radiating an astonishing divine aura, and from his appearance, he was identical to Xu Qing!

The moment the Seventh Heavenly Palace formed, a more powerful fluctuation emanated from Xu Qing, his aura surging. Xu Qing clearly felt his immense strength at this moment. Compared to himself before arriving at the True Immortal's Ten-Gut, the difference was like heaven and earth. "This fortune is truly immense!" he thought. "But it's still not over!"

Xu Qing opened his eyes, sensing that the surrounding universal power was now showing signs of depletion. He knew that the initial gifts he had received for helping the Heavenly Dao complete itself were about to end. So, he raised his right hand and took out the Bloodwing Life Lamp from within his robes.

As he formed a hand seal with his left hand, the surrounding universal power surged violently, not integrating into himself, but rushing into the Life Lamp. He intended to use the universal power here to cleanse his Life Lamp. After all, this item was given by the Saint Lan race, and Xu Qing didn't fully trust it.

Regardless of whether the Life Lamp had any flaws or hidden tricks, using the universal power to cleanse it now was perfectly suitable. In a blink, as the universal power integrated, the Life Lamp glowed with a bloody light, growing increasingly intense, eventually becoming dazzlingly bright, its radiance erupting.

After cleansing it several times in a row, Xu Qing squinted his eyes and formed another hand seal with his left hand. Immediately, all seven Heavenly Palaces within him operated simultaneously. The power of the Ghost Emperor descended, cleansing it once more. Next, the power of the Golden Crow flowed in, followed by the power of the Purple Moon and the aura of the Poison Ban. Finally, the Azure Dragon materialized and breathed out golden light. Only after cleansing the Life Lamp thoroughly, inside and out, using so many methods, did Xu Qing finally feel at ease and no longer hesitate to integrate it into his body.

As the Life Lamp vanished from his hand, soon, within the Life Mist of his Sea of Consciousness, behind the two existing Life Lamp Heavenly Palaces, another Heavenly Palace boomed into existence. The Life Mist churned, and Xu Qing's Sea of Consciousness trembled. Soon, a bloody light erupted from this gradually forming Heavenly Palace, piercing through the Life Mist, and simultaneously, the Heavenly Palace formed by this third Life Lamp abruptly took shape.

Instantly, all perceptions regarding this third Life Lamp surfaced in Xu Qing's mind, bringing clear understanding. This lamp was named the Nether Bloodwing Lamp. Its empowering ability differed from Xu Qing's previous two Life Lamps. It wasn't for defense, nor was it imbued with the murderous aura it seemed to possess. Its sole function was speed!

One who possessed this Life Lamp would exhibit astonishing speed, capable of bursting forth at several times their own speed. It was originally meant to be a pair; possessing both would not only grant even more terrifying speed but also create incredibly destructive killing power. Although he now only had one wing, Xu Qing was still satisfied, especially after experiencing the speed amplification of this Life Lamp, his mood surged with excitement.

This time's gains were unparalleled. Both the military merits and 'Heavenly Dao's daddy' status were enough to make anyone extremely envious, and his cultivation had leaped from five Heavenly Palaces to eight Heavenly Palaces.

Furthermore, because the eighth palace was formed by a Life Lamp, it increased his maximum number of palaces, allowing him to have eleven Heavenly Palaces upon achieving grand completion in the future, instead of the original ten. At this moment, the universal power was gradually dissipating. Although his ninth Heavenly Palace had not fully materialized, it was partially complete. Just as everything seemed perfect, the Ten-Gut Tree, where their group was located, was now less than a thousand feet from the firmament's rift. Seeing the Ten-Gut Tree being continuously absorbed, Xu Qing felt it was time to leave and looked at the Captain.

The Captain's aura had clearly ascended significantly compared to before; even with Xu Qing's current formidable strength, he still couldn't discern its depths. However, Xu Qing had grown accustomed to this.

"Senior Brother, we should leave."

Qing Qiu and Ning Yan, upon hearing this, quickly opened their eyes. Ning Yan clearly showed some nervousness, but compared to Ning Yan's current bewilderment, Qing Qiu already had some answers regarding the identities of Xu Qing and Chen Erniu, and the expression beneath her mask was complex.

The Captain licked his lips, looking up at the Heavenly Dao's hand. "Wait a bit longer."

Xu Qing followed the Captain's gaze, looking at the Heavenly Dao's pale white hand. Knowing the Captain as he did, he immediately understood what the other was about to do. He wasn't surprised; after all, the Captain always took a 'bite' after a major undertaking. Noticing Xu Qing's expression, the Captain winked.

"Junior Brother, this time things got too big; I'm afraid we can't leave by ordinary means, but I told you before that I have a great treasure. Once this item is deployed, although it can't pinpoint an exact location, it can allow us to teleport a great distance. I've already adjusted the direction; our target is Feng Hai Prefecture. However, this item requires too much power to operate, so there's no choice. To ensure our smooth departure, I plan to go say hello to my son."

"Oh." Xu Qing nodded. The Captain coughed and smiled. "Uh, if anything unexpected happens to me later, Junior Brother, you must remember to kick me, kick me into the teleportation."

As soon as the Captain spoke, Qing Qiu fell silent, turning her head with an unreadable expression. Ning Yan's expression, however, changed. He had heard 'Feng Hai Prefecture' and abruptly looked at Xu Qing and the Captain. Previously, though he was bewildered and hadn't reacted, he already had doubts in his heart. However, subsequent events had unfolded too quickly and were too shocking for him to ponder much.

Now that things had calmed down, Ning Yan's doubts grew stronger as he looked at Xu Qing and the Captain. But the moment his gaze fell upon Xu Qing and the Captain, a wild glint appeared in the Captain's eyes. As the Heavenly Dao's large hand loosened its grip and grabbed a tree trunk a hundred feet away, his body lunged out like a hyena. "Heavenly Dao... I wonder what it tastes like."

A fierce light erupted from the Captain's eyes, and he moved with incredible speed. In an instant, he was beside his son's pale white hand. He embraced the Heavenly Dao's hand, tilted his head back slightly, opened his mouth wide, and then forcefully brought it down, biting into the hand. CRACK!