Chapter 712: Dragon Throne

"Brother Ye!" Zhuang Bufan, who had been walking ahead, suddenly shouted. "This is the last thing I can do for you. Make sure you watch closely!" As he finished speaking, an object suddenly appeared in Zhuang Bufan's hand.

The object looked like a spherical orb, about the size of a baby's head, which Zhuang Bufan held firmly in his hand.

When it first appeared, the orb was unremarkable. But the next moment, a sudden change occurred: the orb abruptly disintegrated, breaking into countless tiny fragments. Each fragment seemed to possess a life of its own, and they swiftly enveloped Zhuang Bufan's body.

Amidst crackling sounds, the countless tiny fragments enveloped Zhuang Bufan. In the blink of an eye, the appearance of the man, who was not particularly tall, underwent a drastic transformation.

The spot where Zhuang Bufan had stood was now occupied by a crimson figure. The figure was tall and slender, with smooth, flowing curves all over its body, as if a master craftsman had spent countless years meticulously shaping it.

Around the crimson figure, space itself seemed slightly warped, as if bearing an undue burden. Visible currents of air swirled and undulated around the figure, constantly appearing and disappearing.

This was an anomaly triggered when power reached a certain extreme.

Even with its back to Lu Ye and the others, the crimson figure exuded an indescribable sense of oppression that enveloped everyone.

Those from the Heavenly Rift Sect who faced the crimson figure directly felt an even greater terror surge through their hearts. It was as if an invisible hand had gripped their hearts, and for a moment, everyone stopped breathing.

Both allies and enemies alike were shaken to their core by this sudden transformation.

"That is..." The crimson, towering figure was reflected in Huang Liang's eyes, as if he had suddenly remembered something.

"Ah," the Little Medical Immortal sighed, "It truly is... the Dragon Throne!"

"The Dragon Throne!" Huang Liang gasped, finally realizing, "Yes, it's the Dragon Throne!"

Lu Ye frowned. Listening to the conversation between the two beside him, he knew instantly that the 'Dragon Throne' they spoke of was the miraculous object that had transformed Zhuang Bufan's appearance.

Such a miraculous object, in the Nine Provinces, had another name: Mech!

The Mechanist sect was an extremely niche school in the Nine Provinces. Since Lu Ye began his cultivation, the Mechanists he had encountered could be counted on one hand.

Furthermore, because the Mechanists he met were not highly cultivated, most of them only crafted mechanical constructs, such as mechanical spiders or mechanical snakes. These had limited use in combat, but could often prove remarkably effective when exploring dangerous areas.

If the ultimate secret of the Beast Taming sect was the Beast Transformation secret technique, then the ultimate secret of the Mechanist sect was the Mech.

Mechs were divided into two types: half-body armor and full-body armor. Half-body armor could not cover the entire body, but it was a construct that could enhance a cultivator's strength to a certain extent. It was said that the Divine Sea Realm grand cultivator from the Pavilion of a Thousand Machines possessed a piece of half-body armor. His own strength wasn't particularly outstanding among Divine Sea Realm cultivators, but with the aid of that half-body armor, he could contend with enemies several minor levels stronger than himself for a short period without being at a disadvantage.

Unfortunately, Mechanist cultivation focused too much on external power and neglected personal cultivation. As a result, the inheritance of the Mechanist sect gradually declined.

The Pavilion of a Thousand Machines was sparsely populated. Even with a Divine Sea Realm grand cultivator presiding over it, in the Heavenly Secret's assessment, it was merely a minor sect of seventh or eighth rank.

This was similar to the former situation of the Azure Blood Sect.

As for full-body armor... there was no full-body armor in the entire Nine Provinces, because its crafting and forging had already exceeded the capabilities of the Mechanists in the Nine Provinces.

Lu Ye had specifically researched these aspects of Mechanists back then because he had some interest in the Mechanist sect. His interest stemmed from these legendary Mechs.

As a Spirit Pattern Master, if he truly intended to cultivate the Mechanist path, he could achieve twice the results with half the effort, as the crafting of Mechanist constructs often involved special spirit patterns.

However, once he had learned enough, he abandoned the idea of cultivating the Mechanist path. Firstly, he lacked the energy, and secondly, the Mechs in his imagination were quite different from the actual constructs.

Lu Ye had never expected to see such an exceptional Mech in this Dragon Ascension Realm mystic realm, and a full-body one at that!

This full-body armor perfectly matched what he had envisioned.

Zhuang Bufan's figure was now completely enveloped within the Mech. Every part of the Mech was incredibly sleek, and on its left and right forearms, two sharp barbs, glowing with a chilling light, protruded.

Even colder than these two barbs were the two points of crimson light that flared from behind the Mech's head.

Like a ferocious beast, trapped for countless years, finally breaking free from its confines, the crimson gaze reflected a desire to devour all it saw. An endless, wild aura, accompanied by the swirling vortexes of air that constantly appeared and disappeared, erupted from the crimson Mech.

"What the hell is that thing!" Yun Haitain screamed. Even a powerful figure like him, when gazed upon by those crimson eyes, couldn't help but feel a chilling dread, as if facing a natural predator. An intensely heavy aura of death rose from the depths of his heart, enveloping his entire being, leaving him feeling utterly cold.

Given enough time, he would surely recall an ancient legend prevalent in the Dragon Ascension Realm. But with his mind greatly shaken now, how could he remember much?

Even someone as knowledgeable as Huang Liang only realized after the Little Medical Immortal's prompt, let alone him?

As the Sixth Elder of the Heavenly Rift Sect, after all, the moment he sensed danger, a layer of blood mist erupted around him. His originally burly figure seemed to shrink by a size at that instant. The next moment, enveloped in the blood mist, he fled rapidly.

Cannot be fought, must not be fought!

Although he couldn't recall the legend at that moment, he made the most correct choice. In this situation, the only option was to flee quickly, the farther the better!

"Kill!" A suppressed roar rang out.

The sound, like a dragon's roar and a beast's howl, accompanied by an endlessly ferocious aura, reverberated between heaven and earth.

The instant the sound echoed, the crimson figure transformed into a streak of red light and instantly plunged into the ranks of the Heavenly Rift Sect cultivators.

No one could clearly see how he moved. When he transitioned from extreme motion to extreme stillness, streaks of blood mist burst forth around him like blooming flowers, tragically beautiful.

In that instant, all lives were equal. Whether they were ordinary cultivators of the Heavenly Rift Sect or their elders, all perished simultaneously.

"Ah!" A cultivator shrieked in horror, their face panicked. What they witnessed had already surpassed their comprehension. At this critical juncture of life and death, they didn't know how to react.

"Quickly, kill him!" A Heavenly Rift Sect elder roared, and simultaneously cast a spell, attacking the towering crimson figure.

The crimson figure remained unmoved, simply extending a hand. It directly pierced through the powerful spell and crushed the attacking Heavenly Rift Sect elder in its grasp.

The elder, a sizable man, was like a chick clutched in a hand. No matter how he struggled, he couldn't break free from the hand's grip.

With a 'crack,' like a bursting bubble, this Heavenly Rift Sect elder was crushed and exploded.

Numerous attacks assailed the crimson figure from all directions, but it neither dodged nor evaded any of them. Its own attacks were remarkably simple and pure, like an ordinary person who had never cultivated, punching and kicking wildly through a crowd.

Yet, it was precisely this seemingly ordinary fighting style that plunged the Heavenly Rift Sect group into boundless despair.

The tearing force from the residual waves of its punches and kicks caused Heavenly Rift Sect cultivators to perish one after another. Even those elder-level powerhouses were exploded with a single punch each.

Anyone targeted by the crimson figure did not survive for another breath.

Gazing from afar at this soul-stirring scene, Lu Ye suddenly understood Zhuang Bufan's choice.

Indeed, as he had said, if he missed today, there would be no such opportunity again.

If he missed today, Zhuang Bufan would only slowly wither and die. But at this very moment, he was radiating the most dazzling brilliance of his entire life.

To live so grandly and valiantly, was truly to have lived a life without regret.

"He couldn't fully control the Dragon Throne, which is why he can't unleash its full power." The Little Medical Immortal's voice sounded beside Lu Ye's ear, as if she were speaking specifically for him to hear. This was also why the crimson figure's actions in killing enemies were so simple at this moment. "Because Zhuang Bufan couldn't control this miraculous object, he could only use the simplest and most direct methods to kill enemies. Furthermore, his consciousness must be greatly affected right now. Such a divine object as the Dragon Throne, when forcibly used without proper control, will inevitably result in severe backlash. Damaged foundation and injured spirit are merely external manifestations."

So this was the origin of all of Zhuang Bufan's injuries!

Lu Ye suddenly understood.

Zhuang Bufan had just said that the Little Medical Immortal likely had some guesses about his injuries and probably knew something. It now seemed that this was indeed the case.

The Little Medical Immortal had treated countless cultivators, but none had ever been like Zhuang Bufan.

If his injuries had been sustained from battling enemies, that would have been fine. But in the Little Medical Immortal's view, Zhuang Bufan's injuries weren't from combat at all. Instead, they appeared to be self-inflicted damage resulting from cultivating some secret technique.

Combining this with some rumors she had heard recently, the Little Medical Immortal had formed a hypothesis.

However, she had never inquired about it. For a healer like her, as long as the patient paid for the medicine, her sole responsibility was to treat the illness and heal the wounds.

Had it not been for Zhuang Bufan's words before his departure, she wouldn't have explained so much to Lu Ye.

"Half a month ago, a divine weapon was suspected to have appeared in Nanzhou, leading countless cultivators to fight fiercely, causing rivers of blood. But in the end, the divine weapon that appeared went missing... So that's how it is." Huang Liang murmured to himself from the side.

As the Sect Master of the Imperial Heaven Sect, the intelligence network he commanded was vast. As soon as something happened in Nanzhou, someone would report it to him.

The Dragon Ascension Realm had a long history, having once nurtured Divine Sea Realm and True Lake Realm cultivators. Thus, many ancient artifacts held immense value for present-day cultivators.

The emergence of divine weapons was not uncommon in the Dragon Ascension Realm.

But if what emerged was the Dragon Throne, that was highly unusual.

It now appeared that the events in Nanzhou half a month ago were deeply connected to the Dragon Throne. However, no one knew why it ultimately fell into this person's hands.

If he knew Zhuang Bufan's true identity, he wouldn't have harbored such doubts.

He wasn't called 'God of Thieves' for nothing. Spiriting away treasures without anyone noticing was Zhuang Bufan's greatest skill. However, he hadn't expected that this time, what he took wasn't just a treasure, but a death-inducing talisman.