Chapter 901: Inscription Making Method

"Ah hahaha, truly the culmination of millennia of research by the Five Great Forbidden Zones. This thing is quite miraculous!"

Karl sighed helplessly. "The most powerful aspect of these inventions," he began, "is their ability to achieve formidable combat power without possessing independent souls – a feat unattainable by living organisms. They significantly reduce the time and cost associated with training a cultivator, and their combat capabilities far exceed those of ordinary cultivators. This is the true significance of the Five Great Forbidden Zones' inherited civilization."

It must be admitted that Karl's understanding of this civilization was remarkably pioneering. Besides studying necromancy techniques, he had always been fascinated by the inventions favored by the Five Great Forbidden Zones. In recent years at West Sovereign Ridge, he had dedicated nearly all his time to studying formations and fixed patterns, in addition to his research on the undead.

According to others, he had gained access to the altar because a segment of the fixed pattern connections within the altar's core energy transmission system relied on him for completion. It was precisely because Karl helped the Five Great Forbidden Zones resolve this critical technical challenge that he quickly earned the unanimous approval of their leaders, granting him access to the core tier of the Five Great Forbidden Zones' main residence.

"Quickly tell us how these inscriptions are made!" the Goddess of Winter couldn't help but interject, her voice laced with a hint of menace. "Let us also master the method and try to control these war machines ourselves!"

Knowing he had no other choice, Karl obediently shared the method for condensing power to create inscriptions with Yunxiao, Big Dog, and the Goddess of Winter. Xu Yang, having already acquired the black tome, had long mastered the specific creation method. However, he kept this to himself, intending to use the situation to further assess Karl's loyalty.

Soon, Xu Yang's team of three began using their respective methods to condense power and craft inscriptions. Initially, due to their lack of proficiency, the inscriptions they produced varied in shape, and many couldn't properly engage with their corresponding war machines. Without being embedded, these inscriptions couldn't activate the machines' functions.

Xu Yang, however, immediately selected a replica of a ten-meter-tall war skeleton from the warehouse. Before their eyes, he crafted an incredibly intricate inscription that pulsed with purple light. Xu Yang's mastery over his own power was incomparable to theirs, ensuring that the inscription he created perfectly obeyed his soul's guidance and met his precise requirements.

The inscriptions themselves were color-coded into seven levels: red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and purple. A color further along the spectrum indicated a higher level and greater stored energy. For a high-specification war skeleton of this size, a top-tier war machine created by Ancestral Shaman Yuntong, a cyan array pattern was the minimum requirement for it to perform even its most basic combat maneuvers. To fully activate all functions, like the complete war skeleton previously controlled by Ancestral Shaman Yuntong, a blue array pattern would be required. However, with the purple inscription crafted by Xu Yang embedded, the war skeleton could sustain combat operations continuously for up to a month.

"Haha, Boss truly lives up to his name!" the Goddess of Winter exclaimed, "Even in inscription crafting, he surpasses us! To create such a perfect form on the first try is incredible!"

Xu Yang gently waved his hand, embedding the inscription from his palm into the war skeleton before him. In that instant, immense power rapidly emanated from the purple inscription, surging through the war skeleton's every limb and joint. It swiftly ignited all latent fixed pattern rules, bringing the massive construct's full functionality online and into standby mode.

"Even a powerhouse like Ancestral Shaman Yuntong would need about half a year to successfully create a purple rune," Karl remarked, his voice filled with awe. "You are ridiculously powerful; you just completed a purple inscription in minutes! If all of his thousands of battlefield machines were powered by purple inscriptions, their processing power would undoubtedly be elevated to another level."

Karl was, at heart, a fervent inventor and necromancer. While his loyalties weren't particularly firm, and he never subscribed to notions of justice, his inherent devotion to this branch of civilization displayed a certain craftsman's spirit. This was the sole quality Xu Yang admired in him. Although the practices of the Five Great Forbidden Zones and Karl's own lineage were not mainstream cultivation across the continent, it had to be acknowledged that their existence implied a unique, irreplaceable value. At least in large-scale battlefield operations, the power these war machines could unleash far surpassed that of cultivator teams of comparable strength.

After personally concluding the experiment, Xu Yang immediately instructed Big Dog to pack all the war machines into his storage artifact, reserving only ten of the top-tier war skeletons. Following this, Xu Yang crafted nine more purple inscriptions, distributing two to each of Yunxiao's three companions. He even bestowed one upon Karl, instructing him to personally command a top-tier war machine. The remaining three war skeletons would be personally controlled by Xu Yang.

"Next, Karl, your task is to lead us from here," Xu Yang began, "choosing the shortest path to fight our way to the core area of the Five Great Forbidden Zones where the altar is located. Any undead we encounter, we will eliminate using the war machines we now possess! I intend to test the true combat capabilities of this equipment. You need not hold anything back, and I will ensure your safety. Simply clear the path for us."

Karl knew he had no alternative. Yet, upon hearing the task Xu Yang had set for him, an inexplicable excitement surged within him. With Xu Yang guaranteeing his protection, Karl realized that no power could harm him in the slightest. It was akin to being granted an invincible golden body for free, allowing him to unleash the machines' full power on the battlefield without restraint.

"Hahaha, your words put me at ease," Karl chuckled. "As long as you can guarantee my life, I, in turn, guarantee to get you to the altar's location in the shortest possible time."