Chapter 1974: Fragments

After some time, in the East Palace, Rong Mo began to yawn from waiting. Suddenly, her heart stirred as she felt a gentle breeze. She looked back and saw Zu An had appeared in the room, carrying the Crown Princess.

Glancing at the scene in his arms, Rong Mo was a little speechless. "You knocked her out again?"

Zu An also felt a bit awkward. He gently placed Bi Linglong on the bed, pulled the covers over her, and then said, "Take good care of her."

"'Instead of telling me to take good care of her afterward, you should have been gentler yourself,' Rong Mo complained, casting him a reproachful look. She came to the bedside and, with a pained expression, gently wiped the fine sweat from her lady's forehead and the hickeys from her neck. 'My lady's body is so noble and delicate. Anyone else would treat her like a precious gem, handling her with extreme care, but you use her without any thought or mercy.'"

Zu An felt a bit apologetic. However, it was precisely her noble status and the unique scene of overlooking the imperial palace that had made him exceptionally aroused that day.

He was too embarrassed to respond much. Outside, palace maids heard the commotion and knocked on the door, asking, "Sister Mo Mo, does the Crown Princess need anything from us?"

It was inconvenient for Zu An to stay any longer, so he left with an apologetic glance and quickly vanished into the night sky.

"'Bring some hot water,' Rong Mo told the inquiring palace maids. Bi Linglong finally stirred awake, and seeing herself back in her bedchamber, her pretty face flushed.

"'My lady, I'm not gossiping, but that man simply has no regard for women. I don't even know how he tormented you just now,' Rong Mo grumbled, as she gently wiped Bi Linglong's body with a cloth.

"'It wasn't his fault; I consented,' Bi Linglong replied. As she recalled the recent events, her heart pounded wildly.

Since childhood, she had learned all sorts of imperial rules. From a very young age, she knew she was destined to become the Crown Princess, so she was naturally cautious and never dared to make the slightest mistake in her daily life. However, after meeting Zu An, her actions became increasingly unconventional, and she was no longer the obedient noble lady she once was. Yet, it was as if a new world had opened up for her. Although she sometimes felt fear and anxiety, the strange thrill held a deep attraction for her.

"'My lady, you truly are...' Rong Mo was speechless. 'If he truly cared for you, how could he humiliate you like this?'"

"'Ah, there was no humiliation. I actually found it quite enjoyable,' Bi Linglong replied instinctively.

Rong Mo was utterly dumbfounded.

"My lady is truly beyond help."

Seeing the red marks on her body, Bi Linglong felt a bit embarrassed and instinctively pulled the covers up. "'Ah Zu is usually quite gentle. Today, I don't know if it's because he fought a monster, but his actions were... a bit rougher than usual.'"

Rong Mo was curious. "How does he usually treat you?"

"'He usually...' Bi Linglong replied instinctively, but then she suddenly realized what she was saying, grabbed a nearby pillow, and hit Rong Mo with it. 'Are you having romantic thoughts, little girl? If you're so curious, next time I'll let you experience it yourself!'"

"'No way!' Rong Mo exclaimed, flustered, as she stood up. Her cheeks were flushed.

Zu An returned to Yuquan Mountain, Dong'e Fish Peak. After a night of exertions, the sky was just beginning to lighten. As he passed the lotus pond, he caught sight of his reflection and was startled. "I'm so worn out by wine and women! I look utterly gaunt!"

Lately, besides refining pills, as regent, he couldn't avoid attending various banquets. With endless toasts, he naturally drank a lot. Coupled with continuous 'battles' in various senses over the past few days, he had almost no time to rest, which made him appear rather haggard.

"From today, I quit drinking!"

Zu An simply sat cross-legged on a large rock by the fish pond and began cultivating. Dawn, when the sun and moon exchange places, is the period when the world's vital energy is most abundant, making cultivation twice as effective. Just then, some elite disciples from the academy down the mountain had already risen. They were about to begin their morning exercises when they looked up and saw the High Priest of Dong'e Fish Peak meditating there. He appeared faintly amidst the mountain mists, with the rising sun casting a gentle ray of light upon him, looking just like an immortal from the heavens.

Those elite disciples were all thoroughly convinced. They had thought getting up early was diligent, but compared to the High Priest, they were far behind. If the High Priest, with his profound cultivation, was still so diligent and hardworking, what reason did they have to be lazy?

As for the female disciples, stars practically shone in their eyes. "Ahhh, the High Priest is so handsome!"

"I heard he's still single. I wonder if I have a chance?"

"Wake up! He's already married. His wife is Miss Chu, the most beautiful woman in Brightmoon City."

"But I heard they divorced. And besides, who isn't the most beautiful woman in some city?"

Unaware of the disciples' discussions below, Zu An opened his eyes about an hour later. He felt completely refreshed and fully recuperated. The world of cultivation is truly amazing; this physical resilience completely surpasses that of ordinary people on Earth.

However, he soon noticed a slight abnormality: his internal energy was not entirely calm. He figured it was because he had previously absorbed the War Priest's cultivation, which was so vast that he hadn't yet been able to fully integrate it in such a short time.

Returning to his room, Zu An took out the gold brick. It had fallen into the River of Oblivion during his fight with the War Priest, losing all its divine powers. Now, it was dull and lifeless, not even as good as real gold. After all, it was a Heaven-grade weapon, so discarding it like this would be a real pity.

He quickly summoned the forging system, the new system he had awakened after obtaining the "Divine Weapon Forging Manual." It could not only forge various weapons but also repair damaged ones. A platform resembling a blacksmith's forge appeared in the room. Every time Zu An saw it, he marveled at the keyboard system's incredible powers, wondering where such a large object usually hid.

He placed the dull gold brick onto the rune-embedded platform in the center. Soon, the system reacted.

"Damaged gold brick detected. Repairing the weapon requires special materials: Fiery Glaze, Heaven-grade Crystal Ore..."

Zu An paused at the listed materials. He happened to have Fiery Glaze, which he had won from stone gambling in the demon race territory. What a coincidence! However, he then realized that given his current power among both humans and demons, it wasn't surprising he possessed many rare materials. Even Zhao Hao back in the day probably didn't have as many resource channels as he did, as Zhao Hao had no influence among the demon race. For anyone else, obtaining any single one of these materials might have taken decades.

"Repair!"

As soon as he spoke, the bizarre-looking furnace beside him suddenly blazed with fierce flames. Seeing this, Zu An summoned his White Lotus True Flame and fed it into the furnace. The entire interior of the furnace began to turn pure white, and countless white lotus flowers endlessly bloomed and withered within it, cycling repeatedly.

The forging system's inherent flames were already sufficient for forging various weapons. However, adding special flames of heaven and earth would naturally assist the process, accelerating forging or repair speed, and even offer a chance to imbue the weapon with special attributes.

Zu An put the gold brick, Fiery Glaze, Heaven-grade Crystal Ore, and other materials into the furnace. At the same time, he used his vital energy to pump the bellows beside it. Soon, the forging system began its work, and within the flames, the gold brick gradually regained its luster.

For the final step, he took a large hammer from the side and repeatedly struck the gold brick, channeling his soul power. This was necessary to establish a soul connection with the magic weapon, making it as responsive as one's own limb.

After more than an hour of hammering, the gold brick suddenly flared with brilliant golden light. It then flew out of the furnace, swaying continuously, seemingly cheering and leaping for Zu An. Sensing the ethereal connection, Zu An extended his hand, beckoned it into his palm, and gently stroked it.

Although it hadn't developed a weapon spirit, Zu An felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity when touching it, due to having personally forged it. Suddenly, his heart stirred; he found that the gold brick now possessed an additional divine ability. Previously, it could only enlarge into a small mountain to smash opponents. But now, with a trace of fire attribute, it would no longer be an ordinary mountain crushing people, but a flaming mountain.

Putting away the gold brick, Zu An then took out the Soul-Summoning Banner. Upon careful inspection, he found that because it had originally been damaged by the Purple Gold Alms Bowl, the War Priest's imprint on it had weakened. With his strength, he could directly refine away the remaining spiritual imprint. He then tried placing it into the forging system. Before repairing the gold brick, he hadn't been so certain, but he felt more confident about repairing this item.

As expected, the forging system indicated a need for "Corpse Bone True Bamboo." This material was also something he had obtained from the demon race back then. He had heard it was a primary material for making items like soul-summoning banners, and indeed, it was needed here.

He quickly put the various materials into the furnace. This time, Zu An dared not add the White Lotus True Flame, knowing it was the nemesis of sinister objects like the Soul-Summoning Banner. It would be disastrous if he accidentally destroyed it. He carefully continued the repair process as before, though much slower than before. After several hours, the Soul-Summoning Banner was finally repaired.

As he took it off the forging platform, the entire room instantly became filled with an eerie, sinister aura, as if translucent skeletal heads were darting around. At that moment, the array formations around the house began to faintly glow. Zu An hastily put it away. The old High Priest had resided here for a long time, influencing the entire peak with his righteous energy. Combined with the various defensive arrays, if the item's power fully activated, it would be bad for anyone involved.

He also realized then that the item was not called the Soul-Summoning Banner, but rather the Soul-Reaping Banner. If swung at an enemy, and if the opponent lacked soul defense capabilities, their soul would immediately leave their body. A few more swings could make their soul completely dissipate. Even if they possessed some soul defense, it would depend on whether they could withstand the Soul-Reaping Banner's power. Even if they could withstand it, their soul would still be affected to some extent, leaving them in a daze for a short period—a critical moment that could often be fatal.

Zu An couldn't help but gasp. Fortunately, he had the Purple Gold Alms Bowl protecting him; otherwise, if struck by this item, he wasn't sure if Baiming would even be able to launch a counterattack.

The Soul-Reaping Banner was currently an Immortal-grade weapon, but he vaguely sensed that its power might be far greater. It seemed to be only a fragment of some weapon. If a mere fragment was so powerful, how formidable must the complete artifact be?