Chapter 324: Spirit Sovereign's Magical Treasure

Several people looked in that direction and saw Wu Shanshan and her companions, who had just been discussing cooperation with them, indeed heading towards the Extreme Fire Sect's group. This blatant act of taking their business elsewhere truly stunned the group, and some individuals were even annoyed.

Pang Hou asked, "Are they trying to threaten us or intimidate us?"

Gu Lianni scoffed, "Just them? The mere Oblivion Valley is beneath the Extreme Fire Sect's notice. What if they did join forces with them?" She also glanced at the smirking Wu Jinliang, wondering why he was grinning foolishly. "They're trying to deal with us, and you can still smile?"

Defiance was pointless. Yuan Yao mused, "Uncle-master, whether they'll join forces against us is one thing. We just humiliated Oblivion Valley, and now that they've gone to the Extreme Fire Sect, there's no guarantee they won't stir up trouble there. In any case, they certainly won't speak well of us. It's better to avoid trouble; we shouldn't stay here long." He turned to Shi Chun and asked, "Can we leave now?"

He still respected Shi Chun's opinion quite a bit. The reason was simple: after spending so much time together, he realized that this top contender from the Heavenly Rain Meteorite Assembly indeed had something about him, and listening to his opinions more often wouldn't be a bad thing.

Shi Chun also found it amusing. He looked towards the Extreme Fire Sect and said, "The young lady is right. The mere Extreme Fire Sect; what if they did join forces?" His smile hid a hint of playful mockery. He wasn't in a hurry to leave, wanting to stay and watch the show. The problem was, the Extreme Fire Sect had already arrived. If they truly intended harm, they wouldn't just sit back and let them escape. If Oblivion Valley could cooperate or collude with the Extreme Fire Sect, that would be interesting. The Extreme Fire Sect mingling with demonic sects – at that point, he could twist them around his finger.

Wu Jinliang's knowing smirk basically meant this, as he was also aware of Oblivion Valley's true background. To his surprise, Gu Lianni turned back and snapped at Shi Chun, "It's all your fault! If you hadn't been dawdling here, would the Extreme Fire Sect have caught up with us?" As she spoke, she also glanced at Zhen'er, who was quietly listening. Zhen'er's demeanor showed that she still seemed a bit unaccustomed to so many people suddenly appearing. She stayed close to Shi Chun, treating him as her sole reliance, and seemed to be trying hard to understand the conversation.

Shi Chun was naturally speechless. He really wanted to ask Gu Lianni, "Since the Extreme Fire Sect had already pursued us, someone must have left a trail marker. Given how we're in a forbidden area, not daring to run wildly and cautiously proceeding along what we estimate to be the safe boundaries, we can't go fast. How could we have avoided their pursuit?" Of course, there was no point in arguing about it now, and he couldn't be bothered to argue. He just felt that Gu Lianni seemed to be getting a bit unreasonable.

On the other side, Wu Shanshan and her two companions, approaching the Extreme Fire Sect's group, were stopped by the Extreme Fire Sect's outer perimeter guards. The core group would not allow outsiders with unclear intentions to approach freely. The main personnel of the Extreme Fire Sect were all on the ground.

Yin Tianlu, having received the report, was somewhat puzzled. He muttered to himself, "'Oblivion Valley?'" A fellow disciple named Wu Xiao, also surnamed Wu, said, "It's that sect that's all women; they don't accept members who are ugly, and initiates have to disfigure themselves to join. I heard their founder was an incredibly beautiful woman who, after being hurt by love, established this 'Oblivion Valley.' They claim that by not being troubled by romantic feelings, their cultivation will naturally advance. It's actually a bit of nonsense; since its establishment, this sect hasn't produced any notable disciples."

Upon hearing this, Yin Tianlu remembered. This sect held no significant reputation in the artifact forging world; its only fame came from that sect rule about women disfiguring themselves. "Why would Oblivion Valley be looking for us?" Yin Tianlu pondered briefly. He cupped his hands in thanks to the disciples from other sects who had provided the information. After dismissing them, he gestured for Wu Shanshan and her companions to be allowed through, wanting to see what Oblivion Valley wanted. He also wanted to gather more information, which was a fundamental behavior for a decision-maker.

After Wu Shanshan and her two companions came over, the Extreme Fire Sect group couldn't help but scrutinize the appearances of these self-disfigured women, secretly finding it strange. After mutual introductions, Yin Tianlu directly asked, "What brings you here, honored guests?"

Wu Shanshan replied, "I wouldn't dare give instructions. We have long admired the Extreme Fire Sect; our visit today is naturally to seek your favor."

Yin Tianlu's demeanor and appearance exuded a formidable sense of oppression. He raised a hand to stop her, saying, "Speak plainly."

Wu Shanshan said, "Everyone here knows why they came. Our Oblivion Valley is willing to join forces with the Extreme Fire Sect to jointly pursue the secret method for finding divine fire."

Yin Tianlu's gaze flickered. He neither agreed nor refused, turning his head to look at his fellow disciple beside him. Wu Xiao then smiled and asked, "What makes you worthy of our alliance?"

Wu Shanshan replied, "Shi Chun possesses a Celestial Immortal-grade magical artifact. It's a 'Spirit Venerable' fifth-grade artifact, and its artifact spirit is human."

At these words, the Extreme Fire Sect group was greatly astonished. As experts in artifact forging, they naturally knew what her words implied. An artifact spirit, as it's known, is naturally meant to imbue an artifact with sentience, making it easier to control. Artifacts without spirits have certain limitations in use. For instance, with high-grade artifacts, the wielder's cultivation must be sufficient; insufficient cultivation might even prevent them from wielding it, and if forced, the wielder would be exhausted. In short, artifacts without spirits consume the wielder's magical energy.

Artifacts with spirits are different. When used, they consume their own energy, and the wielder only needs to transmit consciousness to confirm the target and purpose. Furthermore, artifacts with spirits are categorized into 'Artifact Venerable' and 'Spirit Venerable' artifacts. The latter is more advanced and represents a level of craftsmanship sought by many artifact forgers. 'Artifact Venerable' refers to artifacts where the treasure or implement itself is primary, with the artifact spirit serving as an auxiliary. 'Spirit Venerable' artifacts, however, are extraordinary. They aren't simply created by forging an artifact and then finding a suitable spirit to match. Instead, the artifact spirit is primary, and the artifact must be forged to fully match the spirit's complete form.

The principle is actually simple: it involves forging a 'flesh body' (physical form) resembling the artifact spirit's original appearance before death, replacing the body of flesh and blood with a metallic artifact. How exquisite are the functions of the human body? It is incredibly difficult to forge such an artifact, and most artifact forgers never reach such a realm in their entire lives. But once forged, the artifact's performance is extraordinary. The artifact spirit possesses a matching 'flesh body,' has its cultivation methods from its life, knows its combat techniques from its life, can cast spells, and its movements, dodges, attacks, and defenses are not significantly different from when it was alive. The power of such an artifact is incomparable to that of an ordinary fifth-grade artifact; it's like having a Celestial Immortal-level master as a personal bodyguard and enforcer. If not for the 'flesh body' limitation, such a Spirit Venerable artifact could even improve its own cultivation through practice. Under these limitations, all it can do is recover its expended energy, similar to how cultivators recover through meditation. Of course, legends speak of extraordinary artifact forgers who could create artifact spirits with 'flesh bodies' comparable to true living bodies, capable of advancing their cultivation through practice, and even forge new bodies of flesh and blood for living people. But those are, after all, just legends.

Based solely on the Spirit Venerable artifact described by Wu Shanshan, Yin Tianlu and his companions clearly understood that even within their Extreme Fire Sect, no single individual could forge it alone. It would require the joint efforts of many powerful individuals and an unknown amount of time to create. Another point was that the artifact spirit of this so-called 'Spirit Venerable' artifact must have been a Celestial Immortal-level master in its former life. For these artifact forgers of the Extreme Fire Sect from the demon realm, transforming humans into artifact spirits carried no psychological burden. What truly shocked them was that Shi Chun actually possessed an artifact of such caliber; it was truly hard to believe.

Wu Xiao couldn't help but ask, "How could Shi Chun possess a Celestial Immortal-grade Spirit Venerable artifact?" How was Wu Shanshan supposed to answer that? Was she to say she'd been deluded and given the artifact to him? One thing was clear and also quite comforting to her: she could tell that with the artifact in Shi Chun's amateur hands, he probably hadn't yet grasped its true value. Of course, she had her reasons for daring to give away such a valuable treasure. She could give it away because she knew she could retrieve it. So she lightly dismissed it, saying, "That's not important."

Wu Xiao scoffed, "They have a powerful treasure. How does that relate to you joining forces with us?"

Wu Shanshan calmly stated, "I know that artifact's weakness. I can restrain it!"

Wu Xiao and his companions exchanged glances. They finally understood the confidence Oblivion Valley had in seeking an alliance. They also found it strange. The weakness of such a valuable treasure should be a top secret; how could this woman possibly know it?

Wu Xiao couldn't make the decision on whether to cooperate, so he looked at Yin Tianlu, their leader. Yin Tianlu thought for a moment, then glanced back at Black Tiger behind him. After some deliberation, he still adopted an attitude that neither agreed nor refused. He nodded slightly and said, "This matter is significant, so please return first. Allow us to consider and discuss it."

Indeed, Wu Shanshan understood the reason for not making a hasty decision. She also nodded and said, "Very well. However, I must warn you, Mount Shu Dao is not to be trifled with. They won't just sit there waiting for us to make a move; dawdling will lead to missed opportunities."

Yin Tianlu didn't bother with pleasantries and made a gesture for them to leave. Wu Shanshan cupped her hands in salute, turned, and flew back with her companions. On the way, she disdainfully glanced at Shi Chun's group, with an expression that suggested, "You chose to suffer rather than accept my offer." Of course, she also found it strange, "Given the situation, what did Shi Chun's group mean by not running away?"

With no one else around, Yin Tianlu turned to his two fellow disciples. He scoffed, "That woman is overthinking things. We have our own way of finding divine fire. We are here simply to confirm whether Shi Chun and his group truly found that much divine fire."

Wu Xiao followed up, saying, "What if it's true? Will our Extreme Fire Sect's most prized treasure, the 'Wild Breaker Fragment Blade,' really be given away?" These words silenced their entire group. If they could truly stand by and do nothing, they wouldn't have rushed all this way.

After a long while, Yin Tianlu slowly said, "We have more options than other sects. Let's first confirm if the situation is true." Under everyone's gaze, Black Tiger, who had remained silent, faced Shi Chun's group. After his nostrils twitched once or twice again, he said, "They indeed have the aura of various divine fires over there, and more types than we do."

Yin Tianlu and Wu Xiao immediately looked towards Shi Chun's group in unison, their expressions grave. After a brief deliberation, Yin Tianlu slowly said, "This matter is no small affair. If we really get into a conflict with Mount Shu Dao, it won't be good. Junior Brother Wu, stay here and hold the fort. Junior Brother Hei, you come with me to greet Gu Lianni's group. Get close and sniff it out thoroughly." Black Tiger didn't say anything, but nodded slightly.

After giving his instructions, Yin Tianlu led his people directly towards them. Wu Shanshan and others from Oblivion Valley paused, startled by the sight, and couldn't help but feel worried.

After being cleared to pass, Black Tiger followed Yin Tianlu, landing directly in front of Gu Lianni and her companions. With his nostrils subtly twitching, his gaze immediately, like a sharp arrow, locked onto Zhen'er, who was full of curiosity.