Xian Qing'er’s face suddenly changed, becoming extremely ferocious and ugly in an instant. The little girl's body swelled up, and from her lower body came a series of hissing sounds. Numerous knobby-legged appendages burst through her skirt and embedded into the ground with a clinking noise. Her body became thick and long, resembling a giant centipede made of bones. Behind her upper body, bony armor protruded high, making her hunch over, with arms formed of bones spreading out, their finger bones like sharp claws, incredibly sharp.
From the back of her head grew curved bone spurs like deer antlers. Her face was full of ridges and valleys, indescribably terrifying. From her mouth came an extremely sharp sound, like the desperate screams of countless women mixed together. She shouted fiercely:
“You, come in here!”
Qin Mu looked up at this woman-centipede covered in bones, showing a surprised expression, and shook his head:
“No.”
The monster in the temple roared in anger, its legs scurrying rapidly, circling around the temple again and again, then suddenly lunged towards the temple's entrance. At that moment, a rattling sound came, and the oasis shook, with thick chains clanking.
Qin Mu quickly looked over and saw that one end of these chains was sunk into the river, wrapping around the large golden Buddha in the temple, while the other end was locked onto the monster's body.
The monster had several gold rings on it, and the chains were fastened to these rings. As it tried to pounce out of the temple's entrance, it was pulled back by the chains.
The monster flailed its limbs but could not step out of the temple door even half a step.
Qin Mu sat down leisurely and continued to breathe and exhale, cultivating the *Ba Ti San Dan Gong* to restore his energy.
After a while, things quieted down behind him. The monster, unable to break free from the chains, suddenly turned and rushed towards the golden Buddha in the temple, shouting:
“You damned bald thief, suppressing me here! Are you trying to starve me to death? This kid didn't offer you incense, so why won't you let me eat him?”
The Buddha statue was struck by it but remained unmoved. The monster flew into a rage, circling around the Buddha statue, and the many white bones behind the statue were knocked flying by it.
Qin Mu turned back to look and was secretly shocked in his heart. Those white bones were actually human bones, and he didn't know how many people had died in this small rundown temple.
After a while, the monster in the temple quieted down, picking up those white bones one by one and hiding them behind the golden Buddha. It stared with eyes full of blood vessels, fixedly glaring at Qin Mu outside the temple.
“You damned bald thief, delivered meat, delivered meat…”
It came to the back of the temple door again, staring at the back of Qin Mu's head, with saliva flowing endlessly like a stream.
Not long after, it transformed back into the appearance of the little girl Xian Qing'er, with her clothes half undone, giggling:
“Young man, let's indulge in shame together—”
Qin Mu had excellent self-control and ignored it completely. Finally, he restored his strength, and his vital energy returned to its peak. He felt that after this day of hard cultivation, his vital energy had made significant progress.
His heart stirred, so he simply stirred his vital energy, silently reciting the demonic sound, and once again assaulted the Ling Tai Bi.
“Qi Ke Duo, Sa Mo Ye, Ban Ruo Ban Ruo Sa Mo Ye, Qi Ke Duo Ban Ruo Sa Mo Ye…”
As his vital energy just rushed towards the Ling Tai Bi, suddenly from the ancient temple came bursts of roaring. The strange patterns under the gold foil of that large golden Buddha actually had streams of blood light flowing, and the blood light was covered by the gold foil, making the gold foil emit dazzling golden light.
Boom—
In the midst of violent shaking, the originally copper-bodied gold-plated Buddha statue actually opened its eyes, bursting with overwhelming momentum. Qin Mu's ears immediately heard a majestic roar:
“Evil demons and heretics! How dare you act presumptuously before me, reciting the true words of demonic gods, lawless and unrestrained! I shall subdue you with Buddhist true words!”
The monster's face changed drastically, only to see that golden Buddha actually raise its hand, grabbing the chain and pulling the monster, making it unable to stop its momentum, and involuntarily being dragged to in front of the Buddha statue.
Thud.
The monster was pressed down by the golden Buddha's majesty, kneeling on the ground right in front of the Buddha statue, unable to move.
“Om, Ma, Ni, Pad, Me, Hum! Om, Ma, Ni, Pad, Me, Hum! Om, Ma, Ni, Pad, Me, Hum…”
That golden Buddha opened its mouth, actually emitting bursts of Sanskrit sounds, as if a true Buddha was reciting true words. The monster, hearing the Buddhist sounds, was like being crushed by an invisible force on its soul, screaming in pain.
Outside the temple, Qin Mu was bombarded by those Buddhist true words, his mind in chaos. At that moment, his vital energy exactly rushed to the front of the Ling Tai Bi, and from beyond the nine heavens came bursts of divine sounds, like gods high in the outer heavens reciting scriptures.
The divine sounds encountered the Buddhist sounds in the temple and immediately became louder, contending with the Buddhist sounds, greatly reducing the pressure on his vital energy.
“Good opportunity!”
Qin Mu didn't think twice, and from his mouth came sounds, reciting the demonic sound, shouting loudly:
“Qi Ke Duo Sa Mo Ye, Ban Ruo Ban Ruo Sa Mo Ye, Qi Ke Duo Ban Ruo Sa Mo Ye! Qi Ke Duo Sa Mo Ye, Ban Ruo Ban Ruo Sa Mo Ye, Qi Ke Duo Ban Ruo Sa Mo Ye!”
In the temple, the Buddhist sounds boomed:
“Om, Ma, Ni, Pad, Me, Hum! Om, Ma, Ni, Pad, Me, Hum!”
At the same time, the divine sounds from Qin Mu's brow became even more high-pitched:
“Guan, Ming, Duan, Jing, Wu, Si, Jiang, You! Tian, Shi, Dui, Xi, Wei, Ling, Nu!”
The three kinds of sounds mixed together, and the obstacle rushing towards his brow's Ling Tai Bi suddenly disappeared.
Qin Mu seized the moment, urging the *Ba Ti San Dan Gong*, stirring all his vital energy to charge towards the Ling Tai Bi.
Splash—
The waters of the Yong Jiang river surged, with big waves crashing against the shore. At the same time, Qin Mu's Ling Tai Bi made a splashing sound and collapsed with a boom, allowing his vital energy to rush grandly into the Ling Tai God Repository.
Then, even more violent vital energy gushed out from his Ling Tai God Repository, in an instant permeating his entire body, limbs, and hundreds of bones, even rushing through his hair and skin, making each hair stand on end.
The Ling Tai Bi was completely destroyed.
He succeeded in breaking through.
Qin Mu was stunned for a moment, stopped reciting the demonic sound, and that divine sound suddenly disappeared. In the temple, the golden Buddha's Buddhist sounds, having no opponent, also ceased, and the Buddha statue returned to normal, motionless, with only the monster under the Buddha statue refined by the Buddhist sounds, lying there lifelessly.
In Qin Mu's brow, the invisible barrier blocking him from opening the Ling Tai God Repository finally disappeared, and the Ling Tai God Repository was finally revealed without any hindrance.
“I actually really broke through?”
Qin Mu couldn't suppress his joy in his heart and cheered in front of the temple.
He had drunk an unknown amount of Four Spirits Blood and had been unable to awaken his Ba Ti, but now, by relying on the mutual conflict of the sounds of gods, demons, and Buddhas, he broke through. His small chest was immediately filled with a huge sense of achievement.
Soon, Qin Mu calmed down and thought: “Ling Tai Bi, Ling Tai God Repository, since it's a god repository, there must be treasures left by gods for me inside…”
He closed his eyes and “saw” the dazzling golden light between his brows. His consciousness carefully “entered” this mysterious god repository, only to see that the Ling Tai God Repository was a strange space, filled everywhere with golden light, like an ancient and immense cave heaven paradise.
His consciousness dove in, and the Ling Tai God Repository seemed like an ocean of light, with light everywhere, like a fairyland, and his consciousness was nourished by the light, feeling very comfortable.
His consciousness flew in this sea of golden light for an unknown amount of time without any discoveries.
“Isn't it said to be the Ling Tai God Repository? Why is there nothing inside? Did the god take away the treasures meant for me?”
Qin Mu was puzzled. The Ling Tai God Repository was opened, so where was the god repository?
Suddenly, he saw in the sea of light there was actually a stone statue, standing alone in the sea of light, very abrupt.
“Why is there a stone statue in the Ling Tai God Repository? Could this be the god repository?”
Qin Mu was surprised. His consciousness circled around the stone statue, examining it up and down, and then he discovered the strangeness. The stone statue was not actually made of stone.
This “stone statue” was like jade but not jade, like stone but not stone, crystal clear, yet giving a soft feeling.
What was most strange was that the appearance of the “stone statue” actually resembled him somewhat, but more like Qin Mu as a baby, around two or three years old.
“There’s a statue of me in the Ling Tai God Repository? Did the god know what I look like and carved a statue of me to hide in my Ling Tai God Repository?”
Qin Mu was puzzled. His consciousness gently touched the stone statue, and suddenly, his consciousness uncontrollably flowed into the stone statue!
Qin Mu's vision suddenly plunged into darkness. When his consciousness finally reawakened, he was horrified to find himself residing within the stone statue!
"What happened?"
He opened his eyes and attempted to roll them. To his astonishment, he found that his "self's" eyeballs could indeed move. Then, tilting his head, he realized that his consciousness actually possessed a head.
Looking down, he discovered that his consciousness had merged with the "stone statue." The stone statue's hands and feet had become his own!
Consciousness was formless, yet now his consciousness had taken shape. This was far too strange!
He sensed that this "stone statue" was a peculiar spirit, neither appearing to be pure energy nor a true soul. It was bizarre and difficult to articulate.
"Spirit embryo divine treasury, spirit embryo divine treasury... Could this stone statue be my spirit embryo, and my consciousness entering it awakens the spirit embryo? Is this what 'Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury' refers to?"
Qin Mu's spirit embryo blinked its eyes, and in an instant, a flood of understanding washed over him.
Within the human body lay hidden seven great divine treasuries. The spirit embryo divine treasury was the first, but it remained sealed. Ordinary individuals could not open this treasury and thus could not awaken their spirit embryo.
However, a spirit body's divine treasury was naturally open. Therefore, with the appropriate spirit blood, one could guide their consciousness into the spirit embryo, thereby awakening it.
The spirit embryo, then, was precisely this entity that housed consciousness.
As for the divine treasury, could it be that the gods didn't bestow spirit embryos upon people, but rather deliberately sealed them away?
Just as this thought crossed his mind, vital energy surged from outside, flowing into the sea of light. These strands of vital energy were absorbed by the small spirit embryo, and wisps of it were inhaled and exhaled through its nostrils, a truly comforting sensation.
And with every breath the spirit embryo took, his vital energy became significantly purer!
Not only that, but Qin Mu also discovered that the spirit embryo was absorbing the golden light within the sea of light. This golden light and vital energy circulated together within his body. The golden light adorned the vital energy, although its purpose remained unclear.
He attempted to make the spirit embryo stand, but found that this small infant was unable to do so and could not move its body.
"How does a spirit embryo move? Hmm, I'll have to ask the village chief and Grandma when I return."
Just as Qin Mu was contemplating this, his consciousness returned to his body, and he opened his eyes.
Violent coughing echoed from within the temple. The monster was not dead; it lay before the Buddha statue, spitting blood, great gouts of it spraying outwards. Qin Mu considered for a moment, then stepped through the temple entrance.
When the monster saw him actually enter the ancient temple, its heart was filled with a mixture of shock and joy. It hastily struggled to its feet.
As Qin Mu approached, he began to chant: "Qi ke duo Sa Mo Ye, Ban Ruo Ban Ruo Sa Mo Ye, Qi Ke Duo Ban Ruo Sa Mo Ye!"
"Wicked obstacle, you still dare to be presumptuous!"
The monster's hair stood on end. Behind it, the golden Buddha once again began to shake, emitting a brilliant golden light. Chains rattled, pulling it back to its knees!
"Om, Ma, Ni, Ba, Mi, Hong!"
The Buddha's voice boomed, and the monster, being refined, coughed up blood and looked dispirited.
Qin Mu stopped chanting the demonic sound, and the golden Buddha's chant also ceased after a single sentence of the true word. The monster beneath the Buddha statue gasped for breath, just about to stand up, when Qin Mu's mouth once again emitted the demonic sound. The monster shrieked and hastily hid behind the Buddha statue, but to its surprise, Qin Mu only uttered a syllable or two before stopping.
"You are a demon..."
The monster cautiously peeked its head out, staring terrified at Qin Mu, who had entered the temple hall. Its voice was hoarse: "You are a demon! You are a great and terrible demon lord!"
Qin Mu did not reply. He walked directly to the Buddha statue and hesitated for a moment. Finally, he decided to follow Blind Man, that old Jianghu's, advice. He respectfully said: "This young one has suffered from weak kidneys and a frail body since childhood, with a premature leakage of primal yang..."
Upon hearing this, the monster's eyes widened. While coughing blood, it giggled: "Young man, you're telling a Buddha statue you have weak kidneys? A Buddha statue won't replenish you, you know!"
Qin Mu glared at it: "Qi ke duo Sa Mo Ye..."
The Buddha statue shook: "Wicked obstacle!"
The monster's soul nearly fled its body. It hastily begged for mercy, crying: "Don't chant! Spare me!"
Qin Mu stopped chanting, but the golden Buddha still recited one sentence of the true word, refining the monster until it spat blood.
Qin Mu looked around, but found nothing of value. However, the mountain of white bones piled behind the Buddha statue startled him. Clearly, countless individuals had perished in this dilapidated temple, victims of this monster.
The young man couldn't help but shake his head and say: "With the white bones hidden behind the Buddha statue, the Buddha statue has become your accomplice, helping you conceal your misdeeds and deceive more people. If I were to refine you to death with the Buddha statue's hand, it would only become the Buddha statue's merit. I won't do that. Monster, do you have any treasures in this temple?"
The monster, trembling with fear, said: "Where would I have treasures? I was suppressed here by that bald thief. All the treasures were plundered by the bald thief."
"Qi ke duo..."
"Don't chant!"
The monster offered a forced smile and said: "These past years, dwelling here, besides occasionally indulging my desires, I have indeed found some good things. I'll give them to you then." Saying so, it laboriously crawled up and stumbled towards the top of the great hall. It lightly prodded, and a hidden compartment in the ceiling, which it had opened, became visible.
The items stored within the compartment clattered down, a collection of weapons, armor, and other such things. In addition, there were several pieces of clothing, mostly women's bellybands, but based on the material, they appeared to be clothing worn by wealthy families.
"Only these," the monster said with a forced smile.
Qin Mu frowned, disappointed: "Only these? No spirit pills or elixirs?"
"Any spirit pills or elixirs were eaten by me."
The monster stretched its centipede-like body, its bones popping, and chuckled: "I've been imprisoned here for too long. I wanted to eat everything. The taste of spirit pills and elixirs is even better than the taste of these people. How could I let them go? Don't underestimate these weapons; they are all good things. These weapons are treasures that can be bred within the Six Harmonies Divine Treasury. They are naturally nurtured by one's vital energy and possess astonishing power. They are called spirit soldiers!"
Qin Mu was half-believing, half-doubting. He reached out and picked up a goose-wing knife. It felt surprisingly heavy in his hand, much heavier than the pig-slaying knife he carried on his back. But what was strange was that the pig-slaying knife, which was much larger than this seemingly ordinary knife, weighed less than the goose-wing knife.
The goose-wing knife was narrow and long, while the pig-slaying knife was wide and thick.
Qin Mu took down his pig-slaying knife and lightly struck it against the goose-wing knife. With a clang, the goose-wing knife broke in the middle, its head falling to the ground.
The monster's eyes bulged. It stared blankly at the pig-slaying knife in Qin Mu's hand, speechless.
Qin Mu was extremely disappointed and tossed the goose-wing knife aside.
"Who refined this chopping board-like knife of yours?"
The monster shrieked, stammering: "A spirit soldier nurtured by an expert of the Six Harmonies realm, broken with a single touch? This chopping board-like knife of yours is absolutely not something ordinary people can refine!"
Qin Mu stroked the pig-slaying knife. The blade was very cool, a stream of cold air flowing directly into his heart and lungs. The pig-slaying knife had been forged for him by Dumb, the village blacksmith. Dumb was a famous blacksmith in the vicinity, and his creations were very popular. People from outside the village often came to him to forge vegetable knives, hoes, iron plows, and other such items.
"He didn't use ordinary iron!"
The monster foamed at the mouth, wanting to go forward for a closer examination but not daring to, afraid that Qin Mu would chant that strange demonic language again. It cried: "Did you touch it? Is there cold air? If there's cold air, then it's Cold Iron Gold Crystal!"
Qin Mu was surprised and nodded: "Indeed, there is a stream of cold air."
The monster exclaimed in disbelief: "Using Cold Iron Gold Crystal to forge such a chopping board? Furthermore, with such excellent refining technique, to actually forge a knife like a chopping board? A waste of heavenly materials, a waste of craftsmanship!"
Qin Mu glared at it, put the pig-slaying knife back on his back, then picked up the weapons and other treasures on the ground. Piece by piece, he carried them out of the broken temple and placed them in front of the temple entrance.
The monster was furious. It cried: "You already have such a good weapon, why do you still want to take my things?"
"Grandma said that anything you take by your own ability, you must take all of it."
Qin Mu turned his head and smiled innocently: "These things were taken by my own ability, so I must take them all."
The monster was half dead with rage, yet it didn't dare to fall out with him. It could only stare wide-eyed as Qin Mu emptied its painstakingly collected treasures.
"Do you have a bundle or something here?" Suddenly, Qin Mu poked his head back in and asked.
"No!"
"Oh." Qin Mu withdrew his head.
The monster cautiously walked out of the great hall. It saw that outside the temple, Qin Mu was just chopping bamboo by the river. Before long, he had made a bamboo raft, placed the treasures on it, and was using a long bamboo pole to push the raft upstream.
"What kind of unruly child was taught to even dare to rob me?"
The monster was enraged, finally daring to scold: "Lawless! And he even dared to ask me for a bundle to carry stolen goods! He's infuriating me to death!"
