Chapter 475: Self-Explosion

The Guoshi severed his karmic connection with the Immortal, causing the Immortal to forget his existence and become unable to perceive him.

"Lunar True Flame," he silently chanted, exhaling a ball of fire. This was a true flame specifically designed to target souls, capable of dispersing and destroying them, and was as renowned as the Solar True Flame. Through his refinement, even Half-Immortal level powerhouses would find it difficult to resist.

The Lunar True Flame was like a persistent ailment, its soul-targeting power continuously eroding the Immortal's soul.

"I remember!" At the moment Guoshi attacked the Immortal, their karmic connection was re-established, and the Immortal recalled everything from the past.

His nascent Immortal Dao Fruit activated, his soul was restored, and the Lunar True Flame was purified.

"As expected, the Lunar True Flame alone can't kill you." Despite his anticipation, Guoshi was still astonished, unable to discern the method his opponent had used.

Methods to counter the Lunar True Flame did exist, but each was troublesome, none as simple as what the Immortal had demonstrated.

"Is it a method from his nascent Dao Fruit, related to his soul?"

This battle was proving more difficult than Guoshi had anticipated. He had thought that since the Immortal was only a soul, he would be easy to deal with. He hadn't expected the Immortal's soul to be able to instantly restore itself, turning his apparent weakness into his most formidable strength.

The Immortal was also contemplating the Guoshi's technique that had made him forget the Guoshi's existence. He had never heard of such a transcendent spell. Was this the effect of the Guoshi's nascent Dao Fruit?

Ordinary cultivators relied on spells, physical prowess, and similar attributes in combat. Upon reaching the Integration and Tribulation Transcending stages, rules became an additional factor. However, while the rules of the Integration and Tribulation Transcending stages were overwhelmingly powerful against lower and mid-level cultivators, they offered little advantage among cultivators of the same realm, as everyone could utilize the same rules.

When Tribulation Transcending cultivators formed their nascent Dao Fruits, things changed dramatically. A nascent Dao Fruit signified that a cultivator possessed unique rules of their own. The functions of each nascent Dao Fruit varied, and the differences between Dao Fruits, along with the depth of understanding of those Dao Fruits, created the disparity among Half-Immortal level powerhouses.

When Half-Immortal level powerhouses battled, the most crucial aspect was to understand what the opponent's nascent Dao Fruit truly was.

"Tribulation-Breaking Immortal Body!" A colossal Dharmakaya, thirty thousand feet tall, rose from the ground, reaching to the heavens and almost shattering space. It possessed the power to pluck stars and bore an indestructible, immortal quality.

Guoshi once again activated his nascent Karmic Dao Fruit, severing his connection with the Immortal.

"Damn it, this move again..." The Immortal gritted his teeth. Unable to grasp the principle behind this technique, he remained in a passive state. He quickly used his spiritual power to write a string of characters, explaining the entire situation. However, as the nascent Karmic Dao Fruit was activated, these characters also blurred, becoming indistinguishable.

Mid-sentence, his eyes glazed over, and he again forgot the Guoshi's existence.

*Whoosh*— A silver needle appeared out of thin air, spatially jumping from outside the Dharmakaya to its interior, striking the Immortal directly between the eyebrows.

The Immortal cried out in pain, his body weakened. His Myriad Tribulations Immortal Body could no longer be maintained and collapsed with a crash.

Guoshi reappeared, and the Immortal's memory was restored.

"This is a Soul-Shattering Needle, refined from the essence of gold and silver."

All of Guoshi's attacks were targeted at the soul.

"Knowing that won't help you. The Soul-Shattering Needle can separate your three ethereal souls and seven corporeal souls. I'd like to see how you restore your soul this time!" Guoshi sneered, feeling a pang of regret. The Soul-Shattering Needle was exceptionally difficult to refine; he had only ever made three. One had been used to demonstrate his decisive power upon becoming Guoshi, leaving him with only the last one. Refining another was nearly impossible.

The Soul-Shattering Needle's effect was immediate. The Immortal felt as if his body was being torn apart, with immense power surging within him, threatening to rip him open.

Ten distinct soul masses floated out; these were the Immortal's three ethereal souls and seven corporeal souls.

Guoshi waited to see which part of his soul the Immortal would attempt to restore.

After three breaths, the ten soul masses still floated in the air. Guoshi's mind settled; it seemed that dispersing the souls was the correct choice, and the opponent was unable to restore them.

"Lunar True Flame!" He targeted one of the Immortal's three ethereal souls, planning to destroy them one by one.

Suddenly, this soul mass opened an eye, and the Immortal's voice rang out: "Why should I restore myself? Explode!"

Guoshi's pupils constricted, and he immediately felt a bad omen. One of a Half-Immortal's three ethereal souls self-destructing? Guoshi had never heard of any Half-Immortal daring to do such a thing; it was suicidal.

This soul mass exploded instantly, sending Guoshi flying and slamming him onto the ground, his own soul also affected.

"You think that's it?"

Another ethereal soul exploded, unleashing a soul storm. The storm howled, filling the sky with black mist and rendering the five senses and six consciousnesses useless.

"Again!"

*Boom*— The third ethereal soul exploded again.

The Immortal's indifferent voice rang out, echoing amidst the soul explosions: "The patriarch of my Immortal lineage was the leader of the Five Ancient Immortals, unrivaled throughout history. Now, having been reborn, I shall ascend to the pinnacle of the Immortal Dao. I'd like to see whose Dao Fruit is stronger, yours or mine!"

"Damn it!" Guoshi hastily activated his nascent Karmic Dao Fruit, severing their karmic connection.

"Explode again!" The Immortal's voice came from one of the seven corporeal souls, chilling Guoshi to the bone. He had already severed the karmic connection, so the Immortal shouldn't remember him; how could he still attack?

Before he could understand the reason, a new round of soul explosions had already arrived.

*Boom*—*Boom*—*Boom*— The seven corporeal souls exploded without pause. Guoshi had never witnessed such a spectacle; his body was like a small boat, tossed by tumultuous waves, in constant danger of capsizing!

The Immortal had anticipated this move. Since any clues he left would be forgotten or erased, he simply didn't leave any information about Guoshi. Before Guoshi activated his nascent Karmic Dao Fruit, the Immortal had only left himself one instruction: "Six of the seven corporeal souls will self-detonate."

The three ethereal souls exploded three times, and the seven corporeal souls exploded six times. These nine soul storms destabilized Guoshi's immortal soul, leaving him dazed.

"Hoo-hoo—" Guoshi was in a sorry state. He was wearing a precious robe capable of defending against attacks from Tribulation Transcending cultivators, but it was torn to shreds by the nine explosions, losing all defensive capabilities.

Guoshi stared intently at the last corporeal soul mass. "Only one left," he thought, "what will you do now!"

Then Guoshi watched as the Immortal completely restored his three ethereal souls and seven corporeal souls, returning to his peak state.

Guoshi excelled at wars of attrition. His usual tactic was to first use his nascent Karmic Dao Fruit to make his opponent forget him, then launch a surprise attack. Repeating this several times, even a Half-Immortal would be unable to withstand such attrition.

What he didn't know was that the Immortal Dao Fruit was precisely what feared wars of attrition the least.

The Black and White Venerable One looked at Yunzhi and the others as if they were already dead. "What if there are many of you?" he scoffed. "Once Guoshi makes his move, you'll all be finished!"

"Guoshi possesses a nascent Dao Fruit and is a Half-Immortal level powerhouse. If you release me now, Guoshi might still spare your lives!"

His tone carried a subtle threat. What did it matter if there were many Tribulation Transcending cultivators? Before a nascent Dao Fruit, they were no match!