Cultivation: When you take things to the extreme

Chapter 242: Chapter 166: Nail Head (6800, no split)_4

Translator: 549690339

Moreover, Xu Yang was far from having just one means at his disposal in formations.

In a world where Taoism has accumulated for a thousand years, how could it be ordinary?

Seated cross-legged in the Purple Cloud cave, a beam of golden light spurted from his Heavenly Spirit and instantly entered the realm of nothingness, heading straight for his physical body.

Under the many layers of formations covering Dongting Lake’s Fish and Dragon Island, a Nine Ceremony High Altar stood erected towards the sky.

Atop the altar, a Taoist Man sat erect, with eyes wide open and terrifying, as if in the wrathful image of the True Martial Ancestor—it was indeed Xu Yang’s physical body.

As the Yang God returned and settled in the Heavenly Spirit, Xu Yang, in the state of “True Martial Ancestor Master,” merged spirit and flesh, shedding the Stone Sculpted God Statue State. However, he retained the practices of concealing the soul within the body and the Incense Gold Body, without taking back the three souls and seven spirits from the ten directions of the world.

This technique was mysterious. The parting of the three souls and seven spirits was only partial, not complete. Even without their return, it didn’t affect his movements. The only drawback was the inability to cultivate, improve mana and Taoist Cultivation, and advance in realm and cultivation. Apart from that, everything was normal and unchanged.

With the return of the Yang God, Xu Yang opened his eyes, and in his hand, there appeared a jade bracelet, a storage jade bracelet.

With a thought, his divine sense entered it, and he saw bright spirit light dazzling the eyes.

Spirit Stones, Magic Artifacts, Talismans, elixirs, and all kinds of heavenly materials and treasures, rare and precious items—all were accumulations of Purple Cloud Mountain.

As one of the two major outposts of the Green Jade Sect and the operator of the Cultivation Market, the strength of Purple Cloud Mountain need not be overstated. The market had various shops selling all sorts of Magic Artifacts, elixirs, talismans, as well as Cultivation Skills and skill inheritances. The daily turnover of Spirit Stones and goods was immeasurable.

They were indeed filthy rich!

Furthermore, there was that Golden Core Cultivator, as well as the Searching Immortal Envoys who extorted everywhere, and the forces and horses from all corners of the market. Together, the value was beyond estimation.

What was in this bracelet was only a part; the rest would be used as materials to set up the great Formation of Purple Cloud Mountain to meet the forces of the Three Sects of Golden Core.

Even so, the value of this part of the “ill-gotten gains” was over thirty million Spirit Stones.

“Indeed, ‘committing murder and arson earns one a golden belt.’” Xu Yang sighed, shook his head, and tucked the storage bracelet into his chest.

Getting rich through plunder might be fast but, frankly, it didn’t suit him because there would always come a day when there was nothing left to plunder; it wasn’t conducive to long-term development. Only mutual benefits, win-win cooperation, and the establishment of a positive cycle system, with continuous development and production, could truly grow strong and reach the pinnacle.

In the world of Dao and Law, by relying solely on brute force to plunder, how long would it take to amass wealth like that of the Wandao School?

Initiating production and working the land was the true path to power.

Unfortunately, under the current circumstances, the true path wasn’t an option for him. With the threat of the Three Sects of Golden Core and hidden dangers in the Liang Kingdom Cultivation Realm, even relying on his Mecha incarnation, it was difficult for him to establish a foothold, create a sect, and develop it.

Therefore, Xu Yang could only plunder first, reap a harvest of profits, and then make further decisions based on the situation.

If the Three Sects of Golden Core could not bring forth several Nascent Soul cultivators, then he would occupy Purple Cloud Mountain, and possibly even take over Green Jade Mountain, establishing the “Mingxiao Taoist Temple” to recruit disciples and grow his forces.

If the Three Sects had deep potentiality and could break his formations and annihilate his incarnation, then the loot could compensate for the losses, and he would continue to bide his time, restore his Yuan Qi, enhance his strength, and settle scores at a later date.

He could attack as well as defend.

Now was the time to attack.

Xu Yang stood up, took out an object, and placed it before him on the table.

It was a palm-sized redwood book, adorned with golden talisman patterns and faint flickering of thunder and fire.

It was none other than the Nailhead Plowhead Seven Arrow Scripture!

Back then, when Xuanyuan went northward to slay demons, the North City allied forces entered the capital. Amid the ruins, they found some relics from Pudu Cihang, including not only treasures from the Northern Territory and both Taoism and Buddhism but also the Nailhead Plowhead Seven Arrow Scripture that Pudu Cihang had used to curse Xu Yang.

As for the demonic arts of Pudu Cihang and that divine treasure capable of resisting the scrutiny of the Admiring Eye of Heaven, they were destroyed by Xuanyuan during the tribulation and could not be found.

It was regrettable, but with such gains, it was still quite good.

As one who had once been cursed, Xu Yang knew full well the fearsome power of the Nailhead Plowhead Seven Arrow Scripture. Even a Heavenly Master with high cultivation would struggle to withstand it, and as a tool for assassination, it required no medium. Knowing a person’s name was enough to cast a curse on them from afar.

It was truly formidable, impossible to guard against.

However, as this was demonic and evil skills, it required a great deal of one’s life essence and lifespan. Pudu Cihang, being a demon, with a lifespan of millions of years, naturally had no fear, but Xu Yang was a human cultivator. Even with various skill traits that had extended his lifespan considerably, he could not afford such extravagance.

Therefore, these past years, Xu Yang and the Wandao School had been researching this object, attempting to transform this demonic item into a righteous path magical treasure.

In the end, Heaven rewarded their efforts, and the Wandao School successfully re-refined the Nailhead Plowhead Seven Arrow Scripture.

The re-refined Nailhead Plowhead Seven Arrow Scripture still required lifespan as a catalyst, but only a trace, with extremely low consumption—at most one year, usually only forty-nine days, which is a fortnight, and could be supplemented through means.

Lifespan was only the catalyst; the key was mana.

Injecting a large amount of mana in place of the lifespan consumed.

Thus powered by the curse skill, its might remained formidable.

Furthermore, through research, they introduced the method of thunder and fire refining, which surprisingly matched the treasure’s true nature, enhancing its power without diminish, still capable of killing even a Seventh Realm Heavenly Master.

Regrettably, the real Nailhead Plowhead Seven Arrow Scripture still lay within the World of Dao and Law, in the Wandao School.

The one in Xu Yang’s hands was not the original.

It was a… talisman, or rather, a Talisman Treasure.

The Nailhead Plowhead Seven Arrow Scripture Talisman!

It could only be used once, and its power was somewhat reduced.

But to deal with a Golden Core, it was still more than sufficient.

Xu Yang placed the mahogany book on the altar, then lifted his hand to pull out a strand of hair, which, with a flash of spirit light, turned into straw.

The straw was bundled into a straw figure, placed atop the mahogany book. Biting open his index finger, he used the blood as ink to write a person’s identity and name on the Yellow Talisman.

Zhang Zhiqi of the Green Jade Sect!

With the name recorded, he then wrote the birth hour and date, as two Yellow Talismans were affixed to the front and back of the straw figure.

Finally, he took out a nail, a long nail flickering with lightning, and drove it into the head of the straw figure.

And so the Nailhead Scripture was completed, placed upon the altar.

Afterward, the Taoist man performed the spell, stepping through the constellations and chanting the incantation.

“I am a guest from Kunlun, by the southern stone bridge lies my old home, attaining the Chaos Yuan at the beginning of my cultivation, finding eternal life and knowing the laws of nature, no pride in the furnace’s Purple Gold Core; know that within the fire, the Jade Fluid burns.”

“Riding the Qingluan and the white crane, shunning the peaches at the banquet of immortals’ mirth, nor going to Xuandu to pay homage to the Old Master, nor to Yuxu to pledge on the gates, the Three Mountains and Five Sacred Peaks are my playground, and I take joy at will on the islands of Penglai, everyone calls me an immortal fanatic, but within my belly, sufficiency and emptiness are my own affair.”

“Lu Ya the hermit arrives here, the Nailhead Plowhead Seven Arrow Scripture, the souls of the Three Pure Ones vanish, even the life of an Immortal is extinguished.”

“May the gods hasten this command like a law—Go!!!”