Essence Devouring Art

”Both are at the Great Success of the Fifth Dao Gate, but the power of the Divine Desolate Dominating Body is incomparable to the Dragon Whale Dominating Body. Most importantly, there’s the speed!”

Wu Dao gazed at his right fist, which could form a dragon’s head when closed and a Kunpeng’s claw when open. His expression was one of utter satisfaction.

With a single thought.

The great Peng spread its wings and beat them fiercely.

Instantly, he felt like a fish in water or a hawk in the sky; all resistance along his path transformed into propulsion.

His pair of Golden Wings were like blades slicing through water, moving without obstruction. In the blink of an eye, his massive physique crossed several kilometers of empty space and reappeared in a different location.

’If I add the power of the revolving Magnetic Field, my speed will double again. Even in my normal state, someone at the Celestial Human Third Floor couldn’t hope to catch me!’

Wu Dao watched the sonic boom cloud and billowing shockwaves that were only just now erupting behind him, a confident glint in his eyes. He then retracted the broad Golden Wings, and his physique returned to normal.

WHOOSH...

He slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.

He cleared his mind of all distracting thoughts.

Wu Dao focused his consciousness and tapped the plus sign next to the Essence Devouring Art!

He had already obtained the general information on the Corpse God Palace from the Black Dragon Commerce Association.

It was a Hidden Immortal Dao sect whose headquarters were in an unknown location. They cultivated the Corpse Refining Technique. Based on records of their members’ activities over the past few hundred years, their overall power was second only to the Five Peaks of the Southern Border.

To deal with a power of this magnitude...

...the Overlord Domain was no longer enough.

Now that the Divine Desolate Transformation was complete, it was time to step into the Human Extreme Domain.

BUZZ—

As Wu Dao tapped the plus sign...

...a vast, mysterious Energy surged from the depths of his body, flooding his limbs and bones. The transformation had officially begun!

CRACK—

BANG!

After an unknown amount of time had passed...

...it was as if a giant cocoon had burst open in the sky!

An Extreme Dao aura, one that could suppress heaven and earth and stood at the apex of all life, swept through the world. It was vast and tyrannical, continuously stirring the heavens and causing the clouds to churn as if a God and Demon was being born!

SCREECH!

The Divine Whale roared across the sea, its tyrannical intent boundless!

A Fist Intent of overwhelming majesty pierced through the highest heavens.

It manifested as two overlapping, blood-red oceans of divine intent, where great waves surged and Overlord Whales roamed freely.

Then, without losing momentum...

WHOOSH!!

...amid the surging waves, a third ocean of True Intent manifested above them.

Third-Floor True Boxing Dao!

Following the oceans of True Boxing Dao...

ROAR—

...countless, densely-packed streams of dragon-like qi and blood burst from Wu Dao’s pores, continuously expanding the volume of his Qi Blood River!

RUMBLE!

At a certain moment...

...after it had grown to its Limit!

...the Qi Blood River swelled and transformed completely, becoming a miniature Crimson Gold ocean. The shadow it cast submerged more than twenty li of the surrounding desert.

Horizontal Refining Sixth Gate—

Qi and Blood Like the Sea!

His Essence Qi was as vast and boundless as the body of a Kunpeng. In terms of physical body alone, he could rival a Divine Martial Artist at the Fourth Floor, the second realm of the Celestial Being stage!

But most important of all was the Essence Devouring Art!

85% Human Potential Release!

Ten-Turns Undying Extreme Gold Body!

His body’s Magnetic Field was no longer limited to controlling the Life Magnetic Field of flesh and blood. Now, the Magnetic Field Power of all things was his to command!

BUZZ!

Wu Dao’s eyes snapped open. As his Ten-Turn Magnetic Field revolved, his body seemed to transform into a black hole.

As he extended his hand and clenched it into a fist...

...he could clearly feel the various types of Magnetic Field Power from the surrounding twenty li of heaven and earth swarming toward him, converging to become his Power.

The void around his fist distorted and blurred from the condensed Magnetic Field, resembling a tangled ball of invisible thread churning at immense speed.

’If this punch were thrown!’

’Any expert at the Third Floor would be killed instantly!’

’Retract!’

With a thought, Wu Dao suppressed the vast, surging Essence, Qi, and Spirit. The three oceans above his head quickly dissipated into the sky.

He opened his attribute panel and took a look.

[Physique: Human Extreme (Minor Achievement)]

[Extraordinary: Essence Devouring Art (85% Potential Release) +

Overlord Whale Fist 2500 Years (True Intent Third Floor) +

Divine Desolate Transformation 2500 Years (Sixth Dao Gate Minor Achievement) +]

[Teleportation Points: 6115]

He had dumped twenty thousand Teleportation Points into his stats.

Reaching Human Extreme had been a natural progression.

His Overlord Whale Fist had gained a thousand years of Power!

True Intent Third Floor!

His Divine Desolate Transformation had also gained a thousand years!

His physical body not only broke through to the Horizontal Refining Sixth Gate but reached the Minor Achievement level immediately upon entry.

Empowered by the advantages of three great Ancient Fierce Beasts—the Dragon, the Kun, and the Peng—its strength far surpassed that of other Horizontal Refiners at the same level!

Phew...

He closed the attribute panel.

Wu Dao savored the immense, long-awaited power coursing through his body as he privately assessed his current combat strength.

’Third Floor True Intent!’

’Ten-Turn Magnetic Field!’

’Horizontal Refining Sixth Gate at Minor Achievement, with a physique on par with a Divine Martial Artist!’

Finally...

...he came to a conclusion.

’In my normal state, I can instantly kill any expert at the Third Floor!’

’If I unleash the Divine Desolate Dominating Body and Divine Ghost Heaven...’

’...I can dominate anyone at the Celestial Human Fourth Floor!’

’And if I unleash Godlessness...’

’...even if I can’t defeat someone at the Celestial Human Fifth Floor, I can hold my own and remain undefeated!’

The greatest source of his confidence...

...was his current Life Force!

BUZZ—

The Magnetic Field in his body erupted, releasing terrifying Energy!

BANG!!

In the sky, Wu Dao abruptly exploded into thousands of dazzling, Crimson Gold fragments of flesh, bone, and viscera.

But bizarrely...

CRACKLE!

...Crimson Gold electrical currents crackled through the air like chains, tightly binding the thousands of scattered body fragments within a hundred-meter radius.

BUZZ!

The next instant...

...as the Crimson Gold currents flowed back, the pieces of his body converged and reassembled into Wu Dao. The seams closed with incredible speed, leaving him completely unscathed.

The Human Extreme Domain!

His flesh and blood, transformed by the currents of Primordial Magnetism, had truly gained Spirituality. His spirit could now divide into thousands of fragments, each hidden within a piece of spiritual flesh and tissue.

As long as his soul and body weren’t instantly annihilated into dust, he could use the mutual attraction within his Primordial Magnetic Field to rapidly reassemble his physical form!

’The energy consumption is just a bit high.’

However, in this World, that was a trivial matter.

Wu Dao’s Essence, Qi, and Spirit were slightly weakened, so he activated his Magnetic Field. The surrounding Magnetic Field Power immediately surged and converged on him.

It carried with it the Primordial Qi, Spiritual Qi, Soldier Qi, and Essence Qi that permeated the world, all of it flooding into his body like a thousand rivers returning to the sea.

He was like a Chaos Saint Body from a novel, indiscriminately absorbing any and all forms of Energy!

It was even more terrifying than the Kunpeng Body Casting Technique, which could only devour the Essence of All Things. His weakened body quickly returned to its peak condition.

After reaching the Human Extreme realm...

...the Magnetic Field Power of everything in the world was his to command.

So what if he didn’t have a Dantian?

He could still transform into a black hole within his Magnetic Field, absorbing, utilizing, and manipulating the various high-energy Extraordinary Factors of this World.

From now on, even without any external aid...

...he no longer needed to rely on the attribute panel to make rapid progress on his own.

’Corpse God Palace...’

After calming his qi and blood,

RUMBLE!

the sky thundered with an explosive boom.

In the blink of an eye,

Wu Dao vanished over the horizon, flying away from Guangqing Prefecture.

Despise the enemy strategically!

Take them seriously tactically!

Wu Dao had never been an arrogant or conceited person who would get a big head after a small power boost and rush headlong into a trap.

Use any means necessary, and leave nothing to chance!

That was his creed.

Certain preparations naturally had to be made in advance.

...

「On the evening of the third day.」

Wu Dao, flying high in the sky, received a communication from Wanshan Prefecture.

”Alliance Leader, a strange calamity has been discovered in Guyang Prefecture. It’s rumored to be extremely dangerous. What are your orders?”

’Rumored?’

A playful look crossed Wu Dao’s face as he replied, ”Who provided this intelligence?”

”Well...”

The voice on the other end hesitated, as if he had also realized something was amiss.

”A gang leader from Guyang Prefecture. It’s strange, really. They have members of the Bai Ze Bureau over there, so why would he cross prefectures to seek help from our Overlord Whale Alliance?”

”Oh, right...”

”...I just remembered something strange. For some reason, the man had the faint stench of a corpse on him.”

’Corpse stench?’

Tsk...

”Tell me the location.”

Wu Dao cracked his neck, a murderous glint in his eyes. He didn’t waste any more words.

”Yes, sir. Guyang Prefecture, Luoyuan County, Luotou Mountain.”

Primordial Demon replied instantly from the other end.

’Luotou Mountain?’

’What an auspicious name.’

”Alright, don’t worry about this. I’ll handle it myself.”

After ending the communication with Primordial Demon,

Wu Dao found a recently added contact in his Communication Jade Talisman and sent a message.

”Lord Xu, have you had any luck finding the Corpse God Palace’s headquarters?”

A moment later,

a response came through. ”Regrettably, no. They are hidden far too well. The Bai Ze Bureau has been searching day and night for the past several days but we haven’t found a single trace.”

”For Alliance Leader Wu to contact me... has the Corpse God Palace made a move?”

”Lord Xu guesses correctly. And it’s right within your jurisdiction: Guyang Prefecture, Luotou Mountain.”

”Luotou Mountain... Understood. I will contact the Commander at once.”

”Thank you for your trouble, Lord Xu.”

”Alliance Leader Wu, you’re too kind. It’s my duty. Besides, we’re all on the same side here.”

”Haha, excellent! In that case, let the mountain’s collapse be our signal. I’m eager to see for myself just what this ’top peak beneath the Five Peaks’ is capable of!”

...

He put away the Communication Jade Talisman.

Wu Dao broke into a savage grin. A map of the Southern Border materialized in his mind, and he locked onto the direction of Luoyuan County. With a sonic boom that tore through the heavens, he shot away.

’A bunch of sneaky bastards courting death.’

’Trying to play games with me!’

’I’ll rip your heads off and litter the ground with them!’