I Can Devour Spirits

Chapter 74: Chapter 74: Delving Deep into a Single Path

The contents of this black porcelain bottle are so potent! He just caught a whiff of it, and it caused such a strong reaction?

Duan Rong put the black porcelain bottle back into the inner pocket of his clothing, planning to return and find another opportunity to study it thoroughly!

Duan Rong kicked Wu Hui’s headless corpse into the pit with one foot, then threw his head and wolf fang club in as well, cursing, ”You bald donkey, you’ll make the bottom!”

Then, Duan Rong dragged Zhou Shoushan’s corpse and pushed it onto Wu Hui’s body. At this moment, Duan Rong turned to look at Zhou Shoushan’s Ghost Head Saber on the ground.

He removed the severed hand from the Ghost Head Saber, tossed it into the pit, grasped the Ghost Head Saber in his hand, and silently intoned, ”Read the artifact spirit!”

Duan Rong examined the set of data that appeared before him.

Artifact: Ghost Head Saber.

Artifact Spirit Tier: Tier One.

Devouring Requirements: Host’s Spiritual Power Level 1 (met).

Devouring Effect: Mastery of Yellow Springs Saber Technique.

He did not intend to devour the artifact spirit of this Ghost Head Saber; he was just a bit curious about what saber technique Zhou Shoushan had used, which had such a systematic defensive technique.

So it was the Yellow Springs Saber Technique!

The artifact spirits on the weapon rack in the Yuan Shun Escort Agency’s Martial Arts Arena also seem to have this saber technique!

In the artifact spirit of Xiao Zongting’s Broken Blade Saber, there are only three martial arts techniques!

One of them is even a lightweight skill!

Besides the Cloud Serpent Step, the other two are the Hinayana Martial Arts Five Tigers and Sheep Saber and the Middle Level Martial Arts Beheading Thirteen Strokes!

In other words, Xiao Zongting’s cultivation method, whether at the Inner Breath Realm or True Qi Realm stage, was to specialize in one art!

It is said, master of all trades, but only a master of none!

Focusing deeply on one path is the way of cultivation!

Moreover, through Xiao Zongting’s years of exploration and improvement, the Five Tigers and Sheep Saber has achieved a good balance in all aspects, far surpassing the common junk on the market!

Among the six leaders of Yuan Shun Escort Agency, five were trained using this saber technique.

It can be seen that this saber technique indeed has some merits!

This has always been Duan Rong’s thought—greed leads to swallowing more than one can chew!

However, after the previous days’ experience of initially merging the Cloud Serpent Step and the Five Tigers and Sheep Saber, and today’s bloody battle with Zhou Shoushan, Duan Rong’s thoughts were subtly changing!

Ordinary martial artists naturally cannot chew what they cannot swallow, but he elevates directly through devouring artifact spirits!

Why confine himself?

Moreover, Zhou Shoushan’s Yellow Springs Saber Technique today is quite good at defense, which showed Duan Rong certain highlights!

Different martial arts focus on different aspects and suit different occasions!

Although the Five Tigers and Sheep Saber is balanced in all aspects, from another perspective, it might also be said that there isn’t any particular aspect that stands out!

Balance, though a form of overall excellence, is also a form of specific mediocrity!

For instance, this Yellow Springs Saber Technique, though weak in offense, is strong in defense!

Moreover, Duan Rong believes that, through Xiao Zongting’s repeated exploration, the structure of the martial arts moves in the Five Tigers and Sheep Saber is already very complete!

He just needs to use this structure as a framework, filling it with the essences of other martial arts, then blend them, creating an even richer and more varied Five Tigers and Sheep Saber!

On the basis of inheriting Xiao Zongting’s achievements, he should bring his characteristics into full play!

It is said, the stones from other mountains can be used to polish jade!

Maybe he could use the power of devouring artifact spirits to carve out a completely different path of cultivation!

Though Duan Rong thought this way, he did not devour the artifact spirit of the Ghost Head Saber in his hand, as devouring an artifact spirit causes discomfort in the brain!

And since the Yuan Shun Escort Agency’s Martial Arts Arena also has an artifact spirit of the mastery realm of this saber technique, why rush?

Thinking this, Duan Rong was about to throw the Ghost Head Saber in his hand into the pit!

But at this moment, Duan Rong suddenly noticed the blade of the Ghost Head Saber reflecting the sunlight, faintly flashing a light blue glow!

Duan Rong’s expression tightened. ”What is this?”

Duan Rong’s face suddenly changed, his heart vaguely guessing an answer!

Duan Rong held the Ghost Head Saber, slicing across the back of Zhou Shoushan’s corpse lying in the pit!

Zhou Shoushan had just died not long ago, the corpse still held residual warmth; slicing across, his back immediately opened a half-foot-long wound, with blood seeping out from the overturned flesh...

In just a few moments, the blood began to darken, and the wound started to fester...

Duan Rong immediately smelled a stench!

The smell, similar to that emitted from the black porcelain bottle, was equally foul and choking!

In just a few more moments, that wound on Zhou Shoushan’s back had festered to a size as large as a human face, finally stopping its spread...

The wound had already blackened, the pus and blood flowed slowly on it like maggots...

Duan Rong’s face turned extremely unsightly!

This Ghost Head Saber used by Zhou Shoushan was clearly laced with the poison from the black porcelain bottle!

Who knows what kind of concoction this poison was refined from!

The toxicity is incredibly fierce!

Recalling his earlier entanglement with Zhou Shoushan, Duan Rong was filled with lingering fear!

If he had been even slightly careless at the time, he might have been the one dead!

Duan Rong realized he might have underestimated the viciousness and treachery of Jianghu outlaws!

Using every conceivable means, as disgusting as maggots, as venomous as snakes and scorpions, truly, is the norm of Jianghu!

Those gentlemanly and heroic sentiments are merely the dreamy imaginations of fools!

Duan Rong took a slight breath of cold air, then tossed the Ghost Head Saber into the pit!

Only then did he lower his head to look at the corpses of Kong Bin and Zhang Zheng!

Their bodies were relatively clean, with only a small blood mark on their chests, lying on the ground by the pit edge as if they were asleep.

Duan Rong noticed beside Zhang Zheng lay a Cow Tail Saber, and only then did he see that the blade had four or five chipped spots, marking it as a practice sword for servant disciples!

Indeed, only when one was promoted to Apprentice Escort Master would the Yuan Shun Escort Agency equip them with a brand-new Cow Tail Saber, and Zhang Zheng didn’t have that qualification yet!

”Without even a decent weapon, what was the point of you following along to stir up trouble?”

Duan Rong lamented, wiping away the dried blood scab from the corner of Zhang Zheng’s mouth.

Seeing that useless sword, memories from his time as a servant disciple flooded Duan Rong’s mind!

Duan Rong cast a somewhat sorrowful glance over Kong Bin and Zhang Zheng’s faces!

Young faces!

Faces of the dead!

Out of their batch of servant disciples, only four participated in the final assessment!

Besides himself, there were Kong Bin, Zhang Zheng, and Li Chong!

They were already strong, at least they dared to challenge their fate, refusing to yield to it!

Li Chong failed the assessment and hanged himself!

Kong Bin, Zhang Zheng, now both are dead too!

Only he remained alive!

Yet Duan Rong knew that he was no longer the original owner; the original owner had already died of illness!

The path for their batch of servant disciples to turn around was, in truth, a total failure, without exception!

Climbing out from the bottom is difficult no matter the world!