Chapter 995: Chapter 428: Harvesting the Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Marrow Jade; Innate Spiritual Liquid of Origin (2)

Before he had time to cry out or resist, a point of ghostly light had already reflected in his pupils and, in an instant, pierced into his Sea of Consciousness!

Soul-Breaking Needle!

"Ugh...."

The young man’s eyes instantly lost all luster, and his body went limp as he collapsed to the ground.

A blurry Nascent Soul had just begun to flee when a ghost claw condensed from pure Soul Power thrust out of the void, grabbed it in one swipe, and stuffed it into a Ten Thousand Souls Banner that quietly unfurled.

The entire process was as fast as lightning, silent and traceless.

The two Mid-stage Nascent Soul Cultivators hidden outside the palace had not even noticed the slightest anomaly.

The shadows retracted, and Xu Ping’s figure emerged.

He cast an indifferent glance at the lifeless youth’s corpse on the ground, then casually flicked out a wisp of True Flame, turning it to ash and erasing all traces.

"Star Palace’s rules?"

Xu Ping’s lips curled into a cold arc as his figure once again merged into the shadows, vanishing without a trace.

He hadn’t killed this person immediately, naturally to delay the time of discovery and make it easier for him to slip away.

Half a month later.

The young man’s disappearance was discovered by Star Palace. Though they sent people to investigate, they gained nothing.

Star Palace was furious, but they did not expand the search radius.

Because most of Star Palace’s attention was being dragged into the Outer Seas, and lately they were even more beleaguered.

Their schemes in the Outer Seas had once again been exposed by the Demon Race.

.... 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

Three years later.

Xu Ping crossed the vast distance between Star Palace’s inland territory and the Outer Seas and returned to Blood Bone Island.

The island was still shrouded in dense Spiritual Qi mist, the Array circulating as usual, presenting a scene of tranquil peace.

Upon returning, Xu Ping did not rush to tally his gains or enter seclusion. Instead, his figure flickered and appeared outside Duan Shuang’s cave abode.

The beauty seemed to sense something; the cave’s Restriction quietly opened. Duan Shuang, dressed in snow-white robes, was already standing gracefully at the door, her beautiful eyes brimming with unconcealed joy and concern.

"Xu Lang, you’re back!"

Duan Shuang sized him up from head to toe. Only after confirming his aura was steady and that he showed no signs of injury did she truly breathe a sigh of relief.

Although she knew Xu Ping’s Divine Techniques were extraordinary, with the current fierce friction between the Demon Race and Star Palace, even Xu Ping was but one piece on the board.

Once inside the cave, Xu Ping held Duan Shuang’s slightly cool jade-like hand and said softly, "These years I’ve been away, in the Outer Seas... has anything major happened?"

At his words, Duan Shuang’s delicate brows knit slightly, and a grave expression surfaced on her pretty face as she said softly, "Xu Lang, in the second year after you left, something truly earth-shaking occurred in the Outer Seas."

She paused to organize her words, then said, "The Demon Race somehow managed to discover that Hundred Cloud Hall had long since been infiltrated in secret by Star Palace, and might even already have fallen completely under their control."

"This matter enraged the Demon Race. In their fury, they struck with thunderous force and, in a single night... uprooted Hundred Cloud Hall from top to bottom."

"All Human Race forces in the Outer Seas, upon hearing the news, were terrified, panic spreading like wind through the grass."

"The various great sects all began strict internal investigations to prove their innocence, afraid of incurring the Demon Race’s wrath and following in Hundred Cloud Hall’s footsteps."

"Fortunately, after annihilating Hundred Cloud Hall, the Demon Race also seemed to conduct a detailed screening and ultimately confirmed that the other Human Race powers in the Outer Seas had not been infiltrated on a large scale. Only then did they refrain from further expanding the scope of their purge."

"But after this incident, the situation in the Outer Seas became tenser than ever. Human Race cultivators traveling outside all became much more cautious."

"Something that big happened?"

Xu Ping’s face showed an appropriate degree of shock, as if hearing it for the first time.

Yet deep in the calm lake of his heart, everything was perfectly clear.

Behind this matter, his shadow was naturally there, secretly fanning the flames.

Using the Demon Race’s hand to eliminate hidden dangers and frighten the onlookers was precisely one link in his plan.

And judging by the outcome, the effect had turned out even better than expected.

Duan Shuang failed to notice the fleeting shift in Xu Ping’s thoughts and remained worried: "Now the Outer Seas may look calm on the surface, but under the water currents are raging. Every side is strung tight as a bowstring."

Xu Ping gently patted the back of her hand and comforted her, "It’s fine. When soldiers come, we block them; when water rises, we dam it. With me here, Blood Bone Island will stand as firm as Mount Tai."

Duan Shuang lifted her eyes to him and blossomed into a smile.

As for Xu Ping, she naturally trusted him without reservation.

The two lingered and chatted tenderly for a while, exchanging some cultivation insights and trivial matters about the island, before Xu Ping finally rose and returned to the underground cave dwelling deep beneath Blood Bone Hall.

After opening layer upon layer of Restrictions, he sat cross-legged on the cold stone bed. The first thing Xu Ping took out was the specially made jade box holding the Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Marrow Jade.

Opening the lid, a fist-sized piece of jade, milky white and warm throughout, with hazy spiritual radiance seemingly flowing within, lay quietly inside, exuding a vast and pure vitality.

As his fingers lightly brushed the surface of the jade, a trace of burning anticipation surfaced in Xu Ping’s eyes.

"The main materials for Nirvana Golden Body are only missing the last portion of Nine-Heavens Gang Wind Essence; as for auxiliary materials, I’ve already gathered more than half."

Once all the materials were assembled and he cultivated the Nirvana Golden Body, his physical body would undergo a qualitative leap in strength, truly giving him the capital to preserve his life—perhaps even contend—under a Divinity Transformation Cultivator’s hands.

This was one of the most important trump cards he had prepared to face the potential Divinity Transformation-level threats of the future.

Carefully putting away the Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Marrow Jade, Xu Ping took out another Jade Bottle, which contained the Innate Spiritual Liquid that had been born together with it.

The Spiritual Liquid was an even purer shade of milky white. It lay quietly in the bottle, yet seemed to harbor the vitality of a small world.

"This is quite the unexpected gain."

A trace of satisfied smile could not help but appear at the corner of Xu Ping’s mouth.

A heaven-and-earth Spiritual Object that could simultaneously increase lifespan and cultivation was an incomparably rare treasure at any stage of a cultivator’s path.