Chapter 65: Opportunity

“Let’s go! The master’s mission is urgent.”

The eight puppets didn’t spare another glance at the corpse of Fox Laugh, but immediately began searching the nearby villages.

“There, look.”

At the direction of one puppet, the other seven followed swiftly.

“Someone, come forth!” A loud shout startled all the villagers out of their homes.

All eight puppets hovered in the air, exuding a presence of flight, and the villagers on the ground regarded them with utmost respect.

A middle-aged man, standing at the forefront of the villagers, stepped forward and addressed the puppets in the sky:

“Great Immortal, I am the village chief. May I ask what brings you to our humble village?”

The village chief did not know whether these beings came with goodwill or malice, but he knew it was best to speak courteously.

“The monster of Huoyun Cave that once harmed your people has been eliminated by our master.”

“Now, Mount Hao falls under our master’s rule.”

“You must now pay homage to our master.”

The eight puppets spoke in turn.

“May I ask, Great Immortal, who is your master, and what are we to do?” The village chief’s face showed clear signs of fear at the puppets’ words.

“Rest assured, our master is the Divine Ape General from the Celestial Court. To honor him is your privilege.”

When they were turned into puppets, Yuan Wuji had revealed some information about himself to them, for puppets refined with the Myriad Demon Golden Pill were unlike ordinary ones.

“A celestial being... from the heavens.” The chief stammered slightly at the explanation.

“Indeed. Our master descended to the mortal realm to subdue demons, and as a favor has rid your mountain of evil spirits. Your worship is only natural.”

“Furthermore, within the village, only our master may be venerated—no other gods or demons are to be honored.”

“Not only your village, but all the settlements upon Mount Hao must do the same.”

With that, the puppets handed a portrait of Yuan Wuji carefully to the village chief, instructing that it be enshrined. Any statues made must follow the likeness in the portrait precisely, without the slightest negligence.

Their task complete, the eight puppets flew off toward the other villages.

Within a single day, the eight puppets accomplished all the tasks in every village on Mount Hao.

“Truly, clever subordinates make things easy.” Yuan Wuji was quite pleased with the efficiency of his puppets, and more importantly, they obeyed him alone.

Yuan Wuji had now been back in Huoyun Cave for over two months. Finally, one of the fire dragons within the Nine-Dragon Divine Fire Shield had grown dim and almost transparent—its extinction was imminent.

Since acquiring half the dragon aura from the Kingdom of Black Rooster, Yuan Wuji found the nine divine dragon souls were now faintly willing to submit to him. This was the main reason he could absorb them successfully; even so, his fire attribute cultivation remained at twenty percent.

To break through to thirty percent, he had to devour a dragon soul. The Nine-Dragon Divine Fire Shield was refined by the Primeval Lord of Heaven from nine ancient fire dragon souls; fully absorbing even one was no simple matter.

Now, with eight puppets to guard him, he could seclude himself and attempt to devour a divine dragon soul.

“You eight, guard Huoyun Cave well—let no one enter.”

“Yes.”

Upon receiving Yuan Wuji’s command, they flew outside and drove away all the demon soldiers, then scattered in an orderly fashion to guard the vicinity.

“The master is in seclusion—disperse, all of you.”

Relying on their superior cultivation, the eight puppets subdued the ferocious demon soldiers with their overwhelming presence. None dared act rashly under such pressure.

Yuan Wuji felt at ease entrusting the cave to them. Now he could focus wholly on his meditation.

Currently, Yuan Wuji’s body was half demon, half divine; the Myriad Demon Golden Pill controlled the demon half, while the Heavenly Gang Golden Pill governed the divine half.

He carefully wrapped two dragon souls around his fingertips, using them to entice the dimmest dragon soul within the shield. The other eight remained vibrant and unyielding—coaxing them out would be impossible for now.

He then unleashed the full imperial aura upon the phantasmal forms of the two dragon souls, generating a powerful draconic pressure.

The pressure was directed solely at the dim dragon soul. If the other eight noticed, they would interpret it as an insult, and their wrath would provoke a fierce backlash from the shield—an outcome Yuan Wuji could not risk.

The draconic pressure swept toward the dim dragon soul. Though weakened, it retaliated furiously against the intrusion.

“I’ve been waiting for you.”

At the instant the dim dragon soul lunged, Yuan Wuji activated the Ninefold Mysterious Art, simultaneously rotating both the Myriad Demon Golden Pill and the Heavenly Gang Golden Pill. The immense suction of the twin pills forcibly tore the dim dragon soul out of the shield.

A guttural roar erupted.

The dim dragon soul, now before Yuan Wuji’s chest, howled ceaselessly.

With one soul gone, the power of the Nine-Dragon Divine Fire Shield plummeted; even its rank as a magical treasure wavered, dropping below innate spiritual treasure, though still stronger than acquired treasures.

With only eight ancient dragon souls left, it could hardly be called the Nine-Dragon Divine Fire Shield any longer.

The remaining souls, sensing the loss, grew restless and roared within the shield.

“In time, it’ll just be called a ‘shield,’ ha!” The thought made Yuan Wuji recall something delightful from his previous life—life shouldn’t be so dry and dull.

His expression grew odd at the memory, but he quickly turned his attention back to the dragon soul before him.

The ancient fire dragon soul’s samadhi true fire was notoriously difficult to handle; one misstep during devouring and one’s soul could be scorched.

He pushed the Ninefold Mysterious Art’s first cycle to its limit, letting both golden pills begin to consume the dragon soul.

The dragon soul seemed to sense the danger and struggled violently. Under Yuan Wuji’s goading, the samadhi true fire burned hotter than ever.

What had seemed a straightforward process now took an unexpected turn.

Hurriedly, Yuan Wuji employed the Dragon-Taming and Tiger-Subduing Art. Two dragon souls of differing auras emerged from his body and, under his guidance, entwined with the divine dragon soul.

With every clash, the divine dragon soul grew weaker. Yuan Wuji used the twin souls to absorb its essence, dimming it further to make it easier to devour.

“Come!”

The divine dragon soul, now feeble and spent, was torn in two under the suction of the twin golden pills, then drawn into the twin demon hearts.

The instant the demon hearts absorbed the soul, they blazed with heat, as if filled with molten lava.

His fire attribute cultivation began to surge.

Enduring the searing pain of the dragon soul, he pushed the twin golden pills even harder, desperate to refine the soul faster. Yuan Wuji felt as if the samadhi true fire would burn him to ashes.

“I can’t go on!”

If this continued, he would be consumed before he could refine the dragon soul.