Chapter 73: Armor Breaking

Chapter 73: Breaking Armor

This decision came far too suddenly.

Before anyone could even get a word of advice out, Chu Jingxi was already at the door, looking like he was about to take off on a whim.

A cultivator immediately tried to stop him: "Don't be reckless—there's no time."

There were still ghosts left to deal with outside their garrison. Once Chu Jingxi showed himself, the ghost clan would throw everything they had at killing him.

The earlier plan to charge was based on the hope that they could suppress the source of the red light. As long as everyone shielded him with no regard for their own lives, they could wrap up a battle fast.

Now, they'd completely lost the element of surprise.

A Taiqing Sect cultivator shot Yan Zizhan a look. Given how they usually were, Yan Zizhan wouldn't just stand by and watch Chu Jingxi walk to his death.

And sure enough, Yan Zizhan didn't just stand by. He got up and walked out with Chu Jingxi.

"......"

The others had no choice but to follow along. Before anyone could object further, Chu Jingxi said as he hurried along: "The Golden Immortals are mostly holding the weak spots on the frontline against the Senior Ghost Generals. If we lose two more garrison points, we'll be playing right into the ghost clan's strategy of breaking through at key points."

If any Golden Immortal also loses on the battlefield, the entire central war zone's defense line would collapse in no time.

By then, there'd be no saving it.

So hiding in a turtle shell would end the same way.

Time was running out. Seeing the warship up ahead, the Taiqing Sect cultivator changed his mind and spoke up: "What's the specific plan?"

With all that said, this couldn't just be a spur-of-the-moment thing.

Chu Jingxi stopped: "We're bringing the inner-city immortals with us. This time, we go in with our strongest firepower."

At that, everyone around paused. The points we lost before had at least managed to evacuate some cultivators and resources.

They were leaving no escape route, betting it all on one throw?

From then on, Chu Jingxi's every word and move doubled down on his total disregard for his own life.

He only quickly laid out what he needed the others to handle. As for his own part, to keep it from leaking, he told no one.

Seeing the others still hesitating, Yan Zizhan said: "We can ask the Immortal Alliance for instructions."

Knowing the Immortal Alliance would probably greenlight working with Chu Jingxi, the others stopped hesitating and decided to gamble with their lives on the line.

Once everyone agreed, Chu Jingxi looked toward the ghost clan's camp.

A fierce wind carried the stench of blood from the distance. As it swept past, that streak of crimson seemed to sear itself into his clear eyes.

"Blood debts have to be paid in blood."

-*

At the camp outside the garrison, the ghost army was resting and gathering strength.

Their elite forces were currently focused on the border regions and attacking the immortal domains. The troops actually tasked with devouring the lower realms of the Primordial Continent were limited, and they couldn't afford to waste any.

Once the neighboring war zones were just about wrapped up, the three armies would join forces and take this garrison point in one fell swoop.

"Report!" A ghost cultivator on watch hurriedly reported: "We've detected a large group of cultivators closing in. At least three immortals are deliberately hiding their aura, including a First-rank Celestial Immortal."

Over the years, the ghost clan had basically figured out the profiles of the Primordial Continent's immortals through spies. The entire continent had just over thirty Golden Immortals; a First-rank Celestial Immortal was already top-tier fighting power.

"Excellent!" The Ghost General's face lit up with glee. His subordinates were taken aback, not getting why he was so happy in the face of a powerful enemy.

"A tiny garrison point, and they've thrown this many immortal-level fighters at it."

The Ghost General sneered, immediately catching on to one possibility: "Given the situation, they've decided to come out in full force. Chu Jingxi is almost certainly here."

Only one strategy would fit this kind of setup: immortals clear the way, Chu Jingxi pins down the source of the red light, and then they all gang up to kill it.

Too bad that tactic was useless against a puppet.

The other ghost cultivators got excited hearing that. The earlier divination had only given a rough range of garrison points. They never expected such luck—they had hit the exact spot!

Before the war, the Ghost King had promised that anyone who brought back the head of a genius on the Kill List would receive great rewards after the battle.

"We've found Chu Jingxi." The Ghost General immediately notified his kin attacking Garrison Point 28, demanding they free up some forces to come support: "Eliminating Chu Jingxi takes top priority."

He was confident he had absolute certainty in dealing with the target, but given the previous unexpected incidents, having reinforcements would be safer.

After making preparations at top speed, and learning that the garrison's battle group was about to arrive, the Ghost General's voice rang across the camp: "To battle!"

The war horn sounded, its piercing notes spreading across the sky, and the great battle officially erupted.

The human cultivators' warships locked onto enemies in the void, while the ghost clan likewise prepared magic artifacts to interfere with the warships. Dao techniques clashed, blades met in close combat. Yet beneath this brutal slaughter, the ghost clan was actually staging a tale of "little tadpoles looking for their mother."

They did not deploy the puppet directly, instead subtly searching for Chu Jingxi's figure, afraid he might be hiding at the edge, using the Space-Time Law to make their attacks miss.

You can't catch a wolf without risking the child.

Before the battle, the Ghost General had meticulously arranged a grand performance.

Over a thousand ghost cultivators began risking decapitation, spreading out to both sides like wings, forcibly forming an encirclement. The besieged cultivators immediately formed ranks, attempting to break through by force.

Seeing this, the ghost clan knew half the play had succeeded.

With the first act finished, the Ghost General personally lifted the curtain on the second act.

They made appropriate sacrifices, showing a slight disadvantage, which indeed lured the cultivators into a frenzied counterattack. As the new round of combat reached a white-hot state, the cultivators who had been retreating suddenly changed their offensive.

"There!"

The cultivators had found the source of the red light.

The First-rank Celestial Immortal, who had been concealing his cultivation level all along, spotted the source. Even knowing its terror, he did not retreat but advanced, leading the other cultivators to clear a path at any cost.

The Ghost General's heart remained calm, but his face roared: "Stop them! A moment is all we need!"

Both sides fought desperately while acting, leaving only the puppet standing still. With the confusion spell obscuring its true form, it seemed all the more terrifying.

The scene was eerily reminiscent of Cangwu Demon Town—the Ghost King standing alone in one spot while surrounding forces were drawn away.

History was repeating itself. After the cultivators desperately cleared the ghost cultivators around the puppet, Chu Jingxi, who had been hiding somewhere, used the Space-Time Law to teleport in an instant. Yan Zizhan, appearing alongside him, drew his long sword at the same moment.

Bitten the hook!

The Ghost General rejoiced inwardly.

This puppet was the ghost clan's undisputed killing weapon. Before the war, the Ghost King had personally gathered all the power from the Grand Refining Array—the life force of those sacrificed—and infused it entirely into the puppet's body.

Because of the power overload, every activation came with a time lag.

He had precisely timed each act, ensuring that Chu Jingxi would get just close enough right as the puppet was about to activate.

The Ghost General couldn't wait to see the look on Chu Jingxi's face when he realized his frail body couldn't pull off the seduction.

While the Ghost General was waiting for feedback, the cultivators playing their part on the other side felt their hearts tighten—they had no idea what would happen next, since Chu Jingxi had only explained things up to this point.

The one thing they knew for sure was that the puppet couldn't fall in love with a human!

At that moment, the two were just a step apart. Chu Jingxi didn't stop—he sped up.

Just as the deadly light was about to burst forth, the system notification suddenly rang out: "Passive skill activated."

The next instant, the puppet abruptly stalled, stopping its attack before the red light could fire.

Humans and ghosts alike froze in shock.

The puppet had fallen for it too?!

The Ghost General's face turned absolutely grim: "It can be frozen across species too???"

While everyone was stunned, Chu Jingxi breathed a sigh of relief—his gamble had paid off.

No matter how powerful a seductress, she couldn't truly short-circuit the puppet's brain, but the Realm Spirit Origin could.

As the battle had just erupted and everyone was focused on putting on a life-or-death performance, Chu Jingxi had secretly had the Realm Spirit possess the puppet.

The puppet's internal panel was essentially locked down. In modern terms, the ghost clan held the master key, and the Realm Spirit had no authority to change it.

But if you can't beat them, join them.

"Join it, and beat me up."

That wasn't hard for the Realm Spirit. It found a perfect spot, fused seamlessly with the puppet, turned itself into a weapon, and swung its iron fist at Chu Jingxi.

With a sliver of foreign consciousness, the puppet was no longer a completely lifeless object, and it successfully triggered Chu Jingxi's passive skill at the critical moment.

From there, Chu Jingxi didn't need to say a word. During the thirty seconds the puppet was frozen, Yan Zizhan had already thrust toward its core.

A mechanical construct that couldn't fight back was far easier to deal with than the Ghost King.

The Ghost General's expression shifted. He wanted to block it, but unfortunately, he had overacted earlier and was still some distance from the puppet. Eyes blazing red, he shouted, "Yan Zizhan! How dare you!"

Yan Zizhan actually did stop.

He looked at the Ghost General and noticed that beneath his anger, there seemed to be a hint of hidden delight at the prospect of the puppet's core being pierced.

Recalling earlier events, Yan Zizhan remembered that the puppet had a long activation time, as if the power and the construct hadn't fully merged. If that were the case, mishandling it could have catastrophic consequences.

He immediately changed his approach. Instead of directly destroying the core, he carefully manipulated his sword, shifting from a thrust to a dig.

From a distance, the Ghost General was genuinely frantic now. His two deputy commanders charged recklessly, but in just a moment, Yan Zizhan had already carved out the core—

A fist-sized red crystal glimmered ominously under the dim sky.

This was the source of the puppet's power, and it pulsed vigorously like a human heart.

Chu Jingxi swallowed hard. "It looks like it's about to blow."

He wasn't wrong. With its stability compromised, the crystal core was on the verge of detonating at any second.

Yan Zizhan immediately looked at the Ghost General, whose expression shifted drastically. "Throw it over here and we all die!"

When the puppet attacked cultivators, it emitted the light in thin beams for precise targeting. Everyone looked at the glowing orb in Yan Zizhan's hand, but this orb was different—the difference was like that between sunlight and the entire sun.

At such close range, with many cultivators from the Primordial Continent nearby, Yan Zizhan would only throw it if he didn't care about his comrades' lives.

There was only one option: throw it as far as possible.

However, that seemed a bit of a waste.

Just as the thing was about to explode, Chu Jingxi, as if spotting a treasure, quickly pointed at a spot: "Yan Zizhan, over there!"

At his shout, the cultivators snapped back to reality as if from a dream and saw an army rushing over in full force in the distance.

It was none other than the ghost clan army that had received the Ghost General's earlier message and come as reinforcements.

The distant ghost army had no idea what was happening. They had sent out troops from a stronghold and were charging at full speed.

Ahead, a red dot was thrown in a parabolic arc. In the blink of an eye, there was no time to dodge. A commander instinctively tried to swat it down, but a sea of red light struck first.

"Wh—"

The only syllable the ghost reinforcements managed to utter was drowned out by a deafening explosion. The power of the crystal core's detonation far exceeded imagination, and the temperature across the entire sky and earth shot up.

Even at a distance, Chu Jingxi, pulled by Yan Zizhan in a teleport, was rattled to the bone by the shockwave, let alone the ghost reinforcements who faced the red light directly.

...They all dissolved into light.

The surrounding area was leveled. The cultivators and ghosts retreating at high speed witnessed the devastation, their emotions a mix of elation and despair.

Crack, crack.

The burned ashes hadn't even been blown away by the wind when strange sounds rose from the ground.

It was the Realm Spirit Origin!

With the core gone, the Realm Spirit Origin took control of the puppet. The energy storage stone could keep it running for a brief moment, releasing residual power. It began slaughtering ghosts indiscriminately.

Chu Jingxi had just spat blood from the heat wave when he turned and saw the Realm Spirit Origin piloting the 'mech,' smashing a Ghost Cultivator's head into pulp.

What was this?

A genius pilot and its useless master?

Watching the puppet being taken away, the Ghost General on the other side was furious beyond belief. Before he could issue his next order, the surrounding cultivators launched a counterattack. With the puppet threat gone, they fought without restraint.

A perfect hand had been shattered, and the ghost clan's morale took a heavy blow.

What devastated the Ghost General the most was that in the blink of an eye, Chu Jingxi had vanished again.

Even if they wanted to take him at all costs, they couldn't even find him. He had no chance to search either, as the First-rank Celestial Immortal had already moved in, and his two deputy commanders were also surrounded by immortals.

The more panicked he became, the more mistakes he made. When the Ghost General realized there was at least one thing he still had to do, it was already too late.

Before he could crush the communication stone, a blade flashed. The First-rank Celestial Immortal among the human cultivators appeared and slashed at his wrist.

"You're too slow," the Heaven Immortal said coldly, his moves so fast they left afterimages. The Ghost General couldn't get his hands free at all.

At that, his deputy general gritted his teeth and held on under the pressure, trying to buy the Ghost General time to finish the transmission.

Finally, the Ghost General crushed the message stone, but at the last moment, a white light shot into the sky before he could, rapidly spreading outward.

An invisible barrier enveloped the area.

The clouds scattered by the clash of battle stopped moving at a certain point, as if frozen in place. A Ghost Cultivator being pursued nearby seemed to hit an air wall, unable to advance another step, and the transparent barrier even made their voices echo.

Realizing the transmission had failed, the Ghost General's heart dropped. After the First-rank Celestial Immortal beheaded the Ghost deputy general with a blade, he aimed his long sword at the Ghost General again the moment the latter was distracted.

As the Heaven Immortals struck one after another to intercept the Ghosts, Chu Jingxi, whom the Ghost General had been searching for, had long since retreated to safety with Yan Zizhan covering him, using the small wings the Flood Dragon had given him to hurry back and wait for his abilities to recharge.

A powerful spatial fluctuation rippled in the distance. Noticing his confusion, Yan Zizhan explained:

"It's a treasure from the Taiqing Sect that can temporarily seal off space."

Clearly, they intended to make sure the Ghosts couldn't get word of what happened here to the outside, after which they could have the Realm Spirit Origin pull the same trick again.

Chu Jingxi first checked the communicator. The twenty-eighth stronghold had seen a significant drop in pressure since most of the Ghost forces had come to die there willingly, and a temporary ceasefire was in effect.

Confirming the immediate crisis was resolved, he stood there pondering for a long while.

The same trick might work once, twice, but what about a third time? Once the Ghosts adapted, it might instead endanger the Realm Spirit.

Based on the current gathered information, nine puppets remained at different strongholds in the central region.

Taking them out one by one at great risk—how long would that take?

Chu Jingxi didn't have the patience to wait it out, and suddenly asked, "Didn't those red lights earlier feel familiar to you?"

The furnace-like heat, the brutality, the relentless crushing of his organs—he'd only felt that same sensation when he was nearly refined alive in Cangwu Demon Town.

Yan Zizhan nodded. Not only was it familiar, but the moment he'd gotten the crystal core, he'd figured out the source of the red light: "It's power the Ghosts refined from living beings."

That was both grim and somewhat good news—the red light was purely a consumable, depleted after use.

Chu Jingxi seemed to be mulling something over, staying silent for a long while.

When he spoke again, his gaze drifted uncertainly: "I have an idea. If luck is on our side, we could win the central region of the mainland in a short time."

Drawing from their past experiences, Yan Zizhan didn't follow up directly but pointed out the key question: "And if luck isn't on our side?"

Chu Jingxi said in a low voice, "If luck isn't on our side, we can still win the central region in a short time."

"……"

Author's note:

Irresponsible bonus scene:

The Rustless Copper Bell watched the Realm Spirit piloting the mech, all its yellowish-brown bell eyes turning red.

The next day, Chu Jingxi posted a request at Wangdao Tower: The family bell has red-eye disease (literally), seeking expensive treatment spirit liquid.