As Li Mo delved deeper into understanding the Great Sun Golden Core, he discovered that the Tattooed Beasts summoned by Great Sun Spiritual Power, though less potent compared to other spiritual powers, were far more stable and immune to losing control due to cancerous transformations.
It became evident that Great Sun Spiritual Power was particularly suited for prolonged battles.
Unfortunately, Li Mo’s Great Sun Golden Core was still nascent, and even though other spiritual powers could transform into each other, his energy was starting to wane.
Compared to Li Mo, the White Bone Sect wasn’t much better off.
Under the corrosion of the Great Sun Spiritual Energy, rot had already begun to manifest within the White Bone Jungle. They could only abandon sections of the white bones to mitigate the damage.
A tug-of-war had already raged in the True Word Secret Realm for over half a day.
Li Mo squinted his eyes.
The Great Sun Golden Core, being newly formed, could sustain high loads for only so long before risking damage to the foundation of his Mud Pill Palace—a loss that would outweigh any gains.
"Even if I have to escape into the True Void Hometown, at the very least I need to take down the Bone Desolate Taoist. Besides, I’ve already irreversibly crossed paths with the White Bone Sect."
Li Mo took a deep breath, the Cave God’s Eye at the center of his brow shimmering faintly like a copper coin. Time seemed to slow in its presence.
Divine Sense rapidly drained.
He could perceive the Yin Spiritual Power coursing through the veins of the White Bone Jungle.
The White Bone Sect’s cultivation system was unique—allowing Demon Cultivators to combine their spells jointly, though disparities in spiritual power remained irreconcilable.
The Bone Desolate Taoist was the first to notice Li Mo’s anomaly, his lips curling in a sneer.
In his view, Li Mo’s struggle was nothing more than a futile death throe. From the moment the latter revealed himself, his demise had already been sealed—his Dao destined to dissipate.
What unsettled the Bone Desolate Taoist was that Li Mo had persistently chosen to remain dormant.
The White Bone Sect had countless vulnerabilities, and Li Mo certainly had the odds to disrupt the sword refinement process, rendering their strategy in the True Word Secret Realm a colossal failure.
"How laughable. No matter how exceptional your strength, you haven’t even reached the Divine Separation Stage. Do you actually dream of challenging us all alone, Qing Shan Elder?"
Li Mo’s command over his Lifebound Spirit Beast was unparalleled throughout history.
The sword refinement continued unabated, though the White Bone Sect had to endure a certain cost.
Bone Desolate Taoist was mildly puzzled as to why the Qing Shan Elder would sacrifice the opportunity to preserve his life for the sake of one flesh column. Could it be that he didn’t even come to this Secret Realm for the sword refinement in the first place?
"No point overthinking—better focus while I still have time."
The Bone Desolate Taoist adopted a defensive posture while manipulating the White Bone Jungle recklessly. As long as Li Mo could be stalled, it was only a matter of time before his energy was depleted and victory fell into their hands.
"Found you, Bone Desolate brat."
The Bone Desolate Taoist abruptly heard Li Mo’s murmur, his heart racing even as he dismissed it as a dying man’s forlorn struggle.
As Li Mo repeated himself, the blood and flesh of his arms began to boil.
Dark purple blood vessels and meridians bulged grotesquely, with liquid shadows visibly flowing through them. A swung fist directly created a vacuum pocket in the air.
Yin Attribute aura and metallic essence intertwined, and under the effect of Great Sun Spiritual Power, a peculiar convergence and fusion occurred.
Crack, crack, crack...
The continuous sound of bone collisions filled the space.
Li Mo’s frame did not grow larger but radiated sinew akin to solid rock, with faint tiger stripes surfacing on his skin.
Li Mo couldn’t suppress a heaven-piercing howl; every inch of ground within the Secret Realm inexplicably erupted, a palpable momentum scattering violently outward.
The Bone Desolate Taoist’s heart trembled.
He could sense a threat, uncontrollable shivers coursing through his body.
"Impossible! Qing Shan Elder, how do you still have a trump card? What kind of Taoist Body made you, what kind of monstrosity are you?"
"It’s impossible! Our White Bone Sect forsakes flesh and blood precisely because we reject the Taoist Body. Our Immortal Path cannot possibly be flawed!!!"
The Bone Desolate Taoist suppressed his stray thoughts and signaled the White Bone Demon Cultivators to go all out. Instantly, countless bone vines began sprouting unchecked.
Li Mo panted heavily.
This was his first attempt at using Great Sun Spiritual Power as a medium to control two Tattooed Beasts. While it proved feasible, his flesh and bones were already on the brink of collapse.
Since the start of the fight, the bone vines had been taking the initiative to attack Li Mo.
One by one, half-meter-thick bone vines wrapped around Li Mo’s legs, climbing upward toward his torso, with ghostly flames igniting unbidden.
In the blink of an eye, bone vines engulfed Li Mo entirely.
The Bone Desolate Taoist, still uneasy, forced the bone vines’ ends to pierce into Li Mo’s flesh, ravenously devouring his blood, flesh, and marrow.
"Qing Shan Elder, in the end, you’re just one move behind. Die now and become another pile of bones to cement the foundation of the White Bone Sect’s Dao."
Li Mo didn’t respond, closing his eyes to silently count.
He knew he only had one chance to strike. Failing to seize the Bone Desolate Taoist’s opening meant he would have to retreat immediately to the True Void Hometown.
Lingering in the True Word Secret Realm could result in a catastrophic failure.
Li Mo’s body withered, his five internal organs appearing devoid of vitality. Finally, even his exposed pupils were wrapped in bone vines.
"Qing Shan Elder, it’s over."
The Bone Desolate Taoist exhaled, and just as the White Bone Demon Cultivators started to relax, a sudden drum-like heartbeat shattered the silence.
Li Mo opened his eyes, a ferocious expression contorting his face.
"Hehehe, Benefactor, prepare to die!"
Li Mo tore away the bone vines covering his body, the surrounding bones undergoing cancerous transformations. The Demon Cultivators of the White Bone Sect lost their connection to the White Bone Jungle.
The blood, flesh, and marrow he had shed contained an overwhelming number of cancer cells.
The Da Ai Mi Tian technique unleashing its full potential triggered rampant cancer transformations in the White Bone Jungle. However, since the spell’s origin lay in ten-plus Nascent Soul Demon Cultivators, it only temporarily gained him two or three fleeting breaths of time.
Li Mo extended his right hand.
His arm began to grow, though skeletal and emaciated, exuding an indescribable aura.
The Ghost Tiger fused with the Golden Toad, chaos beast infant at the core, the Great Sun Golden Core as a supplement, bolstered further by the madness of Da Ai Mi Tian-induced cancer transformations.
Li Mo thrust his palm downward so fiercely even he was astonished.
Oddly, he couldn’t sense his hand anymore, the compounded forces reducing it to lifeless dead flesh.
Forcing himself to intervene using the Da Ai Mi Tian technique, the massive palm descended from the heavens.
A torrent of airwaves surged forth.
The Bone Desolate Taoist, fully exposed, tried to muster a defense but was far too late.
He could feel swarms of invasive insects burrowing into his body, nesting within his bones.
Though his spiritual power suppressed most of the insects promptly, some remained stubbornly lodged—infuriatingly impossible to eradicate quickly.
"Benefactor, why insist on such regretful roads? I’ve long disliked you."
Li Mo crushed the Bone Desolate Taoist like a mosquito, yanking him away from the White Bone Jungle.
The White Bone Demon Cultivators froze in place, leaderless and at a loss. Saving the Bone Desolate Taoist was now out of the question, panic etched on their faces.
Li Mo let out a sinister laugh.
Even though his own condition was dire, with three Nascent Souls nearly exhausted, his body heavily damaged, and his brain pierced with pain from overusing Great Sun Spiritual Power...
As long as the Bone Desolate Taoist was taken down, the sacrifice was worth it.
After all, the remaining White Bone Demon Cultivators were inconsequential—a rabble incapable of rallying.
Li Mo wielded the Blood Soul seal to imprison the Bone Desolate Taoist. The latter struggled desperately but could not avoid being sucked into the Corpse Mountain Mini World.
Just as Li Mo prepared to summon a sub-peak to crush the Bone Desolate Taoist, replicating what Sun Dasheng once endured...
Elder He Guo exhaled a rich medicinal fragrance, which infiltrated the Bone Desolate Taoist’s skull. Traces of deadly poison began spreading across his skeletal frame.
"Upper Immortal, I have no intention of opposing you. I’m willing to serve you like a loyal dog or horse."
Upon witnessing the Bone Desolate Taoist’s demise, Elder He Guo immediately relinquished any resistance, consuming his own Nascent Soul to express his allegiance.
Li Mo shot him a glance and commanded the Corpse Mountain to drag the Bone Desolate Taoist into its main peak.
Regaining his senses, Li Mo found Elder He Guo surrounded by numerous plant-and-tree cultivators, all babbling nonsensical words.
Elder He Guo chuckled wryly. "Dear masters, could we simply stop fighting?"
Zhang Guo frowned slightly, and his disciples overwhelmed again in unison.
Li Mo’s consciousness reclaimed his body, dispelling the Tattoo Beastification form and returning to his original figure, just over two meters tall. However, his right arm was now missing.
With agile movements, he maneuvered rapidly, simultaneously establishing a connection to the True Void Hometown.
The White Bone Demon Cultivators verged on collapse, but after Li Mo performed the Primordial Chaos technique flawlessly, and with the Bone Desolate Taoist gone, they were unable to pinpoint his location.
Li Mo sensed the True Void Hometown, his body gradually detaching from the Secret Realm.
Inside a massive Buddha Spirit Root, an infant’s earsplitting wail arose, accompanied by the distant hum of a sword. Instantly, all Great Sun Spiritual Energy within the True Void Secret Realm was drained.
It was as though Li Mo’s mind blossomed open. A shriveled Buddha’s head floated within his consciousness.
The head, gaunt and featureless, bore empty cavities where its facial features should have been.
For reasons unknown, although it looked nothing like a Flying Sword, Li Mo’s mind was adamantly convinced it was one.
He flexed his left hand slightly, concentrating Primordial Chaos at his fingertips.
Just as he prepared to deliver a final blow to the White Bone Sect, a sudden and almost imperceptible shift startled him—someone’s hand rested on his shoulder.
"Damaging it would be too wasteful. This sword is barely inferior to a True Buddha. Let’s reluctantly name it the Fake Buddha, then."
Li Mo turned his head, only to see an enigmatic figure standing beside him.
The stranger wore a pure white Daoist robe, their appearance morphing endlessly among a child, a middle-aged person, and an elderly figure. Dead skin continuously peeled off as they transformed.
"I am the Time Sword. How should I address you?"
Li Mo glanced at the Time Sword, noting the three Flying Swords strapped to their back.
Each sword resembled a human foot—the long sword an elder’s, the short sword a youth’s, and the dagger a child’s foot, with blood perpetually oozing from them.
Li Mo’s pupils contracted as he sped up his retreat to the True Void Hometown.
Although he wasn’t certain what kind of Taoist Body the Time Sword carried, the faint resistance it elicited in his Innate Saint instincts suggested it wasn’t an Immortal Body but certainly came close.
The Time Sword tilted their head and grunted, "Hmm?"
As Li Mo attempted to speak, the Time Sword nodded, saying, "Ah, so you are the Supreme Qingtian of the No-Life Sect."
The Time Sword’s face lit up with delight, their mouth shedding outdated teeth and sprouting baby teeth in quick succession.
They crooked their finger.
The Buddha’s head dropped into their palm, their gaze briefly flickering with distaste.
"This is too crude. A sword embryo refined with mortal assistance, riddled with impurities. The Five Hidden Swords themselves deserve death, and so does the White Bone Sect."
Li Mo scanned his surroundings and found every cultivator lying flat on the ground, their heads severed from their bodies.
When had the swords been drawn?
"Qingtian, what do you think of the Fake Buddha refinement process?"
"Your insights into sword refining are quite decent."
It was as if the Time Sword could predict the words Li Mo was about to speak and had no intention of preventing him from retreating to the True Void Hometown.
Li Mo vanished from the True Word Secret Realm.