Chapter 168: Armor of Fiendish Qi

Although the wills of the Four Divine Beasts had been refined into array souls, it was by no means an easy task for Ge Qian, given his current realm of cultivation, to fully refine them.

Ge Qian’s personality never bowed to adversity. With a flick toward the Azure Dragon array flag, he cast the "Drawing the Logs from Under the Cauldron" technique. A vigorous and indominable will that seemed capable of subduing the heavens and trampling the earth transformed into a pale blue dragon, about ten feet in length, that spiraled and danced in the air. Notably, it possessed five claws—a feature typically unique to the royalty among Azure Dragons.

The dragon's expression was rigid, moving purely on instinct, which indicated that its memories had long been erased.

With a flick of his mind, the Azure Dragon sword qi of the Animal Path appeared in the air. Raising his hand, he executed several incantations, causing the sword qi to transform into an entity identical to the Azure Dragon.

He then guided the sword qi dragon to mirror every movement of the Azure Dragon will.

After a full day of following along, the sword qi and the willful dragon achieved absolute synchronicity in their motions.

Abruptly, Ge Qian struck with the "Unity is Strength" spell. The sword qi dragon and the willful dragon instantly fused into one, rolling and leaping as if preparing to tear through the void and depart.

Pointing his finger, Ge Qian cast "Educating the World." The power of the sword qi, now fused with the Azure Dragon will, increased exponentially. With a gentle sweep in the air, a minute spatial fissure tore open in the void.

The sword qi drifted and eventually came to a halt suspended in mid-air.

Ge Qian then turned his attention to the White Tiger array flag, casting "Drawing the Logs from Under the Cauldron." A ten-foot-long white tiger manifested in the air, twenty-eight golden runes flickering across its body. An aura of slaughter transformed into razor-thin threads that sliced the surrounding air into pieces, accompanied by muffled, explosive popping sounds.

The white tiger shook its head and whipped its tail, baring sharp, menacing fangs as a ferocious and oppressive might crushed down upon the heavens and earth.

Using the exact same method, Ge Qian fused it with the White Tiger sword qi of the Animal Path.

Next, he pointed at the Vermilion Bird flag, executing "Drawing the Logs from Under the Cauldron." A ten-foot Vermilion Bird fluttered in the air, its body wreathed in the Southern Departing Bright Flame, which possessed the capacity to incinerate everything. With a single flap of its wings, the surrounding air evaporated into nothingness, making it feel as though the entire immortal cave was about to melt.

Ge Qian performed the incantation once more, merging it with the Vermilion Bird sword qi of the Animal Path.

Finally, he pointed toward the Black Tortoise array flag. A ten-foot-long Black Tortoise appeared in the air. Upon its thick, heavy back, a sharp, crimson bone spur resembling a blade stood erect. As it strode forward through the air, the very atmosphere rumbled with violent shockwaves under its tread.

With a thought, Ge Qian summoned the Black Tortoise sword qi of the Animal Path and fused it with the beast.

The four sword qi formations of the Four Divine Beasts seemed to have been imbued with life. Hovering gently above Ge Qian's head, they trembled slightly before he opened his mouth and drew all four sword qi strands into his Dantian to temper them further.

Out of the twelve sword qi strands belonging to the Animal Path, four were now complete, leaving only the four numinous sword qi strands and the four malevolent sword qi strands remaining.

Having finished everything, Ge Qian produced a tattered and aged jade slip—none other than the "Malignant Qi Armor" gifted to him by Qiao Qian. Unsure of how the upcoming martial competition would be conducted, having an extra layer of protection could only be beneficial.

Directing his spiritual sense into the slip, he spent ten full days in comprehension. Nodding to himself, Ge Qian began practicing the "Malignant Qi Armor."

With a thought, the Demonic Gourd appeared in his palm. Pinching an incantation and executing the technique, the gourd immediately spewed forth extremely pure malignant qi.

Circulating his entire body's magical power, Ge Qian drew the malignant qi into his Dantian, guiding it along the eight extraordinary meridians to condense it into countless hair-thin threads of malignant qi.

These threads drilled out through his pores, intertwining and condensing to form a suit of armor as black as ink. The surface was densely covered with skull motifs the size of fists, each one incredibly lifelike, blinking blood-red, bloodthirsty eyes and baring sharp fangs.

Across the chest was a massive, malevolent ghostly visage with closed eyes and a pale complexion, resembling a netherworld deity hailing from the depths of hell.

Protruding from the back were six bone spurs crackling with stray bolts of lightning, emitting sharp, snapping reports.

A sweep of Ge Qian's spiritual sense revealed this bizarre suit of armor, sending him into deep contemplation. Why had the malignant qi from the Demonic Gourd mutated into such an appearance when condensed into armor? Nevertheless, its defensive power was even greater; Ge Qian estimated that at least a full-strength strike from an early Nascent Soul cultivator would fail to inflict any damage upon him.

With a thought, the armor dissolved back into threads and sank into his body, leaving no trace behind.

At that moment, a sound-transmission talisman materialized inside the immortal cave. Ge Qian extended his spiritual sense into it and smiled faintly. "Have the people from the Beast Taming Sect finally arrived? I suppose I shall go meet them."

Sauntering leisurely out of the immortal cave, he saw that the members of the four major sects of Zhao State and the Rogue Cultivators Alliance were all standing outside.

Po Zhan had lost his former grand demeanor, wearing an exhausted expression as he complained, "Why won the High Priest come out to see us?"

Ge Qian looked the crowd over and noticed that the members of the Beast Taming Sect were in the most disheveled state. Liu Xixi, in particular, looked deathly pale, devoid of all color, and was glaring at Ge Qian with eyes that seemed capable of devouring flesh, harboring an irreconcilable enmity.

Unbothered, Ge Qian said in a measured, unhurried tone, "The High Priest has given orders that she will not meet anyone before the grand assembly officially convenes. If you have any matters to discuss, you may simply tell me."

Tu Linlin offered a captivating smile that could bewitch all living beings. "Since you can call the shots, that couldn't be better. I will tell you then: because we were delayed by matters along the way, Youyun Valley has already been entirely occupied by the sects of other countries. We wish to construct temporary immortal caves adjacent to the Starry Sky Sect."

Frowning slightly, Ge Qian addressed Tu Linlin, "Beautiful Senior Tu, I can indeed make the decision on this matter, but everyone must follow my arrangements."

Tu Linlin replied, "No problem. You have the final say on how the immortal caves are built."

"What do the other seniors think?" Ge Qian asked the Nascent Soul cultivators of the other sects.

Monk Liumei of Xiuyuan Temple chanted a Buddhist invocation, saying, "Amitabha, we have no objections."

With a solemn expression, Ge Qian stated, "The area we occupy is not particularly large. How about this: the Wind Moon Sect will border our sect directly, followed by Xiuyuan Temple, the Tianru Gate, the Rogue Cultivators Alliance, and finally, the outer perimeter can be constructed by the Beast Taming Sect. You have many people, and staying too close inside might be too crowded."

Po Zhan let out a cold snort. "Very well. I hope I still get to see you alive after the assembly concludes. Let's go."

He was burning with suppressed rage. Wasn't placing them on the outer perimeter clearly treating them as free bodyguards? If any mishap occurred, the Beast Taming Sect would be the first to suffer. *Just wait, you brat; even if I have to do it myself, I will wipe you out this time.*

Watching the Beast Taming Sect members head to the outer perimeter to carve out their immortal caves, Ge Qian spoke up, "Everyone else, go make your preparations!"

Liu Xixi stepped up before Ge Qian and demanded, "Ge Qian, I ask you—did you impersonate my cousin and provoke the people of the Benevolence and Righteousness Gate?"

With an upright and righteous expression, Ge Qian replied, "I reside in Zhao State, while the Benevolence and Righteousness Gate is in Benevolence State. How could I possibly provoke people from there? The joke you're telling isn't funny at all, and your fabrication lacks any shred of skill. Isn't it a bit too childish?"

Liu Xixi said coldly, "Ren Guyue of the Benevolence and Righteousness Gate suddenly challenged me to a duel, inflicting heavy injuries upon me and demanding that I reveal the whereabouts of my cousin, Wang Meng. I don't even have a cousin! Someone must have impersonated me to frame me. Who do you suppose that person could be?"

Looking astonished, Ge Qian exclaimed, "Such a thing actually happened? Fellow Daoist Liu, you must have offended someone, or perhaps your grand and illustrious reputation simply gave Ren Guyue an excuse to spar with you under a pretext? Ah, right—by telling me all this, you aren't suspecting me, are you?"

Realizing he could extract no useful information, Liu Xixi stated, "Pardon the intrusion, Fellow Daoist Ge. I will certainly get to the bottom of this matter!"

"I wish you luck," Ge Qian said solicitously.

Liu Xixi turned on her heel and walked away without looking back.

Inwardly, Ge Qian was blooming with joy. With those people shielding the outer perimeter, it would not be so easy for late-stage Nascent Soul grand cultivators to track him down. Returning to his immortal cave, he sat cross-legged and began to ponder how to make a clean escape after the assembly concluded.