Chapter Seventy-Six: The Guardian Spirit Beast

Truly, trouble never comes singly. No sooner had the matter of the four ferocious beasts been settled than rumors of Little Kunlun seeking revenge began to circulate, leaving Qingxu thoroughly vexed.

As the artifact spirit of the innate treasure, the Kunlun Mirror, Little Kunlun would surely not be easy to handle. Yet Qingxu could not let this opportunity slip by, for it was his only clue to the whereabouts of the Kunlun Mirror. An innate treasure was not something he could afford to abandon—he would gladly trade everything he owned for it, knowing it would be a profitable exchange.

The Da Luo Blood-Transformed Qingming Sword, stripped of its ancient demonic aura and innate demonic essence, had changed drastically. Its blade was now a deep crimson, as if stained with fresh blood. The intense scent of blood lingered, contained yet pervasive, evoking the impression of a primordial beast lurking and waiting to devour. Even a fleeting glance weighed heavily on the soul.

“Its power has diminished, yet its appearance is even more intimidating,” Qingxu sighed with a bitter smile, absorbing the sword into his body and turning his attention below.

Over time, the earth, fire, water, and wind below had settled, but the filthy mud and water churned endlessly, exuding a stench so foul it was nauseating. Hundreds of whirlpools swirled rapidly—the very spots struck by the Yin Sha Thunder Orbs unleashed by Qiongqi.

After two consecutive detonations—one from the Dark Spirit and the other from the Three Yin Abyss—the land below had sunk dozens of meters over a span of ten thousand miles!

“Wait, the Yazi Blade?” Suddenly, the thought of Yazi’s innate treasure occurred to him. Qingxu had witnessed the blade’s power and knew it was no trifling matter—it was a superior innate treasure with at least thirty restrictions. He immediately began searching for it.

“How could this be?” The Yazi Blade was nowhere to be found, but to his surprise, he spotted Yazi himself. This was utterly unexpected—Yazi, after all, was only at the early stage of True Immortal of Taiyi. Having endured a self-detonation equivalent to the full force of a True Immortal of Taiyi, followed by a second explosion twice as strong, he should have been utterly obliterated.

Though Yazi had survived, he was in a pitiful state—his fur was scorched black, his flesh torn and bloody, with bone showing in places. His primordial spirit was severely wounded and he remained unconscious.

“Isn’t this just making things difficult for myself? The Yazi Blade is clearly Yazi’s life-bound treasure. No one else can use it unless Yazi is killed, but doing so would provoke the Wrathful Dragon—hardly wise. The Wrathful Dragon is a formidable ancient being; if he were to bear a grudge, it could end disastrously!”

He was caught in a dilemma: unable to advance, unable to retreat.

“Perhaps I should wait for Yazi to die on his own?” The plan seemed prudent, but just as Qingxu was about to act, another brilliant idea struck him.

Guardian Spirit Beast?

“I could tame Yazi as my own guardian spirit beast! That would bring great benefits, and he could even serve as a spy beside the Wrathful Dragon, supplying me with critical information and helping me pass false messages to the Wrathful Dragon, thereby using him and even the dragon clan to my advantage.” The notion was wild, but once conceived, Qingxu could not suppress it, no matter how hard he tried.

Cultivators often tamed rare birds and beasts to serve as guardian spirit beasts, pets, combat aides, or mounts—the uses were endless. Yet in the current era of the primordial world, few dared tame powerful spirit beasts, fearing the wrath of the demon clan. Unlike later times when the demon clan declined, now their power was immense, with countless formidable beings ruling over their territories. If not for their disunity, even the witch clan would have to tread carefully, and few dared provoke them.

To tame Yazi as a guardian spirit beast would shock the primordial world, enrage the dragon clan, and spark an unending feud. Yazi was one of the nine sons of the Ancestor Dragon, highly esteemed among dragons. To tame him would be a direct slap in the face for the dragon clan—a humiliation so profound that, no matter how weakened or subdued the dragon clan became, they would fight to the death.

Yet Qingxu had no need for a guardian spirit beast who followed him constantly; a dragon clan spy would be far more valuable.

“How fortunate! Before descending the mountain, I acquired two ‘Mother-and-Child Beast Control Golden Talismans’ from my master—just what I need. These talismans, forged by a Hunyuan Saint, are so subtle that even the Wrathful Dragon, no matter how advanced his cultivation, could not detect them. With a bit of caution on Yazi’s part, there should be no problem!” The beast control talismans Qingxu had made himself might not successfully control a True Immortal of Taiyi, and there was a high chance the Wrathful Dragon would see through them, potentially bringing disaster. But those crafted by the Primordial Supreme Lord were different—not only could they control True Immortals of Taiyi, but even Golden Immortals of Da Luo, and unless one was a saint, they could not perceive it. The only requirement was to use Jade Pure Immortal Power and a unique method to embed the child talisman into the spirit beast’s primordial spirit, then refine the mother talisman into one's own primordial spirit. In this way, one could fully command the beast’s life and fate.

Normally, even with the mother-and-child beast control talisman, Qingxu would not have the ability to use it on Yazi—without at least the early stage of Golden Immortal of Da Luo, it would be impossible to forcibly tame a True Immortal of Taiyi. But fortune favored him: at this moment, Yazi was gravely wounded and unconscious, his primordial spirit weaker than ever, sunk in deep sleep. In such a state, there was no resistance. Even a cultivator at the Nascent Soul Realm could likely succeed, let alone one at the Earth Immortal Realm.

Not wishing to tempt fate, Qingxu acted swiftly while Yazi remained unconscious. He took out a radiant golden talisman, ancient and resplendent, and tossed it into the air. The talisman hovered, spinning as he rapidly formed intricate immortal seals with his hands. Jade Pure Immortal Light surged into the talisman, its brilliance erupting like a miniature sun.

After hundreds of complicated seals, Qingxu uttered a low command and waved his hands at Yazi, declaring, “Go!”

Whoosh!

With a piercing sound, the tangible golden talisman transformed into a streak of golden light, shooting directly into Yazi’s forehead. Once the talisman entered, Yazi’s brow showed no sign of change—an odd phenomenon. In truth, this was merely a minor trick, turning solid into illusory. Qingxu, as an Earth Immortal, was adept at such feats; things that seemed miraculous, like transmuting stone to gold or drawing prisons on the ground, were commonplace for him, hardly worthy of true praise.

The child beast control talisman met no resistance as it entered Yazi’s Niwan Palace, smoothly merging with his primordial spirit, as effortlessly as water blending with milk.

“Done! Once I refine the mother beast control talisman, Yazi will be my guardian spirit beast! One of the nine sons of the Ancestor Dragon, a True Immortal of Taiyi as my guardian—surely I’ll be the only one in the primordial world with such a companion!” Qingxu was in high spirits, overflowing with pride.

Seeing that Yazi had not yet awakened, Qingxu began refining the mother beast control talisman. But before doing so, he took care to immobilize Yazi, setting up a simple barrier and restriction. Though the chance of mishap was slim, caution was paramount—should he be disturbed at a critical moment in the refinement, it could harm his primordial spirit.