Chapter 539: Setting the Layout
Sun Lingtong looked anxious as he stared fixedly at the Ice Crystal Pipa. “Little Zhuo, hold Heavenly Frost back. I’ll try once to steal that treasure!”
Ning Zhuo replied solemnly, “With Buddha above as witness, such a Buddhist treasure harming the world should be eliminated a day sooner rather than later, so that the people may benefit sooner.”
Sun Lingtong fell briefly speechless. “Alright, Little Zhuo, I’m making my move.”
Just as they spoke, Heavenly Frost drew in a deep breath and suddenly clapped his palms together before his chest.
Divine Ability—Frost Soul Gaze!
In an instant, with Heavenly Frost at the center, an icy mist barrier spread out across a hundred zhang.
Inside the barrier, mist filled the air, condensing into countless inverted ice spikes. The spikes were a grim greenish-black, their surfaces carved with sinister talismans. Within every spike was sealed an Ice Crystal Ghost Spirit, granting each spike terrifying killing power.
Sun Lingtong and Sun Ning were trapped within the barrier, and the hair on their bodies stood on end.
Sun Lingtong shouted a warning, “Little Zhuo, be extremely careful!”
The two of them had long learned intelligence regarding the Heaven and Earth Twin Ghosts, and among it was information about this very technique—the Frost Soul Gaze.
Originally, it was a spell involving spatial principles, frost, and the Ghost Dao, containing numerous profound applications.
Heavenly Frost had comprehended the spell’s inner essence and grasped its principles, thus elevating it into a divine ability!
Once activated, it could form a massive barrier within an extremely short time. Inside the barrier, frigid energy surged, freezing both body and mind. The talismans on the ice spikes did not only seal—they could also cooperate with the Ice Crystal Ghost Spirits to exchange souls.
The Ice Crystal Ghost Spirits were bound within prisons of extreme cold. Through their wailing cries, they lured external living beings and sought to arouse sympathy.
Their cries varied—some tore at the heart, some were faint sobs, others mournful and gentle—each tailored to best move a particular target.
Once the chosen target was emotionally infected and shed tears out of sympathy, the Ice Crystal Ghost Spirit would succeed in switching souls with the target, escaping the icy prison.
If Ning Zhuo were to fall victim, his soul would be trapped within an ice spike, while his body would be seized by the ghost within!
The freezing energy surged forward, greatly obstructing Ning Zhuo’s vision.
Countless ice spikes shot through the cold mist toward him.
Ning Zhuo controlled his Somersault Cloud, dodging rapidly through the air, occasionally flipping. He had only the ability to evade, with no chance to counterattack.
This was because he was still being assaulted by the sound of the pipa.
“My lord, this general will protect you!” At the critical moment, Yuan Dasheng once again stepped forward, using his body as a shield to block nearly all the incoming ice spikes for Ning Zhuo.
Hundreds of spikes pierced his body, densely packed and even layered upon one another.
Even the Black Iron Cloud beneath them suffered, collapsing outright. This treasure-level cloud artifact was utterly destroyed under the terrifying ice-spike assault.
Yuan Dasheng struggled to turn his head and look at Ning Zhuo. Then the light in his eyes rapidly faded.
“You’ve worked hard. Return.” Ning Zhuo sighed and released flames to burn the spikes away.
The ice spikes embedded in Yuan Dasheng screamed as they were burned, scattering all at once.
Ning Zhuo collected the badly charred Heavy Armor Blood Ape, Dasheng back into storage.
But soon, cries sounded from his own body.
Although he had dodged everywhere and had Yuan Dasheng’s protection, several ice spikes had still struck him.
They were embedded in his body, and the Ice Crystal Ghost Spirits within immediately launched their attack. Their wailing echoed from inside him, causing Ning Zhuo’s eyes to redden.
“This is bad! Little Zhuo, your Sea of Consciousness is filled with Buddha Thoughts!” Sun Lingtong cried out in alarm.
“Buddha is merciful.” Ning Zhuo wore a sorrowful expression. “As the saying goes—if I do not enter hell, who will…”
“Bullshit!” Sun Lingtong roared.
At the crucial moment, he could no longer endure and directly took action.
Theft Technique—Direct Copy Hand!
The ice spikes embedded in Ning Zhuo vanished instantly, reappearing within the Wanli Dragon.
Ning Zhuo turned danger into safety.
But after this move, Sun Lingtong was exposed to the sight of Heavenly Frost, Zhu Xuanji, Lin Bufan, and Immortal Red Sleeve.
Immortal Red Sleeve let out a soft exclamation.
Lin Bufan frowned. “The one who just acted… doesn’t seem to be Ning Zhuo.”
Zhu Xuanji nodded. “Of course.”
As the chief detective, he had long known Sun Lingtong was beside Ning Zhuo. Back in Fire Persimmon City, he had already interacted with him and had left a deep impression.
After all, in Zhu Xuanji’s life, there had rarely been the experience of being clung to by someone hugging his thigh in the middle of the street.
Heavenly Frost roared, “No matter how many helpers you hide, all will perish within my Frost Soul Gaze!”
Half of the Buddha Thoughts suppressing him had already been erased, allowing him to unleash more of his true strength.
Ning Zhuo manipulated the Somersault Cloud, desperately fleeing within the barrier.
But his Somersault Cloud was only a magical instrument. It was soon destroyed.
“Little Zhuo, use mine!” Sun Lingtong immediately lent him his Somersault Cloud.
Back in Fire Persimmon City, Ning Zhuo had bought one for Sun Lingtong as well.
Since Sun Lingtong willingly lent it out, Ning Zhuo could use it without any obstruction.
However, such magical-instrument-level clouds clearly could not last long.
Heavenly Frost howled and threw out another treasure.
It was a completely transparent cold-jade coffin, glowing with icy blue luster. The coffin was carved from Profound Yin Cold Jade from lands of extreme frost. It was crystal clear—merely looking at it made one feel a chill penetrating the bones.
Ancient talismans were carved around the coffin’s body, emitting a faint blue glow.
Ice crystals were embedded along its edges, and frost formed natural patterns on its surface, like snowflakes blooming in winter.
The coffin lid was covered with complex formation runes, which combined to form a formation. At the center of the formation was an ice-blue ghost eye.
Four cold pearls of different colors were embedded around the lid, each containing a distinct extreme frost power that enhanced the coffin’s might.
Through the transparent coffin body, one could vaguely see a frozen corpse puppet inside.
The corpse puppet was sealed in cold jade, its face twisted with resentment and unwillingness from life—an unsettling sight.
Treasure—Profound Yin Ice Coffin!
Seeing Heavenly Frost produce the coffin, Earth Ghost immediately shouted, “What nonsense are you doing? Don’t open the coffin carelessly! Do you know how much money it costs me every time you open it?!”
“You’re opening the coffin just to deal with a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator?!”
“Hmph! Shut up.” Heavenly Frost rebuked him. Ultimately he did not open the coffin, instead activating the coffin itself to release a surge of icy yin energy.
The energy surged toward Ning Zhuo.
A sharp pain shot through Ning Zhuo’s finger, and his heart immediately tightened.
At the critical moment, the Mechanical Ring issued a warning—it told him he absolutely must not take the attack head-on. Doing so would bring certain death.
Ning Zhuo hurriedly dodged.
Cang Tie Han Armor!
To increase his speed, he exerted all his strength, instantly equipping his mechanical armor.
Mechanism Technique—Wind-Thunder Surge!
Spirit stones within the Cang Tie Han Armor were consumed frantically, transforming into a vast flow of spiritual power. This power was directed into two palm-sized talismans engraved with complex patterns—one of wind and one of thunder.
The talismans erupted with wind force and thunder force, which flowed through the internal formation patterns of the armor and merged into an entirely new power—
Wind-Thunder Surge!
Green lightning wrapped around the Cang Tie Han Armor.
In an instant, the armor’s speed soared to the extreme.
Mechanism Technique—Iron Garment Frost!
The defensive formation within the armor was pushed to its strongest state, humming loudly as it operated.
Within the formation, metal-attribute and water-attribute forces burst forth, releasing biting cold while carrying metallic sharpness. They enveloped the armor, greatly enhancing both offense and defense.
Ning Zhuo activated the armor’s two mechanism techniques almost simultaneously.
Ten breaths later—
The borrowed Somersault Cloud was destroyed, and the surface of the Cang Tie Han Armor was riddled with damage, despite Ning Zhuo’s desperate evasions.
Mechanism Technique—Azure Dragon Battling the Void!
Armor plates along the back, shoulders, elbows, and wrists suddenly flipped open, revealing hidden explosive talismans.
The talismans shone with dazzling white light. Combined with Ning Zhuo’s movements, they propelled him violently in a chosen direction.
Originally designed for combat, this mechanism technique was one of the armor’s main battle abilities. Yet against an enemy like Heavenly Frost, Ning Zhuo could only use it to escape and alleviate danger.
As Heavenly Frost unleashed more of his strength, Ning Zhuo’s evasions became increasingly perilous.
The Mechanical Ring repeatedly issued warnings, while Sun Lingtong launched successive interventions from within the Puppet Dragon. Together they greatly assisted Ning Zhuo, allowing him to continue struggling for survival within the Frost Soul Gaze.
Mechanism—Floating Ice White Jade Hand!
Ning Zhuo used the mechanism construct to freeze one of his injured limbs, treating his wounds.
He released his spiritual sense and observed the Three Generals Camp.
The camp was constantly on the defensive, their situation extremely passive. The three generals were already panting with exhaustion, while Earth Ghost remained far away without even a single additional injury.
Ning Zhuo had originally hoped for help from Liu Er and the others, but seeing this scene, he could only sigh deeply.
“Little Zhuo, we must retreat! Staying any longer brings no benefit!” Sun Lingtong urgently warned.
Ning Zhuo remained silent.
Hidden in the shadows, Lin Bufan also spoke. “For Ning Zhuo to last this long has already exceeded my expectations. If he has any arrangements or hidden methods, he should use them soon to avoid accidents.”
Zhu Xuanji nodded and suddenly smiled, turning his gaze into the distance. “My arrangement has already arrived.”
Lin Bufan followed his gaze but saw only dense forest.
He looked more carefully, activating spells and spiritual sense, and finally noticed a clue.
Lin Bufan’s pupils shrank. “Quite a number of people have arrived. Impressive—their concealment methods can already rival my One-Leaf Covering the Eyes technique.”
His words caused Zhu Xuanji to glance sideways, though the latter said nothing.
“Heaven and Earth Twin Ghosts—you still dare come here!”
“The revenge from last time—I’ll return it to you a hundredfold!”
“Kill them! Beat those two ghosts until their souls scatter!”
A group of cultivators suddenly appeared, forcefully entering the battlefield.
The unexpected arrival of reinforcements filled Liu, Guan, Zhang, Ning, and Sun with both shock and joy.
Ning Zhuo quickly recognized them—they were familiar faces, Nascent Soul cultivators from the main army of Liangzhu Kingdom.
“How did they arrive? And so timely too.” Ning Zhuo could not help but feel curious.
He did not know that the movements of the Heaven and Earth Twin Ghosts had already been leaked to Liangzhu Kingdom’s main army through Zhu Xuanji’s informants.
“Heavenly Ghost—True Person Blazing Sun is here!”
True Person Blazing Sun flew high into the sky and produced his life-bound treasure—the Golden Crow Heaven-Burning Mirror.
He activated his primary cultivation technique, Golden Crow Touring the Heavens Art, immediately summoning the phantom of a three-legged Golden Crow from the mirror.
The phantom spread its wings and flew into the Frost Soul Gaze, rushing directly toward the coffin.
Wherever it passed, heat waves surged and the cold dispersed. Even the coffin lid began to show signs of melting under the blinding golden sunlight.
Heavenly Frost hurriedly withdrew the coffin and launched thousands of ice spikes from the barrier toward True Person Blazing Sun.
A second cultivator flew behind him—Daoist Mountain Peak Master.
He had already been gathering momentum. Now he formed a hand seal and unleashed a spell—
Five Peaks Soul-Suppressing Seal!
The seal rapidly expanded until it was the size of a small mountain.
Within the light of the seal’s projection, one could faintly see eight ancient characters engraved on its underside:
“Command all ghosts, Five Peaks suppress souls.”
As soon as the seal appeared, it immediately suppressed every ice spike.
The Ice Crystal Ghost Spirits within the spikes had no power to resist and were completely pinned down.
The third Nascent Soul cultivator was a hunchbacked old man holding a damaged bronze sundial.
He dripped Time Snake Poison onto the sundial. It activated and began rotating in reverse, releasing a bronze glow.
The glow illuminated the barrier. The entire Frost Soul Gaze seemed to reverse in time, automatically shrinking and disappearing completely within a few breaths.
Heavenly Frost spat out a mouthful of blood. After glancing at the three Nascent Soul cultivators, he advanced instead of retreating, rushing directly toward Ning Zhuo!
Capturing Ning Zhuo and completing his sect’s mission was his greatest objective in this trip.
Ning Zhuo immediately retreated at full speed, detonating every talisman within the Cang Tie Han Armor to push his speed to the limit.
The hunchbacked old man slightly rotated his wrist, letting the bronze light shine upon Ning Zhuo as well.
In an instant, time accelerated around Ning Zhuo, rapidly widening the distance between him and Heavenly Frost until he was completely out of danger.
The reinforcements from Liangzhu Kingdom had clearly come prepared. They were not only targeting Heavenly Frost—they were also dealing with Earth Ghost.
Previously, the Heaven and Earth Twin Ghosts had seized treasure beneath the battlefield, suppressing the entire main army of Liangzhu Kingdom and humiliating them greatly.
After suffering that loss, the army reflected and fully utilized its advantage in manpower and resources. This time they arrived as a carefully selected team, employing meticulously planned methods.
“Detective Zhu, what a brilliant arrangement!” Lin Bufan sighed in admiration.
Thinking through everything, he understood much more.
Since Immortal Red Sleeve was a layout placed by Southern Dou Country within the Thousand Peaks Forest, then earlier, when she invited the Heaven and Earth Twin Ghosts to seize the great treasure, it must have been Zhu Xuanji’s instruction from behind the scenes.
At that time, Zhu Xuanji had arranged for Lin Bufan to watch over Ning Zhuo attacking the Ten-Li Burning Forest, while also directing Immortal Red Sleeve to lead the Heaven and Earth Twin Ghosts into wreaking havoc on the battlefield.
This plan did more than simply prevent the Twin Ghosts from capturing Ning Zhuo.
It also served another purpose—creating conflict between the Heaven and Earth Twin Ghosts and the main army of Liangzhu Kingdom.
Now that conflict had exploded and was being used by Zhu Xuanji.
Thus he could watch from the sidelines, using the strength of Liangzhu Kingdom to deal with the Twin Ghosts.
On one hand, it protected Ning Zhuo. On the other, it weakened both Liangzhu Kingdom and the Thousand Peaks Forest, further intensifying the friction and hatred between them.