Chapter 120: The Netherfire Scale Blade

Xu Cheng reached into his "Sleeve of the Universe" and retrieved several secret manuals on spellcasting, a small portion of medicinal pills, and a few pieces of rare treasures, handing them over to his companion.

"Pure Yang Techniques, Nine Yang Secret Arts!" Zhentong’s eyes lit up as he held the two manuals. "Senior, are you giving these all to me?"

Xu Cheng nodded. "Indeed, keep them."

"These are treasures! With another skill, I have one more way to save my own life!" Zhentong hugged Xu Cheng’s arm and exclaimed.

*This fellow is a Primordial Spirit realm cultivator, yet he acts like a low-level novice who has never seen the world,* Xu Cheng thought to himself, shaking his head. For now, he needed to refine the tiger teeth; he would keep the Five Pecks of Rice sect spells for the time being, but everything else was to be sacrificed.

"Let us part ways here. We shall meet again if destiny allows," Xu Cheng said softly, prying Zhentong’s hands off his arm.

"Don't go! Senior, if I hadn't met you, I would surely be dead by now!" Zhentong said anxiously.

*What a clingy fellow,* Xu Cheng mused with a slight frown. He activated his Nether Evasion technique, transforming into a streak of black light and vanishing.

"Senior!" Zhentong remained behind, shouting into the void.

Fortunately, Zhentong’s evasion technique was not refined enough to keep up with Xu Cheng; otherwise, he surely would have stuck to him like glue.

After a short while, Xu Cheng arrived at a desolate, snow-covered place surrounded by dense, withered trees. He began the work of refining the tiger teeth, his verdant jade-colored mana surging forth to carve runes onto them. Thirty-six Supreme Runes were etched onto each tooth, complemented by the Yellow Springs immortal spell runes condensed from his Nether mana. Finally, he applied the Lesser Five Elements Creation Art, and the teeth began to glow with a brilliant, treasure-like radiance.

Xu Cheng placed the tiger teeth in his mouth and used the Lesser Five Elements Creation Art to form a mirror of water, baring his teeth to examine himself. He looked quite ferocious, especially with the sharp fangs.

He then took out the items he had obtained from the Immortal’s cave, intending to sacrifice them. He carefully set aside the manuals of the Five Pecks of Rice sect, just in case they proved useful, along with some high-quality rare treasures—red fire stones, purple jade, turquoise, and an unknown dark ore that shimmered with a metallic luster.

He initiated the sacrifice, wrapping the remaining items in his Nether mana and sending them into the Yellow Springs.

The treasures and pills were consumed by white flames within the Yellow Springs, decomposing one by one. As time passed, Xu Cheng waited nervously, filled with anticipation for what the Yellow Springs would grant him in return.

Eventually, a Gate of the Yellow Springs appeared out of thin air, and from it flew an object shaped like a crescent moon, over a zhang in length. It resembled a bow but was not one; both ends were incredibly sharp, and its surface was etched with black patterns and inlaid with sparkling white stones arranged in the shape of the Big Dipper.

The crescent blade circled Xu Cheng, seemingly possessing a trace of sentience. He released his Primordial Spirit to communicate with it. The consciousness within was quite faint and unclear, but Xu Cheng understood its name: the Yellow Springs Fire-Scaled Blade, a magic treasure that had already been refined by someone else.

He realized that by cleansing the blade with his own mana and imprinting it with his Primordial Spirit, he could use it with ease. A torrent of black mana washed over the blade as he branded it with his flame-shaped Yellow Springs mark.

Within half an hour, the refining was complete. With a thought, the blade flew out, slicing through stones and trees until they were ground into powder. The power of such a treasure was exceptional, and Xu Cheng was delighted, though he chose not to incorporate it into his own body.

"It’s a bit too large," Xu Cheng muttered as the blade hovered before him.

The next moment, the Yellow Springs Fire-Scaled Blade contracted until it was the size of a ring.

"A treasure, truly a treasure!" Even Xu Cheng could not help but feel excited.

"Grow!"

As he spoke, the blade expanded, returning to its original size.

"Larger!"

With a low hum, the blade swelled to the size of a ten-plus-zhang house. If it hung in the sky, it could truly rival the moon.

"Larger! Larger! Larger!"

Xu Cheng continued to command, but the blade remained unchanged; it seemed that the size of a house was its limit. He knew he would need to continue cleansing it with his mana day and night to truly master it. He shrunk it down and hung it from his earlobe.

Thrilled with his new acquisition, he turned his attention to the remaining rare treasures. He decided it would be best to refine them into magic treasures and integrate them into his own body. His only eye was currently made of ordinary stone, which was far from satisfactory.

He selected two pieces of metal. Both were a deep, crimson red. He carefully used the Yellow Springs fire to melt them into two egg-sized beads. He meticulously replaced his stone eye with one of these beads, finding that the quality of the red stone allowed him to carve more intricate runes without the extreme caution required for the original. He did the same for the other bead.

Three hours later, his two new eyes were set within his sockets. He then turned to the other treasures, carving runes onto them according to their shapes.

A long, jade-like stone was refined into a tongue. A piece of pure white, razor-sharp metallic mineral became his lungs. A pouch-shaped stone became his stomach. Two black, kidney-shaped stones became his kidneys, and a deep cyan stone became his spleen.

With all the treasures consumed, he applied the Lesser Five Elements Creation Art, fusing them with his skeletal frame until they became a true part of his body.

He activated the Water Mirror spell to see his reflection. Staring back were blood-red eyes, and from his sharp fangs, a long, green tongue flicked out. Even Xu Cheng was startled.

"Is this what I look like now?" he murmured to himself. A few droplets of saliva fell from his tongue. This was because his mastery of the Lesser Five Elements Creation Art had not yet reached the level of true creation; he could not fully reshape the natural form of the treasures. Otherwise, he should have looked like a human.

"So be it, so be it!" he sighed, his confidence somewhat dampened.

Finally, he looked at the last stone in his hand. After being cleansed by the Yellow Springs mana, this round stone was no longer ordinary; it emitted a black luster. While it did not reach the level of a rare treasure, it was still a remarkable object.

He had an idea. He gathered the most common stones he could find, polished them until they were smooth, and strung them together into a bracelet. He carefully carved runes into them and wore it on his wrist, wondering if, with time and constant mana cleansing, he could turn decay into magic.