176: Chapter 177: Start from zero frame!

“There’s a problem! This person harbors a great secret!”

If Zhu Zhengran couldn’t see the problem now, then all his years of Cultivation had been for naught.

Immediately, Zhu Zhengran’s gaze became incredibly fervent.

He was a Demonic Path Cultivator himself and understood the terror of backlash from Demonic Path forbidden Spells even more clearly.

And Wu Daoren’s ability to ignore backlash was unheard of.

Moreover, besides Demonic Path Cultivation Techniques, most Spells could potentially suffer backlash if over-Cultivated or if the Cultivation conditions were not met.

If he could also possess such an ability, it was simply unimaginable!

With it as an aid, what Spells could he not learn, what secret Spells could he not practice in the future!

What Golden Core, what Nascent Soul, all would no longer be illusions.

He vaguely felt that his Opportunity was about to arrive!

Watching Lu Ming below form a Spell, a Mysterious Light swept out, instantly turning a group of ghosts into black mist that dissipated into thin air, tearing open a gap in the ‘ghost tide’.

Seeing this, Zhu Zhengran’s heart sank.

He had already seen that this person hadn’t used his full strength at all; he was probably using him as a whetstone.

He couldn’t let this continue!

“I seem to have underestimated you… Since you’re so capable, let’s see how long you can last!”

Zhu Zhengran’s voice boomed through the ghost mist.

Roar! Roar!

Within the ghost mist, nearly a hundred ghosts began to gather and Fuse, eventually transforming into an eight-armed, red-haired evil ghost, tens of feet tall.

A terrifying, fierce aura emanated from its body, subtly reaching the limit of the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, almost touching the Foundation Establishment Peak.

Lu Ming’s expression settled, and his eyebrows slightly raised.

“Is he getting anxious?”

He chuckled lightly, not taking it seriously.

Chanting a Spell and forming a hand seal, Fallen Soul Mysterious Light transformed into a chaotic torrent, surging towards the red-haired evil ghost.

This Mysterious Light was inherently aimed at the Divine Soul, causing immense damage to ghosts.

Lu Ming also felt it was a rare Opportunity to practice, continuously casting it in conjunction with Yin Sha Secret Thunder.

His proficiency was also rapidly increasing.

Indeed, mere arduous Cultivation doesn’t yield experience as quickly as actual combat!

Screech!

However, this usually effective Mysterious Light seemed to have no effect this time.

The red-haired evil ghost raised its eight thick ghost hands, like shields, firmly blocking the Mysterious Light.

Although six of the eight ghost arms were brushed away by the Mysterious Light, it ultimately resisted.

“No matter how astonishingly talented you are, or how many wondrous methods you possess, human power has its limits. Let’s see if you die this time!”

Zhu Zhengran abandoned his ‘ghost tide’ tactic; he wanted to go the elite route!

With a continuous supply of ghost Qi, the eight-armed ghost god was immortal!

And the facts were as he expected; the opponent did not kill the eight-armed ghost god immediately.

As long as he persisted, this person would surely die!

“Heh, interesting.”

Lu Ming was not disappointed; instead, a hint of joy hung in his eyebrows.

After this battle, he had a good grasp of what level of opponent he could contend with without using his trump cards.

Simply put, Foundation Establishment Late Stage, easily handled!

However, at this point, Lu Ming no longer had the desire to continue playing.

The next moment, Yin Lotus Mother-Child Twin Birth Method and Fallen Soul Mysterious Light were simultaneously activated.

Then Lu Ming pointed two fingers at his glabella and shouted.

“Devour!”

Immediately, the Puppet’s glabella seemed to hold a black hole, frantically drawing in the surrounding black mist and ghost Qi.

It was rather comical to say, but the Clone’s strongest aspect was not its Puppet body, but its Soul Power.

Although ghost Qi was not as pure as Soul Power, and even more turbid and miscellaneous.

But it was still the same saying, what does it matter to me?

So much ghost Qi was, on the contrary, an excellent tonic for the Clone.

Thus, the scene began to turn bizarre.

To Zhu Zhengran’s dumbfounded surprise, Lu Ming, like a pump, literally sucked up all the black mist until it was completely gone.

And the eight-armed evil ghost, having lost the black mist as its backup energy, suffered a significant drop in power, was shattered into countless pieces by Lu Ming’s Yin Sha Secret Thunder, and then once again devoured by Lu Ming.

“Burp~”

Lu Ming let out a satisfied burp, exhaling a mouthful of turbid Qi.

“This… this…”

Zhu Zhengran’s figure, no longer obscured by the black mist, was now exposed, but he seemed completely oblivious to it.

He stammered, watching the scene unfold.

Is this even human?

Zhu Zhengran was now doubting his life; no normal Cultivator played like this!

It was just a slight increase in intensity, did he really have to devour all the ghosts?!

Is this person a sore loser?!

Seeing Zhu Zhengran’s expression, Lu Ming pouted.

“Didn’t you tell me to fight? Now that I’m really fighting, you’re not happy.”

These words, heard by Zhu Zhengran, sounded particularly harsh.

It was as if they were mocking his incompetence.

Zhu Zhengran’s face darkened, and he retracted his Yin Sha Banner.

At this point, the ghost Qi in this Spiritual Artifact was completely depleted, leaving it in a semi-crippled state.

It could only be used again after slowly collecting and replenishing ghosts in the future.

However, he didn’t care; as long as he captured this person and obtained the Opportunity to circumvent Cultivation Technique backlash, nothing else mattered.

Although this person was a bit tricky, he was still very confident in his own strength.

Just as he was about to make a move, Lu Ming suddenly asked.

“Fellow Daoist Zhu, how old are you this year?”

Zhu Zhengran was momentarily stunned by this inexplicable question.

He instinctively felt there was a problem, but couldn’t pinpoint what was wrong.

After thinking for a moment, he figured it was just the other party trying to stall for time to recover his magical power.

However, he also didn’t plan to expose the other party; he had his own plans.

Killing the opponent would be difficult, let alone capturing him for Soul-searching.

So he also needed some time to prepare.

Having understood this, Zhu Zhengran stood with his hands behind his back, proudly in mid-air.

In reality, his hands were constantly forming Spells behind his back.

“This venerable one entered the immortal Dao at the age of fifteen, and established his immortal foundation at forty-eight. Now, I am merely two and a half Jiazi cycles old, yet I am already in the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage. What, do you wish to become my disciple?”

Lu Ming ignored the latter part of his words and began to calculate.

“A Jiazi is sixty years, two and a half Jiazi is one hundred and fifty years. A Foundation Establishment Cultivator can live for about two hundred years, so he still has fifty years of Lifespan left. Ten years of the same rank for one year… I need five hundred years! Even the Great Sage would be released from prison by then!

“But… that’s just right!”

“What are you saying?”

Zhu Zhengran felt a sense of unease; he seemed to have done something foolish.

“Nothing, I’m not taking disciples.”

Lu Ming was somewhat perfunctory, no longer paying attention to Zhu Zhengran.

He formed a hand seal, and specks of greenish-grey light began to gather and Fuse in his hand.

Eventually, they transformed into a mysterious greenish-grey Dao pattern that settled in his hand.

The Dao pattern was intricate and profound, exuding a sense of mystery.

Yet, it emanated both vitality and decay.

The two intertwined and rotated like Yin and Yang fish.

The next moment, the Dao pattern activated, and an indescribable Mysterious Light swiftly swept over Zhu Zhengran.

It was so fast that he couldn’t react.

“I…”

Zhu Zhengran wanted to say something, but suddenly felt a wave of fatigue wash over him.

His Lifespan and vitality were depleted in an instant, and he transformed from a middle-aged man into a white-haired, ancient elder in the blink of an eye.

Thud.

Zhu Zhengran ultimately couldn’t finish his sentence, turning into a white-haired mummified corpse that fell from mid-air.

Cause of death… zero-frame initiation!