356: On Protracted War

The nine eerie purple lotuses attacking from different angles flew halfway before suddenly scrambling like headless flies that had lost their target, then inexplicably collided with one another!

The Three Yin Nether Fire, which shared the same origin, clashed violently at this moment, annihilating and wearing each other down in a silent, distorted radiance until they finally dissipated into nothingness.

Yet, this kind of "coincidence" was far from over!

The Bone-Corroding Miasma Cloud that had been pressing down in an overwhelming manner "just happened" to collide with a turbulent flow of earthly fiend astral wind pouring in from the gaps in the stone forest!

Without the Formation previously set up by Lu Ming to block it, this earthly fiend astral wind, a specialty of the Jiling Wasteland, revealed its violent side.

The powerful and chaotic impact stirred the toxic miasma.

The thick miasma cloud was instantly blown to pieces, and in the end, only a small amount of thin toxic gas stained the hem of Zhuge Mingyi's robes.

However, he shook his mana and easily purified it, failing to harm his body in the slightest.

Even the most powerful Nine Heavens Demon-Slaying Divine Lightning, which seemed to represent the Heavenly Dao's punishment, as well as the Spirit-Slaying Golden Needles falling like a rainstorm and the Earth-Splitting Rock Spikes thrusting viciously from the swamp, all encountered various "accidents" upon entering the three-foot area around Zhuge Mingyi protected by the silver light screen.

They either inexplicably lost control or were coincidentally interfered with, causing the majority of the attack trajectories to deflect to varying degrees.

"Rumble!!!"

The deafening thunder almost tore eardrums apart, and the blinding lightning illuminated the dim stone forest in a ghastly white!

The thick bolt of lightning slammed heavily into the ground less than ten feet to Zhuge Mingyi's left, blasting a bottomless, charred crater several dozen feet in diameter!

Violent electric snakes scurried everywhere, shattering the surrounding rocks and kicking up a cloud of dust and debris, yet ultimately failed to injure Zhuge Mingyi at all.

The violent Spirit-Slaying Golden Needles and Earth-Splitting Rock Spikes soon followed in the footsteps of the Nine Heavens Divine Lightning.

Amidst the sounds of "clanging," the needles were driven deep into the surrounding stone walls, leaving behind a dense cluster of pinholes.

Less than ten percent of the golden needles successfully reached Zhuge Mingyi, but they were weakened layer by layer by the mana shield he held up, and were eventually all blocked.

Zhuge Mingyi had actually used his miraculous Karma Secret Arts to create a possibility out of the seemingly impossible within this tiny desperate space.

He forcibly interfered with and modified the "Causes" of many past attacks, which in turn led to a change in the future "Effects."

Changing causes to alter effects, evading disasters and avoiding tribulations—it was exactly as such!

This had already far surpassed the scope of ordinary combat, even faintly touching the level of Law, achieving a visual impact of "using four ounces to move a thousand pounds"!

The key was that Zhuge Mingyi had not even reached Golden Core Perfection yet!

But this already had Lu Ming's heart racing with excitement, and he couldn't help but clap his hands in praise.

"Wonderful! Truly wonderful! The Dao of Karma has truly opened my eyes!"

His eyes shone with continuous brilliance, as if he had discovered a treasure trove containing infinite mysteries.

The more the opponent displayed the wonders of Karma Secret Arts, the greater the value of investigating him would be once he was captured!

"However..." Lu Ming's tone shifted, and a playful arc curled at the corner of his mouth.

"Such methods must consume a lot, right? How much longer can you hold on?"

His eyes flowed with mystical light, having already seen the key.

Although Zhuge Mingyi's methods were mysterious and almost achieved miracles like "Heaven-Defying fate-changing."

But every time he performed such a secret art, it would consume a large amount of mana and mental energy.

Moreover, there seemed to be a certain limit to this interference with "Karma."

For attacks that were "already a foregone conclusion" or where the "difference in power level was too large," the effect would be greatly reduced or even impossible to change.

For instance, with the Spirit-Slaying Golden Needles just now, Zhuge Mingyi was unable to make them completely "nullified."

He could only make the vast majority miss, but could not make them disappear entirely.

Having grasped the limits of the opponent's ability, Lu Ming felt greatly reassured and shifted his battle strategy.

He no longer pursued a "one-wave" fierce offensive, but instead began to test and wear him down with various means.

— "On Protracted War"

Lu Ming's own cultivation was not weak, his Foundation was extremely solid, and he lacked no combat experience.

His grasp of combat opportunities and control of the rhythm was already effortless.

Coupled with being in the Jiling Wasteland, a Spirit-Severing Land, he relied on the golden book and almost never had to worry about his own spiritual energy recovery.

As one side ebbed and the other flowed, he had firmly controlled the rhythm of this battle in his own hands from start to finish.

In contrast, Zhuge Mingyi's situation was becoming increasingly difficult.

His face turned pale at a visible rate, cold sweat dripped from his forehead, and his breathing clearly became rapid and heavy.

By the end, even his movements showed a trace of imperceptible stiffness and delay.

The mana in his body, which had been forcibly restored by Medicinal Pills, was being rapidly consumed like a floodgate opening, and the stinging pain in his Meridians became stronger and stronger.

What exhausted him even more was Lu Ming's endless stream of methods and the perfectly timed attacks.

It forced him to maintain high mental concentration at all times, constantly performing high-intensity deductions and calculations to judge and intervene.

This was a huge burden on his Divine Soul; in a short time, he already felt waves of dizziness and fatigue surging over him.

"I can't go on like this. If I keep being led by the nose and worn down bit by bit, I will surely die!"

Warning bells rang in Zhuge Mingyi's heart, and a sense of urgency swept through his entire body.

He had realized that the person before him was not only powerful in strength, but his combat ability was even more terrifying.

If he delayed any longer, it would be no different from a chronic death!

The only way was to risk everything!

"It seems I can only use that move!"

The last trace of hesitation in Zhuge Mingyi's eyes completely vanished, replaced by a resolution of burning his boats and madness.

He knew that the price of that move was enormous; after performing it, it would very likely damage his dao foundation, leaving behind hard-to-heal hidden dangers and even affecting his future path.

But at this moment, he was in a desperate situation and had no other choice!

Either gamble everything and fight to the death to strive for that slim chance of survival.

Or die of exhaustion in the opponent's boiling-frog-like attrition!

His mind made up, Zhuge Mingyi no longer had the slightest hesitation.

He suddenly bit the tip of his tongue, and a piercing pain accompanied by a thick bloody scent surged up his throat!

"Pfft—"

A mouthful of Natal Essence Blood, bright red with a faint golden glow and radiating majestic vitality, was violently spat out by him.

Like a mist of blood, it was all sprinkled onto the silver light screen in front of him, which had become somewhat dim and flickering due to continuous consumption!

"Buzz—"

The moment the blood touched the light screen, a sudden change occurred!

Nourished by the Natal Essence Blood, the originally somewhat dim silver-white light screen was instantly stained with a layer of scarlet blood color!

Buzz—!

The blood-colored light screen suddenly burst with light, like a burning flame!

A terrifying aura, more profound and deeper than before, spread out with Zhuge Mingyi as the center!

Zhuge Mingyi's face turned deathly pale due to the loss of essence blood, but his eyes were frighteningly bright, filled with the madness of a desperate gamble.

He formed a strange hand seal in front of his chest.

The moment it was completed, the blood-stained light screen, as if receiving some guidance, instantly contracted from around him.

Like ten thousand rivers returning to the sea, it all wrapped around and condensed onto his slowly raised right index finger!

In an instant, his index finger suddenly became crystal clear, presenting an eerie and magnificent texture.

Inside, it was not flesh and Meridians, but countless Blood-colored Runes, intricate to the extreme, flowing frantically.

And when all this was finished, Zhuge Mingyi suddenly turned his head, his bloodshot eyes staring fixedly at Lu Ming.