498: Chapter 515 Unbelievable!

"Fellow Daoist, you truly have impressive methods."

Without waiting for Lu Ming's answer, Yuan Tu continued speaking to himself.

Looking at Lu Ming's familiar yet strange face, a long-buried memory slowly resurfaced in his mind.

It was this person—the Loose Cultivator who had been trapped in the same Restriction as them after passing the trial.

He had clearly seen this face before, yet during their previous confrontation, he couldn't remember it at all.

It wasn't a matter of poor memory; it was that the process of "remembering" had never happened in the first place.

The person had existed, and he had seen him, but the memory was like wind blowing across water—once the ripples faded, nothing remained.

For a moment, Yuan Tu felt a chill run down his spine.

"Is this... the Dao of Karma?"

He thought of a possibility; perhaps only the Dao of Karma could achieve such a level.

Severing his connection with heaven and earth at its very root.

Making it so that the person did not exist on the level of Karma, causing one to automatically categorize him as background noise that didn't need to be remembered.

Although he had never seen such a method, he had heard of it quite often.

It seemed there was a group of people in the Outer Realms who specialized in this path.

However, their level was only around the third rank, so he hadn't taken them to heart before.

Looking at it now, this path was indeed quite mysterious!

After all, the five of them weren't like those lowly outsiders; pulling the wool over their eyes was no easy feat.

It was fortunate this person hadn't made a Move against them; otherwise, a sneak attack with such an ability would be practically invincible.

Wait!

Yuan Tu suddenly froze as a thought abruptly surfaced in his mind.

He remembered those Cultivators who had rioted for no reason, and Yin Leici's sudden backlash.

At the time, Xuan Zhenzi and Yue Qingyao had suspected Hua Nongying, and he had actually thought the same.

It could only be said that those most like you understand you best; as a member of the Demonic Path, Yuan Tu put himself in her shoes and realized Hua Nongying was indeed the most suspicious one on the surface.

It was just that this woman's methods were too crude and left too many flaws, making it easy for people to link everything to her.

Yuan Tu had felt quite disdainful of this.

Now it seemed that the person before him was likely the true culprit behind everything.

And all of them had probably been played for fools!

Yuan Tu's gaze fell on Yin Leici, who was on Lu Ming's back, and then he stared intently into Lu Ming's eyes.

"Those Cultivators, and Yin Leici—it was all your doing!"

Hearing this, Lu Ming suddenly smiled. "Isn't it a bit late to realize that now?"

"It really was you!"

Yuan Tu's voice was flat and sounded very calm, but the bulging veins on his forehead betrayed his surging emotions.

After a moment, Yuan Tu took a deep breath, suppressing his churning thoughts.

Since the opponent had boldly admitted it, it meant he had nothing to fear and felt there was no longer a need to hide.

Either his strength was at the peak and he had no qualms, or he was bluffing, trying to intimidate him with words and Aura.

Yuan Tu leaned toward the latter possibility; if the opponent could truly crush him, he wouldn't have wasted so much time talking.

Acting so sneakily now clearly indicated that his strength wasn't enough to suppress everything.

Having figured this out, Yuan Tu felt slightly more at ease.

Regardless, at least he had grasped a bit of the opponent's background.

This person might only be skilled in stealth, curses, and tracking; his strength wasn't necessarily greater than his own.

Moreover, he still had the hunyuan bone bead as a trump card; even if he couldn't win, he could at least escape.

Lu Ming watched Yuan Tu's expression shift from vigilance to contemplation, from contemplation to realization, and from realization to composure, and couldn't help but laugh.

Did this old ghost actually think he was just bluffing?

"Bro~" he said, "If you don't leave now, you really won't be able to."

Yuan Tu didn't understand Lu Ming's strange slang, but that didn't stop him from understanding the meaning of the words.

And because he understood, he became even more certain that the opponent was bluffing!

Being so eager to urge him to leave suggested that the opponent wasn't confident in keeping him there.

Yuan Tu suddenly laughed, his voice raspy and low.

"I must say, your methods are indeed clever. The Dao of Karma and pulling the wool over everyone's eyes—even I fell for your trick.

But you're too impatient, which exposes your lack of confidence. I..."

Listening to Yuan Tu analyze human nature to himself, Lu Ming blinked, feeling somewhat speechless.

He hadn't realized this old fellow was such a clown, really good at making up all sorts of nonsense in his head.

"Fine then~"

Lu Ming tossed Yin Leici off his back onto the ground and stretched his wrists.

"After all that talk, it still comes down to a fight."

Actually, Lu Ming was also somewhat curious about how strong this person really was.

His impression of Yuan Tu had always been someone marginalized, low-profile, and with a weak presence.

But to be able to maneuver among the five of them for so long without being targeted indicated that his skills were definitely not limited to escaping.

Although the other party was shackled by his Karma Dog Chain, it didn't mean his escape techniques were weak.

Otherwise, with those few escape techniques just now, an ordinary Golden Core Cultivator would have long since lost him.

Clearly, this guy wasn't as simple as he appeared.

"I was thinking the same!"

As he spoke, black mist billowed around Yuan Tu, and the faint sound of a baby crying could be heard from within, clearly preparing some Move.

Seeing this, Lu Ming didn't have the habit of standing still and waiting for the enemy to charge up a big Move.

He immediately raised his hand, and a light interwoven with black and white surged from his palm, like two swimming fish joined head to tail, twisting and tangling in mid-air.

This was a Divine Ability derived from the Yin-Yang Law—Taiji Rotation.

The Yin and Yang Qi chased each other, forming a massive vortex, attempting to tear, grind, and devour the black mist around Yuan Tu.

"Yin-Yang Law!"

The moment that black and white Qi appeared, Yuan Tu's eyes widened, but his expression soon turned to one of relief.

"So that's how it is; you're a tough nut to crack."

Although the Yin-Yang Law was a supreme Law that ordinary people couldn't comprehend, it wasn't beyond understanding.

As far as he knew, someone in the Outer Realms had also condensed the Yin-Yang Law.

So seeing someone else who had comprehended this path now wasn't unacceptable.

However, this also indirectly proved that this person's background was not simple; he just didn't know which faction he was from!

Despite these thoughts, Yuan Tu's hands didn't stop moving.

He threw out hand seals and chanted incantations repeatedly.

In an instant, the black mist around him surged like a tide, sweeping toward Lu Ming and covering the sky.

Then, Yuan Tu pressed his five fingers down into the void.

In the void, a grayish-white ghost infant appeared out of thin air.

It was withered all over, with sunken eye sockets and a mouth that split to its ears, revealing two rows of jagged fangs.

The ghost infant opened its mouth and let out a sharp cry; wherever the sound waves passed, Divine Souls trembled and mana stagnated.

This was the evil technique, the Soul-Wailing Curse!

Lu Ming felt his consciousness daze for a split second, and the vortex of Taiji Rotation stalled slightly.

Seizing this momentary flaw, Yuan Tu turned into a wisp of black smoke and passed through the gaps in the vortex.

His escape technique was extremely bizarre; he transformed his body into smoke, breaking himself down into countless tiny particles that merged into the air, making him pervasive and extremely difficult to capture.

Lu Ming's Taiji Rotation hit nothing but air, and the black and white Qi circled in the void.

He looked around, trying to find Yuan Tu's trail.

Just then, black smoke condensed behind him, and Yuan Tu's figure emerged from it, his withered palm striking toward the back of Lu Ming's heart, intending to rip it out.

Within his palm, a pitch-black rune flickered.

This palm strike didn't rely on force to win, but on a killing curse.

Once it hit, the rune would enter the opponent's body, following the Bloodline to attack the heart directly and shatter the cardiac vessels.

Lu Ming sensed the danger and lunged forward while activating the Tiangang Law, throwing a punch backward.

The golden fist Aura and the pitch-black palm print collided violently, erupting in a deafening roar.

Lu Ming was knocked back several steps, a wave of numbness spreading through his fist.

"How is this possible? Another Law!"

Yuan Tu's voice came from all directions, making it impossible to tell the source, but the shock in his words was hard to hide.

It wasn't surprising he lost his composure; after all, theoretically, every Cultivator could only comprehend one Law.

Besides the limited capacity of the Golden Core, it was more about the shackles of talent and the cost of time.

After all, mastering one was already time-consuming and exhausting; trying to balance other Laws was just asking for trouble!

You're not a Nascent Soul True Monarch!

So it was better to specialize in one first, and then gradually refine it to forge a path unique to oneself!

Yet the person before him had comprehended two Laws simultaneously, and judging by his proficiency, he wasn't like those "jack of all trades, master of none" types.

"No wonder you could match the Black-robed Man's phantom; your Physical Body is so powerful. It turns out you've taken the path of 'breaking all techniques with sheer force'."

Yuan Tu was somewhat surprised, but it was still within his realm of understanding.

After all, if one really looked at it, these two Laws couldn't even be compared.

Whether in terms of difficulty of comprehension or level of mastery, they weren't in the same dimension.

So the fact that the opponent possessed two Laws at once only surprised him; it wasn't yet unacceptable.

"Heh, did you think this was my limit?"

Lu Ming sneered, forming a seal with his fingers and chanting a spell to activate the Law of Xun Wind.

"Swift!!"

Azure

The azure light transformed into an azure tornado that connected heaven and earth, spinning frantically.

Every gust of wind turned into a wind blade circling around him, forming an airtight barrier.

Each one was enough to cut through metal and jade; with a thousand blades dancing together, not a blade of grass remained within a hundred-zhang radius.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

Yuan Tu finally cried out in shock.

"Laws conflict with each other; you cannot possibly condense three Laws at once!"

Having two Laws in one body was already ridiculous enough, but three Laws was even more impossible!

In any case, Yuan Tu had never heard of any Golden Core Cultivator who could do it.

If it were the Five Elements, he could understand, as they could be broken down into five single-attribute Laws.

But even so, the Five Elements Law required a balance of mutual generation and Restriction, a principle of endless cycle, which was extremely difficult to master.

But these were Yin-Yang, Tiangang, and Xun Wind—three completely different, unrelated Law powers.

How on earth were they linked together and coexisting so peacefully within one person?

Hearing Yuan Tu's exclamation, Lu Ming didn't explain, nor could he be bothered to.

He didn't care what Yuan Tu thought or how he saw it.

Since he had already revealed two Laws, he didn't mind showing his full strength for a quick resolution.

In any case, Yuan Tu could no longer escape; Lu Ming had already sentenced him to death in his heart.

Only dead men keep secrets.

With that thought, the azure tornado crashed toward Yuan Tu with an unmatched, violent momentum.

Instantly, Yuan Tu's black smoke was shredded by the wind blades, and even that eerie baby crying sound vanished.

But Lu Ming did not lower his guard.

He knew Yuan Tu wouldn't be forced back so easily.

Sure enough, the ground beneath his feet suddenly cracked open, and a pitch-black bone claw reached out from the fissure, grabbing for his ankle.

The bone claw was wrapped in countless fine black threads.

These were Soul-Binding Silks; once entangled, the soul would be dragged out of the body by the threads, leaving one at the mercy of others.

Lu Ming shifted his feet and soared into the air.

Activating the Law of Xun Wind to its limit, his speed was so fast that not even an afterimage could be caught.

Transforming his body into wind, he moved a thousand miles in an instant.

The Soul-Binding Silks swept past his feet, grabbing nothing but air.

Yuan Tu's figure reconsolidated from the black smoke not far away; he glanced at his empty hands, then looked up at Lu Ming.

"Law of Wind, such incredible speed."

His voice remained calm, but fine beads of sweat had already broken out on his forehead.

This person's strength was far too unexpected; he felt a faint sense of unease and even considered retreating.

However, a feeling called greed was also growing wildly in his heart.

Without needing any explanation, he could conclude that this person held a great secret.

To be able to control three Laws as a mere Golden Core Cultivator... if he could obtain such an ability, then...

Thinking of this, Yuan Tu had no more intention of testing the waters and planned to go all out.

His hands formed seals as he muttered incantations.

The void began to distort, and pitch-black cracks emerged from it like torn wounds.

From the cracks, countless pale baby arms stretched out, densely packed and blotting out the sky.

This was the taboo evil technique—Ten Thousand Ghosts Paying Homage.

Using one's own Essence Blood as a guide, it summoned ten thousand ghosts from the netherworld to drown the enemy in a sea of ghosts.

Each ghost infant had strength close to the Golden Core stage; when ten thousand ghosts emerged together, even a Golden Core Perfection Cultivator would have to steer clear.

Lu Ming looked at the sky-covering ghost infant arms, his brow furrowing slightly.

He took a deep breath and drew a circle with both hands in front of him.

Yin and Yang Qi condensed in his palms, transforming into a clear black-and-white taiji diagram.

Taiji: Return to Origin.

The taiji diagram rotated slowly; with him as the center, the Spiritual Qi, mana, and even light within a hundred-zhang radius were sucked into the diagram and turned into nothingness.

The ghost infant arms that touched the edge of the taiji diagram were instantly shredded and turned into nothingness.

Ten thousand ghosts surged forward but could not advance a single step before the taiji diagram.

Yuan Tu's face finally changed.

It wasn't because the ghost infants he summoned were being slaughtered, but because he found the mana in his own body was also being uncontrollably pulled by the taiji diagram.

That taiji diagram was not only devouring external spiritual power but also the mana within him.

If this continued, he would be sucked dry.

He made a prompt decision, bit the tip of his tongue, and spat a mouthful of Essence Blood into his palm.

The Essence Blood transformed into a blood-colored rune in his palm.

Blood Curse Technique!

By burning Essence Blood, it forcibly interrupted all negative states while boosting speed to the limit in a short time.

His figure turned into a streak of bloody light, breaking free from the pull of the taiji diagram and escaping over a hundred zhang away.

Lu Ming put away the taiji diagram and looked at Yuan Tu in the distance.

Yuan Tu's face was terrifyingly pale, and his Aura was withered; clearly, that mouthful of Essence Blood just now was a significant loss.

"Old fellow, do you have any other tricks?"

Lu Ming's voice wasn't loud, yet it reached Yuan Tu's ears clearly.

Yuan Tu didn't answer; his hand reached into his sleeve and pulled out an object.

hunyuan bone bead!

The bone bead lit up with an eerie glow in his palm, and a terrifying Death Qi surged from it, transforming into a giant bone hand with fingers splayed, blotting out the sky.

Every phalange of the bone hand was engraved with dense runes; it was the Returning to Ruins Curse inscribed by a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

Once caught by the bone hand, the Physical Body, Divine Soul, and mana—everything would be devoured by the Returning to Ruins Curse and turned into nothingness.

"I must say, you are indeed strong. With three Laws in one body, in all my years of living, I have never seen someone like you."

Yuan Tu's voice was raspy, but it carried a sense of determination.

"But in the end, you're just a Golden Core Cultivator; before the methods of a Nascent Soul, you have no chance of winning!"

As he spoke, the bone hand suddenly clenched and clawed down toward Lu Ming's head.