Chapter 103: Profound Darkness
Chapter 103: Profound Darkness
With his arms folded and sitting cross-legged, Li Yi gazed intently at the two pieces of white paper before him, lost in thought.
On one of them was painted the roaring image of a Whirl Turtle — a turtle body, bird head, and serpent tail — its form vivid and lifelike, emanating a fierce aura as if it could burst right out of the paper! Beside it were some scattered notes, the handwriting messy and clearly jotted down as ideas came to him.
The other paper was crescent-shaped, depicting the Moon River Battle Aura, and also had many notes.
Li Yi was pondering.
Though he had been expelled, given his personality, how could he just let it go?
Starting fresh was certainly possible!
However, Li Yi did not plan to make another “Barbaric Bear’s Might.” Even if he could surpass Zhou Xun and the others, it would feel like copying their work; he neither wanted to nor would he stoop to that.
He wanted innovation, a breakthrough!
A tailor-made Dao Transformation Armament that would completely surpass “Barbaric Bear’s Might,” something unprecedented in history!
“The ancient beast Whirl Turtle, with its many attributes, resembles the Black Tortoise more than it does the Dragon Turtle!”
Combining his personal experience, he stroked his chin and muttered to himself.
“In that case…”
He took out the Myriad Array Collection and flipped to the Super Magic Array — “Wheel of Six Paths.” Li Yi focused intently, carefully observing.
It depicted one of the six divine spirits, the ruler of the earth — the Black Tortoise!
One can learn from others’ strengths.
The rules are universal; arrays and Dao Transformation Armaments could also achieve the same goal through different means.
“But the Black Tortoise is not just a turtle; it’s…”
Muttering to himself, a sudden inspiration flashed in his eyes like a spark of lightning!
“Wrong, completely wrong. I fell into a misunderstanding… So-called mutual enhancement doesn’t require attributes to be completely identical. The complementary interplay of yin and yang, male and female, can also have remarkable effects! Moreover, the effect far surpasses simply stacking attributes!”
His gaze fixed on the Black Tortoise, he read, pondered, and thought for a long time before turning the page to another.
One of the six divine spirits, the Netherworld Emperor — the Soaring Serpent!
Again, he read carefully, pondered deeply, and thought long and hard.
This time, however, he paused even longer, and the sparks in his eyes burned even more intensely.
After a long while, Li Yi closed his eyes.
Countless bizarre and fantastical images flowed through his mind like a revolving lantern — the proud roar of the Whirl Turtle, the sinuous form of the Soaring Serpent. After the light and shadow intertwined, a colossal figure gradually took shape, treading the netherworld below and touching the heavens above.
“Hiss!”
Li Yi drew a sharp breath. Even he himself found that image startling to behold.
He opened his eyes, then closed them again. All the images faded one by one, leaving behind an extremely simple outline, shaped like a star chart or an energy circuit.
Slowing his breathing, he sat cross-legged, motionless.
Time passed bit by bit. He seemed to have fallen into a deep sleep, lifeless.
However, his constantly trembling eyelids indicated he was in the midst of intense thought.
A day and a night passed.
He opened his eyes. A sharp glint flashed in his pupils like lightning and thunder!
There was not a trace of hesitation on his face; his expression showed he had a plan in mind.
“Let’s begin!”
He gripped the brush. A huge, long arc, lingering like a wandering serpent, took shape on the paper with several sharp, angular twists and turns, completing the drawing in a single stroke.
A mysterious aura emerged on the paper.
At the same time, several beads of sweat the size of beans formed on his forehead.
Just that one stroke seemed to have consumed fifty to sixty percent of his energy.
“A good start…”
Before he could wipe the sweat, Li Yi’s gaze turned stern as he drew another arc, sharp and precise like a star’s trajectory.
“Damn it, can’t take a compliment. The second stroke is already wrong!”
“Wrong again!”
His frustrated muttering continued almost without pause.
In the blink of an eye, another six days and nights passed!
Another day arrived, the sun high in the sky.
Under the morning light, Yan He walked to the door with a faint look of concern on his brow and gently knocked.
“Li Yi, are you alright? It’s been seven whole days, and you haven’t been to the Butian Pavilion. Are you having problems with your cultivation?”
“Get lost!”
Before he could finish, a tremendous roar came from inside the room, like the bellow of a prison dragon or a sudden clap of thunder!
Even through the door, a dragon-like imposing force surged forth like a torrent.
Yan He’s body shook violently. His heart seemed to skip a beat, his Mana flow stagnated, and for a moment he couldn’t move.
“Is this kid truly going mad? This presence is just…” He swallowed, unsure how to describe it.
Standing at the door, Yan He was caught in a dilemma, so he simply stayed where he was and waited quietly.
“Done!”
After a while, a voice filled with both excitement and exhaustion rang out loudly.
“Sorry, I was too focused just now… Senior Brother, please come in!”
The door opened, and a pale arm reached out, quickly pulling Yan He inside.
“Senior Brother Yan He, do you have any food?”
Yan He looked up and saw a pair of eyes glowing with a green light, like a hungry wolf in the harsh winter.
He even suspected that if he uttered half the word “no” between his teeth, the other would eat him on the spot.
“I have some rations in my Sumeru Ring, but not much…”
He had just taken them out when he saw Li Yi squatting on the ground, wolfing the food down.
“How many days have you gone without eating, kid?” Yan He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. After a few glances, he felt relieved; aside from being mentally exhausted, Li Yi showed no other abnormalities.
“Seven days,” Li Yi said, stuffing food into his mouth and speaking unclearly.
“Seven days?” Yan He nearly jumped. “What have you been doing these seven days?”
“This thing!” Li Yi pointed at the floor, patted the crumbs off his hands, and headed out. “Senior Brother Yan He, this little bit isn’t enough to fill the gaps in my teeth… I’m going out first to get something to eat.”
“What thing? Took seven days?”
Yan He’s gaze lowered, falling on the scattered sheets of manuscript paper. In an instant, he seemed to realize something, his mouth hanging open so wide it almost split.
“Armament blueprints? Could it be… a self-created armament?”
His teeth chattered uncontrollably. Astonished, Yan He seemed to have lost the ability to speak.
Creating one’s own armament was called the “Stairway to Heaven”; even for an Armament Master, it was a formidable barrier to cross!
And it hadn’t even been a full year! Li Yi’s cultivation in armaments hadn’t reached a year yet!
Could there truly be geniuses in this world?
With trembling fingers, Yan He picked up a thin piece of blueprint paper, his movements seeming incredibly difficult.
As he slowly looked it over, the astonishment on his face gradually solidified, like a wax statue.
“Is it really… a self-created armament?”
Flipping through page after page, he could faintly see, in one corner of the manuscript, four large, flamboyant characters: Profound Darkness Heart!
…
“Fifty thousand and one hundred White Crystals? And on top of that, you need the heart of a Level 3 magic serpent?” Zhang Mingshi showed surprise, leaning back against the armrest. “How did you come up with fifty thousand and one hundred?”
“Nothing personal,” Li Yi said with a faint smile, a hint of pride flashing in his eyes. “My Dao Transformation Armament far surpasses Zhou Xun’s, so naturally I can’t set the same price as him. That would be too degrading.”
“Oh? So confident?” Zhang Mingshi waved his folding fan, smiling brightly.
“I’ve brought the blueprint for this Dao Transformation Armament with me.” Li Yi raised his hand, a thick roll of manuscript paper held in his palm. “You can take a look first.”
“Alright.”
Li Yi wasted no words. With a wave of his hand, a large blueprint unfolded.
“Hmm?”
This armament was also designed for the arm, somewhat resembling an armguard.
On the paper, lines crisscrossed in a complex web. Vaguely, it resembled a coiled serpent, cold and sinister, eerily mysterious.
At a glance, Zhang Mingshi’s pupils contracted. A cold glint flowed in his eyes, and an almost uncontrollable flash of greed flickered across them.
“What do you think?” Li Yi remained unperturbed.
“Profound Darkness Heart? Interesting…” The playful, scornful look on his face vanished, replaced by a serious expression. “Can you really make it? What’s the success rate?”
“Eighty percent!” Li Yi thought for a moment and said.
“Eighty percent?” Another cold glint flashed in Zhang Mingshi’s eyes. “Deal! However, I have a small condition—no, more accurately, a suggestion…”
“What suggestion?” Li Yi asked.
“Have a couple of sparring matches with me!”
“Huh?” The suggestion was truly unexpected. Li Yi couldn’t help but give a bitter smile. “Young Master Zhang, you’re a genuine Sword Song. Isn’t that a bit like bullying the weak?”
“Sword Song, Spell Apprentice—those are just labels on paper!” Zhang Mingshi gave a faint smile. “Let’s be frank. In this Dusk Capital, I doubt there are many Sword Songs who could take you down…”
Li Yi smiled faintly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.
“I’ve been idle for too long; my hands are rather itchy. Let’s just go easy, stop at the appropriate point, alright?” Zhang Mingshi showed a bitter smile, even with a hint of pleading.
“Alright!” Li Yi thought for a moment and nodded. He was actually feeling a bit itchy-handed too.
They stood facing each other, thirty meters apart.
This was the standard distance recognized for duels between warriors and Mages.
A curved longsword in hand, Zhang Mingshi bowed slightly and said softly, “Please.”
Gripping the sword hilt tightly, Moon River Battle Aura erupted. In an instant, the air shimmered with ripples!
Li Yi’s pupils abruptly contracted to pinpoints.