Chapter 16: On the Eve of Battle

Mu Feng returned to Mu Manor, another quiet, late night settling in.

Once the door was shut, Mu Feng felt utterly drained, nearly too weak to walk, wishing he could just collapse on the bed and sleep soundly. Soreness pulsed through every part of his body. His chest, abdomen, and other vital spots bore heavy strikes from the Sky Splitting Tiger, bruised black and purple, as if his bones were on the verge of snapping. Had anyone else suffered such blows, they would’ve surely ruptured their organs and died right on the mountain.

“Ferocious Tiger Splitting the Heavens, the Sky Splitting Tiger!”

Mu Feng grunted lowly, slowly sitting cross-legged. He silently recited the Clear Wind Method. Wisps of pure Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy filtered through his body, transforming into chilly currents that coursed within him, quietly healing his wounds and nourishing his meridians.

After the intense battle, the Shaoyin and Lesser Yang Meridians, long clogged since childhood, felt considerably looser. But perhaps they had been blocked too long or damaged too severely. No matter how much Spiritual Power surged in, it still wasn’t enough to be absorbed. After soaking up vast amounts of energy, these meridians grew tougher and more resilient, yet stubbornly refused to fully unblock. The surging power couldn’t complete a single full cycle.

So close, yet worlds apart!

He could clearly see his breakthrough just out of reach, merely a half-step away. But it stayed stubbornly beyond his grasp, as distant and unreachable as the ends of the Earth!

“All outcomes hinge upon tomorrow’s final battle!”

Mu Feng murmured thoughtfully. He pulled out the Eighteen Yin Wind Command Banners from his robe, examining and contemplating them carefully.

This was arguably his only treasure. The final confrontation against the Sky Splitting Tiger tomorrow would undoubtedly be the most dangerous and fierce. A single misstep and he might die by the Sky Splitting Tiger’s hand before fully unblocking his Shaoyin and Lesser Yang Meridians. His opponent was terrifying even without a weapon. How much more terrifying would his attacks be when wielding his favored arms and artifacts?

Remembering the fierceness and brutality of Sky Splitting Tiger Jing Hu, Mu Feng’s expression turned grave.

Sinister. Icy. Heavy…

Each little banner was astonishingly weighty, at least over ten pounds each, forged from unknown material. When he ran his fingers over them, his fingertips traced dense patterns of freezing cold Talismanic Script. Countless symbols overlapped in layers to form mysterious patterns. At first glance, they resembled sinister skulls; upon closer look, they transformed into fierce demons, chilling Yin winds swirling toward him.

Thud. Thud. Thud…

After a moment of observation, Mu Feng channeled a stream of refined Spiritual Power into the banners. With a flick of his wrist, he flung out all eighteen, planting them in a circle centered on his body. Instantly, the banners stirred without wind, cloaked in swirling Yin Wind. Unearthly howls and wails faintly echoed in his ears.

Whooosh…

A sharp, shrill sob pierced the air. The eighteen banners swelled rapidly with the wind. Each banner manifested an eerie, snarling skeleton visible on its surface. Bone claws tore outwards, pulling monstrous figures halfway through the banner fabric, as if they were stepping right off. The banners trembled violently, rattling and whooshing, straining to rise from the ground and vanish into thin air.

“The Way of the Sorcerer is boundless—forge them for me!”

Mu Feng roared forcefully. Gathering his energy, he forced out eighteen droplets of vital essence, flicking each onto a separate banner. Hands forming a profound Sorcerer Seal, he chanted.

Ancient Witchery—Blood Refinement!

Using his lifeblood as the catalyst and his will and spirit as the foundation, he unleashed the archaic sorcery utilized by Ancient Great Sorcerers to refine everything under the heavens.

In the Ancient Era, Great Sorcerers led their tribes to carve out territories, daring to challenge the heavens and earth themselves. Back then, colossal beasts roamed the land, their claws tearing space apart with a swipe; immense birds soared the skies, covering thousands of miles with a single wingbeat. Revered by foreign races, they were worshipped as gods. Only the indomitable Ancient Great Sorcerers dared confront them. For those sorcerers, even a falling leaf or a drop of rain could be a deadly weapon. Thus, they developed Blood Refinement—a power capable of refining all creation.

Huuuuumm…

After absorbing a droplet of Mu Feng’s vital blood, the violent trembling of the eighteen banners eased. They were washed with a glint of crimson light. Dense inscriptions of Talismanic Script engraved themselves onto Mu Feng, the Great Blood-Refining Sorcerer—a permanent spiritual brand he couldn’t erase.

Instantly, the skulls on the banners writhed in struggle, but their forms grew fainter. In their place emerged eighteen Yin Wind-laced demons. Then the banners shimmered, revealing eighteen fierce reapers armed with scyths… Finally, fixed upon each banner surface were neither skulls nor demons, but shockingly—eighteen thousand-zhang-tall Ancient Primordial Witches!

Their faces blurred, their figures dim, yet as one they roared heavenward. An overwhelming, supreme aura crashed over Mu Feng! It felt like the eighteen Ancestral Sorcerers who once dominated the Ancient Era were awakening from the River of Fate!

“Ancient Witchery—Spirit Gathering!”

Mu Feng reacted swiftly, changing the sorcerer seals. He concentrated to gather the scattered wills and souls of the Ancient Great Sorcerers across all time and space, intending to summon those peerless Primordial Witches onto his banners.

Regrettably, his spiritual power remained hindered, unable to complete its cycle, stalling every time at the Shaoyin and Lesser Yang Meridians. He could only watch helplessly as the images of the eighteen Ancient Primordial Witches faded, vanishing back into the tattooed banners. After trembling intensely, all eighteen flags shrank back to palm-size. A sweeping motion with his hand summoned them neatly back.

Compared to before, they showed little change in size or weight. Yet crimson light pulsed within them, and tiny, deeply carved characters for “巫” (Sorcerer) shone fiercely from their poles. Deep as wood!

Fine treasures!

Tracing his fingers delicately over the “巫” (Sorcerer) character on a banner pole, Mu Feng’s heart surged with excitement.

Moments ago, while he’d failed to summon all eighteen mighty Ancient Primordial Witches in one go, the power contained within these Eighteen Yin Wind Command Banners was undeniable. All it required was powerful enough spiritual power and spirit sense to call forth eighteen formidable skeletons, demons, reapers…even the unrivaled Ancestral Sorcerers themselves, mighty enough to kill gods and buddhas!

“Great Blood-Refining Sorcerer! Blood Refinement Great Method! From now on, these eighteen banners shall bear the name: Eighteen Blood Witch Commands!”

Mu Feng let out a triumphant roar, his fighting spirit soaring. His belly gurgled, then rumbled like thunder, growing deafeningly louder.

These eighteen banners promised hope of ascending to the Cultivation Peak. To think that such peerless treasures were hoarded by the despicable scoundrel Skinny Monkey—what sheer waste! In essence, this was a set of eighteen ultimate artifacts capable of gathering Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy and spirits, summoning eighteen formidable champions to battle alongside the master. The greater the master’s strength, mightier this artifact set would become!

“Sky Splitting Tiger, I hope you won’t disappoint me tomorrow!”

Raising his head towards the fish-belly white tint kissing the horizon, Mu Feng slowly exhaled a heavy breath.

Midnight had passed. The Tribute Payment deadline loomed closer.

He absolutely must mend his clogged meridians and break through to the Mortal Realm in one fell swoop. Only then could he straighten his back forever, escape the vile Tribute Payment, and free his mother from others’ contempt. Should he tragically fail, however, both he and his mother would be expelled from Mu Manor. Without the Manor laws shielding them, the villainous young master Mu Qingyuan and his lackeys would surely unleash cruelty upon them.

Second last day before the deadline!

Steel-faced, carrying pressures like mountains, Mu Feng bowed his head in fierce, concentrated cultivation, silently awaiting the final battle.