The thing inside looked simple but in actuality, it was not.
Poisonous Saber Gentleman’s face changed. “Zizhen, are you mistaken? Aren’t Concentric Knots lost in Danzhou since a long time ago?”
Xia Zizhen smiled bitterly. “I don’t know if they’re really Concentric Knots, but they’re exactly the same as what I saw in ancient books so…”
The 2 of them were almost on par with each other in martial arts cultivation. If there was a life-or-death battle between them, Xia Zizhen, who lost his spirit beast, might be killed by Poisonous Saber Gentleman. Nonetheless, the former was a disciple from the Beast King Sect, after all. It was worth noting that even if cultivators from wealthy and influential sects lacked in martial arts, they were far more knowledgeable than successors from ordinary sects.
As for Big Yellow, Fat Antelope, and the Silver Ridge Giant Leopard, they were even more clueless about Concentric Knots. They kept staring at the average-sized crock as though the soil inside was the most delicious thing in the world; they were completely drawn to it.
Ou Yangming cleared his throat and asked, “Brother Xia, what are Concentric Knots?”
Xia Zizhen was stunned, and he asked in shock, “Brother Ou, do you really not know?”
“If I know what they are, would I waste your time?”
“Brother Ou, please forgive me.” Xia Zizhen smiled bitterly, then he explained after some thought, “Concentric Knots are incredibly peculiar treasures, but it’s said that their refining method has been lost for several millenniums. I can’t be sure about the other states, but they haven’t been seen in Danzhou for a long time.”
Ou Yangming pondered and asked, “What’s a Concentric Knot’s function?”
There were more than 1 Concentric Knot inside the coffin; there were 9 of them.
Xia Zizhen immediately answered, “It’s incredibly mysterious, but it only has one function, which is to make one immune to the magic art attacks of one’s companions.”
“What?” Ou Yangming was dumbfounded and in disbelief.
“Legend has it that a Concentric Knot carries a secret technique. If 2 or more people wear Concentric Knots of the same style, they won’t be harmed when they release magic arts at each other.”
Ou Yangming understood its function in a flash. A weird look was seen on his face as he mumbled, “Gang fights…”
“You’re right—gang fights.” Poisonous Saber Gentleman stated with a smile, “If 2 groups of people are in a gang fight, where one party was bound hands and feet while the other party released magic arts and skills from pieces of equipment without any restraints, the outcome would be clear, right?”
Ou Yangming nodded. He looked at the accessories in the coffin fervently.
“Given that they’re able to make one immune to the magic art attacks of one’s companions, they’re wonderful!”
“Brother Ou, a Concentric Knot can exempt one from most magic art attacks, but there are also some restrictions,” Xia Zizhen added after a moment of hesitation. He explained after a pause, “For instance, if you summon an aerolite attack and destroy where we’re standing on, the Concentric Knots’ protective effects will be in vain.”
Ou Yangming could not help but laugh. “I understand. If the group-damage magic art’s too powerful, the Concentric Knots won’t be able to relieve it.”
“Exactly.” Xia Zizhen continued with a smile, “Another thing is that they can only relieve the effects of magic art attacks, so you’ll still be hurt if your companion punches you.”
“Even so, it’s a rare treasure.” Ou Yangming nodded.
Xia Zizhen responded, “Yes, but unfortunately, the refining method has already been lost in Danzhou.”
Ou Yangming was undecided at first, then he reached out to retrieve the 9 small accessories.
He released his mental conception to copy them into his spiritual world and began studying them inside the world.
The small accessories were identical, such that even the slightest details were handled uniformly. By observing through the thoroughly meticulous state, Ou Yangming soon determined that they were made by the same person.
As he dove deeper with his mental conception, sure enough, he found rune marks on them.
He curled his lips into a smile and thought.
‘They’re indeed a type of Rune Skill, but the rune must be the most powerful kind to be able to unleash such an unbelievable might.’
The runes inside the small accessories were mysterious and unpredictable as every stroke contained a queer power. They would make an amateur dizzy, whereas an insider would become extremely immersed and would not be able to withdraw oneself.
Ou Yangming was completely drawn to the runes on the accessories.
Through his eyes, the small runes somehow evolved into a formation map. Yes, a formation map, which is a treasure comparable with a formation board.
The young fellow was shocked by his discovery. It turned out that the Concentric Knots did not carry Rune Skills, but Formation Maps.
A Concentric Knot was equivalent to a formation board, but it was way more complicated and difficult.
In a way, the practice was similar to forcing power that could be accommodated by a formation board into a small Concentric Knot.
Taking carving masters as an example, where one carved a palm-sized wood while the other carved a rice grain. Even if the 2 masters carved the same drawing, it would be clear which was a tougher process.
Ou Yangming felt helpless. He had not fully perceived ordinary formation boards, so how could he understand anything from Concentric Knots, which were of a higher level.
He sighed and opened his eyes. “These should be Concentric Knots. Let’s distribute them since they’ll come in handy.”
Xia Zizhen and Poisonous Saber Gentleman nodded. When they entered the secret realm with Ou Yangming, they knew they definitely needed his help as a caster, but they were also afraid of his power.
Now that they had the Concentric Knots, they were much less worried.
Since there were 9 runes, even after giving Big Yellow and the 2 spirit beasts one each, there were 3 left.
Ou Yangming stored them in his interspatial bag without any hesitation. Upon seeing this, Xia Zizhen and Poisonous Saber Gentleman did not complain at all because they knew the accessories would only be useful for casters.
The young fellow later looked at the crock and asked, “Brother Xia, do you know what this is?”
Xia Zizhen shook his head and answered, “Brother Ou, I’m not a know-it-all. God knows what this is, but I suppose it’s unordinary seeing how the spirit beasts are so drawn to it.”
Poisonous Saber Gentleman waved his hand and said, “No matter what it is, it’s useless to me, so you can split it between you.”
He was not a disciple from the Beast King Sect, and he was also uninterested in keeping a spirit beast. Therefore, even if the thing was highly beneficial for spirit beasts, he could not be bothered at all.
Xia Zizhen wondered for a brief moment, then he nodded and retrieved the crock. Following that, he divided the black soil inside into 2 parts.
Ou Yangming and Xia Zizhen shook their hands and kept their respective share of the black soil.
Big Yellow and the 2 other spirit beasts turned gloomy right away, and they looked bitterly at Ou Yangming.
The young fellow chuckled and said, “Foodies, I don’t know what the thing is yet. If it contains poison, wouldn’t you be asking for trouble if you eat it? I’ll look it up in ancient books once we go back, and I’ll give you your shares if it’s something good.”
After being lectured by him, Big Yellow and the others finally became spirited again.
They knew Ou Yangming well enough to know that he was a man of his word.
Poisonous Saber Gentleman then clapped his hands and asked, “Are you done? We can continue with our journey now.”
Xia Zizhen chuckled and expressed, “It’s quite a surprise that we stumbled upon Concen
tric Knots this time, so why are you in such a hurry!” Despite that, he identified the direction and advanced again.
Right after taking 2 steps, Ou Yangming was suddenly struck with a thought, so he turned around and kept the coffin in his interspatial bag.
He could not hide from Xia Zizhen and Poisonous Saber Gentleman, but they simply smiled bitterly and were not aggrieved at all.
They had interspatial bags too, but the bags had small spaces, thus they could not store something as massive as the coffin.
Xia Zizhen and Poisonous Saber Gentleman could tell that the coffin’s material was unordinary, but they could not carry it with them, not even if they chopped it into planks. As such, they could not give up on it.
They lamented when Ou Yangming easily put it inside his interspatial bag, ‘Casters are wealthy indeed. Being a caster and a blacksmith at the same time, he’s even more wealthy.’
As they set out again, Xia Zizhen seemed to have a way to identify danger; he changed paths several times throughout their journey. They took a big round, but they did not encounter any danger.
Ou Yangming admired Xia Zizhen’s ability as the guide.
He had sensed some dangers ahead when they walked on straight paths but before he could warn Xia Zizhen, the man had led the way to avoid danger.
Regardless if it was due to a certain treasure or Xia Zizhen’s innate ability to seek luck and avoid danger, it was assuring.
Xia Zizhen was evidently exhausted after walking for a day and a night on the plain. It was clear that being the guide was a difficult job as most of his energy was spent on avoiding danger.
All of a sudden, he stopped and pointed ahead into the distance. “Brother Ou, the place where we previously found the spiritual herbs and poisonous pills is over there.”
Ou Yangming looked, but he furrowed his eyebrows after a while.
An aura that he yearned for was over there indeed but similarly, there was a strong sense of crisis.
“This isn’t right—I can sense danger over there.” Xia Zizhen shook his head and sighed. “Ah, after taking such a long detour, we still didn’t manage to evade it.”
Chapter 626 - Food
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Ou Yangming looked like he was moved. After hearing what Xia Zizhen said, he knew that little insects were harmless so far, or the man would not have openly talked about the danger.
Poisonous Saber Gentleman’s face changed, and he questioned fiercely, “They’re really ahead?”
“Yes.” Xia Zizhen sighed and added, “I can sense that they’re on a large scale, so we might not be able to get around them even if we continue to make detours.” He continued after a pause, “Brother Ou, if I’m guessing this right, countless little insects are lying in ambush ahead. Now, we have 2 choices—one is to charge ahead directly while the other is to give up on this area.”
Ou Yangming blinked and asked with a smile, “Are there also poisonous pills and spiritual herbs in the other areas?”
Xia Zizhen smiled bitterly. “We didn’t enter this spirit realm for a long time during our last visit, so I’m not too sure. That said, I believe that this realm isn’t that simple, so there are probably more important areas.”
The young fellow looked around him. He could sense that the voice that was calling out to him was still further ahead, but there were also things in the area that produced poisonous pills and spiritual herbs that attracted him. Although they could not be mentioned on equal terms with the calling in the distance, since he and his companions had come across them, there was no way they should miss the opportunity.
“Brother Gentleman, what’s your plan?” Ou Yangming raised another question while grinning with his eyes narrowed.
A fierce look was seen in Poisonous Saber Gentleman’s eyes. “I got this treasure saber smithed for today. Heh, I honestly won’t be resigned if we simply leave without trying.”
Xia Zizhen sighed and remarked, “Gentleman, you asked me not to be stubborn, but aren’t you the same?”
Poisonous Saber Gentleman was stunned. He flushed and responded, “Zizhen, Brother Ou, if you think there’s no need to enter the area, let’s change our direction.”
He wanted very badly to advance with his saber, but he still considered his companions’ thoughts and was unwilling to bring them into a dangerous place.
“Brother Gentleman, since you won’t be resigned, let’s go over there.” Ou Yangming smiled and added, “I’d also like to see what exactly is so detestable.”
Xia Zizhen shook his head and smiled bitterly, but since his 2 other companions had made their decisions, he could not object to the idea even if he was quite worried.
Besides, as said by Poisonous Saber Gentleman, they were prepared this time, hence it would not be too much if they took the risk.
This time, Poisonous Saber Gentleman led the way. He was highly-spirited as he moved forward with his chin up and chest out while putting his hand on the saber on his waist.
The ground in front of him suddenly shook after 15 minutes. Though Xia Zizhen knew he was on guard, he could not help but shout, “Watch out!”
“Pow.” The ground split open as a fingernail-sized insect jumped out from the soil and sprung on Poisonous Saber Gentleman.
Poisonous Saber Gentleman simply sneered. Before one could catch his moves, a flash of light emerged from his waist and instantly slashed the insect into 2.
The insect was incredibly tenacious. Even though its body was already split, its limbs kept shaking as though it was still alive.
Ou Yangming furrowed his eyebrows. The little insect was not noteworthy at all, by which it was far from the insects outside the Ni family’s secret realm in the lower realm. Therefore, he was puzzled about the reason the 2 Spiritualists were extremely afraid of the little insects.
Fat Antelope’s eyes lit up. It went forward and approached the insect all of a sudden.
While the others looked strangely at it, it lowered its head and stuck out its tongue to eat the insect.
Poisonous Saber Gentleman and Xia Zizhen were dumbfounded and in disbelief.
‘Where did this bald antelope come from? Isn’t its food range too wide?’
Fat Antelope devoured the insect and even stuck out its tongue again to lick its mouth as if it was asking if there were more insects to be eaten.
Xia Zizhen forced a smile and glanced at Ou Yangming as he thought, ‘I’m afraid that only a weird caster like Ou Yangming can keep a similarly odd spirit beast.’
“They’re here…” Poisonous Saber Gentleman turned his head abruptly and uttered.
Sure enough, spots on the ground in the distance suddenly split open one after another. Following that, little black things emerged from underground. Ou Yangming was not bothered at first, but he looked grave after a brief moment.
This was because there were eventually too many little insects that came into view, and they were so densely packed that it was quite a frightening sight. If any of them here had trypophobia, they would probably be scared to their deaths.
Fat Antelope cheered without warning and charged at the swarm of insects.
‘Food! Food! They’re all mine!’
“Be careful, quickly come back!” Xia Zizhen’s face changed, and he yelled fiercely.
Fat Antelope was a spirit beast that could eat insects, but Xia Zizhen knew very well how fearsome the insects were. If the fat antelope attacked the swarm of insects alone, it would likely suffer a horrible fate.
Who knew, what happened next caused Xia Zizhen and Poisonous Saber Gentleman to be in disbelief.
The instant Fat Antelope dashed into the swarm of insects, the troublesome little insects did not attack it at all. Instead, they escaped in all directions as though they saw a terrifying ancient beast.
Nonetheless, the insects were not as fast as Fat Antelope. As such, the fat antelope immediately caught up to the bunch of insects in front of it and widene
d its mouth to suck them in with all its might!
Fat Antelope’s mouth turned into a bottomless pit at once as plenty of insects tumbled into its mouth. Subsequently, it shut its mouth tight and munched the insects before it swallowed them. At this point, not a single insect could be seen within roughly 30 meters from it.
The faces of Xia Zizhen and Poisonous Saber Gentleman twitched. If they knew this would happen, would it not be better to simply bring Fat Antelope into the secret realm instead of a powerful army?
It was true that the insects feared Fat Antelope, but they were not afraid of Ou Yangming and the others. The other humans and beasts were delicious food to them, and it would be such a pity if they did not eat them up.
With that, the insects that were driven away by Fat Antelope turned around to swarm toward Ou Yangming and the others.
Owing to the overwhelming numbers, the swarm of insects looked like a black wave from afar, and it made one’s scalp tingle.
Poisonous Saber Gentleman scoffed and said, “I’ve been waiting for you for a long time!” He later withdrew his treasure saber and shook his wrist to activate the Skill Runes.
Exceptionally obscure energy was released from the saber’s handle right away, and it kept spreading in all directions.
At the same time, Ou Yangming noticed mysterious powers rippling around the bodies of him and his companions. The powers resonated with each other and connected them into a unit. Inside the unit, magic arts or skills that were released by any of them would be relieved.
This was the power of the Concentric Knots, which was marvelous indeed.
The threat from the swarm of insects in the distance was real, but Ou Yangming was still attracted to the Concentric Knots’ unique ability at the moment.
“Woosh…”
An invisible energy fluctuation, which carried a hint of the poisonous pill’s special properties, expanded.
As soon as the swarm of insects entered a range of about 10 meters from Poisonous Saber Gentleman, they slowed down. They eventually decelerated even more until they only lay on the ground.
When Poisonous Saber Gentleman pulled out his saber to slash their bodies into 2, instead of dying on the spot, they struggled for some time.
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