Chapter 779 – The Great Battle of Witch Creek City
…
…
…
Large cities naturally had the law and order of large cities, otherwise, they simply couldn't be called a city. There would be no difference between them and the barbaric wilds filled with bandits and strife.
In Witch Creek City, all who took part in public fighting would suffer severe punishment. Anyone who ignored warnings would even be executed.
"The city guards are on their way. Then there will truly be a good show to watch, haha!"
And as everyone expected, they city guards quickly caught up. The captain of them was a man named Rong Lin. Before everyone arrived he shouted out, "Just who the hell do you two think you are!? You dare to fight so openly in my Witch Creek City! How insolent!"
As the captain of the city guards, he was generally a solemn and dignified character. Usually, just a single shout from him was enough to frighten others and solve any problem.
But this time, after he shouted out his warning, he was actually ignored. He stared with eyes wide open, as his vision tightly locked onto that skinny skeleton old man that was flying in the air. Then, his complexion completely paled.
"C-Corpsemancer!?"
He was petrified the spot.
"Captain, those two fellows are far too arrogant, they actually dare to fight in the skies of my Witch Creek City! They are courting death!" Beside Rong Lin, another city guard that had relied on family connections to join suddenly spoke up. He was a young martial artist that served as Rong Lin's deputy.
"Captain, why don't you tell them to lay down their weapons so we can quickly capture them?" The young martial artist looked at Rong Lin in puzzlement.
However, Rong Lin remained completely silent while his complexion was becoming increasingly ugly.
Well, if the captain wasn't going to do it then he would do it for him. The young martial artist felt that shouting out loud and grabbing everyone's attention would be a very glorious act.
"To those listening above! We are –"
The young man only just started shouting when Rong Lin jumped like a cat and quickly covered the young man's mouth.
"Do you want to die!?"
Rong Lin's entire forehead was covered with nervous sweat. In every Divine Kingdom, there were only several dozen Destiny Decree characters and most of them were in long term seclusion. They simply lived like hermits for the majority of their life.
If they were a central ruling figure of a mortal nation, then Rong Lin could only be considered a middle class city guard official. The disparity in status could be imagined.
And most fearful of all was that Corpsemancer was an infamous fellow known for his capricious cruelty. Anyone that fell into his hands would suffer a fate worse than death!
He would rather face a top 200 ranked Destiny Decree character than have to cross paths with Corpsemancer. This was because Corpsemancer could randomly kill someone without even batting an eye!
"Captain?" The young man asked somewhat unhappy.
"Everyone obey my command! Evacuate the crowd and isolate the scene! Without my orders, no one can speak a single word of nonsense and absolutely no one can interfere! All offenders will be brutally punished!"
As Rong Lin spoke to here he suddenly saw that the skeletal man floating in the air shot a glance at him. The skeletal man smiled, revealing a blood red tongue and bone white teeth.
It was just a single look but Rong Lin was filled with fear and terror. It was like an icy bone lance had been thrust into his heart.
Rong Lin trembled with dread. He waved his hand and said, "Everyone, retreat ten miles out!'
"What?"
"F*ck! I told you to retreat, so retreat! That fellow above us is a Destiny Decree master!" Rong Lin originally didn't want to reveal the status of Corpsemancer, but as he saw that the young martial artist wasn't convinced, and even had an eager look to butt his way in, he had no choice but to announce a bit of Corpsemancer's information.
"De-de-de-Destiny Decree!?" The young martial artist was not an idiot. In fact, upon hearing the name of the famous Destiny Decree, everyone was shaken to their cores. They were all well aware just what that implied.
"Is there a mistake? If that skeletal old man is a Destiny Decree master, then what about his opponent? He's obviously just a 20 some year old youth, and his cultivation… his cultivation is… at the late Revolving Core realm!?"
"Yes, he is only at the late Revolving Core realm and his opponent is Corpsemancer. That young man is insane!" Rong Lin's eyes blazed as he looked at Lin Ming. As captain of the city guard he naturally had an understanding toward all the top level characters of the four Divine Kingdoms. However, he couldn't recall the slightest bit of information about Lin Ming.
It wasn't just the city guard, but all observing martial artists discovered that the difference in cultivation of the two flying in the air was simply too great.
"Is this a life or death battle, or a senior advising a junior?"
"He's definitely directing him. Don't make too much of a fuss, that old man might be that youth's master. He will certainly suppress his strength to a degree."
Woosh! Woosh!
Two shadows flew to a distant point 10 miles away from the battlefield. These two people were Grandma White and Xiaoxiao.
"Lin Lanjian Isn't someone from my Nine Furnace Divine Kingdom nor is he someone from the other three Divine Kingdoms. It's probable that he hasn't heard the fame of the Destiny Decree yet, thus he rashly acted. Young miss, this is our only chance. If we continue watching the battle from here then it's the same as waiting to die." Grandma White anxiously said.
If Lin Ming really were a junior of the four Divine Kingdoms then it would be impossible that someone with a talent as monstrous and unprecedented as his could remain obscure. Thus, she only thought that Lin Ming came from some faraway region and didn't know just how fierce the ranked masters of the Destiny Decree were.
Let alone Lin Ming, even that senior that knew Xiaoxiao's father couldn't be ranked on the Destiny Decree.
"Grandma White, there is a mark planted on my body; escape is no longer possible. I have already accepted my fate. I would rather stay here and watch Young Hero Lin's battle. Perhaps, there is even a small glimmer of hope that Young Hero Lin can create an opening for us. At that time we'll attack together, and even if we can't win, we can still die an honorable death!"
"Alright…" Grandma White shook her head, no longer attempting to convince Xiaoxiao.
At this time, more and more martial artists began filling the skies. All of them felt that something was off about this situation. How come that the usually blustering and swaggering city guards didn't take this chance to bring these law breakers down?
Meanwhile, up in the skies, Lin Ming and Corpsemancer had already faced each other for over 20 breaths of time.
Lin Ming was the first to make a move.
Bang!
Before his long spear even shot out, double force fields were already erupting outward.
The Asura force field combined with the Death God force field as the dual force fields were released together!
A tide of power rushed out in all directions, setting of a horrifying storm of energy.
The Death God force field, annihilating all life vitality.
The Asura force field, universal suppression of a martial artist's strength and soul!
The air trembled. Most of those martial artists floating in the air and watching the scene weren't masters. They hadn't yet been able to figure out just how Lin Ming's strength contrasted with Corpsemancer, but now as Lin Ming's force field enveloped the entire battlefield, all of them became nothing more than leaves in a storm, scattering or collapsing in all directions! The slightly weaker martial artists, even if they were an entire mile away from Lin Ming, still vomited out a mouthful of blood as they were severely injured!
"What is that!?"
All of the martial artists were dumbfounded. Was this the power released by that youth?
"What kind of killing intent is this?" Xiaoxiao forcefully gulped. Lin Ming had never used this power when he fought the Elders of the Heavencraft Family. It was clear now that he didn't think it was needed at the time.
"This is a force field ability, moreover he has dual force fields!" Grandma White recognized just what sort of skill Lin Ming had used. Force field abilities were exceedingly rare; even a supremely talented junior of the four Divine Kingdoms wouldn't necessarily have one. It was a highly revered and respected ability.
This was not because a force field was freakishly strong, but because a force field could coexist alongside martial skills. It could invisibly increase a martial artist's strength or have a number of other effects without affecting the martial artist's fighting ability at all.
"Hehe, boy, I like you more and more. Once I turn you into a puppet I can keep your force fields. This is far too perfect! Force fields are the ability that puppet masters love the most!" Corpsemancer sinisterly smiled and his ghostly eyes were gleaming.
A powerful puppet master could restore most of the special abilities a martial artist had before death. In fact, a puppet's power could even be raised through the passage of time with the application of a number of arcane skills.
"You really love dreaming."
Lin Ming barked out a short laugh and flourished his spear. He poured his battle spirit into it and thrust out. The inherent power of thunderfire broke through the shackles of space, and with a keening cry, a turbulent wave of energy began to rise up from all around.
Bang! Bang! B Bang!
Space nearly collapsed. Lin Ming's spear instantly passed a 1000 feet forward, thrusting straight between Corpsemancer's eyebrows.
Corpsemancer creepily laughed as his withered claws suddenly grasped forward. A black ghost claw appeared out of thin air and shot out towards Lin Ming.
As the claw shot forward a cold wind swirled up around it, as if countless grieving ghosts formed the black ghost claw that issued mournful wails.
Kacha!
The spear and sharp claw collided together. The ghost claw disintegrated, but Lin Ming's spear light also melted away like white snow under the scorching sun.
True essence shockwaves rolled up in massive waves. All of the surrounding martial artists quickly retreated as their complexions immediately changed.
It had become crystal clear to everyone here that these to evil stars were simply ancient vicious beasts in human form. If they were caught up in the ensuing storm of energy then there wouldn't be anything left of them, not even their ashes!
As for Xiaoxiao and Grandma White, they weren't affected because they were very far away to begin with. But they could still feel that horrifying energy that rampaged about, even from such a distance.
"This should only be a testing move. I have no idea how much strength Lin Lanjian used, but if that is the majority of his strength then there isn't even a slim chance that he'll win. Corpsemancer hasn't even brought out his puppets yet."
Grandma White's face was filled with worry. When Lin Ming had unleashed his dual force fields, a faint hope lit up in her heart. She had been slightly optimistic that Lin Ming might be able to create a miracle or even last a period of time against Corpsemancer. In such a massive fight, there would definitely be other masters arriving if it lasted long enough. At that time, there might be a chance for a favorable turn of events.
"How interesting! So interesting!"
Corpsemancer's skin stitched face became more and more excited. He swiped his special ring and a massive demon puppet rushed out. There were two great wings on its back and its entire body was wreathed in thick, dark blue muscles that were as solid as rock.
Giant Demon?
Lin Ming's mind went cold. This was actually a Giant Demon puppet! Just where had Corpsemancer managed to obtain the corpse of a Giant Demon?
"That is the puppet technique and also a Giant Demon puppet! That man must be…"
Some of the surrounding martial artists recognized the Giant Demon puppet. Although they didn't recognize Corpsemancer, they did manage to recognize that puppet. In truth, top masters that wielded puppets were nearly extinct.
Thinking of all of them, there was only a single person that was this famous for their puppet technique.
And then combining that with this sinister and ominous old man's cultivation, the truth of his identity finally revealed itself.
"The Destiny Decree ranked 330, Corpsemancer!"
"Corpsemancer? Is that really him!?"
"Heavens! No wonder the city guards don't dare to do anything! That old man is actually Corpsemancer… Then just who is that youth? Did that young man come out of nowhere?"
At this time, no one said anymore that the fight unfolding in the air was a senior directing a junior. Corpsemancer was absolutely not the type to do so, and Lin Ming's cultivation method was completely different from his.
This was a true life or death battle!
For a late Revolving Core powerhouse to challenge the Destiny Decree ranked 330, Corpsemancer, in a life or death battle…
This was madness!
Chapter 780 – Stepping Onto the Highest Stage
…
…
…
"This is a Giant Demon puppet that I carefully crafted myself. I call it… the Gargoyle. Let me take a good look at just how many of my puppets you can force me to use!"
Giant Demon puppet? So it seemed that the Sky Spill Continent also had a Giant Demon race. Just where had this Giant Demon corpse come from?
The Sky Spill Continent and the Holy Demon Continent were both isolated from each other. The last time that they had contact with each other was likely when the Netherworld Great Emperor traveled to the Sky Spill Continent through the Demon Emperor's transmission array and then later on founded the Silent Demon Emperor City.
If it was said that there were Giant Demon skeletons from thousands of years ago then Lin Ming wouldn't be surprised. But, puppet techniques required the use of fresh corpses in order to function properly. This meant that one of the four Divine Kingdoms had members of the Giant Demon race within them.
"Where is your Giant Demon corpse from?" Lin Ming directly asked.
"Hehe, of course it comes from the Asura Divine Kingdom. Is that so strange? This old man has no interest in bantering with the likes of you. Now die!"
Corpsemancer gave a loud shout and the Giant Demon puppet extracted a 15 foot axe before cutting it down towards Lin Ming.
As this axe cut out, roiling black clouds followed behind it. This was obviously the demon essence that the Giant Demon race used. Although it was similar to true essence, they had essential differences between them.
An astounding puppet master could reproduce all the abilities that the deceased had before their death. Demon essence was no exception.
'The Asura Divine Kingdom actually has the Giant Demon race; that is beyond my expectations.' Lin Ming shook his long spear, filling it with the Concept of Fire as he smashed it against the Giant Demon's axe.
But at this time, there was a crackling sound as a two foot section of the axe broke off. A thick chain pulled out from the shaft, causing the entire weapon to turn into something like a bola.
With special devices and traps everywhere, it was nearly impossible to guard against. This was one of the special characteristics of puppets.
Ka ka ka!
Lin Ming's red long spear was caught in the chain. At the same time, the axehead was pulled by the chain, smashing straight towards Lin Ming's head.
At such a close distance, for such a change to happen in the axe was truly a sinister combat technique. Moreover, since Lin Ming's spear was twisted into that chain he was unable to dodge it. Unless he abandoned his spear and retreated, his only option would be to directly block that axe.
But to a martial artist, their weapon was their life. To abandon their weapon in battle was equal to disillusioning their own heart of martial arts.
"Sir Lin!"
Xiaoxiao couldn't help but cry out in alarm as she watched the battle from a distance.
All of the surrounding martial artists also watched with wide eyes, waiting to see just how this junior would fight against such a top genius.
But at this moment, Lin Ming appeared nothing but serene. He shook he long spear in his hands.
The large success bronze battle spirit erupted!
Kacha!
With a shattering sound, that chain as thick as an arm was directly broken apart by Lin Ming!
Soon after, Lin Ming's spear thrust forwards, piercing through that half foot thick axe with an unstoppable and sharp spear light that stabbed towards Corpsemancer's head.
"Mm?"
Corpsemancer was bewildered. This was… a battle spirit!?
With his sight and experience he naturally recognized that this was a battle spirit. Lin Ming only had a mere late Revolving Core cultivation and yet his battle spirit was so keen; how could he not be shocked?
Bang!
Lin Ming's spear stabbed into a white bone shield. At that moment, in front of Corpsemancer, another puppet appeared. This puppet looked like a giant turtle. What Lin Ming had pierced through was its shell.
As the spear punctured the shell, although the shell didn't break, cracks still appeared, spreading out like a spider web.
All of the martial artists present could clearly see what happened. A spear had broken apart the axe and simultaneously broke through the first level of armor of another puppet. This striking power was freakishly abnormal!
"So you comprehended a large success battle spirit. It seems I truly underestimated you, no wonder you would dare to fight me." Corpsemancer's ghostly green eyes flashed with a blazing light. He licked his lips and coldly said, "I have now decided to sincerely kill you."
Lin Ming's talent far surpassed Corpsemancer's estimations. To have such an enemy, and for him to be so young, Corpsemancer naturally couldn't allow him to live. Otherwise, his future troubles would be endless.
"Complete body!"
With a loud shout, Corpsemancer's skinny skeletal body began emitting loud crackling sounds. The white cloth that bound his body like a mummy ripped apart and a pair of blood-red wings unfurled. After the wings stretched out they were more than 10 feet long; they appeared like the wings of a giant bat.
At the same time, scales began to appear all over Corpsemancer's face. His arms lengthened and his claws became even larger, a chillingly cold light shining from them.
After the initial probing strike, Corpsemancer was now ready to go all-out.
Lin Ming was solemn. After reaching this boundary, no other junior was his opponent. If he wanted to fight he could only challenge those old monsters that had been stranded in the Life Destruction realm for hundreds of years. In front of these existences, Lin Ming was still far too young.
There were several small boundaries within the Life Destruction realm. From the first stage to the seventh stage of Life Destruction, the difference was approximate to the difference between the Houtian realm and the Revolving Core realm.
For the late Revolving Core Lin Ming to challenge a Destiny Decree master, that meant that he had now transcended the struggles of juniors and transitioned into fighting powerhouses of the older generation. At this moment, Lin Ming had truly stepped onto the highest stage of the Sky Spill Continent.
Corpsemancer extracted a massive scythe from his spatial ring. The scythe blade glowed with a cold light and its entire body was deep black. It looked like the scythe of the grim reaper.
As the scythe appeared, a limitless amount of resentment and malice filled the air, as if countless ghosts were weeping and screaming around the scythe.
"What is this sound? It pains the ears!"
"It's drilling into my brain. The scythe is calling to me!"
All of the surrounding martial artists only felt as if countless demonic spirits were screaming into their ears. This sound seemed to have enormous penetrative power. Even if they covered their ears the sound still passed through, drilling directly into their spiritual sea.
As the martial artists with weaker cultivations heard this sound they felt as if their heads were about to crack open and all of the blood drained out from their faces.
"Hurry up and retreat!"
Some martial artists shook their hands as if they had awakened from a nightmare and began calling out warnings. However, many people were unable to withdraw under the effects of this sonic attack. They lost consciousness and fell down from the skies.
"This is the Evil Hate Scythe that Corpsemancer forged from countless suffering souls and lives. Every strike contains a near-endless amount of grudge and resentment; it can destroy a martial artist's will!"
"If just hearing the sound of it is so terrifying, then what will happen if it cuts down on you!?"
Lin Ming bore the attack. As he was enveloped in the energy field of resentment from the Evil Hate Scythe, his face remained expressionless.
He could clearly hear this resentment colliding with his own dual force fields. 'This Corpsemancer, it seems he really transformed his own body into a puppet.'
A high level puppet master's greatest strength lay in their own bodies. This was because their bodies made the best puppets. Once their skeletons and meridians were modified beyond all recognition, their defensive power would far surpass a general martial artist's.
To be invulnerable themselves and also be able to coordinate three or four puppets together, a powerful martial artist would have an extreme headache if they bumped into a formidable puppet master.
As Corpsemancer brought out his complete body, his two eyes had already transformed from a ghostly green to a deep blood red. He grabbed the long scythe in both hands and unfolded his wings. Then, he silently slid forwards like ghosts and demons; his speed was shocking!
All of the observing martial artists tarried. All they saw was a flash as Corpsemancer appeared in front of Lin Ming, his black scythe rapidly cutting down! This sort of speed was in no way inferior to Lin Ming's Golden Roc Shattering the Void!
Too fast!
Lin Ming was already horrified. This wasn't teleportation, but it was a speed that made it seem as if there were no difference!
"Nether Strike!"
The black scythe seemed to emerge from space. It cut through space, carrying with it endless resentment and howls from mourning ghosts as it slashed towards Lin Ming. This attack hadn't even arrived and yet its aura was so terrifying!
Lin Ming waved his spear. Facing this all-out Corpsemancer, Lin Ming naturally didn't dare to hold back.
Law of Annihilation, Chain of Stars!
A spear ran up to meet the enemy. The Concept of Fire and the Concept of Space were poured into the spear, causing all of the heaven and earth origin energy in a 10 mile radius to restlessly move. The fire energy and the power of space fused together, condensed into tiny little fragments that rapidly spun around like a chain of stars, shrouding down towards Corpsemancer.
Ca!
The tiny fragments of fire and space struck with the resentment of the black scythe, creating a harsh keening noise to split the air.
Lin Ming's spear crossed with the black scythe. A terrifying wave of true essence exploded, causing the atmosphere to vibrate. They were nearly evenly matched!
During the battle, Corpsemancer revealed a diabolical grin. Not only did he have his own attack but he also had puppets!
As Corpsemancer struck out with the Nether Strike attack, the Giant Demon puppet and the great turtle puppet also attacked. The Giant Demon puppet turned the axe shaft in his hands, turning it into a makeshift long spear as he thrust out at Lin Ming's back. At the same time, the great turtle puppet opened its vast maw and spat out a beam of black energy.
These two attacks joined together. Their combined power just was slightly less than Corpsemancer's own Nether Strike.
This was an attack from the front and back!
"Sir Lin, be careful!" Xiaixiao shouted out. Her life was now linked together with Lin Ming's – how could she not be tense? If Lin Ming was defeated, she would suffer a fate worse than death.
At this critical moment, Lin Ming took a sudden step forwards. Space twisted underneath his feet. Although it looked as if he had only taken a casual step forwards, he had actually crossed a mile, causing both of the puppets' attacks to miss.
Lin Ming stood in the skies. A mile away from Corpsemancer, he pointed his spear point right at him.
"I'm also confident in my speed. Although my long distance speed may not reach the degree of your twin black wings."
Bang!
Dozens of miles away, the black beam of energy released by the great turtle puppet smashed into a mountainside, causing an entire rock shelf to collapse.
Watching Lin Ming and Corpsemancer fighting in the air, everyone present felt as if they had lost their breath.
This was the showdown of Destiny Decree masters. Although the Sky Spill Continent had over 100 Divine Sea powerhouses, all of these existences were secretive individuals that almost never appeared. Most of them had hidden themselves in seclusion for countless years.
Without the Divine Sea, the Destiny Decree was king!
The Destiny Decree was equivalent to the highest stage of the Sky Spill Continent!
"Space Laws? What a pleasant surprise." Corpsemancer sinisterly laughed. As Lin Ming had said, that extreme speed of Corpsemancer's came from the pair of wings on his back. In terms of long distance travel, he was faster than Lin Ming. But, in short distances, he was actually slower than Lin Ming. Lin Ming's Golden Roc Shattering the Void was able to twist space, with a single step, approaching teleportation. This was the strength of Laws. As for those black wings behind Corpsemancer, they were merely heaven-step flight treasures.
"You are indeed an unrivalled talent. Only killing someone like you can bring me sweet pleasure! Jejejeje!"
Chapter 781 – The Demon Emperor's Armor
…
…
…
When Corpsemancer had finished speaking, he traced his spatial ring, and another puppet came flying out. It was a humanoid puppet that was wearing a set of armor made entirely of bone. Its body burned with dark green corpse fire; simply looking at the flickering flames caused one to feel a chill in their soul.
"That's likely the bat puppet recorded on the Destiny Decree."
"Those ghostly green flames… you shouldn't be wrong. That's a puppet refined from the corpse of another Destiny Decree master!"
Martial artists had a formidable level of soul force, and thus had near-photographic memory. Nearly everyone present had memorized all of the information on the 360 masters of the Destiny Decree. Most of the famous abilities used by these masters were recorded on the Destiny Decree.
And the puppet that Corpsemancer had brought out was his strongest puppet yet—the bat.
The bat puppet was refined from a Destiny Decree master that Corpsemancer had killed in order to be listed on the Destiny Decree himself. At the time, Corpsemancer's strongest puppet had been cut down by that master, and completely destroyed. Thus, after Corpsemancer had killed the Destiny Decree master, he used his corpse as the foundation for an even stronger, more powerful puppet. And that was the bat puppet in front of them. By relying on this puppet, he'd managed to become the 330th ranked character of the Destiny Decree.
Not only was he using the bat puppet, but he simultaneously used the Evil Hate Scythe. This proved that Corpsemancer had been forced to bring out all of his combat strength!
Corpsemancer had become infamous for over 300 years ago; he was now over 500 years old. As for Lin Ming, he was only in his early twenties. They were people from completely different eras.
Being able to force Corpsemancer to this step, regardless of whether he wins or loses, just that is enough to be proud of." Rong Lin thought out loud. He didn't know who this youth flying in the air was, but without a doubt, if he managed to live through this, he'd become an extraordinary figure that shook the entire Sky Spill Continent.
Huuu-!
High up in the sky, strong heavenly winds were surging. The bat puppet then extended its pair of black wings. In only a moment, it arrived in front of Lin Ming. It stretched out its claws, which shimmered with ghostly blue flames, and grasped at Lin Ming's neck.
Lin Ming gripped his spear, his posture becoming as immovable and steadfast as an ancient mountain. The power of thunder and fire poured into the red spear at the same time. The spear issued an excited keening cry as it fiercely shook.
Penetrating Rainbow!
The power of thunder and fire fused together. A brilliant beam of blazing light cut through the vast blue skies like a sharp sword, and was as bright as a blazing sun as it tore through the void. Lin Ming's spear solidly crashed into the bat puppet's claws.
Clang!
A metallic ringing echoed out in the air. The bat puppet's defensive power was as strong as if it were a heaven-step treasure. A generic martial artist could forget about ever breaking through its defenses. However, Lin Ming's attack wasn't normal; it contained a large success bronze level battle spirit!
Kacha!
The bat puppet's claws were abruptly torn off from Lin Ming's strike!
"Accept your fate boy!" Corpsemancer shimmered into existence like a ghost directly behind Lin Ming. His eyes gleamed with manic light as he raised his black scythe then cut towards Lin Ming's open back.
Endless resentment poured outwards, as if ten thousand grieving ghosts were crying in unison. This resentment condensed into substantialized energy and shot into Lin Ming's spiritual sea.
Peng! Peng! Peng! Peng! Peng!
Under the dual support of the Samsara martial intent and his battle spirit, Lin Ming's spiritual sea was simply an unassailable iron wall. As the power of resentment entered his spiritual sea, it was immediately burnt to ash and smoke.
Burning Star Flame!
The Heretical God Seed trembled. The highly compressed Burning Star Flame then erupted from the Heretical God Seed.
This was the power of a heaven-step Flame Essence!
Which a sizzling 'chi chi chi', all of the spirits attached to Corpsemancer's scythe were burnt to nothingness.
Law of Annihilation, Chain of Stars!
Lin Ming thrust his spear outwards. All of the heaven and earth origin energy in a radius of ten miles was stirred up by him, then concentrated into countless fragments of light that sparkled like the endless number of stars in the sky, before it all fell downwards. From far away, it looked like a sparkling galaxy had crashed into the earth!
Such an apocalyptic scene left everyone shocked.
Bang!
With an explosion, Lin Ming, Corpsemancer, and the bat puppet were all thrown backwards.
A trace of blood flowed out the edge of Lin Ming's mouth. However, Corpsemancer's shoulder had been pierced through by the spear light!
When the martial artists of Witch Creek City saw this fight from far away, all of them were shocked speechless. Corpsemancer's body had gone through the transformative process of puppet techniques. In exchange for a body that couldn't be called human nor ghost, he'd received a body with durability equal to a treasure. Yet he'd still been wounded by Lin Ming!
This was an incalculably strong strike.
Bang bang bang!
An incomparably brutal melee ensued as Lin Ming collided with Corpsemancer again and again. Their movements were so fast that any martial artist below the Life Destruction realm was entirely unable to even make out their movements. Lin Ming's body was tough from the start, and he excelled at frontal combat. However, Corpsemancer and his bat puppet were the same.
They were in sharp opposition!
"Bury the Heavens!"
Lin
Ming revolved the energy of his Eight Inner Hidden Gates to the limit. He thrust his spear out, and several massive cracks appeared in space. The power of space surged out from these cracks, twisting into a savage spacial storm.
The Burning Star Flame ignited atop the red spear, becoming even more vivid and fierce as it fused with the spacial storm.
This was the fusion of fire and space!
This spear contained Lin Ming's complete understanding of both the Concepts of Space and of Fire. At the same time, he also poured his large success bronze battle spirit within it.
On the other side, Corpsemancer stepped forward, and fused with his bat puppet. Then, with the sound of a wailing ghost, the bat puppet's body suddenly rapidly inflated, with a number of bones stabbing out from within its body!
Ribs, leg bones, arm bones… all sorts of long bones had been turned into white bony lances. At the same time, ghostly green flames burned atop every bony lance!
In the briefest of moments, the bat puppet had become extremely hideous.
"Take my strongest attack! 18,000 Deaths!"
In the blink of an eye, all of those bony lances, as well as the black scythe, shot towards Lin Ming.
18,000 was not some random number, there really were that many attacks. The attacks overwhelmed covered the sky, blotting out the sun, and blocking all avenues of escape.
From afar, it looked like both Lin Ming and Corpsemancer had been trapped in a sea of bones!
Xiaoxiao's heart tightened.
"Chi!"
"Chi!"
"Chi!"
"Chi!"
Mournful wails reverberated through both the clouds and earth—as if the entire world was crying together. Lin Ming revolved the Heretical God Force to the limit, his eyes blazing like two twin infernos. The Flame Essence atop his spear seemed ready to explode at any given moment.
"Break!"
With 'Bury the Heavens', several thousand bone lances were crushed to pieces. However, over 10,000 remained, which shot towards Lin Ming the same as before!
Lin Ming waved his spear as if it were a dancing red flood dragon. Shattered bone lances were everywhere, and bone dust endlessly rained down from the skies.
A strong heavenly wind wildly surged through the skies. Lin Ming's black hair flapped in the wind. He tirelessly waved his spear, as if he didn't know what exhaustion was—he was like a demon god incarnate!
"Bury the Heavens!"
Lin Ming ignored everything, and consecutively used Bury the Heavens twice. A dazzling black light was suddenly ejected from the sea of bones, directly sent flying into the horizon. Soon afterwards, countless brilliantly dazzling golden lights shot out from every all over the sea of bones. A sun seemed to rise within the sea of bones, emitting golden light as sharp as a sword that could cut through everything. The countless bones in the sky began to disintegrate like collapsing sand sculptures.
An immeasurable amount of bone dust flew everywhere. It covered the skies, becoming a white fog that filled the heavens and earth.
"Go die!"
Lin Ming forcefully cut a path through the sea of bones, thrusting his spear at Corpsemancer.
At this time, Corpsemancer had already separated from the bat puppet, and they were floating several dozen feet away from each other. Corpsemancer's blood red eyes had turned vacant. At some unknown point, the black Evil Hate Scythe had returned to his hands. Black corpse flames ignited into a blazing inferno atop the scythe's edge.
"Nether Strike, Locking Yin and Yang!"
With a slight movement of his lips, Corpsemancer spoke these words. Then, all of the resentment within the black scythe suddenly fused into a single mass, which locked the surrounding space!
Lin Ming's spear had already been thrust out. However, Corpsemancer had no intention of dodging this strike. Instead, he used the Evil Hate Scythe to cut towards Lin Ming's waist!
Lin Ming only felt the power of resentment wrap around his body; he found himself unable to dodge!
If he were to bring out the Burning Star Flame, then he coul he could reduce the power of resentment to nothing in just a few breaths of time. But by then, Corpsemancer's attack would have already struck him.
Their attacks were completely designed such that they would perish together!
Lin Ming had absolute confidence in his own defensive ability, but Corpsemancer did too!
Whose defensive power was superior?
This thought flashed through Lin Ming's mind, but he instantly rejected it. In this situation, with his strongest attack that also had his large success battle spirit poured into it, no matter how strong the Corpsemancer's strength was, it would still pierce through his skill!
Lin Ming didn't believe that Corpsemancer didn't value his own life above all else.
"Bury the Heavens!"
Facing this inescapable blow, he simply didn't think of avoiding it. Instead, he poured all of his true essence into the red spear, issuing out his final, most brilliant strike!
The power of fire and the power of space had perfectly fused together. The might of this spear was earthshaking!
However, Lin Ming didn't stab towards Corpsemancer. Instead, he threw his spear towards the bat puppet.
"Go!"
The red spear flew out from his hands, crossing the skies like a blazing rainbow!
With a light piercing sound, the bat puppet's head was pierced by the spear light. It's skull was cracked apart, and brain fluid shot out!
At the same time, Corpsemancer's scythe cut into Lin Ming's waist. Lin Ming's bodily protective true essence was instantly melted away, and corpse fire burnt through Lin Ming's clothes. The scythe seemed as if it would split him apart. However at that moment, the scythe's blade was actually blocked by something.
As Lin Ming's robes burned away, it revealed a jet black armor. This was the Demon Emperor's armor that Lin Ming had taken out from the Cosmic Melting Furnace!
The Demon Emperor's armor could weaken the majority of an attack, but it wasn't an absolute defense. Some of the leftover Yin energy rampaged through Lin Ming's body, recklessly tearing through his meridians.
Lin Ming's complexion paled, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.
Corpsemancer's final attack had severely wounded him.
If it weren't for the Demon Emperor's armor, Lin Ming might have died here. It was hard to say whether or not his body's physical defense could withstand Corpsemancer's strike.
"It's over?"
"What happened?"
Everyone looked on, dumbfounded, at Corpsemancer's scythe that was embedded in Lin Ming's waist. As for Lin Ming's spear, it was stuck through the bat puppet's head.
Corpsemancer stood stock still in front of Lin Ming, completely uninjured.
"Did the bat puppet block that youth's final attack for its master?"
"No wait, why do I feel that the youth intentionally attacked the bat puppet?"
"Not unless that youth is an idiot. In a fight against a puppet master, you definitely have to attack the main body. Only an idiot would attack the puppet!"
The final exchange of moves had happened too fast. Almost no one had been able to clearly see what happened.
Chapter 782 – Killing Corpsemancer
…
…
…
"Could that youth have been hacked to death by Corpsemancer?"
"What an idiot. He actually attacked Corpsemancer's puppet at the last moment. Was his brain fried or something?" A Xiantian martial artist asked out loud with a mocking smirk.
"Shut up!" An old man near him coldly humphed, "Do you think that everyone is as stupid as you are? That youth is one of Sky Spill Continent's favored sons of heaven! It's impossible that he wouldn't know how to battle a puppet master!"
The Xiantian martial artist looked a bit ugly as he was reprimanded. Still, he began mumbling to himself, obviously not convinced.
"Something's wrong. Corpsemancer wasn't injured but why is he standing still there? Could that youth have attacked Corpsemancer somehow and we didn't notice?"
"Just who won? What's happening here?"
Ten miles away, Xiaoxiao gripped her chest as her heart tightened in pain. Lin Ming and Corpsemancer were both immobile; this made her incomparably nervous.
To her, Lin Ming's victory or defeat was the difference between heaven and hell.
"Grandma."
"Don't worry, that Lin Lanjian is alright. But that Corpsemancer… Lin Lanjian obviously could have attacked Corpsemancer at the last moment, but he chose to attack the bat puppet instead. I really don't understand what is going on here…"
As the black-clothed old woman spoke halfway, a scene that left all martial artists confounded occurred. That Corpsemancer who was in front of Lin Ming suddenly fell from the sky, smashing into the ground!
Everyone was shocked. Just what was going on!?
Lin Ming's face was pallid as he reached out a hand and released a wisp of his battle spirit. The red long spear shot out and returned to Lin Ming's hand.
Then, everyone found that above Lin Ming's spearpoint, there was actually some fat meaty thing stuck atop it. And that thing was still convulsing and wriggling around.
This was actually a human brain!
As Lin Ming saw this white and glistening human brain, he let out a long breath.
It was over.
A puppet master could transform any part of their body, but there was one place that they couldn't change. That was – their spiritual sea!
The spiritual sea depended on the brain to exist. Corpsemancer's body had already been altered beyond all recognition. Now, his only true existence was his brain.
Zi zi zi!
The brain mass on Lin Ming's spearpoint was actually fiercely struggling. Moreover, it was sending out grating screams, vacillating up and down as if it were a giant fat white worm.
Lin Ming could feel words flowing into his spiritual sea. "Don't kill me! I will give you puppet techniques; I can tell you all the secrets of the Asura Divine Kingdom! With your talent and my knowledge, you can grasp the entire Sky Spill Continent in your hands and rule the world! It's impossible for you to find out what I know, even if I don't tell you of my own volition. Don't think of using the soul searching technique on me; I can self-destruct my spiritual sea!"
"I don't need you to self-destruct. In fact, I'll help annihilate you!" Lin Ming sneered, having no intention of bantering with this thing. He had absolutely no desire to learn anything like this strange puppet technique that turned one into something that didn't seem like a human or ghost.
"No… no!!!"
Puff!
Vibrating true essence sprang forth from Lin Ming's fingertips and ran up the red spear like a viper!
"Nooooo!"
Corpsemancer sent out a final pitiful scream. With a popping sound, the brain burst apart into a thick white liquid like rice porridge.
Corpsemancer had died.
As Grandma White, Rong Lin, and other Life Destruction masters saw this, they suddenly realized what had happened. Before that final strike occurred, Corpsemancer had shifted his brain into the skull of the bat puppet. Then, he had controlled his main body to perish together with Lin Ming.
This was a completely ruthless and insidious move. Once Lin Ming fell for it, he would stil fell for it, he would still be severely wounded even if he didn't die. He absolutely wouldn't be able to fight against the bat puppet Corpsemancer.
But Lin Ming had clearly realized what sort of change had occurred in those fleeting last moments. He had thus given up his attack on Corpsemancer's main body and switched his target to the bat puppet!
If these were peaceful times and one carefully investigated with their perception, then it wouldn't be difficult to find out just where Corpsemancer's brain had gone. But during that fierce battle just now, in that critical moment, Lin Ming had been able to discover this point! Now that was truly horrifying!
Slowly, all of the martial artists began to understand what had happened. Even those that were confused had the series of events explained to them.
For a time, a pall of silence fell over the entire city. Just who was this youth who had managed to exterminate Corpsemancer?
Some people noticed that Lin Ming was wearing a jet-black armor on his body. There was just a circular gap on the chest area, as if it were missing its heartguard mirror.
It was because of this armor that Lin Ming hadn't been cut in half by the Evil Hate Scythe.
What sort of armor was this that it could block Corpsemancer's final strike?
Hu –
Lin Ming took out a new set of clothes from his spatial ring and tossed it on, immediately covering the Demon Emperor's armor. When Lin Ming had first worn the Demon Emperor's armor he placed some minor camouflage on it because he didn't want to attract others' attention. But, that powerful attack of Corpsemancer just now had completely ruined his careful concealment.
For a short period of time, this armor should attract some people's attention. But Lin Ming didn't worry too much. Tens of thousands of years had already passed; it was impossible for others to recognize the Demon Emperor's armor.
Lin Ming received the broken bat puppet and the other puppets and then dropped down from the skies.
As he landed on the ground, all of the surrounding martial artists quickly scattered away from him in shock. Facing such an evil star, no one dared to remain near him, much less approach him. Even the city guard couldn't dream of controlling him. If anyone died here because of him then they could only blame their bad luck.
Lin Ming ignored the surrounding martial artists and gathered up Corpsemancer's corpse and spatial ring. Then, he sent a sound transmitting talisman to Xiaoxiao and flew towards her. At this time he needed to recuperate from his wounds. In that battle just now he had used every ability he had. Not only did he consume a massive amount of energy but he was also seriously wounded.
"He won… Sir Lin actually won…"
As Xiaoxiao saw Lin Ming fly towards her, her lips faintly shivered. Even she didn't dare to believe that this was real and not a dream.
A Destiny Decree master had actually been killed by Lin Ming! And Lin Ming was only at the late Revolving Core realm.
Xiaoxiao never imagined that the young man she met several days ago could actually kill a Destiny Decree master!
Every character ranked on the Destiny Decree was an earthshaking, all-powerful existence. Even if Heavencraft Pavilion called upon their complete resources they would still find it hard to move such a character to action.
He really won. Young miss, your father's spirit must be protecting us to have us encounter such an amazing person!" Beside Xiaoxiao, Grandma White began to cry. In these past days, Xiaoxiao had faced an infinite amount of pressure, but so had Grandma White. She had looked after Xiaoxiao as she grew up, and after receiving the grace of her father, she completely regarded Xiaoxiao as her own granddaughter.
When Lin Ming flew in front of Xiaoxiao, her entire face was wet with tears. For a time she was overwhelmed and unable to speak a single word.
"Lin… Sir Lin, I sincerely thank you…"
"I must heal first."
Lin Ming had no intention of speaking too much and flew directly to Heavencraft Pavilion. The current environment was not safe and he needed to ensure that he was at his peak condition. Otherwise, if he encountered a more powerful enemy he wouldn't even be able to escape.
As the martial artists of Witch Creek City saw Lin Ming fly towards Heavencraft Pavilion with Xiaoxiao and Grandma White in tow, all of them were flabbergasted.
"So it's someone invited by Heavencraft Pavilion."
"Just who is he? It's impossible for him to be in his twenties. He should be several hundred years old but just looks young."
A young martial artist muttered out loud. He was a genius of Witch Creek City's younger generation, but compared to Lin Ming he was nothing at all. He simply couldn't accept that they were of similar age.
"Don't be stupid, he isn't even at the Life Destruction realm. Only when a martial artist reaches the Life Destruction realm can they burn some of their cultivation to renew their youth. And this is only appearances – it doesn't lengthen their lifespan. Normally only female martial artists that value their appearance too much would do such things. Men normally wouldn't. After all, rejuvenating your appearance requires you to burn not a small amount of your cultivation."
"This is incredible news. He's so young and yet he killed a Destiny Decree master. The Destiny Decree will change again. Perhaps the four great intelligence networks will release a revised Destiny Decree soon."
Witch Creek City couldn't be considered a small city of the Nine Furnace Divine Kingdom, thus they naturally had branches of the intelligence networks here as well as eyes from the various major forces.
The news that Lin Ming had killed Corpsemancer quickly passed through every major intelligence network. And Lin Ming's name was also inquired – Lin Lanjian.
...….
At this time, in the front hall of Heavencraft Pavilion the purple-clothed Xiaoxiao knelt down in front of Lin Ming and was deeply bowing with reverential respect. "Sir Lin, I will never forget this gratitude as long as I live!"
Grandma White also bowed. This was no longer just helping Xiaoxiao ascend to the position of Company Head, but had involved saving Xiaoxiao's very life. As she deeply bowed before Lin Ming, her heart hated Xiaoxiao's two great uncles to the extreme. She cursed them for their ruthlessness. They had actually gone to look for someone like Corpsemancer – that was the same as kicking Xiaoxiao into the depths hell.
Since they no longer cared for face, she wouldn't keep any more scruples with her. As long as Lin Ming was here, she simply didn't fear a battle to the death.
"Miss Heavencraft, there is no need to bow to me." Lin Ming waved his hand. "We are just helping each other out according to the previous agreement. Miss Heavencraft must not forget my dragonspine grass either."
"I will definitely help Sir Lin find it as soon as possible. This is my Heavencraft Pavilion's Snow Ice Divine Pill. It has miraculous healing effects and also has the use of nourishing the meridians and dantian. Sir Lin, please accept it."
Xiaoxiao extended a pill box with both hands, respectfully presenting it to Lin Ming.
This was a miracle cure controlled by Heavencraft Pavilion. With Xiaoxiao's current authority, she didn't have the authorization to give it away without the approapproval of the Council of Elders.
But now that the situation had devolved to this level and she had nearly been killed by her two great uncles, Xiaoxiao could no longer care about whatever Council of Elders.
Having Lin Ming restore himself to his peak combat strength was the most important matter at hand.
Lin Ming glanced at the white divine pill within the pill box. Indeed, it contained an incomparably rich heaven and earth origin energy. Even Lin Ming, who had seen a great number of miracle medicines in his time, also felt his heart stir.
He didn't decline. He directly received the box and then entered his training chambers to restore himself.
The battle with Corpsemancer had been strenuous and exacting on Lin Ming. However, he had gained a number of insights during it and needed to seize this chance to digest them.
As everyone expected, in just a mere three days after Lin Ming and Corpsemancer's battle, a new Destiny Decree was issued forth.
Every three years, the four great intelligence networks would collect all new information on every Life Destruction powerhouse's cultivation, progress, and recent battles. They would then use all this information to speculate on their current approximate strength. This was when a new Destiny Decree would be released. Generally, there would be far-reaching changes every time.
Between the two issues of the Destiny Decree, if there was a fight between Destiny Decree powerhouses or a Destiny Decree powerhouse was killed, leading to a clear change in ranks, then a new revised edition of the Destiny Decree would be released.
And this time, the revision of the Destiny Decree was because of Lin Ming.