Poison God's Heritage

Chapter 772: Mega-Mind

"Right, now, what are we going to do with this thing over here?" the Dusking Sun asked, pointing at the unconscious Noble Black sprawled across the floor. His eyes narrowed with a mix of curiosity and caution, the flickering light casting shadows across his stern features.

"Same as before—capture, analyze, and experiment on it. I'll need to figure out all of its weaknesses and strengths to better understand its nature and how to defeat them," I replied, my mind already racing with plans. My fingers itched to start the process, to unravel the mysteries this formidable creature held.

"You really need multiple bodies," the Blue Sun sighed, shaking her head with a mix of exasperation and admiration. Her eyes sparkled with a blend of respect and concern.

"Why?" I asked, genuinely curious about her line of thought.

"Honestly, I'm very impressed with the way you do things. Not only are you cultivating with your main body, but you're also training against the Rakshasa, preparing to wage a war against the Sea of Demons to claim that land, and now getting ready for an upcoming invasion. All of that while still being at the Void Stage.

If you were at the Sun Stage, I would feel much more confident about the upcoming trials," she said, her voice full of genuine respect.

I grinned, feeling a surge of pride. "Don't worry about me. I'll do all I can for what's coming next. I've faced grimmer odds in my life, and this is but a step in the path of cultivation. As for the Sea of Demons, the plan has already begun."

One of the Dusking Sun's eyebrows shot up. "Really? You've already started?" he asked, intrigued.

"Indeed. Once I'm done sealing this guy, I'll show you," I said, gesturing to the Noble Black. I commanded several puppets to come forward and completely seal it, chaining it down with numerous inscribed chains. The Noble Silver was also pinned down as I commanded the seals to lock its movements. No matter how it struggled, it couldn't even budge or use its Qi properly.

Turning to the Blue Sun, I said, "The Red Slab is here." I pointed at the half-puppet on the floor. The holding bag flew to my hand, and I handed it to her. "I suppose Tao Yang can assist you in reading and studying it to make more Soulsteel."

"Automaton," I called out.

"Yes, master," it replied promptly. Discover hidden tales at ???

"How many puppets do we have in operational status?" I asked, needing a clear picture of our resources.

"We have sent twenty thousand of our forces, led by X and Y, to the Sea of Demons. As for what remains inside the Pagoda, we have a little over twenty thousand armed, and ten thousand that have yet to receive their weapons," the Automaton reported.

So, about fifty thousand puppets. Sadly, that's not nearly enough to match the forces of the Sea of Demons—not by a long shot. This number isn't even enough to occupy a single city. But I wasn't planning on waging a frontal war anyway. Most wars are won by fear.

"Can you still open the gate to the Bastion?" I asked the Automaton.

"Now that it is stable and slowly generating its own energy, I can only open it if allowed by Tao Yang, as she can control its protective barrier."

"Good. Tao Yang, can I ask you to assist the Automaton in sending a few of my puppets to several sections of the Bastion?" I requested, turning to her.

"What are you planning?" she asked, her eyes narrowing with curiosity.

"I'm planning on cleaning up the Bastion of Rakshasa. Since we captured their current leader, the rest can easily be destroyed by dumping poison onto them. Especially with the death of the majority of the White Rakshasa thanks to the Poison Gas, the rest don't have any meat shields," I explained.

"I see. But how are you going to deal with the Silver Rakshasa? We can't even see or sense them," she pointed out, her concern evident.

"I'll handle those personally later. For now, we need to kill all the Brutes and Blacks, and any random White stragglers," I said, my mind already formulating strategies.

She nodded and began coordinating with the Automaton on how and where to open the gates to send in my forces.

"And what about your main body?" the Blue Sun asked, her tone thoughtful.

"I'll be swapping focus back to it and leaving Shen Mo here to climb up in cultivation. This avatar is falling behind a lot," I said, feeling the weight of my responsibilities.

Just as I was about to switch Shen Mo to automated cultivation mode, I turned to the Automaton. "One last thing—get the puppets to study and replace these reactors inside my ship with these engines. Also, create a larger Y-Build. You remember the Titans back at the trial of the Darkest Sun? I want at least ten puppets that size," I said, my mind whirring with possibilities.

"The metal we'll need to create something that size is enough to build about a thousand puppets. Is it wise?" the Automaton asked, its voice tinged with caution.

He was right, but my goal wasn't to waste material. I needed shock and awe—it was the best way to deal with mobs of people.

"Don't worry about the cost. Don't we still have enough metal reserves?" I asked.

"If we continue building at this rate, we'll exhaust the entire reserves," the Automaton warned.

"If you want, I can send in some Soulsteel that has been broken off or is not in use from the Bastion to this place," Tao Yang offered.

"You can do that?" I asked, surprised and hopeful.

"Yes, the Bastion itself has a massive storage of unused Soulsteel. I can give the Automaton the coordinates, and we can extract it. I would have mentioned it before, but it was too risky to get there due to the Noble Black," she explained.

"You'll need to be careful," I cautioned. "There could be Silver Rakshasa hiding, and they might enter the Pagoda."

"I'll remain here just in case," the Dusking Sun interjected. "Just do your thing and rest easy," he said, settling himself in front of where the gate usually opened.

"Thank you. I'll repay these favors one day," I said, gratitude coloring my voice.

He nodded, and I nodded back before making Shen Mo sit down to cultivate while I swapped my focus back to my main body, Shen Bao.

I sat at the peak of the Tempering Mountain, a large, steep, and incredibly tall mountain with its peak far above the clouds. The view was breathtaking—an endless canopy of white clouds spread as far as the eye could see, with the bright rays of sunlight shimmering on top of them like a sea of cotton.

The peak wasn't vast, about a dozen or so meters in diameter. Twenty-four pillars surrounded the peak, arranged in a circular formation to harness the world's Qi. It was an amazing place for any cultivator, the amount of Saint Qi swirling around so dense it was visible to the naked eye.

But that wasn't the only remarkable thing. The entire peak hid a Saint Qi dragon vein that spread from the mountain's base, coiling through the rock and all the way to the peak. This dragon vein was a source of immense power, and I could feel its energy pulsing beneath me.

Despite the awe-inspiring surroundings, I felt extreme nausea from the surge of Qi. The most bizarre thing was that my left arm was not… my arm. It had fused and extended into the shape of the Primordial Serpent God. The massive serpent coiled around the mountain peak, its fangs deeply embedded into the dragon vein, absorbing Qi like drinking water through a large straw.

The Qi it absorbed was being pumped into my veins at an alarming rate, causing various parts of my body to bulge and deflate rapidly.

"S-stop!" I cursed, but the serpent showed no intention of stopping. It was greedily drawing Qi, intent on restoring its cultivation base at my expense.

The only way out of this mess was to use the Qi the serpent was absorbing to upgrade and increase my cultivation rank.

I closed my eyes, focusing on my breathing, trying to calm the storm within. The Qi surged through me, overwhelming and invigorating at the same time. I could feel my body straining to contain the influx, muscles twitching and bones creaking under the pressure.

"Damn it, I have to control this," I muttered through gritted teeth. I directed the Qi flow, channeling it through my meridians, guiding it towards my Dantian. The process was excruciating, like trying to tame a wild beast within my own body. Beads of sweat formed on my forehead, dripping down my face as I fought to maintain control.

The Serpent's presence was a constant pressure, a relentless force pushing me towards my limits. I could feel its hunger, its desperation to regain its strength, and I had to match that with my own willpower. There was no room for error; a single misstep could mean the end.

I was relaxed and though stressed back in the pagoda, I never expected to come back here to this stupid mess. I had to keep my focus up for now or else…

As the minutes dragged on, I could sense the change. The Qi was beginning to stabilize, the chaotic energy gradually aligning with my own. My body was adjusting, adapting to the increased flow. The pain started to subside, replaced by a sense of growing power. I was evolving, my cultivation advancing at an unprecedented rate.

It was my first time experiencing something like this. Since I always cultivated by chugging and eating up pills to power through my cultivation stages, feeling the natural heavenly Qi in my body was a brand new experience and you can tell…

"Almost there," I whispered to myself, focusing on the final steps. I could feel the breakthrough approaching, the barrier to the next stage weakening with each passing second. The Serpent's energy intertwined with mine, forging a new path, a stronger foundation.