CHAPTER 367: CHAPTER 113: 13 IMMORTALS? INNATE IMMORTAL SEED

"What the hell is going on?"

The scene before him was absurd beyond belief, but Li Mo’s attention was solely fixed on the high-level entities, whose oppressive aura made his skin crawl.

Amid the dense fog stood twelve colossal figures, each with a cultivation level above the Divine Separation Stage.

Their condition was bizarrely grotesque, as though their bodies and souls teetered on the brink of collapse, their flesh and bones contorted and malformed, emanating an unbearable stench.

It seemed they had just wriggled out of narrow containers, akin to the Boxed Man.

Li Mo’s close proximity triggered a torrent of feedback from the Creation Book, laden with information about Taoist and Demon cultivators from the era before the cosmic upheaval.

All twelve had lived for over ten thousand years without exception.

And, for reasons unknown, their bodies and souls had been trapped inside common, narrow containers—clearly intended for the Twelve Immortals.

[Boxed Man], with the Daoist title Gui Qiong, was once the Sect Leader of the Ten Desires Forest, at the Void Refining Stage ten thousand years ago.

[Bagged Man], with the Daoist title Jian Yu, was a core disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect, also at the Void Refining Stage from ten thousand years ago.

[Bottled Man], with the Daoist title Poison Jiao, was a Loose Cultivator proficient in the Poison Dao at the Divine Separation Stage ten thousand years ago.

......

Li Mo immediately sensed the connection to the cosmic upheaval upon seeing this.

The twelve were, in all likelihood, survivors of the ancient cultivation world, but why were they hiding in containers? And why were those containers so mundane, like objects from the mortal world?

Their mental states were deranged, murmuring to themselves in incomprehensible gibberish.

"Damn it."

"Even though I have Four Nascent Souls, how could I face the terrifying nature of Externalized Dharma Bodies, let alone the schizophrenic ones still at the Void Refining Stage?"

Li Mo instinctively moved back but froze in place after retreating merely half a meter.

He stood at a very peculiar location.

The spot was where the aura of thirteen palaces converged, unnoticed even by those of the Void Refining Stage—clearly a deliberate arrangement by Zu Xiuyun.

However, the safe zone extended only half a meter around him.

A mere few steps forward would instantly attract the attention of various factions.

"In a way, Senior Sister hasn’t made things overly difficult for me. If I abandon the identity of a Thirteen Immortal, I can avoid danger."

"But can I truly escape it?"

A shiver ran down Li Mo’s spine as his gaze swept over the multiple clones of himself climbing the thirteen palaces.

Just among those palaces, there were seven to eight hundred Puppet Bodies, while thousands of flesh sacs were scattered nearby.

Inside the sacs, new versions of himself were visibly taking form.

If Li Mo’s suspicions were correct, the Puppet Bodies were similar to Mou Miaoqing’s earlier creation, the Meat Body Stone, meant to replace him.

But Puppet Bodies were not Meat Body Stones, as the latter were top-tier Foundation Spiritual Objects that even individuals at the Divine Separation Stage couldn’t possess too many of.

One thing, however, was certain.

Once Puppet Bodies entered the palaces and went through a complete transformation, they might develop Spiritual Wisdom.

And when they did, they would undoubtedly try to replace Li Mo.

"Senior Sister, your grand gesture is one I cannot afford to accept."

Li Mo’s gaze fell upon the other palaces, where the Twelve Immortals had already taken residence; the Senior Sisters seemed to be harnessing the remains of the No-Life Mother to extricate themselves from irreversible eldritch corruption and loss of control.

Splhh—

The palace of Sixth Senior Sister squirmed slightly, and out crawled a giant deceitful object, its entire body composed of amber-like flesh.

The object persisted only briefly under the assault of eldritch corrosion before collapsing into a puddle of filth.

Li Mo gasped sharply; the object bore traits of Mou Miaoqing’s corruption, suggesting Sixth Senior Sister was attempting to transfer her own aberration.

If she succeeded, the Twelve Immortals could completely rid themselves of their corruption.

But still...

Why were both Taoist and Demon factions involved? Their attitudes seemed oddly deliberate, as if they were purposefully advancing the Twelve Immortals’ transformation.

"Cosmic upheaval, No-Life Mother, Twelve Immortals, daytime ascension..."

Li Mo muttered endlessly under his breath.

He appeared to have grasped some clues, ones that undoubtedly entangled themselves with the cosmic upheaval, yet they stubbornly remained just out of reach, like paper thin glass.

As Li Mo pondered, over a hundred Puppet Bodies emerged from the sacs, urgently scrambling toward the thirteen palaces.

Only one opportunity to inhabit the palaces existed, forcing the Puppet Bodies into savage struggles.

Li Mo’s eyes flickered with a hint of temptation, and he suddenly contemplated the value of the palaces, surveying the sprawling meat mountain that stretched across thousands of meters.

The Sunlight Bodhisattva, seeking to ascend to the Divine Separation Stage, would have to cultivate the Buddha Embryo Skill.

The entry requirement for the Buddha Embryo Skill was to parasitically inhabit a host body, which would give birth after thirty-three days and thus allow for breakthrough.

The host’s strength would inevitably influence the Bodhisattva’s ability to cultivate its externalized dharma body; an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator would never suffice for the Sunlight Bodhisattva.

And the thirteen palaces, formed from the remains of the No-Life Mother,

were not only extraordinarily complementary to Li Mo but also contained immeasurable nutrients, perfectly suited as the Bodhisattva’s host.

"Whether or not the No-Life Mother ascended to the Immortal Realm remains unclear, but she was at least a Land Immortal. Using her essence for Buddha Embryo Skill is downright extravagant."

Li Mo’s eyes burned with fervor.

Yet he remained cautious of the Taoist and Demon factions; should he act recklessly with hostile intent toward the Twelve Immortals, his emergence would be no less futile than a mantis blocking a cart.

As Li Mo hesitated, a wave of Demon Cultivators swept in from the abandoned Purple Mansion Black Market.

Though wearing robes embroidered with the emblem of the Ten Thousand Demon Dao, these demons were universally of Core Formation or Nascent Soul cultivation levels, their status equating to less than pigs or dogs—mere expendables.

They had all been brought by Gui Qiong, the Boxed Man, specifically to arrange an Array.

Li Mo noticed their severely mutilated limbs and organs, evidence of the Array requiring a great number of Demon Cultivators sacrificed to set the foundation.

"Has Core Formation and Nascent Soul cultivation levels sunk to being inferior to livestock in major sects?"

A flicker of astonishment crossed Li Mo’s face before he quickly came to grips with reality.

The Cultivation World was riddled with the chronic affliction of immortality, resulting in the surplus of low-level practitioners within major sects.

If a cultivator showed no potential for advancement to higher realms, they’d inevitably be relegated to expendables.

"The opportunity is mine!"

A Demon Cultivator with a twisted visage ripped off his skin, exposing ten intricately inscribed vertebrae.

The ten vertebrae extended outward, transforming into ten stunningly beautiful women.

"Husband, we’re here to help you seize the opportunity!!!"

The ten women entwined with one another, casting spells with forked tongues. Explosions erupted incessantly, leaving deep craters across the ground.

"Yin You, I, Pu Jian, have always admired your ruthless determination—rendering all your blood relatives into furnaces for your foundation, hahaha, truly impressive."

Pu Jian’s dual-toned face twisted as he flipped his hair back, revealing the visage of his late wife behind him.

Dodging spells with nimble maneuvers, Pu Jian taunted Yin You, while the wife behind his head wore an expression of venomous resentment.

"Husband, kill him! Kill him, such an ungrateful and unfilial person!"

"Oh, I will—be patient,"

Pu Jian’s right hand gently caressed his wife’s face, his eyes full of tenderness.

The inheritance from the Ten Desires Forest was deeply sinister, a unique Yin and Yang Dual Cultivation Technique requiring the refinement of women into organ furnaces.

The creepiest aspect, however, was that mutual affection between the partners was necessary to unleash the full power of the technique.

Other Demon Cultivators showcased their organ furnaces as well, though the furnaces’ spiritual wisdom was evidently inferior, due to shortcuts in the refinement process.

The spiritual wisdom of the furnaces directly impacted the efficacy of the magic, but at least they wouldn’t turn against their masters.

Of the Ten Desires Forest’s servant disciples, only Pu Jian and Yin You had successfully achieved mutual affinity.

Yin You, whispering sweet nothings, incited his organ furnace to near madness, unleashing spells that kept driving Pu Jian back.

As the Demon Cultivators fought fiercely, the high-level practitioners watching remained utterly indifferent.

Grabbing a clone body, Yin You cackled and said, "All of your foundations have already been drained; you have no hope of breaking through to the Divine Separation Stage."

"So why not bestow the opportunity upon me and let me ascend instead, ahhh."

Pu Jian interrupted with a cold sneer: "You’re only relying on your Innate Taoist Body and Moon-Shielding constitution to refine ten furnaces for assistance; how does your talent or comprehension compare to mine?"

Yin You paid him no heed and dragged the clone body further away from Pu Jian.

In the Ten Desires Forest, disciples without potential to reach the Divine Separation Stage were labeled [Human Mixed], even if their cultivation level reached Nascent Soul, relegating them to servant ranks.

Yin You had always lived in constant fear.

Should an Elder require a furnace, his Moon-Shielding Body would likely be reduced to expendable materials, or directly used as raw ingredients for Artifact Refinement.

"The Secret Realm organized by Gui Qiong, the Supreme Elder, is my only chance."

Yin You’s face flushed as the organ furnaces clung to his neck, moaning seductively into his ears.

He had spent his entire fortune to obtain Gui Qiong’s secrets.

The Secret Realm, as officially announced by the Ten Desires Forest, promised that merging one’s body and soul into the No-Life Mother’s remains—called the [Mother Egg]—could purge inner corruption and elevate Golden Core quality immensely.

Yet few knew the magnitude of the Mother Egg’s hidden implications.

"Gui Qiong, the Supreme Elder, often drifts in and out of his spiritual wisdom, but three thousand years ago, during a moment of lucidity, he mentioned the No-Life Sect repeatedly while muttering that the Twelve Immortals were [Innate Immortal Seeds]."

Yin You’s breathing staggered, ignoring the organ furnaces’ incessant embrace.