CHAPTER 384: CHAPTER 11: THE BIRTH OF THE TATTOOED BEAST’S SWORD BODY

It’s not just the stirrings of the Tattooed Beasts— even the Great Wilderness Immortal Body reacted in turn.

"Ugh..."

Li Mo let out a muffled groan as eight Acquired Spirit Roots sprouted numerous offshoots, binding his spiritual sinew and Sword Pouch even tighter together.

The tattoos flowing across his entire body surged ceaselessly, causing his flesh, blood, and bones to boil.

Judging from the instincts relayed by the Tattooed Beasts, it seemed the Ten Thousand Transformation Sword Infant could benefit them immensely, a drive propelled purely by instinctual tendencies.

Li Mo’s expression shifted subtly. He did not immediately permit the Tattooed Beasts to enter the Sword Pouch.

Instead, he closed his eyes and sought to commune with the Ten Thousand Transformation Sword Infant.

After all, the Tattooed Beasts were the core of the Great Wilderness Immortal Body and bore no connection to the Sword Dao. If they were transformed into a Lifebound Flying Sword within the Sword Pouch, it would bring nothing but disadvantages to Li Mo.

One should know that Flying Swords were an extremely uncanny construct; otherwise, the concepts of cocoons and Night Wandering versus Day Tripping wouldn’t exist.

At the same time, the temperature in the room intensified.

Luo Yang apparently had run out of patience. The Three Flavors Sword Intent filled every inch of the air, causing the entire Three Suns Sword Tomb to quake violently.

Li Mo’s face showed helplessness.

Cracks on the walls continuously spread, while inexplicably, dust began to catch fire on its own.

Li Mo, while focusing on the Tattooed Beasts, released the Blood Soul, whose snake-like entrails coiled tightly around the walls to prevent the structure from collapsing suddenly.

"Huh?"

Li Mo then noticed why the Tattooed Beast wanted to enter the Sword Pouch.

It was indeed due to the Great Wilderness Immortal Body.

The spiritual sinew of the Great Wilderness Immortal Body had already seamlessly connected with the Sword Pouch, indirectly linking the Taasu Beast Infant and the Ten Thousand Transformation Sword Infant with an inexplicable resonance.

The phenomenon resembled Dao Body Fusion— the starkly distinct Nascent Souls shared an unexpected correspondence.

"Could it be... even Nascent Soul Bodies can fuse, similar to the Dao Body?"

A fiery glint flashed in Li Mo’s eyes.

Perhaps at his current stage, Nascent Soul Fusion was no more than an illusion of unattainable complexities.

But nearing the threshold of immortality, Nascent Soul Fusion might prove to be pivotal.

The Tattooed Beasts’ desire to burrow into the Sword Pouch wasn’t to be transformed into Lifebound Flying Swords, but to gain the traits of a Flying Sword through the Great Wilderness Immortal Body.

Indeed, it made sense.

The Tattooed Beasts, being without physical forms, relied on the Great Wilderness Immortal Body for cultivation; naturally, their forms were fluid and never fixed.

"Even without involving Nascent Soul Fusion, making the Nascent Soul tighter-knit is worthwhile."

Li Mo no longer obstructed them, allowing the seven Tattooed Beasts to swarm into the Sword Pouch freely, though he monitored them closely in the Middle Dantian with his Divine Sense.

Beastly roars reverberated one after another.

Once inside the Sword Pouch, the bodies of the seven beasts transitioned into a semi-tangible state.

At the same time, they emitted a profound Conception that even startled Li Mo— the very Conception inscribed by the strokes during their tattooing.

The Red Fox’s [Demon].

The Ghost Tiger’s [Ghost].

The Salamander’s [Life].

The Kun Whale’s [Desolation].

The Golden Toad’s [Sha].

The Mountain Demon’s [Evil].

The Candle Dragon’s [Yin and Yang].

Immediately after, an incredible bestiality erupted from within their forms.

Even the typically docile Salamander displayed a savage aggression, with the Sky-reaching Tree on its head covered in sharp spines.

Each possessed the power of the Nascent Soul Stage.

Even though they relied on the illusionary spirit power of the Xia Dao Technique, their cultivation wouldn’t falter as long as they remained within the influence range of the Spirit Root Worm.

The Lifebound Flying Swords hurriedly distanced themselves from the Tattooed Beasts.

The seven beasts crouched one after another next to the Ten Thousand Transformation Sword Infant, their Spiritual Power washing over them, as the sound of hammering emanated from within Li Mo’s body.

"Sculpting Sword Bodies to grant the Tattooed Beasts another method isn’t a bad idea."

Li Mo lost his connection to the Great Wilderness Immortal Body, noticing that his skin no longer bore any tattoo patterns— it would likely take some time for him to undergo rebirth completely.

Since the Ten Thousand Transformation Sword Scripture had already surpassed the Nascent Soul Stage, there was no point in staying in seclusion any longer.

As Luo Yang’s anger steadily mounted, the temperature in the Three Suns Dojo continued to rise, and the activity outside faded into complete silence.

"The Cocoon Sword is proving far more troublesome than anticipated. Luo Yang still hasn’t resolved the issue."

Li Mo’s expression turned grim.

He knew he couldn’t afford to wait any longer. Being in an enclosed space, if he were caught in the crossfire, he wouldn’t even know how he’d die.

"I need to leave the dojo first..."

The Blood Soul anchoring the walls was already sizzling and hissing, indicating how the rising temperature endangered even pseudo magical artifacts— this was no place to linger.

Li Mo retracted the Blood Soul, rolling off the ground as he stood.

The walls crumbled with a loud crash as the structure’s interior melted away.

Pitch-black void stretched endlessly before him; the passageway lay in ruins, strewn with headless corpses standing eerily upright.

The corpses were, naturally, remnants of the Sword Ghosts, affected by the Cocoon Sword. Their deaths were ghastly.

Their flesh melted like wax, with spines serving as wicks still flickering with faint flames.

The Cocoon Sword’s indiscriminate taboo— its destructive power knew no bounds.

As Li Mo inspected the corpses, the Three Suns Dojo once again trembled violently, the entire structure sinking further into the earth.

"Senior Luo, save... save me..."

A voice cried out from the direction of the Forging Room, where a figure huddled in the doorway.

The individual seemed to be one of the seven Sword Cultivators in the Three Suns Sword Tomb. However, most of his flesh had melted, and his head was engulfed in roaring flames.

His back was already fused with the wall, and the more he struggled, the fiercer the flames burned.

Before Li Mo could react, the Sword Cultivator’s head burned to ashes, and his lifeforce was snuffed out in an instant.

Li Mo pillaged the corpse.

He realized the fallen Sword Cultivator had been in the Nascent Soul Stage, yet against the Cocoon Sword’s taboo, he had no resistance.

"This won’t do— relying on Luo Yang to escape is clearly unrealistic."

Li Mo clutched the Illusion Fish Sword, his Divine Sense sweeping over the Sword Pouch before spitting out a Lifebound Flying Sword that hovered beside his shoulder.

It was an eye-shaped sword, radiating a faint golden glow.

[Golden Armor Eye Sword]

Evidently, the Golden Armor Eye Sword was crafted partially from ocular tissue, carrying Yang Attributes and already reaching the Nascent Soul Stage.

For Li Mo, unless he mass-produced Lifebound Flying Swords within a short period, minor organ losses wouldn’t severely impact his body.

The Golden Armor Eye Sword emitted a ringing Sword Sound, its golden glow illuminating a range of a hundred meters.

With the Ten Thousand Transformation Sword Scripture reaching the Nascent Soul Stage, his Sword Pouch could now hold up to a thousand Flying Swords, which could remain in the outside world for up to an hour.

It could barely serve as a standard method.

Most crucially, the Lifebound Flying Swords could counter the paralyzing terror induced by detachment taboos.

Li Mo placed a hand on the scalding wall.

After being reforged, the Three Suns Dojo had become a singular entity, like a massive cage.

"A cage indeed— there isn’t a single normal one among the Sword Ghosts."

Li Mo pressed forward through the shadowy path.

Everywhere he looked, fragmented corpses of flesh and shattered sword blades were scattered about.

Judging by appearance alone, Sword Ghosts didn’t differ significantly from regular cultivators— except their bodies were filled with sword blades and lacked any Five Internal Organs.

Whoosh.

A streak of sword light brushed past.

Li Mo sidestepped, his Cave God’s Eye locking onto the attacking Sword Ghost.

"Child... walk... don’t make... sound, sound, sound..."

An old woman shuddered upon seeing Li Mo, stumbling toward him uncontrollably.

She was no longer human, her frame barely containing visible White Bone beneath ravaged skin, her entire body marked with bite scars, and her candle-like head aflame.

There was not a shred of kindness in her demeanor; she resembled an Evil Ghost clawing its way out of the Underworld.

"Child..."

"Who are you calling ’child’?"

After Luo Yang’s purging, most of the Sword Ghosts in the Three Suns Daoist Temple had gone into hiding—or lay in mangled pieces across the ground.

Determined to avoid further entanglements with the old woman, Li Mo charged within half a meter of her position.

Clang.

The Illusion Fish Sword unleashed waves of Sword Light, the concept of Universal Illumination vividly on display.

"Child..."

The old woman’s head flew skyward while her body was pierced by the Golden Armor Eye Sword. Yet her never-ending murmurs persisted.

Boom, boom, boom.

Uncertain how long the dojo could hold, Li Mo hastened to find an exit, carefully gathering usable corpses along the way.

In moments, he had over a thousand bodies.

The more intact ones would make perfect Corpse Mountain Tenants, while the fragmented remains could be broken down into valuable spiritual materials. There was no denying the Sword Ghosts’ substantial worth.

The Blood Soul coiled around his waist, prowling for the faintest scent of flesh like a hyena on the hunt.

An hour passed, yet Li Mo encountered no more Sword Ghosts— only countless headless corpses scorched to the bone.

The temperature climbed further, distorting the surrounding air.

By tracing the flow of the wind, Li Mo pinpointed the direction of the exit.

"Child." Another call came.

Li Mo turned to see the old woman crawling out of dried blood again. But the moment she emerged, her head reignited in flames.

The Golden Armor Eye Sword turned incorporeal and slashed through her neck.

Li Mo narrowed his eyes, taking her remains into the Corpse Mountain Mini World once more.

The blood left behind by the Sword Ghosts flowed like a malignant tumor across the ground, moving in step with Li Mo’s footsteps.

The blood re-coalesced, forming what appeared to be an embryonic shape.

However, the repeated deaths were clearly slowing the Sword Ghost’s resurrection.

"Truly uncanny."

Li Mo was in no mood to wrestle with the Sword Ghost further. Riding the Golden Armor Eye Sword, he darted through the darkness.

His mind began to overheat, the omnipresent Candlefire Sword Intent intensifying with every moment.

What’s more, Li Mo realized the Cocoon Sword had sensed his presence, its gaze filled with pure malice.

Soon.

On the dojo’s ceiling, hundreds of candles burst to life.

Countless candle-like creatures, clinging to the walls like geckos, began swarming toward Li Mo.

They only slowed the flames on their heads by drawing closer to him.

Li Mo cursed under his breath, noting the hordes of monsters rapidly multiplying behind him. Streaks of Sword Light narrowly grazed him, their force blocked by his layers of old and new skin.

He injected Great Sun Spiritual Power into the Golden Armor Eye Sword, accelerating his Sky-controlling speed.

The Illusion Fish Sword darted up and down in wide arcs as Li Mo’s strikes grew ever more refined. Wherever the Universal Illumination Sword Intent swept, the monsters faltered and turned against each other.

Their numbers swelled to over ten thousand, their molten flesh merging into amorphous sanguine spheres.

A thought struck Li Mo— a mass of ten thousand Corpse Mountain Tenants would be a massive boost to any magical treasure, perhaps even enabling the Spirit Root Worm to ascend to the level of a high-grade magical treasure.

However, managing them...

Just then, beastly roars resounded from within the Sword Pouch as the Tattooed Beasts completed their rebirths one after another.

Li Mo was nearing the exit, and after deliberately navigating a few additional paths, the number of monsters chasing him had already exceeded twenty thousand.

"Fine, since they’re offering themselves as Corpse Mountain Tenants, how could I not accept them..."