CHAPTER 356: CHAPTER 356: THE SEA CUCUMBER THAT CAN FORGE_1

"Eastern Azure Dragon Stars, Palm. Horn!"

"Southern Vermilion Bird Stars, Palm. Ghost!"

"Western White Tiger Stars, Palm. Legs!"

"The Seven Constellations of the Northern Black Tortoise..."

Shen Mo coordinated his head and hands, continuously launching Palm techniques. These, combined with the numerous Skills of his Demon Soul General, rained down upon the Sea Monkey Demon.

This late-stage Class III great demon, even with a demonic physique as tough as forged steel, couldn’t withstand such a barrage of attacks. The multi-toothed fish spear in its hand stirred constantly, creating layers of water curtains in an attempt to block the onslaught. The dense scales on its body also flashed with an eerie light, bolstering its defense. But it was of little use.

The lightning Skill unleashed by the Snake Eel Demon Soul General scorched its entire body black. A large patch of its dense scales was blasted off, leaving its skin lacerated, flesh exposed, and blood gushing out uncontrollably! The Ghost Bride’s Glare also roiled its vital blood, which it had been suppressing with its formidable demonic power. Once its demonic physique was injured, the bleeding from its wounds intensified. At this rate, its vital blood would soon be completely depleted. Master Hong Jue’s Water-light Pilian, imbued with myriad poisons, even turned the Sea Monkey Demon’s face green! The Gold and Silver Ingots of the Gold Piercing Ghost struck its chest painfully. The attacks from the other Demon Soul Generals made the Sea Monkey Demon feel as if it had stumbled into a demonic cave and was being besieged by a horde of demons.

If that wasn’t enough, Shen Mo was still slashing at it with sword Qi and smashing it with his Palm techniques.

The Sea Monkey Demon was well aware of the Sword Light’s sharpness. Even if it disregarded other attacks, it dared not be struck by the Sword Light. It desperately wielded its multi-toothed fish spear to shatter the streams of Universe Sword Qi.

Then, after being rammed by the Ghost Golden Sheep and gored by Doumu Xie, its aura instantly weakened, and it froze for a moment.

"ROAR!"

The Fire-Spitting Wolf King, a Demon Soul General, let out a growl. Even in the seawater, its escape speed was unaffected. With a flash of variegated light, it appeared beside the Sea Monkey Demon. Its gaping, bloody maw lunged, snatching the hu of pearls from the demon’s waist. Another flash, and it reappeared before Shen Mo.

Shen Mo patted the wolf’s head and took the coral jade hu from the Fire-Spitting Wolf King’s mouth, pouring out flawless, high-quality pearls before him. Shen Mo had seen many similar pearls on Ming Yu. These pearls were condensed by the Clam Girl clan using their innate talents and instincts. They were high-grade spiritual materials for refining bead-type magic artifacts.

The thirty-odd pearls now in Shen Mo’s hands were of even higher quality, likely condensed by a Class III Crystal Clam Demon. In a cultivator’s immortal workshop, each could fetch around ten middle-grade Spirit Stones. As a "parting" gift, their value exceeded 30,000 low-grade Spirit Stones, showcasing Demon Lord Ming Cang’s immense generosity!

Such high-quality pearls would be wasted if exchanged for Spirit Stones.

They are perfect for refining into bead-type magic artifacts, which are great choices for personal use or as gifts!

Shen Mo unceremoniously stored these pearls in his Universe Bag, then with a shake of the Soul Refining Flag, he retracted all the Demon Soul Generals. This wasn’t a life-or-death battle; passing the trial was enough. There was no need to kill or mortally wound the Sea Monkey Demon... though it currently looked quite injured.

The two extra heads on his shoulders, and the additional arms that had sprouted from his ribs and back, gradually dissolved into blood essence primality, merging back into Shen Mo’s body.

"Impressive skills!" the Sea Monkey Demon praised sincerely, blowing whirlpool bubbles from its gills.

Undoubtedly, its physique was astonishingly robust. In such a short time, the bleeding from all its injuries, large and small, had stopped. Its aura had also recovered, and it no longer looked as wretched as before. Of course, in terms of healing and recovery ability, it was still slightly inferior to Shen Mo!

Previously, on their trip to Golden Turtle Island, E Xun and the others had not witnessed Shen Mo’s full strength. Now, they were all dumbstruck. Even Wei Ye was secretly awed by Shen Mo’s terrifying combat strength after opening his Spirit Sea. If his companions reacted this way, it was even more so for the Marine Race guards watching from the sidelines; they all showed Shen Mo a newfound respect.

The guard leader, the Sea Horse Monster, had lost its earlier arrogance. It bowed slightly and said, "Immortal Master Shen, this way, please!" Saying this, it swam ahead to lead the way.

Shen Mo activated his Lightness magic and strode towards the Demon King Palace. Wei Ye, E Xun, and the others naturally followed closely.

Upon entering the palace gates and arriving before the Guest Hall, Shen Mo encountered the second trial. A colossal Marine Race demonic beast, shaped like a sea cucumber yet somewhat resembling an earthworm, blocked the hall entrance with its mountain-sized body. In front of it, to the left and right, were two piles of metal and stone ores.

"Immortal Master Shen, this is the second trial arranged by the Demon King," the Sea Horse Monster twisted its body and explained. "This Marine Race Senior is an expert in Artifact Refining; you must surpass it in this skill!"

Immediately, this enormous sea cucumber demonic beast swallowed one of the piles of ore and spirit gold whole. Then, its demonic physique began to writhe inch by inch, as if digesting these Forging materials.

Shen Mo observed it with great interest, even spending ten middle-grade Spirit Stones to activate "Insight into All Beings." Although it sensed someone using a spell to scrutinize its details, this sea cucumber demonic beast paid it no mind, continuing to focus on writhing its body.

[Demonic Beast: Treasure-swallowing Sea Cucumber Monster Tieya]

[Realm: Class III late-stage]

[Description: This demonic beast originally lived in the abyssal depths of the Immortal Burial Sea, feeding on detritus. Indigestible sand, earth, and metals would be expelled and accumulate.

Upon advancing to Class III, it awakened the [Treasure-swallowing] Skill. Its stomach can digest various foreign objects, including ores, absorbing their spiritual nature to enhance its demonic power. It can also flawlessly smelt various spiritual materials together, forming high-class Forging materials, which it then expels from its body without damaging their spiritual nature. When battling foes, it can suck them into its stomach to refine them.]

[Weakness: Its body is cumbersome, making movement difficult. One can engage it in a protracted battle. When its demonic power is depleted and its hide becomes fragile, seize the chance to slay it in one blow.]

Among the Marine Race guarding the Demon King Palace, many wear armor and wield weapons of excellent material, though their forms and designs are somewhat crude.

I wonder...were they forged by this sea cucumber demonic beast? Shen Mo mused.

Before long, the enormous sea cucumber demonic beast spat out a pile of mixed spiritual materials. Under the tempering of its vast demonic power, these quickly formed a shield-shaped "magic artifact." Though its form was crude, when infused with demonic power, it shimmered faintly and looked quite extraordinary. By the classification standards of Human Cultivators, it should have reached the high-grade Profound Level.

Seeing this, Shen Mo confirmed his earlier suspicion.

"Fellow Daoist," the great demon Tieya said, twisting its upper body towards Shen Mo with great confidence, "you must use this pile of spiritual materials before you to refine a magic artifact. If your creation can break my shield, with neither being controlled, then you pass this trial."

This pile of raw materials contained no high-grade spiritual materials. Without its Innate Divine Ability, one could at best refine a middle-grade Profound Level magic artifact from them.