Chapter 534: Wang Ergou, Wei Tu’s Severed Arm
Join forces, or each seek their own path?
Hearing these words, Madam Jin hesitated for a long while. Wei Tu’s identity remained unclear, still a thorn in her heart.
But after some thought, she nodded in agreement. She had no reason to refuse.
Compared to the threat of Duan Changjing, Wei Tu’s questionable background was at most an internal matter of the Wang family. Whether he was her husband or her husband’s disciple, the chance that he would harm her and her daughter was pitifully small.
Right now, in this dangerous situation, having another mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator by her side could only be a good thing.
“Follow me to Resentful Woman Island.”
Her gaze cold, Madam Jin gave Wei Tu a glance before turning into a streak of light and disappearing in an instant.
Originally, there had been a two-way teleportation array between her cave residence and Wang Sutai’s. But now, with the “space-restriction formation” blocking them, she could only resort to this slower, cumbersome method.
…
Half an hour later.
Wei Tu, Madam Jin, and the still somewhat confused Wang Sutai, who barely understood what was happening, arrived at the underground chamber of the Myriad Yin Sect where the “long-range teleportation array” was kept.
“There’s actually a long-range teleportation array here?”
Madam Jin’s eyes flashed with surprise. Clearly, even as one who had ruled the Myriad Yin Sect for centuries, this was her first time learning that such a hidden place existed within the sect.
“Sutai, if something happens to me later, you must follow Daoist Fu. He’s most likely your father. Unless driven to a dead end, he won’t abandon you.”
Calming her thoughts, Madam Jin turned, gazing softly at her daughter. She gently tucked a strand of black hair behind the girl’s ear and spoke with patience.
Hearing this, Wang Sutai remained silent. She said nothing more, only staring intently at Wei Tu’s back, as if trying to read something from it.
Moments later, just as the array flared and was about to activate…
Wei Tu and Madam Jin exchanged a glance, then flew off in different directions, rushing above ground to destroy the “space-restriction formations” hidden within the Myriad Yin Sect.
As for Wang Sutai, the weakest of them, she stayed behind, feeding qi into the core of the teleportation array to keep it running.
…
The moment the teleportation array began to activate, the “space-restriction formations” hindering its function stood out like fish stirring muddy waters—impossible to miss.
In an instant, Wei Tu’s divine sense swept across the Myriad Yin Sect, spotting seven formations etched with restrictive patterns.
These seven formations were scattered across the sect’s five inner islands. Each was anchored by three tall black stone pillars, more than three meters high, radiating profound force, and arranged in the shape of the character “pin.”
“I’ll take four, you take three,” Madam Jin said, her red lips barely moving as she gave the order.
Though both were mid-stage Nascent Soul, her cultivation had already reached its peak, much stronger than Wei Tu, who had only just stepped into mid-stage. By reason and strength, she should shoulder the heavier task.
Wei Tu had no objection.
What surprised him, though, was that at the moment she left, Madam Jin actually whispered two gentle words to him—“Be careful.”
‘That must be because she thinks of me as her son-in-law,’ Wei Tu thought, shaking it off. He gave a slight nod, then shot off in the opposite direction.
Before long, he reached the space-restriction formation farthest from the long-range teleportation array.
“Young Sect Master, this is a forbidden ground. Without the Vice Sect Master’s order, no one is allowed in.”
The guardian of the formation stopped him.
It was an aged, white-haired elder, his cultivation at early-stage Nascent Soul. Half a year ago, he had been among the high-ranking elders who greeted Wei Tu when he “returned to the sect to acknowledge his kin.”
Wei Tu didn’t waste words. His eyes flashed cold, and summoning the Blood Vitality Seal, he swung his fist.
Body cultivator battles were simple—no tricks, just raw suppression.
Boom!
The old man took the blow head-on. His body trembled violently, nearly shattering, blood spraying from his mouth and staining his beard red as he staggered like a kite with broken strings.
“Mid-stage Nascent Soul? No… fourth-tier mid-stage body cultivator? Who are you really?”
The elder’s face turned deathly pale. His eyes filled with horror as he stared at Wei Tu.
The fight had ended too quickly. Unlike Zhang Nanqiu, he didn’t have the ability to gauge Wei Tu’s exact realm. But he knew that anyone capable of injuring him in a single strike had to be at least mid-stage Nascent Soul—whether by body or Dao cultivation.
Such strength was something impossible for Sect Master Chìlóng to have cultivated in a mere few centuries.
But Wei Tu had no time to explain anything for the white-haired elder. Golden light flashed in his eyes as his fingers bent like claws. With a single grab toward the air, a solid cyan hand manifested, clutching a cluster of spiritual light and crushing the talisman hidden within.
"Spirit Eye Technique?"
The white-haired elder’s face froze in shock. He could hardly believe Wei Tu had discovered and destroyed his secret distress signal in such a short span.
"Run!" The elder’s heart turned cold. He knew full well this man was not someone a mere early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator like him could handle.
But just as the thought of fleeing took hold, a soul banner descended, covering his head. A gray radiance instantly locked down his body, making him unable to move.
"Young Master, spare me…"
"I was only muddle-headed for a moment!"
Fear twisted the white-haired elder’s face as waves of fierce ghosts poured from the banner and pounced toward him. As a devil path cultivator, he knew all too clearly what it meant to be devoured alive as food by soul-refining fiends—a fate worse than death.
Wei Tu only sneered coldly. He ignored all begging and leapt forward to start dismantling the spatial restriction formation.
Half a quarter-hour later, a sharp crack resounded. The black stone pillars collapsed, and this spatial barrier shattered, reduced to rubble. Wei Tu stowed away the soul-refining banner and, without delay, sped toward the next formation.
All that remained behind was the white-haired elder’s gnawed white bones. From first strike to broken array, Wei Tu had not wasted even the tiniest moment.
The remaining two formations had no Nascent Soul elders like the white-haired one. Their guards were only Golden Core cultivators. Even for a sect like Myriad Yin Sect, Nascent Soul elders were too rare to station everywhere, much less at the whim of Duan Changjing.
"Duan Changjing is here."
Soon, as Wei Tu shattered the third formation, Duan Changjing finally sensed the disturbance and rushed over.
But the first person he lunged at wasn’t Wei Tu—it was Madam Jin.
By now, Madam Jin had also destroyed three formations. Only one remained, closest to the super-long-distance teleportation array. Duan Changjing’s intent was obvious: he wanted to stop her from destroying the last one.
In no time, the two old enemies of Myriad Yin Sect clashed fiercely. Curses and demonic arts erupted one after another. The world changed color. Lightning exploded across the clouds as dazzling spells tore through the sky.
Yet, just as the sect disciples had long predicted, Madam Jin’s strength fell far short of Duan Changjing’s.
After dozens of exchanges, she coughed up blood and was hurled backward. Her luxurious phoenix robe was shredded to rags by the force of battle, exposing swathes of pale skin and even her undergarments beneath.
Wei Tu didn’t hesitate. Splitting his focus, he observed their fight while racing toward the last spatial formation, determined to crush it before it was too late.
"Mid-stage Nascent Soul?" At that moment, Duan Changjing noticed him. Surprise flickered across his face before dawning realization.
"So it’s you, Wang Ergou!"
Duan sneered, just like Madam Jin had earlier, mistaking Wei Tu for Ancestor Chilong.
The words instantly left the onlooking Myriad Yin disciples dumbfounded. After all, a high-level duel suddenly mixed with a vulgar countryside name sounded utterly jarring.
"Wang? Could it be… the Sect Master’s true name?"
Quick-witted disciples began piecing it together. The name "Wang Ergou" could very well be the real name of their sect master, Ancestor Chilong. Otherwise, why did Miss Wang Sutai carry the Wang surname when neither parent did?
Madam Jin’s surname was Jin.
Ancestor Chilong’s surname was Zhu.
The puzzle had long nagged them, though none dared to ask about the sect master’s household matters.
Now, with Duan Changjing’s slip, their suspicions were confirmed—Ancestor Chilong’s true surname was Wang, and the name Zhu Tianqi was taken later.
"Wang Ergou, you were just a lowborn wretch. If not for my admiration back then, you’d still be nothing more than a menial in Myriad Yin Sect."
"Zhu Tianqi? Equal to Heaven? What a joke! You dare call yourself that?"
Duan’s laughter rang from the skies, cold and mocking. His eyes burned with cruelty.
"Today I’ll kill you, seize your seat, and return the sect master’s position to Myriad Yin’s rightful line!"
Then his laughter stopped. With a blur too fast to follow, Duan appeared before Wei Tu, blade already drawn.
Steel flashed—crack!
Wei Tu’s arm fell from the sky.
"Impossible!" For once, Wei Tu’s composure broke. His face betrayed shock. Both he and Duan were mid-stage Nascent Soul. His body was far stronger than Duan’s. How could he lose an arm in their first clash?
Duan too was stunned. His brows furrowed. He had not expected his blade, honed for decades, to fail to end Wei Tu’s life. This strike was meant to kill even Ancestor Chilong at his peak.
"It’s the Extreme of Skill," Ancestor Chilong’s voice echoed solemnly into Wei Tu’s mind.
"Extreme of Skill?" Wei Tu’s eyes darkened.
The hallmark of Divine Transformation was birthing divinity. Divinity broke mortal norms, shattered mortal limits—it made one a god. Wei Tu had broken the Nascent Soul limit once before, the common path from Nascent Soul to Divine Transformation.
But there were other paths. The body cultivator’s "Extreme of Strength." The soul cultivator’s "Extreme of Soul."
And this—Extreme of Skill. Not body, not soul, not qi. Pure technique raised to its highest possible peak.
When skill neared Dao, it brushed the divine. A strike at that level carried a trace of Divine Transformation’s might.
Wei Tu’s arm wasn’t lost to Duan’s cultivation realm. It was severed by a blade that had touched the Extreme of Skill, borrowing a hint of godly power.
"But only that much."
Wei Tu’s eyes flashed. He used qi to retrieve his severed limb, tossed it into his storage pouch, then activated the First Spirit Bone to heal.
In moments, his arm was fully restored, as if nothing had happened.
"Stage four body cultivator…"
Duan’s mocking smile vanished. Wariness filled his face. A fourth-stage body cultivator wasn’t a direct counter to him, but their terrifying resilience meant unless he destroyed Wei Tu’s First Spirit Bone—the equivalent of a Nascent Soul—it was nearly impossible to kill him. Even decapitation might not suffice.
But the First Spirit Bone could grow anywhere in the body, depending on one’s cultivation method. Without Spirit Eyes, locating it was nearly impossible.
"Unless… I destroy his soul."
Duan narrowed his eyes and clapped his hands.
A moment later, a burly man with a bone ox-skull helmet and half-armor streaked across the sky toward them.
"Zhang Nanqiu, you take him first. Once I’ve finished Madam Jin, we’ll kill him together!"
Duan laid out his plan. He had no intention of a drawn-out duel with Wei Tu. Alone, he might fight him to exhaustion but never win. Together with Zhang Nanqiu, though, the outcome was certain.
Wei Tu also saw clearly now—Duan had only allowed Zhang Nanqiu of the Soul-Capturing Sect inside. Ancestor Tianxie had been kept out.
‘Makes sense. If Ancestor Tianxie were here, who would really be in charge?’ Wei Tu felt a flicker of relief.
Still, his brows creased with worry. ‘I can hold, but Madam Jin… she’s the weak link. If I were Duan, I’d cut her down first, then turn on me.’
But before the thought fully formed, the ground shook. The last spatial restriction formation collapsed into rubble.
Wei Tu’s divine sense swept over it. The one who destroyed it wasn’t him, nor Madam Jin.
It was Chen, the vein master—another of Myriad Yin Sect’s Nascent Soul elders, one loyal to Madam Jin.