Chapter 178: Essence Pill
Wang Zhongtian had never witnessed such a bizarre sight. He was so terrified his soul nearly fled his body. He had a sinking feeling that if the Ghost King seized his spirit, he would suffer a fate worse than death, never to be reincarnated for all eternity!
Wang Zhongtian pissed himself in terror and began kowtowing relentlessly.
"Mr. Cheng, I was wrong! I never should have wanted to kill you! Just kill me! I’ll give you all the Wang Family’s wealth, all our treasures! Just grant me a quick death!!"
Had Cheng Yuan been in his right mind, he might have granted Wang Zhongtian a quick death. The three old men were dead, and his feud with the Wang Family was settled.
But now, Cheng Yuan’s emotions were spiraling out of control. He had become wicked, sinister, and utterly mad!
At least, that was how he became when casting the Witchcraft.
"If saying sorry fixed everything, what would be the point of laws? And if the law is useless, then I’ll be the one to mete out justice!"
Cheng Yuan’s crazed laughter echoed as he unleashed the Witchcraft!
The Ghost King shot out its pitch-black claws, snatching violently at Wang Zhongtian’s head!
"NO!!"
Wang Zhongtian let out a bloodcurdling scream. The next moment, his eyes went vacant. Though he was still breathing and his heart was still beating, he had lost consciousness.
An ordinary person wouldn’t have seen it, but with his Double Pupil activated, Cheng Yuan could: the Ghost King was pulling a miniature figure out of Wang Zhongtian’s head.
The miniature figure expanded as it met the air, quickly growing to the size of a normal person.
Judging by its features, it was none other than Wang Zhongtian!
Wang Zhongtian’s spirit bowed and pleaded ceaselessly. "Mr. Cheng, I was wrong! I was truly wrong! Please, forgive me just this once! Give me a chance to be reincarnated!"
Cheng Yuan was completely unmoved, his eyes glinting with a manic light. "You should have expected this the moment you plotted against me! If I didn’t have my Double Pupil and see through your death trap, I’d be the one who’s dead right now! Fuse!!"
With a grotesque laugh, the Ghost King opened its massive maw and lunged, jaws wide, at Wang Zhongtian’s spirit!
Wang Zhongtian, of course, was not about to be devoured so easily. He fought back against the Ghost King with frantic desperation!
Normally, a freshly-made soul like Wang Zhongtian’s would be no match for a Ghost King. However, the Ghost King was under Cheng Yuan’s control. With Cheng Yuan deliberately holding it back, Wang Zhongtian fought the Ghost King to a standstill.
Gradually, the two began to intertwine, until they were inseparable. Finally, the Ghost King and Wang Zhongtian merged into one, becoming a brand new Witch Spirit!
A Witch Spirit that wore the face of Wang Zhongtian.
This Witch Spirit possessed power comparable to that of a Divine Realm Grandmaster.
Having inherited half of the Ghost King’s power, the Witch Spirit was utterly loyal to Cheng Yuan.
With a single thought, Cheng Yuan could obliterate its very soul.
The Witch Spirit’s feelings were a complex mess. Cheng Yuan was his sworn enemy, the one who had turned him into this twisted thing, neither human nor ghost. Yet he couldn’t muster a shred of malice toward him. On the contrary, he felt that Cheng Yuan was the person he was closest to in the entire world.
THUD. The Witch Spirit fell to its knees and kowtowed heavily three times.
"Thank you, Master, for the gift of this new life."
"Rise. Tell me about the Wang Family’s Treasury."
"Yes, Master."
Guided by the Witch Spirit, Cheng Yuan headed straight for the deepest part of the Treasury.
"Master, since you are alone, I suggest you take smaller, more valuable items, such as Cultivation Techniques or Elixirs. As for weapons, I would not recommend them. They are too bulky."
Cheng Yuan smiled faintly. "Don’t worry about the size. Just show me all of your Wang Family’s most valuable weapons. I have my ways of carrying them."
The Witch Spirit didn’t question Cheng Yuan’s words, immediately leading him to select the most valuable weapons.
"Master, this is the Bright Silver Spear, a Low Grade Spiritual Artifact. It is the Wang Family’s only Spiritual Artifact. Legend says it was the weapon of Zhao Zilong. I have tested it myself—the Bright Silver Spear is so sharp it can pierce a ten-centimeter-thick steel plate!"
Cheng Yuan’s eyes lit up. He reached out and grasped the Bright Silver Spear.
’It’s heavy!’
’He could barely hold it steady with one hand using his physical strength alone!’
Cheng Yuan channeled some of his True Essence and was finally able to hold the Bright Silver Spear steady.
SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!
Cheng Yuan executed a few flourishes with the spear, then, satisfied, stored the Bright Silver Spear inside the space within his Jade Pendant.
When he first awakened the Celestial Witch Inheritance, Cheng Yuan had discovered that the Jade Pendant contained a small pocket dimension for storing and retrieving items.
As his power grew, the space had been gradually expanding.
The space had grown from its initial one cubic meter to its current size of over thirty cubic meters—about the size of a small bedroom.
However, Cheng Yuan had been in prison and owned nothing of value, so he’d never had a reason to use the space.
Now, it was finally coming in handy.
"Master, these are peak-grade weapons. They are slightly weaker than Spiritual Artifacts, but they can still cut through iron as if it were mud."
Cheng Yuan nodded in satisfaction and stored these peak-grade weapons away as well.
"Master, this is the Celestial King Formula. It is the strongest Cultivation Technique of our Wang Family, passed down only to the men of the direct bloodline. The Celestial King Formula is said to be an Earth Grade, Middle Tier technique, but since we’ve never seen any other technique of Earth Grade or higher, there’s no way to verify. Please, take it."
Cheng Yuan gave the Celestial King Formula a cursory flip-through and couldn’t help but sneer. It was nothing compared to his Celestial Witch Heart Method; it wasn’t even as good as the technique he had modified for Shen Youchu.
’Looks like my Celestial Witch Heart Method must be beyond a Celestial Grade Cultivation Technique, probably at the Saint or even Immortal Grade.’
Cheng Yuan casually stored the Celestial King Formula away. Though he looked down on it, he figured he would have many subordinates in the future. He could always modify it and grant it to them as a reward.
"Are there any other Earth Grade Cultivation Techniques? Bring them all to me!"
"There are no more... We do have a few Profound Grade, Upper Tier techniques. Does Master want them?"
Cheng Yuan curled his lip, looking unimpressed. "You don’t even have a single Celestial Grade Cultivation Technique? No wonder the Wang Family is just a second-rate family. Your foundations are pathetic."
The Witch Spirit’s mouth twitched. ’Master, do you think Celestial Grade Cultivation Techniques just grow on trees?’
’The Wang Family’s foundations are already quite deep, you know?’
’Even among the first-rate families, very few can produce a Celestial Grade Cultivation Technique.’
Of course, the Witch Spirit didn’t dare to talk back to Cheng Yuan. It could only force a smile and say, "Master, since these Cultivation Techniques are beneath you, perhaps you’d like to look at the Elixirs! The Wang Family has a few Essence Pills that might be of use to you."
’Essence Pills?’
Cheng Yuan shot the Witch Spirit a glare. "Are you trying to get me killed? That old bastard Wang Yuanlang croaked after taking one of those."
The Witch Spirit quickly explained, "Master, you’re mistaken. If it was lethal, what my second uncle took must have been a Bursting Pill. This is an Essence Pill—they’re completely different! A Bursting Pill is for life-or-death battles, while an Essence Pill is for Cultivation. It can help Master condense his True Essence, improve its quality, and increase his chances of breaking through to the Divine Realm."
Cheng Yuan raised an eyebrow. "In that case, I’ll have to try it."
Led by the Witch Spirit, Cheng Yuan arrived at a shelf laden with small porcelain bottles. The Witch Spirit raised a hand, pointing to a small bottle at the very back.
"Master, that’s the one."
Cheng Yuan picked up the small porcelain bottle and uncorked it. An incredibly rich, sweet fragrance wafted out. Cheng Yuan felt a stir in his True Essence; the True Essence in his left pinky finger grew slightly more active.
The next moment, an ecstatic expression appeared on Cheng Yuan’s face. In the tip of his left pinky, a thread of Spiritual Power suddenly manifested. This thread of Spiritual Power coiled around his True Essence, showing signs of wanting to fuse with it!