216: Chapter 216 [A Soul-Touching Melody]

At the bottom of the Hidden Dragon Abyss.

Gu Changsheng sat cross-legged atop a protruding black rock. The isolation Formation he had laid out around him deformed slightly under the water pressure, rippling with circles of obscure spiritual light.

He flicked his wrist and tapped his storage ring.

A jade bottle covered in Talismans emerged out of thin air.

With a light flick of his finger, the Talismans spontaneously combusted into ash.

Ang!

A dragon's roar filled with tyrannical aura instantly exploded.

The sealed [Ren Soul Essence] transformed into a three-foot-long blue flood dragon phantom. It lunged out of the bottle's mouth, carrying a frigid evil chill capable of freezing a Purple Mansion Divine Soul, and slammed violently toward Gu Changsheng's forehead.

It was a dead thing, yet it retained the purest survival instinct and arrogance of a True Dragon from when it was alive.

Unwilling to be refined, it sought to devour its master.

"Vile beast."

Gu Changsheng snorted coldly and did not dodge.

He made a grasping motion in the Void Realm with his right hand. His magic power transformed into a pitch-black giant hand, precisely pinching the flood dragon's seven-inch mark.

Zizizi.

The flood dragon phantom struggled frantically in the black hand. Its dragon scales rubbed against the magic power, erupting in ear-piercing shrieks.

"Get in."

Gu Changsheng summoned the crimson eternal regret bone flute with his left hand. Exerting force with his right hand, he physically forced the still-roaring flood dragon into the hole at the very end of the flute.

Boom!

Water and fire were incompatible.

The parching fire nature contained within the Scarlet Skeleton's remains and the extreme cold water nature of the Ren Soul Essence erupted with a terrifying repulsive force the moment they touched.

The bone flute trembled violently, its entire body glowing with an eerie purple light, looking as if it would burst apart in the next second.

Gu Changsheng's expression remained unchanged. Deep within his Sea of Consciousness, the techniques of the Soft Silk Entwining Heart Canon operated frantically.

His originally formless and qualityless Divine Sense now transformed into thousands of green silk threads, nearly invisible to the naked eye, densely wrapping around the bone flute.

Drawing silk, peeling cocoons, and stitching.

Using Divine Sense as a needle and magic power as thread, he forcibly stitched these two diametrically opposed forces together.

"Fuse for me!"

Gu Changsheng gave a low shout. His ten fingers flew like phantoms as one obscure hand Seal after another was struck into the flute's body.

Wooo—

The bone flute let out a shrill, mournful wail.

The blue flood dragon phantom was squeezed and crushed bit by bit, finally transforming into the purest Ren Water Essence and seeping into the grain of the bone flute.

The originally dark red flute body began to show streaks of deep blue dragon patterns, pulsating like blood vessels.

Just at the moment of complete Fusion.

An unexpected change occurred.

A wave of ancient, venomous will awakened from deep within the bone flute without warning.

It was a remnant sliver of demonic intent from the Scarlet Skeleton.

It was unwilling to coexist with a "worm," and even less willing to be driven by a junior.

"Die! You must all die!"

The demonic voice pierced his ears.

Gu Changsheng felt as if his Sea of Consciousness was being churned. The intense pain made his vision go black, and his Divine Soul's line of defense nearly collapsed.

The two forces clashed frantically within the flute, and even his Physical Body began to seep tiny beads of blood.

Did he push it too far?

No.

Gu Changsheng endured the tearing pain in his Sea of Consciousness. The simple and ancient jade pendant at his forehead, which had been silent for a long time, suddenly lit up.

Buzz.

The taiyin submerging spirit jade automatically protected its master.

A cold, black crescent moon phantom slowly rose behind his head.

Taiyin, the sovereign of all things Yin.

Whether it was remnant souls, demonic intent, or dragon soul resentment, all were subjects before the Taiyin Origin.

The clear radiance spilled down.

That restless demonic intent was instantly suppressed. Like snow meeting sunlight, it rapidly melted and disintegrated, finally shrinking back obediently into the depths of the flute.

The blue dragon patterns also stopped pulsating, completely merging with the bone flute.

The bottom of the abyss returned to dead silence.

Gu Changsheng gasped for air, his clothes soaked through with cold sweat.

He looked at the greatly transformed bone flute in his hand.

Most of the original crimson color had faded, replaced by a deep, dark purple. A faint blue light roamed the surface of the flute, and its nine holes were like nine abyssal demonic eyes, soul-stirring and captivating.

It was done.

Gu Changsheng gripped the bone flute, feeling a sensation of Bloodline connection spreading from his palm.

He did not rush to check the attributes. Instead, he held the bone flute to his lips and tentatively blew a single note.

Wooo~

The sound was extremely light and soft.

If one didn't listen carefully, it would even be drowned out by the sound of the surrounding water currents.

But the moment the sound rang out, an eerie scene occurred.

Several hundred feet away, a school of deep-sea luminous fish foraging in the undercurrent suddenly stiffened.

A fanatical confusion suddenly surged within their originally dull fish eyes.

Without any hesitation.

The school of fish turned around and formed a neat line. Like pilgrims on a pilgrimage, they charged frantically toward the black rock where Gu Changsheng was.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Dull thuds followed one after another.

Over a hundred luminous fish threw themselves one after another against the rock wall in front of Gu Changsheng, their brains bursting and blood staining the seawater red.

And their corpses did not sink.

Slivers of remnant souls, so weak they were almost invisible, drifted toward the bone flute along the water current and were greedily devoured by the nine holes.

The flute music stopped.

Gu Changsheng lowered the bone flute and looked at the asura-field-like scene before him, his fingertip lightly tapping his knee.

"How interesting."

This was not a simple sonic attack.

This was direct manipulation and harvesting of the Divine Soul.

His Sea of Consciousness vibrated, and the golden system panel popped up at the right time.

[Congratulations to the Host for mastering the third Divine Ability.]

[Divine Ability Name: yi wood Divine Ability · Soul-Guiding Melody]

[Effect 1 · Heart Bewitchment: When the melody enters the ears, anyone lower than one's own major Realm will have their intellect clouded and heart thrown into confusion; their love, hate, joy, and anger will all be swayed. If a Cultivator of the same level does not have a firm Divine Soul, they will also suffer hallucinations.]

[Effect 2 · Soul Hooking: By concentrating and playing a soul-tugging tune, one can forcibly hook and gather the remnant souls, yin souls, and obsessions of living beings, causing them to involuntarily approach and obey commands. The effect is doubled on heavily injured or dying individuals, nearly equivalent to a forced soul-lock.]

[Effect 3 · Spirit Control: When the gap in cultivation is sufficient, one can use the melody to plant a heart-sound mark. The target will obey simple instructions upon hearing a specific melody, acting like a Puppet.]

[Effect 4 · Delusion Breaking: The melody can also clear the mind and steady the soul, countering illusions, soul-bewitching, and Heart Demons, using righteous sound to break evil sounds.]

[Evaluation: When the Concept's music rises like silk, it entwines the spirit and binds the soul; when the tune falls like a hook, it fishes out all seven emotions. Without hearing the sounds of slaughter, the hearts of all living beings are already in chaos.]

Gu Changsheng scanned the panel, his gaze finally resting on the line "the effect is doubled on heavily injured or dying individuals."

This was practically a god-tier finishing skill tailor-made for a meat grinder like the True Dragon Tomb.

As long as he beat someone half to death, playing this tune would be the best way to collect their remains.

"This third Divine Ability is even more insidious than expected."

Gu Changsheng put away the bone flute and was about to stand up and stretch his somewhat stiff limbs.

Boom!

The isolation Restriction outside the Immortal Cave was struck hard from the outside, causing a violent shaking.

Immediately after, an aged voice, so anxious it was out of tune, penetrated the layers of water and entered his ears.

"Elder eternal regret!"

"Something big has happened!"

Gu Changsheng frowned slightly and with a wave of his sleeve, withdrew the Restriction.

Prime Minister Turtle came rushing in, crawling and stumbling. His black gauze hat was crooked to one side, and his wrinkled old face was filled with terror.

"What is the cause of this panic?"

Gu Changsheng's tone was flat.