651: Chapter 651 Divine Artifacts Possess Spirits; They Can Only Be Controlled by Heaven's Will

the desolate ancient four-pole cauldron hovered silently.

It hung there just like that, without deliberately releasing any pressure, without intentionally asserting its presence; merely by existing, it already made the entire Void Realm tremble.

The aura unique to a Divine Artifact spread in all directions like a tide.

This aura was not the kind of oppressive feeling emitted by ordinary powerful experts, nor was it the kind of heaviness that made you unable to breathe.

Instead, it was something much deeper—an aura that made you feel insignificant, humble, and like mere dust from the depths of your Divine Soul.

It was as if you were not facing a cauldron, but a complete world hovering there.

In this world, there were stars and seas, an eternal river of time, and countless living beings undergoing life, death, and Reincarnation within it.

And you were merely a bystander outside this world, lacking even the qualifications to step inside.

Luo Xiaojiu stood where she was, motionless.

Her gaze was fixed tightly on this cauldron, her pupils slightly constricted.

She knew that this aura was not something she could withstand in her current state.

Let alone her, even experts in the Void Refining Realm, Mahayana Realm, or even those Undergoing Tribulation, would only be suppressed when facing a true Divine Artifact.

This was not a gap in Realm, but a gap in the level of life.

It was like an ant looking up at a goshawk, like a stream facing the vast ocean, like a Mortal looking up at the gods above the Nine Heavens—you couldn't even form the thought of resisting, because you knew very well that it would be meaningless.

The Golden Giant clearly understood this as well.

He raised his hand, his movements slow and gentle, as if he were caressing a rare treasure.

the desolate ancient four-pole cauldron slowly flew into his palm; the nine-zhang-tall cauldron body was like a toy in his hands, light as if it had no weight.

This Divine Artifact, capable of suppressing eternity, was as quiet as a docile cat in his palm.

He looked at the cauldron in his palm, his gaze complex.

This was his everything.

It was his flesh and blood, his essence and Soul, the accumulation of all his eternal years.

It was the final gift he left for this world.

"Divine Artifacts have spirits; only those with the fated destiny can master them."

His voice was calm and desolate.

In this voice, there was the indifference of having seen through the ways of the world, the exhaustion of having experienced the vicissitudes of life, and something indescribable—reluctance.

"With your current cultivation, let alone mastering this cauldron, even if you were to approach within three zhang of it, its artifact spirit would crush your Divine Soul."

He spoke very seriously, without any exaggeration.

A Divine Artifact is a Divine Artifact.

Even if it were just a cauldron, even if it had no intention to attack, the aura it emitted on its own was enough to turn any unqualified existence into ashes.

"Therefore—"

His palm turned over.

In his palm, countless golden runes emerged, like sleeping Dragons opening their eyes.

Streams of sealing power surged from his palm, like countless golden chains, rattling as they coiled around the desolate ancient four-pole cauldron.

The first chain fell, the cauldron body shook, and its light dimmed by three parts.

The second chain coiled around it, and the aura that made heaven and earth tremble began to recede.

The third, fourth, fifth—

With each chain that fell, the aura of the desolate ancient four-pole cauldron weakened by one part, and its power was suppressed by one layer.

Half-step Immortal Artifact.

Quasi-Immortal Artifact.

Peerless Grade Emperor Weapon.

High Grade Sacred Artifact.

Medium Grade Imperial Weapon.

He kept suppressing it until it reached the level of an Imperial-grade Spirit Weapon, and only then did the Golden Giant stop.

Nine Seals, layered one upon another like nine heavenly gates, firmly locked away the true power of the desolate ancient four-pole cauldron.

What was revealed now was merely an ordinary Imperial-grade Spirit Weapon.

It looked ordinary and would not attract any attention if placed in the marketplace of any city.

But the Golden Giant knew that beneath those nine Seals, a Divine Artifact capable of shaking the heavens was hidden.

"This cauldron has been sealed by me with nine layers; usually, it will just be an Imperial-grade Spirit Weapon and will not attract anyone's attention."

His voice was very soft, as if he were giving his final instructions.

"As your cultivation deepens, the Seals will unravel one by one on their own."

"When the day comes that you reach Major Achievement, all nine Seals will be unlocked, and you will naturally see its true appearance."

He paused here.

His gaze landed on Luo Xiaojiu's face, as if confirming something.

Then, he held the desolate ancient four-pole cauldron in his palm and looked at Luo Xiaojiu.

In those golden eyes, there was anticipation, trust, and something else—a entrustment.

"Now, I am going to Seal it deep within your Divine Soul, using your Divine Soul as the furnace and your flesh and blood as the foundation, so that this cauldron will be cultivated together with your life and become one with you."

His tone was calm, as if he were talking about an insignificant matter.

But Luo Xiaojiu knew what this meant.

Using the Divine Soul as a furnace, using flesh and blood as a foundation—

This meant that from now on, she and this cauldron would share life and death.

If the cauldron exists, she exists.

If the cauldron shatters, she dies.

"This process will be a little painful."

The Golden Giant added.

He said it very casually, but Luo Xiaojiu saw something in his eyes.

To be able to make a Desolate Ancient Sacred Body say the four words "will be a little painful"—

This was definitely not as simple as "a little painful."

Luo Xiaojiu did not hesitate, nor did she shrink back.

She just nodded gently.

The nodding motion was very light, very faint, like the wind blowing through willow branches, like a fallen leaf drifting into flowing water.

But that determination was as heavy as a thousand jun.

"Please, Senior."

Two words, crisp and clean.

No grand words, no sworn oaths.

Just these two simple words, yet they were firmer than any oath.

The Golden Giant looked at her and was silent for a moment.

Then, he smiled.

This smile was very faint, so faint it was almost imperceptible.

But it was indeed a smile.

He didn't know how many tens of thousands of years it had been since he last smiled.

"Good."

He whispered one word.

Then, he pushed his palm forward.

the desolate ancient four-pole cauldron turned into a beam of golden light and shot straight toward the center of Luo Xiaojiu's forehead.

The speed of the golden light was not fast, it could even be said to be slow.

But Luo Xiaojiu found that she couldn't dodge it at all.

It wasn't that her body couldn't move, but that her Divine Soul had already been locked onto by this cauldron; no matter where she fled, no matter what methods she used, it was impossible to avoid this strike.

The moment the golden light entered her forehead—

Luo Xiaojiu's body stiffened abruptly.

At this moment, she felt as if the entire world had disappeared.

No sound, no light, no temperature.

Only one feeling remained—

Pain.

This was not physical pain, not the kind of pain from being cut by knives or axes.

It was pain from the depths of her Soul.

It was as if her Divine Soul had been forcibly torn open by something, and a cauldron was stuffed inside.

This opening was not big, but it was deep enough.

Deep enough to reach the very foundation of her existence.

Her consciousness became blurred at this moment, and the world before her eyes began to spin, twist, and shatter.

She felt as if she had been thrown into a giant millstone, being crushed bit by bit, then reshaped bit by bit.

She felt as if her Divine Soul had been placed on an anvil and was being repeatedly hammered by a ten-thousand-jun heavy hammer.

With each hammer blow, the desolate ancient four-pole cauldron fused with her Divine Soul by one part.

With each hammer blow, she felt her consciousness being torn apart once.

This kind of pain could not be described in words.

It was like someone using a dull knife to scrape her bones, one stroke at a time.

It was like someone pulling out her Soul and roasting it over a fire.

It was like she had been completely dismantled, reassembled, then dismantled again, and reassembled again—

Over and over again.

But she did not cry out.

She gritted her teeth tightly, her teeth creaking, blood seeping from her gums.

Her fingernails dug deeply into her palms, and fresh blood dripped down through her fingers, drop by drop, onto the altar beneath her feet, blossoming into bewitching blood flowers.

Her body trembled violently, veins bulging, as if little snakes were wriggling under her skin.

Sweat poured like rain, soaking her clothes and sliding down her cheeks.

Her lips had been bitten through, and blood flowed down the corners of her mouth.

But she never made a single sound.

Not a single one.

Even though her consciousness was lingering on the edge of collapse.

Even though she felt her Soul could shatter at any moment.

She still gritted her teeth tightly, without a word.

The Golden Giant looked at her, a trace of appreciation flashing in his eyes.

This appreciation was not the encouragement of an elder for a Junior, but the recognition of one warrior for another.

"Good."

He whispered, his voice carrying a trace of imperceptible gratification.

But his hand movements did not pause in the slightest.

He could not stop.

If he stopped at this moment, not only would all previous efforts be wasted, but Luo Xiaojiu's Divine Soul would also suffer irreversible damage.

He had to complete it in one go.

The final finger fell.

The final Seal fell.

Hum—

the desolate ancient four-pole cauldron completely fused into the depths of Luo Xiaojiu's Divine Soul.

It was not simply residing there, but had fused into one with her Divine Soul, inseparable.

From this moment on, she was the cauldron, and the cauldron was her.

If she lives, the cauldron lives.

If she grows strong, the cauldron will awaken.

If she falls, the cauldron will also fall silent along with her.

This was a bond even closer than a Bloodline connection.

The Golden Giant withdrew his hand, his figure swaying.

His body had reached the limit of transparency, as if a gust of wind would make him completely dissipate.

But he still managed to stand firm.

He looked at Luo Xiaojiu in front of him, at her tightly closed eyes, her pale complexion, and her tightly clenched fists.

He knew she had made it through.

"The rest of the road..."

His voice became lighter and lighter, as if coming from very, very far away.

"...you must walk on your own."