214: Chapter 214 Returning to Mangshan

The automated harvesting on the surface of the Wasteland had already entered a steady track.

The steel torrent composed of mass-produced Demon Bone Iron Guards and sweepers was continuously scavenging pre-war materials and mutated spiritual materials from the old era for him.

With the rear secured, Gu Shen finally had the leisure to carefully organize his combat methods after stepping into the Foundation Establishment Stage.

He raised his hand and lightly brushed his Storage Ring.

As green light flickered, the High Grade Magical Artifact thunder pattern gold-slaying blade and the top-tier High Grade inner armor, the black flood dragon black gold armor, hovered steadily before him.

Magical Artifacts in the Cultivation World have always required a Cultivator's life-bound True Essence to be nurtured day and night to achieve a connection of heart and mind, allowing them to unleash their full power.

Since Gu Shen achieved his Extreme Dao Foundation Establishment across two worlds, the True Essence within his Dantian and Qi Sea has undergone a heaven-shaking, earth-shattering qualitative change. These few Magical Artifacts, which relied on Qi Refining Stage mana to be driven, were clearly no longer able to perfectly fit his current, incomparably violent combat methods.

"Extreme Dao True Essence focuses on destruction and collapse. This blade and armor should naturally have their sharpness reshaped."

Gu Shen settled his Qi into his Dantian and held his palms together in a void embrace before his chest.

Deep within his Dantian, the [Nirvana Star Core] slowly accelerated its rotation.

The deep cyan Poisonous Evil True Essence seeped out from his body like viscous mercury, instantly enveloping both the blade and the armor.

This True Essence fused the extreme Yang vitality of the Cultivation World with the nuclear death energy of the Wasteland.

As soon as it touched the thunder pattern gold-slaying blade, the thunder magnetic fine sand contained within the blade's body triggered a violent resonance.

Gu Shen guided the violent nuclear Fusion kinetic energy within the True Essence, forcibly channeling it along the original formation patterns of the blade.

"Hum—"

The gold-severing saber trembled violently. The originally faint blue thunder light, under the forced infusion and compression of the Poisonous Evil True Essence, gradually transformed into a deep, heavy dark cyan.

The physical structure on the surface of the blade became increasingly dense under the microscopic compression of the [Nirvana Star Core]'s gravitational field.

With the sharpness of the Geng Metal Sword Qi added to the deadly poisonous evil of nuclear radiation, once this blade was swung, it could no longer be blocked by ordinary metal or stone. Even if it merely grazed the skin, the nuclear poisonous evil would invade the opponent's Meridians like maggots on bones.

After finishing the nurturing of the long blade, Gu Shen's gaze turned to the black flood dragon black gold armor.

This inner armor had once helped him withstand the heaven-shaking and earth-shattering physical bombardment from Core Disciple Qin Wuyan.

He followed the same method, branding the trace of "heavy pressure unloading" intent from the star core's gravitational field, along with his True Essence, bit by bit into the gaps between the black flood dragon's reverse scales and the rare alloy.

Several hours passed.

The surface of the dark golden inner armor now had a faint, ethereal cyan glow. Its toughness and pressure-resistance limit, tempered by the Extreme Dao True Essence, had climbed to a terrifying level sufficient to withstand a casual strike from an ordinary Early Stage Golden Core Cultivator.

Gu Shen withdrew his True Essence, put the black flood dragon black gold armor back on properly, and hung the thunder pattern gold-slaying blade steadily at his waist.

The Magical Artifacts and his True Essence resonated completely, and a powerful, integrated aura emanated from his entire body.

He stood up tall, his gaze cold and stern, sweeping across the nine Demon Bone Iron Guards arrayed below.

The Thunder Cloud Snow Leopard, Golden-Horned Rhinoceros Beast, and Flame Poison Crocodile King—these three third-rank Demon Bone Iron Guards, serving as the core of the main battle force, stood at the front of the formation.

The titanium-tungsten armor on their bodies had been completely repaired, and the layer of earth-yellow [Anti-Vibration and Sound-Insulation Coating] on the surface perfectly concealed the metallic luster. The micro-Fusion batteries in their chest cavities resonated steadily, and their combat power had returned to its Peak.

Gu Shen looked at this killing imperial guard that feared neither death nor sound waves, and the killing intent in his heart, like a dormant angry dragon, gradually awakened.

Before the troops and horses move, provisions must go first.

Mass-produced Demon Bone Iron Guards had already started production in the Wasteland. If the arsenal's assembly line were to roar 24/7, those mere dozen or so Mid-Grade Spirit Stones would be just a drop in the bucket.

He needed a massive amount of Spirit Stones as a power source, and even extremely rare High-Grade Spirit Stones to build an internal circulation shield that could deceive the Heavenly Dao.

"Spirit Stone mines are all controlled by the top Sects of the Great Yu Cultivation World. If I earn them by following the rules, when will I ever be able to gather enough for the army?"

The image of Core Disciple Qin Wuyan, with clothes as white as snow but a heart like a viper, appeared in his mind.

As a core disciple of the Beast Taming Sect, this person was in charge of the overall situation of the encirclement and suppression of the Mountain-Quaking Kui Ox. His Storage Pouch must be loaded with massive resources to dispatch the army and important Sect treasures.

The hinterland of the Ten Thousand Mang Mountains was not just a dangerous place, but a giant treasure vault walking in the mountains and forests.

"Core Disciple Qin Wuyan, you injured my internal organs and even set up a dragnet to put me to death. This grudge of blocking my Dao shall be settled today."

Gu Shen walked to the front of the nine Demon Bone Iron Guards and waved his large sleeve.

Green light flashed, and all nine steel giant beasts were collected into the Storage Ring, waiting for a thunderous strike.

Everything was ready.

Gu Shen stood in the empty arsenal square, his divine will piercing directly into his Sea of Consciousness.

The archaic [Heaven and Earth Furnace] let out a vast, ancient roar that pierced through the barrier between the two worlds.

The pale white flames of rules rushed down from the Void Realm like an inverted waterfall, completely swallowing Gu Shen's figure.

Light and shadow intertwined, and the planes overlapped.

When the void fire dissipated, the unique smell of machine oil from the Wasteland had been replaced by a strong, pungent burnt smell.

Gu Shen planted his feet firmly, a faint dark golden halo shimmering around his body, isolating the scorching fire poison rushing towards him.

He had returned once again to the lonely Peak of the Xuanwu Magnetic Mine, which had been turned into glazed scorched earth by the Heavenly Fire Mountain-Burning Array.

Red fire clouds rolled across the sky, the surrounding magma had not yet solidified, and the four fields were silent.

There was no trace of life here other than the violent fire-type Spiritual Qi.

Gu Shen did not linger.

He restrained the fluctuations of his True Essence, and by using Thousand Faces and breath-concealment techniques, he turned into a gray phantom, quietly descended the lonely Peak and plunged into the dense, perennial poisonous miasma of Mang Mountain.

Returning to the hunting ground.

This time, the identities of prey and hunter had completely reversed.

Gu Shen traveled rapidly through the poisonous miasma forest, his toes lightly tapping on rotten wood, his figure like the wind.

The computing power of the AI Crystal was fully activated, and the Crab's microwave radar summarized all the residual Spiritual Qi and traces of vegetation destruction within a radius of several miles into his Sea of Consciousness.

"Lord, thirty miles to the northwest, there are traces of Spiritual Qi decay in the air from the collision of high-concentration earth-type Spells and wood-type Spells. Along the way, there are a large number of Beast Taming Sect standard Magical Artifact fragments and Yao Beast bloodstains."

The Crab's precise directional guidance came from the iron buckle.

Gu Shen's eyes flickered slightly.

That young Mountain-Quaking Kui Ox was proficient in earth-type Spells.

These traces were clearly the battlefield left behind when the Beast Taming Sect army was tracking and surrounding it.

"Core Disciple Qin Wuyan's layout is far-reaching; he must be constantly squeezing the survival space of the young beast, wanting to force it into a desperate situation to capture it alive."

Gu Shen followed the path of the residual Spiritual Qi, quietly sneaking along the way.

Along the way, he extremely cautiously avoided four waves of hidden sentries set up by the Beast Taming Sect.

Those Late-Stage Qi Refining hidden guards lurked in the treetops and swamps, but they could not perceive Gu Shen, an Extreme Dao Foundation Establishment Cultivator who had integrated into the aura of Heaven and Earth and had no Karma fluctuations at all.

The deeper he went into the northwest, the more treacherous the terrain of Mang Mountain became.

The precipices towering into the clouds all around rose from the ground, tightly encircling a deep, secluded valley.

From the direction of the valley, earth-shaking roars of Spiritual Qi came one after another like muffled thunder.

Various brilliant Spell lights illuminated that part of the sky in colorful hues, and the shrill roars of Yao Beasts intertwined with the shouts of Cultivators.

The killing game of the decisive battle had already begun.

Gu Shen's figure lay on the edge of a hundred-zhang-high cliff, and with the cover of a few thick, ancient pine trees, he overlooked the desperate valley from a high vantage point.