Vol 5 Chapter 85: Living Synthesis
Misty Forests, Divine Pine's space.
An utterly ordinary ancient tree concealed within the complex sea of trees contained an independent space within its trunk. Inside this space, swarms of mosquito beasts crowded around a Mosquito Woman as they approached a pine tree.
"Divine Pine Senior, according to intelligence gathered by the mosquito beasts, the war outside seems to have ended."
"The Heaven Refining Demon Ancestor is dead, and the three Heavenly Demon Sect Envoys have also been executed."
"Even the Holy Son appears to have returned to Tianyuan Continent."
The Mosquito Woman's report made a nearby meditating woman open her eyes. Gu Qianqiu asked, "Divine Pine Senior, can we emerge now?"
"What's the hurry?!" the Divine Pine retorted. "The Refining Dao Sect is nothing. Not long ago, I sensed another terrifying demonic bloodline descending upon Tianyuan - definitely a supreme figure, most likely a high-ranking member of the Heavenly Demon Sect."
"I don't know why she didn't continue attacking Tianyuan, but regardless, we'll keep hiding. Wait for Lin Jing to come find us himself. We absolutely won't emerge proactively!"
Gu Qianqiu and the Mosquito Woman exchanged helpless glances. Fine, it wasn't like they were short on time. They'd wait for Lin Jing to seek them out. Once he handled his affairs, they believed he would definitely come.However, they underestimated Lin Jing's current busy schedule. With the assistance of golden spirit rice and other rare items, the Ice Soul Gu's devouring of the Gu God proceeded extremely smoothly.
The greatest benefit of this devouring was that by consuming the Gu God, the Ice Soul Gu perfectly assimilated the powers of nine other extraordinary gu while elevating its bloodline beyond being merely subordinate to the Gu God - becoming a primordial existence in its own right.
Originally among Lin Jing's three spirit beasts, the Ice Soul Gu's bloodline had been furthest from immortal-grade. But now, it surpassed even the Dragon Carp, second only to the Wood-attribute Pine Leaf Mouse.
After completing the devouring, Lin Jing had it constantly guard the Heaven Refining Demon Ancestor, tormenting the demon ancestor to accelerate the maturation of the Dao Seed. Though it remained uncertain when the Dao Fruit would form.
"I thought you weren't coming back."
Several days later, Lin Jing emerged from the Immortal Banner Space-Time Array and smiled at the Mechanized Turtle climbing into Immortal Prison Mountain.
"No no, nothing like that!" the Mechanized Turtle hastily denied before presenting a pile of items. "Master, these are longevity-enhancing treasures I've collected over the years."
"Thoughtful, but I don't need these anymore." Lin Jing looked at the pile of life-extending treasures. "Keep them for your collection."
"Also... since we have time now, I learned many new things in the Origin Realm. Do you know about Origin Sources? I'll upgrade you next, installing an Origin Source core."
Lin Jing examined the Mechanized Turtle, planning to use the immortal techniques and formations learned in the Origin Realm to thoroughly overhaul it.
"Pine Leaf Mouse, come help too!"
Meanwhile, the advancement of the Pine Leaf Mouse's Glazed Immortal Eye meant the Mechanized Turtle's materials could also receive epic upgrades.
Aside from the Mechanized Turtle, no one else came looking for Lin Jing. Immersed in cultivation himself, Lin Jing had no interest in meeting old acquaintances. In this mutual separation, ten years passed in the blink of an eye.
Over this decade, Lin Jing added Origin Source propulsion to the Mechanized Turtle, making its control of immortal artifacts more effortless. But the main achievement was the Ice Soul Gu's relentless efforts finally condensing the first Dao Fruit concerning the Heaven Refining Demon Ancestor's refining techniques.
This Dao Fruit contained one of the demon ancestor's core secret arts - Living Refinement Technique.
Extremely sinister.
Naturally, this Dao Fruit went into the Pine Leaf Mouse's mouth. Frowning, the mouse consumed several millennia's worth of the demon ancestor's refining experience before sitting cross-legged to slowly digest it.
The Ice Soul Gu and Pine Leaf Mouse watched quietly as the digestion proceeded, though the process remained slow. Only after considerable waiting did the Pine Leaf Mouse finally go "Aah," rubbing its eyes as it stood up.
"How was it?"
"Did you feel any changes in your Glazed Immortal Eye?" the Ice Soul Gu inquired.
"Aah!" The Pine Leaf Mouse shook its head - no changes felt. However, having absorbed this refining knowledge, it could now attempt using the Glazed Immortal Eye as a medium to cast spells. Though whether it would succeed remained uncertain.
"Good!" Lin Jing took a deep breath. "I've long prepared a batch of test subjects for you."
With that, he produced one hundred completely ordinary black rats - not even at Qi Refining Level 1. The sight of these rodents covering the ground made the Pine Leaf Mouse fall into deep thought. Why rats again? Couldn't they use a different species for testing?
It spread its paws helplessly - insects perhaps?
"Just perform the synthesis!" Lin Jing urged, eager to see results. Sighing, the Pine Leaf Mouse turned its Glazed Immortal Eye toward the clustered rats.
In the next instant, something bizarre occurred. The impossible became possible as the hundred living rats - distinct individuals - gradually dissolved under the glowing gaze. The chattering noises vanished as the hundred rodents disappeared, replaced by a single tiger-sized murine creature covered with hundreds of rotating red eyes - an utterly horrifying sight.
"What the fuck?" Lin Jing exclaimed.
[Hundred-Eyed Demon Rat: King-grade Demonic Beast. Each eye contains an independent consciousness with potential to become a Demon Emperor.]
Simultaneously, information about this never-before-seen demonic beast appeared in the Pine Leaf Mouse's mind.
"Success?" Though both process and result were bizarre, this first successful living synthesis thrilled Lin Jing. This represented tremendous progress. He excitedly grabbed both the Ice Soul Gu and Pine Leaf Mouse. "You've both worked hard. Let's continue testing."
Eager to test the Glazed Immortal Eye's current limits, Lin Jing produced another black rat along with some lightning spirit ore surrounding the rodent. "Come, let's try synthesizing living and nonliving matter this time."
The Pine Leaf Mouse nodded.
Under the glazed light's radiance, a yellow-furred rat covered in lightning patterns soon appeared on the ground, looking confused - its cultivation having reached Foundation Establishment.
"Is this... Pikachu?" Living synthesis reignited Lin Jing's joy from when the Pine Leaf Mouse first awakened its Glazed Immortal Eye ability. These ten years of effort hadn't been wasted. With continued success, the Pine Leaf Mouse might eventually synthesize his primordial spirit with Origin Sources!
Then this Half-Immortal Lin might truly stand a chance against Demon Emperor Tianchou.
"Come come, let's try different species. Here are the insects you wanted."
Lin Jing gathered caterpillars and another black rat, pointing at them for synthesis. Beside them, the Ice Soul Gu covered its eyes, too terrified to watch. This Glazed Immortal King must have been some demonic cultivator! Such a horrifying ability would make even Dao Fruit techniques bow in submission.