Chapter 259: Chapter 25 Dao Body Fusion [Primordial Chaos]
Generally speaking, only when the Nascent Soul gradually approaches the Outer Body does it bring about phenomena, but the Soul-devouring Demon Infant has undoubtedly done so prematurely.
Li Mo found this both surprising and expected.
The Five Phase Soul is sufficient to raise the quality of the Nascent Soul to an unimaginable level, likely surpassing the flawless threshold across the three cultivation systems.
For Li Mo, this was naturally a significant boon, indicating the Nascent Soul could swiftly shed its fragile state, avoiding easy destruction in the outside world.
After the transformation of the Mayfly Dream, the Mud Pill Palace immediately birthed the Fake Soul.
By observing the appearance of the Fake Soul, Li Mo noticed it becoming more lifelike, especially the intricate brain patterns on its surface.
The time required for the Fake Soul Propagation Method had also increased from twenty years to fifty.
Unfortunately, it still took twenty years to regenerate the Fake Soul anew.
The other Taoist Body changes were not as pronounced as the Innate Saint or Mayfly Dream, while the leakless body became increasingly dispensable during the Nascent Soul Stage.
After all, Li Mo could already store Spiritual Power within the Golden Core and Nascent Soul while crafting magic robes to conceal himself, rendering the gathering of aura seldom necessary.
It was still limited by the potential of the Taoist Body.
Clearly, the disparity between Taoist Bodies grew more exaggerated as one advanced through realms. For an ordinary cultivator to compare with a superior Taoist Body was sheer lunacy.
Having outlined the general direction for the Taoist Body Fusion, Li Mo activated the Mayfly Dream, and the Fake Soul Consciousness emerged.
"With fifty years of results, I should be able to unearth plenty of useful insights."
In the Illusion Realm created by the Mayfly Dream, Li Mo once again saw another self, who stood in the same cave with its chaotic arrangement.
"No matter how many times, it always feels unsettling."
To uncover the path of Taoist Body Fusion, the Fake Soul Consciousness repeatedly dissected its body, scrutinizing the subtle structures of the Taoist Body, even placing the magic artifact Burning Radiance, which held phosphorescence, right in front of it.
It would occasionally extract traces of phosphorescence to stimulate localized fusion of the Taoist Body.
It started with the left arm.
The Spider Demon’s Multiple-Armed Spine flew horizontally between the flesh, injecting phosphorescence as it ran various experiments on merging the Taoist Body into one.
Li Mo could feel that, under the influence of the Mayfly’s Dream, the Fake Soul Consciousness became increasingly extreme, but it undeniably accelerated the Taoist Body Fusion.
To the outside world, it was only moments, but a decade had already passed within the Illusion Realm.
"The Creation Book is truly bottomless. I’ve spent ten years repeatedly studying the key to the Taoist Body, yet it pales before even a single Harmonization Page."
The Fake Soul Consciousness muttered to itself, its left arm having already turned into an unspeakable lump of flesh, where traces of the two Taoist Bodies intertwined visibly.
The fusion method for the Taoist Body was exceedingly crude, and as a result, it undermined the foundation.
"No, this won’t do."
"The leakless body’s structure is already thoroughly understood, yet it still fails to fuse. Other Taoist Bodies are even less worth considering."
"Achieving immortality and attaining the Way would merely be a pipe dream."
As the Fake Soul Consciousness spoke, it forcibly severed its left arm, hanging it on the rock wall, then summoned the Salamander to aid in the regeneration of the severed limb.
It immediately turned to the right arm, initiating yet another round of bloody fusion surgeries.
The right arm lasted longer, only reaching total failure after seventeen years.
Although it was still a shapeless mass of flesh, it at least barely retained the contour of an arm—a significant improvement.
Once the left arm regrew, the Fake Soul Consciousness began repeating the human experiments again.
Li Mo noticed one thing: after the Fake Soul Consciousness’ lifespan extended, it began to seem less and less like him, with its temperament becoming ever more twisted.
By the last five years, the Fake Soul Consciousness had begun operating on its body from the neck down, its appearance utterly losing any semblance of humanity.
And yet it remained utterly engrossed.
"Kekeke, I’ve grasped the opportunity for Taoist Body Fusion. Give me a hundred more years—just a hundred more years, and I can surely achieve the Supreme Immortal Body!"
"By then, I won’t even need to cultivate further. I’d ascend directly to the Immortal Realm!"
The frenzy exhibited by the Fake Soul Consciousness reminded Li Mo of Tian Chenzi and Chen Tiangang—beings who had become monstrous in their obsession with achieving immortality.
"Immortality! Immortality!!"
Once the Fake Soul Consciousness exceeded fifty years in lifespan, its agitation became more pronounced.
"Something’s off, something’s wrong in here. I can’t be mistaken..."
The Fake Soul Consciousness widened its eyes and belatedly fixed its gaze on the entrance of the Taiyin Law Heaven cave before, unbelievably, stepping outside.
It reached the cave’s entrance, saw the vast void of the world beyond, and collapsed to its knees in despair.
"Fake, it’s all fake..."
The Mayfly Dream gave the Fake Soul Consciousness not a single chance, erasing it entirely from the Mud Pill Palace, leaving behind only a wealth of memories from its life.
Li Mo connected to the memories with his Divine Sense.
He dared not absorb them all at once, as the Fake Soul Consciousness could easily taint his own disposition, instead relying on the Innate Saint to gradually digest them.
Overall, the general direction of the Fake Soul Consciousness was absolutely correct.
If it were Li Mo himself who had spent fifty painstaking years to arrive at the results, they would likely be not far off, albeit less distorted with twisted implications.
It took Li Mo five years to fully assimilate the memories as his own.
"Based on the Fake Soul Consciousness’ design, the chance of succeeding in Taoist Body Fusion is now at thirty percent."
Li Mo estimated that he would need to activate the Mayfly Dream once more to obtain the method for perfect fusion. Meanwhile, during the time required to nurture a new Fake Soul, he practiced surgical techniques within the Corpse Mountain Mini World.
He refrained from experimenting on himself this time, focusing primarily on the Deceit Beasts.
Since the Deceit Beasts felt no pain, Li Mo could conduct repeated experiments to improve his medical skills.
"Ah, if only I had a Medical Technique Divine Ability, I wouldn’t have to expend so much energy. Hopefully, the Three Souls will awaken a similar skill."
In truth, neither the leakless body nor the Primordial Dao Body was particularly complex.
Were the goal set on the Innate Saint, however, Li Mo wouldn’t even dare to imagine its terror, as the Taoist Body would then delve into the level of the soul itself.
As Li Mo engaged in closed-door training, turbulent undercurrents stirred in the outside world.
The No-Life Sect, in particular, suddenly became exceptionally active, even extending its reach into the Sub-Device Sect’s ports, causing considerable chaos.
The Futu Hermit worked to manage the situation while recalling Li Mo’s prior request to investigate the Divine Statue.
Motivated on his own, he began collecting information related to the No-Life Sect, discovering that its heightened activity stemmed from the propagation of an Immortal God’s honorific title.
The origin of the Immortal God was unclear, with no records or scriptures ever mentioning anything remotely similar.
Upon learning the honorific, the Futu Hermit found himself momentarily baffled, unsure whether it bore any trace of Li Mo’s involvement.
"The honorific—Supreme Qingtian..."
"Based on accounts from its believers, why does it resemble an evil god?"
The Futu Hermit did his utmost to compile clues about Supreme Qingtian, but the No-Life Sect’s methods of dissemination were exceedingly covert, leaving him with scant information.
He transmitted a thought to Li Mo, yet the latter was in the midst of "disturb not the idle" closed-door cultivation.
Though other means of contact existed, the Futu Hermit refrained, partly out of fear of disturbing Li Mo, and partly due to his uncertainty about Supreme Qingtian’s authenticity.
Whether it had any connection to Li Mo remained an open question.
......
Meanwhile, Li Mo indeed stood at a critical juncture. After multiple iterations through the Mayfly Dream, he finally grasped the key to Taoist Body Fusion.
In the second simulation by the Fake Soul Consciousness, the two Taoist Bodies became one.
However, the body exhibited certain mutations.
By the third attempt, no distinctions could be seen; in every regard, the newly created Taoist Body harmonized both the leakless body and the Primordial Dao Body seamlessly.
In Li Mo’s perception, it embodied perfect fusion in every aspect.
He could no longer think of ways to further refine the technique. Even if he activated the Mayfly Dream again, it would most likely result in wasting the Fake Soul.
Taking a deep breath, Li Mo began the fusion process with his four limbs.
Burning Radiance hovered above in the cave’s ceiling.
Li Mo summoned the Spider Demon’s Multiple-Armed Spine, its phosphorescent tendrils entwined with its eight limbs. As his skin was sliced open, they injected themselves gradually into the flesh.
His medical skill had reached a level of effortless control.
Within the Corpse Mountain Mini World, over a thousand more Deceit Beast corpses now lie scattered. At least for Li Mo’s current Nascent Soul Stage cultivation, no further improvement seemed possible.
"The Primordial Dao Body’s uncontrollable corrosive power and the leakless body’s introverted nature are complementary to one another when merged..."
Li Mo’s mental state remained tranquil.
Even if this experiment failed, he would merely lose the leakless body, akin to discarding a blank page, with minimal impact on the Primordial Dao Body.
His surgical process gained increasing momentum and precision, leaving seemingly no wounds visible on the surface.
In reality, the limbs of the Spider Demon’s Multiple-Armed Spine had transformed into needle-like blades, performing surgical modifications at a microscopic level.
"Soul-devouring Demon Infant."
The Soul-devouring Demon Infant abandoned its usual nonchalant demeanor, laboriously maintaining the pupil on its forehead, pushing the Divine Sense of the Nascent Soul Stage to its limits.
Fierce winds surged.
Li Mo’s movements resembled delicate needlework, with the phosphorescence as threads in his hand, showcasing unmatched mastery of Spiritual Power control.
With the seamless merging of the two Taoist Bodies, the patterns on the Primordial Dao Body began to flow.
What were once fixed markings within the flesh could now converge at any point, their Mixed Element Patterns exuding enigmatic brilliance.
"It’s done."
A smile spread across Li Mo’s face as the Primordial Dao Body revealed a previously unseen transformation under his skill.
This signified he had once again transcended the boundaries of his medical capabilities, akin to when he first forged a High Grade Magical Artifact, undergoing baptism under the crucible of pressure.
The limbs of the Spider Demon’s Multiple-Armed Spine increased to twelve pairs.
"Hahaha..."
Li Mo couldn’t help but laugh, his excitement beyond words as he transitioned into complex modifications on his head, with no hesitation at all.
The Creation Book shimmered faintly.
The pages of the leakless body and the Primordial Dao Body fused as one.
The Taoist Body silhouette formed was akin to a five-peaked mountain. Though its scale was confined to the size of a single page, its grandeur and magnificence could not be overstated.
Li Mo withdrew the Spider Demon’s Multiple-Armed Spine.
The Mixed Element Patterns gleamed faintly on his body, which now towered over seven meters tall, with his flesh taking on the rugged appearance of jagged stone peaks.
"A name for the Taoist Body..."
Li Mo extended his right hand, and the Mixed Element Patterns converged toward his palm.
His five fingers transformed entirely into vivid, lifelike mountain peaks. To any observer, a single glance would invoke a visceral sense of Mount Tai collapsing before their eyes.
His thumb crossed over his middle finger.
A gentle snap.
BOOM!!!
Centrally radiating from Li Mo, countless crystalline spikes erupted across the space, leaving the walls of the cave entirely imbued with metallic traces.
"Primordial Chaos Leakless."
Li Mo retracted his Taoist Body, having showcased the power of Primordial Chaos Leakless to its fullest extent.
"In the future, I must exercise caution. Taoist Bodies related to rock and metal have profound ramifications; the Primordial Dao Body is likely only a fragmented remnant of some Immortal Body."
In essence, the Primordial Dao Body represented merely a limb of an Immortal Body, perhaps less than one-tenth of its entirety.
Although the fusion of the leakless body into the Primordial Dao Body didn’t restore the Immortal Body, it allowed Li Mo to better leverage the wondrous aspects of Primordial Chaos.
That snap had consumed only Ash Spirit Power.
Were it fueled by Turbid Blood Spiritual Power, despite the mismatch between the Yin Blood Species and the Primordial Dao Body, its potency would still increase several-fold.
"Speaking of the Sub-Device Sect, if they knew of the correct way to use the Primordial Dao Body, what level of power could the Nascent Soul Stage achieve?"
As Li Mo tidied up the cave, he reviewed the recent transmitted messages.
"Hm?"
Li Mo’s expression turned quizzical as he noticed a message from the Futu Hermit regarding the rise of an Immortal God in the No-Life Sect, known as Supreme Qingtian.
"Might as well visit the Sky Well to purchase a few Nascent Soul Stage Spell techniques while investigating the source of these disruptions myself."