novelapdf Chapter 289 The mantis stalks the cicada
Chapter 289 The mantis stalks the cicada
Moli raised her right hand and gently twirled it with her five fingers pointing upwards.
The dome of the Taoist temple behind them shattered with a deafening roar.
Tiles and rafters were torn away like pieces of paper, and countless silvery-white waves surged into the air.
The water surged down from the shattered dome like a celestial river pouring down from above.
A raging wave of water condensed above her head.
Like a dragon emerging from the sea, it roared and swept towards Yangmo.
"Still has such a fiery temper."
Yang Miao handed the red umbrella forward, and the umbrella opened.
The umbrella, as red as blood, was covered with dense runes.
He turned his wrist slightly.
The red umbrella spun like a blooming mandala, and golden runes lit up in unison.
The raging water dragon crashed into the red umbrella as if it had hit a dam. The centrifugal force of the rotating red umbrella tore it into countless tiny water droplets, which then shot out in all directions.
Moli's hands moved swiftly, forming one hand seal after another as her fingers flew across the paper.
The seals piled up in front of her, eventually coalescing into a water moon the size of a millstone, which she pressed against her chest with her hand.
She tilted her head back and let out a clear shout:
"Suigetsu Hiki!"
Water Moon burst forth from her chest, instantly transforming into a full moon several feet in diameter, spinning and crushing towards Yang Miao.
Yang Mo's expression finally turned serious.
He pulled the red umbrella in his hand forward, closing the canopy so that the tip of the umbrella pointed forward.
When the moonlight was three zhang in front of him, he suddenly opened the umbrella.
The moment the red umbrella opened, the runes flowing on its surface exploded into a crimson beam of light, colliding head-on with Shuiyue.
The two forces were locked in a stalemate in mid-air, unleashing countless rays of gold, red, silver, and blue light that ravaged the maple forest and half a hillside outside the Taoist temple, leaving them riddled with holes.
Moli said coldly:
"Yang Li, it seems that after all these years, your cultivation hasn't improved much. I suppose you still haven't fully comprehended the divine artifact left by my adoptive father, you good-for-nothing?"
Yang Miao steadied himself, the red umbrella in his hand resting diagonally on his shoulder.
He didn't respond, but tilted his head slightly, looking at the young man's body in front of him with a strange gaze.
After examining it for a moment, he suddenly realized what was going on:
"I suddenly remembered, the owner of this body you're in is named Jiang Mu, right?"
A few days ago, while I was in seclusion, the junior protector in charge of external affairs within the sect approached me and asked me to help imprison a tough guy named Jiang Mu in the secret realm.
I was still wondering what kind of important person it was that made the church go to such lengths to set up such a scheme.
As it stands now, I am quite disappointed.
After all, this idiot who was so easily fooled into handing over control of his body with just a few words doesn't seem to pose much of a threat. Jiang Mu: ..…….…
My brother's words were quite hurtful.
Yang Mo turned the umbrella handle, looked at Mo Li, and changed the subject:
"Moli, how about we make a deal? I won't kill your reincarnated body that you formed in the Netherworld Pool, I'll let you go and allow you to be resurrected. In exchange, you give me this kid's body."
Do you take me for a three-year-old?
Moli let out a sharp, cold laugh.
"Didn't you just see that this kid is so young yet has such a profound foundation and cultivation, and conclude that his physique and destiny must be extremely special, so you want to use him for a ritual?"
"Trying to take the peaches from my hands? Dream on!"
Before she finished speaking, Moli braced herself with both hands to the sides.
Two thick, jet-black iron nails appeared out of thin air in her palms.
The nail was about a foot long.
Instead of the usual nail heads, the top features two skulls.
The moment Yang Mo saw the two nails, the smile on his face froze, and he exclaimed in surprise:
"A soul-locking coffin?! How do you have such a thing?!"
Immediately, his face darkened, and he said, "It seems that back then... you were also planning to use dirty tricks against me!"
Moli's gaze was mocking:
"Otherwise what? Do you think I'm naive enough to believe that you'll sincerely help me?"
"It's a pity that old man's cultivation was too strong, ruining my plans and allowing you, you scoundrel, to reap the rewards first and betray me!" "You vile woman!"
Yang Miao cursed under his breath, turned around and transformed into a streak of blood-red light, and was about to flee for his life outside the Taoist temple.
However, his figure had barely darted out ten feet when the air suddenly began to fluctuate.
One after another, dark golden coffin lids emerged from the void.
They converged on him from all directions.
Each of those coffin boards was three feet thick, with inscriptions carved on the surface, and a faint green light emanated from the gaps between the boards.
"Bang!"
Yang bumped into an oncoming coffin lid.
Before he could even steady himself, the other coffin lids closed, sealing him firmly inside.
Immediately afterwards, Moli flicked her wrist.
Two soul-locking coffin nails were driven into the coffin lid, one on the left and one on the right!
The moment the coffin was driven into the wood, the eye sockets on the skull suddenly lit up with a piercing light, the coffin shook violently twice, and two muffled thuds came from inside before falling completely silent.
"idiot."
Moli clapped her hands, looked at the upright coffin, and sneered.
"When I fought you so hard just now, did you really think I was risking my life? It was just to conceal my true intentions and secretly set up this 'Soul-Locking Coffin'."
"You're still too green to fight me."
She turned around and looked at the old woman at the door.
Granny Feng remained standing in the same spot, gazing at Mo Li, her old eyes swirling with emotions that were hard to describe—whether it was anger or sorrow.
Moli said calmly:
"Grandma Feng, I won't kill you now. Once I get that old thing's remains, refine them, and become the true master of this secret realm, I'll let you see for yourself whether my choice back then was right or wrong."
With that, she waved her hand and lifted herself up, carrying a wave of water as she flew away into the distance.
The coffin rose off the ground and followed behind her.
Soon, Moli arrived at a mansion with the coffin.
The courtyard was small, with blue bricks and gray tiles, and a blood-red barrier shrouded the outside.
Moli sneered at the coffin, "You think you're worthy to be the master of my father's old mansion?"
She forced out a drop of blood essence from her fingertip, drew a talisman in the air, and with a wave of her hand, tore open the barrier as if it were paper, then strode into it.
The courtyard was quiet.
In the center of the open space stood an octagonal altar.
The altar was surrounded by eight thick bronze pillars, and several dried-up demon corpses were chained to the pillars.
Dark brown bloodstains remained in the grooves in the ground.
Moli glanced around and gave a faint, cold laugh:
"As expected, they're hiding here doing rituals. They're still using the same old tricks over and over again, without making any progress."
She walked up to the coffin, kicked the lid, and asked sharply:
"What happened to the old man's remains?"
There was a moment of silence inside the coffin, then Yang Miao's somewhat muffled and weak voice came out: "I told you, your godfather's remains are not here with me at all. I always thought you took them and hid them."
"Hmph, you think you can fool me like a three-year-old?"
Moli's eyes flashed with anger. She raised her hand, channeled her star power, and slammed her palm onto the coffin.
"boom!"
Yang Mo's agonizing screams immediately came from inside the coffin.
As the screams of Moli and the others subsided, she asked again, "Tell me, where exactly are that old man's remains?!"
"I really don't know!"
Yang Mo, panting heavily inside, shouted, "Maybe she's with Granny Feng."
"impossible!"
Moli coldly denied it, "That old woman is cursed, and she can only guard that dilapidated Taoist temple for my godfather for the rest of her life."
"You can't even step outside the ten-zhang radius of the Taoist temple, let alone steal the remains from the tomb. No one but you can take them!" "If you don't believe me, there's nothing I can do."
Yang Mo's voice carried a sense of resignation, as if he had given up entirely.
Moli, refusing to believe it, channeled her star power and pounded the coffin several more times. But Yang Qi, aside from screaming in agony, couldn't extract any useful information. "Could it be that he really doesn't know?"
The woman frowned.
Unconvinced, she searched the courtyard several times.
Every room was searched, including the hidden compartments in the walls and under the floor tiles.
However, the remains she longed for were never found.
Why isn't it there?
Moli stood in the courtyard, her expression filled with confusion.
Yang Mo, inside the coffin, let out a soft sigh:
"I didn't lie to you. For all these years, I've been searching for that old man's remains. I truly believed you hid them as a backup plan." Moli turned and walked to the altar, gazing at the array patterns and animal bones on its surface, and sneered:
"If there are no remains of that old man, why did you go to such lengths to arrange all this? What are you trying to sacrifice?"
"I just wanted to find other unconventional methods."
Yang Miao sighed from inside the coffin, "I hoped to steal a trace of the secret realm's fundamental laws and completely claim this secret realm for myself. But unfortunately, I haven't found anything useful."
Moli clearly didn't believe it and continued to wander around the altar.
Suddenly, as if she had sensed something, she made a hand seal with her right hand, and a water dragon roared out from her palm, crashing onto the surface of the altar in the center.
The water burst open, scattering the animal bones and spirit stones on the altar into pieces.
A copper ring hidden underneath was revealed.
Moli rushed forward, bent down, grabbed the ring, and pulled it upwards with force.
A muffled rumble was heard, and the ground beside the altar slowly cracked open, revealing a hidden door.
The hidden door leads to a niche.
In the center of the niche was a bone box about the size of a palm.
When Moli saw the box, she was first taken aback, then her expression turned astonished: "This is the Celestial Box?"
She took the box from the niche, examined it in her palm for a long time, then turned to look at the coffin and said sarcastically, "Yang Li, you actually managed to get your hands on this. Now I'm starting to believe that my father's remains are indeed not in your possession. Otherwise, you wouldn't have been so foolish as to attempt to refine this Heavenly Extreme Box."
The membrane inside the coffin remained silent, offering no response.
Moli weighed the box in her hand:
"This box contains a wisp of the secret realm's primordial energy. You want to refine it, use that primordial power to deceive the secret realm's laws, and make it recognize you as its master? Haha, what a pipe dream, utterly naive."
Even if you manage to refine this thing, it will be a waste of time; the laws of nature won't recognize you.
"but·……"
Moli changed the subject.
"It also has a real use: as a catalyst, one can ignore aptitude and directly cultivate the supreme cultivation technique 'Qingyang Zuowang Scripture' left by my father."
"Haha, what a pity, Yang Mo. You only know how to refine it as a sacrifice, but you don't know how to open it. How foolish."
As she spoke, she held the box in her left palm and began to gently tap the surface of the box with the five fingers of her right hand.
The rhythm of the tapping varied, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes heavy, sometimes light, creating a distinct cadence.
"Click..."
As the tapping sound subsided, a crisp cracking sound suddenly came from inside the bone box.
Immediately afterwards, a soft golden light burst out from the crack in the box.
The lid of the box slowly opened.
A wisp of luminous golden primordial energy floated inside the box.
"Hahaha……"
However, just as the box was opened, Yang Mo's maniacal laughter suddenly erupted from inside the coffin.
"Moli, you really didn't disappoint me."
I knew it; only you, his good daughter who inherited his mantle, would know how to open this box.
Hearing the other person's laughter, Moli looked surprised.
Suddenly, a bad feeling welled up from the bottom of my heart.
The next moment, the two soul-locking nails that were nailed to the coffin suddenly came out on their own.
Immediately afterwards, the coffin lid flew off.
The two coffin nails changed direction in mid-air and pierced straight towards Moli.
"What?!"
Moli was taken aback and instinctively dodged towards the altar.
But just as her toes touched the surface of the altar, a muffled boom came from above.
A square iron cage, two zhang long and wide, suddenly slammed down from the dome above the altar, trapping her inside.
Each of the bars of the iron cage was as thick as an arm.
It was covered with sealing runes.
"That's impossible!"
Moli was horrified and hurriedly slapped the railing.
The azure palm strike slammed into the railing, but was absorbed by the runes, failing to even create a ripple.
"Bang."
The coffin lid, which had been flung off, landed to the side.
Yang Mo, who had just been wailing and begging for mercy inside the coffin, now calmly stepped out of it.
He straightened his slightly disheveled brocade robe, gently rested the red umbrella on his shoulder, and with a gentle smile on his face, slowly walked to the iron cage. "You…"
Trapped in the cage, Moli stared blankly at him, her eyes filled with disbelief. "How could you possibly break through the Soul-Locking Coffin?"
"Moli, so many years have passed, do you think I've wasted all these years? Didn't I prepare at all?" Yang Mo looked at his prey in the cage, smiling warmly.
"Do you really think I don't know about the little tricks you played in the Netherworld Pool?"
I can kill you every time you are reincarnated at your weakest, but I can't guarantee that one day you won't be lucky enough to encounter some incredible opportunity and escape that hellish place.
Therefore, I need to prepare a comprehensive plan.
He pointed to the open Celestial Box on the ground, his eyes filled with greed:
"I really can't open this box. I also know that forcibly performing the ritual is a waste of time."
So I deliberately created a loophole and pretended to be subdued by you... because I knew that as soon as you saw this box, you would definitely be unable to resist showing it off and would definitely open it yourself!
"And the moment you activate the mechanism on this altar, this cage specially made for you will immediately fall."
"Despicable! Shameless!"
Moli's eyes were bloodshot, and she almost bit her teeth to pieces.
"When it comes to being despicable, who can compare to you, a vicious woman who would even kill her own father? We're all equally despicable."
Yang smiled.
He held the [Celestial Box] containing the golden essence to his chest, turned around and said:
"Alright, enough of this nonsense. Since you've already helped me open this box, I'll reluctantly accept it and continue my path of refining and sacrificing. As for you..."
Yang Miao glanced at Mo Li, who was still struggling in the cage, his eyes turning icy:
"For so many years, I have been studying the secret techniques of this secret realm's origin. Finally, I have found a good way to completely obliterate your true spirit and annihilate your soul."
Since you're useless to me anyway, you might as well do some more for me before you die.
And this body you tricked into giving up...
Wow, such vigorous blood and energy is something I've never seen before in my life.
"I might as well refine you all into a sacrifice; perhaps it will bring me some unexpected surprises."
Having said that, Yang Qi gently waved the red umbrella in his hand.
A crimson mist gushed out from the red umbrella, quickly enveloping the iron cage.
Then, Yang Mo leisurely walked to the altar.
He sat cross-legged on the ground, placing the open [Celestial Box] in front of him.
"Buzz"
The altar began to operate.
All the array patterns on the altar lit up at the same time, and countless translucent bubbles rose from the surface of the altar.
It began to slowly rotate around the Yang membrane and the Celestial Box.
The golden essence of the secret realm inside the box began to hum and vibrate, as if it were being summoned.
Jiang Mu sighed, "What a disappointment. I thought we'd be sitting back and watching the tigers fight."