Chapter 370: General Aokiji, Ice Soul Silver Lightning
In the empty secret chamber, Mo Yu sat cross-legged. With a wave of his hand, an ordinary brown bamboo scroll appeared in his palm.
"Heavenly Demon Puppet."
The scroll, one of the treasures Mo Yu obtained from raiding the Demon Flame Valley, contained the secrets of an ancient puppet technique. Mo Yu had been quite curious about its contents.
As he unrolled the bamboo scroll, the intricate characters slowly engraved themselves into Mo Yu's mind, leaving deep and lasting impressions.
The chamber fell into a quiet stillness as Mo Yu became completely absorbed in the strange world described within the scroll.
Time passed swiftly, and before he realized it, half an hour had gone by. After studying for this short time, Mo Yu now had a solid understanding of the Heavenly Demon Puppet technique.
To craft such a puppet, as the scroll had mentioned, three main components were required: a body, a magical core, and a soul. In addition to these, certain special metallic materials were needed to strengthen the puppet's body.
Tapping the bamboo scroll against his arm, Mo Yu sank into thought. He realized that he already had most of what he needed.
He had the body—the preserved corpse of a peak Dou Zong expert he had obtained from the Wolf King's lair. As for the magical core, the seventh-rank Ice-type core he had acquired would suffice. And the soul? The trapped soul of the Earth Demon Elder, sealed within the Black Lotus Lightning, would be the perfect fit.
As for the special metals needed, Mo Yu, being a skilled artificer, had more than enough in his storage ring.
With everything in place, Mo Yu didn't hesitate any longer. After mastering the crafting method of the Heavenly Demon Puppet, he summoned fiery-red lightning in his hand.
With a flick of his finger, the lightning surged forth, enveloping the corpse of the Dou Zong expert, melting away the ice encasing it.
As the ice melted, the expert's clothes disintegrated into powder. Mo Yu maintained a calm expression as the intense heat caused the corpse to turn a deep crimson. As it continued to roast, thin wisps of black smoke—remnants of decayed corpse energy—rose from the body, only to be incinerated by the Vermilion Bird Heavenly Flame.
Mo Yu carefully controlled the flame, balancing the heat to burn away the corpse's impurities without destroying it.
It took three full hours of refining the body to completely expel the remaining corpse energy. Once the last wisp of smoke was gone, Mo Yu sighed in relief. With a flick of his finger, he created two fist-sized holes, one in the chest and one in the forehead of the corpse.
No blood spilled from the holes—any remaining fluids had evaporated during the refining process. This was another necessary step in crafting the Heavenly Demon Puppet.
By now, the once-powerful Dou Zong expert's body had shrunk significantly. The skin had turned a ghastly pale gray, tightly clinging to the dried-up muscles, and the fingers had elongated into razor-sharp claws.
Following the instructions in the bamboo scroll, Mo Yu continued the refinement. He then summoned the ice-blue magical core, which floated into the chest cavity of the corpse, filling the hole.
With this done, Mo Yu raised his right hand, where a black lotus-shaped lightning sparkled. Hidden within was a strong soul presence.
"Mo Yu, what will it take for you to let me go?" came an angry and venomous voice from the lightning.
"Earth Demon Elder, no need to rush. You'll be free soon," Mo Yu replied with a cold smile. At his command, the black lotus slowly bloomed, revealing a blue soul hidden inside.
The moment the soul appeared, it tried to flee from the chamber. But Mo Yu was prepared and quickly grabbed it back.
Staring coldly at the struggling soul of the Earth Demon Elder, Mo Yu's hand erupted in crimson lightning. The searing heat engulfed the soul, and agonized screams echoed through the chamber.
Ignoring the curses and threats, Mo Yu continued to raise the temperature of the flame. Under the intense heat, the last remnants of the elder's consciousness were burnt away, leaving behind a pure soul essence.
With the elder's mind wiped clean, Mo Yu tossed the blue soul essence like a dragon into the hole in the corpse's forehead.
As the soulless essence entered, the corpse's eyes suddenly snapped open, revealing icy blue irises.
Mo Yu wasn't surprised. He snapped his fingers, causing various strange metals to shoot out from his storage ring and float before him.
He inspected the hovering metals and nodded. With a wave of his hand, the Vermilion Bird Heavenly Flame surged forth like a pillar of fire, melting the metals into a dark golden liquid.
Three days and nights passed, during which Mo Yu meticulously worked on the refinement. Finally, with a flick of his hand, the molten gold floated towards the puppet, slowly covering its cold, rigid body.
Sizzling sounds filled the air as the scalding liquid met the corpse, but the body showed no signs of damage. Instead, the puppet's skin turned from ashen gray to dark gold, giving it a sturdy and intimidating appearance.
As the molten metal was absorbed into the body, streaks of silver light began to flash across the puppet's skin. These flashes gradually spread, covering more of its body.
Watching the transformation, Mo Yu raised an eyebrow. "Silver… A mid-tier puppet?"
According to the bamboo scroll, Heavenly Demon Puppets were divided into three tiers—Heaven, Earth, and Human. The easiest way to distinguish their rank was by their skin color: gold for Heaven, silver for Earth, and bronze for Human.
The puppet before him now had mostly silver skin, meaning it was of the Earth tier.
Pondering for a moment, Mo Yu reached into his storage ring and retrieved a pair of golden eyes.
These were golden beast eyes Mo Yu had obtained years ago when he destroyed the Mo Clan of Yancheng. For a long time, they had sat unused in his storage ring.
But now, seeing the Earth-tier puppet before him, Mo Yu thought the golden eyes might be a perfect addition. Even though the puppet was not human, the golden beast eyes might give it some unexpected abilities.
Without hesitation, Mo Yu installed the golden eyes into the puppet's empty eye sockets.
The moment the golden eyes were embedded, a fierce aura began to emanate from the puppet, like that of a wild beast awakening from a long slumber.
Mo Yu paused, intrigued by the sudden change. He was curious about how these golden eyes would affect the puppet.
As the Vermilion Bird Heavenly Flame continued to refine the puppet, the fusion between the golden eyes and the puppet became increasingly stable. At the same time, the puppet's aura grew stronger and more intense.
Three more days passed.
By the fourth day, the puppet's body gleamed with a bright silver light. A savage and primal energy, akin to that of a powerful magical beast, surged from within.
When the silver glow reached its peak, the transformation suddenly stopped. The puppet's terrifying aura also came to an abrupt halt.
Despite the stillness, Mo Yu could sense that the puppet now far surpassed the power of the Earth Demon Elder.
Within the red lightning, the puppet slowly stood up. Without any visible support, it hovered silently in mid-air, unmoving, while its golden eyes shone with a crimson glow.
Biting the tip of his tongue, Mo Yu spat out a drop of blood infused with his soul essence. The blood flew into the puppet's forehead, leaving behind a thumb-sized dark red mark.
As the blood was absorbed, the puppet's golden eyes flickered with a faint spark of life.
The puppet moved its stiff neck, looked down at Mo Yu, then gracefully landed on the ground, kneeling on one knee, its head bowed toward him.
With the soul imprint complete, the puppet was now Mo Yu's most loyal bodyguard, bound to follow his commands without question or betrayal.
Mo Yu watched the kneeling puppet with a hint of satisfaction. This puppet, or rather this Earth Demon Puppet, wasn't yet at the highest level described in the bamboo scroll, but it was still a formidable creation.
Although it was only an Earth-tier puppet, Mo Yu was pleased. He could tell that its power was on par with a peak Dou Zong expert.
Having such a powerful puppet by his side would be a tremendous asset, even in Central Plains, where strong fighters were plentiful.
Surveying the silver-clad puppet before him, Mo Yu's gaze lingered on its golden eyes. There was something peculiar about those eyes.
Even though Mo Yu didn't fully understand their purpose, he sensed a trace of lingering spirit within them, suggesting that the original owner of these eyes had been no ordinary creature, likely a magical beast above the seventh rank.
"Master!"
As Mo Yu pondered, a hoarse voice suddenly broke the silence of the chamber, startling him.
Surprised, Mo Yu scanned the room with his silver eyes before locking his gaze on the puppet, which had just spoken.
The Earth Demon Puppet had spoken?
"Is it you… Earth Demon Puppet?" Mo Yu asked, stunned. According to the scroll, Heavenly Demon Puppets were mindless killing machines, incapable of speech.
"Yes, master. It's because of the golden eyes..."
After a moment, Mo Yu narrowed his eyes, focusing on the puppet's golden eyes.
By all accounts, the Heavenly Demon Puppet should have no intelligence. Even the one crafted by Xiao Yan in the original story was completely mindless.
The only difference between Mo Yu's puppet and Xiao Yan's was the presence of these golden eyes.
As Mo Yu pondered, he felt a strange connection with the puppet, as if part of his soul had merged with it. Though the puppet had gained a hint of intelligence, it still followed his every command without hesitation.
Relieved that the puppet hadn't gained full independence, Mo Yu asked, "Who are you?"
"I am your servant, master," the puppet responded stiffly.
Mo Yu raised an eyebrow. The puppet's intelligence seemed quite basic, like a machine.
"Interesting…"
With a smile, Mo Yu lifted his right hand, revealing a small, icy blue lightning seed pulsing with cold energy.
"From now on, you shall be called Aokiji, and this Ice Soul Silver Lightning shall be yours to command."
(End of Chapter)
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