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Chapter One Hundred And Fifty Three Soul-Tethered Talisman

A bean-sized bead appeared on Zuo Mo’s hand, giving off a soft and warm star-like glow.

The bead was spherical, flawlessly spherical, and very light. A thick layer of grey consciousness covered it which made its glow appear dimmer.

Zuo Mo knew that he was halfway there!

In reality, he felt his present situation was extremely weird. Everything in front of him was weird. There were so many wondrous aspects that could not be described, too many things that he could not understand. But so what? He actually hoped that this situation would continue for a bit longer. Please don’t be a dream!

It was a fleeting thought, he stopped didn’t thinking about the weirdness it anymore.

This perfect bead that was forged out of stardust, Zuo Mo called it the star bead. The star bead could automatically attract consciousness, but it still wasn’t enough. If the gigantic grey ball that Zuo Mo was on was his entire consciousness, then the amount of consciousness that the star bead attracted was so little it was insignificant.

That little minuscule bit of consciousness lacked real value.

Luckily, he could control the consciousness. He started to urge the consciousness to gather at the star bead and condense.

 

———

 

No one paid any attention to Zuo Mo. Even Wu Ling Sanren had his attention on Wei Sheng and Gu Rong Ping. The battle between the two had reached the decisive moment. Wei Sheng was covered in blood, and there were three more sword wounds on Gu Rong Ping’s body.

To say nothing of talent, just purely based on pain tolerance, Gu Rong Ping fell far behind Wei Sheng.

Even Gu Rong Ping had to admit it to himself.

What sort of monster was this guy in front of him?

No matter what movement he made, it would pull on his wounds. That heart-boring pain almost brought him to tears. Fresh blood continuously flowed out of the wounds. He could clearly feel the power in his body slowly diminish due to blood loss. His head started to ring, his vision gradually became blurry, his ling power was almost depleted, his channels were wounded … …

But how come this guy in front of him, who was far more  injured than him, still hadn’t fallen down!

Wei Sheng had many more wounds than him, but why didn’t he seemed to be affected? Wei Sheng was flooded in blood, so much that he was suspicious that the other’s had been bleed dry. Why was he still persisting? Wei Sheng’s cultivation was much lower than his. It should have long been used up. His channels should have been damaged a long time ago. But why … …

Looking at the bloody figure in front of him, helplessness and hopelessness suddenly creeped into Gu Rong Ping’s heart!

 

———

 

The air around Zuo Mo’s body gradually calmed. The sounds of explosions became rarer, until it reached a complete silence. If one was watching, they would have found that the air around Zuo Mo’s body had went from one extreme to another. There was no longer any explosions, no flow of air, nothing. The area one zhang around his body was so silent it seemed to be tangible, with no movement in the air at all.

But no one noticed. Wu Ling Sanren and Wei Fei were completely concentrated on the battle between Wei Sheng and Gu Rong Ping. The few people that were fighting viciously in the formation also did not detect it.

Zuo Mo was forced to stop. Floating in front of him was a ball of black-grey consciousness the size of a bamboo basket. This was Zuo Mo’s result. After continuously condensing, this consciousness ball had the star bead as the inner core. As expected, the outer layer of consciousness did not dissipate.

He had taken out about one-tenth of his consciousness, and condensed it into this basket-sized ball of consciousness. The density of the consciousness ball had reached its limit, and was unable to be compressed any further. Due to the density, it was not like a ball of air, but was rock solid. Naturally, the star ball at the center could not be seen.

So was it complete?

Zuo Mo was not certain. He had made the object but he didn’t have any idea how to use it. Pu Yao had just described a concept. It was a pity that he was unable to communicate with Pu Yao. He had a strong feeling that if he left this wonderful state right now, it would definitely be hard to ever enter this wondrous state again.

How was he to use it? Looking at the black-grey rock ball of consciousness, Zuo Mo was in a predicament.

He could feel that there was a certain connection between himself and the ball of consciousness, as though it was a part of his body. Zuo Mo’s heart moved, and the ball of consciousness suddenly started to circle and dance around him.

So interesting!

Zuo Mo instantly became interested. He didn’t need to exert any control. Where his thoughts directed, the ball of consciousness would move. It was very fun. Zuo Mo had never felt so great. Even the [Little Art of Cloud and Rain] that he was most familiar with, he could not cast and maintain it so effortlessly without thought, the familiarity could not compare to this feeling that the ball was a part of him.

He joyfully played around. Anything that he could think of, the ball of consciousness would usually be able to accomplish it.

But quickly, he found something worth noting. The air-like consciousness seemed to reject the ball of consciousness. A natural empty space would form around the ball of consciousness.

Zuo Mo couldn’t help but frown. The consciousness and the ball of consciousness was from the same origins, why would they repel each other?

Pu Yao had never told him that the divided consciousness and the original consciousness would repel each other. Did he do something wrong?

Just as he was uncertain of what to do, he suddenly had an extremely daring idea –––– why not try and  place the ball of consciousness into a talisman! One, since the ball of consciousness and his consciousness repelled each other, then he would find the ball of consciousness another place. Additionally the ball of consciousness felt intimately connected to him, and if it happened to be in a talisman, just  think how great it would be! If a talisman could act according to his thoughts, and turn into a part of his body … …

The more Zuo Mo thought, the more appealing he found the idea!

Because the ball of consciousness was connected to his mind, he was able to understand that the ball of consciousness did not seem to disagree with his idea.

So he did it!

Zuo Mo started to calculate which talisman was suitable. Very quickly, he found a suitable talisman –––– Five Colored Pagoda!

He didn’t have many talismans in the first place and naturally didn’t have many to pick from.

The inside of the Five Colored Pagoda was a small pocket space which could take in the ball of consciousness. The Five Colored Pagoda may be able to deconstruct ordinary materials into the five elemental essences but consciousness was not one of the five elements. Therefore he did not have to worry about the ball being processed. In his perspective, the Five Colored Pagoda might only be half-completed but of all the talismans he possessed, it had the greatest potential to grow and the greatest abilities!

The moment he finished the thought, the ball of consciousness in front of him disappeared.

Immediately after, Zuo Mo could feel that it was now positioned in an area filled with essence of the five elements.

It was inside the Five Colored Pagoda!

Zuo Mo was gleeful.

 

———

 

At the same moment, a blinding five-colored light suddenly lit up the formation.

The four people fighting inside the formation, and Chang Heng who had been watching the rings of light, all stopped and raised their heads in shock.

A Five Colored Pagoda appeared above the formation, releasing five colors of light that was both strong and beautiful. It was so eye-catching that the crescent moon above the Five Colored Pagoda seemed to have lost all color. As the Five Colored Pagoda rose out of the clouds, light streamed like a sun rise,.

The exterior of the Five Colored Pagoda that was covered by the five-colored light had changed greatly. There was a glass-like sheen on the body of the tower, glistening and clear. The colors of each of the five different levels was even more clean and fine. The eaves of the tower curved at a great angle, looking like flying eaves. The body of the tower was narrower and taller than before, the top of the tower seemed sharp!

The sudden surge of light alarmed everyone.

 

———

 

“Soul-tethered talisman!” Xin Yan was the first to react. A light suddenly rose in his eyes, his voice full of excitement!

The other three dazedly stared at that exquisite Five Colored Pagoda in the mirage. The light that it produced, every detail, it all displayed just how unordinary it was.

After a while, the other three managed to react. Pei Yuan Ran was the first to turn around his face to look at Xin Yan. “It really is a soul-tethered talisman?”

The disciples behind them stared at each other. They were able to hear the excitement and nervousness in the sect leader’s voice. They couldn’t help but be curious. What was a soul-tethered talisman? Was it worth Xin Yan Shishu  and the sect leader to be so excited?

“Definitely!” Xin Yan replied resolutely.

An uncontrollable joy floated onto the other three people’s face, unable to be disguised. Xin Yan was skilled in forging, and never over-exaggerated. If he was so certain, then it definitely wouldn’t be wrong.

Soul-tethered talisman!

Zuo Mo actually had a soul-tethered talisman!

If Xin Yan was able to realize this, then other people naturally could also see it. Surprise and shock made their way onto many people’s faces.

A soul-tethered talisman was a talisman that was intimately connected to a xiuzhe. This kind of talisman was extremely rare. The power of a soul-tethered talisman far surpassed normal talismans, and it had many qualities that made people drool. It was able to become stronger as the xiuzhe increased in cultivation. It was connected to the mind of its owner, so they could use it to the greatest effect. The meaning of “soul-tethered” was akin to being a part of the cultivator so they did not have to worry about the talisman being stolen by others.

Even if a soul-tethered talisman was stolen, the thief would not be able to use it. It was bound to the xiuzhe, that was why it was called a soul-tethered talisman. Who would cut off someone else’s hand, and then connect it to their body?

A soul-tethered talisman was the highest kind of talisman all cultivators dreamed about! It was strange but no one was able to forge a soul-tethered talisman. They usually were formed through great treasures which underwent some fortuitous occurrences. Up until now, no one was able to clearly describe the factors for the formation of a soul-tethered talisman.

While there were many benefits to the soul-tethered talisman, it wasn’t as though there were no disadvantages. Due to the great intimacy between the talisman and the xiuzhe, if the soul-tethered talisman was damaged, the cultivator would also be affected. Usually, soul-tethered talismans were also called life-saving talismans. Those that possessed one used one scarcely and carefully.

No one would have thought that a zhuji would possess a soul-tethered talisman!

People envied Zuo Mo’s luck.

As the Five Colored Pagoda transformed and appeared, the completed seventy-two child formation [Skyring Moon Chime Formation] also changed!

The light released by the Five Colored Pagoda gradually disappeared. At the same time, the crescent moon in the sky turned to a full moon, becoming even brighter and clean as it hung up in the sky! The full moon was like a wheel, countless moon-colored strands silently drifted down from the full moon. The moon-colored thin strands seemed to flutter in the wind on the other end, quietly moving through the air and passing through the freely swimming rings of light. In the blink of an eye, the light rings of various sizes had been threaded through by the moon-colored strands into bunches similar to wind chimes!

The light of the full moon brightened. The thin strands that fell down shook, and all the rings of light shook, countless rings chiming at the same time!

Ding!

The clear sound travelled through the enormous Great Pine Pavilion, able to be heard at every corner.

The Skyring Moon Chime Formation had been reborn!

Translator Ramblings: I’ve never encountered an “enlightenment” or “epiphany” that was fake, or was ineffective. People always “gain” something.