Longevity Strange Immortal
Chapter 132 - 133: Branding, the 2nd Middle Dantian

Chapter 132: Chapter 133: Branding, the 2nd Middle Dantian

Because of the influence brought by the disciples of the Sub-Device Sect, the Heart Beast Territory descended into chaos, to the extent that it became a topic met with dread.

Fortunately, the disciples of the Sub-Device Sect did not continue their massacre spree but instead disappeared from sight.

Wu Tu saw Zhang Sheng and the other fleeing in panic in the direction of Rong Town, ignoring him entirely, with no semblance of the composure expected of Fake Core Stage cultivators.

The panic at the Mountain and Sea Market continued to escalate, prompting the loose cultivators to leave one after another.

With their generally mediocre cultivation, once they stepped outside the Heart Beast Territory into the desolate wilderness, encountering a Deceit Beast could mean death without even realizing how.

They could only hide in places they deemed safe and obscure, like ostriches sensing danger, burying their heads in the ground and pretending nothing was happening.

Initially, it was assumed that the disciples of the Sub-Device Sect would immediately pursue the loose cultivators, but they appeared in no rush.

After lingering for days at the Mountain and Sea Market, Sheng Xia descended the mountain alone to select Medicine Men, while Zhang Sheng stayed peculiarly at Duozhi Mountain.

On the surface, he wandered idly around Duozhi Mountain every day, but in truth, he was hunting for the hidden "rats" watching him, his expression increasingly enigmatic.

Zhang Sheng fiddled with a particle of Micro Dust, which had been condensed from Li Mo’s Breath Fog.

"Interesting. A mere disciple of the Heart Beast Sect managed to refine a magic artifact with over fifteen refinements. But to think this could deal with me... laughable."

He wore an amused expression and deliberately made his way toward the back mountain.

As expected, the hidden eyes watching him showed no sign of restraint but instead became more restless.

"If it’s an Innate Taoist Body, taking the corpse back to the Mountain Gate would certainly be more valuable than mere meat limbs. Junior Sister, you’re still too naive."

The spiritual power emanating from Zhang Sheng subtly fluctuated, and both his arms darkened visibly.

He tossed aside the charred meat limbs casually, then spat out a pair of new ones, which he grafted onto the stumps on his body anew.

"Come on, come on, little rats..."

Zhang Sheng made no effort to hide his excitement as thick smoke billowed and dispersed.

Standing in the desolate back mountain, he waited for a long time, but seeing no movement around him, his expression turned annoyed and somewhat embarrassed.

"Heh, heh, heh, heh..."

"I am Zhang Sheng of the Sub-Device Sect, possessing the Six Apertures and Three Hearts Acquired Dao Body. Don’t blame me for being ruthless to Medicine Men if you don’t reveal yourselves."

As Zhang Sheng spoke, the thick sulfuric smoke overhead rendered a hundred meters barren, with even the blood-red rocks blackened into char.

Assuming he had caught onto Li Mo’s weakness, he murmured to himself, "You’re one of those Medicine Men too, aren’t you? Furious? Want to kill me? Then come! Come!!!"

A frenzied, hysterical howl echoed through the mountains, carried on the wind.

A moment later—

Zhang Sheng heard approaching footsteps. Though slightly surprised by Li Mo’s concealed techniques, he eagerly turned around to face him.

Li Mo stood calmly a thousand meters away, his palm emitting faint traces of Breath Fog, dispersing to isolate all movement around the back mountain.

"I’m just curious as to how many of your Sub-Device Sect will be coming."

Zhang Sheng raised an eyebrow, noticing that Li Mo was not a Medicine Man. His cultivation level was comparable to his own, yet he looked no older than forty.

Achieving the late Foundation Establishment Stage despite residing in the Heart Beast Sect, bereft of abundant resources, with only faint traces of the Death Disease—it was difficult to fathom just how terrifying Li Mo’s talent was.

It was clear that an Innate Taoist Body alone couldn’t explain it.

Zhang Sheng scrutinized Li Mo closely, as if appraising a rare treasure.

Li Mo continued striding slowly toward Zhang Sheng, repeatedly asking, "How many of your Sub-Device Sect will be arriving?"

Zhang Sheng froze momentarily before bursting into ridicule. "Such short-sighted ignorance. Do you really expect the Sub-Device Sect to show mercy when they could destroy you entirely?"

"The path to the Heart Beast Sect will remain open for five full years. I’m merely here to check whether the meat limbs are ripe. The next batch will be ready in...."

Before Zhang Sheng could finish, he noticed the man before him smirking faintly as an overwhelming, savage beastly aura exploded forth.

The Mist Fog Spiritual Power coiling around Li Mo’s body subtly transformed into spectral images of beasts and birds.

Zhang Sheng was overjoyed, his arms igniting in a fiery blaze. "Not bad. An Innate Leakless Body combined with a Beast Dao Body of the Acquired, huh."

"A freak like you is truly rare."

Flames surged from his mouth. Without warning, the ground erupted into mounds, forming miniature erupting volcanoes. Viscous magma swept across several kilometers in an instant.

Thick smoke obscured the surroundings.

Zhang Sheng’s figure flickered in and out of sight.

Li Mo frowned deeply. Just a single drop of magma brushing past him turned part of his skin into charcoal, while the fire poison wormed its way into his body, corroding muscles and bones.

Dodging drop after drop of magma, he struggled to pinpoint Zhang Sheng’s location.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Small volcanoes erupted continuously from underground, with the magma’s temperature climbing to four or five hundred degrees in just a few breaths.

Li Mo realized the advantage of the Great Sects: harmonizing magic skills with Dao Bodies.

The Six Apertures and Three Hearts Dao Body, being of the Acquired and more suited to support roles, could rival Innate Dao Bodies under Zhang Sheng’s mastery of magic enhancements.

"You can’t even find where I am. Why not surrender? With your talent, I can recommend you to join the Sub-Device Sect."

Li Mo chuckled coldly and remained silent. Sub-Device Sect’s legacy relied on the unique constitution of Innate Human Pigs, essentially excluding outsiders from joining.

Taking the initiative, Li Mo activated the Paoxiao Swallowing Body. His pores frantically absorbed the thick smoke.

With one wide-opened mouth, the dense smoke within a hundred meters was swallowed completely into his stomach, with even the fire poison nourishing his organs.

Zhang Sheng was exposed.

Li Mo summoned the Eight-Armed Spine Nerve and closed in to within ten meters in mere breaths.

The True Word Sect’s Secret Bone shielded his vital points, while the Magic Finger extended threads of Mist Fog Silk, severing half of Zhang Sheng’s right arm with a single slash.

Zhang Sheng didn’t get angry but grew even more ecstatic. "Paoxiao Swallowing Body—damn you! What kind of freak are you?!"

"A Three Path Body... If you went to Sword Sky Sect, you’d be the most outstanding Sword Slave in millennia. It’s a waste for you to remain in this tiny Heart Beast Sect!!!"

In the blink of an eye, Zhang Sheng replaced his severed arm with a new one. Palms coming together, the blazing magma transformed into fiery pillars, consuming Li Mo’s figure entirely.

"Burn!!!"

Zhang Sheng couldn’t help laughing as he intensified the temperature of the fiery pillars.

Three hearts within his body unleashed unimaginable heat, reducing his Daoist robe to ashes and melting a hundred-meter-wide pit into Duozhi Mountain.

Even a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Heart Beast Sect could scarcely escape unscathed.

Scanning the fire pillars, Zhang Sheng aimed to preserve Li Mo’s corpse as intact as possible, only for his expression to darken severely.

Li Mo’s body, merely charred and wounded, launched itself at him with renewed ferocity.

Only then did Zhang Sheng sense danger, as rib bones burst through his chest, exposing three hearts that unleashed waves of heat.

But as he caught sight of Li Mo’s menacing form, his mind went blank.

Standing nearly three meters tall, Li Mo’s skin bore intricate, otherworldly patterns. Wherever his feet touched the ground, the soil began crystallizing.

"A... Primordial Dao Body?!"

Zhang Sheng’s worldview shattered. The Primordial Dao Body was unique to the Sub-Device Sect—how could it appear in the remote Heart Beast Sect?

Could Li Mo’s bloodline have ties to the Sub-Device Sect?

But weren’t all of us born from the Mother Furnace, rendering us incapable of producing offspring?

As countless thoughts raced through his mind, a heavy punch from Li Mo crushed into his abdomen, sending his body flying into a nearby stone wall.

Li Mo’s legs coiled with power and he vanished instantly, reappearing directly in front of Zhang Sheng.

He didn’t give Zhang Sheng a chance to retaliate. Each step closed the distance further, his fists intertwining with the Eight-Armed Spine Nerve in relentless blows.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Though Zhang Sheng managed to spit magma in retaliation, Li Mo relied on the Paoxiao Swallowing Body to consume it all without issue.

Li Mo fully demonstrated what it meant to crush someone with sheer talent.

After fully understanding Zhang Sheng’s methods, Li Mo used the Paoxiao Swallowing Body defensively before decisively ending the battle once Zhang Sheng’s trump cards were exhausted.

Notably, to avoid leaving any trace of Hui Qingyi’s presence at the scene, Li Mo refrained from summoning any Tattooed Beasts, though this led to considerable injuries from the magma’s toll.

Zhang Sheng panted helplessly, utterly depleted.

"Six Apertures, Three Hearts—what happens when one heart is lost?"

Without hesitation, Li Mo crushed one of Zhang Sheng’s hearts. The latter gritted his teeth in agony but struggled to rise.

"Damn it!"

Even teetering on the brink of death, Zhang Sheng attempted to gather his Magma Spiritual Power for one last desperate counterattack, only to have another heart shattered under Li Mo’s hand.

"Ahhh!!!"

Fixing his gaze on Zhang Sheng, Li Mo offered an almost mocking smile. "Answer my question, and I might let you live."

Zhang Sheng weakly laughed, "Haha, would you even dare to kill a disciple of the Sub-Device Sect?"

Hoping to catch a flicker of panic on Li Mo’s face in his final moments, he instead saw only calm indifference, as if everything was falling into place.

"What bloodlines comprise your Sub-Device Sect?"

Zhang Sheng’s eyes widened in disbelief before a sudden realization dawned on him. "You want to... join the Sub-Device Sect? Or infiltrate it?"

"Foolishness. Even with a Primordial Dao Body, without the Melting Furnace—"

Li Mo pointed toward Zhang Sheng’s chest and abdomen, studying the reaction in his opponent’s eyes before nodding. "So your Middle Dantian is naturally unique and is called the Melting Furnace."

"You... Ahhh!!!"

With practiced precision, Li Mo carved through Zhang Sheng’s flesh and organs, extracting the Melting Furnace from his abdomen in perfect condition, sealing it within a prepared Liu Li jar.

The Melting Furnace, serving as the Middle Dantian, was composed entirely of metal and bore the marks of heavy hammering, an unnatural creation by any standard.

When Zhang Sheng tried to say something further, Li Mo crushed his final heart.

Li Mo stared at Zhang Sheng’s corpse.

Only after confirming that all traces of life were snuffed out did he summon the Deceit Beasts of Duozhi Mountain, leaving the remains for them to devour completely.

Li Mo took no interest in the items Zhang Sheng had swallowed, even bypassing a pair of mid-grade magical artifact-ranked arms, though he did briefly examine one Jade Scroll.

It confirmed that the Sub-Device Sect disciples traveling to the Heart Beast Sect did so under task assignments, with the Jade Scroll indeed documenting operations involving harvesting meat limbs.

After handling the corpse, Li Mo returned to a dilapidated shop at the Mountain and Sea Market.

Li Mo resolved to remain steadfast and wait.

When the next group of Sub-Device Sect disciples arrived, then he’d plan accordingly.

Opening the Creation Book, he saw the Spirit Root Page formed from metallic top-grade Spirit Stones flickering with light, capable of transmuting any organ into a Metal Spirit Root.

Retrieving the Liu Li jar, he gazed at the slightly withered Melting Furnace contained inside.

"Imprint."

The Spirit Root Page projected an image of the Melting Furnace, slowly cultivating a second Middle Dantian.

The Melting Furnace was intrinsically aligned with metal, and unless something unexpected occurred, Li Mo’s second Middle Dantian would naturally adopt an Alien Spirit Energy of the metal attribute.