Fang Yuan's situation was peculiar, almost bizarre, and it forced Qi Zai to take notice.
"What kind of Dao Marks does he possibly carry? Why can he use killer moves from various paths and amplify their power without any reduction?!"
Though Qi Zai appeared composed on the surface, sitting steady as a fisherman on his platform, inwardly he was racking his brain.
"As far as I know, only one person in history has achieved such a thing... the Berserk Demon Venerable!"
In the long history of the human race, there had been only a handful of Demon Venerables of true power — and Berserk was one of them. He had founded the Strength Path, was the progenitor of that discipline, and had simultaneously cultivated the Transformation Path.
According to clear historical records, he could transform into a thousand different forms, and his Dao Marks could shift freely between them.
For example, when the Berserk Demon Venerable transformed into an electric wolf, he could unleash Lightning Path killer moves. When he transformed into a mud bog crab, he would wield Earth Path killer moves — all without being inhibited or diminished by other Dao Marks.
In contrast, ordinary Transformation Path Gu Masters could typically only specialize in a single transformation. During the King's Court Contest in the Northern Plains, the two Gu Masters Cheng Long and Cheng Hu could only transform into dragon and tiger forms respectively.
As for Transformation Path Gu Immortals, such as He Langzi — who had once fought Fang Yuan — he could take on three different wolf forms, each bearing different Dao Marks. But switching between them required a waiting period, during which he had to use methods to clear away the original Dao Marks, preventing interference between different paths.
This drawback had plagued Transformation Path Gu Masters and Gu Immortals throughout all of history.
With the sole exception of one person.
The Berserk Demon Venerable.
He seemed to be able to transform freely, without worrying about interference between Dao Marks.
Unfortunately, after the Berserk Demon Venerable fell, this technique had not been passed down. Countless brilliant predecessors had tried to comprehend his methods, but all had failed and gained nothing.
"Could it be that this enemy before me has somehow inherited the Berserk Demon Venerable's key legacy of the Transformation Path?" The moment this thought crossed Qi Zai's mind, his heart burned with excitement.
He could think of no more likely explanation.
"Of course, the path of Gu Master cultivation is vast and unpredictable, filled with all manner of people. Techniques are as numerous as the stars in the night sky, beyond any conventional estimation." Qi Zai narrowed his eyes, remaining perfectly calm.
In truth, his guess that Fang Yuan had obtained the Berserk Demon Venerable's true inheritance still underestimated Fang Yuan.
The reason Fang Yuan had reached this level was due to the Ninth Transformation Supreme Immortal True Body Gu that Demon Venerable Spectral Soul had refined.
This Immortal Gu was no ordinary treasure!
It was not only the key artifact that Demon Venerable Spectral Soul had relied on to be reborn, but also the cornerstone upon which he had pinned his hopes of surpassing all other Venerables in the future.
Back then, after Spectral Soul Demon Venerable died, he refused to accept his fate.
So he established the Shadow Sect, toiling painstakingly to lay his plans. During this time, he not only compiled his own lifetime of knowledge, but also scoured the world for countless inheritances. Among these were Gu Master inheritances — many of them masterworks that provided Spectral Soul Demon Venerable with considerable inspiration and entirely new ideas. There were even Gu Immortal inheritances, and they even encompassed the legacies of many other Venerables.
Even the most mysterious Red Lotus Demon Venerable — the Shadow Sect had managed to obtain a true inheritance left by him. What, then, of the other Venerables?
Spectral Soul Demon Venerable commanded the Shadow Sect and established the Zombie Alliance as a subsidiary organization. Spanning the five regions, he spent tens of thousands of years diligently accumulating knowledge, conducting research, and sacrificing countless lives and resources.
In the end, he had absorbed the essence of all rivers into the sea, extracting the finest elements and melting them into a single crucible, producing the Ninth Transformation Supreme Immortal True Body Gu.
It could be said that this Immortal Gu was no longer merely the crystallization of Spectral Soul Demon Venerable's Soul Path. It was a peerless treasure forged from the essence of countless paths, the true inheritances of numerous Venerables — a testament to his philosophy of absorbing all and embracing everything under heaven.
Though Heavenly Will had arranged Fang Yuan as a pawn, at the final moment, Fang Yuan had relied on the instincts of an Otherworldly Demon to break free from his shackles and claim the Supreme Immortal True Body Gu for himself.
Qi Zai harbored doubts. Though Fang Yuan radiated only Sixth Transformation aura, he did not let his guard down for even a moment.
He was probing Fang Yuan.
As a Seventh Transformation Gu Immortal, even without a Seventh Transformation Immortal Gu, he should at least have Sixth Transformation ones.
The method of refining Resentment Mud Balls from the rotten mud slurry earlier, and then transforming them into the mud figure Ni Jian — that had been an Immortal Path technique.
But he had not used any Immortal Gu.
Immortal Gu were a Gu Immortal's trump cards, and using them cost Immortal Essence!
Qi Zai merely possessed an Inferior Blessed Land. Under normal circumstances, he would not deploy Immortal Gu.
Of course, Immortal Essence was not the main reason. The primary factor was that once Immortal Gu were deployed, the enemy would be able to deduce what they were.
After all, the Gu Insects a Gu Master carried — how many and what kind — were strictly confidential information. Once intelligence leaked, one would be targeted and countered.
The same applied to Gu Immortals.
In a first encounter, when neither side knew the other's true capabilities, Gu Immortals always had to feel each other out.
While Qi Zai was probing Fang Yuan, Fang Yuan was probing him in turn.
Various Mortal Path killer moves emerged endlessly from Fang Yuan's hands, and combined with his refined and handsome appearance, they drew Qi He's rapt attention.
Like Qi Zai, Fang Yuan also possessed Immortal Gu, but he could not use them recklessly.
Although the Seventh Transformation Sword Path Immortal Gu was tremendously powerful, Fang Yuan only had Sixth Transformation Green Grape Immortal Essence — far less than what the Seventh Transformation Gu Immortal Qi Zai commanded.
Had Fang Yuan not pledged himself to the Langya Sect, without a large supply of Immortal Essence Stones to replenish his Immortal Essence in time, he would have lost this fight without question.
The two exchanged blow after blow, trading offense and defense in a spectacular display that left Qi He unable to look away, gasping with astonishment.
Inevitably, Qi Zai was gradually forced onto the defensive.
Mortal Path killer moves, no matter how excellent, were not Immortal Gu. Therefore, the amplification they received from the Dao Marks on Qi Zai's body had its limits — it could never exceed the bounds of deploying a single Immortal Gu.
In the vast expanse of history, there was only one instance of a Mortal Path killer move that could rival an Immortal Gu when activated.
That was the White Bone Chariot, created by the Proud Bone Demon, Shen Jie'ao.
He had been an Eighth Transformation Demonic Path Gu Immortal, and he certainly had reason to be proud. In terms of this achievement alone, not even the ten great Venerables in history could match him.
Immortal Venerables and Demon Venerables may have once been invincible, but that did not mean they were omnipotent.
Each field had its own expertise. Even Great Sun Immortal Venerable and Thieving Heaven Demon Venerable had sought out Ancestor Long Hair to help them refine Gu.
In contrast, Fang Yuan, though his accumulated Dao Marks were far fewer than Qi Zai's and the power amplification of his Mortal Path killer moves was limited, had the advantage of endless techniques at his disposal, allowing him to handle each situation with ease.
Gradually, Fang Yuan pressed forward with more attacks and fewer defenses, gaining ever greater initiative.
Qi Zai's mind was sharp, and he could see how the battle was going. With a slight furrow of his brows, he launched his counterattack.
Battlefield Killer Move — Air Lock Domain.
Instantly, the surrounding sky was sealed, the air frozen in place, forming a translucent temporary battlefield.
Fang Yuan smiled faintly, showing no panic whatsoever.
Such battlefield killer moves were only at the Mortal Path level. For a Gu Immortal who wielded Immortal Gu, they posed very little threat.