Chapter 561: Chapter 327 Heavenly Ghost
Li Shiming sipped his Third Grade Spirit Tea while taking out a storage bag given to him by his clone, Li Yuanba. From it, he retrieved the Ghost Banner Treasure and a Jade Scroll.
The Jade Scroll contained a cultivation technique for controlling ghosts called the ‘No Thought Earth Willow Netherworld Scripture,’ sourced by his clone Yuan Ba, who had excellent relations through trade channels with the Guardian Golden Core Elders.
Each Guardian Golden Core Elder possessed significant influence within their sect, and obtaining a cultivation technique for controlling ghosts was likely best through the Demon Sect. Given Yuan Ba’s favorable connections within the Senluo Sect, he managed to acquire this ‘No Thought Earth Willow Netherworld Scripture.’
Li Shiming cast a strand of his Divine Thought into the Jade Scroll, and the content of the ‘No Thought Earth Willow Netherworld Scripture’ was instantly recorded by him.
In the time it took to finish the cup of Third Grade Spirit Tea in his hand, he had completed studying the ‘No Thought Earth Willow Netherworld Scripture’ and mastered it entirely.
The Third Grade Fierce Ghost within the Ghost Banner Treasure, though residing inside the treasure and shielded from the Heavenly and Earthly winds, still needed continual energy replenishment; otherwise, its energy would keep depleting.
Unless in some special environments that could nurture ghosts and spirits, or if a Devil Cultivator used special methods to cultivate them, ghosts were not normally seen.
The reason lay in the environment, under the effects of the Heaven and Earth winds, no ghosts could survive in this world.
Being a Third Grade Fierce Ghost placed it at an extremely formidable level among fierce ghosts, equivalent to the Golden Core Realm, but it was equally bound by the Rules of Heaven and Earth. Without the Ghost Banner Treasure for protection, its energy would deplete even faster.
There were two methods for Devil Cultivators to nurture fierce ghosts. One was to coexist with the ghost, sharing the cultivator’s own blood and spirit, thus preventing the ghost from losing energy, but this increased the risk of losing one’s mind to demonic paths.
The second method was to bind the ghost within a treasure, enhancing the power of the treasure while also being able to summon the ghost when needed, feeding it with one’s own blood. This method also deepened the connection with the ghost and, being tied to a treasure, posed less risk.
‘No Thought Earth Willow Netherworld Scripture’ pertained to the first method, direct nurturing of fierce ghosts. However, Shiming was not overly worried about the fierce ghost posing a significant threat to himself.
On one hand, he sought the fierce ghost merely to experiment and see if, once the ghost had gained enough strength, it could possibly animate the Fake Infant Body of Supervisor Feng Yi.
On the other hand, he had a large supply of Third-grade Spirit Pills to replenish himself, so the maintenance of a Third Grade Fierce Ghost wasn’t truly a concern for him.
Contemplating the ‘No Thought Earth Willow Netherworld Scripture,’ his fingers traced an immensely complex Spiritual Power Pattern in the air.
The pattern’s intricate paths of spiritual power made it difficult for cultivators to master. Such a technique, from learning to usage, could not be realized without several months.
Yet, from observing the cultivation technique within the Jade Scroll to executing it, Shiming accomplished it in less than two hours.
This was the effect of his Life-bound Treasure, IBMz15. With each experience, the function of IBMz15 increasingly emerged.
Inside the Ghost Banner Treasure, the Third Grade Fierce Ghost was very weak. After its previous master perished, the ghost had suffered some backlash.
If the Ghost Banner Treasure was immediately refined by a cultivator after that, and the Third Grade Fierce Ghost received nurturing from the new master’s blood, it likely could have recovered quickly.
But after Yuan Ba obtained the Ghost Banner Treasure, he had no intention of refining it and just kept it in his Space Ring, denying the Third Grade Fierce Ghost any energy replenishment.
Had it not been for the binding of the Ghost Banner Treasure, it would have attempted to escape long ago.
In such a state, the Third Grade Fierce Ghost could hardly resist the ‘No Thought Earth Willow Netherworld Scripture’ refinement. Shiming’s spiritual power was vastly superior to that of the ghost’s previous master by an unknown degree.
The weakened Third Grade Fierce Ghost merely allowed the ownership pattern to envelop it, and strands of spiritual lines within it formed a large net. The ownership pattern merged with the Third Grade Fierce Ghost, making them inseparable.
‘No Thought Earth Willow Netherworld Scripture’ was indeed formidable. Right after the successful ownership, Shiming sensed the condition of the Third Grade Fierce Ghost.
Under the influence of ‘No Thought Earth Willow Netherworld Scripture,’ the Third Grade Fierce Ghost held no secrets from him, and its life and death depended entirely on his will.
The Third Grade Fierce Ghost had been refined by a cultivator before and, while it retained certain vicious traits, it had developed sufficient fear and respect for its master.
This fear and respect came from the various methods the previous master used to discipline the Third Grade Fierce Ghost, sparing Shiming some effort.
Of course, the ‘No Thought Earth Willow Netherworld Scripture,’ a technique for directly nurturing fierce ghosts, would instill even deeper discipline, without needing the medium of a treasure.
Shiming extracted a drop of his vital blood from within his body. With a flick of his finger, the blood flew into the body of the Third Grade Fierce Ghost.
This blood was not just life-sustaining; it also carried a significant amount of spiritual power.
Upon receiving the drop of blood, the Third Grade Fierce Ghost immediately revived, as the blood was absorbed and converted into its own energy.
Realizing its current situation, the Third Grade Fierce Ghost was rather intelligent. Sensing Shiming’s formidable spiritual power, it swiftly signaled its loyalty to him.
The intelligence of the Third Grade Fierce Ghost was not high, approximately that of a several-years-old child.