Ten thousand I am across the heavens

Indeed, the Ghostly Demon Lord didn't need to threaten the captured Gu Master, who trembled as he absorbed all the Gu worms before him. These Gu worms were normally unruly and difficult to tame. But now, under the intimidation of the Six-Rank Immortal Gu within the Ghostly Demon Lord, they were all incredibly obedient, in a state where they could be instantly refined upon being grabbed.

For him, these Gu worms didn't require much effort to suppress. Basic shield parrying was like elementary school material in the Mountain and River Republic—something everyone learned, like calisthenics.

Anyone with the aptitude can learn it, so the required level of the Gu worm is usually only one to two levels.

A third-level Gu Master already possesses the ability to refine Gu quickly. In the blink of an eye, several Gu worms had taken root in the Gu Master's acupoints. The method for operating the killing move was also quickly taught to him.

The third-level Gu Master listened carefully to every word, afraid that he might make a mistake that would prevent him from mastering the killing move, and that the exposed immortal would be reduced to ashes.

This seemingly simple killing move sounded far more complex than any he had ever used before. As an ordinary person, a mortal Gu Master who wasn't exactly an elite, he hadn't actually encountered many killing moves.

The third stage is roughly the threshold at which one can accept lethal moves. Starting from the peak of the second stage, the combination of Gu worms becomes increasingly important. Several complementary Gu worms can often enhance each other and achieve a 1+1 greater than 2 effect.

This was the prototype of the killing move. Upon reaching the third stage, the number of Gu worms it could handle increased further, from the original ten or so to a maximum of several dozen. This made the importance of combination even more crucial. Often, a single Gu worm would be the core, paired with a set of other Gu worms as support.

This is the most basic killing move. It doesn't require any special techniques; it simply requires the effects of the Gu worms used to amplify each other. This is the level of killing moves he's encountered so far; they're almost entirely uncomplex. At most, one has to pay attention to which Gu worm effects should trigger first and which should trigger later during combat to maximize the amplification.

The shield counterattack in front of us is merely a simple defensive counter-attack ability, and the core Gu worm is only at the second stage. It should be an extremely simple killing move, and it should be able to be executed normally simply by driving the Gu worm to operate.

However, this killing move is much more complex than other killing moves of the same level. Not only does the timing of each Gu worm's activation need to be precise, but the method of activating the Gu worms is also important. He only managed to grasp a little bit of the trick after many practices.

It requires using Gu worms to construct a force transmission system within one's own body that conforms to human biomechanics, thereby buffering and storing the impact force received when attacked, and then using it to counterattack.

This force transmission system varies from person to person. It must be constructed based on one's own body structure, as described in the instructions for the killing move. The construction of the killing move itself is very complicated, but once it is constructed, it is very simple to use.

It's like a machine made up of gears, linkages, and springs. Assembling it might be complicated, but using it might only require pressing a button.

After studying for most of the day, the third-level Gu Master finally managed to construct a crooked and distorted force transmission system. But at least it was usable.

He quickly wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and pressed down on a Gu worm on his chest. It was a channeling Gu worm; the Ghostly Demon Lord wouldn't keep watching him forever. As an immortal, he had more important things to do. Upon receiving the information, he instantly teleported to appear before the other party. This was the immense authority of a Gu Immortal within their Immortal Aperture—the ability to teleport freely within their own body, but at the cost of consuming their stored Immortal Essence.

The Ghostly Demon Lord plucked a hair from his own head, tossed it on the ground, and blew on it. In an instant, the hair grew into a humanoid puppet.

"Resist his attack, and I'll see how well you do."

Without a word, the humanoid puppet charged forward and slashed at the third-level Gu Master with its blade-like palm, startling the latter into hastily activating his newly prepared killing move. At this moment, he only had a few Gu worms remaining within his body; he couldn't use any other killing moves.

Before achieving immortality, Gu Masters are actually very fragile. Apart from those Gu worms that passively enhance their physique, once other Gu worms are removed from their bodies, they are no different from ordinary people. At this moment, with a body full of unfamiliar Gu worms, he can only use shield parrying while holding them in his hand.

Faced with a palm strike as powerful as a third-level strike, he hastily raised his arm, using a shield parry technique. Theoretically, this move is best used with a shield, but it's not essential. Using his arm as a shield, while potentially injuring himself, is a technique that uses the opponent's force against them, providing a considerable degree of cushioning.

As he raised his hand to block, he slid half a step backward, a sharp pain shooting through his arm. At the same time, the Gu worms within his body acted like compressed springs, absorbing the subsequent impact for him. Simultaneously, he felt a surge of power building within him, an urgent need to be released.

Then, the arm he had just used to block his opponent suddenly thrust forward and in the opposite direction. In an instant, it deflected the attacking puppet's arm, disrupting its stance and causing the puppet to stumble backward. Taking advantage of this opportunity, he punched the puppet in the chest, sending it staggering backward.

Although his arm, which had just been attacked, already bore some bruises, he felt relieved after truly experiencing the power of the attack. Taking advantage of the puppet's recovery animation, he quickly took off his shirt and wrapped it around his right arm, making it into a makeshift shield. This way, even sharp attacks wouldn't easily sever his arm. The shield counterattack itself had some effect on strengthening the shield, and the clothing on his body was also within the scope of reinforcement.

The puppet attacked again. To test the effectiveness of its killing move, the Ghostly Demon Lord only allowed the puppet to use pure physical attacks. With an attack power equivalent to a peak third-tier strength expert, it launched strikes again and again. The attacks, enough to send a bull flying, landed on the arms covered by clothing, but had no effect. They were all deflected, and the puppet even used the force of the blows against itself, causing some damage to the hastily created puppet.

The Ghostly Demon Lord watched the power of this killing move intently, but in his opinion, it was nothing special. The real power lay in the fact that the killing move was constructed from nothing more than first- and second-stage Gu worms.

[To be continued]

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