Battle Through the Heavens: The Holy Sun Immortal Venerable

Chapter 199 Fifth Stage Peak! A Big Surprise!

The Human Scorpion's strength is beyond doubt. As a sixth-level peak Dou Zun, the Human Scorpion's strength has reached the pinnacle of this world. It can even be said that there are very few people on the Dou Qi Continent who can defeat the Human Scorpion.

As a former disciple of the Scorpion, Lin Ran was well aware of just how terrifying his third master's background truly was.

Although the Heavenly Scorpion is the strongest among the three Scorpion Demons, the Earthly Scorpion and the Human Scorpion also have their own skills. Among them, the Heavenly Scorpion has the highest combat power, while the Earthly Scorpion is the most knowledgeable in alchemy. For example, Lin Ran's alchemy skills were taught by the Earthly Scorpion.

As for the third brother, Scorpion, he has the most profound research on martial arts techniques and combat skills.

Many of the techniques and fighting skills that Lin Ran possesses come from the Human Scorpion. For example, the Pure Yang Sword Qi and the Aurora Dragon Step are both from the Human Scorpion. Even the Great Sun Holy Yang Palm was created for Lin Ran by the Human Scorpion in conjunction with the Earth Scorpion and the Heavenly Scorpion.

It can be said that Lin Ran's skills almost all come from the Scorpion Demon Three Ghosts. Without the Scorpion Demon Three Ghosts, there would be no Lin Ran as we know him today.

This is why, despite the Scorpion Demons' heinous crimes, Lin Ran remained completely open and honest with them. This is also why Lin Ran firmly believed he was truly a disciple of the Scorpion Demons, and not some kind of furnace or blood slave…

"How disappointing, Third Master."

Looking at that face that was so familiar, Lin Ran smiled with relief. With a wave of his hand, terrifying soul power shattered the soul imprint on the human scorpion's storage ring and entered it.

As Lin Ran explored his consciousness, his eyes suddenly lit up.

As expected of a sixth-level peak Dou Zun force, and one of the three giants of the Yunyu Sect, the Human Scorpion Sect discovered a large number of good things with just one glance.

Bottles and jars of pills were displayed in abundance, and a large number of rare medicinal materials were piled up, but the most numerous items were cultivation techniques and combat skills!

"Great Zen Fist: Mid-level Earth-rank combat skill".

"Joyful Zen Sword Aura: Mid-level Earth-rank combat skill".

"The Blissful Yang Scripture: High-Level Earth-Rank Cultivation Technique..."

Scrolls of cultivation techniques and fighting skills were arranged in the storage ring. Lin Ran recognized many of them, and those he recognized were actually the most common and ordinary ones!

Among this large collection of martial arts techniques and combat skills, there were five scrolls that Scorpion had deliberately placed aside.

With a thought, the information on the five volumes of cultivation techniques and combat skills immediately entered Lin Ran's mind.

[Joyful Zen Bliss Technique: A top-tier cultivation method that complements the low-level Heavenly Rank combat skill and the Bliss Technique. By utilizing the power of Yin and Yang harmony, it draws upon the Blissful Battle Qi and integrates it into one's own body, allowing one to ascend to the heavens in one step!]

[Great Sun Palm: Low-level Heavenly Rank Combat Skill. This palm technique incorporates the essence of the Joyful Zen Vajra, using its masculine power to shatter all things!]

[Joyful Zen Asura Hand: A low-level Heaven-rank combat skill. Forged with a joyful Zen heart, it embodies unwavering ruthlessness. Its palm strikes extreme Yin and coldness, capable of shattering bodies and severing souls.]

[Joyful Zen Melodic Wave: A low-level Heavenly Rank sonic combat skill. The melodious sounds of Joyful Zen can bewitch the heart and soul.]

[Joyful Zen Blood-Draining Spell: A special secret spell created based on the Joyful Zen Bliss Technique. It uses the ingenious techniques of the Joyful Zen Bliss Technique to seal the soul and dabble in blood...]

Lin Ran had grasped all the information from the five scrolls. His expression changed constantly, and he finally let out a soft sigh.

These five volumes of cultivation techniques and combat skills are undoubtedly top-tier. Not to mention, the cultivation technique he himself cultivates is the Joyful Zen Bliss Technique, and his most proficient combat skill, the Great Sun Holy Yang Palm, is evolved from the Great Sun Gang Palm.

As for the remaining Joyful Zen Asura Hand and Joyful Zen Melting Wave, they are undoubtedly the last resort of the Scorpion Demon Three Ghosts.

As the saying goes, "Teach your apprentice and you'll starve yourself." Normally, a master would hold back a trick, let alone the Scorpion Demon Three Ghosts who never considered Lin Ran their apprentice.

These two Heavenly Rank combat techniques are clearly the 'trump cards' possessed by the Scorpion Demon Trio!

As for the secret method of this final volume of the Joyful Zen Blood-Drinking Curse...

"I suppose this is the trick they used on me that day."

Lin Ran murmured to himself, took the scroll of secret techniques out of his storage ring, and began to study and comprehend it carefully.

After a moment, Lin Ran sighed deeply, his expression complex.

Just as expected, this Joyful Zen Blood-Drinking Curse was the special secret technique that the three demon scorpions had used on him that day.

Through the Joyful Zen Blood-Draining Curse, the caster can use the absorption power of the Joyful Zen Bliss Technique to devour all the essence of the cursed person and add it to their own body!

Lin Ran gripped the scroll of secret techniques tightly in his hand, his gaze icy cold...

"Sealing Souls, Devouring Blood, Drawing Source—what a powerful Blood-Drawing Curse of Joyful Zen! What magnificent Scorpion Demon Three Ghosts!"

……

After thoroughly looting the two's storage rings, Lin Ran did not hesitate at all. He immediately took up the Sacred Golden Meteor Heart Flame and began to refine the two into Corpse Soul Puppets.

Both of them are extremely powerful, especially the human scorpion.

A sixth-level Dou Zun at the peak of his power is top-notch no matter where he is, so Lin Ran wanted to preserve the Scorpion's cultivation level as much as possible.

The blazing, dazzling Holy Gold Meteor Heart Flame enveloped the two corpses, and soon after, a thick wisp of black mist emerged from them.

This black aura is a corpse aura, faintly containing some of the subtle thoughts contained by the owner in life. If this black aura is not completely expelled, it will be difficult for the remaining souls to completely merge with the body.

Therefore, this so-called corpse energy must be expelled.

At this moment, the corpse energy condensed on the human scorpion's corpse is extremely thick. If this corpse energy is not completely removed, the corpse soul puppet that will be refined in the future may even retain the human scorpion's personal consciousness or remnant soul!

Fortunately, Lin Ran possessed the Sacred Gold Meteor Heart Flame.

Even so, it took Lin Ran nearly an hour to expel all the corpse energy from the scorpion's remains.

After completing the physical body condensation, Lin Ran showed no reluctance and directly took out a top-tier eighth-order magic core from his storage ring, stuffing it into the corpse as its core.

However, after doing all this, the creation of the Corpse Soul Puppet was still not successful.

The creation of a Corpse Soul Puppet requires a physical body as its vessel, a magical beast's core as its heart, and a soul and spirit as its essence.

Success requires all three to be combined!

Unlike Soul Palace Battle Venerables who can directly condense their soul bodies, the Human Scorpion's soul has already dissipated. To refine the Corpse Soul Puppet, all conditions must be met.

At this moment, the physical body is there, the core is there, all that's missing is a soul.

However, Lin Ran currently does not possess a soul at the Dou Zun level.

However, it's not a big problem. Lin Ran never does anything without preparation. Since he was already prepared to start the Soul Refining, Lin Ran had already made plans.

"I currently have two options for refining the Corpse Soul Puppet. One is to use the soul in the Soul Bag in the Star-Picking Old Ghost's storage ring to forcibly create a Dou Zun-level ferocious soul, and then condense and purify it to use as the soul of the Human Scorpion Corpse Soul Puppet."

"However, doing so may significantly reduce the combat power of the human scorpion. After all, condensing a fierce soul at the Dou Zun level already consumes almost all of the soul in the soul bag. In addition, with the tempering of my Holy Golden Meteor Heart Flame, the strength of this soul will probably only be at most at the level of Dou Zun."

Lin Ran's eyes were deep in thought.

"If a soul of this level is integrated into the human scorpion's body, it will significantly reduce the scorpion's combat power. The resulting Corpse Soul Puppet will probably not even reach the peak of the Dou Zun level... In that case, why not..."

Lin Ran clenched his fist suddenly, hovering in mid-air. The soul of the old ghost Zhaixing, which had been quietly tempered by the Holy Golden Meteor Heart Flame, trembled violently. The next moment, the brilliant Holy Golden Meteor Heart Flame erupted completely, swallowing the soul of the old ghost Zhaixing whole.

Terrifyingly high temperatures continuously erupted from the Holy Gold Meteor Heart Flame, and even the surrounding space could not withstand this terrifying temperature at this moment, and began to distort.

"Freeze!"

Seeing this, Lin Ran frowned slightly.

The energy of the Holy Gold Meteor Heart Flame at full power is too fierce. If this continues, even the space itself will not be able to withstand it. This will not do.

Lin Ran didn't care about the space itself, but he couldn't let it affect Xiao Ziyan's breakthrough!

Without the slightest hesitation, Lin Ran immediately activated the power of space to reinforce the surrounding space and appropriately weaken the intensity of the Holy Golden Meteor Heart Flame. However, this action resulted in an increase in time.

About half a day later, Lin Ran suddenly opened his eyes. The next moment, he clenched his fist, and the soul of the Star-Picking Old Ghost, which was floating in mid-air, was directly kneaded together by an indescribable terrifying force.

Immediately afterwards, Lin Ran waved his hand and actually stuffed the soul of the Star-Picking Old Ghost directly into the human scorpion's body!

Not bad!

The unique physical structure of the Elders of the Soul Palace means that, in a sense, they are top-tier soul beings, only with an extra outer shell.

This was already discovered when Lin Ran refined the previous Soul Hall elder into a Corpse Soul Puppet, because refining that guy didn't require any messy materials; it could be done directly by condensing.

At this moment, Lin Ran pushed the special characteristics of the soul body possessed by the Elder of the Soul Palace to its limit, using the Holy Golden Meteor Heart Flame to completely refine it into a 'soul' state, and then used it to replace the soul needed by the Human Scorpion Corpse Soul Puppet!

As the old ghost of the stars merged into him, the human scorpion's body suddenly trembled violently. The next moment, his eyes snapped open, his pupils filled with pitch black!

Looking at the scene before him, Lin Ran breathed a sigh of relief, but he was not completely relaxed.

"Next, let's talk about the side ingredients..."

The physical body is the form, the demonic core is the heart, and the soul is the spirit.

With the three elements combined, the Corpse Soul Puppet is already more than halfway to success!

Using the magic core of an ancient eighth-tier magical beast, the soul body of a peak five-star Dou Zun, and the physical body of a peak sixth-rank Dou Zun, the foundation for condensing the Corpse Soul Puppet has been completed. The next step is to continuously add auxiliary materials to maximize the strength of the Corpse Soul Puppet.

With his left hand controlling the heat, he continued to refine the Corpse Soul Puppet, while with a slight movement of his right palm, strands of materials gleaming with a strange light flashed out from his storage ring and floated in front of him.

Continue refining!

Three days passed quietly, and as a powerful aura devoid of any emotion slowly emanated from the corpse, a smile finally appeared on Lin Ran's face.

The power of this aura was so great that it completely surpassed Lin Ran's current strength. The surrounding space even fluctuated violently due to this terrifying battle aura, and it shattered directly!

"Who goes there?!"

Sensing the terrifying aura, a figure instantly appeared outside the secret chamber, his voice booming like thunder.

With a wave of his hand, a vast and mighty aura erupted from the sky, forcefully suppressing the aura emanating from the Corpse Soul Puppet.

Clearly, currently, only Yao Chen in the entire Black Corner Region is capable of achieving this level of skill.

"Don't be too nervous, it's a puppet I created."

Lin Ran's figure appeared, standing beside the Corpse Soul Puppet. He smiled at Yao Chen and said, "It wasn't in vain that I paid such a high price. This power is at least at the peak of the Dou Zun realm!"

"Creating puppets?!"

Upon seeing Lin Ran, Yao Chen understood that there was no enemy attack here. However, after hearing Lin Ran's words, he suddenly paused and his gaze immediately fell on the Corpse Soul Puppet.

"This is... a human-scorpion?! Peak fifth-stage rank?!"

Yao Chen stared in disbelief: "A peak fifth-level Dou Zun! This... this... Sect Master, how many treasures did you use to preserve the human scorpion's cultivation to this extent?!"

"It certainly came at a considerable cost, but it was all worth it."

Lin Ran smiled broadly, patted the Corpse Soul Puppet beside him, and was extremely satisfied.

A fifth-level peak Dou Zun, this strength is top-notch no matter where he is, not to mention that he is a puppet, so he is not afraid of death, and he also has the special ability of a Corpse Soul Puppet to grow by absorbing blood and soul!

It can be said that even without Yao Chen, the Holy Rain Sect could be considered a first-class force in the Central Plains just by relying on this puppet!

"With a Soul Puppet of this caliber, the Sect Master can rest assured about the safety of the sect in this Northwest Continent." Yao Chen wisely refrained from commenting on the matter of 'Lin Ran turning a human scorpion into a puppet,' and instead offered his congratulations.

Lin Ran nodded in satisfaction and said with a smile, "However, the puppet is ultimately an external force. Moreover, the strength of a fifth-level peak Dou Zun is nothing to the Soul Palace and the three Scorpion Demons. The most crucial thing is still you."

"Only when you break through to the Half-Saint realm will we have enough confidence to face all of this."

"Yes, don't worry, Sect Master. I've already prepared to break through to the Half-Saint realm since I returned from the Starfall Pavilion. This time, I will definitely succeed!"

"good!"

Seeing Yao Chen's confidence, Lin Ran couldn't help but burst into laughter and waved his hand.

"If you successfully break through to the Half-Saint realm, I have a big surprise for you!"

"A big surprise?"

Yao Chen was taken aback, and curiosity immediately arose in his heart.

What could possibly be a big surprise for him right now?

However, Yao Chen didn't say much. The reason why a surprise is a surprise is because of its mystery.

Seeing Yao Chen's curious look, Lin Ran chuckled.

"Don't worry, my surprise will definitely satisfy you!"

(End of this chapter)