Chapter 137: Human Emperor’s Banner (Second Update)

Forging artifacts.

In his previous life, Lu Ye had forged a total of eight Celestial Lord artifacts.

One for each person.

The Celestial Lord artifacts Shangguan Huanling consumed were all borrowed from other Celestial Lords. Not only were they willing to lend them to Lu Ye, but they were also willing to be slain by him—truly kind-hearted people.

As for his own Celestial Lord artifact?

He never got around to forging it.

Thinking about it now, it’s rather amusing—a Celestial Lord without his own artifact, while the eight female Emperors, no matter their disposition, each had one.

He really was a damn simp, wasn’t he?

Of course, part of the reason he never forged a Celestial Lord artifact was due to the shattering of his stone sword.

He was a man of deep sentiment. The stone sword had accompanied him from the Core stage all the way to Emperor, becoming his imperial weapon. After it shattered, he abandoned the use of weapons altogether.

Forging Pool.

Scorching heat filled the entire cavern, with molten lava churning below, emitting a golden-red glow.

Lu Ye took out a pile of various precious metals and formed hand seals.

"Boom!"

Vermilion Bird’s true flames surged into the sky.

With the Vermilion Bird’s true flames, there was no need to seek other chaotic divine fires. If they existed, fine; if not, he could simply use the Avenue to nurture them. Sooner or later, the Vermilion Bird’s true flames would reach the pinnacle level of the true Four Celestial Guardians.

Zheng Tianhua watched as the chunks of precious metals melted into liquid, streaks of light continuously imprinted into them, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth madly converging toward them.

The metals and the spiritual energy fused in a unique way under the influence of various mystical seals.

There was no vigorous hammering, only the natural evolution of things.

The stone sword hummed, rushing above the forging pool as the molten metal flowed toward it, enveloping the blade.

Bit by bit, it seeped in, and the stone sword continued to hum.

So damn happy!

The stone sword was a treasure born of heaven and earth. Once such a treasure took form, it would reach the level of a Primordial Spiritual Treasure, and with another leap, it would ascend to the level of a Primordial Supreme Treasure.

There was no such thing as a "postnatal" classification.

Originally, though sharp, the stone sword had never reached the level of a Primordial Spiritual Treasure.

But now, Lu Ye was helping it fully take form.

"Whoosh!"

A powerful sword intent radiated in all directions.

The stone cavern became covered in dense sword marks, and an unparalleled sharpness emanated from the stone sword.

Everything fell into place.

The second item is the Soul Banner.

Lu Ye felt that the name "Soul Banner" was actually a bit unpleasant.

Perhaps he could help the Soul Banner change its name.

In the future, he would use it to protect humanity. Since it was meant to guard mankind, why not rename it the Human Emperor Banner?

Excellent!

As strands of black stone melted into liquid, within the Vermilion Bird's True Flame, the liquid emitted shrill screams, as if it contained trapped souls.

The black banner was too unsightly.

After a moment of contemplation, Lu Ye swiftly formed hand seals, merging the Divine race's top-tier treasure, Gilded Divine Jade, into the black liquid. The two reacted rapidly, and the black liquid began transforming into gold.

The golden luster exuded an aura of righteousness and nobility.

The golden liquid stretched into threads, weaving onto the tattered Human Emperor Banner. A golden hue gradually overtook much of the banner's surface, as black and gold shifted in succession.

Finally, a black banner adorned with a golden dragon fluttered proudly within the Vermilion Bird's True Flame.

At a glance, it resembled a battle flag, a military standard!

Zheng Tianhua watched the scene with a rather peculiar expression.

This...

If he wasn’t mistaken, wasn’t that the Soul Banner just now?

Now it had turned into this?

Whose Soul Banner ever looked so righteous and awe-inspiring?

Lu Ye stored away the Human Emperor Banner, though it was a pity the souls within had no time to be dyed gold. If he were to wield it now, it would still spew black smoke relentlessly.

Once he found suitable materials, he would also dye the souls gold.

Then, with a single wave of the Human Emperor Banner, golden light would fill the sky.

Countless vengeful spirits, glowing gold yet seething with resentment from their torment, would charge at the enemy—a sight too grotesque to behold.

"Is this the Soul Banner?" Zheng Tianhua finally couldn’t resist asking.

"No, this is the Human Emperor Banner!"

Lu Ye’s tone was firm.

Zheng Tianhua... Human Emperor Banner, my foot. Clearly, it was the Soul Banner.

Currently, the Human Emperor Banner was also a Primordial Spiritual Treasure.

For the final treasure, Lu Ye intended to forge a pill furnace.

Yes, a pill furnace!

So, if Taoist Qinghuo ever found out Lu Ye had come to the Forging Peak to craft a pill furnace, he’d probably flip the entire mountain upside down.

He had built a good relationship with Lu Ye entirely thanks to the NineDragon LiFire Furnace. If Lu Ye were to forge his own furnace, it would be obvious that he wouldn’t need to visit the Alchemy Peak anymore.

Yet, Lu Ye ultimately needed one.

A three-legged, two-eared cauldron gradually took shape within the Vermilion Bird’s true flames. The forging pool surged with vast amounts of spiritual energy as fire essence continuously refined the furnace, purging its impurities.

At last, it was complete.

Upon the furnace, the Vermilion Bird spread its wings, vivid and lifelike.

The entire body of the furnace gleamed in crimson, with treasure light shimmering across its surface. Etched into its walls were eighty-one grand formations, interconnected in a marvelously intricate manner.

A Primordial Spiritual Treasure!

Zheng Tianhua was utterly astounded.

A Primordial Spiritual Treasure!

The previous two treasures were already formidable—one enhancing, the other repairing—making it difficult to gauge Lu Ye’s true forging prowess.

But now, from nothing, in a single breath, he had forged a furnace at the level of a Primordial Spiritual Treasure.

Truly astonishing.

Infinite Celestial Lord, this is incredible!

"Peak Master Zheng, these are some of my forging insights I’ve recorded. If you find them worthy, please take a look. I have matters to attend to, so I must take my leave."

Zheng Tianhua hurriedly tried to stop him upon seeing the jade slip, but to no avail.

In his past life, he had ascended to the Second Heaven slowly because he was waiting for his Dao companion.

Bored during the wait for Yue Hongling and the others, he began instructing disciples of the Great Dao Sect, which led to the sect’s rapid rise in overall strength.

Now, without needing to drag along deadweight for ascension,

Lu Ye naturally had no time to linger in the First Heaven.

At this point, his countdown to ascension had already begun.

Even though he was only at the eighth level of the Unity Dao Realm.

Returning to his chamber,

Lu Ye began refining pills.

Before long, an alluring medicinal fragrance permeated the air, and lush vegetation flourished. For several kilometers around him, vibrant life flourished.

After pill refining, he cultivated.

On the ninth day—Unity Dao Realm, ninth level!

Accumulate, accumulate, accumulate.

As expected, he reached the tenth level of the Unity Dao Realm!

Grind, keep grinding.

It wasn’t that Lu Ye was pushing himself too hard—it was simply that to break through to the Tribulation Realm, he needed to face unknown toxins. Thus, he had to bring the Unity Dao Realm to absolute perfection.

Only in this way can he better face the lethal poison.

Speaking of which, Lu Ye still didn’t know what poison Shangguan Huanling had given him.

Eight female Emperors, eight types of poison.

Whether it was the Celestial Rigor Venom from before or the Slaughter Lotus Heart, these were things others might obtain.

But the emergence of the Cycle Obsession made Lu Ye sense the scent of a conspiracy.

The Six Paths of Reincarnation were guarded by the Celestial Lord of Reincarnation.

Due to the immense merit of shaping the Six Paths, the Celestial Lord of Reincarnation existed in an extremely unique state—above Celestial Lords but below Sages, nearly indestructible.

To take the Cycle Obsession right under his nose?

An almost impossible feat.

And Shangguan the Fleeter—no, Shangguan Huanling, that weakest Emperor—no, she might not even be able to defeat a Quasi-Emperor. To expect her to find a poison effective against a Celestial Lord? One could imagine how difficult that would be.

Go ask Shangguan Huanling!

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