Chapter 192

Chapter 192: Battling the Emperor

On the Record of the Four Gods and Demons, the Explosive Talismans were lined up behind the Lightning Sword Talismans, and the Lava Talismans were placed behind the Thunder Shield Talismans, all prepared to deal with water and ice-based spells.

Limited by resources, even though Li Hui had only a small stash, he had still managed to prepare some. Now, he put them to excellent use.

Coldness pervaded, heat surged, and they exchanged blows with great vigor. Yet, this was only the appearance; the true battle was over fortune.

The Jade Symbol Sect acquired the Fortune Ascending Talismans thanks to Yu Zimao, which the Cold Armor Emperor clearly lacked in his era. Therefore, he found it utterly incredible that Li Hui could extract fortune from him.

Incredible, indeed! If he pleased this Cold Armor Emperor too much, would there be any way for him, Li Hui, to survive? Every breath he took now expelled ashes through his nose and mouth—these ashes naturally came from the Fortune Ascending Talismans.

The four Fortune Ascending Talismans had already reached the Treasure Level before merging into the Heavenly Array. After the Heavenly and Earthly Arrays were enhanced by the silver snake bracelet, they too received boosts, and their halos turned silver.

Compared to before, all the talismans in the Heavenly and Earthly Arrays radiated a silver glow; this was the biggest difference.

As the saying goes, “A person needs a breath; a Buddha requires a stick of incense.” Why do humans compete? Why do Buddhas compete? Ultimately, it comes down to fortune—when fortune comes, the heavens assist, and when it leaves, even heroes lose their freedom. In the cultivation world, clearing obstacles is essential; aside from personal effort, one must also have opportunities and fortune.

There’s a saying: "When someone is down on their luck, even drinking cool water can cause a toothache." What Li Hui aimed to do was make the Cold Armor Emperor unlucky enough to suffer such fates!

With a muffled thud, the Nine-Nine Scatter Yuan Gourd trembled violently, and the chilling aura escaping from it sharply reduced.

Though it seemed that Li Hui had the upper hand, his heart raced in his throat, and he didn’t dare to relax for a moment.

He continuously slapped Explosive Talismans onto the gourd, vowing not to stop until it was completely covered. At the same time, he stuck Lava Talismans onto himself to keep warm.

“Impressive! The four talismans reduced ninety percent of the ashes. The remaining ten percent is the hardest to remove. Cold Armor Emperor, will you dare to try harder? Don’t lose face over your title.”

The Cold Armor Emperor was nearly driven to madness. He had just aligned the elemental energy and true energy within the gourd to construct the Nine-Square framework for altering fate. Yet somehow, a strand of elemental energy escaped the five elements to practice a peculiar skill, constantly shifting and breaking the delicate balance he had painstakingly established.

Once a legendary figure, he could no longer be described as merely a strong individual. However, that was in the past; today, he faced repeated oppression, exploitation, and weakening, his power having fallen to the absolute bottom.

If the Cold Armor Emperor had known that the Hongmo Sect was attacking the island, he would have fared much better if he could just hold on a bit longer. The problem was he saw no hope, resulting in him detonating his spirit to survive, which left him in a state where even a sip of cool water could cause a toothache before diving into the gourd!

With bad luck already chasing him, encountering a cultivator like Li Hui made any hope of a turnaround feel infinitely far away.

“Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!”

The four Fortune Ascending Talismans shook simultaneously, and three-tenths of the last ashes disappeared.

“Slow, way too slow! Just now it was ninety-three percent!” As Li Hui let out a sigh of relief, he murmured, “With such an impressive old predecessor, how can you be so limp? A man can’t say he’s unable; he must strive to rise!”

Suddenly, the coldness surged violently.

“Era of Cold Armor?” Li Hui remembered the name Guang Jin had mentioned, and he waved his hand to activate all the Explosive Talismans and Lava Talismans. At the same time, the Yin-Yang Nine Heads formed a formation that locked onto the gourd at his waist, quickly flipping the Yin-Yang back onto itself.

“Is the old fellow scrambling? I’ll match you!”

The spirit talismans ignited with a whoosh. Although the flames were instantly extinguished, they canceled out a significant amount of the chilling effect.

Understanding the principle of "If you’re sick, I’ll take your life," Li Hui knew he had to suppress the Cold Armor Emperor at this moment; otherwise, he would have no chance later!

Isn’t life meant for the struggle? The previously hoarded Explosive Talismans and Lava Talismans transformed into torrents of heat, vanishing after maintaining their effects for fifty moments. The Green Scale Talismans and Blood Energy Talismans activated immediately, providing some protection against the cold.

“Ninety-five percent! Ninety-six percent! Ninety-seven percent! Only three-tenths left, I can barely hold on, hurry!”

Li Hui yelled out as the four Fortune Ascending Talismans had shed ninety-seven percent of their ashes; only three-tenths remained to activate. If he used them carefully, without over-exploiting, he could keep going. As for the drop in the success rate for creating talismans, he couldn’t afford to think about that right now!

“Boom…” The gourd was anything but peaceful; the Cold Armor Emperor was frustrated! What does it mean to have the roof leak while it rains? He was already struggling to hold back the flow of residual fortune, but with time passing, the barriers started to break down, even inciting a backlash from the Oath.

“How is this possible? Has the world changed?” came a panicked voice from within the gourd.

Li Hui’s body began to freeze, with blue ice spreading from his waist to engulf him. Just as he was about to lose consciousness, the four talismans finally activated.

“So fast! I’ve reached full capacity! The Fortune Ascending Talismans help me overpower my opponent!” Li Hui shouted in his heart as the four Fortune Ascending Talismans burst into silver light, halting the spread of blue ice.

The Cold Armor Emperor, in a daze, instantaneously lost all rationality and began to crash around inside the gourd. Things just got intense—once he regained his senses, he let out a terrified roar and hurriedly tried to stabilize his elemental energy and true energy.

After all, his physical body had passed; no matter how wondrously he used secret techniques or how many souls he devoured to strengthen his spirit, he ultimately couldn’t withstand the power of time. Mental strain was inevitable. His memories had long faded, and it was lucky for him to have brief moments of clarity; yet someone was there to take that luck away.

“No!” The Cold Armor Emperor exerted all his strength to suppress the Nine-Square formation.

Li Hui was on the brink of becoming an ice sculpture, but thankfully he didn’t lose consciousness in the end; otherwise, nothing could have been accomplished.

“What a guy; I can feel it, those four Fortune Ascending Talismans consumed two-tenths of the fortune in an instant, but now the old ghost in the gourd is going to suffer!”

And indeed, he was suffering; the Cold Armor Emperor could no longer control the flow of fortune and had fully succumbed, with no barriers remaining between him and the Fortune Ascending Talismans. He was too late to punish the little thief outside the gourd!

While Li Hui worked to thaw himself, the four Fortune Ascending Talismans replenished the fortune once more.

“Good, fortune, fortune, follow my intent, help Yu Zimao recover.” With that shared wish, the talismans responded.

The four Fortune Ascending Talismans rapidly lost sixty percent of their fortune, sensing a hint of the beautifully embroidered ball. Unfortunately, it was fleeting, leaving Li Hui uncertain of the outcome, particularly whether it would be beneficial.

“Did it really consume that much fortune? No matter, I can pray for fortune to help the peach tree demon be born smoothly, so Ao Chongguang and Ao Chonglin can avoid the trials of becoming full-fledged demons! I wonder how much more fortune this old ghost can contribute; I must drain him dry.”

An hour slipped by quickly, and Li Hui’s legs began to thaw, followed by slight movement in his arms as he exhaled large puffs of white air, feeling considerably better and finally making it through the tough time.

The explosive cold he faced from the Cold Armor Emperor was far from what he had encountered in the Era of Cold Armor, hence his ability to dispel it by using his spiritual energy.

If he were to face the true Era of Cold Armor, even space and time would freeze, and he, as a Spirit Motion Stage Cultivator, would be unable to shake it!

Just as Li Hui regained his mobility, he quickly executed the Cloud-Brush Dragon Claw Technique to grab the true disciple of the Hongmo Sect before rushing toward the entrance. With many cultivators unconscious, this was a perfect opportunity for him to increase his foundation.