A World Worth Protecting

1

Anyone other than Wang Baole might not have been able to accomplish that, but Wang Baole had been steeped in the discipline of the Dharmic Armament since he had first come into contact with cultivation. He had started his roots in Dharmic Armaments, progressed to the Dharmic Armament Pavilion, then continued his research and learning when he had been on Mars. His skill and knowledge in the area had become exemplary.

He was now capable of refining a true eighth-grade Dharmic Armament. He was confident of fusing the six divine consciousnesses into a Dharmic Armament.

<em>The only concern is how weak these divine consciousnesses are. The slightest mistake or any slight resistance that occurs during the fusion with the Dharmic Armament might result in a backlash that further damages them. They could disintegrate entirely,</em> Wang Baole thought. He lowered his head and rummaged through his storage bracelet. He managed to find plenty of materials as well as incomplete artifacts.

They were all eliminated as viable options. If the divine consciousnesses were vibrant, he wouldn’t have to worry so much about damaging them during the refinement process. Any of the incomplete artifacts could have been used for refinement. However, there was always an element of resistance during the refinement of a Dharmic Armament.

Resistance occurred when there was instability during the fusion of a Dharmic Armament’s preliminary form and the divine consciousness. Typically, both would suffer a degree of damage before a certain balance was achieved, thus forming the final Dharmic Armament.

Dharmic Armament cultivators weren’t often concerned with such issues. Divine consciousnesses that could be used as Artifact Souls and fused with a Dharmic Armament were often specially selected. That guaranteed their successful fusion even after a degree of damage during the refinement process.

At present, though, Wang Baole was forced to consider this problem. He abandoned the idea of using his incomplete artifacts. There was a flicker of light in his eyes as he stared at the exposed part of the skull.

Wang Baole ran through the idea in his head. It took some time. Then, he rose to his feet and bowed at the skull he was standing on.

“Esteemed senior, I, Wang Baole, student of Ming Kunzi, happened to pass by and sense the remnants of your spirit here. In order to preserve these remnants of your spirit, I will have to turn them into Artifact Spirits. In order to do that, I will have to make use of your bones to refine the artifact that will house the Artifact Spirit. I seek your understanding for my actions!” The expression on Wang Baole’s face was serious. He took a deep breath, then began searching the city as well as the mountain, the area where the bones rested.

Not all bones were suitable for the refinement of Dharmic Armaments. Wang Baole was looking for a piece that possessed a certain degree of vitality and life. It also had to have a certain extent of malleability.

There were still quite a few bones that met those requirements. However, the most important criterion was that the bone had to have melded with the spirit in the past!

In simple terms, it meant that prior to the giant’s death, perhaps during certain emotionally charged moments, the bone had to have unknowingly absorbed the emotions and spirit energy during said moments. Such a requirement ensured the extreme rarity of such bones!

Even though the skeleton was enormous, Wang Baole only managed to find a dozen bones that fit the bill. He had some difficulty digging them out as well. He considered the possibility of fusing his own Thearch Armor but realized that was out of the question. That, in fact, further proved how incredible Li Wuchen’s previous self had been.

Left with no other choice, Wang Baole activated his armor’s right hand, gathered the power of the Divine Armament, and attempted to excavate the bone without expending his own energy!

The Divine Armament was sharp, but the bone was extremely hard. Wang Baole used up quite a bit of his strength, unleashing the full force of his cultivation multiple times, and only then did he manage to slowly dig up the eleven pieces of bone.

Each piece was the length of one’s palm. Pieced together, they looked rather large. However, they were small compared to the whole skeleton.

<em>In his past life, Li Wuchen must have practiced some incredible spell or come across some rare opportunity. Else, there is no way his body could have turned into a Divine Armament. This senior from the Dark Sect must be some amazingly powerful figure as well. But even though his bone is hard, it still can’t beat a Divine Armament.</em> Wang Baole lowered his head and stared at the right arm of his Flame Snatch Thearch Armor thoughtfully.

He set his thoughts aside and sat back down. He got his puppets out again to guard him, then released his Dark Fires in the open as well before he finally settled his mind. His hands came together to form a series of hand seals, and he began refining the eleven pieces of bone!

He intended to use the giant’s bones to form the kernel for the Dharmic treasure. This would ensure a smooth, flawless fusion with the divine consciousness.

It would be a challenge, but Wang Baole was sufficiently skilled in Dharmic Armaments, especially on the calculations required and the inscriptions to be included during the refinement. That was why he was fairly confident in his success.

Time passed steadily as Wang Baole began refinement. His experience in both the area of inscription and refining the core was rich. This meant that speed wasn’t compromised even though he took great care during the process. With the added strength of his cultivation, the eleven bones began to shrink steadily in size. Of course, minor failures were still unavoidable during the refinement process.

Each mistake would result in a bone breaking and turning to dust. It was also a lesson to Wang Baole. Days passed. When Wang Baole finally stopped, exhaustion was bright in his eyes, and he was left with seven beads refined from seven bones!

The beads glimmered with an ash-gray light and shimmered with a mysterious energy hidden within. Contained within each bead were a terrifying number of inscriptions. Even without an Artifact Soul, each bead was the equal of a seventh-grade Dharmic Armament.

Due to the materials involved in its making, it was difficult to rate its performance against an enemy during battle. It had its advantages and disadvantages in a fight. Regardless, without fusion with a divine consciousness, the experience that Wang Baole had earned from this refinement told him that bone-based materials weren’t the most suitable types of materials for refining a Dharmic Armament.

He had completed the crafting of the beads and had the artifacts ready for fusion. Wang Baole didn’t begin the fusion immediately though. Instead, he shut his eyes and meditated for two hours. Only when he had recovered his strength, and the feeling of exhaustion had left him, did he open his eyes again. They shone brightly with determination. He formed a series of hand seals, then pressed his hands on the skull.

His Dark Fire and his consciousness flowed into the skull. He tried to draw the six divine consciousnesses out from the skull slowly. They appeared as colorful lights, spread out in the skull like glowing spheres of vibrant colors. The blood-colored worms that had been watching him carefully began to tremble. They lowered their bodies to the ground in what resembled a kowtow.

A voice that seemed to have traveled through a vast expanse of time and space from the world of the dead echoed once more in Wang Baole’s head. It was an old voice, stirring endless ripples in his mind.

“Soul guiding, dream spinning, rebirth severing, ten thousand tribulations, a thousand lives, five punishments!”

As the voice rippled outwards, the six faintly glowing spheres finally drifted out from the skull and floated before Wang Baole. Save the seventh bead, each glowing sphere entered a bead and lit the bead with a blinding light. Waves of energy exploded from each bead, which began to shake violently and whose shape began to transform. Four beads slowly turned into star-shaped beads with five uneven points!

They gradually settled into their forms, exuding terrifying power. The other two beads continued their transformation!

They continued to shake violently. Their Artifact Souls appeared to be too powerful—they couldn’t be contained within these beads. Even though the beads shared the same source, it seemed that it was still not enough for them to contain the latter. The beads looked as if they might explode at any moment. The waves of energy emanating from the last two Artifact Souls were clearly much stronger than those given off by the previous four Artifact Souls!

Wang Baole teetered at the edge of frustration. He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. He had experienced similar challenges in the past with his scabbard. After calming himself down, he immediately unleashed the Divine Armament arm of his Flame Snatch Thearch Armor. The power of the arm weighed down forcefully on the two beads, enveloping them and boxing them in. This lasted for a long stretch of time before sounds of cracking rang out in the air. The cracks on the beads increased. There were more than a dozen of them on each bead. It looked as if the beads might shatter at any moment. Without hesitation, Wang Baole took the seventh bead and fused it together with the two beads.

The fusion of the seventh bead stabilized the two beads. It took great pains and perseverance on Wang Baole’s part… before the two beads, seemingly on the verge of shattering, finally accepted the fusion of the divine consciousness!

They ended up with vastly different forms. One was shaped like a flat circle and the other a crescent moon!

Upon the full acceptance of the divine consciousness and the resonance achieved amongst the six beads, the beads floated into the air and began rotating as they were drawn to one another. A black thread materialized, like a thin rope, threading the beads together and stringing the beads together like a bracelet!

“The circular one looks like the sun, and the crescent one looks like the moon. The rest are like stars… I’ll call this Dharmic Armament the Baole Bracelet!” Wang Baole muttered to himself. That sounded like a great name. He raised his right hand in the air, and the bracelet dashed over immediately and strung itself around his wrist.

Waves of energy erupted from the bracelet. A Dharmic Armament’s power was unleashed in that instant, and it resonated loudly in Wang Baole’s mind!

The faint voice that had traveled across time and space, crossing the border between life and death, rang out clearly in his head!

“Soul Guiding, Dream Spinning, Rebirth Severing, Ten Thousand Tribulations, A Thousand Lives, Five Punishments!”