Apocalyptic Era: Starting from picking up a Bishoujo
Chapter 460 - 430 Slag Weapons

Chapter 460: 430 Slag Weapons

The raw material of "slag" is the souls of the people I have killed, the remnants after being burned by flames. Because it is waste that can no longer be burned, it can also be seen as a substance that will not change no matter how it is burned.

Strictly speaking, the "slag" that remains after I became the Great Impermanence can still be further destroyed if taken and burned again. However, this process is more of a refinement than destruction, and what remains in the end is still the black "slag."

These numerous pieces of "slag" may seem like useless garbage, but that’s not the case. Precisely because they can withstand the destructive power of my flames, they can also be viewed as materials robust enough to bear my flames. However, their overly strong resistance brings another problem, which is their stable nature makes them difficult to refine into magical weapons.

I entrusted Mr. Zhu to have the "slag" examined by other professionals, and the conclusion was generally that they were unusable.

After much consideration, I realized there was no need to use "slag" as material to refine magical weapons; simply utilizing its greatest strength of "bearing flames" in its original form would suffice.

The slag sword in my hand was made by simply reshaping the slag, intended to act as a container that preserves and further compresses the flames.

The skill "Eclipse" that I used in the past was formed by compressing flames to a great degree, yet "Eclipse" had its limits. Beyond a certain point, maintaining such a high-density embodiment of power demanded nearly all of my focus. A slight relaxation of my mind would cause "Eclipse" to disintegrate and explode before I could even launch it at the enemy, akin to dancing on a tightrope.

In a sense, I created an imaginary container for the flames with my Spiritual Power. The key elements of "Eclipse" did not lie in the flames themselves or the power to compress them but in the skill to maintain its form at a critical point smoothly and cleverly. As the saying goes, "A dike of a thousand miles can be breached by an ant’s nest," and any slight error would cause internal pressure imbalance and self-destruction; such is the dangerous nature of "Eclipse."

By compressing the flames within a slag weapon, a lot of mental focus can be freed up and applied to the compression of flames. Since my flames cannot destroy the slag, there is no worry of it losing control and exploding.

Though the power will gradually leak from the slag weapon, as long as it’s not explosively released, this "leak" is just a process of slowly releasing energy. Considering that it could at least store the power to destroy a large city, even if I left it aside for centuries, the depleted power would likely only account for a small portion.

On the day the slag weapon was created, I immediately put it into practice and the result was astounding. This slag weapon allowed me to unleash an attack equivalent to several times my previous strength, and the compressed flames could be effectively used for defense. If I were to fight against myself unarmed with this slag weapon, the battle would be entirely one-sided.

Overall, my idea of increasing combat power might be somewhat similar to Water Master Xuanwu’s "Golden Core," both involving compressing tremendous power into a container. The difference is that Water Master Xuanwu basically cannot control the power compressed in the "Golden Core" to reach the Great Impermanence Domain, whereas since I am the Great Impermanence myself, even though the power compressed by the slag weapon is incredibly heavy, it doesn’t quite reach the point where I cannot match it.

Additionally, since I can attack ignoring space distances, the flame released on decompression can reach the target before spreading too much while maintaining high density, avoiding the embarrassing situation like Water Master Xuanwu where it barely retains scale when hitting distant enemies.

Mr. Zhu also had high praise for the weapon upon seeing it.

"In the domain of you Great Impermanences, all special superpowers are futile; in the end, it’s still all about comparing the magnitude of strength." He said to me, "Even though you can’t bring out the power to refine magical artifacts, I believe it doesn’t matter at this point, because this is the most suitable magic weapon for you."

Then, the question was whether this weapon could defeat Ming Zhuo. This was the first question I pondered after confirming its power.

I’m afraid not.

At most, I can only match evenly with Ming Zhuo, because Ming Zhuo is unkillable. Though I can maintain infinite endurance, Ming Zhuo can achieve limitless revival. On this basis, he can even harm my True Spirit, yet I cannot inflict effective damage on him.

With the slag weapon, I am confident in defending against Ming Zhuo’s black and red beams, but if you ask me if I could block a thousand attacks from Ming Zhuo, I would lack the confidence. A wise person is bound to make a mistake eventually; my defenses are not flawless. If the conflict prolongs, it would still end in Ming Zhuo’s victory.

I must find a way to overcome Ming Zhuo’s Naraku Undying Body. Even though it seems like there is peace between Ming Zhuo and me now, it doesn’t mean our conflict is entirely resolved.

Zhu Shi once said, True Spirit power can threaten even those who achieve the Dream realm; can it possibly counter Ming Zhuo’s Naraku Undying Body? If so, is there a chance for me to master such power?

Yinyue once mentioned in a spiritual dreamscape about "Reincarnation," "Dreams," and "Manifestation," realms of legend that bear some level of relation to realizing the True Spirit. Perhaps I might have a chance to touch upon the True Spirit’s power. It’s just that I have actively investigated the archives at Luoshan Headquarters for knowledge concerning those legendary realms. Most of it simply recounts "what feats were left by which people," without much in-depth description of the realms’ essence.

As if every Great Impermanence is an unrepeatable miracle, the achievements of each legendary realm seem to have no proper method to follow, and numerically, are even rarer than the Great Impermanences in history.

In the world of demon hunters, the criteria for judging someone’s status as a Great Impermanence is solely based on strength, and power and realm are not entirely bound. Reaching a legendary realm generally entails mastering Great Impermanence-level power, yet possessing Great Impermanence-level power does not guarantee reaching a legendary realm.

The next day, I went to the university, also surveilling Xiaoqiao, who entered the campus as usual.

I first approached her to ask if she had encountered anything strange last night. Despite my surveillance revealing no unusual signs, there is always the concern of "abnormalities only perceptible to the involved party" emerging. Fortunately, everything seemed normal last night, and she went on to class.

Though I had said I would protect her closely, the mysterious male’s specified time was at night, and it was still day. With "Firefly" around, it wasn’t necessary for me to quite literally stick close for protection. I remained nearby like an undercover private bodyguard.

Seeing me waiting in the vicinity, Zhu Shi came over to chat, then laughed and said, "Xiaoqiao is quite well-known as a beauty in her freshman year, although the title of ’Campus Belle’ has long since gone out of fashion, by approximation you can be considered the bodyguard of the Campus Belle now, Senior Brother Zhuang."

"Is that so? But I think you might be more famous. Although I haven’t really delved into that kind of gossip," I said.

"You’re quite adept at saying such things with a straight face..."

Zhu Shi sighed first and then prepared to head to class, adding another remark before leaving, "By the way, I tried to contact the Achieved Level Impermanence in charge of Saltwater City, but couldn’t get in touch. He’s been missing for half a month, can’t reach him by phone, and he doesn’t reply to messages left in his email."

Could it be that the Extraordinaryism Achieved Level Impermanence is actually the mysterious figure trying to lure Xiaoqiao over? Has he betrayed Luoshan to Taoyuan Village? I harbored such suspicions. Taoyuan Village itself has a substantial record of recruiting members in various social sectors, even within Luoshan. To hear of a high-ranking Achieved Level Impermanence defecting, though shocking, wouldn’t be unprecedented.

As evening approached, it seemed Xiaoqiao’s classes were all done for the day, and she made her way to the entrance of the teaching building, looking around. It was dinner time, and many were heading toward the student cafeteria. Saltwater University’s cafeteria is also open to outsiders, with reasonable food quality, so there were quite a few people moving along the path. I walked over alone, and Xiaoqiao visibly relaxed upon seeing me, promptly jogging to my side.

"Did that person specify a time to meet at the abandoned construction site?" I asked.

"He didn’t mention a time, just said evening."

Xiaoqiao glanced at the sky, then suggested, "How about we head to the cafeteria for a meal first?"

"Alright..."

Just as I responded, a man in black clothing walking from behind Xiaoqiao halted right as he was about to pass her, then gently tapped her shoulder. She showed a puzzled expression and turned around.

At the same time, the man’s body began undergoing a horrifying transformation. His entire frame suddenly swelled like an inflated balloon, ripping his clothes and pants apart, revealing his pulsating, crimson skin beneath, along with explosively muscular contours brimming with what seemed like boundless anger.

His head morphed into that of a sheep, yet grotesque and malformed. Even his pupils turned horizontal, provoking a visceral sense of unease. With no lips covering them, his teeth and gums were exposed to the air, exhaling hot breaths through the gaps, appearing like a living monster climbing out straight from hell.

What Xiaoqiao turned back to see was such a monster, its entire being emanating an aura of horrifying ferocity.

She was instantly frozen in place, as if her whole system crashed. After a moment, as she seemed to realize the monster before her was not merely a daytime nightmare, she let out a scream of utmost panic.

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