Ao Tian could no longer bear it, his demonic energy surged, and he immediately revealed his true form.
He was a dragon-veined python with a single horn on its head, a purple body, and a golden-red stripe along its back.
The dragon-veined python was an ancient and rare species, possessing the blood of a flood dragon and an iron-hard body, making it incredibly powerful.
Alas, it was no match for over a hundred dragon fish. Its entire body was torn and bleeding, a truly miserable sight.
"I come from the Panlong Sacred Land. If you dare to kill me, you will face dire consequences."
Ao Tian writhed and roared, proclaiming his background.
But the dragon fish were unfazed. Could there be any background more powerful than theirs in this world?
As Ji Mo's fish, they feared nothing!
Just as Ao Tian thought he was doomed, the dragon fish, for reasons unknown, scattered and transformed back into golden carp, sinking to the bottom of the pond.
"Hmph, it seems you know what's good for you."
Ao Tian believed his lineage had intimidated the dragon fish. He scrambled out of the pond, a smug expression on his face.
He failed to notice a dark shadow approaching from behind.
It turned out that Ji Mo, who was inside the house, heard the commotion from the pond and came out to investigate.
He immediately saw a horned monstrous snake lying by the pond, eyeing his fish with ill intent.
"What a scummy snake, trying to steal my fish."
Ji Mo grabbed a broom and strode over.
Tian Peng watched this scene with a mix of emotions.
The situation was all too familiar. He, too, had been ignorant and covetous of the dragon fish, only to fall into Ji Mo's hands.
Scummy snake?
Ao Tian's eyes lit up with murderous intent upon hearing someone dare to insult him so.
He turned and saw Ji Mo, and his eyes gleamed.
Lan Ling had shown him Ji Mo's portrait, so he recognized him instantly.
He had searched high and low, and now, he had found him effortlessly. If he killed this person, he could win the beauty's heart.
Ao Tian leaped forward, lunging directly at Ji Mo.
In his eyes, this mortal before him could be killed with a single breath, as easily as crushing an ant.
But in the next moment.
Ao Tian was sent flying by a fierce sweep of Ji Mo's broom.
The broom contained unimaginable power. He was struck so hard that his skin was torn, his bones creaked, and he didn't know how many had shattered.
Feeling death approaching, Ao Tian quickly shattered a scale on his forehead, sending out a distress signal.
However, Ji Mo did not deliver a killing blow.
"What a big snake, perhaps I should make some snake soup to try?"
Ji Mo licked his lips, his gluttonous nature revealed, and then he glanced at Tian Peng, "Perhaps a dragon-phoenix soup would be nice too."
Hearing this, Tian Peng's legs trembled so violently that he almost fainted in the chicken coop.
Ao Tian, on the other hand, trembled from fear. The words "dragon-phoenix soup" made his scalp tingle, and he felt he might have fallen into Ji Mo's trap.
"Could it be that I've fallen for this Ji fellow's scheme?"
Ao Tian's mind went blank.
He was a dragon-veined python, related to the dragon race.
And the one he had just called for help was a cloud-piercing sparrow with phoenix bloodline.
Did the words "dragon" and "phoenix" refer to the two of them?
Perhaps Ji Mo had seen through everything, knowing he had an accomplice, and intended to capture them both.
Ao Tian had heard Lan Ling mention that Ji Mo was cunning, treacherous, and intelligent to the point of being demonic, and that he should be dealt with cautiously.
He hadn't believed it at first, as any scheme was futile in the face of overwhelming power.
To his surprise, Ji Mo not only pretended to be a mortal to lure him in, but he was also an old schemer who had not only ambushed him but also the cloud-piercing sparrow.
Ao Tian quickly concluded that his guess was correct.
He was being hung upside down under the eaves by Ji Mo, clearly being used as bait.
"Ao Tian is in trouble?"
Thousands of miles away, on a mountain peak, a scale in the possession of the cloud-piercing sparrow glowed faintly before turning to dust.
With years of friendship, he naturally wouldn't stand by and watch.
Without a word, he transformed into a rainbow light and flew towards Ao Tian's location.
Ji Mo emerged from the kitchen with a cleaver, walking towards Ao Tian.
Ao Tian almost wet himself on the spot.
He had thought Ji Mo was just joking about the snake soup earlier, but he didn't expect him to be serious.
Who could endure such a death, to be cooked and eaten?
"Don't panic, my body is made of iron and bone, even imperial weapons can't break through my defenses," Ao Tian reassured himself.
But then he saw the cleaver in Ji Mo's hand emitting a dazzling, dreamlike glow, and he was stunned.
With a swift chop, Ji Mo sliced him.
"I'm fine, I'm completely fine. Haha, I knew it, it wouldn't be so easy to hurt me."
Ao Tian breathed a sigh of relief, but soon felt something was wrong.
His aura was rapidly weakening, his entire body felt as if it had been hollowed out.
"Where are my tendons? Where have my tendons gone?"
Ao Tian exclaimed in alarm, feeling that something vital was missing from his body.
He then saw a purplish-gold object in Ji Mo's hand, which was precisely his dragon tendon.
With a casual slice, his dragon tendon had been extracted. Such a feat was simply inconceivable.
Even more terrifying was that after his dragon tendon was removed, he felt no pain.
"Hmm, this tendon is okay for a rubber band, but I still need one more thing."
Ji Mo's gaze fell on Ao Tian's abdomen with ill intent.
That meaningful look sent a chill through Ao Tian, and he felt a coolness in his groin.
A devil, this person was a devil.
Ao Tian watched helplessly as a cold glint flashed in Ji Mo's hand, and something on his body was permanently gone.
"I am incomplete."
Ao Tian shivered, unsure whether to be happy or worried.
What was cut off was not his... but his most resilient inverse scale. Without it, all his cultivation was gone.
Tian Peng opened his eyes and watched all this, knowing that Ji Mo wasn't intentionally tormenting Ao Tian, but must have a purpose.
He saw Ji Mo walk to the Bodhi tree and pick a twig about the size of a finger.
Tian Peng finally understood that Ji Mo was likely going to forge an artifact.
With the materials prepared, Ji Mo sat under the willow tree and began his work.
Boom!
The willow branches moved as if by wind, willow catkins flew everywhere, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth surged in, gathering like swallows returning to their nests.
The power of laws permeated the air, runes danced, and the rhythm of the Great Dao was born in Ji Mo's hands, creating an astonishing spectacle.
The twig from the Bodhi tree underwent a world-altering transformation under Ji Mo's carving.
Lines of order divine chains intertwined, forming Great Dao runes imprinted within the twig. Simultaneously, the dragon tendon was split in two and bound to the twig along with the inverse scale skin.
The entire twig was radiant, displaying myriad phenomena, with divine beasts roaring and gods and demons howling, exuding a terrifying aura of world-destroying destruction.
Finally, a beam of nine-colored light pierced the sky, illuminating the entire world.
"A divine artifact, a supreme divine artifact has appeared!"
In the Xuanling Realm, countless powerful beings sensed the soul-shattering aura and gasped, their hearts filled with immense shock.
It was the Southern Region again, that desolate place, the most barren and backward region, yet the aura of a divine artifact had appeared once more.