Chapter Thirty: The Talisman of Great Strength

With the little creature as his secret weapon, Li Chengzhu found slaughtering those two-winged angels to be almost effortless. All it took was for the little thing to dart in and jab them with its needle, and Boss Li would simply wait to collect the spoils of victory. Moreover, Li Chengzhu discovered that the little creature had a rather finicky appetite—it ignored the energy of the two-winged angels entirely, but whenever a four-winged angel was slain, it would eagerly dash over to absorb their soul energy. Now, Boss Li no longer feared enemies below the rank of four-winged white angels.

As long as they couldn’t match the little creature’s speed, they were destined for defeat.

Even when confronted by a couple of slightly stronger angels, the little thing would hover around them, performing figure-eight maneuvers to distract their minds, giving Boss Li the perfect opportunity to strike with his celestial sword.

Meteor was famed for its speed, but it was a true celestial sword nonetheless. Even though Li Chengzhu couldn’t fully merge his strength with it, channeling celestial spiritual energy from his Nascent Soul was enough to tear through the angels’ defenses with ease.

Clad in a long robe, Li Chengzhu resembled a god of war, cutting down foes wherever he went. Soon, a group of cultivators gathered behind him. On this battlefield, everyone fended for themselves, focused solely on their own survival, so few paid attention to the celestial sword in Boss Li’s hand or the uncanny speed of the little creature.

Boss Li repeatedly cautioned the little thing not to devour others’ souls in plain sight. If it must, it should do so out of view, perhaps beneath a pile of corpses. It should also slow down to avoid arousing suspicion.

With Li Chengzhu leading the way, the number of cultivators trailing behind him grew steadily. The more, the merrier—the angels crumbled wherever this band appeared.

One cultivator chanted quietly while holding a talisman between his fingers. When his incantation ended, he drew a few marks in the air, and the talisman shot into Boss Li’s body with a swish.

In the midst of battle, Li Chengzhu suddenly felt a surge of spiritual energy welling up from its hiding place into his meridians, even the depleted celestial energy became vibrant once more.

He struck down a nearby angel with a single blow, then turned to grin broadly at the cultivator, “Thanks!”

“You’re welcome!” the cultivator replied.

The others, seeing this, were astonished. One found a spare moment to ask, “Fellow Daoist, was that a Strength Talisman just now?”

The man smiled faintly. “Indeed, it was.”

Cries of amazement broke out among the group—they had actually witnessed the legendary Strength Talisman.

The Strength Talisman could awaken a cultivator’s potential for one hour, making it perfectly suited for large-scale battles like this. Only the Dragon Gate Sect possessed the secret of its creation; many had heard of it, but few had ever seen it.

Crafting talismans sounded simple, and most cultivators could make a few, but the true art lay in guiding vital energy. As the saying goes, a talisman has no fixed form; its spirit lies in the energy. Yet, to master the art of merging with the Dao through talismans—this accomplishment belonged solely to the Dragon Gate Sect across the entire Immortal Realm.

Seeing a disciple of the Dragon Gate Sect here, the cultivators clamored, “Give me one too!”

“And me! Let’s roast these feathered wings!”

With a smile, the cultivator affixed Strength Talismans to each of them. Those who received them felt their cultivation leap dramatically. The Strength Talisman’s reputation was well-deserved; intoxicated by their newfound power, the group charged headlong into the enemy lines.

The cultivator shouted after them, “Fellow Daoists, remember the time limit is only one hour! After that, your cultivation will temporarily drop!”

“What?” Boss Li nearly tripped and fell from the sky.

“Every boon has its cost!” The Dragon Gate disciple shrugged helplessly.

“Damn it!” Li Chengzhu spat in frustration, the wind carrying it straight into the face of the Dragon Gate Daoist.

Looking ahead, he saw those with the Strength Talismans had already surged forward. Clearly, everyone else knew about the side effects except for him. Grumbling to himself, Li Chengzhu decided it was better to kill a few more angels than to argue. When time was up, he’d simply run for it.

He shot a glare at the Dragon Gate Daoist and followed the main force with the little creature.

With their power temporarily boosted, the cultivators charged like butchers into a slaughterhouse, working in concert to bring down angel after angel.

Time ticked slowly by, and Boss Li relished the advantages of his enhanced strength. That tiny slip of talisman paper had boosted his physical cultivation from mid-Out-of-Body to early Divinity Stage—not just a slight increase. It made controlling his celestial sword far easier.

The rampage of this group of several hundred cultivators finally drew the angels’ attention. When one angelic force of equal numbers failed to intercept them, a barrage of “Holy Spear Barrage” and streaks of lightning rained down upon the group.

Damn, they’re even hitting their own side, Boss Li grumbled. Were the angels so desperate they no longer cared for their comrades?

At the front lines, where the fighting was fiercest, there were no massive defensive arrays like the “Heavenly Net.” The dual energies crashed down, and instantly, more than a dozen cultivators were impaled like porcupines. Even the angels suffered—these attacks didn’t distinguish friend from foe, and more angels than cultivators fell to friendly fire.

Boss Li, shielded by the Bixue Ring’s protective barrier, burst out laughing. These fools were so frantic, they’d rather harm a thousand of their own to hurt eight hundred of the enemy.

But his laughter faded as he realized the Bixue Ring’s barrier, which had guaranteed his safety, flickered a few times—then vanished.

Panic seized Li Chengzhu. Damn it, why did it have to fail now, of all times?

Hearing the little creature’s warning cry, Boss Li looked up and nearly tumbled from the sky in fright—a dense swarm of those long, white energy spears was hurtling straight toward him.

Run! Boss Li made a split-second decision, diving toward the ground without a backward glance. But with the angels’ ranged units so numerous, this volley of Holy Spear Barrage was more determined than ever, intent on pinning these formidable cultivators in place.

At his current speed, Boss Li would be caught by the spears before escaping their range, and he’d be riddled with holes—severe injury was a certainty.

Desperately, Boss Li prayed for a miracle, hoping he wouldn’t meet his end just yet.