My Artifacts Can Upgrade Infinitely

Suddenly, the Centipede Puppet opened its great maw, where a black tube was faintly visible. It then spat out a pale yellow liquid that spread toward the two of them like a swift, dense curtain of rain, blocking most of their escape routes.

"Fall back! It might be poison!" Zhao Zuo immediately shouted. He then leaped backward several times and activated the Vajra Talisman on his body. Even though he had retreated just in time, the pale yellow liquid still splattered the barrier formed by the talisman.

The brilliant golden light of the barrier immediately dimmed. The liquid, possessing a terrifyingly corrosive power, continued to eat its way inward and spread across the surface.

The Golden Light was being devoured.

Zhao Zuo didn’t dare to be careless. He immediately activated three more Vajra Talismans to resist the pale yellow liquid and began observing the Centipede Puppet’s movements.

It was still spewing the pale yellow liquid. Most of it landed on the ground and began to corrode the black floor, filling the air with a foul odor like that of a rotting corpse.

"Let’s just keep it busy for now," Zhao Zuo said. "We’ll wait until it’s done spitting that corrosive liquid."

"Okay."

’The Centipede Puppet can’t have a large supply of this corrosive liquid,’ Zhao Zuo guessed. ’In other words, as long as we can get through this initial burst, it will be our chance to defeat it.’

Besides, the metal making up the Centipede Puppet was extremely hard. Even a strike from a sharp Middle Grade Magical Artifact would only leave a shallow scratch. The hardness of its legs was even more terrifying, approaching that of a Middle Grade Magical Artifact.

Based on his analysis of the external materials, Zhao Zuo estimated it must have cost nearly ten thousand Spirit Stones to build. ’By that calculation,’ he thought, ’ten thousand Spirit Stones for a combatant at the level of the Late Period of Qi Cultivation doesn’t seem like a bad deal.’

But he also knew that the truly valuable part of this Puppet was its construction method. Perhaps on the inside, where he couldn’t see, there were even more expensive Artifact Refining materials.

The two of them continuously circled the Centipede Puppet, using the several-hundred-square-meter Underground Space to wage a war of attrition. Though they looked ragged at times, they fortunately avoided any major problems. Meanwhile, the speed at which the Puppet spat its venom had noticeably slowed.

"Just a little longer and we should be good!" Shen Yunjiao said with some excitement. If they defeated the Centipede Puppet before them, she would obtain the Foundation Establishment inheritance she valued most. With that... she would be one step closer to her goal.

"Don’t let your guard down." Zhao Zuo had a feeling this Centipede Puppet wouldn’t be defeated so easily. ’Spitting venom is likely just one of its trump cards.’

"Don’t worry, I know." Shen Yunjiao nodded, hurriedly reining in her emotions as she perilously dodged another of the Centipede Puppet’s pounces. Its combat style was to manipulate its front legs to attack enemies from eight different angles; getting hit meant instant dismemberment.

Its weakness, however, was that its attack patterns were very simple and easy to dodge. It also lacked Spiritual Wisdom, and having been sealed away for decades, its power was a shadow of what it once was.

Three minutes later, the entire Underground Space was filled with pits and holes. The deepest were about thirty centimeters deep, while even the shallowest were around five. These were all marks left by the venom the Centipede Puppet had spat.

The foul stench in the air grew even stronger. Concerned for his own safety, Zhao Zuo took out and swallowed two Antidote Pills effective against different poisons. At the same time, he began to control the frequency of his breathing, increasing the interval between each breath.

"It’s completely out of venom! Prepare to attack!" Shen Yunjiao called out from the rear. Although she also practiced a Body Refining Technique, her Realm was far below Zhao Zuo’s. Therefore, while they had been keeping the puppet busy, Zhao Zuo had shouldered the main responsibility of drawing its aggression.

The expert whom Zhao Zuo once had to look up to had been reduced to a background character multiple times during this fight. This change in Zhao Zuo’s strength left Shen Yunjiao so astonished she could barely remain calm. But she also knew this wasn’t the time to ask him about it.

Zhao Zuo swung his Black Flame Saber, continuously parrying the Centipede Puppet’s attacks.

Shen Yunjiao, meanwhile, stood several meters away, using her Mana to power Talismans for ranged strikes. She was mainly using Ice Talismans to constantly restrict its movement.

Evidently, for the sake of the final Foundation Establishment inheritance, Shen Yunjiao had specially prepared numerous High Level One Tier combat Talismans, striving to compensate for her own lack of offensive power.

Shen Yunjiao took out a handful of Pill Medicine and tossed them all into her mouth; she needed to restore her Mana as quickly as possible. At the same time, her hands formed seals, and a Talisman covered in complex patterns spontaneously combusted in her palm.

Simultaneously, countless icicles grew and spread from the ground, the tallest reaching nearly two meters high. They shot up from all directions, trapping the Centipede Puppet in the center. Shen Yunjiao was using the Ice Talismans to restrict the puppet’s movements as much as possible, providing support for Zhao Zuo’s attack.

After several more minutes of fighting, Shen Yunjiao had completely acknowledged Zhao Zuo’s strength and accepted the fact that she had become the weaker party. She now diligently fulfilled her role as support and commander.

Even so, a part of her was resentful. ’It’s not that I can’t accept Zhao Zuo’s strength surpassing my own,’ she thought, ’but I can’t accept... becoming the one who needs protection again.’

After what happened back then, the thing Shen Yunjiao hated most was her own weakness.

"I’ll create as many opportunities as I can! You find the Puppet’s core and attack it! We need to end this fast before something else goes wrong!" Shen Yunjiao forcefully suppressed the turmoil in her heart and threw herself back into the fight.

"I know. Help me restrict the attacks from its front legs."

This Centipede Puppet had over a hundred pairs of legs, each with its own responsibility. The dozens of pairs at the back handled directional changes and adjustments, while the legs in the middle were for linear movement and bursts of speed.

Only the five pairs of legs closest to its head were used for attacking, and they alone were enough to occupy all of Zhao Zuo’s attention. Only by disabling some of them would he be confident enough to destroy the Puppet’s core quickly.

PING!

Suddenly, a huge icicle grew and spread across the Centipede Puppet’s abdomen, instantly encasing six of its legs in hard ice. This slowed its attack speed and created a clear opening in its otherwise impenetrable barrage of Slashes.

This was a golden opportunity, and he naturally wouldn’t miss it. He immediately began to gather his strength.

Zhao Zuo mobilized all the Qi Blood in his body, leaped high into the air, and brought his saber down in a killing blow from above.

For this strike, he used a technique from the Realm of Overflowing Moon, amplifying his immense strength of 12,000 jin. Catalyzed by his Mana, the Black Flame also released a terrifyingly high temperature, even causing the surrounding air to warp slightly.

Zhao Zuo knew a thing or two about Puppets. ’Since it’s a Puppet, it must have a core,’ he thought. ’That’s where the Array is inscribed and where its Spiritual Power is stored. It’s because of the core that a Puppet can carry out its tasks, like guarding a specific area.’

’Furthermore... the core is also where a Puppet recognizes its master and receives commands.’

’As the name implies, it’s the most important part of the Puppet, and also its greatest weakness.’

Zhao Zuo’s eyes were fixed on the Centipede Puppet’s head. That spot was specially reinforced with metal, obviously to protect the fragile Puppet core beneath the outer shell.

’This has to be the Puppet’s weak point,’ he guessed.

BOOM!

The Black Flame blazed like Hellfire descending upon the mortal world. The saber’s edge finally batted aside the intercepting legs and struck heavily against the centipede’s outer shell, letting out an incredibly sharp, grating sound. It was so ear-piercing it felt like a steel needle stabbing his eardrums.

CRACK, CRACK, CRACK.

The hard metal was shattered by the blade, revealing the intricately patterned core within. At the same time, the Centipede Puppet shattered the icicles, and its ten pairs of legs immediately moved to block and defend.

But the Sky-Breaking Saber at Zhao Zuo’s waist flew out, slipped through a gap in the defense, and pierced the pure white core in a single, targeted strike.

The Centipede Puppet struggled for a few moments before finally losing all power.

.....

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