Molting the Mortal Coil

Sage had once tried to get a full list of the obtuse system that Guan Zhenyan used to categorize his services. He’d learned that getting access to the full list of rules and regulations would cost him a few million Spirit Stones and so he was forced to instead deal with a constant stream of unusual stipulations. With that prior experience, it was no wonder that he completely ignored Zhenyan’s mention of a type of service and instead just gestured for the man to get on with it.

“Those are Psionic Crystals. If placed within the Spiritual Sea, they can amplify one’s Spirit Power. Of course, that is only the most basic way to use them. The proper use for them is to fuel one’s Spirit Cultivation Technique.”

Guan Zhenyan nudged the corpse with his toe, “It’s no wonder this fellow had so much Spirit Power. This fellow must not have had any Spirit Cultivation Technique and so he could only use the Psionic Crystal in the most basic way.”

Sage continued to stare at the man until he realized what he left out, “Oh, right. Bring it to the center of your Mental Fortress and input your Spirit Power into it.”

Then Guan Zhenyan held out his hand to Sage, considering his obligation now complete. Sage called out to Tao Ba, and Guan Zhenyan frowned. The white haired boy glared at Guan Zhenyan and walked a couple gloating laps around the two of them before he stopped beside Sage.

“Oh Great Sir. Are these objects Psionic Crystals? Are they safe for me to use? There won’t be any danger in my bringing them into my Spiritual Sea, or giving one to this fellow is there?”

Tao Ba, who had his eyes mostly closed and his nose up in the air, turned his head down and opened one eye wide to take a better look. He leaned a little closer to the crystal before he nodded, “Ahh, yes. Those are indeed Psionic Crystals. They should be fine, though they seem a little tainted.”

Then Tao Ba noticed the corpse on the ground near them and took a closer look at that too before he poked a finger at the giant arm, “Ahh, here’s the reason. That’s quite a high amount of energy corruption,” the flesh on the arm split apart before his finger touched it. It was like there was an invisible cutting beam a few millimeters in front of his fingertip. As the skin split, a wave of pus, blood, and other gross fluids spurted out, but thankfully they flowed as if with a mind of their own. Thin ribbons twisted through the air and flew a few feet away from Tao Ba. The ribbons spun and twisted into small spheres, collecting everything perfectly without a drop touching the ground or staining the boy in white. One of those ribbons formed a violet stream and coalesced into a crystalline sphere, “Found it. A type of Spirit Power from the Astral Realm.”

Sage put two and two together, “I’m on a mysterious planet, the whole atmosphere is flooded with some sort of poison. It gets heavier near the bluish plants and bodies of purple water.”

Tao Ba nodded, “Blue plants and purple water? Hmm, that could explain it. You may have run into a dimensional collision. Sometimes, dimensions collide and that can create a crack, a sort of hole joining the two and causing their energies to spill into the other. If the two dimensions are on similar levels, then it just becomes a convenient method of travel. On the other hand, like in this case, if they are on different levels, the stronger one overpowers the weaker. It’s usually only a matter of time until it usually incites a calamity.”

“This world does seem to have just suffered an apocalypse.”

“Lucky you! You missed the worst part and now you can comb for treasure. Those Psionic Crystals should be pretty common there now, and if you’re lucky you might find other treasures that have spilled over from the Astral Realm.”

Guan Zhenyan had a displeased look on his face. Tao Ba was spilling so much information without even asking for anything in return. Not only was he a competitor in the information business, he was giving away his products for free!

Sage couldn’t care less about Guan Zhenyan’s displeasure, but he reluctantly handed over one of the three Psionic Crystals to the man. Then he turned to Tao Ba and bowed low, holding out one of the other two, “Please accept my gift, Great Sir. It is far from being able to catch your attention, but I shall endeavor to find better for you in the future.”

Haha, that sure made Guan Zhenyan’s face twist. The more I bootlick Tao Ba, the more unhappy it makes Zhenyan. Even if I couldn’t stand it, I’d probably do it more just for that reason!

He knew he was being a little spiteful, but the kindness that Guan Zhenyan showed him was far less than the torturous work he made him do in return. Tao Ba laughed and patted his belly, eyeing the crystal. He had a magnanimous look on his face and held out his hand as if he was going to refuse the gift. Then he licked his lips and looked like a large fish swallowing a guppy. With a single swallowing sound he inhaled the crystal from off Sage’s palm and into his mouth. Without saying anything else, he turned around. Patting his belly and waltzing off.

Sage held back his laughter at Tao Ba’s antics and focused on the remaining Psionic Crystal. He wouldn’t have agreed to give one to Guan Zhenyan if he knew there were only three total, but it was better to lose a third portion than have no treasure at all. As for the gift to Tao Ba, after learning that there should be more on this planet he chose to build relations with Tao Ba and also rub salt into Guan Zhenyan’s wounds. It was not an economical choice, but the man had taken advantage of him when he was down.

Putting his mind back on the task at hand, Sage sent the Psionic Crystal into his Spiritual Sea with the Twin Soul to escort it. He watched it carefully as he brought it into the heavily damaged Mental Fortress. Many of the walls of the labyrinth had been smashed through, but the Fisher Punk had not even reached the halfway point. Eventually the Twin Soul and Psionic Crystal reached the center of the labyrinth and now Sage could feel a sort of resonance with it. Since Tao Ba had confirmed the method, Sage was eager to see what would happen once he used the crystal. That other fellow had been barely taking advantage of the three crystals and it had made him as strong as Core Formation Cultivator. What would it do to him if he used it correctly? For that matter, how much would it help Guan Zhenyan who had such powerful Spirit Power already?

Sage carefully inserted his Spirit Power into the crystal and the glittering dust inside started to flow. What had been static flecks of reflective purple suddenly started to move. Twisting and turning like the center of the crystal had just turned into a liquid and was being moved by something. A soft pink light originated in the center of the crystal and started to get gradually brighter, illuminating the central chamber of the Infinite Immaterial Seat’s Labyrinth. The light twisted and shifted, some parts brighter than others. Those bright beams searing shapes and patterns onto the walls, floor, and ceiling of the chamber.

Spirit Power Formations?