The corpse of Shikegu picked out the Golden Core of the barbarian general from Gaotu Tribe, and then… swallowed it whole.

The Golden Core, which was deeply intertwined with a cultivator’s life, blood essence, and spiritual energy, was forcefully chewed to pieces.

The powerful energy contained within the Golden Core exploded, distorting Shikegu’s face and entire head. Yet, it couldn’t escape the fate of being chewed up and devoured.

With a bloodied face, Shikegu chewed and swallowed the Golden Core of the Gaotu Tribe’s barbarian general as if it were a “fruit.”

This scene was incredibly horrifying.

All the barbarian generals in the arena, who were at the Golden Core stage, felt their own hard-won Golden Cores in their Dantian tremble, a chilling sensation creeping up on them.

They had never witnessed such a bizarre event in their lives.

Even demon cultivators had never done such a thing.

What was even more bizarre was that after the corpse of Shikegu consumed the Golden Core, ancient and ferocious beast patterns emerged on its body.

These beast patterns seemed to “come alive,” absorbing the spiritual energy from the Golden Core and then feeding it back to Shikegu’s corpse.

These fierce beast patterns resembled “totems” on Shikegu’s body.

And Shikegu, in turn, seemed to be merely a “medium” for these beast patterns.

Shikegu was a person; the beast patterns were a formation.

But the beast patterns were alive, while Shikegu was dead.

This strange and unsettling feeling enveloped everyone’s hearts.

At the same time, Shikegu, whose aura was originally weak and spiritual energy completely depleted, seemed to be recharged by the power of the Golden Core. Its entire body glowed with a deep, cold blue light, and its aura instantly surged.

It seemed as if it had been fully charged and had “come back to life” once again.

“Be careful!” Gaodu roared sharply.

Another barbarian general from the Gaotu Tribe, who was suppressing Shikegu, paled and tried to flee upon hearing the warning, but it was already too late.

Shikegu’s bloody hand had already clamped around his neck, twisting it with force until it was deformed.

This barbarian general also cultivated the Hundred Vipers Technique, but his skill was not profound enough to separate his flesh and bones for “snake evasion” like Gaodu. Once Shikegu grabbed him, he couldn’t break free.

And in the next instant, he met a terrible fate.

His abdomen was pierced by Shikegu, and the Golden Core in his Dantian was also ripped out by Shikegu’s large hand and swallowed like a monster.

The Taotie patterns on Shikegu’s body grew brighter, even carrying a hint of malevolence, like a giant beast opening its mouth to breathe.

With two consecutive barbarian generals, both his trusted subordinates, brutally slaughtered by Shikegu, Gaodu, as a great general, was immediately enraged.

Ignoring his shock, he gritted his teeth, forcefully activated the Hundred Vipers Technique, his hands turning snake-like, his bone blades poisoned, and lunged back at Shikegu.

However, these sinister and terrifying bone blades were firmly seized by Shikegu’s large hand.

Shikegu had killed two barbarian generals in a row and swallowed two Golden Cores, receiving a surge of immense spiritual energy. Its strength was extraordinary.

Gaodu, exhausted from successive battles, felt a sudden increase in pressure.

What made him even more terrified was that Shikegu’s left hand was gripping his bone blades, while its right hand reached for his lower abdomen.

The intention was clearly to dig out his Golden Core.

Gaodu’s heart turned cold. He immediately broke free and retreated. Shikegu let out a low growl, chasing him like a “monster.”

Gaodu fought and retreated.

In the Gu Poison Marsh, a land teeming with potent toxins, it was Gaodu’s home ground.

Yet, he was being battered and pursued by the powerful, “invulnerable to all poisons” corpse of Shikegu, looking utterly disheveled.

Seeing the critical situation, an aged elder of the Gaotu Tribe solemnly declared, “Activate the Hundred Gu Thousand Poisons Net to stop this monster!”

Within the poisonous marsh, water rippled, and poisonous vines suddenly spread out, forming a net like chains, firmly trapping Shikegu.

The net was woven from poisonous vines, coated with potent toxins, and numerous Gu insects were parasitic within the vines.

It would take over a hundred years to cultivate these Gu insects and refine this poison net.

This was the Gaotu Tribe’s most dangerous trap and most lethal tactic.

Originally, it was intended to capture and kill enemy leaders at critical moments, such as a great general like Lugu, or a “Divine Priest” like Mohua.

Now, with Gaodu being pursued by Shikegu, they had no choice but to activate this Hundred Gu Thousand Poisons Net to suppress Shikegu.

But the problem was, Shikegu was not alive. It was a corpse.

Gu insects could not harm it, and a thousand poisons could not corrode it, because its flesh and blood were already “dead.”

The Gu was useless, the poison was useless.

This Hundred Gu Thousand Poisons Net was effectively rendered half-useless, only retaining its function of “trapping the enemy.”

It could only trap, not kill.

And even just using the poison net to trap it wouldn’t be enough.

The Gaotu barbarian generals and numerous barbarian soldiers could only form a formation, and with the aid of the Hundred Gu Thousand Poisons Net, they took turns suppressing Shikegu.

With the combined efforts of the barbarian soldiers and the Hundred Gu Thousand Poisons Net, Shikegu was indeed suppressed.

Thus, General Gaodu finally got a chance to breathe.

Gaodu wasted no time. He immediately swallowed some pills, ate some meat from an unknown poisonous beast, and then sat in meditation to restore his strength.

When his strength had recovered by more than half, Gaodu opened his eyes, only to find that after such a long time, the Hundred Gu Thousand Poisons Net was already struggling to suppress Shikegu’s corpse.

Gaodu was startled, and without much thought, he had to personally step forward again and fight Shikegu.

With him, the great general, directly bearing the brunt of Shikegu’s pressure, and the other barbarian generals and soldiers working together, coupled with the Hundred Gu Thousand Poisons Net, they finally managed to successfully suppress Shikegu once more.

Shikegu’s corpse, just as before, gradually saw the blue light on its body dim, and its movements slowly became sluggish.

No matter how strong it was, it was ultimately just a “corpse.” It couldn’t truly contend with the Gaotu Tribe’s great general, over twenty barbarian generals, and a host of barbarian soldiers who cultivated poison techniques.

Gaodu slowly let out a sigh of relief.

But he dared not be careless; the lessons of the past were still fresh in his mind.

This corpse, when strong, killed people, but when weak, it would “eat” people.

Moreover, eating people wasn’t truly terrifying; what was terrifying was that it ate “Golden Cores.”

“Be extremely careful, control this thing, don’t give it any opportunities…”

Gaodu ordered sternly.

Everyone replied, “Yes,” but sometimes, the more one orders and reminds, the more likely mistakes are to happen.

Especially in such a tense moment, facing a terrifying monster that “eats Golden Cores.”

A Gaotu Tribe barbarian general, standing about half a zhang too close to Shikegu’s corpse, stumbled slightly, either from fear or fatigue, and lost focus for a moment.

When he steadied himself and opened his eyes again, he found Shikegu’s dark, empty eyes staring at him.

The black eyes were like an abyss.

That faint blue light was captivating and terrifying.

The Gaotu Tribe barbarian general, filled with fear, momentarily forgot what to do. In the next instant, a piercing pain shot through him.

His abdomen had been pierced by a pair of a corpse’s hands.

Then, he watched helplessly as the Golden Core he had cultivated his entire life was brutally ripped out and devoured by that “monster.”

His eyes widened in immense terror, but he was powerless to resist. He fell to his knees with a thud, his life extinguished.

The death of this barbarian general immediately caused an uproar, shaking the hearts of the Gaotu Tribe members.

Furthermore, witnessing Shikegu “eating” a Golden Core alive at such close range made them experience the taste of fear firsthand.

Gaodu was both shocked and enraged, cursing these useless individuals, but a hint of panic also crept into his own heart.

Because after consuming the Golden Core, the previously weakened corpse of Shikegu, with a flash of eerie blue patterns on its body, became strong again.

Gaodu gritted his teeth and said, “Quick, suppress it again! Be extremely careful, don’t let it kill anyone else!”

Having said that, Gaodu activated his cultivation technique, wielding his bone blades in both hands, and charged back towards Shikegu.

But this time, a sense of trepidation filled his heart, and he hesitated in the midst of the battle.

In contrast, Shikegu, having devoured another Golden Core, pulsed with its Taotie patterns, its spiritual energy beginning to recover once more.

Not only that, but after these few life-and-death struggles, its movements and techniques were noticeably smoother and more varied.

It seemed that it was adapting to this body. It was still getting stronger.

Gaodu felt anxious, but as a great general, he was in a difficult position and could only bite the bullet, continuing to fight with Shikegu’s corpse.

Under their combined efforts, a familiar scene quickly unfolded again.

Shikegu’s corpse was suppressed, the blue light on its body began to dim, and its movements grew sluggish once more.

Gaodu, however, wasn’t happy at all. In fact, he became even more panicked, feeling as if he were treading on thin ice.

Because he knew that this corpse monster was about to “eat” Golden Cores again.

But no matter how cautious he was, it was useless.

He was a great general, with high cultivation and rich combat experience; he could protect his own Golden Core from being extracted by Shikegu.

But he couldn’t protect the Golden Cores of the other Gaotu Tribe barbarian generals.

Finally, in a moment of carelessness, blood splattered, and another Gaotu Tribe barbarian general had his Golden Core ripped out and devoured by Shikegu.

Gaodu’s mental state completely collapsed.

It’s over…

Shikegu’s corpse, if it had any special techniques, indeed had none.

It was simply tough-skinned and thick-fleshed, impervious to blades and poisons, incredibly strong, durable, capable of fighting, with simple and direct moves, fast and effective.

But the problem was that while it could withstand and fight, it could also “eat” Golden Cores to replenish its spiritual energy.

Gaodu could defeat it, but he couldn’t kill it. To suppress it completely, everyone had to work together, wearing it down in turns.

If not enough people teamed up, they simply couldn’t outlast it.

But once everyone teamed up, it was tantamount to feeding “Golden Cores” into its mouth, “recharging” it.

It was like throwing meat buns at a dog; the more you threw, the less you had.

And Gaodu’s prediction was correct; what followed was that all the “Golden Cores” of the Gaotu Tribe became meat buns.

Without the suppression from top-tier combat power, Shikegu’s corpse became truly “unrestrained.”

Its moves were simple—a punch, a kick—and precisely for this reason, they were brutal and lethal.

As the Taotie patterns pulsed, almost every punch and kick claimed a life from the Gaotu Tribe.

The combined attacks of the crowd could penetrate its skin and corrode its flesh, but they simply couldn’t kill it.

How could a “dead person” die again?

An ordinary cultivator at the late Golden Core stage, despite their powerful cultivation, could not withstand “human wave” tactics and successive chaotic battles.

But Shikegu’s corpse was different.

It could eat “Golden Cores,” eager to fight in the thick of the crowd, killing and eating as it went, like a “perpetual motion machine,” immortal and unharmed.

Especially when facing a large number of barbarian soldiers, as long as Shikegu was not truly dead, it could continue killing.

But Shikegu was already “dead,” so it would continue to kill until all its enemies were gone…

This was a seemingly unpretentious yet terrifying, pure “killing machine.”

Within the poisonous marsh, Shikegu stood like a small mountain, its hideous Taotie patterns glowing with an eerie blue light. It “ate” and killed simultaneously, resembling an ancient fierce beast roaming a purgatory of corpses, slaughtering the living beings of the world.

Moreover, Shikegu grew stronger with every kill and every meal.

The more it killed, the more agile its limbs became, the simpler its moves, and the faster it killed.

The more it ate, the more fully activated the Taotie patterns on its body became, gradually merging with its bones to become one.

Shikegu increasingly resembled a humanoid “Taotie” monster.

Seeing more and more people die and Shikegu growing ever stronger, Gaodu, as a great general, felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, completely losing the will to resist.

Gaodu fled.

And with Gaodu’s escape, the other Gaotu Tribe warriors completely collapsed.

With the Taotie patterns adorning it, Shikegu, like a “killing machine,” almost single-handedly crushed the third-grade Gaotu Tribe.

Not only were all the people of the Gaotu Tribe consumed by fear and despair,

Even the barbarian soldiers of Suzaku Mountain were terrified and pale.

Lugu, as the Great Chieftain, looked at his brother Shikegu in his current state, equally shocked and lost in thought.

Only Mohua remained calm throughout.

Seeing the Gaotu Tribe collapse and the front lines breached, Mohua’s gaze was indifferent. He waved his hand and commanded,

“Don the poison-repelling armor, and charge forward to annihilate the Gaotu Tribe…”

“Yes, Divine Priest!”

The barbarian soldiers of Suzaku Mountain quickly changed into their dark green patterned barbarian leather armor.

This poison-repelling armor was specially forged at the instruction of Mohua, the Divine Priest, to cross the poisonous marsh of the Luyoushan Realm.

However, although this poison-repelling armor had high poison resistance, its other defenses were poor. If they had been ambushed by the Gaotu Tribe during their crossing of the poisonous marsh, the Suzaku Mountain barbarian soldiers would have suffered heavy casualties.

But at this moment, the Gaotu Tribe had been crushed by Shikegu, who bore the Taotie patterns, and Great General Gaodu had been defeated and fled. This was naturally the best opportunity to cross the poisonous marsh.

All of this was within Mohua’s expectations.

Lugu, who had been poisoned by the Hundred Vipers’ potent venom, temporarily suppressed the toxins in his body. He also donned a set of poison-repelling armor and led the Suzaku Mountain army, stepping into the Gu Poison Marsh of the Luyoushan Realm.

The Divine Priest’s army began its advance.

This was also the first time in thousands of years that the Luyoushan Realm, teeming with deadly poisons, had been invaded on such a large scale by an “external enemy.”

This was unprecedented in the entire history of the mountain realm.

Once the Gu Poison Marsh, this almost insurmountable natural barrier, was crossed, the subsequent poisonous miasma and forests became relatively simpler.

Under Mohua’s guidance, and with Lugu leading the charge, after half a month of fierce fighting, the headquarters of the third-grade Gaotu Tribe was breached.

The heavily wounded Great General Gaodu was captured alive, the Gaotu Great Chieftain fled, and the remaining tribesmen surrendered.

Thus, the Gaotu Tribe, the largest tribe in the third-grade Luyoushan Realm, was conquered.

And through “actual combat” and the corpse of Shikegu, Mohua verified the feasibility of the Twelve Meridians Taotie Spirit Skeleton Great Formation.

This also proved that he had initially comprehended and mastered this incredibly difficult Taotie Spirit Skeleton Great Formation, which was created by a mysterious great shaman priest of the Great Wilderness, possessed a second-grade, twenty-four-pattern rank, and contained the ferocious laws of Taotie.

And this Taotie Spirit Skeleton Great Formation would soon become his…

Life-bound formation for forming his Golden Core.

(End of Chapter)