Chapter 142: Dragon Soul Magic Artifacts

……
No matter how many spirit talismans there are, there will always come a moment when they run out.
But Su Che was firmly determined, stubbornly believing that hope for survival lay ahead, and he would never give up until the very last moment!
One after another, top-grade spirit talismans were cast, and in the blink of an eye, over thirty attack talismans were used up.
“You brat, the advantage you stole from me is now being used against me…”
The Black Fiend Old Ghost had already guessed that Su Che must have obtained so many talismans from the Jinghun Ridge market.
Filled with anger and losing all patience, the old ghost swiftly raised his hand and cast a certain divine spell.
Whoosh~~~
A giant phantom finger appeared in the air, over ten feet long, a gleaming golden finger.
The Shocking Finger!
“Master, be careful! The old fellow is attacking you!” Old Black hurriedly warned.
Su Che quickly activated a top-grade spirit talisman—this one was not an attack talisman but a soil-type defensive talisman with the strongest protective power.
As the talisman was released, a phantom of a soil-type giant enveloped Su Che, making him seem like an embryo within it.
That wasn’t enough. Su Che then brought out a first-class spiritual weapon shield he had just picked up and placed it behind him, creating a double layer of defense.
Behind him, the Shocking Finger arrived in an instant!
Boom!
The shield shattered into fragments, and the first-class spiritual weapon was completely destroyed.
The golden finger merely shrank slightly, its power not diminished much.
Boom!
The phantom of the soil-type giant seemed to let out a silent cry, but it still dissipated into specks of spiritual energy like bubbles. A top-grade soil-type defensive talisman was completely shattered by the Shocking Finger before its spiritual energy could run out.
The golden finger shrank further, becoming just over seven feet long, but its remaining power was still enough to kill Su Che on the spot.
With a bang, the golden finger struck Su Che’s back precisely…
Pfft!
A mouthful of blood gushed out of Su Che’s mouth like an arrow, while the golden finger also ran out of energy and turned into golden light.
Yet Su Che laughed heartily, “Old fellow, you’re really useless. This couldn’t even kill me.”
The Black Fiend Old Ghost was stunned. For a moment, he couldn’t figure out how Su Che had withstood that attack and only suffered minor injuries.
“This brat has quite a tough life. Even better—I’ll hit you a few more times.”

Though he said so, in reality, the Black Fiend Old Ghost’s second attack was much more serious. It wasn’t just a finger this time, but a huge golden hand that shot toward Su Che in an instant. Su Che had no other good options either—just a defensive spirit talisman and a defensive magic artifact. Yet, under the impact of the golden hand, these two defenses were no better than two thin pieces of paper. With two soft pops, they were instantly extinguished. Just as the golden hand reached Su Che, suddenly, a pure black scale appeared on his back, transforming into a 30-zhang-long dragon illusion. It opened its maw and crushed the golden hand to pieces in one bite. “What is this?” The Black Fiend Old Man was stunned once again and realized that it was this scale that had blocked his previous strike, preventing serious injury to the boy. However, he had never heard of such a form of magic artifact before and wondered, “Where did this boy get so many treasures? Could he be a direct descendant of some Nascent Soul elder from the Myriad Ghost Sect?” The “Reversal Scale Magic Artifact” in Su Che’s hands was extremely rare in the cultivation world. It condensed all the life essence of an adult dragon, with the dragon willingly sealing its soul inside. It could be said that aside from the greatest and most selfless maternal love, no other force in the world could achieve such a thing. Thus, such a life-bound magic artifact often possessed power far beyond its own grade. If it were considered a top-tier spirit artifact, it could exert the strength of a lower-tier or even mid-tier treasure artifact. Moreover, Su Che believed that the grade of this dragon reversal scale surely exceeded that of a spirit artifact, likely already reaching the level of a treasure artifact. Normally, one’s cultivation level wouldn’t allow them to control a treasure-tier magic artifact. But since the dragon soul inside had recognized him, it could often protect him automatically, proactively unleashing its power to defend him… Even so, Su Che was fully aware of the huge gap between him and the Black Fiend Old Ghost—a gap that no magic artifact could bridge. If the old ghost really went all out, he could easily destroy Su Che in just a few moves. “Master, please, let us go. If we work together against him, there might still be a chance.” In the Immortal Prison, Old Black made another request, hoping to join the Snake Woman and the little dragon to help Su Che fight the Black Fiend Old Ghost. But Su Che refused to agree. “It’s useless.”

Su Che once again dismissed the idea in his mind: “I have the Inverse Scale magic artifact to protect me, which allows me to withstand his attacks. If it were you guys, you’d die on the first strike, and even if you survived, it would be useless.” Su Che was right—killing someone at the Golden Core stage was as easy as killing someone at the Foundation stage; a fatal blow was indeed possible. “Then what should we do? You can’t withstand even a few attacks either,” Lao He said anxiously. “As many as I can endure, that’s how many.” Su Che thought that Black Fiend Lao Gui would continue to attack, but unexpectedly, after that golden hand, he strangely stopped attacking and merely followed behind, remaining motionless for now. Su Che didn’t know that Black Fiend Lao Gui had already taken a liking to this Inverse Scale magic artifact and was reluctant to use force to destroy such a rare treasure. He believed that only someone at the Golden Core stage was worthy of possessing it. So, the old ghost paused his attack and began to think of a clever plan to achieve both goals—capturing this troublesome kid while still getting that Dragon Soul magic artifact unharmed… The situation temporarily stalled, but just after a dozen breaths, the expressions of the two chasing each other in the sky changed simultaneously… Su Che and Black Fiend Lao Gui both saw a large cluster of dark clouds appearing in the distance ahead, filled with an eerie aura and an astonishing presence. “People from the Ten Thousand Ghosts Sect!” Su Che’s spirit soared as his potential exploded, and he accelerated toward that direction. At the same time, a special spirit talisman appeared from the Immortal Prison and was instantly activated, causing a strange burst of flames in the sky. This was a distress signal from the Ten Thousand Ghosts Sect. In the Immortal Prison, Lao He had already interrogated that sect’s disciple and learned all about this. Behind them, Black Fiend Lao Gui looked displeased, thinking that this kid really had bad luck—encountering a Golden Core-level ghost from the Ten Thousand Ghosts Sect in such a remote place. Black Fiend Lao Gui was very familiar with the Ten Thousand Ghosts Sect and could tell at a glance that those dark clouds carried great power, surely belonging to some Golden Core-level ghost’s flying artifact. “What a pity!” Black Fiend Lao Gui sighed in regret. If not for the fact that this kid was far more troublesome than expected, he would have already obtained that Dragon Soul magic artifact. As for whether he could kill Su Che, Black Fiend Lao Gui didn’t really care. After all, the actions in the Jinghun Ridge market were part of a larger strategy—a feint that didn’t require secrecy or killing. Chasing Su Che was merely to retrieve the Qiangu Bags he had picked up.

The dark clouds in the sky had already spotted Su Che’s distress signal. In the blink of an eye, they flew hundreds of feet away—such speed seemed even faster than that of the Black Fiend.
“Black Fiend, you’ve come to cause trouble again.”
A woman’s voice came from within the dark clouds. Yet it was extremely shrill and unpleasant, evoking the image of an old crone with a face full of wrinkles.
“More than just causing trouble,” the Black Fiend laughed heartily. “Old witch, don’t you know yet? Your Jinghunling Market has been completely destroyed by me. All valuables were taken, not a single chicken or dog left.”
At that point, he pointed at Su Che and said, “Oh, wrong—only this kid isn’t dead… This thief is not only cunning but also carries many treasures. I’ve chased him for thousands of miles yet still can’t get rid of him. Old witch, which of your Wan Gui Sect’s Yuan Ying monsters is his great-grandson?”
Su Che cursed inwardly: “That old bastard is really despicable. He deliberately claims I have treasures on me. This way, even if I’m rescued, it’s like escaping one danger only to fall into another…”
Moreover, Su Che realized that the woman hidden in the dark clouds knew Black Fiend—though he still wasn’t sure what their relationship was.
There was no response from the dark clouds for a long time. It was unclear whether the woman inside cared about the massacre at Jinghunling Market.
“Old witch, what are you thinking about?”
The Black Fiend urged harshly, “If you don’t want to save him, I’ll take him down. Don’t stop me.”
In the Immortal Prison, Lao Hei quickly interrogated that Wan Gui Sect disciple and already knew the identity of the woman in the dark clouds, known as “Old Witch.”
So, Su Che bowed and pleaded with a trembling voice, “Uncle, save me!”
The dark clouds swayed as the woman inside asked in a deep voice, “Whose disciple are you?”
“My master is the Bone-Dry Lord,” Su Che replied hastily.
“Bone-Dry?”
The Black Fiend snorted and interjected, “That stingy wretch would he spare so many treasures for you? No way.”
“That’s none of your business!” Su Che glared back. There was no need to be polite with that old bastard.
“Seeking death!”
The Black Fiend flew into rage. With a twist of his wrist, a beam of golden light appeared…
“Black Fiend!” The dark clouds surged as the woman snapped coldly, “Do you think I don’t exist?”
The Black Fiend calmed down slightly and asked, “So, you decide to save him after all?”

“Anyway, how dare you kill my disciples right in front of me!” the woman replied in a low voice. “The affairs at Shocking Soul Ridge have nothing to do with me. Do as you please. Now, get out of my sight!”
“You old witch! Wish you stay locked up forever and never come out…”
The Black Fiend Old Ghost muttered some indistinct curses, flicked his sleeve, and turned to leave without even glancing at Su Che again.