Asura Emperor Venerable

Chapter 126: Chapter 126 Ninefold Mountain

Shi Hao didn’t give a damn and kept walking on his own.

The palace was very spacious, with black and white floor tiles alternated clearly, as if it were a chessboard.

And on it, there clearly stood stone statues, horses, chariots, and soldiers.

Eh, this is truly a game of chess.

However, the black side is missing a pawn.

With a thought, Shi Hao walked to the position where the black pawn was missing.

Immediately, the white piece moved, advancing the cannon, placing it in front of the king.

Cannon two flat five.

Shi Hao had never played Chinese chess, but in Yuan Chengmie’s memories, there were numerous chess manuals and his rich experience in chess.

—Yuan Chengmie was an all-around genius, proficient in chess, calligraphy, and painting. There was nothing he didn’t excel in.

But how to move the pieces?

“Knight eight forward seven,” he said.

As his words fell, the black knight immediately moved to the corresponding position.

Shi Hao was astonished; both the stone figures outside and the chess pieces here demonstrated a very high level of Artifact Forging.

No wonder sects such as White Cloud Sect were eager to enter this place; just the level of Artifact Forging alone was crushing the present times.

Weird, how did such a once-glorious power decline?

The chess game continued, and Shi Hao was more than comfortable with it.

He was cautious with every step, yet dynamic, and soon he cornered the opponent’s king into a checkmate, defeating the white pieces.

Crack, the white king exploded, and among the shattered pieces was an Iron Box.

Eh, a reward for winning the game?

Shi Hao picked up the Iron Box, opened it, and found a thin book. Flipping through it, it was a Martial Technique called “Cloud Picking Skill”—a low Sun-Level art that could mobilize Elemental Energy, with quite astonishing power.

Sadly, Shi Hao casually put the book away. His mind was filled with even high Sun-Level Martial Techniques, so naturally, he wasn’t tempted.

Then, he froze.

White Cloud Sect didn’t possess Sun-Level Martial Techniques.

This meant that although many had come here generation after generation, none had obtained Sun-Level Martial Techniques.

Why could he obtain it?

Was it because of a perfect game of chess?

Did he finish the game in the shortest time possible?

Possibly.

Because disciples from the White Cloud Sect and Kuangsha Sect focused all their thoughts on martial arts; who would have the leisure to study the art of chess?

Even if they could win, it would probably take a very long time.

But it was different for Shi Hao; he could immediately use Yuan Chengmie’s experience, which was naturally in a different league.

He moved on.

He walked forward in this completely empty place, where nothing could hide, so he moved quickly. When he reached the end of the palace, he found a row of weapon racks.

Some racks were empty, while others held weapons.

Shi Hao’s gaze swept over them, pausing at a certain blade.

Although the sword was known as the “king of a hundred weapons,” its finesse was not suitable for Shi Hao’s direct and crushing style.

The blade was different; a straightforward, tough cut was most suitable for his relentless approach.

Of course, spears and staffs would also be a good fit, but they were too long and not convenient to carry.

Shi Hao reached for the blade, but it seemed rooted in place and wouldn’t budge.

Eh, can’t take it?

Just then, a flow of light swept over the weapon rack, and he found the blade had lightened, letting him pick it up.

So heavy!

Shi Hao was astonished. Although this knife looked no different from ordinary ones, the difference in weight was tremendous.

Knowing that he possessed a strength of over a million catties, the fact that he felt the knife’s heaviness indicated its extraordinary heft.

—At least two hundred thousand catties!

What material was it made of? It was truly astonishing.

He unsheathed the knife, and with a buzz, a cold light gleamed.

“This is a Spiritual Artifact!” Shi Hao murmured. As memories belonging to Yuan Chengmie flowed into him, he immediately invoked his Soul Force, infusing a tiny bit into the blade.

Buzz, suddenly, a pattern resembling a character lit up on the blade, and Shi Hao noticed that the weight of the knife had diminished significantly.

Shi Hao nodded. This pattern was the Weight Reducing Rune. Once activated, it could significantly reduce the weight of the knife.

However, when this blade was brought down upon a person, one only needed to extinguish the Rune for the terrifying weight to burst forth.

One must know, a twenty thousand-catty heavy object crashing down at an unimaginable speed could crush a person to pulp. Furthermore, this was a blade, so what level of destruction could it achieve?

Regardless of how forceful the energy one possessed, it would all be cleaved through.

“And there’s more—” Shi Hao activated another Rune, and he noticed that the weapon rack not far away began to tremble slightly.

The other Rune was… magnetism!

This was also very practical. Amid fighting, suddenly pulling away the opponent’s weapon could be amusing.

Of course, one had to judge their capability, for magnetic attraction works both ways. If the opponent’s strength was greater, one might end up being pulled over instead.

Shi Hao lowered the blade to the tiled floor and dragged it lightly across without needing to exert any force, and the sharp edge etched a mark into the tile.

Terrifying!

Shi Hao sheathed the knife and reached for other weapons, but this time, despite all his efforts, he could not lift any other weapon.

It seemed he could only take one.

Was this the reward for entering the palace?

Did it have anything to do with the time it took him to defeat the stone figure?

Shi Hao looked at the weapon rack again, a hint of a smile on his lips. The knife had been placed on the top row of the rack, where there was only one such weapon, whereas the second and third rows below were nearly full.

As expected.

The time it took to defeat the stone figure directly determined the tier of the reward one could receive.

He hadn’t been able to take the precious knife immediately because his identity was being confirmed.

“Ninefold Mountain.” Shi Hao picked up the precious knife again, and saw three characters etched on the scabbard.

He nodded. The name Ninefold Mountain was admittedly a bit exaggerated, but it did capture the essence of the knife.

How much would his combat power increase now that he had this knife?

“A workman must first sharpen his tools if he is to do his work well.”

This saying also applied to martial artists; possessing a superior Spiritual Artifact could transform a martial artist’s combat power drastically.

Sadly, although the White Cloud Sect had an Artefact Courtyard, it could only forge things like the Purple Crystal Cannon, and had not yet the ability to create a weapon powerful enough to threaten those in the Soul Nurturing realm.

Had such skills or, rather, production blueprints already been lost? Therefore, to obtain a Spiritual Artifact, one could only hope to find it within ancient relics.

With the knife in hand, Shi Hao strode forward.

After a few steps, he grimaced.

Sure, the knife would be incredible when chopping down an enemy, but it was just too heavy to carry around normally.

While he could activate the Rune to lighten the weapon’s weight, that would consume Soul Power, which was hardly cost-effective.

“What a bother!” Shi Hao grumbled. Twenty thousand catties was a hefty weight to carry around. It wouldn’t matter for a short time, but after a while, it would become quite uncomfortable.

He switched from carrying it in his left hand to his right as they grew tired and, when both hands were fatigued, he shouldered it, fighting the urge to just throw it away.

But upon reflection, Shi Hao viewed it as a form of training.

—Always carrying around a twenty-thousand catty weight and then suddenly releasing it during combat; how strong would the burst of power be?

With that thought, he became much more accepting of the inconvenience.

He reached the end of the palace, where another door stood. He pushed hard, and the door creaked open, slowly revealing a burst of greenery that instantly filled Shi Hao’s sight.