Cultivation is just so scientific! Chapter 1543 - 818: Life and Death

Though Li Shiming has existed for just over a century, his experiences surpass those of numerous cultivators who've endured nearly a millennium. He's beheld demise, inflicted it directly with his own hands, and hovered near the edge of oblivion on multiple occasions.

He has observed formidable cultivators, and especially via his clone, he has glimpsed the dread of the Great Power Elder.

Yet the might of the Sword Elder never targeted him directly, leaving him without the grip of true terror.

Right now, in this instant, one lone finger instilled in him the sensation of death, the chill of fear, and the utter powerlessness of a frail being confronting an overwhelming force.

His innate treasure, IBMz15, blared urgent warnings, flashing a barrage of evasion strategies before his eyes without pause.

Still, that finger emerging abruptly from emptiness wielded an unfathomable restraining energy, locking him in place and barring any attempt to dodge or shift.

He was forced to merely observe as the finger advanced toward his form, bypassing the defensive shield around him that stemmed from the ’Heavenly Human Technique’ via ’Chaotic Spiritual Power’.

Before the barrier of ’Chaotic Spiritual Power’, the finger appeared to occupy a separate dimension, gliding through the ’Chaotic Spiritual Power’ shield with zero disturbance.

Next, the finger pressed on, and upon brushing Li Shiming’s robe, the elite fourth-grade magical treasure instantly activated its automatic guard spell.

Regrettably, despite the spell's activation, it mirrored the earlier ’Chaotic Spiritual Power’ shield in failing to hinder the finger's path at all.

Only upon the finger reaching the solid fabric of the robe did he sense the incomprehensible potency it held.

The elite fourth-grade robe burst apart in a thunderous explosion, this supreme garment from the cultivation realm shattered into irreparable shards by the single finger.

One must remember that the elite fourth-grade robe worn by Li Shiming served as his prize from battle.

Normally, even if damaged, such an elite fourth-grade robe could mend itself gradually with the infusion of spiritual power.

But on this occasion, the elite fourth-grade robe's ruin was total and absolute, beyond any hope of revival.

This revealed that the finger's force had obliterated every rune array embedded in the elite fourth-grade robe.

At last, the finger struck Li Shiming’s flesh, where he endured a crushing pressure beyond imagination.

His flesh split open, his sinews burst sequentially, and his skeleton groaned under strain. Even worse, one of his Nascent Souls got sealed outright by this force, rendering its power inaccessible.

Precisely as he believed his end had arrived this time, the finger withdrew.

As the finger vanished, Li Shiming’s form hurtled backward against his will.

Nevertheless, free from the finger's menace, he paid no heed to the gravity of his wounds.

Meanwhile, Yan Gao Great Cultivator and Wang He Great Cultivator contended with five late-stage Golden Corpses, confident in Li Shiming’s predicament since they fully understood the nature of the force unleashed moments ago.

Such immense power wasn't meant to manifest beyond the sect's bounds. It emerged only thanks to Li Shiming’s prowess and certain unique circumstances.

The pair of Peak Great Cultivators unleashed their full assault on the late-stage Golden Corpses, but a wave of futility washed over them.

The late-stage Golden Corpses had endured countless blows; with strikes from Peak Great Cultivators like theirs, even a fully equipped great cultivator would have crumbled long ago.

However, the five late-stage Golden Corpses showed only superficial marks on their hides, nowhere near crippled or defeated.

The incredible resilience of these five late-stage Golden Corpses left them confronting what felt like five elite fourth-grade magical treasures, each armed with a top fourth-grade iron hammer magical treasure, compelling them to stay wary against any close approaches by the five late-stage Golden Corpses.

They had spotted Li Shiming’s dire state, and with him subdued, the five late-stage Golden Corpses would surely forfeit their fighting ability.

Right as they prepared for one to restrain Li Shiming, a verdant glow erupted from his frame, brimming with vital essence—it was the restorative radiance, the essence of vitality, radiating from the ’Innate Wood’ divine skill.

"That’s the ’Innate Wood’ divine skill—how can this be?" Master Wang He identified the ’Innate Wood’ divine skill, given his near-year association with Li Yuanba.

Li Yuanba had leveraged the ’Innate Wood’ divine skill to win over nearly every cultivator in the Hell Cave Heaven, placing all major factions in his debt while reaping immense gains himself.

In the cultivation world, while a few cultivators possess this divine skill through inheritance, Li Yuanba stands alone in applying it to great cultivators, as Master Wang He had learned.

Li Yuanba could wield the ’Innate Wood’ divine skill on great cultivators due to a wood-attuned treasure gifted by the Sword Elder; since it came from the Sword Elder, no great cultivator would dare to eye it enviously.

Naturally, Li Yuanba proves a formidable sword cultivator, wielding Nascent Soul Middle Stage great cultivator might and seen by many peers as an equal.

Yet when had Li Shiming mastered the ’Innate Wood’ divine skill as well? A great cultivator armed with the ’Innate Wood’ divine skill becomes a profoundly vexing adversary.