She had seen Yellow Spring Great Sage become bald after eating the flatbread, so she told herself that she would never eat it. However, she had no choice this time. Tian Cang's flesh was made into a puppet by someone. To her, this was unforgivable, and it filled her with grief and fury, so she decided to eat it. She wanted to avenge Tian Cang.
'Tian Cang is dead. These guys from Nether Prison cannot humiliate him, and they are not qualified to do that either!" she thought to herself.
All of a sudden, a mighty aura exploded out behind her. It rocked violently, spreading in all directions as if it was about to rush out of the starry sky. Ice Saint's pupils constricted slightly as she hovered in midair with a blank face, her long hair waving and her dress fluttering. She was very familiar with the aura. Slowly, she turned and looked over her shoulder in disbelief.
The Fortune Flatbread had not improved her cultivation base as it did to Yellow Spring Great Sage. She was disappointed at first, but when the aura exploded out behind her, and she slowly turned and saw a familiar figure with his eyes closed, she lifted a hand and covered her mouth in astonishment.
"You… You…" Ice Saint never thought that she could summon Tian Cang with the Fortune Flatbread, and she was a little vexed at herself. She now recalled that when the last time Tian Cang appeared, it was because Er Ha had eaten a Fortune Flatbread. 'Why didn't I give it a try earlier? Is he being summoned because Er Ha and I missed him dearly?'
Genes could be passed on. Since Er Ha was so good-looking, his father, Tian Cang, was by no means ugly. His body was huge, and his somewhat illusory hair waved around his handsome, weatherbeaten face. Slowly, he opened his eyes. There seemed to be a world spinning in his pupils, and he looked a little confused, but soon, his eyes began to glow with life.
"Oh?" The moment Tian Cang woke, he saw Ice Saint, who was shedding tears. He paused, puzzled. "Ugh… Have I been summoned again?"
Ice Saint's long eyelashes fluttered, but she didn't say anything.
The corner of Tian Cang's mouth twitched. He didn't know whether to cry or laugh. He was calmer this time, however. He had no idea how he was summoned back to this world, but he knew that it would require a very strong conviction. It meant that there were still people who remember him in this world.
He raised his head and glanced around. He noticed that they were in the battlefield of the stars, and the atmosphere was somewhat depressing. Then, he turned his eyes into the distance. When he saw the few figures who were fighting there, his pupils constricted instantly.
The Heavenly Nether Puppet was made with the best materials in the Netherworld, which had reached the peak in terms of toughness, strength, and efficiency in energy transmission. He was Nether Puppeteer Patriarch's pride, his masterpiece.
Meanwhile, Yellow Spring Great Sage's aura began to decline. Although he had once again reached the level of a Perfected Great Saint with the Fortune Flatbread, he felt that he was beginning to grow weak. His opponent now was even faster than before. He was nervous. If he could not stop this Heavenly Nether Puppet from sabotaging Earth Prison Dog's breakthrough, then there would be no one in Earth Prison who could stop Nether Prison. Therefore, he had to finish this fight as soon as possible while the effect of the flatbread was still in him. He had to finish the puppet with a punch.
Yellow Spring Great Sage roared, his bald head seemingly glowing as a rushing Yellow Spring River emerged above him. The water poured down like a torrent and wheeled around him, causing his aura to climb. He lifted a fist. The water gathered over it and began to compress, turning into a square crystal. As a deafening shout burst out of his mouth, Yellow Spring Great Sage threw the fist at the puppet in the distance, pushing the crystal forward.
The Heavenly Nether Puppet twisted his neck, and his face that belonged to Tian Cang was cold and emotionless. There seemed to be light flashing in his eyes as he lifted a hand and threw a punch at the crystal.
BOOM!
The fist and the crystal collided. Energy spread like ripples, sweeping across the whole battlefield of the stars.
The tremendous impact threw Yellow Spring Great Sage back. Coughing blood, he fell from the sky like a cannonball. However, even as he was falling, he saw a figure approach the puppet. Dumbstruck, he looked at the puppet, then at Tian Cang. For a moment he was confused, but before he could figure out what was going on, he had already fallen through the clouds and smashed hard into the ground with a rumble. The whole area collapsed into a huge crater measuring thousands of meters from end to end, with plumes of smoke rising from the center. It was as if a meteorite had fallen.
…
In the battlefield of the stars, the smoke had cleared, and the energy ripples had disappeared. The Heavenly Nether Puppet pulled back his fist. His metal arm glinted cold and bright. In terms of physical toughness, this puppet, which took Nether Puppeteer Patriarch thousands of years to make, was even stronger than Tyrant Patriarch. Coupled with the mighty energy in Tian Cang's flesh, he was almost invincible.
Er Ha was panting for breath. His hair was messy, and he looked somewhat bedraggled. Suddenly, he jerked his head and looked into the distance. There, a figure was slowly walking over. When he saw that person's face, he froze.
"Dad?" Er Ha was struck dumb. He glanced at the burly, domineering Tian Cang, then at the Heavenly Nether Puppet in the distance. For a moment, he was confused.
"We meet again…" Tian Cang gave Er Ha a look and smiled.
Er Ha regained his wits instantly, and his eyes gleamed with excitement. 'Dad's been summoned again? Who summoned him this time?' He glanced around, and when he saw Ice Saint in the distance, understanding dawned on him. He could hardly contain his excitement, but the next moment, he seemed to think of something, and that made his expression change.
Tian Cang glanced indifferently at the Heavenly Nether Puppet. 'What a fine work of art,' he thought, 'But… How dare Nether Puppeteer make my flesh into a puppet?! Damn him!' As he looked at the puppet's face, which was actually his face, the corner of his mouth twitched, and he took a deep breath. There was a strange feeling in his heart.
The puppet, on the other hand, cocked his head, and his eyes flashed with a mechanical light. He was staring at Tian Cang because he did not know if he should attack or not.
'I bet Nether Puppeteer Patriarch never thought I'd come back to life again… Otherwise, that old fellow would never refine my body into a puppet.'
Tian Cang stomped his foot, causing the starry sky to tremble. The next moment, he was approaching the puppet, pointing a finger at his clone.
The puppet's mechanical eyes flickered. He sensed the emotions in Tian Cang. Then, the metal plate on his arm lifted open, and he raised his hand. A scarlet energy beam shot out of the muzzle in an instant.
Tian Cang twisted his body and dodged the attack effortlessly. "No matter what Nether Puppeteer did, there will always be my mark in my own flesh, and this mark cannot be wiped away by anyone." Even as he muttered, his finger approached the puppet.
The Heavenly Nether Puppet seemed to feel uneasy. Suddenly, a series of clanging sounds rang out as his body began to change. On his arms, chest, palms, thighs, and legs, metal plates lifted and muzzles emerged, where scarlet energy was gathering. Then, with a rumbling sound, energy beams shot out of them, all aiming at Tian Cang. Flashing brightly, these beams streaked across the void and looked breathtakingly beautiful, but each of them contained lethal power that could kill a Great Saint.
Ice Saint and Er Ha moved quickly away from them. As they watched the energy beams shot across the starry sky, they both felt chills run down their backs. They hated to admit it, but the Heavenly Nether Puppet was too formidable. However, he had met his only nemesis: Nether King Tian Cang.
After all, the main component of this puppet was Tian Cang's flesh. At his level, the power of the Will of the Great Path he had formed when he became a Great Saint could not be destroyed, not to mention the mark of the Laws in his flesh. Therefore, he had absolute control over his flesh!
Tian Cang avoided all the energy beams, then pointed the finger on the puppet's forehead.
Buzz…
The next moment, the metal plates across the puppet's body lowered and closed, and his mechanical eyes flickered, while Tian Cang began to slowly fuse with him as if he was made of water.
In the distance, Ice Saint and Er Ha stared in bewilderment. They didn't expect this to happen.
"Does this mean that dad can use this puppet's body to come back to life?!" Er Ha said in surprise.
"It's possible…" Ice Saint nodded, her eyes flickering.
Was the man who shook the skies with his power and made Nether Prison tremble really coming back?!
The Heavenly Nether Puppet's body began to shake the moment Tian Cang entered it. His mechanical eyes flashed violently as if his emotions were bursting, while his body was twisting grotesquely. After a long time, the mechanical light in his eyes disappeared. His eyes closed, and when they opened again, they were filled with a domineering look!
Crack… Crack…
The Heavenly Nether Puppet clenched his fists, then the corners of his mouth curved upward slightly.
"Surprisingly, this puppet body is excellent…" he said. Although his voice was a little strange, it was not as emotionless as before.
…
Meanwhile, in Nether Prison…
Nether Puppeteer Patriarch, who sat cross-legged on a black rock in the Di Ting Clan's homeland, flicked open his eyes, which seemed bursting with lightning.
"How is that possible?! How did my spiritual mark in the Heavenly Nether Puppet become so weak?!"
He pushed to his feet, and a terrible aura exploded out of him. He glanced at the huge black vortex in the distance, took a deep breath, and ripped the void apart.
"Who is trying to erase the spiritual mark I left in the Heavenly Nether Puppet? The mark is refined with the most talented descendant of my clan… How can someone erase it without asking me?!"
A rift cracked open in the void. With his hands clasped behind his back, Nether Puppeteer Patriarch walked into it with a dark face. After that, the void healed.
A new storm was approaching!