No hope for eternal life

Chapter 418: The Way of Talisman

"Do you really want the Tianhun ginseng?" Old Man Shengu asked slowly.

Mu Changsheng nodded firmly and said in a resounding voice: "I am determined to win."

"Very good." Elder Shen Gu nodded with satisfaction. This was what he wanted: "If I remember correctly, you are like that Demon Lianyue, with no life?"

"Yes." Mu Changsheng answered truthfully.

"You are a body-refining cultivator, and you are also good at talismans?"

"Yes."

"Very good, very good." Old Man Shengu laughed. He was so satisfied with Mu Changsheng that he couldn't be more satisfied.

"Senior, do you want me to help you with research?" Mu Changsheng asked bluntly. Looking at the reaction of old man Shengu, it was not difficult to have such doubt.

Elder Shen Gu did not answer affirmatively, but asked again: "Do you know what I have been studying for so many years?"

"I would like to hear the details." Mu Changsheng replied. He was really curious about old man Shengu's research.

"What I study is refining talismans on the physical body of a cultivator." Old Man Shengu said proudly.

Upon hearing this, Mu Changsheng instantly understood where the complicated lines on old man Shengu's face came from. Those were clearly the traces of drawing talismans!

Mu Changsheng also practiced the art of talismans, so he asked curiously, "Is there any difference between drawing talismans on the flesh and on talisman paper?"

"There is a huge difference." Elder Shen Gu said loudly: "The talismans on the talisman paper are all rigid and dead talismans with a single function. Even if multiple talismans are used together, the effect is not much better. The talismans on the flesh are directly attached to the cultivator's flesh. The power alone is one level stronger than the talismans of the same level. Moreover, the flesh can accommodate multiple talismans at the same time. When used in combination, the effect is even more outstanding. If this way can be mastered, it can be like You Wushuang and Yang Wuji, and it is no problem for the eighth realm to kill the ninth realm."

Old Man Shengu explained his grand blueprint to Mu Changsheng. This was the reason why he disdained the Ninth Realm. If he could possess a combat power comparable to You Wushuang, it would not matter if he could not reach the Ninth Realm. Even if the Eighth Realm had a lifespan 30,000 years less than the Ninth Realm, Old Man Shengu did not care. His pursuit of his own great path had really almost reached the point of madness.

After listening to Elder Shengu's story, Mu Changsheng couldn't help but admire his wonderful ideas, but he also had some questions: "If you fail to draw a talisman on talisman paper, there will often be backlash. Then, will there also be backlash if you fail to draw a talisman on your body?"

Elder Shengu's lofty ambitions were instantly interrupted by Mu Changsheng's question, and he said awkwardly: "Yes, this problem is indeed difficult to solve, so we need to keep experimenting. If it weren't for your Tianling Sect always restricting me, my research might have been completed long ago."

"Using humans for experiments is inherently against the harmony of nature. If there are no restrictions, I don't know how many innocent monks will die." Mu Changsheng shook his head slightly. On this point, he absolutely stood on the side of the sect. If everyone followed the Black Demon's way and did some human body research, the Nine Realms would have been in chaos long ago.

Elder Shen Gu was too lazy to argue with Mu Changsheng. Instead, he stared at Mu Changsheng with burning eyes and said expectantly: "Now you should understand my idea. If you follow me, I will not only give you the Heavenly Soul Ginseng for free, but also teach you my way of talismans."

Old man Shengu called his own flesh-and-blood talisman the Way of Talismans, which shows how great his ambition is.

"Okay, I promise you, you can do whatever you want with my clone." Mu Changsheng agreed immediately. Although he didn't like human experiments from the bottom of his heart, his clone in black was the weakest. Even if he was really killed by old man Shengu, he could spend 100,000 or 200,000 top-grade spirit stones to quickly cultivate a new clone in the Tribulation Realm. This was much more cost-effective than a top-grade Heavenly Soul ginseng that cost one million. Moreover, he was indeed very interested in old man Shengu's art of talismans.

"A clone?" Elder Shen Gu shook his head and said, "One clone is not enough. For my experiment, I must have the help of your original body. This is the conclusion I have drawn after years of research. The original body and the clone may seem the same, but in fact, the difference is huge. Let me give you a simple example. If the clone dies, the original body is fine, but if the original body dies, the clone will die with the original body. This is direct proof of the difference between the two."

Mu Changsheng frowned when he heard that. He believed what old man Shengu said about the difference between the original body and the clone, but the original body was related to his life after all. He knew that old man Shengu's experiment was risky. If the original body was finished, he would have nothing.

On the other side, old man Shengu rubbed his hands nervously. He had always wanted to find a genius cultivator who was proficient in talismans and body training as a research subject, but those geniuses from famous families all cherished their own lives and dared not take risks. Now, he finally waited for Mu Changsheng who came to him on his own initiative, and he didn't want to miss it.

So, Elder Shen Gu comforted him: "You are a body cultivator, you are not that fragile. Even if you want to die, I will not let you die, so don't worry, I will be extra careful when I attack you, and I promise that I will teach you all my talisman skills without keeping any for myself."

Mu Changsheng looked at the sincere eyes of Old Man Shengu and remained silent. He could see that the other party was obviously the kind of persistent person who was obsessed with his own path and rarely had the intention to harm others. But he was afraid that the other party would reach a critical point in his research and directly disregard his own life and death in order to pursue the path in his heart. That would be disastrous. After all, he only had one life and could not afford to squander it.

After thinking for a long time, Mu Changsheng slowly said: "I can let me participate in the experiment."

Before Elder Shengu could show his joy, Mu Changsheng immediately said, "But I want to make three rules in advance. If you don't agree to one of them, there will be no room for negotiation. First, this clone of mine can be regarded as working for you. You can do whatever you want to study, and I will cooperate. But if this clone dies, the service will end here."

"Okay." Old Man Shengu agreed very readily. What he really cared about was Mu Changsheng's original body. This clone was just a side effect, so he didn't care much about it.

"Second, I have to practice and do work, so it is impossible for me to do research with you all the time. I can only promise to spare at least two months a year to cooperate with you. If I have to retreat for a long time, I can make up for it later. Third, I have the right to reject all your unreasonable requests to avoid accidents to me." Mu Changsheng stated two more requests in one breath.

Elder Shen Gu frowned. The second one was fine, but he was worried about the third one: "Your 'unreasonable request' is too vague. If you disagree with whatever I say, then my efforts will be in vain."

"This is not negotiable." Mu Changsheng said firmly. It is difficult to distinguish between reasonable and unreasonable. The safest way is to hold the decision-making power in his own hands.

Then, Mu Changsheng explained: "If your talisman technique is really as good as you say, I will naturally cooperate with you to the fullest, unless you are deceiving me."

"Don't provoke me with your words, kid." Old man Shengu said disdainfully. He was very confident in his art of talismans and guaranteed that Mu Changsheng would never forget it.

So, Elder Shen Gu agreed and said, "Since you are a disciple of the Tianling Sect, I reluctantly trust your character and agree to all three of your requests."

"No hurry, I have one last request." Mu Changsheng smiled and said, "My original body will be waiting for you in Lingshan Sect of Tianshuang Realm. My fourth request is that all experiments related to my original body must be conducted in Lingshan Sect, and only your original body can conduct them."