Chapter 129 - A Remnant

Li Zhan coughed violently, blood spraying from his lips as he clutched his chest, staring at Cale with eyes so bloodshot they seemed ready to burst from their sockets.

"W-who are you! Are you together with that woman too?!" he gasped, his voice cracking with betrayal and dawning realization.

All those moments with Niva suddenly replayed in his mind.

It had all been orchestrated. A performance so masterful that he’d never suspected for even a moment.

’So they both planned this from the very start,’ he realized. ’Even killing Ruo Wan and my other subordinates. It’s my fault too... I was a fool to fall for such a bitch’s ploy!’

Desperation overwhelmed pride.

He raised his hands in surrender, his voice almost pleading.

"Hey... hey, stop. Can’t we work together? I’ll give you half of the inheritance. We can divide it! I promise my clan won’t pursue you. I’ll tell them Ruo Wan and the others died by accident. They won’t know."

Cale’s expression darkened as he smirked coldly.

’Heh, fake begging,’ he thought. ’Reminds me of my good old days.’

His silence was answer enough.

Seeing that Cale had no interest in negotiation, Li Zhan made his final gamble. His hand shot into his spatial ring and produced an artifact — a small jade token carved in the shape of an eagle’s head.

He crushed it.

SCREEEEEECH!

A massive flying beast materialized in a burst of golden light. An eagle the size of a small building, its feathers gleaming like burnished metal, its talons sharp enough to cleave stone. It was a semi-divine artifact creature, one of the Li clan’s most valuable possessions.

"Haha! See, you didn’t agree with me! Now die!" Li Zhan screamed, his tone shifting from desperate to delusional as he watched Cale with manic glee. "Attack him!"

The eagle launched itself toward Cale with terrifying speed, its talons extended like swords, its shriek piercing enough to make reality itself seem to vibrate.

Cale stared at it.

His divine consciousness exploded outward; a wave of mental force that crashed against the eagle’s mind with devastating force. It was like trying to move an immovable mountain with a feather. The control was overwhelming.

"Kieeeek!" the eagle wailed, its cry transforming from aggressive predation into a shriek of anguish and defeat.

Li Zhan’s face went deathly pale.

Using Chains of Holding, Cale bound the creature’s legs for nearly two seconds. The Thorned Lotus transformed mid-air into a massive spinning drill, its surface rotating at speeds which even he couldn’t. The very air around it seemed to tear apart from the friction.

With a snap of Cale’s fingers, the drill accelerated forward.

It pierced the eagle’s body like a needle through silk. Dozens of ghastly holes erupted across its massive form, each one a killing blow. The creature’s shriek became a death rattle as its form began to dissolve back into the artifact space from which it had been summoned.

Total combat time: fifteen seconds.

A semi-divine artifact creature destroyed; like its owner, it was insignificant.

"You... you... what are you! You monster!" Li Zhan screamed, his voice breaking as he backed away in absolute terror.

But then necessity overrode panic.

This was the moment for his trump cards, the artifacts his clan had given him for this type of emergency.

He couldn’t defeat Cale directly, but he could survive long enough for something to change.

Long enough for help to arrive; he broke a sphere, likely calling for help.

He began pulling items from his spatial ring in rapid succession:

A Healing Feather of Phoenix materialized, its golden plumage radiating warmth and regenerative power.

A High-Tier Breastplate covered his torso—enchanted steel that gleamed with gold light.

Shoulder Plates locked into place, reinforcing his upper body.

Chainmail wove itself underneath, a metallic second skin.

A Golden Sword manifested, already hovering beside him and leaving trails of radiant particles in the air as it moved with autonomous movements.

A Helmet descended to cover his entire face, leaving only narrow gaps for his eyes.

In seconds, Li Zhan had transformed from a battered, desperate cultivator into something resembling a warrior slightly capable of combat. It wasn’t that he was weak, but Cale was too strong against him.

Cale’s expression darkened.

’So he’s pulling out all the cards now?’ he thought with frustration. ’Why didn’t you show this earlier, you fucker! I could have taken those artifacts! They’ll disappear if you die! Sigh...’

But there was no time for regret.

"So have you used all your tricks in the bag?" Cale asked with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

He produced Noxis, and began running directly toward Li Zhan without hesitation.

Li Zhan, despite his newfound armor and weapons, was still terrified. His body moved on instinct rather than thought, raising his golden sword to parry Cale’s initial strike.

Cale’s blade came down in a vertical slash — using only his physical strength.

"Kuagh!" Li Zhan groaned,

Li Zhan barely managed to parry, the force of the blow driving him to one knee despite all his defensive equipment. Before he could recover, Cale was already pressing forward for a killing strike.

In desperation, Li Zhan activated another artifact- a teleportation token that yanked him several meters away from the point of contact.

"Huff... huff... what do I do," he breathed heavily, his heart hammering against his ribs like it was trying to escape his chest.

Then suddenly, something unknown happened.

A black spiral of energy began forming at the chamber’s center with power coalescing from nothingness, gathering mass and density with terrifying speed. The spiral grew larger and larger, condensing into an orb of pure darkness that seemed to swallow light itself.

Cale retreated immediately, his instincts screaming that this was something beyond simple artifact summons. Li Zhan wasn’t the one who summoned this.

’Hmm, what is... Oh, it’s a fucking remnant avatar! This damned... did he leave some help for his descendant, or just to protect this place from anyone?’ He realized, even his own ancestors weren’t this good to their descendants.

But Li Zhan’s reaction was different.

Seeing the distinctive logo of the Li clan emblazoned on the avatar’s back, his expression transformed from desperate terror into desperate hope. He fell to his knees, tears flooding his eyes, his entire body shaking with relief and desperation.

"Ah! You’re my ancestor, aren’t you! Please help me! Oh lord emperor!" he screamed, his voice raw with emotion.

The avatar slowly solidified.

Transparent light gradually became opaque as a humanoid form took shape. Standing before them was a man of intimidating presence—his eyebrows sharp as swords, his mustache immaculately groomed, his gaze laser-focused and utterly merciless despite the obvious fact that this was merely a construct, a shadow of the real being.

His build was extraordinarily muscular, veins cording his arms like roads of power. He wore a light robe, half-open at the chest, revealing a physique that spoke of centuries spent perfecting martial prowess.

He laughed and a deep, resonant sound erupted, shaking the chamber itself.

"Hahaha! Descendant, you’ve heavily disappointed me! To think you’d be so weak that you couldn’t even claim this venerable one’s rewards without external assistance!"

Niva pulled on Cale’s sleeve anxiously, her voice small.

"Is he the Bone Fiend Emperor?"

"Most likely," Cale replied, his gaze never leaving the avatar. "But it’s only his avatar. A fragment of his soul trapped here."

But Niva observed something that made her more concerned.

"Umm... why are you smiling like a maniac?" she asked nervously.

Cale didn’t answer directly.

"Am I?" he responded, making even Niva shiver.

He couldn’t see his own face, but he was definitely smiling; a crazed expression so intense it would have terrified anyone watching. To most observers, this Bone Fiend Emperor avatar would appear as a horrifying monster’s silhouette, a threat worthy of absolute fear.

To Cale, it was a feast.

’Hmm, so this is how a fated one works?’ his mind raced. ’This Li Zhan was fated for this inheritance, so fate even manipulated events to ensure he was the most likely candidate to acquire it. Now it makes me even more interested in that Fate Shattering Technique.’

His consciousness flickered across his memories, recalling the moment he’d ascended from Low to Mid-Apex Stage and received the title:

[MASTER OF ALL ELEMENTS]

It had seemed quite simple at first, just another reward. When creating Origin Essence, cultivators typically had to focus intensely on each individual element — wind, fire, earth, water, metal, chaos, nihility, mana, and countless others. For most cultivators, this required maintaining separate concentration threads for each element simultaneously.

It would be impossible for someone without multiple soul bodies to do this efficiently every single time they cultivated or engaged in combat.

But Master of All Elements combined with the Taiyi All-Encompassing Breathing Technique had changed his approach. The technique now handled much of the elemental integration automatically, reducing his mental and soul strain by approximately ten percent. That ten percent meant he could think more clearly, last longer in combat, maintain control over more complex techniques simultaneously.

Surprisingly, it hadn’t come with typical cultivation rewards. It was a Title — awarded by the system to those who’d overcome their limits and mastered virtually all elemental forces. His previous absurd title, [Portable Dildo], had finally evolved into something that could reflected his power.

He was quite relieved about that particular change.

The Bone Fiend Emperor’s avatar tilted its head, studying Cale with an expression of mild disdain.

"Young lad, you’re looking down on me," it said in a heavy tone. "Even if just a part of my soul, this body can easily kill you and take over your body! Don’t mistake a fragment for a weakness!"

Cale’s smile widened.

"Heh, you can try!" he called out, launching himself toward the avatar with his fastest speed.