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Chapter 212: Another Black Fragment
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Inside the blood river, all the corpses leaped up violently, lunging toward Konan in the air. They truly looked like blood zombies—ferocious and terrifying.
Hmph!
Konan snorted coldly. The densely packed "blood corpses" below only looked scary. They were merely puppets made from dead bodies. Most were at the potency of low to mid-level Chunin; Jonin-level corpses were a minority, and Kage-level ones were extremely rare.
An ordinary ninja facing such a massive horde of blood corpses would likely be drowned in the wave within seconds. But to her, numbers meant nothing. They were just cannon fodder. To her, there was no difference between a Kage and a Genin.
Konan raised her hand. Instantly, the sky filled with kunai. They radiated a biting chill, causing the temperature of the entire dimension to plummet. There were even more kunai than the "corpse tide" below.
They shot downward. It looked as if a wall composed entirely of ice kunai had formed in the air.
In an instant, they swept through every blood-red corpse.
And then... there was no "then."
Every corpse was pierced by multiple ice kunai, frozen into sculptures in a split second. Before they could even fall from mid-air, they shattered with a boom. A heavy rain of ice particles fell from the sky.
Just then, a massive, pitch-black skull phantom surged out from beneath the blood river. It created no ripples and made no sound. It was formless and immaterial, existing as a soul or spiritual body.
This was Jashin's true form. Without special means, ordinary people couldn't see it at all!
Taking advantage of the chaos, it approached Konan silently from above, remaining undetected.
"Keh heh heh!" Jashin's laughter sounded like a ghost from the abyss. "I didn't expect such an excellent physical vessel!"
"Your body is mine!!!"
Amidst a hideous cackle, the skull arrived in front of Konan, opening its massive jaws to swallow her whole and possess her body.
Konan's gaze shifted, looking directly at Jashin.
"Hmm??" Jashin was shocked. "You can see me??"
"Your eyes??!"
In her pure white pupils, blue starlight flickered.
The Rinnegan could grasp and see souls. The Tenseigan could do the same. Even though it wasn't fully awakened yet, having gone through four fetal movements, her Byakugan could still vaguely perceive Jashin.
He had foolishly assumed she couldn't see him and walked right into the trap.
"I was waiting for you!!" Alex laughed mischievously. A curtain of purple light suddenly shot out from his paper body, completely enveloping the looming Jashin.
It was the Soul Sealing Technique obtained from the Priestess Shion!
"Arghhh—!" Jashin suddenly screamed, shouting in utter terror, "Miko—!"
"This is the power of a Miko! How do you possess the power of a Miko?! The Miko lineage died out thousands of years ago; it's impossible for this power to remain!!"
"Oh?" Alex watched the giant skull melting visibly within the purple light with great surprise.
Usually, this technique only sealed souls and spiritual bodies; it didn't have a melting effect. He hadn't done anything special, just deployed the seal as usual.
It seemed this sealing technique possessed an unknown power that specifically countered Jashin. Just his bad luck to run straight into the muzzle of the gun. He tried to ambush them but got subdued instead. Now, he faced the risk of total annihilation.
Alex and Konan watched as the skull grew smaller and smaller within the purple light. It was best to completely destroy an old monster that had lingered for at least a thousand years. They couldn't leave him be, lest accidents happen.
Over an hour later.
Jashin had completely dissolved within the purple light, leaving behind only two small objects—one black, one white.
Alex examined the black part and was greatly astonished. The surface was covered in intricate patterns and tiny characters that looked very familiar! It was extremely similar to the Black Fragment he had obtained before!
The same type of script and patterns, just with a different meaning!
Another Black Fragment!!
The shape and volume were slightly different, but there was no doubt it belonged to the same category as the Space Fragment!
As for the white object the size of a ping-pong ball next to it...
Alex could feel exceedingly pure soul or spiritual energy radiating from it. It was like a crystal of pure spirit!
"Alex?" Konan also recognized it. "Another Black Fragment?"
"That's right. Although there are differences, it's undoubtedly one."
"Let me see what's written on this one."
The purple light faded, and Alex immediately flew over to wrap his paper form entirely around the Black Fragment.
Ability Activated!
In the next instant, the replication was complete.
Alex paused briefly, digesting the information from the fragment.
The Space Fragment had used the most fundamental language to describe the nature of space, allowing him to perceive and use space-time ninjutsu more flexibly—his improvements to the Flying Thunder God were thanks to it.
This fragment, however, used the same fundamental language to explain the nature of the Soul and Spirit.
Upon understanding it, his comprehension of souls, spirits, and related forces advanced by leaps and bounds. It even included a method for cultivating soul and spiritual power.
It was extremely precious.
The entire ninja world lacked a method for cultivating the soul or spirit. Ninjas only saw passive improvements as their physical power increased. He hadn't expected to obtain this from Jashin.
No wonder this guy always appeared as a spirit body and managed to survive for so long.
Unfortunately, Jashin didn't have a cheat-like ability. Despite possessing the Black Fragment for so many years, he hadn't understood the meaning inscribed on it. He had gained only meager benefits and had even gone astray. It was like sitting on a mountain of treasure without a shovel to dig it up. Otherwise, after so much time, he would have long since condensed a physical body and healed his injuries.
Alex let out a light breath, happily stowing away the Black Fragment. The harvest was rich—truly rich. Jashin really was a benevolent god, delivering treasure right to his doorstep.
He looked at the white crystal sphere nearby.
Thanks to his skyrocketing understanding of the soul, Alex now knew what this thing was.
It was also a treasure.
Such a large crystal of pure spiritual power, without a single impurity. It was the accumulation of Jashin's power over countless years.
Alex flew over and used his newfound soul insights to inspect it thoroughly, finally setting his mind at ease. Jashin was dead, and there were no traps in the crystal.
"Alex?" Konan asked. "It looks like a big haul. Are they good things?"
Alex gave an affirmation. "They are rare treasures. The Black Fragment is a treatise on the soul and spirit, while this white crystal sphere is pure spiritual crystallization. Anyone can absorb it to enhance their spiritual energy."
"I'll try it first."
With that, Alex wrapped himself around the white crystal.
Instantly, surging, pure spiritual power flooded into his paper body. It merged naturally into his sea of consciousness like water. His spiritual consciousness grew at a visible rate.
Combining this with the newly acquired spiritual secret technique, Alex could finally perceive his own consciousness residing within the piece of paper. Previously, perhaps due to weak spiritual power, he hadn't been able to sense it—just as ordinary people cannot sense their own souls within their bodies.
As more and more pure spiritual power poured in, Alex had a moment of enlightenment and shouted, "Open!"
His paper body trembled violently.
Deep within his internal existence, a mental space was carved out!
It was like the sealing space where Jinchuriki held their Tailed Beasts, but fundamentally different. This white world was entirely Alex's sea of consciousness, not something created by a sealing jutsu.
In the center stood a figure.
He had long blue-purple hair and a face similar to Konan's, only more masculine.
Alex stared blankly at the full-length mirror formed from spiritual energy before him.
"This is my spirit body... or perhaps my soul..."
He stared dumbly at the face in the mirror. "This is what I will look like after I take human form..."
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