True Martial World
Chapter 1290: Earthen Jar

"Peng!"

Cang Wu's lifeless body dropped listlessly to the bottom of the bronze cauldron.

Yi Yun also descended and with a beckon of his hand, Cang Wu's interspatial ring flew to him. Yi Yun was rather interested in Cang Wu's possessions.

Other than that, Yi Yun also saw a jar beside Cang Wu's hand. It was blackish-green in color and looked like a piece of inferior-grade pottery made by ordinary commoners. It appeared inconspicuous.

Yi Yun held the jar in hand and found it very heavy. The small jar seemed to weigh more than fifty kilograms. There were engraved patterns on the side of the jar that resembled a swimming fish circling around an eye.

Yi Yun turned his head and saw that the Poison Demon was still in the sky.

It had bared its fangs and flashed its claws previously. Now, it was barely holding up under Ling Xie'er's relentless assault. Cang Wu's death had not hurt it in any way.

When it noticed that Yi Yun was looking at him and that his master was dead, coupled with the adorable little girl who was oddly as mighty as a tiger, the Poison Demon felt despair. It desperately tried to escape but the Ascending Dragon Cauldron was sealed shut. Its interior could fit a ten-thousand-meter mountain but with the jar in Yi Yun's hand, where else could it escape to?

"Xie'er, hold on a minute," Yi Yun said. Xie'er immediately stopped her attacks. Once the boisterous Heretical Fire retreated, the Poison Demon's true body was revealed. It had been charred black in several spots and looked miserable.

"Come down here!" Yi Yun commanded.

Poison Demon seemed to have an idea as it roared a few times, acting as though it did not understand human speech.

"Brother Yi Yun wants you down there. Did you not hear him?" Ling Xie'er's tiny face turned sullen as the Heretical God Fire Seed blazed in her hand and slowly crept towards Poison Demon.

Poison Demon was truly afraid as it hurriedly said, "Don't do it! Don't! I'm going down right now!"

As Poison Demon spoke, its body shrunk into the shape of a black tiger as it landed in front of Yi Yun.

It was many times bigger than an ordinary tiger. Although it looked ferocious, it had a crafty pair of eyes. It was a little afraid of Yi Yun, and it was secretly staring at the jar in Yi Yun's hand.

Yi Yun played with the jar. He sensed that the earthen jar was something extraordinary. It was definitely a huge opportunity for Cang Wu to receive it.

"What is your origin?" Yi Yun asked Poison Demon.

"You could say that I do not have any origins. I'm just a jar of poison that gained sentience."

Poison Demon gave a simple answer. Its voice was strange, bright but deep. It seemed to echo in the ears like metal colliding.

"In that case, you are useless. Xie'er, burn it!"

Yi Yun sealed the earthen jar's lid shut and beckoned to Xie'er.

"Alright, Brother Yi Yun." Xie'er was not vague at all. She would set anyone ablaze if it was what Yi Yun wanted.

"Wait! Wait!" Poison Demon jumped in fright as it hurriedly said, "No, you will regret it if you do something like that."

"You are terribly weak and you do not have any spectacular origins. What's there to regret?" Yi Yun said nonchalantly.

Poison Demon turned depressed upon hearing that. "Human, you call me weak? It's only because that lass is too powerful! Besides, fire counters poison, to begin with. Even I was almost burnt to nothing. If it were any ordinary poisonous entity, they would have been burned to nothingness by that monstrous lass."

Poison Demon felt disgruntled. Yi Yun smiled faintly. What he said was entirely true. Fire was strong against poison and the Heretical God Fire Seed's origins were terrifying. Even the Empyrean Cleansing Flame had been devoured by it. For Poison Demon to last that long in a battle with Ling Xie'er was actually an impressive feat.

Yi Yun examined the earthen jar in his hand again. The eye that was surrounded by the fish captured his attention. The more he looked at it, the more terrifying it appeared. It seemed to be an infinite abyss that could suck in a human’s soul.

"A word of caution, don't look at it for too long," said Poison Demon suddenly. "That pattern is extremely malevolent. Look at it for too long, and your soul will be damaged. You’ll find your mind and soul getting stuck in it, losing yourself in the process."

"Oh? So… you were not a part of this earthen jar originally?" Yi Yun looked at Poison Demon. If Poison Demon was one with the jar, it would have been under Poison Demon's control. It wouldn't necessitate such a warning.

"Since you are so informed, do you know the origins of this jar?" asked Yi Yun again.

Poison Demon was taken aback. It never expected that a passing comment would allow Yi Yun to infer this much. It was indeed not related to the jar. "Since it was a vessel for my esteemed self, I naturally understand it a little."

"Did I ask you about your origins?"

Yi Yun pursued the issue. Poison Demon did not seem willing to mention the origins of the jar. It hesitated, not saying a word. Yi Yun frowned. "There is a limit to my patience."

Poison Demon finally gave up and said, "It's actually an urn for ashes…"

"Ashes?"

Yi Yun was surprised. He never expected that the jar was for storing ashes. Despite the extraordinary intricacies of the jar, it was used to store ashes. Yi Yun could not say who would go to that much trouble.

"Do you know its owner?"

"That I'm truly unsure of." Poison Demon shook his head.

"Then, how did you enter the jar?" Yi Yun asked again. If the urn had been placed in a mighty figure's grave, it would have been sealed. It wouldn't be easy to enter the urn at all.

"I was inside it, to begin with. The mighty figure who originally owned it died in battle. The person that fought him was even more powerful and was skilled in the art of Great Poison. After the mighty figure died, he was cremated but traces of the poison were left in his ashes. After a long period of time, the poison gained sentience and I was born."

Poison Demon explained its origins without missing a beat. It was unwilling to mention it as it seemed inglorious to be born from an urn of ashes. Back when it told Cang Wu of its origins, his account was that he was formerly a Godly Monarch.

But in front of Yi Yun, it finally decided to give an honest account. Bragging could end its life.

"To think he was poisoned to death…"

Yi Yun gasped lightly. He never expected Poison Demon to have such origins. A mighty figure that used such an urn would have an extraordinary background. An existence that could kill him would only be more terrifying.

It was hard to imagine the existence that was capable of using the art of Great Poison. After the mighty figure had been poisoned to death, he was cremated. The flames that could cremate such a mighty figure's corpse had to be some extraordinary fire. Yet, the poison was not burned away and lived on in the ashes. It even managed to gain sentience after hundreds of millions of years.

"Do you know who the person that used the art of Great Poison was?" asked Yi Yun. He knew that poison was not limited to poison from plants or animals. The art of Great Poison was recorded in the divine alchemist's notes. When a world, or even the universe, was on the cusp of destruction, there would be the emergence of Apocalyptic Fumes. Apocalyptic Fumes were actually a form of poison that could corrode a world.

Poison Demon shook its head and said, "I do not know. Before I gained sentience, I was always in a primordial state of chaos. I do not remember those events in detail…"