Back in the apartment, Zhaozhao started to study the wooden carving. She tried all kinds of methods to melt or open it, but strangely, the wooden carving was extremely hard. After trying every possible way, she couldn't even make the slightest mark on it.
"Junior Brother Wu, what on earth is this wooden carving? Why is it so hard? Could it be some ancient divine wood?" Zhaozhao propped her head up in distress, completely puzzled.
Cheng Sang took a close look at the wooden carving. In his memory, he had never seen a divine wood of this kind.
"Zhaozhao, wait a moment. Brother will help you check." Cheng Sang opened an illustrated book and started to flip through it carefully.
"The Floating Pagoda Catalog?!" Zhaozhao exclaimed in surprise when she saw the illustrated book in his hand, her face full of disbelief. "Junior Brother Wu, you actually brought this down. You're amazing!"
"Back then when I was practicing in the Kunlun Ruins, whenever there was something related to this, Master asked me to keep this Floating Pagoda Catalog with me for emergencies. If you like to read it, Brother will give it to you, okay?" Cheng Sang looked at his junior sister indulgently and was about to hand the catalog to Zhaozhao.
Seeing this, Zhaozhao quickly waved her hand and refused. "I don't want it. This is something Master gave to you, Brother. How could I take it? Since Master gave it to you, you should cherish it. It's also Master's kind intention. I'm just a little curious. Just lend it to me when you're free!"
Hearing Zhaozhao say this, Cheng Sang lowered his head and thought for a moment, then nodded. "All right, then."
Cheng Sang looked through the Floating Pagoda Catalog for a long time. He also shifted his gaze to the wooden carving from time to time. After a careful comparison, he shook his head. "This wooden carving doesn't look the least bit similar to what's recorded in the book. It seems it's not a divine wood. Maybe there's something special inside?"
"Even if there's something special inside, we have to be able to open it and take a look. But now we have no way to deal with it. What should we do?"
Their commotion woke up Taotie, who was sleeping in his own room. Taotie rubbed his eyes unhappily and stormed out of the room. He looked at Zhaozhao and the others dissatisfiedly and vented his anger. "What are you guys doing? Making so much noise in the middle of the night. Do you still want the demon to sleep?"
"Sorry for waking you up. We have something to deal with now." Although Taotie had a really bad temper, even extremely so, Zhaozhao knew that he had a kind heart. Moreover, with his cute and innocent face in front of her at the moment, the appearance - loving Zhaozhao couldn't get angry at all. Instead, she comfortingly stroked Taotie's head and explained to him in a low voice.
Being coaxed by his own master in such a gentle tone, Taotie suddenly felt embarrassed. He deliberately pouted his lips and looked at Zhaozhao sideways. "What could make you stay up all night and tinker around? Tell me and I'll help you solve it!"
Zhaozhao thought that Taotie was one of the four ancient divine beasts after all. Maybe he really had a way. So she pointed at the wooden carving on the table and asked him, "Do you have any way to split this wooden carving?"
A wooden carving?
Taotie casually glanced at the wooden carving and snorted arrogantly. "You can't even handle such a small piece of wood. What's wrong with you? Stupid master. You really can't do without me."
Zhaozhao: "..."
Fine, whatever you say.
Taotie put his hands behind his back and walked over with his short legs, looking very self - assured. He didn't take this wooden carving that had bothered his master at all seriously. He gathered his magic power in his palm and casually struck. Then he closed his eyes, already looking like he was waiting for praise.
Three seconds later, the air was as quiet as ever, even with a bit of an awkward atmosphere.
Taotie sensed something was wrong. He quietly opened one eye and glanced at the table. When he saw that, he was stunned. The wooden carving was completely intact?!
Feeling embarrassed, Taotie was very unhappy. He rolled up his sleeves and struck the wooden carving more than a dozen times. But without exception, the wooden carving was like a rock. No, maybe it was even harder than a rock. It didn't show the slightest reaction under Taotie's magic power and just sat there on the table properly.
"Hey! I don't believe I can't handle you. A tiny piece of wood, how dare you not take me seriously!" Taotie was furious. He revealed his original form and was about to pounce on the wooden carving.
Seeing this, Zhaozhao quickly grabbed him into her arms. "Okay, okay, don't be angry. It's not your fault. It's the fault of this piece of wood. Our Taotie is very powerful!"
Taotie was almost mad with anger, but the way Zhaozhao coaxed him like a child made his mature heart not know where to rest. He struggled to jump out of Zhaozhao's arms and lifted his chin high. "I don't know where you found this strange thing."
Looking at the wooden carving that was exactly the same as when it was taken out of the Zhuang family, Zhaozhao felt very melancholy. She couldn't help but sigh. "What should I do? It seems even harder than Master's cold iron."
Speaking of cold iron, Zhaozhao suddenly had a flash of inspiration. She excitedly jumped up. "Ah! I know. Let's try with the Soul - Severing Sword!"
Without hesitation, Zhaozhao immediately summoned her spiritual sword, the Soul - Severing Sword. The Soul - Severing Sword glowed with colorful lights in her hand, shining brightly. No matter how many times one saw it, one could immediately feel the sharpness contained in the sword.
Being in complete unity of mind with the Soul - Severing Sword, Zhaozhao injected her magic power into it. After concentrating for a moment, Zhaozhao swung the sword with all her might at the wooden carving. A white light flashed, and the wooden carving was split in two by the Soul - Severing Sword. To everyone's surprise, the inside of the wooden carving was hollow, and there was a colorful fragment floating inside.
"This is..." Zhaozhao looked at the fragment, and a strange palpitation rose in her heart. A certain place in her body subconsciously ached faintly. It hurt so much that she wanted to cry.
"Zhaozhao? Zhaozhao! What's wrong with you?" Cheng Sang supported Zhaozhao's body, which was about to collapse to the ground. Seeing the tears streaming from his junior sister's eyes, he was panicked and at a loss.
Zhaozhao wanted to speak, but she couldn't utter a single word. Because she didn't know what was wrong with herself either. She just stubbornly stared at the fragment with her eyes, and the fragment seemed to sense something too. It floated to her side and stopped in front of her.
"What on earth are you?" Zhaozhao reached out and touched the fragment. Suddenly, the fragment turned into a ray of light and directly entered her chest.
In an instant, Zhaozhao's breathing became heavy. The mark on the back of her neck kept flashing and burning the skin there. Her body also changed. She revealed her demon form, and a green pattern on her forehead kept appearing and disappearing.
"No, I can't... Ah!" Zhaozhao let out a shrill and painful cry. She pushed Cheng Sang away and curled up on the ground, constantly convulsing.
"You, you are... the fallen goddess from the Wuhuang Valley?!" Taotie, who had originally revealed his original form and wanted to help Zhaozhao, froze in place when he saw the demon pattern on Zhaozhao's forehead. His face showed a shocked and terrified expression.