"Bone Demon... is that it?"

Xu Ye was stunned by this ferocious operation: "This, this is too..."

In fact, if you have to say it, Ning Ning's strategy is not so high-end and classy, ​​and it is even too concise.

Who would have thought that an evil demon with the cultivation of a Yuanying would be defeated on the ice?

But not only did she think of this method, she also did it step by step without any care, the simplest, but also the most useful.

As expected of someone who once played Neon Island around, she still doesn't follow the usual path.

Xu Ye took a breath of cold air and secretly thanked himself for not standing on the opposite side of her.

"The cliff below is so deep that you can't see the bottom. If it slides down like this, it will probably be gone."

Ningning is super strong but overly cautious. Even though the bone demon is likely to fall to the west after free fall, she still stares at the end of the river, as if she is not reassured: "I'll go to the edge of the cliff to take a look."

Xu Ye nodded blankly.

Seeing Ningning walking farther and farther away, he was still in a daze, and suddenly heard the rustling sound of clothes rubbing beside him. Looking in the direction of the sound, he found that the young man on He Zhizhou's back had opened his eyes at some point.

The four looked at each other.

The man's face became increasingly sinister, his facial features twisted into a knot, and he uttered three hoarse words from the depths of his throat: "Xu--Ye--er--"

Xu Ye was frightened and trembled: "Senior Brother Zhou, please spare my life!"

"Good job! Zhou Zhao finally woke up!"

Outside the Xuan Jing, not far from the Xuanxu Sword Faction's base, an elder from the Wanjian Sect slapped his thigh hard, and his words seemed to hint at something.

"This kid has been strong-willed since childhood. Now that he is about to break through the Jindan stage, his strength is extraordinary. What's the point of showing off his little cleverness? It's time to show some people what a true sword practitioner is!"

Tianxianzi cracked melon seeds and let out a dry laugh: "Brother Zhuguan has woken up. He and Xu Ye used that tube together. I think you are not too frustrated, right?"

The elder of the Wanjian Sect, who was facing him from a distance, had long been accustomed to the secret competition between the two major sects. Hearing this, he hummed: "It's useless to just talk. Elder Tianxianzi might as well open your eyes--" When

he said this, his expression suddenly froze and he closed his mouth. Before Tianxianzi could glare at him, his own eyeballs almost popped out of their sockets.

Zhou Zhao in the mysterious mirror got off He Zhizhou's back without hesitation, and said to Xu Ye while suppressing his anger: "Tell me, what kind of bad idea did you come up with? If I hadn't been distracted by that bamboo tube, I might have fought the Bone Demon for three hundred rounds - huh? Where's the Bone Demon?"

Xu Ye had screwed this man over badly, and now he could only feel wronged and say nothing. He stretched out his right hand with a smirk and pointed to the end of the river.

Zhou Zhao didn't see the shadow of the Bone Demon, and looked at him in confusion. Without thinking too much, he took a step forward.

He stepped on the ice of the river.

Xu Ye: "Wait!"

He Zhizhou: "No!"

Both voices were stuck in their throats. Before the two could finish speaking, the white-clothed swordsman with a dusty temperament on the ice took the first step.

Before being carried by He Zhizhou, his feet were covered with many snowflakes.

As we all know, snow will melt and turn into water.

At the moment when Zhou Zhao looked back upon hearing the voice, the plum blossoms bloomed for the second time.

At this moment, Ningning, who was on the edge of the cliff, finished her investigation and turned back with a sense of relief.

Then her smile froze instantly.

Who could tell her why the stranger she had never met before would suddenly lie in the river, spinning around like a bowling ball, repeating... the carp jump?

Zhou Zhao's hands and feet were slipping, and while his hands and feet were flying around, he actually danced out the floor moves in street dance, and stretched out his legs, doing a 720-degree Thomas spin.

Xu Ye was so frightened that he hurried forward to help. Unexpectedly, as soon as he stretched out his right hand, he was grabbed by the other party and thrown forward uncontrollably.

Then the two of them slid back and forth hand in hand, grinning and swaying, and danced a tap dance together.

Tian Xianzi chuckled as he watched, like a little piglet that was about to suffocate: "Oh my God, what a dance competition. Is this a sword practice?"

The elder of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect: ...

The elder of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect pressed hard on his philtrum and patted his colleague on the shoulder: "Water... give me a glass of water."

=====

"This is Senior Brother Zhou Zhao, your golden elixir has reached perfection."

After finally getting off the ice, Xu Ye walked forward with his head lowered in grievance, while introducing the identities of the people present one by one. When he met Zhou Zhao's lifeless eyes, he shrank reflexively.

"It turns out to be Fellow Daoist Ningning."

Zhou Zhao looked like he had suffered a severe blow. His face was paralyzed with lifeless eyes, just like the robot male protagonist with poor acting skills in youth idol dramas: "I've heard a lot about Fellow Daoist Ning's deeds, and I've always wanted to compete with you. Hehe."

These two dry "hehe"s without a trace of smile made Ningning's back numb. She always felt that they should not appear at this time and place. If Brother Zhou attended the funeral of his mortal enemy one day, this tone would be quite appropriate.

She smiled politely and asked curiously, "You two came earlier than us. I wonder if you have found anything?"

Xu Yi was as droopy as a delicate flower: "Senior Brother Zhou and I have been traveling all the way. Apart from those orchids, we have not seen anything useful."

According to Xu Yi, they were lucky enough to find the precious spiritual plant Blood-Drinking Orchid at the foot of a mountain. They had planned to pack it up and take it away, but unexpectedly they ran into the Bone Demon. After a fight, they knew they were no match for it and were losing ground, so they had to flee.

And now, it was Xu Yi who led everyone to the location of the Blood-Drinking Orchid.

"Fellow Daoist Ning, Fellow Daoist He."

Zhou Zhao said, "I will not participate in the division of the Blood-Drinking Orchid. Please be kind and forget what happened on the ice. If you can keep the secret, you will be my reborn father and mother."

Ning Ning choked.

You recognize your father and mother so easily, so spineless.

"Blood-Drinking Orchid."

He Zhizhou touched his chin, "I heard that this flower is very rare and only grows in places with deep resentment, using the blood of hundreds of people as nourishment - what happened in this place to grow such an evil thing?"

"Just looking at the environment here, it seems that something is not right."

Ning Ning looked up for a moment, frowning at the deathly aura condensing everywhere.

The deeper you go, the darker the sky becomes.

At first, the dark clouds were just light cotton wool, pressing heavily on the sky. The weak sunlight fell silently from the gaps, like inconspicuous gold flakes, breaking into extremely light halos when falling to the ground.

Then, black ink gradually stained the clouds, and all you could see was dull dark gray. The outlines of the clouds were blurred and intertwined, and they were like layers of overlapping, indistinguishable mountains, hanging heavily under the sky.

The withered old trees around were in various shapes. At first glance, they looked like countless sharp claws waiting to snatch souls. In the increasingly dark environment, the black mist-like deathly aura made people feel even more uncomfortable.

The foot of the mountain mentioned by Xu Ye was not far from the river, and the group quickly reached their destination.

The whole body of the blood-drinking orchid was dark red, like layers of blood stains solidified on the petals and roots. Ningning picked one and smelled it carefully. What lingered on the tip of her nose was not the dull fishy smell, but the elegant and sweet orchid fragrance.

"Strange."

Zhou Zhao frowned and said, "First, there was the bone demon formed by death energy, and then there was this cluster of orchids that feed on human blood... Logically, where they are, there must be countless corpses and many people dying, but why do we only see endless snow?"

"Since the evil demons in the Demon Refining Tower are real, monsters that can kill so many people don't seem to be common, right?"

Xu Ye shuddered, "A single bone demon is scary enough, so how terrible must the culprit who caused all this tragedy be? Is this really only the 50th floor?"

Ningning put the blood-drinking orchid into the storage bag, "The area we have explored is very small. If we go further, we will definitely make more discoveries. Have you noticed? The death energy and demonic energy are getting stronger and stronger."

She was right.

In addition to the increasingly dark and gloomy sky, the pitch-black fog around us also became thicker and thicker. The air was filled with the smell of decay, and the black smoke gathered and dispersed with the cold wind, as if ghosts and monsters were floating in the air. Sometimes they even seemed to have physical bodies, weighing heavily on the chest, making it difficult to breathe.

"If we go further, the danger level may be far beyond our imagination."

He Zhizhou gently brushed away a piece of snow from the tip of his nose, and said seriously: "I suggest we go and take a look first. If we find it really difficult to cope with, it is not too late to leave this tower."

When Zhou Zhao heard that there was a fight, his eyes, which were as dull as a rag doll, immediately lit up, and he clenched the hilt of the sword and replied: "I agree! It is impossible to run away. How dare a little evil demon dare to be so presumptuous here? We must beat it in and out and make it a mess!"

- His chance to save face has finally come!

As soon as Zhou Zhao finished speaking, he heard Xu Ye beside him shouting: "Look, what is that!"

Ningning also noticed the abnormality and subconsciously took a defensive posture.

They were in a vast sea of ​​snow, the sun was hidden, the mountains were invisible, and the towering peaks cast shadows. In the chaos of snow, fog and shadows, with extremely low visibility, several figures appeared silently.

Those "people" walked hunched over, as if they had no strength, and dragged their legs slowly forward, with a demeanor that was somewhat like the zombies in horror movies.

As they gradually approached, she finally saw the appearance of the coming people.

They were several soldiers wearing rotten armor, their clothes were all stained with shocking blood, covered with knife wounds and burn marks.

Their bodies were devoid of flesh and blood, only a pile of eerie white bones. When they sensed the breath of a living person, they suddenly raised their heads.

A murderous aura suddenly appeared.

Ning Ning tightly grasped the sword in her hand.

"

It's a bone puppet!" He Zhizhou lived up to the roomful of miscellaneous books he bought. He whispered at the first moment: "I heard that when a human corpse is infected by a strong demonic energy, it will degenerate into a monster that is neither human nor ghost... But a demon that can achieve this must be at the stage of transformation of spirit!"

Transformation of spirit.

The same level as the elders of major sects, or even higher.

The bone puppet sensed the breath of a living person, and its slow movement suddenly stopped. After a very short moment of stunned, a thin black mist appeared in its eye sockets.

Then, like a puppet on a string, the joints moved suddenly.

Xu Ye drew his sword from its sheath: "They are coming!"

The bone puppet was much faster than the bone demon. In just a split second, it rushed forward at an astonishing speed.

Ning Ning dodged in time, but He Zhizhou beside her was not so lucky. The end of his hair only lightly brushed against the dark white claws and was instantly cut off in the wind.

Their strength was beyond imagination, but no matter what, the predecessor of the bone puppet was just a mortal with meager spiritual energy. Even if it was infected with demonic energy, it would never be able to reach the level of the bone demon and possess the power to suppress a Jindan cultivator.

Ning Ning drew her sword quickly. When the long sword hit the pale skeleton, the surging sword energy spread like thunder, bursting out with a loud bang. The bones shattered and turned into powder in an instant, melting into the snow.

The battle ended very quickly. He Zhizhou touched the cut hair and felt a lingering fear: "It was a close call. Why is this thing biting people like a mad dog?"

"Not good."

Xu Ye made a bitter face and squatted on the ground, staring at the skeleton: "What kind of monster is imprisoned in this floor of the tower? Just relying on the magic energy it emits, it can cultivate such a powerful bone puppet... Is this really the 50th floor?"

He paused and asked curiously: "Ningning, what are you doing?"

"The evil demons imprisoned here have all been suppressed by major sects. This one must have been seriously injured and his cultivation was greatly damaged, so he is on the 50th floor."

Ning Ning bent over with her head down, carefully groping in the clothes of each bone puppet. She didn't seem to find anything useful, and showed a look of distress: "I want to see if they have anything that can prove their identity and time, so as to confirm the identity of the monster."

As soon as she finished speaking, her arms suddenly stiffened, and a bright color appeared in her eyes: "Ah."

Xu Ye became more curious: "What did you find?"

As he spoke, he looked down and saw a token in the little girl's white jade hand.

The token was stained with blood, and it was difficult to make out the words carved on it. Xu Ye frowned and looked at it intently, slowly reading out the two blurry small characters: "Sword-brake?"

This time He Zhizhou couldn't sit still: "Sword-brake?!"

Zhou Zhao's eyes twitched as well: "No way, sword-brake? Then isn't the one in this tower--"

Ning Ning knew very little about the past and present of the cultivation world, and was confused when she heard this: "What is a sword-brake?"

"The Sword Blade was an army during the great war between immortals and demons."

He Zhizhou knew her identity and patiently explained it to her. He could not hide the complex emotions in his eyes when he spoke: "The reason why it was formed was to deal with the Shadow Demon, one of the demon lords."

Ning Ning nodded and listened to him continue: "The Shadow Demon has a high level of cultivation and likes to kill. He has many demon soldiers under his command. The most difficult thing is that it has no entity. , it was just a demonic breath with deep resentment, and it could not be defeated by ordinary means. "

He Zhizhou said, scratching his head and sighing in frustration: "At that time, the war was almost over, and both the immortal sect and the demon world suffered heavy casualties. Due to the scarcity of monks, in order to resist the demon soldiers, mortals formed an army called "Sword Breaker". "

Xu Yi added in a low voice: "In fact, it was almost like sending yourself to death."

"Fortunately, Jiansha held back the demon tide, which bought time for the elders to set up the Thousand Lights Returning to the Origin Formation on the top of Mount Qiong. The Shadow Demon is afraid of light, and it is said that only strong light can reduce its strength a little."

He Zhizhou did not refute Xu Ye's muttering, and continued in a deep voice: "The power of mortals is so small. After the battle, Jiansha was indeed... wiped out."

So these demonized bone puppets were actually the soldiers who fought against the demons back then.

"The Shadow Demon is imprisoned on the 50th floor. This is too, too..."

Zhou Zhao is an impatient person who speaks his mind. He kicked a pile of snow on the ground and said, "Isn't this a scam?" "

Don't worry. Its strength has greatly decreased. It is definitely not as good as it was in the past."

Ning Ning put the token into the storage bag and looked up at the vast snowfield in the distance.

It turns out that this place is called Qiongshan.

The snowflakes in the sky are getting bigger and bigger, as if they will never stop, and the road in the distance is swallowed by black air, like the abyss of a giant beast, waiting for its prey to fall into the trap.

... But whether it is a trap or not, no one can tell until the last moment.

Ning Ning said softly, "Let's go a little further?"

=====

This long road is a gradual change from day to night.

With each step forward, the surrounding scenery becomes darker and the bloody smell becomes heavier.

Ning Ning kept moving forward in the snow and fog, and unexpectedly saw several translucent figures on the roadside. They looked like the soldiers who were alive back then. It seemed as if the war had not yet happened, and they were talking to each other or walking slowly in the snow.

"That's the 'mind spirit'."

He Zhizhou explained carefully on the side: "When the deceased's thoughts about something are very strong, they will leave such phantoms, which is equivalent to the memory of that time reappearing."

Ning Ning suddenly said "Oh", this thing is equivalent to the brain waves in the world of cultivation.

Passing through the phantoms that occasionally appear, when the decayed death aura becomes stronger and stronger, Ning Ning can't help but take the Turtle Breath Pill, and everyone finally arrives at the end of Qiongshan.

Their side was covered in silvery white snow.

As far as the eye could see, it was a vast expanse of fog and pitch black.

Countless bone puppets were hovering above the snow, as densely packed as a group of ants under a black pressure.

Surrounded by the layers of bone puppets, in the narrow shadows between two adjacent mountains, a group of irregular black shadows was suspended.

Compared to the spreading death aura, the pitch-black color around the shadow demon was much darker.

It was even bigger than Ning Ning had imagined, almost as tall as a whole building, and was entangled with invisible and visible dark gold chains. It roared from nowhere, shaking the snowflakes on the mountaintop. The

wriggling huge black shadow was like a black hole that could swallow all light, exuding the breath of death and uncertainty. Even if others just watched from a distance, they would feel suffocated by the strong pressure and demonic energy.

Suddenly, the shadow moved slightly.

The four of them retreated behind the boulder together and retreated tacitly.

"No, no, no! My God, do you feel that pressure?"

Zhou Zhao's legs trembled, and he patted his chest: "And the group of bone puppets surrounding it - with that number, if they all scatter and attack us, we won't be able to return to the sect alive!"

Although the sword cultivators are aggressive, they are not stupid. Facing an opponent with a very obvious difference in strength, it is impossible to rush in recklessly.

Xu Ye's face was also pale: "Why do I feel that it is still very strong? What is the strength of the shadow demon now, Jindan or Yuanying?"

He Zhizhou glanced at him: "Judging from the pressure, it is the middle stage of Yuanying."

What a painful realization.

The three of them showed an expression that was difficult to explain.

"Hey, Ningning."

He Zhizhou didn't hear Ningning's voice. He glanced to the side and saw her lowering her head and carefully looking at a damaged piece of paper: "What are you looking at? A martial arts secret book?"

Ningning shook her head and handed him the paper.

He Zhizhou took it and read it out loud.

"You are the moon in the sky, the fragrance of flowers in front of the house, and the first swallow that lands on my window in spring.

If you ask me how much I love you, just like birds love the blue sky, fish in the pond are attached to the clear water, and butterflies cannot live without the fragrance of flowers, I would like to live by your branches - ah! What a disgusting thing!"

He got goosebumps all over his body, and returned it to Ningning without finishing reading it, his face wrinkled like a bitter gourd: "Which little boy wrote you a love letter? How come only half of it is left?"

Ningning still shook her head, and her voice was very soft: "It's a letter I found on a soldier, it should be written to the girl he likes."

Since she learned the truth, she gave up the name of "bone puppet" and called those dead monsters "soldiers".

He Zhizhou was stunned and didn't say anything.

Ningning carefully put the letter into her storage bag, and a vague thought crossed her mind.

It was a pity that he didn't finish reading it.

After those creepy love words, the man wrote carefully, stroke by stroke:

[You always say that I am timid and cowardly, and the fact is indeed so. I never dared to tell you these true feelings, and I blushed after writing them.

Please forgive me for leaving without saying goodbye.

The evil demon is coming to the world, and all people are in danger. We have no choice but to stand up and save the world from danger. The world

is so vast, and ordinary people are just a mayfly in the vast ocean. Although our abilities are meager, it is always better than escaping and hiding.

I never tell lies, you are the moon in my heart.

The moon should hang in the sky without wind or waves.

He Zhizhou said that the power of mortals is so small, so the destruction of Jiansha is inevitable.

But Ningning doesn't think so.

The soldiers at that time knew that they would die in the future, but they still gathered on the battlefield, wholeheartedly serving the common people, paving the way for the monks with their flesh and blood, and turning the tide of the war.

Although they are mortals, they also have unparalleled determination and strength.

But now, those people who have faith and vowed to defeat the demon tide have become monsters despised by thousands of people, wandering in the endless snow sea and dark abyss, never seeing the light of day.

It's really unfair to think about it, what kind of thing is this.

Heavy snow fell, and in the silence, Ning Ning suddenly spoke: "Are you interested in fighting the Shadow Demon with me?"

This sentence was like a thunder, and Zhou Zhao's eyes widened instantly: "Are you crazy? That was the big demon that made the whole cultivation world tremble with fear!"

Ning Ning remained calm: "But it is only at the middle stage of the Yuan Infant now."

Zhou Zhao took a breath of cold air: "That is also the middle stage of the Yuan Infant!"

He really didn't understand where she got the courage to say such a thing in such a calm tone.

A demon in the middle stage of the Yuan Infant, accompanied by a group of densely packed bone puppets, with their current cultivation, let alone defeating it, it would be difficult to even get close to it!

"Think about it, the 50th floor is right between the Golden Core and the Primordial Infant, and the shadow demon on this floor should be the strongest evil spirit that we can kill within our capabilities - in other words, it is also the highest score we can get."

Ning Ning said slowly, "It's useless not to try. Don't you want to get a good ranking in the Ten Dharma Conference? What's more, even if we fail, it is locked in place by the chain, and we can still take the opportunity to escape."

These words are reasonable and a little tempting. Xu Ye swallowed his saliva after listening to them: "But can the four of us really defeat it?"

Ning Ning smiled.

There was little light in the silent snowfield, and a snowflake happened to fall from her nose, reflecting a faint white on the girl's face.

She raised her hand and pointed to her head, her eyes lit up: "I have a way."