Chapter 219 Jinling Cannot Cross (Part 5) (Supplement) "He is a Saint of the Returning to Truth Realm..."
Let alone ordinary people, even cultivators with profound cultivation levels would find it difficult to resist the temptation.
The woman was still worshipping and giving thanks, but the water that had just wrapped the child was no longer pure. It was now a chaotic, misty white, which gradually crystallized and turned into distinct grains of white sand, slowly sinking into the water.
“When Zhang Si first brought me here, I had the same expression as you,” Li Changfeng said softly. “Back then, this pool of clean water saved dozens of people. I even felt a little dazed. What’s wrong with saving lives?”
"But what is the price?" Lin Feiran turned to look at him. "The lakebed is covered with white sand, what are these?"
Li Changfeng shook his head, led Lin Feiran into the dense forest, and then turned west: "We still don't know what the price is, but judging from Bai Sha, they must have something to ask for."
According to Qing Tong, the Holy Maiden and the Dao Lord do not fully trust the others, and the secret of the white sand at the bottom of the lake may only be known to the two of them.
However, after Zhang Siwo and his group investigated, they discovered that a spiritual energy was actually surging at the bottom of the lake, continuously flowing into a certain place.
Deep in the forest, occasionally, members of the secret sect would come to patrol. The two silently avoided them, circling almost half of the Mirror Lake on the mudflats. Only when they reached the back of the towering Taoist temple did Lin Feiran see the strange phenomenon.
Instead of prayer lanterns floating in Mirror Lake behind the Taoist temple, there was a swirling eddy, but the water flowed slowly, like an unpainted eye, seemingly looking upwards.
Lin Feiran looked up and saw a blurry cloud swirling in the air, like a flower blooming or a spring flowing backward. Layer upon layer of petals or clear spring water fell downward, but did not land. Instead, they were blown away by the ceaseless wind.
She paused for a moment, then said, "If it's just displayed here like this, will no one suspect anything?"
“What’s revealed isn’t important.” Li Changfeng pointed to the distance. “This strange spiritual energy flows into the lake’s eye and is then evaporated, forming this strange cloud formation, which the esoteric sects call ‘Ascending Cloud Platform’.”
Every year, the most accomplished followers can set foot here, go to the Heavenly Palace on the Cloud Top, and meet the Dao Lord.
Strangely, at the end of this endless road, instead of a heavenly palace, there were 'Three Bridges'.
Lin Feiran frowned slightly. She had never heard of Sanqiao, but she had a vague impression of him. He seemed to have been mentioned a few times in the original book, but only in some unimportant occasions, so she didn't remember him well.
She asked, "Is 'Sanqiao' a place name, a bridge name, or three different bridges?"
"It can be called a place name, but it's not entirely. It's normal for a child your age not to know it. It's very old. Nowadays, Sanqiao has another well-known name: the Ancient Road to Rebirth."
Lin Feiran immediately understood: "I have seen it in the book."
Legend has it that during the great war between the two realms, the human race suffered far more casualties than the demon race. Many saints could not bear to see this hell on earth, so they gathered together and, through their combined wisdom and efforts, spent three years building a "Road to Life" that connects the five continents and runs from north to south, also known as the Ancient Road to Rebirth.
It is a refuge for mortals in chaotic times, and a blessed land for cultivators to heal their wounds.
It is not a bridge or a road, but a structure built with magic arrays that will appear when needed.
Now that peace has lasted for hundreds of years, the ancient path to rebirth has, like a secret treasure, disappeared from the world and needs to be searched for.
Lin Feiran pondered for a moment: "If it is the Ancient Path to Rebirth, how did they find it?"
Li Changfeng shook his head slightly: "Their treasure-hunting skills are extraordinary. They have unearthed many treasures in the world, even rare and unheard-of treasures like the spiritual veins of heaven and earth, not to mention the Ancient Path of Rebirth."
The ancient road is interconnected and rich in spiritual energy. It is also covered by array formations, which are like a spider web covering the five continents. As long as you find one, you can quickly go to any place. However, there are also many restrictions. We do not know where the other side of the ancient road leads.
What I want you to see today is the Dengyuntai Terrace and the Three Bridges.
"Since we've infiltrated, we must keep a close eye on any news."
Lin Feiran and he gradually retreated, disappearing into the dense forest shadows. He was still very concerned about Sanqiao: "Senior, there is no taboo about the name Sanqiao. Why was it suddenly changed back then? What is the meaning behind Sanqiao?"
Li Changfeng looked at her inscrutable for a moment, a serious look appearing in his usually nonchalant eyes, but it quickly faded away.
He slowly opened his mouth, then suddenly tilted his head back and drank a mouthful of wine before leaping away, his voice languid: "Top secret of the Star Domain. Young man who knows nothing, if you can keep up with my speed, I'll tell you!"
Lin Feiran paused slightly, then looked back at the pristine shallows and mirror-like lake, past the fiery lotus lanterns, and gazed at the tall building again. After a moment of contemplation, she turned and left.
Li Changfeng wasn't really trying to outrun her. Halfway through the chase, Lin Feiran noticed that his movement techniques and footwork were different from hers, and were identical to his Haoran Sword.
He didn't say anything, but Lin Feiran suddenly realized that Li Changfeng was intentionally giving her guidance.
She immediately withdrew the lightning beneath her feet and used the same movement technique to chase after him.
Li Changfeng turned around and chuckled, "You're teachable! Although you can't use the final sword strike, this isn't difficult. Little girl, I'm going to speed things up!"
The two chased each other through the dense forest and mountain peaks. The shadows of the branches swayed along the way, and the biting night wind blew past their ears, making them feel increasingly light. Lin Feiran suddenly remembered that day.
That day, she went with her parents to see Li Changfeng descend the mountain. At that time, he rode his sword westward, laughing heartily. He picked up the young girl and placed her on his sword, and they traveled together through the mountains and rivers.
That was the first time she felt the righteous wind, and the first time she flew on a sword.
Logically speaking, Lin Feiran shouldn't be reminiscing about the past at her age, but she still felt a moment of disorientation.
How could she have foreseen this situation back then?
How could Li Changfeng have foreseen today?
She channeled her spirit into her veins, quickening her pace, and found a sense of exhilaration in the darkness of the night.
Li Changfeng had originally intended to give Lin Feiran pointers, but seeing that Lin Feiran was becoming more and more skilled, he also became lazy. When he arrived at the market in Jinlingdu, he suddenly dropped down and stopped in front of an old wine shop with few people, where he bought wine from the stall owner.
Lin Feiran failed to stop in time and rushed over them, passing directly over their heads and nearly crashing into a long flag.
When she landed again, Li Changfeng had already bought the wine. He looked up and pointed to the streets and alleys: "Let's talk as we walk."
"..." Lin Feiran was speechless for a moment. After buying a lot of food from the stall owner, she quickly followed.
One person drinks wine, another eats bread, walking along the sparsely populated riverbank—it's quite a harmonious scene.
Li Changfeng formed a hand seal before speaking. His tone was neither gentle nor nostalgic, but contained an emotion that Lin Feiran could not understand.
"When the ancient path to rebirth was built, it was named the Three Bridges because it was created based on the principles of 'Heaven, Earth, and Man'."
But you probably don't know that before the construction, many saints had a dispute.
They disagreed on how to deal with the demon race.
At that time, my good senior brother, Ding Yi, was also among them.
Lin Feiran paused, quickly swallowed what was in his mouth, and exclaimed in surprise, "He's a Saint of the Returning to Truth Realm?!"
Li Changfeng nodded and took a piece of fried dough from her hand: "It used to be. I was very young then, and the sect was not well-known, but because of his disciple, it became famous overnight... Let's not talk about these things."
There was a faint sense of nostalgia in his eyes: "After the great chaos between the two realms, he went down the mountain to save the world like the other disciples. Several years passed, but I don't know what happened. After returning, he went into seclusion for half a year and did not see anyone."
Later, the other saints sent messages asking him to come out of seclusion to discuss the matter of the demon race. He came out, and although his expression was no different from usual, his body and spirit were scattered, which was a sign that his realm was loosening and falling.
At that time, his master advised him to stay and meditate, but he went anyway.
Lin Feiran pondered for a moment: "What did they discuss back then?"
"At that time, it would be impossible for the many saints not to be angry when they looked at this ravaged human world. They gathered together to discuss how to suppress the demon race and prevent them from making a comeback."
Li Changfeng recalled: "At that time, everyone had their own opinions. Some suggested that we should do everything we could to exterminate the race. Some suggested that we should put all the demon races under the command of the Demon Subjugation Order so that they would not dare to resist. Others suggested that we should destroy the Gate of the Endless Sea so that the two worlds would never interact again."
At this point, he sighed slightly: "Besides these methods that seem to eliminate future troubles, there are also some more gentle ones. The people debated for three days and three nights, but no one agreed with them."
The demon race is inexhaustible, just as the human race is inexhaustible, so they eventually split into three factions and took three different paths.
"Some of them were determined to destroy the Gate to the Endless Sea and sever the passage between the two worlds."
Others decided to infiltrate the demon realm, create a powerful enough puppet, seize the throne of the demon king, command the heroes, and cease their invasion of the human realm.
They planned to find a way to enable mortals to develop spiritual veins, just like the demon race, so that everyone could cultivate and would no longer be bullied.
The image of the kind-smiling old man with a whisk in his hand floated into Lin Feiran's mind, and he was at a loss for words.
She couldn't help but press for details about this secret history: "And then what happened?"
"The Endless Sea is naturally formed by heaven and earth, and the array patterns are also created by heaven and earth. Since it is impossible to completely destroy and seal it, they have settled for second best and sent people to guard the boundary gate, not allowing any demon to cross it. Anyone who comes will be killed. This is the origin of the boundary guards."
Xie Kanhua was the ninth-generation successor of the leading saint. Originally, there was more than one, but later the defense of the boundary became a joke, and only he remained.
Only he would still sit by the endless sea every day, listening to the ebb and flow of the tide.
The various tribes of the demon race were already at odds, and the demons themselves found it difficult to advance, were overly fond of strength and war, and refused to be subservient to others. They experienced ups and downs, succeeding and failing repeatedly, until the two realms began to trade. They still couldn't find a demon puppet that could convince everyone.
However, this move wasn't a complete failure; without their several successful attempts, the two realms wouldn't have gradually reconciled.
At this moment, Lin Feiran thought of Ru Xian, and Li Changfeng seemed to have thought of him as well, and said, "If that demon lord had been born a few hundred years earlier, he would probably have been the best candidate, but controlling him is another problem."
Lin Feiran thought that there was no need to control it at all. He originally had no interest in plundering. Perhaps it would be enough to just send more sparkling treasures.
She then asked, "What about your senior brothers and the others?"
Although Lin Feiran asked the question aloud, she had a guess in her heart. When the Spirit Well shattered the boundary gate and the spiritual energy overflowed into the human world, it might have been Ding Yi's plan all along.
"My senior brother?"
Li Changfeng held his sword and idly twirled the thin rope holding his wine pot.
"After that discussion, he returned to seclusion again, but he couldn't stabilize his cultivation level. After spitting out a mouthful of blood, he fell back to the Divine Travel Realm. He then went down the mountain and never returned. His master said that he went to seek the Dao again."
I later met him by chance and discovered that he had already made progress. Although he had not yet reached the state of returning to the true self, he had returned from the realm of spiritual wandering to the state of selflessness and was still a venerable one.
At that time, he was already married with children, but he told me this frankly.
“Junior brother, I have found a way for mortals to cultivate, and I will start with my daughter.”
Even now, Li Changfeng could still recall Ding Yi's smile. It was not the joy of a father, but Ding Yi was always kind and gentle. He thought it was a perfect solution and had just received orders to go down the mountain to perform acts of chivalry. After saying "congratulations," he hurriedly left.
"Later, I made a name for myself on the main road, and the next time I heard news of him, it was that he had established the Canxing Domain and become the teacher of a country."
He suddenly smiled and said, "Look where I've gone. As people get older, they tend to reminisce about the past... The idea of building the Three Bridges was his. The fact that the Esoteric School was able to find it means that my senior brother deserves a lot of credit."
The Three Bridges saved the lives of tens of thousands of people. If Ding Yi was the leader, his merits would be immeasurable. But if that were the case, why did he help the esoteric sect find such a miraculous passage?
Could it all be for that Reincarnation Bead that allows mortals to cultivate?
She turned to look at Li Changfeng: "Senior, there's a question I've always wanted to ask you: why did you leave the Cangxing Domain?"
Li Changfeng's lips curled up, but there was no smile in his eyes: "There's no particular reason. It's just that I've been following him for so long that I often feel confused about what is right and what is wrong."
Thinking about it all the time, I realize I'm no longer myself.
Seeing her doubt, he asked again, "If sacrificing one person could save ten, would you do it?"
Before Lin Feiran could answer, he immediately chimed in: "I'll do it. Li Changfeng, who fears neither heaven nor earth, will definitely do it. With a mighty sword strike, who cares about demons or monsters? If I have to save one person, I'll save ten!"
Lin Feiran stopped talking and simply held the food, becoming a quiet listener.
"But what if a single sword strike cannot solve the problem?"
Having to choose only one, Li Changfeng naturally chose ten. Human life has no inherent value, but this was the most unavoidable and cost-effective option. After all, life in the mortal world is carefree, yet sometimes there are unavoidable circumstances.
His voice softened, and though there wasn't much wine left in the pot, it was still being shaken, producing a sound like waves.
"But what if it's ten people versus a hundred? If I choose, of course I'll save the hundred. But if I save them, won't that implicate the thousand people outside the situation?"
Lin Feiran didn't know how to answer. She hadn't thought about this question before, and could only say in a hoarse voice, "That's the situation. Since we're in it..."
"Then we had no choice but to stop."
He took the lead, closing his eyes slightly.
“I can close my eyes and ignore it the first time, but what if I make the same choice hundreds of times?”
I'll just get confused.
Perhaps I am also one of those who are slaughtered.
At this point, I could no longer draw my sword. You young people should take this as a warning: a swordsman who can only close his eyes is not worthy of drawing his sword.
Li Changfeng exhaled slowly, stopped talking, and patted his head with the wine pot.
"I'm telling you this not to elicit sympathy, but simply to tell you that my senior brother experienced something like this thousands of times on the battlefield. He faced the task of saving hundreds, thousands, even tens of thousands of people..."
I could only vaguely sense his thoughts; he might have gone mad.
Last time I saw you confronting him, I was on tenterhooks. I might as well tell you today: I suspect he's one of the Nine Swords. If you ever face him, run if you can.”
...
Lin Feiran returned to Xun Feifei's home, lay on the bed, and was still pondering his words.
If it were her, what would she choose?
Open your eyes or close them?
She had just closed her eyes when she suddenly sat up, realizing with a start that she had almost forgotten to send a message before going to sleep!
She summoned the yin-yang symbol, not communicating through telepathy, but simply saying, "Like snowflakes?"
A moment later, a response came from the other end, the tone of which sounded normal.
She breathed a sigh of relief, but before she could say anything more, she saw a wisp of smoke rise from the mustard seed bag—it was the pill that the fox clan used to deliver messages.
She immediately took out the burning pill and placed it in the incense burner beside her. In an instant, wisps of green smoke rose, and Qiu Tong's face appeared in the thin mist.
She seemed to be sitting cross-legged in a dark, narrow place, with a few lamps lit behind her. She looked somewhat dazed, but as soon as she saw Lin Feiran's face, her gaze immediately fixed on him, and she began to speak.
"Lin Feiran! I miss you so much!"
Lin Feiran was a little confused, but then she heard a light, teasing laugh coming from the Yin-Yang Fish.
"You're so popular, Lin Feiran."
This sentence, however, was spoken with the voice of the heart.
Lin Feiran: "..."
A note from the author:
P.S.: You've been following this update for a while now, so here's a red envelope giveaway for the next few chapters of Jinling Bedu, fifty red envelopes per chapter!
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