◇ 【145】 Indiscriminate killing
Gu Juan took a step, and suddenly felt a tightness around his ankle, sending him flying. Looking down, he discovered he'd stepped on a green vine. The brown vine, about the thickness of a thumb, was covered in heart-shaped green leaves, dotted with pink flowers with triangular petals he'd never seen before. It looked incredibly lovely. But the vine itself was alive. Like a spirit snake, it slithered up Gu Juan's leg and coiled around him. All the leaves and petals became incredibly sharp, like countless knives, stabbing him fiercely.
Gu Juan struggled for a while but failed to break free, so he summoned the Moonlight Sword. The blade, wrapped in spiritual energy, was extremely sharp. It cut through the vines as soon as it touched them, and he fell limply to the ground.
Seeing that he could handle it, Xi Lang looked around warily.
"The flying dragon over the mountain is indeed interesting." Gu Juan glanced at the wilted vines with some interest.
As soon as he finished speaking, the vine suddenly came back to life. Not only did it become as thick as an adult's thigh, but it also split into two. One above and one below, one on the left and one on the right, they coordinated to attack Gu Juan with murderous intent.
"Be careful!" Xi Lang looked behind him and reminded him in time.
The chill behind him startled Gu Juan's heart. He soared into the air, swung the Moonlight Sword in his hand backwards. After a flash of dazzling silver light, two vines let out a shrill scream and fell limply to the ground, instantly turning withered and yellow.
Gu Juan let out a sigh. He had indeed been a little careless just now. "No wonder they say that Shenlong Feishan is full of dangers and the plants have become spirits. Old man, how many years have you said this place has existed?"
As far as Xi Lang could see, the thinnest tree required one person to hug it. Standing under the dense and heavy tree canopy, he could hardly see the sky above his head. "It's at least a thousand years old. Follow me." Xi Lang led the way.
Gu Juan pondered for a moment and asked a question that frightened Xi Lang, "Is it possible that someone lives here?"
Xi Lang paused. Ever since he'd learned of Shenlong Feishan's existence, he'd subconsciously assumed it must be a secret realm left behind by a senior ascended cultivator, never considering this possibility. He couldn't help but frown. This kind of self-righteousness was unacceptable.
"Maybe. We have to be more careful next time." Xi Lang became even more alert and felt that the dark forest was even colder.
Continuing forward, Gu Juan's gaze fell on a clump of purple grass, filled with wonder. Purple Cloud Grass, with its vibrant purple leaves and flowers, also known as Purple Cloud Grass, is one of the primary ingredients in refining the Po Yuan Dan (Break Yuan Dan). Cultivators typically fear two things: becoming possessed and reaching a bottleneck. While possessing can be alleviated with elixirs, reaching a bottleneck is even more formidable. If one's comprehension is insufficient, even a century of seclusion will prevent them from advancing. The Po Yuan Dan, by catalyzing the primordial energy, opens a gap in the cultivator's realm, making it easier to break free from the shackles of their realm. While the Po Yuan Dan isn't as valuable as top-grade elixirs like the Wuji Dan and the Dujie Dan, it's undoubtedly highly sought after by cultivators. This demonstrates the importance of Purple Cloud Grass.
These purple herbs were no worse than those in Gu Juan's space. He only glanced at them twice and didn't pick any. Perhaps it was because of his higher realm, he could occasionally vaguely realize the laws between heaven and earth. In some mysterious way, it seemed that many things were related. It was a very subtle feeling that was difficult to explain in words. In his spare time, he would also think about his rebirth. Was the bead the cause or the effect? And the immortal palace, was it the cause or the effect? Especially every time he saw the difficulties faced by the cultivators in the current world of cultivation, he would think more. He would not be so saintly as to take out the resources in the space to share with more people, but he would not compete with the cultivators on Earth for the resources on Earth, unless there were resources that he did not have in his space.
At this moment, he suddenly felt a sense of relaxation in his Dantian, and then he was delighted. The shackles of his realm had loosened, which meant that he would soon advance to another level!
Xi Lang turned back with a look of delight. He had also noticed it. His family treasure was indeed powerful.
Gu Juan couldn't help but be surprised, "Old man!"
Xi Lang nodded in understanding, "Juanbao, congratulations."
"Congratulations, congratulations." Gu Juan was delighted. He and Xi Lang were one, so wasn't his happy event Xi Lang's happy event?
Xi Lang smiled, but his expression turned serious as he watched the white mist rising from the woods ahead.
"We seem to have accidentally triggered a magic circle." Gu Juan wasn't good at breaking it, but that didn't mean he understood its structure. He took two steps forward and stood shoulder to shoulder with Xi Lang, slightly sideways, back to back. This would make it easier for them to be on guard.
Xi Lang carefully observed his surroundings and said calmly, "It's too late to retreat now. We can only break the formation."
Gu Juan also looked at it carefully. Breaking the formation is both difficult and easy. There are generally two methods: one is to find the core of the formation and destroy it, which will break the formation; the other is to destroy the formation to change the formation and find a way to break it. Let's talk about the first method first. The core of the formation is the soul of the formation, just like the commander of an army, who usually sits at the back of the army to command, so finding him is not easy. The second method is to destroy the formation. You may find a way to break the formation, but it may also make the originally simple formation more complicated, making it even more difficult to break. Otherwise, why are formation masters so precious?
Gu Juan was staring warily at the white fog that had become as thick as milk when someone patted his shoulder. He turned around and met Xi Lang's smiling eyes. Then he saw the white fog recede like a tide and quickly disappeared.
"What's going on?" He stared at Xi Lang with wide eyes. When had his old man become so powerful, or was the formation here so vulnerable? From the time they entered the formation to the time they broke through it, it took less than a minute.
Xi Lang enjoyed his lover's look of surprise and admiration. He took his hand and walked forward, saying slowly, "Remember when I told you I had a major discovery that needed to be verified?"
Gu Juan nodded, "Yeah, you were always reading some science and technology magazines during that time."
Xi Lang now revealed the answer, "That's because I discovered the wonder of the golden ratio. I've had my doubts since the incident with the mountain. At the time, I thought it was just a fantasy, but after verifying it several times, I was finally sure."
"What do you mean?" Gu Juan was still a little confused. How could a magic circle be related to the golden section?
Xi Lang didn't keep anyone in suspense. "I've discovered that no matter what kind of formation it is, the power of the formation is strongest when the center is placed at the golden section point of the formation. When I entered the mountain, I first determined the golden section point to break the formation, so I was able to enter. The center of the formation just now wasn't at the golden section point, but I still determined it first and set a new center. I used the best spirit stones. When the two eyes compete, the stronger one wins."
"Amazing!" Gu Juanxian praised proudly, stroking his chin. "In that case, does this mean that these two magic circles were set up by different people? If there's no master here, it's fine. But if there is..."
The two men frowned simultaneously, but kept walking without saying anything. No matter what, they were determined to find a cultivation method for Zhang Muheng. There were unusual fluctuations of spiritual energy not far ahead, and perhaps there would be something to gain.
A miserable cry was heard in the distance. Gu Juan paused, not intending to respond. Needless to say, Feng Feiye and the others must have come in, and someone must have been infected.
…
Only one person could enter the formation at any given time. Feng Feiye suggested using rock-paper-scissors to determine the order in which the three sects would enter the mountain. While this method was a bit naive, it would prevent unnecessary casualties and waste of energy, and Xuanyuan Ao and Yin Ji both agreed.
Xuanyuan Gong was lucky enough to enter the mountain first. But then, luck failed to favor him. After two days on the mountain, he still found nothing. During this time, they either encountered treasures, but they disappeared suddenly or were trapped by magic arrays. His men also decreased from twelve to nine. The three who died were all elite members of the Xuanyuan family.
Fortunately, Xuanyuan Rong, who is good at breaking formations, is still there.
"Master, look!" Xuanyuan Chun suddenly pointed ahead and shouted excitedly.
Xuanyuan Ao looked closely and saw a chubby white baby with a few green leaves on his head standing more than ten feet away, facing the wind, and the green leaves swayed in the wind.
It turned out to be a ginseng doll! Judging by the roots, it must be at least a thousand years old!
Xuanyuan Ao's expression remained unchanged, but his hands moved unconsciously, and his breathing subconsciously became lighter. He had only heard that ginseng could transform into a doll when it became a spirit, but even as a cultivator, he had only considered it a legend, never having imagined such a treasure could actually exist. He had missed out on the treasures he had encountered before, but this ginseng doll, he was determined to obtain.
Seeing that the ginseng doll was confused and seemed to be blowing the wind, Xuanyuan Ao calmly sent a message to his men, "Don't make any noise. Ah Chun, you are the lightest, go around it from behind first."
"Yes." Xuanyuan Chun couldn't help but lower the volume of his voice, for fear of disturbing the ginseng doll.
A group of people spread out silently, surrounding the ginseng doll from a distance.
As Xuanyuan Aoyi circulated his Yuanli, his whole body became illusory, as if he had turned into smoke. In a flash, he appeared next to the ginseng doll, stretched out his long arms, and was about to grab the ginseng doll.
In the blink of an eye, a figure suddenly rushed down from the sky and grabbed the ginseng doll in his hand after a flash of light.
The ginseng doll cried as if it were a real baby, but the crying stopped abruptly after the man pinched it hard.
Xuanyuan Ao saw who was coming and his pupils shrank. "Chengfeng, what do you mean?"
Xuanyuan Chun already had a prejudice against Gu Juan, and he was furious. Without saying anything, he attacked from behind, "Despicable villain!"
Gu Juan curled his lips into a smile, then glanced at Xuanyuan Ao with a look of disdain. Just before Xuanyuan Chun's palm strike was about to fall on him, he suddenly turned, slashing the spirit sword in his hand through the air, slicing Xuanyuan Chun's neck, and Xuanyuan Chun died instantly.
"It depends on your ability." Gu Juan said lightly and turned to leave.
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