Chapter 49
The competition on stage remained intense, but this match was now essentially an internal contest within the Qingxu Sect. How many sects could surpass the Qingxu Sect amidst such a fierce barrage of talisman attacks?
"Can the people of Qingxu Sect help us?" Shi Yunzhou suddenly thought of this question.
"If it's about the Illusion Demon, they will comply." Since this plan to lure them has been devised, it means the leaders of all the sects have agreed. The Qingxu Sect has strict rules and examines the character of its disciples; if it's an order from the sect, they will carry it out.
“No,” Shi Yunzhou retorted, “it’s about Master.” He stared blankly at Zhou Xuanzhi.
The relationship between Tianyu Mountain and Qingxu Sect has been awkward for over seven hundred years. The incident involving Wen Sushu and Ding Xiuyuan caused a great uproar, resulting in the tragic deaths of countless innocent people. After their deaths, although there were still interactions between the two sects, they were never as close as before.
This story is from over 700 years ago, it can't be true!
Seeing that his senior brother didn't think much of it, Shi Yunzhou said, "Wen Sushu is dead, but she killed so many innocent people; she deserved to die. What about Ding Xiuyuan of the Qingxu Sect?"
It was one thing for Master to kill someone from his own sect, but Ding Xiuyuan was from the Qingxu Sect, so no matter what, he should be handed over to the Qingxu Sect for punishment. Master, being the kind of person he was, naturally understood these social dynamics, but he still couldn't figure out why he had killed both of them at the same time.
Zhou Xuanzhi kept his lips tightly closed, not wanting to comment on the Qingxu Sect. After hesitating for a long time, he finally spoke: "No matter the reason, he shouldn't have taken Wen Sushu out to wreak havoc on the world, much less aid and abet evil."
This event is documented, but not completely. However, judging from Zhou Xuanzhi's expression, he seems to know something about it.
"Senior brother, the book doesn't describe this in full."
Zhou Xuanzhi sighed and said, "No one really knows how the two of them met. The female cultivator absorbed the life essence of many people, mostly women and children, in order to cultivate. At that time, everyone suspected that it was the work of demons. Later, the investigation found that there should be a traitor in the immortal sect. Later, it was said that a scheme was used to force the female cultivator out, and the ancestor ordered her to be executed."
"It just so happened that several disciples of the Qingxu Sect were also at Tianyu Mountain at that time. On the day of the execution, Ding Xiuyao took advantage of the fact that the people were not on guard and kidnapped them. Tianyu Mountain and the Qingxu Sect searched for a long time but could not find their whereabouts. Wen Sushu also stopped absorbing people's essence, and they disappeared from then on."
"Finally, Wen Sushu started inhaling the 'dangerous breath' again for some reason. Only at this point did both factions issue a kill order."
"As for Master... Master didn't deliberately pursue them. It was just by chance that he discovered the corpse of a person whose life essence had been drained, and that's how he found their trail. They both seemed to be seriously injured. When Master was about to kill Wen Sushu, Ding Xiuyao stood in front of the female cultivator... and that's how he died. Later, the female cultivator committed suicide while holding that person's corpse."
"?" This means that the question that has been in my mind for nearly two hundred years has finally been answered, but there is still one question that has not been resolved: "So... why would that female cultivator absorb people's life essence?"
Zhou Xuanzhi looked at the crowd on the platform and said, "Later, they investigated, but found nothing. They couldn't even find out how the two of them met and fell in love."
Looking at the crowd on the stage, Shi Yunzhou denied the strange feelings that had arisen in his heart. "Human essence is indeed not to be underestimated. But why does this female cultivator suddenly want to absorb human essence?"
"Let's think about the Illusion Demon! At least we need to know what happened to Master before she died." Zhou Xuanzhi couldn't believe that his master died at the hands of the Illusion Demon. Even if his master was on her last legs at that time, she was still the number one female immortal in the immortal sect. There were few men in the world who could be her match. How could she die like that?
“Therefore, Miss Gu must have some clues that we don’t know about,” Shi Yunzhou said definitively.
"Then let's just follow behind Miss Gu!"
Lin Jichen came to Gu Qingci's side again.
Given the Qingxu Sect's outstanding performance so far, and their humble and polite attitude, many girls are quite interested in them. Even after Gu Qingci explained the Qingxu Sect's rules, their interest remains undiminished.
Lin Jichen responded, "We can only watch."
“Nobody really wants anything with them, but it’s nice to see and get to know them,” the young woman said. “Even without such rules, their future partners should be women like you.”
The girls in the capital were very clear-headed; they understood the gap between themselves and these cultivators. Even if some women truly crossed the divide to be together, they must be incredibly powerful, at least excelling in some aspect.
Lin Jichen looked at these people and thought for a moment before saying, "Actually, it's not that bad. There are good endings too." Cultivators have existed in this world for so many years; what hasn't happened to them?
"Really? Do you have anything a little more exciting?" A woman approached Lin Jichen with a hopeful look on her face.
"Stimulation? Like?"
"Storybooks, the kind where a demonic witch and a righteous gentleman."
Lin Jichen chuckled dryly, "Your preference is quite... quite novel." It's already very kind of the righteous young master not to kill them; this kind of love that transcends race and blood feuds is truly unheard of.
"However, there is one, though."
Gu Qingci and her group were already seated, waiting for Lin Jichen's story, while the other girls also pricked up their ears. Sure enough, popular and memorable stories are often filled with all sorts of taboos.
After hearing the story of the Qingxu Sect disciple and the Tianyu Mountain disciple, everyone sighed with pity. These two were pitiful, yet utterly despicable.
Watching the Qingxu Sect disciples compete on the stage, Lin Jichen recalled the Immortal Alliance Conference two hundred years ago. Back then, none of them were qualified to compete on stage, so they just watched with their senior brothers and sisters. Who could have imagined that their first Immortal Alliance Conference would leave such a deep impression on everyone?
That was the first time everyone witnessed the so-called war between immortals and demons; the sea near Tianyu Mountain turned red that day. The other three factions guarding the sea sent reinforcements, and even the demonic cultivators in the Illusionary Sea rushed over. After several days of fighting, all the demons trying to invade the mortal realm were finally eliminated, and the barrier was repaired. Two hundred years later, the demons have made their move again; it's truly infuriating.
How did you embark on the path of cultivation?
"Me? Nothing much. I was abandoned by my parents when I was born. I was found by an outer sect cultivator from Tianyu Mountain. She took me back to the mountain and raised me. Later, I passed the inner sect exam and got to where I am today."
This is the cultivation path of the vast majority of cultivators. Those with great potential, like those in the painting books, who can be chosen by their masters at a glance, are extremely rare.
"Are you just going to stick with it like this?"
Lin Jichen answered very seriously this time: "When I was young, I went out with my senior brothers and sisters from the outer sect. I was naughty and ran around, so I got separated from them. I ended up in the outskirts of a city and saw a female cultivator fighting a magical beast. There was a town behind her. If she retreated, a third of the people in the town behind her might die."
She looked at the woman with utmost seriousness and said, "Even though she was covered in wounds, even though her spiritual palace was shattered and she could die at any moment, she still did not retreat. She kept fighting until reinforcements arrived and killed the demonic beast. That battle shortened her already dwindling lifespan even further."
"I envy people like that, I admire her." Lin Jichen's face was full of longing.
"Did you see her again after that?"
Lin Jichen nodded: "I've met her, and I've even heard her teachings."
When Gu Qingci heard these words, she looked at the person in front of her. So this was her past, the person she admired, the image she held in her heart was so lofty. Back then, she must have envied Zhou Xuanzhi and Shi Yunzhou.
Zhou Xuanzhi and Shi Yunzhou, however, did not see Lin Jichen.
"Where is this person?" Shi Yunzhou asked, pointing to Lin Jichen's empty seat.
Anzhi looked at the two of them, pointed ahead and said, "She's over there. Master told her to go there."
"Uncle Mu?" Did Lin Jichen go to protect Gu Qingci? He turned to look at Zhou Xuanzhi, and seeing Zhou Xuanzhi nod slightly, he said nothing more and found a place to sit down.
"Do you know why Junior Sister Lin is being asked to go?" Zhou Xuanzhi asked.
Anzhi shook her head at the two of them and said, "I don't know, and Master doesn't allow Senior Sister to say anything."
"Senior Sister Ming isn't here?"
"They were called away too." Anzhi noticed that all the stronger disciples around her had left. She leaned closer to the two of them and whispered, "Could something be about to happen that they don't want us to know about?"
Shi Yunzhou thought to himself, "Yes, they're using Gu Qingci as bait to lure out the Illusion Demon. But what great things can they accomplish with just these few people? Before, the Illusion Demon didn't intend to kill anyone, but that might not be the case now."
Seeing the two people's unpleasant expressions, Anzhi asked, "Is something wrong?"
"It's nothing," Zhou Xuanzhi replied.
Anzhi smiled and shut his mouth. Judging from his expression, he didn't seem to be alright, but since he wasn't going to say anything, she wouldn't ask.
While everyone was not paying attention, many of the stronger disciples from different sects were no longer in their seats.
"Let's go find Junior Sister Lin now!" The more people there are, the more strength we'll have. Gu Qingci also carries the mystery of her master.
"Okay, let's go."
On his way to find Lin Jichen, Zhou Xuanzhi kept thinking that since they had already made arrangements, it meant they knew about the Illusion Demon's actions. Could they have already figured out how the demons escaped from the Ten Directions Barrier?
And this Phantom Demon escaped before. He's been missing for so long, could he have already returned to the Boundless Realm and accepted a new mission? Does his new mission include destroying the Ten Directions Barrier? I wonder what the sect leaders are thinking. They should have given everyone a little bit of information at this time, just a little bit would have been enough.
Shi Yunzhou, watching Zhou Xuanzhi's furrowed brows, shook his head and said, "Don't think so much. The various sects have been established for so many years, it's normal for them to have some special channels to know some special information. Although I am also worried, I have never worried about how the various sects will deal with the Illusion Demon."
He stopped and stood in front of Zhou Xuanzhi, saying firmly, "They have not forgotten their duties; they know what they are supposed to do."
Then he continued walking forward: "What I'm worried about now is that we're not strong enough to defeat the Phantom Demons. I don't know if they've made any plans for the future. If we really die, then we'll be in big trouble."
Zhou Xuanzhi chuckled self-deprecatingly and followed Shi Yunzhou forward, saying, "You have a really good attitude."
“Master’s teachings are excellent. You should learn more from me. Don’t waste your time worrying. It’s not worth it.” He turned to look in the direction of Qingxu Sect and said, “Aren’t you curious about the true strength of Qingxu Sect? I’m also curious about their Medicine God Valley and Exorcism Division.”
"Alright, let's take this opportunity to see." Zhou Xuanzhi's words sounded like he was coaxing a child.
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