Chapter 16 "If I kill someone, I can never go back to her side."
The blade pierced in, blood flowed from the blade, dripping blood from the tip. With a swing, blood was flung out with the wind of the sword, landing on Ling Shu's neck, a bright red streak of blood, as if it would kill on sight.
The blade tip grazed the taut muscles on Ling Shu's neck; she turned her head slightly, narrowly avoiding it.
But she was unarmed.
The sword was chasing after them very quickly.
"Zhao Chi, I have no grudge against you."
The sword swept across, its wind carrying the force of metal, slicing through a blade of grass and heading straight for Ling Shu's Achilles tendon. Ling Shu leaped off the ground, and the sword changed direction, swiftly slashing upwards.
There is nowhere to hide from the effects of Poria cocos.
But as she jumped, Ling Shu grabbed something floating in the air.
The umbrella given by Wang Lifu.
The umbrella that I couldn't budge even when kneeling in the snow could now be easily taken down with a gentle squeeze.
With a clang, Ling Shu used her umbrella to block Zhao Chi's attack.
Fortunately, she had a chance to catch her breath. Taking advantage of this moment, Ling Shu chuckled and said, "Good sister, tell me who took my life, so that I can die knowing the truth!"
Zhao Chi disliked her slick manner and drew his sword even more swiftly: "There must be a noble person who wants your life."
"Who is it?" Ling Shu closed the umbrella and used it like a stick to block her sword. The sharp blade slashed at the umbrella dozens of times, but the umbrella was still intact. She thought to herself: This bastard is annoying, but her stuff is pretty good.
"Wang Lifu?"
Zhao Chi laughed disdainfully: "You think you're worthy of knowing the name of such an important person?"
"Oh, my cheap mother doesn't actually want my life." Ling Shu fought and retreated. The Tanshan Formation was chaotic. Who knew what he might step on in the pitch-black night? If it were the Meridian Killing Formation, he would be dead.
"Heh, everyone knows that Sect Leader Wang wants you dead." Zhao Chi's attacks were repeatedly thwarted, and he became impatient as his attacks failed to penetrate. Impatience is the worst thing in a life-or-death battle, as it exposes weaknesses, and Ling Shu saw this weakness.
But she was holding an umbrella!
"It's Li Qiaoyan, isn't it?"
Seeing that she couldn't kill him even after discovering his weakness, Zhao Chi said with amusement, "Yes or no, you guess."
"You're such a jerk!" Ling Shu cursed.
After a few rounds, Ling Shu approached the forest that was the only way out of the mountain. Victory was in sight. Ling Shu turned around and made a face at Zhao Chi with a cheeky grin: "Grandma is going first."
Zhao Chi chased after Ling Shu relentlessly, yelling, "Damn Ling Shu!"
A bright light appeared before the trees; it was the magical fire used to illuminate the path down the mountain. Ling Shu rushed over happily, when suddenly, a giant net descended like a blanket, trapping Ling Shu in a tree.
"Hahahaha!" Zhao Chi ran over from a distance, laughing.
Three people were standing under the tree; they were the three cultivators who had captured her and taken her to the Demon Transformation Valley.
"As expected, I shouldn't have believed that the bullies would sincerely repent. Put me down!" Ling Shu grabbed the net, which shimmered with the shimmering gray light of magic. This was definitely not a cultivation method practiced on Shangqing Mountain. The cultivation methods of Shangqing Mountain followed the righteous path, and the faint light of their magic was mostly white or gold.
The three cultivators stood under the tree, not answering Ling Shu's question, waiting for Zhao Chi to arrive.
Zhao Chi didn't say anything about putting her down. He reached the tree, brandished his sword, and flew up. The sword moved swiftly, and several muffled sounds were heard.
Ling Shu was pale as they pulled her down from the tree. As they moved, snow fell on her and touched her wounds, but she felt no pain.
Ling Shu was carried back into the depths of Bitan Mountain, towards that empty meadow. The meadow was covered with snow-proof formations, yet it was still lush and green in the winter.
The net binding her was removed, and she was thrown to the ground. Golden light suddenly appeared all around, so bright that Ling Shu couldn't make out what kind of formation it was.
"Who's there?!" a woman's voice shouted. Zhao Chi and the others quickly disappeared into the forest like sand crabs hiding from people.
The sound of footsteps on the grass was frequent. Ling Shu lay on her side on the ground and saw several people surrounding her.
They were dressed in the blue and white robes of the Shangqing Sect cultivators. Someone said, "Don't come any closer!"
"The spirit-suppressing formation has been activated; getting too close will result in being sucked in!"
The Spirit-Suppressing Array is used to suppress the spiritual energy of a region. Natural spiritual energy is irregular, with some areas having more and others less. Therefore, when cultivators meditate, they set up a Spirit-Gathering Array to collect the spiritual energy for cultivation. To ensure that the spiritual energy of the entire Shangqing Mountain is within a range suitable for cultivators, it is necessary to gather spiritual energy over a large area.
Bitan Mountain is where the sect's cultivators practice array formations, and it requires stable spiritual energy for their practice. Therefore, the sect's elders simply set up the spirit-suppressing array of Shangqing Mountain here.
As the saying goes, water overflows when it is full, and the moon wanes when it is full. Too much spiritual energy disrupts the balance and becomes a kind of malevolent energy. This malevolent energy must be suppressed, hence the name "Spirit Suppression Array". Once the Spirit Suppression Array is activated, people must leave the array and maintain a safe distance of three zhang. Otherwise, people inside the array will be suppressed by the spiritual energy gathered by the entire array. The high concentration of spiritual energy will compress the meridians of people inside the array, causing the meridians to burst, resulting in bleeding from the seven orifices and death.
However, Ling Shu was inside the formation at that moment.
She had multiple sword wounds on her body, and the blood stained her lotus-white clothes, making them mottled red. The winter wind blew in through the holes in her clothes, freezing her skin until it turned purplish-red.
I can't get up.
The umbrella opened by itself and slowly floated above her.
The pain from the pressure of spiritual energy has lessened considerably.
Ling Shu saw the pale purple umbrella bobbing slightly above her and let out a mocking "heh".
The cultivators who came to practice using the magic array gathered around, and someone asked in confusion, "Hey? A Spirit Suppression Array? The Spirit Suppression Array is activated every half month, why is it activated early today?"
"I don't know."
"Who is that?" The cultivators outside the formation watched.
Someone pointed at her and said, "It looks like that witch."
Another monk sighed, "She'll die, won't she?"
Many others remained on the sidelines, saying, "Who cares whether she lives or dies?"
"She was covered in blood!"
"Who knows who she offended or who plotted against her? Now that she's inside the formation, she's bound to affect the operation of the Spirit Suppression Formation. If the Spirit Suppression Formation doesn't operate well, it will affect the spiritual energy for the next half month. I'm waiting for the spiritual energy to weave my new clothes. This is so annoying."
"Hmph, witnessing the witch die on Shangqing Mountain is also witnessing history."
Ling Shu had excellent hearing and heard every word. She used all her strength to get up from the ground. She couldn't die here, or rather, she couldn't die so alone.
Someone exclaimed, "She got up!"
Ling Shu stood at the center of the formation with her hands hanging down. The light from the formation shone on her from below. Her hair was loose, half tied up and half left hanging down beside her face. From a distance, her face was hidden in her black hair, which was terrifying. Her clothes were stained with blood, the fabric was torn, and in some places it was cut into strips. She stood in the golden light, but she moved like a ghost.
The pinkish-purple spiritual energy fell from her palm onto the array on the ground, and in an instant, the pinkish-purple color covered the entire spirit-suppressing array.
What is she doing?
One of the cultivators cried out in alarm, "She...she's using demonic power to forcibly alter the array's range!"
The pinkish-purple light on the ground spread outward from its original range, quickly engulfing those fleeing towards the exit. Soon, screams and howls filled the air.
The trapped cultivators desperately pounded on the array's barrier, but the barrier remained completely unmoved.
Some people ran frantically towards the exit, only to find that the exit, which was so close, was also completely blocked off when they reached the woods near it.
Ling Shu has enveloped the entire Bitan Mountain in this spirit-suppressing array!
"Witch! Let us out!" Unable to escape, the cultivators turned on Ling Shu. Several cultivators brandished their swords at Ling Shu, trying to grab her and force her to release the people. But she simply flicked her sleeve and knocked everyone present to the ground.
The umbrella that Wang Lifu gave him also shattered into pieces instantly.
Her magical power was too strong; it didn't seem like the kind of power a Foundation Establishment cultivator could possess.
Ling Shu formed a ball of magic power in her hand, feeling every bit of the immense thousand-year-old demonic power at her fingertips. The several sword strikes Zhao Chi unleashed did not kill her; instead, they activated the protective power of the thousand-year-old demonic core as she lay dying.
For no apparent reason, she suddenly gained control of a thousand-year-old demonic power.
The sheer power she felt was exhilarating; killing those who insulted her was as easy as crushing an ant. Ling Shu threatened them, "Didn't you want to see me die?"
"Hahahaha," she chuckled wickedly, "I'd be so lonely dying alone. With you all buried with me, I'll have some fun on my way to the underworld."
Those who had verbally insulted her fled in terror, begging for mercy.
"Aaaaaah! I didn't hurt you, please let me go, please let me go!!!"
"I'll never do it again! I'll never do it again!"
"Hahahaha," Ling Shu raised her magic ball high, summoning a bolt of lightning to strike down, followed by several more bolts raining down, "Let's all die together, hahahahaha!"
She doesn't accept me.
Someone wants me dead.
Here on Shangqing Mountain,
Who else loves me?
"Stop! Ling Shu!" A sweet voice came from the distant sky outside the formation.
It's Li Chang.
Upon seeing her, Ling Shu resolutely rushed into the formation and headed straight for her.
The random lightning strikes left her clumsy and unsteady. With her low cultivation level, she stumbled and staggered unsteadily within the array, the immense spiritual energy within the Spirit Suppression Array pressing down on her, making it impossible for her to move an inch.
"Foolish," Ling Shu cursed inwardly.
Li Chang fell twice, scraping her palms and abrasions on her face, but she did not give up on approaching Ling Shu.
As they drew closer, Li Chang greeted Ling Shu with her usual bright and sunny smile, saying, "Thank goodness, we're still in time. Don't kill them. They're not usually bad people, just a bit sharp-tongued."
Ling Shu smiled sinisterly, as if human lives were nothing more than ants in her eyes: "Don't be a pushover. If they insult me, they deserve to die."
"Grandma! If you kill them, your master will abandon you!!!"
Ling Shu was taken aback.
Zhuang Jinfu didn't seem to have said anything about kicking her out.
Li Chang observed her expression: "Right? You killed them, so your master has no reason to keep you alive. Back then, she was the one who went against everyone's wishes to keep you alive, and even clashed with Sect Leader Wang for your sake. Think about it, now you're going on a killing spree on Shangqing Mountain, isn't that slapping her in the face?"
Ling Shu's mouth was filled with the taste of blood. She disliked the sweet and pungent smell of blood, and she dared not imagine how foul it would smell if her hands were covered in blood.
Li Chang was right. She disliked blood. She couldn't imagine how she, covered in filth, could approach that immaculate immortal.
She opened her mouth and said, "I didn't really kill him."
Li Chang breathed a sigh of relief: "That's right, don't kill anyone!"
"Hmm." Ling Shu withdrew her hand, which was filled with magical power, and let it hang lifelessly at her side. "I dare not."
"If I kill someone, I can never go back to her."
That aloof and ethereal figure lingers in my mind.
The pinkish-purple magic power receded, the array's range shrank, and it converged on Ling Shu, causing the shimmering golden array to gradually lose its luster.
The rescued cultivators were in complete disarray, fleeing in panic. Some bumped into each other but dared not argue, staggering back to their respective meridians on their swords.
The immense pressure of spiritual energy dissipated, and Li Chang stood there, adjusting her breathing. Ling Shu stared at Li Chang's sword for a long time before saying, "Can I borrow your sword?"
Li Chang, being naive, casually asked, "Where's your sword?"
"..."
Will she still have a sword?
Ling Shu didn't answer, and Li Chang didn't press the matter. She handed it to her and asked, "What are you going to do with it?"
"Cut down four people."
"Aaaaaah! Didn't you say you wouldn't kill anyone?"
"Yes, I won't kill them."
She said she wouldn't kill, but Li Chang saw a sharp, fierce glint in her eyes. Li Chang still reminded her, "You're not allowed to kill people indiscriminately."
"Understood." With that, Ling Shu brought her index and middle fingers together in front of her chest, using her millennia-old demonic power to extend her senses and track the target across thousands of miles.
With the enhancement of demonic power, he could see for miles, and the environment in front of him was rapidly receding. His gaze focused on a figure dressed in black, and Zhao Chi's aura was as clear as if it were right in front of him.
Ling Shu took a step and rushed out.
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