Chapter 61 Yes, the Shangqing Sect is of paramount importance.
Wang Lifu asked, "What would it take for you to be willing to go to Bitan Mountain?"
Ling Shu crossed her arms and coldly watched the faint spiritual light dissipate from the cultivator. When she spoke again, her words were utterly cold and unforgiving: "I want you to kneel before heaven and earth, apologize to Wen Ji, and have a memorial tablet erected for my mother in the ancestral temple so that she can be worshipped by all the cultivators of the Shangqing Sect."
Upon hearing this, dissenting voices immediately erupted: "She's a demon! Why should she be worshipped alongside our ancestors!" "Making Sect Leader Wang kneel is utterly absurd!"
Ling Shu gritted her teeth, the words seemingly squeezed out from between them: "You won't agree? Then don't come begging me!"
The dissenting voices immediately disappeared; everyone was like a dog with its mouth shut, unable to utter a single bark.
Upon hearing this, Wang Lifu closed her eyes slightly, took a deep breath, as if burdened by some profound and unspeakable sin. She suppressed her magical power to avoid injuring others in her anger, and roared, "Ling Shu! What nonsense are you spouting!"
Ling Shu seemed to have heard a very funny joke: "I'm being ridiculous? Wang Lifu, please face reality, you are the one begging me."
Wang Lifu suppressed his anger and softened his tone: "Yes, I beg you, I beg you to save the Shangqing Sect."
"Then kneel down!"
Wang Lifu channeled a powerful burst of magical energy into the killing formation that trapped Li Xinzhi, then silently withdrew it, walked to the palace gate, faced heaven and earth, lifted her skirt, and knelt down on both knees.
She remained silent for a long while.
Ling Shu's anger subsided somewhat, but her silence displeased her again: "Apologize to Wen Ji."
Wang Lifu's eyes were red, but she held back her tears: "Wen Ji, I have always been sorry to you."
Filled with grief and hatred for the fate of the deceased, Ling Shu rushed over, stomped on Wang Lifu's shoulder, and questioned her: "Now you know you were wrong, but where were you when my mother gave birth in the dead of winter?! Where were you when she was being chased and killed while carrying me?! Where were you when she was surrounded and killed in the wilderness?!"
Everyone was speechless, knowing it was an old grudge.
Wang Lifu remained silent, simply enduring the situation.
Ling Shu kicked Wang Lifu hard, and the image of Wen Ji's body shattering into dust as she died flashed through her mind again and again.
The mother and daughter were all alone. In the dead of winter, they were beaten and thrown into the river. The icy water washed over their bodies, and she still feels lingering fear when she thinks about it.
She still remembered the kind words Wen Ji had said to Wang Lifu in the Tongxuan Secret Realm. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She couldn't understand how she could forgive someone who had abandoned her.
"You bastard, you've finally come to beg me for something."
Wang Lifu was kicked, her body tilted backward, but she clenched her fists, stubbornly refusing to fall. She couldn't let others see her disgraceful state, so she held onto her dignity and calmed her anger: "I will have someone make the memorial tablet."
Cang Luo chimed in, "Are you insane?! You're letting a demon into a cultivator's ancestral temple! You'll be a laughingstock of the world!"
Wang Lifu retorted quickly, "Are you just going to stand by and watch more than 1,300 people from the entire clan die unnatural deaths, allowing this evil spirit to grow stronger and then wreak havoc on the world?!"
Cang Luo's imposing manner also diminished by three points: "There must be other ways..." Then, seeing Li Xinzhi, a hint of murderous intent flashed in Cang Luo's eyes: "Why not kill her?"
“We cannot kill her,” Zhuang Jinfu said. “She has connected herself to the Desolate Calamity Array. The reason why the Transfer Array is called an evil technique is because it encloses the body of the person who sets it up within the array. If the body is damaged or destroyed, the array will self-destruct, and the Desolate Calamity Array will split into several arrays of the same type. At that time, not only the Shangqing Sect, but the entire Shangqing Realm will be affected.”
Cang Luo dared not move, but only glanced at Wang Lifu with pity.
"There's no other way..." the person kneeling on the ground murmured helplessly.
Wang Lifu lowered his head, like a crane that had renounced the world and bowed to its mundane surroundings.
Ling Shu was somewhat satisfied, but nothing Wang Lifu could do could mend the bloody hole left by Wen Ji's death. He said listlessly, "You'd better keep your word."
Wang Lifu looked up at her and asked earnestly, "Can you go and save the Shangqing Sect now?"
Shangqing Sect, Shangqing Sect, she only remembers her Shangqing Sect! Ling Shu angrily retorted, "Is the Shangqing Sect that important to you? You abandoned them back then for this damned Shangqing Sect!"
"Yes, the Shangqing Sect is as important as Mount Tai."
With that one sentence, a heavy responsibility was placed upon her, making Ling Shu seem inconsiderate and immature. There was nothing more to say. She flicked her sleeve and called out to Li Chang, "Li Chang, let's go!"
They discussed matters beyond the mountains, with Zhuang Jinfu escorting them all the way.
Ahead lay a familiar, wide expanse of green grass, upon which a huge circular red array lit up. Eight trigrams occupied the eight directions, and white, fluid-like cultivation energy drifted into the array from all eight directions. After entering the array, it rotated around the center, creating a small tornado.
To break the formation, one must enter it.
"Master, please don't see me off." There was still some distance between here and the center of the formation. Ling Shu called out to the person in front, "This formation can kill cultivators. It's dangerous. Don't go over there."
"This formation can also kill you." Zhuang Jinfu stopped and turned to look at her.
"My death is nothing to regret, I'm just a worthless life anyway," Ling Shu said casually, and started to walk away.
"I pity you."
These words stopped her in her tracks, "If you're pitiful, then don't..."
“It’s not about pitying her.” The man, as slender as a pine tree and as refined as jade, looked at her with unwavering eyes.
"If you keep talking, I won't be able to leave." Ling Shu replied playfully, avoiding some sensitive words, then turned back and waved to her, her smile as bright as the sun, "I'm going to save your people, wish me luck."
The petite and frail girl, together with Li Chang, stepped into the desolate calamity array, which was several times larger than her body. The enormous red circle resembled the gaping maw of a beast, and the two figures disappeared into the tornado.
Zhuang Jinfu waited outside the formation, when suddenly a possibility came to mind: the Desolate Calamity Formation was connected to Li Xinzhi. If Li Xinzhi died, the formation would self-destruct and split into several Desolate Calamity Formations of the same design. Therefore, it was necessary to suppress the killing intent of the Meridian Killing Formation towards Li Xinzhi. But what if Li Xinzhi committed suicide and they were to perish together?
not good!
She glanced in the direction of the Desolate Calamity Formation. With Li Xin dead, Ling Shu was the first person to die in this calamity!
Zhuang Jinfu didn't care about anything else and immediately flew back to the execution platform on his sword.
Outside the main hall of the execution platform, two long lines were relaying magical power to suppress the killing intent of the Meridian Killing Array, while Li Xinzhi stood safely inside.
Zhuang Jinfu breathed a sigh of relief.
"Why has Master returned?" a cultivator asked.
"It's nothing, I was just worried, so I came back to check on her." She walked over and used magic to trap Li Xinzhi in the Meridian Killing Formation, binding her hands and feet. She searched her body for any sharp objects like hairpins before turning away, relieved.
Just as he stepped onto the sword, someone shouted, "Something terrible has happened! Li Xinzhi has bitten his tongue and committed suicide!"
A white shadow flashed past in front of them, and when they looked again, they saw the handsome immortal rushing into the killing formation, grabbing Li Xinzhi's chin, and forcibly healing her wounds.
Zhuang Jinfu stared at her, his eyes filled with a chilling and ruthless intent: "Did I grant you permission to die?"
"Hahaha!" Li Xinzhi's mouth wound was healed by magic, yet she remained calm and composed, even becoming more frenzied. "You think you can save me from death just because you've healed my wound? Hahaha!"
Zhuang Jinfu released his grip after healing the wound, and the next moment, a mouthful of black blood vomited from the man's mouth.
This is poisonous blood, which means...
"I took poison long ago. I knew I wouldn't live past today, so I timed it perfectly and took it. I want all of you to die with me! I want all the talented people in the world to die with me!"
After saying this, she suddenly felt as if she had choked on a fishbone, unable to catch her breath. Just as she was about to fall to the ground, Zhao Chi appeared out of nowhere and forcibly fed her a pill. She swallowed it, and it transformed into a white rabbit.
Cang Luo immediately grabbed Zhao Chi and interrogated him, "What did you feed her?!"
Before Zhao Chi could answer, a gasp drew everyone's attention, and someone pointed to the sky and asked, "What is that?"
Zhuang Jinfu suddenly turned around. Five Desolate Calamity Arrays rose into the sky above the direction of Bitan Mountain. They crowded together and spread outward. Instantly, even she was affected. Her spiritual energy rose, her cultivation level decreased little by little, and her body became heavier and heavier.
Even she's like this, so what about Ling Shu, who's at the center of the formation...?
The crowd dispersed and ran towards the mountain gate. Zhuang Jinfu flew alone on his sword against the flow of people towards Bitan Mountain.
Cang Luo called out to her, "Qingxi!" Before she could respond, she rushed out like lightning.
Cang Luo caught up with her in no time and called out, "Qingxi! You must protect yourself. In six months, during the Dragon Boat Festival, there will be a natural disaster in Nanxi City. If something happens to you, what will happen to the people?"
"But if this Desolate Calamity Formation continues to split, the entire Shangqing Sect will perish in less than six months, or even in three days!"
"Don't go, I'll go." Cang Luo quickly stepped forward and grabbed her.
Zhuang Jinfu insisted on going, but suddenly a figure in purple flashed in front of him and blocked his way.
Wang Lifu said, "You are not allowed to go to Bitan Mountain."
"Master, I will definitely get out of here unscathed," she pleaded.
Wang Lifu said sternly, "Don't think I don't know your selfish motives. You'd better weigh the pros and cons carefully! Before the natural disaster, you are not allowed to go to any dangerous places. Canglu, take the Immortal Venerable back to Qingxi Mountain."
Cang Luo hesitated and said, "What about the other side of Bi Tan Mountain..."
"I have my own plans."
——
Ling Shu and Li Chang stepped into the Desolate Calamity Formation.
The powerful suction force was drawing away Ling Shu's cultivation, so she immediately learned her lesson and used her demonic magic to wrap herself in a solid protective shield, preventing her cultivation from being absorbed.
Li Chang remained completely unaffected: "Hehe, even the useless Li Chang has some use."
Ling Shu: "Stop talking nonsense and get to work."
The two steadied themselves and stepped into the tornado formed by cultivation energy. The energy swirled around them without stopping, and there was a calm spot in the center, which was presumably the core of the formation. Ling Shu rushed in.
Sure enough, there was a red dot on the ground. Ling Shu said, "The array eye is here. Bring the array-destroying pestle."
Li Chang handed it to her.
Ling Shu aimed the pointed end at the center of the formation, and then, as if hammering a nail, gathered a ball of magical power in his palm and struck down at the flat end.
With a "bang," the array's core shattered.
"It's done!" Ling Shu was overjoyed. He turned to leave and headed to the next Desolate Calamity Formation.
Looking at the cultivation tornado surrounding them, which seemed to be twice as big as before, Li Chang asked in confusion, "That's not right. Why didn't the cultivation tornado disperse? Instead, it's gotten even bigger."
His vigorous cultivation was spinning rapidly. Looking up, the sky was ablaze with red, with striking red circles and the Bagua symbol floating in the air, one after another, then splitting into several more from the middle. Ling Shu's heart tightened: "Oh no! Li Xinzhi might be dead!"
"Quickly, use your sword to take me up there!"
Disregarding their own safety, the two flew straight to the most dangerous place on their swords. At the center of several Desolate Calamity Arrays, Ling Shu's self-protection barrier shattered. She couldn't care less about protecting herself, gritted her teeth, raised her head, and launched one Desolate Calamity Array after another at the array's core.
Aside from her and Li Chang, no one could save the Shangqing Sect. This was the peace that Zhuang Jinfu wanted to protect, and she couldn't let her down.
It split too quickly; the two of them couldn't keep up with its speed. Several desolate calamity arrays pressed down on their heads, and the suction force grew stronger and stronger.
The left side of the atractylodes is weak while the right side is weak.
Just as she forcefully unleashed the Desolate Calamity Formation, the scene before her eyes blurred again. She felt her cultivation being continuously drained away, and a wave of dizziness washed over her, as if she had lost too much blood. Her body became unsteady, and she stumbled, her foot slipped, and she fell straight down.
Li Chang shouted, "Ling Shu!"
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