More than a month has passed, atop the sacred peak.
When the frigid peak reaches its extreme cold, not even a single snowflake can be seen. Looking around, it seems as if everything has been frozen, leaving only large chunks of ice. The extremely low temperature makes the flowing blood seem to solidify within the body, and even spiritual energy is affected.
'Pfft—'
With the sound of ice being pierced, the tip of the longsword sank into it, and a slender figure in a heavy crimson robe stepped onto the blade of the longsword, pressed against the edge of the divine peak.
Nguyen Thanh An went to great lengths to conceal his whereabouts.
The cold wind howled, whistling past my ears like ice knives, as if it wanted to scrape my bones and leave me covered in wounds.
Ruan Qingan stepped on the blade and managed to rest for a while.
037: [Ancestor, do we... really have to go up there?]
"The Divine Peak is the highest point in the cultivation world, hidden in the Central Plains, nestled atop the clouds. There are rumors that the Divine Peak is a creation of the heavens, and others say it is a natural barrier descended from the sky, but both are shrouded in mystery."
Ruan Qing'an paused: "During this time, after arriving in Zhongzhou and finding the location of the Divine Peak, we climbed upwards. After passing through the clouds, we could not see any trace of cultivators. The originally warm Zhongzhou became extremely cold and terrifying after passing through the clouds of the Divine Peak."
"In my opinion, this is a forbidden zone, and a method that no human could possibly use. Rumors shouldn't be taken at face value, but perhaps the Divine Peak is indeed the closest place to the heavens, and being closest to the heavens also means—"
037 also realized: [This means that the place closest to the Heavenly Barrier, the barrier of the small world, is where the Heavenly Dao resides!]
Now I understand, our ancestors came to investigate the ways of Heaven.
Ruan Qing'an nodded: "Do you still remember the ancient book that Lou Yunqi gave you? It mentioned a sentence in it: 'A natural Dao body is a gift from heaven. One is born close to the Dao of Heaven and in harmony with the Dao of Heaven. Only then will one receive divine assistance, because one is supported by the Dao of Heaven.'"
037: [In layman's terms, isn't he just Heaven's favorite son?]
"But look at Shiyi and Zhou Ziqi, are they on good terms? If you put the Heavenly Dao into Shiyi, and then put Shen Changlin into Zhou Ziqi, little system, why do you think the Heavenly Dao would help him?"
037 was momentarily speechless: [...It's a bit chilling to think about.]
After a brief silence, Ruan Qing'an looked up at the summit of the divine peak that was so close at hand: "So, I want to go to the place closest to the Heavenly Dao and see—what the Heavenly Dao wants to do."
As soon as she finished speaking, she lightly leaped with her toes, and the long sword she was standing on shattered again from the cold, leaving not a single fragment.
Because she gave her sword to Shen Changlin, she used only cheap, low-quality ones along the way, and countless of them broke along the way...
Ruan Qing'an, who had very few spirit stones left, felt his heart bleeding.
But she quickly gathered her thoughts, channeled her spiritual energy into it, and leaped lightly into the air. The shield blocked the howling cold peaks, and she landed on the summit of the divine peak. And right there—the temperature suddenly rose.
A pale golden aura of the Heavenly Dao enveloped the area, isolating it from everything.
The force, subtly intimate, clung tightly to her.
Ruan Qing'an lowered his eyes, raised his hand, his fingertips covered in sticky, sticky Heavenly Dao power: "A forbidden zone that no one can visit..."
"Is it because Heaven has lifted its restrictions on me that I was able to come here?"
At the summit, there was only a small, empty space to stand, except for a chessboard in the center. It seemed as if someone was playing a game against them, and after half a game, they had disappeared.
Even the howling cold wind had disappeared. Ruan Qing'an squatted down, raised his hand and pressed it on the chessboard. His divine sense was instantly drawn into it!
This is indeed a game of chess.
His strategy was far more far-reaching than Zhan Hongyuan's, like a patient hunter quietly setting up his net and waiting patiently.
Ten years, a hundred years, a thousand years, ten thousand years...
She didn't know how much time had passed, but when Ruan Qing'an staggered back half a step, her outstretched fingertips were trembling uncontrollably.
037: [Ancestor, what did you see?]
"...Little system, do you still remember what was said in the ancient book?"
Upon hearing this, 037 was slightly taken aback: ['A naturally born Daoist body is a gift from heaven, inherently close to and in harmony with the Dao.']
The next moment, 037 suddenly fell silent.
Ruan Qing'an then said in a deep voice, "Yes, the innate Dao body is most compatible with the Dao of Heaven. Why was I able to cross the clouds and step into the sacred peak of the forbidden zone of living beings? Why was I able to discover these things?"
"First, even Heaven itself did not expect me to come here."
"second……"
Ruan Qing'an subconsciously raised her head and looked up at the sky. At the top of this sacred peak, it seemed as if she could reach out and touch the edge of the sky. The cold wind howled, and the vast expanse around her made her feel as if she were the only person left in the world.
In the deathly silence, her voice was slightly hoarse: "Because the Heavenly Dao is no longer watching this place, or rather... it has descended."
...
Half an hour ago, in a remote, frigid land.
A streak of light flashed across the horizon, hurtling towards the distance. In the sky after the light disappeared, a faint crimson hue could still be seen, like a long river of blood, which sent a chill down one's spine.
The snowflakes, each as large as a mat, swept past on the cold wind.
Blood was still flowing from the long sword in Shen Changlin's hand. His face was ashen, as if he had lost all color in it. His plain white Taoist robe was completely stained red, and there was a bloody wound on his waist and abdomen.
But no matter how hard he tried to dodge, the powerful aura behind him relentlessly pursued him, even gradually closing in.
"Damn it..."
Shen Changlin murmured softly, his eyes shifting with uncertainty.
For the past month, he had been living a life of being hunted down, but the pursuit from the Wandao Sect and the Sanyue City was nothing, and even the ubiquitous rogue cultivators who wanted to kill him were not a threat.
The most terrifying thing is probably the two people behind me...
Shen Changlin's face was icy cold as he tightly clutched his wound. Suddenly, the hem of his robe fluttered without wind; alarm bells rang in his mind. The next moment—
He turned around abruptly and raised his long sword in an instant!
'bite--'
In the close combat, blades clashed, and Shen Changlin, already severely injured, was slammed hard onto the ground, crashing into the cold ice. The figure swung his sword and instantly closed in on Shen Changlin.
Despite the pain, Shen Changlin suddenly rolled over and dodged the attack.
Who exactly are you?
The cold wind was biting, lifting the corner of his clothes. Lou Yunqi lowered his eyes, but before he could speak, Shen Changlin's aura suddenly reversed.
Instead of conserving her spiritual energy to dodge attacks as before, she launched a fierce attack on him. But just as they made contact, she suddenly withdrew her longsword, kicked Lou Yunqi, and then retreated, not engaging in any further entanglement.
But then, invisible puppet strings attacked—
"Don't waste your breath on him, you crazy guy."
This sudden attack pulled Shen Changlin back just as he was about to escape. The puppet strings suddenly burrowed into his body, tightly controlling him in place, and even growing into his injured flesh.
"hiss--"
Shen Changlin couldn't help but gasp, but Mu Cangwu's sneak attack came at just the right time. He had barely tried to break free when Lou Yunqi's figure appeared in his field of vision, and then, the sword tip pierced through—
The pain in my chest spread.
Shen Changlin's pupils suddenly contracted. As his heart was pierced, he felt his life force draining away for the first time so clearly. Even the sky over the extremely cold land in his vision began to blur little by little.
It's as if, at the far end of the world, in a land of extreme cold, flowers are swaying.
Is it... a joyful reunion...?
The boy tried to raise his hand, as if to touch it, but found that even the temperature at his fingertips was gradually cooling down until it was completely gone...
Snowstorm raged across the desolate, icy plains of this frigid land.
Mu Cangwu retracted the puppet strings: "Is it completely dead?"
Lou Yunqi merely glanced at him dismissively, drawing his sword with one hand: "Fool, haven't I killed enough people already?"
Mu Cangwu's smile froze.
He glanced at the boy's corpse on the ground, large patches of blood already spreading out. He waved his jade-bone folding fan and said, "In that case, let's go."
The two figures flashed, just as they were about to leave—
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com