"!"
The red puppet that pounced towards Chu Qi was cut through from head to ankle by the sword intent!
The puppet cracked, its blood and flesh turned charred black, as if it had been materialized, and finally broke into various small joints.
Under the scarlet sword energy, the remaining power crushed the pile of debris into powder.
The will-o'-the-wisp in the puppet's eye sockets went out.
Even if he used forbidden techniques and reached the Spiritual Transformation Stage, he still couldn't withstand a single sword strike.
A wind blew from nowhere, and the dust was blown away far away from Chu Qi.
All was quiet.
In just a few breaths, when Chu Qi came back to his senses from what had just happened.
A tall figure landed in front of him, the man's aura was fierce, like the sharpness of a sword. Red forbidden runes lingered around him, and the aura of a peak Spiritualization Stage was clear.
The sword energy lingering on the Guiyin sword dissipated because of the arrival of the person, and the vigilance and fighting spirit faded away.
—Because he is the master of these sword energies, Yan Jiuge.
When Chu Qi raised his eyes, the first thing he saw was a slender hand with distinct joints and thin calluses on the fingertips and palms. It was the hand of someone who held a sword all year round.
Looking up, I saw Yan Jiuge's face.
However, his current appearance is somewhat different from usual.
His eyes were a deep dark gold, like amber colliding with light and shadow; the red lines on his forehead were like flames, making his eyebrows and features more mysterious. At a quick glance, there was an indescribable feeling of alienation and indifference.
Yan Jiuge stretched out his hand towards Chu Qi, wanting to pull Chu Qi up from the ground.
But when his hand was halfway extended, Yan Jiuge suddenly came back to his senses. He now looked a little strange to Chu Qi.
In order to break the barrier of Qiucheng, Yan Jiuge removed the restrictions that sealed his cultivation and recovered from the Nascent Soul stage to the peak of the Spirit Transformation stage. The appearance that was hidden by the seal was also revealed.
Chu Qi blinked.
He raised his hand and placed it on Yan Jiuge's hand that was suspended in mid-air. Then he pressed his fingers together and used the force to stand up from the ground.
The invisible strangeness and alienation all disappear at the touch.
Yan Jiuge's Adam's apple moved slightly. He was thinking about how to explain his cultivation to Chu Qi. Maybe he could use the excuse that it was the forbidden technique of the Yan family that caused him to be like this now...
However, once the first lie is told, more lies will be needed to maintain the truth.
What should we do when the truth can no longer be hidden
"Will there be any sequelae if such power is used?"
Before Yan Jiuge could think of what to say, Chu Qi asked him first.
Obviously, the first thing Chu Qi thought of was forbidden techniques.
Yan Jiuge was stunned, then shook his head, "No."
Skipping the explanation, his eyes fell on Chu Qi. While looking at him carefully, he asked, "Were you injured in Qiucheng?"
"I'm not hurt, but Qiu Cheng is a little strange."
Chu Qi was just about to tell Yan Jiuge about what he had discovered in Qiu City when he caught a glimpse of a metal puppet approaching in that direction from the corner of his eye.
The relaxed mood was brought up again, and Chu Qi hurriedly reminded Yan Jiuge, "Qiucheng's weapon refiner is dead, but Qiucheng's puppets are still there, so be careful."
"Okay, stay behind me and I'll take you out first." Yan Jiuge nodded. He also noticed those metal puppets that were ready to move.
Without a controller, the combat effectiveness of these metal puppets has declined.
With a flash of sword light, a broken puppet fell in front of Yan Jiuge. For a sword cultivator at the peak of the Spiritualization Stage, facing these semi-finished puppets was just a matter of a flick of sword energy.
Moreover, at this time, other Tianxuan Sect disciples, as well as Yan family members and Bodhi Sect disciples came from not far away. They entered Qiucheng to provide support.
First, the sword cultivators of the Tianxuan Sect cut the puppet into pieces, and then the Buddhist cultivators of the Bodhi Sect liberated the wronged souls. With the cooperation of the two parties, the number of metal puppets was decreasing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Everything is moving in the right direction.
It won't be long before Qiucheng can return to normal—
Chu Qi's steps forward suddenly stopped, and he looked up at the city he was in. Even though the refining pool was mostly destroyed by Yan Jiuge's sword intent, the rest of the city was still intact.
Gold is for the walls and jade is for the tiles.
The autumn city is still quietly prosperous.
"Something's not right." Chu Qi muttered to himself.
"What's wrong?" Yan Jiuge, who was closest to him, turned around and asked him.
Others cast inquiring glances, wanting to know what was going on.
"The gold in Qiu City is all fake. It was transformed by spiritual magic. The weapon refiner has long been dead. This city was created by him. The spiritual magic should have dissipated."
Chu Qi spoke out his doubts.
"Is the weapon refiner really dead?" Yan Chi's face became even more confused when he heard his words. He pointed at the metal puppets in front of him that were still approaching them, "Why are these puppets refined by him still able to move? Once the master dies, they should become useless."
“…” The air was silent for a moment.
Chu Qi turned his head and wanted to confirm whether the weapon refiner Yan Kuwu was alive or dead.
He remembered it very clearly. The sword formation he set up pierced through Yan Kuwu's head and killed Yan Kuwu beside the refining cauldron.
Chu Qi's words suddenly stopped in his throat.
In the sight, Yan Kuwu, who had a big hole on his head, was walking out from the direction of the refining cauldron step by step. His steps were strange, and his limbs even looked a little twisted.
"All the puppets have arrived. The master has been waiting for you for a long time."
"Yan Kuwu's" mouth did not move, but a strange tone came out of his body, like a monster learning human speech in a hoarse voice, and his laughter was harsh and creepy.
As soon as Yan Kuwu finished speaking, a sharp sword energy slashed towards his face, easily cutting his body in half.
But Yan Jiuge frowned and did not look happy.
Because not long after, the broken body put itself together again in a twisted posture, like the joints of a puppet, and stood up from the ground.
The voice of "Yan Ku Wu" chuckled.
"My body was given to me by my lord. What can you do to me? I'd better save my energy and wait for my lord's arrival."
"… "
Yan Chi frowned, the thing he was most worried about finally happened -
"Why did the evil spirit come to Yunhua Realm again?"
As early as two months ago, the Yan family used the Yan family treasures to repair the cracks in the space barrier. But now, the evil spirit has appeared in Yunhua Realm again.
"Maybe it was missed last time." Yan Jiuge spoke calmly. He took a step forward and protected Chu Qi behind him calmly.
Then he told Tianxuan Sect and others, "All fellow disciples, evacuate Qiu City. It is too dangerous here. And fellow Taoists from Bodhi Sect, do not stay here either."
"First Senior Brother..." Liu Weiming and the others rarely hesitated because of his orders. The more dangerous it was, the more they should advance and retreat together. How could they let the First Senior Brother take the risk alone
"You'd better retreat as soon as possible." Yan Chi advised.
The evil spirit is difficult to kill. Apart from the Longyin sword in Yan Jiuge's hand, only the special sealing spell carried by the Yan family can remove it.
Other ordinary monks who stayed here would be of no help and might even be a hindrance.
"Then let's evacuate from here first." Gui Chen did not force it. He could see to some extent that the chief disciple of Tianxuan Sect was special.
However, the changes came very quickly.
At that time, the Yan family's attention was attracted by "Yan Kuwu", and Tianxuan Sect, Bodhi Sect and others planned to retreat.
Chu Qi was performing a range-enhancing magic spell, and just when the spell was about to be completed, his left wrist was suddenly strangled by a vine ring, forcing him to stop.
"!"
Before he could ask the reason for the vine ring, an astonishing force suddenly burst out from behind "Yan Kuwu".
It was not as murderous as Yan Jiuge's sword intent, nor was it a strong pressure that could crush everything. Instead, it was an invisible stagnation, like mental torture, which made people see hallucinations in a trance.
A slender white puppet walked out from behind "Yan Kuwu". It had no face and there were obvious scars on its head.
Its steps were slow, but its fingers kept jumping, as if it was playing on the strings, with its knuckles flying. As it moved, everyone stopped moving uncontrollably.
[play-]
[It’s about to start—]
Chu Qi heard one or two vague words, then his vision blurred and the figure of the puppet disappeared into the air.
The scene around Chu Qi began to change constantly. It was as if an invisible hand stretched out from the void, pulling his consciousness down.
This is a sign of an impending illusion!
But with Chu Qi's strength, he was unable to stop it.
At this critical moment, the vine ring in Chu Qi's hand burst out with light, protecting him alone.
Abundant spiritual energy enveloped Chu Qi, pulling him from the chaos of consciousness into reality.
A flash of confusion flashed across his emerald eyes, and Chu Qi quickly came to his senses. He subconsciously looked in the direction of Yan Jiuge and asked Teng Huan, "And Yan Jiuge, please protect him as well."
However, the vine wreath revealed an emotion of regret, conveying its helplessness.
Around him, the figure of "Yan Ku Wu" had disappeared, and the strange puppet also disappeared. The culprit seemed to have completely disappeared from Qiu City, and the Golden City returned to its original appearance.
But the people in the city were all deeply trapped in the illusion, with blank eyes.
Unable to find the puppet, Chu Qi focused his attention on Yan Jiuge. No matter how he used spiritual techniques, he could not pull him back from the illusion.
Why is this happening
Chu Qi gritted his teeth.
Just when Chu Qi wanted to contact the head of Tianxuan Sect for help, not far behind him, Buddha's light suddenly flashed on the bodies of the disciples of Bodhi Sect, gradually dispelling the state of illusion that they were trapped in.
The first person to recover his mobility was Gui Chen, the chief disciple of Bodhi Sect. Although the other Buddhist disciples were a beat slower, they also gradually returned to normal.
"Bodhi Sect fellow, how did you escape from the illusion?"
Chu Qi's tone was extremely urgent and his expression was pleading.
(End of this chapter)