Qu Zhengfeng still remembers that not long after he returned from the West Sea, he heard that the high and mighty Hengxu Zhenren of Kunwu ordered a search of the West Sea, saying that "the most evil monster in the world is about to emerge."
But later on, there was no trace of this monster anymore.
So the matter was shelved. Later, he rebelled against Yashan and came to Mingri Xinghai, and no relevant news was heard from him again.
But I never expected...
Today, on that night ship with an obscure background, unexpectedly, this person, this great demon, was seen again!
"Ahem..."
The blood in his body was rushing and Qu Zhengfeng couldn't help coughing. He staggered a little and held on to the door frame beside him before he could walk up.
Hongdie hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not reach out to help him.
Someone like Qu Zhengfeng, given time, will definitely be as good as the silent master of the past, or even better than him. Why does he need help
only…
"You just said, big demon?"
At that time, Zhenren Hengxu had already made a conclusion, saying that this extremely evil monster was originally a mayfly, which was transformed into a monster by the help of heaven and earth and possessed the power to destroy heaven and earth.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with calling it a "big demon".
Qu Zhengfeng was suddenly puzzled by Hongdie's doubts: "It is indeed a great demon."
"… "
Hongdie was silent for a moment, her eyes swept across Qu Zhengfeng, watching him sitting cross-legged beside the table, enduring the pain, and her two lightly swept eyebrows slowly wrinkled.
"But I didn't feel any demonic power yesterday or today."
After swallowing a pill, the medicinal power immediately dissipated like clear spring water.
The injuries in Qu Zhengfeng's body were rapidly healing at a speed as fast as ice melting away. But Hongdie's sudden words made him pause.
"No demonic power at all?"
"You know, I am an ancient monster..."
Hong Die has practiced for a much longer time than most of the old monsters and powerful beings in the Nineteen Continents today. However, she is restricted by her demon body and the hidden world of Qingfeng Temple, so her strength is barely comparable to that of a cultivator in the Return to Void Stage.
But even so, such strength is rare in the entire starry sky.
Not to mention, as a demon cultivator, she has a natural advantage when it comes to sensing her own kind.
"At my level, I can sense any demon cultivators around me. Unless they have reached the highest level of cultivation, and have eliminated all the demonic energy, they are only one step away from becoming immortals."
Hongdie glanced at the piece of wood that she had broken off from the window frame, and her voice sounded a little solemn.
"But I also saw the scene from afar yesterday. At that time, I just thought that the old demon from the southeast wilderness had come and was fighting here..."
The mainstream of the Nineteen Continents today is completely monks.
Whether it was Zuo Sanqian in the Central Region or the Southwestern Aristocratic Family; whether it was the Sea of Tomorrow or the Southeastern Wilderness; whether it was the Northern Region Buddhist Sect or the Yin-Yang Sect...
They are all monks.
As for the demon cultivators
As early as when the power of the ancient monks rose, they disappeared in one war and encirclement and suppression after another.
Therefore, in the Nineteen Continents today, decent demon cultivators are extremely rare, and they often hide in the wilderness or live in the vast West Sea, rarely coming out.
Hong Die simply didn't believe that there was some "celestial demon" hiding here who had reached the pinnacle of cultivation and was about to ascend to heaven.
Qu Zhengfeng was also aware of these situations. However, he never thought that Hongdie didn't even sense the slightest demonic power!
But that young man clearly...
Great sounds are silent, and great images are invisible.
Compared to the ferocious and terrifying "centipede" in the hall, he actually looks very comfortable. Even every attack he makes has a sense of returning to nature, so natural!
It was as if he was nature, the universe.
The patterns covering his pale green robe certainly gave off a sense of dilapidation and oldness, but at that moment, those eyes held a new life.
It is hard to tell whether it is old or young.
Contradictory, but also natural.
Qu Zhengfeng had never seen such a strong enemy in his entire cultivation, and he even had a strange premonition that even Zhenren Hengxu, who was known as the best person among the three thousand left people in the Central Region, would be slightly inferior to this person.
Anyone who saw him would think he was a monster, but Hongdie said he was not.
no
What kind of existence would that be
The shadow of the hideous eyeless centipede in the hall passed through Qu Zhengfeng's heart, leaving a few faint traces. But when he thought about it carefully, he found that there was no trace left.
He slowly closed his eyes and said, "No matter who he is, it is true that he knows Jianchou."
"Do you know Jianchou?"
This was totally beyond Hongdie's expectations, and she was shocked.
But Qu Zhengfeng didn't say anything more about it.
His face was gloomy and cold. He just sat cross-legged, placed his hands lightly on his knees, and then suddenly made a gesture!
At this moment, an extremely fierce force burst out from the ancestral acupoint between his eyebrows. A deep blue wave started from the top of his head and moved towards his arms.
"puff!"
When the deep blue ripples approached, a ball of black gas as sticky as thick ink came out from his pinched fingertips!
Hongdie took a breath of cold air immediately.
The black air forced out by Qu Zhengfeng was not like ordinary evil air at all. It seemed to have life, constantly wriggling, trying to get back into his body!
When Qu Zhengfeng saw this, his eyes turned cold.
He raised his hand and grasped the black air in his palm, squeezing it hard!
At this moment, Hong Die clearly saw a mysterious and complex golden seal flash in his eyes which were as cold as a pond.
Then there was a "puff" sound, and the mass suddenly collapsed like a sac that had been punctured, shrank rapidly, and then turned into a wisp of green smoke and disappeared.
"This power..."
Hongdie was a little frightened and felt a little cold all over.
Qu Zhengfeng knew that this power was just the tip of the iceberg of what he encountered yesterday. The Nineteen Continents were so vast, who knew how many unknown strong men were hidden there
“If I break through to the Return to Void stage, I might just be able to fight.”
Return to the Void…
After hearing this, Hongdie looked at him with a more complicated look, and said, "Nascent Soul is a huge watershed. To advance to the Out-of-body stage, you must face the 'questioning of the heart'. You have been stuck in the 'questioning of the heart' for nearly four hundred years. After passing this level, your cultivation has improved by leaps and bounds. In just sixty years, you have reached the peak of 'entering the world'. You are only half a step away from perfection and advancement to 'returning to the void'."
Half a step.
Half a step back to the void.
In the entire Tomorrow Star Sea, perhaps some people have already guessed that he has reached the realm of entering the secular world.
But no one should be able to notice that he has already reached the pinnacle of the world, and he only needs that final step to enter the next realm and join the ranks of the true "powerful" people in the Nineteen Continents!
Unfortunately...
Qu Zhengfeng lowered his eyes and looked at his extremely pale palm after he pushed back the black energy: "It's a pity that sometimes, half a step can be a chasm."
The so-called "entering the world" means entering the "earthly world", the "secular world", and the "human world".
The key point of this state is actually very similar to the "mortal calamity" often mentioned in Buddhism. It requires the cultivator to truly experience all kinds of worldly things and have his own unique enlightenment before he can cultivate to perfection.
Hongdie herself follows the path of a demon, and her method of cultivation is different from that of cultivators. In addition, she is spiritual enough, so she did not encounter any obstacles at the so-called "entering the world".
But if Qu Zhengfeng is replaced...
He used to be the eldest senior brother of Yashan and he had climbed to the top of the One-Man Platform in his early years. His talent in cultivation was unparalleled, but the question of "questioning his conscience" had trapped him for four hundred years, and now he had the mental obstacle of "entering the world".
"During the 'questioning the heart' calamity, you wandered in hardship for four hundred years, which was understandable. But now in the realm of 'entering the world', you are still hesitant..."
In order to avenge Master Bu Yu, Hong Die came to Qu Zhengfeng.
She didn't want him to stop there.
"You don't have to completely eliminate the seven emotions and six desires, but you must be able to understand them. You have understood most of the joy, anger, sorrow, happiness, love, hate, separation and parting. You are just missing that last little bit."
Qu Zhengfeng himself knew where the last bottleneck was. However, after listening to Hongdie's words, he suddenly didn't want to pay attention to her.
"I have my own plans for my practice."
"But Your Majesty the Sword Emperor, this matter is not up to you—"
Hong Die actually interrupted him directly. At that moment, the gaze she gave him suddenly became sharper than ever before, as if she had seen through Qu Zhengfeng, and there was an unspeakable sigh hidden in her eyes.
"You must know that love is beyond your control."
"… "
The five fingers that were spread out slowly gathered together and clenched tightly.
The expression on Qu Zhengfeng's face at that moment was extremely unpredictable, as if thousands of emotions were passing through him, but with his seemingly unintentional lowering of his eyes, they were all hidden in the deep shadow beneath his eyelids.
At this moment, Hongdie could only see his motionless silhouette, like a towering mountain, with a heavy feeling full of power.
Somehow, I don't want to watch it anymore.
She turned around, pushed the door, and finally walked out.
Qu Zhengfeng was the only one left in the hall. He sat cross-legged with his back to the door, still as still as a mountain.
"See Senior Sister Chou!"
As soon as she entered the courtyard where Zuo Liu was recuperating, a shout of surprise rang out and reached Jianchou's ears. She turned her head and saw Xiaojin sitting under the eaves, holding a big watermelon in her arms.
Although sixty years have passed, Xiao Jin doesn't seem to have grown much taller.
Even her appearance, her weird-looking clothes, and the small braid at the back of her head haven't changed much.
When he saw Jianchou, he almost threw away the watermelon in his arms. He rushed to her like a monkey in three or two steps, his two big eyes shining.
"Big Sister, you are finally here. Senior Brother Bai Yin went out early in the morning to gather information, and Zuo Liu is in there recovering from his injuries. I really don't have anyone to talk to, and I am so bored!"
"… "
Jianchou's mouth twitched involuntarily, and the scene of Xiaojin's mother-in-law chattering and defending herself yesterday suddenly came to his mind.
He said it wasn't his fault for getting lost, it was all because the terrain of Tomorrow Star Sea was too complicated and the streets were too busy...
God knows that even a gentleman like Bai Yin was so angry that he rolled his eyes!
But when it came to the matter of getting lost, Xiao Jin was too talkative, and Bai Yin was overwhelmed by it. In the end, he had no choice but to succumb to his verbal attacks and reluctantly admitted that Xiao Jin's getting lost had nothing to do with him.
At that time, Jianchou was right next to them and witnessed the whole process.
simply…
Breathtaking.
When she heard Xiao Jin mention "talking to relieve boredom", she felt her head slightly expand, and suddenly she had an idea: "Zuo Liu is recovering from his injuries now, so there is no need to visit him, so I might as well just go."
cough.
This is certainly not true.
Jianchou coughed, gathering all the thoughts in his head. He walked inside and said with a smile, "I had something to do just now, so I went to find Fairy Red Butterfly and just came back. As for you, I just found out that you are the young master of the Jin family, a noble family in the southwest. Now that the matter of the Silver Building is over, why don't you go back?"
"I finally got out here, I'm not going back!"
With a "crunch" sound, Xiao Jin took a bite of the watermelon, and the juice splashed all over his fur coat. He didn't take it seriously at all and continued talking with a hum.
"It's going to be another Zuo Sanqian meeting in a few days, and I want to go and see the excitement."
Zuo Sanqian Xiaohui...
Jianchou was stunned for a moment, then vaguely remembered: Yes, sixty years have passed in a flash. The small meeting is held every thirty years, and this year is just the right time, isn't it
If I'm not mistaken, this year, we are still in Kunwu.
I wonder what Kunwu and Yashan look like now after such a long time.
Jianshou's thoughts suddenly flew away for a while.
It was not until she heard a slight "creaking" sound in front of her that she came back to her senses. It was Xiao Jin who helped her push open the door in front of her. She shouted without any hesitation: "Zuo Liu, Zuo Liu, Senior Sister Jianchou is here!"
There were tables, chairs and beds in the room, but Zuo Liu was currently sitting cross-legged on a cushion in front of Eucalyptus.
A spirit gathering and mind purifying formation was placed around him, gathering the surrounding spiritual energy for him. For a moment, one could see the phantoms of red lotuses, wrapped in karmic fire, rising from under him, and soon disappearing, and this cycle repeated over and over again.
Originally, he was very focused. But when it comes to cultivation, the most taboo thing is to be disturbed by outsiders.
Almost immediately after hearing Xiao Jin's cry, Zuo Liu stopped practicing and uttered a painful wail: "What a sin!"
Jianchou knew without thinking that the "evil" was definitely not referring to him.
Having been trapped in the polar region for a long time, she hadn't seen these old acquaintances for a long time, and it had been a long time since she saw them interacting and joking with each other like this.
At first glance, I do feel a bit of familiarity.
He just pretended not to notice Xiao Jin's deliberate rolling of his eyes in anger, and when Jianchou came up, he asked with a smile, "Are you recovering well?"
"No, it's nothing serious."
In front of Jianchou, Zuo Liu suddenly became a little restrained for some reason.
Now he had washed off all the dirt and changed into a clean Taoist robe. The embarrassment he had yesterday was gone, and he now looked very energetic.
"After taking the pills Senior Brother Bai gave me and meditating for a night, I have recovered almost all my strength."
Yashan has a profound cultural heritage, and it is no exaggeration to say that it is truly wealthy and powerful.
Jianchou had asked privately yesterday, Bai Yin really brought a million spirit stones, but like Jianchou, he had no intention of really giving it. He brought it just in case.
The elixirs of Yashan have always been made by the Dantang and are almost only used by disciples within the sect, so they are not well-known.
But if we really talk about effectiveness, it is not inferior to Baiyue Valley.
After hearing Zuo Liu's words and observing the circulation of spiritual energy around him, Jianchou knew that the problem was indeed not a big deal, and he felt much more relieved.
So he sat down and chatted with Xiao Jin and Zuo Liu for a while.
It’s been a while since we last met. They each had their own experiences. Zuo Liu’s sounded more miserable, and Xiao Jin’s… to some extent, it could also be considered “miserable”.
After all, for a young man who is particularly eager to be independent, the system of aristocratic families is too restrictive.
As for Jianchou himself, there is nothing to say.
What she had experienced was totally different from what Zuo Liu and Xiao Jin had experienced. She had no intention of showing off, nor did she want to complain, so she just made a few casual remarks, which made the other two bosses very unhappy.
It turned out that Chou didn't care about that. Seeing that it was getting dark, she took the initiative to end the topic and said goodbye to the two of them.
Bai Yin has been gone for almost half a day and has not returned yet. He must have found out some substantial information and cannot get away for the time being.
Jianchou thought about it and walked outside casually, at the same time pinching out a wind signal to ask about the progress.
But she had not walked far when a mirror-like lake in front of her came into her sight.
Jiexing Villa was built on a small hill beside a tributary of the Lan River. The appearance of this calm lake was really beyond her expectations.
I remember yesterday, I didn’t even notice the existence of this lake.
Maybe it was because it was too late when she came yesterday, and she was preoccupied and didn't notice it
At this time, the sun was setting, and the afterglow of the beautiful shadow spread out on the lake like a piece of smooth silk.
The lake is several dozen feet wide, not very big, with weeping willows surrounding the banks, and a few lake stones scattered along the shore. The water is very clear, and you can see the bottom at a glance, and it can be seen that it is not very deep.
only…
Even from a distance, Jianchou discovered that there seemed to be many things in the lake.
The afterglow of the setting sun shone through the lake, but there was some faint light from the bottom of the lake, which reflected up, passed through the lake surface, and fell into her eyes.
Jianchou suddenly became curious, turned around and walked towards the lake.
When she stood on the shore, she was surprised to find that—
This is actually a "Sword Lake"!
Under the lake surface that was dozens of feet wide, those faintly glowing objects were neither gems nor pearls, but long swords as bright as autumn water!
They look exactly the same, with no discernible difference.
Each sword was inserted upright at the bottom of the lake, allowing the flowing water to erode its edge and the dust to bury its cold light!
Looking around, there are tens of thousands of long swords stuck under this small "Sword Lake"!
Jianchou's mind couldn't help but tremble for a moment.
Somehow, she suddenly remembered the Yashan Arsenal she had visited in the past, those magical weapons and sharp blades buried in ice and snow for thousands of years...
"when… "
Suddenly there was a slight sound under my feet.
Only then did Jianchou realize that he had unknowingly stood on the shore of the lake. When he was walking forward, he was not careful and seemed to have bumped into something.
So he looked down.
It turned out to be a small, dark black sword-sharpening table with an ordinary iron sword casually placed on it.
What she touched just now was this sword.
But this is not even a real sword, at most it is a "sword embryo", the blades on both sides are only half sharpened, and the other half is very blunt, and it can be seen that it has not been sharpened yet.
It's ordinary, something you can find in any blacksmith shop.
How could such a sword appear in Jiexing Villa
Jianchou lowered his eyes and looked for a long time, thinking for a moment, but still could not figure it out, so he moved forward, bent down, reached out to pick up the sword and see what it was.
But I never expected that—
She stretched out her hand, and just as her fingertips touched the sword, a dark blue sword light burst out from the sword!
Before Jianchou could react, he felt a chill on his fingertips, followed by pain.
“Tick-tock.”
Blood immediately dripped from her slightly bent ring finger and splashed onto the dark sword sharpening table below!
Her body had been tempered through multiple layers of "Human-Device" body refining, but she was actually injured by an inconspicuous sword beam from an iron sword
His brows, like two distant mountains, were suddenly furrowed tightly.
Jianchou stared at the sword on the sword-grinding table that had not yet been sharpened, and was stunned for a moment.
When Qu Zhengfeng arrived, he happened to see this scene.
This female cultivator, who was quite at a loss when she was brought to Yashan by her master in the past, now has the talent and strength to stand on her own.
If you count carefully, it's only been about sixty years.
At this moment, the way she looked at this ordinary sword suddenly reminded him of the way she looked at another sword when she was choosing magic weapons in the Yashan Armory that day.
That mouthful, the three-foot green peak sealed in the glacier—
The best sword in Yashan is Yixiantian.
Qu Zhengfeng walked over slowly and said, "I thought that after you got the ghost axe, you would no longer look at the sword."