But at this moment, the wind suddenly started to blow.
A strong wind blew through, and yellow sand covered the sky, gradually filling the sky, blocking the blood-red setting sun, and like a dark cloud pressing down on a city, threatening to destroy it.
But this isolated city no longer has any defenders, nor any armor reflecting the setting sun.
There is only one man and one sword left in this city, that's all.
Amidst the yellow sand, a ray of rainbow light lingered in the air, transforming into an old Taoist with white eyebrows and a grim face.
Chapter 213: Renewing the Flame (4k
"The Taoist Qingzhuo seems to have arrived."
Qiao Mu, the corpse going by the alias Qiao Xiaoming, looked far away in the direction of the lonely city through the window. He saw a rainbow light descending from the sky and transformed into an old Taoist with white eyebrows.
At this time, he was in an earthen fort outside an isolated city.
This earthen fort was a hidden refuge built by the soldiers and civilians of the isolated city. In fact, Qiao Xiaoming and others only went to this earthen fort to avoid being affected by the Taoist magic of Qingzhuo, and did not run deeper into the desert.
After all, this desert is shrouded in the immortal sect's illusion formation. If you continue to run outside, you will only get lost in the wind and sand. Where can you hide
If they were too far away, it would be embarrassing if they were discovered by Taoist Qingzhuo who entered the desert first.
So they stayed in this earthen fortress which was neither too far nor too close for the time being.
Captain Hai and the old man in the armory were also watching and waiting, while at the same time treating the injuries of Captain Hai and other old soldiers who had previously been to the battlefield.
There were also emergency medicines prepared in this earthen fort, which were put to use now.
"Can we just wait here?" Captain Hai was a little confused:
"We can only place our hopes on Elder Qiao and Jian Zexian?"
He had fought all his life, from the age of twenty to sixty, and by the time he was sixty he was the highest-ranking officer in the city.
But now he had to pin his hopes on them while he could only wait behind the battlefield, which made him feel a little at a loss.
"The Sword Exiled Immortal is no match for the Taoist Qingzhuo. He was imprisoned here thirty years ago... He should not be able to defeat him now." Captain Hai tried to analyze the battle situation:
"So in this case, does it mean that the variable falls on Qiao Rusen, the old man?"
Although Captain Hai was not sure how strong Qiao Ruosen was, he thought that he should not be as strong as Jian Zexian.
And Jian Zexian is not as good as Taoist Qingzhuo... Could it be that if these two weaker people join forces, they will have a hope of defeating Taoist Qingzhuo
Captain Hai was very worried.
He has been standing on the front lines of the battlefield, and now it is others' turn to fight for him and he can't rest in peace, trying to analyze the battle situation.
"No... refining the spirit is refining the heart. The strength of a warrior who refines the spirit lies in his mind." Qiao Mu also spoke at this time.
At this moment, his real body was on the top of the lonely city, but he could also remotely sense and control his flesh and blood clone on this side.
"Forty years ago, Jian Zexian was already the best in the world, but thirty years ago, Jian Zexian did not fulfill his promise and did not compete with Wu Shengren because he did not want to win and did not want to take responsibility, so he lost the desire to compete."
"A swordsman who has no desire to fight may not be able to defeat a martial saint no matter how skilled he is in swordsmanship. So it is reasonable for him to lose to Elder Xiandao Qingzhuo. If he had won thirty years ago, it would have been incredible."
"But now, it should be different." Qiao Mu said:
"By turning his body into a sword, he has developed the belief that 'I am invincible' in the battle, which is actually in line with his sword-refining technique: Heaven-slashing Sword-drawing Technique."
When Jian Zexian first demonstrated the "Heaven-Cutting Sword Technique" to Qiao Mu, he just simply demonstrated the movements.
At that time Qiao Mu thought he was joking, but unexpectedly Jian Zexian said that he had no sword in his heart, so the Heaven-Slaying Sword Technique was in form but not in spirit and could not be truly demonstrated.
“But…” Captain Hai frowned and wanted to say something.
"Okay, Xiao Hai, why is it your turn to hesitate?" The old man in the armory smiled and shook his head:
"War is never a joke. It is not a simple comparison of the strength of the enemy and our own situation. Does it mean that we don't have to fight because the enemy is strong and we are weak?"
"If that were the case, we should have surrendered forty years ago."
The old man in the armory actually knew that the old soldiers like Captain Hai were just confused bystanders.
There are only 300 old soldiers left. They can leave the battlefield only when they are seriously injured. How can they have the time to watch the battle from the rear
Qiao Mu also listened to these words and narrowed his eyes slightly.
Qiao Mu and Jian Zexian waited on the top of the city wall for half a day, guarding the empty city for half a day.
Wait until the sun sets in the west.
This process is not just waiting.
Both of them were clearing their minds of distractions and building up their strength.
In Qiao Mu's opinion, listening to the words of these veteran soldiers who have been on the battlefield for a long time is also a way to build up strength and sharpen the sword before the battle.
Only by sharpening the sword can the true meaning of the Heaven-Slaying Sword Technique be brought into play.
Then, Qiumu can also die with dignity.
...
A strong wind is rising.
The old Taoist Qingzhuo came alone. He looked down at the empty city below his feet, and his brows furrowed little by little.
He naturally knew that this was an empty city.
It doesn’t matter whether the city is empty or not, because there are not many disabled and elderly people in the city.
The souls of the soldiers and civilians in this city are quite valuable to Dao Ni and other foundation-building cultivators, but as an elder of the immortal sect, he has a broad vision and will not be so petty.
I think maybe the soldiers and civilians in the city have gone to some place to take refuge, so we can just come back and search for them. It's a small matter.
He wasn't here for that.
The reason why he came all the way here was actually because of one person.
"Where is Lu Yannan? Where is Jian Zexian?" He looked down suspiciously, and his spiritual sense swept across the empty city bit by bit.
He subconsciously ignored the tall trees on the top of the city wall.
Because Qiumu was obviously an elderly warrior, alone, and not worth mentioning.
The Martial Saint is dead, the Exiled Sword Immortal was defeated thirty years ago, the path of martial artists has come to an end long ago and is not as good as the path of immortality, this is an indisputable fact.
But Jian Zexian was able to make him look up to him, so Taoist Qingzhuo specially placed him in this cage of a hundred miles of desert, using the soldiers and civilians of a city to polish his character bit by bit.
I thought that Jian Zexian had not moved for thirty years, which was a good change, but I heard that he finally took action. He had tempered his character for thirty years, but in the end he went astray. So he came here for this, hoping to save him... .
When Taoist Qingzhuo's spiritual consciousness swept across the empty city, a voice was heard from the city gate tower.
"Jianzhong, your father is here!"
The voice sounded teasing and frivolous, causing Elder Qingzhuo to frown immediately.
"What are you doing..." His eyes fell on the stone sword beside Qiao Mu, and his face twitched suddenly. He was obviously quite surprised, so much so that he forgot what to say for a moment.
"It's been thirty years, and you, a sword-like being, are finally willing to come and see me. You are such a filial son..." Shi Jian continued to taunt.
But Qiao Mu next to him suddenly interrupted: "Sword Exiled Immortal, you say he is a sword species and recognizes him as your father, aren't you insulting yourself as well?"
"Lu Yannan? How did you become like this..." Elder Qingzhuo's voice trembled slightly, with confusion and anger.
He glanced sharply and pointed casually.
A strong wind swept through, and more than a dozen houses on the long street were blown down by the strong wind. Dozens of stone statues of women that had just rushed out were also shattered into pieces by the strong wind and shattered all over the ground.
"Captain Hai and his men's stone statues... they're of no use at all, aren't they?" Qiao Mu complained.
"I was just teasing him, and you really believed it?" Jian Zexian's voice was still frivolous, as if he didn't take it seriously.
"You don't want to follow the path to immortality, but you are good at these kinds of unconventional tricks. How can you turn your body into a sword? What kind of evil way is this?" Taoist Qingzhuo frowned, and he looked intimidating without being angry. He sighed.
Speaking of the mortal body turning into a sword, the Exiled Sword Immortal also felt very depressed.
If there is no choice, who would be willing to do this
But facing the Taoist Qingzhuo who had locked him up here, he felt more angry:
"There is nothing in this lonely city. It's all gone. I have nothing but iron crotch skills. What use do I have for this iron rod?"
"Enough!" Taoist Qingzhuo shouted. His voice echoed in the city, and the wind and sand in the sky rose and fell with it:
"Lu Yannan, don't waste your talent!"
"Come with me back to the sect right now. I will ask the great masters in the sect to help you rebuild your body..."
Although they had just met, Elder Qingzhuo had already seen that Jian Zexian seemed to have thoughts of self-destruction, so he did not put pressure on him, but was very sincere, like a good teacher admonishing a prodigal son.
Taoist Qingzhuo imprisoned Jian Zexian here, using the vast desert as a cage and the remnant soldiers in the isolated city as a chessboard. He used the blood and tears of the soldiers of Jiuzhou for forty years to polish Jian Zexian's character bit by bit... With such a big move, how could Jian Zexian suddenly fail in the end
"Go to the Da Dao Sect? Will you take me in to be the sect leader?" Jian Zexian asked casually.
"You want to be the clan leader? You do have the ambition."
Taoist Qingzhuo continued to try to persuade him patiently. He really couldn't bear to see his hard work go to waste:
"The leader of this sect is one of the few Dao Lords who have reached the state of Divine Transformation in this world. No matter how talented you are, don't be arrogant."
"This world is full of living beings, and there is no shortage of talent. Don't take yourself too seriously."
"Only the nine great sects can lead to longevity. The secular martial arts are a dead end that cannot lead to longevity. The other small sects and independent cultivators are just clinging to their shortcomings. No matter how good their aptitude is, they can't go far. No matter how high their cultivation is, it is difficult for them to maintain it in the human world."
The overall environment is already very competitive, and the top cultivators are all occupied. Even if one relies on incense and talismans to assist in cultivation, there can only be a handful of Taoist masters in the God Transformation Stage in this world.
Therefore, after the great changes in heaven and earth, the nine major immortal sects particularly valued cultivators with outstanding qualifications.
A cultivator with extraordinary talent and outstanding combat power can be invincible in the same realm and crush his peers.
This is also the reason why Taoist Qingzhuo is more tolerant towards Jian Zexian.
If one can become a leader in martial arts by practicing martial arts, then naturally his character and means are good. If one has spiritual roots and turns to practicing Taoism, even if they are inferior spiritual roots, he will not do too badly.
What's more, for a genius like Jian Zexian who was born with the seed of a sword immortal, Elder Qingzhuo specially placed him in such a cage and used a city to slowly polish his character.
Spiritual energy is scarce, so those who can cultivate immortality against the odds in such an environment are more precious than ever before.
"I think I understand..." Qiao Mu's eyes were deep:
"You, the elder of the immortal sect, came to this city, but you didn't ask a single question about this empty city, and you only cared about the exiled sword immortal..."
"I thought the Immortal Sect sucked the marrow out of the bones, and even the souls of mortals who died in battle could not rest in peace... I didn't expect that the souls of the dead are actually not important, but just a stage for you to train disciples of the Immortal Sect?"
Inside the earthen fort, old soldiers including Captain Hai also felt a chill in their hearts.
They also didn't know that the souls of the old soldiers would be detained by the Immortal Sect after they died in battle. Qiao Mu only revealed this to them today, which made them feel sad.
The bloody and tearful history of the lonely city over the past forty years is like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, but in the eyes of the immortals, it is just used as a whetstone
"Who are you? Is it your turn to speak?" It was only at this moment that Qingzhuo Taoist took a closer look at Qiao Mu.
Ordinary warriors have never been valued by immortal practitioners, and the reason why Jian Zexian is highly regarded is not because he is a leader in martial arts, but because of his immortal qualifications.
"Qiao Morison of the Qiao family." Qiao Mu looked down at the deserted city:
"A soldier guarding the city."
"Defending the city? I find it funny when you say defending the city. Not to mention that there is no one in this city..." Taoist Qingzhuo joked, but his eyes gradually became deep. He shouted:
"This is just a carefully built theater stage. Lu Yannan, you have been watching this play for thirty years, but you still don't understand the meaning behind this play?"
He had no intention of paying attention to Qiao Mu, and his mind was still on Jian Zexian:
"Immortals and mortals are separated. What can mortals do if they sacrifice their own lives? What is the meaning of sacrifice?"
"The more bravely you fight, the better show you put on for us. Lu Yannan, do you want to continue to be an actor on the stage, or jump out of this stage and achieve immortality?"
His stern warning seemed to be some kind of magic. The sound was like the sound of a huge bell, echoing throughout the entire lonely city along with the sand and wind of the desert.
"Lu Yannan, you are born to be a heartless person. What does the life and death of mortals have to do with you? Your worldly ties are only a hindrance to your pursuit of the Tao. Don't make mistakes!"
Thick black clouds covered the city, and electric snakes were dancing among the clouds.
The suspended stone sword remained silent, as if it was also enduring the torture of the spell, and was only trembling slightly.
His magic seems to be similar to the witnessing technique of the spiritual warrior, which can directly reach people's hearts.
"Alas..." Taoist Qingzhuo sighed slightly:
"It seems that I have to take action to help you see how meaningless it is for these old soldiers to hold on..." He turned his gaze to Qiao Mu:
"Qiao Rusen, you are also a mere mortal... Since you are an old soldier guarding the city, you know the situation of this city. If I accept you into the immortal sect, you will have the opportunity to enjoy immortality..."