Chapter 1438
Black Paint
Chapter 1438 Black Paint
The void was dark and gloomy.
A fierce wind howled in southern Xinjiang, dark clouds filled the sky, and the dense forest was shrouded in darkness, appearing even more gloomy and terrifying. Yet, a supernatural being silently traversed the area and stopped in the clouds.
The leader was dressed in white, with an excellent appearance and a sword on his back. A step behind him was an old man in red, with white hair and a look of doubt on his face.
These two were none other than Fu Xuan, the Daoist Master of the Pure One Dao, and Ji An, his guest elder.
Since the decline of the Sun Dao lineage, the Pure One Dao has always been cautious in its words and deeds. Although there are disputes at sea, they are all handled by Guanghou, who is in the mid-stage of the Purple Mansion realm. The rumored Fuxuan is still in seclusion and does not seem to be particularly dazzling.
But now, the two people standing in the clouds are both Great Immortals!
In the hundreds of years of history of the Sun Dao lineage, the time when two Great Masters could be gathered together was almost always the most dazzling moment for each lineage. The last time the Pure Dao lineage had such glory was not long after its establishment.
However, Fu Xuan showed no sign of pride.
Those who are family know their own situation. Although Ji An has become a Great True Person, he is already nearing the end of his life. Otherwise, he would not have been willing to become a guest elder in the Pure Dao Sect. He was not a True Person cultivated by them, and all he sought was protection after his death.
Fu Xuan now understands that the lords have made arrangements for the Pure Dao, and he has no intention of being proud. Moreover, in his opinion, even if the two of them act together, they are no match for Yuan Shang when he had perfected the Taiyin Divine Power.
He had already decided to keep a low profile, but now he had no choice but to come:
'Moonlight of the Moon…'
The Great Master's gaze was deep as he stared at the dark southern border below. Ji An, standing beside him, was equally deep in thought. The joy that the Great Master had brought him was fleeting, but aging was like a death warrant, constantly reminding him of his impending doom.
The two waited for a while, and then saw that a real person had arrived from the other side of the clouds. Riding on the light of day, he laughed and said:
"Two esteemed masters, please come this way!"
So he followed the immortal down the mountain, took his seat, and saw a young man standing in the mountain. Only then did Li Ximing speak seriously:
"This is Xian Chan, a good friend of Liu Bai Zhenren. He has suffered greatly at the hands of Shen Lu Fu. Those demon kings who are on the left and right or who have submitted to Shen Lu Fu will be dealt with by them."
After saying this, he turned to look at the old man and smiled:
"congratulations!"
Fu Xuan nodded slightly, but Ji An was quite embarrassed. He bowed to Li Ximing and said:
"It was just luck... I've been stabilizing my cultivation in my cave, taking medicinal herbs to extend my lifespan, and haven't had a chance to meet the True Immortal yet..."
When Ji An needed something from him back then, he naturally spoke very politely, saying things like he would visit again after his breakthrough and have more opportunities to interact with the young master. But ultimately, these were just empty words. Although Li Ximing felt something was off, he didn't take it to heart, and secretly thought:
'So that's how it is...no wonder he insisted on having this "Great Separation Book".'
After obtaining the "Great Li Book", Li Huo Zi Fu was able to consume wood-based medicines. Depending on his cultivation level, he could experience various indescribable wonders, making him somewhat like a wood-based cultivator. Ji An's lifespan was in imminent danger, but he obtained this supernatural power at the last moment and used it to consume various spiritual medicines he had prepared over the years, thus extending his lifespan!
Back then, Ji'an was afraid of being controlled by the Li family, so he naturally wouldn't mention this concern. He even deliberately mentioned that all his family's assets had been exchanged for spiritual resources for breakthroughs, so as not to let the Li family think about this aspect.
'He's really got some experience after all…'
He shook his head and laughed:
"The old master is capable, so it's not surprising that he broke through."
Ji An gave a dry laugh, rummaged in his sleeve for a moment, took out a jade slip, and handed it to him, saying solemnly:
"I promised Your Highness back then, and I have kept my word. This contains my experiences from taking pills during my breakthrough and my insights from surpassing the Ginseng Purple Realm. It is of great benefit to cultivators of the Li Huo Realm. I should have delivered it to the lake myself, but now that I have met Zhao Jing, please take it to Your Highness..."
Seeing that he was somewhat prepared, Li Ximing knew that he didn't completely regard his family as a jinx to be avoided, and that he had obviously planned to come as promised. Only then did Li Ximing put aside his last bit of unease and smiled:
"I thank you on behalf of that kid, senior!"
"Don't dare!"
Fu Xuan listened for a while, then raised his eyebrows and said:
"That treasure..."
Li Ximing had come here after seeing Feiyuan on the lake. He simply smiled and nodded, then flipped his hand, revealing a small ink mountain in his palm. Fu Xuan's eyes lit up for once, and he took it with both hands, praising:
"My darling!"
So he closed his eyes slightly, found a cave, and went to carefully experience the wonders. Li Ximing and Ji'an sat down in the mountains. After seeing Fuxuan leave, Ji'an hesitated for a moment and then said:
"There is something I must tell the real person..."
Li Ximing raised an eyebrow, and smiled as he looked at the old man:
"I have a friend who has cultivated for many years, but now lacks a wisp of moonlight and wishes to ask me for help from the lake..."
"Oh?"
Li Ximing had anticipated this. Since he had agreed to Fu Xuan's request, Ji An, a cunning old fox, could guess eight or nine parts of the truth just by looking at the real person's attitude. It was not surprising that people from all directions would rush to gather around as soon as there was a hint of this.
He only said:
"What kind of moonlight?"
Ji An hurriedly said:
"She also knows that she can't be picky about these things. She's heard there's one called [Mysterious Moon Essence], which is very beneficial to her cultivation path. It would be best if there were any traces of it, but if not, there are two that are more commonly found..."
"Wow."
Li Ximing chuckled to himself.
'【Xuanqing Moon Essence】...Isn't that what we refined in batches back then, used to condense the Taiyin Spiritual Essence?'
But he looked troubled, so Ji An quickly said:
"She's willing to spend her entire life's wealth for spiritual cultivation! I originally wanted to ask someone else, but that place seemed unreliable..."
This item was nothing special to the Li family, but as the Li family grew stronger step by step, Li Ximing really didn't have anything he absolutely needed, and thought to himself:
'I don't know who it is. First, I need to ascertain their identity to avoid aiding the enemy. Second, I also need to see what valuable items they have. If I were to exchange them so casually, it would be too ostentatious and attract attention. Not only would everyone come asking for them, but refusing would seem like offending someone!'
Having considered this, he made up his mind and sighed:
"This is a difficult matter. It can't be resolved by just a few words between you and me. It's also inconvenient for you to move around in the middle. Let your fellow Daoist come to the lake in person!"
Ji An was speechless. He moved his lips, seemingly wanting to offer some reasons, but he couldn't resist Li Ximing's insistence, and was even more afraid that Li Ximing would refuse him outright. So he could only say:
“I understand! I understand… I’ll go answer her right away.”
Li Ximing nodded, changed the subject, and brought up the situation in the southern border region, saying:
"You know what, although that old guy is a demon, he has a very close connection with the immortal path. There are also formations on the mountain. This Bifu Mountain has deep veins, so it would be troublesome to attack it directly. There are also Foundation Establishment level formations covering various places below. It's like a major sect!"
The Immortal Xianchan nodded. They, the demons of the Southern Frontier, were more than happy to have the Li family rid themselves of this mountain lord; they had racked their brains for a long time. He said solemnly:
"This old man is overly cautious. It used to be extremely difficult to lure him out, but ever since he broke through to the brink of a breakthrough and took action against those several witch kingdoms in the southern border, he has no choice but to act, and he is not as cautious as before."
"I've discussed it with a few fellow cultivators. He's currently in the Blood Forging Pool, so we could try our luck there..."
Ji An frowned and said:
"Blood pool?"
Xian Chan nodded and said:
"That Song emperor didn't treat the barbarians as his subjects. The old man took advantage of this loophole, destroyed those small countries, and relocated all the people from the north, building eight large ponds in all directions..."
"He's been refining it for quite some time now, leaving his subordinates to watch over it while he went into seclusion. We took advantage of his seclusion to seize some of the spoils, forcing him to emerge. He discovered that it wasn't just us who were involved; his own men couldn't resist the temptation and were lining their own pockets. The harvest from the pool was unsatisfactory, which greatly angered him..."
He said solemnly:
"Although he has turned back to seclusion, we all estimate that he is currently lying in wait, ready to strike. We can take advantage of this opportunity to outmaneuver him!"
The group talked in detail, and after only a few days, Li Ximing touched his sleeve and felt the golden talisman burning hot.
'My King of Wei has arrived!'
The immortal raised his head and immediately rode the wind to greet him. He met Li Zhouwei in the clouds and came down to meet him. Ji An's expression changed, and he respectfully went to greet him.
"Greetings, King Wei!"
Li Zhouwei sat for a while in the mountains, listening to the words of the Immortal Xianchan, who had devised a plan and first tried to lure him. The King of Wei interrupted him halfway through, gently shaking his head, and said:
"There's no need for such trouble. If you try to lure him out for no reason, he won't come out because he has the 'Looting Dew' in his sense."
He rose and strode forward, his eyes gleaming with a chilling light.
"If he values enlightenment more than his life, I will simply stand before the blood pool, and he will surely emerge. But if he believes his life is more important than enlightenment... he will cower and refuse to come out..."
The King of Wei said:
"I will go into the mountains and kill him."
……
"Splash..."
The torrential rain washed over the ground, plunging the forest into darkness. In the gloomy night, a wolf demon lay lurking, its face blue and its fangs gleaming, its hair and beard as red as fire. Several small flags were stuck in its back as it lay there listlessly.
But amidst the fine rain, faint footsteps seemed to be heard, and the wolf demon quickly got up and turned to look.
A man stood with his hands behind his back in the forest, his black robe flowing, his golden eyes coldly staring at him.
At first glance, the wolf demon seemed familiar. Its four eyes widened, and sensing the despair-inducing aura emanating from the other, its legs went weak, and it uttered:
"Grandpa! Grandpa, what's wrong..."
He had seen his own mountain lord before. When the Blood Pool was broken, the mountain lord had no choice but to come out of seclusion. His azure light was earth-shattering. But the bloodline of this lord in front of him was even more terrifying, and he was even slightly superior!
He only glanced at it, yet felt his liver and gall bladder rupture, his mouth tasted metallic, and he could only kowtow on the ground, while listening to the adult say:
“The people of Bifu.”
"It's... a little demon..."
Before he could finish speaking, the man in black robes said:
"Lead the way to your master."
The wolf demon spontaneously got up and shakily made his way up the mountain. The demons on either side seemed unable to see him. He passed through several checkpoints and formations before finally entering a demon cave.
The cave was even darker, and on the throne piled with white bones sat a huge demon, covered in light black fur, holding a cup in one hand and sipping wine.
The moment the wolf demon stepped into the hall, the black monkey frowned, about to reprimand him, but his expression froze instantly. He lifted his legs from the bone throne, knelt down with a thud, and said:
"This grandpa... Little Demon Black Monkey..."
The young man, who had remained as immaculate as a figure shrouded in ancient black ice, finally showed a subtle change in expression.
Li Zhouwei repeated:
"Black...Monkey?"
The demon suddenly had a bad feeling, but still managed a forced smile, looking obsequiously at the nobleman, and said respectfully:
"Grandpa...Grandpa, you've come at the perfect time! I've prepared some blood offerings here; they're all from people who migrated from the north..."
But the person in front of him closed his eyes slightly, as if he remembered something. His expression turned gloomy, and a sarcastic smile appeared on his lips. He seemed to be completely enraged and took a step forward.
He stretched out his five fingers, locked the black monkey's head, and slowly lifted it up. Its golden eyes seemed to be those of a terrifying monster lurking in the night, staring at him coldly.
Li Zhouwei murmured:
"It's you..."
Time seemed to stand still in the demon cave. Invisible black flames flickered everywhere, and there was a sound like some enormous creature dragging its feet on the ground. The demon was completely terrified, and its eyes reflected the huge golden pupils, as large as the sun and moon, behind the man in black.
He said, trembling.
"Grandpa...Grandpa...I don't know where I offended you..."
But he vaguely felt his body growing taller and taller, and those golden eyes returned to his field of vision. Li Zhouwei seemed to suddenly realize something, yet also seemed to say sarcastically:
"Someone like you..."
As he uttered the last word, his five fingers twitched only slightly.
"Oh!"
The monster exploded from head to tail in an instant, crushed by the opponent's physical strength as if it were an ant. The sprayed blood mist and bones existed for only a brief moment, leaving not even a speck of ash, dissipating like smoke.
"Ding-dong..."
Only one seal landed on the ground in mid-air, making a crisp sound.
Li Zhouwei slowly lowered his head.
It was a bronze seal, seemingly depicting the undulating landscape of a mountain gorge. The myriad patterns on it resembled fine streams flowing quietly, making it a vessel for water.
"Snapped…"
In the next instant, the magical artifact, which had been refined with the blood and flesh of countless people, was crushed into a thin sheet of copper paper. The man in black stepped forward, put his hands behind his back, looked at the throne of countless white bones, and slowly exhaled.
The demon that was originally meant to deliver a message had been destroyed by him, so he could only turn his head away.
The demons on the ground cowered and knelt like stone statues, hoping their demon king wouldn't see them. King Wei raised his hand, lifted the nearest monkey demon, and said:
“Go up the mountain and let the ginseng roll down.”
His anger seemed even greater than when he arrived, yet he appeared calmer on the surface, saying:
"Otherwise, let this mountain of blood pools and his chance to attain enlightenment perish together, and then I will go up the mountain to kill him."