As the king of all birds, the Phoenix, how could its flight and escape techniques be comparable to two crawling serpents? The fiery red light of escape traveled ten thousand li, the sound of breaking air whistling like thunder, carrying the changes of the nine heavens and clouds like a divine bird in flight chasing and surpassing its prey.
And its prey, were two long serpents!
In the golden light of escape ahead, Hua Geng had already exerted all her strength to fly, the golden flowers beneath her feet spinning so fast they were almost invisible, only a rolling golden glow traversing the sea of clouds.
But the distance between the former and the latter was still rapidly closing.
Grandmother Hua Geng concentrated, simultaneously expending her divine energy to urge the light of escape and speaking to Qing Ling, "Qing'er, when the enemy behind us catches up, I will stop them. You just keep running forward, don't go back to Xi Shan, but run into the East Sea.
No matter what happens, do not look back. This Myriad Serpent Xuan Staff is a treasured heirloom of Xi Shan and must not be lost. You must keep it safe..."
"Grandmother, you don't need to say more. I will not escape alone," Qing Ling said slowly after taking a deep breath.
"No! You must go! If you don't go today, you will no longer be a member of the Xi Shan clan, nor will you have me as your grandmother!" Hua Geng's expression turned stern, her voice laced with anger as she reprimanded him.
Qing Ling was touched. Grandmother Hua Geng treated him so well. Though he was cold-blooded, he was by no means heartless. Though he was not a benevolent person, he was not a wolf with a heart of dog.
"Grandmother, please don't be anxious. Qing'er has a plan to repel the enemy. Things are not as serious as you say, where you must sacrifice your life to buy me time to survive. In this vast sea, even a Heavenly Tier cultivator would only find death."
Grandmother Hua Geng's eyes narrowed, the light flickering, "Alright, Grandmother will trust you this once, and take this risk."
With that, Grandmother Hua Geng instantly increased her speed again. The sound of wind and thunder roared in her ears, and the sea islands and oceans beneath her rapidly retreated behind them, covering ten thousand li in an instant.
But the fiery phoenix of escape was faster. The fire of breaking air directly burned the void. In just a few more breaths, it overtook Grandmother Hua Geng and blocked the golden flowers.
Grandmother Hua Geng paused, and the golden divine flower stopped.
The three of them, the two sides, confronted each other. Wind and fire swirled between Qu and Hua Geng. No one spoke, and finally, Qu moved first.
The firelight that filled the sky condensed behind him, forming a ten-thousand-zhang fire phoenix that blotted out the sun. The phoenix danced in the nine heavens, its powerful pressure far exceeding that of Grandmother Hua Geng.
Qing Ling's thoughts raced. This person had definitely touched the threshold of Da Luo, and was an extremely powerful existence among Tai Yi cultivators, let alone his origin...
Grandmother Hua Geng did not retreat, even facing the top predator among the primordial beasts, the Phoenix, the natural enemy of the serpent race, inherently restrained.
A golden giant python rose into the sky, its body like a dragon, its golden light 황색. Every inch of its scales had weathered the passage of time. The golden giant python floated into the air, coiling its massive head to confront the fire phoenix from afar.
This golden giant python was Grandmother Hua Geng's true form!
Qu, standing beneath the giant phoenix, saw this scene and raised his hand. The Wutong ancient zither in his hand flew up and merged into the body of the fire phoenix. The fire phoenix let out a long cry to the sky, its fan-like wings turning in four streams of light, revealing a crisp, melodious, ancient, and magnificent beauty.
The giant phoenix suddenly swooped down, stirring the clouds for ten thousand li, like a suddenly erupting volcanic lava mountain, engulfing the void with endless flames, and charging straight at the giant python.
The golden giant python's body meandered, its golden scales flashing like they were forged from gold and were indestructible. It shot out like a golden long sword, colliding with the giant phoenix.
Standing below the two ancient behemoths, Qing Ling felt so small at this moment. In an instant, the world seemed divided into gold and red. The collision between the giant python and the fire phoenix erupted with a deafying roar, shaking the East Sea into a thousand-zhang giant wave, and annihilating dozens of small islands nearby. Qing Ling stabilized himself amidst the smoke and ashes.
He was now looking up at the sky, where the fire phoenix and the giant python trembled again after the first blow. The giant python used its winding body to forcefully entwine the fiery red giant phoenix, while the giant phoenix desperately flapped its wings, its phoenix claws grabbing the snake's tail and tearing forcefully. The snake's head coiled around the noble phoenix's head.
In the phoenix's panic, Qu pointed from afar, and the Wutong fire zither within it vibrated violently, emitting a long phoenix cry that shook the eardrums and touched the primordial spirit.
"Qiang~"
The phoenix cry clearly carried some kind of sound dao divine ability, shaking the firmament and causing the giant python to stiffen, unable to move.
Even Qing Ling below, upon hearing this sound, twitched all over, clutched his head with both hands, and fell directly from the air into the sea. His human body, beyond his control, devolved from his legs into a verdant green snake tail, which gradually spread to his upper body, completely transforming into a seven-hundred-zhang azure giant python swimming in the sea before he gradually regained his senses.
"Such a powerful sound dao divine ability. Even the residual power made me so pathetic."
He came to his senses and quickly looked up at the sky. He saw that the golden giant python, directly targeted by this sound, was powerless. Its body drooped, and it was grabbed by the phoenix's claws, lifted high into the sky.
Qing Ling was greatly alarmed. The nine heavens were the domain of the Phoenix. If Hua Geng, already at a disadvantage, was taken there, she would be in grave danger!
He quickly swam his serpentine body, transforming into an azure rainbow that shot straight into the sky towards the fire phoenix.
Qu, standing in the air, saw this and sneered, "I almost forgot about another one. It'll be perfect to take it into my mouth."
Saying that, he clenched his hand in the air, and a fiery red giant palm appeared out of nowhere, pressing down from above towards the azure python.
Qing Ling opened his mouth and spat. The Sky-Covering Rope instantly transformed into a straight azure rainbow. The nine innate divine restrictions on his body were pushed to their limit, piercing through the fiery red giant palm and shooting through it. The azure python followed closely, continuing to ascend.
Qu let out a sound of surprise. A Heavenly Tier little snake could block his casual strike, which was unexpected.
He then reached out his finger again, intending to strike.
But in the next moment, Qing Ling transformed into his human form with a snake tail, his left finger pointing to the sky, the Sky-Covering Rope entwined around his left hand, its other end shooting out and entwining the giant phoenix in the sky.
His right finger pointed to the ground. The Xuan Tian Vine in his dantian manifested a illusory image, transforming into a giant vine reaching from the earth to the sky, anchoring Qing Ling's upward momentum.
With this obstruction, the golden giant python also reacted. It raised its snake head, and two enormous golden rays of light shot from its eyes like lasers, piercing directly through the giant phoenix's head.
The golden giant python then suddenly lunged, its massive body falling from the sky and rotating, its potential energy transforming into striking power. Its snake tail, carrying immense force, struck the second attack Qu launched at Qing Ling.
"Boom~"
The void shook violently, and even spatial cracks were torn open. A powerful wave of energy swept out in all directions, knocking down countless birds.
The golden python suddenly retracted and disappeared. Hua Geng emerged, spitting out a mouthful of blood that had been shocked back into her body. She looked at the Holy Son of the Phoenix Clan.
Qing Ling instantly retracted his Dao manifestation, enduring the violent fluctuations of his magic power, and flashed to Grandmother Hua Geng's side, "Grandmother, are you alright?"
"If I'm alright, can I still stand?" Grandmother Hua Geng glanced at him, then said, "The gap in strength between us is too great. Qing'er, you should leave quickly."
Qing Ling, however, smiled faintly, "Grandmother, it's fine. I have a plan to defeat the enemy!"
Saying that, he took a step forward and looked at Qu, who had retrieved the Wutong fire zither after the fire phoenix had dispersed. He raised his voice and said, "Senior, I already know your identity. If you truly intend to attack the two of us, then your identity will immediately be known to the Azure Luan Ancestor who came with you."
Grandmother Hua Geng looked confused but did not stop Qing Ling.
Qu was initially indifferent, but upon hearing the last sentence, his perfect phoenix eyes narrowed dangerously. "No matter what you know, it's enough to kill you."
Qing Ling quickly threw out eleven green light clusters, saying, "These are spiritual charm puppets I refined, twelve in total!"
Qu lowered his head, plucked a string on his zither, and said unhurriedly, "So, the missing one was left on Miao Zhu Island?"
"That's right! Senior is indeed powerful. That remaining puppet is only at Heavenly Tier strength, but it only takes me one breath of time to make it transmit a message throughout the entire Miao Zhu Island, revealing a secret about Senior, a secret in your primordial spirit!"
"Zheng~"
The Wutong ancient zither instantly erupted with a great burst of firelight that swept over. Grandmother Hua Geng quickly extended her hand and pushed, and over a thousand golden flowers bloomed, transforming into a golden ray that blocked the sea of fire.
"You seek death!" Qu's face instantly contorted with rage. "If you speak of this today, I will make you suffer the pain of your soul being burned by ten thousand fires!"
Qing Ling smiled, "But if I don't speak, will Senior let us go? I promise not to speak, and will Senior truly believe me?"
Qu's anger subsided slightly. He said coldly, "Then tell me, what secret is in my primordial spirit?"
Qing Ling's eyes flickered. He opened his mouth but did not speak the words. Instead, he transmitted his primordial spirit to Qu, "The physical body of the Phoenix Holy Son is of acquired origin. As for Senior, although you have hidden your true strength extremely well, you cannot isolate me, a fellow innate spirit, from my special senses for innate spirits.
If I am not mistaken, the true Phoenix Holy Son has long since perished! The current Holy Son is a soul possessing an innate spirit!"
Qu's face instantly tensed. He laughed in extreme anger, "Truly underestimating the beings of this world! Even a Da Luo Ancestor cannot see this secret, yet a mere Heavenly Tier has seen through it!"
Upon hearing this, Qing Ling couldn't help but sigh. He had long sensed an innate energy surrounding this Holy Son. He had initially thought it was the aura of an innate spiritual object, but when this person unleashed his sound dao divine ability earlier, the innate energy he sensed emanated from his primordial spirit.
However, the physical body of the Phoenix Holy Son was clearly an acquired one. An acquired body with an innate primordial spirit meant either reincarnation of an innate spirit or possession.
Clearly, Qing Ling had guessed correctly. This Phoenix Holy Son, a being of immeasurable nobility, had actually been possessed by a fragment of a soul from an innate divine being!
Qing Ling smiled, "Senior, if you let us go today, I swear I will never let a second person know!" He did not tell Grandmother Hua Geng. The more people knew, the more their hearts would be tested.
To scheme against a prehistoric overlord, the Phoenix Holy Son, if discovered by the Phoenix Clan, even the most powerful ancient ancestors in the world would face the danger of being suppressed and annihilated by the immortal volcano.
Qu said coldly, "There's no need to mention oaths. Since you've spoken, you must have the confidence to restrain me. Tell me what you intend to do."
Qing Ling's heart rejoiced and he smiled, "This is not difficult. We will plant a means within each other. We will leave first, and then Senior will return to Miao Zhu Island to erase the core of that puppet. Then, after ten years, we will withdraw our respective means, how about it?"
Qu's eyebrows twitched. After a moment of thought, he nodded, "Good! In that case,..."
"In that case, allow me, the junior, to plant it in Senior first. After all, Senior's abilities are divine, and this junior dares not be without precautions," Qing Ling hastily interrupted, inserting himself.
Qu pondered for a moment and then transmitted his voice, "Alright, I don't believe you have the guts to do anything extra. If I am truly destroyed, then you will have forged this karma with me. And not just one Da Luo Golden Immortal, but two! Weigh it carefully yourself. The world is vast, and in my eyes, you, a mere Heavenly Tier, are just a matter of effort!"
Grandmother Hua Geng did not know what Qing Ling had said, but only saw them transmit messages for a while before beginning to plant means on each other. She couldn't help but ask worriedly, "How effective are your means against a Tai Yi cultivator?"
Qing Ling said, "I dare not guarantee anything else, but if he acts rashly, then Grandmother will surely be able to defeat him."
Saying that, Qing Ling spread his hand, and a drop of ink-green crystal floated up, slowly flying to Qu.
"Please, Senior, swallow this crystal."
Qu snorted coldly. A point of fire light flowed through his hand, and a black and red flame flew to Qing Ling. "After I swallow this crystal, you must immediately swallow the Nirvana Fire, otherwise, I will strike with lightning, and one of you will die!"
Qing Ling examined the terrifying black and red flame in front of him and nodded heavily. Seeing Qu swallow his Ten Thousand Tears of Sorrow, he also swallowed this black and red flame.
As the flame entered his body, it was instantly transferred by Qing Ling into his dantian world, where it was enveloped by the vast water of spiritual energy, then completely entwined by the Sky-Covering Rope, and finally sealed with the Fu Chun Divine Seal. Several layers of means were used to tightly seal this wisp of black and red Nirvana Flame.
"Senior, can we go now?"
Qu scrutinized him up and down. The killing intent that had been as solid as substance in his eyes receded. "You'd best pray that you never appear before me again. The next time, there will be no means to save your life!"
Hearing this, Qing Ling was neither afraid nor intimidated. He simply turned to Hua Geng and said, "Grandmother, let's go quickly!"
Although Hua Geng was greatly astonished, she did not hesitate at all. She immediately activated her light of escape at high speed, taking Qing Ling and flying towards Xi Shan. Here, she was no match for this person, but within her clan's territory, she had a great deal of control over the land of Xi Shan. On Xi Shan, her combat power could be amplified by thirty percent with the help of the power of heaven and earth, not to mention the various hidden trump cards of the clan. As long as it was not a Da Luo Supreme Being attacking, there would be no danger of her perishing!
Qu watched the two escape. Golden light flickered in his mouth, and a bright yellow divine light appeared on his chest. Then, he coughed violently, spitting out that drop of azure crystal.
He sneered, "A mere Heavenly Tier, even if it's an innate spirit, what means can it have?" Saying that, he flicked his finger, intending to flick the azure crystal away and then accelerate to catch up with the two long serpents. He had no intention of letting go of the living beings who knew his secret.
However, the moment his finger touched it, the azure crystal suddenly dissipated and "disappeared." Countless tiny, molecule-sized life-sucking poison bullets scattered and attached themselves to Qu's face, as well as his arms and neck, instantly integrating into his body. A force that devoured life began to circulate within his body.
Qu's expression changed instantly, and he cursed, "Damn long worm!" His once handsome face was now contorted with ferocity, veins bulging on his forehead. The life-sucking poison in his body was madly draining his vitality. Although it did not directly affect his primordial spirit with the abnormal pain of life-plundering, it was certainly unbearable for ordinary people. Endless pain coursed through his muscles and bones.
This poison was Qing Ling's unique Thousand Tears of Sorrow, but the one Qu had taken was the Ten Thousand Tears of Sorrow he had condensed after achieving Golden Immortal strength!
(4170 words)