Beneath half of Mount Wuwang.
Deep within the mountain's roots, strands of Great Dao rules crisscrossed, presenting a magnificent and all-encompassing scenery. From the depths of these rules, a cage inexplicably emerged. In this cage, pitch-blackness prevailed, imprisoning the legendary Lin Baiyi.
Lin Zhao found himself in a world of darkness, sharing only Leng Yan's vision. At this moment, Leng Yan had just ascended the mountain on his sword and witnessed the scene of Liu Liying being slain by an Eleventh Realm demon cultivator.
Even Liu Liying's attempt to hide within the mural, leaving herself a path of retreat, was severed by Zhou Hai.
How vicious were the methods of that demon cultivator?
"Liying..."
Lin Zhao sighed, his eyes blurred with tears. In the end, he had failed everyone. Liu Liying could have left, but she didn't. She merely wished to accompany him to his death.
If the atrocities committed by the demon race against the Snow Region Heavenly Lake and the Mountain Peak Villa were not considered profound enmity, then what was?
His body trembled slightly, perhaps from anger, or perhaps from the weakness of being long offline. He swore in his heart that as long as he could recover his account and escape this cage, he would surely exact bloody vengeance. Together with the prevailing trend of the world, he would unreservedly exterminate the demon race and extinguish the Neon Dress Realm!
...
Fusuo Great Wall.
The city walls were shrouded in darkness. There were no sword cultivators or martial artists defending the walls. Most people would head to the Eastern Yi Forest Sea, avoiding the calamity that would befall Fusuo Great Wall. After all, this Fusuo Great Wall would cease to exist before long. The true meaning of the sword path would dissipate with the retrieval of the Sword Saint's weapon, and Fusuo Great Wall would no longer be as impregnable as it was.
"Liying..."
On the city wall, a young sword cultivator in a blue long gown sat quietly on the battlements, gazing into the distance with tears streaming down his face, murmuring, "It is my fault, Chi Zhongyu, that I am incompetent. It is my fault, Chi Zhongyu, that I am too useless. If I were a Fourteenth Realm sword cultivator, perhaps the Mountain Master would not have died, and you would not have died either. I, Chi Zhongyu, have always claimed that you are the only one in my heart, yet in the end, I can only watch as you are killed..."
Feathery snow fell in torrents.
Beside him, a burly man with a furrowed brow, Liu Xilong, a native martial artist of Fusuo Great Wall, gently patted Chi Zhongyu's shoulder and said, "Brother Chi, there is no need to be overly grief-stricken... The Mountain Peak Villa's entire lineage were loyal martyrs, and all cultivators in the world will honor them. This deep-seated hatred... we will help you make the demon race pay their blood debt in the future!"
"Yes..."
On the other side, Qin Yu, the innate sword seed, frowned and said, "Chi Zhongyu, grief is fundamentally useless. We should think about the future plans. The matter of Fusuo Great Wall heading to the Eastern Yi Forest Sea was arranged for you by Lin Zhao before his death. Therefore... everything still depends on your decision."
"I know."
Chi Zhongyu waved his hand. "Qin Yu, Liu Xilong, go and give the order. Light the warning beacons of Fusuo Great Wall and let everyone set off immediately for the Eastern Yi Forest Sea. The Snow Region Heavenly Lake has already been breached, and the demon army will arrive at any moment. The Washing Sword River will not hold for long."
"Mm."
The two turned and soared away on the wind. Immediately, specks of starlight lit up on Fusuo Great Wall, and the sound of horns echoed through the city. Countless cultivators of Fusuo Great Wall, with their families in tow, headed east in the snow.
Chi Zhongyu wiped away his tears and used the Water Moon Observation Technique to gaze at the Mountain Peak Villa, wanting to see Liu Liying one last time. He feared he would never see her again in this life. The thought brought forth an even greater torrent of tears, falling like a broken string of pearls.
...
Snow Region Heavenly Lake, Mountain Peak Villa.
Zhou Hai, with a single sword strike, shattered the mural where Liu Liying had hidden. He still felt indignant, unleashing dozens more sword strikes until the entire mural turned to dust. Only then did he feel truly relieved. He fiercely kicked a bluestone, creating cracks, and then sneered.
"You want to die, and I'll send you on your way. You ungrateful wretch!"
Zhou Hai frowned, drew his sword, and floated away, heading straight for Tianran Ju. Since Chen Rusong was busy capturing Dong Cang alive, Zhou Hai would plunder Tianran Ju and see what other good things he could take.
Just as Zhou Hai was flying away on his sword, a phantom figure, accompanied by falling leaves, appeared in the nearby woods. It was Lin Zhujie.
In fact, Lin Zhujie's hand had already been on his sword hilt. He had truly wanted to cleave Zhou Hai's head off with a single strike. Moreover, with Lin Zhujie's cultivation and the element of surprise, the possibility of a fatal blow was extremely high. However, doing so would mean truly falling out with Zu Shan, something Lin Zhujie could not do.
He harbored a lingering resentment. In the human race, Lin Zhao and the Mountain Peak Villa had treated him, Lin Zhujie, kindly. These were not reasons to betray the demon race.
Had the Demon Ancestor not treated him well since childhood at Zu Shan? Had Zu Shan not treated him well?
Lin Zhujie was a demon with a conscience. Both sides had treated him well, so he could not harm either side. The demon race and the human race merely had different stances. All Lin Zhujie could do was tread on thin ice, seeking a space he could control between them.
He floated forward and landed before the blue rock.
Looking down, he saw fragments of a mural scattered across the ground. Liu Liying had indeed perished.
However, he was Lin Zhujie, the Twelfth Realm great demon with the most talent in deduction at Zu Shan of the demon race. Therefore, on the stone wall, which was crisscrossed by sword energy, Lin Zhujie still detected a trace of Liu Liying's aura, and even a wisp of her soul lingered within that aura.
Instantly, Lin Zhujie was overjoyed. He quickly plucked a green leaf, bit his index finger, and dripped a drop of his vital blood onto the leaf. Then, with a gentle wave of his hand, the leaf transformed into a vibrant aura that permeated the rock wall. It vanished without a trace under Lin Zhujie's innate divine ability, as if nothing had happened.
In reality, a wisp of Liu Liying's soul and a trace of her aura were sealed within the stone wall. This seemingly ordinary giant rock on the mountain peak would become the only opportunity for Liu Liying's future rebirth.
After completing this, Lin Zhujie bent his body and once again transformed into the figure of a bamboo borer, flying towards Tianran Ju.
He would do everything he could to help, in every aspect.
...
Tianran Ju.
Following the oppressive wave of the dense pine forest's aura, Dong Cang let out a muffled groan, spitting blood continuously. Her apricot-yellow dress was almost entirely stained with blood. At this moment, Dong Cang was on the verge of falling from the Eleventh Realm. Any further injury might cause her to drop into the Middle Five Realms.
"Come!"
At this moment, Chen Rusong spread his palm wide, condensing a colossal golden hand that covered dozens of feet. How could Dong Cang, an Eleventh Realm apricot maiden unversed in magic, contend with the divine ability of a Thirteenth Realm cultivator? In an instant, Dong Cang was beyond her control and was grasped within Chen Rusong's palm. Then, her entire being rapidly shrunk, transforming into a faint glimmer of firefly within Chen Rusong's palm.
"Hmph!"
Chen Rusong let out a cold snort, took out an exquisitely crafted golden treasure lamp from his large sleeve, and sent the firefly that Dong Cang had become into it. The lamp immediately lit up. He then hid the lamp in his sleeve and sneered, "I will imprison you for fifty years. If you survive these fifty years, and if I, Chen Rusong, break through to the Fourteenth Realm, I will spare your life. If you cannot withstand the pressure of the Great Dao and die from spiritual energy depletion, you cannot blame others."
"Yo~~~"
Not far away, Zhou Hai landed on the roof of Tianran Ju, looking at Chen Rusong. Leaning on his long sword, he chuckled, "Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Chen. With such vigorous wood spirit from this Eleventh Realm apricot maiden, your throne as the Supreme of the Lower Realm's spirits is likely to be secured."
Chen Rusong smiled faintly. "Thank you, Fellow Daoist Zhou. I have already obtained what I desired. As for this Tianran Ju, please accept it, Fellow Daoist Zhou. I will not contend for any opportunities."
After all, although Chen Rusong was a guest elder of Zu Shan, he was ultimately a spirit, an outsider. Even though Zhou Hai was merely an Eleventh Realm sword cultivator, he was still a member of the demon race. Therefore, Chen Rusong would never have any conflict with Zhou Hai. As for the treasures left by Lin Baiyi in Tianran Ju, there might be good things, but he was no longer interested.
"Thank you!"
Zhou Hai cupped his fists and smiled. This Chen Rusong was indeed sensible.
"I'm leaving."
Chen Rusong smiled faintly, flicked his sleeves, and soared into the sky, returning to the demon realm. He had promised the Demon Ancestor that he could leave after the Snow Region Heavenly Lake was breached. After all, this was the first battle, and the most difficult one.
In the dense forest, the figure of a bamboo borer hid beneath the falling snow. It was Lin Zhujie.
Lin Zhujie had witnessed everything. Dong Cang had been taken away by Chen Rusong in a treasure lamp. She would likely have her vital essence refined. For a moment, Lin Zhujie frowned, transformed into an afterimage, and left the Snow Region Heavenly Lake, following Chen Rusong northward.
...
Upper Realm, Shenjian Mountain.
A streak of green figures descended from the sky. It was the Thirteenth Realm Great Sword Immortal Lin Qingqing. Lin Qingqing had just finished a fierce battle with the Heart Demon Legion. She had burnt marks from the heart demons on her arms, legs, shoulders, and even her face. Fortunately, the recovery ability of a Thirteenth Realm sword immortal was extremely strong. Such injuries would quickly heal as long as she nurtured her sword intent and nourished her physical body.
On the cliff edge of Shenjian Mountain, a little girl sat quietly on the edge of the cliff, gazing down at the lower realm, her lips pursed.
She had no cultivation, not even a First Realm sword cultivator. However, among the righteous path in the Upper Realm, no one would look down on her. After all, she possessed a naturally divine sword heart. Although she had lost all her cultivation during the iteration of the physical body in the flow of time, as long as she was given some time, it was not a problem for her to return to her peak.
And this little girl was Su Qingjiu, brought back to the Upper Realm by the old scholar Fu Sheng. Or rather, she was Su Qingjiu, who, more than a hundred years ago at the Snow Region Heavenly Lake, had merged with the memories of Su Qingjiu who had been slain by a sword in a painting, and had been reborn.
Old scholar Fu Sheng also had to attend to matters in Wenlin, so entrusting Su Qingjiu to her master, Lin Qingqing, was the most reasonable course of action. Moreover, Shenjian Mountain was very close to the ancestral court of Taoism. With Dao Sheng and Wei Huarou helping to guard her, there would be no accidents.
"Master..."
Su Qingjiu looked at the scene in the lower realm, tears streaming down her small face. "Sister Liying and Sister Dong Cang have already..."
"It's alright."
Lin Qingqing gently stroked the little girl's head and said softly, "What we need to do is cultivate well, return to the Thirteenth Realm in the shortest possible time, and then go to the lower realm to kill those bastards and avenge Brother Lin Zhao!"
"Brother Lin Zhao..."
As soon as the little girl heard these four words, she cried even more fiercely.