Tianchi Mountain, south side.
...
Chen Yu led four guards, escorting Lin Zhao down the mountain.
When they reached the Mountain God Temple halfway up the mountain, Lin Zhao took an extra look. He often came to this Mountain God Temple when he was a child, following his father and mother to offer incense and pray for blessings. However, he had rarely come since then. At that time, the Mountain God Temple was quite dilapidated. Now, it seemed to have received funding from the Great Shang Dynasty and began to be repaired and expanded, with a more imposing facade.
A Mountain God Temple carried many of the young boy's memories of his father and mother.
"What's wrong?"
Chen Yu smiled gently, "Are you reluctant to leave?"
"Perhaps."
Lin Zhao said, "The furthest I've been before was Jiu Zhang Yuan in North Mountain. This time I'm going to the Great Shang's Baidi City. Along the way... I'm still a little apprehensive."
Chen Yu smiled and patted the young man's shoulder, "A man's ambition lies in all directions. One must go out and explore to see what the world is like, and to see the girls along the way. You can't just see the women in the small town for your whole life."
Lin Zhao's old face turned red, "Oh..."
At this moment, a figure emerged from the Mountain God Temple, bowed to Chen Yu, and said, "Su Fu, the Mountain God of Tianchi Mountain, pays respects to His Highness Yu!"
"You are too kind, Lord Mountain Lord."
Chen Yu cupped his fist, "It is Chen Yu who should pay respects to the Mountain Lord."
Su Fu smiled slightly and his gaze fell on Lin Zhao, "Is Lin Zhao going on a long journey?"
"Yes."
Lin Zhao nodded, "Lord Mountain Lord has a sharp eye and sees through everything."
Su Fu laughed heartily and clapped his hands, "The martial world below the mountain is full of spirit, but also full of deception. As you venture down the mountain for the first time, you must be very careful~~~"
"Thank you for your kind words, Lord Mountain Lord!"
Lin Zhao cupped his fists in salute.
Su Fu returned the salute.
"Let's go~~~"
Chen Yu tugged at Lin Zhao's wrist and led him down the mountain. At this moment, Chen Yu was already treating Lin Zhao like a younger brother.
Su Fu watched their retreating figures, frowned, and felt a pang of unease. He shook his head and returned to the Mountain Lord's shrine.
...
At the pavilion at the foot of the mountain, Lin Zhao bid farewell to Chen Yu, then took his map and set off south from the mountain.
He didn't walk too fast, but not too slow.
In the evening, he reached a desolate mountain forest. There was nothing to say. He took out a prepared raincloth from his bamboo box and set up a small shelter from the wind and rain under a tree. Then he took out dry rations and ate them with water. After eating, he leaned against the tree and slept fully clothed. In the middle of the night, he heard the sound of horses' hooves, seemingly patrol cavalry from the Tianchi Army.
Lin Zhao paid no mind and continued to sleep. When he opened his eyes, it was morning. The gentle morning sun shone on his face. So he took out a small cooking pot, found some wild vegetables nearby, cut a piece of deer meat the size of a fist from his bamboo box, and put it in the pot. Then he roasted two large flatbreads over a bonfire. When the surface of the flatbreads turned golden and crispy, a pot of meat soup was ready. He wolfed it down, finishing everything before continuing on his way.
Along the way, he practiced his fist and sword stances as he traveled, not walking too fast, but not much slower.
It was not until the third day that he was hundreds of miles away from Xueyu Tianchi.
During this time, Lin Zhao hadn't even seen a single person. The thousand-mile territory between Fusu Great Wall and Xueyu Tianchi was originally a buffer zone for war, and the Great Shang Dynasty did not station troops there.
In the afternoon, Lin Zhao hurried on his way and arrived at a forest of fiery red mountains.
It was the third year of severe winter, yet here, surprisingly, one could still see fiery red maple forests. And amidst the fiery red maple forests, a large lake lay across the land. On the map, this lake was called Tongjing Lake.
Several miles away from Tongjing Lake, Lin Zhao stopped. With the perception of a second-realm sword cultivator, he sensed an ominous presence ahead, with a faint trace of demonic energy lingering. Looking from afar, there was a peach blossom forest by Tongjing Lake. This was too bizarre. It was already the third year of severe winter throughout the world, so why would peach blossoms bloom? There must be a spiritual object at play!
He slowly walked through the maple forest, his feet crunching on fallen leaves.
Under the perception of a sixth-realm martial artist, he stopped again. There were two human presences ahead. The other party seemed to be suppressing their aura, wanting to prevent him from detecting them. Unfortunately, Lin Zhao still felt it.
When he went down the mountain, Chen Yu had said that the martial world was treacherous and that he should be extremely cautious. Therefore, although Lin Zhao had been practicing his fists all the way, he had been suppressing his aura to the level of a first-realm martial artist. To others, he was at most a young man just starting his martial path, traveling the world and honing the foundation of his martial realm, appearing harmless.
As soon as Lin Zhao stopped, the two presences could no longer remain calm.
"It seems we have been discovered by this fellow Daoist~~~"
From a lush red maple tree, a figure descended gracefully. It was a young Daoist priest, about twenty years old, dressed in a Daoist robe and holding a peach wood sword. He was extremely delicate and said with a smile, "Qingfeng Daoist Temple, Ziling Mountain, Xu Zhen, greetings to Daoist friend!"
The young man smiled and cupped his fists. This Daoist priest's realm was not low, a fifth-realm spiritual cultivator, just shy of the middle five realms.
From the bushes, a person who had blended with the color of the grass walked out. He was a martial artist carrying a broad saber, dressed in animal skins, with a wild and untamed look on his face. He carried his battle saber on his shoulder and said with a smile, "Martial artist, Zhang Lei, greetings to Daoist friend!"
He was a fifth-realm martial artist, his aura quite strong, his voice like thunder.
Lin Zhao immediately cupped his fists and said, "Lin Zhao."
"Oh?"
The young Daoist priest Xu Zhen raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "May I ask where Daoist Lin Zhao comes from, and where are you going?"
"From the north."
Lin Zhao smiled slightly, "Heading to Baidi City in the Great Shang Dynasty to broaden my horizons."
"So that's how it is!"
Xu Zhen performed a salute and said, "In that case, I advise Daoist friend to take a detour. Tongjing Lake has been restless lately, with frequent demonic disturbances that have already claimed the lives of many martial artists and traveling merchants. And now... Zhang Lei and I have accepted a bounty from the government to resolve a demonic creature here."
"Is that so?"
Lin Zhao frowned, "May I ask what kind of demonic creature it is?"
"Look over there."
Xu Zhen pointed to a peach blossom forest in the distance and said with a smile, "In this cold winter, only cold plum blossoms would bloom. How could these peach blossoms open at this time? To be honest with you, Daoist friend, a powerful demon resides in Tongjing Lake... If you don't want to die, you might as well take a detour. It's better to walk a little further than to lose your life."
"Hmm..."
Lin Zhao hesitated. By his nature, he did not shy away from trouble. Unless it was a truly formidable demon, he would have taken a detour long ago. What kind of tempering would that be?
"Hey..."
Beside him, Zhang Lei, the fifth-realm martial artist, gently planted his saber on the ground. As if changing his mind, he patted the young Daoist priest Xu Zhen on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Daoist Xu, this is not right. Look, young friend Lin Zhao also has the realm of a martial artist. Is it really appropriate to let a martial artist avoid a confrontation? If young friend Lin Zhao is willing, why not join us in catching that peach blossom demon!"
"Alright!"
Xu Zhen frowned and said, "Lin Zhao, are you afraid of death?"
"Yes!"
Lin Zhao smiled slightly, "Who isn't afraid of death?"
"But isn't our cultivation meant to vanquish demons and subdue monsters for the world? Since there are demonic disturbances, we should not stand by idly, right?"
"That makes sense."
"Excellent."
Xu Zhen nodded, "Shall we three go to Tongjing Lake together and face that peach blossom demon?"
Lin Zhao readily agreed, "Yes!"
...
Not long after, by the shore of Tongjing Lake.
The three of them concealed their presence and hid in the woods, observing the calm, mirror-like lake from afar.
Xu Zhen frowned and said, "Later, I will use a Daoist talisman to force the peach blossom demon out of the water and lure her to the shore to fight me. When she is far enough from Tongjing Lake, Daoist Zhang Lei and Daoist Lin Zhao, you two will attack together. Daoist Zhang Lei will cut off the peach blossom demon's retreat, and Daoist Lin Zhao, you can punch freely, but be careful not to actually kill this demon."
"Oh?"
Lin Zhao asked, "Since the peach blossom demon harms people, why can't she be killed?"
"She is useful."
Xu Zhen said, "Just cripple her. Leave a living specimen, so I can report back to my sect."
"Mm."
Lin Zhao nodded and asked no more questions.
Xu Zhen slowly approached, holding his peach wood sword. He began to circulate his spiritual arts, and immediately strands of Daoist magical light appeared around him. He stepped closer to the lake, took out a blood-red talisman, and threw it towards the lake's surface, shouting, "By decree, suppress the demon!"
It was a Daoist demon-suppressing talisman!
Lin Zhao's eyes widened as he watched. The Daoist demon-suppressing talisman was indeed different from the military demon-suppressing talisman taught by his third senior brother. The Daoist demon-suppressing talisman emphasized a kind of "heavenly decree," commanding the spring thunder and wind of heaven and earth to suppress the demon. The military demon-suppressing talisman, on the other hand, commanded the offensive might of the military, suppressing evil spirits with intense killing intent. Their origins were different, but their ultimate effect was the same.
"Chi~~~"
The demon-suppressing talisman burned on the lake's surface, turning into strands of Daoist talismans that suppressed the lake. Instantly, the lake water began to swirl violently, waves churning. Something at the bottom of the water seemed to be resisting this demon-suppressing talisman. After a while, the talisman burned out, and the water returned to calm.
"Hmm?!"
Lin Zhao frowned.
In the distance, the young Daoist priest's face showed a trace of embarrassment. He let out a cold laugh, "Still daring to resist? Very well, I'll let you know how powerful this Daoist is!"
With that, Xu Zhen took out another demon-suppressing talisman. This time, it was a demon-suppressing talisman written on silver paper. After igniting it and throwing it onto the lake, it actually produced faint sounds of wind and thunder rustling in the air. The lake floor once again churned with stormy waves. At this moment, strands of pink peach blossom petals swirled in the water with the waves. Immediately after, a beautiful figure appeared amidst the turbulent water. It was a woman in a pink long dress, emanating demonic spiritual energy, who looked at the other party with a frown, "Xu Zhen, you keep pestering me, are you really so shameless?"
"Suppressing demons and monsters is the duty of all who seek the Dao in this world!"
"How dare you say such a thing?!"
The peach blossom demon flew up, enveloped in a flurry of peach blossoms, raised her hand, which transformed into a gnarled bone palm like a peach branch, and slammed it fiercely towards the young Daoist priest's back.
"You want to kill me? Not so easy!"
Xu Zhen sprinted to the edge of the maple forest, turned around, raised his peach wood sword, and said, "Not only you, but also your deceased lover, I will command the power of heaven and earth to slay you both!"
ps: Eight chapters finished, brothers, please leave your recommendation votes for the Sword Immortal!!!!