Chapter 101
On his way to find the stone pagoda, Gu Xiyu was unaware that Bu Tianhan, the person he was worried about, had reverted to his original adult form after landing.
Bu Tianhan thought that it was an effect of the traveling, and it was only when he failed to revert to the youthful form that he realized that it was not an external force that had broken the illusion, but rather a power within the secret realm that had restricted his powers.
He looked down at his hand. A thin strand of hair slid down to his chest, and the luster of the gold embroidery on his lapel, which resembled a dragon, was soon imprinted with a fiery red glow, the same color as the blood red of his eyes.
It was the magical power that he had gathered in his hand. The almost overflowing spiritual power moved around his hand as he wished; he threw it out and it landed in the middle of the pond not too far away, exploding the merman-shaped sculpture.
He was able to use his powers, so at least he didn’t have to worry about getting attacked and being unable to fight back.
Even so, Bu Tianhan still felt a little uncomfortable, mainly because this secret realm gave him an inexplicable feeling. It looked as beautiful as a fairyland, and there was no great danger, but he could sense something beneath the surface. It was similar to the power running through his body—demonic energy.
Could it be that this secret realm was left by an orthodox cultivator a long time ago and was a trap? Was its appearance an accident or a trap?
The demonic energy was so strong that the demon seed in his body couldn’t help but surge, desperately wanting to lead him there. Although he hadn’t seen it yet, it was a great temptation for a demon cultivator who was thirsty for power and wanted to become more powerful.
Bu Tianhan had no intention of letting go.
He looked in the southern direction. As long as he crossed the forest, there was an important opportunity waiting for him in the deeper part of the valley. Maybe if he got it, he would be able to repay everything that had happened to him, to kill the people who had humiliated and schemed against him, and to trample this continent under his feet.
This time, not even Gu Xiyu… could stop him!
He was planning to go to that destination before the others discovered his presence, but before he could take a step, a sharp-edged attack suddenly came from the shadows. He turned slightly to protect the vital points, and it grazed his right arm, leaving a deep cut on the upper side.
Bu Tianhan glanced down at the wound on his arm and smiled instead of being angry.
——-
“Boom!”
Gu Xiyu, who had reached a fork in the road, was about to meditate on the location of the Great Demon when a fight suddenly broke out not far away. Before he could take the initiative to find out what was going on, he saw two rather familiar figures running from the other side of the grassy slope, and they were so happy to see him that it was like seeing a savior.
Gu Xiyu glanced at the blood stains on Lu Cheng and Lin Qianyue’s clothes and then looked behind them. Unfortunately, he didn’t see the person he wanted to see and had a sinking feeling in his heart. “What happened?”
Lu Cheng let out a sigh of relief, but before he could speak, he saw that Lin Qianyue beside him was also red with anxiety. He probably felt that he looked too unstable, so he tried to tidy himself up before explaining with a straight face and pretending to be calm: “Master, I happened to meet Junior Sister Lin and some fellow disciples on the way to find you and Junior Brother, and they…”
Lu Cheng frowned slightly, looking a little torn, as if he was hesitating how to explain. On the contrary, Lin Qianyue, who was beside him, calmed down and put her hands on her hips as she said helplessly, “To put it bluntly, those people are cheap. They told them not to break the talisman on the door without permission, but they didn’t listen. They touched things that shouldn’t be touched, and we almost lost our lives.”
It seemed that those people were from Lin Qianyue’s family. Lin Qianyue was pretty and the daughter of the sect master, so it was normal for her to be surrounded by many men. Since they had come to the secret realm with her and her master, Bu Mingfeng, was not with her, they felt anxious to show off and wanted to touch everything they saw.
Lin Qianyue intended to wait until she found a few seniors or her master, but when she passed a pagoda with a sealed stone door, one of her senior brothers came forward and said he knew the talisman on it and would be able to break it.
“I’ve read in ancient books that such talismans were usually used by the great powers in the past to seal their valuables. It isn’t difficult to break them, but once the talisman is touched, it would alert the owner, who could immediately come and “catch the thief.” It’s been so long now that this talisman looks like it hasn’t been touched for a long time, so I guess the original owner has already died.” That senior brother laughed and said.
Lu Cheng, who was passing by, was debating whether or not to break the talisman without permission, so he warned, “I’ve also seen the details of this talisman before, and although it is mostly used to warn the owner of the danger of theft and infiltration, if the person who places the talisman is strong enough, they can even leave a few orders on it.”
Those orders can turn into an attack that can hurt someone the moment the talisman is broken, and they will not dissipate over the years.
“That will be good, it’s been so long that even if it’s still there, the power must have weakened. Besides, even if the talisman is strong, it is only an order, and the spiritual power that can be attached to it is limited. Can’t the few of us manage a simple attack?” The few senior brothers who were escorting Lin Qianyue were all cultivators who had been in the sect for at least a hundred years. They could be regarded as junior members of the Immortal Sect and were confident in their strength.
Moreover, they were questioned by Lu Cheng, a young man who had just entered the sect and was of a similar age to Lu Qianyue. So under the pressure of the sense of crisis, they ignored Lu Cheng’s advice and insisted on breaking the talisman.
Gu Xiyu could guess what happened next without Lu Cheng and Lin Qianyue narrating it.
Lin Qianyu said, “Two senior brothers have already died, and the others fled in fear when they were attacked, hiding in some corner.”
He was about to ask the two what had been released from the talisman when several black, foggy figures fled from the direction they had come from, flying through the air like dragons. As Lu Cheng said, these creatures, which were more like pythons than dragons, were left behind on their master’s order. They had no substance, and their bodies were made of black and misty demonic qi, so the plants and trees they touched were corroded on the spot.
Lu Cheng and Lin Qianyu were so frightened that they hid behind him. Gu Xiyu thought for a moment and did not want to waste time on these demonic snakes, so he took out his sword and skillfully made several swipes, and started to counterattack.
Lin Qianyu followed Lu Cheng, her spirited brown eyes reflecting the pale blue and almost white glow of Gu Xiyu’s sword energy as he swung it around, and she couldn’t help but sigh: “ Senior Brother Lu, your master is truly amazing.”
The demon snakes that several senior brothers couldn’t fight, became a few insignificant worms before Brother Lu’s master. The moment the sword energy touched them, they would get wiped out.
The two best sword techniques for those who use swords in the Emotionless Dao are to cut off emotions and calm the mind. Gu Xiyu was so simple and brutal that he did not learn much else but only these two sets of techniques to the end, determined to reach the realm of perfection as soon as possible.
Hearing Lin Qianyue’s words, Lu Cheng felt honored and raised his head with a little pride: “That’s right.”
When Master came out of meditation a while ago, it seemed that he had raised these two sets of techniques to the fifteenth level. So it seemed that the 18th level was just around the corner. He heard from the people in the Immortal Sect that if one could specialize in these two core techniques, one could easily subdue that great demon, Bu Tianhan, and then the continent would return to peace.
Lin Qianyue added, “In fact, there are many girls in the Immortal Sect who like Lord Tai Ling, but he is too difficult to reach out to. Many people have asked him to take on disciples, but he has refused. You and Little Xie are probably the luckiest people in the Immortal Sect, so don’t waste this great opportunity.”
As a man with aspirations, Lu Cheng certainly aspired to a higher realm of power. He looked at Gu Xiyu, who was calmly solving the crisis for them, and secretly vowed to become stronger, so that …… even if he could not give the great demon Bu Tianhan as much threat as his master, he could at least ensure that the people around him would not be easily harmed by other demon cultivators.
If he couldn’t guarantee Bu Tianhan’s death, he could deal with the rest of the demon cultivators.
As one of the great cultivators of the Immortal Sect, especially for a particularly powerful dao, the demon snakes that posed a threat to the children were no big deal in Gu Xiyu’s eyes, and they were eliminated with little effort. No sooner had he disposed of the demon snakes than a few people walked over. They were led by a female cultivator he knew was from the same sect as him.
She was followed by a young man whose hair was already a bit disheveled. When he saw Lin Qianyue, his eyes lit up, and he pointed at them and said, “Seventh Elder, we found them!”
The female cultivator called Seventh Elder glanced at Gu Xiyu and said with understanding, “I think the crisis has been solved by Lord Tai Ling.”
According to the speed at which they had gathered, Gu Xiyu realized that the disciples who had come in were not too spread out, so he might be able to find Bu Tianhan soon.
He had just finished thinking optimistically when the system sent out an automatic notification.
[Target’s risk value +5, the current risk value is now 75.]
Gu Xiyu was puzzled, and he sent a question: “?”
However, neither the main system nor the intelligent system answered him. He looked at the female cultivator who was about to walk away and suddenly took out a large bag of stuff and handed it to Lu Cheng, saying, “Here are all the protective talismans, attack items, and medicinal elixirs that I made with my own hands, including some magic weapons that can save your life in times of crisis.”
He could only say to Lu Cheng, “Your junior brother is still young and not capable enough, I am a bit worried about him having an accident or being attacked by other cultivators. I will go and find him, so you follow Sister Lin and regroup with the other disciples.”
The main protagonists have the protection of the world consciousness, even a crisis is an opportunity for them, so he doesn’t need to worry about their safety. The only person who could pose the greatest threat to them at the moment was Bu Tianhan who had disappeared, and it was unlikely that they would be able to meet him before he did.
Lu Cheng received the bag. Gu Xiyu handed it to him a bit reluctantly. He wanted to go look for Xie Xing as well, and he was worried about his junior brother. After thinking about it, he decided that he would only be a burden to Gu Xiyu if he followed him around, so he agreed.
Gu Xiyu left a tracking charm with him: “When I find him, I will come and join you.”
Lin Qianyu, who was beside him, heard their conversation and smiled sweetly at Gu Xiyu: “Don’t worry, I will take good care of Brother Lu!”
The girl’s smile reminded Gu Xiyu of his friend in another world, called Lin Mianmian. Although he still kept his expression indifferent, he reached out to give her a rare pat on the head and said, “Then please do.”
Lin Qianyu froze and touched the top of her head after Gu Xiyu turned around and left, murmuring with a look of disbelief, “I can’t believe Uncle Gu touched me!”
It was enough for her to show off to her sisters for a while.
She excitedly grabbed Lu Cheng’s wrist and said, “When we go back to the Immortal Sect, you must testify for me!”
Lu Cheng was confused: “……?” Testify to what?
——-
After Gu Xiyu left, he went to a deserted place and tried to sense the faint feeling between him and Bu Tianhan. He had told Bu Tianhan that the jade hook could not be used to track his location without Bu Tianhan’s active trigger, but if he was nearby, he could get a slight sense of direction if he put some effort into it.
After locating his position, he immediately headed in that direction, only to find that it was exactly where the main system had said the stone pagoda was located.
The door to the pagoda was already open, and Gu Xiyu’s heart sank at the sight of the empty entrance.
Almost as soon as he arrived, a red light appeared in the eyes of the four fierce beast statues surrounding the pagoda, and an invisible layer of powerful spiritual energy gathered around it. The stone bell at the tip of the pogado shifted slightly, emitting a deep, but not loud, sound.
It was as if something had been triggered.
Gu Xiyu reached out slowly and felt a tingling, burning sensation as his hand touched the wall of spiritual energy trying to isolate him.
The main system said that the stone pagoda was a place where the ancient great demons had left an important legacy to those who had the fortune to be in their good graces and that this pagoda could not be broken or opened by anyone else, no matter what means were used.
If there was something inside that had been triggered, then the person who triggered it must be the one he was looking for.
He called out in his mind with some unease, “System?”
[[The intelligent system is…offline. Its communication function is temporarily taken over by the automatic system. Please ask your questions, and the system will match the keywords to the answers that may be appropriate!]]
In the distance, the entrance to the stone pagoda suddenly began to slowly close.
Gu Xiyu immediately gathered a layer of spiritual energy that could protect him for a short time and then forced his way through the barrier before the four ferocious beasts’ formation became perfect and the entrance closed.
As the heavy doors closed, the stone bell at the tip of the pagoda stopped shaking. The four beasts’ mechanism-activated array was completed, the spiritual barrier fell, and the ancient stone pagoda suddenly disappeared from the distance.
–Anyone passing by could not see the pagoda due to the array!
While Gu Xiyu was searching for Bu Tianhan, Lu Cheng, who was with Lin Qianyue, followed the large team and happened to meet up with Bu Mingfeng, who looked like he had been injured.
With one hand over his chest and pale lips, Bu Mingfeng said to them with a solemn look on his face, “Be careful when you move around in the secret realm; that demon, Bu Tianhan …… has come in too!”
The people were amazed when they heard this. Bu Mingfeng coughed hard and said with a vicious look in his eyes, “I accidentally met him when I entered the secret realm and was seriously injured, but I managed to escape with great difficulty.”
Lu Cheng’s heart suddenly rose to his throat, and he squeezed the small cloth bag Gu Xiyu had given him, feeling a little nervous inside.
‘Master had gone to look for his junior brother, and he wondered if these two people would run into Bu Tianhan.
Master was injured due to various things a while ago and has not fully recovered. Although it was said that the Emotionless Dao could restrict Bu Tianhan’s demonic powers, in his current state, can the two of them escape from Bu Tianhan if they run into him?’
Lu Cheng was so worried that he wished he had followed his master earlier.
Bu Mingfeng on the side noticed the worry on his face and remembered that he was Gu Xiyu’s disciple, so he expressed his concern: “Lu Cheng, is everything okay?”