87 - A Farewell to Mr. Luo

Chapter 87 A set of hands scooped up some pitch-black earth from the ground and brought it to the nose for a sniff. “It has the scent of scorching blood mixed with a faint sweetness. It must be an anomaly, perhaps even a dragon.” As he spoke, the soil slowly trickled through his fingers. He then tossed the remaining dirt from his hands onto the ground. Three cultivators were standing there, with the speaker being a man with a slender and delicate face adorned with bronze rings on his brows. “Judging by the footprints, their direction disappears here. They must have headed south.” A spirited woman with a half-mask stood near where Bai Fan and her companions had just taken off. Behind her was a muscle-bound man nearly two meters tall, with a scar running down his nose and sharp, piercing eyes. “If they went south, we should be able to track them down as long as their trail isn’t covered up, Old Third.” The delicate-faced man called out to the muscle man. The muscle man cast a sharp look at him before opening his palm. A blue, dazzling bird with jade-like feathers jumped out, chirping lively as it hopped around on the muscle man's body. Seeing the little bird, the delicate-faced man grabbed some dirt off the ground and walked over to the muscle man, offering the soil to the bird on his open palm. The bird, perched on the man's shoulder, tilted its head curiously at the dirt before fluttering down to the delicate man's hand, swallowing the soil stained with Bai Fan’s blood. “Find this person.” The bird let out a cheerful chirp before flapping its wings and flying off in the direction Bai Fan and her group had departed. Elsewhere, the gray goose that had been flying for nearly a whole day finally grew exhausted, bringing Bai Fan and her two companions down to the ground. It lay flat on the ground, panting heavily like a parched bird. “Gah.” Bai Fan looked at the gray goose with mild exasperation, thinking it was being lazy. It hadn't been this tired carrying her and He Yiman previously, so adding Mingzhu shouldn’t have worn it out like this. She suspected the gray goose might be afraid of Mingzhu. “If you’re that tired, go back into the Beast Pouch.” “Gah.” At the sight of the Beast Pouch, the gray goose quickly dove right into it, not needing Bai Fan to collect it. With the three of them standing there, Bai Fan turned to He Yiman: “Where should we go next?” “To the west of Beizhou, there’s a human city called Loulan. We might find information about the wilderness there,” He Yiman suggested. Mingzhu, meanwhile, was silently grumbling, wondering why Night River wasn't asking her for advice. After all, she had lived for thousands of years and knew a bit about places like the wilderness. On the way to Loulan, tensions that had been building up in Nanzhou finally erupted. The Demon Clan surged out from the abyss, causing a horrific massacre upon numerous low-level cultivators. Even great factions like Xuanyun and Yunxiao had a hard time stopping the demon invasion. The mortal kingdoms suffered various natural disasters and rampant plagues. Many small sects were wiped out overnight, leaving fields strewn with corpses. Finally, those demonic cultivators who had lurked in the shadows openly emerged. At the Qiongxu Sect in far-off Nanzhou, disciples were gathered in one place. The Old Sect Master, finishing an engraving on the teleportation array, began to totter but was quickly supported by Liansheng. “Grandpa.” The Old Sect Master steadied himself, pushed away Liansheng’s hand, and stood in the center of the teleportation array, looking at the remaining few disciples. “Nanzhou is in chaos, and the Upper Sect cannot protect our Qiongxu lineage. The mortals of our Li family are gathered at the foot of the mountain, but I can only send a small portion of you away from Nanzhou. Remember, once you arrive in Dongzhou, seek out Elder Yushu of Xuankong Palace.” Among the promising disciples standing before the Old Sect Master were Liansheng, Li Xiaoyan, Gu He, Li Xiaocha, and Li Min. Li Zhenshang, watching his daughter from behind the Old Sect Master, felt helpless. The demonic army was already breaching the sect’s borders, with his eldest disciples fighting desperately to hold them back. The sheer number of demons and the lack of reinforcements meant they were sacrificing lives to buy time. For these younger ones in front of him, there was no way the older generation could escape. The Old Sect Master walked with heavy steps to Liansheng, handing him a storage pouch solemnly. “Liansheng, you are now the Young Sect Master of Qiongxu Sect. In Dongzhou, everything depends on you. You are the last hope of our Li family.” Liansheng, feeling a surge of emotion, accepted the storage pouch. “Grandfather, can’t we all go together?” The Old Sect Master shook his head. “This array can only transport ten people at a time. Your path of cultivation is still long. We, the old bones, shall stay behind.” Gu He, standing behind Liansheng, watched his elders with a heavy heart. This was the place where he had grown up, and he had never imagined leaving it in such a manner. Ultimately, they were too weak; if they had been stronger, they wouldn’t have ended up like this. For the first time, Li Xiaoyan wept openly in front of the others, rushing into Li Zhenshang’s arms. “Father, I don’t want to leave you.” Li Zhenshang gently patted his daughter’s back with his dry hands, caressing her hair. “Xiaoyan, you need to grow up now. Help your cousin when you are out there. You are all still young. If there is ever a chance to come back, remember to offer incense for us.” “Father…” Li Zhenshang’s words seemed to touch a chord within everyone. Li Min held onto Li Xiaocha, sobbing uncontrollably. These girls were no longer the carefree young girls they once were; they had grown into young women over the past five or six years. Gu He, with his head bowed, clutched his walnut sword tightly, tears falling one by one, leaving wet marks on the ground. Li Zhenshang, pushing his daughter away, grasped her shoulders firmly. “Remember, do not be willful. Now, go.” Once Li Xiaoyan entered the teleportation array, the Old Sect Master stepped out. “When you reach Xuankong Palace, show them the jade you carry to Elder Yushu. She will recognize you. If not, tell her that I sent you.” “Yes.” Liansheng took a step back into the teleportation array. Just then, a disciple ran in hurriedly, covered in blood and despairing. “Sect Master, the demons have reached the mountain foot. Elder Erhuai can’t hold them off any longer.” Li Erhuai was Liansheng’s uncle, the Old Sect Master’s second son, an average talent whose ordinary looks could not be more different from Liansheng’s father, Li Zhenyan. Had the Old Sect Master not acknowledged them, no one would believe they were brothers. Erhuai had spent his whole life being invisible in the Old Sect Master’s eyes, who favored the talented and exceptional Zhenyan. Living under the shadow of his father, Erhuai had received the best resources from the sect, taking over forty years to build his foundation. His younger brother, however, built his foundation in his twenties. Were it not for Erhuai’s interference in the patrol of Wan Feng Tai, Zhenyan might have formed his core. But Erhuai never regretted his actions. He always felt satisfaction, thinking if Zhenyan looked down on him in life, he’d no longer be a mountain on his back in death. He had thought, with Zhenyan’s death, his father would finally entrust great responsibilities to him. But he was wrong. It turned out Zhenyan had a child outside, who was brought back by their father with every cherished resource. This new Zhenyan look-alike filled Erhuai with loathing, but he had to feign affection for this despised child. Thinking such days would repeat, Nanzhou fell into chaos. First, there was the rogue cultivator rebellion, then the demon invasion. While his father was preoccupied with other matters, Erhuai, under the guise of patrol, colluded with demonic cultivators. Adding to this, the demonic cultivator that brat brought back caused havoc, stealing the entire sect’s secret archives. The precious legacies of Qiongxu Sect were plundered. Erhuai had been furious enough to want to kill Liansheng then, but he knew his father would never forgive him for it. Thus, driven by inevitable betrayal, Erhuai led the demons to overthrow Qiongxu Sect, seeing no further use for it. His cultivation had stalled, and without the necessary resources, he was destined to languish and die slowly. But Li Erhuai refused to accept this fate. After obtaining a blood refining technique from the demonic cultivators, his progress became astonishingly rapid. As long as he had enough essence blood, he could cultivate endlessly, even reaching the Nascent Soul stage was within the realm of possibility. This was what he had dreamed of all his life. Upon hearing the news, the Old Sect Master’s face turned deathly pale. He quickly turned to Liansheng and the others, urgently saying, “Hurry, start the teleportation!” Other elders hurriedly joined in to help activate the array. Unlike other formations, this ancient long-distance teleportation array consumed a tremendous amount of resources. Each use required thousands of low-grade spirit stones, and Qiongxu Sect had already been stretched thin. Providing these spirit stones completely exhausted their resources. Under their efforts, the teleportation array began to glow. With a thunderous roar, a beam of white light shot skyward, illuminating the entire Qiongxu Sect. Down at the mountain’s base, Li Erhuai, who had been feigning defeat, was momentarily stunned. He thought that perhaps something had happened at the back mountain and knew he couldn’t delay any longer. He had to act swiftly to resolve the situation. With this thought, Li Erhuai suddenly turned away from his adversaries, wielding his sword to slash the throat of another elder of Qiongxu Sect. The elder died with eyes wide open, unable to fathom why Li Erhuai had killed him, unable to find peace in death. With Li Erhuai’s betrayal, the disciples struggling to hold the line at the mountain’s base were swiftly slaughtered. The demonic cultivators, alongside Li Erhuai, charged toward the back mountain. ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ A heartfelt thanks to the little angels who cast vote tickets or provided nourishment! Special thanks to the little angels who cast [Grenades]: Huanyu, Sui Yi (each gave one); Special thanks to the little angels who provided [Nutrient Solution]: Novel Cancer Terminal Stage (20 bottles); Thank you all for your unwavering support! I will continue to work hard! Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter Home | Desktop Version | Bookshelf | Novel Directory | Hot Novels