Chapter 95: Retreating in the Face of Difficulty

Retreating in the Face of Difficulty

In this Hengze Heaven, everyone's identity was sensitive; concealing one's origins was an unspoken rule. Even though Fan was very compatible with Ruan Ci, he had never asked about her master's sect. The blue-robed cultivator's words were undoubtedly too abrupt, yet he remained unhurried, explaining himself, "To view great profit as dung, to possess foresight, and to remain independent of the Dao Struggle—if I have not underestimated the heroes of the world, such vision is not something we Foundation Establishment disciples should possess unless we were steeped in it within our own sects from the start. If I am not mistaken, everyone present here is a disciple of a Great Sect."

He smiled at an arrogant female cultivator with flying, delicate brows outside the crowd. "This Junior Sister, during the last fierce battle, you paid special attention to the sword pellets held by the Yin-Yang Dao soldiers. Not only were you yearning for them, but your fingers were twitching, as if you were sparring with them in your mind. Yet, you are here watching the battle again today instead of going outside the city. I imagine that while serving by your elders' side, you heard their occasional admonitions: no matter what, you must never actively involve yourself in the Dao Struggle. Am I right?"

That female cultivator was dressed in yellow, with a clear, beautiful face and a tall figure. At these words, she merely gave a light snort, neither confirming nor denying, her arrogance not restrained in the slightest. The blue-robed cultivator smiled slightly. "If I didn't know that the Green Lotus Sword Sect had sent a male disciple this time, I would have guessed that you were a high-level cultivator from the Green Lotus Sect."

As soon as he said this, the female cultivator's figure fluctuated like a bubble, gradually shattering, revealing a delicate-featured young male cultivator. He glanced at the blue-robed cultivator and said coldly, "Meddlesome."

The blue-robed cultivator smiled. "I am Su of the Grand Void Gate. Greetings, Junior Brother."

This was the first time Ruan Ci had seen a disciple of the Grand Void Gate. The Grand Void Gate, the Green Spirit Gate, and the Profound Heaven Sect were known as the three pillars supporting the Central Continent, and they were somewhat like kings who never met. The Heavenly Boat of the Central Continent had traveled to collect disciples in the South Zhuzhou, but neither the Green Spirit Gate nor the Grand Void Gate had participated, and it was unknown if this was related to Sister Xie Sister Xie Yan Yan Huan finally cutting down the lives of all the Sword Seeds in the world. At the very least, in the memories of Di Wu Cang, the Green Spirit Gate had intended to seek out Sword Seeds.

The Grand Void Gate and the Profound Heaven Sect were even further apart, and one rarely heard news of the Grand Void Gate within the Profound Heaven Sect. However, at this moment, as Su revealed his identity, the others present were quite complimentary. Although the young sword cultivator was unwilling, he still cupped his hands and said coldly, "I am Shen Qi, ranked seventh among the disciples of this generation in the Green Lotus Sword Sect. 'Senior Brother' and 'Junior Brother'—let's not be so hasty. Let's talk after we've fought."

Su clearly did not wish to stir up unnecessary trouble and smiled. "Ah, then I shall call you Senior Brother."

He was all smiles, a picture of maturity and sophistication, clearly giving Shen Qi a way to step down. Shen Qi, however, would not let him off so easily and said coldly, "I am only ranked seventh in this generation. If you cannot even defeat me, and I call you Senior Brother, does that mean the proud disciple sent by the Grand Void Gate cannot even defeat the Seventh Junior Brother of our Green Lotus Sword Sect?"

Ruan Ci couldn't help but smile. Shen Qi glanced at her and suddenly said, "What are you laughing at? The last time we fought, it was unfinished. Why don't we continue it right here?"

He had directly exposed the fact that he had ambushed the three of them last time, without the slightest attempt at denial. Li Pingyan's brows furrowed, but Ruan Ci smiled. "Senior Brother Shen, you are eager for a fight, yet you cannot strike now, so you are taking your anger out on us? I know that disciples of the Green Lotus Sword Sect cultivate through combat and love to gain insights during battle. You and I have no friendship; why should I help you gain insights for no reason? To make you uncomfortable, the way is not to defeat you head-on, but to try every possible way to avoid fighting you."

These words hit exactly where it hurt. The icy expression on Shen Qi's face cracked slightly. He shouted, "You—a disciple of the Profound Heaven Sect, are you really this cowardly?"

He really did know Ruan Ci's identity. A word revealed it all. Everyone else was shocked, and Fan was even more horrified. Ruan Ci thought to herself, "Could he really be a disciple of the Yan Mountain... This is the benefit of hiding one's identity. No matter who he is, he probably won't be as intimate with me after this."

She smiled slightly and said, "You are ranked seventh, while I don't even have the qualifications to be ranked. Isn't it only natural for me to be cowardly toward you?"

Shen Qi wanted to say more, but Ruan Ci interrupted him. "Senior Brother Shen, you must not forget: if you want me to fight you, provocation is useless. Think about what I said. If you want me to fight you, you have to follow my wishes and be a bit more pleasing to me."

Both of their words were filled with hidden meanings. Shen Qi provoked everyone, but it was clearly not because he was naturally stubborn; he obviously had his own purposes. After being spoken to like this by Ruan Ci, he stopped talking, merely casting a meaningful glance at Ruan Ci before folding his arms and walking to the railing, looking at the battlefield outside the city, as if he were indifferent to everything in the building.

"The three Great Sects have already arrived with two. Are there any fellow disciples from the Green Spirit Gate here?" Su saw that the two had stopped arguing and stepped forward to ease the atmosphere, asking around. None of the others admitted their identities. He sighed and shook his head. "It seems that the Senior Brothers of the Green Spirit Gate are mostly at other city gates."

He then introduced everyone to each other. Of the eight people present, Su and Ruan Ci had the highest status. Su had a magnanimous personality and vaguely presided over the group. Shen Qi remained aloof from the crowd, and the other three came from the Guiyi Sect, the Liuming Hall, and the Wugou Sect, respectively. Li Pingyan reported his sect as the Golden Wave Sect, which made Su look at him with new eyes. He smiled and said, "Junior Brother Li, it is not that I am speaking arrogantly, but that you are able to be here today shows that the fortune of the Golden Wave Sect lies with you. Your future achievements may not be lower than ours."

He did not look down on Li Pingyan at all just because he was a disciple of a Minor Sect.

At this moment, only Fan had not reported his sect. His eyes rolled a few times, and he said to Ruan Ci, "Senior Sister Ci, I am also a disciple of a Great Sect, but it is inconvenient to reveal my identity at this time. If I were to say it, I would not be able to follow by your side. Could you forgive me?"

Ruan Ci said, "I don't mind. Your appearance here is fate. If it weren't for Senior Brother Su coming forward, I wouldn't feel that asking about identities and origins had any use at all."

These words clearly suited Fan's heart, but the others looked at her with flickering eyes. Su smiled and said to Fan, "In that case, Junior Brother, you are a disciple of the Yan Mountain? I heard that there are immortal paintings for sale at the Baoyun Ferry. I wonder if they are your handiwork?"

Fan neither admitted nor denied it, only saying, "Senior Brother, the reason I stay here is not because I like being probed, but because I understand what you want to say, and I think the same as you. Before entering Hengze Heaven, everyone had some ambition to make a big splash here. But looking at the mysterious changes that have occurred, we should also assess the situation and abandon those inappropriate thoughts in time. In my view, the most urgent matter now is to escape from this city. Whether the Hengze Jade Dew is taken, or by whom, is no longer that important. Don't you agree?"

His words made sense, and everyone was moved. Su also straightened his expression and sighed. "It is no wonder that after entering the Eternal Dao City, those immortal paintings gradually lost their spirituality. It seems that Junior Brother Fan and I share the same view... I came here today to ask everyone: since entering the city, has anyone thought about going out of the city and returning to the market outside the eight city gates?"

The female cultivator from the Guiyi Sect, Senior Sister Mu, couldn't help but change color. "Could it be that we can't get out?"

Su said, "The soldiers at the city gates don't stop us, but after going out, it is the battlefield outside the city, not the market outside the city gates... But in my opinion, what is more concerning than this is that it has been more than a month since we arrived, and apart from myself, it seems that no fellow Daoist has thought about going outside the city to take a look."

"Illusion Array?!"

Awakened by his words, everyone finally felt that something was wrong. Cultivators naturally wouldn't just stay in the city without returning. With a pass in hand, they could constantly travel between the inside and outside of the city gates. But for some reason, after entering the city this time, it seemed that no one had thought about walking outside the city.

"It is not an Illusion Array," Shen Qi finally opened his mouth to participate, his voice cold. "It is the power of the Dao Ancestor... To a Dao Ancestor, all things in the world will naturally be close to them. If the Dao Ancestor does not want us to leave, then we will be subtly influenced by this thought. Unless there are special circumstances, it is very difficult to have any thoughts that are unfavorable to the Dao Ancestor."

He looked at Su with a different expression and said gloomily, "Either you have a treasure to protect you, or your will is exceptionally firm. If it is the latter, you are worthy of a battle with me."

Su smiled. "Then Seventh Senior Brother must be careful. I find that what Junior Brother Ci said is very right, and I am prepared to follow his example."

Shen Qi glared at Su and gave Ruan Ci, who was turning her head to suppress a smile, a roll of his eyes. He folded his arms and said, "I naturally know the severity of the situation. Let's talk about the main business first. The city gates can be entered but not exited. If we cannot find a way within these few months, as Hengze Heaven detaches from the Hengze Heaven and the Huanhuan Universe, I am afraid we will all die here."

The cultivator from the Liuming Hall, Senior Brother Pu, said in a deep voice, "The situation has changed to this extent, and there is an extra force of a Dao Ancestor within the Huanhuan Universe. The significance of this matter is not something we can easily imagine. It requires the elders of the sect to deliberate personally. I agree with what everyone said. The struggle for the Jade Dew should be put aside for now. We should work together to find a way back from the Dao City to the shore."

The Wugou Sect's little monk, who called himself Seng Xiu, said softly, "The struggle for the Jade Dew is just gambling on the spiritual materials produced by the Spirit Mountain in the next thousand years. Looking at it this way, Hengze Heaven can actually accommodate the power of a Dao Ancestor. Regardless of whether it is a phantom, this matter must be carefully reported to the sect. I agree with what everyone said. The struggle for the Jade Dew should be put aside for now. We should work together to find a way back from the Dao City to the shore."

Li Pingyan and Fan had no objections. Li Pingyan asked Ruan Ci softly, "Junior Brother Ci, did you not let me work in the city defense because you were worried that I would lose myself in this Dao City and never want to return?"

Ruan Ci pondered for a while. In fact, she should have absolute initiative here. After all, she knew one key piece of information more than anyone else. As long as she took off the silver hairpin, leaving alone would not be a problem. Qin Qin Fengyu was not here, and apart from Li Pingyan, it seemed there were no worries. The more she said, the more she would dilute her own advantages. One had to know that the cultivators present were all outstanding figures. Just take Su of the Grand Void Gate; he was a ruthless character who deduced so much without any hints and had enough willpower to overcome the closeness to the Dao Ancestor and walk outside the city. If Ruan Ci said anything slightly imprecise, she would immediately be caught by the handle and forced to reveal more clues.

Her thoughts turned like lightning, and her eyes swept over everyone one by one. She suddenly made a decision and thought to herself, "These many romantic figures might be ruined in Hengze Heaven because of my caution. Actually, I am not a good person, but I don't like treating human lives like this. When I was in the Song Kingdom, I hated the way the three sects decided the life and death of the Ruan family at will. Actually, was the Ruan family innocent? Perhaps not. Seven hundred years of factional strife, no one's hands are clean, and they would probably destroy a family for a little profit without any consideration. But no matter what, just for the sake of profit, treating the lives of strangers as bargaining chips without hesitation—this is what I hate the most. I can't control others, but I can't live to be the person I hate."

Since she entered the cultivation world, Ruan Ci had always been passive, always acting under the arrangements of others. Even this time coming to Hengze Heaven, she was following the arrangements of various people inside and out. She naturally knew that these people might not be trying to harm her, but it was only at this moment that a thin veil in her heart seemed to be pierced by a fierce poke, and her thoughts suddenly became clear and comfortable. She thought, "I will just follow my nature. Walking to the end with caution, what is it for? To give Qing Jun a perfect body to possess? Or to keep the sword for Sister Sister Xie until the end?"

This thought was a bit like breaking the jar, but her mood became comfortable instead. She smiled and said, "Lose myself? I think Hengze True Person probably doesn't have such great power yet. He can only lock the passage, but he cannot completely confuse you. If he really had such ability, you wouldn't have such doubts now, and you would only treat yourself as a cultivator of Hengze Heaven without reservation. Asking Senior Brother Li to leave the city defense was mostly my cautious consideration. The Dao Struggle must not be easily involved in, otherwise, it will not be so easy to stay out of it."

Her words sounded vaguely confident, obviously knowing more about Hengze Heaven than what she said. Everyone had different expressions, but they all looked at Ruan Ci. Su immediately asked, "Junior Brother Ci, do you know the limit of Hengze True Person's power at this time? But... matters of the Dao Ancestor have always been taboo. How do you know?"

His eyes flickered, and he looked at Shen Qi, thinking to himself, "No wonder Shen Qi wants to challenge you. If it weren't for the fact that the Sword Envoy only returned to the mountain from the South Zhuzhou ten years ago, even a genius wouldn't be able to reach the ninth layer of Foundation Establishment in ten years. I really want to guess that you are the Sword Envoy of the Profound Heaven Sect out for experience."

Ruan Ci drew the Frost Sword and sneered, "Senior Brother Su, I have no malice toward you and have been complimentary everywhere, but you have no good intentions. To tell you the truth, I am the wing of the Sword Envoy, blessed with a piece of spiritual jade. Senior Brother Shen must have sensed the Donghua sword energy, so he attacked me, wanting to force out a trace of sword energy to temper his sword heart. Is your exposure meant to tell the others present that if there is a chance, they can attack me and cut off the arm of the Sword Envoy?"

Su smiled and was about to speak, but Ruan Ci shook the tip of her sword and shouted, "I don't like you like this. Even if you want to apologize, take a sword from me first."

Without a word, she drew her sword. Her temperament made everyone look sideways. Su sighed and did not shirk, but smiled. "Very well. Since we are both here, we must distinguish between primary and secondary. Let this battle be the proof. Let it be a gentleman's battle. After this battle, everyone will cooperate sincerely and never mention these idle words again."

He also took out a jade flute from his bosom and smiled slightly at Ruan Ci, saying, "This flute is named Chunxiao. Junior Brother Ci, be careful."

As he spoke, he blew a burst of spiritual power with his lips. The Chunxiao flute trembled slightly, and invisible sound waves immediately spread. The craftsman who was originally practicing his magic weapon on the side saw them fighting and was about to stop them, but when he was covered by the sound waves, his head tilted, and he fell to the ground and fell into a deep sleep. Even the cultivators who were watching from the sidelines all felt sleepy and had to use their methods to resist the sound waves.

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Updated, sorry for the wait, I will send red envelopes for this chapter.

The meat of the Hengze Heaven story is coming soon~ The weather has also become very cold, I am preparing to change to a spring and autumn quilt~!

As for reading, there are still no good recommendations. I want to read infrastructure novels, but I feel that nothing can satisfy me. I like to see the reactions of the natives to food or modern technology, woo woo woo.

. Thanks to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated nutrient solution between 2020-09-17 12:04:53 and 2020-09-18 12:06:21~

Thanks to the little angel who voted for the shallow water bomb: 20021990 x1;

Thanks to the little angels who voted for the landmine: Wu Mingya, Yu Yu Wan Yao, hamel Ji, Long Qian, Wan Tang, Hu Jing Meng Xing Yu Lai Zao x1;

Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: Yu Mi Lu, Yan Yan, Yan Zhi Jiu x20; Nana x17; Ma Daidai Riding a Horse, Dan Ji, Shan Qi, Xiao Hua, Zhuo Zhuo Yao Hua, Zhou Zhou x10; LLLe x9; 29101557, Qingding Road Street Office x5; Dan Dan, yy_Youyou, Quan Shui Ding Dong, 42669612, Bing Lan Se De Yu, Du Zhe Zhi Zhong, yzac, Bao Mu Cao Xi Yang, Jiao Ta Shi Di Mou Fa Zhan x1;

Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!

Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!