Chapter 615: Only Strive for the Morning and Evening

North Hong, the dwelling of immortals.

On the round, thick coiled-dragon pillars, a dark-gold dharma image about ten zhang tall hangs its head low.

At the heart, a lacquered-red wooden wedge is deeply embedded, making its solid, broad chest appear strangely withered and shriveled; dark-gold liquid seeps from it, rolling down the muscle veins, soaking the talismans and ropes on its body.

"Hah..."

This towering Prison-Suppressing Golden Body emits a faint breath; its eyes, like gilded gold, stare blankly at the ground, their gaze no longer possessing the domineering aura of old, leaving only endless numbness and struggle.

"Open your mouth, take the pill."

A rough, dark-black dragon claw presses on its left shoulder, slamming it violently against the pillar; the moment the Golden Body is forced to raise its head, this black dragon shoves a pill shimmering with treasure light straight into its mouth.

The Golden Body slumps against the pillar, feeling the vigorous medicinal power spread within its body, silently staring at the black dragon before it.

That something like a pill can affect a body condensed from faith power means it is absolutely not refined from ordinary heavenly treasures and earthly herbs.

"What are you looking at? Such an immortal pill is rarely seen even by this one; using it on you is truly a waste."

Qi Tianchuan, eyes filled with contempt, grabs the Golden Body's head with one claw and forcefully presses it down.

A minor cultivator who barely rivals the Dao-Integration realm only thanks to heavenly immortal pills; if he had not taken a crooked path to deceive the attention of the Immortal Court, he would never have had the qualification to look directly at this one in his entire life.

"Surname Qi, be careful; do not implicate this old man."

An old man in a yellow robe frowns, glancing at the black dragon, and calmly repairs the cracks on the Golden Body that shattered from being unable to withstand the seal.

Even if it is merely food for immortals, it is not something people like us can easily insult.

Wasting food is a great taboo.

"I just feel it is a bit of a pity."

Qi Tianchuan sniffs the remaining pill scent on his claw; tsk, such a sweet fragrance of incense is truly intoxicating.

Just then, a sound of unhurried footsteps came from behind.

Both put down what they were doing, turned together, and bowed humbly: "The matter you entrusted has been handled; as long as there are enough immortal pills, plus diligent treatment of its injuries, it can live another hundred thousand years under this seal without issue."

"Hundred thousand years?"

Flowing clouds and white robes sway slightly as the newcomer steps out from the clear light.

Perhaps all living beings would think Hongze Daxian is an old man with an immortal wind and Dao bone, or at least of middle age.

But in reality, he looks quite young, his face slightly thin; even set off by such immortal-air-floating robes, he reveals a hint of sharpness.

Hongze Daxian smiles, looking at the figure on the pillar: "Shen Xianyou, ten-plus years is enough."

For existences like them, ten-plus years is merely the blink of an eye, just a short nap, or even an occasional spiritual wander beyond the heavens.

Such a brief time can yield merit that even moves his heart.

This is Heaven aiding his return to the Immortal Court.

"Go out."

Hongze Daxian softly dismisses the two, walks slowly to the Golden Body, and as his robes sway, he slowly rises.

Four eyes meet.

In the Golden Body's numb eyes, a deep fear suddenly surges forth.

Lady Qinghua chants her master's name in her heart, yet she still cannot suppress the slight trembling of the Golden Body's dharma image; as if knowing what will happen next, she curls up deep inside the dharma image and bites her teeth shut with force.

The next moment, Hongze Daxian extends his index finger and slowly points toward the void.

"ROAR!!"

At the same time, the muscular Golden Body dharma image suddenly clenches both fists; Jin Guang surges on its body, being peeled off strand by strand and merging into the immortal's fingertip.

Its entire body's muscle lines are taut, veins bulging, palms trembling wildly.

That merit, which could allow it to exchange for an immortal position in the heavens, is slowly being stolen by others.

Inside this towering Golden Body.

The yin spirit, with a handsome face and a snow-white long robe, is struck as if by lightning; it stares blankly, extending its right palm, wanting to hold onto this merit, yet its five fingers grasp at nothing, unable to hold anything.

"My lord—"

The yin spirit, appearing as a youth, trembles slightly on the lips.

What truly makes Lady Qinghua despair is not the pain sweeping through her entire body.

She controls the yin spirit for her master and manages the Golden Body, yet now she can only watch helplessly as what belongs to Shen Yi is stolen away, completely powerless to protect it.

"Who are you calling?"

Hongze Daxian looks down upon this Golden Body from above, noticing the other's muttering, and cannot help but find it somewhat ridiculous: "Praying to immortals and bowing to Buddhas? Have you forgotten, I am the immortal."

His words echo through the great hall, rolling up a despairing pressure.

Below the immortal, all things are but straw dogs.

"..."

The trembling five fingers of the white-robed yin spirit gradually return to calm; the eyes originally filled with pain and struggle become as calm as a stagnant pool.

He clenches his palm.

Carefully feeling the pain on his body, the youth remains silent for a long time, then lifts the corner of his lips, revealing a fierce smile.

"Hmm?"

Hongze Daxian lightly hums, slowly frowning.

Immediately, he sees the Golden Body, which had been full of numbness, slowly raise its head; those struggling gilded-gold eyes are now so clear.

Without a shred of emotion, it simply gazes quietly at him.

Even making Hongze Daxian feel a hint of offense and anger, yet he still displays the magnanimity of an immortal: "Look, after all, you only have ten-plus years left to live."

The Prison-Suppressing Golden Body gazes at those merit forces in the heavens merging into the other's fingertips.

It shifts its gaze to the immortal's face, as if wanting to remember this countenance; finally, it opens its mouth, and a deep voice resounds through the great hall as well.

"Ten-plus years is too long; I only strive for the morning and evening."

Hearing this, Hongze Daxian paused for a moment.

Then, as if hearing the most absurd joke imaginable, he laughed until he was gasping for breath.

He casually waved his sleeve, taking away those merits, while simultaneously using pure Qi to veil the palace doors; the entire hall instantly plunged into deep darkness.

Hongze Daxian glanced outside the hall and said mockingly, "Shen Xianyou, before this seat..."

His voice suddenly grew gloomy: "Where can you still see any dawn or dusk?"

However, the Golden Body Dharma Image no longer responded.

It lowered its head again, savoring the afterglow of its body's painful convulsions; that torment, which felt as if the soul were being torn apart, could keep it eternally awake.

West Hong, Banshan Sect.

Shen Yi stood with closed eyes before a low mountain, his hands hanging loosely, except for his fingertips digging deeply into his palms.

"What's wrong with you?"

Ji Jingxi sensed something was amiss and gently supported the other; the moment she touched him, she felt just how weak Shen Yi truly was beneath his upright posture.

Her heart startled; could it be that during the earlier duel with the two Liangdaohuang Sect Shen Zongzhu, her own Shen Zongzhu had not won as easily as others saw?

"Nothing."

Shen Yi opened his eyes and gently brushed the hand from his shoulder.

Having experienced the immortal's methods from start to finish, though it was somewhat self-inflicted suffering, it allowed him to gain a clearer understanding of that Hongze Daxian.

He lowered his head and murmured, "I must hurry."

Ye Jiu and Qi Yansheng slowly strode over from a distance; they did not know Shen Yi's current plans, but simply refused to let him face it alone again.

Even if they themselves were a bit weaker, being able to create a bit of noise on the sidelines, provide some support, or something similar, was still better than doing nothing at all.

Previously, watching helplessly as the other fought the Liangdaohuang Sect alone was truly unbearable.

"When do we act?"

Ye Jiu drew the flowing light long sword; the Ten Thousand Things Sword that failed to pierce the Dragon Demon's body last time should finally be able to play some role this time.

Hearing this, Shen Yi looked toward the waters, gently rubbing his wrist to calm his trembling five fingers.

"Right now."

Inside the West Long Gong hall.

Qi Shengtao stared死死 at the desk before him, writing furiously: "This is a matter of fellow disciples killing each other; I hope your sect will personally intervene to clean up your own household!"

Everyone else in the hall dared not breathe loudly.

Clearly, the fact that the two Liangdaohuang Sect Shen Zongzhu were still beheaded after summoning the Ancestral Stele had given the father king a great shock.

If that person also mastered the method to summon the Ancestral Stele, one could say he already possessed the strength to turn West Hong upside down; even if the father king appeared personally, he恐怕 could not easily kill the other.

He had thought the Wan Yao Dian was the biggest trouble, but who would have expected that in this seemingly peaceful land and water, such a monster was hidden!

Now with both sides emerging, it gave these dragon sons and grandchildren a feeling of being in imminent danger.

Bang!

Qi Shengtao finally put down the brush, carefully examining the three letters before him, addressed respectively to the Liangdaohuang Sect, the Yue Family, and the North Long Gong.

The former two were to invite forces to deal with this Liangdaohuang Sect disciple, while as for the North Long Gong... after discovering the situation had changed, this West Long Wang had abandoned his former view.

The current Hongze seemed to have become even more bizarre.

Various powerful figures of unknown identity appeared out of thin air; who knew if the next moment an old horse might stumble, falling into the hands of some nameless person.

And the North Long Gong was deeply trusted by the immortals, bearing the mission of guarding Hongze.

Even though that group of Netherworld Profound Dragons had huge appetites, Qi Shengtao had to invite them to appear; at least, being of the same dragon race, plus they had to consider the immortals, they would not likely commit the evil deeds of the Wan Yao Dian thugs.

Choosing the lesser of two evils; cutting off an arm is better than losing one's life.

"..."

Qi Shengtao suddenly froze, then gave a self-mocking smile.

Too many strange things had happened, causing him to have such an absurd thought.

He was currently residing above the dragon cave; those who could kill him, counting all of Hongze, were merely those three, and those three restrained each other, all being watched by the immortals; where was the opportunity to act?

"Look at your cowardly appearance."

Qi Shengtao raised his head, his eyes turning fierce again, slowly scanning the crowd below: "Pull yourselves together, do not let Crown Prince Ziyang see a joke."

Seeing the father king wave his hand to send the three letters out.

Qi Zhaowen finally breathed a sigh of relief in his heart and bowed to the side, saying, "During this period, I will trouble Crown Prince Ziyang."

With two Heaven Realm Perfected powerful figures, famous throughout Hongze, stationed here, there was indeed no need to panic.

"No need for courtesy."

Crown Prince Ziyang sat behind the desk with his sister, taking a small sip of wine and casually waving his hand.

He merely glanced with the corner of his eye at the three letters flying out of the hall, without even the slightest ripple in his expression.

The moment he ordered them sent out, the entire West Hong could not transmit a single word; this was the confidence of being the Crown Prince of the East Long Gong.

He was just not entirely sure if what he did had any meaning.

That young man who rashly spoke of killing an immortal already possessed sufficient mental fortitude, but as for his strength, putting aside whether he could defeat me, even if he could, he was still a hundred thousand miles away from his goal.

Let alone killing an immortal; even if he slaughtered this old dragon before him, it would not be enough.

Tsk, should I think of a way to trick this old dragon out?

Provide Shen Yi with an opportunity?

Thinking of this, Crown Prince Ziyang put down his wine cup and helplessly shook his head.

Truly influenced by that surname Shen; given the current situation of the East Long Gong, how could it possibly get involved in such matters?

Take it slow. First, see how Shen Yi plots, then observe further.

As the Crown Prince of the Eastern Long Gong, how could he be led away by a few words from others?

"Father King, do not worry."

Having received Qi Zhaowen's affirmative reply, his heart settled a bit more. Seizing this opportunity to show how he differed from his brothers, he smiled and said, "In truth, whether it is the Wan Yao Dian or the disciples of the Liangdaohuang Sect, if they truly possessed strength, why would they hide? They would have already attacked the Long Gong."

"In my humble opinion, we previously underestimated them, which allowed them to seize the opportunity and cause us repeated harm. Better to firmly defend the Long Gong and not go out, waiting calmly for aid from the South Hong. Then all troubles will be resolved."

If Qi Shengtao were to say such words, it would somewhat diminish the Long Wang's dignity.

Its gaze casually swept over this son. His expression revealed no joy or anger, yet deep within, a hint of satisfaction finally arose.

Lacking strength is nothing; at least his insight and mind are not bad.

Qi Shengtao slowly leaned back onto his throne, passing over this topic: "The current situation is treacherous. First, summon your eldest brother back to avoid any accidents. As for those idle wild demons, take in as many as you can; leave the rest for the south to worry about."

"This son understands!"

Hearing this, Qi Zhaowen was overjoyed.

The eldest brother had only been gone for such a short time; how could the matters in the south be resolved so quickly? Calling him back at this moment, without the support of the South Long Gong and the demons led by Shenxu Laozu, and with that wretched woman Senior Zi Xian already pushed out by Father King, where would Qi Zhaoyi have the qualification to compete with him?

Father King has already made a decision in his heart!

However, the joy in Qi Zhaowen's eyes did not last long.

Due to his urgent mood, he even used his essence blood to activate the Dragon Clan's secret method to contact the other, just to show his concern for Qi Zhaoyi before Father King: "Eldest Brother, there is a change in West Hong. Please return quickly."

In the next moment, the eyelids of this Second Prince of West Hong twitched lightly twice.

He stared blankly upward, looking at Qi Shengtao on the throne: "Father King... Eldest Brother seems to have already returned... right outside the Long Gong."

Everyone present were demons who had lived for so many years; how could they not know what caused the strangeness on Qi Zhaowen's face?

Qi Zhaoyi was ordered to handle affairs in South Hong. He had only been gone for a short time, sent no report or letter, gave no prior notice, and did not respond to the essence blood secret transmission. Yet he appeared quietly outside the Long Gong?

This matter sounded somewhat eerie no matter how one heard it.

Plus, the events that recently occurred in West Hong...

"Huff."

Qi Shengtao slowly straightened his body, his expression indifferent. He lightly nodded his chin and said, "Go welcome your eldest brother. I, the King, wish to know what exactly happened in the south."

He had already given this eldest son too many chances, even personally appearing to drive away great demons for him, and outside Senior Zi Xian's sight, to gather a retinue belonging solely to himself.

Such a small matter, and the other could still accomplish it in such a manner.

Truly, it was somewhat too disappointing.

Of course, there was another possibility, but Qi Shengtao did not believe it: that someone, after doing such things, would still dare to walk boldly before him.

"..."

Crown Prince Ziyang and Senior Zi Xian exchanged a glance. Sensing the Dragon Seal within their storage treasures, their faces suddenly became very strange.

A dead person could certainly not appear outside the hall.

The person Qi Zhaowen sensed left only one possibility.

But... what is he doing coming here now?!

Everyone in the hall felt Qi Shengtao's emotional shift, and the place instantly became Tianyan Siji.

Qi Zhaowen dared not speak more. He bowed deeply, then immediately turned and dashed toward the hall entrance.

However, just as he reached the hall door, his entire body froze in place.

His eyes stared死死 at the figure ahead, seeing that plain ink robe he had never seen before but had just heard of, that Bai Xi and handsome face, and the calm gaze cast upon him...

Qi Zhaowen's pupils instantly dilated. His throat convulsed; a roar had already surged to his tongue tip, yet he still could not shout it out.

Boom!

The ink-robed youth lightly stepped forward and kicked hard against the dark color is heavy armor on Qi Zhaowen's lower abdomen.

No fluctuation of aura; only the surrounding heaven and earth instantly twisted.

This great demon of the Mid-Heaven Realm was thrown flying back without any power to resist. He tumbled several times in the air and, under the shocked gazes of everyone, crashed down with a boom, shattering the long stairs!

连带着 the throne itself suddenly sank and tilted.

Qi Shengtao's figure leaned forward slightly. His double palms gripped the armrests tightly. Beneath the swaying crown tassels, the grotesque dragon head stared down in fury and rage.

Qi Zhaowen curled his body like a giant shrimp, lying amidst the pile of shattered jade. One hand covered his lower abdomen, his whole body twitching uncontrollably. The other blood-stained hand dug forcefully into the broken steps.

He opened his mouth as if to say something, but his mouth was full of blood.

He could only stare wide-eyed at Father King, then struggle to crawl up the long stairs, wanting to reach Father King's feet.

"Heh... heh..."

A long boot landed casually on his back, stepping on his dragon spine. It made Qi Zhaowen's eyes bulge until his eyeballs nearly popped out of their sockets; his entire body could not move a single inch.

At some unknown time, the ink-robed youth had walked through the crowd and arrived at the bottom of the long stairs.

He casually stepped on Qi Zhaowen, raised his eyes, and looked toward that West Long Wang.

Behind the youth, three figures silently stepped into the hall.

Their wide golden-threaded white robes fluttered slightly, each embroidered with the patterns of Qingyue, Tianjian, and Lingyue, making the eyelids of everyone in the hall twitch simultaneously.

"You—"

Qi Shengtao's eyes turned red as he watched the Crown Prince he had just established in his heart being trampled underfoot by someone.

His voice was hoarse: "Is that the disciple of the Liangdaohuang Sect?"

Perhaps they would not wait for the Xian Sect to clean house, because now, the killing intent in his heart had risen to a point where it could no longer be restrained.

"Blind your dog eyes!"

Previously, when Situ Fuhai and Shi Lianchang perished, Qi Yansheng had cared extremely about this matter. Now hearing these words again, he stepped forward, his expression turning cold: "This is the eldest of my Seven Sons, the Shen Zongzhu of Nanyang."

Upon hearing this, even Qi Zhaowen stopped struggling. He turned back dazedly, looking at the young man before him.

They had guessed countless identities for their enemy, yet never thought the answer would be so simple.

Just recently, Yu Nanhong was the Qi Sect they had just attempted to frame.

That fallen power, once secluded in a corner, reappeared and now walked boldly into the main hall of the Western Long Gong.

(End of this chapter)