Chapter 132: The Path of Cultivation

On this path of cultivation, life and death are the norm.

"Lady Tian, please accept my condolences!"

Their acquaintance was not that deep, so Li Youyi found it difficult to empathize, and immediately asked who "Diran" was.

Among the group that ambushed them in the valley, Li Youyi only recognized "Xue Qi" of the Sui Sect and "Chen Song" of the Three Chen Gong, and that was only because Shang Zhi had told him when they entered the mountains.

Zuoqiu Lanlan wiped away her tears and said resentfully: "Diran is a disciple of Zen Master Xinku, one of the three great Zen masters of Coffin Mountain. Like his master, he loves to eat people and is cruel beyond measure. But he has the cultivation of the second realm of the Five Seas Realm, a freakish species that broke into the Five Seas from the Nine Springs. He has drunk the blood of two types of ancient immortal giant beasts, and his strength is extremely formidable..."

Listening to her account, Li Youyi knew who it was; it was exactly that freakish martial cultivator, about four meters tall, with a pair of metallic wings. At the time, he was wearing a Spirit-Passing Human Skin and flying above the valley; Shang Zhi was killed by the metallic feathers that flew from his body.

"Lady Tian, do not be sad. I will definitely kill this Diran!"

Li Youyi wanted to avenge Shang Zhi, firstly because he had accepted the deceased's money. Secondly, a monster who loved to eat people was truly repulsive, and it would be just right to eliminate him.

Zuoqiu Lanlan's watery eyes stared at him in surprise.

Of course, she knew that "Sima Tan" was just saying this as a polite remark to comfort her. After all, Diran's cultivation and combat power were already at the pinnacle of the second realm of the Five Seas, far beyond what a martial cultivator in the first realm of the Five Seas could measure up to, but she felt some consolation in her heart.

As for the term "Lady Tian," Zuoqiu Lanlan felt strange; no one had ever addressed her like that before.

Li Youyi walked up to Zuoqiu Baiming and, seeing his miserable state, reminded him: "Brother Baiming, your Spirit-Passing Human Skin seems to be shattered. Is that alright?"

Zuoqiu Baiming had suffered a severe blow to his heart; he just glanced at Li Youyi indifferently and said nothing.

He was a Nine Springs Pure Immortal Body who had broken into the Five Seas; although he lacked a hundred meridians, he was definitely a person with a boundless future, a top-tier prodigy even among thousands of gates.

Yet, leading a team on his own for the first time, he had been defeated so miserably, ending up with broken legs and a disability, his will almost crushed. How could he have the mood to speak?

Zuoqiu Lanlan was filled with worry and said: "Brother Baiming's legs were severed by Xue Qi of the Sui Sect. With his Spirit-Passing Human Skin shattered, he can no longer fight others. Once he activates the magic power in his body, he could spontaneously combust and die at any time. Fortunately, you are still alive, otherwise I alone... I wouldn't know what to do."

Li Youyi pondered secretly in his heart.

The current situation was naturally tragic for the Zuoqiu Gate, but for the Jiuli Clan, it couldn't be better.

A Zuoqiu Baiming with broken legs would inevitably harbor monstrous resentment toward forces like the Sui Sect and Coffin Mountain, and after returning, this resentment would inevitably affect his clan elders.

The resentment of a Zuoqiu Lanlan who had lost her husband was also enough to ignite the anger of some elders in the Zuoqiu Gate.

He couldn't let them die; he had to save them.

"Wait for me."

Li Youyi walked into the stone forest of giant stone statues, took out Shang Zhi's corpse from the Evil Camel Bell, and carried it on his back.

Seeing Li Youyi return with Shang Zhi's corpse, Zuoqiu Lanlan smiled bitterly as if she had expected it: "He died too?"

"He was also killed by Diran."

Li Youyi took off the talisman robe from Shang Zhi's body and handed it to Zuoqiu Lanlan: "Put it on Brother Baiming; it might be of some use."

"How could his corpse be in this stone forest?" Zuoqiu Lanlan asked curiously.

Li Youyi was too lazy to explain much and said casually: "I carried it out from the valley. No matter what, I must bring him back to the Beast Li tribe for burial."

Zuoqiu Lanlan was silent, thinking of many things at once. Looking at Li Youyi, her eyes were suddenly filled with infinite admiration.

The situation in the valley at that time was so critical that the three of them from the Zuoqiu Gate didn't even have time to collect the high-grade magic tool, the Yin Banner. In contrast, "Sima Tan" was simply righteous and loyal; no matter how dangerous it was, he would never let his companion's corpse be exposed in the wilderness.

After Zuoqiu Lanlan put the talisman robe on Zuoqiu Baiming, she heard Li Youyi say again: "We must leave quickly. This stone forest is not safe; there is a terrible danger."

"If we go out, we'll die. Diran and Chen Song are guarding outside the stone forest." Zuoqiu Lanlan's face turned pale instantly as a terrible scene appeared in her mind.

"Then we'll kill them."

Li Youyi didn't want to linger here, nor did he want to expose his powerful trump cards like the Evil Camel Bell, so his gaze fell on the high-grade magic tool, the Heaven Flame Blade, in Zuoqiu Baiming's hand: "Brother Baiming, may I borrow the blade?"

Zuoqiu Baiming finally reacted, threw the Heaven Flame Blade over, and said listlessly: "Take it and use it."

Li Youyi picked up the Heaven Flame Blade and walked out.

"I'll go with you."

Zuoqiu Lanlan knew very well that hiding in the stone forest could only avoid disaster for a while. If they couldn't get down the mountain in time when the immortal mist dissipated tomorrow, the mysterious heaven and earth energy of the Thirty-Three Mile Mountain alone would be enough to cause them, these Five Seas Realm martial cultivators, to spontaneously combust and die.

Since that was the case, it was better to fight to the death.

If they could take one down with them, it wouldn't be a loss. Even if they died in the end, at least they would die with dignity and not disgrace the gate of the thousands of gates.

"No need, just take good care of Brother Baiming."

With all one hundred and twenty trace meridians in his body refined into gold, and the high-grade magic tool Night-Walking Clothes and the high-grade magic tool Battle Blade bolstering his defense, speed, and strength to an absolute peak, Li Youyi had full confidence in fighting any opponent in the second realm of the Five Seas.

If Zuoqiu Baiming wielded these two high-grade magic tools, he might even be able to defeat some people in the third realm of the Five Seas.

Li Youyi carried the blade out of the stone forest, stood on top of a white stone more than two meters high, faced the mist-filled gravel area, released his perception, and shouted: "Where is Chen Song? Do you recognize Chen Jingtang?"

Sounds of breaking wind rang out in the mist.

Chen Song, wrapped in the Spirit-Passing Human Skin, walked forward slowly: "It's useless even if you recognize Jingtang. Everyone from the Zuoqiu Gate must die. Friendship is worthless in the face of life and death interests."

Chen Song, Chen Jingtang, and Chen Wenwu were the only three Nine Springs Supreme People of the younger generation of the Three Chen Gong.

Among them, Chen Wenwu was slightly older and had the highest talent; he was a Nine Springs Pure Immortal Body and a top-tier figure ranked in the top five of the younger generation in Li Province, the face of the Three Chen Gong.

Li Youyi scanned the blurry figures behind Chen Song and said proudly: "I want to tell you that Chen Jingtang was killed by me. You, Chen Song, will also die under my blade."

"Are you Sima Tan?"

Chen Song's gaze sharpened, his murderous intent fully revealed.

The reason Li Youyi said that just now was to provoke Chen Song.

When a person is angry, reason is often hijacked by emotion.

"Whoosh!"

Li Youyi didn't respond to him at all; he leaped three zhang away in one step, and after three steps, he arrived in front of Chen Song. The Heaven Flame Blade in his hand, driven by magic power, released a vigorous and scorching flame.

This flame was not an ordinary fire, but a demon fire.

Martial cultivators below the third realm of the Five Seas could not use the manifested combat intent to defend against it; even if they were touched by just a little, their flesh and blood would be burned through.

"Good, today is just the right time to avenge Jingtang."

Chen Song waved his arm, and the jade bracelet on his wrist flew out.

The jade bracelet spun at high speed, releasing bright radiance, and struck along a winding and uncertain path.

Li Youyi bent his legs, crouched down to dodge, and then slashed horizontally at his lower body, drawing a crescent-shaped flame blade energy.

Chen Song, confident in his deep cultivation and thick magic power, did not dodge or evade, and activated a palm mirror.

He struck out with a palm.

The vast palm power and the mirror's radiance erupted together, colliding with the flame blade energy, and energy ripples spread wildly outward.

"Boom!"

The two retreated backward at the same time.

While retreating, Li Youyi tilted his body to the left, avoided the jade bracelet flying from behind, supported his palm on the ground, and flipped to land several zhang away.

Chen Song retracted the jade bracelet, his face calm and grave, but his heart was surging with stormy waves; he couldn't accept being fought to a draw by someone crossing realms.

Although the opponent carried high-grade magic tools, it would be good if he could exert ten percent of the power of a high-grade magic tool with his cultivation in the first realm of the Five Seas. He himself carried three medium-grade magic tools and could exert twenty or thirty percent of their power; he definitely wouldn't lose in terms of weapons.

"As expected of Sima Tan, who was invincible in the Gushing Spring Realm. After stepping into the Five Seas Realm, he really is a fish turning into a dragon. Is he about to gain momentum?" Chen Song was extremely serious, regarding Li Youyi as a life-and-death enemy.

"Gain momentum? Then I'll cut him down here."

Diran's deep, mixed voice came from the mist.

"Swish! Swish!"

A dense rain of arrows flew out from the mist, accompanied by Diran's metallic feathers.

Blood mist and blood-colored scriptures flew from Li Youyi's clothes, and he held the Heaven Flame Blade horizontally in front of him; a fire shield larger than a human body appeared on the blade.

Before the arrow rain could touch the fire shield, the arrowheads melted into liquid.

When the metallic feathers struck, they were blocked by layers of defensive power and could not land on Li Youyi.

The arrow rain ceased.

Through the fire shield, Li Youyi saw Chen Song stepping on wind-controlling boots to attack, holding a jade bracelet in one hand and pinching a palm mirror in the other.

In the sky, Diran's massive body flew out from the mist, holding a flame halberd, looking domineering and extraordinary.

"Two against one? No, it's eight against two."

Li Youyi didn't come here to compete in martial arts with them; he wouldn't talk about fairness, but was here to kill.

Therefore, he slapped the insect tube.

Seven Phoenix-Wing Moth Emperors flew out together, rushing toward Diran.

They were like seven arrows leaving the string, emitting "whoosh whoosh" sounds of breaking wind, ear-piercing and dangerous.

On the ground, Li Youyi and Chen Song had only exchanged three moves, but Diran's screams came one after another, and his four-meter-long, nearly thousand-jin corpse fell from mid-air with a bang.

Chen Song and the other martial cultivators in the mist were scared out of their wits.

How did Diran suddenly die?

They didn't even see clearly what those seven colorful light shadows were.

Chen Song saw clearly; it was seven moths, and his eyes gradually became terrified: "You are actually an insect controller!"

Without thinking, he turned and fled.

What a joke, Diran was a freakish species who broke into the Five Seas from the Nine Springs, and his combat power was slightly higher than his, but he died miserably on the spot in just a few breaths.

How could he still fight?

Li Youyi was previously mainly afraid that the seven Phoenix-Wing Moth Emperors would be backlashed by the mysterious heaven and earth energy of the Thirty-Three Mile Mountain, so he had been cautious and dared not release them easily. Yesterday, when picking herbs, he had tested that they could resist that power.

The seven Phoenix-Wing Moth Emperors were comparable to seven inheritor seeds of the same realm, each capable of killing enemies across realms, and their combat power was not much weaker than Diran and Chen Song.

Seven against one, it was naturally easy.

"Leave Chen Song to me. You go and clean up those martial cultivators in the mist. They must have picked up dyed-mist exotic herbs, so don't let them get away."

Li Youyi carried his blade and chased after Chen Song with big strides.

Zuoqiu Lanlan stood at the edge of the stone forest of giant stone statues, witnessing everything in the mist, shocked to an extreme degree.

"Sima Tan" crossing realms to fight Chen Song to a draw was one thing, but he actually raised seven fierce insects... no, it couldn't be fierce insects, they must be exotic insects.

Only young exotic insects could possibly enter the Thirty-Three Mile Mountain.

The one-legged Zuoqiu Baiming appeared silently behind her, staring into the mist, listening to the continuous sounds of fighting and screaming: "Lanlan, our death date is approaching!"

Zuoqiu Lanlan was dazed: "Brother Baiming, what do you mean? Sima Tan can definitely handle them; he is really strong."

Words are useless when people teach people; things teach people once and it enters the heart.

Zuoqiu Baiming seemed to have suddenly become mature and steady, no longer arrogant, and smiled bitterly: "It is precisely because he is too strong that we are bound to die."

(End of chapter)