Chapter 324

Li Youyi and the five Phoenix-Winged Moth Emperors shattered Sikong Yanlun's Ghost Fire palm print, seeing that Yang Qingxi was still standing by as a spectator, seemingly having the genuine intention of joining forces with them.

Consequently, he stowed the five little ones and the Earth Spirit into his insect bag, preparing to escape into the depths of the swamp and flee using the spatial power of the Prefecture Governor's official robe.

"Li, this strike is worth five million Gushing Spring coins; don't come asking me for money again in the future."

Yang Qingxi stepped on the long river of magic power, rose from the water, and headed straight for the jade boat holding dual swords.

She saw that the jade boat was the true treasure for escape, but unfortunately, it was being tightly restricted by Sikong Jingyuan.

Yang Qingchan drove the six Bodhi seeds and over eight hundred scriptures toward the battlefield of Li Youyi, Sikong Yanlun, and Yi Yi Zhou Xue, tearing a gap in the Dao Heart projections of the two great powerhouses.

Li Youyi could not fathom the true intentions of the two Yangs and dared not let Yang Qingchan get close, so he decisively fled to the bottom of the water.

As for the two people and two phoenixes on the jade boat, he could no longer worry about them; he could only hope that Brother Qi Xiao would be decisive and trigger the jade boat's flight power to escape.

Yi Yi Zhou Xue and Sikong Yanlun rushed into the water, chasing after Li Youyi's aura as sensed by their Dao Heart projections, their magic power entangling him. Even if he knew water escape or earth escape, they would drag him back.

"Splash! Splash! Splash!"

Three figures rushed out of the water simultaneously, their faces filled with extreme terror as they fled at top speed.

"Boss, run quickly, the things below... have all come to life!" Sikong Yanlun roared in horror, alerting Sikong Jingyuan.

Li Youyi was also terrified by the situation below and fled back to the water's surface; he didn't even have time to take out the Prefecture Governor's official robe, shouting to Brother Qi Xiao: "Drive the jade boat, escape immediately."

It was too terrifying, like the descent of a ghost realm.

On the jade boat, Yang Qingxi had just obtained the ghost flag and looked back.

She saw.

Behind Yi Yi Zhou Xue, Sikong Yanlun, Li Youyi, and Yang Qingchan, the water surface was burning—it was all ghost fire.

One after another, phantom images of Buddhas appeared amidst the ghost fire.

Some held prayer beads, some held wooden fish, some held monk staffs... all were chanting scriptures, the Zen sounds incessant in their ears.

The corpses at the bottom of the water climbed up one after another, held up on the surface by the ghost fire. They were so decayed that only white bones remained, with only a few still wearing tattered armor or monk robes.

On the water surface, the ancient departed spirits were becoming more and more numerous.

"Swish!"

The jade boat flew over, picked up Li Youyi and Yang Qingchan, then flew into mid-air, erupting with unparalleled speed as it headed straight for the huge hole thousands of meters above.

"Miss Yang, where are you taking us?" Brother Qi Xiao asked.

Yang Qingxi stood at the bow of the boat, her magic power continuously releasing and injecting into the jade boat: "In the current situation, only by going up is it safest."

"According to the orientation, above the Nether Flower Black Swamp is the Truth Zen Forest." Li Youyi sat in meditation to heal his injuries, then released the five Phoenix-Winged Moth Emperors from the insect bag, secretly transmitting his voice to them to be on guard against Yang Qingxi and Yang Qingchan.

There was no help for it; even if Yang Qingxi and Yang Qingchan truly wanted to help just now, he and Brother Tuoba Butuo were both severely injured, and without the power to protect themselves, there was no guarantee they wouldn't turn around and deal a lethal blow.

Yang Qingxi raised her beautiful head, looking at the huge hole above that looked like the "sky collapsing," and muttered to herself: "The layer above is indeed the Truth Zen Forest. But this giant hole seems to lead even higher; could it be connected to the Sacred Heart layer?"

Soon, the jade boat disappeared into the pitch-black hole.

The swamp below.

A blood-mud figure, riding a coffin, drifted out from behind the countless departed spirits.

It gazed at the glimmer of jade light disappearing into the huge hole and muttered to itself: "Good lad, haven't seen you in over a year, and your combat power has actually reached such a level."

The blood-mud figure was none other than Master Guan.

Chan Hai Guan Wu, Master Guan, and Master Lingwei had all gone to the Sacred Heart layer along the giant hole; Master Guan had stayed behind to meet them.

When Li Youyi first arrived here, Master Guan had already noticed him, but he dared not easily make contact.

The first reason was that Brother Qi Xiao and Brother Tuoba Butuo were there.

The second reason was that he wasn't sure if any Longevity Realm giants of the Dao Sect were following in the shadows.

"Scatter, all of you; better not cause too much of a stir. If I provoke a Longevity Realm giant, I won't be able to hold them off in my current state."

Master Guan waved his hand gently, and then the departed spirits sank back into the bottom of the water one by one, not continuing to hunt down Yi Yi Zhou Xue and the other two.

In the cavern-like secret treasure vault.

Li Youyi spent three hours bringing his injuries under control, then stood up to observe the cave; Brother Qi Xiao, Brother Tuoba Butuo, and Yang Qingchan were all there, but Yang Qingxi was nowhere to be seen.

The cave dwelling was large, and footsteps echoed.

Li Youyi walked several hundred meters before seeing Yang Qingxi, who was studying the ghost flag near the stone door and the entrance array.

He walked over, his tone gentle: "Have you figured it out?"

Yang Qingxi raised her head and glanced at him: "Don't think I want to keep it for myself! It's not safe here; Sikong Jingyuan and Sikong Yanlun could find us at any time, and I must master stronger power to deal with them."

Li Youyi stared into her eyes: "Earlier, did Miss Yang truly want to save us, or was there another motive?"

"You actually suspect me? If I had another motive, do you think I would give you the chance to heal?" Yang Qingxi said.

Li Youyi nodded: "That makes sense! But there is one thing that doesn't make sense: earlier in the Nether Flower Black Swamp, I was clearly at an absolute disadvantage, and even if we joined forces, we would have had little chance of winning. Yet Miss Yang chose to help me instead of killing me; that makes no sense."

Yang Qingxi did not answer this question immediately, pondering for a moment: "Your potential is far above theirs; you are a better partner for cooperation. The combat power you displayed earlier earned my approval."

Li Youyi walked up to her, only a foot away, and shook his head: "Too far-fetched! Killing me would yield far more benefits than cooperating with me."

Yang Qingxi felt Li Youyi's aggressiveness, her heartbeat quickening involuntarily; she dared not meet his gaze and turned to the side: "I don't believe that after killing you, those three would share a portion of the benefits with me."

Seeing her like this, Li Youyi found it interesting and pressed forward another half-step: "But I heard that Sikong Yanlun is deeply in love with you and would absolutely never deal with you."

"Him? He's just driven by possessiveness! Can you stop getting so close? Why do I feel like you want to take the opportunity to make a move on me?" Yang Qingxi retreated two steps as if fleeing.

Li Youyi had never thought that a strong woman like Yang Qingxi could also have such timid moments.

"Li, let me tell you, she might be a little moved by you! When a woman is moved but refuses to admit it, many things cannot be explained clearly."

Yang Qingchan's figure stood leaning against the stone wall, a smile on her face.

Yang Qingxi's eyes turned cold as she looked at her: "If I were truly someone who would lose their reason because of being moved, I would have acted long ago, rather than waiting until he was in his most dangerous moment to intervene."

"Only by intervening at the most dangerous moment can he remember it more deeply and feel grateful to you." Yang Qingchan revealed a set of snow-white teeth, her red lips bright and moist.

Li Youyi said: "I actually think Miss Yang's explanation is quite reasonable. It seems that in the future, I can't call you Qingxi anymore; it's too ambiguous, and if I keep calling you that, you'll take it seriously! You're too easy to take things seriously!"

Li Youyi laughed heartily, shifting from his previous aggressiveness back to his playful, cynical manner as he walked into the cave.

Regardless of what was said, this time, Li Youyi had completely changed his view of Yang Qingxi; he could see that she genuinely wanted to help him escape.

To be able to stand on his side at the most dangerous moment was already no small feat.

As for what she was truly thinking in her heart—calculation, long-term planning, the intentions of the Sui Sect, or perhaps even a tiny bit of genuine affection—it didn't actually matter.

In any case, everyone was a clear-headed and rational person who wouldn't be swayed by such trivial emotions.

Yang Qingxi's mood was sent up and down by Li Youyi, her ears burning slightly; she had never experienced such intense emotional fluctuations before and said coldly: "Five million Gushing Spring coins, wiped clean."

"What kind of beautiful dream are you having? You didn't really help much earlier; you didn't intervene in time, and you still want to offset the debt?"

Li Youyi disappeared into the depths of the cave dwelling.

Although she was very angry on the surface, ripples were stirring in Yang Qingxi's heart; this sense of connection made her feel that there was always a bond linking the two of them.

She made up her mind that this money absolutely must not be returned to him.

His internal injuries were too severe; it took Li Youyi four full days to completely recover.

He dared not easily walk out of the secret treasure vault because Sikong Jingyuan, Sikong Yanlun, and Yi Yi Zhou Xue had appeared in the nearby area. In addition, there were large numbers of patrol guards.

"They must have already returned to the main altar and learned that we didn't go back, so they guessed we were hiding here." Yang Qingxi's eyes were grave; she somewhat regretted not fleeing back to the main altar immediately.

Li Youyi said: "They might have also invited some other experts over."

Brother Qi Xiao said: "The strength of those three is truly terrifying; so many departed spirits couldn't keep them there."

Everyone nodded, realizing that the sudden appearance of large numbers of departed spirits in the swamp was quite strange.

"They shouldn't be able to find the entrance to the treasure vault for a while, and the entrance is narrow and easy to defend but hard to attack; it's a good place to hide. From now on, we will take turns keeping watch," Brother Tuoba Butuo said.

Li Youyi nodded: "If we can really hide for ten days or half a month, they might retreat, thinking we went to a higher region along that hole, which is tens of miles wide."

"If we really hide for that long without returning to the main altar, it should alert the big shots behind the two of us!" Yang Qingxi said.

For the next half month, everyone immersed themselves in cultivation and improvement. Under crisis and pressure, a martial cultivator's potential is stimulated, constantly developing talent and enhancing it.

"Splash!"

In the cave dwelling, powerful spiritual light erupted, spreading across the stone walls and illuminating the entire space with a scorching brightness.

Supported by enough Spirit Platform Fire Star Stones, two attempts at breaking through failed.

On the third attempt, Li Youyi finally condensed the fourth mental power star.

Brother Qi Xiao and Brother Tuoba Butuo were startled, stopped their cultivation, and looked over, all of them envious.

Whether in martial arts or mental power cultivation, the fourth realm is a hurdle that is extremely difficult to cross. And now, Li Youyi had actually crossed it first.

In the center of the cave dwelling.

Li Youyi sat cross-legged, behind him the light shadow of the Fusang Divine Tree, which had grown significantly longer.

The divine tree's light shadow, like two large umbrellas, showered down Golden Crow fire rain from its branches and leaves, enveloping his body, while his mental power nerves intertwined throughout the space like a spider web.

(End of chapter)