Chapter 363: Self-Attachment Without Regret, Sentience Without Grinding, Princess Qingcheng Forms the Jin Dan

"That Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger is a mountain god and earth deity fallen into demonhood!"

Qian Chen 'struggled' to reach the desk, stretched out a hand to brush it, and an ancient zither appeared upon it.

He covered his lips with his sleeve, coughed weakly a few times, and said, "As for that Fifth Ghost Messenger, it is the bitter wine of the mortal world, brewed from the integration of ten million mortal dusts into tears... During the great tribulation of the human race three hundred years ago, all kinds of love, hate, and grievances were fused into a single tear, brewing the poison of the mortal world into bitter wine."

"Thus, it became the most poisonous wine in the world, its name—Longevity Poison!"

"Only such poisonous wine could poison countless fierce ghosts, transforming them into *Zhen* insects! When humans die, they become ghosts; when ghosts die, they become *Zhen*; when *Zhen* die, they become *Xi*; when *Xi* die, they become *Yi*! To suppress *Zhen* insects, there is only the Great Sound of *Xi* and *Yi*, the Supreme Dao Sound!"

Qian Chen flicked his sleeve and pressed his hand onto the zither strings.

Ning Qingchen looked up in surprise and said, "Yan Yan Shixiong, could it be that you intend to..."

"Although I am severely injured, I can still manage to pluck a single note of the *Xi-Yi* Divine Thunder if I concentrate my spirit!" Qian Chen said with awe-inspiring righteousness. "Ning Ning Shimei, guard me!"

Ning Qingchen stood by Qian Chen's side, holding the Poison-Enemy Hook.

Inside the Red Pavilion, Qian Chen plucked a zither string. Within the dark ghost realm, the main body of the Fifth Ghost Messenger, which had transformed into countless *Zhen* insects, suddenly felt a great terror from the netherworld descend upon it.

A silent, soundless thunderous tone swept across, continuously impacting the spreading darkness. The dense, impenetrable darkness decomposed and collapsed bit by bit...

The dense swarms of *Zhen* insects died in vast swathes.

The evil spirits, which everyone feared like tigers and which were extremely terrifying and bizarre, suddenly collapsed without any power to resist.

Yan Shu, however, had already received Qian Chen's voice transmission!

Seeing the darkness formed by the human ghost realm collapse, he laughed heartily, shook his robes, and merged his body with his sword. The sword Qi, gathering like a river, wrapped around his physical body, turning into a sharp sword beam that fiercely slaughtered its way into the ghost realm.

His natal sword embryo drove the sword pellet, gathering infinite sword Qi. With just a single sweep, he cut the darkness of the ghost realm into pieces. Wherever the sword light reached, it slaughtered fierce ghosts and the other shadow-clones of the Fifth Ghost Messenger as easily as chopping melons and vegetables.

The other reincarnators only saw a sword light galloping and rampaging through the ghost realm.

The dazzling sword rainbow flickered back and forth, and countless sword Qi swept like a wild wolf. Wherever the sharpness reached, fierce ghosts and demons were hacked to pieces like tattered dolls.

In an instant, he slaughtered over five hundred shadow-clones of the Fifth Ghost Messenger and tens of thousands of various demons and ghosts, completely annihilating the darkness that had shrouded dozens of miles.

Qian Chen plucked a zither string, causing the darkness formed by the ghost realm to collapse.

He coughed up drops of fresh blood, staining his long sleeves like plum blossoms, appearing to be on the verge of death, which worried Zen Master Master Fa Xin and the others beside him. Zen Master Master Fa Xin had to advise, "Fellow Daoist, your Great Sound of *Xi* and *Yi* has already leveled the *Zhen* ghosts; your merit is immense. But your injuries have also worsened by several degrees."

"Previously, in order to sweep away the demons, Fellow Daoist Ning already shattered her Jin Dan, cutting off her Dao path. Now, you are also going to greatly damage your lifespan; how can we bear to watch? Fellow Daoist, you must not play again!"

Qian Chen shook his head slightly and said solemnly, "Two more notes, and I can kill that Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger. Now that the White Bone Demon King has yet to appear, we seem to have the upper hand, but in reality, our situation is as precarious as eggs piled high. Zen Master, please do not try to persuade me further!"

Sensing a hidden, bizarre gaze from the distant ghost realm locking onto him, Qian Chen sneered in his heart. He secretly transmitted his voice to Yan Shu: "Yan Yan Shixiong Yan, deal with the Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger first and take the Divine Talisman for Ning Ning Shimei!"

Qian Chen secretly infused the pill Qi of the Inner-Scene True Thunder Pill into the divine domain above the Desolate Market, transforming it into cyan thunder *Gang*, hiding it within the golden light that filled the sky.

Luo Sen used his blade as a foot, his left arm's broken blade dancing, while his right hand's long *Ji* swept across, forcing back the Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger. The twelve-foot-long iron *Ji* used his right hand as a fulcrum, the blade pointing downward, and he hacked down heavily like a war hammer.

The Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger's twin horns glowed with blood light. The executioner's blade clashed with the long *Ji*. From the tail of the ghost-headed executioner's blade hung a red scarf, like blood-colored rays, dancing with the blade. Behind it appeared a long, barbed battle flag, and on the flag was a variant ghost-faced insect pattern—*Chi*!

As the battle flag fluttered, drops of scarlet like burning embers fell, leaving patches of scorched marks on Luo Sen's mountain-pattern armor. His iron-blue skeleton also bore marks of burning dark red.

Luo Sen's body was already riddled with holes. His arm bones, which had begun to burn, were gradually finding it difficult to withstand the hacking of the huge ghost-headed blade, and cracks appeared.

The woman Rou Niang, who had broken free from the Fifth Ghost Messenger, merged her body with his.

Within the mountain-pattern armor supported by the skeleton, inside the empty ribs, the ghost body flashing with emerald light emitted drops of ghostly radiance, healing the scorched marks. It defended him against the dark red embers constantly falling from the sky.

The Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger roared at the sky, the banners fluttering in the wind, and the embers falling around them danced in the sky with sparks. As the Ox-Head breathed heavily, the sparks surged into its thick nostrils with its breath. Its chest expanded, and dark red glowing patterns burned through the chest armor, revealing themselves.

"Base slave, skeleton demon, I will suppress you in the Demon Realm and burn your souls with demon fire for ten thousand years!"

The ghost-headed long blade burning with dark red demon fire slashed down fiercely. Luo Sen raised his long *Ji*, using the *Ji* guard to block the executioner's blade. But as this blade, carrying demon fire, slashed down, the *Ji* guard shattered, and countless sparks flying from the blade landed on Luo Sen's skeleton, causing it to gradually wither, yellow, and become brittle.

The Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger slashed upward with its second blade. Luo Sen raised his left leg and hacked down with his *Miao* blade.

The blade lights intersected. With a crisp 'clink', the leg bone, which had been burned riddled with holes by the sparks and embers, snapped again, and the Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger's long blade took the opportunity to thrust straight into Luo Sen's chest...

The blade tip was gripped by a pair of hands, piercing only a palm's distance and breaking a few ribs, failing to penetrate the stubborn skeletal warrior.

The woman's hands gripping the blade tip gradually became illusory. The long blade pierced through her chest; she used her own ghost body as a shield to block this strike.

The woman's cheek pressed against the skeleton's cheekbone.

She whispered in the skeleton's ear, "General, I have finally seen you again!"

The skeleton felt a moistness slowly seeping into his withered bones at his zygomatic arch. Drops of misty radiance welled up within his bones, falling from his skull's eye sockets into his chest and abdomen, turning into brilliant clouds and seeping into his entire skeleton.

"Do withered bones cry too?"

Luo Sen sighed wistfully...

The woman's ghost body dissipated, but in his firm blade-heart, a kind of indomitable obsession, unobstructed by life or death, quietly imprinted itself into his heart, leaving a mark in his heart-mind, which was as clear as diamond.

It was as if someone were whispering in his ear, "The General has the great righteousness of home and country, lofty ambitions, and the dauntless spirit to slay demons and eliminate evil... but in my heart, there is only the General!"

A sound of zither music rang in his ears...

Luo Sen let go of the long *Ji* in his hand and backhanded the high-pitched blade-ring within the zither music!

The blade light, accompanied by the zither sound, erupted from the belly of the Great Sage Dasheng Dasheng Leiyin Zither in front of Qian Chen, pulling out a bright, snowy rainbow that spanned ten miles in an instant, gripped in the palm of the skeletal blade-guest...

The *Yanling* long blade danced like moonlight, reflecting his own body. A graceful figure quietly hugged him from behind, and the long blade slashed forward!

"My Attachment!"

"Liberation!"

The two tones coincided—one was the woman's thin, small whisper, as if pouring her heart out to her lover; the other was the man's firmness, mixed with pity and awakening... The strange dual tone seemed to be whispering in everyone's ears.

Zen Master Master Fa Xin in the distance pressed his palms together, bowed his head deeply, and suddenly knelt on the ground.

"Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva, when practicing deep Prajna Paramita, perceived that the five aggregates are all empty, and delivered all suffering and affliction!"

Qian Chen's hand remained frozen in the air for a long time, never falling.

He lowered his head slightly and sighed in a tone filled with memories, "The Great Liberation Demon Blade!"

The Soldier-Lord Flag behind the Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger suddenly snapped, the banner fluttering to the ground. The dark red embers dancing in the sky all extinguished their remaining fire, turning into ashes as white as snow, sprinkling onto Luo Sen's body.

The bucket-sized head fell into the dust, and neck blood splashed three *zhang* high...

Behind Luo Sen, the headless body of the Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger suddenly toppled over like a golden mountain collapsing and a jade pillar falling.

Qian Chen plucked the third zither string, hooking out the Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger's essence and the faintly visible Divine Talisman within its soul. In the distant ghost realm, a roar swept over like rolling thunder.

"How dare you!"

The Divine Talisman flew toward the Red Pavilion. In the distant ghost realm, the dense ghostly Qi suddenly shook violently, and then a giant white bone hand tore open the ghost realm, reaching out from within, covering the sky and sun, arriving above Luo Sen's head. The giant white bone hand was like a mountain; its palm alone could cover one-tenth of the Desolate Market.

The giant white bone hand headed toward the Divine Talisman.

Countless golden light talismans above the Desolate Market gathered into a Heavenly Net that fell, shrouding the giant white bone hand.

The group of reincarnators stared blankly, the giant white bone palm that almost occupied the entire night sky, not knowing how to react.

"White Bone Demon King!"

"A Ghost King who opened up a hell on earth!"

The Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang had seven great Yin Spirit clones and was an ancient divine-cultivating demon, while the White Bone King opened up a ghost kingdom, forming its own hell, and also cultivated the ancient ghost-god Dao.

Although named a Yin Spirit, in reality... it was almost not inferior to the status of an ordinary Yang Spirit!

Seeing this situation, Qian Chen could not help but feel heavy in his heart. Both of these great demon kings had such foundations. As for the leader of the five demons, the culprit who destroyed the Great Ming and caused the great tribulation of the human race—the Peacock Great Bright King, just how powerful was it?

The divine domain that Si Princess Qingcheng opened up with the *Luo Tian Da Jiao* was shaken by that giant hand. The Heavenly Net interwoven with countless talismans was pried open by that hand, and the golden light talismans gathered into a net shattered inch by inch. The White Bone Demon King continued to claw in the direction where the Divine Talisman was escaping.

The Divine Talisman flew toward the Red Pavilion. Qian Chen looked up at the giant hand covering the night sky above his head...

In the golden light in the sky, rumbling thunder sounded incessantly.

A giant cyan jade hand, bathed in countless thunderbolts, slapped out from the golden light. Yan Shu gave a sharp shout in the ghost realm, merging his body with his sword, and for the first time erupted his natal sword embryo after forming the core. Countless sword Qi erupted suddenly, like a sea of swords, and wherever it reached, countless demons and ghosts had their souls scattered.

Yan Shu drove the brilliant sword light to slash open the ghost realm, revealing the White Bone Demon King's huge, mountain-like skeletal true body.

Qian Chen's Innate One-Qi Great Capture gripped that giant white bone hand.

He was wrapped in thunder light, his long hair dancing behind him, like a god and like a demon. His magic power surged throughout his body, his sleeves billowed, and he floated up from the Red Pavilion... The Great Sage Dasheng Dasheng Leiyin Zither hovered in front of him; where was there any trace of the weakness from just a moment ago?

The Ox-Headed Ghost Messenger's Divine Talisman fell into the golden light net, and the twenty-four Huang Jin Divine Generals took action, beginning to refine the Divine Talisman.

Yan Shu also sent the remaining ghost realm he had slashed open back into the divine domain.

Rolling wish-power surged into the sky, refined by divine power into golden mist. The golden mist fell onto that Earth-Deity Divine Talisman, washing away the remaining demon Qi, dyeing it pure cyan bit by bit.

Outside the Divine Talisman, a divine general with an ox head and human body, resembling a god of war, slowly manifested. Surrounded by the twenty-four Huang Jin Divine Generals and six thousand Huang Jin Heavenly Soldiers, the Soldier-Lord Flag behind him gradually condensed.

In the golden light, countless talismans danced, manifesting the traces of the Great Dao within, casting that piece of divine domain into the foundation of the Jin Dan realm... Above the Desolate Market, the demon clouds had vanished without a trace. Only countless stars appeared, sprinkling starlight. The Taiyin star lowered a moon-essence beam a *zhang* thick, mixed with drops of Emperor-Flowing Pulp like raindrops.

There was also a beam of misty purple Qi, emerging from the phantom of the Great Sun in the east, falling into the divine domain.

The three lights went straight into Si Qingchen's Qi sea, shining on that natal Dao Talisman. The sun, moon, and stars lowered moon-essence to refine it. The Dao Talisman shed its yellow talisman paper quality, dyeing it jade-colored. The talismans upon it also slowly evolved, changing into a red-script Heavenly Mansion True Talisman.

Jin Dan manifestation—sun, moon, and stars, the three lights gathered!

As the three lights refined the natal Dao Talisman into a first-rank jade talisman, an illusory Dharma seal manifested out of thin air, covering the Dao Talisman.

Orthodox One Alliance Might!

The second Dharma seal also gradually took shape.

Treasure of the Heavenly Master!

The final Dharma seal only shallowly condensed a ray of spiritual light...

As the Supreme Edict!

Jin Dan manifestation—Treasures of the Dao, Scripture, and Master, the Three Pure Ones confer the Talisman!

A cyan-talisman ox-horned war god equivalent to a first-rank Jin Dan, twenty-four Huang Jin Divine Generals equivalent to third-rank Jin Dan, and eight thousand Huang Jin Divine Soldiers—within the divine domain, the lineup of Dao soldiers, which could be called luxurious, gathered magic power, transforming into a red flag sweeping across the sky above the Desolate Market, draped over Si Princess Qingcheng's divine Dao Dharma body.

Jin Dan manifestation—Heavenly Soldiers and Divine Generals, Flag of the Soldier-Lord!

Next, pure spiritual energy turned into heavenly flowers falling, and golden lotuses and sweet springs gushed from the earth. A goddess with a face like Si Princess Qingcheng slowly walked into the divine domain, and six more Jin Dan manifestations turned in sequence, sweeping away the gloomy Qi within a thousand miles.

The group of Jin Dan True Persons of the human race in the Guzu Kingdom looked in the direction of the Desolate Market. Various manifestations occurred frequently, and auspicious clouds and propitious Qi soared into the sky. They could not help but look at each other. Wasn't it said that the White Bone Demon King was attacking the Desolate Market? Why didn't it look like it?

The scholar riding a donkey reached out to catch a heavenly flower, feeling a pure spiritual energy surge into his body, and his expression suddenly became strange. He looked up in the direction of the divine domain and clicked his tongue, saying, "What rank of pill is this? To have such momentum!"

Qian Chen looked at these nine Jin Dan manifestations and felt quite happy for Si Princess Qingcheng in his heart.

After discovering the true origin of the Ox-Headed Divine Messenger, the reason he and Yan Shu spent so much effort to calculate its death was precisely to take its entire foundation to help Ning Ning Shimei Si take that step, wasn't it?

But on the surface, Qian Chen deliberately made a sour expression, shook his head, and said, "The Divine Dao is just ostentatious, lacking the simplicity of Yan Yan Shixiong Yan's sword Dao breakthrough!"

Sensing that Si Princess Qingcheng had already taken that step, formed a first-rank pill, and was building her own Jin Dan realm...

Qian Chen finally felt completely at ease to take action. He surged his true essence, his hands turned into phantoms, dancing wildly on the zither strings. Countless thunder sounds erupted suddenly. *Xi-Yi* Divine Thunder mixed with *Hun-Yuan*, Five Elements, Eight Trigrams, and *Qian-Yuan* various divine thunders swept out, bombarding wildly, pouring the crazy zither sound into the White Bone Demon King in the distance.

Three thousand *Xi-Yi* Divine Thunders surged within the White Bone Demon King's huge ghost body...

Qian Chen laughed loudly: "White Bone Demon King, I have waited for you for a long time! The Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang walked too lonely! Entrust me to send you down too!"

Zen Master Master Fa Xin was dumbfounded, looking at Qian Chen, who was displaying great power—weren't you just seriously injured and unable to rise? How come you are playing the zither like a god of war now? And... what is going on with the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang?

The White Bone Demon King's voice was low, like the echo amplified in an underground cave: "So it was you who killed the Wise Zhi Zhi Lang Wang!"

Yan Shu's sword light was brilliant, impossible to look at directly, slashing toward the White Bone Demon King.

Luo Sen raised his 'My Attachment' blade, the Great Liberation Demon Blade, slashing out for the second time... ===== CHAPTER 364 =====