Chapter 561: Deflecting the Hard with the Soft, Controlling Motion with Stillness

The Youming Gu was deathly silent, and even the venomous insects dared not appear here. Yet, the three of them could all feel a powerful and evil aura watching them from the shadows.

"There is a powerful demonic beast nearby," Lin Xuan said alertly, "and it is not just one."

Muerxiu used the Void Path to scout: "Senior Brother, there is intense spatial distortion about five hundred meters ahead; that should be the beast's lair. But strangely, I sense a rich fragrance of medicinal herbs. The Nine-Turn Soul-Returning Grass is very likely there."

"It seems we must get past this demonic beast," Qingfengzi took a deep breath, "everyone, prepare for battle."

The three of them cautiously groped forward and soon discovered the abnormal area Muerxiu had mentioned. It was a massive cave, the entrance sealed by dense spiderwebs, with the skeletons of many unknown creatures hanging from them.

"Shihunzhizhuwang!" Qingfengzi's expression changed drastically, "I never expected such a terrifying demonic beast to be here!"

No sooner had he spoken than a heaven-shaking hiss erupted from the cave. A massive Black Spider crawled out; its body was the size of a house, its eight legs covered in sharp barbs, and most terrifying of all were its blood-red compound eyes, which seemed capable of seeing through a person's soul.

"Peak Foundation Establishment Stage cultivation, and it has mastered mental attacks!" Muerxiu's expression was grave, "We are in trouble now."

The Shihunzhizhuwang clearly regarded the three as intruders; it let out an angry hiss, its eight legs exerted force simultaneously, and it pounced toward the three like lightning.

"Scatter!" Qingfengzi shouted, and the three immediately dodged in different directions.

The spider king's attack missed, but it immediately turned its body and opened its mouth to spray a large patch of ink-green venom. As this venom landed on the ground, it immediately corroded deep pits into the hard rock.

"Such potent toxicity!" Lin Xuan was startled; if one were touched by this venom, even their bones would likely be corroded away.

Muerxiu used the Void Path to flicker around the spider king, attempting to find an opening to attack, but the spider king's reactions were extremely fast, and it could detect his position and counterattack in time every single time.

Qingfengzi used Wind Blade techniques for long-range attacks, sending wind blades slashing toward the spider king like blades, but they were all deflected by its hard shell.

Most terrifying of all, the spider king suddenly launched a mental attack. Its compound eyes flickered with an eerie red light, and a powerful mental shockwave assaulted the three.

"Ah!" Muerxiu bore the brunt of it, feeling as if his head were splitting, and his figure staggered in mid-air.

Lin Xuan's Taiji Heart Method had a certain resistance to mental attacks, but he still felt a wave of dizziness.

Qingfengzi's situation was the worst; he was older and his mental strength was relatively weaker, and under the mental attack, he actually lost the ability to act for a moment.

The spider king seized this opportunity, its eight legs exerting force simultaneously as it pounced toward Qingfengzi. The sharp barbs shimmered with a cold light under the sunlight; if it struck, Qingfengzi would surely die.

"Senior Qingfeng!" Lin Xuan was shocked.

At the critical moment, Qingfengzi forcibly regained consciousness, but it was already too late to dodge completely. He gritted his teeth and circulated all his spiritual power, blocking this strike from the spider king head-on.

"Pfft!" Qingfengzi spat out a mouthful of blood; his chest was pierced by several bloody holes from the spider king's barbs, and fresh blood stained his Daoist Robe. Yet, he still stood firmly in front of Lin Xuan and Muerxiu, buying them time.

"Senior!" Lin Xuan roared, his eyes burning with raging fury.

Seeing Qingfengzi injured to protect him, the anger in Lin Xuan's heart reached its peak. But this anger did not make him lose his reason; instead, it allowed his Taiji philosophy to be further sublimated.

"Deflect the hard with the soft, control motion with stillness..." Lin Xuan muttered to himself, the anger in his eyes gradually subsiding, replaced by a kind of transcendent tranquility.

He slowly closed his eyes, his body beginning to move slowly according to the forms of Taiji. As he moved, the surrounding air seemed to become gentle, and even the poisonous miasma was pushed away by an invisible force.

"Taiji True Art—All Things Return to One!"

Lin Xuan opened his eyes; there was no more anger in them, only incomparable tranquility and firmness. He walked toward the spider king step by step, each step planted with extreme stability.

The spider king sensed the threat and launched a mental attack once more. But this time, Lin Xuan's mental strength was as stable as a rock, and the mental shockwave dispersed like water ripples before him, causing no effect at all.

"This... how is this possible?" Muerxiu looked at Lin Xuan in shock, "Has Senior Brother's realm actually reached this level?"

Seeing that the mental attack was ineffective, the spider king pounced at Lin Xuan in a rage. But Lin Xuan simply extended his hands and met it according to the forms of Taiji.

A miraculous thing happened. When the spider king's violent attack made contact with Lin Xuan's hands, it was actually guided by a gentle force to change direction, ultimately crashing into the cave wall.

"Borrowing force to strike, Four Taels Deflect a Thousand Catties," Lin Xuan said calmly, "this is the true essence of Taiji."

The spider king clearly had not expected such a result; it struggled, wanting to attack again, but Lin Xuan had already taken the initiative.

"Taiji Fist—Yin and Yang as One!"

Lin Xuan's fists pushed out slowly; they appeared light and soft, yet they contained incomparably powerful force. This punch struck the spider king's vital point squarely, and the massive demonic beast's body tumbled in the air several times before crashing heavily to the ground, unable to crawl up again.

"Success!" Muerxiu was wild with joy.

But Qingfengzi's situation was dire; his injuries were more severe than imagined. Lin Xuan and Muerxiu immediately went up to check and discovered that not only were his external injuries severe, but the circulation of spiritual power within his body had also encountered problems.

"Senior, how are you?" Lin Xuan asked with concern.

Qingfengzi managed to squeeze out a smile: "This old man won't die yet; go quickly and find the Nine-Turn Soul-Returning Grass, we cannot let Fairy Xiao Yuan wait too long."

The three entered the spider king's lair and sure enough, in the depths of the cave, they discovered a spirit herb emitting a strange glow. That herb was nine-colored throughout, each leaf crystal clear, and it was indeed the legendary Nine-Turn Soul-Returning Grass.

"Found it!" Lin Xuan reached out to pick it in excitement.

But just at this moment, a cold voice came from the depths of the cave: "You want the Nine-Turn Soul-Returning Grass? That depends on what price you can afford to pay."

The three turned around alertly, only to see a middle-aged man wearing a sky-blue Daoist Robe walking out from the shadows. Powerful spiritual power fluctuations radiated from his body; he was actually at the Golden Core Stage.

"Heaven Sword Sect, Yunxiaozi!" Qingfengzi stood up with difficulty, "Why are you here?"

Yunxiaozi sneered: "This seat knew long ago that you would come here to look for the Nine-Turn Soul-Returning Grass. The Soul-Severing Bone-Eroding Powder was refined by this seat personally, so naturally, I know where the antidote is."

"It was you!" Lin Xuan glared at Yunxiaozi, "You were the one who gave the poison to Jianying!"