Chapter 157: Human Dao, Azure Sky (Two-in-One)

Following the principle of caution, the three did not eat in the shop, but came to the counter and asked the white-haired shopkeeper for three upper rooms.

The shopkeeper was a mortal, and it was rare for immortals to stay here on weekdays, so he was trembling even when collecting silver.

However, while the shopkeeper was collecting silver, a faint sound of clattering came from the cabinet on the right side of his feet, that is, the inside of the counter.

Hearing this sound, the three raised their heads in unison.

The shopkeeper didn't seem to notice, still lowering his head, but his shoulders were trembling slightly.

Then he hurriedly grabbed a piece of silver and handed it to the three without even using the small scale used to weigh the silver, still lowering his head, and his temples gradually began to get slightly wet.

"Found too much."

"?"

The shopkeeper looked up subconsciously, and saw Ji You throw back the silver he grabbed casually, his eyes stunned.

Then Ji You turned and left, walking in front of Cao Cao Jingsong and Pei Pei Ruyi, stepping on the wooden stairs with creaking sounds, and quickly came to the second floor.

"There is a young girl hidden in the cabinet." Pei Pei Ruyi whispered.

Ji You nodded calmly: "About the same size as Qiu Ru, it should be the shopkeeper's young child."

"It seems that in the eyes of the people of Fengzhou, we cultivators are no different from demons and evil species."

"Don't belittle yourself, demons and evil species are not as good as cultivators."

"?"

What Ji You said was indeed true.

In this Fengzhou land, the fact that cultivators catch children to refine medicine is known to everyone, so the image of all immortals for the people of this territory is like this.

People like this shopkeeper who have no cultivation don't know that under the spiritual sense of cultivators, this kind of hiding has no meaning at all...

Within the Nine Provinces, the people all suffer, and in Fengzhou, you can see all the suffering methods of the Nine Provinces.

Ji You had heard a sentence from Qiu Zhong that the old master of the Ji family who died four years ago said, which sounded ironic, but it was a fact.

Mortals still alive in the world are not because they are hard-working enough, but because they should thank the immortal masters for being too lazy to kill.

Ji You came to the door of his guest room at this time and reached out to push open the door.

Night City is close to the prefecture capital. By reason, the geographical location is considered quite good, but because there are mountains blocking it, the connection with the prefecture capital is not close, so it is not much better than Yuyang County.

The gray bricks used to pave the floor in the guest room are missing one piece here and one piece there.

This is already considered excellent.

At this time, Ji You pushed open the window facing the back wall and turned to look outside.

Along the main city road from south to north, there are eyes and ears everywhere on both sides.

The cultivation of these eyes and ears is not high, the best is only at the Initial Realm of Dim Illumination, and they are already in their thirties or forties, and some are even older, with lower cultivation.

This kind of immortal sect disciple is actually not even comparable to some merchants doing business in the capital, but coming to Fengzhou, they can be arrogant and domineering. This is the most ridiculous thing.

Ji You left the window at this time, sat cross-legged on the bed, and began to enter meditation.

The spiritual energy all around began to surge toward him, constantly being exhaled and inhaled into the body through the gas orifices, and scattered to the limbs and bones through the damaged spiritual essence.

This scene was like spring rain falling into a natural low-lying ditch, gradually gathering into a murmuring stream.

And as the rain continued to increase, the ditch was washed and expanded, and the stream gradually began to rush.

Then his spiritual sense moved slightly, and these rushing spiritual streams were instantly ignited.

The white robe was supported by the aura, constantly fluttering, and Ji You's brow began to furrow gradually, and a look of pain that had experienced endurance appeared in his expression.

This was his fourteenth Dim Illumination, and also the thirteenth spiritual fire tempering.

In the Condensation and Transformation Realm of the Lower Three Realms, it is roughly like this, but the spiritual essence that should be calcined is replaced by Ji You, a living person.

After several hours, Ji You was already sweating like steam, and with the breath he held, he sent it out. His shoulders instantly drooped, and he was already panting, the golden light in his eyes slightly restrained.

Both external observation and internal vision require the use of spiritual sense.

External observation can look thousands of miles away, while internal vision requires careful observation.

At this time, the sweat on his forehead had dripped to the ground, mixing with the dust on the ground into turbid water droplets.

It was about the same when he resisted Elder Qi's last 【Thought Without Evil】 at Spirit Sword Mountain, so this fourteenth Dim Illumination was truly not easy.

"Burned empty..."

"Need to leave a part of the time to restore spiritual sense and spiritual energy..."

And at this time, outside the inn, in the teahouses and taverns, many people were still staring at this restaurant, and the discussion had not stopped.

Everyone knows that there is a student in the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan who learned the sword Dao of Spirit Sword Mountain.

They are curious about the ownership of Fengzhou, but actually more curious about his sword.

Now the outside world says that on the day of the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan Autumn Tournament, Chu He carried the 【Hun Tian Technique】, unparalleled in the world, but was finally beheaded by him.

So the crowd who had never seen it but only heard about it was very eager to see that unparalleled sword Dao.

"Two hours, do they leave the city today?"

"Not necessarily."

"Why?"

"Just now the carriage has been unharnessed and pulled to the backyard by the groom, and the horse trough in front of the shop was not used."

Amidst the discussion, a commotion suddenly came from the teahouse, and some eyes began to look along the street.

In the early morning of the hour of Chen, because a large number of cultivators entered the city, the people of Night City who had never seen such a big battle had already closed their doors, or ran outside the city, so the main city road was empty.

"How can you tell?"

He walked toward the inn, pondered for a long time when he arrived at the door, and finally lifted his robes and walked in.

"Who is that?"

"Luo Pingshan, Deputy Manor Master of the Falling Moon Xianzhuang, Initial Realm of Profound Understanding, descendant of the Luo family in Zhongzhou. This Luo family is not a top aristocratic family in Zhongzhou, but several clan elders in the family are on good terms with the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan."

"He is...?"

"It seems that these immortal manors are not all wanting to fight. If they can talk, they still hope to talk. After all, this Ji You is now a registered disciple of the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan inner courtyard."

On the teahouse, some cultivators who were originally familiar with these immortal manors couldn't help but speak to solve the confusion for everyone.

Hearing this, a Chen family immortal clan walker who rushed to join in the fun couldn't help but furrow his brow.

"This situation is very similar to the scene where the Mountain and Sea Pavilion and the Heavenly Jianfeng of Spirit Sword Mountain joined forces to confront my Chen family immortal clan..."

This Chen family disciple spoke with extreme caution. After the Qiling incident, the Chen family immortal clan was clearly besieged, but at this time it was cleverly replaced by him with the word "confrontation".

However, the rest of the crowd didn't care about his choice of words at this time, but were more concerned about the inner meaning of his analogy.

After the ancient war, the human race rested and recuperated for many years. As long as the benefits were enough, they would not move easily if they didn't move.

"The world is bustling for profit, and the world is bustling for profit. All wars are just uneven distribution. In other words, if the distribution is equal, harmonious coexistence is not impossible. It depends on how much these immortal sects are willing to give."

"One percent, two percent, three percent..."

"I heard that this Ji You loves money extremely, just look at how much those immortal sects are willing to bid, and he will be tempted."

The facts were just as the Chen family disciple said. The immortal manors in Fengzhou were indeed constantly wavering between fighting and not fighting.

And since Ji You entered Night City, just as he was approaching the front line, someone proposed to probe the tone first. That Luo Pingshan could be considered a messenger at this time.

The condition they offered was that Ji You could establish an aristocratic family in Fengzhou, but he couldn't take away all the tax revenue quota, only one percent.

The so-called tax revenue is actually not just grain.

Fengzhou also has some small spirit mines, spirit seedling fields, which are also counted in it.

Of course, the resources in Fengzhou are indeed scarce, but the offerings of a vast state, taking one percent is already good. Some foreign immortal manors have operated here for four or five years and may not necessarily be able to get one percent.

In their view, Ji You is alone.

Even if endless, it will take decades of time to establish a huge family, and one percent is enough sincerity.

At this time, multiple intelligence reports had been transmitted through the sect walkers, and the situation in Fengzhou was gradually known to major immortal sects and aristocratic families.

For the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan, if the two sides can really talk and make peace, whether you have more or I have less, it is excellent.

And for other aristocratic families, it is actually the same.

However, soon, the crowd on the teahouse saw Luo Pingshan walk out of the inn, frowning and leaving in a hurry.

"It seems it didn't work out..."

"The rules are like this, no one can hit it off at the first bid. Those immortal manors are actually suppressing the price, and it is estimated that it will rise again."

Sure enough, after not long, Luo Pingshan came again and entered the inn.

The price offered by the immortal manor this time was 1.2 percent of Fengzhou's tax revenue.

Then came out, went in, came out, went in, this share has been constantly rising, from 1.2 percent to 1.8 percent, but Luo Pingshan, who came out of the inn, was still frowning.

And when he came for the eighth time, they didn't even say anything about 1.9 percent, directly bidding to two percent.

Two percent of Fengzhou's tax revenue, this is a sky-high price.

One must know that the human territory in the Azure Cloud world has a total of nine provinces, with thousands of aristocratic families. Being able to get two percent is almost approaching a millennium-old aristocratic family.

In the eyes of many people, being able to bid to this extent is also because these immortal manors are hindered by the face of the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan.

If this Ji You is a smart person, he should agree at this time.

But what surprised everyone was that Luo Pingshan frowned even more when he came out of the inn again.

"Two percent is already enough."

"Indeed, even if Fengzhou is barren, such a large share has already moved the face of my Heavenly Tian Shuyuan."

The three managers of the Management Tian Shuyuan specially arranged for immortal transmission. Seeing the result at this time, they couldn't help but furrow their brows deeply.

Actually, Ji You was reasonable at the beginning of this matter, but as the price continued to rise, some people really felt that he was too greedy.

At this time in the capital city, Princess Princess Changle, Dou Dou Yuankong, and other aristocratic family children were discussing, while Wei Rui sat on the side, listening carefully.

You must know that in the human territory of the Azure Cloud World, there are a total of nine provinces, among which there are thousands of aristocratic families. Being able to claim two-tenths of them is almost approaching the status of a thousand-year aristocratic family.

"This Ji You, originally high-minded, two percent is not agreed to, I am not surprised at all."

Zhao Zhao Yunyue sneered: "On the day of beheading Chu He, I sent a hairpin to him, wanting to become his Dao companion, but he didn't look down on it. How could this two percent tax revenue enter his eyes?"

Dou Dou Yuankong also couldn't help but sneer: "He probably thinks that the tax revenue of this Fengzhou is his, how can two percent satisfy him?"

Wei Rui couldn't help but speak at this time: "No, Young Master Ji is for the people of Fengzhou, so he will naturally not compromise at this time!"

"Rui'er, you are too easy to deceive. If that Ji You is really for the people, he would have already drawn his sword at this time, why would he pretend to hide in the inn and wait for people to bid? That is the same type as the Xiang-surnamed scholar with him, we are greedy, but we never hide it, unlike them being so deep!"

Zhao Zhao Yunyue picked up the teacup at this time: "Next, those immortal manors will probably not bid, but will directly ask Ji You how much he wants."

"..."

At noon, Luo Pingshan came to the inn again.

He was already familiar with the road, walked up to the second floor, pushed the door and walked into Ji You's room: "Young Master Ji, such bidding has no meaning other than wasting time. My Manor Master, and other manor masters, all want me to ask you, how much do you want to be satisfied?"

Hearing this, Ji You slowly opened his eyes, his lips parted slightly.

At this time, on the vast and boundless Fengzhou land, the farmer holding an empty bowl was in tears in the wilderness.

Paper money autumn wind sends, farm family adds new pain.

And Luo Pingshan, who heard Ji You say it word by word, his face changed drastically, then he stood up angrily and left the inn quickly.

At this time, everyone on the teahouse saw this scene and was shocked.

And after not long, the mountain range behind Night City suddenly shone brightly, and the intense immortal light began to soar into the sky, illuminating all directions, dyeing the clouds.

Immediately after, countless immortal manor disciples ran toward Night City and spread a message.

A natural spirit treasure appeared in the mountains of Night City, and a group of wild private cultivator bandits entered the mountains to seize the treasure. The major immortal manors in Fengzhou are now joining forces to suppress the bandits, so the inside and outside of the Fengzhou prefecture are completely sealed for thirty miles, and no one is allowed to enter or leave. Those who violate the order will be killed without mercy.

Hearing this news, the cultivators on the teahouses and taverns were in an uproar and stood up one after another.

There are many coincidences in the world, but it is impossible to be so coincidental.

So everyone knows that the so-called spirit treasure appearing in the mountains must be fake, and the so-called suppressing bandits is also out of nothing, and the only truth is that Fengzhou is sealed, and the foreign immortal manors here are joining forces to kill people.

Ji You establishing an aristocratic family here is legal, so even if they take action, they need a grand reason.

And those lies are the reason.

Fengzhou prefecture is sealed. If someone breaks into the mountains here and is besieged and killed, whether the killed person is a bandit or not is a bandit.

In other words, Ji You and these mountain gates have talked and collapsed.

And just when everyone hadn't recovered from this sudden news, they suddenly found a figure walking out of the inn.

He was wearing a white robe, carrying seven long swords, his sword intent boiling along the main road in the city, his eyes full of sharpness.

Cao Cao Jingsong and Pei Pei Ruyi followed behind him, their swords already out of their sheaths, their eyes also solemn, following him into the mountains, killing intent rising.

Those who sat on the teahouse were originally spectators. At this time, they watched them all the way to the west city gate, seeing them walk toward the mountains, and suddenly came back to their senses.

War is about to start!

Once this thought arose, the sect walkers immediately began to report the news outside, quickly transmitting this sudden news.

And more people were blank, plus shocked, looking at the figure of the three people walking toward the mountains with their mouths wide open.

"Why did the war suddenly start, how much did he want?"

"Yes, how much did this Ji You want?"

"The immortal manors in Fengzhou originally had the heart to talk and make peace, but it is a matter of how much, it shouldn't have reacted so violently!"

At this moment, as this sudden news was quickly transmitted, countless people changed their faces.

In the capital city, Princess Princess Changle, Dou Dou Yuankong, Wei Rui, and other royal clans, official children.

Lu Lu Qingqiu, He He Lingxiu, Wen Zhengxin, Ban Ban Yangshu, and other Heavenly Tian Shuyuan inner and outer courtyard disciples, as well as the three managers of the Management Hall.

Except for them, the two hall masters of the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan who were playing chess also failed to drop their pieces.

At the same time, in the towering and deep palace, the Emperor who was obsessed with the new policy also walked out of the main hall.

How much did Ji You want, so that those immortal manors didn't even consider it, and directly started such a massacre?

"He must have wanted everything."

"Everything?"

"He rushed to the Fengzhou prefecture so urgently, it was for all the shares of Fengzhou. If he didn't want everything, those immortal manors couldn't have reacted so violently!"

"News is coming."

"?"

"What Ji You wants..."

Not all immortal manors in Fengzhou participated in the war, just like those Dim Illumination Realm eyes and ears, getting involved is also cannon fodder.

But they knew how much Ji You wanted. When the sword Qi soared into the sky, it had already been asked by those cultivators guarding Night City, and at this time it was quickly transmitted to all directions.

Zhao Zhao Yunyue couldn't help but lean out: "How much did he want?"

"He wants..."

"Say it."

"He said he wants the children in the family to grow up, wants people who go out to be able to go home late, wants the ghosts who have lost their hearts to have the law in their eyes, and he also wants all the Daos in this world to be under the azure sky..."

As the words fell, the capital city tavern suddenly became quiet.

Inside and outside the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan, everyone couldn't help but look at the ten thousand miles of clouds and sky.

"!"

The Night City mountain area is very large, but most of them are small hills, and the mountain is not steep. This is the reason why those immortal manors set the battlefield here.

At this time, Ji You stepped up the mountain, the boiling sword intent making the wild wind in the mountains roar.

Seeing this scene, the cultivators on the mountain top all narrowed their eyes, and killing intent roared.

They were basically at the Realm of

"Speak."

"He said he wants the children in his home to be able to grow up, he wants those who have left home to be able to return no matter how late it is, he wants there to be justice in the eyes of ghosts who have lost their conscience, and he also wants all the Daos in this human world to be under the blue sky..."

As his voice fell, the Shengjing Tavern suddenly went quiet.

Inside and outside the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan, everyone could not help but look toward the vast, cloudy sky.

"!"

The area of Night Chengshan is quite large, but it mostly consists of small hills, and the terrain is not steep. This is also the reason why those immortal manors wanted to set the battlefield here.

At this moment, Ji You stepped onto the mountain, and the surging sword intent made the wild winds in the mountains roar along with it.

Seeing this scene, the cultivators on the mountaintop all narrowed their eyes, and suddenly, killing intent whistled through the air.

They were basically all in the Realm of Profound Understanding, eighteen in total, and were famous experts within the manors. Among them, some were honored guests and others were vice-masters. Some with higher talent still had black hair, while others already had patches of white hair.

They were all children of aristocratic families from other provinces who, due to insufficient talent, could not enter an Immortal Sect to cultivate.

There were also some who had entered an Immortal Sect but failed to break through their realm when their time was up, so they could only leave. Through the tempering of time and the accumulation of elixirs, they managed to enter the Upper Five Realms, yet they knew their immortal path had reached its end in this life.

Such cultivators are everywhere in the Azure Cloud World.

And when they saw the end of their lives and knew there was no hope of becoming an immortal, the desires they had suppressed for the sake of cultivation would strike back crazily, making them even more greedy for wealth and power.

Such people could never sit quietly in the deep mountains to guard their Dao hearts; instead, they would be driven by the seven emotions and six desires.

Thus, they left their aristocratic families, came here, and began to dominate the region, their minds full of distracting thoughts.

"Instructor, Senior Sister, you go ahead first."

"Alright."

Those in the Realm of Profound Understanding could not stop someone in the Realm of Merging with the Dao. Even if the addition of their numbers gave them a chance, it was unnecessary for them.

Because they knew that behind them, there were still five manor masters holding the fort.

And their target was Ji You, who was also in the Realm of Profound Understanding, and he was the key to this matter.

Whether they killed him or crippled him, the other two people would be useless even if they reached the Fengzhou Prefecture.

Thus, Cao Cao Jingsong and Pei Pei Ruyi went ahead, heading toward the deeper, dense forest.

"It is said that this Ji You is very strong, but no matter how strong, he is only in the Realm of Profound Understanding, and we have eighteen people in the Realm of Profound Understanding."

"That's right. When the Broken Moon Manor Master wanted to take out one-tenth of the tax revenue to appease him, I felt, why bother?"

Amidst the discussion, a black-haired cultivator in the Realm of Profound Understanding stepped forward and looked at Ji You, who was coming up the slope holding a sword: "I was also once a disciple of the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan, but even during my time at the academy, I was never so arrogant because of the sect's reputation. You brat, you really do think too highly of yourself."

As soon as his voice fell, the response he received was seven Dao swords overflowing with spiritual energy suddenly rising toward the sky.

The intense sword qi was like white clouds flying into the sky, and the heavy sword intent instantly shook the mountains.

【Spirit Sword Mountain Dao Sword, Seven-Fold Mountain】

Seeing this, the eighteen people in the Realm of Profound Understanding on the mountain soared into the air, and cold light from knives, spears, swords, and halberds splashed everywhere.

Boom!

Ji You swung his arms violently, and the seven great swords slashed down toward the mountaintop with a roar. The black-haired cultivator in the front raised his sword to meet them, but his pupils suddenly constricted before the sword intent arrived, followed by shock and terror.

With a 'pfft' sound, blood splashed everywhere, and the sound of the falling swords was like thunder, directly crushing the entire cliff.

And the swordsman in the wind had his long hair dancing, his entire body's scorching aura whistling continuously.

"This is the legendary sword Dao of Spirit Sword Mountain..."

At this moment, the onlookers who had sat in the city for half a day had already caught up, standing not far away, staring blankly as the seven people were sent flying backward, blood spilling directly from their mouths and noses.

There is, after all, a difference between disciples of an Immortal Sect and disciples of an Xianzhuang.

And the difference between disciples of the outer sect of an Immortal Sect and disciples of the inner sect of an Immortal Sect is even greater.

Even in the same realm, the realm they built by taking elixirs and enduring time was, after all, far inferior to this young man in the Realm of Profound Understanding before them. This is the truth.

Of course, only people like them, who are used to acting like tyrants in Fengzhou, would look down on everyone, thinking the arrogance of the person before them came from the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan...

But those who are well-informed, like the wandering disciples of other sects, actually know that ever since the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan asked about the Dao at Spirit Sword Mountain, half of the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan's arrogance has come from him...

At this moment, the eighteen people in the Realm of Profound Understanding all had their expressions change drastically; some were bleeding non-stop, and their eyes were full of terror.

Ji You stepped up the mountain, and a huge, heavy sword qi rose again. However, seeing several people around him about to retreat into the mountain forest, his eyes instantly froze.

"Don't retreat. Today, whoever retreats, I will kill first."

"?"

Hearing this, the surrounding onlookers were all stunned.

Because they knew Ji You's purpose for this trip was to reach the Fengzhou Prefecture and establish his own aristocratic family.

Just now, his sword strikes were fierce, clearly having frightened these people. Letting them leave now would naturally save his strength, which would be for the best. Yet, for some reason, he would not let them retreat.

Ji You came holding his sword, looked at those in the Realm of Profound Understanding, and spoke slowly: "Some things, whether it's the Retirement Pavilion or exchanging children to eat, you feel sorrowful the first time you see them. But after seeing them often and for a long time, it becomes anger. I feel that in this world, good people may not necessarily get good rewards, so how can you expect to end well?"

"So, when I left Yuyang County, I had already made up my mind. I won't leave a single one today. So it's not that you are blocking me; it's that I am playing along with your plan to kill you."

"Because there are bandits tonight, and those who enter the mountain will be killed without exception—do you remember? You all have aristocratic families behind you, and I am just a private cultivator from the countryside. So if I miss today, how can I find a reason to strike at you so freely again?"

Ji You stood amidst the rubble and slowly raised his hand, his incredibly sharp sword qi shooting straight into the nine heavens.

(Pulling for average subscriptions, so two chapters combined, asking for monthly tickets...)

(Recommending a friend's book, "Liver-Exploding Life Profession: From Ant to Martial Dao God." There is a direct link in the author's note below.)

(End of chapter)