Chapter 255: Natural Disaster and Man-made Calamity

In the mountain forest at night, countless taut bowstrings vibrated continuously under the night.

Bright arrows, wrapped in swaying spiritual energy, left the strings amidst "bang" sounds, blooming into a clear silver light under the moonlight, flying and shooting toward the valley in an overwhelming manner.

The speeding sharp arrows swept away the surrounding air, to the point that buzzing sounds arose everywhere the arrows passed.

And in the valley toward which the arrows were aimed, there were also countless figures stepping on the air with spiritual energy, continuously slashing downward with knives and swords.

"Pfft—"

Under the brilliant blade light, the ferocious-looking evil corpse was hacked to the ground by the iron blade, and then the head was severed with a follow-up strike.

At the same time, lightning flashed from time to time, striking out with palms in the dark night, so that the mountain wind was soon filled with a scorched smell.

However, this thunder technique did not have lethal killing power against the Evil Seeds; its only use was to scatter the Evil Seed groups that had gathered into a tide.

Just like this, spiritual energy kept surging in the valley until dawn; the mountain wilderness began to become completely silent, not even the chirping of insects or the calls of birds echoed.

At this moment, the people from the Immortal Supervision Bureau and the local cultivators panted lightly, looking at the Evil Corpses all slaughtered in the valley, finally relieved, and then rested for a long time in the slightly cold mountain peaks of early morning.

This was almost a battle without any technique.

The bodies of the Evil Seeds were too hard; according to the Zhenbei Army squad, their physical body strength could not even be compared to that of the Barbarian race.

This also made them, who had only heard of the people of the Remnant Race in historical records, once again experience the terrifying aspects of that race that had ruled the Qingyun world for ten million years.

To deal with this kind of thing, exquisite techniques were not necessarily effective; instead, pure slaughter was more efficient, but this caused a huge consumption of their own strength.

After resting for a long time, the Immortal Supervision Bureau still did not relax their vigilance, still holding iron knives, and began to inspect the corpses.

After confirming there were no omissions, everyone couldn't help but turn their eyes to look at that mountain top that had been leveled.

Actually, breaking a mountain was not some terrifying technique; theoretically speaking, as long as the sword Dao was sharp enough and the strength was huge enough, it could be done.

But the problem was, what realm was needed to reach this kind of combat power, no one could say clearly...

But they could be certain that this was not something anyone could do; if it were otherwise, they wouldn't have felt that a great expert had taken action in the mountains before going up.

At this time, Ji You had already walked out of the mountain forest and was sitting in front of a stall in Wang Yue Town, eating with the faint dawn light.

A powerful physique needed more heat supply, and the simplest way was food intake.

When in the Sages' Holy Land, there was no need to take action, so it could naturally be ignored, but the consumption of the two sword strikes last night was huge; he needed more replenishment.

After eating a bowl of hot plain noodles, Ji You looked toward the direction of the mountain forest.

He only came out of the Sages' Holy Land yesterday evening, and when he came out, he felt something was wrong.

Because the surroundings were too quiet, not even the chirping of insects or the calls of birds.

At the same time, there was a smell of decay, continuously drifting in the air.

Regarding this smell, Ji You was naturally incomparably familiar, because when he followed the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan to the Wanzhuo Mountains to search for the missing Yuan Caiwei, he had smelled it many times.

That was the smell of Evil Seeds, a rotten smell as if dug out from the soil.

Thus, Ji You walked along the mountain range, and sure enough, he saw Evil Seeds all over the mountains and plains moving back and forth in the valley.

He stayed in the Sages' Holy Land for a long time and didn't know what had happened outside at all, but no matter what, he never expected that this kind of thing would welcome him out of seclusion.

But even so, he still very quickly judged how to stop the Evil Seeds from escaping, so he swung his sword and slashed off a mountain peak, blocking the side mountain path.

But until this moment, he still didn't know why Evil Seeds had appeared in the Qingyun world again.

After breakfast, the sun rose high, and the aura in the mountains had gradually calmed down.

The people who entered the mountains withdrew one after another, among whom several from the Inspection Division came to Ji You and bowed slowly.

"Young Master Ji, I am Mu Jing, Inspector of the Inspection Division of the Immortal Supervision Bureau; for this extermination of Evil Seeds, many thanks to Young Master Ji for taking action."

Ji You put down his chopsticks: "Even if you didn't come, I would have done it; I couldn't just leave these ghostly things wandering in the mountain forest; maybe one day they would become a disaster; but where did so many Evil Seeds come from? Could it be that ruins somewhere have opened again?"

Mu Jing shook his head upon hearing this: "The appearance of the Evil Seeds was very sudden; my Immortal Supervision Bureau has investigated for a long time, but until now, we haven't found the source, because the ruins that have been registered have shown no signs of being opened."

Ji You frowned after hearing this, his eyes becoming much deeper.

After the Qiling incident happened back then, Kuangcheng Yan Shuyi once told him that there was a dungeon under the Zheng family residence that had imprisoned many Evil Seeds.

And now, if these Evil Seeds did not come from ruins, then they were very likely to come from similar places.

But if this were true, then it would be even more terrifying.

Because this explained that the Qiling incident was not over yet; some things looked like natural disasters, but they might not be man-made calamities.

But these ghostly things were neither dead nor alive, just a mass of decaying bodies; Ji You found it hard to imagine what this thing could do.

"Have Evil Seeds appeared in my Fengzhou?"

Ji You looked at Mu Jing again after pondering for a long time.

Compared to this kind of world-shaking event that was like a rolling flood and could not be swayed by human power, what he cared about was actually the situation in Fengzhou.

Mu Jing nodded after hearing his question: "Yes, but the Zhenbei Army camp is stationed in Fengzhou, so no chaos has broken out."

"Then in the past half year, have any other things happened?"

"That would be too many..."

"?"

It was Mu Jing's subsequent words that let Ji You know he had actually missed so many strange sights.

For example, the torrential rain for a continuous month, the sudden heavy snow in the Northern Territory, and that red mist that drifted over from the Profound Sea.

He knew that strange phenomena represented the instability of the Heavenly Dao and the chaos of the Dao rules, which was definitely not a good thing.

But what made Ji You feel more concerned was the time these things appeared.

Because according to what Mu Jing said, these things all appeared when the Sages' Holy Land began to show inexplicable auras.

Too many coincidences appearing meant it was not a coincidence; Heavenly Dao phenomena, Evil Seeds appearing—Ji You felt that there seemed to be a connection between these things.

And besides this matter, according to Mu Jing, the Barbarian race and the Demon race had also had unusual movements recently; among them, the Barbarian army had left the Ten Thousand Mountains again and was stationed outside the Northern Territory, and the Demon merchants had been recalled, and when they returned, they were already some new faces.

The only thing that could make these two races restless were the four words "return to the Nine Provinces."

And these two races starting to move now couldn't help but make people feel they had seen something, such as destiny, such as disaster; linking them together made people feel even more ominous.

Additionally, Mu Jing also told Ji You the news that Dou Yuankong had been injured by Evil Seeds and had become mentally retarded after being rescued.

Ji You pondered for a long time after hearing this sentence and wanted to ask for more details, but Mu Jing told him that he was only responsible for the Evil Seed encirclement in Sanli County back then, and Xiang Cheng would know more about the specific investigation details than he did.

Additionally, regarding some matters of the cultivation world, Mu Jing also told him everything he knew.

For example, the Chen Immortal Clan and the Mountain Sea Pavilion had another conflict, and the direct disciple and holy son of the Asking Dao Sect had broken through his seclusion and gone to visit Lingjian Mountain.

Hearing this, Mu Jing felt a sudden sword aura and was somewhat bewildered.

"How is Lingjian Mountain recently?"

"?"

Mu Jing was stunned for a moment, and only after a long time did he realize he was asking about Lingjian Mountain, not the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan: "I don't know much about Lingjian Mountain; besides that matter of the Lingjian Mountain Master, I haven't heard of any major events happening."

Ji You turned his head after hearing the name of the tsundere ghost: "What happened to the Little Master?"

"After the direct disciple of the Asking Dao Sect broke through seclusion, he went to visit Lingjian Mountain but was rejected by the Little Master, saying she already had a sweetheart."

Ji You was slightly startled: "She said with her own mouth that she had a sweetheart?"

Mu Jing nodded: "Said with her own mouth, but not many people believe it; most people feel this is just an excuse, that the Lingjian Mountain Little Master doesn't want the Asking Dao Sect to interfere in her sect affairs; after all, such a majestic fairy, I'm afraid it's really hard to fall in love."

Hearing this, Ji You couldn't help but look at him, thinking that this prejudice the world had against fairies was truly too deep-rooted.

Hard to fall in love?

Every time that girl Kuangcheng Yan Shuyi went to play with him, she had to wash her own pants after returning; it was just that cold expression of hers that fooled too many people.

Mu Jing looked at him at this time: "Why isn't Brother Ji speaking?"

Ji You returned to his senses: "I do believe the matter of having a sweetheart; it must be a handsome and beautiful man, and his body must be very good."

"?"

"How is the Pill Sect?"

"There is news that the Pill Sect direct disciple is trying to control the Holy Artifact, to the point that many noble fairies have visited the mountain; additionally, some young masters have also visited the daughter of the Pill Sect, but the daughter of the Pill Sect also announced to the outside world that she had a sweetheart."

Mu Jing knew there was a secret affair between the daughter of the Pill Sect and Ji You, so hearing him ask about the Pill Sect didn't seem as strange as hearing him ask about Lingjian Mountain.

Ji You thought to himself that Yuan Caiwei had some tricks; this could also be a dream linkage.

Kuangcheng Yan Shuyi probably became a vinegar jar for a long time after hearing this.

Mu Jing looked at Ji You after finishing: "During the days Young Master Ji was in the ruins, Brother Xiang often mentioned you."

"Where is Xiang Cheng now?"

"In Shengjing; the floods some time ago and the Evil Seeds that appeared everywhere have caused quite a bit of trouble; the Reception Division is currently handling the disaster relief documentation work."

Ji You looked up at him: "Then where are you going next?" Mu Jing looked toward the southwest after hearing this: "There is another place where Evil Seeds gathered in Central Province; we are going to clear it, and then return to the capital."

Ji You pondered for a long time: "I will go with you, and by the way, hitch a ride back to Shengjing; is that possible?"

Mu Jing opened his eyes wide: "Naturally, you are welcome; with Young Master Ji accompanying this trip, there will definitely be no Evil Seeds able to escape."

"When are you setting off?"

"Although the Evil Seeds have been exterminated, we still need to search around; on one hand, it's to fear omissions, and on the other hand, it's to check for clues about the source, so it was originally scheduled to leave here tomorrow morning."

After chatting with Mu Jing for a long time, a person dressed as a servant suddenly walked over in Wang Yue Town.

The person stopped in front of Ji You and offered a post with both hands: "Young Master Ji, I am Liu Quan, a servant of the Liu family of Central Province; my Second Young Master was a fellow student of yours at the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan; hearing you are here, the family head specially ordered me to come and invite you."

"I am just passing through here and have to go elsewhere later."

"It's just a banquet; it won't delay Young Master too much time."

Ji You looked up upon hearing this: "A banquet? A banquet is fine."

Mu Jing looked at the empty plate on the table: "Hasn't Young Master Ji already eaten?"

"Only thirty percent full."

"?"

Ji You originally wasn't full, and since he was hungry and someone was sending food, how could he not go? Thus, he happily accepted the post, then rose from the stall and followed the servant toward the Liu family.

At this time, those noble disciples who had followed into the mountains were still gathered by the roadside south of Wang Yue Town.

The cruelty and hideousness of the Evil Seeds left them with quite a bit of shadow, to the point that from the time they came out of the mountains until now, they hadn't had much conversation, always watching Ji You's figure silently.

Seeing him walk along the road at this time, their gazes became even more concentrated.

For more than half a year, Ji You had been in seclusion, and no one had seen him.

It wasn't until someone came out of the Sages' Holy Land that news of him still being in the Realm of Profound Understanding was brought, causing a wave of discussion.

They chatted about these things last night and were still guessing that his talent was limited; this news once made many of them feel much more at ease in their hearts.

Especially Tang Jingming.

Actually, when he was at the Heavenly Dao Assembly, he always felt his chances were very high.

Even though he later lost to Ji You, after waking up and hearing that he had taken the top spot, he still felt that as a leader among the noble disciples, he wasn't too far behind, and if he worked hard to catch up, there might not be no chance.

So after hearing that Ji You had stayed in the Sages' Holy Land for so long and was still in the Realm of Profound Understanding, he even felt that Ji You had wasted the opportunity that should have belonged to him.

This was the difference between seeing with one's own eyes and hearing from others.

It wasn't until last night when they entered the mountains that Ji You slashed the desolate mountain with his sword under the moonlight, suppressing all the Evil Seeds.

He actually didn't see the scene of the moment the mountain broke, but he felt that rising sword aura incomparably clearly.

This strong sense of contrast made him suddenly realize that Ji You was actually not on the same level as him at all.

What he had always thought about was catching up to those famous Immortal Sect disciples, but the Ji You who slashed the mountain and whistled in the forest last night had actually already shown that he could step into the level of an Immortal Sect direct disciple.

And the one whose emotions were even more complex was Qiu Hanyue.

Like a sheltered girl like her, when she didn't encounter things, she always felt that strength was not the first choice.

But when she saw the Evil Corpses pouncing in her face yesterday, she knew how important it would be to have a strong person by her side to protect her.

That was a sense of security while being in turmoil, something other things couldn't compensate for.

Seeing Ji You walking along the road, Qiu Hanyue, who was hesitating, couldn't help but open her mouth lightly: "Ji You, have you come out of seclusion?"

Ji You turned his head to look at her, his gaze slightly confused.

He seemed to have thought for a while before remembering who this person was, so he nodded politely at her.

Actually, Ji You didn't have any special opinion about this daughter of the Qiu family; she was like a stranger whose name he knew; even if it was out of habit, he would greet her.

Seeing this scene, Qiu Hanyue was slightly startled.

She only remembered that she had only met Ji You briefly once; she remembered Ji You clearly only because on the day of the Heavenly Dao Assembly, everyone remembered this figure clearly.

But conversely, to him, she was just a woman he had met once.

Afterward, Ji You was invited into the Liu family.

The Liu family of Central Province was also a noble family close to the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan; the aptitude of their children and grandchildren had always been quite good, and although they couldn't be counted as top-tier in Central Province, they were still a name that could be counted.

That Liu Qichen who challenged him in the Heavenly Dao Assembly qualifiers was a disciple of this Liu family.

Because they were close to the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan, it wasn't strange that the Liu family wanted to banquet Ji You.

However, those attending this banquet were not only the Liu family head, but also an ancestor of the Liu family with white hair and beard.

The banquet lasted until the afternoon; what was chatted about during the banquet were some matters regarding Fengzhou and the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan; it could be seen that the Liu family intended to be on good terms with Ji You, and since Ji You was eating their food, he naturally couldn't reject their face.

By the time Ji You left the Liu family, the sun had already entered the afternoon; the Liu family head personally sent him to the door, and when he returned, he saw his own ancestor standing in the courtyard, still staring in the direction Ji You had left.

"At first, when I heard that a private cultivator from the Fengzhou countryside had defeated the Bloodline of the Heavenly Sword Shanfeng who broke through his realm just before the competition, I, the ancestor, didn't believe it."

"Noble families that can survive in the Qingyun world, their foundations are not as simple as they look on the surface, let alone Immortal Sects."

"But after seeing him at this time, I am surprised."

"Cultivators are too superstitious about realms and auras, but this Ji You's combat power is definitely not as simple as it looks."

"Perhaps even for me, it would be very difficult to deal with him; after all, I am also a bit old."

"?"

The Liu family head opened his mouth slightly after hearing this, a trace of incredulity flashing in his eyes.

The Liu family ancestor was an expert in the Realm of Responding to Heaven; this kind of realm could even make one an elder in an Immortal Sect, and naturally, he was also a character not to be underestimated in a noble family.

His lifespan was now approaching the limit, so for the past ten-plus years, he had been in seclusion breaking through realms, attempting to enter the Boundless Realm before the limit arrived, to snatch lifespan from heaven, not willing to waste even half a minute.

And now he had specially come out of seclusion to see Ji You once; this matter soon spread to the ears of many surrounding noble families.

Noble disciples, even if they were in the same province, were rarely able to meet.

Especially those of marriageable age, such as Tang Jingming, Liu Qichen, Qiu Hanyue, and Sheng Xiyu, were not in a hurry to go home, but were chatting in a leisure courtyard.

"Your Liu family head specially took a look at him? Then what did he say?"

"The ancestor said... don't be superstitious about realms, and don't be fooled by auras."

"Why?"

"He said that the current Ji You, even if he wanted to deal with him, would find it somewhat difficult."

"Your Liu family ancestor is an existence who has already touched the threshold of the Boundless Realm!"

"The ancestor must have been somewhat humble, and specially said he was old, but I think no matter what, Ji You, who stayed in the Sages' Holy Land for more than half a year, should also be surpassing the Realm of Merging with the Dao."

Actually, for those who cannot ascend, the purpose of cultivating the Dao is very simple.

One is for lifespan, and the second is for combat power, because only by possessing sufficient combat power can one have sufficient deterrence in the Qingyun world.

After the Heavenly Dao Assembly, everyone knew Ji You's combat power was astonishing; when in the Realm of Profound Understanding, he could defeat Yan Hao of the Realm of Merging with the Dao.

But they didn't expect that after he returned from the Sages' Holy Land, he would make a noble family ancestor of the Realm of Responding to Heaven say these words.

The key was that Ji You was still very young now, and he was still very, very far from his own limit.

Everyone here felt that his talent for enlightenment had been exhausted, and he had fallen into the bottleneck that everyone feared and could not break through, otherwise he wouldn't have been stuck in this realm.

But even so, he could still temper himself over long years, and ultimately he could take another step forward.

So strictly speaking, the gold content of the Liu family ancestor was actually worse than Ji You's; the gap between the two was just a matter of time.

Qiu Hanyue's several close friends were also in the leisure courtyard at this time; after hearing this, they looked at each other for a long time, and then turned their heads to look at the Qiu family daughter with a cautious expression.

And Qiu Hanyue also turned her eyes, looking at them with a cold expression, making the gazes of these close friends dodge.

The one who dodged the most was Sheng Xiyu, who had given her the idea back then to have Qiu Hanyue personally find Ji You to reject the marriage.

At first, hearing that Qiu Hanyue was to be betrothed to a Heavenly Tian Shuyuan disciple from Fengzhou, they had indeed laughed.

That kind of laughter didn't carry malice, but there was mockery.

After all, they hadn't heard of this person Ji You at all at that time, and didn't even know there would be this surname.

So in the hearts of these sisters, Qiu Hanyue was going to marry into the poor countryside to be a concubine for a rustic village man, and even Qiu Hanyue thought so.

But now hearing the discussion of the people around, recalling the sword aura that soared to the sky when the Evil Seeds were raging last night, and thinking of those words of the Liu family ancestor, they realized that when the He family wanted to play matchmaker back then, the one who was climbing high was actually the Qiu family.

It was too close; they almost let their sister live a good life.

Qiu Hanyue withdrew her gaze at this time, and also clearly realized what kind of person she had originally had the possibility of marrying.

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 256 =====