Chapter 245 - 273: Cloud Immortal’s Creation! Strange Village Affairs! Nether Celestial Sect
The Power of Incense inside the Golden Cloud Immortal Platform was what his Jin Family had accumulated over decades!
"Damn that Yun Family!"
The man in the purple robe clenched his fists and roared, his gaze turning icy.
Faced with this disaster, his first thought was of the Yun Family!
An invisible killing intent radiated in all directions, causing the nearby Golden Armor Attendants to fall to their knees, trembling.
The fury in his heart surged like a heaven-scorching inferno!
But at the thought of his Old Ancestor’s condition, the purple-robed man forcibly restrained his anger and killing intent, waving his hand to dismiss the Golden Armor Attendants.
After the attendants left, killing intent glinted in the purple-robed man’s eyes as he muttered with a grim expression.
"So be it!"
"I’ll let the Yun Family run wild a little while longer."
"Once the Old Ancestor recovers and masters that ancient Divine Skill, it will be the day your Yun Family is annihilated!"
...
After Su Bai and the others left Jin Yun City, they headed in the direction of Ancestral Demon Mountain.
On the way, Su Bai suddenly spoke up. "That Golden Cloud Immortal Platform has a miraculous Yin-Yang Fish Diagram in its center that can suppress one’s Cultivation. It’s quite extraordinary. But why is it called the Golden Cloud Immortal Platform?"
"Heh! I asked Master the same question before."
The woman gave a mysterious smile.
"Oh? I’m all ears."
"It wasn’t built by Human Cultivators, nor was it built by the Jin Family."
"Then...?"
"A long time ago, some Martial Arts Strongmen would often spar and test their Martial Arts here. Back then, this was just an empty plot of land. It’s said that one day, a person arrived, claiming to be a descendant of the Cloud Immortal."
"He said he was moved by the heroic spirit of those senior martial artists and was willing to build a platform here for them to exchange pointers and compete in the future. He only asked that they remember the Cloud Immortal’s gift and offer a few sticks of Incense whenever they came and went."
As she spoke, the woman glanced back at Jin Yun City behind them. "When those senior martial artists heard this, they thought, ’Something this good exists?’ Half-dubious, they agreed."
"From then on, this place changed once a day, adding a new layer each time. After seven times seven, forty-nine days, this Golden Cloud Immortal Platform miraculously appeared."
"Later, the Jin Family rose to power and, with their great strength, occupied the Golden Cloud Immortal Platform."
After hearing the woman’s story, Su Bai showed a hint of surprise.
’Creating something from nothing?’
"Quite miraculous."
"I think so too."
The woman suddenly frowned and asked the old Daoist beside her.
"Hey, right! I’ve been wondering for a long time, do you Daoists have a special fondness for numbers like seven-times-seven-is-forty-nine, six-times-six-is-thirty-six, and nine-times-nine-is-eighty-one?"
"Why do things always have to take so long? And why is it always these specific numbers?"
The old Daoist at her side smiled and said, "Most of the time, we act as we please, without being bound by such things."
"It’s just that when the common folk tell the tales, they feel these numbers sound pleasant, roll off the tongue, and are full of mystery. It could also be that some Daoists themselves want to use these numbers when telling their stories to the world, or perhaps they’re just following the customs of their predecessors..."
"Over time, this idea just became common lore."
"Oh..."
The woman drew out the sound, nodding repeatedly.
The rain didn’t stop. Her hair was already soaked and stuck to her face, and her clothes were drenched, clinging to her body. But she seemed completely unaware, just striding forward.
She didn’t think getting rained on was good, nor did she think there was anything wrong with Su Bai and the old Daoist using umbrellas to shelter from the rain.
It was only when the rain bothered her that she would either shake her head, wipe her face, or purse her lips and blow a puff of air to relieve some of the annoyance, and that was that.
Seeing this, the old Daoist beside her offered her an umbrella. "Would you like one?"
But the woman waved her hand and said with a smile, "For people of the Jianghu, we are our own sky. Why would we need an umbrella..."
The effortless grace she displayed in that moment made both Su Bai and the old Daoist glance her way.
’What a remarkably free-spirited woman.’
...
After the group had walked for some time, small mountain villages appeared in the distance.
Most of these small mountain villages were inhabited by people of a single surname, who had either fled from disaster or migrated here together. They were close-knit and exclusionary, with the smaller ones having only a few dozen households, and the larger ones over a hundred.
Desolate Province was one of the more remote of the Thirteen Provinces, and mountain villages like these were scattered all over.
Zhang Village was the largest among them, with nearly two hundred households. A tall fence was erected outside the village entrance, with people standing guard day and night, and many hunting dogs on patrol.
"My son! How could you leave your mother!"
"My dear husband! You’re gone, leaving me all alone. How am I supposed to live!"
That morning, amidst sounds of weeping, a group of people carrying three coffins walked out of Zhang Village.
"Sigh!"
At the village entrance, Village Chief Zhang sighed, a look of helplessness and pity on his face.
That family had only four people in it. Who would have thought that overnight, three would die, leaving only an old woman behind.
"Birth, old age, sickness, and death are determined by heaven. Please try to restrain your grief!"
The one who spoke was a young Daoist in a gray Daoist Robe. He sighed softly, his expression unchanging, as if he had long since grown accustomed to such sights.
He looked to be about thirty years old, holding a bell in one hand and a gourd covered in black runes in the other.
"My son..."
The old woman paid him no heed, just kept crying out.
The Village Chief and the young Daoist said no more, leading the procession forward.
Before long, the group saw Ning Village ahead of the burial ground.
"We’ve arrived at Ning Village."
Village Chief Zhang glanced at Ning Village and cupped his fists towards the young Daoist. "We’ll have to trouble you again, Daoist Master!"
"We’re all neighbors here. If I can help, of course I will."
The young Daoist shook his bell and strode forward.
Everyone hurried to follow.
This place, Ning Village, was funded and built by many nearby villages for the purpose of temporarily storing coffins and bodies.
Su Bai and his group saw this and, feeling curious, walked over.
It was unclear if it was because the old Daoist was highly respected and famous, but the villagers were all very deferential to him, and by extension, showed respect to Su Bai and the others as well.
The group entered the courtyard of Ning Village without any issue.
In the courtyard, including the three coffins that had just been set down, there were a total of nine coffins.
Su Bai slowly walked up to the three newly placed coffins, sensed them for a moment, and then suddenly reached out and pushed open the lid of one.
Inside the coffin was a middle-aged man, around thirty years old.
’Just as I thought, no injuries...’
Su Bai’s eyes flickered.
The other two had died in the exact same way, with no injuries whatsoever. It was clear that their souls had been extracted by someone using an Evil Technique.
"Blessed Infinite Heavenly Venerable!"
"What is that!?"
Just then, the Silver-White Dog Demon following alongside them suddenly widened its eyes, pointed to a spot in the sky, and let out a strange cry.
The group looked up.
They saw strange black bolts of lightning suddenly erupt across the sky.
CRACK!
...
CRACK!
Somewhere outside the borders of Great Xia, a bolt of lightning tore through the heavens.
A rift formed in the void.
As if a cloth sack had been torn open, a figure walked out from within.
This person had a distinguished appearance, stood eight chi tall, and was middle-aged.
He wore a black Daoist Robe embroidered with gold patterns, and his waterfall of black hair flowed in a way that gave off a bizarre aura.
The Daoist emanated wisps of extremely terrifying Extreme Yin Qi. The surrounding void seemed to twist and collapse under the pressure of this aura.
The Daoist stood in mid-air, looking down upon the land before him, his vast Divine Thoughts sweeping wantonly in all directions.
’This is the place the Sect Leader sent me to investigate?’
The Daoist frowned slightly and muttered to himself, "The Spiritual Qi between heaven and earth is so thin, so barren. And it’s such a remote place. I doubt there’s even a single Nine Tribulations Realm cultivator here."
"Even if we were to establish a branch of the sect here, it would be of little value."
"Sigh! The Sect Leader, really... he just had to make me come all this way myself."
"That Vice Sect Leader of Rashomon was just a lowly disciple from a subordinate sect. If he’s dead, he’s dead..."
After complaining casually, he shook his head and consoled himself, "Forget it. I’m already here."
"I’ll just casually wipe out the enemy who dared to oppose my Nether Celestial Sect and then head back to report."
After some thought, the Daoist prepared to take a step and fully enter the domain before him.
But just then, his spreading Divine Thoughts suddenly captured a strange wisp of an aura.
This aura seemed to be the residual presence of some powerful expert, spreading outwards.
The Daoist’s expression froze. He then flickered through the air several times, quickly arriving at the source of the aura—
Qishan!
After arriving at the shattered Qishan, he focused his gaze on a certain spot in the sky.
’Something’s not right! Something is very wrong!’
The Daoist’s eyes were fixed on that spot, a tidal wave of shock crashing through his mind.
’This is the aura of that Celestial Wind Divine General!’
This aura was clearly what remained after one’s body was shattered upon death.
This meant that the renowned and powerful Celestial Wind Divine General was very likely dead!
’Dammit! This place must harbor some great terror!’
’It’s nowhere near as simple as it looks!’
’There must be an incredibly terrifying, world-shaking expert living in seclusion here.’
A moment later, realization dawned on him.
’I understand now. This must be the Sect Leader’s true reason for sending me here!’
At this thought, the Daoist’s expression changed drastically.
Finally, he gritted his teeth and slowly took a step forward.
As he took that step, he instantly transformed into an ordinary-looking middle-aged man.
He even descended from the sky, his feet landing solidly on the ground.
"I need... to proceed with caution."
"Utmost caution!"
Muttering to himself, he walked forward one step at a time.
With every step.
He felt himself drawing closer to that powerful, mysterious existence!