sinovels Chapter 72: Sneak Attack
Chapter 72: Sneak Attack
Li Shangyu reacted quickly. With a thought, golden energy rose around his body, and more than ten fan-shaped magical artifacts surrounded him, gathering together to block Li Wu's powerful halberd strike.
"Li Wu, my [Golden Yue Sect] was careless for a moment, allowing you to reach this state. Today, I will leave you here!"
Li Shangyu snorted coldly, and with a thought, the dozen or so fan pieces returned to her hand, becoming a magic fan. Then, she moved and charged straight at Li Wujing.
Li Wu frowned slightly. The person in front of him was already at the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage, and now, in this [Golden Virtue] Secret Realm, he was further blessed by the golden energy in the cave.
"A direct confrontation is not advisable!"
With these thoughts in mind, Li Wuxin's figure once again transformed into arcs of electricity, flashing and leaping between the palaces.
Li Shangyu transformed into a golden thread and chased after it at lightning speed.
"Where do you think you're going!"
Seeing Li Shangyu relentlessly pursuing him, Li Wu immediately made a hand seal, and the [Golden Mirror] behind him shot out two more bolts of lightning, heading straight for Li Shangyu's face.
Li Shangyu snorted coldly, raised his hand and waved, and the golden shield once again blocked his way.
boom!
The instant she blocked the lightning, she threw out a large golden net towards Li Wulong.
Li Wu's eyes sharpened, and he held his halberd horizontally in front of him. Lightning surged on the halberd's blade, and a silver-white bolt of lightning as thick as an arm slammed out, striking the golden net squarely.
"Crack!"
The lightning collided with the golden net, sparks flew everywhere, and a gap was blasted open in the golden net. Li Wu flashed out through the gap.
…………
On another battlefield, the duel between Pei Xiyan and Zhang Zheyuan has also reached a fever pitch.
Both were skilled archers, and their arrows collided in mid-air, exploding with alternating bursts of golden and purple light.
Zhang Zheyuan's face was gloomy. His arrows were enhanced by golden energy in the cave, making them far more powerful than those outside, but they still could not break through Pei Xiyan's purple lightning.
Pei Xiyan's purple lightning arrows were not only incredibly accurate, but also contained an extremely domineering destructive power. Every time they collided with his golden arrows, they would shatter the golden arrows into pieces.
"Damn it!"
Zhang Zheyuan gritted his teeth, and the golden bow in his hand shone brightly, with three golden arrows simultaneously condensing on the bowstring.
"Three yangs pierce the sun!"
Three golden arrows shot out in a triangular formation, moving at a speed so fast that they were almost impossible to detect with the naked eye.
Pei Xiyan's expression remained unchanged, a purple light flashed in his eyes, and the purple bow in his hand hummed, with three purple lightning arrows also condensing on the bowstring.
The three arrows transformed into a purple dragon, swallowing the three golden arrows whole.
Zhang Zheyuan was shocked and hurriedly dodged to the side, but the purple lightning arrow still grazed his left shoulder, leaving a charred wound. Purple arcs of electricity danced at the wound, and the intense pain made him groan.
"What amazing archery skills!"
Zhang Zheyuan's face grew even more gloomy. He took out a pill and put it in his mouth, his eyes darting left and right.
Ying Zichu stood at a distance, holding a tablet and chanting incantations. Rays of light emanated from him, falling on Li Wu and Pei Xiyan, healing their injuries and replenishing their spiritual energy.
"The auxiliary methods of this [Lu Qi] path are quite troublesome."
A murderous glint appeared in Zhang Zheyuan's eyes. He turned the golden bow in his hand and aimed it at Ying Zichu in the distance.
"I'll kill you first!"
A golden arrow shot out from the sky, heading straight for Ying Zichu's head.
Pei Xiyan's eyes narrowed, and the purple lightning arrows shot out simultaneously, intercepting the golden arrow in mid-air.
"Your opponent is me."
Pei Xiyan spoke coldly, his figure flashing as he stood in front of Ying Zichu, his purple bow drawn taut once more.
Zhang Zheyuan's face turned ashen, but he had no choice but to continue arguing with Pei Xiyan.
While performing hand seals to nourish Li Wu and Pei Xiyan, Ying Zichu observed the situation and pondered:
"That male cultivator is no match for Fellow Daoist Pei. As for that female cultivator, with so many magical artifacts, she's probably from the [Treasury] path. However, Fellow Daoist Li seems to have quite a few magical artifacts as well, so holding off one or two of them shouldn't be a problem."
"As for that golden-armored giant, although it is powerful, it is ultimately an inanimate object. As long as you are careful to control the distance, it poses almost no threat."
"The fellow Daoists from Yulin Mountain and the Dragon Clan should be arriving soon."
Just then, a commotion came from outside the palace.
Several figures arrived through the air; they were several Wood Virtue cultivators and several dragon-type dragons from Jade Forest Mountain.
"Senior Sister Pei, we're late!"
The leader of the Yulin Mountain disciples shouted, made a hand seal, and several green vines burst from the ground and wrapped around the golden-armored giant.
Those dragons transformed into their original forms, three dragons over ten zhang long swirling in the air, spewing water columns that hurtled towards Li Shangyu and Zhang Zheyuan.
The situation reversed instantly.
Li Shangyu's expression changed; she hadn't expected the enemy's reinforcements to arrive so quickly.
"withdraw!"
She made a quick decision, transforming the golden shield in her hand into a round shield about ten feet in size to protect herself, and then she fled into the distance.
Zhang Zheyuan dared not linger in battle, so he put away his golden bow and followed closely behind.
"Do not pursue them."
Pei Xiyan spoke up, stopping the Yulin Mountain disciples who wanted to give chase.
Li Wu and Ying Zichu then returned to Pei Xiyan's side.
"Let's go inside the hall and see if there are any spiritual items we need," Ying Zichu said.
Pei Xiyan nodded slightly:
"Let's go."
As for the golden-armored giant, it was naturally left to the Jade Forest Mountain and the dragon-affiliated cultivators to handle.
The three of them flew into the hall together.
The hall was glittering with gold, and countless spiritual objects were piled up like mountains, including gold essence stones, black gold iron, and golden marrow fungus... each one was extremely valuable.
However, they are all spiritual objects of the [Gold Virtue] path, without [Prosperity Qi] or [Divine Thunder] or [Thunder] spiritual objects.
Within the [Tai Xu] secret realm, cultivators who are not on the corresponding path cannot take these spiritual items.
In other words, no matter how precious these spiritual items from the [Gold Virtue] path are, the three of them cannot take them away.
"What a pity," Ying Zichu sighed and shook his head.
Pei Xiyan's expression remained unchanged as he spoke:
"Let's go to the next grotto."
…………
at the same time.
Qi Yu also quietly slipped into the cave.
Looking at the towering trees all around, Qi Yu asked in a low voice:
"Where can we find the spiritual objects of the Purple Mansion in the Dao of [Longevity Qi]?"
"How would I know?"
The white jade turtle shook its head and said:
"In fact, the spiritual treasures of the other sects in this [Tai Xu] Secret Realm have long been plundered. Although many precious spiritual treasures are generated every hundred years, it is not enough for so many sects to send their disciples here."
"They sent their disciples here for two purposes. First, to kill the lightning-attribute cultivators. Second, to find the spiritual objects hidden here, such as [Divine Lightning], [Thunder Lightning], [Prosperity Qi], and [Longevity Qi], and then to hide them again using a special secret method."
"Therefore, the location of these Purple Mansion spiritual objects is different every time the [Tai Xu] Secret Realm opens, and they need to be searched for again."
"No, when will we find it?" Qi Yu frowned.
This [Tai Xu] secret realm has more than a dozen cave heavens, each with an area comparable to a country. Even at full speed, it would take at least a year and a half for a Foundation Establishment cultivator to search every corner.
The white jade turtle slowly poked its head out, its beady eyes gleaming with a sharp light:
"What's the rush? Do you think those disciples from major sects are here for sightseeing? Every time they enter a secret realm, they have sensing artifacts bestowed by their masters, specifically used to find spiritual objects that correspond to their cultivation path."
"Do you have one?" Qi Yu looked down at it.
The white jade tortoise remained silent for a moment, then said matter-of-factly, "No."
Qi Yu: "..."
"But isn't it enough that they have it?"
"All we need to do is find a cultivator who is searching for [Longevity Qi], and then follow them."
Qi Yu's lips twitched. He looked down at the self-righteous little turtle in his arms and remained silent for a long time.
"So you mean we're just wandering around this vast, mysterious realm like headless flies, and then we'll get lucky and bump into a cultivator with a magical artifact that can sense things?"
"Otherwise what?"
The white jade tortoise rolled its eyes, and said in a condescending tone:
"Anyway, we [Longevity Qi] cultivators don't have much else, but we have plenty of time."
Qi Yu remained silent for a moment.
I must say, what the tortoise said makes sense.
After figuring it out, Qi Yu immediately lay down on the ground and whispered:
"Then let's wait and see."
This wait lasted for several days.
Several groups of cultivators swept through the forest, some carrying magical artifacts, others making hand seals, all flying by in haste.
Judging from the aura emanating from them, they were not searching for any spiritual objects related to longevity.
…………
On this day, the white jade tortoise suddenly opened its eyes, its tiny, beady eyes staring into the distance, and its tone became unusually serious:
"Here it comes, here it comes."
Qi Yu opened his eyes and followed the gaze of the white jade turtle.
Then a figure slowly emerged from the woods, walking at a leisurely pace, as if strolling in his own backyard.
The newcomer was thin, around forty years old, with a stern face and a long, gray beard on his chin. He held a jade pendant in his hand, making hand seals, and exuding an aura.
"It's [Longevity Qi]!" Qi Yu's eyes lit up.
"Let's go, follow them."
Qi Yu nodded slightly, concealing his aura as he followed behind the other person.
With the help of the White Jade Turtle's magic and the [Longevity Body] immortal foundation, Qi Yu could completely conceal his aura to the extreme, making it impossible for Foundation Establishment cultivators to detect him.
The brown-robed monk walked and stopped, taking out his jade pendant to sense it for a moment at each stop before changing direction.
Qi Yu followed behind at a leisurely pace.
a few days later.
The brown-robed monk suddenly stopped in front of a towering tree.
The tree was as thick as ten people could hug, its trunk covered with moss, its branches and leaves so lush that they blocked out the sun.
The brown-robed cultivator affixed the jade pendant to the tree trunk, closed his eyes to sense it for a moment, then opened them, a smile appearing on his lips, and whispered:
"Found it."
He muttered to himself, made a hand seal with his right hand, and a white light surged from his palm and disappeared into the tree trunk.
A phantom portal suddenly appeared on the trunk of the giant tree, and the brown-robed cultivator stepped into it without hesitation.
Qi Yu's eyes flashed, and just as the portal was about to disappear, his figure darted out like a ghost and silently followed it inside.
Beyond the gate lies a hidden paradise nestled among the trees.
Thick fog filled the surroundings, carrying an aura of vitality.
Qi Yu took a deep breath and felt the [Longevity Body] immortal foundation within his body tremble slightly, as if something was responding to him.
"Is this [Longevity Qi]?"
The white jade turtle nodded:
"That's right! It seems the spirit treasure of the Purple Mansion is inside."
At this moment, the brown-robed cultivator stood in the center of the cave, the jade pendant in his hand floating in the air, emitting a soft white halo.
His gaze was fixed intently on the front, where there stood a strange plant, its entire body pure white, its leaves carved like jade, and a fist-sized fruit hanging from its branch. The fruit was faintly visible in the mist, emanating a rich aura of longevity.
"[White Jade Longevity Fruit]"
The brown-robed monk muttered to himself:
"It takes three hundred years for it to bloom, three hundred years to bear fruit, and three hundred years to mature."
"A [Longevity Qi] spiritual item at the Purple Mansion level can add at least a hundred years to a cultivator's lifespan, even if consumed by cultivators from other lineages."
"It's just a pity that in this [Tai Xu] Grotto Heaven, only cultivators of the [Shou Qi] lineage can obtain it."
He was a cultivator of the [Earth] element, and his mission in entering the [Great Void] secret realm was to reapply the secret technique to the [White Jade Longevity Fruit] and relocate it to another hidden cave.
He took out a jade talisman from his sleeve, chanted an incantation, and the jade talisman slowly rose, emitting a faint white halo, and floated towards the [White Jade Longevity Fruit].
This jade talisman was given to him by his master, the Purple Mansion True Man.
"Once this [Spirit Transfer Talisman] is applied, the [White Jade Longevity Fruit] will be transferred to another grotto-heaven."
He muttered to himself as he manipulated the jade talisman to approach the translucent white fruit.
Just as the jade talisman was about to touch the fruit, a figure emerged from the mist like a ghost, moving at incredible speed.
His expression changed drastically, and before he could react, a fair hand had already grasped the branch of the [White Jade Longevity Fruit].
"who!"
He shouted sharply, turned around abruptly, and a long sword appeared in his hand.
Qi Yu grasped the branch with the fruit and tried to pluck it, but found that the fruit did not move at all.
"Um?"
He frowned slightly, and the immortal foundation of the [Longevity Body] within his body began to operate, with longevity energy surging into his palm.
This time, the fruit trembled slightly and fell from the branch into Qi Yu's hand.
"court death!"
The brown-robed cultivator was furious when he saw the spiritual object being taken away. He flicked his longsword, and a sharp sword aura slashed towards Qi Yu.
Wherever the sword energy passed, the air seemed to become heavier, carrying a suppressive force.
Qi Yu's expression changed drastically, and he quickly grabbed the white jade turtle and held it in front of him.
The white jade turtle shell shone with a spiritual light, forcefully blocking the sword energy.
"Burn your lifespan!" the white jade tortoise shouted sharply.
Qi Yu immediately cast a spell, his spiritual energy surged, and his strength increased dramatically, instantly breaking through to the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage.
However, Qi Yu did not intend to fight the other party. Instead, he turned around and left without looking back, fleeing the place.
The brown-robed monk reached out, but only grasped at air.
"Indeed!"
His eyes widened in fury, and he quickly cast a spell to give chase. Watching the figure recede into the distance, a sense of panic gripped him as he pondered:
"How could this be! There haven't been any cultivators at the [Longevity Qi] level for hundreds of years, why are they suddenly appearing!"
"Why did it appear just as I entered the [Tai Xu] cave!"
If he were to lose this spiritual treasure from the Purple Mansion of the [Longevity Qi] path, he would be in grave danger.
It should be noted that the last time a Purple Mansion spiritual object was lost was two hundred years ago, and that loss was due to the dragon's overwhelming strength.
He fought against ten men and snatched it from their hands.
Even so, they were still punished after leaving the [Tai Xu] secret realm.
He has made such a foolish mistake that he will surely be punished when he returns.
…………
At the same time, Qi Yu, who was burning through his lifespan, saw that the cultivator was nowhere to be seen behind him and immediately hid in the dense forest.
The spell was used to conceal his presence.
"Huff...huff...this has cost me twenty years of my lifespan in one go." Qi Yu gasped for breath.
Fortunately, Qi Yuxiu possessed the [Longevity Qi] technique, granting him a lifespan of three hundred years after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage.
"Twenty years of lifespan in exchange for this [White Jade Longevity Fruit], you've hit the jackpot."
The white jade tortoise jumped onto the [White Jade Longevity Fruit] and said:
"With this fruit, your chances of breaking through to the Purple Mansion realm in the future will increase by at least 30%!"
"Only 30%?" Qi Yu was very dissatisfied.
The spiritual treasure in my Purple Mansion, which I obtained by burning twenty years of my lifespan, only increased my power by thirty percent?
Qi Yu is becoming increasingly steady; he would never consider attempting to break through to the Purple Mansion realm unless there is a 99% chance.
The white jade turtle rolled its eyes and said:
"A 30% success rate is already quite good. To increase the success rate further, we can only rely on the corresponding Purple Mansion Secret Technique."
"Can we find this [Tai Xu] Secret Realm?" Qi Yu asked.
The white jade turtle shook its head and said:
"I'm not sure about that either. I only know that I can definitely find the Purple Mansion Spiritual Object, but as for the secret techniques, I can't guarantee that."
Upon hearing this, Qi Yu's lips twitched slightly.
"So you don't have a definite answer either?"
The white jade turtle shook its head confidently:
"I've never been to this godforsaken place before, how would I know so much? But then again..."
It changed the subject, its beady eyes narrowing:
"You don't need to worry, because I know a place where it's definitely there."
"Where?" Qi Yu asked.
"【Jade Pivot Hall】."
Upon hearing this, Qi Yu frowned slightly and asked in confusion:
"Where is this place?"
The white jade turtle explained:
"The Jade Pivot Hall is the treasure trove of the Thunder Palace, containing almost all the precious pills, secret techniques, and magical treasures of the Daoist traditions."
Upon hearing this, Qi Yu's eyes lit up, and he said:
"That's amazing? Where is the Jade Pivot Palace? Let's find a chance to sneak in."
The white jade turtle shook its head and said:
"We can't go there. The Jade Pivot Palace hasn't been seen in the world for hundreds of years."
Upon hearing this, Qi Yu, who had been excited, immediately froze, frowning as he said:
"Then what the hell are you talking about?"
"If it hasn't appeared for hundreds of years, then it's as if it's gone."
"What's your hurry?"
The white jade tortoise flicked its tail and said:
"Although the Jade Pivot Palace has not appeared in the world for hundreds of years, it is not gone and there is still a chance for it to reappear."
"How so?"
"As long as three Thunder-attribute Purple Mansion True Persons from different lineages travel in the world at the same time, they can summon the Jade Pivot Palace."
"As far as I know, there is a Purple Mansion True Person named She Lei in the East Sea Dragon Palace."
"In other words, all that's left is for the two [Divine Thunder] and [Thunder] within the [Tai Xu] Cave Heaven to break through to the Purple Mansion level before we can summon the [Jade Pivot Palace]."
"I see." Qi Yu nodded slightly, then asked:
"Shall we go find Brother Li now?"
"Let's find their trail first, but there's no rush to meet them."
"They will inevitably clash with other cultivators from different lineages afterward, so it's best if we don't get involved to avoid getting into trouble."
"That's right."
Qi Yu nodded in agreement.
He was determined to carry out his principles to the end.