Chongming Xianzong

Chapter 498 Strange Movement of the Black Bones
Kang Dabao's eyesight was excellent; he recognized the person in front of him as Han Chengfeng from the Yu Kun Han family before Su Changqiu could. Accompanying him were Fei Nanyi and Fei Wanqing.

Even though he was somewhat surprised to hear that Shu Yuanjiang was already dead, Sect Leader Kang acted quickly, carrying Tu Li and leaping in front of Su Changqiu. With a slash and a strike, the latter's expression darkened, and he hurriedly summoned the Xuanqiong Huagai, a magic weapon he had nurtured for many years, to block it.

This inherited treasure has some intricacies.

Its twenty-eight ribs are made of thousand-year-old lightning-struck wood and purple bamboo from Puxuan Island in the outer sea, interwoven together. Each rib is engraved with the "True Scripture of Longevity of the Big Dipper". When closed, the runes emit a faint blue light, which is bewitching.

The outer layer of the umbrella is woven with silk of the same type as Li and Xue, and is decorated with the Bagua Taiji. The Big Dipper is embedded in the Qian position and the Southern Dipper is attached to the Kun position. The inner layer is lined with Taoist gold paper rubbings of the "True Form Map of the Hundred Mountains", and the spiritual veins of the mountains are outlined with three-tiered cinnabar mixed with gold powder.

The umbrella surface is coated with three layers of demonic oil, mixed with ambergris and Chenzhou sand. When it encounters evil spirits, it automatically emits purple smoke, making it effective for exorcising and refining evil.

The umbrella handle is shaped like a dragon and is made of ancient green jade from Yingzhou. The dragon's mouth holds a pearl for warding off evil and a ruler for suppressing demons. The dragon's body has six Taoist scriptures, including the Mantra for Subduing Demons and the Mantra for Light, which can receive the light of the Purple Star and summon the Four Spirits to suppress evil.

When the umbrella is closed, it manifests the true forms of a hundred mountains, transforming into layers of barriers that can withstand a single blow from a cultivator; when the umbrella is opened, the illusory images of twenty-eight morning stars appear, chanting various true scriptures, drawing the light of the Purple Star to combine with the Yin-Yang fish to evolve the Four Spirits Suppressing Evil Array, which all those below the Golden Core stage must avoid its sharp edge.

The inherited magic treasure is incomparable to ordinary magic treasures, and is naturally rare for ordinary people.

Even though Sect Leader Kang has traveled to several states and has considerable experience, he has only ever seen such treasures in the possession of Chu Yanran and Su Changqiu. In terms of quantity alone, they are even rarer than the Nascent Soul cultivators he has ever seen.

This clearly demonstrates the immense wealth of the Su family in Yuezhu and the high regard the Su family held for their young master, Su Changqiu.

However, this magic weapon is extremely valuable. Even when Su Changqiu was at his peak, he struggled to control it, let alone now that he had just fought to the death with that fat-eared pill master.

The young master of the Su family is now exhausted, both physically and mentally, and surrounded by powerful enemies, so it's unlikely he'll be able to make any impressive moves.

The multiple barriers formed by the true forms of Baiyue blocked the two beams of halberd light in front of him, one vertical and one horizontal, allowing Su Changqiu to find a moment to swallow a few pills whole.

This C6 prison is truly a place devoid of spiritual energy. Without pills or spiritual objects, it's unknown when the cultivators will be able to recover most of the spiritual power they've expended.

Despite his failed attack, Master Kang did not stop. He quickly moved in front of Su Changqiu, who was about to be pushed away, and unleashed the Eight Desolations Mountain Suppression technique, which was quite fitting for the scene. The illusory mountain shadows were shattered in large chunks, which annoyed Su Changqiu, who then changed his hand seal.

As the talisman in his palm became even brighter, bolts of lightning suddenly and irrationally struck Kang Dabao's head.

The intense, scorching heat made the air around Master Kang several times hotter, and his internal organs felt a burning sensation with every breath. However, before he could make a move, Han Chengfeng, who had caught up from behind, had already summoned his spiritual weapon.

A jade-like scroll quickly unfurled in mid-air. The thunder that had been exploding violently vanished the moment it entered the scroll.

Su Changqiu, having wasted his efforts, looked unwell. He felt a burning pain in his meridians after the repeated exertion. As someone skilled in warfare, he knew this was one of the early signs of spiritual energy depletion.

With no worries about his rear, Kang Dabao's offensive intensified, and Han Chengfeng, who was close behind, put away his scroll and was also about to enter the arena. Seeing that the true forms of the Hundred Mountains were becoming increasingly sparse, Su Changqiu no longer held back.

With a flick of his finger, a jade stopper fell to the ground, creating a deep crater. A fragrant aroma then wafted from the jade bottle in his hand, seemingly invigorating even the Grand Master Kang opposite him.

"Ten-thousand-year-old chalcedony?!"

Han Chengfeng, who had just arrived at his side, murmured something. Kang Dabao was amazed by this spirit-restoring artifact, which he had only heard of in cultivation books. At the same time, he subtly moved a few steps away to create some distance between himself and this Han family direct descendant, whom he was not very familiar with.

According to what the Fei family had told Headmaster Kang these past few days, Han Chengfeng was quite capable, but he was not the most valued junior by the Han family patriarch.

Therefore, considering that the Su family's social standing is lower than that of the Han family, Han Chengfeng's wealth is probably far inferior to that of the Su family's young master. It is understandable that he was somewhat surprised by the spiritual artifact in the latter's hand.

According to ancient texts, even True Immortals can use this ten-thousand-year-old jade marrow. Below the True Immortal level, only a few top-tier cultivators can keep some on hand.

Even if Su Changqiu only bestows a drop this time, his already nearly depleted spiritual power will probably be fully restored in just a few breaths.

Fortunately, there were already four of them on their side at this time. Otherwise, Master Kang would have had to carefully consider whether or not to engage in a fierce battle with a powerful enemy right at the beginning.

Fei Nanyi, who arrived later, also used lightning magic, but it was not as grand and majestic as the one used by Su Changqiu earlier. However, it was somewhat similar to the profound lightning used by ordinary demon beasts based on their innate bloodline talents.

Kang Dabao then realized that what Fei Tianqin had said before—that the Fei family of Yingzhou had some Kui dragon bloodline—was probably not unfounded.

The flying sword used by Fei Wanqing at the end was named Zhu Hong. Although it was far less precious than Su Changqiu's Xuanqiong Huagai, it was still a top-quality spiritual weapon made by the Fang family.

Furthermore, with the "Azure Heart Sword," a low-grade sword technique of the Celestial Rank that many members of the Fei family have practiced, Fei Wanqing is well able to keep up with others in this area.

Judging from the perspective of Master Kang, his wife's younger sister's skills are already comparable to those of Yang Wuwei back then. Considering her young age, he felt that the Fei family's selection of her for the C6 prison cell was indeed reasonable.

But there was no time to think too much at this moment. The three reinforcements who arrived—one using thunder magic, one using the Xuan Blade, and one using the Azure Edge—joined forces with the four of them, including Master Kang, and quickly broke through the layers of mountain shadows in front of them.

Su Changqiu was filled with hatred. He changed his hand seal, and the cultivators felt that there was nothing in front of them. They thought to themselves that something was wrong. Where was the Xuanqiong Huagai Xuanguang?
But in the next instant, a blue light shone down.

Han Chengfeng and Fei Nanyi were too busy to defend themselves, each summoning their own magical artifacts to block the attack. Fei Wanqing was caught off guard, and her usually bright eyes froze.

Su Changqiu, having received the Xuanqiong Huagai, became solemn. He tapped his palm with his fingers, and a bolt of lightning surged from the crimson talisman, aiming at Fei Wanqing, the head of the Six Yangs.

If this blow lands squarely, Fei Nanying and his wife, far away in the south of the mountains, might have to bury their son.

Fortunately, the Golden-eyed Sect Leader Kang arrived in time, stepping forward to wield his halberd and slash down the lightning. The few wisps of lightning energy attached to Tu Li had not yet dissipated, causing a tingling sensation in Kang Dabao's palm. However, after he activated the "Mysterious Purity and Prosperity Secret Manual" to summon a bit of Azure Spirit, these minor injuries were quickly healed.

Su Changqiu was not disappointed by his failed attack. He formed hand seals, and star-like images gradually formed around his body. The annoying chanting also began to resound.

Before arriving, all the cultivators had heard from their elders about the abilities of these three wicked guests. They knew that Su Changqiu intended to use the Xuanqiong Huagai in his hand to form the Four Spirits Suppressing Evil Formation. If this fellow were to succeed, even if the four of them were present today, they would still find it difficult to take his life at this opportune moment.

Han Chengfeng's gaze sharpened. The Grand Master Kang couldn't discern the exact rank of his sword technique, but it was clear he had cultivated it to an extremely high level. At this moment, he indeed displayed the extraordinary qualities of a direct descendant of a Nascent Soul clan.

The blade flashed, its sharpness intense. Those around felt as if the clouds above their heads had been churned apart by the blade's light, and the sound of it cutting through the air almost drowned out the chanting in the arena, causing the young master of the Su family opposite them to furrow his brow even more.

The newly formed illusory star image was half-cut off by the blade's edge, and Fei Nanyi's lightning storm also arrived swiftly. Su Changqiu's expression grew increasingly gloomy. Despite his deep regret, he still swallowed the last drop of ten-thousand-year-old jade marrow.

"It's a pity there's no one around to help me. Otherwise, once I form the formation, these people in front of me... Hmph!"

As his previously parched meridians were filled again, Su Changqiu's heart settled, and he formed a hand seal. As the Xuanqiong Huagai in front of him, which had been closed, opened again, a vermilion talisman appeared in each of the young master of the Su family's palms, and then he uttered the word "敕" (edict) before clenching his fists together.

"Six Jia Shrinking Earth Edict! Fellow Daoists, do not hold back, or this fellow will truly escape!" Han Chengfeng, the most knowledgeable among them, shouted, his Xuan Blade shining brightly, clearly indicating that he was using all his strength and no longer holding back.

While inwardly praising the Yuezhu Su family for being of the same lineage as the orthodox Daoist Longhu Mountain, Kang Dabao noted that Su Changqiu's methods were all grand and imposing, and the various techniques in the "Three Caverns Talisman Secret Instructions" were truly profound; at the same time, he sheathed the butcher's knife in his hand, his pupils gradually filling with a brilliant golden light. In just an instant, two golden lights, along with the blade's edge and the thunderous storm, rushed towards the reappearing layers of mountain shadows.

However, Su Changqiu had already made a plan. He knew that although the Xuanqiong Huagai was strong, it could not withstand three equally powerful opponents for long. So he summoned another shield-shaped talisman to fight against it as well.

Just as Han and Fei, who were standing beside Kang Dabao, were pondering whether they should also use their talismans to defend themselves, they saw that the snow-white robes of the young master of the Su family opposite them had been soaked in a golden light.

The Grand Master Kang's eyes narrowed, and just as he was hesitating, he heard Han Chengfeng beside him let out a soft sigh, and the spiritual light of the Xuan Blade in his hand seemed to dim a little.

As expected, shortly after Han Chengfeng's sigh, Su Changqiu sneered and transformed into lightning, fleeing from the place.

"In the end, this fellow still managed to escape," Han Chengfeng said, looking at the shield-shaped talisman left behind by the young master of the Su family. Even though he came from a prestigious family, he couldn't help but admire Su Changqiu's wealth. Even a rare and precious defensive magic weapon was discarded decisively without hesitation.

After preparing the spiritual water and giving it to Fei Wanqing, who had been injured by their opponent Xuan Qiong Hua Gai, Fei Nanyi sighed, "It's only because we encountered Su Changqiu that we were able to achieve success. If it were one of the other two, we might have already accomplished something great."

When the head of the Kang family heard what the elders of the Fei family said, he disagreed.

Kang Dabao knew little about the Taoist priest from Wenshan, but he was still quite wary of Fu Neng, whom he had once been his rival. Back then, he had only managed to gain the upper hand by taking advantage of the latter's complacency after a winning streak, thanks to his nearly perfected Golden Eyes of Truth.

Heaven knows how formidable this man, who has been hiding in the snowy mountains for so long, will be now.

It is true that the Yuezhu Su family is famous for its wealth and that their Taoist temple is magnificent, but compared with the Xueshan Dao Benying Temple, it still pales in comparison.

Even now, Fu Neng is regarded as a thorn in the side and a source of hatred by Ga Da, a Buddhist disciple of Benying Temple who has already achieved the Golden Core stage. He even specially invited his master to come and greet the headmaster Kang, which shows how capable Fu Neng is. Kang Dabao never dares to underestimate him.

"However, if Fu Neng comes out at this time, the four of them working together will have a much greater chance of winning than me fighting him alone."

If the rest of the Fei family were only focused on collecting as many living souls as possible, vying for first place, and obtaining the Five Spirit Ice Sunflower to form their core, then Headmaster Kang had more inclinations to eliminate acquaintances.

After all, the words "enemy of Buddha" were indeed quite heavy, and whenever he thought of them, they made him somewhat uneasy.

Not long after, Fei Wanqing, who had been injured by the azure light of the Xuanqiong Treasure Canopy, also woke up. Her injury was not serious to begin with, and she had fully recovered after taking the spiritual water prepared by Fei Nanyi.

She only noticed that she was injured and looked embarrassed, showing some girlish shyness and unease.

Sect Leader Kang had no time to concern himself with his wife and sister's petty thoughts; his gaze was fixed on the shield-shaped talisman that Su Changqiu had discarded. Unlike the other cultivators, who were all from prominent families, Kang Dabao, without any elders to look after him, was quite poor.

Since the Chess Immortal Plate was destroyed by Gu Chengsen during the Battle of Fazhou, he had no suitable defensive magical artifacts available for a while. Most of the time, he only used a high-grade magical artifact, the Golden Mountain Token. If the opponent's methods were not sharp enough, he could also use his already fully developed Primordial Body to block.

Therefore, this talisman is a scarce item for him.

Thinking of this, Sect Leader Kang summoned a gentle breeze, generously took the talisman into his hand, bowed and said, "I am still lacking protective means. I wonder if Fellow Daoist Han and my clan uncle would be willing to part with it?"

Han Chengfeng didn't think much of a second-hand talisman and agreed after a little thought; Fei Nanyi was, after all, an elder and didn't lack talismans for protection, so he also readily agreed.

Kang Dabao, relieved that his wish had been fulfilled, took out the one-legged golden man from the fat-eared alchemist, added some other spiritual items, and shared them with Han and Fei. Only then did he truly put the shield-shaped talisman into his hands.

The four fought a fierce battle, but their injuries were not serious. They only spent some time taking some pills and spiritual items and adjusting their breathing before discussing matters again.

The sect leader Kang showed little interest in the death of Shu Yuanjiang, his wife's former betrothal partner, but that was precisely the matter Fei Nanyi mentioned when he opened his mouth:
"Fellow Daoist Shu was killed by Gong Butong using the 'Tai Xu Yin Yang Jie Yun Jing' taught by Wen Shan. By the time Fellow Daoist Han and I rushed over, Gong Butong had already escaped."

Before leaving, he also took away the purple jade alms bowl that had been used by Daoist Shu to collect souls, which was quite leisurely.

We were chasing Gong Butong when we bumped into Wanqing, who had just escaped from Tonghe and Su Changqiu, and that's how we got here.

The fact that Shu Yuanjiang was killed was not surprising to the cultivators, because among the six people from the Fei family, he and Fei Wanqing were the weakest.

However, according to their prior agreement, the weakest of the three hostile guests was Gong Butong.

After all, in terms of both strength and foundation, the Wenshan Sect ranks far behind the Benying Temple and the Yuezhu Su Family.

His only Nascent Soul cultivator had suffered Dao injuries while entering the secret realm, and had rarely appeared in public for the past one or two hundred years, which led to the gradual decline of the Wenshan Sect.

The Daoist disciples of the Wenshan Sect in recent generations have not been well-known. There was even one who was nearly two hundred years old and only managed to form a core by having the sect elder pay him more fees to save face.

Therefore, this job is different, and it was not really valued by people just now.

However, it now seems that the cultivators were overconfident. None of the three hostile guests were weak, and they all needed to be treated with caution.

After briefly recounting the events surrounding Shu Yuanjiang's death, the four began discussing their future. Should they continue their separate journeys to gather living souls, or should they travel together and unite to fight any powerful enemies they encountered? This was a matter that required careful consideration.

After all, someone like Han Chengfeng who came to provide assistance was not simply there to help the Fei family of Yingzhou.

Even among Nascent Soul clans, the Fei family's Five Spirit Ice Sunflower might not be considered a top-tier spiritual item. However, it holds considerable appeal for cultivators like Han Chengfeng who urgently need to form their core.

Therefore, if they traveled together, it would inevitably affect Han Chengfeng's speed in collecting living souls. Moreover, Han Chengfeng was confident in his abilities and was not afraid of any opponent. After thinking for a while, he bowed to the three of them to say goodbye and left on his own.

Sect Leader Kang wasn't particularly surprised by this choice, but he himself still opted to travel with the Fei family uncle and nephew. This was because he had a vague premonition that his success in forming a high-grade Golden Core might have little to do with the precious spiritual objects others valued so highly.

Therefore, rather than striving for first place to obtain the Five Spirit Ice Sunflower, which the Fei family cherishes so much, it is more worthwhile to quickly take Fu Neng's life and have peace of mind afterwards.

Fei Nanyi and Fei Wanqing were pleasantly surprised by Kang Dabao's choice, and they both secretly thought to themselves that their noble ladies were very capable.

Given the methods that Headmaster Kang possesses, he is still able to disregard personal interests and be so close to his wife's family. This son-in-law is truly hard to find even with a lantern.

Fei Wanqing felt a strange mix of emotions welling up inside her. She shook her head, not taking it to heart, assuming it was just a slight envy of her older cousin finding a good husband.

The three continued their journey for several more days, encountering only a dozen or so Foundation Establishment cultivators who were so decayed they were barely recognizable as human beings.

It was still early before the opening of the Xie Zhi Xuan Prison, so the cultivators had no need to be impatient. On this day, the three leaders of the Grand Master Kang found a valley with evil energy rising from it. According to the clerk of the Demon Exorcism Bureau, there might be a master alchemist here who was a senior alchemist, whose strength might be even higher than that of Tong He.

Sect Leader Kang didn't hold out much hope, and didn't even know if anyone would visit this place. But in an instant, his expression turned serious:
The black bones, which had been dormant for many years and were no longer black, suddenly moved!
(End of this chapter)