From a martial arts disciple to a god through countless trials and tribulations

Chapter 152: Dragon Raises its Head, Market
"Four Fire Virtues, one Wood Virtue, Huo... A young deputy commander of the Demon Suppression Army caught a big fish."

The Zhiguo monster who was the first to step into the courtyard looked at the five people from the Demon Suppression Bureau with a look of satisfaction in his eyes.

This is a willow monster. Its hair is like willow branches with small white flowers. It has a bluish-white humanoid pointed face and looks to be in its forties or fifties. There are silver veins on its neck, like some kind of ancient rune lines.

The plant spirits, like demons, have human-like appearances, but retain some of the original signs of plants. In addition, there are usually some rune lines on the bodies of the spirits that look like the veins of leaves, making them easy to identify.

"Liu Qi..."

Deputy General Xu, Shen Lingfeng and the other five great masters of the Demon Suppression Bureau all stared at the willow tree monster, their hearts sinking.

Except for Lieutenant General Xu, no one else cared about the mysterious creature in the well. Their attention was completely attracted by the Zhiguo monster named Liu Qi.

A Taoist monk at the peak of the sixth level.

Luoyue City and Zhiguo have been in confrontation for more than half a year. Although no major war has broken out, minor frictions continue. The Demon Suppression Bureau has found out all the dangerous monsters from Zhiguo along the way.

In addition to the two most powerful Dinglu masters, the Zhi Kingdom’s army also has four extremely powerful peak-level Taoist masters, known as the Four Great Spiritual Demons, all of whom are first-class powerful figures under Dinglu.

They are not "straw Taoist scriptures".

Liu Qi, the willow spirit, is actually nearly two hundred years old. A hundred years ago, he was at the sixth level of the Daozang realm, but he had no chance of obtaining a cauldron. Therefore, he practiced hard in the Daozang realm and his combat power is terrifying. There are few rivals among those at the same level.

Since the war between the two countries, the number of Chu state cultivators who died at Liu Qi's hands could not be counted on both hands... Moreover, he was cruel by nature. He sucked the mortals in the villages and towns he met along the way into white bones and hung them under the willow trees, with corpses piled up like mountains.

Everyone knows that Liu Qi wants to fight for the elusive Mu De Ding Lu treasure body in the war between the two countries!

"Since you know my identity, surrender as soon as possible!"

Liu Qi glanced around with his cyan eyes, frowning slightly. Suddenly, he smiled sinisterly and said, "I remember that when I passed by this place last year, there were several skeletons hanging from the big willow tree outside the door. It must have been my fault. Haha, hundreds of lowly humans turned into dry bones in an instant. Today, I'm revisiting this old place..."

"you!"

Upon hearing this, the monks from the Suppression Department became furious and were ready to take action immediately.

Deputy General Xu hurriedly stopped them, his face gloomy and his eyes bloodshot, and he lowered his voice and said:
"Liu Qi, let's go fight outside the village. We won't run away. Let's fight to the death!"

Of course it’s a lie, it would be strange if they didn’t run away!
But there is a sleeping creature under the well that is suspected to be an ancient real dragon.

The majesty of that pale golden vertical pupil was no less than the look of the mighty Dinglu that Deputy General Xu had seen before.

They are fighting over someone else's nest. Do they really want to die?

"Oh? Moving the grave?"

Liu Qi sneered at this. Then, he said coldly, "Human, this is war. There's no point in playing tricks! I'll count to three. Kneel down where you are and hand over the Daozang. Otherwise, I guarantee you'll die a thousand times more painful death!"

Of course, you will die if you give up the Taoist Canon, but it will be an easier death, right?
The Chu cultivators had studied him thoroughly and knew the extent of the misery that would befall anyone who dared to resist him. Thousands of willow branches would pierce through the skin and flesh, sucking out the internal organs, even the bone marrow...

"three……"

The countdown to death begins.

"Damn it..." Deputy General Xu, Shen Lingfeng and the other five monks from the Demon Suppression Division had their immortal energy circulating and surging in their bodies. They could only prepare for a fight to the death.

Although, they were covered in wounds and had little fighting power.

But they won't surrender directly.

Those who are afraid of death will sell themselves to those thousand-year-old families and regional sects, rather than actively joining the Chu State's Demon Suppression Bureau. The Demon Suppression Bureau's duty is to fight against demons and ghosts.

"two……"

Liu Qi slowly uttered the second number, his expression turned cold, green energy surged in the air, and the grass and trees on the ground began to grow wildly.

Behind him, six other plant monsters of different species, some shaped like ginseng, some with Ganoderma lucidum on their heads, locked their murderous gazes on the five people from the Demon Suppression Bureau.

"Ugh……"

Down in the well, in the dark and vast underground space, the huge creature sighed in its heart.

After Chen Xuan regained consciousness, he sensed the movements on the ground and was puzzled as to why these Daoist monks, who were engaged in a frenzy of violence, were unaware of his presence. Was his perception really that poor? Or was it that the Taiyin Qi was exerting its magical power of isolating perception?
after all.

He is so huge.

You know, he noticed the arrival of these two groups of Qi practitioners from several miles away.

After achieving minor success in the "Purple Sky Dragon Transformation Technique".

It seems to possess some of the power of a perfect divine body of a powerful being in the Dinglu realm!

Chen Xuan was promoted to the fourth level in one month.

Afterwards, he completely exhausted the spiritual energy of the Plague Department, and in mid-April, he achieved a thrilling breakthrough to the fifth level of the realm.

In the past half month, he first mastered the "Eight Gates Soul Locking Technique" that he had long comprehended, and then, with great momentum, he successfully mastered the "Purple Sky Dragon Transformation Technique".

"I was just hesitating between condensing the Ninth Heaven Thunder Purple Qi or studying the Secrets of the Five Treasures of the Immortal Body... but something unexpected happened first."

Chen Xuan complained in his heart that these two major events were very troublesome even for his monstrous level of comprehension. They were really huge troubles.

It takes years of hard work.

"The Secret of Zhenwu Seven-Section Sword" is a set of secret techniques, which is more difficult than the previous two ancient secret techniques.

The difficulty of "The Secret of the Five-Tibet Weaponry Immortal Body" is even higher than one can imagine. This is the complete version, and it is the supreme skill that Shangyang Immortal deduced during his last time in the cave. He exhausted all his efforts, integrated the mysteries of all scriptures, and finally deduced it.

Chen Xuan thought so and sensed the movement above his head.

"It's the fifth day of the fifth month, time to move..."

In the courtyard.

The atmosphere was tense.

"With the passing of Emperor Jiang, you humans of Chu have lost your backbone. Your race has been kneeling on the ground since the Age of Mountains and Seas, unable to stand up. Anyone who dares to grow a backbone will accept the most cruel death."

Liu Qi stared at Deputy General Xu and the other four with a gloomy expression. He opened his mouth and was about to utter the last word "one".

Suddenly, his heart skipped a beat, and he sensed a sense of crisis.

It was the faint, imperceptible breathing sound that seemed to become clearer.

"call……"

Lieutenant General Xu was winking at the other four people and was about to shout "escape".

Then, he would launch an attack into the well, hoping to anger the sleeping creature that was suspected to be a real dragon, causing unrest and a fight to the death, thereby giving everyone a glimmer of hope.

But he paused, his face frozen.

Shen Lingfeng and the other four didn't understand the meaning of Deputy General Xu's look. But the next moment, they heard a huge breathing sound that seemed to come from ancient times.

At this moment, the monks from the Demon Suppression Division and the plant monsters of Zhi Country all heard the heavier breathing.

Then, the ground beneath my feet trembled.

“Long…”

Chen Xuan turned over his huge body.

It was like an earthquake.

The earth cracks.

From August last year until May this year, a total of nearly ten months, Chen Xuan secluded himself in seclusion under the rain and snow, like a stubborn stone, practicing in seclusion.

But now, his rusty body began to move.

"Earthquake? What?"

Liu Qi stared at the shaking earth beneath his feet, and a majestic aura rose up like a surging river.

"escape!"

Deputy General Xu finally roared out what he had been saying and led the others who were still stunned to escape.

“Long…”

With the ancient well as the center, the earth slowly rose, and mud and dust slid down from the huge body with black and gold scales like waterfalls, and yellow sand rolled.

A pair of pale golden vertical pupils lit up, overlooking everything.

The entire ruined village sank into the ground, with smoke and dust forming clouds.

"A real dragon? Impossible. The Rain Country dragon's 'Purple Sky Dragon Transformation Technique'..."

Liu Qi reacted immediately, hovering in mid-air, his face solemn as he gazed at the cold, vertical golden pupils. Zhiguo and Yuguo had a secret connection. He quickly recognized the black dragon's foot, breathed a sigh of relief, and said with a smile:
"Excuse me, which dragon son from the Rain Country has arrived?"

As one of the people closest to the Dinglu level, Liu Qi immediately realized that this black dragon was not a true Dinglu level powerhouse.

He was cruel to humans, but now he is humble when facing dragons.

Because he knew that only a handful of dragon sons in the Daozang Realm of the Rain Nation had mastered the "Purple Sky Dragon Transformation Technique." It was said that there was a dragon-born Third Prince who resolutely gave up the opportunity to hide in the mortal world and almost mastered the art. He was a great demon, but unfortunately, he died at the hands of the human Chen Xuan in the Southern Wilderness.

Heh... a human being throws himself into the Southern Wilderness among ghosts and monsters. Humans are indeed weak-willed...

"Dragon, it's actually a dragon..." Deputy General Xu, Shen Lingfeng and others were all shocked and felt cold all over.

Seeing how enthusiastically Liu Qi was chatting up the black dragon, they were bound to die without a burial place.

“Long…”

Chen Xuan’s huge body was over a thousand meters long, and his black scales reflected a metallic luster in the sunlight.

He had a majestic and ferocious dragon head as huge as a mountain, hanging in the sky. His eyes were like the sun and the moon, and he looked down at Liu Qi, who was like a fly in front of him, with a cold look.

"Everyone, work together to attack the Chu State. Your Highness, Longzi, you are welcome to come to Luoyue City to watch the battle in person..."

Liu Qi chatted with a gentle expression. He had lived for almost two hundred years and knew how to speak human words to people and speak demon words to demons.

"boom!"

The next moment, Liu Qi's face was filled with horror. His entire body floating in the air was grabbed by a black dragon claw and pressed hard to the ground, causing the earth to shake violently.

"what!"

An extremely shrill scream erupted from under the dragon's claws.

"We are all Daozang Realm, so let's give the Dragon Clan some face. You are too arrogant!"

Liu Qi roared. For no apparent reason, he suffered a fatal attack from a dragon!

Liu Qi immediately launched a counterattack. A strong green light burst out from under the black dragon claws. He evolved into a willow tree, growing rapidly, trying to push away Chen Xuan's dragon claws.

"brush!"

At the same time, hundreds of willow branches strangled out like chains, chopping off the black dragon claws. Each green willow branch had a sharp power comparable to a treasure, and could cut through iron like mud.

"rumble……"

Chen Xuan did not make any response to Liu Qi, but between the black dragon claws, the black energy of water virtue surged and raged, and countless black and purple talismans evolved, carrying dazzling rune light, silently destroying each willow branch.

"Black Qi? It's not Xiaolei Ziqi. You are not a dragon from the Rain Country!"

From within the willow tree, Liu Qi's voice rang with utter horror. Could this be a foreign dragon invited in by the humans? Had he fallen into a trap carefully set by the Demon Suppression Division? Despicable humans!
"rumble……"

Chen Xuan's dark dragon claws grabbed the big willow tree like a divine sword. He stood up and dived, dragging the big willow tree across the ground, and endless immortal energy light flooded down.

"Chila!"

A deep gully, like a dried-up riverbed, was carved into the earth, leaving behind countless broken dark green willow branches and leaves.

But not long after.

Gradually, a large amount of blue-red blood was dragged out.

"rumble……"

The majestic black real dragon was traveling across the earth as if it were flying across the sea. Smoke and dust rose into the sky. The green light under the dragon's claws quickly dimmed, and Liu Qi's roar disappeared.

In the end, a shocking bloody road stretching for tens of thousands of meters was dragged out on the ground.

"Wow!"

Chen Xuan stopped and raised his dragon claws. A tattered willow tree soaked in blood had half of its edge worn flat. Blue-red blood mixed with flesh and blood poured down from the wound like heavy rain.

"You..." A weak plea for mercy came from the big willow tree. It was Liu Qi's humble prayer.

"Crack!"

The black dragon claws closed like a gate knife, without any pause, and directly crushed the big willow tree.

A top-level Taoist priest died instantly.

"Liu Qi is dead..." In the distance, Deputy General Xu, Shen Lingfeng and others were stunned. Liu Qi, the extremely cruel and top Taoist who had few rivals under the cauldron, died in such a miserable manner in front of them.

"Senior Liu Qi, there is no power to resist. Is this black dragon really in the Daozang realm..." On the other side, the other monsters of Zhi Country were horrified.

A black dragon suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and without saying a word, it crushed one of the top strong men of their Zhi country to pieces in a few breaths.

"There's no hatred..." They couldn't understand. They said dragons were brutal, but not to this degree. Could this really be a trap set by humans? But it didn't look like it. The monks from the Demon Suppression Division across from them were equally terrified. It didn't seem like an act.

"Old man, you're talking a lot of nonsense, disturbing my meditation. If you don't die, who will?"

Chen Xuan muttered to himself coldly. This voice, emitted through the black dragon's body, resonated with a heavy and resounding dragon roar:
"hold head high!"

The earth shook.

The dragon's roar broke through the clouds.

Everyone trembled, and Deputy General Xu's face turned pale. He guessed:
"It must be angry, blaming us for disturbing its slumber. We are dead!"

They were afraid that the power displayed by the black dragon at this moment was no less powerful than the Dinglu Mighty.

These defeated soldiers couldn't even defeat Liu Qi, and had no ability to escape from the brutal dragon's claws. They could only wait to die!

Chen Xuan's dragon claws pinched a ball of remaining top-level wood virtue spirit, and his light golden vertical pupils passed across the sky, as if he was greedily searching for the next prey.

Everyone trembled. Once targeted by the black dragon, there was no chance of survival.

"boom!"

The next moment, the black dragon's body moved, and it swam towards the other side where the six people from the Zhi Kingdom's spiritual tribe were. The huge shadow formed by its supreme majesty enveloped it like a tidal wave.

"The monks from Chu State were here first. If you are angry, go find them first!" The monsters from Zhi State roared and fled in all directions. They were so unlucky!
"Good opportunity! Escape separately!" Seeing this, the five people from the Demon Suppression Bureau were overjoyed and immediately fled madly in another direction.

Although no one knows why the Black Dragon attacked the Zhiguo elves first, this is obviously a good opportunity for them to escape!
"rumble……"

The mountains and rivers were shaking, the birds and beasts were crawling on the ground, when the real dragon appeared, all living things could only submit.

"Pfft! Pfft!"

A moment later, six blooming blood flowers were left on the ground, and all the remaining monsters of Zhiguo died.

"hold head high!"

The black dragon let out a long roar towards the sky, the sound echoed for dozens of miles, and then disappeared.

The earth returned to tranquility and silence.

A quarter of an hour later.

In the wild mountains and wilderness, five cautious figures from the Demon Suppression Division gathered together through low-level communication talismans, all of them still with lingering fears.

"Didn't chase us? Survive a disaster!"

"It's so terrifying! Where did this dragon come from? He just killed all the evil monsters from Zhi Country." Shen Lingfeng gasped for breath. His legs went limp with fear when the black dragon came out.

Everyone was filled with emotion. They had managed to escape from a desperate situation. It was such a wonderful feeling.

"This black dragon of unknown origin has been of great help. The death of Liu Qi and his group of evil monsters will cause great losses to the Zhi Kingdom."

Deputy General Xu said slowly that in the past, when the Demon Suppression Division wanted to capture and kill enemies of Liu Qi's level, they could only adopt the ant-covering tactic, and they had to sacrifice the lives of at least a dozen Taoist monks before they could reap the rewards.

"Deputy General Xu, what should we do now? Should we flee to Fire Dog City, two thousand miles away? Or should we search for our lost colleagues from the Demon Suppression Division?"

Someone asked, once Liu Qi and his gang of Zhiguo monsters died, the area within a hundred or two hundred miles became much safer. They got a chance to breathe and seemed to be able to do more things.

Lieutenant General Xu looked around at everyone, pondered for a moment, and said, "Luoyue City has just fallen. The Jiang family may organize a counterattack. Why don't we wait and see?"

"Then just wait!"

"Although some aristocratic families have retreated to their hinterlands, several of the Jiang family's princes and princesses have gone to the front lines. It's said that a few days ago, a Jiang family prince died on the city walls of another city. What do we have to fear?"

"..."

Everyone sighed and said that the descendants of Emperor Jiang in the current era had some talent but were not very capable, and there were not even a few who were at the Dinglu realm.

But their spirit is indeed consistent and there is no doubt about it.

The only Princess Jiang Jiu is extremely talented, but she is only in her teens. In a few decades, she may become powerful, but now, she can't play a big role in this ancient country-level war.

The group walked along the mountain road. They had special communication talismans on them. The level was not high, but it could work stably even if they were one or two hundred miles apart. As long as they met colleagues from the Demon Suppression Bureau nearby, they could communicate and meet up.

"It would be great if there was a way to subdue the black dragon just now. I think it has the ability to restrain the powerful people in the Dinglu realm for a few times." Someone laughed softly.

"Why don't you tell me about taming the mysterious master who swung the sword that opened the sky last year?" someone sneered.

"Go away! I don't think you can bear to see the Demon Suppression Division get better!"

"..."

The winding mountain road is rugged, and at the end there is a tea shop. Further away, the ruins of a small town come into view.

Luoyue City used to be prosperous, with people living and working in peace and contentment. There were many traveling merchants, and there were tea shops along the mountain roads to serve customers. But now, there are few living people.

Of course, not all of them died. Starting from the second half of last year, the Demon Suppression Bureau began to arrange for mortals in the mortal world to retreat to the rear cities... For some mortals who did not understand the situation and were unwilling to leave their homes, the Demon Suppression Bureau did not persuade them a second time.

Most of them died one after another, but a small number of them survived... There were also some humans surviving in Zhi Country and Yu Country.

"A living person?"

Everyone stopped and saw a figure in black in the abandoned tea shop.

"No, it's a Qi practitioner."

The young man in black stood tall with his back to them, seemingly making tea, and wisps of hot mist drifted out of the shabby shop.

The young man in black clothes looked extraordinary and heroic, with a faint glow flowing from the corners of his clothes - a feathered robe woven with immortal energy, a Taoist monk.

Deputy General Xu, Shen Lingfeng and others looked at it for a few moments and approached cautiously.

"Daoyou? A Chu person?"

Deputy General Xu told his name and then asked directly.

There is no need to introduce their identities in detail. The blood-stained scarlet armor is the symbol of the Demon Suppression Bureau. Anyone in the State of Chu who can cultivate to the Daozang realm cannot fail to recognize this attire.

Chen Xuan turned around, holding a teacup, and replied:

"Yes, the Chu people."

He possessed the ability to perceive eight kinds of immortal energy, as well as his spirit, soul and body, and was waiting in front of this group of people early on.

Deputy General Xu was taken aback and asked, "What's your name? Which faction are you from?"

They had been in Luoyue City for more than half a year and had never seen Chen Xuan, so they were very surprised. They didn't know what Chen Xuan's intention was for suddenly appearing in Luoyue City at this time.

Chen Xuan's expression remained normal as he replied:

"My surname is Xue, my name is Chen, and I am a mountain and wild cultivator."

"Xue Chen, Fellow Daoist Xue..."

Lieutenant General Xu nodded when he heard this. It was an ordinary name, and he was not a famous person in the State of Chu. Moreover, the surname Xue was not a thousand-year-old family in the State of Chu. It seemed that he was from a small family.

However, this name sounds a little familiar, as if I have seen it in a book before.

Lieutenant General Xu immediately said, "Fellow Daoist, it seems you're waiting for us? If you have something to say, just tell me. Are you joining the Demon Suppression Division? With two countries at war, this is the perfect time to seize the opportunity and rise to prominence!"

He invited Chen Xuan to join the Demon Suppression Division. During this period, there were quite a few cultivators who joined the Demon Suppression Division halfway.

Moreover, he vaguely felt that Chen Xuan was extraordinary and his strength seemed to be no less than his.

The most crucial thing is that he did not sense Chen Xuan's breath in advance, and only discovered Chen Xuan's figure when he saw it with his naked eyes... This feeling is slightly similar to the situation when he saw the black dragon not long ago.

Could it be...

Deputy General Xu immediately shook his head and discarded the unrealistic thoughts in his mind. He had also heard of the "Purple Sky Dragon Transformation Technique" mentioned by Liu Qi, and it was something that only a dragon could learn.

Besides, how old is the person in front of me? Around 20 years old!
Do you really think everyone is like Princess Jiang and General Xiao Huo, who can learn ancient secret techniques at such a young age? If Xue Chen had this ability, he would have been famous in Chu long ago, how could he remain unknown?

Moreover, if Xue Chen really saved their black dragon, it would be such a great favor, how could he remain silent?

Chen Xuan smiled and shook his head. He would not join the Demon Suppression Bureau because the disadvantages far outweighed the advantages.

But he was waiting for this group of people because he did have something to inquire about.

"It is said that in this area, there were traveling merchants who used space treasures to build a secluded marketplace between the two worlds?"

I heard this news when I was in the well.

The master of two worlds.

Chen Xuan missed the two world masters at the Southern Wilderness Ghost Market, but the four Taoist Zang villains saw the two world masters with their own eyes!
The Lord of the Two Realms seemed to be a Destiny Person who could cooperate with her. Most importantly, she knew many of the Destiny's secrets...

Lieutenant General Xu nodded and answered frankly, "Indeed, we have. We have entered the market several times to exchange Fire Virtue spiritual objects from Zhiguo merchants... Alas, the middle area has now been occupied by Zhiguo."

He remembered why he was strangely familiar with the name Xue Chen, because he had actually seen it in a fabricated novel at the market!
Very famous!

"..."

In front, Chen Xuan and Deputy General Xu were chatting and exchanging information.

In the back, Shen Lingfeng took one look at the handsome face of the young man named "Xue Chen", then looked at him again. His hands and feet were already cold, and his whole body was shivering.

(End of this chapter)