Lingyuan Immortal

Chapter 941 The Moon Reflects on Ten Thousand Rivers, Ultimately Returning to Silence

Dark clouds covered the sky, rumbled thunder, and torrential rain poured down.

Raindrops gathered into a curtain, obscuring the surrounding scenery.

Hong Wuyai silently took a step back, and put away the gray jade pendant that had just slipped from his sleeve.

The situation has quietly changed, and the opportunity is fleeting. If we act now, it may be too late.

Hong Wuyai looked troubled, and the sleeve of his robe, which concealed a gray jade pendant, swayed slightly, as if he was hesitant.

"But if this battle ends here, wouldn't there be no chance at all?"

Just as Hong Wuyai was in a state of great distress, another change occurred.

Through the thick curtain of rain, everyone suddenly fixed their gazes, vaguely seeing Chen Mu seemingly chuckling, followed by his voice: "Fellow Daoist, do you know that the moon reflected in ten thousand rivers will eventually return to still water?"

Everyone was confused, but Gong Qingli was shocked. She looked up and saw that the falling moon had disintegrated on its own, turning into millions of raindrops that disappeared into the green curtain.

She sensed something was wrong, and the next moment, she was shocked to find that the water element in her body was flowing backward uncontrollably. It turned out that the raindrops had already silently seeped into her entire body through the power of the Xuanjian's absorption!
The moon in the water, the moon in the water.

The moon is an illusion; the real killing move is the endless water radiance beneath the illusory moon.

This is also the second level of the "Mirror Flower Water Moon" realm, "Moon Sea Ripples".

After several battles and insights, Chen Mu had not yet gained much in the power of cause and effect, but he had touched the threshold of the second level of immortal arts.

Although it was only the second level of the first realm, "Mirror Flower Water Moon," it far exceeded Fu Yuanzi's expectations.

If Fu Yuanzi were to find out, he would probably stroke his beard and sigh for a moment...

Gong Qingli was horrified and wanted to urge Xuanjian to suppress it, but she saw the Dao cauldron in front of Chen Mu shine brightly, and the water splendor suddenly burst out from her meridians. Each strand turned into Kan Water True Pattern, which disintegrated the green curtain Dao rhyme that she had been trying to maintain inch by inch.

"Wow--"

The Bi Ze Xuan Jian crashed to the ground, its surface rippling with water, while Gong Qing Li staggered back seven steps, blood spilling from the corner of her lips and staining her blue dress.

Chen Mu was still dressed in a plain robe, with only a few raindrops clinging to his hair quietly evaporating.

"Concession."

He lightly rolled up his sleeves, and the suspended pouch instantly fell into his palm. After concentrating on exploring it, he couldn't help but smile slightly and put it into his personal grotto.

The heavy rain gradually subsided, and under the cool drizzle, the Gong clan members in the distance were already dumbfounded.

Gong Qingli was deeply troubled. This defeat was not due to insufficient cultivation, nor to underestimating the enemy, nor to any other reason. It was precisely because of the profound changes in that move, "Moon in the Water".

If she also possessed a complete immortal technique, how could she have been defeated so easily?

Her jade-like fingers brushed across the corner of her lips, leaving a trail of blood on her pale skin.

She looked up at the figure in white robes on the cloud, the vermilion mole at the corner of her eye shining brightly in the moonlight: "What a beautiful moon reflecting ten thousand rivers, returning to still water... truly mysterious."

She suddenly turned around, and the Xuanjian Dao Fruit transformed into a stream of light that entered her brow.

"Qingli will keep her promise today. However..."

She didn't turn around, but said coldly, "When we meet again someday, I hope your foundation will be solid and your path to immortality will be smooth."

Upon hearing this, Chen Mu's eyebrows twitched slightly. This blessing sounded awkward no matter how you looked at it, as if it carried an unresolved fighting spirit.

However, he didn't say much. When he turned around, he looked around at Gonggong Shi Zhenjun and saw the fear in their eyes. He knew that he had suppressed the villains in the field today, and no one would dare to interfere with whether he stayed or left.

"Fellow Daoist Hong, until we meet again."

Chen Mu bowed slightly before gracefully departing amidst the lingering mist.

Everyone present watched them leave, especially Gong Qingli, who had turned her back early on, her eyes darting around as if she were lost in thought.

But just as all was quiet, a towering figure suddenly broke through like a thunderclap, charging forward with lightning speed.

Gong Qinghe, who was closest to her, was startled. Just as she was wondering what was going on, she suddenly realized that the figure was not fleeing, but heading straight for Gong Qingli, who was wide open in the middle of the arena. Her face turned pale and she shouted a warning: "Be careful!"

Gong Qingli looked back and saw Hong Wuyai approaching rapidly with a ferocious expression, holding a gray ancient jade pendant tightly in his hand.

Although the Gong clan members feared Chen Mu like a tiger, they showed no fear in the face of Hong Wuyai. In an instant, several figures soared into the air: "Stop!"

In an instant, several streaks of rainbow light streaked across the sky and struck Hong Wuyai, who neither dodged nor evaded. To everyone's surprise, these rainbow lights, which were enough to seriously injure a Dao Inquiry True Monarch, all silently dissipated three zhang away from Hong Wuyai.

"This……"

The blue-robed youth suddenly realized: "He has fallen into the cycle of reincarnation; Hong Wuyai has gone mad!"

Everyone knows that the state of "sitting in oblivion" requires a hundred lifetimes of reincarnation, but how could a cultivator dare to truly risk their true self?
Therefore, he has always used the technique of splitting his soul and transforming it into a physical form to escape into the void, using the torrent of time to refine his Dao heart. Each time he breaks through a layer of mortal illusion, he is considered to have completed a lifetime of cultivation.

However, there is still a way to perish together with the dead: to enter the turbid waves of reincarnation with one's true body. If one encounters a life-or-death calamity here, one will truly perish and one's path will be extinguished.

However, if one is fortunate enough to break through the cycle of ten lifetimes, one can directly reach the Great Perfection Realm...

This method is extremely dangerous, and even cultivators nearing the end of their lifespan rarely attempt it.

At this moment, the surging Netherworld energy around Hong Wuyai clearly indicated that he had initiated the reincarnation of his true form.

Although this move may temporarily use the torrent of reincarnation to dissolve all laws, such a reckless rush is no different from seeking one's own death.
No wonder the young man in blue robes cried out in alarm that Hong Wuyai had gone mad...

Despite the shouts and commotion from her clansmen, Gong Qingli remained unmoved, her eyes coldly fixed on Hong Wuyai, devoid of any emotion.

Hong Wuyai felt a tremor in his heart, and for some reason suddenly felt that something was wrong.

But now that things have come to this, there is no turning back. Moreover, compared to the past, this is the best time to turn back.

With no sixth-order Dao Lord from the Gong clan outside and Gong Qingli injured inside, if we don't act now, Wu'er's remnant soul... will probably be annihilated in the Sea of ​​Rebirth.

Thinking of this, he roared and rushed forward to meet Gong Qingli's cold gaze, then forcefully slammed down the gray jade pendant.

"Snapped--"

The gray jade pendant split in two. One piece flew to the top of Gong Qingli's head and spun gracefully, casting a curtain of light over her body. The other piece shattered into mist, which swirled with the mountain wind and condensed into a handsome young man's phantom in an instant. Although the outline was ethereal, one could still vaguely discern the youthful charm of Hong Wuyai.

Gong Qinghe stared in disbelief from afar. Hongwu... hadn't his soul been scattered long ago? When did Hong Wuyai manage to preserve a wisp of his soul?

Looking at the last remaining soul of his child, Hong Wuyai's cold expression softened slightly. Trembling, he presented the Soul-Soothing Lotus and used his magic to refine it into wisps of green smoke.

The moment the pale blue haze seeped into the illusory image, it finally settled, and a glint of light appeared in its eyes.

"Father……"

The spirit's voice was faint and trembling, especially after seeing the swirling torrent of the void around Hong Wuyai, it seemed unable to control itself, its shoulders shaking as it wept bitterly.

Hong Wuyai's expression turned serious at this moment, and he said in a deep voice, "Wu'er, I have sealed Gong Qingli with the 'Azure Cold Jade,' and she is no different from a mortal at this moment. You must quickly go and seize her Dao foundation, and use her flesh and blood to reshape her body. In this way, she can achieve a new life..."

Upon hearing this, the blue-robed youth and his companions paled in shock. After exchanging glances, they dared not linger any longer and immediately sprang to their feet, exclaiming, "Hong Wuyai, how dare you!"

"As for the rest of the Gong clan..."

Hong Wuyai seemed not to hear, his eyes growing even more resolute: "I will stop them for you!"

The spirit was overjoyed and suddenly raised its head and whispered, "Your son will certainly not fail your expectations, Father!"

After saying this, he leaped away, leaving a trail of gray mist and chilling aura in his wake, before breaking through the gray curtain in an instant.

Gong Qingli looked at the other party and smiled mockingly: "Hongwu, you deserve to die but you didn't. Instead, your father risked his life for you. You are a disgrace to our generation."

After leaving his father's side, Hongwu's expression seemed to change, and a fierce aura suddenly appeared between his brows: "What do you know? I am the Hong family's once-in-a-millennium talent. I was only defeated by you due to a moment of carelessness. How can I be annihilated like this?"

Gong Qingli grew increasingly disgusted: "If that's the case, why did you even bother to gamble with me in the first place?"

Hongwu abruptly stopped speaking, then gave a sly smile: "You desire my Daoist attainment, but how do you know that's not what I'm thinking?"

Upon hearing this, Gong Qingli's brows furrowed, a look of surprise flashing in her eyes: "You actually know the secret techniques of my Gonggong clan?"

This bizarre and secret technique of devouring cultivators' Dao fruits and converting them for one's own use is a forbidden method passed down through generations in the Gonggong clan. It has always been kept secret and never revealed. If Hongwu truly possesses the ability to cultivate it, then within the clan...

Just as she was filled with surprise and doubt, Hongwu chuckled and said nothing more. His body turned into gray mist and spread out, with countless strands entering Gong Qingli's body.

In an instant, Gong Qingli's Xuanjian Dao Fruit manifested without reason. The mirror surface, which was originally like a vast expanse of misty waves, suddenly appeared with thousands of gray lines. As the gray lines continued to spread, specks of fluorescence overflowed, which were all gathered and swallowed by the gray mist.
Hongwu concealed himself in the depths of the mist, and a three-foot-long beam of spiritual light suddenly appeared behind him, with the phantom of a bronze incense burner emerging in the void.

The three sticks of azure incense in the censer emitted wisps of smoke, and with each wisp of light they absorbed, the inscription on the censer would light up by a sliver. In contrast, Gong Qingli's Azure Mirror flickered like a candle in the wind, its light shimmering and fading, perfectly illustrating the principle of one's gain and loss.

The members of the Gong clan were extremely anxious. Although they did not particularly like Gong Qingli, they knew that she was much stronger than Gong Daosheng. If Gong Qingli were to be lost, who would be left to uphold the clan's reputation thousands or even tens of thousands of years from now?

Despite the relentless bombardment from the crowd, Hong Wuyai, who had fallen into the cycle of reincarnation and attracted numerous turbulent currents of the void, gradually became overwhelmed. However, he persevered through gritted teeth and even traded injuries for injuries when necessary, preventing the Gong clan from making any progress.

Although he can't hold on for long, how long can Gong Qingli hold on?
High in the distance, Chen Mu stopped and watched from afar. He had long anticipated that Hong Wuyai might have some surprising plans, but he hadn't expected it to be such a desperate act.

It is said that kinship is indifferent on the path of the Great Dao, and when destiny comes, even the Heavenly King himself will fight for it. But Hong Wuyai is the opposite. For the sake of his children, he is willing to destroy his own path of cultivation.

He had heard of the cycle of self-destruction, but this was the first time he had witnessed it firsthand…

Gong Shi Zhenjun was extremely anxious, but Gong Qingli remained extremely calm, as if she were not the one whose Dao Fruit was being refined.

She glanced at Hongwu's figure quietly, a faint smile appearing on her lips.

"You desire to attain my enlightenment, but how do you know that I am not plotting this?"

"That statement is quite fitting for the occasion..."

As soon as the thought crossed her mind, she reached out and gently touched it.

As the gray mist surged, Hongwu's maniacal laughter abruptly ceased, the phantom of the incense burner trembled violently, and the gray lines that had been devouring the fluorescent light broke apart inch by inch, turning into countless tiny specks of light that rolled back.

The surface of the Azure Mirror rippled like water, swallowing up all the fluorescence. The dim mirror body instantly shone with a hazy, clear light, even more solid than before.

Gong Qingli's lips curled slightly, her eyes piercing the bewildered Hongwu with a mocking glint: "Your Dao Fruit was already marked with the mark of my Gonggong clan a hundred years ago. Now it is merely returning to its rightful owner. Why be alarmed?"

"impossible!"

Hongwu's ethereal spirit twisted and his roar, accompanied by the trembling gray mist, roared, "Although I lost the duel back then, I clearly destroyed my own Dao Fruit..."

Before she finished speaking, Gong Qingli flicked her finger lightly across the mirror, and a ripple spread out, revealing a green curse mark on Hongwu's chest.

The incantation runes, like vines, entwined and burrowed deep into the gray mist, eventually merging with his soul.

"You think you can escape by destroying your own cultivation?"

She sneered, "Gonggong's 'Abyss Devouring Curse' is specifically designed to counter remnants of reincarnation. When you perished, I used the Xuanjian to extract a wisp of your true spirit."

"After a century of refinement, your Dao Fruit has long become nourishment for my Azure Curtain Dao Rhyme. Today, I am merely completing the final strand."

The gray fog churned violently, and Hongwu's spirit was struck as if by lightning.

"You...you knew all along that a wisp of my soul had escaped?"

He asked tremblingly, but received no response.

The illusory image of the incense burner exploded with a bang, the three sticks of incense broke, and the wisps of smoke were all inhaled by the Jade Mirror.

The water in the mirror suddenly boiled, turning into thousands of tangled water chains that entangled Hong Wu's soul and dragged him toward the mirror.

"Father! Save me!"

Amidst his mournful cries, Hongwu struggled to look at Hong Wuyai.

However, the torrent of the void had receded like a raging tide, leaving Hong Wuyai covered in cracks. Blood seeping from his seven orifices mixed with rainwater, staining his dark beard a deep red.

"Wu'er..."

Hong Wuyai's eyes were bloodshot with rage. Ignoring the incoming killing move, he turned around and poured his remaining magic power into the Soul-Soothing Lotus.

The lotus phantom bloomed above Hongwu's head, but it only managed to block the water chain for a moment.

"idiot."

Gong Qingli indifferently raised her hand, and the Azure Mirror burst forth with dazzling clear light, causing the water chains to tighten abruptly.

The petals of the lotus of peace withered one by one, and Hongwu's soul shattered like glass. The last wisp of gray mist was also swallowed up by the mirror.

"Do not--!"

Hong Wuyai roared, shaking the heavens, and the Void Torrent suddenly surged, actually pushing the Gong clan members back a hundred feet.

He staggered toward Xuanjian, and the half of the ancient jade pendant that had been hanging above Gong Qingli's head fell into his hand. It burst forth with a dark light and tried to strike the mirror, but before it could touch it, cracks had already spread from his body to his brow.

With a soft "crack," Gu Jue and his physical body disintegrated simultaneously, turning into countless specks of light that vanished into the rain...

As the rain gradually thinned, the Azure Mirror hung in Gong Qingli's palm, and amidst the flowing water ripples on its surface, a struggling gray mist was faintly visible.

In the distance, Chen Mu stood suspended in mid-air, his white robe remaining perfectly still in the gradually subsiding wind and rain.

Just now, when Hong Wuyai was on the verge of death, he used his divine sense to send a message to him for help, but he didn't even flinch.

Putting aside the fact that the karmic ties between the two have been severed, Hong Wuyai's decisive action just now showed that he had not taken him into consideration.

After all, Gong Qingli was unable to resist much because of his earlier injury, and if Hong Wuyai were to make a move at this time and it really resulted in Gong Qingli's death, it's hard to say that he wouldn't be implicated in the consequences.

He is not afraid of trouble, but he is also unwilling to bear the consequences for others.

Moreover, this deadly scheme, born from the obsession between father and son, was utterly illusory, like a mirage.

"Fellow Daoist Chen is quite composed."

Gong Qingli suddenly looked up, a drop of blood falling from her fingertip into the mirror, stirring up circles of scarlet ripples: "Today, because of you, I almost capsized in a ditch. If we meet again in the future, the stakes will be more than just Dao Fruits."

Chen Mu chuckled upon hearing this, showing no fear of the ambitious Gong Qingli: "I, Chen, am always ready to serve you. However, if you lose next time, you'll have to gamble..."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the Xuanjian Dao Seal between Gong Qingli's brows: "That is life."

Their eyes met, and their energies clashed like lightning.

Gong Qingli suddenly turned around with a flick of her sleeve, and the Azure Mirror transformed into a stream of light that disappeared into her brow. The bloodstains on her blue dress faded away on their own, as if they were alive.

"go!"

She gave a soft shout, and although the members of the Gong clan looked unwilling, none of them dared to say a word.

After everyone had disappeared into the small world, Chen Mu slowly descended on the clouds.

After the rain, the sunlight broke through the clouds, revealing that where his toes touched the ground, tiny fragments of moonlight condensed into steps.

Just now, at the place where Hong Wuyai was annihilated, a broken ancient jade pendant was half-buried in the mud and water, faintly exuding the aura of reincarnation.

He paused and stared for a moment, then suddenly rolled up his sleeve, and the moment the ancient jade pendant was in his hand, the sound of a surging torrent could be heard in the void.

"It's a pleasant surprise."

He stroked the cracks in the ancient jade pendant, his eyes sparkling with starlight.

This fragment, tainted with the aura of self-destruction and reincarnation, might help him comprehend the state of "sitting in oblivion" in the future...

Within the small realm, Gong Qingli's figure appeared. Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain between her brows. Then, the Bi Ze Xuan Jian manifested on its own, and Chen Mu's figure was reflected in the mirror as he played with the ancient jade.

Her pupils contracted slightly, and she made a hand seal with her fingertips as if trying to see the secrets of heaven, but suddenly a crack appeared on the mirror.

"Backlash?"

She wiped away the fresh blood from the corner of her lips, then suddenly smiled: "Well done, Taoist Chen, you even dared to taint the 'Cang Han Jue' that carries the burden of self-destruction and reincarnation..."

Gong Qinghe's eyes darted around: "This person is ultimately a True Lord from beyond the borders; he is unaware of the entanglements of 'Cang Han Jue'."

Gong Qingli nodded: "Let's ignore him. Gong Qinghe, where are the others?"

Gong Qinghe looked somewhat awkward upon hearing this: "It should be in the Ice Palace..."

"Ice Palace?"

Gong Qingli's eyes flashed: "Lead the way quickly."

……

A gust of wind swept across the mountaintop. Chen Mu seemed to sense something, looked back in the direction where Gong Qingli had left, and chuckled softly.

Gray mist rose from the ancient jade in his palm, and Hong Wuyai's ferocious face before he disappeared was vaguely visible in the mist, but he flicked it away with his finger.

"If obsession turns to ashes, what's the point of all this suffering?"

As her white robes fluttered, her figure vanished like a streak of light.

Only the lingering sound dissipated into the sea of ​​clouds, startling a few black crows to flap their wings, diluting the last trace of bloody stench in the heavens.

……

(End of this chapter)