I made the entire cultivation world cry

Chapter 422 Siege (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

Two days later, Jiang Yi arrived at Wangyue Lake and waited for another half day before successfully meeting up with Liu Taozhi and Luo Qingsi at the lake.

They have traceless eye worms on their bodies, so it will be easy for Jiang Yi to find them.

Luo Qingsi had already entered the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm, while Liu Taozhi was still in the early stage. Although both of them had great potential, everyone still felt that their chances of making the list were slim, so they let them leave the group and train at their own pace.

When they reach the peak of the Golden Core stage in the next competition, it won't be too late for them to compete for the Heavenly Ranking.

"Senior Sister, have you noticed anything wrong?" Liu Taozhi frowned. "Those demonic beasts seem to have gone mad. Regardless of their strength, they don't know how to avoid cultivators. They all rush at them with bloodshot eyes, fighting to the death."

Luo Qingsi nodded vigorously, "Yes! They're so fierce. They used to run away after being scared, but now they won't budge."

Jiang Yi looked up at the vast barrier that covered the entire sky, resembling a giant blue glass bowl.

“It’s not that they are inherently like this,” Jiang Yi’s voice was low. “It must be the power within this barrier that has turned all the creatures in the Azure Nether Forest into consumables for the trial.”

Upon hearing this, Liu Taozhi gasped, feeling inexplicably uncomfortable.

How ruthless this move is!

Liu Tao sighed, "Actually... there's no need for that at all."

Luo Qingsi nodded sullenly, "Some beasts eat grass and don't eat people, but now they all eat people. It's not fun at all."

Jiang Yi said no more. "Avoid fighting and preserve your strength. Let's enter the secret realm as soon as possible. The secret realm is the final battlefield. It's pointless to waste our energy here."

Therefore, the three of them tried their best to conceal their presence and sneak around, relying on Shang Shixu's Invisible Eyes to avoid the monsters and people on their path.

Another day passed, and the night was as dark as ink, soaking the forest into darkness. The monsters in the forest became even more active.

The three found a secluded mountain hollow to rest for a while. While Jiang Yi was exploring the surrounding environment, his keen senses detected something unusual on the nearby cliff face.

Hua Gu also transformed into a teenage girl, touching and sensing the cliff face with her hands. After a moment, her eyes suddenly lit up.

"It's Hong Li's aura! Hong Li is inside!"

"Back off."

With a thought, Jiang Yi's Zhaoming Sword flew out of its sheath on its own. With a single slash, the stones piled up at the foot of the cliff were instantly reduced to dust by the dense, silent sword energy, revealing a dark cave entrance. A rich aura of fire spirit energy and the unique aura of a fox demon rushed out.

"Hongli—"

Hua Gu was the first to rush in, eagerly searching for Hong Li's figure.

Jiang Yi, Liu Taozhi, and Luo Qingsi followed closely behind. Upon entering, they found the cave in a mess, with dozens of foxes of various colors lying haphazardly, all with their eyes closed and in a deep coma.

Deep within the cave, on a high platform, a throne covered with thick animal hides stands out. Behind the throne, at the foot of the mountain wall, there is a carved stone couch, also covered with animal hides, and a tea set is even placed on the stone table at the end of the couch.

Jiang Yi could almost picture Hong Li sitting on a throne like an emperor, propping up her small head, feigning majesty, and issuing commands.

Could that couch in the back be reserved for her?
Should she be the woman behind the fox king?

“Hongli isn’t here, so I found this.”

Hua Gu brought a blanket made of white tiger skin to Jiang Yi. Jiang Yi looked at it and sure enough, she saw the seal mark that she had customized for Hong Li back then in the corner of the inside of the blanket.

After examining the fox demons, Liu Taozhi said, "None of these fox demons are in mortal danger. They have just taken some kind of pill and are in a coma. I'm afraid they won't wake up for a month or two."

Kneading the blanket in her arms, Jiang Yi's heart sank as she thought of the barrier covering the entire forest outside and the ferocious and untamed monsters.

"Yaoyao, Qingsi!" Jiang Yi turned around abruptly, her tone urgent. "This cave is safe for now. You two stay here to rest for the night. Seal the entrance when you leave tomorrow. I have to go back to find Hongli."

Liu Taozhi was taken aback. "Now? But we are still a long way from the giant sword on the mountaintop. The number of people who can enter the secret realm is limited. Everyone is rushing over there now. If you go back now, Senior Sister, you may miss the opportunity to enter."

Luo Qingsi nodded worriedly, and even stepped forward, saying, "I want to go with Senior Sister. If Senior Sister doesn't go into the secret realm, I won't go either!"

Hua Gu twisted the hem of her clothes and looked up at the group. She was torn between worrying about Hong Li's safety and fearing that Jiang Yi would not be able to enter the secret realm.

Jiang Yi smiled gently, "If you miss the secret realm, you can wait for the next time. If Hong Li is injured, even if I have ten or eight more chances to enter the secret realm, it won't make up for it. You two go to the giant sword and wait for me. If you can wait for me, we will enter together. If you can't wait for me, you go in first."

After saying that, Jiang Yi took out the Heart-Piercing Mirror and handed it to Hua Gu.

"Hua Gu, you stay with Yao Yao and Qing Si and lead them on their journey. Avoid the sword cultivators in the late and peak stages of the Golden Core realm to reduce conflicts. If you have any questions, ask Zhu Xin. I will come back as soon as I find Hong Li."

Hua Gu bit her lip and finally accepted the Heart-Piercing Mirror.

"Yes, Hua Gu will take good care of them. We'll wait for you at the entrance to the secret realm."

Jiang Yi rubbed Hua Gu's head and looked at Liu Taozhi and Luo Qingsi, "Don't worry, I don't give up so easily. I will only do it if I am confident."

Before the two could say anything more, Jiang Yi immediately used his Xuan Qi to escape, his powerful divine sense sweeping across the forest with all its might, searching for Hong Li's aura.

……

The next morning, somewhere in the forest.

Crimson flames erupted with a dazzling yet deadly light as four rogue sword cultivators worked together to besiege a gigantic three-tailed fox demon at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm. The three enormous fox tails lashed out like wildly dancing flaming whips, each strike accompanied by the roar of wind and thunder, shattering the incoming flying swords.

With a flick of its tail, Hong Li unleashed a roaring giant tiger clone engulfed in flames, slamming into a sword cultivator who was trying to approach, forcing the latter to retreat in a sorry state.

A flash of fire appeared on the Crimson Sky Hunter Armor, and the Fire Scale Protective Qi shone brightly. Not only did it withstand a tricky sword qi, but it also reflected the burning damage back, instantly charring the opponent's wrist and causing him to groan in pain.

Taking this opportunity, Hongli took out another medicine bottle and swallowed all the medicines inside to heal and restore her demonic power. There were many such medicine bottles in the surrounding grass.

The four rogue cultivators were so angry they almost vomited blood.

"Damn it! Who is this fox demon? Not only are its magical artifacts and armor troublesome, but it also knows how to consume pills, and it has way too many of them!"

A rogue cultivator clutched his burned wrist, both shocked and furious.

"Could it be someone's spirit pet?"

Watch out for its claws!

Another person cried out, but before he could finish speaking, Hong Li's figure flashed in front of him like a ghost, her fiery claws tearing through the air and instantly shattering the protective sword aura that the other person had erected.

"Formation!"

The leading swordsman had a gloomy expression.

The four of them had come here because the fox demon was alone and its beast fire was extraordinary. They wanted to subdue it quickly, so that even if it failed the test later, the trip would not be a loss.

As a rogue cultivator, one must constantly think about collecting resources, unlike sect disciples who are indifferent to everything.

The four of them never expected to kick such a hard iron plate!
This fox demon's fire magic is unpredictable and its close combat is incredibly powerful. It also possesses powerful protective armor and magical artifacts, as well as fire beast clones. Even with the four of them working together, they were unable to defeat it for a long time.

A fierce flame burned in her red and green eyes, blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, and her magnificent Crimson Sky Hunter Armor was torn in many places, revealing charred fur and deep, bone-revealing wounds beneath.

She had been wandering around the western part of the Azure Forest for several days. Although the barrier had not made her lose her mind, it had trapped her in the forest and prevented her from leaving, hindering the contractual connection between her and Jiang Yi. She could only try her luck and wander around looking for Jiang Yi's whereabouts.

Today, she encountered this group of people, fighting four against one—one at the peak of the Golden Core stage and three at the late stage. Their combat power and speed were both remarkable. She had already done her best without revealing her gray flame.

She tried to escape using her phantom escape technique several times, but there were four of them. Each of them chased after a phantom clone, which allowed them to see through her disguise and stop her.

Left with no other choice, Hong Li had to fight.

"You do have some skill. Let's see how long you can last under our sword formation. Go all out and kill you!"

Before he finished speaking, the four men's sword techniques surged instantly, and the sword auras of the other three men suddenly merged with his. The sharp sword energy intertwined and swirled, actually condensing into a dazzling hundred-foot-long giant sword in the void.

The power of the sword formation increased exponentially. Before the giant sword could even strike, the terrifying pressure, as heavy as a mountain, had already poured down.

Faced with this deadly formation that could instantly crush an ordinary Golden Core cultivator, Hong Li felt her bones creaking all over her body. The exhaustion caused by the rapid loss of her demonic power and the heavy, oppressive feeling of the sword formation, which was as heavy as a mountain, almost crushed her.

At the critical moment of life and death, a ruthless glint appeared in Hong Li's eyes. She remembered what Jiang Yi had once told her: in this world, everything is trivial except for life and death.

As long as you're alive, all problems can be solved.

Hong Li held nothing back; the originally blazing crimson flames around her suddenly transformed into cold, lifeless, and corrosive gray-white flames.

The moment the giant sword formed by the sword formation came into contact with the gray-white flames, it emitted a sizzling sound that made one's teeth ache, and its brilliance visibly dimmed.

The longswords in the hands of the four sword cultivators also trembled and groaned at the same time. The spiritual light on the swords was instantly corrupted and eroded, and the formations they were operating became sluggish and disordered.

With a flick of its three tails, Hong Li unleashed a shower of gray flames, burning the entire sword formation to ashes in the blink of an eye, like paper meeting fire.

"This is impossible!"

The four sword cultivators' faces were filled with disbelief.

The embers of the gray-white flames had not yet completely dissipated. Hong Li was breathing heavily as she used the Shadow Erosion Moth Flame to forcefully erode the sword formation.

However, only a trace of demonic power remained within her demon core, and the gray-white flames flickered like a candle in the wind, unable to maintain their previous intensity of erosion.

The Crimson Sky Hunter Armor was damaged in many places, revealing bleeding wounds underneath, and the pills used to replenish demonic power had all been used up.

The leading swordsman stared in shock at his natal sword, now corroded and dimmed, his eyes filled with horror and greed.

"That gray fire is extraordinary; we must take it down today."

The other three also recovered. Hong Li's current state gave them hope. Although they were wary, their greed overcame everything.

The four no longer formed a battle formation, but instead split up and attacked together. Their sharp and cunning sword energies once again intertwined into a net. Although it was not as domineering as the giant sword before, it was more flexible and harder to defend against.

Instead of confronting the gray flames head-on, they used their speed and agility to avoid their attacks, constantly harassing Hong Li and wearing down her demonic power.

Hong Li was forced to defend, her speed slowed down, and the gaps between her dodges became smaller and smaller. The fire scales protecting her body with the Crimson Sky Hunter Armor were dim, barely able to withstand some of the attacks. Several more deep sword wounds appeared on her body, and blood stained her crimson fur.

Just when Hongli was about to despair, she suddenly saw a green figure appear under the ancient tree at the edge of the battlefield.

(End of this chapter)