Starting from the Tiger Demon Yaksha, the demon immortality

Chapter 254, 263 Azure Phoenix Armor, Heaven and Earth in Hand (5000 words)

"helmet?"

Feeling the joy and intimacy of the blue phoenix, Li Cunxiao did not hesitate and immediately began to refine it.

There aren't many divine weapons of armor to begin with, and the two he found before were not compatible with him, so there's no guarantee he'll find anything better if he keeps looking.

"You are the one."

The jade-colored true essence transformed into a blue dragon that stretched out its head, spewing out agate-colored crimson imperial mercury from its mouth, which condensed into a pool of water, and the blue phoenix bird obediently jumped into it.

As they bathed and played, a deep connection gradually strengthened, and a large amount of their true essence began to dissipate.

Fortunately, Li Cunxiao was no ordinary Heavenly Ladder martial artist. He had the foundation of the Yellow Court Qi Sea, with the twelve regular meridians and eight extraordinary meridians connected like a network of rivers, flowing into the Dantian Qi Sea.

Compared to the weak feeling he had when refining the Wind and Fire Wheels before, where he felt like he was releasing water from a floodgate and couldn't keep up with the demand, he now only felt slightly empty, which was many times stronger.

But true essence alone was not enough, so Li Cunxiao stretched out his two fleshy arms, palms facing each other, and slashed forcefully.

The fragrance carried specks of golden blood, like drops of sweet rain, or like real mercury, viscous yet clear, like gemstones falling one by one into the pool of water transformed from the flowing mercury of the Crimson Emperor.

It's no exaggeration to say that Li Cunxiao is now only half a human being. A single drop of his blood is equivalent to a second-tier Qi and Blood Pill.

For ordinary people, consuming this will not only cure all diseases, but also promote good health and provide significant nutritional benefits.

Boo!
The blue phoenix let out a high-pitched cry, one after another, each one louder than the last.

The talismanic patterns, tinged with crimson amidst the blue-green hue, were naturally outlined on the phoenix's head, making the long feathers on its head appear even whiter.

With his eyes closed, Li Cunxiao could more clearly perceive the joy of this divine weapon and its resonance with his own true essence.

Divine weapons are "divine" in nature; only a master who has achieved the unity of the three elements is qualified to forge them.

Correspondingly, refining divine weapons requires focusing on the three aspects of "essence, energy, and spirit".

The reason why divine weapons choose their masters is that martial artists below the level of Grandmaster do not have enough "divine" cultivation. They must have a divine weapon that matches their nature, so that they can save the effort of refining it with "divine" power.

It glowed with a crimson light amidst its emerald green color, flickering occasionally as if it were breathing.

In less than a quarter of an hour, Li Cunxiao could feel that he had initially gained control of this divine weapon, and the rest would require years of refining.

Like a pair of fiery wheels, it has been almost half a year since it was upgraded to a divine weapon, and only now can it be used as easily as an extension of one's own limb.

However, the refinement of divine weapons has no end. The longer the weapon is nurtured and refined, the closer the connection between the weapon and its master becomes, and the more skillfully it can be used.

He had already begun to refine the divine weapon. With a thought, the Azure Phoenix cried out and disappeared into the helmet. Only then did the helmet's full appearance become clear before him:

Eight-petaled iron armor, with fragrant herbs embroidered on the seams, and red gold outlining the lotus scrolls, with silver lotus flowers adorning the center of the forehead;
The scales on both sides of the helmet curl up, with patterns inside resembling feathers, and the two sides look like phoenix wings, complementing the phoenix feathers on the top of the helmet, which are blue on the inside and red on the outside.

But this is not the complete helmet.

Li Cunxiao raised the helmet with both hands, put it on his head, and his true energy surged into it.

In an instant, the light and shadow of feathers, blue on the inside and red on the outside, appeared on his skin and quickly spread throughout his body.

In the blink of an eye, it was completely covered, and then, amidst the high-pitched cry of the phoenix, the feathers scattered, revealing a magnificent suit of armor.

Its body armor is extremely long, covering up to the feet, with two round guards on the chest, a beast-shaped belt around the waist to hold the belly, and complete with shoulder guards, wrist guards, and leg guards.

The armor plates are all a light jade-green color, with the edges wrapped in crimson brocade.

With flowing sleeves and ribbons hanging down from the shawl, he moved without wind, like a celestial general, majestic and imposing.

Noticing the commotion, Ye Shuyi, who arrived late, was also stunned for a moment, a strange look appearing in her eyes.

'Junior Brother Li is so majestic; there are probably not many handsome men like him in this world.'

Seemingly realizing something was amiss, Ye Shuyi blushed and, noticing the other person's gaze, quickly changed the subject:
"Congratulations, Junior Brother, on acquiring the Divine Armor. What is the name of this artifact?"

"Azure Phoenix Armor".

Li Cunxiao answered calmly. It wasn't that he was showing off, but rather that with this divine armor on his body, his mind inexplicably became peaceful, like a still lake in winter.

In contrast, the true energy within the body is like a torrential summer rain, more active and with a recovery efficiency several times higher than usual.

Wearing the Azure Phoenix Armor provides not only all-around protection but also comprehensive enhancement.

This full suit of armor looks somewhat bulky and heavy, but in reality, it feels light and agile when worn.

When he activated the Azure Phoenix Armor, the Wind and Fire Wheels in his dantian were also stimulated, transforming into the Wind God and the Vermilion Bird and flying out.

Two divine birds flew out one after the other, and soon the Azure Phoenix followed, the three birds dancing in the air. Their clear, bell-like cries sang in harmony, like a piece of music.

"The Luan bird is a descendant of the Phoenix. It resembles the Phoenix but has white plumage. Its appearance is like that of a pheasant with five-colored patterns. Its appearance signifies peace and tranquility throughout the world."

Ye Shuyi couldn't help but praise her, her eyes filled with deep envy.

"I am not as fortunate as my junior brother; I will return empty-handed this time."

"Don't be discouraged, senior sister. There will be other opportunities in the future."

Li Cunxiao was not surprised by this. Many people enter a treasure mountain and leave empty-handed, let alone the fact that what the other party wanted was a rare alchemy furnace.

He wasn't in a hurry to test the weapon's performance. As soon as he withdrew his true essence, the armor transformed back into feathers and dissipated into light and shadow, leaving only the Azure Phoenix standing on the helmet, supported by Li Cunxiao.

The two went out of the back mountain together and were surprised to see a group of disciples and elders gathered at the entrance.

Li Siqi firmly declined Qin Sixing's invitation to the banquet and took Li Cunxiao away first, as if he were a precious treasure.

Back at Miaoyan Palace, Taiyi saw the Azure Phoenix Helmet, weighed it in his hand a few times, and couldn't help but marvel at it.

“Cunxiao, your luck is extraordinary. This divine armor has a remarkable history.”

"Something of great importance?"

Li Cunxiao immediately became interested, and on the way back, Li Siqi also seemed quite surprised.

But the latter didn't say anything more, only claiming that his master knew better.

“That’s right. As you know, our Louguan Dao has a close relationship with the Qin royal family. In fact, many princesses have become nuns here.”

"Among those who have left home to become monks, there are naturally even more who make offerings and donations, including not only grains and silks, but also gold, silver, and other valuables."

As the old Taoist priest spoke, he handed the dull helmet in his hand to Li Cunxiao. The moment he took it, Qingluan cried out and flew out from inside, hiding behind his neck.

"You mean, this divine armor was also a donation from the Qin royal family?"

Li Cunxiao was truly stunned by this outrageously extravagant act. "What spendthrift would be so willing to do this?"

"spendthrift?"

Taiyi Zhenren burst out laughing, leaving the former completely bewildered.

"If Emperor Taizong Wen can only be called a spendthrift, then wouldn't all the sages of the Qin Dynasty be considered incompetent rulers?"

"This divine armor belongs to Emperor Taizong?!"

"Indeed. This divine armor belongs to Emperor Taizong."

Li Cunxiao's eyes widened in surprise, after all, the legendary story of this founding emperor was well-known to everyone.

As a prince, he established the Tiance Mansion, helped Emperor Gaozu conquer half of the country, and later overthrew the crown prince, taking his place. His civil and military achievements were unparalleled.

If this were Emperor Taizong's divine armor, then...
"It is the relic of Li Xuanba, the Prince of Wei, who is Emperor Taizong's younger brother."

what?
Taiyi saw Li Cunxiao's lips droop and couldn't help but grin mischievously.

"King Wei was a heroic young man back then, but unfortunately, he was envied by heaven and died on the battlefield in his twenties."

"Some say that if he hadn't died, he might have become the second Grandmaster in the royal family after Emperor Taizong."

"I see," Li Cunxiao quickly recovered, this kind of thing was easy to understand.

As the emperor with the highest military strength since the founding of the Qin Dynasty, he naturally kept his divine weapon to protect the lives of his descendants.

Louguan Temple was forcibly moved from its original site by Emperor Taizong, who had dealt it a heavy blow, so naturally, he had to offer a carrot.

Offering up personal belongings of his deceased brother, the King of Wei, was enough to demonstrate his attitude.

"Besides its protective function, what other magical properties does this divine armor possess?"

This was a matter of absolute certainty, and no one else could possibly reveal it. But when the old Taoist priest asked, Li Cunxiao didn't hide anything, after all, the other party had lent him his divine weapon several times already.

"Firstly, it has a calming effect; secondly, I don't know if it's just my imagination, but it seems that after acquiring this divine armor, it's easier for me to circulate my true energy."

"Ok?"

Taiyi Zhenren was taken aback, and saw the other party put on a helmet, his true essence transforming into light feathers that condensed into a full suit of armor.

The old Taoist priest extended a finger, placed it on Li Cunxiao's chest, and withdrew it after a moment, exclaiming in admiration:

"As expected of the divine armor of Emperor Taizong's own brother, it is indeed extraordinary."

"The phoenix is ​​the essence of the gods, connected to heaven and earth. With this divine armor, the energy consumption of using divine weapons will be lower than that of ordinary martial artists."

"Not to mention, it can also assist in the cultivation of true essence. Once this divine armor memorizes your true essence cultivation route, it will probably operate automatically without you having to pay attention."

"so smart?"

Li Cunxiao's face lit up with joy. Did this mean that it wouldn't be long before he could automatically go offline?
If the time spent cultivating true essence could be saved, there would be more time to delve into alchemy and martial arts. "Master, I have a favor to ask."

"Don't make unreasonable requests," Taiyi Zhenren chuckled and scolded. Li Cunxiao ignored him and shamelessly stepped forward.

"Could I borrow your Qiankun Bow for a few days to study it?"

"What, knowing how rare divine weapons are, you've set your sights on your master?"

"I wouldn't dare. We're here to forge the Dragon-Binding Rope, and I thought it would be good to see more divine weapons and broaden my horizons."

These words reminded Taiyi Zhenren. The old Taoist stretched out his hand, and golden light condensed, outlining a dark bow arm.

He warned:

“Refining magical artifacts isn’t difficult, but with your current knowledge and experience, and even with the Nine-Turn Flowing Pearl at the third stage of mastery, you can only refine low-grade ones.”

"Focus more on your cultivation and alchemy, and you will naturally master them when you reach a certain level. Don't put the cart before the horse."

"Master, rest assured, I am not the kind of person who is ambitious but unrealistic. These days, apart from the calming pill, I know nothing else."

"My fellow disciples in the sect are just spouting empty praise, but I know the truth perfectly well."

"That's more like it," Taiyi said, and then handed over the black longbow with satisfaction.

The bow arms of the Qiankun Bow are extremely long, almost as tall as a person. The black and lustrous bow arms have no superfluous decorations, except for the handle, where silver Qiankun trigram patterns are outlined inside and out.

"Let me remind you, divine weapons choose their masters. The reason you were able to use the Bone-Illuminating Mirror before was because I had left some true essence inside it beforehand."

"You can only draw this bow three times at most. After that, you won't be able to use it anymore."

"The disciple understands."

Li Cunxiao was filled with enthusiasm at this moment, and readily agreed. He then hurried back to the small courtyard and went into the cultivation room.

"Dragon boat!"

With a blink of an eye, he found himself in the Qianyang Palace.

Li Cunxiao held a longbow, the blue phoenix bells jingled, and he donned armor. The Wind and Fire Wheels lifted him into the air above the palace complex.

"I have already explored the third and fourth palaces, and the human and demon captains at the Heavenly Ladder Realm are no longer a threat."

"However, in the second level, the Demon General of the Seventh Realm is a bit troublesome."

"The difference between the entrance and the exit is the difference between life and death. I don't know how long it will take to break through the entrance. A living person can't let himself die from holding in his pee."

This time, using the dragon boat to search for the divine weapon gave him a taste of success, but it also woke him up.

Leaving aside the treasures in the palace, the dragon boat itself is the greatest opportunity.

The sooner the spirit treasure recognizes its master, the sooner one will be able to obtain a trump card that allows one to escape unscathed even in front of a grandmaster.

The spirit was rigid and insisted that Li Cunxiao eliminate the demon before it would acknowledge him as its master.

If you lack the necessary strength, make up for it with foreign aid.

While Li Cunxiao was pondering, he had already flown to the second entrance. As soon as he descended slightly, a low roar came from inside the room.

"court death!"

The sword energy, tens of meters long, shot straight into the sky, startling Li Cunxiao so much that the Wind and Fire Wheels under his feet exploded with flames, instantly drawing an arc.

After ascending a hundred meters into the air, he felt slightly relieved. He saw a new demon general in full silver armor at the second entrance, whose magnificent attire was second only to the deceased Sima Fufeng and Yuwen Jian.

"You scoundrel, come down and fight me!"

Compared to those confused demon captains, these seventh-realm generals clearly retained more of their sanity, but faced with Li Cunxiao, who possessed the ability to fly, they had no choice but to stare blankly and curse.

"It seems that only the Grandmaster level human demons have complete intelligence; the rest are still lacking."

Li Cunxiao thought of Wen Zhongzi. Now, in the dragon boat, there was actually only the other half-mad master left.

However, he had no intention of provoking anyone before he became a grandmaster himself.

The original form, which combines the three religions, sounds so powerful that even ordinary grandmasters probably wouldn't be qualified to fight it.

Li Cunxiao took a deep breath, cleared his mind of distractions, held the bow in his left hand, and brought his right index and middle fingers together, condensing his true energy into a red and blue feather.

With a thought, six arms emerged from behind, forming a lion's fist seal, which was then poured into the feathers, making them even stronger.

This is another function of the Azure Phoenix Armor: it can condense an attack into a single feather, with a range of up to 100 meters.

With a flick of its wrist, the red and blue feathers emitted a sharp whistle and instantly landed on the ground.

The demon general had already sensed this, and with a thrust of his sword, he struck the tip of a feather squarely. Six magnificent blue lions immediately burst forth, fiercely pouncing and biting.

Unexpectedly, the opponent's sword technique changed again, drawing a silver line through the air and instantly severing the Green Lion at the waist. The uncontrolled true essence exploded, causing the demon's robes to flutter wildly.

Not a single scratch was broken.

"I knew it."

Li Cunxiao sighed, then clenched his right hand, once again conjuring red and blue feathers.

"With three divine weapons at the same time, I wonder how many arrows I can shoot?"

As he spoke, his six arms came together, and three crimson dragons flew out—the ultimate technique, the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover.

At the same time, his right hand rested on the arm of the Qiankun Bow, and as he pulled his right hand back, the bowstring, which was condensed with golden light, gradually appeared.

The fire dragon charged in, intertwined and contracted, transforming into an arrow, with the red and blue phoenix feathers becoming its tail feathers.

At the same time, a powerful suction force erupted from the Qiankun Bow. Li Cunxiao felt his true energy drain away like a flood. Before the bowstring was even drawn, he already felt a sense of emptiness.

"That old geezer said he could drive it three times, but in reality, he probably wouldn't even be able to drive it once!"

Li Cunxiao knew he had been tricked by the old Taoist priest, but there was no turning back once the arrow was released. He steeled his heart and unleashed his true energy.

Not only the Azure Dragon itself, but even the Nine Dragons Bodhi itself had the Flame Pearl flowing out as if it were free.

The resistance to drawing the bow increases as you go on, as if you're pulling on a mountain.

Li Cunxiao gritted his teeth and withdrew some of his true energy, causing the soles of the Azure Phoenix Armor to dissipate instantly.

He stood on one leg, like a golden rooster, his left foot like a palm, supporting the bow and arrow. Both hands simultaneously gripped the fletching of the arrow, veins bulging on his face, and he pulled hard with all his might—

The bow is drawn to its fullest extent!

"break!"

With a low growl as if venting his anger, Li Cunxiao felt as if his very marrow had been drained away the moment the arrow was shot. He barely managed to maintain his Wind and Fire Wheels, tumbling into the air before managing to stay upright.

His face was ashen, and he was panting heavily. The moment his left foot loosened, his left hand, which was reaching for the Qiankun Bow, trembled uncontrollably.

Li Cunxiao never imagined that after advancing to the Heavenly Ladder, he would one day be completely drained.

But at this moment, he couldn't care less about any of that; his eyes were fixed on the arrow that flashed by in the air.

Before he could see it clearly, the arrow disappeared from sight like lightning, and the next moment, he heard a roar mixed with a scream.

The blue and red tail feathers on the chest of the demon general trembled, making its eyes turn scarlet, and its right hand was about to slash the arrow in its chest with its long sword.

However, as the arrow broke through, the crimson light suddenly intensified, and three ferocious red dragons spun out, creating a fire tornado hundreds of meters high.

Then they intertwined again in mid-air, forming a giant arrow, before finally crashing down—

Bang bang bang bang! ! ! ! ! !
The intense explosion sent Li Cunxiao flying, and he stumbled but managed to regain his footing on a rooftop.

His pale face was illuminated by a towering orange-red flame, and his gaze fell on the Qiankun Bow in his left hand, somewhat incredulous.

So fierce?
"Such an attack is simply beyond my current level of skill."

"The attack range of Phoenix Feather alone should only be about 100 meters, but with the support of the Qiankun Bow, it is probably about 100 zhang."

"But if Master were to make a move, it would likely shoot for ten or even a hundred miles, which is equivalent to shooting directly from Qinglong Peak to Huayin County."

However, despite being shocked by the power of the arrow, Li Cunxiao couldn't help but sigh when he saw the Vajra Pestle that remained motionless.

This attack might severely injure the demon, but it wouldn't kill him, and he didn't have the strength to fire another arrow for the time being.

"Why do you sigh, young friend? To have achieved this much with your Heavenly Ladder cultivation level is already quite remarkable."

"?!"

Li Cunxiao instantly got goosebumps all over his body, and his wind-fire wheels roared as he ran nearly a hundred meters in an instant.

Turning his head, his even paler face looked at Wen Zhongzi, who had appeared out of nowhere.

The former dynasty's master smiled but made no further move.

He glanced first at the still-burning fire dragon, then at the longbow in Li Cunxiao's hand, a look of understanding flashing in his eyes.

Then, with a smile, he extended an invitation:
"Young friend, it's time for us to have a match."

(End of this chapter)