Starting from the Tiger Demon Yaksha, the demon immortality

Chapter 298 307 With the red ribbon in hand, today we will bind the azure dragon!

During the reign of Emperor Taizong, there was a painter named Zhang Seng who painted four dragons on the wall of Qinglong Temple in Xijing, but did not paint their eyes.

When asked, he would say, "It flies away as soon as you touch it."

People at the time thought it was absurd and insisted that it be pointed out. The moment the brush touched the paper, thunder and lightning broke through the wall, and two dragons rode the clouds and soared to the heavens. The dragons whose eyes had not been pointed out were all still there.

Li Cunxiao's Dragon-Binding Rope was made from the hide of a seventh-tier fire dragon and was full of spiritual energy.

At this moment, the essence of gold was refined into spirit liquid, and a single point was made in the eyes, as if a galaxy had entered them, instantly enveloping the giant dragon's body.

Its scales, armor, horns, and claws were all coated with a layer of crystalline color.

The towering Guangmu Tianwang spirit image opened and closed its palms, holding the Dragon-Binding Rope and the Azure Dragon spirit image on its left and right respectively.

The Dragon Flower Palace appeared, and within the Niwan Divine Palace, the surging power of the primordial spirit, carried by true essence, poured into the newly born divine weapon.

At the same time, blazing flames rose and twisted, condensing into layers of hellish scenes. There were mountains of knives and forests of swords, copper pots and molten iron, boiling cauldrons of excrement, and rivers of ash and forests of thorns—truly a scene of the infernal hell.

"Five Wheels of Nirvana" is a divine-level martial art that complements the "Western Guardian Dragon King Sutra".

One of them, the Fire Wheel, is called the "Burning Heaven Life and Death Wheel".

It symbolizes constant change, like the dynamism of a fiery wheel. Reality and illusion are intertwined, instantly separating life and death.

The wheel-like shape appears to exist but is not real, serving as a metaphor for the illusory appearance of all things and phenomena.

All of this is like the fiery abyss of hell, with its endless cycles; hell and paradise are but a thought away.
If you have a courageous heart and an indestructible will, and your body is like a dragon or an elephant, you can break through hell and turn the sky upside down!

Using this method and with this intention, a divine weapon is forged, named—

"Huntian Ling!"

With a low shout, Li Cunxiao clasped his hands together and struck out with force. Invisible ripples, accompanied by the wind and thunder of his palms, spread out with a thunderous roar.

Having received sufficient nourishment from the golden essence and primordial spirit, the crimson dragon in the sky now looked completely indistinguishable from the real thing, even attracting the attention of the spirit of the magical artifact above the caisson ceiling.

However, the dragon boat's spirit is a red dragon with golden horns, while the Hun Tian Ling (a magical ribbon) has jade horns like agate stones, and their auras are also different.

"Come!"

At the call, the soaring red dragon immediately turned and swooped down, shrinking and flattening.

When it arrived at Li Cunxiao's side, it had already transformed into a three-meter-long red ribbon, on which faint golden dragon scale patterns could be seen.

With the blessing of the Hun Tian Ling, Li Cunxiao clearly felt that the true essence of the Dragon Pearl in his body had become several times more active.

Moreover, the Hun Tian Ling was originally a thirty-zhang-long dragon skin, but now it appears to have shrunk. However, once it encounters danger, it can protect itself from all angles without any blind spots, which is equivalent to wearing another layer of divine armor on top of the Qing Luan Jia.

Of course, besides its contracted form, the Hun Tian Ling looks completely different when unfolded, but there's no rush to test it now.

"The complete 'Nine Revolutions Flowing Pearl Nine Elixir Scripture' is indeed powerful. My master said that alchemy and weapon crafting are based on the same principle, so crafting divine weapons is not a problem for me either."

"First, refine the Purple Flame Serpent Spear, then use the Chi Tiger skin to make a divine weapon for Shuyi to protect herself."

Not feeling particularly tired, Li Cunxiao glanced at the time and saw that only an hour had passed. He decided to go all out and throw the Purple Flame Serpent Spear into the furnace formed by the Azure Dragon Spirit.

Under the heat of the flames, the original purplish-black gun barrel became even darker, evolving towards a dark red.
The golden, wavy spearhead and tail tip, however, rapidly turned red and eventually softened into mud.

Li Cunxiao timely extracted the spine of the dragon-tiger and threw it into the flames to burn.

He has now reached the Xuan Guan realm, and can now wield the Samadhi True Fire that was once taught to him by the Taiyi Zhenren with ease.

The essence of essence, qi, and spirit is infused into the spear shaft, spearhead, and dragon-tiger bones through the dragon essence.

This step is both shaping the divine weapon and refining it.

This process will take longer than upgrading the Hun Tian Ling Hua.

After a long wait, when the Azure Dragon raised its head, the Heavenly King Guangmu reached into the furnace and pulled out a large spear.

The spear was initially glowing red like lava, but after it was taken out, Li Cunxiao immediately covered it with the refined Golden Spirit Liquid.

Like a coating, the red light gradually dimmed in just a dozen breaths, revealing the jet-black spearhead, buttstock, and dark red shaft.

The shaft of the spear is decorated with raised dragon and tiger patterns that run from end to end. The ferocious tiger head is located just below the spearhead, supporting a black glass-like lotus seat. On the lotus seat is a spearhead that looks like a short sword.

This is a large spear in every sense of the word, with a simple and unadorned design, yet it is not overly simplistic.

"Phew~ Forging a divine weapon is quite costly."

Li Cunxiao's face turned slightly pale. He extended his five fingers, and the Heavenly King Spiritual Image automatically handed him the great spear.

The surface felt cool and moist to the touch, as if my fingers were immersed in a river. As I rubbed the gun barrel with my fingertips, I felt a texture like dragon scales.

However, the two front paws of the Chihu had somehow moved to the point of intersection, as if it were not he who was holding the gun, but the gun that was actively holding his hand.

With his left hand slightly forward and his right hand gripping the butt of the gun, both hands were locked in a tiger claw grip.

At this moment, Li Cunxiao felt himself naturally become one with this divine weapon.

The gun barrel seemed to become his body, the gun tip seemed to become his eyes, and the surrounding wind became his skin, bringing a subtle tactile sensation and the breath of all things flowing.

Instinctively, I lowered my stance, used my waist to generate power, and thrust my hands forward—

hum!
A waterspout suddenly burst forth from the tip of the spear, spiraling forward wildly.

Li Cunxiao was secretly taken aback.

"I didn't use a single bit of true energy just now. The Purple Flame Serpent Spear is so powerful after it was upgraded to a divine weapon?"

"That's right, a seventh-tier dragon-tiger bone, it even overturned the original fire attribute of this gun."

"Black with a hint of red. From now on, you shall be called Xuan Chi."

The long spear hummed, like the joyful shouts of children.

He played with them for a while, and when the Dragon Essence and Primordial Spirit had almost recovered, Li Cunxiao opened his mouth and inhaled, and both divine weapons shrank rapidly and were stored in his Niwan Divine Palace.

The magical treasure can be stored in the dantian, while the divine weapon can be stored in the niwan (upper dantian) and controlled by the gods.

This not only makes storage convenient in ordinary times, but also allows for quicker and more responsive action in battle, with weapons readily available at the slightest thought.

Having dealt with his own situation, all that remained was Ye Shuyi's protective shield.

With the experience gained earlier, this time it went very smoothly as well.

Because his father-in-law generously provided a whole animal hide and bones, after deducting the cost of forging the Xuan Chi Divine Spear, the remaining material was enough to forge not only a robe but also a short sword, which took quite a while.

However, before they could decide on a name, they emerged from the secret realm and saw the sun rising again.

Li Cunxiao then remembered that he had arranged to inspect the soldiers with Li Siqi the day before, and hurriedly rushed to the drill ground.

At the foot of Liangyi Peak, the drill ground.

Hundreds of soldiers were arrayed in four formations, each in black, white, red, and blue, led by a disciple of one of the Four Peaks.

In front of the three formations of Xuanwu, Baihu, and Zhuque, there were two true disciples leading the way. Guo Zhao and the others huddled together, talking in hushed tones.

Only Li Siqi stood before the formation representing Qinglong Peak.

Within the formation, the Taoist soldiers whispered amongst themselves.

"Is that Li Zhenchuan, who leads us? He doesn't look that young."

"Idiot, there are two true disciples of Azure Dragon Peak. The one standing in front is Li Siqi, and our superior is Li Cunxiao!"

"I heard that this disciple of Li Cunxiao is already a Heavenly Ladder expert at such a young age. I really don't know what rare and precious herbs he has consumed. At my age, I'm still gathering the five vital energies of my internal organs." "He is a disciple of a Grandmaster, so of course we can't compare to him. However, I've heard that he is very skilled in alchemy. If we say a few nice words to him in the future, we might be able to get a lot of benefits and avoid a lot of hardship."

"Yes. The alchemist is in charge of refining pills, and we, following Li Cunxiao's true teachings, will definitely be the last to go to the front line."

"With the added benefit of medicinal pills, one would be the first to step up in any situation. It's truly a wonderful job."

"That's definitely true. A person only has twelve hours in a day. He might be good at alchemy, but not so good at battle formations. When we're setting up the formation later, brothers, be careful. Don't let our new boss lose face on his first day, or else..."

The chaotic sounds entered Li Siqi's ears, but he didn't care and even showed a hint of disdain.

What do a bunch of frogs in a well know?
The so-called Dao soldiers are mostly martial artists who almost failed the entrance examination of Louguan Dao, or who were over the age requirement and had already acquired skills before becoming disciples.

These people aren't much less talented than the average martial artist, but they're not much better either.

Being stuck in the middle, one can only cultivate the castrated Four Symbols and Four Meridians martial arts, with strength ranging from muscle to Yellow Court level.

Individually, none of them are particularly remarkable, but once they are combined into a formation, due to the shared origin of their martial arts, they can unleash a greater power than ordinary military formations.

Previously, when the Ming Cult attacked the mountain gate, Du Guanglei relied on the Vermilion Bird and Azure Dragon Formation of a hundred people to fight against the Ming Cult's envoys who had reached the Xuan Guan stage without being defeated.

But these things mean nothing to true geniuses, especially to extraordinary individuals like Li Cunxiao.

The more Li Siqi learned about Li Cunxiao, the more unfathomable he seemed.

The Taoist soldiers' claim that "a person only has twelve hours in a day" only applies to ordinary people, but not to Li Cunxiao, whom he knew.

Skilled in alchemy, but lacking in combat?
I'm afraid that's not necessarily true.

"Junior Brother Li excels in alchemy but is lacking in combat. Qin Sixing and Cheng Ruoshui, what are you two trying to do by insisting on the four peaks training together? Are you trying to embarrass him?"

Guo Zhao looked at the disciples of Xuanwu and Baihu Peaks with displeasure. Upon hearing this, the other two quickly shook their heads.
"Senior Brother Guo, you can't just say things like that. Junior Brother Li is a genius, we're so eager to curry favor with him, who would dare to embarrass him?"

Cheng Ruoshui was relatively tactful, but Qin Sixing was straightforward by nature and didn't mince words:
"Senior Brother Guo, please forgive my bluntness. You admire Junior Brother Li, and so do we, but with the army pressing in, Zhu the bandit and other rebel forces could attack at any moment."

“You have already broken through the barrier and conquered heaven and earth, but we and Junior Brother Li are still just ladders to heaven. If we encounter a large army, we will still be surrounded and die from exhaustion.”

"When the time comes to actually fight, this battle formation will be the key to survival. The Four Symbols Formation will be significantly less powerful if any one of its four elements is missing."

"It's precisely because Junior Brother Li is neglecting his combat skills that we need to seize the time to train him. Otherwise, if something unexpected happens in the future and something unspeakable occurs, who will explain it to Uncle Taiyi?"

Guo Zhao was speechless after hearing this. He wanted to lash out, but after thinking about it carefully, he realized that it was indeed true.

It was because he had always valued Li Cunxiao highly and was unwilling to have even the slightest disagreement with him.

Therefore, when he was conducting military drills today, his first thought was to save face for the other side, and he almost overlooked the current situation.

When Qin Sixing said this, he realized what was happening and was about to say something when he saw a streak of blue light flying through the air.

The azure dragon meandered, its scales and claws menacing, and on its head stood a Taoist priest in purple robes with his hands behind his back.

Guo Zhao and the others were about to step forward when they suddenly sensed something was wrong. They all narrowed their eyes, but Li Siqi was the first to exclaim in surprise:
"A spiritual manifestation!"

"what?!"

"The Azure Dragon's spiritual form is not its true form. Junior Brother Li has broken through the Xuan Barrier!"

"How can it be!"

The voices of the several true disciples were like pebbles thrown into a pond, instantly creating ripples among the Dao soldiers.

For a time, the training ground at the foot of Liangyi Peak was bustling with noise, even attracting the attention of some elders from the sect.

Upon arriving at the destination, Li Cunxiao concealed his spiritual form, then rode the wind and descended step by step.

With each step, the soldiers' voices grew quieter. By the time their feet touched the ground, the training ground was once again completely silent.

"Junior brother, you've kept this from your senior brother for so long."

Guo Zhao's expression was complicated, and he finally let out a sigh.

"I had mistakenly thought I was the second person in the sect to break through the Xuan Guan after Senior Brother Xue."

"Only today do I realize that I was like a frog at the bottom of a well, only seeing the sky from the bottom of the well."

"Please don't be offended, senior brother. I only recently gained some insight into this matter."

Li Cunxiao lied without batting an eye, his gaze sweeping over the shocked expressions of the disciples before settling on the hundreds of soldiers.

Wherever their gaze fell, no one dared to look them in the eye; only awe and submission reigned.

This is his purpose.

Showing off is great, but simply being pretentious won't help you in your current situation.

With war approaching, Li Cunxiao's goal was clear: to do everything in his power to strengthen his forces.

Besides one's own realm and divine weapons, Daoist weapons and military formations are undoubtedly another option.

Therefore, the decision to reveal one's cultivation level was actually a spur-of-the-moment decision.

In any case, besides the Haotian Spiritual Form, he also has the Guangmu Heavenly King Spiritual Form, so he has many trump cards.

Rather than pretending to be at the sixth realm and hiding behind these true disciples, it would be better to appropriately display one's strength, subdue these Dao soldiers, and occupy a leading position.

Each of the four peaks' true disciples leads one hundred soldiers, which doesn't mean that Louguan Dao only has four hundred soldiers.

If we don't demonstrate our strength in advance, who will be willing to follow us if things change in the future?

The others naturally couldn't guess his intentions, assuming it was just a coincidence and his exceptional talent that allowed Li Cunxiao to make another breakthrough in just one month.

"Now that Junior Brother has reached the Mysterious Gate, it's perfect for the two of us to lead the practice of the Four Symbols Formation."

Guo Zhao was no longer a teenager or a young boy in his early twenties. He quickly calmed himself down and returned to the front of the Vermilion Bird Taoist soldiers in their red armor and red robes.

The Vermilion Bird's true essence surged and condensed into the spiritual form of the Vermilion Bird Star Lord.

Its enormous golden-red wings spread out, stretching for dozens of feet.

The feathers formed from true essence resembled an array diagram, connecting the hundred soldiers.

These hundred soldiers were all furious, and their boundless blood and energy surged into the Vermilion Bird Spirit Form, causing it to swell to more than twice its original size.

"This feeling is quite similar to that of Senior Brother Xue. So, a hundred-man army formation can barely raise one's cultivation level by one small realm, from the Chonglou stage to the Inner Realm?"

As Li Cunxiao pondered, Li Siqi quietly approached and whispered something in his ear.

“Junior brother, although you have broken through the Xuan Gate, this is the first time you have controlled a military formation.”

“A hundred people have a hundred different thoughts, and their qi and blood fluctuations are all different. It is difficult to unite them into one by relying solely on the power of spiritual image.”

"That Taoist army is not the first time that Senior Brother Guo has commanded it. He has also trained it a lot on a regular basis, which is why he is able to handle it so well."

"Therefore, junior brother, please do not be impatient. I will enter the formation later and, as the central figure, organize the military formation for you."

"Thank you for your kindness, Senior Brother," Li Cunxiao smiled slightly, and before Li Siqi could reply, he pointed to the sky.

A burst of red light shot towards the sky, then exploded violently, enveloping the sky within a hundred meters radius, like a crimson glow.

The sky was blocked out, and the long shadows covered the entire training ground.

As hundreds of soldiers watched in astonishment, thousands of dragon scales fell from the crimson clouds, and an invisible connection instantly linked everyone together, including Guo Zhao and the others who had already formed an array.

A surge of powerful energy flowed into the Azure Dragon Spirit Form like a mighty river. The Azure Dragon roared, and the crimson Hun Tian Ling, shimmering with golden scales, fluttered and danced around it, its end landing in Li Cunxiao's palm.

With a single hand, he can bind a dragon amidst the ranks of soldiers!
(End of this chapter)