The head master has a new female apprentice

Chapter 342 How could I possibly be willing to die here? (6k)

Meanwhile, Nangong Lu stood there dumbfounded, his face filled with disbelief.

"Could this person be from another cultivation country?" he muttered to himself, even rubbing his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things.

Meanwhile, on the other side, separated by the three-colored restrictive cage, Ghost Hound and Luo Lingling were overjoyed to see that Zhou Qing was still alive.

But when they saw so many spirit seals, they were all equally shocked.

"Eight thousand spirit seals." Ghost Hound's hand, gripping the spear, trembled slightly. "When did this kid..."

Luo Lingling's beautiful eyes gleamed with surprise: "Could this be the result of these two years of seclusion? But that's too exaggerated!"

At this moment, the purple-gold lightning had fully taken shape, and its terrifying pressure caused the entire world to tremble.

Zhou Qing's cold mask looked particularly menacing under the lightning.

"Old man, it's only fair to return the favor, take this!"

Zhou Qing clenched his fists, and the lightning that had fused with eight thousand spirit seals suddenly began to collapse.

Space itself seemed to warp at that moment, as if it could not withstand the terrifying power.

The lightning continuously compressed, eventually transforming into a purple-gold spear only as thick as an arm, yet condensed to its extreme.

Eight thousand spiritual seals flowed across the gun's body, each containing destructive power.

At the tip of the spear, space had completely shattered, revealing a pitch-black void rift.

He took a step, and ripples spread across the space beneath his feet.

As the second step landed, his figure had already appeared in front of the phantom.

Before the lightning spear even arrived, the destructive aura emanating from its tip had already caused the phantom's form to begin to distort and blur.

"This shot will send you on your way."

Zhou Qing's voice was icy cold, and the thunder spear in his hand moved like a dragon emerging from the abyss.

The moment the gun was fired, the world went dark, as if all light had been swallowed up by the single shot.

The phantom hastily gathered spiritual energy to resist, but it crumbled the moment the spear tip touched it.

Eight thousand spirit seals bloomed simultaneously, transforming into eight thousand strands of purple-gold lightning as thin as hair, tearing the illusory image apart inch by inch from within.

"No, that's impossible."

The phantom's roar abruptly ceased, for his form, like shattered glass, crumbled into pieces amidst the lightning.

Before any fragment could even hit the ground, it was completely swallowed up by the void rift at the tip of the spear, leaving not even a trace.

The world suddenly became quiet.

Zhou Qing was covered in blood and breathing heavily, but the killing intent in his eyes did not diminish in the slightest.

He slowly turned around, his cold gaze locking onto Nangong Lu, who was slumped on the ground.

The Daoist of the Nangong family was ashen-faced and trembling like a leaf.

"now you."

Those four simple words plunged Nangong Lu into an icy abyss.

He opened his mouth, his lips trembling as he tried to explain, his eyes filled with despair and resentment.

"I can."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhou Qing's thunder spear had already left his hand.

A purple-gold spear slashed through the sky, aiming straight for Nangong Lu's brow.

"puff!"

The dull thud of the spear tip piercing flesh rang out, and Nangong Lu's pupils suddenly dilated.

His body froze on the spot, blood gushing from a hole between his eyebrows.

"impossible"

Nangong Lu's physical body crashed to the ground, while a primordial spirit fled in panic.

The translucent phantom's face was still frozen in disbelief as it desperately fled into the distance.

"Want to go?"

Zhou Qing snorted coldly and raised his hand to strike.

The remaining lightning power on the lightning spear suddenly erupted, transforming into a purple-gold electric net that instantly enveloped Nangong Lu's primordial spirit.

"what--!!"

Amidst the piercing screams, the primordial spirit disintegrated inch by inch in the thunder, eventually turning into specks of spiritual light and dissipating between heaven and earth.

Zhou Qing barely managed to retract his lightning spear, but his body swayed violently, and a mouthful of blood gushed out.

At this moment, he had already reached his limit. His vision began to blur, his legs went weak, and he fell straight down from mid-air.

"Little A-Qing!"

From afar came Luo Lingling's heart-wrenching screams.

But in the next moment, a sneaky figure suddenly darted out from the ruins at the edge of the battlefield!
It was the middle-aged cultivator who had led the way earlier. His eyes gleamed with malice and excitement as he thrust a short sword coated with deadly poison straight toward Zhou Qing's back!

After playing dead for so long, it's finally his turn.

At this moment, he couldn't even imagine how grateful the defeated Spirit Severing Realm ancestor of the Nangong family would be to him after he killed Young Master Chicken.

"Die!" the middle-aged cultivator roared, his face contorted with rage.

In a flash, Zhou Qing, who should have been unconscious, suddenly opened his eyes, a fierce golden light flashing in them!

He mustered his last bit of spiritual power and swung his right hand sharply backward—

"boom!"

A thin, yet extremely sharp bolt of lightning shot from his fingertip, instantly piercing the middle-aged cultivator's brow!
"How...how is this possible?" The middle-aged cultivator stared wide-eyed at the young man before him, who should have been on his deathbed.

His body froze in mid-air, then crashed heavily to the ground like a rag doll, his very soul failing to escape.

"You...you dare to say that?" Zhou Qing could no longer hold on, and everything went black before his eyes as he completely lost consciousness.

"boom!"

His body crashed heavily to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Little A-Qing!"

"Fourth!"

The three-colored restrictive cage crumbled inch by inch after Nangong Lu's death, and Gui'ao and Luo Lingling rushed out at the same time.

Without hesitation, Luo Lingling threw the old hen aside and leaped to catch Zhou Qing as he fell.

Her spiritual power surged into Zhou Qing's body as she hurriedly examined his injuries.

"It's alright, I'm just exhausted." She breathed a sigh of relief, but then her expression changed drastically, and she looked up sharply into the distance. "Oh no, many auras are approaching!"

Without a word, Ghost Hound picked Zhou Qing up and said in a deep voice, "Let's go!"

Luo Lingling grabbed the still unconscious hen, and the three of them turned into streaks of light and disappeared into the depths of the dense forest in the blink of an eye.

A moment later, figures flew in from all directions and landed at the edge of the area.

"This is this"

Some people gasped, staring at the scene before them, too shocked to speak.

The ground, spanning thousands of feet in circumference, collapsed into a deep pit, with dark cracks spreading like a spider web.

The destructive power of thunder still lingered in the air, stinging the skin.

"Could it be that powerful beings at the Spirit Severing Realm are engaged in a fierce battle here?"

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, their hearts filled with turmoil.

……

Meanwhile, in the distant Yaoguang Prefecture, the Nangong family...

Inside a deep, secluded hall, an aged figure suddenly opened his eyes, a hint of solemnity flashing in his cloudy pupils.

"Young Master Chicken, you really underestimated me."

The deep voice echoed in the empty hall, carrying a hint of cold killing intent.

"If this matter is not handled properly, my Nangong family might truly face annihilation..."

A shadow crossed the old man's cloudy eyes, and his voice grew even lower.

As a powerful expert in the Spirit Severing Realm, he understood better than anyone what it meant for a genius who could kill more than twenty people of the same level in the Divine Transformation Realm and even annihilate a Spirit Severing Soul Division.

Especially since the opponent is a formation master who is about to advance to the fourth level!
"Somebody come!"

Several figures immediately knelt on the ground outside the hall, not daring to breathe.

"Pass on my order: summon all remaining Nascent Soul Realm cultivators at the Great Perfection stage to return to the clan immediately!"

The numerous figures immediately obeyed the order and left, transforming into streaks of light and disappearing into the night.

He slowly rose to his feet, gazing at the gloomy sky outside the hall, a chill flashing in his cloudy eyes: "It seems I have no choice but to meet you personally."

……

Imperial Capital, Cloud Palace
The majestic palace complex stands tall in the clouds, its golden and resplendent halls gleaming in the sunlight, yet exuding a breathtaking majesty.

Deep within the grand hall, a blurry figure sat high on a throne, enveloped in a hazy halo, as if he had merged with the world around him.

Below, a dark figure knelt on one knee, respectfully reporting the information within his duties.

The figure on the throne leaned forward slightly, and the halo surrounding him rippled.

"interesting."

He tapped the armrest lightly with his fingertips and pondered for a moment.

"Spread the word." The emperor's voice was playful. "Let all the major families see how the Nangong family got its eyes pecked out by a 'chicken'."

The shadowy figure bowed his head: "Yes."

"in addition."

The emperor's voice suddenly turned cold.

"Search for clues about 'Chicken Prince' with all our might."

"If this person can be used by me, it will be a great fortune."

If not…

He didn't continue speaking, but the temperature inside the hall suddenly dropped to freezing.

The shadowy figure kowtowed deeply: "Understood, subordinate."

……

A piece of news that caught everyone off guard suddenly swept through the entire capital.

It even surpassed the heated discussion about "Grand Eunuch Gao Xianzong being mysteriously killed in the street by a spirit-slaying ritual" by dozens of times.

"Have you heard? All nineteen Nascent Soul stage elders of the Nangong family have been wiped out!"

"what?!"

"It's absolutely true! It happened right here in the Ancient Beast Wilderness!" A cultivator excitedly waved the image stone. "Look, the traces of the battlefield haven't faded even now!"

"Yeah, yeah, I went to see it too. The scene was so shocking! Guess who did it?"

"Who?"

"Who else could it be but Young Master Chicken!" another person slammed his hand on the table and stood up. "If you ask me, he's the number one person below the Spirit Slayer realm!"

"My God, who exactly is he? He's probably killed almost everyone in the Nangong family."

"That's right. I heard that the Nangong family only has ten Nascent Soul Realm Great Perfection cultivators left. Not only that, he also killed Nangong Lu, the direct disciple of the Nangong family's patriarch."

"What's so surprising? I have the latest news: he even shattered the Spirit-Severing Split Soul of Ancestor Nangong!"

"hiss--"

Everyone gasped, but the most shocking part was yet to come.

"Do you know what's most terrifying?" a cultivator wearing a bamboo hat asked in a low voice. "He is indeed a level three array master, but do you know how many spirit seals he has condensed?"

"How many?"

"Eight thousand! A full eight thousand!" "Holy crap! Really?!"

The teahouse instantly erupted in chaos.

……

The Zhuge Family, the Star-Gazing Platform!

"Hahaha! Old Ghost Nangong has finally met his match!" An old man holding a feather fan slammed his hand on the table and laughed loudly, his eyes gleaming with schadenfreude.

"Who would have thought that the decline of a prestigious Spirit Slayer family would be due to a petty squabble at an auction..."

But soon, his smile faded, and he lightly waved his feather fan: "Old Ghost Nangong hasn't even arrived in the capital yet, but the news has already spread throughout the entire city..."

He frowned and looked towards the palace: "It seems that this was done by that person."

After a moment of contemplation, he sighed, "So be it. In order to take that step, even the direct descendants of the clan have been suppressed in the capital. Some infiltration is to be expected."

"As long as it doesn't go too far."

The Yuwen family, the Netherworld Palace!

Inside the dimly lit hall, several figures remained silent.

After a long silence, the black-robed man on the head seat spoke in a hoarse voice: "To fight twenty opponents at once, with unparalleled combat prowess among his peers, is unheard of."

"What's even more terrifying is that he has already condensed eight thousand spirit seals. Such a person may be able to enter the Spirit Severing Realm on his own without needing any secret formula."

"It seems I must personally make a trip to the capital and find an opportunity to get to know him. This person can only be a friend, not an enemy."

"Old Ghost Nangong... he really made a terrible move this time!"

The Wang family, the Sun family, the Heavenly Sword Pavilion, the Yellow Spring Sect, the Murong family...

The various powers were shaken, some in shock, some in greed, and some in fear.
But in one place, hearty laughter could be heard.

Duobao Chamber of Commerce!

In the magnificent hall, President Mo Tianheng clapped his hands and laughed: "We still underestimated him!"

"Fortunately, I placed my bet in advance." He squinted, his face full of pride. "My luck is as good as ever."

Recalling the wisp of Heavenly Dao energy he had obtained during his Foundation Establishment stage, he couldn't help but sigh, "It truly helped me a great deal."

……

Meanwhile, inside a temporarily opened cave!
"cough cough"

Zhou Qing coughed up a mouthful of blood, his face turned pale, and even breathing was painful.

Although supported by the immense vitality of the Four Flowers Gathering at the Top and the Blood Phoenix Tribulation Crystal, the fact that he had single-handedly killed twenty experts of the same level had already pushed his spiritual power, divine sense, and physical body to their limits.

Not to mention withstanding the full force of a Spirit Slayer's attack in the end!
When that finger fell, his internal organs were almost shattered, his bones were broken, and his meridians were cracked.

If it weren't for the "Demon-Subduing Golden Bone" technique, the Blood Phoenix, and the Golden Crow's divine powers unleashing their rebirth power at the critical moment of life and death, forcibly keeping him alive until his last breath, he would probably have been annihilated on the spot.

Even so, he was already at his last gasp.

But even as the illusory image of the Spirit Slayer still lingered, he stood up.

With an almost obsessive will, he squeezed out the last bit of potential in his body, forcibly fused the eight thousand spirit seals with the lightning, and unleashed a strike that transcended his realm.

Anyone else would have died from exhaustion when Nangong Lu and his men attacked them.

Even if they were lucky enough to survive, they would have no power to resist the deadly attack of severing the spirit and splitting the soul.

But he is Zhou Qing.

He is a madman who rises from humble beginnings, defying common sense and pushing the limits time and time again.

"How could I possibly want to die here?"

It was this unwavering determination that allowed him to unleash his final strength even as his body crumbled and his soul dissipated.

But the cost was also heavy.

At this moment, he was like a lamp that had run out of oil and was about to burn out, especially since the aftereffects of forcibly activating "Thunder Seal Unity" had fully erupted.

The spiritual energy in his meridians was depleted, and his internal organs felt as if they had been scorched by a raging fire.

Even his sea of ​​consciousness showed signs of drying up due to overexertion, and his primordial spirit was covered with spiderweb-like cracks.

Fortunately, the four-colored flowers rooted in the sea of ​​consciousness continuously emitted a halo, repairing the damage to the primordial spirit on their own.

The Yin-Yang Technique, created by a powerful being from the Starry Sky Battlefield, was running at high speed, with Yin and Yang energies flowing like a gentle stream, nourishing the broken meridians.

The Blood Phoenix Tribulation Crystals of the Nangong family, who had been scattered and killed earlier at the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul Realm, also turned into wisps of blood energy, constantly replenishing his depleted life force.

Undeniably, the benefits to Zhou Qing from successively comprehending so many Nascent Soul realms, coupled with this extreme battle, are unimaginable.

Each struggle on the brink of life and death made his Dao heart more resilient and his control over power more exquisite.

Even so, it will probably take a long time to fully recover.

Similarly, after confirming that Zhou Qing was not in immediate danger, Gui Ao and Luo Lingling took turns protecting him and healing him.

……

Time flies, and half a year has passed in the blink of an eye.

Zhou Qing finally came to his senses.

All the Blood Phoenix Tribulation Crystals have been absorbed, and even about a hundred top-grade spirit stones have been consumed.

His breathing gradually stabilized, no longer as chaotic and weak as it had been at the beginning, but instead exuded a chilling aura.

That was the aura of someone at the Spirit Severing Realm.

Although it is only a trace, it truly exists.

At this moment, he sat cross-legged in the center of the cave, surrounded by a faint purple-gold halo.

Each breath seemed to resonate with the heavens and earth, causing the surrounding spiritual energy to tremble slightly.

His primordial spirit was no longer dim; on the contrary, it was more solid than before he was injured.

A mysterious pattern, resembling thunder or an array, faintly appeared between his brows, radiating an aura that made people afraid to look directly at him.

"This breath..."

Luo Lingling, who had recovered two months earlier, and Gui Ao exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with shock, but it quickly turned into ecstasy.

They hadn't expected this day to come so soon, and no one dared to make a sound or disturb them; they simply waited quietly.

After a long while, the aura gradually subsided. When Zhou Qing opened his eyes, it seemed as if thousands of thunderbolts were being annihilated and reborn in his eyes.

He looked down at his palm and gently clenched it—

"boom!"

The air inside the cave suddenly exploded, and a tiny spatial rift flashed and disappeared in his palm.

“It’s still a little off!”

He muttered to himself, a hint of regret in his voice.

The ordeal of the past six months brought him to the threshold of the Spirit Severing Realm, but he was ultimately lacking the right opportunity.

However, this is enough.

He had personally experienced two attacks by relying on the strength of Xuan Yuanshuo, who was in the mid-stage of the Spirit Slaying Realm.

He had already thoroughly understood the different artistic conceptions and insights of the Lu sisters on the jade slips on his way to the capital.

In addition, the "Golden Bone of Subduing Demons" possesses a natural restraint of obsession, an extraordinary comprehension of the Four Flowers Gathering at the Top, and is nourished by the Daoist essence of the ancient tea tree.
He was actually 60% confident about the upcoming Spirit Slaying!

but--

not enough!
"I need to gather enough wood-attribute spirit stones as soon as possible to fully advance to the fourth level of array master!" Zhou Qing's eyes gleamed.

If successful, he will be able to set up the "Nine Revolutions Spirit Condensation Array" from Xuan Qingzi's inheritance, which is of great benefit to the Spirit Slayer.

This formation can help cultivators stabilize their primordial spirit and harmonize yin and yang during breakthroughs, increasing the success rate to over 90%!
If we could refresh the page and get another "Lucky Sticker," that would be even better, making it a 100% success rate.

Otherwise, if the spirit-slaying attempt fails, the consequences are unimaginable. Senior Lu Yuanjiu is a prime example; he truly suffered a fate worse than death.

Even more terrifying is the risk of falling!
"Now is not the time." He took a deep breath, suppressing the restlessness in his heart.

Then, Zhou Qing slowly stood up, a smile finally appearing on his face as he looked at his senior brother and second senior sister who had protected him for half a year.

Before he could even speak, the old hen flapped her wings and jumped onto his shoulder, where he casually picked her up and stroked her feathers.

“Little Aqing, you’re amazing,” Luo Lingling said with her arms crossed and raised an eyebrow. “Now you even have the aura of the Spirit Severing Realm. It seems we’ll have to call you Ancestor Zhou next time—no, we should call you Old Demon Zhou.”

"Old Demon Zhou?" Zhou Qing was taken aback.

Luo Lingling blinked and said, "Yes."

She counted on her fingers, a mischievous glint in her eyes:
"Wu Guang Hai, you fought nine Great Perfection Nascent Soul cultivators all by yourself, and you refined tens of thousands of Cloud Thieves, leaving no trace of their bodies."

"In the Blood Maple Forest, first kill the six Nascent Soul stage cultivators and twenty Nascent Soul stage cultivators from the Nangong family."

"In the Ancient Beast Wasteland, he single-handedly slew twenty Nascent Soul Grand Perfection cultivators, withstood the Soul-Severing Split Soul attack without dying, and then wiped out their direct disciples and elders—"

She leaned closer, her red lips parting slightly: "Decisive in killing, meticulous in thinking, ruthless towards enemies, plus that refining technique..."

"What else could it be but the Old Demon?"

Zhou Qing: "..."

Gui Ao, holding his spear, said in a deep voice, "Don't listen to your senior sister's nonsense. No matter what, you will always be our junior brother, the direct disciple of Xiaoling Peak of Taiqing Sect."

“Boss, you don’t know this.” Luo Lingling smiled slyly.

"Now, Xiao Aqing is our little sect leader. Once she's in the sect, all the senior uncles, senior masters, and direct disciples address her that way."

Ghost Hound scratched his head, revealing a rare stubbornness: "Anyway, I don't care, I'm going to call him Junior Brother."

A hint of a smile flashed in his eyes, "Especially in the future, being able to call someone at the Spirit Severing Realm junior brother, just thinking about it will be so classy."

Zhou Qing smiled wryly: "Stop teasing me, it's not even close to happening yet."

"Isn't this just a matter of time?" Luo Lingling patted his shoulder. "Even those who have reached the Three Flowers Gathering at the Top can smoothly advance to the Spirit Severing stage, let alone someone like you who has reached the Four Flowers Gathering at the Top—a feat unprecedented in history!"

Ghost Hound looked at Zhou Qing, then suddenly stepped forward and bowed solemnly: "Junior Brother, it's because of me that I've dragged you into this again."

Zhou Qing quickly helped him up, saying, "Senior Brother, what are you doing?"

Luo Lingling pouted: "You're being too formal with me. Look at me, when have I ever been polite to Xiao Aqing?"

The three of them smiled at each other, and the tense atmosphere of the past six months finally dissipated.

"By the way, I see your injuries have healed, could you lend me a hand?"

With a wave of his hand, Zhou Qing sent more than twenty storage bags pouring out and piling up in the center of the cave.

These are all relics left behind by the Nangong family cultivators, many of which are rare treasures.

Zhou Qing planned to organize everything and carefully check for any traces or markings.

The items that are not needed are planned to be sold to the Duobao Merchant Guild in exchange for spirit stones to use for breakthroughs.

Luo Lingling is extremely experienced in this regard.

The three immediately took action.

After a busy half-day, everything was finally inventoried.

To Zhou Qing's surprise, he found six top-grade wood-attribute spirit stones, along with several other spirit stones of the five elements.

There were over six hundred ordinary top-grade spirit stones, most of which were found in Nangong Lu's storage bag.

The rest, such as natal magic treasures, rare spiritual medicines, and various materials, amounted to a huge pile, comparable to a small mountain.

After all, these are treasures accumulated by cultivators at the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul Realm throughout their lives.

“These materials will be perfect for refining a few more three-colored masks.” Zhou Qing’s eyes shone brightly as he picked out several rare “Thousand Illusion Crystals” and “Hidden Breath Iron” from the spoils of war.

"Wait a few more days for me!"

Before he finished speaking, eight thousand spirit seals surrounded him like a galaxy. As the spirit seals swirled, the materials began to melt and recombine, outlining the initial shape of the mask in the air.

Luo Lingling and Ghost Mastiff exchanged a glance, both seeing shock in each other's eyes.

However, I didn't ask any more questions. On the path of cultivation, who doesn't have their own opportunities?
Seven days later, nine masks floated in the air, three for each person, to be changed at any time to avoid arousing suspicion.

Moreover, once worn, even a spiritual sense at the Spirit Severing Realm cannot see through its illusions.

"Let's go deal with the spoils!" Zhou Qing put on one of the pairs, and his aura vanished instantly.

The three people and the chicken quietly left the cave and sped towards the bustling inner city of the imperial capital...

(End of this chapter)