From martial arts sects to immortality sects

Chapter 253 The Battle at the End of the Year
Just as Liu Jing was pondering this, a civil official spoke up: "My lord, should we inform Qingxiao Sect about this?"

This statement immediately garnered the agreement of many civil and military officials.

To deal with evil spirits, one must seek help from immortal cultivation sects; otherwise, relying solely on ordinary people like them would result in incalculable casualties.

Liu Jing sneered, "Do you think Qingxiao Sect learned about this slower than us? What in this world can't escape Qingxiao Sect's eyes?"

The hall fell silent; everyone was stunned, for they knew that what Liu Jing said was true.

The Qingxiao Sect's spies are spread throughout the world, making it difficult for people to tell whether it's due to its vast power or its extraordinary abilities.

An official under Liu Jing once spoke recklessly about the Qingxiao Sect and even prepared to incite trouble. However, before the matter could reach Liu Jing, the official was killed by Qingxiao Sect disciples. Judging from the letters he left behind, this did indeed happen.

After this incident, wherever the civil and military officials went, they felt like they were being watched, which made them very uneasy.

"Regardless of Qingxiao Sect's attitude, we must take action and prepare to rush to Cangzhou's aid and seize control of the city. Even if it means being attacked from both sides, we must do it."

Liu Jing said in a deep voice, directly stating his stance.

The civil and military officials looked at each other, none daring to refute.

……

In order to deal with the Great Demon Luo, Li Qingqiu began to cultivate diligently.

He learned about the Great Demon's strength through the memories of the Soul-Stealing Black Demon's true form. The Great Demon's strength far surpassed that of other evil spirits, but it was not yet at the level to easily annihilate them.

Li Qingqiu will definitely take risks in this battle.

But there's nothing we can do about it. If time is on Qingxiao Sect's side, he'll drag it out.

However, the Great Demon Lord's corpse demon assimilation speed is too fast, and it has already threatened the Qingxiao Sect.

If any Qingxiao Sect disciples were to turn into corpse demons, that would be a real problem.

The vast majority of the true disciples are also working hard to cultivate. They have learned about the upcoming battle plans to some extent, and they are seizing the time to cultivate in order to be selected.

However, the world is too vast, and finding the Great Demon is no easy task.

In mid-September, Zhao Zhen and Shen Yue broke through to the ninth level of the Nourishing Yuan Realm one after the other, and Ji Ya and Xue Jin followed closely behind, taking their place and filling the vacancy at the eighth level of the Nourishing Yuan Realm.

Currently, Qingxiao Sect has more than ten disciples who have reached the seventh level of the Nourishing Yuan Realm, and more than fifty disciples who have reached the sixth level. There are also some disciples who are outside or in seclusion and have not had time to go to the Imperial Spirit Hall to update their cultivation.

If it weren't for the threat of the Great Demon King, Qingxiao Sect would have entered a new phase in ten years at most. Unfortunately, the world doesn't always go smoothly.

It's early October.

Inside Lingxiao Courtyard, Zhang Yuchun, Zhu Yan, and Chu Jing sat opposite Li Qingqiu, with stacks of letters containing intelligence records laid out on the table.

"It's really strange. If there were signs of withered flowers and plants within a radius of dozens of miles, it should be easy to find. Disciples have been searching all over the north, but they haven't been able to find such a place at all," Zhang Yuchun said in a deep voice, his brows furrowed.

Zhu Yan said, "Perhaps the place he is in is a wasteland, or there are not many flowers and plants, maybe it is in a city?"

Li Qingqiu pondered. Zhu Yan's words made sense, but places like this were everywhere in the northern border, so narrowing down the search area wouldn't be easy.

The northern border is vast, and the desolate lands are even larger than the Nine Provinces. Finding the Great Demon Lord is indeed like finding a needle in a haystack.

Even the Soul-Stealing Black Demon didn't know the exact location of the Great Demon. The Great Demon liked to use corpse demons to meet with other evil spirits. The Great Demon was clearly different from other evil spirits; he was extremely wary of the mortal world.

Chu Jing suddenly said, "Perhaps they will show themselves soon."

Zhang Yuchun and Zhu Yan looked at Chu Jing with puzzled expressions.

Chu Jing continued, "Liu Jing has already sent troops north, and a large number of soldiers skilled in martial arts have gathered. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the Great Demon Luo. The stronger one is in life, the stronger one becomes after becoming a corpse demon. If he keeps searching for ordinary people, the fighting power of this ghost army may not be strong. He must know this in his heart."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yuchun and Zhu Yan's expressions changed.

Is Chu Jing using Liu Jing's elite army as bait?
Isn't that a bit too risky?

Li Qingqiu asked, "How far is Liu Jing's army from Cangzhou?"

Chu Jing replied, "Judging by the journey, I should be able to reach Cangzhou Prefecture before the end of the year."

"Year-end."

Li Qingqiu looked up at the sky, where dark clouds had already covered the sky.

Zhang Yuchun and Zhu Yan exchanged a glance, both understanding that a major battle was about to take place at the end of the year.

……

At Ziyang Peak, in a courtyard, Hu Yan and Duan Xiaojuan sat facing each other, and Duan Xiaojuan poured tea for him.

"I heard the sect is making some big moves, will you go with them?" Duan Xiaojuan asked curiously.

How could anyone not care about such a major operation personally led by the sect leader?
However, the specific details of this major operation have not been disseminated, making it unclear whether it is a good thing or a bad thing, but Duan Xiaojuan felt that it was most likely a bad thing.

Hu Yan replied, "I also asked my master, but he said I was too young and that I should take on the sect's responsibilities ten years from now, not now. He told me to just focus on my cultivation."

Duan Xiaojuan exclaimed, "The sect leader is truly far-sighted. Cultivating under his guidance must be very smooth, right?"

Hu Yan thought about it for a moment. In fact, most of the time Ji Ya was teaching him. Li Qingqiu was going to guide him in cultivating magic, but not often. But then he thought that all the cultivation resources he could get came from Li Qingqiu. Ji Ya was able to teach him because Ji Ya was taught and raised by Li Qingqiu.

"It really went very smoothly, Master is a very good teacher," Hu Yan said with a smile. Duan Xiaojuan said with a bitter face, "My cultivation with Senior Sister Xu has not gone very smoothly. Although she did not blame me, I always feel that I am wasting her time."

Hu Yan comforted her, saying, "Senior Sister is a straightforward person. If she had a problem with you, she would never hold back. Since she doesn't, it means she has no complaints about you. She just feels that cultivation can't be rushed."

Upon hearing this, Duan Xiaojuan's expression improved, and she broke into a smile.

The two talked and laughed about their future.

Looking at her smile, Hu Yan suddenly felt a little flustered.

His experiences from childhood have made him feel unfortunate, and he is afraid to build closer relationships with people because he doesn't want to lose them.

However, he remembered his master's words, which were that one should always have hope, because being depressed would not change anything and would only cause him pain.

Hu Yan tried hard not to think about these distracting thoughts. After discussing the sect's affairs, they began to exchange their cultivation experiences.

These two are just a microcosm; there are many other disciples in the Qingxiao Sect who are paying attention to the upcoming major operation and thus start talking about themselves.

……

Winter snow fell in mid-December.

The disciples of Yuling Hall began to travel to various peaks and courtyards, and one by one, the disciples were summoned to gather in front of the Qingxiao Mountain gate the next morning.

Li Qingqiu stood on the cliff, looking down at the vast expanse of white snow. His gaze could see the disciples darting behind the snow mist.

During this time, he also worked hard to cultivate, using up many of the sect's best spiritual energy pills, and finally his cultivation reached the fourth level of the Spiritual Awareness Realm.

This journey north will definitely not be easy, but Li Qingqiu feels there is no way to avoid it.

After so many years of development, it's time for Qingxiao Sect to face a test.

That evening, Li Qingqiu convened a meeting in the Xuanxin Hall. All the elders and above from the sect rushed over. He announced that after his departure, Xu Ning and Zhang Yuchun would jointly manage the sect's affairs, and also explained the objective of this operation.

Upon hearing that the demons of the Northern Frontier were planning to establish a Ghost Dynasty, everyone in the hall was in an uproar.

They finally understood why the sect leader had taken such a big step, and at the same time felt deeply worried.

Li Qingqiu revealed this matter to encourage his sect's disciples to practice the art of detecting ghosts.

Although his disciples have embarked on the path of cultivation, there is still a shortage compared to the number of cultivators he imagined. This is not the disciples' fault, mainly because the Qingxiao Sect is still developing and exploring.

Li Qingqiu wasn't afraid of having spies from the Great Demon Luo. Chu Jing wandered around the various peaks every day and didn't notice the presence of any strange ghosts.

This night, many people are destined to have trouble sleeping.

The next morning.

Li Qingqiu carried the Tianhong Sword down the mountain, with Jinlang perched on his shoulder.

As he entered Lingxiao Courtyard, Jiang Zhaoxia, Zhao Zhen, Shen Yue, Yandao Sect, Ji Ya, the three Xiao brothers, Yun Cai, and others got up one after another and followed him out of the courtyard.

As they walked down the mountain, the true disciples from various academies followed one after another, and the number of people behind Li Qingqiu grew larger and larger.

Li Yang, Xue Jin, Han Lang, Lu Qing, Gu Changping, Zhu Xunyang, Yang Chengyu and other top ten contestants from the first Battle of Magic Tournament are also present.

Nineteen-year-old Jian Du also arrived; he had now reached the sixth level of the Nourishing Essence Realm.

Li Qingqiu even chose Bai Ning'er, hoping that Bai Ning'er's "Lucky One" destiny would bring them good luck. The twenty-nine-year-old Bai Ning'er also possessed the cultivation level of the sixth level of the Nourishing Yuan Realm.

This time, Li Qingqiu brought along all the elites of their respective sects.

Zhang Ping stood on the cliff, looking down at the elite members of the sect below, his expression complex.

Since successfully changing his fate, his cultivation level has been rising steadily, and he has now reached the seventh level of the Nourishing Yuan Realm. His reputation has also begun to grow.

Hearing that the sect was planning a major operation, he was initially worried that he would be selected, but he wasn't.

Looking at the sect leader's figure now, he felt a pang of guilt.

His guilt wasn't about his cowardice, but about his lack of strength. If he had already reached the Spiritual Consciousness Realm, he would definitely have actively participated in this operation.

He looked at Jiang Zhaoxia, Zhao Zhen, Ji Ya, Li Yang and others behind Li Qingqiu. They were so full of vigor, like the protagonists in a story, while he was just a supporting character who could only admire them.

Li Qingqiu led his men down the mountain, and the impressive lineup behind him astonished the disciples along the way.

The sect leader is truly determined to exterminate the ghosts!
When Li Qingqiu and his group arrived at the foot of the mountain, hundreds of true disciples had already gathered in front of the mountain gate. Upon seeing Li Qingqiu, they all raised their hands in greeting, creating a spectacular scene.

The lowest cultivation level among those present was the fourth level of the Nourishing Yuan Realm.

Yesterday, the training hall also distributed various pills to them, so everyone felt very confident.

When they saw the prominent figures from their sects behind Li Qingqiu, they were all filled with excitement. This battle was destined to be recorded in the sect's history, and they could use it to boast about themselves in the future.

Li Qingqiu stopped, and the disciples behind him walked around him and joined the ranks at the front.

Looking at his disciples in front of him, Li Qingqiu felt a surge of pride. These were the disciples he had cultivated over eighteen years.

Besides these people, there are many other geniuses who stayed in the sect and thrived.

(End of this chapter)