Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

"Moths and willow branches, golden threads, laughter and sweet fragrance linger. I searched for him a thousand times in the crowd..."

Chu Mingkong suddenly stopped writing. He turned to look at Zuo Qiuchi. The dazzling fireworks in the sky shone with colorful light on her beautiful face, and her clear and bright eyes reflected the magnificent scenery of the world.

The rosy glow of the sky descended upon the earth, and Zuo Qiuchi stood amidst this magnificent scene, a vision that seemed both dreamlike and otherworldly.

I remember many years ago, he stood in front of the poetry stall with Zuo Qiuchi, except that he was short back then.

While lost in thought, Zuo Qiuchi noticed his gaze and looked up at him.

The stall owner and the surrounding tourists were stunned, all waiting for the final sentence, but why was there no follow-up?

“If life is without worries, there will be no joy; if life is filled with worries, there will be joy… Where are my worries?” Zuo Qiuchi took the pen from Chu Mingkong’s hand and continued writing what was left behind.

Everyone crowded around, eagerly anticipating what would happen next, and someone whispered:

"...Suddenly turning around, I found him there, where the lights were dim."

Several scholars picked up the paper and were amazed. They wanted to see the man and woman who had just written the poem, but they didn't know where they were.

The commotion attracted many people to come and see what was going on. Princess Chu, arm in arm with her daughter, also came over.

Upon seeing the two women, the stall owner exclaimed, "Oh my, Your Highness, Miss! Why didn't you let us know you were coming? We received a wonderful poem this year! Come and see!"

Chu Mingkong held Zuo Qiuchi's hand, and the two blended into the bustling crowds strolling through the park.

"You finally remembered? Not bad at all! You even remembered such a long word!"

"I do remember now, but I'm still a little curious. Back then, you were always idling around with me, having fun everywhere. Where did you find the time to steal such a poem from a teahouse or a fisherman?"

"I heard this when I was little. If you find your legs feeling a little weak after you say it, don't be angry~ I just rubbed it lightly!"

"What the hell..."

Chapter Fifty-Eight: It's Over

Another round of fireworks burst forth, huge colorful sparks adorning the entire night sky, illuminating the night as if it were daytime.

As the fireworks gradually faded and the world was once again enveloped in the darkness of night, this illusion of mental torment gradually receded into the distance. The sounds became faint, and the scenery became blurred, like viewing flowers through fog.

However, Chu Mingkong and Zuo Qiuchi still clearly understood each other, so they were not afraid of the subsequent changes in this mental tribulation illusion. Even if another tribulation occurred, they would not panic—this was just talk, but they didn't want it to actually happen.

Fortunately, everything went smoothly. Chu Mingkong opened his eyes and found himself still inside the "Yang Fish".

Within this extreme Yang energy lies what resembles a burning ocean, and what else is hidden within it?

When Chu Mingkong's soul went to help Zuo Qiuchi out of the predicament, his body was unknowingly covered with a layer of thorny, aquatic plant-like material, or vines.

The sword intent had been almost completely melted away. Looking around, countless extinction heavy swords were densely arranged all around, forming a high wall like bricks and tiles.

The heavy sword that Chu Mingkong had blocked in the middle of the sword pit had also been twisted and melted into the shape of extinction. One side was a corrupted state eroded by extreme yin power, and the other side was a brilliant state tempered by extreme yang power. The shape of extinction could only be barely recognized.

While Chu Mingkong was observing, Zuo Qiuchi, who was being held in his arms, also woke up. The blurriness in her mind only lasted for a moment before she remembered the cause and effect.

Just as Chu Mingkong had mentioned in his confession, she felt a familiar squeezing and tingling sensation below, except that it used to squeeze her rear, but now it had secretly moved to her front.

She was furious. She took out a cucumber that had been bitten twice from her storage bracelet and swung it at his forehead, sending the cucumber flying.

"Why do you carry a cucumber with you?" Chu Mingkong laughed, pretending to rub his forehead even though it didn't hurt him.

"My cat asked me for snacks, but I was too lazy to go ask Aunt Gu for them, so I just scooped a cucumber from the vegetable garden for her to eat." Zuo Qiuchi explained, then looked down at the place where they were of one mind, and glared at this rebellious disciple with a burning desire.

But she only glared at him for a few moments before putting on her clothes, knowing it was time to discuss leaving the place.

The sword intent forged into the shape of this city wall clearly indicates that they do not want her to leave.

"You'd better get out of here right now, you should start thinking about how to get out!" She gave her rebellious disciple a reproachful look.

This back and forth between coming out and going out is really confusing.

Chu Mingkong wanted to be witty again, but it wasn't the right time. Reluctantly, he left the house, and drops of blood, like roses, scattered in the extreme yang energy, resembling drops of bright red ink falling into a clear pool.

There should have been a similar scene at the "Yin Fish" area, but the color tone there was indeed darker. In addition, since Zuo Qiuchi had not been found yet, Chu Mingkong did not pay much attention to it. He only remembered the bloodstains left on Zuo Donglu's two snowy legs.

"I didn't even get a chance to savor the experience before I was plunged into your mental tribulation illusion, sigh—" Chu Mingkong didn't want to be sarcastic, but he couldn't help feeling the regret in his heart.

Splat!

Another crisp, refreshing cucumber was slapped onto his forehead, and Zuo Qiuchi said angrily:

"Show me your head! Hurry up and get ready to leave this formation. You shouldn't be able to use your Yin power here, right?"

"Yes, otherwise I would have just taken you out of the Heart Tribulation Illusion to skip class and escape."

"Then let's just unleash pure sword intent. Let's work together, don't try to test each other, and try to succeed in one strike."

Chu Mingkong nodded.

He came in with this mindset, so why would he hold back anything when he's about to run away?

However, to build up strength to break through the formation, one must also figure out where to strike. A heavy blow to the tortoise shell will only shake one's own hand. It is always better to strike the weak point.

The master and disciple stood back to back, releasing their senses to search for the weak point of the "Yang Fish," as if some kind of spirit was present in this Yin-Yang Chaotic Soul Array.

As if sensing the two's intention to escape, the long-docile replicas of the Extinction Sword trembled and then attacked them.

"These sword intents have long lost their meaning, having been erased by these two forces. Now that these extinctions are launching an attack, is there some kind of consciousness within this great formation beneath our feet?" Chu Mingkong wondered wildly.

His attention did not slacken; he continued searching for weaknesses.

These sudden attacks of the Annihilation Greatsword were quite easy for the master and disciple to deal with.

As these heavy swords flew in from their original positions, Chu Mingkong realized that these countless extinction heavy swords had built up several layers of that "city wall".

Fortunately, I didn't act rashly just now; it turns out there were layers upon layers of defenses.

"Probably, but this great formation should be uncontrolled by anyone, otherwise it wouldn't have stood by and watched you come to help me break through the tribulation. It can only be attributed to the high level of this great formation. I even feel that this great formation wants to refine me into the sword, especially with the appearance of these extinctions, which has deepened this feeling."

Their conversation came to an abrupt halt as the master and apprentice simultaneously discovered a weakness.

Several more Extinction Heavy Swords flew out from that spot, which is equivalent to removing several bricks from the city wall. We can only start from there.

"Let's stay here. If we keep searching, those extinct creatures will have to fly back," Chu Mingkong asked.

"Okay." Zuo Qiuchi had no objection; she was too lazy to look any further.

......

Outside the great formation, Zuo Donglu remained on guard. She didn't know what she could do, only that she would feel uneasy if she left.

Suddenly, she vaguely sensed a tremor in the great formation, a tremor from the inside out!

Her gaze was fixed on one spot, where the tremor she had just felt had come from.

“If we recklessly tamper with this formation, it might harm Qiu Chi and Ming Kong, but... it's possible that the two of them are trying to break the formation.”

Zuo Donglu made up her mind to take a gamble. She raised her sword intent to its peak, formed a sword incantation in her hand, and the flying swords behind her surged out like a vast rain of swords, then condensed into a single point.

Even a drop of water can wear away stone. When the speed of the drop reaches a certain level, a seemingly weak water droplet can have the power to pierce through mountains and split rocks in an instant.

A shattering sound rang out as three sword intents collided, blasting open the barrier constructed by the great formation.

Chu Mingkong carried Zuo Qiuchi and flew out, also picking up the stunned Zuo Donglu in the process.

Behind them, the Yin-Yang Chaotic Soul Array seemed to go berserk, drawing power from the Abyss and Yang Valley once more. Countless extinct swords within twisted and interlocked into more than twenty chains that flew out, as if trying to capture the escaped sword-forging materials.

The two yin-yang fish also stirred, slowly separating, as if they too wanted to emerge from the great formation to capture them.

A small flame condensed on the tip of Chu Mingkong's tongue, containing concentrated, extremely Yin energy.

"Now that I've come out, I'm not going to hold back anymore. Even if you take the form of your extreme Yang power and come out, you can't scare me."

He carried his master and sisters in his arms and fled at top speed. He turned around and spat, and a small flame flew out along with the spit, striking into that extremely yang power.

A terrifying energy was released in the explosion, which resembled a series of firecrackers, blasting upwards along the two forces that had been drawn into the air.

The sky under the bright sun was bustling with activity. The beams of light that burst forth were dazzlingly bright, and the sky was sometimes overcast and sometimes clear. The Yin-Yang Chaos Soul Array had long since collapsed and vanished with a loud bang.

The aftershocks released by the collision of the two enormous forces of extreme yin and yang traveled even faster than Chu Mingkong was flying.

He used his body to shield Zuo Qiuchi and Zuo Donglu, with layers of flying swords intertwining to form a shield behind him, but he was still blasted away.

The three landed on a grassy field in the suburbs.

"Are you alright?" Zuo Qiuchi asked, glancing up at the back of his traitorous disciple.

It seems like there's nothing seriously wrong, except that the clothes on the back and bottom of the body were blown off, leaving the area bare and smelling a bit burnt.

"Not bad, but my back feels a little cold."

Zuo Qiuchi lightly slapped his charred buttocks, making him gasp in pain. Zuo Qiuchi then laughed heartlessly:

"Isn't it cold here?"

“My dear Master, you knew it was burnt but you still hit it. Now my heart is ice-cold.”

Chapter Fifty-Nine: After the Battlefield Was Destroyed

These minor cuts and bruises are nothing to worry about. As long as the internal spiritual meridians and bones are not damaged, physical injuries can be healed quickly in the presence of a cultivator.

The only thing worth paying attention to was the grand formation in the sky, but that's not really worth worrying about now, because the intense energy of the explosion has destroyed the formation that had been built up by generations.

The aftershocks of the explosion were still quite powerful. Fortunately, it was built high in the sky. If it had been built underground, the entire capital of the Sword Dynasty might have been blown up and the ground would have collapsed.

From this perspective, perhaps the late emperor had already considered the possibility of the formation being destroyed long ago, and the decision to construct it high in the sky was based on this consideration.

But no matter how high the structure was built, many old buildings in the capital collapsed, and the extent of casualties is unknown.

Chu Mingkong really wanted to go straight back to his room to rest, but since such a big thing had happened, he still had to go to the Sword Emperor Palace to meet with Balan and the others.

"I'm wondering if this Yin-Yang Chaos Soul Formation might be similar to... the demon egg in the Heavenly Palace back then, which was a bloodsucking worm," Chu Mingkong said as he changed out of his tattered clothes.

The Realm of Annihilation unfolded here, becoming an open-air changing area for the three of them. Zuo Qiuchi and Zuo Donglu also changed their clothes here. When they came out of the great formation, although they were wearing new clothes to cover their delicate bodies, they were hastily put on, almost like wrapping themselves in bath towels, and they didn't have much time to slowly tidy up their appearance.

"You mean that the demon egg stole the dragon vein and national fortune of the Heavenly Extreme Empire, and now this great formation is stealing the manpower and resources of the Sword Dynasty, acting as a parasite to suck the marrow from its bones?"

As Zuo Qiuchi spoke, she rather rudely tore off her tattered dress, revealing her perfect body underneath. Her two close-fitting undergarments were still barely intact, so she didn't need to bother changing them for the time being.

However, it was only barely intact. She discovered that Chu Mingkong had made an opening in her silk trousers to facilitate her entry and exit for cultivation... Oh well, she'd better go back and change them later.