Immortal Road.

Chapter 183 Shocking Layout
Above the vast East China Sea, a skeleton flying boat cut through the clouds, dispersing flocks of oncoming seabirds.

Even though five days had passed, everyone on the boat was still in shock about their previous experience. Whenever they thought about it, they couldn't help but sigh that they were lucky, and that the envoy's strategic planning had led them to accurately find the gap in the righteous defense and break out from the Qingzhou coastline in one fell swoop.

Of course, in fact, Lin Shan was not a prophet at all, but someone leaked the news to him.

That night, the three Yuanying-stage elders of Zixiao Sect joined forces, and Ma Jiansheng rushed towards the "Nine Heavens Thunder Waterfall" without hesitation. While buying time for everyone, he also unlocked everyone's seals and shackles, and a battle royale began.

All the demonic monks were overjoyed after recovering their powers, and fled in all directions in a blink of an eye.

At the same time, the righteous cultivators also recovered their cultivation, and this time the Zixiao Sect also brought a group of reinforcements, all of whom surrounded them.

Yin Wuming of the Blood River Palace is indeed a rising star in the evil world. He can fight against several righteous Jindan Zhenren alone. The "Joint Law Enforcement Detective Team of the Three Evil Sects" under him are all elites, attracting most of the attention of the righteous pursuers.

Lin Shan and his group took the opportunity to break out in the darkness. Everything around them was in chaos like a busy city, with countless spells and magic weapons flying everywhere. A group of younger brothers surrounded him and tried to kill him. Fortunately, with the help of the Black Skull Demon Lord, they were able to escape danger.

However, when he was leaving the siege, a voice came into his ears.

It turned out to be "Master Pei" from the Beast Taming Valley. In gratitude for Lin Shan's care over the past two days, he returned the favor by secretly pointing him to a clear path. Although he did not explicitly say which coastline was guarding the void, Lin Shan was still able to guess the location with his intelligence.

I have to say that Master Pei is a really good old man. He will never delay repaying a favor. Besides, Lin Shan is just a magic foundation-building cultivator, so letting him go will not affect the overall situation.

Later, they went around in circles, stopped and walked, avoided encirclement and pursuit everywhere, and finally successfully escaped from the mainland and entered the East China Sea.

The East China Sea is still under the control of the demonic camp. The righteous coalition is recovering lost territory in the eastern inland, while at the same time chasing and intercepting the defeated troops everywhere. I believe that before the inland is completely digested, the East China Sea is still safe for the time being.

However, when we think about the current situation, I'm afraid anyone with a discerning eye can see it.

The East China Sea is probably no longer defensible.

It was a matter of time.

The Demonic Path suffered heavy losses in this battle. The loss of the eastern territory of the Song Dynasty was equivalent to the collapse of the "inland family and sect coalition" in their own camp. Coupled with the casualties suffered by the East China Sea monks and the direct troops of the three sects of the Demonic Path, their vitality was completely destroyed.

They no longer have the capital to compete with the righteous camp.

Lin Shan was worried about the future and the safety of "Ma Sword Master", not knowing whether he was alive or dead.

That night, three Yuanying stage cultivators besieged him alone, which was extremely dangerous. Even the "King of Dharma" at that time could not match them, so he had to summon the "woman in lotus skirt", the so-called shadow of the Buddha, to come.

But as a mere swordsman, could he survive this?
"Alas, I almost thought I would find a Nascent Soul Stage backer, but I just became his disciple..."

Lin Shan looked bleak, and he seemed to be beginning to doubt himself. Was he really "poisonous"? Did he have a physique that would bring disaster?

When he was at the Lin family in Qinghe County, Lin Fan and the pawn shop owner took the blame for him. Later, when he was traveling around the world, his escort team was robbed, and Master Pu also suffered with him and his whereabouts were unknown. Later, when he was traveling from the imperial capital to Yichuan, not only did his companion Huang Xianshi die, but all six members of the team died, including the "woman in the bamboo hat" who was killed by him in the Gongsun family. Later, when the good and the evil were fighting, he finally got close to the head of the Black Lotus Sect, but in the end, this leg was gone.
Lin Shan couldn't help but glance at the group of people around him guiltily. When they set out from the East China Sea, they had more than a hundred people under their command, and it was very lively and bustling with people following them. Now they have fled back to the East China Sea in a panic, with only more than twenty people left. How miserable it is.

Phew~~ Fortunately, they don’t know about my own experience, otherwise they would have abandoned me.

The Black Skull Demon Lord next to him saw that he was uneasy and thought that he was still worried about Ma Jiansheng, so he comforted him for the first time.

"Think positively. Your new cheap master may not have a simple background. He won't die so easily."

"Oh?"

Lin Shan suddenly came back to his senses and looked at the Black Skeleton Demon Lord beside him. Seeing the swaying state of its soul fire, it didn't seem like he was just saying it casually.

"How do you make that judgment?"

"There is no concrete basis for this, but some of his characteristics reminded me of some ancient legends."

Lin Shan couldn't help but become curious. He knew that the Black Skull Demon Lord had traveled to many worlds and had unmatched experience. He also knew a thing or two about many ancient secrets.

"Have you ever heard of the term 'sword cultivator'?" The Black Skull Demon Lord turned his head and stared at him.

"Sword cultivator?" Lin Shan thought for a moment and answered uncertainly according to his own understanding:

"You mean the kind where the natal magic weapon is a sword, which is kept in the dantian at all times, and is taken out when flying or fighting an enemy. Apart from this, there is nothing else on the body, and the focus is only on refining the sword."

"No! What you mean is that they are not sword cultivators. They are just disguised as sword cultivators. In fact, they are still immortal cultivators under the immortal civilization system."

The Black Skull Demon Lord looked at the distant horizon, where flocks of seagulls and schools of fish jumped and tumbled. His thoughts scattered in an instant and his tone became vicissitudes of life and distant.

"The real sword cultivators were the protagonists of the world several epochs ago. They comprehended the way of the sword, tempered their sword hearts, sublimated their sword intentions, condensed their sword potential, and constructed their own sword domains. What they cultivated in their bodies was the sword essence, which is a completely different cultivation system from ours."

"I once traveled to an extremely ancient world. There was a ruin left over from the last era. There were vague records about the past eras, which left a deep impression on me."

"It is said that in the Void World, a Chaos Era lasts 129.6 million years. Each Chaos Era has its own cultivation system. For example, the last Era was the Warlock Shaman Civilization, and the last Era was the Blood Path Shura Civilization. There are also Confucianism, Sword, Witchcraft, Martial Arts, and so on."

"And our era is the immortal civilization. With the influence of some previous eras, some shadows of ancient eras occasionally reappear in the immortal civilization, but they are just covered with a skin, but in fact, they are still immortal cultivators at heart."

"Just as you know now, the so-called Confucian techniques, blood techniques, body cultivation techniques, voodoo curses, etc. in the cultivation world are all unorthodox methods derived from the assimilation of the immortal civilization."

"Look at the warriors in the mortal world now. The highest realm they can cultivate is the Xiantian realm. There is no way forward to go any further. That's because the protagonist of this era is the immortal civilization. Warriors are destined not to rise. Unless they change their appearance and cultivate immortality, they will only return to dust after a hundred years."

"The general trend of the era, chosen by heaven, favored by destiny, changes with each era."

……

After listening to it, Lin Shan suddenly realized and at the same time was extremely envious of the Black Skull Demon Lord's experience. He even knew such secrets, which was more than some living fossils and antiques. What else didn't he know?
It seems that I have to squeeze this guy hard and make him spill everything in his head.
The Black Skull Demon Lord also noticed that since Lin Shan had the innate spiritual treasure, his dependence on him seemed to have greatly decreased. In fact, the other person's formation level was even higher than his. He gradually became dispensable, so he hurriedly tried to find ways to show his value.

The two of them each have their own ulterior motives, and neither wants to leave the other for the time being, so they compete with each other in secret.

At this time, Lin Shan immediately asked a question: "So what do you mean by real swordsmanship?"

"Yes, it's your cheap master. He already has the embryonic form of a sword cultivator!"

The Black Skull Demon Lord spared no effort to explain to him: "That night, he not only demonstrated the realm of sword heart clarity and sword will soaring into the sky, but I could even feel the sword force from him!"

"Sword power? Is there any mysterious connection?" Lin Shan didn't quite understand the connection.

"Potential is the external manifestation of spiritual power, and has the ability to stir up the vitality of heaven and earth."

The Black Skull Demon Lord gave a hint, and Lin Shan suddenly understood.

“Stirring up the vital energy of heaven and earth is a miraculous power that only occurs in the Nascent Soul stage, and it is a power that only magical skills can produce!”

The Black Skull Demon Lord nodded and continued to explain the secret to him:

"In the immortal civilization system, each stage has its own characteristics: the Qi training stage transforms the spiritual consciousness, the foundation building stage releases the spiritual consciousness, the golden elixir stage purifies the magic power, and the Yuanying stage has a golden body."

"At the Nascent Soul stage, the combat power of practitioners of the same level varies greatly. Aside from the external factors of magical powers and treasures, if we only talk about ourselves, our comprehension and understanding of the momentum and how to use it will most likely determine the outcome of a battle."

"And the Dharmakāya is the external manifestation of the power, which can help the cultivators better control the vitality of heaven and earth and help them improve the power of their magic. Some people's Dharmakāya is restrained within the body, some people's Dharmakāya phantom is displayed outside, and there are very few geniuses who condense the Dharmakāya golden body, and some even have the Dharmakāya that can leave the body and walk, comparable to an external incarnation."

"So, as you progress in the later stages, understanding becomes even more important. It affects every aspect of your spiritual practice, and the gap will widen as time goes by."

"Hiss~" Lin Shan took a breath of cold air. Doesn't that mean that the battle time is likely to be gradually shortened as the battle progresses to the later stages? Even some extremely powerful and powerful people can suppress the enemy with just one move, without the enemy even having a chance to resist?
"Don't worry too much. Although there are true geniuses, the world of cultivation is extremely vast, and the chances of you running into one are slim. Most cultivators are mediocre, and there are very few like me who have fought their way to the throne from obscurity."

Lin Shan looked at the boasting skeleton in strangeness. If you were really as powerful as you said, why would you have failed in your expedition to the "Three-Headed Cerberus" territory in the third world of hell, and been beaten so badly that your original body dared not even say a word, and could only launch sneak attacks in another world to save face?

The Black Skull Demon Lord did not notice his gaze, but continued to talk to himself: "Your cheap master was born with sword power, and he has the ability to control the vitality of heaven and earth. He is in line with the sword civilization, which is equivalent to the Nascent Soul stage. At the same time, his memory took over the body of the late Nascent Soul Dharma King, and he also has the huge magic power of the Nascent Soul stage. So his real strength is definitely not bad. Even if he can't fight three people alone for the time being, I think there is still a great chance that he can save his life."

"However, he is not following the path of a cultivator who only changes the soup but not the essence. Instead, he is a sword cultivator and a cultivator who coexists. This heaven-defying path will be very difficult to take in the future. After all, the immortal path is the protagonist in this era. The sword path, a system of the ancient era, was accidentally born and is likely to be targeted by the heaven, resulting in continuous heavenly punishment."

"Of course, although this road is tortuous and bizarre, if he can really maintain his courage and perseverance, his future achievements will probably be immeasurable, and he may even grow into a truly great figure in the heavens."

Lin Shan was horrified, but he couldn't help but wonder:
"We cultivators endure heavenly punishment and thunder tribulations. Once we get through them, we will be rewarded with the nectar of heaven and earth, which will improve our aptitude and understanding and pave the way for the future. My master was targeted by the heavens. Logically speaking, even if he managed to withstand it, he would not receive any reward, right? Then how can he improve his potential in the future?"

The Black Skull Demon Lord hesitated and guessed uncertainly:

"He is an outlier, and the Heavenly Dao will definitely suppress him. There is no doubt that he will not receive compensation after the catastrophe. But since he can awaken and embark on the path of sword cultivation, maybe
Is there a legacy from the past life? The legacy of the Sword Dao Era? A dark hand behind the conspiracy? A test subject of an ancient powerful being? An investment from the upper world?"

The Black Skull Demon Lord listed several guesses in succession, but at this moment, Lin Shan suddenly had a flash of inspiration and couldn't help but come up with an absurd idea:

"Do you think that all the above mentioned things are possible?"

"Fuck!!!"

The Black Skull Demon Lord was so frightened by his idea that he almost fell ill. Then he suddenly realized what was going on and quickly grabbed him and told him:
"Quick, hurry up, immediately, cut off all causal connections with your cheap master, otherwise not only you will suffer, but everyone around you will suffer as well!"

"Listen to my advice, the water is very deep here, you can't control it!"

"Is it really that serious?" Lin Shan was also shocked by it. This was just a guess. Wasn't it an exaggeration?

But the Black Skull Demon Lord was so anxious that he jumped up and down:

"Of course, this kind of ancient conspiracy involving complicated power struggles and even the change of eras is not something you can bear. You are really a worry. I even doubt whether you are a disaster star."

"No! You are still entangled with strange creatures! You are a disaster!"

The soul fire of the Black Skull Demon Lord burned rapidly. At this moment, his thoughts were about to diverge, and his brain was spinning faster and faster:

“Not only that, you used the curse magic in front of me before. You are just a young man in the foundation-building stage, and you used the sect-suppressing magic without even casting the pre-casting swing. Could it be that you have already condensed the magic seed???”

"My true form is a skeleton from the Nascent Soul stage. Even the bone path magical power that the tribe has awakened, I haven't condensed it into a magical power seed. How come you already have it?"

"Ridiculous, this is ridiculous. This magical seed cannot be made by you. There must be a powerful person in the immortal world who taught you the method. Maybe you have already received investment from a big shot!!!"

The Black Skull Demon Lord is indeed an old monster who travels around the world. After staying with Lin Shan for so long, he can actually guess some of his cards from clues, and this is even far beyond his limit.

At this moment, the soul fire in its skull began to burn wildly again, and it continued to overdraw its soul power to deduce.

"The powerful immortal who signed the contract with our Hell World, his curse power was born from the witch civilization several epochs ago. Maybe he is a big shot in the immortal world who likes archaeology."

"Generally speaking, people who don't focus on improving their immortal cultivation and prefer to delve deeply into other civilizations are mostly ultimate old monsters who have lived for countless years. Their immortal cultivation can't be improved any further, so they plan to find another way to learn from."

"And you are appreciated by such a person, and he personally teaches you the Dharma and invests in you to improve your magical power of cursing, which brings trouble and misfortune to others. Maybe you are a disaster star! The source of trouble! You are the best at doing this! My previous guess was correct!"

"Even weird creatures smell your scent and rush over to you, trying to get close to you. I, I, I, I am so unlucky. How could I have to deal with something like you?"

……

"No, who are you calling a toy? You are the toy!"

Lin Shan slowly and methodically pushed aside the trembling bony fingers of the Black Skeleton Demon Lord. He simply stopped pretending, with a green glow in his eyes and a weird smile on his face, he suddenly leaned forward!
"scare?"

The Black Skull Demon King was so frightened that he collapsed to the ground. For a moment he was weak and helpless, like a lamb about to be slaughtered.

Lin Shan laughed out loud, pointing at the skeleton on the ground with his mouth wide open, and was very satisfied with the prank he had just played.

But my back was covered with cold sweat.

Isn't he panicking? He is panicking!

But does he dare to admit it?

That must not be possible.

Lin Shan remained calm and composed, and even lied without thinking: "Brother Black Skull, you are worrying too much. I can use the sect-defending magical power not because of my own ability, but because of a treasure."

"What treasure?"

The Black Skeleton Demon Lord calmed down a little at this time, but still did not dare to approach Lin Shan. It seemed that he was afraid of ropes for ten years after being bitten by a snake once.

Lin Shan thought about it and decided to take out the "Seven Arrows on the Head and Calligraphy Man".

In fact, because he has the seed of magical power, he can curse others by making a straw man. However, this "straw man" is a treasure inherited from the Wudao Sect and is connected to the fairy weapon in the void. It has an additional "peek" function, which allows it to detect the enemy's status from a long distance and understand the progress of its own curse.

It is something that can be dispensable, but it is better to have than not to have, and it is more or less a treasure.

The Black Skull Demon Lord just watched and didn't dare to touch the "straw man". He felt that this thing was given to Lin Shan by a powerful being from the immortal world. This kind of "investment" that already had an owner would be unlucky for anyone who touched it. If it ruined the boss's plan, it would surely die miserably.

"Come on, brother, take it and take a closer look. I really didn't lie to you!"

"No, no, take it away quickly. This is something given to you by the Immortal Realm. I can't touch it. I don't want to die."

The Black Skeleton Demon Lord rolled and crawled on the deck, retreating frantically, as if he was afraid of being contaminated by some horror.

Lin Shan was speechless, realizing that this guy seemed to be possessed by a demon. He immediately put away the straw man and took out the virtual star plate.

"Come on, brother, take this and have a look."

"okay!"

The Black Skull Demon Lord jumped up immediately and excitedly stepped forward to take it.

"Get lost!"

Lin Shan slapped the guy aside and took back the magic treasure angrily.

I knew it, this guy is still a thief with evil intentions!
The Black Skull Demon Lord finally reacted and couldn't help but feel embarrassed. His reaction to seeing the innate spiritual treasure just now was completely subconscious, and any fear was thrown out of his mind.

It seems that I am also a person who values ​​money more than life.

This time, it made it recognize itself more clearly and became more determined to obtain the innate spiritual treasure.

Screw the weirdness and conspiracy. In front of the visible benefits, these unknown dangers are all bullshit! We skeletons only fight for the day, who cares about who is in front and behind?
He was scared to death just now, but now when he saw the virtual star disk, he immediately became excited as if he had been injected with chicken blood. It turned out that the greedy nature of the creatures in hell was not groundless.

The two of them each had their own ulterior motives, but continued to be hypocritically warm on the surface.

……

Time flies by.

A week later, they arrived at a volcanic archipelago deep in the East China Sea, and the Demonic Path’s temporary headquarters in the East China Sea was already in sight.

(End of this chapter)