Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 66 The Little White Hair Who Can't Leave

Lu Xingzhou silently rowed his wheelchair to the edge of the pond, watching the ripples spread and disappear where Shen Tang had dived, not knowing what he was thinking.

The impulse at that moment not only made Shen Tang feel upset, but he was also confused.
I had been suppressing my desires before, mainly because almost all my thoughts were on treating my legs and I really had no mood for anything else.

But now my legs are better... I think I can consider something else...

In fact, for men, whether there is someone in their heart is not that important...

Moreover, the shadow of that person has become increasingly faint these days.

Lu Xingzhou's mind was a little blank for a while, but he finally shook his head, took out the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, and got down to business first.

Everyone was gone, so what was the point of just standing there in a daze? The Ten Thousand Souls Banner was half damaged, and he needed to repair it.

Treasures like the Ten Thousand Souls Banner rely heavily on the spirit, and their materials are relatively fragile, at least at this low level. Damage has been common over the years. This time the damage is more severe than usual, but repairing it isn't difficult. A strong main spirit can repair it, though it will take a while longer.

This banner has never had a good main soul. Lu Xingzhou has always used the strongest ghost as a temporary substitute for the main soul, but this time he did not plan to use fourth-grade cultivators such as Jin Mingxiu or Bai Jingtian.

Because this time there is an interesting soul... the Fire Demon.

Killing someone and taking their soul depends on the strength of the deceased, and there's no way to nurture them. This Flame Demon itself is a soul, living and growing within the essence of fire. It's a spirit that can continue to grow.

However, after being absorbed into the Ten Thousand Souls Banner and having its consciousness erased, its properties will also change.

That kind of blazing Yang Fire cannot possibly exist in the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, as the banner itself would be burned... but it can be transformed into Soul Fire, or other properties similar to Nether Fire.

Lu Xingzhou once again realized the greatness of the Yin-Yang Ultimate Intentions Technique. This transformation from yang to yin was also within the realm of martial arts. A day ago, he hadn't been able to do this at all.

Now you can try it, and it will be easier after breaking through the sixth level.

Lu Xingzhou stretched out his finger and touched the center of the eyebrows of the small flame demon in the soul flag. The fiery breath that was originally incompatible with the soul flag slowly transformed into a strange black flame.

A pattern of black flames faintly appeared on the white banner, which looked quite cool.

Black Flame turned into a ghost face and said respectfully, "Master..."

Lu Xingzhou tested it and was a little surprised: "This is not soul fire, I don't think I have seen this kind... What kind of fire is this?"

He only reverses yin and yang, he cannot create any fire by himself. What it can be transformed into depends entirely on the Flame Demon himself.

Black Flame answered honestly, "This is Black Flame... The final form should be... Skyless Black Flame."

Lu Xingzhou pointed to the vines by the pond that had shattered his leg bones and said, "Try burning it."

The black flames in the Ten Thousand Souls Banner spread silently, and the vines disappeared without a trace, as if they had never existed.

Lu Xingzhou himself took a deep breath.

It is not certain how strong this black flame is, but its properties are extremely strange. Although you can't feel any temperature, it is actually extremely hot. Most people who are not prepared will be killed by it.

What will happen once it evolves to the so-called "Skyless Black Flame"?
Lu Xingzhou silently placed the Ten Thousand Souls Banner in the pond and gave the Flame Demon an order: "How long will it take to absorb spiritual energy and repair itself?"

The Flame Demon answered honestly, "It would take 49 days to repair it myself, but with the help of this water, it would take about ten days."

Ten days... Lu Xingzhou felt his legs, which were still numb and itchy. Besides not being able to use any strength, he had not yet adapted to the discomfort of being hot and cold at the same time. He wondered how he would be able to recover after ten days.

…………

For practitioners, ten days is just a blink of an eye.

The pills and talismans that Lu Xingzhou had accumulated had already been used up in the various battles in recent days. Ten days alone were not enough to replenish the reserves by refining pills and talismans. He also needed to spare time to refine the Melting Snow Returning Origin Pill for the Tianxing Sword Sect to enter the high-end pill market.

After breaking through to the sixth level, Lu Xingzhou was able to refine more pills.

The alchemy notes and recipes left by the original owner of the cave are also very valuable information. Among them are many types of instant recovery medicines. Lu Xingzhou directly gave up the healing pills and qi-invigorating pills he had always kept on hand, and instead refined higher-grade instant recovery pills for backup.

And he has already begun to try to refine soul-enhancing elixirs.

This time, his soul was injured and he had no medicine to treat it. Instead, the pill given by An Nuo was barely effective. This reminded Lu Xingzhou that there would be more enemies involving the soul in the future, so it is better to be prepared.

There is no rush for talismans for the time being. After all, you can just buy higher quality ones from others, and they are more useful.

In fact, after breaking through the sixth level, Lu Xingzhou can already cast the lower three levels of spells instantly, and the reserves of those low-end talismans can also be reduced to save effort.

Lu Xingzhou had always felt that the threshold between the seventh and sixth rank was the one where qualitative change occurred, with the previous seventh, eighth, and ninth ranks lacking any noticeable qualitative change. Yin Yang Ji Yi Gong didn't even mention the nine-rank system. Instead, when referring to this threshold, the term "qin heart" was repeatedly used. The meaning of this term was difficult to decipher. If I were to compare it to online immortal cultivation literature, it seemed this hurdle was more akin to foundation building.

So does the third grade count as a golden elixir? It's just that there's no clear sign of a successful elixir, so the concept has gradually faded.

Therefore, many figures like Shen Tangjin, Mingxiu Baijingtian, Wu Jianchen, and Xuanhe Zhenren are stuck at the Fourth Rank, and it seems very difficult for them to sprint to the Third Rank. Dugu Qingli needs to experience the world and seek the path to the Third Rank, which shows that even the Holy Land has to treat this hurdle with caution.

The top three ranks are also the standard for entering the Daqian Heroes List. No matter how good the fourth rank is, you can only be called a rookie. When you get older, you will be called an old man who is still stuck at the fourth rank.

If the top three grades are considered golden elixirs, these phenomena can be explained. After all, it is a typical hurdle no matter which world view you use.

A key reason why a super-grade technique is considered super-grade is that it transcends the forced nine-grade system and points to a more correct core of cultivation. From the perspective of a super-grade technique, the so-called sixth grade is just the beginning.

"I'm here to get today's portion of the Melting Snow Guiyuan Pill. Is it ready?" Dugu Qingli's voice came from a distance.

Lu Xingzhou turned his head and looked. As Dugu Qingli walked along, the water on her body automatically turned into icy mist. With her white hair and blue eyes, the scene looked like a scene from an ACG animation. It was really beautiful.

Shen Tang hasn't come these days. I don't know if it's because the sect is really busy or because he was in a bad mood after being kissed on the face that day. Anuo was the one responsible for delivering the herbs and getting the elixirs. I don't know why Dugu Qingli came to snatch Anuo's job today.

Lu Xingzhou turned back to look at the alchemy furnace: "Have you made a breakthrough?"

"Yeah." Dugu Qingli stood beside him, his tone very calm: "I wanted to resign, but Shen Tang refused, so she asked me to come to you to talk to you. I'll also help her get the pill by the way."

Lu Xingzhou asked, "Did Shen Tang tell you that there would be a conflict with Fenxiang Tower in the near future? Fenxiang Tower is a third-rank sect with a wide network of contacts. If Shen Tang doesn't have you, he'll lose without even having to fight."

"said."

"Then you still want to leave?"

Dugu Qingli was silent for a moment. "This kind of sectarian conflict will continue to happen all the time. Even if the Tianxing Sword Sect rises, it will continue to fight against other third-, second-, and even first-rank sects. It's endless. When will it end?"

"Are you sure it's just this factor and has nothing to do with me?"

“…It has nothing to do with you.”

"Since it has nothing to do with me, why did Shen Tang ask you to ask me, and you came?"

Dugu Qingli tightened his grip on the scabbard.

She doesn't know either.

Originally, her mission had nothing to do with Lu Xingzhou. She could just resign to Shen Tang. Why bother about what Lu Xingzhou said?

But Shen Tang asked her to come and ask Lu Xingzhou, so she came anyway.

Lu Xingzhou was still looking at the pill fire and said calmly, "Master, when you asked you to come out to train, did you mean to experience the world?"

"Yes."

"Then what kind of worldly experience can you expect from traveling alone? Observing other people's grievances and hatreds from afar? You might as well find a storybook and read it. It would have the same effect."

Dugu Qingli was silent.

She didn't understand why her master wanted her to experience the world of love. Anyway, it seemed to be of no use in the past two months.

No...it's a little useful...

At least the two scenes of the day when the wheelchair was shaking and later when he pressed on me, flashed through my mind again and again these days, and I almost couldn't maintain my peace of mind even when I was trying to break through.

Does this count?

You have to understand that for someone like Hanchuan, maintaining a mind as pure as ice and without ripples is fundamental, without requiring any deliberate practice of mind-clearing techniques. Even a grudge like being stabbed by someone wouldn't affect her daily thoughts. Going from the fifth rank to the fourth rank wasn't a particularly significant hurdle; her breakthrough wouldn't require seclusion; she could have achieved it simply by meditating in her room.

But this time, he actually had to find the Sword Sect's secret room, and with the help of the most fierce sword intent, he had to banish all thoughts and get rid of the messy images in his mind.

Lu Xingzhou turned to look at her dazed expression and concluded, "So, if your training isn't here, then where is it?"

Dugu Qingli opened his mouth, wanting to say something but nothing came out.

Could it be that Master's past life love means finding a man? How can it be explained like that?
Then why doesn’t the master look for it himself!

(End of this chapter)