Daoist Master of Qing Xuan

Jing Shu never thought of squandering her mana to save the lives of ants, but after seeing what Shen Lian had done, she started to feel a different emotion, thinking how different this man was.

Kui Li felt rather indifferent. After knowing Shen Lian for a period of time, she was no stranger to seeing Shen Lian do such a thing.

The trio then departed as their spiritual shapes vanished in the clouds. They left in haste, feeling carefree.

The distance between Zhou country and Diqiu was large in the eyes of a mortal. For cultivators like them, it was only as far as their neighboring house.

In that present moment, the water of Xia Canal in Diqiu was still flowing gloriously with its spiritual vigor erupting in the canal water. However, Shen Lian could clearly feel that the spiritual vigor of Xia Canal had actually deteriorated significantly.

The fate of Xia was no longer in its prime. Diqiu had turned quiet, and its fortification had turned black. Pure black, like charcoal ink.

Black was mysterious and unpredictable. It was also hidden, evasive and complicated.

On a white paper, other colors would be so obvious; on a piece of black paper, it could only show white in contrast, deeming this color inconsumable. As soon as the trio of Shen entered Diqiu, they soon became the most striking white which was inconsumable by the black.

Jing Shu was a Kunpeng so she could transform into a giant Kun fish and swim in any water. But she never liked the Xia canal in Diqiu, because its water which was apparently running with spiritual vigor, had a ‘bitter’ taste.

This ‘bitterness’ was not the ‘bitterness’ on the taste buds, but more like the ‘bitterness’ of human lives, like hopelessness and desperation upon oneself.

She was a demon who laughed and cried as she wished, yet her heart was currently so compressed she could not cry out loud.

The structure of Diqiu was crisscrossed. Its streets were very broad but once entering the city, all its surrounding was blurring dark mist, so a normal person would not be able to see far into it.

Fortunately, none of the trio there were normal people.

Jing Shu looked at Shen Lian with her glowing eyes and said, “This place is so weird.”

Shen Lian lifted his hand and said calmly, “Looks like Emperor Xia has perfected his Primeval Demon Technique. I am looking forward to this.”

His other reason of coming to Diqiu was to have a close look at the Primeval Demon Technique. Why would he do this? Naturally, this was to peek at the Primeval Lord of Heaven from the sideline, who was also the Yuqing Daoist Master.

The Primeval Demon was the heart demon of the Primeval Lord of Heaven. Although this was cut off by the Primeval Lord of Heaven, the implication between two must still remain strong.

Of course, this thought appeared when he was in Biyou Palace, but he had forgotten about it upon his arrival here. All that was left was his curiosity about the Primeval Demon Technique and fulfilling his promise towards Jing Shu.

He did this mainly because the Daoist Master was too powerful that he feared that his own thoughts would be noticed by the Daoist Master. Biyou Palace and Qing Xuan Daoist sect were the only places where he could possibly think of Yuqing Daoist Master and go unnoticed by the Daoist Master. If even these two places could not insulate the peaks of the Daoist master, he could only sit and expect his doom or pray for his mercy.

Even if he was just an ant in the eyes of a Daoist master, he still wanted to struggle a little. Additionally, since he was chosen by the Shangqing Daoist Master, he must not dissipate so easily. Even if his ending was destined to be miserable, at least he put up an effort. Should he be turned into dust, he could leave with no regrets and reservation.

As soon as Jing Shu heard of the Primeval Demon Technique, the thought of it instantly rid her of the claustrophobic feeling in Diqiu city earlier. She said, “The king of this country is practicing the Primeval Demon Technique? How is this possible? The Primeval Demon should not have existed anymore.”

Shen Lian gazed upon the far end of the Xia canal. In the blurry mist, there would be a palace where Emperor Xia would be in. He replied Jing Shu with a voice that could stop the tides of Xia canal, “You should know very well, the presence of the Primeval Demon could leave its tracks in any part of the world. It is impossible to completely remove its existence. Maybe Emperor Xia himself was born from the remnants of these Primeval Demonic thoughts.”

His words were filled with some sense of envy. After all, such existence could always make an epic comeback as long as it was not washed off from the River of Time, even if all its Spiritual shape was devastated. Just like the time before Buddha attained detachment, nothing could wipe off his Parinirmita-vaśavartin.

The silent Kui Li finally spoke, “It is night time already.”

In the current Diqiu, there was no difference between day and night, but this nightfall had happened too quickly and abruptly. The reason Kui Li said it was night time was that the mist above had dissipated, showing a shining bright moon. The big trees in Diqiu were swaying in the breeze. The water dews on it turned into icy frost due to the extreme coldness of the moonlight. The frosts refracted the moonlight and created a dazed and surreptitious mood to the city.

Other cultivators would have been freaked out by this environment and fled the city. Cultivators were those who valued their lives more than anything. If one’s lifespan was long, many would not take risks in anything.

Nevertheless, both Kui Li and Jing Shu were not those timid beings. They were true blue demon creatures. Especially Kui Li who had experienced so much that she never feared any obstacle, as what did not kill her only made her stronger on this road of cultivation.

Jing Shu showed an unusually stern look. As soon as her chest was free from the heavy load earlier, she stared at the bright moon and murmured, “Such a pure power of Taiyin, just like it was inherited from Heng’e.”

Heng’e was the wife of Da Yi. She was one of the prominent ancient fairies like the Queen Mother of the West. Everyone knew that Da Yi was invincible with his Mystic bow, but they never knew that his wife Heng’e was an almighty too. Her cultivation level might even exceed that of Da Yi, though she was lacking in real combat experience.

Ever since Da Yi perished, Heng’e built a Daoist palace in the void and named it ‘Guanghan’. It might not be as majestic as Yuxu Palace and Bajing Palace, but it was definitely comparable to Palace Yaoshi and Palace of the Undead.

Jing Shu was concerned that this moon had some connection with Guanghan Palace. Although Heng’e might have ceased to exist, Guanghan Palace was passed down through generations. Since Jing Shu was unable to return to Palace Yaoshi, she would not want to see any more small and old things.

Shen Lian remained calm after hearing this. He merely replied, “This was the Lunar Deity of the Netherworld. Even if she was related to Heng’e, we need not care about her.”

Jing Shu saw the calmness in Shen Lian’s eyes and calmed down. She imagined that the situation Shen Lian and her were in was more deadly than offending all major forces in all worlds.

Armed with this thought, Jing Shu instantly felt more relieved. She said, “Let me test the strength of this one.”

At the same time, the Lunar Deity who had become the imperial consort was on top of the palace. Next to her was Emperor Xia dressed in black emperor garment. She spoke gently, “It seems if you do not kill this Shen Lian, you will not become the true Primeval Demon.”

Emperor Xia answered, “I am just ‘me’. I will never become the Primeval Demon. Since the Netherworld did not want me to become its master, it shall perish with Shen Lian.”