Chapter 0621: Saving Shi Qionghua
As soon as Ning Cheng stepped inside, he felt his longevity disappearing like water flowing out a leaky bucket. The Eroding Life Cliff sure lived up to its fearsome reputation. Just as that shop assistant had told him, even someone with a long life would run out of lifespan in just a few days inside this place.
Moreover, Ning Cheng could also acutely make out that this erosion of life span was utterly different from that he encountered in the Sea of Twilight. This place simply consumed longevity, while containing no kind of law that one could understand and sense. Within the Sea of Twilight, although it also shaved away at one’s longevity, it happened due to the flow of time, something fundamentally different from this place.
In other words, this place consistently consumed one’s life span; however, the Sea of Twilight, consumed one’s ‘time’ that flowed out of them.
Feeling the rapid consumption of life span, Ning Cheng felt worried. Even as a cultivator who touched the surface of the Laws of Time, he could not stop or even slow down the consumption of his longevity. Could Shi Qionghua survive in such a place?
Ning Cheng no longer felt concerned about damaging the foundations of his Celestial Essence and Sea of Consciousness and forced his Spiritual Consciousness out while rushing forward.
After half an incense stick worth of time, Ning Cheng suddenly came to a stop and saw Chasing Bull, followed by Shi Qionghua.
Chasing Bull did not show even the slightest movement and lay slumped on the ground with the barest hint of life. As for Shi Qionghua, she sat about two feet from Chasing Bull, also not showing any movement. Moreover, her body did not give off even a hint of aura, or even any fluctuations of life whatsoever. Yet her appearance and hair remained the same.
Although the Eroding Life Cliff sucked away her longevity, it could not take away her looks.
Ning Cheng took a step forward and immediately reached next to Shi Qionghua in one stop. Then carefully lifting Shi Qionghua with one arm, Ning Cheng then grabbed Chasing Bull with the other before stimulating the Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds to its maximum potential and rushing out.
In just over a dozen breaths, Ning Cheng made it out of the Eroding Life Cliff.
“You…… How were you able to get out of the Eroding Life Cliff?” A cultivator passing by the Eroding Life Cliff blurted out in shock as he saw Ning Cheng emerging from inside. Although cultivators who managed to exit the Eroding Life Cliff were a minority, it did not mean such cultivators did not exist. However, each of those cultivators was an earth-shattering figure. Yet, today, he actually met such a cultivator. Moreover, this cultivator even held a female cultivator in one of his hand and a giant bull in the other.
Ning Cheng was in no mood to stop and chat with this cultivator, with another wave from the Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds, he instantly disappeared without even a trace left behind. After forcefully stimulating his Spiritual Consciousness to its limit, Ning Cheng could access around twenty to thirty feet around him inside. Otherwise, how could he manage to find his way out after entering deep into the Eroding Life Cliff? Therefore, Ning Cheng did not feel surprised on seeing the cultivator’s reaction, as one really would find it hard-pressed to search for the way out using one’s Spiritual Consciousness. If one ended up going in too deep, it really would become impossibly hard to find an exit.
Ning Cheng did not go too far and found a broken cave somewhere near to the cliff’s entrance. Dropping a few Defensive Array Discs at the entrance to the cave, Ning Cheng quickly entered the cave and dropped Chasing Bull to the floor.
“Many thanks, master, for saving me…..” Chasing Bull, who lost god-knows how much of its longevity within the Eroding Life Cliff, finally managed to speak; it really living up to its species as a Longevity Bull.
Ning Cheng took out a jade bottle containing a drop of Glimmer of Dawn Ice Essence and threw it towards Chasing Bull with the words, “After you refine this drop of Glimmer of Dawn Ice Essence, go to the side, and try to heal.”
He had no idea if the Glimmer of Dawn Ice Essence could help restore Chasing Bull’s lost lifespan, but when his body grew old within the Sea of Twilight, a single drop of Glimmer of Dawn Ice Essence helped him recover in the shortest possible time. Therefore, it should also have some effect in restoring the lost longevity.
Chasing Bull carefully grabbed the jade bottle containing the Glimmer of Dawn Ice Essence within its jaws and weakly dragged its body to the side. Although it had entered the Eroding Life Cliff on the Mistress’s orders, it could not truly escape from inside with the Mistress. In case its master got angry with him because of it, it would not have ended well for it.
Ning Cheng then put three drops of Glimmer of Dawn Ice Essence into Shi Qionghua’s mouth. The moment those three drops of Glimmers of Dawn Ice Essence touched her mouth, they instantly transformed into Spiritual Liquid and quickly got absorbed into her body. However, Shi Qionghua showed no signs of waking up.
Instead, after Chasing Bull swallowed the drop of Glimmers of Dawn Ice Essence, it immediately sobered up and stood up shaking from head to toe.
Ning Cheng looked at Chasing Bull in doubt, “Since the Glimmer of Dawn Ice Essence works so well on you, why does it not work on Shi Qionghua?”
“Master, Mistress sealed her vitality using a secret art on the second day of entering.” Chasing Bull immediately answered.
“Sealing her vitality with a secret art?” Ning Cheng could not understand.
“Even I don’t know. It’s what Mistress said before she sealed her vitality. Mistress said that rather than letting this place slowly erode her longevity, it would be better to seal her vitality a step earlier. With one’s vitality sealed away, it would also mean that one’s longevity would also disappear. The Eroding Life Cliff consumed longevity; since one did not have any longevity left, it would also have no way to consume it.” Chasing Bull relayed Shi Qionghua’s words to Ning Cheng.
Ning Cheng remained silent; after all, even Glimmer of Dawn Ice Essence cannot bring people back to life. Although Shi Qionghua sealed her vitality with a secret method herself, it was similar to putting herself in a state of death. At the same time, Ning Cheng felt sure that the Glimmer of Dawn Ice Essence would be helpful to Shi Qionghua’s body.
Although Shi Qionghua’s body did not give off even half a shred of life-like aura, Ning Cheng felt sure that Shi Qionghua had not actually died. He could still feel Shi Qionghua’s Spirit Soul. It was just that her Spirit Soul was in a sealed state and couldn’t recover for a while.
In any case, he had decided to save Shi Qionghua. Maybe he could take Qionghua back to the Everlasting Sacred Shrine. After all, Shi Qionghua most likely learned this sealing technique from the Everlasting Sacred Shrine.
But how could he reach the Everlasting Sacred Shrine? Right, he still had to refine the Starry Sky Wheel.
Just when he thought about the Starry Sky Wheel, Ning Cheng immediately thought about another treasure within his collection, the Essence of Wood. Ning Cheng, without even a shred of hesitation, took out the Essence of Wood.
After placing the Essence of Wood on Shi Qionghua’s glabella, Ning Cheng then started helping Shi Qionghua’s body to integrate with the Essence of Wood.
Three days later, Ning Cheng thoroughly used up the Essence of Wood, and to Ning Cheng’s surprise, Shi Qionghua’s face turned rosy and did not look pale like before. Not only that, but Shi Qionghua’s body also turned soft and did not feel stiff anymore.
This immediately boosted Ning Cheng’s confidence, and he promptly communicated with the Underworld Crow Ghost Rattan King, on how to obtain more Essence of Wood?
Unfortunately, Ning Cheng’s Underworld Crow Ghost Rattan King conveyed that it was still a low-level plant, and let Ning Cheng know that the Essence of Wood that he obtained from the Underworld Crow Ghost Rattan King had taken countless years to condense. In other words, if Ning Cheng wanted the same quantity of Essence of Wood, it would take a lot of time and require a significant accumulation of natural treasures.
Even though Ning Cheng realised that obtaining the Essence of Wood might be extremely difficult, he still felt a lot more relaxed. He felt more afraid of not have a direction. With direction, Ning Cheng felt confident to help Qionghua recover both her longevity and her Spirit Soul. He carefully picked up Shi Qionghua’s body and head out to open up a new cave in a safe place to refine the Starry Sky Disc. However, just when he picked her up, Ning Cheng felt a pulse within Shi Qionghua’s body.
Feeling this pulse made Ning Cheng almost ecstatic. It meant that Shi Qionghua only sealed away her Life Essence using her secret art. As long as he could find a way, Shi Qionghua would wake up completely.
Maybe he could wake Shi Qionghua up without the need to head to the Everlasting Sacred Shrine.
……
The largest starland within the Grand Spirit Heaven Starry Sky naturally was the Spirit Heaven Starland. However, the Spirit Heaven Starland was known for the Spirit Heaven Starry Sky City, but for the Nine Phoenix[1] Palace on the Nine Phoenix Emperor Mountain.
The Spirit Heaven Starry Sky City was one of the largest starry sky city within the Spirit Heaven Starland; however, the Grand Spirit Heaven Starry Skies’ premier Eternal-level Starry Sky Emperor did not live in the Spirit Heaven Starry Sky City, but in the Nine Phoenix Emperor Mountain. This Nine Phoenix Emperor Mountain contained a luxurious and splendid looking palace called the Nine Phoenix Palace, which was Yi Jiufeng’s residence.
A bold and laughter-filled voice rang outside the Nine Phoenix Emperor Mountain, “Chuan Xinlou came to visit Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix, and yet Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix actually sealed up the mountain. This definitely is not the right way to welcome guests, you know.”
As soon as the voice ended, Yi Jiufeng wearing a scarlet robe appeared outside Nine Phoenix Emperor Mountain and spoke to the middle-aged Confucian scholar with cupped fists, “Since Brother Levelled Heart came all the way here, then let this little sister treat you as the guest of honour. However, this little sister does not know why Brother Levelled Heart came here and hopes that you did not make this special trip to make trouble for this little sister. This little sister had already made it clear that no one can take the Wind Thunder Apricot from here.”
Chuan Xinlou, dressed in Confucian robes, stood calmly in the void. However, his Confucian robes moved without any wind, giving him an unrestrained and uninhibited quality. On hearing Yi Jiufeng’s words, he laughed and spoke up with a smile on his face, “Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix sure has an imaginative mind. However, I’m not here for the Wind Thunder Apricot at this time. If I had any intention for obtaining the Wind Thunder Apricot, I would have already taken action at the Immortal Jade Star and would not have waited until now to come here.”
“Brother Levelled Heart should open the window and speak up. Since you say that you’re not here for the Wind Thunder Apricot, then why are you here?” Yi Jiufeng truly had no idea why Chuan Xinlou came to the Nine Phoenix Emperor Mountain.
Chuan Xinlou held a faint smile over his face and spoke up, “I’m here to actually help Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix. If I’m not mistaken, Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix currently is in a very dire situation.”
Yi Jiufeng showed a sneer and spoke, “Just a Qian Jierui, I, Yi Jiufeng don’t have to put him in my eyes. He couldn’t do anything to me before, and he still can’t do anything to me now. This is the Grand Spirit Heaven Starry Sky, and we don’t fear his Devil Domain.”
Chuan Xinlou still spoke with a calm voice, “Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix, you don’t need to fool me. I know that you are not afraid of a single Qian Jierui, but if you add a Zhangkang Tianji, what would you feel then?”
Having said that, Chuan Xinlou purposefully paused.
Sure enough, Yi Jiufeng’s expressions changed slightly. She had long since known that Qian Jierui and Zhangkang Tianji might join forces. If they actually joined forces, then she absolutely would not be a match against them.
At this moment, Chuan Xinlou once again spoke up, “If Zhangkang Tianji might not be enough, then how about me, Chuan Xinlou?”
Yi Jiufeng’s expressions finally made a drastic change, as she spoke up with a gloomy voice, “Although you came to my Grand Spirit Heaven Starry Sky, I, Yi Jiufeng will not back down from a fight.”
Chuan Xinlou knew that he had backed Yi Jiufeng into a corner. Therefore, instead of pressing Yi Jiufeng even more, he spoke up with a gentle voice, “Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix, if I wanted to work with them, I would have already joined forces with those two. As I said, I’m here today to help Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix. If Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix is willing, then I, Chuan Xinlou, would immediately take the oath to never sit back and watch the Great Spirit Heaven Starry Sky suffer through an invasion.”
Yi Jiufeng carefully scrutinised Chuan Xinlou before taking in a deep breath and speaking up, “What does Brother Levelled Heart want? Please state it directly, I don’t like to beat around the bush.”
Chuan Xinlou clapped his hands together and spoke with appreciation, “Speaking to Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix really brings one some peace of mind. I, Chuan Xinlou, just hope that Junior Apprentice Sister Nine Phoenix could help me launch a search that spans the entire Grand Spirit Heaven Starry Sky, help me find just one person. I only know that this fellow entered the Grand Spirit Heaven Starry Sky, but I have no way of knowing which planet or star he might be on.”
[1] Nine Phoenix = Jiufeng