Chapter Ninety-Five: Eternal Azure Sky
Having learned Guang Chengzi's sword control technique, Jiang Liu's sword control skills greatly improved. His sword light flashed everywhere, and before long, he was only a hundred miles away from Baiman Mountain.
The Bai Man Mountain is located in the heart of the mountains of southern Xinjiang, surrounded by barren mountains and treacherous waters. The mountain range is winding and densely covered with towering vegetation that blocks out the sun, and is shrouded in poisonous mists and miasma all year round.
Five hundred miles from the mountains, a few mountain dwellers could still be seen. The closer one got, the less human there was. Apart from the many venomous insects and strange pythons that lurked in the shadows, even wild animals were hard to find.
Jiang Liu, sword in hand, looked down from the sky. The valleys and mountains below were shrouded in poisonous miasma, obscured by colorful clouds—clearly a miasma created by nature itself. Occasionally, strange insects and giant snakes could be seen, coiling and chasing each other, their scales shimmering and their red tongues flickering.
There are two great demonic masters in Baiman Mountain. One of them is the Green-Robed Ancestor of Yinfeng Cave, but he has now died at the hands of Jiang Liu.
The last one is Liebaduo, the Five Poison Heavenly King of the Naked Cave. Liebaduo is a barbarian who has been born with a body full of scales and fangs. He is wicked and does all sorts of evil deeds. Seeing that all the sects are recruiting disciples and expanding their sects, he also wants to promote the Naked Cult. He has already established the Naked Cult in Mount Kongtong and rarely comes to Mount Baiman.
Although he wasn't in Baiman Mountain, Jiang Liu didn't want to cause trouble and tried to stay away from areas where conflict might occur. He entered this world to obtain treasures and improve his strength, not to exorcise demons and engage in fighting.
So, following the Green-Robed Ancestor's memory, they headed towards the Heavenly Silkworm Ridge where the Spider was located. The Ancestor naturally knew of the Spider's existence, but the time was not yet right; it was not yet time for the Spider to be born.
Jiang Liu calculated the date and realized it was already March. According to his memory, the Laughing Monk would be arriving soon to scout the place and prepare to seize the Spider.
"Let's get the Azure Sky of Ten Thousand Years first! And that ox born of heaven and earth..."
By the time we reached the Tiancanling area, it was already late at night.
The valley was filled with poisonous gas; there wasn't a single bird or beast, not even an insect, only a few haphazardly growing weeds. Jiang Liu observed for a while, when suddenly a sharp, strange sound came from afar, as if someone was calling him.
"A naturally endowed ability to summon souls?" Jiang Liu ignored him and turned to leave.
The monster in this valley is born from the mating of a thousand-year-old scorpion and a giant fire spider, named the Patterned Spider. It has 491 eggs. Upon landing, they burrow into the soil. With each clap of thunder, they deepen their burrowing by an inch. After 365 years of dormancy in the deepest, darkest places, where the stagnant, humid, and toxic energy of heaven and earth gathers, they finally take shape, reaching a length of 1.2 inches. They first cannibalize each other underground, growing an inch with each meal. Only when only one remains can they become a formidable force.
Hear the thunder again, and it will rise a foot higher until it is born. At that time, it will be able to grow big or small and wreak havoc on the world.
Even before it is born, this monstrous spider can call out to people. Within five or six miles of it, whoever hears its call feels as if a loved one is calling their name. As soon as they respond, their souls are drawn to it. Then, in a daze, they walk over and are devoured by it.
More importantly, this demon contains a Fire Spirit Pearl inside its belly, a treasure of ultimate Yang and strength.
It's not yet time for the Spider to emerge, and given Jiang Liu's current strength, it would be difficult for him to subdue it on his own. So he turned around and left to find the cave that contained the "Ten Thousand Year Azure".
Knowing that it was an inhabited cave, Jiang Liu found it relatively easy to locate.
After searching for several hours, near dawn, they found signs of human activity and discovered a fox den. They chased out a dozen or so large foxes and found signs of a fire inside. However, it was clear that they had been gone for some time before the den was taken over by a fox den.
In the center is a square bluestone, perfectly shaped, six feet square, with about three feet protruding from the ground and the lower part buried in the soil. The stone is smooth and clean all around, cool to the touch, yet warm to the touch.
Jiang Liu, embracing the large blue stone, suddenly exerted force with both hands and pulled the entire stone out. Upon closer inspection, he found that it was perfectly uniform in height and shape, without the slightest deviation. Looking further down, he saw that the bottom of the stone was covered with yellow sap, as thick as a human arm, which resembled countless black pythons, intertwined and coiled together in a heap.
Although the plant Polygonatum has little medicinal effect, it is a common food for practitioners of cultivation and has the effect of nourishing qi and abstaining from grains.
Those who cultivate will have a greatly increased appetite. Look at nature: tigers and lions eat meat, while weak sheep eat grass. Why are cultivators so powerful? In short, they can eat a lot.
Where does the power of a cultivator come from? It comes from the interaction with heaven and earth.
Eating, drinking, and breathing—this is the process of cultivation. Cultivators are also human beings. Humans are like iron and steel; if you miss a meal, you'll feel hungry. The essence of grains in food provides the energy for survival, and breathing allows us to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. All of these processes rely on the absorption and mediating function of the five internal organs. There is no one in this world who is exempt from this.
The more you eat, the more energy you get after digestion, which is necessary to support the daily energy expenditure of your powerful body. Some cultivators who have reached a high level of spiritual practice will eat an entire cow for each meal. Some even stop eating ordinary food from the world, as the energy they get from grains can no longer meet their cultivation needs. This practice is called "Bigu" (辟谷) by cultivators.
As for those who claim to practice fasting, there are quite a few. In a narrow sense, fasting means not eating grains. In a broader sense, it means not eating the foods that everyone eats, because these foods have too many impurities and too little energy.
Polygonatum is one of the foods that practitioners of Qi cultivation consume after fasting.
The river flowed a little shorter, but the taste was sweet and fragrant.
"The leakage of spiritual energy is what caused so much Solomon's Seal to form—it's this big rock!"
Jiang Liu gently stroked the large blue stone with his palm, and the stone was shaved off piece by piece, just like a carpenter planing wood, peeling away layer by layer. The stone became more and more delicate as he went further, shimmering with golden light, while the stone skin fluttered like snow.
Before long, the large blue stone, which was six feet square, was transformed into a stone more than a foot in diameter. The two ends were as white as jade, and the middle section was pure blue.
"These two ends must be the Eternal Azure Sky! Let's drink it first, so as not to reveal it when we retrieve the treasure in the middle."
The Azure Sky of Ten Thousand Years is a spiritual substance created by heaven and earth; drinking it directly can increase one's vital energy. However, because it dissolves upon contact with air and cannot be preserved, one needs immense good fortune to drink it.
Jiang Liu chuckled and opened a small eye at one end, sealing it with his Yuan Power. He probed inside with his divine sense and found a stream of air that was both blue and white, which was none other than the "Ten Thousand Years of Azure Sky".
Enveloped in vital energy, it was brought into the mouth, and one felt a clear stream flowing straight into the internal organs from the air, like drinking a bowl of ice water on a hot summer day, making the whole body feel comfortable.
Then, using the same method, he drank the "Ten Thousand Years of Azure" from the other end. Jiang Liu was not in a hurry to take the treasure in the middle. He sat cross-legged and absorbed all the spiritual energy before picking up the treasure in his hand to look at it.
Chapter Ninety-Six: Crushing
Cutting open the jade from the center revealed a silvery-white interior. Jiang Liu dared not damage it in the slightest and carefully dissected it. Before long, the silver color became more pronounced, as if dancing within the stone.
In an instant, a wisp of white vapor hissed out from the silvery-white stone eye, disappearing in an instant. Looking at the stone surface again, seven small holes appeared. Scanning them with divine sense, it was found that they were hollow, with something seemingly coiled in the center.
Upon closer inspection, the object inside the stone is a silver calf, complete with facial features, lifelike in appearance, and constantly turning inside.
When the silver ox inside the stone encountered outside air, its movements gradually slowed down, and after a while, it lay down on the stone and stopped moving.
Upon closer inspection, the ox was neither stone nor jade, but rather shimmering with silver light. It had blue eyes, white teeth, and crimson hooves. Even its horns were silver. Its lifelike form was entirely natural, with no trace of human intervention.
Holding the silver ox, a message appeared in Jiang Liu's mind.
It turns out that the full name of this thing is "Eastern Taiyi Yuanjing", which is formed by the condensation of the life force of Jia and Yi wood in the East, and contains a large amount of wood element essence.
This large blue stone was originally a stone embryo. If the stone ox that was conceived within it had been nurtured by heaven and earth for countless years and had emerged on its own, it would have been a powerful monster with great supernatural abilities, just like Sun Wukong.
Unfortunately, these kinds of spirits are destined to suffer calamities and rarely attain enlightenment or are reborn.
Now that it has been cut open by Jiang Liu and born prematurely, its hope of attaining enlightenment has been dashed. It has been transformed into a stone ox and can only be regarded as a rare treasure, with no possibility of becoming a demon.
This item is excellent for cultivating wood-based supernatural powers. After refining it, one can obtain a considerable amount of the essence of Eastern Jia and Yi wood, which can save cultivation time. Moreover, Eastern Jia and Yi wood governs life force and also has detoxifying effects.
Jiang Liu hasn't mastered any wood-based supernatural abilities yet, so he naturally threw it into his storage space.
As soon as he stepped out of the cave, he saw two streaks of sword light flying from the sky.
Jiang Liu curled his lip, thinking to himself, "The treasure just appeared, and I didn't hide it. It seems they're here to snatch it!"
The sword light fell, revealing a young monk with red lips and white teeth, and another person as black as charcoal, dressed in Taoist attire. However, they were both very young, only fourteen or fifteen years old.
Jiang Liu looked at the two people in front of him and thought to himself that he had arrived just in time and had gotten there first to seize these treasures. Jiang Liu naturally recognized the two people as the Laughing Monk and the Black Boy Yuchi Huo.
The Laughing Monk is a true disciple of the Three Immortals of the East Sea, the Ascetic Monk. The sword light just now was formless and invisible, seemingly the formless sword.
Black Boy Yuchi Huo is a disciple of Tong Yuanqi, one of the Seven Immortals of Luofu Mountain, Jicui Cliff, Taibai Mountain, Shaanxi.
"Junior Brother Xiao, that strange light just now came from here, didn't it?"
The young monk looked at Jiang Liu, his smile tinged with a hint of heaviness.
One of them had a large head and a round face, with a gentle, warm complexion. He would smile as soon as he saw someone, appearing comical and possessing a simple-minded charm. The other was as black as iron from head to toe, with a booming voice. He spoke bluntly and inflexibly, possessing a simple-minded charm.
The Laughing Monk stopped smiling and frowned, saying, "Brother Yuchi, I met Qi Jinchan before. He poured out his grievances to me, saying that before the New Year, a petty thief stole his treasures in Jiuhua, and his beautiful spirit was dissected. Brother Chan even drew a portrait and told me to remember the thief's appearance, saying that if I saw him, I must not let him go... And this person is the one in the painting!"
"Is he the one who stole the treasure from Jiuhua?" Yuchi Huo was upright and righteous, hating evil as if it were his enemy. He instantly raised the sharp sword in his hand.
The Laughing Monk nodded and said, "My brother Chan and I investigated before. This person appeared at Ciyun Temple, but then disappeared without a trace. We heard his name is Ding Yin, the Swordsman of the South China Sea! He is quite strong, and he managed to escape from Senior Sister Qi Lingyun's clutches. Let's join forces..."
"good……"
Listening to the conversation between the two, who seemed to disregard him completely, Jiang Liu touched his nose, then released the "Hundred Poison Golden Silkworm Gu," summoned the "Nine Heavens Primordial Yang Ruler" to protect his body, and drew a thunder talisman in his palm, preparing for both defense and offense.
These two came to Baiman Mountain to slay the Spider-like creature, naturally carrying valuable treasures. The Laughing Monk bestowed upon them the Invisible Sword, a celestial sword personally forged by the ascetic monk. It was colorless and formless, making its attacks impossible to defend against. The Black Boy, Yuchi Huo, also possessed a superior flying sword.
Jiang Liu scanned the area with his divine sense but did not find the invisible sword, clearly indicating that a sneak attack was being planned.
Yu Chi Huo, hot-tempered, charged forward on his sword. Jiang Liu sneered, ignoring their words, and unleashed a palm strike of lightning at the flying sword.
With a loud "boom," the flying sword, like an out-of-control paper airplane, traced an arc in the air before embedding itself in the ground.
Yu Chi Huo was also surprised that his flying sword was broken in the first exchange, and he was stunned for a moment.
The Laughing Monk narrowed his eyes, secretly alarmed. He formed a sword incantation with his hand, controlling the invisible sword to slash at Jiang Liu's neck from a tricky angle, while his other hand struck out from afar.
The invisible sword wounds without leaving a trace; this move has slain countless evil figures. This single palm strike is also the ultimate skill of the ascetic monk, called the Taiyi Divine Palm.
In Jiang Liu's view, this palm strike was like the Buddha's Palm, capable of injuring people from a distance, though it was only a weakened version.
Jiang Liu had been keeping a close eye on the invisible sword. Sure enough, his protective "Nine Heavens Primordial Yang Ruler" suddenly moved, and nine golden flowers bloomed. A colorless and invisible sword slashed at his neck. If it weren't for the golden flowers blocking the way, he would have been beheaded in one stroke.
The most dangerous part of the invisible sword is before it is drawn, but once it is drawn, it is difficult to launch another successful sneak attack.
Having withstood the attack of the invisible sword, Jiang Liu felt reassured. Having broken the Taiyi Divine Palm, he took a single step and arrived in front of the Laughing Monk.
Jiang Liu has been in this world for some time now, and he has discovered the weaknesses of these sword-wielding cultivators. In the Shu Mountain world, whether they are sword immortals who wield swords or cultivators who refine magical artifacts, they all belong to the magic-based professions. In terms of his previous life, they have powerful skills, but low health and defense, and are extremely weak in close combat.
When Jiang Liu, a grandmaster of Chinese martial arts, got close to him, given the Laughing Monk's strength, he had almost no chance to fight back and was directly crushed.
After finishing his attack, he threw the Laughing Monk to the ground, then grinned maliciously and reached out his hand towards Yuchi Huo. What followed was predictable: the two brothers, bruised and battered, collapsed together in a pitiful state.
Judging from their current appearance, even their own mothers wouldn't recognize them. The smiling face of the Laughing Monk Maitreya has swollen into a pig's head, and Yuchi Huo's dark skin has now turned bluish.
"You...I...Xifu Bugui Faguli..."
The Laughing Monk watched as Jiang Liu snatched the Invisible Sword, his eyes wide with disbelief, and he managed to utter a single sentence from his slurred mouth. Yet, he was utterly powerless and could not even stand up.
As for Yuchi Huo, whose cultivation was inferior to that of the Laughing Monk, he had already fainted.
Chapter Ninety-Seven: Yin Wind Cave of Baiman Mountain
Jiang Liu threw the Invisible Sword directly into his storage space after obtaining it, not intending to take it out in this world, lest it be taken back by the ascetic monk.
This invisible sword, nurtured for decades by the ascetic monk, is deeply imprinted with his spirit and soul. Anyone within ten miles of him can transform into a rainbow and disappear with a wave of their hand. And in the Journey to the West world, this mid-grade spiritual weapon flying sword is at Jiang Liu's disposal, without any fear of it being taken away.
As for Yuchi Huo's flying sword, it is a low-grade spiritual weapon called Jingtao.
Naturally, it also entered the river's bag.
Forging a flying sword of the spiritual weapon level is not easy. It either needs to be passed down from a sect or nurtured with spiritual energy for decades.
Even a master like the Long-Browed Immortal, to forge the Seven-Cultivation Sword specifically designed to counter the Five Poisons of other sects, had to first gather the essence of the Five Elements, employ the Nine-Nine Mystic Technique, and refine seven flying swords according to the Seven True Forms. By the time the Long-Browed Immortal ascended to immortality, his skill was not yet fully refined, and he could not pass it on to his disciples. He could only seal the flying swords with magic, and it took several decades for each of the seven swords to be forged, based on the principles of mutual generation and restraint.
As for the Purple and Green Twin Swords, these are ancient treasures, not crafted by Changmei.
Having obtained two flying swords, Jiang Liu was extremely satisfied and headed towards the Yin Feng Cave of the Hundred Barbarian Mountain, where the Green Robe Ancestor resided.
Based on Jiang Liu's understanding of Mount Shu, apart from Xin Chenzi, who had a rebellious streak, none of the other people in Mount Baiman dared to resist the brutal rule of the Green Robe Ancestor.
Although it was his first time here, Jiang Liu was extremely familiar with the Hundred Barbarian Mountains because of the fragment of the Green-Robed Ancestor's primordial spirit within the Mysterious Female Pearl. He carefully observed his surroundings along the way, and realized that the Yin Wind Cave was situated in a desolate and treacherous place.
As they rode straight on their swords, they suddenly saw the mist below thin out and disappear, revealing a high plateau plain. In the center stood a solitary peak, towering high into the sky, with the surrounding mountains seemingly bowing in homage.