Volume 1, Chapter 24: Surrounded

At the same time, a pale cyan light barrier, visible to the naked eye, rose silently from the ground like an overturned bowl. It expanded rapidly, enveloping the entire Lin estate.

Once the barrier stabilized, it gradually faded from sight, yet Su Haoming could still sense an indescribable screen surrounding the air, bringing him a sense of peace.

"There, we are safe for now." Liu Ruoxi’s taut nerves finally relaxed. She turned to Su Haoming and said, "Follow me. I will arrange a place for you to rest. We can discuss other matters tomorrow."

She paused, then added, "Tomorrow, I will arrange for you to meet the Sect Master."

"The Sect Master?" Su Haoming’s footsteps faltered; he nearly thought he had misheard.

***

Jiang Sheng’s act of writing spring festival couplets in town eventually reached Niu Aihua’s ears. Upon hearing how much money he had made, she was livid, leading to a fierce argument once Ma Aiguo returned from work.

Glancing at the man who stood with his head bowed, Yan Yanqi let out a soft laugh, then turned her head to look at Xu Jingnan.

Su Zhe felt a jolt in his heart. Setting aside the military report in his hands, he couldn't help but look at Cai Shu. He realized that since she was even aware of his grain shortage, it must be the Cai family stabbing him in the back.

"Understood!" Yue Ji accepted the order and immediately dispatched trusted Qiang generals to the Western Qiang tribes in Jincheng Commandery to recruit soldiers.

Tang Yu turned his head away to dodge her kiss, but the more he resisted, the more determined Qiao Xia became; she was intent on stealing one regardless.

Watching the enraged Rock Demon, Shi Tian raised a hand and drew the Golden Spear Sword. He poured his gold elemental energy into the blade as if it were inexhaustible. As the energy surged, the ancient, primitive patterns on the sword began to shift and coil, eventually forming a snarling golden dragon circling the length of the blade.

In truth, Qian Huang had only just learned of this news himself. Having been preoccupied with Ruan Fengge’s affairs these past few days, he had specifically sent men to dig up all previous investigations regarding Hua Ming, only to discover this. Even he had been shocked upon first seeing it.

Although Xia Shiguang didn't understand what Liu Miao had said, she could tell from her tone that it wasn't anything pleasant.

"I just told him to come over now, and he flew over. Then I asked him if he would marry me, and he said he would... and that’s how it... happened." Yan Yanqi bit into an apple, feeling a bit guilty. She wasn't entirely sure herself; the other fragments were blurry, but she distinctly remembered these crucial words.

***

Xu Rongrong blinked her eyes, feigning innocence as she spoke, and pointed a finger toward his chest.

With a muffled thud, Shi Yan’s palm struck Leng Jianfeng squarely in the chest. Leng Jianfeng felt as if he had been hit by a heavy hammer. As Shi Yan’s palm remained pressed against him, he released a surge of internal energy, sending Leng Jianfeng reeling backward.

Shi Yi walked out of the room and saw the wine jars neatly arranged in the courtyard. He offered a bitter smile; he was destined to be a failure. He had intended to help Fei Liangyan, but instead, he had only made things worse.

The news the Grand Princess brought back was that the Empress needed to consult with the Emperor, so nothing was settled yet. If the Emperor did not agree, then even if he and Roujia had confessed their feelings to each other, they could never be together.

"Shi Yi, what happened tonight was not Lu Tong's fault; it was entirely my idea. Please, give me ten minutes to explain, will you?" Fei Liangyan pleaded with Shi Yi.

"Then as we agreed, I will scout ahead." After saying this, the Stone Monkey leaped onto an ancient tree and vanished into the dense thicket.

The rain was heavy—growing heavier by the moment—lashing down as if to scrub the entire earth clean and wash away everything in the mortal world. This night was destined for restlessness; this night was destined for unease.

"Damn it, this wretched Qing Dynasty should be overthrown. If things continue like this, there will be no way for us common folk to survive," Yang Desheng suddenly cursed.

"No wonder! For a cultivator at the Qi Refining stage to possess such inconceivable strength—at first I was puzzled, but it turns out you are a demonic cultivator!!" Yu Yu pointed at Cui Feng, her arm trembling.

"You saw it with both eyes, didn't you?" Cui Feng’s voice was icy. Fang Jiuling tried to restrain him, only to find that Cui Feng’s arm felt as if it were cast from molten iron, immovable.

"The Nine-Turn Soul-Returning Pill?" Ximen Dongjun’s heart trembled upon hearing this. He quickly retrieved the pill and, while the man still had a breath of life left, forced him to swallow it.

However, before it could even get within a hundred meters of Ye Chen, it suddenly burst into flames and began to melt, evaporating into a billowing mist until it finally vanished completely.

This creature was a Titan Bug, a superior class among second-tier monsters. Its thick black armor was impervious even to particle guns, and it could spew highly corrosive acid comparable to aqua regia. It was a core force in siege warfare.

To be able to serve such a person of great wisdom, great supernatural power, and profound knowledge as his master was, for Yuxiao Shangren, nothing short of a divine blessing—the greatest stroke of fortune in his life. How could he dare to be anything but respectful?

***

At the foot of Mount Tai, the area was completely sealed off. At least a thousand troops were stationed there, refusing entry to any unauthorized personnel.

The car was a common model, chosen for the sake of keeping a low profile. Chu Feng was not the type to demand luxury vehicles just for the sake of appearances.

As for Zhou Xun, he came to see Zhang Fei, but found that Zhang Fei was away inspecting the Western Regions, leaving only Guan Ping and his brothers there. After the formalities were exchanged, Guan Ping received Zhou Xun with the honors befitting a guest of honor.

To control filthy entities for battle, one’s spiritual power must be at least double the combined spiritual power of the entities being controlled.

He quickly sank into his sea of consciousness and performed internal observation of the Heart-Eroding Gu poison he had been afflicted with. He discovered that more than half of it had vanished. Although there were still remnants of the poison within him, it was finally suppressed, and his life was no longer in immediate danger.

Biting her lower lip with her pearly teeth, a flash of determination crossed her eyes. As she gathered her spiritual power, her jade-like hand moved to meet the fatal blow regardless of the consequences, ignoring the gasps of Zhiwei and the others. Suddenly, a figure appeared, gently pushing her aside with one hand, while his fist collided with the descending giant palm with a thunderous roar.

"You don't think we should be searching in Ning City, do you? If we leave Ning City now, where are we supposed to find Old Hu?" Upon hearing Wang Yao’s suggestion, Jiang Qiu immediately became perplexed.

At this moment, both I and Fatty Pang were stunned, staring blankly at the pile of pottery. We found it extremely strange, because even though we hadn't paid attention to this spot earlier, it was impossible that we could have missed such a large heap of pottery.

The Maoshan Taoist held a compass, walking along while muttering profound phrases that no one could understand, while the old monk held a vajra pestle, tapping the ground periodically and exchanging more cryptic words with the Taoist.

As he finished speaking, he uttered a single syllable. A streak of white light suddenly erupted from his hand, resembling a cruciform beam of light—intensely hot—leaving trails of light as it swept through the air.

"I'm coming back now." Wang Yao hung up the phone and headed upstairs. At that moment, Leng Luosha, who was beside him, was looking at him with a strange expression, as if she had discovered something.