Hide in the world of gods and demons

Chapter 179 The storm is coming
After entering the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, Chen Li made no fuss and instead became even more reclusive, meditating and practicing Qi to consolidate his realm while researching new techniques. He even refused to see Hu Buwei, who came to visit, citing his seclusion as the reason.

During this period, he mastered the Water Elemental Shield and the True Fire Technique.

And it is improving at an astonishing rate.

One day to become proficient, two days to master, four days to expert, eight days to master, sixteen days to grandmaster...

Chen Li's strength is improving at a visible rate every day, which is one of the reasons why he is reluctant to leave seclusion.

This feeling is so wonderful that it's impossible not to become addicted.

For more than four months, until the Water Elemental Shield and True Fire Technique were both maxed out and the spiritual power overflowing from his body was completely contained, making it difficult to see any signs of a breakthrough, he finally emerged from seclusion.

……

In the courtyard in front of the cave dwelling.

The three illusory bodies lined up in a row, each protected by a water element shield.

In fact, there are not only water elemental shields, but also metal, earth, wood, and fire elemental shields of the same level. All five elements are represented, but the Zhenhuan Sect's library only has water elemental shields.

Fortunately, their attributes are different, and their defenses have different focuses, so there is no difference in their strengths or weaknesses.

Compared to the light blue of ordinary water elemental shields.

The color of the max-level Water Elemental Shield is much deeper, and it looks incredibly solid, almost like a physical object.

Chen Li looked at one of the illusory figures, took out the second-tier mid-grade Qingyun Sword from his storage bag, circulated his Zhou Tian Gang Jin, and then took a leap.

The distance of ten meters was covered in an instant. He gathered all his strength and spiritual power, focusing it on the tip of his sword, and delivered a standard thrust.

The air was instantly pierced, producing a sharp sonic boom.

The next moment.

There was a loud "boom".

A shockwave spread out, scraping away a layer of the ground and filling the courtyard with dust.

Under such terrifying power, the illusion was blasted dozens of meters away, but it was still safe and sound. The water element shield only dimmed a little, obviously it was still far from being destroyed.

"As expected of a defensive spell comparable to a second-tier, eighth-level technique!" Chen Li thought to himself, "To break through this level of defense, one's own strength alone is clearly not enough."

Chen Li put the Qingyun Sword back into his storage bag, took out the third-grade low-rank Zhuxie Sword, and continued testing it.

After nearly two years of refinement, compared to its initial sharpness and aggressive nature, the Demon-Slaying Sword now seems to have developed some sentience, becoming much more docile and even subtly in harmony with its own will, making it exceptionally wondrous.

It is possible that a spirit might actually emerge from an artifact in the future.

Chen Li gripped the Demon-Slaying Sword and channeled his spiritual power into it. Instantly, an invisible sharp aura surged forth, blurring the air.

This time, he didn't bother to circulate his internal energy. He took a step and thrust his sword at another illusory form.

Although it was just a casual sword strike.

But it still easily broke the speed of sound.

Since cultivating the Immortal Muscle Jade Bone Technique, not only has his physical strength greatly increased, but his power has also grown day by day. He can unleash powerful force with every move he makes, and he is not much different from Feng Qi when he cultivated the Primordial Chaos Technique.

"boom!"

The Demon-Slaying Sword struck the illusory form.

The water elemental shield on the surface of the illusion instantly faded from deep blue, then flickered violently.

"Almost!"

Looking at the illusory body that was blasted away again, Chen Li thought to himself.

In other words, the illusory body is a magically created form, light and weightless, and cannot withstand physical attacks. If it were a normal cultivator, the illusory body would probably have been destroyed and the person would have died long ago.

Chen Li stepped forward and delivered another blow.

This time, it finally ended in utter failure, without any suspense.

Chen Li felt that his spiritual power was almost completely depleted. He took out a porcelain bottle, swallowed two Qi-union pills, and thought he would rest for a while before continuing to test the True Fire Technique.

At that moment, the distant sound of a bell came from the mountaintop, penetrating the magic array. Chen Li was momentarily stunned.

"This bell... could it be that the Golden Core Ancestor has emerged from seclusion?"

However, the joy on his face froze as soon as it appeared.

The bells continued to ring, without ceasing.

One sound, two sounds... it rang nine times in a row before it stopped.

Chen Li's heart skipped a beat, and his expression became extremely solemn.

He knew all too well what the nine chimes meant: it was an emergency summons issued because the sect was facing a possible crisis of annihilation, and it was a state of highest alert!
how come?
Things have been calm these past few days, with no obvious signs whatsoever.

Could it be that some sect is coming to attack?
"Husband!"

While they were still in a daze, Zhou Hong and Zhang Shuniang rushed out upon hearing the bell, their expressions filled with worry.

"Don't panic. You all hide in the basement now and don't come out. I'll leave a phantom body behind to protect you. I'll go out and check the situation. Maybe it's just a false alarm," Chen Li said quickly.

Next, cancel one of the illusions, leaving the last one to protect the two women.

The illusions can last for an extremely long time, more than an hour, and these illusions have only been released for a few minutes.

The two women were no strangers to illusions; after all, they had seen far too many in the past year or two. It was just that when they didn't speak, it was impossible to tell the real from the fake.

"I understand!" Zhou Hong said worriedly, "You also need to be careful."

“Husband, don’t worry about us,” Zhang Shuniang said.

Chen Li nodded and said no more.

He left the cave, his body soaring into the air, and quickly flew towards the mountain peak.

The entire mountain gate was in chaos, with cultivators flying around everywhere on magical artifacts.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, do you know what this matter is about?"

He had only been flying for a short while when someone called out to him. The person was a middle-aged Foundation Establishment cultivator. Chen Li remembered that his surname was Lu and his given name was Chongfeng. They had met a few times before.

"I have no idea either; I'm completely baffled," Chen Li said, spreading his hands.

"Alas, the Ancestor has not yet emerged from seclusion. What should we do?" Lu Chongfeng said with a worried expression.

Chen Li remained silent.

I don't know if it's too late to escape now?
He had no intention of fighting to the death for the Zhen Huan Sect. The limited kindness shown to him by the Zhen Huan Sect had already been repaid in the last battle against the Tian Xing Sect. In the end, he was just a guest elder, not a disciple trained by the sect from childhood.

Essentially, he's just a working-class person.

They lacked the awareness to live and die with their sect.

He still had some concerns when his ancestor was alive, but now that his ancestor's fate is unknown, he feels even less pressure.

……

In the time it took to say a few words, Chen Li and Lu Chongfeng had already arrived at the council hall.

He was late; quite a few people had already arrived, and the place was bustling like a vegetable market, buzzing with activity.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, come here!" Xiao Yuan greeted Chen Li as he arrived.

Chen Li walked over. Several acquaintances, including Wen Hui and Peng Yan, were there. At this moment, he had no time to greet them one by one and asked directly, "I have been in seclusion recently. Do you know what happened?"

"A third-tier demonic beast has appeared. It's been spotted a few times in Yongning Ward recently, but the Sect Leader of General Affairs has kept it a secret, and only a few people know about it. I didn't expect it to suddenly appear nearby today. Just now, it lingered near the mountain gate for quite a while," Xiao Yuan said with a solemn expression.

"We were just discussing and guessing that this is a demon beast that has been driven out of its territory. It has obviously set its sights on the third-tier spiritual vein here. The reason it is lingering here is just to test the waters. Once it finds that there is no threat, it will probably stop testing the waters."

"hiss!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Li couldn't help but gasp.

"Where is that monster now?" Chen Li asked.

"We know nothing about it to this day."