ninety thousand miles

Chapter 704 Poison
The old palace master said, "I understand."

Before he finished speaking, he disappeared.

"What did the old palace master understand?" Gong Er asked.

No one answered him.

On the sea, the old palace master made the first move.

The ancient sword roared, and countless sword streams converged into a massive pillar of light, aiming directly at the divine bird's right wing. The divine bird slightly shifted to the side, dodging the attack, and a vast divine light emanated from it. However, the sword streams suddenly vanished. The divine light locked onto the old palace master. The next instant, the divine light also mysteriously disappeared. The divine bird retreated abruptly, but its movements appeared strangely sluggish.

—On its wings, claws, and neck, a few wisps of blue silk shimmered, like maggots clinging to bones, constantly gnawing away.

While the old palace master was fighting the divine bird, Yao Shuang kept slashing with the black shovel in her hand.

Wherever the black shovel tip passed, space was silently cut open.

She moved step by step, constantly closing in on the divine bird through the gaps in the battle.

Lao Xiaokai and Gong Ersang San remained hidden in her hiding place. The space followed her as she continued to move forward.

There's still one foot left.

The black shovel paused, and Yao Shuang felt a resistance, and... the divine bird noticed her.

She gripped the shovel handle tightly and with a sudden burst of force, shoveled open the twisted, chaotic, and shattered space in front of her.

The divine bird's body shook violently, trying to shake her off. However, she seemed to be one with that space, and no matter how the divine bird rolled around, it could not separate her from it.

We must continue forward.

Hundreds of sharp feathers flew towards her.

She did not try to hide.

Just as the feather was about to pierce her body...

With a deafening roar, the chains formed from condensed flames finally arrived, closing in around her and burning away the flying feathers.

Jiang Mei, holding the Abyss Fire Mirror, appeared beside the tail feathers of the divine bird.

Nine fiery serpents snaked out and quickly intertwined to form a powerful seal, locking the divine bird's movements in place.

Yao Shuang sped up.

She bit her lip hard, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth, her knuckles turning pale from the extreme force gripping the black shovel. The black shovel sliced ​​through time and space; she was determined to carve through that final, impenetrable wall, advancing inch by inch…

"Brother Yao, that's about enough," Lao said with a smile.

At this moment, the walls of his shelter were transparent, allowing him to see the outside world.

Yao Shuang did not respond to him, but continued to swing the black shovel.

She lowered her head, staring at the sheer cliff in front of her, her whole body trembling, as she slowly sank the black shovel deeper and deeper...

"Okay, I can tear it now," Lao said with a smile.

Yao Shuang gripped the black shovel with both hands, using her last bit of strength, and just as the blue wisps were about to dissolve, she pierced the final barrier with the black shovel.

Lao Xiaokai felt himself being pushed.

"It's your turn," Yao Shuang said.

She pushed Lao Xiaokai to the front.

Lao Xiaokai felt a surge of heat emanating from Yao Shuang's hand pressed against his back, enveloping him and protecting him. "Quick," Yao Shuang said.

Lao Xiao opened and closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, the spindle in his hand emitted a grayish-white light, drawing an arc on the wings of the divine bird.

The aura of annihilation instantly invaded the boundary wall.

The divine bird went berserk.

The seal constructed by the fire serpent collapsed instantly in its rage.
Yao Shuang used up her last bit of strength and began to fall. When she was halfway down, her shelter broke, and Gong Er and Pang San were thrown out.

Gong Er flew rapidly toward Yao Shuang, trying to grab her, but only managed to grab her sleeve. With a rip, the sleeve was torn open, and Yao Shuang continued to fall.

Just as she was about to fall into the sea, a huge crab appeared on the surface of the water; it was Pang San, who had fallen into the water first.

Yao Shuang landed on the crab shell, and Gong Er followed closely behind.

"Don't look at the sky," Yao Shuang said weakly.

She barely managed to raise her blood-covered hand, made a hand seal to set up a protective barrier, and then closed her eyes.

The divine bird roared, and the sky and sea tore apart and collapsed in response.

The great formation was once again on the verge of collapse.

Just then, a breeze blew by. The breeze was very gentle, without light or sound, carrying a hint of the warm fragrance of peach blossoms in March, and silently swept across the sea.

The cracked sky began to close, and the steaming sea calmed down.

Absolute stillness descended upon the world.

Lao Xiaokai, holding a spindle, stood beside the divine bird, calmly gazing at the scene below. The spindle spun slowly between his hands, weaving countless threads like warp and weft between the sky and the sea, tracing the hidden source of consciousness in the stillness…

One of the threads trembled slightly...

On a small island not far away, a look of surprise appeared on the face of the immortal who had been quietly watching the battle.

"A divine hero..."

The phantom of the divine warrior coalesces amidst countless emerging threads of warp and weft.

His phantom was reflected on the sea. Lao Xiao clasped his hands together and grasped the spindle. One by one, the gray-white threads wrapped around the sea of ​​consciousness hidden between the sea and the sky, at the original location of the secret realm.

The sea of ​​consciousness slowly turned.

"Its existence is beyond our comprehension. If it weren't for the power of the divine heroes that revealed it, even if it swaggered past us, we wouldn't have been able to sense it," Sect Leader Chu said telepathically, gazing into his sea of ​​consciousness. "I never imagined he could actually borrow the power of the divine heroes."

“But…” The old palace master remained standing in front of the divine bird, wary, his face somewhat ashen. “The power he can withstand is limited.” He drew his sword again and said, “Have you noted down which cultivators exhibited unusual behavior just now?”

"I've noted it down. What do you plan to do?" Sect Leader Chu asked.

"What do you think?" the old palace master asked in return.

Sect Leader Chu paused for a moment, then said, "I understand."

The formation locked the cultivators in place. The Xingtian Guards on the outer edge of the formation began to act, silently knocking the cultivators unconscious and using the Wujiu Ring to lock their souls and cultivation, finally taking their place.

The old palace master snorted coldly and withdrew his gaze.

The silk threads completely enveloped the sea of ​​meaning.

Lao laughed and started making a lot of strange movements.

The phantom of the divine warrior, along with those movements, gradually approached the sea of ​​consciousness.

Lao Xiaokai's breathing grew heavy. As the phantom imprisoned his sea of ​​consciousness, he plunged the spindle into his body. His blood and his consciousness, through the threads, invaded the swirling currents of his sea of ​​consciousness.

He sensed the cold, indifferent, and aloof will within his sea of ​​consciousness.

"Heh..." Lao laughed and scoffed.

His blood was infused into it, spreading throughout his sea of ​​consciousness.

Compared to the sea of ​​consciousness, he was utterly insignificant; even if all his blood were poured into it, it wouldn't cause the slightest ripple. But... that didn't matter.

"Hiss..." He felt pain, as if millions of silver needles were piercing his soul. He arched his body and gasped for breath.

He is still conscious.

He could feel his blood and his will seeping in, merging with, and subtly changing that lofty, indifferent will.

He must stay alert.

After an unknown amount of time, a black mark suddenly appeared on the surface of the vortex. The mark quickly peeled away and vanished into the sea of ​​consciousness. But moments later, more black marks appeared.

Reappear, then vanish.

After repeating this countless times, the sea of ​​consciousness no longer resisted it and began to rotate in the opposite direction along with the black marks. As a result, more and more black marks merged together, forming one viscous black envelope after another.

It's poison.

Dependence, symbiosis, and then reversal.

A smile finally appeared on Lao Xiao's bloodless face.

He poisoned himself. This poison was harmless to him, but it could silently transform the half-demon's soul into a substance.

This substance can be completely broken down.

All the pharmacological knowledge inherited from Shenxia Island, as well as his 24 years of hard work, are condensed in it.

No, not just twenty-four years, he went to Shenxia Island twice, so it was... a full forty years!

"master……"

But... Lao Xiaokai's thoughts drifted slightly. If it weren't for Li Chuan, he probably would never have known the true nature of a half-demon...

After his entire sea of ​​consciousness was connected into a viscous black envelope, Lao Xiaokai made his final move.

The phantom of the Divine Swordsman moved once more.

A gigantic hand, composed of pure, clear light and large enough to encompass the stars, appeared between the sea and the sky.

With his five fingers gently spread out, as if cradling a fragile pool of moonlight, he held the viscous, black vortex of consciousness in his palm.

Put your five fingers together.

In the stillness, the sea of ​​consciousness was gradually crushed. The threads of the spindle also snapped.

Deny, erase, and then—

The hero opened his palm, and there was nothing there.
Everything returns to nothingness.

The divine bird drooped its wings.

Among the cultivators who had been knocked unconscious by Xing Tianwei, some suddenly opened their eyes in terror.

Some of the shadows have dissipated.

The phantom of the Divine Hero vanished, and Lao Xiaokai's body began to fall, his face and body covered in blood, the spindle flying out of his hand...

But his eyes were still open, bright and clear. He stared in the direction of the small island where Immortal Yunyi was, and with his last ounce of strength, he hoarsely cursed, "You damn immortal! You can't find the real culprit, so you take it out on mortals! You never do anything productive all day... This time, I'll spare your life, but in the next life, I promise..."

"I'll wait for you to come and collect it."

A cold, metallic voice rang in Lao Xiaokai's ears.

His body was frozen, and the chill permeated his body, repairing his physical form.

Lao Xiaokai realized he had fallen into the sea. Had someone caught him? ...And was he alive?

(End of this chapter)