Walking alone with a sword, slaying ghosts and gods

Chapter 97: A mausoleum every five steps, a tomb every ten steps; many mausoleums under Chang'an

The Tang Dynasty was prosperous and flourishing. It had vast territory, rich resources, and a population of tens of millions. It was the central country and the most superior nation in the world.

However, there are the Southern Barbarians in the south, the Thirty-Six Kingdoms in the Western Regions in the west, the East China Sea in the east, and the barbarians who believe in darkness in the north who often invade.

When His Majesty first ascended the throne, everyone thought that His Majesty was too weak to serve the ancestral temple, and that the downfall of the prosperous Tang Dynasty was imminent.

For the first few years, this seemed to be the case.

This Emperor Li Zhi was in poor health and seldom did any major events. Power was held by his relatives. He simply selected his concubines from the harem and even chose his most favored concubine, pushing her to the front to rule the country with him. People all thought it was amazing.

During the twenty years, in this kind of co-governance, His Majesty cleaned up the court, eliminated his clique members, and exterminated his uncle's entire family.

She even cried in public: "How could I bear to convict my own uncle?"

He swallowed up all the glory and left all the desires and sins to his wife and subjects.

But the Tang Dynasty needed such a bright king. Under his rule, the court was clean, the administration was honest, the country was stable, and the border troops had sufficient food, wages and armaments.

Even the most vicious and warlike northern barbarians, after several raids southwards in which they suffered greater losses than gains, were unwilling to start a war again.

It was not until this time that more and more people realized that His Majesty was more than just a coward.

In the Tang Dynasty Taoist Garden, Lu Mansion, a young Taoist is practicing sword and qigong.

The human foundation-building method is the weakest among all the foundation-building methods, but those who have succeeded in it still have a certain chance to go further. The earthly foundation-building method can obtain innate magical powers, and the spiritual consciousness and magic power are also stronger than the former.

In recent years, the Eight Scenes Sect has studied and developed the foundation for longevity, abandoned its innate magical powers, strengthened its own Taoist foundation, and placed the greatest emphasis on improving its magic power. It is easy to practice and cultivate, and when encountering a bottleneck in cultivation, it is relatively easier to break through, reaching the same level as the underground foundation.

The Heavenly Dao foundation builds, and at the same time possesses the innate magical powers of the Earthly Dao foundation and the magical powers of the Longevity foundation. However, even for the top disciples of the sect, the practitioner needs to have amazing understanding and perseverance, which is almost impossible for ordinary practitioners to achieve.

Whoosh whoosh.

As the sword wind broke through the air, the five-colored sword lights of blue, red, white, yellow and black moved and changed. Lu Cheng flew into the sky with a long sword in his hand, and then slashed down from the air.

Red flames covered the sword and it fell with one slash.

boom.

The ground exploded with a loud bang, but the sword energy that spread was not the explosion of fire sword energy, but the powerful sword energy of earth.

Next, the sword moves performed by Lu Cheng were either powerful, sharp, light, tough, or violent, but they were a reciprocating cycle and interdependent.

When Lu Cheng had exhausted all his sword skills, a stream of extremely refined and pure five-colored sword light flowed back from his arm into his dantian and merged into his magic power.

Lu Cheng's swordsmanship is so superb compared to his level of cultivation that from the outside to the inside, he uses his swordsmanship to induce the circulation and changes of the vital energy of heaven and earth. Each time, it can in turn promote the improvement of Lu Cheng's magic power, making his magic power purer and the speed of improvement not inferior to that of the Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment cultivators.

The Five Elements Sword Technique helps increase mana, and the Great Five Elements Earthly True Fire tempers the body, comprehensively improving the physical qualities and even spiritual consciousness.

While resting in Lucheng, Xue Yuzhen and Yun Linger ran in carrying a piece of silk and many jade ornaments.

We need to prepare gifts for Uncle Huang Longzi and Aunt Baoxiang to make a good impression.

However, among the heavenly book treasures in Lucheng, there are many spiritual objects of the third and fourth levels, but there are no spiritual objects or magic tools of the fifth level:
There have been few alchemists in the Lin family of Ranmu Mountain from ancient times to the present. Even if there were really fifth-level magical instruments and talismans passed down, how could they be placed in the Lin family's treasury?

In fact, Lu Cheng does have some valuable spiritual objects:

The fifth-level Ice Soul Crystal and the sixth-level Taibai Gold Essence that the Hundred Poisons Golden Silkworm Gu brought out from the Jiuli World back then are enough to be given to a Jindan Zhenren.

But Lu Cheng was reluctant to do so. He had plenty of spirit stones and wanted to obtain treasures through auctions and trade fairs held by cultivators in Chang'an City.

Xue Yuzhen and Yun Ling'er came to Chang'an from the Chixin Temple in southern Xinjiang. Lu Cheng gave them a lot of spirit stones and asked them to choose gifts for Madam Baoxiang.

The best gift would be one that is precious but still available and that would please Madam Baoxiang. Lu Cheng would not be able to choose such a gift. Instead, Xue Yuzhen and Yun Ling'er would be more likely to choose it.

However, these days, Xue Yuzhen and Yun Ling'er had a lot of fun traveling and shopping, and their spirit stones were spent like water, but they had not yet found a gift that pleased Madam Baoxiang.

"Master, look at this piece of silk. I will cut it into a long skirt. You will definitely like it." Xue Yuzhen tore open a piece of silver silk. The texture was close-fitting. If it was made into a long skirt, it would indeed highlight Yuzhen's plump and full figure.

"Okay, okay, as long as you like it, but Yuzhen, you must be more careful when choosing a gift for Madam Baoxiang, and you must be more careful than when you buy it for yourself."

"I understand, sir."

Lu Cheng still believed in Xue Yuzhen's promise. She was the type of person who had been rich when she had money and poor when she didn't.

He had accompanied him in southern Xinjiang for ten years, practicing austerity and observing his duties. Lu Cheng didn't think there was anything wrong with coming to a prosperous place like Chang'an to satisfy his nature.

In fact, for Xue Yuzhen and Yun Linger, Nanjiang Chixin Temple and Chang'an Daoyuan each have their own advantages.

In southern Xinjiang, Chixin Temple has a very high status, especially among the people of Shiyuan City, who regard the monks of Chixin Temple as immortals and gods. Even in the Tongxuan Realm, because of Lu Cheng's reputation as the Nanling Sword Saint, Xue Yuzhen and Yun Linger are also followed closely, and few people dare to disrespect them.

But when they arrived at Chang'an Taoist Garden, the foundation-building cultivators were almost becoming ordinary people. When selecting spiritual objects at Chang'an Baoqixuan, they would occasionally run into senior masters at the Ningsha and Liangang realms, and Xue Yuzhen and Yun Linger would even pay their respects to them.

However, Chang'an is more prosperous, ten times more prosperous than Ishihara City, and has better food, clothing, housing and transportation, so both sides have their own advantages.

Just as Yun Ling'er was showing Lu Cheng what she had gained that day, the housekeeper of the Lu Mansion came in, bowed and said:
"Master, Immortal Zuo is here with several other immortals to visit you."

"I know, I'll be there right away."

Zuo Shuting is a Kun cultivator with a wide circle of friends in this Taoist garden. She came to visit Lu Cheng when he just moved into the Taoist garden.

Because they have a lot of connections, they often act as porters to earn resources for cultivation.

Leaving the back house, arriving at the front hall living room.

"Mr. Lu is really a busy man, so he kept us waiting."

Before Lu Cheng entered the house, he heard a tender and soft voice. When he entered the hall, he saw a woman in yellow with bright eyes, white teeth and fair skin standing there.

Lu Cheng had never been short of beautiful women. His concubine Xue Yuzhen was of the same type, and three times more outstanding.

Therefore, Lu Cheng did not care about Zuo Shuting's words, but smiled and said: "I was practicing swordsmanship before, and the housekeeper did not dare to disturb me, but I am sorry for being rude. Who are these three?"

Behind Zuo Shuting sat three men in black robes, dressed in both Taoist and secular styles, but all of them had a murderous aura that Lu Cheng could not conceal.

"These three are the three immortals who are cultivating in Xuanyang Mountain: Taoist Zuoji, Taoist Baiyang, and Taoist Huafa. These three immortals have great magical powers and generous personalities. I have specially brought them here today to introduce them to Mr. Lu and make friends with him."

The three of them had gloomy temperaments and murderous auras. Lu Cheng really couldn't see how they were generous. As for the term "Sanxian", it was just a respectful title for casual cultivators, just like Zuo Shuting calling herself "Dashen". It had no practical meaning other than showing respect.

It's just that one shouldn't hit someone who smiles at one's friend, let alone someone like Zuo Shuting who has a wide range of friends. But at this moment, Lu Cheng has made up his mind that if she really came to his place to hang out today, she would no longer be welcome in the Lu Mansion.

Whenever the butler comes for something in the future, he will say: My master is in seclusion, or he has been traveling for more than a month and I don’t know when he will return.

In these two situations, no monk can afford to wait.

Fortunately, the four of them sat down and exchanged greetings for a while. After a few words, Zuo Shuting suddenly said:

"In fact, Zuo and the three fellow Daoists from Xuanyang Mountain came here this time to give Daoist Lu a favor. I wonder if Daoist Lu is willing to do so?"

"I wonder what's going on?"

"This matter involves a secret. If Fellow Daoist Lu is interested, please swear to Dao Xin first. After listening to it, you can either join. Even if you refuse, you must not mention this matter to others for at least ten years, otherwise you will be plagued by demons in your heart." Zuo Shuting said.

Lu Cheng thought about it for a moment, and then made a Dao Heart Oath. This kind of oath has no binding force, but it is enough to constrain ordinary things.

"The thing is, Fellow Daoist Lu has lived in this Dao Garden for some time. You should know that when the Tang Dynasty was first established, the capital was set in Chang'an. The same was true in the previous dynasty. Over the thousands of years between the two dynasties, countless Taoists have been buried underground."

"Now that the Li Tang Dynasty has regained its powerful ruler and its rule is stable, we dare not touch the imperial tombs of the current dynasty, but there are many treasures left in the tombs of the previous dynasties for those who are destined to find them."

As Zuo Shuting told the story, Lu Cheng understood what was going on.

The imperial mausoleum of the Lin family of the Yinyue Dynasty was built by a master of formations in combination with the geographical advantages. Every time it was closed, it would be carried deep underground by the movement of earth dragons.

Therefore, although Li Tang ruled the world for many years, he was unable to open all the imperial tombs of the Yinyue Dynasty to gain full benefits.

But it is said that because the Lin family searched the world, countless treasures were hidden in the Earth Dragon Emperor's Mausoleum. The court has been secretly supporting the formation master to continuously measure and open it, but it has always been a great secret to the outside world. Instead, it protects the imperial mausoleum and maintains its own orthodoxy.

However, only the dead emperor can be buried in the imperial mausoleum, and at most some concubines in the harem. But the Yinyue Dynasty ruled the world for a thousand years, and there were more than tens of thousands of princes, princesses, and those royal servants.
This time, it was the descendants of Zuo Shuting's family who accidentally found an ancient tomb of the previous dynasty near Yuping Mountain in the northwest. Judging from its regulations, it was either that of a prince or a favored princess. The Zuo family monks withdrew and reported to the family patriarch, Zuo Shuting.

Zuo Shuting felt that she was not sure, so she invited three wandering people from Xuanyang Mountain. After the four of them joined forces to explore once, they withdrew in embarrassment. They still did not have enough Taoist skills and magic power, so they invited Lu Cheng again.

After Lu Cheng learned the whole story, his first reaction was: "Do I have some conflict with the Lin family?"

"Fellow Daoist Zuo, I still need to think about this matter for a while, so I can't reply to you immediately. How about three days? After three days, I will give you an explanation whether I go there or not."

"You Taoist, you are so unhappy. This is obviously a good thing that has been delivered to your door. Don't you know that if you don't take what is given by heaven, you will suffer the consequences?"

Before Zuo Shuting could say anything, the Huafa Taoist behind her spoke angrily.

Upon hearing this, Lu Cheng just drank his tea and smiled without saying anything.

"We are in a hurry on this trip, so it is natural for Fellow Daoist Lu to be a little cautious. Then, Fellow Daoist Lu, we will wait for good news."

After that, the five of them chatted for a while, then Zuo Shuting took the three wanderers from Xuanyang Mountain away, and Lu Cheng returned to drink tea after seeing the three off.

"Master, are you planning to go there?"

At this time, Xue Yuzhen walked out from behind the screen in the hall. Seeing that there was no one around, she snuggled into her master's arms like a cat.

"When the time comes, it's okay to go for a look. The three wanderers from Xuanyang Mountain have some magical powers, but I don't care about them. And the ancient tomb of the royal family of the previous dynasty may have some treasures that can save me some money."

The sixth-level spiritual item on his body, the Taibaijinjing, is hard to come by, and Lu Cheng is really reluctant to give it up. But if he really can't find anything good on this trip, he will have to bite the bullet and give it up:

It is very difficult for a low-level cultivator to have no one to rely on in the Tongxuan Realm.

In his early years in southern Xinjiang, when he killed the Black Temple Gu King, if Lu Cheng was not a disciple of the Red God Son, he would either happen to be in a good mood and be accepted as a disciple, or he would happen to be in a bad mood and have his soul extracted and spirit refined.

Moreover, how could a casual cultivator easily obtain the Taoist foundation that has been passed down for thousands of years by the top sects? Without this foundation, his basic skills would be worse than others, and the further he progresses, the more difficult it will become.

If the foundation in the beginning is poor, in the end you will either be at a dead end or you will have to spend ten times more effort and energy to go back and make up for it.

The reason why Lu Cheng set aside three days of free time was because his training of the fourth-level dog demon had reached a critical stage.

Among the monsters, the survival of the fittest prevails, and the strong prey on the weak. In a wolf pack, the weak must absolutely obey the strong.

Lu Cheng used these characteristics, as well as the experience of cultivators in raising monsters, to gradually eliminate the ferocious nature of the dog monster.

The Jiuli Ding itself seems to have the function of transforming hostility into peace. The more ferocious the dog demon is, the harsher and more cruel the world it will be thrown into. On the contrary, if it is docile, Lu Cheng seems to be able to influence the Jiuli Ding to throw it into a relatively safe world.

Lu Cheng still has too many doubts and unknowns about this treasure.

"Go, attack there!"

To the north of Dao Garden, there were barren mountains and dense forests. Lu Cheng pointed at a pile of rocks and waved his sleeves. A short-haired, white, thin-waisted dog, as big as an elephant, emerged from his sleeves. It growled and spit out demonic flames at the pile of rocks.

boom.

Exploded.

Seeing this, Lu Cheng touched the dog demon's head and threw it a piece of meat. This time the dog demon did not refuse but lowered its head and swallowed it. After a moment, it was rolled back into the Jiuli Ding by a golden light.

"It will no longer resist, and I will have to bear the cost of its spiritual consciousness. However, compared with the combat power of a demon beast of the Condensed Evil level, this consumption of spiritual consciousness is nothing."

Lu Cheng stroked his forehead with his hand, but he had not yet taken this dog demon into account in his fighting power. If this demon was cunning and behaved obediently on weekdays, and suddenly counterattacked when he faced a strong enemy, he would be seriously injured if not killed.

Therefore, you have to try various methods to feel at ease.

Three days after Zuo Shuting's visit, Lu Cheng wrote back to her, expressing his willingness to participate in the ancient tomb exploration.

Zuo Shuting quickly replied, giving a location near Yuping Mountain in the communication talisman and inviting Lu Cheng to meet there.

At night, in the bedroom of the Lu Mansion, Lu Cheng and Xue Yuzhen made love for a while. After a passionate embrace, Xue Yuzhen lay wetly in her husband's arms, chatting casually:

"My husband, do you think that Zuo Shuting is working with the three evil men of Xuanyang Mountain to deceive and harm you? I often hear about this kind of thing. They first pretend to make friends, then find a hidden place to set up a formation, besiege and kill. Many robbery cultivators use this routine."

"No, if it's this kind of routine, at least we should test the target's combat power first. They don't know my background, so they just casually lure me into a trap? You know the difference between ordinary cultivators and first-class Xuanmen inheritors. Even if they set up a formation, it will be destroyed by a talisman."

The foundation-building true disciples of the top sects have at least a few fourth-level talismans on them. As long as it is not a third-level formation connected to the earth veins, an ordinary third-level formation can be broken with one talisman, and it cannot surround anyone at all.

"Also, did you notice that although Fellow Daoist Zuo was the leader, he seemed to be a little afraid of the Three Evils of Xuanyang Mountain. She pulled me into the game, and it seemed that she was more intended to keep a check on me."

Lu Cheng analyzed for a while and found that his concubine had no reaction at all. He looked down and saw Xue Yuzhen had fallen asleep with a cute and naive look on her face. She was obviously the mother of a grown girl, but she still acted like a little girl.

Lu Cheng kissed her eyes tenderly, then closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep as well.

During these days, the two of them had used the Taiyi Tiandun Yin-Yang Calculation to deduce the Innate Qi Capture, which allowed Lu Cheng to gain a deeper understanding and insight into this technique.

The next day, Yuping Mountain, this mountain is close to the capitals of the two dynasties. It is a place with beautiful mountains and rivers, and a gathering place of energy. Therefore, many senior monks sat in meditation here, and at the same time hid all their Taoist secrets and magic tools for those who are destined to come.

But just like the treasure of the Heavenly Book, third and fourth level magical instruments are still common, but fifth level ones are almost nonexistent. Second and third rate Xuanmen skills are common, but the truly top-notch ones are almost nonexistent.

After all, when a senior monk from a top sect passes away, how could he not leave behind all his Taoist secrets and magical weapons to the younger generations in the sect?

Between the shapes of Yuping Mountain.

Zuo Shuting, the three evil spirits of Xuanyang Mountain and four Qi training realm cultivators came to welcome Lu Cheng.

"Brother Lu really trusts people."

"I am a timid person, but I have kept you three Taoist friends waiting for a long time."

"Where, please."

"please."

Zuo Shuting and the three villains of Xuanyang Mountain had been planning for a long time to find the hidden tomb of the previous dynasty, but in fact they had not even broken into the gate.

But the layout is indeed concealed. If the monk from the Zuo family had not accidentally come to the nearby area while collecting herbs, he probably would not have discovered this ancient tomb.

As the group flew to the entrance of the cave, white clouds appeared from all directions, layer upon layer, gathering strength and pressing down on everyone present.

The immortal magic ban is still functioning normally after a thousand years, and its power has not diminished.

(End of this chapter)