Blind Ghostwriter: Starts with the full level of Nine Yang Magic Skill

Chapter 260 Legend
Gu Mo pondered Jiang Ruoxu's situation for a while but couldn't figure it out, so he stopped thinking about it. He quickly found the Taixu Sword and the Yuanhong Sword, and then left with Gu Chudong, Xiao Ziyin, and the others.

The imperial army had already been decimated by Ye Jinglan several times, and just now they were attacked again by Gu Mo and Ye Jinglan. They were already in a state of disarray. Now that Emperor Jiang is dead, the army is in complete disarray.

Therefore, Gu Mo and his group left without much hindrance. They then returned to the Honglu Temple, called the others, and quickly evacuated.

The emperor was killed, and almost none of the civil and military officials survived.

There was no leader in the capital of Jiang Kingdom at present, so Gu Mo and his party left the capital without any hindrance and swaggered out of the city.

Gu Mo was resting and recovering in the carriage.
Before Ye Nantian died, he unleashed Jiang Ruoxu's sword strike, catching Gu Mo off guard. Although Gu Mo withstood most of the impact thanks to his innate qi and the power of the Great Vajra Divine Force,

However, that sword strike was too sudden, and he was too hasty to defend against it. He didn't even have time to activate the defensive form of the Boundless Returning to Origin Qi, which resulted in him being seriously injured.

but,

He possessed a variety of martial arts skills with miraculous healing effects. As long as he wasn't crushed to ashes on the spot, even if he was killed, theoretically he could recover. Therefore, although he was seriously injured, it didn't have a significant impact on his health.

Traveling together for three days,

We arrived at the edge of a wasteland.

The two delegations reached their parting points, and then an awkward atmosphere ensued.

Overall, the cooperation between the two missions during this period was very harmonious, especially among those who survived the battle of the capital, who were comrades-in-arms who fought side by side.

And especially these three days,
Although they hadn't encountered any obstacles, everyone was very nervous. Few could kill a foreign emperor in the capital and then leave without a care in the world, completely unfazed.

So, during these three days,

Both diplomatic missions harbored a tacit understanding that they were ready to betray each other at any time.

At this time,
It's time to go our separate ways.

People habitually prepare to say goodbye to those they get along with, but suddenly realize that after today, they will be enemies.

The war between the states of Qian and Chu
Anyone with eyes can see that it's impossible to avoid; it's just a matter of time.

So, for a moment, the atmosphere became somewhat awkward.

Xiao Ziyin rode his horse to Gu Mo's carriage, cupped his hands and said, "Master Gu, after you return to your country, the remaining 100,000 taels of commission will be presented to you by someone."

Gu Mo lifted the curtain and stepped down from the carriage, cupping his hands in thanks.

“I should thank you,” Xiao Ziyin said. “We originally agreed to just kill Ye Nantian, but we didn’t expect it to cause such a big mess and even bring out the physical body of Jiang Ruoxu.”

Gu Mo said, "Your Highness is knowledgeable and experienced. The Chu Kingdom once sent a master to participate in the siege and killing of Jiang Ruoxu. Do you have any guesses about Jiang Ruoxu's situation? Did he really ascend to immortality?"

Xiao Ziyin said, "The idea of ​​ascension has been around for a long time. For example, Longhu Mountain, which you are familiar with, has an Ascension Platform, named after the idea of ​​ascension. However, according to various records, ascension only exists among Qi cultivators."

I once visited the Great Bright Temple and consulted relevant scriptures. One theory I tend to agree with is that the legendary Thirteen Taboos—Knocking on the Heavenly Gate, the Inner Demon, and the Outer Heaven—combined together constitute ascension.

Gu Mo quickly replied, "Your Highness, please do not hesitate to enlighten me!"

"I dare not accept such praise," Xiao Ziyin said. "To be honest, Master Gu, my martial arts level is far from that level, so I don't know much about this. However, you are the best in the world, and your martial arts cultivation is the highest in the world. You can certainly learn more about this. If you are interested, I will personally take you to see the royal library of Chu whenever you go there."

Gu Mo nodded slightly and said, "Thank you."

Xiao Ziyin continued, "Legend has it that when a Qi cultivator reaches a certain level, they can ascend to heaven. This is called knocking on the Heavenly Gate, which is the fourth of the thirteen taboos. However, when knocking on the Heavenly Gate, one will encounter inner demons, which is the ninth of the thirteen taboos."

Only after defeating one's inner demons can one truly knock on the Heavenly Gate. Opening the Heavenly Gate allows one to ascend to immortality and enter the Immortal Realm. There are many legends surrounding this Immortal Realm, but the one I most readily accept is the Seventh Forbidden Heaven Beyond Heaven.

Gu Mo asked, "Are there any special rules?"

Xiao Ziyin thought for a moment and said, "I once obtained an ancient book in the royal library of my Chu Kingdom, which recorded a story."

The story goes that more than 190 years ago, a scholar was traveling to the Taihang Mountains when he was caught in a torrential downpour. To take shelter from the rain, he entered a cave.

In the middle of the night, he smelled a strange fragrance and followed it. He found a small opening deep in the cave. He was so engrossed in the fragrance that he ignored the danger and crawled into the opening, unaware that it was actually an underground river.

The scholar fell into the dark river, which was so deep and wide that he could not see the bottom. He thought he was going to die, but suddenly he saw a light. He swam over desperately and saw a woman in the water being bitten by a strange fish.

The scholar felt pity for the woman and desperately drove away the strange fish, saving her. Afterwards, he was exhausted and sank to the bottom of the water, but when he woke up, he found himself back in the cave, where he saw the woman sitting high on a lotus platform, bathed in radiant light.

The stunningly beautiful woman claimed to be a Qi cultivator from the Taihang Mountains. After two hundred years of cultivation, she had finally attained immortality. During her final attempt to enter the immortal realm, she was attacked by a demon that materialized in human form. Fortunately, a scholar helped her, and out of gratitude, she promised to descend to the mortal realm in ten days to help him achieve great success and a life of wealth and honor, in return for his kindness. Having said this, the woman ascended to heaven on a lotus platform.

The scholar awoke with a start, only to find that it was already dawn; everything that had happened the previous night was nothing but a dream. Later, the scholar passed the imperial examinations, entered the court as an official, and within a few short years became a prefect of a region.

But at that time, the country suffered from natural disasters, and the people were living in misery, even resorting to cannibalism. The emperor was extremely incompetent, engaging in large-scale construction projects and increasing taxes. The scholar was arrested and imprisoned simply because he pitied the people and petitioned for their lives. He was sentenced to have his family property confiscated and his clan exterminated.

But, just as he was about to be beheaded, a goddess descended from the execution ground and rescued him. This occurred exactly ten years after the cultivator's ascension, corresponding to one day in heaven and one year on earth. Afterwards, with the goddess's help, the scholar rose in rebellion, overthrowing the tyrannical dynasty and establishing a new one, bringing new life to the people. This scholar was none other than the High Emperor of my Great Chu!

After listening, Gu Mo said, "This is just a very normal myth about emperors. Throughout history, the founding emperors of various countries have had similar legends. To be honest, this was made up to fool ordinary people, making their rebellion seem justifiable by claiming divinely granted imperial power."

Xiao Ziyin nodded slightly and said, "Looking at this story alone, it is indeed nothing special. However, there is a second half to this story. During the process of establishing the Chu Kingdom, Emperor Gaozu developed feelings for the goddess. However, the goddess's time in the mortal world had come to an end, and she had to leave, never to be seen again."

Xiao Ziyin paused for a moment and said, "The story ends here. Later, I found a record at Da Guangming Temple about a celestial messenger from beyond the heavens visiting the human world. The time coincides with the time when the goddess was taken away by the celestial visitor and left the human world in that story."

Furthermore, there are clear records that after the country was stabilized, Emperor Gaozu devoted himself to searching for the celestial realm beyond the heavens, a fact that should be documented in various countries. Many people today say that Emperor Gaozu became senile in his later years and sought immortality, but our imperial records clearly state that Emperor Gaozu was not pursuing immortality but rather the celestial realm beyond the heavens, and that he gazed at the portrait of a goddess for a long time.

Later, when Emperor Gaozu sensed that his time was coming to an end, he abdicated the throne to Emperor Hui and left a final imperial edict, stating that his time was coming to an end and that he would go to the Taihang Mountains to sleep with the immortal body left behind by the goddess who had shed her mortal body.

In fact, even now, the portrait of the goddess still exists in the palace of my Great Chu, and the last imperial edict of Emperor Gaozu is still preserved.

After listening,

Gu Mo nodded slightly and said, "So, Your Highness means that ascension is indeed a real thing."

“I didn’t really believe it before. After all, both the story about Emperor Gaozu and the records of Daguangming Temple were more like legends, and I always took them as just stories,” Xiao Ziyin said. “But after seeing Jiang Ruoxu’s physical body this time, I’m starting to believe those records.”

At this point, Xiao Ziyin asked, "Master Gu, it is common knowledge that a sword is destroyed when a person dies. With your unparalleled martial arts, is it possible that someone dies but their sword intent remains?"

Gu Mo shook his head slightly and said, "Sword energy is possible. As long as there is a special carrier, sword energy can be stored. However, sword intent is unlikely. Therefore, Jiang Ruoxu is not dead. Emperor Jiang should not be lying about this matter."

Xiao Ziyin said, "Actually, many of the survivors who participated in the battle to besiege Jiang Ruoxu said that the Jiang Ruoxu they saw at the time was not like a human, but like a ghost, and ordinary swords could not cut him at all."

It wasn't that Jiang Ruoxu was fast or had strong defense; he was simply like a ghost from legend, impossible to touch. However, not many people thought about it at the time. After all, there are all sorts of martial arts in the world, and Jiang Ruoxu was one of the most unpredictable Qi cultivators, so it was normal for him to have some special methods.

Looking back now, it seems that Jiang Ruoxu at that time was probably not human. Legend has it that those who ascend to immortality shed their mortal form and become gods, and there is a great difference between gods and humans; earthly things cannot harm gods. Therefore, Jiang Ruoxu was ultimately defeated because someone summoned heavenly lightning.

Therefore, Jiang Ruoxu should have already transcended the mortal realm, but for some reason, he didn't ascend; instead, he suffered a qi deviation. Perhaps he had already undergone the transformation when he knocked on the Heavenly Gate, but failed to overcome the tribulation of his inner demons.

Gu Mo nodded slightly and said, "Thank you for your kind guidance, Your Highness!"

Xiao Ziyin quickly waved his hand and said, "I haven't been able to offer you any help, Master Gu. How about this, when I return to China this time, I will specifically look up some books on this subject, and if I find any useful information, I will write to you."

Gu Mo cupped his hands and said, "Then thank you very much, Your Highness. I will be staying at Longhu Mountain for a while when I return to Qian Kingdom, so you can send the letter to Longhu Mountain." Xiao Ziyin said, "I heard that Hero Gu has a very good relationship with Celestial Master Zhang Daoyi. You can also check the relevant documents and records at Longhu Mountain. As the ancestral home of Taoism, Longhu Mountain has a history of thousands of years and there must be a lot of documents on this subject."

Gu Mo nodded and said, "I will ask about it later. These things may be secrets of the sect's inheritance and cannot be passed on to outsiders."

"That's true."

After Xiao Ziyin uttered those words, both of them fell silent.

After a while, Gu Mo said, "Your Highness, it's getting late, let's take our leave now!"

Xiao Ziyin nodded and said, "Hero Gu, if you ever have the chance to visit the Chu Kingdom in the future, please let me know so that I can extend my hospitality as a host!"

"it is good."

Xiao Ziyin took two steps, then suddenly turned back and asked, "Master Gu, do you remember the question I asked you when we first officially met?"

"What's the problem?" Gu Mo asked, puzzled.

Xiao Ziyin said, "Seven hundred years ago, Qin lost its power, and the various states have been divided for seven hundred years, which means seven hundred years of chaos and constant warfare. What I asked at the time was, Master Gu, how many more years do you think it will be possible for the world to be unified again?"

Now I'd like to ask, does Master Gu think it's better for the world to remain divided like this, or is it better to have a short, sharp pain than a long, drawn-out one, so that a wise and capable leader emerges and sacrifices a generation's bloodshed for centuries of peace?

Gu Mo shook his head slightly and said, "I don't care about these things."

Xiao Ziyin cupped his hands in greeting and walked towards Gu Chudong, who was not far away. He then started chatting with Gu Chudong.

At this moment, Ye Jinglan came to Gu Mo's side and clicked his tongue in admiration, "I was just discussing with Brother Zhuo whether this Princess of Chu would use her beauty to seduce you, Brother Gu. Brother Zhuo was even thinking of having you play along!"

Gu Mo glanced at Zhuo Qingfeng.

Zhuo Qingfeng's martial arts skills are average. It's already quite an achievement that he survived the battle of the imperial city. His injuries were very severe. He doesn't have Gu Mo's self-healing ability, and he doesn't know how long he will need to recuperate. He still can't even get out of the carriage.

However, no matter how serious his injuries were, it didn't stop him from having some strange ideas.

Gu Mo pursed his lips and said, "Speaking of which, Brother Zhuo, you've been constantly testing Xiao Ziyin in Jiang Kingdom these past few days. Have you found out anything?"

Ye Jinglan shook his head slightly and said, "Besides guessing that Chu was planning to send troops to Jiang, he didn't find out anything else. However, I did discover something."

"What's the matter?" Gu Mo asked.

Ye Jinglan said, "The martial arts practiced by this princess are not normal martial arts. Or rather, this princess is probably the same kind of person as me. There is a kind of cold energy hidden in her body, which is not weaker than my Qilin blood."

During the battle in the imperial city a few days ago, when I was fighting her right next to her, I could clearly sense that the energy within her was not true qi.

Gu Mo nodded and said, "That's normal. Which royal family doesn't have some foundation? Even a small country like Jiang has Jiang Ruoxu's physical body. How could Chu, the strongest country in the world, not have something?"

“That’s true.” Ye Jinglan nodded.

"By the way," Gu Mo asked, "Didn't you want to get that drop of Qilin blood from Ye Nantian's body? Did you get it?"

“I’ve obtained it,” Ye Jinglan said. “My drop of Qilin blood possesses immense demonic power, granting me tremendous explosive force, while Ye Nantian’s drop is immeasurable in energy, capable of endless regeneration. Brother Gu, once I have fully fused with this drop of blood, I’m going to challenge you to a fight!”

"I'm available anytime," Gu Mo said with a light laugh.

Ye Jinglan smiled too.

Soon, both of them fell silent.

After a while, Gu Mo asked, "Is there any danger?"

"I chose it myself!"

……

After parting ways with the Chu delegation, another seven or eight days passed before they finally entered the border of the Qian Kingdom.

immediately,

Gu Mo and Gu Chudong then parted ways with Ye Jinglan, Zhuo Qingfeng, and the other members of the Qian Kingdom delegation. The delegation was going to the capital to report on their duties, while Gu Mo and Gu Chudong were going to Longhu Mountain in Luzhou.

Last year, I made an appointment with Zhang Daoyi to go to the Ascension Platform in May. The enlightenment effect of the Ascension Platform is the best during that time, and we can also pick a few Enlightenment Fruits. This should be enough to help Gu Chudong to enter the basics or even achieve minor success in the cultivation of the Heavenly Dragon Eight Sounds.

but,

The brother and sister weren't very busy, as there was still more than a month before the Enlightenment Tree would bloom, so they kept stopping and starting. While Gu Mo was instructing Gu Chudong in cultivation, Gu Mo himself was also pondering how to advance further in martial arts.

This battle with the capital of Jiang Kingdom,

Gu Mo gained a lot.

He had always believed that he possessed dozens of advanced martial arts techniques, making him invincible in close combat. But after that day's physical clash with Jiang Ruoxu, he realized a problem.

It is true that he knows countless moves.

However, he was still bound by the characteristics and moves of various martial arts. Even though he had reached a level of combat mastery with techniques like the Eight Strikes of the Scattered Hands and the Tai Xuan Scripture, he was still bound by the framework of various martial arts.

Therefore,
He began to ponder breaking free from the framework and seeking a state of effortless mastery where one method encompasses all methods.

……

On Gu Mo's way to Luzhou,

Xiao Ziyin had already returned to the capital of Chu, but he was summoned to the palace as soon as he entered the city. Led by a eunuch, he arrived at the imperial study, sat and waited for a while, and then footsteps sounded outside the door.

A young man walked in.

The young man had his black hair tied up in a crown, his eyebrows were sharp as if cut by a knife, and his phoenix eyes held a commanding presence. He stepped into the imperial study with steady steps, his wide sleeves sweeping across the screen. His aura was like a surging dark tide, and the palace servants held their breath and lowered their heads wherever he went.

The emperor's gaze swept across the room full of books, his imposing aura revealing the supreme majesty of the emperor. What was most remarkable was that within this man's pupils, there was a faint pair of pupils, making him none other than the legendary Chu Emperor Xiao Zhaolin, a saint born with double pupils.

"Greetings, Your Majesty!" Xiao Ziyin quickly rose and bowed.

Xiao Zhaolin waved his hand slightly and said, "Your Majesty, there's no need for such formalities. You've had a hard time these past few days, first to Southern Jin, and then to Jiang Kingdom without stopping. This trip to Jiang Kingdom was fraught with danger, but fortunately Your Majesty is unharmed, otherwise, I would not be at ease!"

“This is my duty,” Xiao Ziyin said.

Xiao Zhaolin chuckled lightly, then suddenly asked, "Royal Sister, have you found out? What exactly is Gu Mo?"

Xiao Ziyin said, "He is a human being, a born saint just like you!"

"A person? How could it be a person?"

(End of this chapter)