The more you believe me, the more real it becomes.

Chapter 264 Traveling Together (3k)

Beneath the stone bridge, the alluring woman's face was almost bloodshot, a frighteningly pale color.

Not only were there shattered magical artifacts scattered around her, but there was also a lot of blood on her body.

Even though it had long since dried, that deadly sweet scent still lingered. A glance at the unhealed wound on her wrist revealed that all the blood was her own.

All of this was the cost and effort incurred to preserve the established formation.

At first, she thought that sacrificing one magic weapon would be enough to deal with it, but unexpectedly, the righteous energy stirred up in that person's body was like a tide, wave after wave, without any sign of stopping.

The costs she incurred were ever-increasing, leaving her with no way out but to grit her teeth and persevere. By this point, the entire fortune she had brought with her had been completely wiped out.

Even so, the elaborate formation that had been painstakingly set up ultimately could not be preserved.

Firstly, the key point of the formation here had been severely damaged; secondly, all the lesser demons she had previously placed in the river had already perished. Her entire plan now had absolutely no chance of success!

How could she not be furious at such an outcome? The stubborn rock beneath her was gripped in her hand and easily crushed into dust as if it were soft clay.

"Who is it? Who on earth dares to be so despicable as to ruin my grand plan!"

When her gaze fell upon the immortal sword beneath the stone bridge, she was so angry she nearly vomited blood.

The sword is spiritually connected; unless one recognizes it as their master, there is absolutely no chance of obtaining it.

Even though most of these immortal swords have long since lost their original owners, they are by no means something that can be taken away by just anyone.

They would rather lie somewhere forever, letting time seal them away and eventually decay, than let unrelated people easily get their hands on them.

The more powerful the Legend of Sword and Fairy is, the more this is true.

Anyone who attempts to touch it will surely face a fierce counterattack from the Legend of Sword and Fairy.

Ordinary immortal swords can defend themselves on their own, using their unparalleled killing power to annihilate invaders; even more so, their methods are unpredictable and unpredictable, making them impossible to guard against.

Only a very few are mild-mannered, perhaps simply impossible to pull out. The one in the Lan River might be one such example.

After all, the word 'benevolence' was forged into that sword.

It is one of the fundamental and important instruments of Confucianism.

But such immortal swords are extremely rare. Even the one in front of her can unleash its sword energy to kill anyone who tries to take it.

The brave swordsman who retrieved the sword, a story the people of Hexi County have always talked about, died because of this.

A mere iron chain, cast from ordinary iron, dared to attempt to take down a celestial sword.

It's absolutely ridiculous!
Therefore, in order to avoid dying like an ordinary person, she meticulously arranged a grand formation and carefully plotted to seize the human destiny.

They claimed to have done everything to the best of their ability.

When the time is right, I will be able to take the sword and leave.

But now.
Everything is ruined!

She would risk her life to hunt down that Confucian scholar who recited the classics!
A tremendous rage gripped her heart and lungs, and she felt as if she were about to grind her teeth to powder.

But just as this atmosphere of hostility was surging, a rough, hoarse voice suddenly came from the side:
“Your plan is doomed, and you can’t take this sword with you. So, give me what I need, and I should leave.”

The visitor was not Wu Yike, but another of her allies.

This man had none of the refined and otherworldly air of a cultivator; instead, he looked like a butcher who had just come out of a butcher shop, with greasy fat still clinging to the corners of his mouth. Even the weapon he carried was not some magical artifact radiating spiritual light, but a gleaming bone-chopping knife covered in bits of meat.

The alluring woman's face instantly turned cold. She pointed to the messy ground in front of her, her voice chilling:
"The golden elixir you wanted? I just swallowed it. As for magic treasures, I don't have a single one left. That damned Confucian scholar destroyed them all under the guise of righteous energy."

The butcher's eyes narrowed instantly, his grip on the cleaver tightened involuntarily, and his voice was deep and sullen: "So you're not thinking of backing out, are you?"

Upon hearing this, the alluring woman suddenly burst into a dazed laugh, her laughter carrying a hint of manic derangement.

Then, without any hesitation, she lay down on the spot, revealing a small, white foot, its ankle bound with a red rope, soft as if soaked in honey:

"I don't really have anything valuable left, but haven't you been wanting to taste my body for a long time?"

The butcher's eyes lit up instantly, his previous gloom vanished, and he nodded hastily, taking a step forward, his voice full of urgency:

"Excellent! Excellent!"

He was about to rush forward when he took two steps when a small foot gently pressed against his chest—the foot looked slender and delicate, but its strength was not weak at all, and it stopped him in his tracks.

"What? At this point, you still want to back out?" The butcher's face darkened.

The alluring woman's smile grew even more seductive, yet her eyes concealed a ruthlessness that rivaled anything else: "Of course I won't go back on my word. I'll let you have your way. But there's one condition: afterwards, you must come with me to kill that damned scholar!"

"That won't do." The butcher took a sudden step back, and the urgency on his face vanished instantly, leaving only vigilance.

"No? How dare someone like you say no?"

The glamorous woman's silly smile froze for a moment, then she looked utterly bewildered.

This fellow is unlike Wu Yi Ke, who was manipulated by a group of fox demons in his early years, causing him to suffer damage to his Dao, to the point that he desperately studied the art of controlling charms, making ordinary charm techniques completely ineffective.

How could someone who cultivates skills and destiny but not morality resist his own charm?

'Did I only learn the basics back then?' The alluring woman began to doubt herself.

Fortunately, the next moment, they heard the butcher grin and say:
"You must let me do as I please until that scholar is killed! It can't just be today!"

The glamorous woman scoffed instantly, "So that's it."

He immediately lowered his leg and said:

"Of course you can, but don't let yourself run away later."

The butcher laughed heartily:

"Don't worry, don't worry, I'm a person who always keeps my promises!"
-
After taking a careful look at the ancient sword beneath the Lan River, Du Yuan bid farewell to everyone and planned to check each of the places where she had previously noticed something, as they were all the same swords.

In this way, it's easier to determine which one is the most suitable for you.

Although Lanhe's performance was indeed quite good, and it was even recommended by a friend.

But there are so many Legend of Sword and Fairy games, wouldn't it be a waste not to watch them all?
With her plans in mind, Du Yuan left Guanshui Tower and began searching in the surrounding area.

As Du Yuan passed by an old tree, she suddenly caught a glimpse of a figure huddled in the grass.

The person was crouching inside, covering their head, with only their round buttocks sticking out as they trembled. A fluffy dog ​​tail was also sticking out from under their clothes, clearly indicating that they were a little demon.

It must have been the righteous spirit I had instilled when I recited the classics of the sages that terrified the little guy.

Du Yuan found it amusing, stepped forward, and gently kicked its exposed rear end, her voice mild: "You haven't done anything wrong, what are you afraid of?"

Anyone with eyes can see that this little monster was able to remain unharmed under the influence of righteous energy, so it must not have done anything immoral.

But to everyone's surprise, after that kick, the other person trembled even more violently, their voice shaking and almost crying:
"I...I...I did it!"

Du Yuan was taken aback and asked in surprise, "Have you done anything wrong?"

The little dog demon quickly turned around, its knees buckled, and it knelt tremblingly at Du Yuan's feet, its head bowed low.
"Yes, yes, yes! I... I really did something bad!"

"Oh? Then tell me, what evil deeds did you commit?" Du Yuan asked curiously.

Since this little demon dared to admit it and is still alive and standing here, it must not be a big deal.

Just then, the little dog demon stretched out its paw, pointing tremblingly to the mountains and fields ahead, and whispered:
"I...I often run out at night and dress up as a ghost to scare people!"

These words truly stunned Du Yuan, leaving her both amused and exasperated.
"You are a monster yourself. If you really wanted to scare people, why would you need to pretend to be a ghost?"

"It's fun!"

The little dog demon, his face streaked with tears and snot, choked out as he explained:

"Back when I was just an ordinary house dog, I loved to be chained up, baring my teeth and making a fierce face to scare passing kids when I couldn't reach them. After I became a spirit, I loved doing that even more."

Du Yuan wanted to facepalm, and blurted out, half-laughing and half-crying, "Is this some kind of tribute?"

The little dog demon didn't understand what he was saying at all. He even forgot his previous fear and stared blankly at Du Yuan with his eyes wide open.

What does "致" or "敬" mean?

Du Yuan waved her hand helplessly and said:

"You don't need to know, and you wouldn't understand even if I told you. So, do you see that water-viewing pavilion over there?"

Seeing the little dog demon nod in a daze, he continued:
“Go upstairs and find a magistrate surnamed Han. Have him give you a few dozen lashes, and we'll let it go for what you did to scare people by pretending to be a ghost. Don’t do such absurd things again. Either cultivate yourself properly or go out and do some good deeds to accumulate merit. That’s better than anything else.”

The little dog demon was immediately relieved, and scrambled to its feet on all fours, running towards the Guanshui Tower.

But it ran in a panic, frightening many passersby who exclaimed in alarm, thinking they had encountered a madman and fearing that if it bit them, they would have nowhere to complain.

Du Yuan stood there watching this scene, feeling both amused and exasperated—this little monster was truly beyond words.

Just then, another voice came from behind Du Yuan.

"You seem to be quite tolerant of the demon race?"

Du Yuan turned around at the sound and saw a man in black standing behind her. He had an extraordinary bearing and was obviously a cultivator.

Du Yuan laughed:

“Demons are not like humans; cultivation is not easy for them. Since they haven’t done anything immoral, they should naturally offer some guidance if they encounter such a situation.”

The man in black sighed:
"It is rare to see such thoughts in your opinion. In the past, the people in the mountains all claimed that humans and demons could not coexist, and that they would definitely eliminate any monsters they encountered."

"If that's really why they went there, then so be it, since they're not of our kind, it's understandable. But what's the reality? Heh, they're just after demon cores and precious flesh."

Even so, they still don't dare to provoke those who are powerful or even similar, and only dare to show off their power to those who are inferior to them.

After saying that, the man in black suddenly said:

"Are you planning to take a look at swords? If so, would you be willing to accompany me? I dare not speak of other things, but I am very familiar with swords! Perhaps I can tell you about them?"

Du Yuan immediately cupped his hands and said:
"In that case, I'll leave it to you, sir!"

(End of this chapter)