Zhongshan Shenzhu Chi

Chapter 121 The Old Taoist

Seeing that Hongze's fate was sealed and there was no turning back, Xuanlian turned around and asked.

"Has there been any news from the Dragon Court of the East Sea?"

"Please inform the Palace Master that the Dragon King and the Dragon King have not yet left the East Sea," the group replied immediately.

"Hold your positions and wait until Zhongshan and the East Sea Dragon Court are fully engaged in war, and that red dragon appears to fight with Qiu and Chi, then we will make our move." Xuan Lian walked down the steps one by one.

"We will obey the immortal's decree." Everyone bowed and clasped their hands in greeting.

"Manage your family's territory well. I don't want to hear any news about the Mist Ghosts attacking people—" Xuan Lian's tone was cold, her eyes like sharp swords, sweeping over everyone present with murderous intent.

Their backs were bent even deeper, their whole bodies resembling arrows broken in half, with only their tails still connecting them.

Xuan Lian walked past them, bringing with her a gust of cold wind.

She knew all too well who these native aristocratic families of Yunxi Continent were.

Without evidence, she couldn't blindly go on a killing spree. Punishing one family a year apart was manageable. But if she killed too many at once, the hard-won stability of Yunxi Continent would plunge it back into turmoil.

Furthermore, there is only one and a half fifth-realm cultivators in the Star River Sword Palace—far from having the strength to control the East Sea, resist Zhongshan, and defend the imperial dynasty.

Xuan Lian sighed inwardly.

She was already a fifth-realm immortal, yet she still lacked the power to rectify the world's ways.

No matter how much you lament, nothing will change.

Human effort is key; only by taking things one step at a time can the flower of peace gradually bloom. This is the truth that my mother-in-law realized after overcoming her inner demons.

"Hongze has been occupied by the Zhongshan demons, and the surrounding area is bound to be in chaos. The Lü family will definitely not let this opportunity to burn, kill, and plunder go to their heart's content."

"Old Ancestor of the Lü family—if you collude with me, I will kill you with a single sword stroke."

2

With her mind made up, Xuan Lian's figure transformed into a wisp of silvery starlight and vanished.

*

*

*

The road to Hongze City was shrouded in thick fog.

When the wise old Taoist walked through it, he felt as if he were in the dark seabed, and his vision could not penetrate even a meter.

"This fog is a bit unusual," the old Taoist priest muttered to himself.

Not only was his vision obstructed, but his hearing also seemed to be impaired.

It was completely quiet all around, without a sound. The fog churned like a sea, indicating there was wind, but there wasn't even the slightest rustling sound of it blowing through the trees.

With their view obstructed and the muddy road beneath their feet seemingly endless, they couldn't find the location of Hongze City at all.

"Let me calculate it." The old Taoist priest stopped and took out a wooden abacus that was more than three feet long from his sleeve.

The Taoist priests of the Shuowang Sect are different from those of other sects; they believe in acting spontaneously. However, in order to calculate celestial secrets and deduce the Shuowang techniques applicable to the human realm, almost every Taoist priest carries an abacus at hand, and the same goes for Mingli.

With frequent use, the abacus was imbued with spiritual energy every day, and over time, it became a magical artifact.

"East, North, South—" The old Taoist priest's hands moved with lightning speed, the abacus beads clicking loudly.

Suddenly, the abacus beads representing the West jumped up to thirteen.

"Two is auspicious, one is inauspicious. West—is someone about to meet with disaster?" Mingli frowned deeply.

He calculated the location of Hongze City, not the person in danger who needed rescue.

The wise old Taoist priest looked up, gazing in the east, north, and south directions, his hands moving ceaselessly as he continuously moved the abacus beads.

A spiritual aura, seemingly capable of foreseeing the future, emanated from the old Taoist priest, creating countless illusory figures that walked into the thick fog.

After a long while, the phantoms returned. They had also gotten lost, and as they walked, they returned to where they started.

"This is troublesome—this fog demon has broken free from the shackles of illusion; it is now a living being of this world." Thinking of this, Mingli broke out in a cold sweat.

The fog was particularly gloomy at this moment, and wisps of it came in, like the drooling tongue of a demon licking its own body.

"The West is both a gate of misfortune and a gate of life—there's only one chance to get through it."

Mingli gritted his teeth and flew off in the direction the abacus beads were pointing.

Mingli also tried to fly into the sky, but no matter how high he flew, the fog still enveloped him.

In order to preserve his strength to cope with changes, he had no choice but to walk on the ground.

As he headed west, the abacus in his hand kept jumping. From the initial thirteen beads, to eleven, nine, seven, and finally only one remained.

Mingli suddenly stopped in his tracks.

The mist that enveloped him changed.

"You're playing tricks, come out!" Mingli shouted, and with a wave of his sleeve, the thick fog in front of him was dispersed for a hundred meters.

A child appeared before him.

She was thirteen or fourteen years old, with a wheatish complexion and jet-black hair as smooth as silk.

"Master, why are you so late? I've been waiting for you for ages." He looked up, smiling as he asked.

"You demon! Stop impersonating my disciple!" Mingli was completely unmoved by his charm.

With a raised hand, countless abacus beads floated in the air and shot out like lightning.

Wu Cunyi's body was instantly riddled with holes, bleeding profusely, and he collapsed to the ground, slowly crawling toward the Taoist priest Mingli.

"Master, why did you kill me?"

"Master, why did you kill me?"

"Master, just kill me." Just as Mingli's body stiffened, a voice rang out on his shoulder.

The old Taoist priest suddenly turned his head and saw a young boy with tears streaming down his face, tears that looked like blood.

"I was born without parents, and now my master has abandoned me, so I might as well die."

As soon as he finished speaking, the boy knelt down on the ground, a gleaming knife appearing in his hand.

He cried out, "Father, Mother, I can't live in this world anymore, I've come to find you."

Each sound was filled with sorrow and bitterness.

"Demon!" The more accurately the Mist Demon imitated, the angrier Akari became.

His obedient disciples have never left Hongze City, and the fact that they can imitate him so perfectly can only prove one thing.

That is, this fog demon has been eating people and has even developed its own thoughts! Knowing that it cannot deceive itself, it has instead begun to try to evoke a trace of pity in its heart and pry open its defenses!

A great calamity for humanity!

They can't stay!

"Die!" With a shout, the abacus beads flew everywhere. With a wave of his hand, the abacus beads fell like meteors, crashing towards the demon.

The boy crying on the ground didn't flinch or dodge; a strange smile crept onto his lips.

When Mingli saw that smile, he immediately felt uneasy.

The thick fog suddenly dissipated, revealing more than a dozen crying children. A strong gust of wind swept by, and they all looked up. They saw a Taoist priest with an air of otherworldly wisdom and righteous indignation.

A glimmer of hope suddenly ignited in his eyes, which had been filled with despair and darkness.

"vicious!"

"Get out of the way!"

As the mist evaporated, the connection between Mingli and the abacus was severed for a moment.

"Damn it!" Mingli bit her tongue and offered up her essence blood.

The abacus beads were incredibly fast; in the time it took to bite the tip of its tongue, they were already in front of the children.

Watching the hope that had been rekindled in the eyes of those dozen or so children turn into despair once again.

Two sword lights attacked from different directions.

A chilling aura shattered the abacus beads that held reason. A clear, refreshing mist dispelled the gray fog that clung to the child's seven orifices.

Before he could even express his gratitude, Mingli immediately took action, using the principle of the round heaven and square earth to trap the mist demon that was entangled around his body.

Xuan Lian landed on the ground, her blue shoes touching the ground and creating ripples in the clear water.

"Give me the Fog Demon." Her voice was as cold as ever.

"The Lord of the Star River Palace?" Mingli was taken aback, then realized what was happening and was about to hand over the Mist Demon.

"Xuan Lian, this is Hongze City, you have crossed the border." Another white-haired old man emerged from the mist.

"The Mist Demons are rampant, and your Lü family is partly responsible for it—" Xuan Lian met Lü Changqing's gaze head-on, refusing to yield an inch.

She reached out to snatch the Mist Demon, but grasped at empty air, only catching a glimpse of crimson in her peripheral vision.

"What a fine example of the human garrison commander of Yunxi Continent! Lü Changqing has slain the Dragon Immortal!"

"Not only do you condone the Mist Demon, but now you're even traveling with this monster!"