Volume 8: Demon Suppression Chapter 22: Four Spiritual Essence and Blood
"Uncle-master, what exactly happened?" Lu Qingshan frowned and asked.
What could possibly happen to Huanling Sect, a Taoist sect that is as famous as Jian Sect, that requires it to discuss matters with people from other Taoist sects?
Moreover, he was not looking for a great cultivator, but a cultivator of the fifth realm like himself.
Lu Qingshan found it hard to understand.
"The situation is a bit complicated," Xi Xiang said with a smile, "The root cause is that you have made a name for yourself..."
Xi Xiang began to explain the details of the situation. In fact, things were not as complicated as imagined - the Huanling Sect had recently discovered the location of a prefecture-level branch hall in the Zhongling Domain Underworld.
"It is the responsibility of all human cultivators to eradicate the underworld. However, Huanling Sect does not think highly of a branch hall of the underworld at the prefecture level, and they also want to expand their victory," Xi Xiang said with a smile, "and you have caused quite a stir during this period, and you know it yourself. Therefore, the underworld is particularly wary of you. If this branch hall is exposed by Huanling Sect personally, how can the effect be as good as if you did it yourself?"
After Xi Xiang said this, Lu Qingshan immediately understood.
Simply put, it is the "celebrity effect".
If the news about the branch hall of the underworld was spread by Huanling Sect, the underworld would most likely be like this: "It's really unlucky. Huanling Sect caught us. This branch hall can only be discarded as a pawn."
That’s it. It’s over.
The loss of a prefecture-level branch of the underworld is not meaningless to the underworld, but it is by no means a serious loss.
But if this news was sent by him, the Central Spiritual Territory Underworld might have to think more - "Could it be that Lu Qingshan is going to start attacking our Central Spiritual Territory Underworld? How much information does he know? How should we respond?"
The more you think, the more clues you reveal.
Of course, Lu Qingshan’s actions cannot be said to be 100% effective, but at least he can give it a try.
"It's up to you to decide whether to go or not." Xi Xiang did not interfere with Lu Qingshan's decision, although he hoped that Lu Qingshan would go.
Lu Qingshan fell into deep thought.
Causing trouble to the underworld is a good thing, and he is definitely willing to do it.
In addition, the underworld in the Central Spiritual Realm had always been extremely deeply hidden in the previous life, and no one expected that the Huanling Sect would be able to find out their flaws this time.
He was somewhat surprised, and at the same time, he also wanted to see what kind of monsters and demons were in this extremely mysterious underworld of the Central Spirit Realm.
As for the safety issue, no matter what, the Huanling Sect is also a Taoist sect. Is it possible that he could make any mistakes?
The Huanling Sect used an open channel and invited him through the Jian Sect. They must protect their own safety. Otherwise, if something happens to them, how will they explain to the Jian Sect?
"Then I'll go to Huanling Sect before I go to Yumen Pass." Lu Qingshan thought about it carefully and finally agreed.
Xi Xiang nodded and said nothing more.
His idea was the same as Lu Qingshan's. This was a direct communication between the two Taoist sects, and the Huanling Sect would definitely protect Lu Qingshan.
Therefore, there is no need to worry about Lu Qingshan's safety - if the underworld can threaten Lu Qingshan under the nose of Huanling Sect, then Huanling Sect can just commit suicide and be done with it.
There can't possibly be such a useless Daoist master.
…
Central Spiritual Realm, Kawakami Plateau.
As a beast cultivation sect, Huanling Sect is divided into the north and south banks by the Zangbo River.
The South Bank is the core area of Huanling Sect and a restricted area. Even disciples of Huanling Sect are rarely able to enter the South Bank, and the secrets there are beyond the reach of outsiders.
As for the north bank, it is home to 99% of the disciples of the Huanling Sect and tens of thousands of various monsters.
After making the decision, Lu Qingshan set out immediately, changed his appearance, and quietly arrived at Huanling Sect through a teleportation array.
Outside the mountain gate, he handed over a visiting card from the Sword Sect indicating his identity.
Not long after, a long-faced old man in the Spirit Transformation Realm appeared.
When disciples of a sect visit each other, what matters is equality and mutual courtesy.
However, this so-called equality must be judged based on the sect's level and the disciples' cultivation level.
For example, the Sword Sect is the Dao Sect, and Lu Qingshan visits sects below the Dao Sect in the name of a disciple of the Sword Sect. Other sects will have to send out disciples with higher cultivation than Lu Qingshan to greet him, in order to show respect for the Sword Sect.
The Sword Sect and the Huanling Sect are both Taoist sects. Lu Qingshan has reached the level of Lianxu cultivation, so the Huanling Sect only needs to send out Lianxu disciples to meet him.
However, this time the Huanling Sect sent out cultivators at the Spirit Transformation Realm, which can be said to have raised the standards to a much higher level.
This is because the reason why Lu Qingshan came this time was due to the invitation from Huanling Sect.
In terms of etiquette, the Huanling Sect can be said to be very faithful to its own ways.
"Are you from the Sword Sect, distinguished guest?" The long-faced old man exchanged greetings with Lu Qingshan. He spoke very cautiously, but there was a smile on his face.
"That's right," Lu Qingshan nodded slightly, "I came here at the invitation of your clan."
The long-faced old man looked at Lu Qingshan, his eyes showing no emotion. "Come with me. Uncle Master is waiting for you in the sect."
After he finished speaking, the long-faced old man opened the sect's formation and walked straight inside.
Lu Qingshan did not doubt him and followed the long-faced old man into the Huanling Sect.
Chirp-chirp-chirp——
Roar—roar—roar—
Howl—howl—howl—
After passing through the sect formation of Huanling Sect, the continuous roars of various beasts came into Lu Qingshan's ears.
As he looked around, he saw countless monsters of various shapes and sizes.
Among them were monkeys that were five or six meters tall, giant bears that were more than ten meters tall, gray wolves with wings, and countless magical birds flying in the sky.
Lu Qingshan even saw a phoenix bird with an extremely majestic appearance flash across the sky, fly into a mountain hidden in the clouds, and then disappear.
Flutter flutter!
Just as Lu Qingshan was observing these strange beasts, a translucent butterfly that looked extremely magical and was seven or eight times larger than an ordinary butterfly flew past him, flapping its wings.
"What kind of monster is this? It looks so strange." Lu Qingshan asked curiously.
The long-faced old man glanced at it and smiled, "I don't know them either, because there are actually many new species of monsters in the sect that were cultivated by our sect's great master. They are all unique and special species in the world. No one knows what to call them except me."
Lu Qingshan felt a little emotional.
This doesn't feel like arriving at a human sect, but more like entering a large "zoo", a "biological research base", and a demon country on earth.
The roar of the beast continued.
This is a lively situation that is definitely not seen among the Sword Sect.
Lu Qingshan then looked around and saw that there were four towering mountains in the northern area of the Huanling Sect.
The four peaks are like four long swords, piercing upside down into the sky.
On the top of each of these four mountains stands a huge statue of different colors but all lifelike.
The statue on the eastern mountain is a winding, circling green dragon.
It is hundreds of meters long, like an indestructible Great Wall of Steel. It is cast entirely from priceless Qinggang rock. It is full of cold aura and oppressive pressure, as if it is about to burst out at any time.
The statue on the western mountain is a white tiger sitting cross-legged.
The white tiger statue is made of white magic iron, so the statue is pure white all over. On the statue, the huge tiger eyes overlook the entire north bank. The eyes are dark and cruel, and vivid.
God’s grace is like the sea, God’s power is like a prison, and the terrifying momentum is coming in full force.
On the southern mountain peak is a statue of a phoenix.
The statue is bright red in color, and its body is divided into five parts, with the upper third being the upper part and the lower second being the lower part. The middle wing is eight inches long, symbolizing the eight winds, and the waist is four inches wide, symbolizing the four seasons. The round shape of the axle symbolizes the endless rotation of yin and yang.
The statue on the northern mountain is a turtle and snake.
The statue is cast from black iron, full of shocking power. It is black in color, shining with a black luster, and covered with scales that gleam with a faint black light. It is full of fighting spirit and looks extremely majestic.
Even from Lu Qingshan's perspective, he felt a little shocked.
As if noticing Lu Qingshan's scrutiny, the long-faced old man took the initiative to introduce: "These are the four spiritual peaks on the north bank of our Huanling Sect. To the east is Qinglong Peak, to the west is Baihu Peak, to the south is Zhuque Peak, and to the north is Xuanwu Peak. Our Huanling Sect is divided into four veins according to these four spiritual peaks, and we cultivate the four spirits."
"Cultivate the Four Spirits?" Lu Qingshan's eyes flashed.
"The so-called Four Spirits is naturally just a superficial statement. The Four Spirits are ancient spiritual beasts. There is only one, so how can you keep it as a spiritual pet? But the so-called cultivation of the Four Spirits is not entirely empty talk, because the four branches of our Huanling Sect each have their own heritage," the long-faced old man explained frankly, without exaggeration or self-deprecation. "For example, the Xuanwu branch focuses on cultivating turtle-snake monsters with water and earth elements. These monsters have more or less Xuanwu blood in their bodies. Under the cultivation of our sect's secret method, if they reach the extreme, they may return to their ancestors and reproduce some of the power of the Xuanwu in the past. The same is true for the other three branches. In addition, we usually collect the essence and blood of the Four Spirits. If you happen to kill a monster with the blood of the Four Spirits, you can also resell its body to us. The price offered by our Huanling Sect must be at least 50% higher than the market price," the long-faced old man said smoothly, "Of course, it is limited to the corpses of monsters with the blood of the Four Spirits."
"The Huanling Sect is collecting the essence and blood of the four spirits?" Hearing this, Lu Qingshan suddenly remembered something that happened a long time ago.
So long that he almost forgot about it.
If the long-faced old man had not mentioned the four spirit essences, he would definitely not have remembered this matter.
Immediately afterwards, an idea flashed through his mind in a flash.
Although the long-faced old man saw Lu Qingshan's big reaction, he didn't think too much about it.
He thought Lu Qingshan was just curious about their purpose of collecting the four spirits' blood essence, so he took the initiative to introduce it, saying, "We in Huanling Sect have a magical power that must be mastered by high-level cultivators. It is also the sect's magical power, called Soul Taming Beast. The so-called Soul Taming Beast means artificially refining a monster's body, and then splitting a part of our spirit and soul and placing it in the monster's body we refined, so as to control the monster and make it fight for us."
The higher the quality of the monster's body we refine, the stronger its combat power will be after we control it, and the Four Spirits' Blood Essence is the magical item that improves the quality of the monster's body."
"Just like your natal swords, we can also improve the quality of this monster's flesh by constantly offering sacrifices to it. The combat power of our sect's great cultivators largely depends on the quality of the monster's flesh they offer sacrifices to. Therefore, the essence and blood of the four spirits have always been a sought-after item in our sect that is in short supply."
The long-faced old man was very frank and did not shy away from revealing the secrets of his own sect's inheritance.
The reason is very simple. They never deliberately hid these things.
This is something that everyone knows among the high-level cultivators.
As for whether it will lead to leaks and bring about bad consequences?
With thousands of years of inheritance and extremely profound principles, can others find flaws in it just by listening?
I tell you that the strength of the Dragon Elephant Body lies in its indestructibility, but you still can't do anything to him, right?
Let me tell you that the strength of a Sword Sect sword cultivator lies in their invincible attacks and swift speed, but their physical bodies are weak. But if you meet a Sword Sect sword cultivator, won’t you still die if you deserve to die?
This is the grand road, upright and dignified .
Only those small sects that take unorthodox paths, such as the cultivators of the so-called blood-gu magic that their combat effectiveness drops sharply when exposed to sunlight, would try their best to hide their secret skills.
Here, the long-faced old man was still talking complacently, but he didn't notice that a strange symbol suddenly flashed in Lu Qingshan's eyes silently, and then gradually disappeared.
"I really thought too much, it's just a coincidence," Lu Qingshan shook his head and laughed in his heart: "If it is really as I thought, it's too outrageous."
Pupil technique: identifying evil.
He looked around and saw peace everywhere, without any trace of murderous intent.
…
Feihu Peak is a peak belonging to the White Tiger Spiritual Vein.
Led by the long-faced old man, Lu Qingshan went straight into the Feihu Hall of Feihu Peak.
The hall was solemn and dignified. There were three great cultivators in the hall, two of whom were cultivators who had reached the perfect state of transformation. Sitting in the middle was the leader of Feihu Peak, Ximen Lie, a great cultivator who was in the early stage of fusion.
Under normal circumstances, except in the Sword Sect, Lu Qingshan would have no chance to talk to such a great cultivator.
This is also the reason why Xi Xiang hopes that Lu Qingshan will take this trip - to give him a chance to meet the great masters of other Taoist sects.
This is the network.
Otherwise, no matter how famous your swordsmanship is, how can you have the chance to meet a cultivator of the seventh realm?
" I am Lu Qingshan from the Sword Sect, and I pay my respects to all the seniors from the Huanling Sect." Lu Qingshan took the initiative to salute in a neither humble nor arrogant manner.
Ximen Lie's eyelids drooped slightly, and his voice was loud and majestic, "Young friend Qingshan, there is no need to be so polite. This time, I sent a spiritual letter to the Sword Sect, inviting you to come and help my Huanling Sect eliminate the Central Spirit Realm Underworld."
"It is our duty to eliminate evil and defend justice." Lu Qingshan replied politely.
"As expected of a sword master who can make the six regions of the underworld hate him to the core!" Ximen Lie couldn't help but applaud and laughed heartily. At the same time, he waved his hand and threw out a jade slip, "Take a look at the details."
The jade slip flew in front of Lu Qingshan in an instant.
Lu Qingshan lowered his eyebrows slightly, took the jade slip, and probed his spiritual sense into it.
The jade slip contained detailed information about a branch of the underworld located in Anping Prefecture, Hanzhou, Zhongling Domain, including the specific address as well as the number of cultivators and their cultivation levels.
Lu Qingshan raised his head and looked at Ximen Lie again, "How do you want me to cooperate?"
"It's very simple. Just do it in ours the same way you do in the other six regions." Ximen Lie said.
From the perspective of military force alone, the Huanling Sect does not need any help from others to destroy the underworld.
But the difficulty of the underworld does not lie in its strength, but in its hidden whereabouts, so they thought of asking Lu Qingshan for help.
What they meant was that Lu Qingshan should unite with Zhishou Tower in Zhongling Domain in his own name to deal with the underworld branch here, while Huanling Sect would hide in the dark and not show up.
"Of course, on the surface, our Huanling Sect will not be involved, but behind the scenes, we will first mobilize our people to carefully investigate all the abnormalities that occurred , and not miss any clues. In addition, before you leave the Central Spiritual Domain, I will hide in the dark to protect your safety," Ximen Lie said, "If the monks in the underworld find your whereabouts and want to kill you, I will take action, and you don't have to worry about it."
The cultivators of the Seventh Realm were protecting him in secret, and the sincerity of the Huanling Sect was obvious.
"Please check if there are any other omissions or any additional requirements. Just let us know and we in the Huanling Sect will fully cooperate with you." Ximen Lie added again.
Lu Qingshan thought for a moment, shook his head, clasped his fists and said, "Your Majesty has considered everything carefully and there are no omissions. Then act as soon as possible."
"Okay, I just like the straightforward nature of you sword cultivators!" Ximen Lie patted the handle of the chair and stood up with extraordinary authority, "Then I won't delay any longer, we can set off now."
