Volume 8: Demon Suppression Chapter 24: The Moon Rises from Tianshan Mountain
Not only him, but also the other monks from Zhishou Tower, the monks from the underworld who were besieged, and even Ximen Lie, a seventh-level cultivator from Huanling Sect who was disguised as a monk from Zhishou Tower, were all stunned by the attack power of Lu Qingshan's sword.
This is a perfect fifth-grade snake demon beast, the most powerful being in this branch of the underworld.
It is understandable that you, Lu Qingshan, can defeat it, but you are clearly just a Void Refining cultivator. How could you strangle it to death with just one sword?
Ximen Lie, who knew Lu Qingshan's background, was even more surprised and suspicious, and glanced at Lu Qingshan with a very complicated expression.
You, Lu Qingshan, weren't you still the strongest in the fourth realm half a year ago?
How did it become like this in the blink of an eye, killing a fifth-grade monster is as easy as killing a chicken?
Is this reasonable?
There is such a thing as rapid progress? Why haven't I heard of it? Is it because the times have changed?
Not to mention Ximen Lie's confused thoughts, on the other side, all the cultivators in the underworld were utterly shattered and had lost all their fighting spirit after Lu Qingshan's sword.
On the other hand, the people in Zhishou Tower had just been frightened by the ferocious momentum of the snake demon monster, but when they saw it torn into pieces in the blink of an eye, their morale suddenly increased greatly.
As one side gained strength while the other lost, the already one-sided situation became even more overwhelming.
Nothing else happened during the following massacre. After half a quarter of an hour, everything was settled and all the monks in the underworld were killed.
The monk Zhishoulou began to tidy up the battlefield in an orderly manner.
They are not like sword cultivators who only care about killing and not burying. They know how to finish the job and are even very good at it.
Because, in every branch of the underworld, there must be many important things, and the ending is of great significance!
"Hearing about someone is not as good as meeting him in person, and meeting him in person is even better than hearing about him." While the monks from Zhishou Tower were cleaning up the mess, Chongshan, the monk from Zhishou Tower who was leading the group, had already walked quickly to Lu Qingshan.
He looked at Lu Qingshan carefully, nodded first, then shook his head, and praised meaningfully: "Sword Master Lu Qingshan, his sword is indeed as powerful as the heaven and earth. Just with this sword, I wonder how many sword cultivators will be left with despair!"
Chongshan's voice was neither too loud nor too soft, just enough to be heard throughout the entire place, allowing the monks in the Zhishou Tower nearby to hear it clearly.
The next moment, the monk from Zhishou Tower, who was still doubting Lu Qingshan's identity, became slightly agitated.
"Is this Lu Qingshan the same Lu Qingshan as that Lu Qingshan?"
"That should be it. He is also called Jian Jue and Lu Qingshan. Who else could it be except the strongest one in the fourth realm of the Sword Sect?"
"During this period of time, he has been stirring up big storms in the six domains of the human race. I don't know how much trouble he has caused to the underworld. I didn't expect that he has come to our Zhongling Domain. It seems that this time it is the turn of the underworld in our domain to be unlucky... Hahaha, so satisfying!" Monk Zhishoulou, who hates the underworld to the core, couldn't help but say happily.
This was the reason why Chongshan came over specifically to praise Lu Qingshan - to spread the news that Lu Qingshan had come to the Zhongling Domain and started targeting the underworld in this area in the most subtle way, so as to make the underworld in the Zhongling Domain feel fearful and reveal their flaws.
"Comparing goods to others will make you throw them away, and comparing people to others will make you cry." A sword cultivator who was still immersed in Lu Qingshan's amazing sword move just now sighed, "No wonder he is a master swordsman, and I am nothing."
In response to these exclamations, Lu Qingshan just smiled and said nothing.
The fact that he instantly killed a fifth-grade perfect snake beast with one sword did not make him feel too proud.
He is now already a Three-Flower Cultivator, which is the so-called Perfection of Refining the Void. This snake monster is equal to him in rank, even the minor rank is exactly the same.
Since when did it become worthy for Lu Qingshan to be excited and proud when he instantly killed a monster of the same realm?
…
After the matter here was settled, Lu Qingshan, escorted by Ximen Lie, soon set out on the journey back to the Eastern Region.
This made him look like he had succeeded in striking the target and then walked away in a carefree manner.
Of course, this was simply because his goal of coming to the Central Spirit Realm this time had been achieved.
This was a very smooth operation to destroy the government, and no accidents occurred during the process.
As for what kind of follow-up response the Zhonglingyu Underworld would have, whether they would follow the Huanling Sect's wishes and start a war, thus revealing their flaws, Lu Qingshan had no idea.
This is not something he can control.
However, he didn't know whether to feel disappointed or fortunate, the imagined Central Spiritual Realm Underworld, which had three heads and six arms, seemed not to be much different from the other six underworlds, judging from the level displayed by those underworld monks during this operation?
Even... Lu Qingshan vaguely felt that the branch of the underworld in the Central Spiritual Realm was even weaker?
It was just his instinct.
Because, from the surface, judging from the number of cultivators and their cultivation, the Underworld Branch of Anping Prefecture is definitely at the level of a prefecture-level Underworld Branch.
But he always felt that these monks from the underworld he faced this time lacked something called "a flash of inspiration".
This resulted in all the reactions of these monks from the underworld being within the predictions of Monk Zhishoulou, and it could be said that they were completely controlled.
This is not reasonable - human nature is a very complex thing, which can never be fully understood. You can only be correct in the general direction, but it is impossible to be perfect in every detail.
This gave Lu Qingshan the feeling that the underworld branch of Anping Prefecture did not seem like a den of demons, but more like a copy in an old-fashioned online game that was planned by someone specifically for players to gain experience, and all the character actions were arranged in advance.
Of course, this was just his feeling, and it came out of nowhere.
So he finally gave up on worrying about these unreasonable and fleeting thoughts.
With a flash of light, Lu Qingshan's figure disappeared in the teleportation array and returned safely to the Eastern Region.
…
…
Tianshan Mountain is one of the seven mountains within the human territory and an important line of defense within the human heartland.
Once the Seven Mountains are lost, the demons will be able to pass through the space channel and march straight into the sky to invade the human territory. Its importance can be imagined.
Over a period of 20,000 years, a large number of monks from the Eastern Region went to Tianshan to fight against the demons .
At the same time, there are also a large number of monks who are buried forever in that mountain range.
"We're here." In the dark night, a sword light cut through the sky. Lu Qingshan, flying on the sword, looked at the astonishing mountain range in the distance.
The mountains stretch out in all directions, and their length is immeasurable at a glance. In the night, they look like a sleeping dragon.
The peaks of Tianshan Mountains are so high that they block out the sun and reach the sky. The peaks are hidden in the vast sea of clouds and cannot be seen.
A bright moon had just risen at this time, and half of it was covered by the Tianshan Mountain, just like a pipa holding a half-hidden face.
What is even more shocking is that there are countless horrifying tornadoes that descended from the sky and connected to the ground. From afar, they look like pillars reaching the sky, or like the legendary Buzhou Mountains, supporting the sky and turning this place into a sealed land of divine punishment.
The bright moon rises over Tianshan Mountain, among the vast sea of clouds.
The wind blows for thousands of miles, passing through Yumen Pass.
This is the place in the entire Eastern Region where the most powerful people gather, Tianshan.
As for those terrifying tornadoes, they were actually part of an ancient formation, the Changfeng Formation.
Those tornadoes looked like long winds, but they were actually the result of magical powers, powerful spells sealed by Xia Daozu himself.
The "long wind" of tens of thousands of miles can seal off Tianshan Mountain, which is Tianshan Mountain's most important trump card.
As long as this method is not destroyed, the demon army will never be able to destroy Yumen Pass and invade the human territory.
Deep in the tornado-covered Tianshan Mountains, one can vaguely see a majestic and towering pass standing tall.
That is Lu Qingshan’s destination, Yumen Pass!
This pass divides Tianshan into two areas. One side is the territory of the Abyss Soldier Demon Clan, and the other side is the Eastern Territory of the human race.
All human cultivators who want to conquer the demons must pass through Yumen Pass and enter the battlefield between the two worlds.
Such a strategic location is naturally heavily guarded.
A layer of translucent water curtain blocked the way ahead and stopped Lu Qingshan.
And just when Lu Qingshan stopped in front of the water curtain, a man wearing standard Taoist armor walked out of the water curtain.
"I'm applying to enter Yumen Pass to exorcise demons. I wonder what the specific process should be?" Lu Qingshan took the initiative to speak.
"Follow me." The man in standard Taoist armor said politely, turned around and walked into the water curtain with Lu Qingshan.
The water curtain that had previously blocked the way ahead now allowed Lu Qingshan to enter and exit freely, which was extremely magical.
The man in standard Taoist armor flew with Lu Qingshan all the way, and after a while they landed on a lower mountain.
At the top of the mountain, a huge and spacious square has been artificially opened up.
On the ground of the square, mysterious Taoist patterns are engraved.
"Any cultivator who enters Yumen Pass for the first time must wait here until the number of people is gathered. Once the number of people is gathered, a great cultivator will perform a magical method to imprint the mark of your soul into the Tianshan formation, so that you will be recognized by the Tianshan formation. From then on, the Tianshan barrier will no longer prevent you from entering and exiting." The man in standard Taoist armor introduced with a smile.
"You wait here for a while. In order to save the loss of spirit crystals, the imprinting of the soul mark can only start when there are 1,000 people. But you came at a lucky time, just in time for the end of this batch. Wait for about five or six days, and the number of people should be complete," the male cultivator in standard Taoist armor said with a smile, "You should know that the earliest people who came have been waiting here for almost two months."
Following the male cultivator's introduction, Lu Qingshan looked around and found that there were about eight or nine hundred people gathered in the square.
"You're lucky," Lu Qingshan said with a smile, "It's better to arrive at the right time than to arrive early."
…
The reason for branding the soul mark is to prevent demons from sneaking into human territory.
During the battles with the demons, there were always demons who, after killing human monks, disguised themselves as the killed human monks and tried to sneak into Cang Qiong Tian.
The soul mark is like an identity certificate, and the Tianshan Formation is like customs, which can extremely effectively check out those demons who want to "enter the country illegally".
Of course, it turns out that this approach is not 100% effective.
There are still many demons who use some strange means to sneak into the human territory with important strategic resources, otherwise the underworld would not continue to grow.
But no matter what, this step is still necessary.
Just like customs certainly cannot prevent contraband 100%, but no one would think it is a waste of resources and unnecessary.
Because, if this step is not taken, the number of demons lurking in the human territory will be ten or a hundred times what it is now.
In addition, even if the demons have great means, it is definitely not an easy task to pass the detection of the Tianshan formation, and it will definitely cost a lot.
…
Lu Qingshan waited silently in the square for another three days, during which time some monks occasionally came over to talk to him.
He did not keep people at a distance, but he only limited himself to the most superficial and perfunctory courtesy, and did not reveal too much information about himself, appearing to be very low-key.
In fact, whether it is the identity of a disciple of the Sword Sect or the identity of Xia Daoyun's first disciple, he can enter Yumen Pass directly without waiting here.
But he didn't do it.
Because he knew very well that there were many powerful demons who wanted to kill him. If he wanted to avoid getting into danger, it would be better not to reveal his identity for the sake of convenience and privilege.
Once Lu Qingshan's identity is exposed, with so many people in Yumen Pass and so many eyes on the ground, the danger he would face would increase tenfold or a hundredfold as long as he entered the battlefield between the two worlds.
He is not afraid of fighting life and death, but that doesn't mean he doesn't value his life.
…
After waiting for another half a day, the man in standard Taoist armor who had disappeared before reappeared, and with him appeared an old man with white hair and beard and an extraordinary demeanor.
The old man glanced at the thousands of cultivators in the square, and finally said in a deep voice: "Everyone, you are all cultivators who voluntarily came to Tianshan to conquer the demons.
For twenty thousand years, batches of passionate monks like you have come to Tianshan, to Yumen Pass, and then entered the battlefield between the two worlds.
The battlefield between the two worlds was like a giant beast that accepted all comers and swallowed countless cultivators of our human race. Many of them were even killed without a trace, buried silently in some corner of the battlefield.
As the saying goes, no one ever returns from a battlefield.
Some people think it's worth it, but some people are dismissive, and some even mock the human monks who died on the battlefield, which makes us feel very sad.
After the excitement, you may feel regretful or feel it’s not worth it, and there’s nothing wrong with that.
Before that, I have something to say to you.
The place where we stand now is the lifeline of the Eastern Region and our homeland.
How we are determines the future of human race; as long as we have light, human race will not be in darkness.
What we are fighting for is the light of humanity, which is also our sunshine!"
After he finished speaking, the old man seemed to not want the atmosphere to appear too heavy, so he did not give the monks present too much time to think, and immediately activated the magic circle.
Then, the Dao patterns on the ground of the square lit up from one end like a line of fire, and then quickly spread out.
In just a moment, the huge square was filled with light.
Immediately afterwards, Lu Qingshan could clearly feel that a huge will was approaching his body, which made his heart subconsciously tighten.
However, this powerful will was very gentle, like a spring breeze, passing over his body like a dragonfly skimming the water and then disappearing.
This means that he has obtained the identity certificate of the Changfeng Array.
"You are about to go to the bloodiest and cruelest battlefield," the old man said after everything was over. His voice unconsciously became hoarse and heavy as he looked at everyone. "But it is also the most glorious battlefield."
There were no passionate brainwashing words, and the old man's tone was very calm, but the monks present felt as if there was something extra in their hearts.
Heavy.
The next moment, a huge spiritual light shot up into the sky, covering the entire square, making it impossible to see what was going on inside.
The spiritual light quickly disappeared, and along with it, the one thousand monks also disappeared.
"Everyone," the old man stared at the empty square and murmured , "Triumph..."
