Chapter 28: Solidifying Spirit Grass (XIII)

It was already the sixth evening, and there was less than an hour left until the seventh day.

Sui Ning was a little anxious. “Jianzun, how can we get out of this illusion?”

She could feel the illusion crumbling, with cracks appearing all around and foul, putrid waves seeping in.

The illusion was about to collapse.

Xie Changzhou remained calm and composed. “Once we find the true boundary of the illusion, we can leave.”

The true boundary of the illusion?

Sui Ning was confused. “But how do we know where it is?”

Xie Changzhou’s gaze was gentle and soothing as he reassured the panicked Sui Ning. “Ningning, don’t panic. Where do you think she would set the boundary of the illusion?”

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Sui Ning’s pupils shrank. “Jianzun, I remember a place!”

She quickly summoned Ba Tian and gestured for Xie Changzhou to follow.

The cracks of the illusion kept appearing around them, and Sui Ning and Xie Changzhou had to avoid them, as getting caught in the cracks would mean being torn apart instantly.

As time passes by one minute and one second, Sui Ning is anxious in her heart as more and more cracks appear in the illusion. Houses on the street are gradually disappearing.

Suddenly, a huge crack appeared right in front of her, and a wave of air with a musty smell blew over.

Sui Ning didn’t have time to dodge; her pupils shrank instantly, and her heartbeat began to accelerate.

Just as she was about to fall in, a shackle around her waist pulled her back, and she collided into a broad and cold-scented embrace.

Xie Changzhou held her waist and stood with her on Du Wang. He called back Ba Tian and handed it to Sui Ning.

The two were very close, so close that Sui Ning could almost hear Xie Changzhou’s heartbeat.

He was much taller than her, and at this moment, with him hugging her waist, her whole body was buried in his embrace, and the scent of pine and cypress on his body filled her nose.

“Jianzun…”

“Ningning, I offended you.”

Before Sui Ning could finish her words, Xie Changzhou interrupted her.

She looked up and saw his cold and distinct Adam’s apple rolling up and down, then his exquisite jaw, slightly pursed lips, and high and straight nose.

Then it was her favorite eyebrows and eyes—the lustrous blue eyes and the well-groomed long eyebrows, noble and clear like an immortal.

Xie Changzhou’s face was calm, and he didn’t even look down at Sui Ning in his arms, as if he did it all to protect her, with a gentlemanly appearance.

Sui Ning was a bit disappointed. When would she be able to conquer Xie Changzhou, who looked like he could shave his head and become a monk?

She felt a little depressed in her heart and lowered her eyes, not looking at him.

In the dim void, Xie Changzhou’s hand holding Sui Ning’s waist trembled slightly; his cold white hand tightened, tightly holding Sui Ning’s waist and pulling her into his arms.

He just realized that she seemed thinner than she looked, her slender waist looking as if he could hold it with one hand.

When Sui Ning looked at him just now, his heart pounded like thunder, and even his ears turned red. Fortunately, it was still dark outside, and Sui Ning could not see his face clearly.

And now she was in his arms.

His heart beat faster and faster, so he quickly moved away from Sui Ning, as if he were trying to escape.

He didn’t want her to hear his heartbeat.

Sui Ning would be scared.

He didn’t want Sui Ning to think he was a frivolous person.

Xie Changzhou tried to restrain his wildly beating heart and led them through one crack after another, heading towards the deserted mountain.

As soon as they reached the vicinity of the deserted mountain, Xie Changzhou felt a faint spiritual wave pulsing.

His brow furrowed, and his voice became cold: “This is it.”

This was the real boundary point of the illusion.

It turned out that Qi niang had really set the boundary point at the place where Su Kao and Liao Wu used to play together when they were young.

Sui Ning’s face showed surprise, and her grape-like black eyes looked at Xie Changzhou with joy, with a hint of cunning and pride.

Xie Changzhou was stunned, then smiled helplessly and said, “Ningning is smart.”

His voice was gentle and clear, and his face was full of sincerity. Sui Ning suddenly smiled.

Xie Changzhou was like this. No matter what he said, coupled with his clear and warm face, he would appear especially sincere, making people instinctively believe him from the bottom of their hearts.

Gradually, Du Wang descended, and cracks appeared around them, almost one every few seconds.

Xie Changzhou could only tightly grip Sui Ning’s hand, keeping her firmly by his side, to prevent her from being sucked into a crack if he were to lose focus.

He was at the level of crossing the tribulation, while Sui Ning was only at the golden core stage, with a weak cultivation level and therefore, easily being pulled into the cracks.

Sui Ning reciprocated and held his hand, her gaze calm and steady without any unusual movements.

Xie Changzhou’s just-stabilized heart began to panic once again.

As if sensing that the two of them had found the boundary point, Qi niang, who is outside the formation, suddenly caused cracks to emerge all over the desolate mountain. The huge suction force almost lifted Sui Ning off the ground.

Xie Changzhou quickly gathered a barrier to protect the two of them.

He stood tall and composed, his face cold and full of murderous intent. His left hand held Sui Ning’s, while his right hand gripped Du Wang.

Amidst the dark sky, trees were swept up and sucked into the cracks, and the entire desolate mountain was swept up in a violent storm.

Qi Niang panicked.

A sword light carrying a sharp killing intent shot out, hitting the nearby void and causing a wave.

Xie Changzhou said lightly, “This is it.”

He let go of Sui Ning’s hand, adding another layer of protection around her: “Stay here; don’t go out!”

With that, his slim figure flew forward, wielding his sword and striking with Du Wang’s sword intent, causing the airwaves to ripple and moving his white robe.

Sword intent broke through the void and headed straight towards the transparent barrier ahead, causing a wave of energy to ripple upon impact.

Xie Changzhou curled his lips, and his handsome face suddenly became a bit wicked. His gentle face was filled with killing intent.

Cracks all around him were howling towards him, and a huge suction force lifted his clothes and blew his dark, long hair in the wind.

He said in a low voice, “Su Kou, you are too stubborn.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a bright white light flashed on the blade of his sword, and Xie Changzhou’s long sword slashed out. A sword light suddenly split the dim surroundings and pierced through the gaping cracks in the illusion, heading straight towards the point of the barrier with determination.

At the moment when the sword light collided with the barrier, a powerful wave of energy erupted, rolling towards Sui Ning and kicking up the yellow dust on the ground.

Her pupils shrank, and she was about to summon Ba Tian to resist, but the wave of energy disappeared as it hit the transparent barrier in front of her.

One by one, the cracks in the illusion disappeared, and above the void, a faintly visible crack was slowly winding. Then, starting from the point of the barrier, the illusion began to break apart.

A decaying, desolate, and lifeless city appeared outside the illusion.

Sui Ning’s heart skipped a beat. She was a cultivator in the Golden Core stage, and her senses were greatly enhanced. Now she could clearly sense that there was no vitality left in the city of Nanjing.

This was a dead city.

Xie Changzhou’s brow furrowed, and the pressure around him dropped to an extreme low, indicating his current anger. The body of his sword, Du Wang, was covered in frost, flickering with intense killing intent.

In front of him was the alluring Qi niang. Her beautiful face was filled with disbelief, and her delicate features looked somewhat ferocious because of the cruelty in her eyes.

Qi niang gritted her teeth and said, “Xie Changzhou, I can’t believe you made it out.”

Xie Changzhou, tall and upright, had a warm face full of anger. “You slaughtered a whole city of people to accelerate the growth of the Solidifying Spirit Grass,” he said.

Sui Ning quickly asked the system, “What does Xie Changzhou mean? What does it mean to slaughter a whole city of people to accelerate the growth of the Solidifying Spirit Grass?”

“The Solidifying Spirit Grass needs to be infused with cultivation to nourish the soul, and the growth requires the use of human vitality as a catalyst. Qi niang took the vitality of the people in the city!” the system explained.

Qi niang massacred everyone in the city!

Sui Ning looked at Qi niang in shock.

Xie Changzhou’s tall figure stood in front of her, and from her perspective, she could only see half of Qi niang’s profile. Her pale face was somewhat eerie with bright red lips, and a strand of black hair hung down.

Qi niang smiled lazily. “So what? Yan Zhang went to deal with the ghost groom to protect them and ended up dying there. Isn’t Yan Zhang dying for them? I made them pay with their lives, which is not too much,” she said.

Sui Ning felt that her words were outrageous. “Didn’t he die in order to save you?” she asked.

Qi niang was stunned, and the smile on her lips gradually froze. Her gaze toward Sui Ning became somewhat cold.

Sui Ning stepped out from behind Xie Changzhou and continued, “The Liao Wu in reality died to save you, but the Liao Wu in the illusion went to save you and didn’t die. You want to deceive yourself and hold onto this illusion, but your cultivation is not enough, so the illusion has cracks.”

“You probably didn’t expect it, but although Liao Wu didn’t die at the hands of the ghost groom, he still died trying to save you.”

At this point, Sui Ning lowered her gaze for a moment before looking up at Qi niang with a heavy expression.

She spoke softly: “You and Liao Wu were at a dead end from the beginning.”

“Shut up! Shut up!” Qi Niang was furious; her voice, which was once lazy and charming, now sounded particularly mournful, as if it were going to pierce through Sui Ning’s eardrums.

“You don’t understand anything. He can survive, and I will save him!”

“He was so good; why did he have to die? Why did the ghost groom have the right to kill him?”

Qi Niang was already possessed, with demon marks crawling all over her beautiful face. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her demonic energy was rising.

Xie Changzhou watched coldly and said in a flat tone, “You hate the ghost groom, but you have become like the ghost groom yourself.”

As soon as he spoke, Qi Niang was stunned.

Her expression was somewhat dazed, as if she couldn’t believe it.

She had also become like the ghost groom.

Qi Niang trembled and reached out her hand, and the back of her pale and thin hand was covered in demon marks.

As if she had been burned, she quickly retracted her hand and looked at Sui Ning and Xie Changzhou with a fierce gaze.

“I don’t care what I become as long as I can save him.”

“Xie Changzhou, go die!”

Qi niang’s demonic energy surged, summoning the retrospective mirror, a high-grade artifact, and she controlled it to attack Xie Changzhou.

The demonic energy howled out, boosted by the power of the retrospective mirror, and Qi niang’s strength greatly increased.

“Jianzun!”

Sui Ning, holding Ba Tian, was about to step forward, but Xie Changzhou quickly stopped her: “Ningning, I can handle this. Stay inside the barrier and don’t come out.”

The barrier tightly imprisoned Sui Ning, leaving her anxiously watching Xie Changzhou.

Xie Changzhou’s white clothes fluttered, and the sword light of Du Wang swept out with frosty sword intent towards Qi niang.

The sword’s intent clashed with the demonic energy, and Qi niang’s face froze.

Xie Changzhou was unexpectedly strong.

She had never fought against a Crossing Tribulation cultivator before. Previously, when she encountered a cultivator in the Mahayana, she could deal with them easily with the retrospective mirror.

But now, even with the retrospective mirror, she was struggling to deal with Xie Changzhou’s sword intent.

Xie Changzhou’s eyebrows were cold, and his lips were tightly pursed. He silently recited sword techniques, and the sword intent of Du Wang continued to grow stronger.

Qi niang’s face became increasingly ugly, and the demonic energy of the retrospective mirror was gradually suppressed. She struggled to reinforce it.

The shining and powerful sword intent of Du Wang cleaved down, cutting through the gathered demonic energy and decisively heading towards Qi niang.

Qi niang was directly blasted away, slamming hard into the stone wall behind her.

After a painful cry, Qi niang fell to the ground, her neatly coiled hair falling apart and her messy hair sticking to her face. The bloodstain on her lips accentuated her somewhat thrilling beauty.

Something fell from her arms.

Sui Ning went to take a look and was immediately stunned.

A four-leafed short stem, growing vigorously and beautifully, is the Solidifying Spirit Grass.

At this moment, a familiar aura enveloped it, warm and pure.

That is the aura of Liao Wu.

Qi and blood surged, and Qi Niang suddenly spat out a large mouthful of blood.

Drops of blood fell onto the emerald Solidifying Spirit Grass, which emitted a faint glow.

Qi Niang’s expression changed, and she hurriedly tried to retrieve Solidifying Spirit Grass. But a pure spiritual energy was faster than her and quickly rolled up the Solidifying Spirit Grass before her eyes.

It was Sui Ning.

“Give it back to me! Don’t touch it!” Qi Niang struggled to pounce, but she didn’t even have the strength to stand up and fell heavily back.

Her hair was disheveled, her beautiful face was full of panic, and her mouth and chin were stained with blood.

She was desperate and pathetic.

Looking at her like this, Sui Ning felt an inexplicable pang of sourness in her heart.

She spoke softly: “Qi Niang, why bother?”

Qi Niang was in tears and pleaded on the ground, “Sui Ning, please give me the Solidifying Spirit Grass back. I beg you, Ningning!”

Sui Ning looked at the Solidifying Spirit Grass in her hand, and the familiar and pure aura inside confirmed that the soul of Liao Wu was preserved inside.

Qi Niang was really trying to nourish the soul of Liao Wu with the Solidifying Spirit Grass, attempting to bring him back to life.

Using the cultivation of a cultivator, using the vitality of an entire city.

To give a person a new lease on life.

“This is simply…absurd.

Qi niang struggled to crawl over, her face full of panic, and kept reaching out to try to retrieve the Solidifying Spirit Grass.

The Qi niang in front of her coincided with the innocent and kind Su Kou in her memory. Sui Ning couldn’t describe what she was feeling.

Xie Changzhou held his sword against Qi niang on the ground. “Su Kou, you have killed too many people. Today, I cannot let you live.”

His clear voice carried some coldness and anger. Sui Ning had just wanted to stop him, but Du Wang’s sword light had already whistled towards Qi niang with a resolute killing intent.

Sui ning looked over in horror. Xie Changzhou really wanted to kill Qi niang!

The sharp sword light went towards Qi niang, who showed no response, only staring at the Solidifying Spirit Grass in Sui Ning’s hand with reluctance and affection in her eyes.

At the moment when the sword light was about to hit Qi niang, the Solidifying Spirit Grass in Sui Ning’s arms suddenly reacted. The faint light suddenly became bright.

A warm and yellowish light blocked Qi niang, and a familiar figure slowly emerged from the light.

He wore a cassock, was tall and straight, and had a compassionate face.

That was Liao Wu.

The sharp sword light hit Liao Wu, and his already weak figure became even harder to see.

Sui Ning and Qi niang were both stunned in place, and Xie Changzhou was also slightly dazed.

Seeing that Liao Wu’s figure was about to dissipate, Xie Changzhou quickly acted, and his pure spiritual energy gathered to stabilize Liao Wu’s soul. His figure, which was about to dissipate, gradually became stable.

Qi niang could hardly believe it.

The familiar monk’s robe, the familiar back figure, and the familiar demeanor.

It was Liao Wu.

Her beloved, whom she hadn’t seen for two hundred years.

“Yan Zhang…” Her voice trembled, barely recognizable, and was filled with choked sobs.

Liao Wu turned around, his face still serene and gentle.

His gaze toward Qi niang was tender. “Ah Kou.”

He called her Ah Kou, and she finally heard him call her Ah Kou.

The accumulated grievances and longings of Qi niang over the past two hundred years erupted, and she broke down in uncontrollable sobbing. “Yan Zhang, I miss you so much.”

Sui Ning finally snapped out of her daze, her expression complex as she looked at Liao Wu and Qi niang in front of her.

Xie Changzhou sighed softly and sheathed his sword.

Liao Wu’s dark eyes were filled with compassion and gentleness as he softly spoke. “Ah Kou, life and death are natural occurrences. Why do you torment yourself like this?”

Qi niang shook her head, tears streaming down her face.

“Ah Kou, you were wrong. If my revival required the slaughter of so many lives, I would refuse.”

Emotions swirled in Liao Wu’s eyes, and Qi niang could hardly dare to meet his gaze.

Her face was now covered in demonic markings, no longer the beauty of the past, while Liao Wu remained bright and noble. Her hands were stained with blood; how could she dare to look up at him?

A faint sigh echoed as Liao Wu turned reluctantly towards Sui Ning and Xie Changzhou.

He clasped his hands together and bowed to them. “Miss Ningning, Mister Xie.”

His soul, hidden in the Solidifying Spirit Grass, suddenly awakened when he sensed the blood from Ah Kou, and all the memories that the Solidifying Spirit Grass had seen in these years were also passed on to him. He knew what Ah Kou had done and recognized these two people, Sui Ning and Xie Changzhou. Xie Changzhou nodded slightly, and Sui Ning also nodded at Liao Wu.

Liao Wu’s voice sounded somewhat helpless: “Ah Kou did everything in the past for me, and I am really ashamed.”

Xie Changzhou’s warm gaze still looked at him calmly and said, “Daoist Liao, she has committed many sins, and I cannot let her go.”

“Today, she must die.”

His words carried a murderous intent, and there was a hint of anger in his tone, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.

Liao Wu was silent, and Qi Niang, who was sobbing softly behind him, also quieted down and looked over quietly.

Sui Ning met her eyes, and Qi Niang’s beautiful eyes turned red. The black lines on her face had faded somewhat, and even though she heard Xie Changzhou’s intention to kill her, she showed no fear.

She was just looking at Liao Wu.

After a while, Liao Wu spoke: “I do not intend to stop Mr. Xie. I just want to make amends for Ah Kou on her behalf.”

“There are about 20,000 people in this city, including the common people and the cultivators.”

“I will make amends for Ah Kou and use my reincarnation to repay her debt.”

“I would like to ask Mr. Xie and Miss Ningning to give Ah Kou a chance to be reincarnated.”

As his clear and melodious voice fell, the Wugang pearl on his wrist flashed brightly, and Liao Wu lowered his head and closed his eyes.

The sound of Buddhist scriptures came through, and countless scattered starlights floated from the Solidifying Spirit Grass, flying towards the void. The dim world was filled with flickering lights.

Liao Wu’s figure gradually dissipated. Qi Niang was stunned for a moment, then struggled to crawl over.

“Yan Zhang! Yan Zhang, no!”

Tears flowed down her face, and her voice was desperate, like a lost child. Tears fell one by one, staining the ground with shadows.

Sui Ning was taken aback and quickly prepared to intercept him, but Xie Changzhou beside her grabbed her hand.

“Ningning, it’s too late.”

He turned his head back to Liao Wu, his voice tinged with some reluctance. “This is the way of transcending the dead in the Jingchan Sect. Liao Wu used his three souls and seven spirits to send these trapped spirits in the Solidifying Spirit Grass into reincarnation.”

Suining was stunned and said in a slow voice, “Is there no reincarnation after losing his soul and spirits?”

“His souls scattered; there is no reincarnation.”

A sourness surged in Sui Ning’s heart as she looked at Liao Wu and Qi Niang not far away.

Liao Wu’s robe fluttered, his long black lashes drooping. In a golden light, his whole person looked sacred, like a god.

He murmured the scripture, and as he repeated it over and over again, his figure gradually dissipated.

Qi Niang struggled to stand up and crawled towards Liao Wu, her hair falling apart and her beautiful face covered in tears, devoid of her past enchanting charm.

She repeatedly pleaded with Liao Wu, “Don’t do it, Yan Zhang; it’s all my fault!”

“Yan Zhang! Please, don’t do it!”

“Yan Zhang! Ah!”

Her final scream echoed as Liao Wu’s figure completely dissipated, turning into golden fragments floating in the air.

There was only a sigh left in the air: “Ah Kou, I’m sorry.”

Qi Niang stood motionless on the ground, reaching out to grab the fragments but failing to hold onto anything.

Sui Ning could hardly bear to look at her.

Unconsciously, tears streamed down Qi Niang’s face as she stood there in a daze.

Sui Ning and Xie Changzhou watched her in silence.

For a moment, there was complete silence, and no one spoke.

After a long period of silence, a light laugh suddenly came through.

“Hahaha…”

Qi Niang lay on the ground, laughing softly, curling up her body, and laughing louder and louder, making Sui Ning’s heart tremble.

“Everything is wrong, everything is in vain… Hahaha…”

She laughed and laughed before bursting into tears again, her voice full of despair and hopelessness. She banged her head on the ground, her hair covered in dirt and leaves, looking disheveled and miserable.

After a while, her voice grew quieter until she lay on the ground in silence, as still as a dead person. 

“Su Kou…” whispered Sui Ning softly, but Su Kou did not respond, ignoring her completely.

Xie Changzhou stepped forward and spoke in a clear voice: “Su Kou, let go of the past; only then can you have reincarnation. Your attachment is too deep, afraid you won’t be able to enter the cycle of rebirth.”

Su Kou remained silent.

After a long while, Xie Changzhou sighed and drew his sword, preparing to kill her completely. She had killed too many people, and he could not let her live.

Sui Ning felt sorry for her, but she knew that this was the punishment that she deserved. She had killed twenty thousand people, and her sins were too heavy.

Just then, Su Kou’s body twitched, and her voice choked as she spoke. “But I don’t want to be reincarnated.”

Sui Ning and Xie Changzhou were taken aback. Demonic energy began to leak out of her body, and her body gradually dissipated into a mist of glowing particles.

Within a few moments, even Sui Ning had not yet reacted, and she had completely disappeared.

A strange-looking mirror and a string of Buddhist prayer beads fell to the ground.

They were the Retrospective Mirror and the Wugang pearl.

Sui Ning’s nose felt sour, murmuring to herself, “Qi niang has dissipated her soul.”

Liao Wu had paved the way for Qi niang’s reincarnation with his own three souls and seven spirits, but Qi niang did not want it.

Xie Changzhou shook his head and retrieved the retrospective mirror and prayer beads that had fallen to the ground.

He put the retrospective mirror back into his Qiankun bag but kept the string of prayer beads.

It was the Wugang pearl, Liao Wu’s own life-saving weapon.

He continuously infused his spiritual energy into it, with a calm and cool expression in his eyes.

“Jianzun, what are you going to do?”

“Watch the memories of the Wugang pearl.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the Wugang pearl immediately emitted a bright light, and a screen appeared in the void.