The Human Calamity

"I'm going to die, I'm going to die, I'm going to die..."

Chen Ganliu felt utterly wretched. Why had he insisted on staying behind to make those few chairs? If he'd gone to Shuangyun Mountain ahead of time, would any of this have happened?

As wind roared past his cheeks and the ground drew closer and closer, just when he was about to smash into a bloody mess, a streak of golden light drifted down from the high sky.

His whole body suddenly grew light. Looking at the Mind-Wandering Zen Blade circling him and darting about as a golden rainbow like a happy little puppy, Chen Ganliu was completely dumbfounded!

The quality of this flying blade was truly excellent.

It had actually nurtured a spirit.

It even knew how to "save its master."

Anyone who saw this would have to say—what a fine Immortal Flying Blade!

But he wasn't even the master of this flying blade!

Chen Ganliu knew that he had survived, but he had also been "hammered to death."

Even Mind-Wandering Zen could come to "save its master." No matter how eloquent he was or how wildly he spun tales, he could never explain this away.

Seeing this scene, Ouyang Tuo gnashed his teeth and cursed, "Little thief, you've hidden yourself well!"

"Senior Sister Nan! This little thief is also a disciple of that traitor Yao!"

Nan Shiheng was slightly astonished as well. Mind-Wandering Zen and Azure Luan were equally famous. Both had endured a thousand years of time, been infused with countless generations of their masters' power and painstaking effort, and been tempered and refined into two of the few Immortal Flying Blades in the world.

Because it had been taken away by that Great Demon who had betrayed his sect, Mind-Wandering Zen had not appeared in public for several hundred years. Its reputation had consequently faded, and few people knew of it.

Such a treasure had been cherished dearly even by that person back then, yet he had actually been willing to bestow it upon someone else. This youth must be a direct disciple among direct disciples, an heir destined to inherit his mantle in the future.

Although she had escaped Mind-Wandering Zen's entanglement, she now had to fight two powerful enemies. The two young women had inherited that person's true teachings, and their Demonic Sect arts were extraordinarily formidable. They also possessed a formation-diagram magic treasure that could evolve the Heavenly Demon Illusion Array. Ouyang Tuo alone could not deal with it, and she could not free herself. She could only flick out a bolt of lightning. Watching Mind-Wandering Zen lightly tremble and shatter her lightning technique, she could only curse inwardly, This little thief is cunning. Then she had no chance to strike again.

A cultivator had to reach the Seventh Layer of Qi Condensation, the realm of Essence and Qi Integration, before they could cultivate the Body-Sword Unity technique, ride a sword through the sky, and enter and leave the blue void.

Chen Ganliu was only at Qi Refining Layer One, yet he had been forced to forcibly raise his cultivation. With Body-Sword Unity, Sword Qi as sharp as ten thousand blades, swords, needles, and awls surged into his meridians and acupoints. His true qi was driven until it seemed ready to boil, and every circulation felt like a trip through the Eighteenth Level of Hell. The agony nearly killed him, no different from suffering every form of torture at once.

In his previous life, he had dreamed countless times that he would trade anything to be able to ride a sword through the sky. Now that he truly could, he wished he had never harbored such a delusion.

Mind-Wandering Zen caught him and carried him to the ground. It abruptly retracted, landing in the youth's arms with blade and sheath together, intimate and docile beyond compare.

Chen Ganliu threw Mind-Wandering Zen away the moment he let go.

This was absolutely an evil object!

Before it could even hit the ground, Mind-Wandering Zen leaped back. It even trembled with a plaintive whimper, as though it had suffered some grievance.

Chen Ganliu hurriedly threw it away again. His Beast Skin Pouch had been seized, and all his minor magic treasures were gone. He could only slap on two Light Talismans and sprint for his life.

Mind-Wandering Zen flew after him with a whooshing sound, following close behind without ever abandoning him.

The two young women were high in the sky, controlling the formation, and they were even more astonished than Nan Shiheng and Ouyang Tuo.

They actually had not schemed against Chen Ganliu at all. They had bought the chairs on a whim and had no idea that Mind-Wandering Zen had fallen into Chen Ganliu's hands. Their rush to save Chen Ganliu had truly come from a moment of righteous indignation.

As for joining forces with Mind-Wandering Zen from within and without to break the formation of the Immortal Encounter Sect disciples, that had surprised them greatly as well.

Not long before, Yao Hanshan had said to his disciples, "Mind-Wandering Zen has suddenly stirred recently, as if it intends to undergo the Human Calamity."

"Before long, I will cast this blade into the mortal world. Whoever finds Mind-Wandering Zen will be its master. If this treasure returns on its own, it means none of you possess the destined affinity."

When the two women saw Mind-Wandering Zen suddenly appear and slaughter several Immortal Encounter Sect disciples on their behalf, they had thought they were fated to be connected with this Immortal Flying Blade. How could they have expected that the one with the destined affinity would be someone else?

The two young women exchanged a glance. Their thoughts aligned, and they nodded together.

They were only at the Golden Core Realm. They had relied on the Heavenly Demon True Illusion Scroll bestowed by their master to set up the formation and trap Nan Shiheng and the others.

Nan Shiheng was one of the most outstanding figures of this generation of the Immortal Encounter Sect. Her cultivation was profound, and with Ouyang Tuo's assistance, the two of them could borrow the formation diagram to imprison their opponents. But to determine victory or defeat would take at least several dozen days. Only after both sides exhausted their magic power would there be a result.

In truth, if Mind-Wandering Zen had not suddenly attacked and killed several Immortal Encounter Sect disciples, Nan Shiheng and Ouyang Tuo, together with those few high-level Qi Refining disciples, might even have gained the upper hand after a prolonged stalemate.

Neither young woman wanted to keep fighting. They only wanted to capture that "boy" and investigate why Mind-Wandering Zen had taken the initiative to draw close to him.

The two women held the initiative and possessed a treasure like the Heavenly Demon True Illusion Scroll, so escaping was easy.

They continuously activated illusions, shifting Nan Shiheng and Ouyang Tuo hundreds of miles away while their true bodies remained motionless in place. When the moment came, the two women cast their magic power simultaneously and raised their hands in unison. The Lightning Fire and Black Qi vanished in an instant.

The two senior and junior sisters retracted their Escape Light, swayed once, and disappeared without a trace in the blink of an eye.

Nan Shiheng stood atop a golden lotus, her pretty face flushed with fury. They had come out this time to capture and kill the two disciples of that person, yet they had never expected to be outmaneuvered and lose several fellow disciples.

Ouyang Tuo was even more frantic. He urged his Flower Basket magic treasure to charge wildly through the air, drove his true qi, and roared, "Demoness, come out and engage in Magical Combat!"

At that moment, Chen Ganliu had not run very far on his own two legs when his body suddenly grew light. Someone had forcibly hoisted him into the air. He twisted around and saw two familiar faces. Although they were not Nan Shiheng and Ouyang Tuo, his heart still pounded with fear.

He knew now that these two young women were disciples of the Great Demon. Falling into the hands of the Immortal Encounter Sect meant death, but if he fell into the hands of the Great Demon's disciples, how could there possibly be any "life" left for him?

Mind-Wandering Zen drifted down onto the top of Chen Ganliu's head and stood upright like a single horn, giving a soft, smug hum.

The senior sister reached out, wanting to seize the Immortal Flying Blade, but Mind-Wandering Zen let out a melodious whistle, as if warning her not to move her little hand recklessly.

His lordship Mind-Wandering Zen was no ordinary blade. It did not let just anyone touch it.

The senior sister truly did not dare reach out again. She knew the might of this Immortal Flying Blade. She said to her junior sister, "Let's find some desolate mountain nearby and ask about his origins!"

The junior sister was also extremely curious. "There is a Woniu Mountain nearby. Let's find a cave there and question him thoroughly."

When the two women's words reached Chen Ganliu's ears, they instantly became—find a secluded place and torture him thoroughly. His brain spun seven or eight times faster from fright, but despite having lived three lifetimes, he possessed no quick wit to speak of. For a time, he could not think of any way to escape.

The two women took Chen Ganliu to the nearby Woniu Mountain and, sure enough, found a cave.

The senior sister set Chen Ganliu down, giggled, and said, "Fellow Daoist, there's no need to be afraid. We cultivate the Orthodox Heavenly Demon Sect..."

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