Luo Feng's Six Palaces

"We're almost at the border of Luofeng Mountain. I heard that the Xun Kingdom has built a long military camp to block the mountain, so we probably can't get around it. We might even encounter a patrol and have a fierce battle."

Traveling day and night, Li Fan observed the stars and the celestial phenomena, calculating the journey with his fingers based on the position of Venus in the Big Dipper, while explaining to the two boys...

"You two take these talismans and hide inside the flying boat. If anything happens, activate the Returning to Emptiness Concealment Talisman to protect yourselves. Generally, Nascent Soul cultivators won't be able to see through your origins. If there's any danger, use the Qiongqi Talisman to unleash a fierce wind to counterattack; it can probably kill even Golden Core cultivators instantly."

Anyway, the coffin is very sturdy; I'll carry those four ungrateful wretches myself...

In short, prioritize your own survival and be quick-witted. When I was your age, I was already invincible, killing gods and demons alike. I was unbeatable among those of the same level, and it would be difficult to defeat me unless I could take on ten opponents at once. You should all take me as your role model, understand?

"Yes, I remember." Xiang Xiaoyu rolled her eyes and silently accepted the talisman written by Li Fan in Taishan ink.

Nie Feilian, being more honest, burst out laughing, "Pfft! You're always joking, Master. When you were our age, weren't you in the Qi Refining Stage? One against ten? That would just be getting ganged up on! Hahaha!"

Xiang Xiaoyu tugged at her, "Feilian, even if the real person was beaten up and lost before, you shouldn't point it out to their face."

Nie Feilian stuck out her tongue. "Uh, you're right. I know I was wrong."

"... No, so what I meant was... sigh, I've spoiled you two too much..."

Seeing their disrespectful behavior, Li Fan felt helpless. Sometimes being too outstanding is really a problem. They just wanted to show off a little, but when they said the truth, it was so outrageous that no one believed them. Ugh, so annoying...

Now was not the time to discipline these two unruly girls. Li Fan placed the large coffin containing four maidens on the deck, stood with his hands behind his back at the bow of the boat, and accelerated.

The front lines of the Xun Kingdom war zone are truly impenetrable. Within his current Divine Sense perception range, he has already detected several hundred-man squads, interlocking and gathering large numbers of troops in the ravines. He clearly bypassed the camps and infiltrated through the gaps in the defenses, but there are far too many patrolling troops.

But since they had already reached Luofeng Mountain, they didn't care about the Xun Kingdom's army and just accelerated past the defensive line.

But to Li Fan's surprise, before they even discovered Li Fan whereabouts, these troops started fighting amongst themselves!

Is this another power struggle and infighting? Isn't it going too far to have them killing each other on the front lines?

Li Fan was initially suspicious, thinking it was some kind of trick, but soon the firebirds of Xun Kingdom sent out distress signals, and after observing for a while, he realized what was going on.

It turned out that the troops he had just detected with his Divine Sense were not all patrols and guards from the Xun Kingdom, but rather the troops of the Mountain Ghosts who had launched an ambush!

There were about seven or eight teams of a hundred men each, which ambushed the Xun Kingdom's patrol teams from all directions, setting up multiple ambushes to surround the Xun Kingdom's troops, attacking them from both the front and rear, and besieging them on all sides.

The hundred-man squad was divided into three sections, unable to support each other. Some held their ground and sent signals for reinforcements, while others were directly overrun and engaged in fierce fighting. Still others attempted to break out by flanking maneuvers, but were met with arrows from the Fourth Department, suffering heavy casualties.

Li Fan glanced at the purple phoenix circling in the sky, then used his blindness to extend his Divine Sense and survey the surrounding area. There were several large armies hiding in the mountains nearby, seemingly planning to ambush the Mountain Ghosts army of the Xun Kingdom.

Did they actually run headlong into the battlefield...?

Li Fan had no choice but to stop the boat and wait in the air for half an hour. But the hundred-man squad was wiped out, and no reinforcements came from the nearby camp of Xun Kingdom. The Mountain Ghosts lying in ambush were also very decisive. After eating a patrol squad and not receiving any reinforcements, they retreated back into the mountains.

It seems this isn't a major battle, just routine tactical skirmishes. I didn't expect the Xun Kingdom to be so short-handed, only able to hold their fortified camps, and not even daring to rescue the patrols.

Seeing that the Mountain Ghosts army had finished cleaning up the battlefield and was preparing to retreat, Li Fan drove his flying boat forward, revealing the aura of a true human, raising the banner of Ink Bamboo Mountain, and slowly approaching.

The Mountain Ghosts troops then became aware of the situation and quickly took precautions. Two generals at the Golden Core stage came forward to pay their respects.

As they flew closer, Li Fan glanced at them and saw that these Mountain Ghosts were basically no different from ordinary people in appearance and figure, except that they had disheveled hair and some tattoos on their faces.

Their armor and weapons were clearly captured from the Xun Kingdom, but the armor had been dyed, with the red armor favored by the Xun Kingdom army dyed bluish-gray, probably more suitable for ambushes in the mountains.

The two Golden Core cultivators came up to look at the banner of Ink Bamboo Mountain, but they didn't recognize it. However, they could tell that Li Fan, this Nascent Soul Stage cultivator, was not on the side of Xun Kingdom. So they asked in broken Mandarin, "May I ask what brings you here, True Man?"

Li Fan then took out the command token given to him by Xie Mingchen and said, "Qingyue, a disciple under the master of Ink Bamboo Mountain, is here to pay respects to the Jueyin Shenjun on my master's orders. Please convey my message."

The two generals realized that Xie Mingchen's command token was genuine. They exchanged glances and nodded, saying, "Please, Master, come with us into the mountain. We will stay temporarily at the palace at the foot of the mountain until the Divine Lord summons us."

Li Fan nodded in agreement, saying, "That's only right."

Thus, they were able to successfully follow this Mountain Ghosts army into the mountains; their luck was quite good.

Li Fan glanced at the Mountain Ghosts army's military formation. He saw that most of them had Foundation Establishment cultivation. They marched through the mountains at night, carrying armor and bows, moving with incredible speed and discipline. Their formation was orderly and orderly, like a swiftly flowing river, without the slightest sign of chaos. The army of over a thousand men moved like wolves, and apart from the rustling of their footsteps like the wind, not a single one made a sound. They were truly like ghosts, capable of startling someone to death if they suddenly appeared in the middle of the night.

What a formidable mountain force!

No wonder even elite tribes like the Xun Kingdom and the Thunder Department couldn't achieve a complete victory after so many years of fighting. It shows just how formidable Luo Feng Immortal Army was back then...

"Please follow me, Master." Of course, the Golden Core general couldn't lead Li Fan, an outsider, to their camp, so he sent someone to take him to a tribal camp in the mountains.

This camp was clearly a military stronghold designed for war, built along the mountainside with numerous fortified villages. The Mountain Ghosts Clan climbed up and down the hills, which were almost sheer cliffs, as if walking on flat ground. At the summit, there were several Daoist palaces, among which one could sense the aura of the Nascent Soul Stage level, which was probably the local Daoist temple of the Luo Feng Immortal Palace.

Li Fan followed the rules, first issuing a talisman to the mountain, asking the Mountain Ghosts General to pass on the talisman and command arrow. Only after the True Person in the temple agreed to open the magic array did he land on the flying boat and enter the temple with two attendants.

The layout and design of the Daoist palace at the foot of the mountain are clearly in the style of the Immortal Palace. However, the shrine at the entrance has been removed. Originally, there should have been a statue of an Immortal Venerable here. It seems that Luofeng Mountain has truly fallen into demonic possession, no longer even worshipping the Immortal Venerable, and has severed all ties with the Immortal Palace.

Further in, there are many statues on both sides, mostly generals, and some guardian statues of demons and monsters, which may be the totems of the Six Mountain Ghosts.

The guardian deity inside the main hall was dressed similarly to the Hundred-Ling Boy, wearing a blue ceremonial robe embroidered with a black phoenix, which was probably the ceremonial robe of Luofeng Mountain.

After entering and handing over the Daoist certificate and talisman to verify one's identity, the basic procedure of paying homage to the mountain is considered complete.

Thus, Qingyue became a guest visiting Luofeng Mountain.

"Fellow Daoist, please wait in the guest room until the Divine Lord summons you..." The guard on duty hadn't finished speaking when he suddenly paused, then added, "The Divine Lord has already sent a pageboy to invite you into the grotto to meet him."

"Uh, well... okay..."

Li Fan hadn't expected the other party to react so quickly. He had barely reached the foot of the mountain when a boy came to greet him and lead him into the grotto. It was only then that he suddenly realized something was amiss.

So you're just carrying a coffin up the mountain to return to E'e like that? Won't people think you're here to cause trouble...?

But since the boys had already arrived, Li Fan couldn't keep them waiting, so he gritted his teeth, lifted the coffin, and under the strange gazes of the crowd, Tengyun followed the boys up the mountain.

This Luo Feng Cave Heaven of Baiyue Mountain is Grotto-Heaven Blessed Land like the Ink Bamboo Mountain Grotto-Heaven. Led by the attendant of the Jueyin Shenjun, the group entered the grotto-heaven, and instantly their true qi filled them, changing the color of the world. In the blink of an eye, they saw six flying mountain Immortal Palace in the blue sky and sea, which were probably the Six Palaces of Luofeng.

Below the immortal mountain lies an endless expanse of azure water, its nature indistinguishable between a lake and a sea. At the center of a six-pointed star-shaped magic array formed by the six palaces is a massive, dark cave entrance. Endless seawater cascades down like a waterfall, an endless curtain of water plunging straight into the deep cave. True Qi permeates the air, water vapor rises, and clouds and mist swirl, creating a scene reminiscent of a fairyland.

Li Fan turned his head and looked around, feeling that his Divine Sense was blocked by some kind of barrier.

He hadn't really noticed before; the Ink Bamboo Mountain Grotto-Heaven were all mountains, but he never imagined that the caves in Luofeng Mountain were actually the sea?

Judging from this, Grotto-Heaven Blessed Land seem to be some kind of alternate dimension or something similar...

So, led by the boy, they arrived at one of the Immortal Palace, and then Li Fan was in an awkward situation.

There is not just one, but six, divine rulers in the Immortal Palace!

There stood the six great deities, one of blue, white, gold, red, purple, and black, seated in the highest positions, arranged in a line from left to right.

On either side below, like civil and military officials, stood forty-eight Nascent Soul Stage cultivators!

The True Cultivator members of the entire Luo Feng Daoist Tradition are probably all here; they might be holding a major meeting and have just been summoned by Li Fan...

Deng Xiaoyu Nie Feilian had never seen such a scene before. Their legs went weak at the gate, and they collapsed to the ground, kneeling and bowing with the welcoming boy at the palace gate.

Li Fan glanced silently at the coffin in his hand. Well, he figured he'd just have to bite the bullet and go for it. As long as he wasn't embarrassed, it was others who would be...

"Qingyue pays homage to Ink Bamboo Mountain!"

So Li Fan tilted his head back, lifted the coffin with one hand, and entered the hall. Then, to the bewilderment of the True Cultivators, he placed the coffin in the hall, cupped his hands, and said, "On behalf of my master, I have come to return the maidservant under the tutelage of Luo Feng Old Lord."

The entire room fell silent for a moment.

Li Fan remained calm, smiling without saying a word, taking the opportunity to observe the people of Luofeng Mountain.

This Luo Feng Old Lord is truly formidable; all six of his disciples have reached the Transformation Stage. Seven Divine Transformation cultivators in one sect—that's quite something! No wonder the four great families of Xun Kingdom weren't enough; they even had to bring in the Thunder Department to contend with them.

However, Li Fan could sense that at least three of these six people had unstable cultivation levels. He didn't know if they had recently broken through or had been injured. The pressure they exerted on him was even less than that of the man-eating Qiongqi old demon from the Qingyang Sect. They were basically on par with Fairy Wangshu, while the three people in the central seats had almost the aura of an old demon.

The one in the middle is probably the Jueyin Shenjun. If you only look at his upper body, he is a handsome man with long eyebrows and slender eyes. He wears a bright yellow robe and is wrapped in a fairy sash. His expression is reserved and his aura is peaceful, giving people the feeling of a piece of warm jade. However, from the waist down, he is clearly not human. Although he is covered by the bright yellow robe and cannot be seen, you can vaguely see that his lower body is like a four-legged beast. Half of his body is lying there, holding his upper human form high in the air, which is particularly eye-catching.

The two deities flanking the Jueyin Shenjun were equally imposing. The one on the right was a martial arts cultivator with a thick beard and a large belly, wearing a red robe and a sturdy armor. He was nine feet tall and stood there like a bear, with fists as big as sandbags. He also wore black gauntlets similar to Xie Mingchen's. He was probably the master of Grayhead, who was in charge of the Martial City Palace.

The one on the left, however, is dressed in flowing robes, with white hair and a youthful face, and a white beard and frost-like hair—the most fitting description of an old immortal with a dignified and otherworldly air. Of course, if he weren't so radiating a murderous aura and reeking of corpses, and if he trimmed his three-inch-long fingernails a bit, he'd probably look even more like an immortal...

The aura and Divine Sense pressure emanating from these three divine lords were the most intense, so much so that the mere sight of the three of them standing together felt like a branding iron burning directly onto Li Fan's retina, leaving him no room to look at anyone else.

"Hmph! What does Ink Bamboo Mountain mean by this! Are they thinking that Luofeng has no one to rely on?!"

Li Fan blinked, turned his head to look, and saw a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator in yellow robes jump out and speak, laughing.

"Fellow Daoist, why do you say that? I was afraid they might escape on the way, so I specially packed it up and delivered it to you. Please check the goods and sign for it. Thank you."

A sound like a sneer, or perhaps the exhaust of a motorcycle, came from beneath the robes of the Jueyin Shenjun.

Upon hearing the strange noise, the Nascent Soul Stage cultivator in the lead immediately fell silent, bowed deeply, and returned to his place.

Among the six Divine Transformation Lords in the top row, a green-robed, tattooed-faced lord stepped out from the far left. This person looked as if his face had been shaved, his flesh scraped, and his nose cut off, leaving two conspicuous holes in his face. He then used tattoos to draw another face on the remaining muscle, making his face the most grotesque. Yet, his vitality was extremely vigorous, and his entire body exuded an almost chilling and scorching yang energy, which was particularly in stark contrast to the deathly aura of the old immortal corpse beside him.

"As expected, he's that person's disciple, incredibly audacious. However, his cultivation is rather lacking, only at the Nascent Soul Realm. I think we don't need to intervene; let's select a few juniors to spar with him."

"Very well, Shou Meng, why don't you learn a few moves from Moshan's esteemed disciple?"

The one speaking was a deity on the far right, dressed in black and wearing flowers. He looked like a man, but he wore a red flower on his head, with heavy makeup, like a theatrical performer. He also had large butterfly wings behind him, making him very eye-catching. It was only because he stood with the three deities seated above that he was not conspicuous.

"Yes, Luo Fengqi is not Gong Shou Meng. I would like to ask for your guidance."

Upon hearing the summons of the Black-Clad God, a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator in black robes with crimson floral patterns on his lapel stepped forward from among the Nascent Soul Stage cultivators below and bowed. The man had tattoos on his face and his hair was tied in a braid, so he didn't seem to be from the Central Plains. It was unexpected that Mountain Ghosts could also cultivate to the Nascent Soul Realm.

Seeing that this group was quite polite, Li Fan also said sincerely, "Wait a minute, I'm just here to deliver some things, and I have no intention of challenging your sect. Besides, aren't you all about to go to war with the Xun Kingdom? At this time when you need manpower, it wouldn't be good if I accidentally killed a couple of them."

Then, a purple-robed, hooded figure with silver armor hovering in the air like a ghost transmitted a message, "It's alright. Our two sects are closely connected and have a long-standing friendship. How could we harm you? It's just a friendly spar. If your fists and feet are truly blind and destroy your body, our sect has plenty of immortals who can compensate you with a body for self-destruction."

Li Fan chuckled coldly upon hearing this, then bowed and said, "Since all the Divine Lords have given such orders, how dare I disobey? Fellow Daoist, please enlighten me."

As soon as he finished speaking, he launched a preemptive attack, using the same old trick: combining the Wind and Cloud Dragon Ascent Technique with his jade flute, he unleashed the Mysterious Heaven Lightning Sword, striking the Nascent Soul Stage cultivator Shou Meng, in three consecutive strikes at his head, throat, and heart. He then instantly retreated to his original position. This whole sequence took less than a blink of an eye, so of course the opponent couldn't react in time.

Li Fan smiled and clasped his hands in a fist salute, saying, "You flatter me."

To everyone's surprise, Master Shou Meng shrugged and said, "What are you offering? Are you putting on a monkey show?"

Li Fan's smile froze. Seeing that the six Divine Lords above didn't seem inclined to speak, he had no choice but to patiently remind the country bumpkin, "Fellow Daoist, I was just being polite. If I had a real sword in my hand, you would have died three times already."

Shou Meng Shoumeng chuckled and leaped to the side, "With the protection of Luo Feng's Dao power, how could your sword force possibly harm me in the slightest! What use are such tricks on the battlefield! Stop with the empty talk and show me your true skills! Let me see just how capable the disciples of Ink Bamboo Mountain really are!"

"Protecting the body with Dao power?"

Li Fan frowned, looked the other person up and down, hesitated for a moment, then flicked his finger, sending out a sword aura that severed the other person's thigh.

Master Shou Meng let out a scream and fell to the ground, his body tilting to one side.

... No, are you here to liven things up?

"This is the method of blind contemplation. I didn't expect you to have such high comprehension," the old corpse immortal said. "Those from the Seven Non-Palaces, don't bother. Illusion magic is useless."

Oh, so that frog jump was an illusion, right? He thought he was just warming up...

"I've long heard of the Ghost Hand! Shan Chao, a disciple of Luo Feng Jueyin Palace, has come to learn from him!"

This time, it was the yellow-robed master who had reprimanded Li Fan when he entered the hall who jumped out.

"Oh, you specifically asked for the Ghost Hand, right? Are you going to try out all of my Moshan's secret techniques, you disciples of the Six Palaces of Luofeng?" Li Fan asked, arms crossed.

The burly warrior from Wucheng Palace, speaking in a booming voice, said, "No need for all this trouble. We just wanted to see your claw skills, but who knew you'd come up with a sword? Just be straightforward and use your sect's Ghost Hand to fight Shan Chao."

Li Fan laughed too. Damn it, he'd already fought with Grayhead, didn't he know you guys had specifically researched ways to break this?

"Excellent! Ghost Hand! Please enlighten me!"

Li Fan leaped forward like an eagle swooping down on a rabbit, his claws aimed Shan Chao's skull! This palm strike was filled with murderous intent, a fierce wind, and terrifying power, like Heavenly Ghost appearing!

Shan Chao's expression was stern. Sure enough, he moved his feet and made a sword-finger gesture with his hand, using the same finger technique as Gray Head Old Man before, in order to avoid the deadly blow of Ghost Hand that crushes the skull and breaks the head, and to counter the weakness of this move with his finger technique!

But little did he know that Li Fan had also anticipated his prediction. How could a move he had only seen once possibly be effective again? So, Ghost Hand suddenly changed its move at the last moment! It transformed its claws into a palm! Wind Splitting Palm!

"You dare call me a barefoot thief!"

The slap landed Shan Chao's face, sending him spinning like a top through the air three and a half times before he flew out of the hall.

The six divine lords of Luo Feng fell silent for a moment.

The surrounding cultivators glared angrily at Li Fan, seemingly eager to challenge him to a duel.

Li Fan sneered and glared at them. He was joking, thinking, "I'm invincible at the same level, I could take on ten at once, I just want to be defeated!"

The burly warrior coughed, "After all, his skills aren't bad either."

The leader, the Jueyin Shenjun, nodded and said, "Qingyue of Ink Bamboo Mountain, the founder of the Avoidance Sect, Lord Luo Feng Old Lord, is currently in seclusion in the Taiyin Demon Cave. However, our Luofeng Mountain is currently facing a great upheaval, and we need Lord Luo Feng to take charge. Please help us, fellow Daoist, to enter the Demon Cave and invite our ancestor out of seclusion."