Lin Longyue: General, Please Save Me

The battle between Xiao Changlü and Yuan Yuan lasted for a full quarter of an hour.

That level of confrontation is beyond the comprehension of ordinary eyes.

The aftershocks of the collision of Qi and Blood transformed into visible ripples that spread in all directions, causing the sea of clouds to churn and the sound to be like thunder wherever they passed.

The Yuan River was churned upstream, and the reeds Zhuozhao River were uprooted, swept into the Void, and then turned to dust under the onslaught of sword light and palm strikes.

Chen Lingxi stood on an unnamed hill dozens of miles away, barely able to glimpse a corner of the battlefield through the ice mirror condensed by Xi Mu from the mist.

"Mystic Entry Realm."

He silently repeated those two words in his mind.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the shock and turmoil in his heart, turned around, and strode away into the distance.

He moved extremely fast, his Concealed Edge Method flowing silently within his body, completely concealing his aura.

Xi Mu then transformed into a faint mist, silently trailing behind him for several feet, like a loyal shadow.

"We cannot stay in Yuan River Prefecture for the time being."

Chen Lingxi pondered in her heart.

A large-scale search will be conducted around Yuan River Prefecture; this is a foregone conclusion.

He killed Yunhe Commandery Princess, Chu Linzi, Yang Zhuri, and many other figures. Today, Xiao Changlü has committed the earth-shattering act of assassinating the Imperial Concubine. Yuan River Prefecture is probably in complete chaos.

Staying here is tantamount to putting oneself in danger.

"I must temporarily avoid their sharp edge," he thought to himself.

Southwest of Yuan River Prefecture, about three hundred li outside the city, lies the territory of Southern Lu Prefecture.

Southern Lu Prefecture is mountainous with little arable land and is located in a remote area, so it has never been as prosperous as Yuan River Prefecture.

There is a continuous mountain range in the Nanju area of Nanju Southern Lu Prefecture, called the Nanju Twelve Mountains. The mountains are steep, the forests are dense and the grass is thick. Tigers and leopards often appear there, and ordinary people rarely set foot there.

The government was too lazy to bother with such remote places, and only set up some checkpoints outside the mountains to check passing merchants and travelers, but did not enter the mountains.

This is exactly the kind of place he needs to stay right now.

With his fully developed Golden Body Minor Accomplishment skill, he could travel over 300 Southern Lu Prefecture in just half a day, even with breaks and sightseeing.

He did not enter the prefectural city, but went straight towards the direction of the Nanju Twelve Mountains.

The Nanju Twelve Mountains, as their name suggests, consist of twelve peaks that rise and fall in succession, resembling twelve giant dragons coiled on the earth.

Chen Lingxi walked across several mountains and searched along a ridge for about two hours before finally finding a suitable cave halfway up an unnamed mountain.

The cave was hidden beneath a precipice, its entrance completely obscured by several gnarled old pines and dense vines. Had he not carefully probed it with his spiritual energy, he would never have discovered it.

"It's a good location, though."

Chen Lingxi nodded in satisfaction.

He entered the cave and set up the Pure Marvel Qi-Pivot Formation.

He had already mastered this formation, and now he was setting it up as smoothly as flowing water.

In less than half an hour, the array's core was set, and the blue flames in the bronze lamps ignited one after another, while the jade pendant shimmered with a hazy blue light.

A powerful suction force emanated from the center of the array, drawing in the sparse Spiritual Qi within a radius of several hundred feet. The energy gathered in wisps and strands, condensing into a pale blue Spiritual Qi within the array.

Chen Lingxi sat cross-legged in the center of the formation, feeling the dense, almost tangible Spiritual Qi surging in from all directions, enveloping his entire body.

He took out the Undying Willow Leaf he had obtained from Willow Street Alley from his bosom, swallowed it, and closed his eyes to heal his wounds.

After a long while, he opened his eyes.

"The medicinal properties of these Willow Leaf are rather ordinary; they can only heal minor injuries."

Chen Lingxi was secretly disappointed.

But then he remembered that the Willow Leaf was obtained by killing two mortals as a sacrifice to the Undying Willow, and he felt relieved.

Then, he closed his eyes and devoted himself to cultivation once again.

"I will then retreat to the mountains to cultivate until my injuries are fully healed, and then return to Yuan River Prefecture," he secretly planned.

Within Yuan River Prefecture lies the Treasure Qi within Lin Longyue's body, as well as that Demon Banner.

He still needs to go back and seize these fortuitous opportunity.

Not to mention Lin Suri.

Wandering Sight Divine Ability will ultimately fall upon Lin Suri.

Chen Lingxi suppressed these thoughts for the time being, calmed his mind, and circulated the Six-Qi True Method.

The stream of spiritual liquid in the Qi Sea rejoiced under the nourishment of the Spiritual Qi of the Pure Marvel Qi-Pivot Formation, flowing slowly along the meridians, gathering, refining, and incorporating the pure Spiritual Qi into the stream.

Time slipped away quietly in this daily grind of rigorous practice.

In the blink of an eye, more than forty days have passed.

It's already a new year.

Fine snowflakes drifted outside the cave, turning the entire mountain into a pristine white.

Chen Lingxi sat cross-legged in the center of the formation and opened his eyes.

He held a Spirit Stone in his hand. The stone, which was originally as white as jade, was now dull and covered with fine cracks.

As he exhaled his last breath, the Spirit Stone finally exhausted its last bit of Spiritual Qi, silently turning into a handful of fine ash.

A faint lingering Spiritual Qi aura permeated the cave.

Chen Lingxi let out a long breath.

He looked down at his hands.

Beneath the skin, golden light flows endlessly, and deep within the bones, Golden Broth surges like a tide.

After several days of arduous cultivation and refining another Spirit Stone, his cultivation level improved again. Although he still hadn't reached the threshold of the Qi Circulation Fifth Floor, it was much more solid than when he first entered the fourth level.

More importantly, his Qi and Blood cultivation has benefited from the constant nourishment of his muscles, bones, skin, and flesh by spiritual Qi, and he has already reached the Golden Body Great Accomplishment.

The Golden Body Great Accomplishment, the Purple-Tempered Golden Wheel was completed, and all the bones in the body had turned into pure gold, with the Golden-Soup Blood Qi surging like mercury.

"My cultivation progress is faster than I expected."

"It's time to go back."

He muttered a few words to himself, stood up, and stretched his limbs.

His bones crackled and popped, like popping beans, a particularly crisp sound in the silent cave.

He carefully collected the bronze lamps and jade pendants from the formation and put them into his Universe Bag. He then cleaned up any traces he had left in the cave before parting the vines at the cave entrance and stepping outside.

The snow outside has stopped.

The leaden clouds in the sky remained unbroken, pressing heavily on the mountain peaks and making the vast forests of the Nanju Twelve Mountains appear even more desolate.

Chen Lingxi stood at the cave entrance, took a long breath of the cold mountain air, and felt completely refreshed, the slight dullness of the past few days of hard training swept away.

He straightened his clothes, strode down the mountain, and headed towards Yuan River Prefecture.

--

Yuan River Prefecture is now much more heavily guarded than before.

Long queues formed at the city gate, and people entering and leaving the city were subject to layers of checks by yamen runners and soldiers.

Chen Lingxi the city easily, given his cultivation level and the Concealed Edge Method he possessed.

The atmosphere in the city was even more tense than it had been in December.

The streets were now filled with more yamen runners and armored soldiers patrolling, and the teahouses and taverns were buzzing with discussion.

Chen Lingxi sat down at a tea stall on the street, ordered a bowl of coarse tea, and while drinking the tea, listened to the general discussions around her.

"It seems that Consort Chun is not dead, as she was stopped by Yuan Yuan."

It turns out that Consort Chun had encountered a misfortune, but had not died and had already returned to the capital.

It is said that he was assassinated several times on his way back to Beijing.

These assassins who came to kill the Imperial Concubine probably originally intended to carry out the assassination in Yuan River Prefecture, but they did not expect Xiao Changlü to appear halfway and disrupt the situation, so they could only make their move on the way back to the capital.

However, the imperial concubine was heavily guarded, and the mysterious Yuan Yuan was also with her, so the assassination attempt naturally failed.

Chen Lingxi listened to these discussions, her face remaining expressionless, but inwardly she sneered.

Consort Chun is indeed lucky. Even Xiao Changlü, a fearless Xuan -Mystic Entry Realm, failed to take her life when he personally intervened. It will probably be even more difficult to kill her in the future.

"Fine, I'll kill them."

He then returned to the inn and closed his eyes to communicate with the Divine Chamber.

Lin Suri had indeed returned and was at the Baosu Marquis Residence.

"Hmm? Lin Suri is in seclusion again?"

In the East Hall of the South Courtyard, Lin Suri was sitting cross-legged on a futon.

He held a bright lamp in his hands, the very lamp he had seen during his Sight-Roaming that day.

The lamp burned, emitting specks of spiritual light. The light contained a rich Spiritual Qi that spread out and entered Lin Suri's body.

A hazy light enveloped him, making his pale face appear even more like a jade sculpture.

The aura became increasingly unfathomable, much more profound than when I saw it a few months ago. It was like a still pool of water, calm on the surface but with undercurrents surging beneath, its depths unfathomable.

Chen Lingxi secretly assessed the situation and felt that Lin Suri's current aura was probably not far from reaching the Qi Circulation Seventh Floor.

The Qi Circulation Seventh Floor is the threshold to the Upper Three Floors.

Once you cross that threshold, it's a whole new world.

He looked away, then suddenly remembered something else.

During the previous Sight-Roaming, Lin Suri's consciousness went to the Great World. The woman in red said that he had reincarnated into the Rebirth Pool too late, only two years had passed. Compared with other Truth-Seekers, he was far behind in time.

But now it seems that even if he had fallen behind, Lin Suri has caught up and is even showing signs of surpassing him.

He couldn't help but feel a little emotional.

"Such talent truly deserves to be called Golden Grotto opportunity, which is truly enviable."

"However, the methods used by this Dao-Below Academy are slightly different from those of other sects and clans." He thought to himself, "Other cultivators from the Great World enter the Rebirth Pool and are reincarnated, their memories sealed away, only to awaken when the time is right or when they encounter some opportunity."

But this Lin Suri seems to have been possessed; the original Lin Suri was completely possessed, and it's likely that his soul and spirit have been destroyed."

Chen Lingxi shook her head. "Lin Suri's seclusion this time will probably last for a long time... That's fine too."

"It makes it convenient for me to do many things."

Sight-Roaming broken, Chen Lingxi waited quietly.

Late at night, Chen Lingxi suddenly opened her eyes, changed into black clothes and a mask, entered the Baosu Marquis Residence, and came to the main courtyard of the West Courtyard where Lin Longyue lived.

He silently pushed open the courtyard gate and stepped into the courtyard.

The door to the main hall was also closed, and a few dim candlelight shone through the paper windows.

He walked to the window and peered inside through the crack.

Lin Longyue was not sleeping in her boudoir, but was lying on her side on the rosewood couch in the main hall, covered with a thick brocade quilt, only revealing her pale and haggard face.

Her eyes were closed, as if she were asleep, but her brows were tightly furrowed, and a fine layer of cold sweat beaded on her forehead.

In just over forty days, she looked even more haggard than before.

Chen Lingxi frowned slightly.

Logically speaking, with Yunhe Commandery Princess dead, the source of that foul energy should have been cut off, and Lin Longyue's condition from having her vital energy drained should have improved.

Even if it cannot recover immediately, it shouldn't look like this.

Without further hesitation, he silently pushed open the hall door and entered.

A censer of aloeswood incense burned in the hall, its smoke curling upwards and lingering.

The fragrance was supposed to be calming, but at this moment it seemed to carry a hint of inexplicable chill.

Chen Lingxi walked to the bedside and looked down at Lin Longyue's pale face.

When she was asleep, her innate coldness and majesty faded considerably, revealing a demeanor more befitting her age.

He activated the Six-Qi True Method and initiated the [Qi Observation] technique.

The spiritual energy emerges from the Qi Sea, travels upwards along the meridians, and flows into the eyes.

In an instant, what Chen Lingxi saw changed!

He saw that the foul energy within Lin Longyue's meridians was still slowly writhing.

It did not dissipate because of Yunhe Commandery Princess's death; on the contrary, it became even larger than before.

What alarmed Chen Lingxi even more was that the essence and Spiritual Qi within Lin Longyue's body were being drawn away bit by bit by this magic array and accumulated within it.

"Yunhe Commandery Princess is dead, so who is maintaining this magic array?"

Chen Lingxi narrowed her eyes slightly, needing not to guess much.

"It's Ying Chi," he murmured to himself.

Yunhe Commandery Princess was merely taught the Qi-Swallowing Method by Ying Chi, and received only a small share of the benefits.

After she died, Ying Chi personally took over the magic array and continued to extract essence and Spiritual Qi from Lin Longyue's body.

Chen Lingxi's expression remained unchanged, and her gaze returned to Lin Longyue.

Lin Longyue slowly opened her eyes, as if sensing something was amiss.

Then Lin Longyue saw Chen Lingxi mask.

She looked at him, startled.

"General!"

Lin Longyue got up, wearing only a thin garment that revealed her beautiful figure. She stepped off the warm couch, stood barefoot on the cold bluestone floor, and walked to Chen Lingxi.

Then... she seemed to think for a moment, then suddenly bowed gracefully to him.

The manners were extremely respectful.

Chen Lingxi stood with his sword at his side, his body straight and his aura profound.

He looked at Lin Longyue and suddenly asked, "Have you met the Crown Prince?"

Lin Longyue was slightly taken aback, then nodded respectfully. "More than twenty days ago, the Crown Prince came to Mangyang Mountain and held Beast-Fighting Banquet. I and others were invited to the banquet."

As she said this, a hint of doubt appeared in her eyes, and she said, "Yunhe was also very close to the Crown Prince back then, could it be...?"

Chen Lingxi asked bluntly, "The Imperial Concubine wants to use you in her medicine, and the Crown Prince has inscribed a magic array in your body to absorb your spiritual energy to sustain himself... Has your cultivation level regressed?"

"The Crown Prince..." Lin Longyue smiled bitterly and said, "General, you are wise. My cultivation of Qi and Blood has already reached the Silver Bone Major Accomplishment, and my strength and Qi and Blood are even inferior to those of the Copper Scarlet Realm type."

She spoke with her head slightly lowered, her black hair falling down and covering half of her face, revealing only half of her pale, thin chin.

A few breaths later, her gaze suddenly hardened.

Then, she bowed gracefully again, and then knelt respectfully before Chen Lingxi.

"Please, General, save me!"