"Click——"
A clear cracking sound sounded, and spider web-like cracks appeared on the surface of the formation.
Ling Xiao happened to rush to the entrance of the cave, and before he could ask questions, a violent punch came straight through the cracks in the formation.
"Poof!"
Ling Xiao felt like his chest was struck by lightning, and his whole body was blown away. He rolled on the ground several times before barely stopping.
He got up in despair, his chest hurt, and a fishy sweetness filled his throat.
But he swallowed the mouthful of blood and stared in the direction of the hole.
"At least Half-step Primordial Realm."
Ling Xiao quickly judged the opponent's strength and his heart sank.
In the current state of him and Gu Sheng, there is almost no chance of winning in a head-on confrontation.
Outside the cave, Long Teng looked at the damage he had caused and nodded with satisfaction.
He raised his fist again, ready to completely smash this obstructive barrier.
According to the rules of Profound Nether Sacred Mountain, as long as he does not directly attack Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao, it will not be considered a violation of the rules. This way of taking advantage of loopholes is exactly his usual tactic.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
He punched the formation three times in a row, and each impact made the stone wall in the cave tremble.
Ling Xiao knew he couldn't wait any longer, so he gritted his teeth and took out a golden bowl from his arms.
The golden bowl was no more than the size of a palm, and its surface was engraved with complex runes. It glowed faintly golden under the influence of spiritual energy.
"Go!"
Ling Xiao threw the golden bowl towards the hole, bit the tip of his tongue and spurted out a mouthful of blood.
The golden bowl grew long when exposed to the wind, and instantly became ten feet in size, firmly covering the entire entrance of the cave.
Golden light poured down like water, and the formation lines that were about to collapse miraculously began to repair under the golden light.
"Huh?"
Long Teng noticed that the formation suddenly stabilized, frowned, and then showed an expression of interest.
"It's interesting."
He no longer held back, the muscles in his right arm swelled to the limit, and the blood vessels under the skin were clearly visible.
What was even more astonishing was that the surrounding spiritual energy began to gather towards his fist, and there was even a trace of light cyan Daoist aura wrapped around it.
"Senior Brother Long can actually induce the Daoist aura!"
Liang Yu was stunned, his eyes full of admiration.
Wang Yuchen was also breathing rapidly. This method of getting close to the Tai Chu Realm was simply out of reach for ordinary disciples like them.
Long Teng glanced at the two of them proudly.
"It just resonates with the laws of heaven and earth. When I really step into the Tai Chu Realm and Qi Transformation Realm, the attack power will be doubled!"
Before he finished speaking, he punched suddenly. This punch was more terrifying than any before. The air around the fist was compressed into ripples visible to the naked eye.
When the fist touched the barrier formed by the golden bowl, a deafening explosion echoed in the valley.
"Crack-boom!"
The golden bowl trembled violently, and the runes on its surface were extinguished one by one.
The formation barrier shattered like glass, Ling Xiao spat out a mouthful of blood, and his face instantly turned pale.
What's even more frightening is that the punch's power remains unabated, passing through the broken barrier and heading straight into the cave!
"Gu Sheng!"
Ling Xiao turned around and shouted, his voice filled with unprecedented anxiety.
Gu Sheng, who was sitting cross-legged on the stone platform, was shaken violently.
He was at the last moment of a breakthrough, and the spiritual energy in his body had reached its peak. He only needed to hold on for a few more moments to succeed.
But at this moment, the interference from the outside world caused his breath to stagnate, and the realm that was about to break through came to an abrupt halt, and even began to plummet at an alarming speed.
"Pfft——"
Gu Sheng spit out a mouthful of blood arrows and the moment the breath was completely taken back into his body, he felt as if his internal organs had been hit by a heavy hammer.
When he opened his eyes, his eyes were bloodshot and there was still wet blood hanging from the corners of his mouth.
The dusty entrance to the cave.
With a sarcastic smile on his face, Long Teng glanced around the cave, finally landing on the embarrassed Ling Xiao and the disturbed Gu Sheng.
"Oh, aren't these Junior Brother Gu and Junior Brother Ling?"
Long Teng pretended to be surprised.
"Who I thought occupied such a good training place, turned out to be you."
Wang Yuchen followed Long Teng swaggeringly, with a winner's smile on his face.
He suddenly stopped when he reached the entrance of the cave, turned around, grabbed Liang Yu who was about to retreat, and dragged him in forcefully.
"What are you hiding from?"
Wang Yuchen lowered his voice, with a sinister look in his eyes.
"Haven't you always wanted to take revenge? Now is your chance."
Liang Yu was pushed to the front. Facing the angry gazes of Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao, he involuntarily took a half step back, but was firmly held down by Wang Yuchen on his shoulders.
Ling Xiao supported the crumbling Gu Sheng, the anger in his eyes almost turned into substance.
Liang Yu's villainous demeanor lingered in his mind, and what was even more hateful was Long Teng's insidious method of killing someone with a borrowed knife.
"Don't be impulsive"
Gu Sheng waved his hand weakly, the sound was like sandpaper rubbing.
"Help me sit down."
Ling Xiao carefully helped Gu Sheng sit cross-legged on the stone platform, looking at his pale face and the wet blood at the corner of his mouth, clenching his fists.
"Sooner or later this account will have to be settled!"
Gu Sheng didn't answer, just closed his eyes and adjusted his breathing.
The spiritual energy in his body was flowing wildly, and his meridians seemed to have thousands of steel needles stirring.
This is an internal injury caused by the backlash of cultivation. It doesn't look like much on the outside, but in reality all the internal organs have been severely damaged.
He guided the remaining spiritual power to run slowly through the main meridians, repairing the damage bit by bit.
The sky outside the cave is getting dark, and the dark clouds are very low, as if they will fall down at any time.
Ling Xiao stood guard at the entrance of the cave, observing the surroundings vigilantly.
Once night falls completely, the danger level of Profound Nether Sacred Mountain will increase exponentially.
What's even more frightening is that Long Teng's group is likely to attack at night.
Two hours later, Gu Sheng finally opened his eyes. Although his face was still pale, some color had returned.
He breathed a sigh of relief and spit out a mouthful of bruised blood.
"How's it going?"
Ling Xiao came over immediately.
"Can't die."
Gu Sheng managed a smile, but his eyes were solemn.
"We can't stay here any longer. We have to leave immediately."
Ling Xiao nodded.
"That's exactly what I meant. But Long Teng must be spying outside. How can we leave?"
Gu Sheng stood up and moved his stiff limbs.
"It's better to take one step at a time than to sit still and wait for death."
The two packed their simple luggage, and Ling Xiao took out the golden bowl embedded in the stone wall with great effort.
Several cracks have appeared on the surface of the golden bowl, and the spiritual energy has been greatly damaged.
Ling Xiao wiped it distressedly and put it away carefully.
When they walked out of the cave entrance, the sight in front of them made them both stunned at the same time - a layer of dreamlike spiritual mist had enveloped the outside of the cave entrance, and a slim figure was vaguely visible in the mist.
But Long Teng and others have disappeared.
"Who?"
Ling Xiao subconsciously stood in front of Gu Sheng, already holding the magic formula in his hand.
The spiritual mist slowly dispersed, revealing a woman wearing a moon-white skirt.
Her back was turned to them, her long hair was like a waterfall, and she was surrounded by a faint halo of aura, as if she was integrated with the world.
Gu Sheng's pupils shrank suddenly, and his body tensed unconsciously.
Even if he only looked at the back, he recognized this person - Su Muxue, one of the people Qinghe Holy Land least wanted to see.
"Senior Sister Su."
Gu Sheng's voice is so dry that it doesn't sound like his own.
The woman slowly turned around, revealing a suffocating face.
Her eyebrows are like distant mountains, her eyes are like stars, her skin is like gelatin, and her lips are like red spots. But the most breathtaking thing is her aloof temperament, which seems to be otherworldly.
"Junior Brother Gu, you are fine."
Su Muxue's voice was as cold as a spring, and there was no hint of emotion or anger.
Gu Sheng suppressed the waves in his heart and spoke straightforwardly.
"What do you do, Senior Sister Su?"
Ling Xiao noticed something was wrong in the atmosphere, and quickly stepped forward and saluted respectfully.
"Senior Sister Su is here. Do you have any advice? If I can find any use, I'm willing to do my best."
Su Muxue's eyes stayed on Ling Xiao for a moment, then returned to Gu Sheng's face.
"You want to leave Qinghe Holy Land?"
Gu Sheng was shocked, how did she know? But it doesn't show on the face.
"Why did Senior Sister say this?"
"Imperial Dragon Hall has a newly released outing experience mission."
Su Muxue didn't seem to care about Gu Sheng's attitude and said to himself.
"After accepting the mission, you can leave openly."
After saying that, she turned around to leave. The moon-white skirt drew an elegant arc, leaving only a wisp of fragrance.
Gu Sheng suddenly took two steps forward.
"Wait!"
Su Muxue stopped for a moment, but did not look back.
"You've already recognized me, haven't you?"
Gu Sheng's voice was trembling.
"Why don't you expose me?"
The spiritual mist suddenly surged at this moment, as if affected by some kind of emotion.
Su Muxue finally turned around, with an elusive light in his eyes.
"So what?"
Her answer was chillingly simple.
Gu Sheng's chest rose and fell, and a question blurted out.
"Why?"
"I don't know, I don't want to."
Su Muxue's answer was still brief, but Gu Sheng keenly noticed that her slender fingers curled up slightly.
Just when Su Muxue was about to leave again, a picture suddenly flashed in Gu Sheng's mind - the blurry figure who pulled him in at the critical moment during the Holy Road Trial.
"It was you that time on the Holy Road!"
Gu Sheng almost shouted.
"That sword energy was released by you!"
Su Muxue's body visibly froze. The next moment, spiritual energy surged around her body. She directly tore open the void with a wave of her hand, and her figure disappeared in an instant.
The gesture of leaving in a hurry was completely different from the calm one before.
Ling Xiao stared at this scene dumbfounded, and it took him a while to come back to his senses.
"Are you crazy? You suddenly chased me and shouted something about the Holy Road Sword Qi!"
Gu Sheng stood there with a bitter smile on his lips.
"Let's go to the Imperial Dragon Hall."
"What's wrong with you?"
Ling Xiao grabbed Gu Sheng.
"Who is Su Muxue? What's going on with the Holy Road?"
Gu Sheng shook his head, obviously not intending to explain.
"It's getting late. If we delay any longer, we won't be able to leave."
Ling Xiao was so angry that his teeth itched, but looking at Gu Sheng's appearance, he knew that he couldn't ask anything, so he had to follow angrily.
"Sooner or later you will suffer from internal injuries!"
The two of them quickly left Profound Nether Sacred Mountain under the cover of the growing darkness. On the way, we encountered several waves of patrolling disciples, but they were cleverly avoided.
Gu Sheng Although his internal injuries have not healed, his movements are not serious, but his face has never looked good.
"Imperial Dragon Hall is in the northwest corner of Qinghe Holy Land."
Ling Xiao lowered his voice and said.
"I've inquired about it. New tasks are posted there every day. We have to be the first to pick them up tomorrow."
Gu Sheng nodded, suddenly stopped, and looked warily at the trees ahead.
"Someone."
Ling Xiao immediately became alert, his hand already pressed on the storage bag. But only a hare sprang out from the bushes and quickly disappeared into the night.
"There are so many people going to the Imperial Dragon Hall."
Ling Xiao looked at the endless stream of figures on the mountain road and couldn't help but sigh.
These disciples wore different costumes. Some flew in the air with magic weapons, some galloped past on strange beasts, and many more walked on foot like them.
Gu Sheng responded absently.
"Imperial Dragon Hall is the only way to get points."
His breath was unsteady as he spoke, and the spiritual power in his body was still slowly repairing the damaged meridians.
"Kung Fu, elixirs, magic weapons, which ones don't require points to be redeemed?"
Ling Xiao noticed the cold sweat on Gu Sheng's forehead and knew that he was still enduring internal injuries and rushing on his way.
The internal injuries caused by the backlash of this kind of practice are the most troublesome. They don't appear to be anything on the surface, but in fact they are like millions of ants gnawing at the meridians.
"Would you like to take a break?"
Ling Xiao asked in a low voice.
Gu Sheng shook his head, with vigilance in his eyes.
"Long Teng's people may already be on their way, so there is no need to delay."
The two quickened their pace and climbed up the winding mountain road.
Changhe Mountain is like a sleeping ancient giant. The mountain is majestic, and there is a vast atmosphere among the clouds and mist.
As the altitude increases, the spiritual energy in the air becomes more intense, and you can feel the spiritual power seeping into your body every time you breathe.
"Look!"
Ling Xiao suddenly pointed upward and exclaimed.
Gu Sheng looked up and saw a majestic palace looming in the clouds and mist on the top of the mountain.
Even from such a distance, you can still feel the majestic aura coming towards you.
The most eye-catching thing is the hundred-foot-tall palace door, which is made entirely of black iron. The dragon pattern carved on it is lifelike, as if it will burst out the next moment.
"That's Imperial Dragon Hall."
Gu Sheng murmured to himself, with a complicated look in his eyes.
The two walked for about half an hour and finally reached the top of the mountain.
Watching Imperial Dragon Hall up close, the feeling of shock is even stronger.
Every scale of the dragon pattern on the palace door is clearly visible, and the dragon's eyes are inlaid with some kind of gemstone, which glows coldly in the sunlight.
"I heard that this door was made by Qinghe Ancestor himself."
Ling Xiao explained in a low voice.
"The dragon pattern above contains the will of True Dragon, which can distinguish good from evil."
Gu Sheng didn't comment, just tightened his robe and stepped in first.
The moment he passed through the palace door, he felt a strange wave sweep through his body, as if he was being scrutinized by some kind of being.
The space inside the temple is far wider than it appears from the outside, as if you have stepped into another world.
Dozens of coiling dragon stone pillars support the dome, and each pillar requires ten people to hug it.
The most eye-catching thing is the stone tablet in the center that is hundreds of meters high. It is as tall as jade and has densely packed text on its surface.
"Is that the mission list?"
Ling Xiao eyes widened.
Gu Sheng nodded, but his eyes were attracted by a line of golden text on the top of the stone tablet - that was his name!
"Gu Sheng, a reward of 10,000 points, life or death."
Ling Xiao read out loud, and then took a breath of air.
"Ten thousand points! This is enough to exchange for a Earth-tier cultivation method!"
Several disciples around heard the movement and looked over curiously.
Gu Sheng immediately pulled Ling Xiao back to the edge of the crowd and lowered his voice.