Chaos Erupts

The seventh day in the Land of Wei.

Zhou Ning rose from his bed and asked himself, What should I do about this weakness in my body?

He grew ever more certain that, within two days at most, this body would fall apart. Fortunately, his trip was nearing a successful conclusion.

He counted the Spirit Stones on him: fifteen in all. I can't waste this chance, Zhou Ning thought. I'll try looking for some more fortuitous opportunities.

Zhou Ning called the wildflower girl to guide him and headed first to an artifact forge.

Law Artifacts routinely cost a dozen or several dozen Spirit Stones. Unable to afford one, Zhou Ning stood in the shop eyeing them covetously for a good while, until the shop assistant gave him a cold look and he left.

He didn't dare take out the little red sword for fear someone would recognize it as something Chai Dingchun had left behind. If it were taken from him, he wouldn't even have tears to cry.

He also visited a shop that sold flying boats. The prices made his jaw drop: they started at fifty Spirit Stones. Why didn't they just rob people?

He suppressed the wicked urge to rob the shop and left in silence.

In the end, though, he still failed to save his Spirit Stones. At a formation shop, Zhou Ning spent fourteen Spirit Stones on an Illusory Light Bewildering Shadow Formation Plate of the Qi Refining level.

He didn't want people peeping at him with Divine Sense when he did secret things at Cuiwei Lake.

A formation would make things much more convenient, and it could also conceal the secrets of his breakthrough to Qi Refining and his pill refinement.

Buying formation flags alone would have been cheaper and more durable, but Zhou Ning didn't know how to set them up, so he could only pay a hefty premium for a formation plate.

The trip was now a complete success.

Zhou Ning glanced at the smiling wildflower girl beside him. Though she was a mortal, she made her living guiding immortal cultivators and knew the prices of all kinds of goods inside out.

That was only natural. After all, mortals weren't necessarily any less intelligent than immortal cultivators.

The wildflower girl really had saved him quite a bit of money.

But the day of parting was near. It would likely be four or five years before he returned to Gazing Immortal Port.

The wildflower girl wore her usual short jacket and skirt, washed until they were somewhat faded and patched besides. Only the flower in her hair was fresh and lovely enough to drip.

As they passed a silk shop, Zhou Ning bought her a new skirt and jacket, then ordered a table of fine food at a restaurant.

The wildflower girl was delighted. She called him Senior at every turn, smiling softly and chattering in a crisp voice.

Zhou Ning took out a bundle. "Today's spirit rice. Tomorrow..."

The wildflower girl thought they would meet again tomorrow. Biting into a chicken leg, she looked overjoyed.

"Young Master, I found out there's an exchange fair tomorrow. I'll take you there."

"Uh..." Zhou Ning thought that would work too. Waiting for this body to fall apart on its own would save him some trouble.

"Oh, and Mother said I met a good person. She's very grateful to you and made you some osmanthus cakes. She told me to bring them to you tomorrow!" the wildflower girl said, happily imagining what lay ahead, wholly unaware.

She had earned a great deal of spirit rice these past few days. Her younger brother could buy more talisman paper, and once he became a talisman master, life would be easier for the family.

It was the first time she had met such a kind senior. He would surely like her mother's osmanthus cakes.

For a moment, one thought after another filled her head.

Zhou Ning smiled and agreed, then ordered several more dishes for her to pack up and take home.

When they left the restaurant, dusk had just begun to fall, and sunset glow filled the sky.

The wildflower girl wore a plain-colored short jacket and carried a clothes box, her skirt fluttering gently and her shadow stretched long and slender.

Without realizing it, the corners of Zhou Ning's mouth slowly turned up. "That's nice."

The girl suddenly turned back, her smile blooming like a flower. "Senior, thank you for the skirt!"

She made up her mind to dress prettier tomorrow and make Senior see her in a new light.

Zhou Ning nodded.

He had thought this world was treacherous and ever-changing, a place where one couldn't be sure of living from one day to the next. In truth, no matter where one went, there was always a peach blossom haven.

The next morning, the sky was dark.

A tremendous commotion jolted Zhou Ning. He quickly put away his Jade Slip and looked outside.

The great barrier of spiritual light that had once covered the entire city had shattered, and fragments were falling from the sky.

Countless black dots accompanied them, swarming toward the city like locusts.

Chaos had already broken out in the streets. Cries of battle, Law Techniques, blood mist and black smoke could be seen and heard everywhere.

Devil Cultivators have breached the city? Where is the Wu Household's great Foundation Establishment cultivator? The thoughts sprang into Zhou Ning's mind.

Another shout came from outside. "Search and plunder for three days! Search and plunder for three days!"

Even beneath the inn where he was staying, sounds of fighting rang out.

Zhou Ning threw on black clothes, clutched several talismans and leaped down from his room.

The perfect chance to fish in troubled waters!

The moment he landed in the alley behind the inn, a streak of black light came at him without warning, stabbing straight for the center of his back.

Without hesitation, Zhou Ning activated a talisman. A pale yellow earthen shield instantly formed over his body, blocking the black light with a dull thud.

"Huh? A Thick Earth Essence-Guarding Talisman?" The young Devil Cultivator was quite surprised.

Zhou Ning turned around and saw the man standing in a pool of blood, slowly savoring a pastry in his hand.

Beneath his feet, a little white flower was stained with blood, giving it an eerie beauty.

Zhou Ning's pupils contracted slightly.

His voice was dry as he asked, "Have you seen a little girl wearing a flower?"

The Devil Cultivator ate the pastry in one bite, then stuck out a tongue like a snake's and licked the blood from the corners of his mouth. A dark light gleamed in his eyes, as though he hadn't had his fill.

"If you ask me, the blood of the girls in the city is so fresh and tender!"

As he spoke, Zhou Ning flung out a talisman. Golden light flashed and swelled in the wind, becoming a crescent-shaped golden arc that sliced toward the young Devil Cultivator.

It covered the thirty meters between them in the blink of an eye.

Caught off guard, the young Devil Cultivator only had time to bring out a black alms bowl. The strike hit it head-on with a sharp creak that set the teeth on edge.

The golden light dissipated, leaving the black bowl in the Devil Cultivator's hand battered and covered in cracks.

The devil flew into a rage and shrieked, "You destroyed my treasure! You're courting death!"

He flung both hands forward, and they transformed into two blood-colored hooks that smashed out.

Zhou Ning saw the towering Blood Qi on the hooks. Even with the Thick Earth Shield, he didn't dare take them head-on.

He immediately slapped on a Swift Movement Talisman and activated a mundane lightness skill. His body shot upward, and he stepped along the wall, narrowly avoiding the blood hooks.

The Devil Cultivator actually rode a cloud of black smoke straight at him.

This is bad! Zhou Ning thought.

He sensed the two blood hooks stop in their tracks, then wheel around and attack him from behind.

Caught between attacks from front and back-the Devil Cultivator was so experienced in magical combat!

Zhou Ning gritted his teeth and thrust out his right hand, the red sword in his grasp.

He activated the Clear Flame Heart Method's Law Power and poured it into the blade. Flames blazed up at once.

"A Foundation Establishment Law Artifact!" The Devil Cultivator retreated in alarm.

How could a mere Qi Refining First Layer cultivator have a Foundation Establishment Law Artifact?

Then greed surged across his face. So what if he had one?

Relying on the Thick Earth Shield, Zhou Ning ignored the blood hooks behind him and slashed down fiercely at an angle.

The single stroke cut the retreating Devil Cultivator in two. Everything below his waist fell to the ground with a smack.

Strangely, not a drop of blood came out.

The moment Zhou Ning finished the slash, he put the sword back into the jade space, terrified it would drop as equipment if he died.

The blood hooks arrived from behind as expected. Zhou Ning had nowhere to dodge. The Thick Earth Barrier shattered with a crash, knocking one hook away, while the other gouged across his left arm.

Zhou Ning only felt his left side grow lighter. He swept it with his Divine Sense and found nothing at his shoulder. Warm blood soaked through his robe.

Then came the agonizing pain. Zhou Ning couldn't help letting out a muffled groan, his ears buzzing.

Fortunately, he had once been in a gang and had trained since childhood. Otherwise, his consciousness might have grown hazy and he might have lost the ability to fight.

He retreated several steps and saw that the Devil Cultivator had been split in two, blood mist rising from his upper body.

The Devil Cultivator's upper body hung in the air, using Blood Qi to draw up his severed lower half, apparently trying to reattach it.

He cursed, "You little punk, how dare you wound my body!"

"You only lost half your body, but I'm missing an entire arm!" Zhou Ning said with feigned distress.

As he spoke, he darted forward and flicked out a fireball. With a whoosh, it burned the severed lower half that had just flown halfway up.

At the sight, the Devil Cultivator's eyes nearly split with rage. He wanted nothing more than to tear Zhou Ning apart alive.

How much fresh blood would he have to drink to refine two legs?

"I'm going to kill you!" The Devil Cultivator rode the blood mist down from the sky and pounced.

The two blood hooks attacked from the left and right.

Zhou Ning saw that he was clearly much slower. With a flick of his hand, he revealed a silver talisman marked with silver lines.

The Devil Cultivator caught sight of it and shouted in terror, "A thunder talisman!"

He stopped abruptly and frantically pulled away, not even bothering with the hooks.

Zhou Ning activated the Innate Bright Thunder Talisman, using his Divine Sense to trigger the Law Technique. "Freeze!" he called.

A thin bolt of pale silver lightning cleaved through the air, moving so fast that it arrived in an instant.

It caught the Devil Cultivator, and, as though swatting a mosquito, there was a crack. The blood mist scattered, his flesh charred black, and he plummeted straight down, lifeless.

The two blood-lit hooks lost control and clattered to the ground.

Zhou Ning put away the hooks, then darted over and beckoned the Storage Bag to him, putting it into the jade space.

He sent another fireball down and burned the Devil Cultivator to ash.

Only then did he catch his breath and use a Law Technique to stop the bleeding from his shoulder wound.

"He really was hard to kill!"

Zhou Ning's heart still pounded with fear. If he hadn't inherited Chai Dingchun's belongings, the blood hooks would probably have killed him in their first exchange.

"I underestimated the way of talismans before!"

As Zhou Ning recovered, he saw thick smoke billowing nearby. The chaos was growing worse, and who knew how many cultivators were taking advantage of it to do evil?

He walked over to the pool of blood and picked up the bloodstained little white flower, holding it between his fingers.

A pretty face seemed to flash before his eyes: she had called him Senior at every turn, obedient and well-behaved, yet when she met a crooked merchant, she would angrily haggle with them, terrified Zhou Ning would be cheated.

A little girl like that was gone forever.

Zhou Ning was silent for a long while before forcing out a sentence. "This damned world."