Pointing the Way (Wishing Friends a Safe and Peaceful New Year's Eve)

"Dong Zhongshu mentioned that Houtu controlled a vast amount of power and once governed many secret places in the human world. If secret places can be found in Fengdu, Luofu, and Taozhi, they may be abandoned places after being destroyed in the past, just like the secret place of the Lord of Mount Tai!"

Zhang Xuezhou mentioned that Emperor Jing and Shi Wudao moving quickly, possibly inspecting all three locations of the Reincarnation Stone.

This speed, averaging one search every ten days, is quite close to his guess.

But when compared to luck, calculations seem utterly worthless.

Traveling only 2,300 li from Chang'an City, Zhang Xuezhou spotted flying zombies heading towards Fengdu Mountain at night. This chance encounter left Zhang Xuezhou speechless.

After some back and forth, he learned that Shi Wudao and Emperor Jing had first searched for Mount Luofu and Mount Taozhi, but the two had not found the secret places of these two mountains. After many twists and turns, they began to search for Mount Fengdu, where they also met Zhang Xuezhou and others on the way.

Zhang Xuezhou and Emperor Jing engaged in some rambling conversation, revealing a great deal of information. This information stirred something in the new emperor, who felt that some of it coincided with what Dong Zhongshu had said.

Dong Zhongshu's speculations based on the Unity of Celestial Person and Heaven Technique are unreliable. However, if there is some supporting evidence, that is another matter. Even if we don't take it seriously, the new emperor cannot ignore it.

"Dongfang Shuo, help us search! This place of the Reincarnation Stone is too hard to find!"

Did you give me the wrong seat?

The sound coming from the flying zombie's mouth was somewhat strange, a mixture of two different sounds.

The new emperor couldn't quite believe that the flying zombie before him was the former leader of the Shijiao School, and he no longer felt the same envy he had for Zhang Xuezhou, who was treading the balance between life and death.

Ultimately, every technique comes at a price. There has never been a perfect Technique Method in this world. No matter how powerful or weak a technique is, there will always be some unexpected problems.

You guys are so lame!

Zhang Xuezhou, aboard the Imperial Shuttle, uttered a complaint before turning to look at the new emperor.

"Could you point me in the right direction?"

Zhang Xuezhou turned his head and asked in a low voice, but the new emperor remained silent.

The new emperor searched for many years in Shanglin Garden before finally finding a secret place. If the secret place could appear with a simple gesture, the new emperor wouldn't have had to go through so much trouble.

"Fly over into those dark mountains!"

He was used to Zhang Xuezhou's requests, and when he was speechless, he could only point in the direction Zhang Xuezhou pointed.

"Then let's fly that way!"

Zhang Xuezhou wholeheartedly agreed and turned to search. The new emperor couldn't help but mutter to himself, while occasionally glancing at the flying zombies that accompanied the Imperial Shuttle.

The new emperor knew about flying zombies, and he knew that these zombies with copper skin and iron bones were good at flying. They were a nightmare for many cultivators. Even though he was wary of being ambushed in the middle of the night, he could kill these sinister creatures in a direct confrontation. So he was not afraid of causing the flying zombies to become enraged by giving them wrong directions.

"This place is too easy to find. Look over there, there are even some little devils!"

When Zhang Xuezhou started grumbling, the new emperor felt as if he had been possessed by an evil spirit that night.

"That's impossible. We flew through Luofu Mountain and Taozhi Mountain all night long, and we never saw the secret place. You found it just by looking around?"

Zhang Xuezhou's conversation with the new emperor wasn't exactly a secret; Shi Wudao and the others could tell that the new emperor was just pointing randomly.

But the fact that such a casual direction actually led them to the outside of the secret place made Shi Wudao and the others feel that things were going too smoothly.

With a kick, the little devil who was trying to escape through the Yellow Springs flew away, and Shi Wudao and Emperor Jing muttered to themselves as they disappeared into the pitch-black darkness.

"It is said that in ancient times, there was a cultivator in the secret realm of Fengdu Mountain who called himself the Great Emperor of Fengdu. Who would have thought he would be in such a desolate place!"

Zhang Xuezhou commanded the Imperial Shuttle to descend, and the new emperor jumped down.

After scanning his surroundings, the new emperor couldn't help but sigh.

"Of course! This place is too desolate!"

Zhang Xuezhou nodded in agreement, then reached behind his head and touched the back of his head, whereupon the bright light from the Heart Sutra illuminated the surroundings.

Several decaying coffin lids came into view, along with some desolate and unattended grave mounds.

The presence of graves outside the secret realm indicates that no cultivators have resided there for a very long time.

Perhaps nourished by the aura of the secret place, the corpse in the coffin was fortuitous opportunity into a zombie ghost that wanders around here, and occasionally patrols the area in front of the grave mound.

The bright light illuminated the surroundings, and also revealed the hidden Yellow Springs in the shadows.

When Zhang Xuezhou's gaze swept across the area, he couldn't help but gasp slightly.

He was also a knowledgeable person. He had once walked along the Yellow Springs in Fengxi Marsh. The presence of 'Bai' made the Yellow Springs in Fengxi Marsh like a lake, and in front of them was a Yellow Springs River.

The river was deathly still, without a ripple, yet it was several meters wide and stretched out into the distance.

The size of the Yellow Springs is not directly related to the size of the secret realm, but the number of cultivators who have perished here may be considerable, and the level of these cultivators is likely to be quite high.

"Hey!"

Hearing shouts and sounds of fighting, Zhang Xuezhou took a step forward.

As soon as he landed, he felt the withered vines beneath his feet rapidly climbing up, as if trying to pierce his body and suck his blood and flesh.

"It's a pity my cousin didn't come, otherwise I would have burned you all to the ground!"

Zhang Xuezhou, having attained sainthood in his physical body, wouldn't care about these vampire-like vines. However, it was true that too many vines would make it difficult for him to move. After all, just because he was not afraid of being beaten after attaining sainthood in his physical body didn't mean he was not afraid of being pulled and entangled. If he were bound and locked by some special chains, Zhang Xuezhou really wouldn't have the ability to break free.

He stomped his feet several times until a sharp clang of a sword sounded behind him. The vines wrapped around him were suddenly severed as if their limbs had been cut off, and they could no longer pull him even an inch.

"Which bastard planted the Ghost Yin Vine in this secret realm? This old vine is everywhere in the secret realm; it's probably hundreds or even thousands of years old!"

From afar, Shi Wudao, having spotted the vines, shouted.

"As long as it retains even the slightest trace of human life, this thing will endlessly haunt us. Only by cutting off its root will it quiet down. You tyrant, you're inefficient! Quickly bring that little swordsman over to help!"

"Little Swordsman?"

The new emperor found it hard to retort to Shi Wudao's greeting, but the name Shi Wudao mentioned made his eyelids twitch. He even began to wonder why Zhang Xuezhou had been so vague in his narration and had insisted that he come and check.

"They're over there!"

Zhang Xuezhou reached out and pointed again, his mental energy shining brightly behind his head like the rising moon, illuminating an area within a hundred feet.

The sight of Fei Jiang, weak and bound while wielding his sword, came into view, and the new emperor also clearly saw the main root of the Ghost Yin Vine, which was as thick as a bowl.

He took a breath and quickly located the position using the light from Zhang Xuezhou.

As he uttered the rebuke, his right hand wielded a long sword that shot out.

With a piercing whistle, the longsword unleashed a crimson wave as it slashed down, causing Shi Wudao to let out a sharp, high-pitched scream.

"I asked you for help, not to kill us! Ahhh, I'm dying! I'm going to die again!"

"You have no knowledge at all!"

Shi Wudao screamed in panic, while Emperor Jing remained calm.

Shi Wudao had limited knowledge of the Vertical and Horizontal Sword Technique, but Emperor Jing was very familiar with it. This was a sword technique that Emperor Jing had once wanted to master but was unable to, and only a handful of people today could see the complete version.

He touched the limp Red Empyrean Sword in his hand, his gaze sweeping over Zhang Xuezhou, whose head was glowing, and then looking at the unfamiliar face beside Zhang Xuezhou, feeling that there was a vague sense of familiarity in this face.