Chapter 68

“Demonic cultivators have no morals, so their acts are unrestrained. Nanjiang is their main den too. You’re indeed powerful in your own ways, but you don’t necessarily know as many tricks as they do. Please leave as soon as you acquire the Ice-hearted Fire, and try not to fight them directly in the city. If you want to fight them anyway, remember to get out of the city first.”

Those words are the advice Tang Zhen gave Cheng Qian before he left. He isn’t so reckless as to throw them all away after just a few seconds into the mission.

However, seeing this scene, Cheng Qian is reminded of the half-naked demonic cultivator he encountered earlier by the gate. His anger flares up again, as he itches to tear apart this infernal hive of scum.

He suppresses the waves of cringes on his body. It takes reciting the Scripture of Serenity on the spot for him to calm his temper and his hand, which moved on its own to the scabbard.

Afterwards, Cheng Qian signs a spell. Taking advantage of the various shadows in the pavilion to cover him, he keeps close to the wall and flies down.

Luckily, there are people present, but they are all occupied with their lustful entertainment. No one pays attention to Cheng Qian, as if he were just the smoke from an incense burner.

Cheng Qian hides himself behind a bamboo curtain. Trying his best to block out the cringe-worthy activities around him, he begins his search for the Ice-hearted Fire and takes out a little jade turtle Tang Zhen gave him. Only about as big as two fingers of an adult hand, the jade turtle is all green and so transparent that it glistens. It crawls in a circle on his fingertips, its round head examining the air. Then, opening its mouth as if being hungry for something, it stops and looks toward one direction.

Cheng Qian follows its gaze and feels like he was struck by lightning. This damn thing looks in the direction of the platform!

Suspecting that the brain of the turtle is broken, he turns it upside-down. Being placed on its back, the little turtle still squirms with its short legs in the air, and stubbornly turns to that platform.

It can be seen that, either this bastard is a lecherous demon among the turtles, or the Ice-hearted Fire happens to be under the platform.

Cheng Qian sighs, feeling that he has been provoked to rashness by the issue of Han Yuan. He shouldn’t have gone out that night after all.

However, he has already gone this far. Cheng Qing glances around, then runs to the place where the captives are being kept. With a quick flash, his body is covered in a layer of frost, which makes the guards freeze on the spot. Cheng Qian quickly reaches the hidden prison. At the same time, he releases his spiritual energy and neatly cuts apart the lock on the cage.

Although he doesn’t make noise, the more alert demonic cultivators nearby still notice him. One of them yells. “Who is sneaking around there?”

Cheng Qian doesn’t stop. Still, he is filled with disgust. He doesn’t know how this lot can be so brazen as to accuse other people of shady things.

Planning to get this over with as quickly as possible, he makes the thin frost covering his body disperse, causing a blizzard in the pavilion. Then, when the others don’t manage to react yet, he pushes the iron cage out with a strike of his sword.

This is a truly asshole move. Most of the demonic cultivators present are naked, so their bare asses have to suffer the harsh snowstorm. Chaos immediately reigns over the place.

Taking advantage of the situation, Cheng Qian sneaks to the platform and makes a sudden attack. As Shuang Ren makes a slash as bright as snow in the air, he cuts the platform into two in one stroke. He neatly clears up the stone shards as well as the demonic cultivators who haven’t escaped, then releases the little turtle that has been squirming.

When it lands on the ground, the thumb-size turtle becomes as large as a small hill. It stands proudly in the centre, as if it were a natural part of the place. Opening its mouth, the turtle jade takes in a deep breath that seems to contain the essence of the world. The entire pavilion shakes, as a large stone underneath the destroyed platform gradually emerges, as if it wanted to leave the ground.

At that moment, in the chaotic crowd of the demonic cultivators, one with the rare proper attires appears. On the balcony of the highest floor, a man in a long robe, whose face is completely covered, walks through the crowd and shouts. “Where’d you from, little bandit? Do you want to die?!”

Cheng Qian feels that there is no way he can calmly deal with this ‘little bandit’ tone.

Standing on that vantage point, the man in the log robe makes his attack through the air without a care about collateral damage.

Under the miasma-filled strike, the snow storm Cheng Qian created gradually disperses. A demonic cultivator with low cultivation doesn’t manage to escape in time, and gets devoured by the hypnotic dark cloud. The cloud leaves only the bones, which are cleaner than chicken bones that underwent a beggar’s meal!

Even this infernal place has a guardian. Cheng Qian snorts and jumps on the neck of the jade turtle. Shuang Ren leaves his hand, as the chilly frost will charges upward like a whirlwind and overthrows without holding back both the demonic cultivator’s attack as well as the roof of the pavilion. The cold sword energy in the pavilion clashes with the hot and humid wind of Nanjiang, and causes water droplets to fall everywhere with a buzzing sound.

The sword wind sweeps by the long-robe clad demonic cultivator on the balcony, forcing him to fall back and avoid the attack. In a blink of an eye, the jade turtle takes the opportunity and swallows the Ice-hearted Fire.

Seeing that the artifact he came for has been obtained, Cheng Qian makes the jade turtle turn back to thumb-sized and puts it away in his sleeve. Even he feels that he has overdone it by causing such a great disturbance, so he prepares to escape. However, at that moment, someone cries from the hidden prison in a corner. “Senior, please save us! We’re disciples of Xiliang’s White Tiger Estate!”

Earlier, Cheng Qian destroyed the hidden prison not because he wanted to save those inside, but because he needed a distraction. However, he feels that he has already done everything he should. If their abilities are only so much, they have only themselves to blame.

Obviously, he doesn’t believe that the lives of the White Tiger Estate’s disciples are worth more than those of other people’s. Nevertheless, when he hears that introduction, Cheng Qian can’t help pausing a little, for no other reason than the fact that one of the keys to the ‘Earth’ lock of Fuyao Mountain is in the possession of the Lord of White Tiger Estate.

Cheng Qian doesn’t know why his Master arranged the ‘Earth’ lock like that, but he can’t ignore his most senior brother’s burden. Whether it’s a lie or the truth, he has to act as soon as he hears the name ‘White Tiger Estate’.

As soon as Cheng Qian gets close to the hidden prison, a group of demonic cultivators charges at him. With one stroke, he creates a great wave that sweeps these monkeys away, then appears in front of the one who called out to him.

That person is a young man. He has a lively face and eyes that are so bright they seem to give off light. Cheng Qian was worried he would be trouble, but seeing those eyes, he can’t help liking their owner a little. That young man was only grasping at straws, but Cheng Qian unexpectedly turns back for real to help, so he is very happy.

Still, no matter how happy he is, his brain is still working. As soon as he sees Cheng Qian, he quickly mentions the most important thing. “Senior, there are spells of restriction on the chain we are bound with!”

Hearing that, Cheng Qian doesn’t waste his time talking, but immediately slashes the chain with his sword. With a clang, Shuang Ren clashes with the chain, but it isn’t even dented.

“Using force won’t work,” The young man hastily says, “Let me think of another way, Senior. Careful!”

Some demonic cultivators are trying to attack Cheng Qian from behind.

Cheng Qian doesn’t even bother to look back. In his hand, Shuang Ren makes a wide slash. This killer sword rarely has the chance to engage in a bout of killing like this. The snow-bright tip of the sword is dyed in red, its blade trembles like a living being. Filling the space it passes with killing intent, the sword cuts off a series of head. Then, carrying the blood that has been splattering around, it returns and strikes at the same spot on the chain before the young man can say anything.

The young man can’t find his voice, as the killer sword and the demonic spell ferociously attack each other time and time again. Each subsequent clash is more brutal than the one before. In that life or death fight, the black energy and the frost tangles with each other, such that it’s nigh impossible to tell them apart.

Under the pressures from both sides, the chained young man can’t even open his eyes, thinking that this person looks so elegant, but acts like a brute.

In the end, the more ferocious side wins.

As the young man gapes, a crack appears on the enchanted chain that binds him. Demonic energy pours out like black smoke over ash. The remaining chain is only regular iron, which breaks at the slightest movement.

Cheng Qian points and shoots a ray of white light that transforms into the shape of a flying horse into the sky. This is the signal to inform Tang Zhen that he has succeeded and is about to escape, so that his allies can get ready to support him.

Demonic energy from all sides gathers like a thunderstorm and relentlessly targets Cheng Qian, but he blocks it with Shuang Ren.

At the frontline, Cheng Qian holds a Shuang Ren that has become extremely heavy and tells the young man without looking back. “Stay well away.”

Having seen this person’s ability, the young man quickly grasps the situation and does what he is told. He gets out of the pavilion without looking back.

Cheng Qian suddenly changes his posture. Then, using the blade that has been carrying the burden of the demonic energy, he strikes at the ground. A deep crack emerges in Zhaoyang City after the slash. Demonic energy from all sides falls apart, as the buildings that have been used as demons’ dens collapse. Either Cheng Qian doesn’t bother at all, or he will finish a deed completely once he has started it. Thus, he releases all of the unlucky sods that have been held in the hidden prison.

Most of the prisoners here are cultivators. They must have been suffering all kinds of torture in this infernal den. Suddenly having their freedom back, their eyes all redden.

A chaotic battle begins.

As soon as Cheng Qian feels that he can take advantage of the chaos and escape, the sound of pipa comes from an unknown place, Through the ears, it goes straight into one’s organ and disturbs the spiritual energy of the entire body.

Right away, the pipa music is like a sieging army that fills the entire Zhaoyang City. The cloying sweetness, which has been overwhelmed by the stench of blood, floods the place out of nowhere, causing one’s limbs to lose strength. Cheng Qian suddenly feels like he has fallen into a pile of cotton. An indescribable weakness fills his limbs and veins. There is a voice whispering in his ears, as a pair of soft hands caress his waist, the fingers of which make his skin tingle.

Unfortunately for that demonic cultivator, his enchantment meets a block of iron. Cheng Qian doesn’t easily fall to sexual seduction by nature. Furthermore, he has just witnessed all kinds of questionable acts in the demonic den. His body filled with cringes, he angrily waves Shuang Ren around like a whirlwind and strikes at everything in the way, regardless of whether it’s a beauty or a skeleton. Smelling the strange scent lingering on his body, Cheng Qian wants nothing more than to be able to find a spring and scrub himself.

Seeing his iron will, someone grumbles quietly from somewhere nearby. The tone of the pipa music immediately changes. There is the sound of a leaf flute mixing in it, which is thin and low, but seeps relentlessly in one’s ear.

Cheng Qian is dizzy, as an illusion appears again. Within seconds, countless faces flash in his heart. Then, the cloying sweetness all disappears without a trace. In its stead is the familiar scent of orchid. The arms that wrapped over him earlier transforms into a thin smoke. Then someone he knows very well stands not far from him.

Holding a fan in his hand, that person looks at Cheng Qian with gentle, smiling eyes. There is a ring with coin mounting on his hand.

Cheng Qian: “…”

He can’t help falling into a daze. Fortunately, it doesn’t last long. Right away, an identical coin ring falls into his palm. This is the real ring that he took from the original.

The imitation spirit in the ring emerges like a ghost. Not caring what its target is, the spirit slaps the illusion in front of it, and breaks the demonic farce. Then, with an arrogant gaze, it gloomily returns to the ring.

This silly imitation spirit turns out to be unexpectedly useful in getting rid of infernal tricks.

Cheng Qian becomes awake again. His ears heating up, he feels that he won’t be able to look at himself in the mirror in the near future.

He waves Shuang Ren around. The vapour in the air freezes into a huge ice stick, which clashes with the sword blade. That noise quickly disperses the pipa music, and the overwhelming illusion around vanishes in the thick fog.

Cheng Qian finally realises that pipa strings are hung all over the walls of Zhaoyang City. They give off sounds by themselves when the wind blows by, and creates an array of illusion in the city. On a city wall, there is a demonic cultivator with an adrogynous appearance, who is holding a pipa in his arms. Giving Cheng Qian a cold glance, he immediately disappears.

The young man lands next to Cheng Qian. Panting, he says, “This demon is the chief of a branch called ‘Merriment Sect’ in the Nightmare Travellers. They’re truly degenerate. Ah, I am Zhuang Nanxi, disciple of White Tiger Estate. I was sent here by my sect to investigate this great gathering of these demonic cultivators. I fell to this one’s trick because I didn’t know it. Senior, how should I address you?”

“Fuyao, Cheng Qian,” Cheng Qian throws out that concise line, then flies into the air and strikes at the demonic cultivator who is about to blow the horn on the bell tower in Zhaoyang City. From that vantage point, he glances at Zhuang Nanxi and says, “Why are you still here? Do you want to get mobbed by the whole demonic city?”

Hearing that, Zhuang Naxi jumps on a great tree in the city. From his movement, a great bow is formed. Like a giant bird, Zhuang Nanxi dives from the high place to the ‘bowstring’ and says loudly, “Xiao-Qi, lend me some fire.”

Seemingly out of nowhere, a youth with a small stature emerges and quickly signs a spell. He spits out a chilly fire, which flies like a shooting star towards Zhuang Nanxi, then says, “This is the last one.”

As Zhuang Nanxi makes a whistle, the indigo fire grows longer and transforms into an arrow, which gets into the position in the bow and shoots off. With a wind ripping sound, the fire arrow flies to the sky then explodes into thousands of dancing flames, which turn Zhaoyang City into a sea of fire as they meet the ground.

Zhuang Nanxi makes a long whistle and gets several whistles from the surrounding in reply. Several shadows quickly follow the order and withdraw from the city, showing good training and discipline.

Watching from outside, Cheng Qian is moved a little. Compared to the disciples of Azure Dragon Island who are in a perpetual funerary mood, and the Vermilion Bird Tower that dies without leaving anything behind, the disciples of White Tiger Estate will have a bright future, despite their lack of experience.

Under Cheng Qian’s supervision, the group destroys the gate of Zhaoyang City and runs in the northern direction, as many demonic cultivators chase after them.

Zhuang Nanxi asks Cheng Qian loudly, “Senior, how can we leave them behind?”

Cheng Qian says, “No need.”

As soon as he says that, a black flag falls from the sky. It passes by Cheng Qian’s group and precisely traps the demonic cultivators below.

In the sky, together with Liu Lang and Nian Dada, Tang Zhen is waiting for him with a flying horse that he got from somewhere.

“Put this away,” Placing the jade turtle with the Ice-hearted Fire inside in Tang Zhen’s lap, Cheng Qian says, “We shouldn’t tarry here. Let’s go!”

Nian Dada has already been terrified by the demonic energy that fills the sky. As soon as he hears this, he immediately waves his whip and makes the flying horse run like mad.

Nian Dada urges, “Disciple uncle, quick.”

Not paying him any mind, Cheng Qian fearlessly stays on the spot.

In a blink of an eye, a hole appears on Tang Zhen’s black flag. Pipa in hands, the Merriment Sect’s Chief and his subordinates already catch up, but he stops at a distance from Cheng Qian.

This place is already outside the demonic city, so there are no longer traps and snares from demonic energy for the Merriment Sect’s Chief to rely on. He suddenly regrets losing his temper and charging out.

Except for the extraordinary talents, when one falls in the demonic paths, one is always a little behind when it comes to raw power in battles.

In the middle of the sky, Cheng Qian is alone on his sword. His sleeves flutter in the wind like sails. However, for some reason, everyone keeps a wide berth from him. A strange, quiet mood spreads under the Southern Sky and suffocates everyone.

Glancing at the running back of Zhuang Nanxi’s group, the Merriment Sect Chief carefully raises his voice. “Sir, may I ask what grudge you have against my sect? Why do you assault Zhaoyang City for no reason?”

This demonic cultivator is truly shameless. He considers Zhaoyang City to be his base after just a short while.

“Not at all. I’m no sage who fights for righteousness. Just,” Fixing his gaze on the pipa on the hand of the Merriment Sect’s Chief as he speaks, Cheng Qian slowly unsheaths Shuang Ren. The steel of the blade rubs at the scabbard and gives off an ear-piercing sound. He smiles coldly. “Making your dirty thing take the appearance of my sect leader, you sure are bold!”

Right after that, Shuang Ren angrily makes its attack. The power that Cheng Qian held in when he was in the demonic city finally gets loose and bares it fangs, giving off a frosty aura.

Terrified, the Chief of Merriment Sect grasps the pipa’s strings. With a dull sound, the strings all break, as the loud noise charges at Cheng Qian. At the same time, the so-called Chief immediately runs away after making that strike, without caring if his subordinates are dead or alive.

Unfortunately, he too can’t run far.

As his heart is pierced from behind, he hears the low voice of his enemy. “Remember this blade. In the next life, think carefully if you can take it before you violate someone’s taboo.”