Dao Companions Help Me Live Forever

Chapter 206: The Wind Rises from Floating Duckweed

Fog, white fog, endless fog.

In the blink of an eye, the cultivator's field of vision was filled with white fog.

He immediately extended his divine sense, but it felt like he was touching thick walls. Every inch he explored consumed more mental energy.

He couldn't go on for more than a hundred meters before running out of strength.

In other words, he was completely cut off from the outside world.

"Who set up this formation?"

The cultivator's heart skipped a beat.

This was the territory of the Xiu family, the safest place for him. But now, it had silently turned into a trap.

Almost immediately, he thought of Li Liangyu.

The one who benefited the most would be the mastermind behind it all.

For so many years, Qiufeng County had been peaceful. Among his enemies, only Li Liangyu, who had broken through to the Gold Core stage within three years and had mysterious trump cards, had the ability to do this.

But they had just fought outside the city, so how could he have secretly infiltrated his home without him noticing the trap?

Therefore, there must be someone behind Li Liangyu!

A thought flashed through the cultivator's mind, but even if he realized the truth, it was of no help to his current situation.

As the fog gradually encroached, ghostly figures emerged from it, and buzzing sounds filled his ears, making him feel uneasy.

The cultivator didn't hesitate anymore. His figure flashed, and multiple afterimages appeared in the air. It was his cultivation of the sixth-grade Gold Core technique, "Chasing Shadows in the Wind!"

This was a teleportation technique that required the assistance of the juice of the Wind Shadow Grass, the powder of the Light Stone, and the petals of the Floating Flower to enhance the speed and agility of the body.

It took him thirty years to collect these spiritual objects after completely taking over the Li family, and then nearly ten years to successfully inscribe this technique onto his Gold Core.

Once cultivated successfully, he would possess extreme speed in the wind. Even mid-stage Gold Core cultivators would not be able to catch up without a similar technique.

This was another trump card of the cultivator, which he hadn't revealed even when facing the combined forces of Li Liangyu and the Ape King.

But now, sensing the danger, he used it without hesitation.

Sounds of rustling came from the fog as fog locks, like venomous snakes, drilled out but couldn't stop the shadow of the cultivator retreating.

The cultivator had been cultivating for nearly two hundred years and had some knowledge of formations. When the Mist Prison Formation truly activated, he keenly sensed its weakness: its grade was not high enough.

If he forcefully broke through, the formation wouldn't be able to stop him.

However, what he could think of, Yu Xian would naturally think of as well.

Just as the cultivator tore through layer after layer of fog hindrance and arrived at the edge of the formation, about to shatter it and escape, a blood curtain instantly swept across the sky, and an endless sea of blood descended.

It was the top-grade treasure, the Ten Thousand Beast Soul Banner!

Combining the Mist Prison Formation with the Ten Thousand Beast Soul Banner completely made up for the lack of attack power in the Mist Prison Formation and had even stronger trapping capabilities.

It could be said to be a makeshift third-grade formation.

Back then, Lin Zhanlong had astonishing combat power. Within a few moves, he defeated two False Dan stage cultivators, but he was still trapped and killed in the formation by the Ten Thousand Beast Soul Banner.

In terms of actual combat power, the cultivator couldn't compare to Lin Zhanlong even if he tried his best.

Lin Zhanlong was a formidable sword cultivator who had cultivated a fourth-grade Gold Core technique and could rival elite cultivators from prestigious sects.

However, the cultivator remained calm despite the shock.

He saw a dark red treasure resembling an iron gallbladder appear in his hand. It was the surprise he had prepared for Li Liangyu—the Fire Thunder Seed.

Boom!

The Fire Thunder Seed was instantly activated.

Like heavenly thunder igniting earthly fire, immense power was released in the confined space, distorting the air.

The blood curtain seemed to be violently torn like a piece of cloth, and amidst the surging blood waves, a narrow opening was torn open, enough for three to five people to pass through.

The cultivator made a decisive move and directly entered the blood curtain.

He had a premonition that this was the final obstacle. Once he crossed this barrier, he would be able to escape.

Outside, he would be like a dragon returning to the sea, a tiger entering the mountains. With the Gold Core technique of Chasing Shadows in the Wind, he believed that few people in the Gold Core stage could catch up to him.

Just at this moment, a warning sign appeared in the cultivator's mind. His divine sense unconsciously probed forward and saw a pair of cold and merciless blood eyes floating in mid-air, giving him a slight glance.

Divine sense attack secret technique—Astonishing Gaze!

The cultivator felt a piercing pain in his sea of consciousness, as if a pair of eyes had occupied his body and mind. A buzzing sound, similar to chanting, appeared in his mind, suppressing his consciousness for a moment.

However, life and death often hang by a thread.

When the abnormality in his sea of consciousness was suppressed by the cultivator, the opening that was blasted open by Huo Leizi had disappeared without him knowing when.

In its place was an ugly giant wasp blocking his way.

It was as if countless small wasps had piled up to form its body, with fierce compound eyes all over and a large tail covered in bee stingers.

With a flap of its wings, countless bee stingers rained down like arrows.

The cultivator knew that he couldn't retreat at this moment, otherwise his chances of survival would be even slimmer.

He roared angrily, and the Earth Spirit Pearl spun out from his dantian, forming a layer of earth-yellow light shield around him.

As an auxiliary magic treasure, the Earth Spirit Pearl could greatly enhance the power of earth attribute spiritual arts, and even if it wasn't earth attribute mana, it could still enjoy a small part of the enhancement.

At this moment, he formed a spiritual shield, pushing forward against the bee stingers.

But it was all in vain.

After the giant wasp made a move, it seemed to be exhausted, and its huge body gradually turned into an illusion, replaced by a boiling blood-red giant wave crashing down.

Boom!

The giant wave seemed like a mountain pressing down.

The cultivator clearly heard the Earth Spirit Pearl's painful groaning in his ear, and the shield on his body couldn't hold on any longer. With a crack, his whole person was crushed by the giant wave.

When the cultivator stood up again, the surrounding mist had turned into chains that completely enveloped him.

Within the mist, there were constantly attacking shadows coming towards him.

His mana was rapidly depleting.

But the cultivator also keenly sensed that the person who set up the formation seemed to have no intention of killing him.

Otherwise, his attacks wouldn't be so gentle.

Whether it was the giant wasp just now or those cold eyes, they were not easy to deal with.

"I think we can talk. How much did Liang Yu give you? I can offer double!"

The cultivator's divine sense kept shaking, transmitting his voice even further.

In a situation where he couldn't escape by violent means, he could only try to persuade the other party.

"Oh."

A mocking voice came from the mist.

"Liang Yu sold his life to this seat. Can your offer be higher than his?"

The cultivator was instantly speechless, and it took him a while before he said with difficulty:

"Liang Yu has nothing, he can only sell his life to you. But I have a fortune of a million, far beyond what he, a destitute person, can compare to.

If you are willing to stop interfering in this matter, I am willing to offer 500,000 spirit stones to buy my life."

"Killing you, the spirit stones will still belong to this seat."

The voice in the mist was indifferent, as if talking about an ordinary matter.

"But this seat has a suggestion."

"What suggestion?"

"You offer your Gold Core to this seat, and this seat will guarantee the survival of your clan members."

Yu Xian used the same trick again.

The Gold Core is something that exists between reality and illusion.

Without the cooperation of the person themselves, simply wanting to kill and take the core like a demonic beast is not something he can do now.

The cultivator's expression changed, "You want my Gold Core? The Gold Core is what I rely on for my life. Without it, how can I survive?"

"You won't survive, but your clan members can, your bloodline can. It's a very profitable deal."

Yu Xian said calmly.

But he already knew that the cultivator wouldn't compromise with him.

Because the cultivator only cared about his own life, and never mentioned anything about his clan members and bloodline.

This is probably the difference between the first generation and the countless generations of wealth.

The former achieved everything through their own efforts, with a firm character, and the clan is their subsidiary, not the main body.

The latter received family education from a young age, prioritizing the interests of the family, and can sacrifice themselves for the family.

Sure enough, the cultivator only heard a cold laugh.

"If you think you can blackmail me with my clan's bloodline, you are gravely mistaken.

My Xiu family was nothing more than a poor peasant family back then, and it was I who brought them to their current prestigious position.

The entire Xiu family is honored because of me, and they only have the duty to sacrifice for me. How can I sacrifice for them?"

Your Excellency, even if you were to exterminate the entire Xiu family, don't think for a moment that I would blink an eye.

As for your belief that killing me would grant you control over the Xiu family's assets, it is nothing but a delusion. The Xiu family's spirit stones are hidden in a place where no one can find them.

No one, except for me, can find them.

The voice in the mist abruptly stopped, but the attacks became more intense. The cultivator felt a sharp pain in his back as a giant bee stinger pierced into it.

The air was filled with a faint smell of blood.

The ground became increasingly muddy, like a swamp, and bloodied hands grabbed onto his legs, causing him to sink deeper and deeper, unable to struggle.

The cultivator felt suffocated.

His eyes widened, his expression becoming more ferocious.

"Even if you kill me, you won't get anything!"

The cultivator, true to his reputation as a self-made man, remained fearless even in the face of life and death.

Half an hour later.

The last trace of the cultivator's spiritual power was devoured by the blood sea created by the Soul Banner, leaving him in a state of neither life nor death.

A hand reached out from the mist and pressed against his head.

Yu Xian calmly said, "I won't bother with hypocritical words about eliminating evil for the sake of the people. Blame yourself for not being decisive enough, for not uprooting the grass, and allowing Li Liangyu to encounter me."

With that, he directly used the Soul Searching Technique.

His spiritual power forcefully entered the exhausted Gold Core cultivator's sea of consciousness, transforming into small hands that continuously grasped fragments of memories.

Although the cultivator was from a family of cultivators, compared to major sects like the Xuan Yang Sect, he was nothing more than a lone cultivator. Therefore, there were no powerful restrictions placed in his sea of consciousness.

Many major sects would set restrictions in their disciples' sea of consciousness to prevent them from falling into the hands of enemies and leaking sect secrets.

Yu Xian's spiritual power was always stronger than others at the same level, so suppressing an exhausted Gold Core cultivator was not too burdensome for him.

Furthermore, the Soul Searching Technique could only see fragments of memories and couldn't fully explore a person's entire life.

This was also the first time Yu Xian had used the Soul Searching Technique on a living person.

The feeling was like watching a long movie with a cultivator as the protagonist, with scenes flashing one after another, most of them being memorable events in the cultivator's life.

Starting from the cultivator's childhood, growing up in a peasant family that worked for the city lord's mansion.

He had talent in cultivation from a young age, ranking first among his peers. As a young man, he entered the county school to study cultivation, only to realize that there was a whole new world beyond that, understanding that there were people beyond people.

During his low point, he was recognized by an old mentor. As a young man named Mu Ai, he developed a mutual affection with his mentor's junior sister, but was jealous by his classmates and secretly bribed, losing the opportunity to be selected by the Xuan Yang Sect.

The junior sister went to the Xuan Yang Sect and became an outer disciple, sending a letter saying she would not return.

The scene flashed to a night with heavy dew, the cultivator howling at the moon in endless pain.

After that night, the cultivator turned his attention to pursuing Miss Li from the Li family, entering the family as a son-in-law in order to gain entry.

Then, he achieved Foundation Building and took control of the Li family, intentionally befriending the Li family's Gold Core seed, forming a life and death bond.

The scene flashed again.

The Li family's Gold Core seed looked at the cultivator in disbelief as he died, and the Foundation Building spiritual object was grabbed by the cultivator in a near-crazy manner, laughing at the sky.

Then came the desperate gamble, successfully forming a Core.

To prevent the Li family's ancestors from holding him responsible, he didn't dare to return home for twenty years, making the Li family believe that they had all died outside.

Only when news of the Li family's ancestor's passing came, and the Li family was in decline, did he return to take control of the Li family.

On that day, he was full of confidence, and the excitement in the scene was evident.

After that, the cultivator gradually eliminated the bloodline of the Li family, replacing the entire Li family.

The scenes became chaotic and rushed, apparently not much worth remembering for the cultivator.

Until one day, the scenes suddenly became clear.

The cultivator received news from the Xuan Yang Sect that his junior sister, who had failed to form a Core in her youth, had passed away in the sect.

On the same night, he no longer felt pain, only gazing at the bright moon, feeling infinite loneliness.

From then on, he cultivated bitterly, his heart filled with calculations of interests, gradually losing his emotions.

The cultivator's entire life was compressed into a movie that lasted over two hours, hastily browsed through by Yu Xian.

However, Yu Xian was not interested in the cultivator's love, hate, and emotional entanglements. He only cared about the spirit stones.

"The location of the Xiu family's treasury... I found it!"

"Damn it! The treasury is empty!"

As the fragments of the cultivator's memories unfolded, Yu Xian realized that he had been deceived by the cultivator.

Over the years, the cultivator's cultivation had not brought much profit to the family. Most of the family's gains had been used to increase his own power and his Gold Core's abilities, leaving very few spirit stones behind.

As the cultivator had said, the Xiu family flourished because of him, and it was only natural for him to have control over the family's fortunes.

With a sense of indignation, Yu Xian opened his eyes.

Outside the Mist Prison Formation, Li Liangyu had been waiting for a long time.

"Young master."

Seeing the formation open, Li Liangyu saw the cultivator lying at the young master's feet, not knowing whether he was alive or dead. His heart couldn't help but tremble as he respectfully presented the Beast Control Cards of the Old Ape King and the Queen Bee.

"Thank you, young master, for your help. Only with your assistance could Li Liangyu avenge this great enmity. From now on, Li Liangyu will go through fire and water for the young master, never hesitating to die!"

Yu Xian casually put away the Beast Control Cards and pointed to the cultivator at his feet.

"You can announce the death of the cultivator to the outside world now. As for your next task, it is to take control of the Li family again. Wu Daoist friend will assist you in this."

Wu Laozu walked out from behind Yu Xian with a smile and greeted Li Liangyu.

"Li young friend, we meet again."

Just now, he had been in the formation all along, accompanied by Wan Tianchou as a reserve force.

Although both of them were only False Core cultivators and their combat power was not comparable to that of an ordinary Gold Core cultivator, the two of them combined could still put up a fight.

It was not that they were weak when they were defeated by Lin Laozu with a few moves, but that Lin Laozu was too strong.

And the cultivator had rich experience and decisively escaped at the first opportunity, tearing apart the domain of the Soul Banner with a treasure, forcing Yu Xian to reveal his true form and suppress him with his shocking divine eyes, thus not needing the two of them.

"So it's Senior Wu."

Li Liangyu knew that Wu Laozu had come to seize power, but still politely bowed and said,

"Liangyu was worried about his own lack of experience and didn't know what to do. With Senior Wu's help, Liangyu can finally breathe a sigh of relief."

After saying that, Li Liangyu walked out of the formation with Wu Laozu and flew above the Li family, loudly proclaiming,

"The traitor of the Li family, Xiu Yuan, has already been brought to justice! I, Li Liangyu, the 23rd generation descendant of the Li family, will once again take control of the Li family today!"

His voice spread throughout Autumn Wind Mountain, causing a commotion.

In the county magistrate's mansion, County Magistrate Yan, who had been secretly observing, was full of astonishment.

"The cultivator is dead?!"

In his eyes, the battle between the cultivator and Li Liangyu would not stop for a dozen or twenty years.

The final result was most likely to be inconclusive, with neither side able to do anything to the other.

And he had taken advantage of the situation to weaken both families and completely control Autumn Wind County, achieving great political achievements, rising in official rank, and competing for infant spirit treasures.

It had only been a few hours since the results.

Li Liangyu, who had ventured into the Xiu family alone, not only did not escape in embarrassment, but also killed the cultivator.

He released his divine sense and saw Wu Laozu, who was by Li Liangyu's side without any concealment, instantly realizing that he was also a Gold Core cultivator.

"There's actually another outsider Gold Core cultivator?"

Just then, County Magistrate Yan remembered the mysterious young master Yu Xian, who was the only one close to Li Liangyu in the information for the past three years.

"It's him!"

County Magistrate Yan immediately understood.

Li Liangyu, who had fled Autumn Wind City, was originally a desperate dog, but he encountered the mysterious young master Yu Xian and received his support, which allowed him to return and fight against the cultivator.

Now he was secretly helping Li Liangyu to kill the cultivator and regain control of the Li family.

Was it just a coincidence or was there another motive?

In just three years, such a miracle had been achieved.

That was a Gold Core cultivator!

County Magistrate Yan pondered for a moment, took out a piece of jade slip, and used his divine sense as a pen to write on it.

Soon, he wrote down everything that had happened here, especially emphasizing Yu Xian's identity.

But when he was about to send the jade slip through the sect's channels, he hesitated.

"No, if there is another motive, how could his identity be exposed so easily? Could it be that this Yu Xian is just a diversion, deliberately showing himself to others?"

But it was also possible that he was just passing by and would leave after playing for a while, so he revealed his identity openly.

If I report this, it will definitely attract the attention of the sect's inspectors.

It's easy to invite a god, but it's hard to send one away. Once they find nothing, or when they arrive, this Yu Xian has already left, it will only bring trouble to me.

Once the sect's inspectors arrive, they will have to return with some achievements. If there are no achievements, it is highly likely that they will target me.

I haven't done nothing in Autumn Wind County these years. If I don't get any benefits and still get into trouble, it won't be good for me.

No, it's not right. I should investigate thoroughly before making a decision.

County Magistrate Yan put away the jade slip, pondered for a moment, and decided to wait and see.

If that Yu Xian and the outsider Gold Core cultivator lingered here and refused to leave, he could still react later.

After all, as a disciple of the Xuan Yang Sect, the fire couldn't reach him no matter what.

(End of this chapter)