Chapter 424 – An Acquaintance Unchanged (1/2)

Fu Qingjin was more alert than ever. The Soaring Dragon sword had appeared here. In the message, the Divining Elder had been so stern that he dared not be careless, not even in the slightest.

Very soon, he sensed the abnormal activity of the spiritual qi of the world there. Fu Qingjin found a cave. The cave was not very deep, such that he reached the end very soon. There was nothing in there anymore, but he could sense someone had cast down formations here.

A streak of golden light fell from the ceiling, landing in Fu Qingjin’s eyes. Through the crack, he could see the sky outside.

That’s right. It had to be here. The Soaring Dragon sword had not managed to escape, but the sword qi had already pierced the sky.

Fu Qingjin closed his eyes. As the sun shifted overhead, the streak of sunlight vanished before long.

Fu Qingjin snapped his eyes open. First of all, the person was not particularly powerful, below the second heavenly tribulation at the very least. Otherwise, he would have been able to suppress the Soaring Dragon sword before it could emit sword qi. Second of all, the person should have been a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Daemon Generals could not open sumeru rings. Moreover, he should have been rather powerful, as stopping the Soaring Dragon sword was anything but easy.

Only one question remained. Did this person obtain the sumeru ring through a coincidence, or was he connected to the Soaring Dragon Elder’s death?

There were approximately a hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators in the Clear River prefecture. All he had to do was investigate where they were when the Soaring Dragon sword emerged. Then, he could use a process of elimination, and he would definitely be able to find some clues.

There were no absolute hermits among cultivators. Human life was limited and people could be found no matter where they hid, especially with Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Fu Qingjin made his way out of the cave as his eyes flickered with cold light. He had to retrieve the sumeru ring and the Soaring Dragon sword no matter what!

Near the shore of the Lake of Dragons and Snakes, within the ripping reeds, Xiao An opened her hand, and the sumeru ring flashed. She thought about something before tossing the sumeru ring into her mouth and swallowing it with a gulp.

“Is it just you?” At this moment, Qian Rongzhi arrived by striding on the water, looking around.

Xiao An nodded.

“Did he tell you to come find me?”

Xiao An nodded again.

“What’s the matter?” Qian Rongzhi was very confused.

“Why?” Qian Rongzhi crouched down and propped up her cheeks.

Xiao An stopped talking. She thought back to the cave when she parted with Li Qingshan. Li Qingshan had said, “Xiao An, looks like we can’t open this sumeru ring without proper preparation in the near future. I felt that something was amiss earlier. The Sword Collection palace might have discovered our location already from that moment just then.”

“From now onwards, we’ll split up. I’ll go find Ru Xin so that she can refine pills for me, while you… you’ll go find Qian Rongzhi and get her to gather corpses for you so that you can continue forging Skull Prayer Beads. Didn’t you say forging eighteen of them will allow you to cast formations? I think it’ll be up to you to kill Bloodshadow.”

Killing either Strongboulder or Bloodshadow required enough strength to make the battle completely one-sided. Otherwise, once he failed, he would not be able to remain among the daemons anymore. Strongboulder was impregnable, while Bloodshadow was as fast as lightning. Both of them were tough bones to chew. If he wanted to guarantee their deaths, he had to possess strength that completely overwhelmed them.

Among all the people that Li Qingshan knew, basically all of them were more trustworthy than Qian Rongzhi. However, there was no one more suitable for this than her. Only a person as meticulous and secretive as her could guarantee complete secrecy when handling this matter. Even Li Qingshan paled in comparison to her in this regard.

However, her nature of constantly acting in her own interests had instead become a safeguard at a time like this. Although Li Qingshan did not necessarily like this nature of her, their cooperation had always resulted in success.

Xiao An said nothing, so Qian Rongzhi just stopped asking. She pushed the pile of spiritual stones back. “I’ll find him when it comes to remuneration. What kind of corpse do you need? Corpse Soldiers and Corpse Generals that have already been refined, or will any do?”

“Any will do… but don’t kill mindlessly.”

“Did he tell you this too? Heh, why would I spend all that effort? The last thing I’d need to do with the current circumstances is kill mindlessly.”

“I’ll bring you to a good place.” Qian Rongzhi smiled.

“He doesn’t want me to be with you.” Xiao An lowered her head.

“Fine then. Sometimes I really want to kill him. Don’t glare at me, I’m just kidding. The weather’s perfect!”

The rippling surface of the Lake of Dragons and Snakes reflected their figures, as if they had been gilded with gold. Qian Rongzhi’s smile seemed to become slightly warmer too.

“Let me rest a little. We’ll set off immediately, we’ll set off immediately.” Qian Rongzhi lay down on the dried grass, resting her head on her arms and shutting her eyes. A gorgeous, little snake winded across her face. It was a strange and terrifying sight to behold, but her face was extremely peaceful.

When Li Qingshan saw Ru Xin again, she was healing the sick in a small city by the mountains. Dressed in white clothes, she smiled warmly as she stood among the people. Wherever her hand passed by, the wounds would all heal, and the diseases would be cured. Everyone knelt on the ground and lowered their heads, constantly referring to her as goddess, bodhisattva, or great immortal.

Her expression became even gentler, and she told them all to stand up. Under the setting sun, a halo seemed to appear on her head, which made her seem noble and pure, just like a goddess.

“Oh great benevolent bodhisattva Ru Xin, my chest hurts. Do you have any medicine for it?” Li Qingshan came up with an idea and withdrew his aura, pushing aside the crowd and going up to her.

Ru Xin heard a familiar voice ring out from behind her. Looking back, her eyes flashed brilliantly, and she smiled. “If your chest hurts, that means you have a wicked heart. The only way to heal it is to dig out the heart and cut away the wicked flesh. However, I can tell that your heart has become wicked through and through. Even immortals won’t be able to save you. You are beyond help.”

“Then I’ll dig it all out and give it to you.” Li Qingshan laughed aloud. After three years, this old acquaintance of his had not changed at all, which was truly a joyous matter.

However, he unintentionally infuriated everyone there with that smart comment of his. In particular, the younger men were filled with indignation. “What are you supposed to be? Why have you come to joke around?” “Don’t let him escape! Beat him up!”

An old man rushed over and threw a punch at Li Qingshan, treating Li Qingshan as a rascal. Li Qingshan tilted his head and dodged, but he did not fight back. With his current strength, a slight movement could kill a whole swathe of people.