Chapter 406
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Chapter 406: Strength to Move Mountains
The swirling dust from above the sky stirred up fierce winds.
But when the dust settled, the towering rocky mountain did not stop. It kept slowly pressing down, exuding an unstoppable pressure.
The leader of Xuantian Sect looked into the distance and felt relieved.
"I knew it…"
"Qingming Cave is a method left behind by an ancient Xuantian Sect True Immortal."
"During this era of declining spiritual energy and where the path to immortality is not as powerful as ancient times, no beings in this age can challenge it, not even a Soul Changing cultivator at their peak."
Qiao Shuangxin is not weak. With one strike, he was able to break through the defenses of Xuantian Sect’s important place, Qingming Medicine Valley.
However, despite the strike that was even awe-inspiring to the elders of the Immortal Gate, landing on the towering mountain only left a long crack.
Creating a crack and completely breaking something with one strike are two different things; breaking something with one strike is different from stopping the slowly descending Qingming Cave Small World.
It was because of this that Xuantian Taoist Lord dared to say:
"Even if he is ten times or even dozens of times stronger, he will never be able to stop Qingming Cave."
"So, today Qiao Shuangxin will undoubtedly die!"
The leader of Xuantian Sect spoke with great confidence.
"The sect leader has a broad vision and great ambition."
By now, Elder Yao Yin also understood the plan of Xuantian Sect’s leader.
As they say, a lion uses all its strength to catch a rabbit.
To the ordinary martial artists in the world, Xuantian Sect’s leader, who spent two years in seclusion to heal his injuries, is like a rabbit that suddenly grew fangs and started hunting young lions in his eyes.
The injured lion is confident that he can easily kill this rabbit, but he won’t act rashly because any possibility of worsening his injuries will make him cautious.
Xuantian Sect’s leader, in fact, chose to risk his own injuries over protecting the Medicinal Valley Spiritual Farmer, using the latter as a trap.
"Using countless lives as pawns, sacrificing the crucial Medicinal Valley location, making a bold move in planning – truly shows the leadership style of the sect leader."
However, there was still one thing that Elder Yao Yin couldn’t understand.
The Qingming Cave Small World of Xuantian Sect did not have any tools or treasures for attacking or fighting.
So, for strong people, speed is not considered fast, it may even be called slow.
Right now, being able to avoid this attack by hiding under the pressure in Qingming Cave is not difficult at all.
Even Elder Yao Yin, a Nascent Soul cultivator who is not skilled in escape techniques, is confident that he can leave Qingming Cave Small World before Medicinal Valley collapses.
But stopping Qingming Cave, single-handedly resisting the weight of a small world, even for a cultivator like him, seems like a fantasy, completely impossible!
"Even Qiao Shuangxin, who can break through a great formation with one sword, cannot shake this huge mountain…"
"Staying here is a dead end, definitely a certain death!"
Spiritual Farmers running frantically towards the valley entrance, the chaotic sound of footsteps echoing through the mountains.
However, these special farmers were just ordinary people, and only a few had practiced martial arts.
The speed at which Qingming Cave was collapsing seemed slow, but for Qiao Mu, it was slow.
For these ordinary farmers, it was a real disaster.
At this moment.
Like a swarm of locusts, the spiritual farmers ran wildly through the valley, their noisy shouts and cries like a flood.
Suddenly, a bright light flashed.
A burst of light exploded from a cave in the valley.
Lingling Taoist Priest dashed out from the light, standing in mid-air with her robe stained with blood.
On the palm of her hand, a small jade tower was slowly spinning. The souls of Wang Songhe and other medicine men were inexplicably attracted by a force and entered the small jade tower.
It was not easy for Lingling Taoist Priest, a beginner in magic, to find Wang Songhe the Medicine Man. She might have encountered some traps that hurt her.
"Finally caught up…"
Lingling Taoist Priest looked up at the sky covered by the Cave Heaven Small World. She turned into light and was about to quickly fly out of the valley.
"Why aren’t you leaving yet?" Lingling Taoist Priest urged as she saw Qiao Mu and others still standing at the valley entrance.
"Sometimes we are limited by our own strength, why are you waiting here?" Lingling Taoist Priest questioned.
"You’re right, sometimes we are limited by our own strength, we should act within our limits," Qiao Mu replied.
His eyes fell on a long scar on the towering giant above his head.
With all his strength, his strike tore open a crack on the towering giant mountain that was hundreds of meters long.
However, for the Qingming Cave Small World that was powerful enough to crush the Medicinal Valley and block out the sun, it was not a big deal.
Whether it’s Xuantian Taoist Lord or Qiao Mu, both know exactly…
Whether it’s Heavenly Slashing Swordsmanship, or any other powerful secrets, incredible martial arts… they are not powerful enough.
Not even powerful secrets, even if he is ten times or dozens of times stronger, he cannot stop the Cave Heaven Small World above his head.
This is indeed a small world left behind by the ancient True Immortal, unstoppable in an era of declining spiritual energy.
Even the ordinary Spiritual Farmer in the valley, upon seeing Qiao Mu’s astonishing sword that did not stop the towering mountain, knew that waiting here was a dead end.
Qiao Mu carefully calculated in his mind.
Even though he had four more chances to resurrect, with the Long Life Lock breaking four times, the resurrection time multiplied by a hundred… If he used up all his lives, could he suddenly become tens or hundreds of times stronger, enough to stop the small world created by the True Immortal?
He was not at all sure in his heart.
Not to mention the question of whether he could.
Nowadays, the time of resurrection is multiplied by a hundred. Who knows, after experiencing death several times, he directly collapsed in the Long Life Dream that lasted for thousands of years.
So no matter how you measure the gains and losses, facing the Qingming Cave Small World is a challenge beyond Qiao Mu’s level.
Escaping alive is not difficult.
Blocking is absolutely impossible.
"Some people don’t consider their own limits, they act without careful thought, without considering the price behind things," Qiao Mu continued.
"A valuable life should not be wasted on meaningless things, don’t you agree?"
The crowd was puzzled.
The chubby cat on Qiao Mu’s shoulder completely ignored him, its paws resting on Qiao Mu’s neck while it licked fervently, looking like an infatuated fool.
The Jingwei Bird perched on Qiao Mu’s shoulder seemed to understand, pausing its grooming to tilt its head slightly and look at Qiao Mu.
So… Qiao Mu grabbed the back of the fat cat’s neck, pulled the fat cat off his chest, and carefully held the Jingwei Bird’s bird claw in his other hand.
"I hope you all cherish your lives and don’t block my path!"
He grabbed a cat and a bird, and threw them forcefully towards Qiao Canxue who was standing nearby.
With Qiao Canxue looking surprised, Qiao Mu slightly bent his legs, stepped on the Heavenly Dragon Eight Steps, and in an instant, leaped into the sky, running wildly towards the valley.
Thump thump thump thump…
There were continuous loud bangs in the air.
Qiao Mu ran in the sky, every time he stepped on the void, his figure was as fast as an arrow breaking through the air.
In the blink of an eye, he landed on a small rocky hill in the valley.
Qingming Valley is the Medicinal Valley of Xuantian Sect, the land in the valley is vast, and the small rocky hill beneath his feet, which is just tens of meters high, is already the highest point in this valley.
From up here, you can see the whole valley below, with countless ordinary people running away like swarms of locusts.
Aside from being high up, this small rocky mountain is nothing special and doesn’t have a lot of spiritual energy.
But for Qiao Mu, it is a great stage.
With a deep breath, he raised his King Qin Sword, releasing a powerful energy that turned into soaring sword lights as he swung the sword.
With his other fist clenched, he gathered energy and punched towards the sky, creating layers of fist shadows.
The fist shadows and sword lights piled up like endless waves, rushing towards the sky.
He displayed many martial arts skills he had trained in his whole life, using his true strength.
For a moment, the small rocky mountain was filled with excitement and attracted many onlookers.
Regardless of the countless sword lights and fist shadows, when they fell towards the towering mountain, they disappeared like water into a sponge.
Like an armored knight charging at a windmill, it was all in vain in the end.
At that moment.
Lingling Taoist Priest finally turned into a streak of light and dashed out of the valley.
"Canying, Yuanyuan, why are you still standing there foolishly?" Lingling Taoist Priest scolded.
In the next moment, Qiao Canxue made a move. She took the fat cat that had been handed to her before and stuffed it into her Senior Sister Yuanyuan’s hands.
Then she soared into the air, waving her sleeves. Radiant lights blossomed, capturing the Spiritual Farmers fleeing within the Medicinal Valley with invisible force, drawing them into her sleeves.
It wasn’t until Elder Yao Yin saw this scene that he finally understood.
"This person clearly knows his weakness, yet he still stands on the mountaintop without retreat, no wonder the sect leader said that the Qiao family’s martial arts is a dead end."
"The sect leader is truly wise, indeed." Elder Yao Yin praised.
This member of the Qiao family was burdened by fame, could have escaped unscathed, but ultimately chose to confront overwhelming odds. The leader of Xuantian Sect chuckled.
The Qingming Cave, which was nearly touching the small rocky mountain, slightly slowed down, gradually transitioning from virtual to real, pressing down towards the mountain.
"You’re right," Qiao Mu looked up at the towering mountain nearby and declared loudly:
"But I, Qiao Shuangxin, have no particular talents…" he proclaimed.
The voice resonated like thunder in the valley, echoing repeatedly.
At that moment, even the noisy cries of the Spiritual Farmers seemed to be overshadowed by the penetrating sound.
Regrettably, the entire Qingming Valley was shrouded by the slowly descending towering mountain, with only a vague dark figure visible on the small rocky mountain.
"Only in front of… good people does holiness appear!"
As the words fell silent.
He took a deep breath, his body visibly squirming and rapidly expanding.
Since his last death in Heyang City, he had perfected the "Shape Changing Skill" and, combined with Xue Changhe’s "Blood Origin Skill", his body had further improved, allowing him to resist Xuantian Sect Elder Jiuyang’s Nanming Li Fire.
Standing on the top of a small hill, his face covered in shadows, making it hard to see his expression. All one could see was a growing black shadow.
His legs expanded and spread out, like two tall pine trees thrusting into the ground. His torso also swelled, making his shoulders as wide as mountains.
In the blink of an eye, he had transformed into a several meters tall giant, his face shrouded in darkness.
He couldn’t believe it… at this moment, he had to earn more points… This thought quietly crossed Qiao Mu’s mind.
What he sought was a grand and attention-grabbing death.
Only in this way could he achieve a higher Death Assessment, making his Long Life Dream last a bit longer, in hopes of returning.
Qiao Mu wants to die.
But Qiao Mu doesn’t want to die.
People are often contradictory, trying to find ways to survive while rushing towards a dead end.
At this moment, he stretched his body, which continued to grow larger bit by bit, his muscles becoming thicker visibly quickly as he raised his hands up high.
This scene, however, appeared strangely absurd to the onlookers.
The immense mountain above their heads was large enough to fill Medicinal Valley with thousands of Spiritual Farmers.
Even with thousands of people, they seemed tiny beneath the towering mountain, especially compared to a small giant standing on the mountain peak with arms open wide towards the sky.
The extreme contrast in size between the two was strikingly abrupt.
Boom.
Qiao Mu’s eyes widened slightly.
The heavy pressure on his head made his body bend and twist, like a big bow. His arms were pressed tightly against his head, and his whole body made sounds of struggling under the weight.
Crack, crack.
The ground beneath his feet cracked silently, his thighs swelled up like two young pines, muscles tightening, and a mist of blood burst from his pores.
As his skin tore open and his bones twisted, his body’s energy flowed rapidly with Qiao Mu’s breathing rhythm.
The torn flesh kept moving, and the cracked bones slowly came together…
Just at that moment.
The semi-real Qingming Cave Small World paused imperceptibly.
Whether it was the leader of Xuantian Sect holding back or the Qingming Cave Small World not fully materializing, was unclear.
The scene of the sky collapsing and Mount Tai pressing down did not happen.
Looking up, Qiao Mu saw the leader of Xuantian Sect finally taking a step forward and appearing at the entrance of Qingming Valley, gazing far into the valley towards Qiao Mu trying to shoulder the huge mountain.
At this moment, Qiao Mu was like being squeezed between hydraulic machine tables, his upper body already twisted into a ball, his flesh and bones nearly melded onto the towering mountain.
His lower body was deeply embedded in the crumbling rocky mountain beneath his feet.
After using his Shape Changing Skill, the giant-like figure that was almost ten meters tall had now shrunk to half its original height.
This twisted posture was more gruesome than a car accident scene, most ordinary people would have died naturally, and it would be impossible to move them.
Yet, Qiao Mu was still alive, his contorted flesh wriggling, his fractured bones attempting to come together, but his appearance was quite frightening.
While the previous Qiao Mu could have easily escaped, now he couldn’t even take a step.
"Being a hero comes with a price, don’t you agree?" remarked the leader of Xuantian Sect casually.
He was now in complete control of the situation.
"Good." Qiao Mu struggled to adjust his blurry mind, nodded slightly.
"It’s important to do things within your capabilities. If you push yourself too hard, not only might you get hurt, but you might also not do a good job and affect others as well."
The leader of the Xuantian Sect was momentarily speechless.
He wanted to say something, but this Qiao Shuangxin person interrupted him. What a situation!
This made him feel a subtle mix of emotions.
After these calculations.
Even though he had the upper hand, he didn’t even need to use any magic spells to outwit Qiao Shuangxin completely, understanding his thoughts and leaving him with no chance to turn the tables.
But when he was about to give a speech as the victor, he found Qiao Shuangxin’s reaction different from what he had predicted.
The feeling of being in control and strategizing had a slight discordant note now.
Just like…
It was not that he schemed against Qiao Mu, but he was led into a trap by the distinctive style of the Qiao family member’s actions.
Instead, Qiao Mu willingly fell into the trap, cooperating fully and following his plan step by step, accepting the bleak outcome calmly.
"Then you–"
"Acting within one’s abilities is the right way, it is the path to survival for everyone." But Qiao Mu did not look at him, instead he looked down, taking Qiao Canxue, Jingwei Bird Qing Li, and others into his gaze.
At the end of his life, he did not spare a glance for the Xuantian Sect’s leader who had pushed him into a corner, simply murmuring:
"In this world, if there were a foolish old man like the one who tried to move a tree acting beyond his abilities, I believe it would be better."
