Volume 2 Chapter 19
Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW
Volume 2 Chapter 19: Xuan Xiu
Hearing the words from the person on the altar, Xu Qingfan and the others were stunned. They hadn’t expected that their presence could be detected despite the mysterious "Sky Melting Curtain." They all turned to look at Bao Wei, waiting for him to decide. But Bao Wei also wore a look of shock, eyes full of confusion. Then his expression changed as if he had thought of something, and he slightly shook his head at Xu Qingfan and the others, signaling them to remain calm. Then he began to move his lips, as if speaking to someone.
"Penance Valley Xuan Xiu, greets the benefactor."
Just as Xu Qingfan and the others were puzzled by Bao Wei’s reaction, an incredibly old voice suddenly came from beside them, hoarse and dry, as if it hadn’t spoken in a long time. This unexpected voice startled them, never expecting someone to be hiding so close! Bao Wei, on the other hand, showed a thoughtful expression.
Suddenly, a shadowy figure slowly appeared three feet away from Xu Qingfan and the others.
The person who appeared was an image of a frail old man, with a face full of wrinkles, clouded eyes, and only a few strands of white hair left. He wore a tattered robe and was barefoot, with no imposing aura. His Spirit Qi waves were very faint. If it weren’t for the fact that his body floated quietly half a foot above the ground, Xu Qingfan and the others would have thought he was just a dying, destitute old monk, not associating him with a cultivator at all.
"Is he a cultivator from Penance Valley?" Lv Ziqing exclaimed in surprise.
"Judging by the faintness of his Spirit Qi waves, it should be Penance Valley’s ‘Qi Hiding Technique,’ it must be right," Bao Wei nodded slowly, his eyes flashing with a gleam as if he had thought of something.
Penance Valley is regarded as the most mysterious Holy Land among the six Holy Lands in the Cultivation World. The cultivators here are all wholeheartedly seeking immortality. They rarely participate in the conflicts of the Cultivation World and seldom appear in it. Therefore, no one, not even the Sect Masters of the other Five Holy Lands, knows how many members there are in Penance Valley or how strong they are. It is only known that the members of this sect are not many, at most a few hundred, but each one is very powerful.
This sect is the oldest among the six Holy Lands of the Immortal Realm, with a history spanning seven thousand years. Internally, there is no talk of a sect leader or guardians; every decision made by Penance Valley is collectively decided by all the cultivators of Penance Valley. Additionally, there are no masters or disciples within this sect because cultivators in Penance Valley rarely take on apprentices. It is only when a powerful rogue cultivator appears in the Immortal Realm that cultivators from Penance Valley will invite these rogue cultivators to join, addressing each other as taoist friends.
It is said that Penance Valley began as a gathering place for a few powerful rogue cultivators to discuss the path to immortality together. Later, these rogue cultivators found regular meetings to be too inconvenient, so they chose a secluded place near the Southern Wasteland to live together, which became the prototype of Penance Valley. As their fame grew, more rogue cultivators joined them, each dedicating themselves to the path of immortality, freely sharing their cultivation experiences. This increased their cohesion, leading to the formation of a powerful sect known as "Penance Valley" in acknowledgment of the hardships of cultivation.
Because the cultivators in this sect were already powerful and well-known rogue cultivators before joining, and after joining Penance Valley, they openly discussed and shared knowledge with the other cultivators, their strength grew rapidly. Therefore, although people in the cultivation world knew that Penance Valley had very few cultivators, they did not dare to be careless, placing it alongside "Qingxu Gate," "Five Elements Sect," "White Lady Palace," "Jiuhua Gate," and "Zen Cloud Temple" as one of the six Holy Lands of the Immortal Realm.
Such a cultivator, detached from worldly affairs and devoted to the path, from Penance Valley now appeared in the Barbarian people’s mountain village, surprising Xu Qingfan and the others.
"Stranger, why have you appeared here? The entire Southern Wasteland is the Holy Land of our Jiuli tribe, and outsiders are not allowed to step foot." The man on the altar coldly stared at the suddenly appearing Xuan Xiu monk, his voice echoing across the entire Barbarian village, emanating an extremely dangerous aura.
Faced with countless Barbarian people glaring at him with hatred, the old face of Xuan Xiu remained calm and composed, as he asked in his dry, hoarse voice, "May I ask how to address you, and how did you see through my ‘Qi Hiding Technique’?"
Seeing Xuan Xiu’s demeanor unmoved by his imposing force, the man on the altar seemed slightly surprised. After a moment of silence, his powerful voice once again resonated through the entire Barbarian village.
"I am Naxiu, the master of the Jiuli tribe, the great Demon God’s representative on earth. As for how I saw through your ‘Qi Hiding Technique,’ it’s because I possess the power of the magic eye. The Demon God’s magic eye is all-seeing." Naxiu said proudly, "Now it’s your turn to answer my question, stranger."
Xuan Xiu glanced casually at the magic orb placed on the wooden totem pole, then slowly said, "A year ago, three of my taoist friends from Penance Valley came to the Southern Wasteland to collect materials for pill-making, and then there was no news. May I ask if it was your doing?"
"The Southern Wasteland is the Southern Wasteland of the Jiuli tribe, and no one can step foot here without my permission."
"So, does this mean that the disappearance of my three taoist friends is related to you?" Xuan Xiu asked after a moment of silence.
"The magic eye requires a blood sacrifice. The stronger the person’s blood, the more it can awaken the power left by the Demon God in the magic eye."
Hearing Naxiu’s words, Xuan Xiu said nothing more, quietly standing in mid-air, his eyes lowered, murmuring as if praying for his deceased taoist friends. After a long time, Xuan Xiu finally finished his prayer but said nothing further. His body gradually rose higher, and when he floated three feet above the ground, he quickly flew northward.
But Naxiu didn’t care at all about what Xuan Xiu was doing. His eyes suddenly shone with a strange purple-blue light, staring firmly at Xuan Xiu’s figure floating high in the air, he said, "I have said, the Southern Wasteland belongs to the Jiuli tribe. Without my permission, no one can set foot here, and you have broken the rules."
After flying into the air, Xuan Xiu found himself surrounded by a dense swarm of barbarian warriors riding on mutated birds, holding various weapons, glaring fiercely at him. But he was not worried, simply looking calmly at Naxiu on the altar below, he asked, "So what should be done?"
"You possess a powerful strength, stronger than all the cultivators I’ve met before combined. By sacrificing you to refine the Demon God’s magic eye, the Demon God will grant me even greater power."
As Naxiu’s words fell, the sky filled with silent howls from the soldiers, driving their mutated birds towards Xuan Xiu like a dark cloud rushing at him. The sound of wings cutting through the air filled the sky.
But Xuan Xiu’s expression remained unchanged. As the soldiers charged at him, he closed his eyes. Just when they were about to attack, the sky erupted with deafening thunder. Countless massive golden lightning bolts flashed down from the dark clouds, striking the soldiers around Xuan Xiu, lighting up the entire Barbarian village like daylight.
The lightning descended rapidly, and the soldiers had no time to avoid it before being struck. In the face of such heavenly power, they had no resistance, turning to dust that scattered to the ground.
"So powerful!" Watching his hundreds of soldiers and their mutated birds turn to dust under the lightning’s force, Naxiu’s face showed no surprise. Instead, his eyes revealed strong greed, yet he seemed unconcerned about Xuan Xiu’s astonishing strength.
"Lightning magic!" Xu Qingfan exclaimed after seeing the technique Xuan Xiu used.
"This person’s power is so strong," Lv Ziqing said, shocked.
The Thunder Magic is the most powerful Taoist spell, requiring the alignment of one’s own Spirit Qi with the Spirit Qi of heaven and earth to harness great power; it is extremely difficult to master.
Seeing Xuan Xiu float in the air without any magical tools, Xu Qingfan knew he possessed at least the Condensed Core Stage cultivation and wasn’t surprised he could use Thunder Magic. However, Thunder Magic requires one’s Spirit Qi to resonate with the Spirit Qi of the heavens, making the user’s Spirit Qi fluctuations highly noticeable. Astonishingly, when Xuan Xiu performed Thunder Magic, there was no trace of Spirit Qi fluctuations, and the spell was executed effortlessly, which explained Xu Qingfan’s and others’ amazement.
"In a while, Xuan Xiu will keep that person called Naxiu occupied, and I’ll seize the opportunity to take the Magic Pearl. You all help me hold off the others," Bao Wei suddenly said to Xu Qingfan and the rest, as he watched Xuan Xiu in the sky.
