CH 44
Proofread by Snake & Lucia
Of course, Xu Jingxian knew Jiufang Changming.
Ever since she had become a cultivator, having left her family of common people, she often heard this name.
The first one in the world.
Daoist Sect Master.
Buddhist Monk.
Great Master of Demonic Cultivation.
Confucian Scholar.
It was hard to even imagine so many completely unrelated titles referring to one person.
This was because Jiufang Changming’s cultivation path was different from others’: he first entered a Daoist sect, and then entered a Buddhist sect. After that, he became a Demonic cultivator, then turned to Confucianism, and finally became an independent rogue cultivator.
Usually people followed the same path throughout their lives to perfect it, but he, on the contrary, studied every school, and even became proficient in each of them.
And what was even rarer was that although people despised him behind his back, they still bestowed the highest titles upon him to win over the talented man.
All those overt and covert slanderous tales were never voiced in front of him. In Jiufang Changming’s heyday, everybody, regardless of whether they liked him or not, whether they were his friends or foes, they still had to call him Immortal Jiufang in his presence.
For many people, he was a legend who was out of reach.
Xu Jingxian was not an exception.
She had read all sorts of scripts depicting tales about Jiufang more than once, and thought that every cultivator should be like him.
Faced with his immense powers, every discontented voice had to go silent.
People around the world feared and vilified him, yet venerated and admired him.
After the battle of the Sacred Mountain Wan, Jiufang Changming fell from the sky. No one saw him alive, but his corpse was not found either.
Fell from the sky: die (of an important person); here, probably, fell from his high position
Some said that he died, and some blamed the failure of the Liuhe Zhutian Formation on him; the second opinion prevailed. Many young cultivators did not understand the situation, and after some time, this name, Jiufang Changming, was nailed to the historical pillar of shame, which was considered as ironclad evidence of his colluding with demons.
Worshiping and chasing the strong is the nature of all kinds of people, and cultivators are no exception. But, when the idol fell and lost his face, the image in their hearts collapsed; the name Jiufang Changming was no longer mentioned and was relegated to the dustbin of history.
Xu Jingxian would have never thought that this sickly man in front of her was related to this legendary figure.
They shared the same name, but she always deemed it a coincidence.
Who would have thought that the same name would mean the same person?!
That is to say—
Xu Jingxian suddenly recalled the strange atmosphere between him and the Jianxue Sect master that day.
She knew that her sect master was one of Jiufang Changming’s disciples.
When Xu Jingxian first heard about it, she complained about the moody temper of the sect master in her heart, did he dare to act the same in front of Immortal Jiufang?
Unexpectedly, the master and disciple had actually met.
No wonder he ordered her to bring him to the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
If Xu Jingxian was that surprised, one could imagine what the bystanders felt.
In a flash, all eyes fell on Changming.
Shock, doubt, curiosity—not a single expression repeated.
A hint of astonishment flashed even through Zhang Mu’s ruthless face.
“Jiufang Changming?”
After being surprised for a moment, he looked Changming up and down. His ridiculing thoughts were obvious.
“The so-called first person in the world turns out to be like this? Have all the cultivators gone extinct? How are you worthy?”
One stone sparked a thousand waves. After these words fell, the humans started seething with anger.
Some people with easily-irritable temperaments broke out in curses as soon as they heard this provocation.
Changming remained unmoved, and was only looking at Zhang Mu: “Do you know Cang Tian? He is one of your kin. He asked me to pass on a message for you.”
Zhang Mu’s expression changed slightly.
Changming: “Looks like you do know him.”
Zhang Mu: “How is he?”
Changming did not answer his question: “The bet.”
Zhang Mu smiled coldly: “I won’t make a bet with you. If you are able, try to pry open my mouth with force, otherwise, you’ll all die here today!”
Before he finished saying the word “today”, his shadow moved, appearing right in front of Changming!
He stretched out his nails, but grabbed the air.
Changming had disappeared, leaving a puppet to be caught.
The thin paper turned into ashes that were blown away by the wind.
Zhang Mu turned around abruptly. The point of the black sword had already reached his forehead!
He felt pain and quickly flew back. His subordinates wanted to interfere, but Yun Hai blocked their way.
Yun Hai’s figure could not be discerned among the black-clothed demons, and surging demonic qi surrounded him. Xu Jingxian could not say whether he was alive or dead, but gritted her teeth, thinking, After all, I gambled on you, and flew near him.
It seemed that Changming and Yun Hai had had an agreement beforehand.
Yun Hai did not meddle in Changming’s battle with Zhang Mu, only helping him to stop other demons.
Their battlefield moved to the surface of the sea away from the shore.
People were watching them from afar, but could only see criss-crossing sword lights. Waves were raised by their spiritual powers, seething more and more vigorously, and turning into billows dashing to the skies one after another, almost covering the night sky.
On the Seven Star Platform back then, Zhang Mu managed to fight against many powerful masters alone, so naturally, his cultivation level was high. Even if humans did not understand the world of demons, the Darkest Abyss, they could see that Zhang Mu was at least at the master level.
Jiufang Changming used to be very famous, but it was different now. Each generation brings new talents to the world, and the situation had long since changed. By the time the majority of the cultivators here started to practice, the world’s major sects were already determined, and the balance of power had been achieved. They had never practiced in the shadow of Jiufang Changming, trembling with awe, so naturally they could not realize how powerful this person was back then; but this name alone made people avoid him.
Each generation brings new talents to the world: “Lunshi” (“About poetry”)
Xu Jingxian’s thin silk was inconvenient to use now.
It was neither long nor short.
But her cultivation had improved greatly as she broke through the bottleneck, so she could hold on through a desperate effort. If this battle happened before, she would have been quickly defeated.
That would be wonderful if they won; she would follow Changming, and maybe would be able to dig out something useful like the Yangzhen Grass again. But if they lost, that would be truly losing the wife together with soldiers.
Losing the wife together with soldiers: sending the helve after the hatchet, a double loss
But was Changming actually that Jiufang Changming?
Tales had come true, and she could not help but feel a bit perplexed.
Probably because she had just flirted with him, grabbing his hair.
She was absent-minded during the fight, and her shoulder was scratched with long nails; fortunately, someone pushed her to the side.
“Why did you freeze?!”
Xu Jingxian turned her head and was surprised to see He Qingmo.
That disciple from the Celestial Abode Shenxiao who she met on the Rainbow bridge, and who disappeared without a trace after jumping into the Mirror Lake, unexpectedly, was still alive.
What surprised Xu Jingxian even more was that while many people chose to stand by and let them do the fighting, He Qingmo actually took the initiative to participate.
One of his shidis followed him as well.
While others were looking at each other in dismay, and the majority wisely chose to play safe, waiting and observing them, some people gradually started coming forward.
The pressure on Xu Jingxian lightened a lot.
As for Yun Hai—
Xu Jingxian realized that he was nowhere to be seen.
Where did he go?
Zhang Mu had not believed that his opponent was able to win at all.
But now, he had to reconsider this thought.
He found himself trapped in a Void Formation.
Void: Budd. emptiness of the material world
Images of Changming holding the sword and applying techniques with hand gestures surrounded him from eight directions, and every illusion technique was different. But no matter which mirage Zhang Mu attacked, every strike would bounce back on him.
After several attempts, Zhang Mu began to doubt.
He thought that he had surely missed some details.
This formation did not only require spiritual powers to support it, but also the caster to have a deep consciousness. Zhang Mu could not believe that the other’s sea of consciousness was so broad that Changming was able to confine him in the illusion, rendering Zhang Mu unable to move a single step.
The sea of consciousness…
A thought suddenly dawned on him, and Zhang Mu realized one thing.
His enemy used Zhang Mu’s lack of attention to assault using the breach.
Using the breach: lit. to use ‘void’ to enter
Right now, he was not in the sea of misleading fog of the Nine Layers of the Abyss, but rather in Changming’s sea of consciousness.
As long as the sea of consciousness was broken, he could get out of the trap, and also damage Jiufang Changming’s consciousness.
That former brilliant master’s gotten dumber, doesn’t this sound interesting?
The corners of Zhang Mu’s lips curled into a smirk, and he suddenly moved!
He noticed that although the mirrages all around him seemed to have no flaws, some details were still different.
The one on the south-east was holding the Sifei Sword turned towards him on high alert, ready to strike.
But the more it tried to show off its powers, the weaker it was inside.
The spiritual power of the Sifei Sword seemed to be unable to support this image, and its appearance was weaker than the other seven’s.
This thought leapt through Zhang Mu’s mind. His attack was swift like wind as he threw himself on the south-eastern mirage.
It was ripped into pieces as soon as Zhang Mu touched it.
As expected!
Zhang Mu was excited.
But his excitement did not last even for half a breath.
A hurricane hit him from behind. He was sucked into the vortex and started fighting with it on equal footing in the chaos, but noticed that the other seven mirages attacked him, controlling their swords!
He showed this weakness on purpose!
Zhang Mu realized suddenly. But it was already too late.
One false move, and he lost the whole game. The Sifei Sword pierced his heart from behind, and Zhang Mu fell into the sea from the air when Changming pulled it out.
But before Zhang Mu’s body sank in the water, his enemy fished him out and dragged him to the shore.
Zhang Mu felt a sharp pain as his palm was pierced right after his chest.
He opened his eyes with great difficulty, and saw that Changming had nailed his hand using the sword, making Zhang Mu unable to move.
Zhang Mu wanted to say something, but vomited a mouthful of blood after opening his mouth.
He saw Changming squat down.
“I know Cang Tian,” Zhang Mu heard, “Those people you cooperate with are only using you for their profit. Once they need a scapegoat, they’ll sell you out with no hesitation. When the massacre of Yuru Town took place, Cang Tian died this very way. One foot in the grave, he asked me to tell you not to believe them.”
“Cough, cough, you are wrong, I didn’t believe them from the very beginning! It was the only way to leave the Darkest Abyss and enter the Human World. They never deceived me…”
Zhang Mu smiled, showing a mocking sneer.
“Do you think that you can kill me, leave the Nine Layers of the Abyss, and everything will be over? No, it’s just the beginning. The Nine Layers of the Abyss looks magnificent and enormous in your eyes, yet it is nothing but one link in their plan. Ha-ha-ha… You can’t even imagine it!”
It seemed that his mouth could not be opened with Cang Tian’s name.
Changming used force to insert the Sifei Sword an inch deeper, and its spiritual power distorted the opponent’s muscles and bones. Even a demon could not stand this, and Zhang Mu groaned in pain; his expression twitched and twisted, and fog wrapped his eyes.
“Who are you? Who works together with you, except for [Wan] Chi Bijiang and Situ Wanhuo?”
Of course, Zhang Mu said nothing. He had a totally unperturbed expression on his face, as if he was saying, “I knew you’d mention them”.
Blood was splattering from his mouth and nose, but he was still jeering at Changming’s ignorance.
But Changming’s next words were—
“Xiao Cangfeng?”
Zhang Mu’s smile froze.
The serious injury made him confused, so he could not conceal his expression for a moment, and this instant reaction let Changming guess the answer.
Changming: “Moreover, if I’m not mistaken, Chen Ting is an incarnation of Jiang Li, the head of the Wanjian Immortal Clan.”
I won’t tell, if you are qualified, go and check it yourself.
Zhang Mu’s lips laughed wordlessly. His expression gradually stiffened, until he could finally make no sound.
The demons in black were mostly killed as well. When Xu Jingxian saw Changming float down to the ground safe and sound, she was delighted at this unexpectedly good result, and rushed towards him, stretching out one of her hands.
“Ming-lang, are you alright?”
Changming hummed in agreement, and looked at the other side of the misty sea.
New high tides were coming from there slowly.
Looking from far away, their speed seemed slow, but their force and noise surpassed everything else.
If this continued, the whole shore would be submerged under the water, becoming an inundated area under the boundless sea.
Xu Jingxian frowned at this.
“What do we do? Do we still need to cross the fog?”
They did come to the Nine Layers of the Abyss through the fog, but they went straight to the Third Layer of the Abyss when they passed through it last time. Obviously, it was constantly changing, and any mistake could send them back, over and over again.
“Maggots! Those maggots came again!”
Before Changming answered her, someone suddenly called out. Xu Jingxian’s expression changed drastically. She turned her head and saw a group of glowing lights coming closer from a distance in the darkness. At first glance, they looked very beautiful, but everybody knew what they actually were.
The dreaded firefly maggots that killed people with one touch.
Watching the firefly maggots, Xu Jingxian recalled the lost half of her thin silk.
Changming told her: “Follow me!”
Having said that, he used his sword to fly towards the place where the huge tides came from, his figure getting further and further away, finally submerged in the waves.
This action looked like pure suicide, and Xu Jingxian froze for a moment, but still chose to follow him quickly.
The closer she got to the huge waves, the stronger the wind blew.
Xu Jingxian almost lost her balance, falling into the water. She gritted her teeth and squinted, braced herself for going against the sky-high waves and wind, and plunged into the water.
The water blocked out both the sky and the earth.
She was completely submerged in the water and overwhelmed by the force pressing down on her from every direction. Xu Jingxian had no choice but to drift along with the flow. She used a little spiritual power to protect her body and stay conscious, however, the sky and the earth were spinning in front of her eyes, and it was very difficult to remain sober when she could not even tell yin and yang apart. After cultivating for so many years, she once again tasted the feeling of dizziness and nausea from riding a horse carriage, just like in her childhood.
Tell yin and yang apart: in this case, a total chaos, yin being the earth and yang being the sky
Xu Jingxian’s eyes rolled, and she fainted.
When she regained consciousness, her body was still fatigued, and her hot eyelids were stinging.
She felt unwell, and could not help but cover her eyes with her hand, opening them at the same time.
The sunlight came in through the space between her fingers, stabbing her eyes.
Xu Jingxian slowly came to her senses and sat, looking around.
Not far away, Changming was standing on a cliff with his hands clasped behind his back, talking with that disciple from the Celestial Abode Shenxiao.
Yun Hai came from the other side with a bunch of withered grass in his hand. It seemed that he had just picked it from the woods and came back.
Xu Jingxian remembered this place.
They entered the Nine Layers of the Abyss from here.
Mists and clouds spreading all over under this steep cliff were the passage to the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
So to say, they had finally left this terrifying place?
Xu Jingxian felt a little absent-minded, as if she was in a dream.
If she went back in time and started over again, she was not sure that she would have made the same choice, and she was positively sure that she would not enter this place again.
Never.
It was unknown what He Qingmo was discussing with Changming. He looked at Xu Jingxian once, as if hesitating whether he should say goodbye, but in the end decided not to. He went past her to Yun Hai, clasped his hand, bidding farewell, and flew away on his sword.
Ignored Xu Jingxian: …Very well, if I see Celestial Abode Shenxiao’s disciples, if I catch one, I’ll torture one, and if I catch two, I’ll torture the pair.
She looked at Changming.
He wore his long hair up, but some was still loose, scattered over his shoulders.
His loose robes were fluttering with the wind, and he actually resembled the master of a generation.
Xu Jingxian knew that the news about Changming killing Zhang Mu would soon spread throughout the world with those cultivators who had escaped from the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
Many people would learn that Jiufang Changming had risen from the dead, returning to the Human World. Probably, this would soon stir the world.
She was looking at him in a daze. Her mind was still jumping, but she sighed freely after surviving a disaster.
Suddenly, Changming vomited a mouthful of blood and sat on the ground weakly, not maintaining that image of a rumored master at all.
Xu Jingxian’s fanciful thoughts scattered like mist and ashes at once: “Weren’t you acting like you were fine just now?”
Changming wiped off the blood from his mouth: “In front of admirers, having a cool demeanor is an absolute necessity, you must endure.”
Xu Jingxian: …
They encountered too many things in the Nine Layers of the Abyss. Everyone went their own ways, and they had their own adventures; all the stories could not be told even in three days and three nights. Xu Jingxian had many questions, especially about the time when Zhang Mu said in front of everyone that Yun Hai was his kin. This thought kept lingering in her mind.
She raised her eyes and saw Yun Hai coming closer. His eyes seemed to be frozen like a glacier or a snow sea. This made her blood run cold, and she could not even voice even half of her questions.
Yun Hai did not stop near her, and did not pay her any attention at all. Without saying anything, he went straight to Changming.
Proofread by Snake & Lucia
Of course, Xu Jingxian knew Jiufang Changming.
Ever since she had become a cultivator, having left her family of common people, she often heard this name.
The first one in the world.
Daoist Sect Master.
Buddhist Monk.
Great Master of Demonic Cultivation.
Confucian Scholar.
It was hard to even imagine so many completely unrelated titles referring to one person.
This was because Jiufang Changming’s cultivation path was different from others’: he first entered a Daoist sect, and then entered a Buddhist sect. After that, he became a Demonic cultivator, then turned to Confucianism, and finally became an independent rogue cultivator.
Usually people followed the same path throughout their lives to perfect it, but he, on the contrary, studied every school, and even became proficient in each of them.
And what was even rarer was that although people despised him behind his back, they still bestowed the highest titles upon him to win over the talented man.
All those overt and covert slanderous tales were never voiced in front of him. In Jiufang Changming’s heyday, everybody, regardless of whether they liked him or not, whether they were his friends or foes, they still had to call him Immortal Jiufang in his presence.
For many people, he was a legend who was out of reach.
Xu Jingxian was not an exception.
She had read all sorts of scripts depicting tales about Jiufang more than once, and thought that every cultivator should be like him.
Faced with his immense powers, every discontented voice had to go silent.
People around the world feared and vilified him, yet venerated and admired him.
After the battle of the Sacred Mountain Wan, Jiufang Changming fell from the sky. No one saw him alive, but his corpse was not found either.
Fell from the sky: die (of an important person); here, probably, fell from his high position
Some said that he died, and some blamed the failure of the Liuhe Zhutian Formation on him; the second opinion prevailed. Many young cultivators did not understand the situation, and after some time, this name, Jiufang Changming, was nailed to the historical pillar of shame, which was considered as ironclad evidence of his colluding with demons.
Worshiping and chasing the strong is the nature of all kinds of people, and cultivators are no exception. But, when the idol fell and lost his face, the image in their hearts collapsed; the name Jiufang Changming was no longer mentioned and was relegated to the dustbin of history.
Xu Jingxian would have never thought that this sickly man in front of her was related to this legendary figure.
They shared the same name, but she always deemed it a coincidence.
Who would have thought that the same name would mean the same person?!
That is to say—
Xu Jingxian suddenly recalled the strange atmosphere between him and the Jianxue Sect master that day.
She knew that her sect master was one of Jiufang Changming’s disciples.
When Xu Jingxian first heard about it, she complained about the moody temper of the sect master in her heart, did he dare to act the same in front of Immortal Jiufang?
Unexpectedly, the master and disciple had actually met.
No wonder he ordered her to bring him to the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
If Xu Jingxian was that surprised, one could imagine what the bystanders felt.
In a flash, all eyes fell on Changming.
Shock, doubt, curiosity—not a single expression repeated.
A hint of astonishment flashed even through Zhang Mu’s ruthless face.
“Jiufang Changming?”
After being surprised for a moment, he looked Changming up and down. His ridiculing thoughts were obvious.
“The so-called first person in the world turns out to be like this? Have all the cultivators gone extinct? How are you worthy?”
One stone sparked a thousand waves. After these words fell, the humans started seething with anger.
Some people with easily-irritable temperaments broke out in curses as soon as they heard this provocation.
Changming remained unmoved, and was only looking at Zhang Mu: “Do you know Cang Tian? He is one of your kin. He asked me to pass on a message for you.”
Zhang Mu’s expression changed slightly.
Changming: “Looks like you do know him.”
Zhang Mu: “How is he?”
Changming did not answer his question: “The bet.”
Zhang Mu smiled coldly: “I won’t make a bet with you. If you are able, try to pry open my mouth with force, otherwise, you’ll all die here today!”
Before he finished saying the word “today”, his shadow moved, appearing right in front of Changming!
He stretched out his nails, but grabbed the air.
Changming had disappeared, leaving a puppet to be caught.
The thin paper turned into ashes that were blown away by the wind.
Zhang Mu turned around abruptly. The point of the black sword had already reached his forehead!
He felt pain and quickly flew back. His subordinates wanted to interfere, but Yun Hai blocked their way.
Yun Hai’s figure could not be discerned among the black-clothed demons, and surging demonic qi surrounded him. Xu Jingxian could not say whether he was alive or dead, but gritted her teeth, thinking, After all, I gambled on you, and flew near him.
It seemed that Changming and Yun Hai had had an agreement beforehand.
Yun Hai did not meddle in Changming’s battle with Zhang Mu, only helping him to stop other demons.
Their battlefield moved to the surface of the sea away from the shore.
People were watching them from afar, but could only see criss-crossing sword lights. Waves were raised by their spiritual powers, seething more and more vigorously, and turning into billows dashing to the skies one after another, almost covering the night sky.
On the Seven Star Platform back then, Zhang Mu managed to fight against many powerful masters alone, so naturally, his cultivation level was high. Even if humans did not understand the world of demons, the Darkest Abyss, they could see that Zhang Mu was at least at the master level.
Jiufang Changming used to be very famous, but it was different now. Each generation brings new talents to the world, and the situation had long since changed. By the time the majority of the cultivators here started to practice, the world’s major sects were already determined, and the balance of power had been achieved. They had never practiced in the shadow of Jiufang Changming, trembling with awe, so naturally they could not realize how powerful this person was back then; but this name alone made people avoid him.
Each generation brings new talents to the world: “Lunshi” (“About poetry”)
Xu Jingxian’s thin silk was inconvenient to use now.
It was neither long nor short.
But her cultivation had improved greatly as she broke through the bottleneck, so she could hold on through a desperate effort. If this battle happened before, she would have been quickly defeated.
That would be wonderful if they won; she would follow Changming, and maybe would be able to dig out something useful like the Yangzhen Grass again. But if they lost, that would be truly losing the wife together with soldiers.
Losing the wife together with soldiers: sending the helve after the hatchet, a double loss
But was Changming actually that Jiufang Changming?
Tales had come true, and she could not help but feel a bit perplexed.
Probably because she had just flirted with him, grabbing his hair.
She was absent-minded during the fight, and her shoulder was scratched with long nails; fortunately, someone pushed her to the side.
“Why did you freeze?!”
Xu Jingxian turned her head and was surprised to see He Qingmo.
That disciple from the Celestial Abode Shenxiao who she met on the Rainbow bridge, and who disappeared without a trace after jumping into the Mirror Lake, unexpectedly, was still alive.
What surprised Xu Jingxian even more was that while many people chose to stand by and let them do the fighting, He Qingmo actually took the initiative to participate.
One of his shidis followed him as well.
While others were looking at each other in dismay, and the majority wisely chose to play safe, waiting and observing them, some people gradually started coming forward.
The pressure on Xu Jingxian lightened a lot.
As for Yun Hai—
Xu Jingxian realized that he was nowhere to be seen.
Where did he go?
Zhang Mu had not believed that his opponent was able to win at all.
But now, he had to reconsider this thought.
He found himself trapped in a Void Formation.
Void: Budd. emptiness of the material world
Images of Changming holding the sword and applying techniques with hand gestures surrounded him from eight directions, and every illusion technique was different. But no matter which mirage Zhang Mu attacked, every strike would bounce back on him.
After several attempts, Zhang Mu began to doubt.
He thought that he had surely missed some details.
This formation did not only require spiritual powers to support it, but also the caster to have a deep consciousness. Zhang Mu could not believe that the other’s sea of consciousness was so broad that Changming was able to confine him in the illusion, rendering Zhang Mu unable to move a single step.
The sea of consciousness…
A thought suddenly dawned on him, and Zhang Mu realized one thing.
His enemy used Zhang Mu’s lack of attention to assault using the breach.
Using the breach: lit. to use ‘void’ to enter
Right now, he was not in the sea of misleading fog of the Nine Layers of the Abyss, but rather in Changming’s sea of consciousness.
As long as the sea of consciousness was broken, he could get out of the trap, and also damage Jiufang Changming’s consciousness.
That former brilliant master’s gotten dumber, doesn’t this sound interesting?
The corners of Zhang Mu’s lips curled into a smirk, and he suddenly moved!
He noticed that although the mirrages all around him seemed to have no flaws, some details were still different.
The one on the south-east was holding the Sifei Sword turned towards him on high alert, ready to strike.
But the more it tried to show off its powers, the weaker it was inside.
The spiritual power of the Sifei Sword seemed to be unable to support this image, and its appearance was weaker than the other seven’s.
This thought leapt through Zhang Mu’s mind. His attack was swift like wind as he threw himself on the south-eastern mirage.
It was ripped into pieces as soon as Zhang Mu touched it.
As expected!
Zhang Mu was excited.
But his excitement did not last even for half a breath.
A hurricane hit him from behind. He was sucked into the vortex and started fighting with it on equal footing in the chaos, but noticed that the other seven mirages attacked him, controlling their swords!
He showed this weakness on purpose!
Zhang Mu realized suddenly. But it was already too late.
One false move, and he lost the whole game. The Sifei Sword pierced his heart from behind, and Zhang Mu fell into the sea from the air when Changming pulled it out.
But before Zhang Mu’s body sank in the water, his enemy fished him out and dragged him to the shore.
Zhang Mu felt a sharp pain as his palm was pierced right after his chest.
He opened his eyes with great difficulty, and saw that Changming had nailed his hand using the sword, making Zhang Mu unable to move.
Zhang Mu wanted to say something, but vomited a mouthful of blood after opening his mouth.
He saw Changming squat down.
“I know Cang Tian,” Zhang Mu heard, “Those people you cooperate with are only using you for their profit. Once they need a scapegoat, they’ll sell you out with no hesitation. When the massacre of Yuru Town took place, Cang Tian died this very way. One foot in the grave, he asked me to tell you not to believe them.”
“Cough, cough, you are wrong, I didn’t believe them from the very beginning! It was the only way to leave the Darkest Abyss and enter the Human World. They never deceived me…”
Zhang Mu smiled, showing a mocking sneer.
“Do you think that you can kill me, leave the Nine Layers of the Abyss, and everything will be over? No, it’s just the beginning. The Nine Layers of the Abyss looks magnificent and enormous in your eyes, yet it is nothing but one link in their plan. Ha-ha-ha… You can’t even imagine it!”
It seemed that his mouth could not be opened with Cang Tian’s name.
Changming used force to insert the Sifei Sword an inch deeper, and its spiritual power distorted the opponent’s muscles and bones. Even a demon could not stand this, and Zhang Mu groaned in pain; his expression twitched and twisted, and fog wrapped his eyes.
“Who are you? Who works together with you, except for [Wan] Chi Bijiang and Situ Wanhuo?”
Of course, Zhang Mu said nothing. He had a totally unperturbed expression on his face, as if he was saying, “I knew you’d mention them”.
Blood was splattering from his mouth and nose, but he was still jeering at Changming’s ignorance.
But Changming’s next words were—
“Xiao Cangfeng?”
Zhang Mu’s smile froze.
The serious injury made him confused, so he could not conceal his expression for a moment, and this instant reaction let Changming guess the answer.
Changming: “Moreover, if I’m not mistaken, Chen Ting is an incarnation of Jiang Li, the head of the Wanjian Immortal Clan.”
I won’t tell, if you are qualified, go and check it yourself.
Zhang Mu’s lips laughed wordlessly. His expression gradually stiffened, until he could finally make no sound.
The demons in black were mostly killed as well. When Xu Jingxian saw Changming float down to the ground safe and sound, she was delighted at this unexpectedly good result, and rushed towards him, stretching out one of her hands.
“Ming-lang, are you alright?”
Changming hummed in agreement, and looked at the other side of the misty sea.
New high tides were coming from there slowly.
Looking from far away, their speed seemed slow, but their force and noise surpassed everything else.
If this continued, the whole shore would be submerged under the water, becoming an inundated area under the boundless sea.
Xu Jingxian frowned at this.
“What do we do? Do we still need to cross the fog?”
They did come to the Nine Layers of the Abyss through the fog, but they went straight to the Third Layer of the Abyss when they passed through it last time. Obviously, it was constantly changing, and any mistake could send them back, over and over again.
“Maggots! Those maggots came again!”
Before Changming answered her, someone suddenly called out. Xu Jingxian’s expression changed drastically. She turned her head and saw a group of glowing lights coming closer from a distance in the darkness. At first glance, they looked very beautiful, but everybody knew what they actually were.
The dreaded firefly maggots that killed people with one touch.
Watching the firefly maggots, Xu Jingxian recalled the lost half of her thin silk.
Changming told her: “Follow me!”
Having said that, he used his sword to fly towards the place where the huge tides came from, his figure getting further and further away, finally submerged in the waves.
This action looked like pure suicide, and Xu Jingxian froze for a moment, but still chose to follow him quickly.
The closer she got to the huge waves, the stronger the wind blew.
Xu Jingxian almost lost her balance, falling into the water. She gritted her teeth and squinted, braced herself for going against the sky-high waves and wind, and plunged into the water.
The water blocked out both the sky and the earth.
She was completely submerged in the water and overwhelmed by the force pressing down on her from every direction. Xu Jingxian had no choice but to drift along with the flow. She used a little spiritual power to protect her body and stay conscious, however, the sky and the earth were spinning in front of her eyes, and it was very difficult to remain sober when she could not even tell yin and yang apart. After cultivating for so many years, she once again tasted the feeling of dizziness and nausea from riding a horse carriage, just like in her childhood.
Tell yin and yang apart: in this case, a total chaos, yin being the earth and yang being the sky
Xu Jingxian’s eyes rolled, and she fainted.
When she regained consciousness, her body was still fatigued, and her hot eyelids were stinging.
She felt unwell, and could not help but cover her eyes with her hand, opening them at the same time.
The sunlight came in through the space between her fingers, stabbing her eyes.
Xu Jingxian slowly came to her senses and sat, looking around.
Not far away, Changming was standing on a cliff with his hands clasped behind his back, talking with that disciple from the Celestial Abode Shenxiao.
Yun Hai came from the other side with a bunch of withered grass in his hand. It seemed that he had just picked it from the woods and came back.
Xu Jingxian remembered this place.
They entered the Nine Layers of the Abyss from here.
Mists and clouds spreading all over under this steep cliff were the passage to the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
So to say, they had finally left this terrifying place?
Xu Jingxian felt a little absent-minded, as if she was in a dream.
If she went back in time and started over again, she was not sure that she would have made the same choice, and she was positively sure that she would not enter this place again.
Never.
It was unknown what He Qingmo was discussing with Changming. He looked at Xu Jingxian once, as if hesitating whether he should say goodbye, but in the end decided not to. He went past her to Yun Hai, clasped his hand, bidding farewell, and flew away on his sword.
Ignored Xu Jingxian: …Very well, if I see Celestial Abode Shenxiao’s disciples, if I catch one, I’ll torture one, and if I catch two, I’ll torture the pair.
She looked at Changming.
He wore his long hair up, but some was still loose, scattered over his shoulders.
His loose robes were fluttering with the wind, and he actually resembled the master of a generation.
Xu Jingxian knew that the news about Changming killing Zhang Mu would soon spread throughout the world with those cultivators who had escaped from the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
Many people would learn that Jiufang Changming had risen from the dead, returning to the Human World. Probably, this would soon stir the world.
She was looking at him in a daze. Her mind was still jumping, but she sighed freely after surviving a disaster.
Suddenly, Changming vomited a mouthful of blood and sat on the ground weakly, not maintaining that image of a rumored master at all.
Xu Jingxian’s fanciful thoughts scattered like mist and ashes at once: “Weren’t you acting like you were fine just now?”
Changming wiped off the blood from his mouth: “In front of admirers, having a cool demeanor is an absolute necessity, you must endure.”
Xu Jingxian: …
They encountered too many things in the Nine Layers of the Abyss. Everyone went their own ways, and they had their own adventures; all the stories could not be told even in three days and three nights. Xu Jingxian had many questions, especially about the time when Zhang Mu said in front of everyone that Yun Hai was his kin. This thought kept lingering in her mind.
She raised her eyes and saw Yun Hai coming closer. His eyes seemed to be frozen like a glacier or a snow sea. This made her blood run cold, and she could not even voice even half of her questions.
Yun Hai did not stop near her, and did not pay her any attention at all. Without saying anything, he went straight to Changming.
Of course, Xu Jingxian knew Jiufang Changming.
Ever since she had become a cultivator, having left her family of common people, she often heard this name.
The first one in the world.
Daoist Sect Master.
Buddhist Monk.
Great Master of Demonic Cultivation.
Confucian Scholar.
It was hard to even imagine so many completely unrelated titles referring to one person.
This was because Jiufang Changming’s cultivation path was different from others’: he first entered a Daoist sect, and then entered a Buddhist sect. After that, he became a Demonic cultivator, then turned to Confucianism, and finally became an independent rogue cultivator.
Usually people followed the same path throughout their lives to perfect it, but he, on the contrary, studied every school, and even became proficient in each of them.
And what was even rarer was that although people despised him behind his back, they still bestowed the highest titles upon him to win over the talented man.
All those overt and covert slanderous tales were never voiced in front of him. In Jiufang Changming’s heyday, everybody, regardless of whether they liked him or not, whether they were his friends or foes, they still had to call him Immortal Jiufang in his presence.
For many people, he was a legend who was out of reach.
Xu Jingxian was not an exception.
She had read all sorts of scripts depicting tales about Jiufang more than once, and thought that every cultivator should be like him.
Faced with his immense powers, every discontented voice had to go silent.
People around the world feared and vilified him, yet venerated and admired him.
After the battle of the Sacred Mountain Wan, Jiufang Changming fell from the sky. No one saw him alive, but his corpse was not found either.
Fell from the sky: die (of an important person); here, probably, fell from his high position
Some said that he died, and some blamed the failure of the Liuhe Zhutian Formation on him; the second opinion prevailed. Many young cultivators did not understand the situation, and after some time, this name, Jiufang Changming, was nailed to the historical pillar of shame, which was considered as ironclad evidence of his colluding with demons.
Worshiping and chasing the strong is the nature of all kinds of people, and cultivators are no exception. But, when the idol fell and lost his face, the image in their hearts collapsed; the name Jiufang Changming was no longer mentioned and was relegated to the dustbin of history.
Xu Jingxian would have never thought that this sickly man in front of her was related to this legendary figure.
They shared the same name, but she always deemed it a coincidence.
Who would have thought that the same name would mean the same person?!
That is to say—
Xu Jingxian suddenly recalled the strange atmosphere between him and the Jianxue Sect master that day.
She knew that her sect master was one of Jiufang Changming’s disciples.
When Xu Jingxian first heard about it, she complained about the moody temper of the sect master in her heart, did he dare to act the same in front of Immortal Jiufang?
Unexpectedly, the master and disciple had actually met.
No wonder he ordered her to bring him to the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
If Xu Jingxian was that surprised, one could imagine what the bystanders felt.
In a flash, all eyes fell on Changming.
Shock, doubt, curiosity—not a single expression repeated.
A hint of astonishment flashed even through Zhang Mu’s ruthless face.
“Jiufang Changming?”
After being surprised for a moment, he looked Changming up and down. His ridiculing thoughts were obvious.
“The so-called first person in the world turns out to be like this? Have all the cultivators gone extinct? How are you worthy?”
One stone sparked a thousand waves. After these words fell, the humans started seething with anger.
Some people with easily-irritable temperaments broke out in curses as soon as they heard this provocation.
Changming remained unmoved, and was only looking at Zhang Mu: “Do you know Cang Tian? He is one of your kin. He asked me to pass on a message for you.”
Zhang Mu’s expression changed slightly.
Changming: “Looks like you do know him.”
Zhang Mu: “How is he?”
Changming did not answer his question: “The bet.”
Zhang Mu smiled coldly: “I won’t make a bet with you. If you are able, try to pry open my mouth with force, otherwise, you’ll all die here today!”
Before he finished saying the word “today”, his shadow moved, appearing right in front of Changming!
He stretched out his nails, but grabbed the air.
Changming had disappeared, leaving a puppet to be caught.
The thin paper turned into ashes that were blown away by the wind.
Zhang Mu turned around abruptly. The point of the black sword had already reached his forehead!
He felt pain and quickly flew back. His subordinates wanted to interfere, but Yun Hai blocked their way.
Yun Hai’s figure could not be discerned among the black-clothed demons, and surging demonic qi surrounded him. Xu Jingxian could not say whether he was alive or dead, but gritted her teeth, thinking, After all, I gambled on you, and flew near him.
It seemed that Changming and Yun Hai had had an agreement beforehand.
Yun Hai did not meddle in Changming’s battle with Zhang Mu, only helping him to stop other demons.
Their battlefield moved to the surface of the sea away from the shore.
People were watching them from afar, but could only see criss-crossing sword lights. Waves were raised by their spiritual powers, seething more and more vigorously, and turning into billows dashing to the skies one after another, almost covering the night sky.
On the Seven Star Platform back then, Zhang Mu managed to fight against many powerful masters alone, so naturally, his cultivation level was high. Even if humans did not understand the world of demons, the Darkest Abyss, they could see that Zhang Mu was at least at the master level.
Jiufang Changming used to be very famous, but it was different now. Each generation brings new talents to the world, and the situation had long since changed. By the time the majority of the cultivators here started to practice, the world’s major sects were already determined, and the balance of power had been achieved. They had never practiced in the shadow of Jiufang Changming, trembling with awe, so naturally they could not realize how powerful this person was back then; but this name alone made people avoid him.
Each generation brings new talents to the world: “Lunshi” (“About poetry”)
Xu Jingxian’s thin silk was inconvenient to use now.
It was neither long nor short.
But her cultivation had improved greatly as she broke through the bottleneck, so she could hold on through a desperate effort. If this battle happened before, she would have been quickly defeated.
That would be wonderful if they won; she would follow Changming, and maybe would be able to dig out something useful like the Yangzhen Grass again. But if they lost, that would be truly losing the wife together with soldiers.
Losing the wife together with soldiers: sending the helve after the hatchet, a double loss
But was Changming actually that Jiufang Changming?
Tales had come true, and she could not help but feel a bit perplexed.
Probably because she had just flirted with him, grabbing his hair.
She was absent-minded during the fight, and her shoulder was scratched with long nails; fortunately, someone pushed her to the side.
“Why did you freeze?!”
Xu Jingxian turned her head and was surprised to see He Qingmo.
That disciple from the Celestial Abode Shenxiao who she met on the Rainbow bridge, and who disappeared without a trace after jumping into the Mirror Lake, unexpectedly, was still alive.
What surprised Xu Jingxian even more was that while many people chose to stand by and let them do the fighting, He Qingmo actually took the initiative to participate.
One of his shidis followed him as well.
While others were looking at each other in dismay, and the majority wisely chose to play safe, waiting and observing them, some people gradually started coming forward.
The pressure on Xu Jingxian lightened a lot.
As for Yun Hai—
Xu Jingxian realized that he was nowhere to be seen.
Where did he go?
Zhang Mu had not believed that his opponent was able to win at all.
But now, he had to reconsider this thought.
He found himself trapped in a Void Formation.
Void: Budd. emptiness of the material world
Images of Changming holding the sword and applying techniques with hand gestures surrounded him from eight directions, and every illusion technique was different. But no matter which mirage Zhang Mu attacked, every strike would bounce back on him.
After several attempts, Zhang Mu began to doubt.
He thought that he had surely missed some details.
This formation did not only require spiritual powers to support it, but also the caster to have a deep consciousness. Zhang Mu could not believe that the other’s sea of consciousness was so broad that Changming was able to confine him in the illusion, rendering Zhang Mu unable to move a single step.
The sea of consciousness…
A thought suddenly dawned on him, and Zhang Mu realized one thing.
His enemy used Zhang Mu’s lack of attention to assault using the breach.
Using the breach: lit. to use ‘void’ to enter
Right now, he was not in the sea of misleading fog of the Nine Layers of the Abyss, but rather in Changming’s sea of consciousness.
As long as the sea of consciousness was broken, he could get out of the trap, and also damage Jiufang Changming’s consciousness.
That former brilliant master’s gotten dumber, doesn’t this sound interesting?
The corners of Zhang Mu’s lips curled into a smirk, and he suddenly moved!
He noticed that although the mirrages all around him seemed to have no flaws, some details were still different.
The one on the south-east was holding the Sifei Sword turned towards him on high alert, ready to strike.
But the more it tried to show off its powers, the weaker it was inside.
The spiritual power of the Sifei Sword seemed to be unable to support this image, and its appearance was weaker than the other seven’s.
This thought leapt through Zhang Mu’s mind. His attack was swift like wind as he threw himself on the south-eastern mirage.
It was ripped into pieces as soon as Zhang Mu touched it.
As expected!
Zhang Mu was excited.
But his excitement did not last even for half a breath.
A hurricane hit him from behind. He was sucked into the vortex and started fighting with it on equal footing in the chaos, but noticed that the other seven mirages attacked him, controlling their swords!
He showed this weakness on purpose!
Zhang Mu realized suddenly. But it was already too late.
One false move, and he lost the whole game. The Sifei Sword pierced his heart from behind, and Zhang Mu fell into the sea from the air when Changming pulled it out.
But before Zhang Mu’s body sank in the water, his enemy fished him out and dragged him to the shore.
Zhang Mu felt a sharp pain as his palm was pierced right after his chest.
He opened his eyes with great difficulty, and saw that Changming had nailed his hand using the sword, making Zhang Mu unable to move.
Zhang Mu wanted to say something, but vomited a mouthful of blood after opening his mouth.
He saw Changming squat down.
“I know Cang Tian,” Zhang Mu heard, “Those people you cooperate with are only using you for their profit. Once they need a scapegoat, they’ll sell you out with no hesitation. When the massacre of Yuru Town took place, Cang Tian died this very way. One foot in the grave, he asked me to tell you not to believe them.”
“Cough, cough, you are wrong, I didn’t believe them from the very beginning! It was the only way to leave the Darkest Abyss and enter the Human World. They never deceived me…”
Zhang Mu smiled, showing a mocking sneer.
“Do you think that you can kill me, leave the Nine Layers of the Abyss, and everything will be over? No, it’s just the beginning. The Nine Layers of the Abyss looks magnificent and enormous in your eyes, yet it is nothing but one link in their plan. Ha-ha-ha… You can’t even imagine it!”
It seemed that his mouth could not be opened with Cang Tian’s name.
Changming used force to insert the Sifei Sword an inch deeper, and its spiritual power distorted the opponent’s muscles and bones. Even a demon could not stand this, and Zhang Mu groaned in pain; his expression twitched and twisted, and fog wrapped his eyes.
“Who are you? Who works together with you, except for [Wan] Chi Bijiang and Situ Wanhuo?”
Of course, Zhang Mu said nothing. He had a totally unperturbed expression on his face, as if he was saying, “I knew you’d mention them”.
Blood was splattering from his mouth and nose, but he was still jeering at Changming’s ignorance.
But Changming’s next words were—
“Xiao Cangfeng?”
Zhang Mu’s smile froze.
The serious injury made him confused, so he could not conceal his expression for a moment, and this instant reaction let Changming guess the answer.
Changming: “Moreover, if I’m not mistaken, Chen Ting is an incarnation of Jiang Li, the head of the Wanjian Immortal Clan.”
I won’t tell, if you are qualified, go and check it yourself.
Zhang Mu’s lips laughed wordlessly. His expression gradually stiffened, until he could finally make no sound.
The demons in black were mostly killed as well. When Xu Jingxian saw Changming float down to the ground safe and sound, she was delighted at this unexpectedly good result, and rushed towards him, stretching out one of her hands.
“Ming-lang, are you alright?”
Changming hummed in agreement, and looked at the other side of the misty sea.
New high tides were coming from there slowly.
Looking from far away, their speed seemed slow, but their force and noise surpassed everything else.
If this continued, the whole shore would be submerged under the water, becoming an inundated area under the boundless sea.
Xu Jingxian frowned at this.
“What do we do? Do we still need to cross the fog?”
They did come to the Nine Layers of the Abyss through the fog, but they went straight to the Third Layer of the Abyss when they passed through it last time. Obviously, it was constantly changing, and any mistake could send them back, over and over again.
“Maggots! Those maggots came again!”
Before Changming answered her, someone suddenly called out. Xu Jingxian’s expression changed drastically. She turned her head and saw a group of glowing lights coming closer from a distance in the darkness. At first glance, they looked very beautiful, but everybody knew what they actually were.
The dreaded firefly maggots that killed people with one touch.
Watching the firefly maggots, Xu Jingxian recalled the lost half of her thin silk.
Changming told her: “Follow me!”
Having said that, he used his sword to fly towards the place where the huge tides came from, his figure getting further and further away, finally submerged in the waves.
This action looked like pure suicide, and Xu Jingxian froze for a moment, but still chose to follow him quickly.
The closer she got to the huge waves, the stronger the wind blew.
Xu Jingxian almost lost her balance, falling into the water. She gritted her teeth and squinted, braced herself for going against the sky-high waves and wind, and plunged into the water.
The water blocked out both the sky and the earth.
She was completely submerged in the water and overwhelmed by the force pressing down on her from every direction. Xu Jingxian had no choice but to drift along with the flow. She used a little spiritual power to protect her body and stay conscious, however, the sky and the earth were spinning in front of her eyes, and it was very difficult to remain sober when she could not even tell yin and yang apart. After cultivating for so many years, she once again tasted the feeling of dizziness and nausea from riding a horse carriage, just like in her childhood.
Tell yin and yang apart: in this case, a total chaos, yin being the earth and yang being the sky
Xu Jingxian’s eyes rolled, and she fainted.
When she regained consciousness, her body was still fatigued, and her hot eyelids were stinging.
She felt unwell, and could not help but cover her eyes with her hand, opening them at the same time.
The sunlight came in through the space between her fingers, stabbing her eyes.
Xu Jingxian slowly came to her senses and sat, looking around.
Not far away, Changming was standing on a cliff with his hands clasped behind his back, talking with that disciple from the Celestial Abode Shenxiao.
Yun Hai came from the other side with a bunch of withered grass in his hand. It seemed that he had just picked it from the woods and came back.
Xu Jingxian remembered this place.
They entered the Nine Layers of the Abyss from here.
Mists and clouds spreading all over under this steep cliff were the passage to the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
So to say, they had finally left this terrifying place?
Xu Jingxian felt a little absent-minded, as if she was in a dream.
If she went back in time and started over again, she was not sure that she would have made the same choice, and she was positively sure that she would not enter this place again.
Never.
It was unknown what He Qingmo was discussing with Changming. He looked at Xu Jingxian once, as if hesitating whether he should say goodbye, but in the end decided not to. He went past her to Yun Hai, clasped his hand, bidding farewell, and flew away on his sword.
Ignored Xu Jingxian: …Very well, if I see Celestial Abode Shenxiao’s disciples, if I catch one, I’ll torture one, and if I catch two, I’ll torture the pair.
She looked at Changming.
He wore his long hair up, but some was still loose, scattered over his shoulders.
His loose robes were fluttering with the wind, and he actually resembled the master of a generation.
Xu Jingxian knew that the news about Changming killing Zhang Mu would soon spread throughout the world with those cultivators who had escaped from the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
Many people would learn that Jiufang Changming had risen from the dead, returning to the Human World. Probably, this would soon stir the world.
She was looking at him in a daze. Her mind was still jumping, but she sighed freely after surviving a disaster.
Suddenly, Changming vomited a mouthful of blood and sat on the ground weakly, not maintaining that image of a rumored master at all.
Xu Jingxian’s fanciful thoughts scattered like mist and ashes at once: “Weren’t you acting like you were fine just now?”
Changming wiped off the blood from his mouth: “In front of admirers, having a cool demeanor is an absolute necessity, you must endure.”
Xu Jingxian: …
They encountered too many things in the Nine Layers of the Abyss. Everyone went their own ways, and they had their own adventures; all the stories could not be told even in three days and three nights. Xu Jingxian had many questions, especially about the time when Zhang Mu said in front of everyone that Yun Hai was his kin. This thought kept lingering in her mind.
She raised her eyes and saw Yun Hai coming closer. His eyes seemed to be frozen like a glacier or a snow sea. This made her blood run cold, and she could not even voice even half of her questions.
Yun Hai did not stop near her, and did not pay her any attention at all. Without saying anything, he went straight to Changming.
Proofread by Snake & Lucia
Of course, Xu Jingxian knew Jiufang Changming.
Ever since she had become a cultivator, having left her family of common people, she often heard this name.
The first one in the world.
Daoist Sect Master.
Buddhist Monk.
Great Master of Demonic Cultivation.
Confucian Scholar.
It was hard to even imagine so many completely unrelated titles referring to one person.
This was because Jiufang Changming’s cultivation path was different from others’: he first entered a Daoist sect, and then entered a Buddhist sect. After that, he became a Demonic cultivator, then turned to Confucianism, and finally became an independent rogue cultivator.
Usually people followed the same path throughout their lives to perfect it, but he, on the contrary, studied every school, and even became proficient in each of them.
And what was even rarer was that although people despised him behind his back, they still bestowed the highest titles upon him to win over the talented man.
All those overt and covert slanderous tales were never voiced in front of him. In Jiufang Changming’s heyday, everybody, regardless of whether they liked him or not, whether they were his friends or foes, they still had to call him Immortal Jiufang in his presence.
For many people, he was a legend who was out of reach.
Xu Jingxian was not an exception.
She had read all sorts of scripts depicting tales about Jiufang more than once, and thought that every cultivator should be like him.
Faced with his immense powers, every discontented voice had to go silent.
People around the world feared and vilified him, yet venerated and admired him.
After the battle of the Sacred Mountain Wan, Jiufang Changming fell from the sky. No one saw him alive, but his corpse was not found either.
Fell from the sky: die (of an important person); here, probably, fell from his high position
Some said that he died, and some blamed the failure of the Liuhe Zhutian Formation on him; the second opinion prevailed. Many young cultivators did not understand the situation, and after some time, this name, Jiufang Changming, was nailed to the historical pillar of shame, which was considered as ironclad evidence of his colluding with demons.
Worshiping and chasing the strong is the nature of all kinds of people, and cultivators are no exception. But, when the idol fell and lost his face, the image in their hearts collapsed; the name Jiufang Changming was no longer mentioned and was relegated to the dustbin of history.
Xu Jingxian would have never thought that this sickly man in front of her was related to this legendary figure.
They shared the same name, but she always deemed it a coincidence.
Who would have thought that the same name would mean the same person?!
That is to say—
Xu Jingxian suddenly recalled the strange atmosphere between him and the Jianxue Sect master that day.
She knew that her sect master was one of Jiufang Changming’s disciples.
When Xu Jingxian first heard about it, she complained about the moody temper of the sect master in her heart, did he dare to act the same in front of Immortal Jiufang?
Unexpectedly, the master and disciple had actually met.
No wonder he ordered her to bring him to the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
If Xu Jingxian was that surprised, one could imagine what the bystanders felt.
In a flash, all eyes fell on Changming.
Shock, doubt, curiosity—not a single expression repeated.
A hint of astonishment flashed even through Zhang Mu’s ruthless face.
“Jiufang Changming?”
After being surprised for a moment, he looked Changming up and down. His ridiculing thoughts were obvious.
“The so-called first person in the world turns out to be like this? Have all the cultivators gone extinct? How are you worthy?”
One stone sparked a thousand waves. After these words fell, the humans started seething with anger.
Some people with easily-irritable temperaments broke out in curses as soon as they heard this provocation.
Changming remained unmoved, and was only looking at Zhang Mu: “Do you know Cang Tian? He is one of your kin. He asked me to pass on a message for you.”
Zhang Mu’s expression changed slightly.
Changming: “Looks like you do know him.”
Zhang Mu: “How is he?”
Changming did not answer his question: “The bet.”
Zhang Mu smiled coldly: “I won’t make a bet with you. If you are able, try to pry open my mouth with force, otherwise, you’ll all die here today!”
Before he finished saying the word “today”, his shadow moved, appearing right in front of Changming!
He stretched out his nails, but grabbed the air.
Changming had disappeared, leaving a puppet to be caught.
The thin paper turned into ashes that were blown away by the wind.
Zhang Mu turned around abruptly. The point of the black sword had already reached his forehead!
He felt pain and quickly flew back. His subordinates wanted to interfere, but Yun Hai blocked their way.
Yun Hai’s figure could not be discerned among the black-clothed demons, and surging demonic qi surrounded him. Xu Jingxian could not say whether he was alive or dead, but gritted her teeth, thinking, After all, I gambled on you, and flew near him.
It seemed that Changming and Yun Hai had had an agreement beforehand.
Yun Hai did not meddle in Changming’s battle with Zhang Mu, only helping him to stop other demons.
Their battlefield moved to the surface of the sea away from the shore.
People were watching them from afar, but could only see criss-crossing sword lights. Waves were raised by their spiritual powers, seething more and more vigorously, and turning into billows dashing to the skies one after another, almost covering the night sky.
On the Seven Star Platform back then, Zhang Mu managed to fight against many powerful masters alone, so naturally, his cultivation level was high. Even if humans did not understand the world of demons, the Darkest Abyss, they could see that Zhang Mu was at least at the master level.
Jiufang Changming used to be very famous, but it was different now. Each generation brings new talents to the world, and the situation had long since changed. By the time the majority of the cultivators here started to practice, the world’s major sects were already determined, and the balance of power had been achieved. They had never practiced in the shadow of Jiufang Changming, trembling with awe, so naturally they could not realize how powerful this person was back then; but this name alone made people avoid him.
Each generation brings new talents to the world: “Lunshi” (“About poetry”)
Xu Jingxian’s thin silk was inconvenient to use now.
It was neither long nor short.
But her cultivation had improved greatly as she broke through the bottleneck, so she could hold on through a desperate effort. If this battle happened before, she would have been quickly defeated.
That would be wonderful if they won; she would follow Changming, and maybe would be able to dig out something useful like the Yangzhen Grass again. But if they lost, that would be truly losing the wife together with soldiers.
Losing the wife together with soldiers: sending the helve after the hatchet, a double loss
But was Changming actually that Jiufang Changming?
Tales had come true, and she could not help but feel a bit perplexed.
Probably because she had just flirted with him, grabbing his hair.
She was absent-minded during the fight, and her shoulder was scratched with long nails; fortunately, someone pushed her to the side.
“Why did you freeze?!”
Xu Jingxian turned her head and was surprised to see He Qingmo.
That disciple from the Celestial Abode Shenxiao who she met on the Rainbow bridge, and who disappeared without a trace after jumping into the Mirror Lake, unexpectedly, was still alive.
What surprised Xu Jingxian even more was that while many people chose to stand by and let them do the fighting, He Qingmo actually took the initiative to participate.
One of his shidis followed him as well.
While others were looking at each other in dismay, and the majority wisely chose to play safe, waiting and observing them, some people gradually started coming forward.
The pressure on Xu Jingxian lightened a lot.
As for Yun Hai—
Xu Jingxian realized that he was nowhere to be seen.
Where did he go?
Zhang Mu had not believed that his opponent was able to win at all.
But now, he had to reconsider this thought.
He found himself trapped in a Void Formation.
Void: Budd. emptiness of the material world
Images of Changming holding the sword and applying techniques with hand gestures surrounded him from eight directions, and every illusion technique was different. But no matter which mirage Zhang Mu attacked, every strike would bounce back on him.
After several attempts, Zhang Mu began to doubt.
He thought that he had surely missed some details.
This formation did not only require spiritual powers to support it, but also the caster to have a deep consciousness. Zhang Mu could not believe that the other’s sea of consciousness was so broad that Changming was able to confine him in the illusion, rendering Zhang Mu unable to move a single step.
The sea of consciousness…
A thought suddenly dawned on him, and Zhang Mu realized one thing.
His enemy used Zhang Mu’s lack of attention to assault using the breach.
Using the breach: lit. to use ‘void’ to enter
Right now, he was not in the sea of misleading fog of the Nine Layers of the Abyss, but rather in Changming’s sea of consciousness.
As long as the sea of consciousness was broken, he could get out of the trap, and also damage Jiufang Changming’s consciousness.
That former brilliant master’s gotten dumber, doesn’t this sound interesting?
The corners of Zhang Mu’s lips curled into a smirk, and he suddenly moved!
He noticed that although the mirrages all around him seemed to have no flaws, some details were still different.
The one on the south-east was holding the Sifei Sword turned towards him on high alert, ready to strike.
But the more it tried to show off its powers, the weaker it was inside.
The spiritual power of the Sifei Sword seemed to be unable to support this image, and its appearance was weaker than the other seven’s.
This thought leapt through Zhang Mu’s mind. His attack was swift like wind as he threw himself on the south-eastern mirage.
It was ripped into pieces as soon as Zhang Mu touched it.
As expected!
Zhang Mu was excited.
But his excitement did not last even for half a breath.
A hurricane hit him from behind. He was sucked into the vortex and started fighting with it on equal footing in the chaos, but noticed that the other seven mirages attacked him, controlling their swords!
He showed this weakness on purpose!
Zhang Mu realized suddenly. But it was already too late.
One false move, and he lost the whole game. The Sifei Sword pierced his heart from behind, and Zhang Mu fell into the sea from the air when Changming pulled it out.
But before Zhang Mu’s body sank in the water, his enemy fished him out and dragged him to the shore.
Zhang Mu felt a sharp pain as his palm was pierced right after his chest.
He opened his eyes with great difficulty, and saw that Changming had nailed his hand using the sword, making Zhang Mu unable to move.
Zhang Mu wanted to say something, but vomited a mouthful of blood after opening his mouth.
He saw Changming squat down.
“I know Cang Tian,” Zhang Mu heard, “Those people you cooperate with are only using you for their profit. Once they need a scapegoat, they’ll sell you out with no hesitation. When the massacre of Yuru Town took place, Cang Tian died this very way. One foot in the grave, he asked me to tell you not to believe them.”
“Cough, cough, you are wrong, I didn’t believe them from the very beginning! It was the only way to leave the Darkest Abyss and enter the Human World. They never deceived me…”
Zhang Mu smiled, showing a mocking sneer.
“Do you think that you can kill me, leave the Nine Layers of the Abyss, and everything will be over? No, it’s just the beginning. The Nine Layers of the Abyss looks magnificent and enormous in your eyes, yet it is nothing but one link in their plan. Ha-ha-ha… You can’t even imagine it!”
It seemed that his mouth could not be opened with Cang Tian’s name.
Changming used force to insert the Sifei Sword an inch deeper, and its spiritual power distorted the opponent’s muscles and bones. Even a demon could not stand this, and Zhang Mu groaned in pain; his expression twitched and twisted, and fog wrapped his eyes.
“Who are you? Who works together with you, except for [Wan] Chi Bijiang and Situ Wanhuo?”
Of course, Zhang Mu said nothing. He had a totally unperturbed expression on his face, as if he was saying, “I knew you’d mention them”.
Blood was splattering from his mouth and nose, but he was still jeering at Changming’s ignorance.
But Changming’s next words were—
“Xiao Cangfeng?”
Zhang Mu’s smile froze.
The serious injury made him confused, so he could not conceal his expression for a moment, and this instant reaction let Changming guess the answer.
Changming: “Moreover, if I’m not mistaken, Chen Ting is an incarnation of Jiang Li, the head of the Wanjian Immortal Clan.”
I won’t tell, if you are qualified, go and check it yourself.
Zhang Mu’s lips laughed wordlessly. His expression gradually stiffened, until he could finally make no sound.
The demons in black were mostly killed as well. When Xu Jingxian saw Changming float down to the ground safe and sound, she was delighted at this unexpectedly good result, and rushed towards him, stretching out one of her hands.
“Ming-lang, are you alright?”
Changming hummed in agreement, and looked at the other side of the misty sea.
New high tides were coming from there slowly.
Looking from far away, their speed seemed slow, but their force and noise surpassed everything else.
If this continued, the whole shore would be submerged under the water, becoming an inundated area under the boundless sea.
Xu Jingxian frowned at this.
“What do we do? Do we still need to cross the fog?”
They did come to the Nine Layers of the Abyss through the fog, but they went straight to the Third Layer of the Abyss when they passed through it last time. Obviously, it was constantly changing, and any mistake could send them back, over and over again.
“Maggots! Those maggots came again!”
Before Changming answered her, someone suddenly called out. Xu Jingxian’s expression changed drastically. She turned her head and saw a group of glowing lights coming closer from a distance in the darkness. At first glance, they looked very beautiful, but everybody knew what they actually were.
The dreaded firefly maggots that killed people with one touch.
Watching the firefly maggots, Xu Jingxian recalled the lost half of her thin silk.
Changming told her: “Follow me!”
Having said that, he used his sword to fly towards the place where the huge tides came from, his figure getting further and further away, finally submerged in the waves.
This action looked like pure suicide, and Xu Jingxian froze for a moment, but still chose to follow him quickly.
The closer she got to the huge waves, the stronger the wind blew.
Xu Jingxian almost lost her balance, falling into the water. She gritted her teeth and squinted, braced herself for going against the sky-high waves and wind, and plunged into the water.
The water blocked out both the sky and the earth.
She was completely submerged in the water and overwhelmed by the force pressing down on her from every direction. Xu Jingxian had no choice but to drift along with the flow. She used a little spiritual power to protect her body and stay conscious, however, the sky and the earth were spinning in front of her eyes, and it was very difficult to remain sober when she could not even tell yin and yang apart. After cultivating for so many years, she once again tasted the feeling of dizziness and nausea from riding a horse carriage, just like in her childhood.
Tell yin and yang apart: in this case, a total chaos, yin being the earth and yang being the sky
Xu Jingxian’s eyes rolled, and she fainted.
When she regained consciousness, her body was still fatigued, and her hot eyelids were stinging.
She felt unwell, and could not help but cover her eyes with her hand, opening them at the same time.
The sunlight came in through the space between her fingers, stabbing her eyes.
Xu Jingxian slowly came to her senses and sat, looking around.
Not far away, Changming was standing on a cliff with his hands clasped behind his back, talking with that disciple from the Celestial Abode Shenxiao.
Yun Hai came from the other side with a bunch of withered grass in his hand. It seemed that he had just picked it from the woods and came back.
Xu Jingxian remembered this place.
They entered the Nine Layers of the Abyss from here.
Mists and clouds spreading all over under this steep cliff were the passage to the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
So to say, they had finally left this terrifying place?
Xu Jingxian felt a little absent-minded, as if she was in a dream.
If she went back in time and started over again, she was not sure that she would have made the same choice, and she was positively sure that she would not enter this place again.
Never.
It was unknown what He Qingmo was discussing with Changming. He looked at Xu Jingxian once, as if hesitating whether he should say goodbye, but in the end decided not to. He went past her to Yun Hai, clasped his hand, bidding farewell, and flew away on his sword.
Ignored Xu Jingxian: …Very well, if I see Celestial Abode Shenxiao’s disciples, if I catch one, I’ll torture one, and if I catch two, I’ll torture the pair.
She looked at Changming.
He wore his long hair up, but some was still loose, scattered over his shoulders.
His loose robes were fluttering with the wind, and he actually resembled the master of a generation.
Xu Jingxian knew that the news about Changming killing Zhang Mu would soon spread throughout the world with those cultivators who had escaped from the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
Many people would learn that Jiufang Changming had risen from the dead, returning to the Human World. Probably, this would soon stir the world.
She was looking at him in a daze. Her mind was still jumping, but she sighed freely after surviving a disaster.
Suddenly, Changming vomited a mouthful of blood and sat on the ground weakly, not maintaining that image of a rumored master at all.
Xu Jingxian’s fanciful thoughts scattered like mist and ashes at once: “Weren’t you acting like you were fine just now?”
Changming wiped off the blood from his mouth: “In front of admirers, having a cool demeanor is an absolute necessity, you must endure.”
Xu Jingxian: …
They encountered too many things in the Nine Layers of the Abyss. Everyone went their own ways, and they had their own adventures; all the stories could not be told even in three days and three nights. Xu Jingxian had many questions, especially about the time when Zhang Mu said in front of everyone that Yun Hai was his kin. This thought kept lingering in her mind.
She raised her eyes and saw Yun Hai coming closer. His eyes seemed to be frozen like a glacier or a snow sea. This made her blood run cold, and she could not even voice even half of her questions.
Yun Hai did not stop near her, and did not pay her any attention at all. Without saying anything, he went straight to Changming.
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