Chapter 388 - Coercion
Shen Lian and Zhao Xiaoyu stepped on the water but they did not sink. Clouds formed above in the sky, making them look celestial-like.
Zhao Xiaoyu smiled, "You walking out like that has left a blank space and I was not able to thank Zhenren Wang personally."
"As long as you keep the favor in mind, you can repay it in the future. It's unnecessary to fake a polite reply as an expression of gratitude. It's not very classy to do so." Shen Lian walked along the river as every step he took were clear and precise movements.
Zhao Xiaoyu too was not to be outdone by Shen Lian. After her gain from the Enlightenment Scripture, her injuries greatly healed and it seemed like she could face challenges ahead of her. She captured the lingering Dao rhythm at the Tianmen Straits and infuse it with herself to radiate a ray of holy light. She was able to catch up with Shen Lian's pace.
The two of them had a competition of shifting methods. They crossed the flowing water and yet there were no ripples on the surface of the water. It was as if they were walking in a different world and the reflection, in reality, was just a portrait.
Shen Lian enjoyed this type of competition. He revealed a sly look as he took the lead against Zhao Xiaoyu.
Every single word he uttered at the Temple of Contentment was not just his understanding of the five elements, but also a triggering force of the Five Elements Magical Sword. As the two combined, the sword will break open the highly condensed divine Qi of Wang Shidao and the guests of the Temple of Contentment. It connected the inside and outside of the temple as the five elements operated automatically. That was why his words were so heart-gripping and gave an impression that he overpowered Wang Shidao.
It was not his intention to overshadow the host but as he spoke about the essence of the five elements of Dao, he was so into it that he forgot to restrain himself as his words came out smoothly.
Wang Shidao was indeed a kind person. He did not blame Shen Lian and instead gave him his blessings.
Shen Lian naturally refused to shamelessly stay behind to hear the compliments of the audiences.
Dashing out from the hall was the right decision to make. Furthermore, it was also effective in concealing the fact that Zhao Xiaoyu's injuries have improved and that would save Wang Shidao from unnecessary troubles.
Even if people would label him as an eccentric person, there were many thoughts that lead this decision. It would be difficult for one to understand it if they were not in the picture.
Although Xuantian Sect made it clear that they did not want to be involved in the upcoming revolution of the heaven and earth, they could not neglect the fact that Shen Lian had good momentum and was riding on the revolution of the heaven and earth, hence extended their friendly hands to him. This was just Shen Lian's guess, but he firmly believed that it was close enough to the truth.
He thought to himself, "After all, strength is power."
If he was neither the headmaster of Qing Xuan nor a rare prodigy, or even if Zhao Xiaoyu was not the Saintess of Luoism, Wang Shidao, despite being a broad-minded person, would have never spoken about the Enlightenment Scripture to cure Zhao Xiaoyu's injuries. Such Dao formula were the fundamentals of the school and it made no sense to preach it externally.
The two of them moved quicker and quicker and no one was keeping count on how far have they went. Looking at the direction that Shen Lian was heading to, Zhao Xiaoyu predicted that he wanted to go to Xi Huang. She put her thoughts together and guessed that Shen Lian's next destination was the Temple of Killings.
As they passed the mountains, the mountain bloomed in spring; as they cross the waters, the water became clear; as they walk passed densely polluted and sickly areas, their radiated divine lights that eliminated illnesses. People of this region were able to enjoy good health in the next tens of years.
In the past years, voices that could linger for three days seemed impressive. But Shen Lian and Zhao Xiaoyu were even better. Their shadows lingered long enough that many believers drew the portraits of them and to pray to.
Sometime later, Shen Lian arrived at the area near the Temple of Killings. Supposedly, there should be tons of Chen Jianmei's enemies and Guangqing's people who would crowd the place.
But as Fang Yanying improved with heavenly speed, she practiced the sword fairy act every day. This caused Chen Jianmei's enemies to be on high alert and did not dare to take reckless actions.
Furthermore, the enemies did not have a leader and they also had their own feud with each other as there would be fights every day. Otherwise, with Fang Yanying's abilities which were already on par as Chen Jianmei, she could have abandoned the temple and leave.
The demons and cultivators who were lurking behind the Temple of Killings sensed a sudden frightening aura that was beyond the nature of heaven and earth.
It was as if some sort of gravity force pulled the dark clouds to gather at the same spot. There was no sound at all and in this vast horrifying loneliness, a figure stood out stunningly.
That person stood below the mountain of the Temple of Killings and he looked more massive than the mountain. Holding a long sword, the razor-sharp Qi dashed towards the cloud like a solitary peak upon the ground of the world.
Everyone was fearful but none of them knew what were they afraid of.
At this very moment, a cultivator yelled, "Zhenren Shen of Qingxuan, as an immortal Zhenren, are you here to bully the weak?"
The demonic spirit was confused when they heard the words 'Zhenren Shen'. They were demons of prestige, and ever since the time of their ancestors, humans were a form of food. Even up till today, they were still feeding on humans. They had no idea the fearful meaning behind 'Zhenren Shen'.
They only knew that the cultivators were extremely terrified by Shen Lian and they did not want Shen Lian to be involved here.
Shen Lian kept a straight face and yet no one dared to mess with him.
The dark clouds above the sky were thick as ink. There was no other glow in heaven and earth beside the divine aura of the cultivators and demonic spirit.
The demonic spirits thought that it would rain soon and they could secretly munch on a couple of human cultivators without being exposed. They came along with several demon kings but not all of them were shapeshifted by the demon kings. They had their own train of thoughts and according to their peers, cultivators were the most delicious food in the universe.
Although they knew that their peers only had the chance to lick on the remainders of the demon king's meal, but as they looked the expression of their peers talking about the food, they knew that cultivator's meat was definitely the ultimate taste.
Shen Lian stood in silence but he did not have the intention to kill any of the demonic spirits and cultivators. He came here to do something very specific.
Fang Yanying was meditating at the Temple of Killings that was surrounded by layers of Dao restriction. The formation set by the Shapeless Sword aura prevented the demonic spirits and cultivators from breaking in.
She was lethargic as she has been fighting non-stop for the past few days. Although she was improving, the demonic spirits and cultivators, too, had been joining forces. Sooner or later, she would definitely collapse.
Despite that, she remained hopeful and did not have the intentions of seeking help from Qing Xuan. If her master could set up the Temple of Killings in Xi Huang, she would have the ability to protect the temple.
The commotion outside shook her. She walked out of the mediation room and noticed the thick dark clouds in the sky. She wondered was it a demon king of the level of an immortal Zhenren appeared among the demons or was it one of the five celestials of Guangqing that came by; do they really want to turn their back against Qingxuan?