221: Great Immortal! Black Ridge City is so poor!

Hearing the voice, Shen Li did not show much panic.

Instead, he frowned and slowly turned around.

He saw a Foundation Establishment True Person with a face like jade, whose entire body was covered in red scriptures, appearing like seals, looking at him.

His eyes were filled with sincerity... but what they revealed was only a deep eeriness.

His pupils were like ink, as if countless wronged souls in a burial ground were struggling with raised hands.

The whites of his eyes resembled wells, seemingly wanting to contain all the fallen intentions within.

A faint smile hung on the corner of his mouth... looking at Shen Li, there was a sense of Buddhist compassion surrounding him.

But this compassion always sought to draw him into the abyss within the sea of his eyes.

This Foundation Establishment True Person was extremely evil... unbelievably evil.

Shen Li did not panic; the crescent moon on his brow shone brightly, and his Tai Yin Sword Intent slowly emerged, poised and ready.

Upon seeing this, Xuan Zang quickly withdrew the hand he had placed on Shen Li's shoulder and looked at his palm.

Unbeknownst to him, a piece of flesh had been cut from his palm, with no blood flowing out; instead, a bone-chilling cold poison gradually ascended along his Meridians.

It made him feel as if he were in the coldest depths of winter, unbearable.

A hint of surprise flashed in Xuan Zang's eyes, but he said with a smile,

“That was a bit presumptuous; please, Fellow Daoist Qingxuan, do not take offense... Your Sword Intent is indeed extraordinary. Among the dozen or so Dao Foundation Sword Cultivators I killed in previous years, none had Sword Intent like yours. Even those Dao Foundation True Cultivators who had produced a rudimentary form of Sword Intent were far inferior.”

Shen Li did not respond... instead, he asked curiously,

“Fellow Daoist Xuan Zang... have you ever heard of Jin Chanzi?”

A hint of confusion flashed in Xuan Zang's eyes, and then he tapped his own head.

The strange seals rapidly expanded, then suddenly collapsed... After a long while, he looked at Grand Master Shenqian.

Grand Master Shenqian kept his eyes downcast, not wanting to bother with the two... Then Xuan Zang said with some apology,

“Fellow Daoist... after I entered Locking Madness Cave, I washed away a part of my memories with the pool water to suppress my Heart Demon, so... I have never heard of this Fellow Daoist, this Daoist title...”

“If I were to stretch it... the taste of this eighth-grade heaven and earth treasure, Jin Chan, is quite good.”

Shen Li lowered his eyes, his eyebrows twitching wildly.

Entering Locking Madness Cave, wasn't that like entering a mental asylum? And this Xuan Zang's entire aura wasEvil, clearly due to the Heart Demon's mischief. From the looks of it, he had just been bailed out of Locking Madness Cave?

His combat ability goes without saying; Xuan Zang's Realm was roughly at the Mid to Late Stage of Dao Foundation, and he possessed at least three Divine Abilities, each extraordinary.

He knew this from their brief skirmish earlier.

If not for the terrifying Tai Yin Sword Intent, the powerful Taiyin Immaculate Body, and the fact that he had long ago purged his Heart Demon, he would probably have been tormented by Xuan Zang's Heart Demon.

He just didn't understand... calling this person as a helper... wouldn't that just cause more trouble for himself?

Was there no one left in Qingchi Mountain?

Shen Li looked at Grand Master Shenqian with some helplessness and said,

“Great True Person... if Qingxuan is not mistaken, Fellow Daoist Xuan Zang has just emerged from Locking Madness Cave? He probably needs a few years to stabilize and recuperate, right... Going out and wantonly creating slaughter like this... won't it cause some undesirable reactions?”

“I am but a small Early Stage Dao Foundation Cultivator... Black Ridge City is also weak, truly unable to accommodate a great Buddha like Fellow Daoist Xuan Zang.”

Before Grand Master Shenqian could speak, Xuan Zang said with great sincerity,

“Fellow Daoist Qingxuan, Fellow Daoist Qingxuan... what kind of talk is this? Do you look down on Cultivators like us who come out of Locking Madness Cave?”

“This is discrimination, blatant discrimination!”

“We will absolutely not mess things up. No one wants to go to a place like Locking Madness Cave, but there's nothing we can do about it...”

Then Grand Master Shenqian waved his hand and said,

“Enough... Xuan Zang, you go down first. I have something to discuss with Qingxuan.”

Xuan Zang stood up, muttering,

“Alas, I was once a bad person, and at that time, I had no choice.”

“But coming out of Locking Madness Cave... I must realize that the sea of suffering is boundless, and turning back is the shore. I want to be a good person.”

“Fellow Daoist... please understand.”

“Goodbye...”

“....”

The immortal palace was empty, and the dense, blood-red scriptures on the hall slowly faded. Shen Li, however, felt utterly helpless.

“Great True Person... this is not a game. If Qingxuan could control him, then so be it, but Fellow Daoist Xuan Zang has at least three Divine Abilities. I truly lack the strength.”

“No matter... Since I brought him here, how could I not have a backup plan for you?”

“This Xuan Zang is also a person ofHard life... his intentions are not bad. He has also contributed to the mountain.”

“There's another reason for entrusting him to you: with the Taiyin Immaculate Body and having cut off your Heart Demon, you will not be affected by him.”

“Take this item... and you can restrain him.”

“For this trip, I have also instructed him clearly: everything must be done according to your wishes. If he disobeys this command... I will personally bring him back, so you need not worry.”

At this point, Grand Master Shenqian slowly took out a crystal skull.

There was no profound aura within it, which made Shen Li feel a strange sensation.

“Can this item... truly restrain Fellow Daoist Xuan Zang? This is just an ordinary skull...”

“Oh, this is the skull of Xuan Zang's Dao Companion.”

Shen Li: “???? You still have the nerve to call yourselves a Righteous Path Sect?”

Seeing Shen Li's gaze growing increasingly strange, Grand Master Shenqian spoke,

“Don't misunderstand. Our Qingchi Mountain is a firmly established Righteous Path Immortal Sect. We are registered as a Righteous Path Sect in Qing State. How could it be false?”

“This crystal skull was not made by us either. Back when Xuan Zang had not yet entered the mountain, he was a monk from Bai Ma Temple in the Central Plains. One day, he broke his vows... and was expelled from the temple.”

“This act caused considerable damage to Bai Ma Temple's reputation, so some martial monk Cultivators secretly killed her... and made her into a crystal skull, placing it in the Grand Hall to serve as a warning.”

“Xuan Zang went mad... and attacked Bai Ma Temple, but alas, Bai Ma Temple had a Purple Mansion Great True Person. Despite his best efforts, he only managed to retrieve this one skull.”

“He then joined our Qingchi Mountain, sacrificing much... wanting to advance to Purple Mansion, reclaim the woman's Physical Body, and help her reincarnate.”

“This item... is Xuan Zang's obsession, and also the location of his Heart Demon. Both Xuan Zang and his Heart Demon... must fulfill this obsession to achieve Perfection and make progress.”

“Therefore... this is the strongest lock.”

Grand Master Shenqian slowly said,

“And the mountain naturally would not be so despicable as to use this as a threat...”

“This item... was personally handed over by Xuan Zang before he entered Locking Madness Cave. For thirteen years, he relied on this obsession to forcefully emerge from Locking Madness Cave.”

“His Dao Heart is firm, like a stubborn rock.”

“Do not underestimate him.”

Shen Li solemnly accepted it, sighing as he said,

“Qingxuan understands... but whether this matter succeeds or not.”

“Just do your best.”

“Qingxuan obeys.”

“But Great True Person....”

Shen Qian asked in confusion,

“Hmm?”

“Qingxuan... is poor. Black Ridge City cannot support two Dao Foundation Cultivators.”