As one of the twenty or so youths who were chasing the deer in the forest, Xue Meng also had a precious chess piece buried in his body. He was walking around the lake nonstop, his eyes empty. When ghosts fell from the sky, he and the others would rush up together. They were brave and fearless, like puppets who were not afraid of pain or death. They would cut down the ghosts with their swords and sabers, not letting them destroy the formation. However, when the ghosts tried to escape into the darkness of the night, they did not care.
The purpose of these chess pieces was obvious. They were guarding the Five Elements Array.
Chu Wanning saw that his disciple was being controlled. He endured for a moment, but he could not stand it anymore. When he was about to get up and rush out, Mo Ran suddenly stopped him.
Chu Wanning gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, "Let go."
"Don't go out. Wait a little longer."
"How can we wait? That is Xue Meng! "
Chu Wanning was too strong. Mo Ran could not hold him with one hand. He could only hold him tightly and hold him in his arms. He covered Chu Wanning's mouth with one hand. No matter how hard he struggled in his arms, he did not let go. Mo Ran whispered in his ear. His hot breath brushed against the back of his ear.
"It is too risky to go out now. Don't be so impulsive. Listen to me. Hmm? "
Mo Ran was answered with an elbow. Chu Wanning pried open his hand and gasped. His eyes were full of anger. He said in a low voice, "Under the control of the Exquisite Chess Game, his spiritual power is quickly depleted. There are ghosts here. If there is a mistake, he will die!"
"He won't."
"… …"
Mo Ran grabbed his hand. His eyes were burning and firm. "I know the Exquisite Chess Game. You have to trust me."
Chu Wanning saw his serious expression. He could not help but be startled. His breathing slowly slowed down. At this time, a strange howl came from afar. They quickly turned around and saw an evil spirit breaking through the air and pouncing on Xue Meng.
Swoosh!
Dragon City's scimitar reflected the cold moonlight. Xue Meng's body was as light as a swallow, and the blade instantly pierced through the ghost!
"A living person who was hit by the Exquisite Chess Piece would have their spiritual energy gradually depleted. In the end, they would not be as good as before. But he's only under control for a short time, so he'll be fine for now. "
Chu Wanning turned his head to look at him with a scar between his eyebrows. "Why are you so clear about this?"
"… What I saw during my travels."
The evil spirit fell down and soon turned into ashes. Xue Meng held the Dragon's City Scimitar in his hand. Black drops of blood continuously flowed down the blade, dragging a strange and crooked trace on the snow.
The moonlight shone on his face. His expression was cold and his eyes were dull.
Mo Ran's heart clenched.
Xue Meng had never been a chess piece in his previous life. Who was it …?!
Suddenly, there was movement in the distance.
Mo Ran returned to his senses and said in a low voice, "It seems that someone is coming."
Sure enough, two people came out of the forest and walked along the frozen lake to the eye of the array. The eye of the array was shining with a green light. One of them was holding a Divine Weapon in his hand, but because of the angle, Mo Ran could not see what the Divine Weapon was.
The man broke the ice with his palm and threw the Divine Weapon into the eye of the array. In an instant, the eye of the array shone brightly. The dark clouds moved away, and the moon showed up from behind the thick clouds. The cold light shone on the ice and completely illuminated the two people guarding the eye of the array.
One of them was wearing a luxurious robe with golden silk, graceful and bright, but he was wearing a thick coat and a bamboo hat, so his face could not be seen clearly. The other one was barefoot in the cold, but he did not mind the cold.
The man raised his head and looked at the Endless Sky Fissure.
Mo Ran suddenly opened his eyes wide.
"How is it possible!"
— — Xu Shuanglin?!
He was extremely stunned and shocked. Xu Shuanglin … … Elder Shuanglin?
He was Ye Wangxi's adoptive father. In his previous life, he used his flesh and blood to protect Ye Wangxi and died under the knife. How could it be him?!
Chu Wanning did not know that Mo Ran was shocked. He lightly patted Mo Ran's shoulder and said in a low voice, "Go."
"Why hasn't he appeared yet?" The man wearing the bamboo hat beside Xu Shuanglin spoke. Mo Ran listened and found that it was Nangong Liu's voice.
Nangong Liu's voice was obviously anxious and gloomy. He could not help but curse, "Damn it, did you make a mistake?"
Xu Shuanglin said, "Let's wait and see."
"Hurry up! Tear the Sky Fissure wider. I don't know when those guests will send people here. If we wait any longer, it will be too late! "
"I know you're impatient, but don't you know whether the Sky Fissure can be torn wider? Last time in Colorful Butterfly Town, because you were too impatient, the situation got out of hand and attracted the ten great sects to come here one after another. If you can't stay calm, you'll still fall short. "
"… … Sigh!"
Xu Shuanglin closed his eyes and said, "Sect Leader, it was not easy for you to find these five Divine Weapons with different attributes. They can absorb and accumulate the spiritual energy of cultivators. You've endured for so many years. How could you miss this short night?"
"You're right." Nangong Liu took a deep breath and nodded. "I've waited for five years … … No, it's not just five years. From the day I became the Sect Leader of Confucian Wind Sect, I've been waiting … …" He rubbed the thumb ring in his sleeve, and his eyes flashed with a dark fire.
Nangong Liu murmured, "I've been waiting … …"
"Don't wait."
Suddenly, a fierce and strict male voice sounded on the empty lake, like thunder breaking through the clouds. The two people on the lake were shocked and looked at each other.
The moon was bright in the sky, and the thousands of pine trees were rustling. A slender man stood on the treetops. He narrowed his long and narrow eyes, and his white robe billowed. The dark color of his robe made his face look like a frozen jade, and there was a bone-chilling coldness in his handsomeness.
"Nangong Liu, it's over."
Nangong Liu was shocked, and then he gritted his teeth and said, "Chu Wanning … …!"
Heaven's Inquisition exploded with golden light, reflecting Chu Wanning's gloomy eyes, and his whole person looked more and more dangerous.
"Wanye Yuheng, Venerable Northern Dipper, why didn't I let you die after suppressing the Rainbow Butterfly? Now you're here to ruin my plan, evil creature!"
Chu Wanning was stunned. He lowered his eyebrows and said sternly, "So the disaster five years ago was caused by you?"
Nangong Liu saw that the matter was exposed, and he had no intention to hide. He sneered and said, "So what?"
Chu Wanning raised Heaven's Inquisition, and his fingers swept over the willow vine. The vine whip was polished on his fingertips inch by inch, and the light was almost platinum. His eyes were like a hawk's, "… … Back then, when you asked for a sword in Jincheng Lake, the spirit in the lake wanted your wife's spiritual nucleus in exchange. You ordered people to cut open her heart and threw it into the lake. At that time, I was disgusted to the bone, and I hated you so much that I wanted to kill you. But you told me that Nangong Si is still young, and can't be without a father … … You said that you were obsessed for a moment, and you regretted it … … You also said that from now on, you will be a righteous scholar and not do evil again, you … … "
The willow vine touched the last tip, and the golden light burst out.
Chu Wanning gritted his teeth, "Nangong Liu, you are so evil, and so vicious!"
"Blame me?" Nangong Liu suddenly laughed in a low voice, "Grandmaster Chu, why don't you blame yourself for being young and naive? At that time, you were still a fifteen or sixteen year old boy, right? You were so naive, and after a few words from me, a few tears, and using Si 'er as a cover, you let me go mercifully. Ah, Grandmaster, why don't you think about it, what I am today can't be separated from your leniency? "
Before he finished speaking, the wind had already arrived.
Heaven's Inquisition cut through the dark night, and slashed towards the place where Nangong Liu was standing. In an instant, the dragon light danced, and flames broke through the sky, splitting the entire frozen Lingshui Lake in half, and the ice shattered!
Nangong Liu shouted, "Rise!"
The group of puppets that had been walking around Lingshui Lake suddenly had a flash of light in their eyes. They all turned around and surged in Chu Wanning's direction. Xue Meng's battle prowess was the strongest, and she actually took the lead.
Clang!
Dragon City and Heaven's Inquisition collided fiercely. Chu Wanning was afraid of hurting Xue Meng, so he retreated in time and moved back a few feet. With a ruthless expression, he said, "Nangong Liu, you used others as a wedding dress, what kind of ability is that?!"
"Ha, I made you unable to attack, and you can't kill me, this is my ability." Nangong Liu laughed, "Go ahead and hit them, they are all living people, they just got hit by my precious black stones. Chu Wanning, this Young Master Xue is your disciple, right? Can you bear to do it? You are helpless, you are waiting for death, you are the same as more than ten years ago by the Jincheng Pool, you are powerless, you can only let me go, you — "
He suddenly stopped, and the smile on his face was like a basin of cold water suddenly poured on him, and the ash black fire was still smoking.
— — Chu Wanning's eyes were too calm.
He stared closely at Chu Wanning, and the calmness on that person's face made him suddenly feel uneasy, and he shuddered. Nangong Liu's lips moved, and he seemed to have a guilty conscience, "What do you want to do …"
Chu Wanning didn't want to talk nonsense with Nangong Liu. His eyes were cold, and he raised his hand to wave Heaven's Inquisition, and shouted, "Heaven's Inquisition, Ten Thousand Coffins!"
Dozens of golden vines rose from the ground, trapping the puppets that were hit by the precious stones. A thick and powerful giant vine rose like a dragon from the ice lake, and ice crystals splashed everywhere. Chu Wanning flew and sat on the ancient vine, his robe fluttering in the wind. He raised a slender and powerful hand, and said one word at a time.
"Jiuge, summon."
Strands of golden light gushed out from his palms and gathered on his knees to form a jet-black guqin. The guqin's tail was curled up like a tree that was still full of vitality. The leaves on the guqin's tail were lush, and the guqin's strings were translucent and icy white. The strings were constantly emitting cold air.
Shenwu Jiuge.
Heaven's Inquisition's most commonly used skill was "Wind", which was a killing move, and Jiuge's most commonly used skill was "Song", which was a healing move. Chu Wanning only gently plucked the strings a few times, and played a short section of "Song", and those who were hit by the precious stones showed confused expressions. They were originally struggling under the entanglement of Heaven's Inquisition, but now they looked left and right, as if they were a little confused.
Nangong Liu was furious, and he silently chanted a spell. The veins on his forehead bulged, and he fought against Chu Wanning. Seeing that he couldn't hold on, he angrily turned around, "Shuang Lin, go and interrupt his guqin!"
"… Me? Sigh, okay, okay. "
Xu Shuanglin sighed and helplessly wanted to fly to the top of the giant tree where Chu Wanning was. Unexpectedly, a black shadow flashed in front of him. Mo Ran stood in the wind, raised his whip, and stopped him.
"Elder Shuang Lin, please advise me."
Xu Shuanglin blinked, and suddenly sneered, "Stop me? You two are really master and disciple, how touching. "
Chu Wanning fought while saying to Mo Ran, "Barrier."
"It's all set up."
It turned out that Mo Ran didn't appear just now because he was ordered to set up a barrier around the Lingshui Lake. Although this Heaven's Fissure wasn't as exaggerated as the one in Colorful Butterfly Town, the Abyss of Hell imprisoned evil spirits with twisted minds. It would be fine if three or five of them escaped, but if too many escaped, there would be a rain of blood in the mortal world, and it wouldn't stop for a long time.
Mo Ran and Shuanglin exchanged blows. In the blink of an eye, the two of them had exchanged ten moves. Mo Ran said, "Elder Shuanglin, don't keep trying to run to my Shizun. The person you should be fighting is me."
"What am I doing?" Shuanglin suddenly laughed, "Do you have to force the opponent to fight these days? It's not that I want to say this, but young man, you're a bit too fierce. Uncle is old, and I'm afraid I can't handle your violence. "
Mo Ran was speechless.
"If I come with you, I'll be ruined." He giggled, "Little brother, spare me. Let me go a little and let me play with your Shizun, okay?"
Mo Ran actually didn't know how to face Xu Shuanglin. In his previous life, he had witnessed Xu Shuanglin's death with his own eyes, so he knew that he wasn't a bad person. Who would have thought that in this life, besides Nangong Liu, he was also the mastermind behind the scenes. For a moment, he didn't know what to do, so he remained silent and focused on exchanging blows with him.
Ghost See had the same interrogation ability as Heaven's Inquisition. As long as he could successfully hold Xu Shuanglin, it wouldn't be difficult to get the truth out of him. However, Xu Shuanglin's movements were light, and his movements were much better than Nangong Liu's. He floated like a kite on the shattered ice lake. The red light could only hit him, but it couldn't lock him down firmly.
Moreover, because he was Ye Wangxi's adoptive father, before things were clear, Mo Ran couldn't help but give him some face.
Xu Shuanglin suddenly laughed evilly, "That's about it. Grandmaster Mo, I'll apologize to you first."
Mo Ran didn't know why he said this, so he was startled, "What?"
"Because I'm going to bully your master."
Xu Shuanglin raised his hand, and a light flashed at his fingertips. A white stream of light whistled in the direction of Chu Wanning, who was playing the zither.
Mo Ran was the most worried about Chu Wanning, so he was distracted. Xu Shuanglin's eyes darkened, and his other hand pulled out the folding fan at his waist. He swiftly and fiercely thrust it towards Mo Ran's throat.
"Sha — —"
In an instant, blood splattered everywhere. Although Mo Ran dodged quickly, his neck was still scratched by the sharp barbs of the fan. Xu Shuanglin took back the handle of the fan, which was stained with Mo Ran's blood, and pointed to the ground. A drop of blood fell into the lake, and the bottom of the lake suddenly lit up with a green light.
Looking down, it turned out that Nangong Liu and Xu Shuanglin were guarding the core of the wood element formation, the Divine Martial Sword, was immersed in the ice lake, absorbing the essence of the surrounding plants.
At this time, because of Mo Ran's drop of blood, which was full of spiritual energy, the Divine Martial Sword suddenly burst out with a dazzling green brilliance. The earth trembled, and after a few moments of silence, a fierce black blade broke out of the water, shining brightly!
Xu Shuanglin shouted to Nangong Liu, "The forbidden spell has been activated! He's coming out — quickly go under the Sky Fissure and fight! Fight! "
Fight?
They summoned someone from the Abyss of Hell, was it just for a fight?
But this thought only flashed through Mo Ran's mind. When he saw the Divine Martial Sword floating in the air, he didn't think about anything else. His whole body was like being whipped, standing there stiffly, unable to say half a word.
Because the weapon that gathered the wood element formation core, was actually …
Emperor Ta's Fierce Blade — — Divine Martial Sword!!
Mo Ran suddenly felt a dull pain in his chest, and his vision turned black. There seemed to be some kind of ravings that he couldn't hear that kept repeating in his ears. He couldn't breathe, and only felt that the blood of his previous life came from the night, soaking him. He felt sick, dizzy, and his heart was beating fast …
Seeing that Xu Shuanglin wanted to do something with the Divine Martial Sword, Mo Ran didn't have time to think. He raised his hand, wanting to call back the Divine Martial Sword. But as soon as his spiritual energy reached out, he heard Chu Wanning's zither music suddenly stop. He suddenly felt that something was wrong, and endured the inexplicable suffocation, turning his head.
His pupils suddenly shrank.
"Master!!"
How could he forget!? Chu Wanning's spiritual core was very weak. As early as the Xuanyuan Society, there was a doctor who said that the Divine Martial Sword seemed to have some kind of repulsive force with Chu Wanning. It would backfire on Chu Wanning, and it would make Chu Wanning's already weak spiritual core even more unable to bear it.
How could he forget!?
Mo Ran suddenly cut off his connection with the Divine Martial Sword and flew onto the giant vine. The moment the Divine Martial Sword was exhausted, he jumped up and hugged Chu Wanning, who was in so much pain that his face was pale, and landed with him in the nearby orange grove.
At the same time, the coffins that Chu Wanning summoned also broke and disintegrated, but fortunately, those who were bewitched were already confused. Although they didn't completely wake up, they no longer listened to Nangong Liu's instructions. One by one, they stood there blankly, with a dreamy expression on their faces.
"Master!" Mo Ran was anxious and regretful. He knelt in the snow and hugged Chu Wanning, who was frowning, and kept stroking Chu Wanning's face, "How are you?"
He saw blood seeping out from the corner of Chu Wanning's mouth, and felt even more distressed. He hurriedly wiped it for him, but as he wiped, he suddenly remembered that in his previous life, Chu Wanning was also lying in his arms like this, on the peak of the Kunlun Snow Mountain, bleeding from all seven orifices and dying. And he was the same as now, frantically wiping away the mottled blood, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't wipe it clean.
It was like an awl piercing into his heart.
His eyes were red, "Is it very painful?"
Chu Wanning was greatly affected by the Divine Martial Sword. He felt that the Divine Martial Sword was flowing to his chest in an instant, as if it was going to cut his chest open.
What was worse was that there seemed to be many broken illusions in front of his eyes, twisting and flickering.
He shook his head, trying to shake off those blurry illusions, and struggled to look in the direction of Nangong Liu. But with just a glance, the last bit of color on his face suddenly disappeared.
He didn't know where he got the strength, but he suddenly grabbed Mo Ran's arm and said hoarsely, "Over there, be careful!"
Mo Ran saw that his face was like gold paper, and his eyes flashed with great shock, reflecting the light of the fire …
Light of the fire?
He turned his head. What came out of the fissure was no longer small ghosts and monsters, but rolling hell's lava. The fire of the earth boiled and flowed down from the sky. Those ghosts and monsters that escaped at the same time were burned to ashes by this turbulent evil fire. They didn't even have time to cry out before they turned into a cloud of green smoke.
What kind of strange situation was this?
The lava of hell hung in the sky like a magnificent and magnificent golden-red waterfall, flowing slowly and leisurely, licking dangerously and magnificently. When the lava flowed to the Lingshui Lake, the shattered ice and lake water were ignited like firewood and began to burn fiercely. Nangong Liu and Xu Shuanglin, who were standing at the front, activated the most powerful water spell, so that they wouldn't be engulfed by the fire.
Although the flow of the fire was slow, it would soon burn those who were frozen in the exquisite chess game.
Mo Ran cursed and raised his hand to make a hand seal, but he wasn't familiar with the water spell. Halfway through, Chu Wanning, who was in his arms, suddenly grabbed his hand and said with a pale face, "You made the wrong hand seal. Let me do it. "
Mo Ran hugged him and let him sit up, but he stopped his hand, "Don't move anymore, teach me."
Although Chu Wanning was hesitant, he knew that his spiritual power was temporarily damaged, so he might not be able to cast the spell well. This was a matter of life and death, so he couldn't be careless. So he held Mo Ran's hand and put all ten of his fingers in the right position. Then he said in a hoarse voice, "Cast the spell."
The spiritual power overflowed from his fingertips and quickly formed a barrier in the air, forming a blue wave that wrapped around those puppets who had lost their minds.
Chu Wanning let out a sigh of relief. She wanted to praise Mo Ran, but when she looked up, she saw that under the illumination of the light of hell, there were traces of tears on his handsome face.
He … why was he crying?
Because of who?
Chu Wanning was a little confused.
Shi Mei wasn't here, Xue Meng wasn't injured, and Mo Ran didn't know the others. So, could he be so bold and greedy that Mo Ran was crying for him?
"… Don't cry."
Mo Ran came back to his senses and wiped his face in a panic.
"You're already so old, what do you look like?"
Mo Ran only looked at him with teary eyes and asked, "Does it hurt?"
Hearing him say this, Chu Wanning was stunned. Then, the pain in his chest that hadn't subsided suddenly felt a soft warmth like a hot spring stream. Sorrow and gentleness intertwined together, sour and painful, sweet and bitter. For the first time in his life, he had personal feelings related to his life before a great calamity. It wasn't appropriate, but he couldn't stop it.
"It's just a small injury. It's probably because I used too much spiritual power to summon two Divine Weapons at the same time, so my old illness flared up." Chu Wanning raised his hand, hesitated, and touched Mo Ran's hair, "Don't worry, it doesn't hurt anymore."
Then he turned his head and looked at the vast Hellfire and the Blazing Flame Red Lotus.
His eyes gradually darkened, the pain in his eyes subsided, and his gaze became firm.
"You saw what Nangong Liu was going to do and found a good opportunity." He paused, and when he opened his mouth again, he didn't hesitate, "Kill him."
Chu Wanning's eyes were full of hatred, but there was also regret in them.
Nangong Liu was right. At the side of the Jincheng Pool, it was him who was fourteen or fifteen years old. He had just stepped into the mortal world and didn't know much about the world, so he let go of Nangong Liu, who had revealed his evil face at that time. He even took into consideration the stability of the Upper Cultivation World and didn't let the young Ah Si know that Nangong Liu sacrificed his wife to get the Divine Weapon.
It was his ignorance and naivety when he was young and too much kindness that led to the current situation. He let the tiger return to the forest and provoked the torrential Hellfire of the Red Lotus …
What did Nangong Liu want to do?