Chapter 306: [Sisheng Peak] Have Pity on My Different Race

The heaven and earth instantly changed color. The devil's breath was like a sharp arrow piercing through the clouds, directly shooting towards the distant Space-Time Life and Death Gate.

The continuous torrential rain that lasted for more than ten days suddenly stopped.

Just a moment ago, it was overflowing, but in the blink of an eye, not a single drop was left.

Some people's lips trembled, and they were hoping to get lucky as they shakily asked, "This is… What's going on?"

No one answered him. Everyone's eyes were fixed on the direction of the Portal, but the black hole that had occupied most of the space remained undisturbed for a while.

The people waited nervously.

Their hearts were pounding…

There were no abnormalities.

Nothing unusual happened.

"The rain has stopped… Did nothing happen?"

"It should be a false alarm. Everything should be fine now…"

One by one, people let out a sigh of relief, and their tight cheeks relaxed. However, just at this moment, the ground under their feet began to shake all of a sudden.

"What's wrong?!"

Looking up, they saw the black hole of the Gate of Life and Death started to expand at an alarming speed, engulfing the remaining cumulus clouds in the sky. Following that, a sharp whistle broke through the sky, causing them all to be dumbstruck!

After cutting across the dome, the Phoenix Bird flapped its wings, blocking out the sun. It was as large as a heavenly lake, and its claws were as large as mountains. Just a single feather was over a hundred meters long. With a flap of its wings, godly winds billowed, and countless plants were uprooted.

As for Mount Kunlun, which was the closest to it, the snow had melted and the icicles had shattered.

Chirp chirp —!

In the blink of an eye, the divine bird had settled down on top of Mount Kun. It began to cry, and the sound it produced was exactly the kind of whistle that would appear whenever the Gate of Life and Death opened and closed.

"This is…"

One of the cultivators cried out miserably, "It's the First Phoenix!"

"It's the Ancestral Phoenix!"

This was an ancient mythical beast that did not even have a painting scroll. Later on, it went to Gouchen Palace. The First Phoenix could move mountains and fill the sea. When it flapped its huge wings in the nine heavens, its speed was faster than lightning, far faster than the light of dawn.

Chu Wanning mumbled, "So… Was the guardian of the Gate of Life and Death always him?"

Of the Three Forbidden Techniques created by Gouchen, the Gate of Life and Death in Time and Space actually opened the void cage which imprisoned the First Phoenix. The instant somebody stepped into the rift, the First Phoenix crowed and asked questions. It rushed through time, carrying those who entered, returning to the past or running into the future. Its body was too large, its speed was too fast, so the people who opened the Gate of Life and Death were often unable to see it at all and only had time to hear its cries before they were taken to the time they wanted to go to.

The phoenix stood on Mount Kunlun, looking down at the earth with its red and gold eyes. It suddenly spoke in human language, sounding out a warning bell, "The heavens shall punish anyone who goes against the order of the mortal world."

After speaking, it rose into the air and opened its nine golden wings one by one, dragging them along the ground. With a flap of its wings, the human world shook, and the hills crumbled! If it wasn't the apocalypse, the scene would have been magnificent.

Chu Wanning snapped, "Retreat!"

At the same time, almost every sect's Elder and Sect Leader reacted in the same way.

Retreat.

To survive was their instinct, so they did not need to remind them anymore. The cultivators who were like ants and mustard seeds in front of Shi Huang immediately flew up on their swords, fleeing in the opposite direction of Shi Huang.

Mei Hanxue rushed to Chu Wanning's side, brushing away the messy hair on his forehead and said, "Grandmaster, please ask them to retreat to the boundary of the Portal."

Before Chu Wanning could say anything, he added, "This mortal world has long passed on. For the past eight years, Xue Meng and I have been thinking of a way to minimize disaster when this day arrives. So, on the day that the two worlds were cleared, we used the Black Tortoise Armor to set up a formation around the Gate of Life and Death."

The Heavy Black Tortoise Armor was a slough left behind from the Black Tortoise that was at the same time as the first Phoenix. With it as its foundation, the protective barrier cast down by the armor would be thousands of times stronger.

However, according to the rumors, this kind of slough was in the Eastern Sea, a place where there was a nine out of ten chance of death.

Just what kind of difficulties and dangers had the Mei brothers and Xue Meng gone through in the mortal world to be able to bring it back…

Mei Hanxue said, "Grandmaster, please have everyone retreat over there and return to their own world."

"…"

"This is the calamity that is born from the world. It should end here."

The Phoenix in the distance had flapped it's wings and soared high. Then, it transformed into a streak of red light between heaven and earth. Its speed was so fast that no one could see it, but in the blink of an eye, the Yellow River had been emptied, the Yangtze River ran in reverse, and the vast waters of the ocean were stirred up to hundreds of thousands of feet high, as if a vast ocean was being lifted up from the seabed, rushing towards the mainland!

The waters of the Great Sea came from the heavens, and the Nine Prefectures became desolate in the blink of an eye.

Chu Wanning wanted to retreat, but he discovered that the power of the flood was even faster than the speed of people escaping on their flying swords. In a blink of an eye, they were already closing in on where they were. He was afraid that in a flash it would catch up with the majority of the retreating people.

He made a prompt decision and said to Mei Hanxue, "You and Xue Meng lead them away first. I will stay here and delay some time."

As he spoke, he summoned the Ascending Dragon Talisman again and soared into the sky.

Chu Wanning said sternly, "Tianwen! Ten thousand people's coffins!"

The willow vine rose up from the ground. He bit his finger and dripped some blood on it. He shouted, "Build a wall!"

The vines pressed down on the rattan, and the willow branches coiled around the willow branches. They overlapped and overlapped, forming layers upon layers of lush green. In an instant, it became a towering wall that stretched out to the horizon.

"Jiuge, come here!"

Jiuge was lying on his knees, radiating light from his palms. Chu Wanning strummed the zither, and amidst the flowing sound, golden rays of light wrapped around the wicker-like array wall, making it even more impenetrable. By the time he finished doing all of this, the surging torrent had already reached him.

"Hua —!"

A splash hit the wall and turned the sky upside down.

Chu Wanning turned his face to the side and said to Mei Hanxue, "Go!"

Mei Hanxue had not expected such a situation. Although his heart ached, he had no other choice but to bow to Chu Wanning and disappear into the hazel forest.

For a moment, the cultivator army retreated. Chu Wanning tried his best to defend.

The torrential flood roared, trying to tear down the dam made by Tianwen and Jiuge.

On the Path of Martyrdom, the Butterfly-Boned Beauty Feast slowly opened the door to the Demon World. The demonic world's crimson and dark purple clouds blended with the world's despair.

The door was completely opened.

Standing at the very front was Shi Mei, the first person to be enveloped by the pure devil aura. That kind of aura made his whole body tremble. His whole body felt comfortable, and he couldn't help but inhale the demonic aura greedily. The withered spirit core in his chest had finally recovered after coming into contact with the magical aura.

A surge of power belonging to the demons finally surged through his body.

So this was the feeling of having a strong spiritual energy?

He finally felt it… He finally felt it!

The ecstasy caused his eyes to light up, and a beast-like glint appeared on his handsome face. Just like him, there were also all the people of the Butterfly-Boned Clan behind him.

Those beauties who had lost their spirit cores due to the lack of demon auras and were powerless finally obtained great strength that belonged to them at this moment.

An old man with a stooped body and a spotless beard slowly appeared at the entrance of the Infernal domain. His crimson eyes swept across the crowd, and then, his chicken skin puckered up as he grinned: "Aiyo, I've been waiting here for over four thousand years. Even the gatekeepers above have been annihilated, but I haven't seen any beauties capable of doing this."

He leaned on his walking stick and said with satisfaction, "Alright, alright, you have done a lot to oppose the God Realm. Not bad, not bad."

As he finished speaking, he glanced at the collapsing world and smiled, revealing his black and yellow teeth.

The old demon turned around and made way for the Butterfly-Boned Beauties. With a trembling voice, he said, "This old one greets you all on your return to your homeland."

Behind them, the waters surged, but that was already a mortal matter. What did that have to do with the devil?

Shi Mei turned around and looked at Chu Wanning, who was trying his best to fight against Sky Disaster.

Was this bravery or foolishness?

However, it was probably only because of Chu Wanning's stupidity that caused him to be unable to calm down. As he was about to leave, Shi Mei couldn't help but recall that year when Elder Yuheng had brought him home under an umbrella. At that time, they saw an earthworm crawling on the side of the Bridge of Helplessness.

Chu Wanning gave it a casual glance and waved his sleeve. The earthworm was wrapped in a golden light and returned back into the vegetation.

"Elder, what are you doing?"

Chu Wanning was expressionless, "He's blocking the way."

This reason was naturally lousy. Shi Mei laughed: "Elder, you truly are kind. But when it rains, the ground is stuffy, so even if you put it back in the ground, after a while, it will come out again and crawl outside, and then it will be blocking the elder's way again."

Chu Wanning paused for a moment. There seemed to be a slight crease between his eyebrows.

"… I never knew that." He then lowered his eyes and looked at Shi Mei, "You know quite a lot."

Shi Mei smiled shyly and said, "Earthworms are Earth Dragons, they are usually used for medicine. I know a little about their habits. I only know these things that aren't very useful."

The two continued to walk forward, and as a result, Shi Mei discovered that even though Chu Wanning understood, he still "cleaned up" the little things that were in his way. In the end, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so he decided to help.

Chu Wanning looked at him with a stack of books in his arms, but still managed to bend down and said, "Why?"

"They're blocking the elder's way." In the clear rain, Shi Mei looked back at him and said gently, "Disciple will teach them to be a little more obedient."

Chu Wanning shook his head and walked over. Once again, he put the azure bone paper umbrella over Shi Mei, "Don't run around, it's all wet."

The way back was neither long nor short. As the two walked side by side, it was always awkward not to talk about anything.

Shi Mei asked gently, "Elder, are you always so good?"

"…"

His brown eyes rolled down and his phoenix-like eyes became majestic.

Chu Wanning's face was expressionless, "What are you saying?"

At this moment, he could see that Elder Yuheng wasn't as heartless as the rumors had said. He laughed: "Elder clearly knows that some things are useless, but you still want to do it…"

Chu Wanning did not answer and just walked on silently.

Just when Shi Mei thought that he wouldn't pay any more attention to him, Chu Wanning said, "When I meet a beggar on the road, I know that a little money doesn't necessarily mean that they will be able to get out of their predicament, so I shouldn't give them alms?"

"…"

"When encountering a spirit beast on the way, knowing that it will be rescued and then released into the forest, it may enter the snare or not, so I just leave it alone?"

Shi Mei gently said, "I understand what you mean now, elder. Thank you for your teachings."

"…" He was so gentle, yet Chu Wanning was actually a little embarrassed. He coughed lightly and said, "However, it's about earthworms. They are really just blocking the way."

Shi Mei was stunned and raised his head to look at the side of his face. It was obviously cold, but his ears were red.

Suddenly, he felt it was so cute.

Thus, Shi Mei pursed his lips, and spoke with a voice as calm as water: "Great Elder you are very kind. I must have pity for the other living beings."

"…"

He paused for a moment before suddenly asking, "Oh right, I've read something in the book today that I don't understand, but I have no Shizun to ask. Can the elders clear up this disciple's confusion?"

At least they no longer had to embarrassingly talk about saving lives. Chu Wanning seemed relieved of a great burden and nodded, "Go ahead."

"Guyue'ye's Medicine Sutra encompasses everything, and there are many cultivation methods that cause disciples to be flabbergasted. Among them, the most puzzling is a type of sacred medicine that rapidly injects the essence into the spirit core. After ingesting it, it can cause —"

Chu Wanning's face darkened for some reason, he interrupted, "You want this medicine?"

"Elder, do you know which kind it is?"

"In the early days of the cultivation world, this medicine was highly respected. All large and small sects would go to the Medical Sect to ask for it to be sold." Chu Wanning narrowed his eyes, "How could I not know?"

Observing his expression, Shi Mei then said: "This disciple is not interested in that medicine, but seeing the ingredients needed for the pill, as well as the Flesh and Blood of the Butterfly-Boned Beauty Feast, I am somewhat puzzled. I wonder if this Butterfly-Boned Beauty… Is counted as human or as beast?"

Chu Wanning didn't hesitate at all. He frowned and answered his disciple's question with a solemn expression.

"It's a human."

He did not even say "count as a person", but said "It's a human" without a doubt.

"…"

Before Shi Mei could reply, Chu Wanning glanced at the book about Guyue'ye's Medical Sect written on his chest, before putting it on his palm.

"Elder?"

"Guyue'ye's Medical Sect's contents are hard to distinguish between right and wrong, it is unsuitable for you to take part in the first part of the study. Tomorrow, you can go to the Compendium Pavilion and borrow Elder Tanlang's writings, maybe it's more appropriate."

Shi Mei lowered his head and said, "As for the books in the Compendium Pavilion, I can only borrow them from the other districts. All of them require the permission of their direct Shizuns…"

Chu Wanning was stunned for a moment. He thought about how this child had been in the school for quite some time, but because of his low talent, he didn't even want to taken in by the most tolerant Xuanji.

In the gentle breeze and drizzling rain, he untied the lily-white jade on his waist. "Take it."

"…!"

"If the people from the Compendium Pavilion ask, just show them my token." Chu Wanning warned again, "You should choose your reading method. Don't go down the wrong path just because you read the wrong book."

Shi Mei wanted to receive the jade pendant with both hands, but there were too many scriptures in his hands. A single hand was tantamount to treading on the wrong path. He was at a loss of what to do and flushed red to his ears. Chu Wanning half-knelt down, and in an instant, was only slightly taller than an immature child. He lowered his long eyelashes and tied the jade pendant around Shi Mei's waist.

Chu Wanning was expressionless as he was doing all of this, as if he was trying to take care of an earthworm blocking the way with his hand.

If it were any other elder, they would definitely not lend their library token to any disciple they were unfamiliar with. This was the rule.

However, Chu Wanning was not a person who lived by the rules.

"Alright." After attaching the jade pendant to Shi Mei, he stood up once more and lowered his hand that had been callused as a result of his year-round mecha repair. "Let's go."

"…" The young child took a deep breath.

He didn't know why he had to take that deep breath, but if he didn't, there was something in his chest that might make him cry.

In truth, he felt wronged.

Whether it was as a Butterfly-Boned Beauty or as a disciple lacking in spiritual energy, he had never been treated fairly. In the past, he didn't think much of it. In any case, he was already used to it. In his eyes, these people were nothing more than extremely ugly butchers.

However, there was really someone who stopped and told him "They are humans". Someone really did stop and just gave him the command tablet that even direct disciples might not be able to obtain. For some reason, that heart of his that had been tempered with countless thousands of thousands of times suddenly felt an excruciating pain.

Only then did he finally feel wronged. All along, he had endured too much.

Shi Mei knew that although he looked gentle and polite, that was just a mask he made for himself after seeing through the danger.

He hid behind this mask, defending himself with gentleness, avoiding it with gentleness. He seemed kind to everyone, but in reality, no one was able to immerse themselves in his heart. His heart was already filled with hatred for the sake of the clan of the Butterfly-Boned Beauty Feast, so he would no longer feel any warmth.

However, when he went back that day to write a disciple invitation, he sketched it out with some rare sincerity.

When the letter was finished, he put down the broken bamboo pen and looked at the lamp that had turned into a pool.

He felt that in his life, besides revenge and return, there was also an unexpected pleasant surprise. This surprise might be dangerous for him. However, at that time, he felt that a little tenderness might be harmless, and it wouldn't change the biggest repayment in his heart.

At this moment, Shi Mei turned his head back to look at his former "tenderness". He didn't know what to feel in his heart.

Anger? Sadness?

It was not as simple as that.

The path was different. In the end, one could not scheme against others.

Shi Mei paused for a moment, but still said with a hint of ridicule: "Shizun, look. No matter who it was, in front of Heaven's Mandate, they couldn't help themselves from competing. You, me, man, and demon, are all the same."

These words were spoken very softly. Chu Wanning stood high up in the air, so it was impossible for him to hear them. However, as soon as Shi Mei said it, he felt relieved in his heart.

Afterwards, he led the thousand over Butterfly-Boned Beauties to the majestic and vast Demon Area's Gate.

Home.

The old devil guarding the gate was naturally the leader of this group. He was very polite and respectful to Shi Mei as he greeted him after he entered the gate.

"Young Master, please wait."

"Why?"

"The devil world is divided into different grades according to the bloodline of the family. Since Young Master is returning to his hometown, first, he has to test his origin and return to the sect to reunite with his ancestors."

Shi Mei said expressionlessly: "Aren't the Butterfly-Boned Beauties the descendants of Gouchen's mother race? What else is there to test?"

The old demon gatekeeper said, "Gouchen's mother clan has long been taken off the demon registry. After Young Master and the rest of you return to the demon realm, you will have to arrange registrations according to the mixed blood of the remaining families in their lineage."

Shi Mei frowned. Even though he found this troublesome, he did not know how long he could last until he saw that Chu Wanning was on the thin side. And behind him, there were still thousands of people waiting to enter the Infernal domain. They nodded, "Then let's hurry up."

The Old Demon gatekeeper waved his hand, and a scepter with the head of a beast appeared in his hand. He chanted an incantation, and a hundred red ribbons of light floated out of the beast's mouth, like a brocade, wrapping around Shi Mei.

"Bai, Cheng, Xie, Zhou…"

Each light band shimmered with a single word.

"What is this?"

The old demon said, "Clan tree, which family has the most powerful bloodline, and which family's belt of light will be linked to the young lord's wrist?"

Shi Mei stopped talking and looked down at the colorful ribbons.

"Qin, Fei, Ouyang, Shangguan, Zhong Li, Luo, Ye, Duan, Chu…"

The old demon chanted nonstop, but after a long time, there was still no ribbon falling. His forehead couldn't help but wrinkle, and he lifted his eyes to look at Shi Mei's face.

Shi Mei also calmly looked at him.

Looking at him, the Old Demon smiled in embarrassment and continued to speed up his incantation. As he chanted, a red ribbon wrapped around his arm, and he raised it thoughtfully to examine it: "Is it this one? What's your surname?"

He looked left and right, but before he could take a good look at the words on the ribbon, the ribbon rapidly withered and turned black, turning into fine powder in an instant.

Shi Mei: "…"

The old gatekeeper was also silent for a moment, frozen in place, looking at him in disbelief.

Shi Mei slowly raised his gaze a few inches. In his heart, he already had an answer, but he still asked with a smile: "What's wrong?"

The old demon's face changed, his nose wrinkled, and he shouted: "Divine descendant!?!"

"…" Shi Mei Ning paused for a moment, sneered, and carelessly brushed away the black dust on his wrist, then said indifferently, "My father is indeed a descendant of the gods, but so what? I have never done half an inch of the god race's business in my life, and I have always taken the home of the demons as my responsibility. It's not like I have that much dirty blood on me. You'll have to put on a god-like hat for me. That's too…"

Before he could say anything, he saw the Old Devil, who was guarding the door, wrapped himself in a black gust of wind, forcing Shi Mei to take a step back.

The wind dispersed, and the hunchbacked old demon disappeared.

What appeared at the entrance of the demon realm was a skeleton monster with intersecting fangs holding a giant axe. The monster suddenly hacked the axe in its hand onto the ground, blocking the path of the people from the Butterfly-Boned Beauty Feast Clan, and shouted angrily towards the sky with a hoarse voice.

"Since ancient times, gods and devils have never been allowed to collude with each other. The Path of Martyrdom cannot be completed, so quickly get the evil beings like you out of the demon territory — Close the devil doors!"

With its shout, the devil gates on the left and right were alarmed and closed towards the center. The originally built bridge of martyrdom also collapsed with the terrifying sound of an avalanche from the distant Sisheng Peak.