"You seem nervous?"
As the two tightened their hearts, a hoarse voice came from behind them.
Ji Yuan's scalp immediately tingled. He turned around, flung out the talisman in his hand, and immediately ignited the magical power within the talisman's core.
In an instant, waves of extremely strong and yang energy erupted. The place seemed to be enveloped by several small suns, and within the dazzling light, flames containing rich yang energy rose.
However, a wisp of gray qi flashed past, and the fierce yang fire was immediately extinguished. A cold aura dispersed the scorching yang energy, as if it could freeze one's soul.
Ji Yuan resolutely retreated several feet, took out another handful of talismans, and immediately tossed them into the air.
The talismans flew out one after another, hovering around the opponent. Then, their cores were ignited, releasing pure and peaceful righteous energy.
To ordinary people, righteous energy was harmless. On the contrary, it would bring peace of mind. Even the dullest person would feel a surge of intelligence.
But for demons, ghosts, and evil spirits, the Confucian righteous energy was like a death warrant. Even a touch would be like being splashed with hot oil. If one were in it, they would perish in endless suffering.
However, under the dense righteous energy, the opponent's expression remained as usual, and gray qi continuously rose from his body, being ground away bit by bit.
Not only did the opponent not show any signs of pain, but he even seemed to be enjoying it, bathed in the pure righteous energy, completely unaffected.
Seeing this, Lin Yubai immediately waved his hand and unleashed bolts of lightning, which were even more damaging to demons and evil spirits than Ji Yuan's talismans.
But the opponent merely stretched out a hand, and countless bolts of lightning disintegrated in his palm. The powerful strike could only dissipate a bit of the gray qi.
Seeing this, the expressions on their faces immediately sank. Although they had not used their full strength, the few probing attacks were enough to inflict considerable damage on ordinary demons and evil spirits.
However, the person in front of them was completely unaffected. He even forced a look of regret onto his stiff face.
"Do you have any stronger means?"
The opponent looked at them with cloudy, gray-white eyes, and his low, hoarse voice once again reached their ears.
Seeing that the two in front of him were already full of vigilance, he immediately explained, "Don't misunderstand, I have no ill intentions."
But how could Ji Yuan and Lin Yubai lower their guard just because of his words?
They carefully pulled away, but did not continue to attack, waiting for the opponent's next move.
The main reason was that the previous probing attacks had made them realize the opponent's strength, which was not something that ordinary means could resolve. If they were to go all out, it would inevitably trigger a series of reactions.
Not to mention that they were not in their prime condition. In an unknown environment, if they were to exert their full strength, no matter how much power they had left or how much commotion they caused, they might fall into an even more dire situation.
"My name is Zhu Wudang, and I am an elder of the Qingyuan Sword Sect."
The opponent introduced himself. Seeing that the two in front of him showed no change in expression, he forced a bitter smile, "Indeed. Although I don't know exactly how many years have passed, I estimate it's been two to three thousand years."
In such a long period, the sect, which was not particularly strong to begin with, must have long since vanished. The possibility of it becoming a major sect and surviving for thousands of years was almost nil.
"What exactly are you?"
Seeing that the opponent had no ill intentions and that they could not sense any killing intent, Ji Yuan's expression softened slightly, and he asked.
However, he did not lower his guard. He had already quietly circulated the Xuan Tian Dao Jing, ready to unleash the Xuan Tian Spirit Devouring Pagoda he held in his palm at any moment.
He wanted to see if the gray-white death qi on the opponent could be devoured and transformed by the pagoda's spirit-devouring power!
Zhu Wudang no longer made a sound. His stiff face was difficult to read any expression from, and his eyes, filled with gray-white death qi, had no trace of luster.
"In the great blood sacrifice thousands of years ago, I was already beyond dead."
After a long time, Zhu Wudang's lips did not move, but his low, hoarse voice sounded in their ears, "It's just that for some unknown reason, my soul did not enter the cycle of reincarnation. Instead, it was trapped in this fleshly body, devoid of life."
For thousands of years, his soul had been eroded by the increasingly dense death qi, and he could no longer leave this ruined body. He had also tried to leave this ruin, but he was utterly incapable of doing so.
The collapsed city walls seemed to still exist, and he could not step out half a step.
"If you can remove the death qi from me and allow me to be liberated, I will bestow upon you a great opportunity."
Zhu Wudang's voice rang out, "Whether it is to re-enter reincarnation or to vanish into smoke!"
As long as he could end thousands of years of suffering, he would have no regrets even if his soul were to be scattered.
It was better than enduring the constant erosion of death qi day and night, suffering without end.
Upon hearing 'a great opportunity,' the two's eyes flickered, but they did not immediately agree.
Although they were tempted, they did not lower their guard even a little and did not truly believe everything he said.
Seeing this, Zhu Wudang shook his head stiffly, and then a sigh was heard in their ears.
"Follow me. I will first take you to get an opportunity, as a small token of my sincerity."
He candidly admitted that even if they could not liberate him, they would have established a good karma, which might lead to a turning point in the future.
Upon hearing this, Ji Yuan's expression became thoughtful. It would be a lie to say he was not moved. Although he was wary of this person, it seemed he could still go and see.
Even if he were to be tricked and fall into a trap prepared by the opponent, he believed that with his and Lin Yubai's strength, they could at least ensure their safe retreat.
Especially since the opponent's movement technique was far faster than the Shenxing Talisman. With a thought, he could appear dozens of feet away. If he exerted his full strength, he could cover ten zhang in the blink of an eye.
"I think it's feasible."
Lin Yubai spoke.
In his opinion, it was better to follow this person than to wander around aimlessly. Perhaps there really was a significant opportunity.
And if they could verify his words, they would naturally do their best to help him escape his predicament.
"Alright, then we'll accompany you."
Ji Yuan nodded and made up his mind.
Zhu Wudang said nothing more, turned around, and walked into the ruins. The two behind him quickly followed, maintaining a distance of about one zhang.
"May I ask what the final outcome of the great blood sacrifice thousands of years ago was?"
After walking silently for a while, Ji Yuan suddenly asked.
Lin Yubai's eyes lit up. He was also interested. Compared to the fragmented information dug out from various caves, this was a person with complete experience!
As if sensing the curious gazes from behind him, Zhu Wudang remained silent for a long time before recounting the events of that year.
Just as the fragmented information they had obtained indicated, the Daoist Priest Chi Xin wanted to perform a blood sacrifice of all the cultivators in the entire dojo to help himself break through a bottleneck that had troubled him for a hundred years and ascend to the highest level.
He had spent decades secretly setting up a grand formation that covered the entire dojo, completely sealing off this area.
On the day of the blood sacrifice, thousands of cultivators rose up in resistance, including those who lived and cultivated in the dojo, as well as a large number of cultivators residing in the city.
After several days of fighting, countless cultivators had perished. The entire land was ravaged, and even the soil was dyed crimson. After all, Xuanhuang City was inhabited not only by cultivators from all walks of life but also by hundreds of thousands of ordinary citizens.
Although Daoist Priest Chi Xin was powerful and had great means, his lifespan was nearing its end. Even with the help of his disciples and the meticulously arranged formation, he could not avoid being heavily injured.
In the end, as he was on the verge of death, he detonated all the formations and restrictions within the dojo, as well as more than a dozen precious spirit veins that had been captured, forcefully pushing the blood sacrifice to completion.
However, under the desperate struggle of everyone, coupled with the sudden appearance of heavenly punishment, Daoist Priest Chi Xin finally died.
But after his death, the entire dojo was covered by the power of heavenly punishment. Coupled with the collapse of the earth veins, it eventually sank into the ground.
And all living beings within the dojo became Daoist Priest Chi Xin's funeral sacrifices. Even the Golden Core cultivators who had miraculously survived could not escape.
"Since that day, the souls of many living beings have been trapped in their bodies, just like me, suffering the torment of death qi's erosion day and night."
A sigh echoed. Thousands of years of torment made Zhu Wudang sigh uncontrollably.
For ordinary living beings, what they pursued was eternal life. Even for the wealthy, as long as they could live longer, even if they became like walking corpses, it was not something they could not accept.
But Zhu Wudang did not want such longevity at all. He was willing to be a mortal with a lifespan of only a few decades.
It was a pity that now, he truly could not die even if he wanted to. The residual power of heavenly punishment in this place kept his three souls and seven spirits trapped in his dead flesh, constantly being eroded by death qi.
This situation, where one wanted to die but could not, and wanted to live but had no hope, was enough to make one's scalp tingle and a chill spread through their heart with just a thought.
"We're here."
Just as Ji Yuan and Lin Yubai fell into silence because of this, Zhu Wudang suddenly stopped.
He pointed to the ruins in front of them, and then his voice sounded in their ears, "This place was the headquarters of a merchant guild. In the fierce battle and the heavenly punishment of that year, all the formations and restrictions collapsed."
Even if some remained at that time, they had long since vanished over the thousands of years.
However, he also told them that most of the spiritual objects and treasures within were destroyed. Coupled with the lack of maintenance over the long years, how much was left now depended on luck.
Upon hearing this, Lin Yubai nodded and stepped forward two or three steps, unleashing bolts of pure and sharp energy, gradually clearing the ruins in front of them.
After about a quarter of an hour, the debris and rubble here were roughly cleared.
During this process, many artifacts were unearthed, but they were either so decayed that they crumbled at a touch, or their spiritual essence had long since dissipated, and even the spiritual materials used for casting had turned into a pile of scrap.
Even the value of smelting them again was gone.
However, in the end, a hint of surprise appeared in their eyes, because after most of the ruins were cleared, a staircase leading underground was revealed. At the end of it was a large door made of an unknown metal.
Even after thousands of years, traces of spiritual light remained on the door, and it still retained some restrictions. It was likely that there were relatively complete items inside.
"Your luck isn't too bad. I was already preparing to go to the next place."
Zhu Wudang's voice sounded at the opportune moment. "I just don't know how much is left inside. It was, after all, the treasury of a merchant guild whose business spanned tens of thousands of miles."
Ji Yuan pondered for a moment, then directly summoned the Xuan Tian Spirit Devouring Pagoda he held. At this moment, he no longer cared about exposing the spirit-devouring power.
Firstly, after such a long time, this place could no longer withstand violent dismantling of restrictions.
Secondly, the spiritual energy accumulated in the pagoda had been greatly depleted during their journey. Although there was still about sixty to seventy percent remaining, it needed to be replenished as much as possible.
Otherwise, if they encountered any danger, Lin Yubai, who could not be continuously supplied with spiritual energy, would only be able to exert twenty to thirty percent of his strength.
As light cascaded down, the remaining restrictions on the metal door were quietly devoured and transformed into pure spiritual energy, which was drawn into the body of the pagoda.
Although the total amount was not much, it was better than nothing.
When the restrictions on the door disappeared, Lin Yubai immediately unleashed a surge of magical power, and slowly pushed open the door in front of them.