Chapter 240: A Fortune and Two Opportunities

Chapter 240: A Fortune and Two Opportunities

The attacks and defenses of the Three Heavens cultivators had absolutely no effect on these Montauk daisy clones.

Even Lin Likuang and the others, who were at the Seventh Heaven realm, could only hold out against the Montauk daisy clones for a moment. Prolonged exposure would still be extremely dangerous.

They only had one choice:

Run!

Run immediately!

Having failed to stop the Montauk daisy clones from landing, Lin Likuang immediately turned around and fled from Daheshan Mountain.

There was a Seventh Heaven elder from the Lin Clan of Jiangzhou who, despite knowing the danger of these creatures, slowed down to rescue his younger clan members. He was immediately entangled by one of the Montauk daisy clones.

He was powerful.

And so, more than ten of the white daisies attacked him at once.

In just a moment, he was already bleeding.

On Daheshan Mountain, slaughter was everywhere.

Some of the Lin Clan disciples escaped with Lin Likuang down the mountain.

But immediately, a large number of long-silked white daisies drifted down from the mountain, relentlessly pursuing them and slaughtering them one by one.

The remaining long-silked white daisies that hadn't drawn blood yet continued to chase after Lin Likuang.

From afar, Lei Jun saw a towering sword energy surging towards the sky in the direction where Lin Likuang was fleeing.

The sword energy was icy cold, even more ferocious and frigid than the blizzard in the Northern Country. It was clearly a secret art of the Youzhou Lin Clan.

As the invisible sword energy swept through, its might far surpassed Lin Likuang's previous display of manipulating the earth's spiritual energy to create the northern wind.

It was the Confucian Sword Art of an Eight Heavens Confucian master from the Youzhou Lin Clan.

Aside from Lin Likuang, there was indeed a more formidable expert from the Youzhou Lin Clan who had arrived at this Northern Snow Ridge.

However, to temporarily avoid provoking the Tang Dynasty imperial family, they had stayed away from the Daheshan Mountain area and hadn't approached earlier.

But with the unexpected turn of events on Daheshan Mountain, this Eight Heavens elder from the Youzhou Lin Clan was finally forced to reveal himself.

The Montauk daisy clones were indeed ferocious. Facing the surging sword energy that had turned into a blizzard, although some of the white silk strands were damaged and broken, most of them remained intact.

They appeared soft and gentle, yet they aggressively charged through the snowstorm to continue their attack on the two elders of the Youzhou Lin Clan.

No wonder the Lin Clan and Dakuang Temple had high hopes for this creature earlier.

Although the sword energy of the Eight Heavens Confucian master from the Youzhou Lin Clan was fierce, he didn't directly clash with the numerous Montauk daisy clones in order to protect Lin Likuang, who was at a lower cultivation level. Instead, he fought while retreating.

The long-silked white daisies resembled a group of bloodthirsty sharks chasing after the snowstorm, gradually disappearing into the horizon.

Lei Jun watched from a distance, deep in thought.

The two Lin Clan elders understood the nature of the long-silked white daisies, and their current approach might indicate that these creatures couldn't maintain their state for too long.

By temporarily avoiding their sharp edge, there was a chance to wait for these creatures to exhaust themselves and wither.

Of course, the prerequisite was to be able to hold them off first.

Lei Jun didn't chase after them to see the outcome. Instead, he turned his gaze back to Daheshan Mountain to observe the remaining long-silked white daisies.

At this moment, these creatures could no longer be called white daisies.

After drinking their fill of blood, they were all crimson red.

However, after the slaughter, these creatures that had devoured flesh, blood, and spiritual energy didn't become stronger.

Instead, the long, slender silk strands of the blood-red daisies showed signs of withering.

After a while, the silk strands turned from blood red to dark red and finally to pitch black, continuously shrinking.

The slaughter had accelerated the end of their lives.

The long-silked white daisies that had entangled Lin Likuang earlier, which hadn't tasted blood, were able to last longer.

"No wonder they aren't in sync with the true great demon, the Montauk Daisy. Strictly speaking, they can't be considered true clones of the Montauk Daisy," Lei Jun realized.

Observing their changes from a distance, he speculated that these creatures were indeed related to the Montauk Daisy, but more accurately, they were like the severed tail of a gecko trying to survive—a byproduct of some sort.

Perhaps when the Montauk Daisy was heavily injured by the Queen and its wounds were slow to heal, it was forced to sever a part of its body to recover.

It was probably a move that greatly damaged its vitality, and it wouldn't use it lightly.

However, it was still a great demon equivalent to a Nine Heavens cultivator, originally fierce and formidable. These remnants were used to share the burden of the Queen's power, hence their transformation into these bizarre creatures resembling long-silked white daisies.

Dakuang Temple had made good use of what others considered waste.

Elder Lei thought this line of reasoning was quite good.

If it could also give the hidden expert from the Youzhou Lin Clan something to do, that would be even better.

With both sides temporarily neutralizing each other, Tang Xiatang would have one less thing to worry about.

...Well, judging by the unrestrained fighting style of that female celestial master, she probably didn't have any worries to speak of.

Earlier, Shangguan Ning had contacted the Tang Dynasty imperial family, and there had been a response from the capital.

The Tang Dynasty would also send experts to secretly head north to this area, but the exact time of their arrival was unknown.

Hopefully, they wouldn't arrive after the story had ended.

Lei Jun shook his head slightly.

At this moment, Daheshan Mountain was deathly silent.

Most of the Lin Clan cultivators had perished under the onslaught of the creatures, including the Seventh Heaven elder from the Jiangzhou Lin Clan who hadn't been able to escape in time. He was the last to be surrounded and killed by the remaining creatures, and in a sense, his death was somewhat pitiful and unjust.

After wreaking havoc on a large scale, the creatures also exhausted their last bit of vitality and withered away.

Their blackened remains, under the howling north wind, seemed to crumble like ashes, scattering and disappearing with the wind.

Lei Jun looked towards the sky above the summit of Daheshan Mountain.

He could still vaguely sense the abnormality in the void realm.

But there were no further changes there for the time being, and to the naked eye, aside from the blowing snow, there was no difference between this sky and any other.

Should he go see if his junior disciple sister had made any discoveries at Dragon Bone Ridge? Or should he go look for clues elsewhere... Lei Jun pondered.

As he turned these thoughts over in his mind, the light ball in his brain suddenly flashed, and words appeared:

[The path to heaven rises step by step, and fortune and misfortune arise from the wild and cultured.]



Lei Jun's eyebrows rose slightly as he looked up at the sky above Daheshan Mountain, pondering the meaning of "the path to heaven rises step by step." Was it referring to the path beyond the summit that led to a different realm, or something else?

This time, four fortune slips appeared:

[Upper-middle fortune slip: First go to Pine Leaf Ridge, wait for the right time, then return to Daheshan Mountain. There is an opportunity to obtain a third-grade opportunity and a fourth-grade opportunity each. There will be minor waves, but no major risks. However, hidden dangers lurk, so be cautious in the future. Auspicious.]



[Middle fortune slip: Stay away from Daheshan Mountain, Dragon Bone Ridge, and Morning Drum Mountain. There will be no additional gains or losses. Neutral.]



[Lower-middle fortune slip: Go to Dragon Bone Ridge. There will be no additional gains, and there may be some risks. Inauspicious.]

】

[Lower-middle fortune slip: Go to Morning Drum Mountain. There will be no additional gains, and there may be some risks. Inauspicious.]



Lei Jun scanned the surroundings as he read his fortune, his mind conjuring up the relevant maps he had perused earlier.

Although those snow-capped mountain maps weren't particularly exciting, Lei Jun vaguely guessed the dangers indicated by the two lower-middle fortune slips.

The direction in which Lin Likuang and the other escaped was probably towards Morning Drum Mountain.

After all, with an Eight Heavens expert among them, there weren't as many pursuing demons as before.

The two elders from the Youzhou Lin Clan should be able to handle those demons.

On the other hand, if Lei Jun were to go in that direction, they might become a threat.

One of them was an Eight Heavens Confucian master, with keen perception. Lei Jun, hiding with the help of the Heavenly Master Seal, couldn't guarantee that he would be able to stay hidden from such a perceptive opponent.

As for Dragon Bone Ridge, several Eight Heavens experts were engaged in a fierce battle, and although their attention was focused on each other, the battlefield was treacherous, and approaching them unnoticed could be equally dangerous.

And as for the middle-upper fortune slip, it suggested going to Pine Leaf Ridge first and then returning to Daheshan Mountain?

Lei Jun pondered briefly over Pine Leaf Ridge before turning his gaze towards the sky above Daheshan Mountain one last time and then walking away.

The benefits indicated by this middle-upper fortune slip were indeed quite attractive.

A third-grade opportunity and a fourth-grade opportunity were like having explosively good luck!

But the reason it was middle-upper and not upper-upper was because...

There were no major risks at present, but there might be future troubles.

Not knowing the specifics of Xu Yuanzhen's situation, Lei Jun decided to give this middle-upper fortune slip a try after careful consideration.

As he concealed his presence and made his way forward, he recalled the terrain of this mountainous area, slowly making his way towards Pine Leaf Ridge.

The Celestial Eye Glasses lit up, and a huge illusory eye appeared in the sky for a fleeting moment.

At this moment, Lei Jun's insight was comparable to that of some Upper Three Heavens cultivators.

Although he refrained from displaying his full capabilities due to his desire to stay hidden, with enough time, he still made a discovery.

In a snowy valley below Pine Leaf Ridge, everything seemed calm, with only the snow accumulating incessantly.

However, there were subtle fluctuations in the flow of spiritual energy in this area.

Lei Jun remained calm and composed as he quietly drew closer.

He first climbed to the summit of Pine Leaf Ridge.

Here, a Jiangzhou Lin Clan disciple, who cultivated the Divine Shooter legacy of the Confucian path, was hiding.

Divine Shooter lineage cultivators were known for their keen perception and sharp insight, especially after reaching the Heart's Eye realm at the Fourth Heaven.

If they cultivated further in techniques that enhanced their perception and insight on top of this foundation, their advantage in this aspect would become even more pronounced.

However, in this regard, this Lin Clan disciple was no match for Lei Jun.

Moreover, his stealth skills were far inferior to Lei Jun's.

In the quiet of the night, Lei Jun appeared beside him and clasped his hands around the disciple's neck, twisting it with deadly force.

He gently lowered the limp corpse to the ground and then made his way down the mountain into the snowy valley.

This valley had been altered by some techniques to appear normal from the outside, but within, it was a different world.

Various ritual vessels, such as the gu, gui, bian, and deng, were arranged, and a classical ritual was underway.

There weren't many people performing the ritual, only five, with a young-looking woman leading them.

Having dealt with the Jiangzhou Lin Clan numerous times, Lei Jun recognized Lin Qian, the daughter of Lin Che, just by her side profile. She was one of the outstanding figures among the younger generation of the Jiangzhou Lin Clan, second only to Lin Zhen and Lin Lang, and was expected to reach the Upper Three Heavens within a hundred years.

Although there weren't many Lin Clan disciples here, the ritual they were performing was grand and formal.

At the center of the ritual site, a bronze ding sat, with curling wisps of blue smoke rising from it and transforming into a landscape of mountains and rivers above it.

Most techniques held no secrets for Lei Jun at his current level. Even if he couldn't unravel all the intricacies in a short time, he could still grasp the general idea by observing.

As he had suspected, the Lin Clan was indeed trying to seal the 'doorway' in the sky above Daheshan Mountain.

It seemed that apart from their efforts at Dragon Bone Ridge, they also had a backup plan in place here at Pine Leaf Ridge.

However, unlike Dragon Bone Ridge, which had been prepared for a long time, this setup at Pine Leaf Ridge was new, and as a result, the ritual performed by Lin Qian and the others was still in its rudimentary stages.

This presented an opportunity to sabotage their efforts.

The middle-upper fortune slip had suggested going to Pine Leaf Ridge first and then returning to Daheshan Mountain, and it seemed that this was what it had been referring to... Lei Jun calmly took out a metal rail and pointed it at Lin Qian.

In the next moment, the air between the two of them seemed to twist and ripple.

"Pa!"

"Clang!"

Lin Qian's attention was focused on the ritual, and her vigilance towards her surroundings had lapsed. Her defenses relied mostly on the Divine Shooter on the mountain peak.

Before she could react, her white clothes turned black as if stained by ink.

The black ink expanded outward, forming a towering 'ink mountain' to shield and protect her.

However, before the ink mountain could fully take shape, it cracked and shattered with a "pa" sound, turning into scattered fragments.

Fortunately, this ink mountain had bought Lin Qian a brief moment, allowing her to produce another treasure, a brush washer, to protect herself.

But with a "clang," this brush washer was also directly shattered.

Only then did Lin Qian have the chance to react. She dodged and evaded while turning to face her attacker, and she saw a tall Daoist in a deep red robe.

It was Lei Jun from the Celestial Master's Mansion!

Lin Qian was very familiar with his appearance.

But the item he held in his hand was unfamiliar to her.

Just as Lin Qian was about to warn her fellow clan members and contact her father, Lin Che...

"Bang!"

A gaping hole appeared in the chest and abdomen of the Lin Clan's daughter as she turned.

The wound on her back was even more terrifying.

Even with the protection of her noble spirit, she couldn't withstand the second Yuan Magnetic Sword Pill's bombardment.

Lei Jun had guessed that as Lin Che's daughter, she would definitely have treasures for protection, so he decided to strike quickly and decisively, sending two Yuan Magnetic Sword Pills her way.

Indeed, they were excellent Confucian treasures, capable of vaguely sensing the direction of his Yuan Magnetic power's convergence and reacting swiftly.

This was related to Lei Jun's close-range attack this time.

And conversely, at this distance, his accuracy was guaranteed.

Lin Qian didn't even have the chance to consider whether to engage Lei Jun in close combat or maintain a distance. She was directly hit and sent flying backward.

She possessed a sacred body constitution, which not only accelerated her cultivation progress but also made her famous for her actual combat abilities.

But in the face of Lei Jun's onslaught, she didn't even have a chance to fight back...

In the blink of an eye, the proud daughter of the Jiangzhou Lin Clan, a Sixth Heaven cultivator, lay dead, her blood staining the ground.

The other Lin Clan disciples, caught off guard by this sudden turn of events, quickly regained their wits.

But they were no match for Lin Qing, and Lei Jun quickly took care of them all.

Lei Jun didn't pause for a moment, putting away the metal rail while quickly using the secret side of the Celestial Master's Manual to clean up the scene.

However, he didn't disturb the ritual.

He walked up to the bronze ding, his fingers drawing complex talisman patterns in the air.

The talismans shone with a radiant light, leaving traces in the air. Once they stabilized, they imprinted themselves onto the ding.

Seeing this, Lei Jun turned and left, disappearing into the swirling snow.

Perhaps it was a father-daughter telepathic connection, or perhaps he had been keeping an eye on the ritual on Pine Leaf Ridge.

In the area around Pine Leaf Ridge, although Lei Jun had quietly shielded it with his Yuan Magnetic power, Lin Che, the clan head of the Jiangzhou Lin Clan, felt his heart stir as he looked in the direction of Pine Leaf Ridge.

He glanced at the seemingly peaceful ridge.

Lin Che couldn't be sure what had happened, but he sensed that something was amiss.

In this situation, not knowing the truth only indicated that something had indeed gone wrong. The reason he felt it was minor was probably because there was a master interfering!

But Lin Che couldn't spare the time to check it out.

As he glanced at Pine Leaf Ridge, his vision was suddenly filled with a dazzling golden light, almost as if he was about to be engulfed by it.

Above Dragon Bone Ridge, true fire had been ignited.

The half-gold, half-green Taiji Yin-Yang diagram illuminated the surroundings, with yin and yang harmonizing and the dragon and tiger roaring together.

"Crazy woman!" Lin Che wanted to send Lin Yuwei to check on the situation, but for now, he had to deal with someone who was already going berserk.

In the snowy valley of Pine Leaf Ridge, the ritual was still underway, but it had completely changed.

Without anyone presiding over it, the distorted ritual was like a runaway horse.

The ding trembled incessantly, and cracks began to form from the talismans on its surface, spreading outward.

Finally, the ding shattered completely, with fragments flying in all directions.

Like the last straw that broke the camel's back, the chaotic ritual fell apart at this moment.

A radiant light shot up from the snowy valley of Pine Leaf Ridge, reaching towards the clouds.

The valley shook, triggering an avalanche, with mountains collapsing and the ground splitting open.

The flow of earth vein spiritual energy was thrown into disarray.

It was similar to the turmoil that had occurred earlier at Dragon Bone Ridge.

The mountains undulated, as if an angry dragon was constantly shuttling and rolling underground, causing the earth to shake and the mountains to tremble.

One of the "angry dragons" underground headed straight for the distant Daheshan Mountain.

The previously quiet Daheshan Mountain now shook as well.

However, Daheshan Mountain did not crack or collapse.

But the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, centered on the mountain, changed completely.

The howling wind and snow seemed to disappear in an instant, leaving nothing but silence.

The thick clouds in the sky also dissipated, revealing the afternoon sun.

The spiritual energy condensed, forming a pillar that seemed almost solid, standing atop the peak of Daheshan Mountain, connecting the heavens and the earth.

At the edge of the pillar, at the peak, the void rippled, forming what looked like real ripples that spread outwards.

A blurred boundary formed around the pillar.

After leaving Pine Leaf Ridge, Lei Jun rushed back to the area near Daheshan Mountain.

He didn't immediately approach, though.

Although it looked a bit strange, that should be the "doorway" that Lin Che had been thinking about.

The question was, what now?

Daheshan Mountain had changed, but Xu Yuanzhen had not appeared.

There was no sign of the so-called third-grade opportunity and fourth-grade opportunity mentioned in the middle-upper fortune slip in the surrounding area.

So, does that mean I should go in too? I hope it's not one of those situations where it's easy to get in but hard to get out. If I end up getting trapped in there with my senior disciple sister, the Lin Clan will have a good laugh... Lei Jun took a deep breath.

Just then, another figure could be seen flying through the air in the distance, also heading towards Daheshan Mountain.

It was an elderly Confucian scholar.

It was Lin Likuang, the Seventh Heaven realm housekeeper of the Youzhou Lin Clan, who had escaped earlier.

However, Lin Likuang looked a little disheveled, having lost his previous elegant demeanor. He hadn't changed his bloodstained clothes, and his spirit seemed unusually weary, indicating that he had indeed encountered trouble with those creatures.

But he didn't have time to rest. He hurried back to Daheshan Mountain and was astonished to see the unexpected changes before him.

"Something went wrong with the demons from Dakuang Temple, and the ritual of the Jiangzhou Lin Clan is also in trouble?"

His injuries had lowered Lin Likuang's perception, but witnessing this scene, he immediately became alert.

"On the pine and cypress green mountains, there stands a city..." Although he hadn't discovered any enemies yet, Lin Likuang started to recite.

A Confucian master of the Seventh Heaven realm, who had entered the realm of enlightenment, could manipulate the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and communicate with nature without uttering a word, although the effect was not as powerful as when he spoke aloud.

Lin Likuang was injured and his strength was not at its peak, so he didn't dare to be careless. He was extra careful this time.

But before he could finish reciting the poem, he saw faint flashes of electric light in the distance!

In front of Lin Likuang, a barrier of pine and cypress trees appeared, along with the beginnings of a city.

However...

"Bang!"

The explosion was muffled, sounding like one bang but also like multiple bangs overlapping.

Accompanying the sound was the thunderous roar of lightning!

The city, which was still illusory, instantly vanished.

The tall cypress trees were snapped in half.

The majestic green mountains were pierced through, leaving a clear hole that went straight through.

Three.

Three large holes also appeared in Lin Likuang's body, which was hidden behind the pine and cypress trees.

One was incomplete, grazing his body and leaving a semi-circular notch on his side, along with taking off one of his arms.

Another was complete, hitting him squarely in the chest and abdomen, leaving a huge hole with bloody and charred flesh.

And the last one left Lin Likuang particularly incomplete, as it happened to hit him right in the face...

As the unfinished poem was blasted back at him, so was his head, blown away.

In the distance, on a snowy mountain, Lei Jun sat cross-legged, breathing deeply to recover his depleted spiritual energy.

Above him, three metal rails formed an "H" shape as they hovered in the air.

(PS: The poem excerpt in this chapter is from the poem "Two Funeral Songs for Minister Zhang Zuogeng" by Li Duan of the Tang Dynasty. The full poem is as follows: "The white banner droops over cold water, and the clear horn sounds in the morning wind. The birds come to mourn Jia Fu, and the horses stand at the burial of Teng Gong. On the pine and cypress green mountains, there stands a city in the white day, and from this day forward, ancient and modern are separated, and only the moon shines together. When disaster strikes, the hooked sickle is lost, and when calamity strikes, the sword suddenly flies. There is no way to pay respects during the day, and one can only remember the return from heaven. The gatekeeper watches the burial, and the palace official recognizes the bestowed clothes. The mourning gifts in the Eastern Hall are finished, and from now on, there will be few old subjects."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end