https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-314-The-Ramblings-of-an-Ancient-God/12850682/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-316-Seven-Secret-Scriptures-Reversing-Life-and-Death/12850684/
Chapter 315: Earthly Might Examination, Ancestor Transforms into a Dragon
Chapter 315: Earthly Might Examination, Ancestor Transforms into a Dragon
"Is this the Liu Family estate?"
In the quiet suburban area far from the city's hustle and bustle, the sprawling estate, covering several tens of thousands of square meters, was eerily silent. A long trail of blood stretched from the iron gate, disappearing into the distance.
Before approaching the Liu Family, the Xuanying Academy finally revealed their target.
Initially, when they were told it was the Liu Family, many students were excited, their eyes gleaming with anticipation.
After all, the Liu Family was no ordinary major clan. If they could gain something from this, even if they didn't make a fortune, they would still have a bountiful reward.
The current Xuanying Academy was more like a mercenary guild.
Even with the previous generation of cultivators maintaining it, the atmosphere had inevitably changed.
Ji Shan, on the bus, could see the Liu Family estate. Both the clan's ancestral patriarch, Liu Gu, and the clan head, Liu Zhi, resided here.
But now, it was like a ghost town.
Special forces armored vehicles were parked nearby, but there was no sign of anyone, and the place was eerily quiet.
This made those who hadn't been blinded by greed feel a chill run down their spines. They knew that the special forces, with their superior comprehensive qualities and strength, would have entered first. If there had been a fight, there would have been a significant commotion, but now, there was nothing.
There were only two possibilities: either they had infiltrated, which was unlikely given the number of people involved, or they had been completely wiped out, a possibility that was all too real.
As for them leaving, that was even less likely, with the armored vehicles still there.
The headmaster, leading the group, also looked grave. He was now seriously considering turning back.
In the bus, the bearded man's expression grew even paler as the murmuring in his mind became clearer and more chaotic.
In a daze, he even saw a six-petaled lotus slowly blooming.
"Everyone, get off the bus. Prepare to provide support," the headmaster, who had initially wanted to retreat, thought of the Liu Family's resources and, with a final resolve, ordered all the students to get off.
Some students, who didn't fully grasp the situation, were quite excited. Even those who were reluctant obediently got off and gathered.
Being cultivators, they assembled quickly. Then, the headmaster, with a bold step, kicked open the iron gate and led the group into the Liu Family estate, treading through the bloodstains.
The bearded man and Ji Shan deliberately lagged behind. The bearded man was simply in poor condition, while Ji Shan was pondering what had happened inside.
As for resources, he had no need for them. Since contacting the Black Hand, he could get whatever resources he wanted.
For him, gaining knowledge and broadening his horizons was more important. Strengthening himself was something that could be done in an orderly manner.
"Did you see something?" Ji Shan, seeing the bearded man's deteriorating state, asked in a pressing tone.
Since entering the Liu Family estate, Ji Shan had also felt something ominous.
"Jiao, just a Jiao. It cannot become a dragon, nor a snake, turtle, fish, or clam," the bearded man said vaguely.
His words were strange, carrying a peculiar resonance, and his voice was loud enough to draw the attention of a few nearby cultivators.
However, they only glanced at him, dismissing his ramblings as meaningless.
They couldn't possibly connect the bearded man's words to any knowledge, as he wasn't a member of the Liu Family.
'Sss~ Jiao?' Ji Shan's heart jolted. He knew that Liu Gu had obtained a Jiao Pearl. Under normal circumstances, a human transforming into a Jiao was highly unlikely, as it required a regression to a primal state, and humans lacked the necessary bloodline.
But the current situation was far from normal.
"Have you heard of the Earthly Might Examination?" the bearded man suddenly said, in a mysterious tone.
To Ji Shan, the man's mental state was clearly deteriorating.
"No, I don't want to hear it," Ji Shan firmly refused.
But the bearded man, seemingly oblivious, continued, "You see those with human heads and snake bodies, armless fish with scales, earthen oxen, and wooden horses..."
As the bearded man spoke in his neurotic manner, the entire Liu Family estate began to tremble.
As cultivators with heightened senses, they immediately noticed this. Before the headmaster could issue any commands, the trembling intensified.
In that instant, it was as if a terrestrial dragon had turned over.
Chaos instantly spread, and a massive black shadow burst out of the ground, emitting a powerful pressure that made everyone tremble.
The leading Headmaster Xu Qing was particularly unfortunate; as the giant black shadow emerged, it swallowed him whole in a single bite.
After everyone steadied themselves, they finally saw what it was.
It was a Jiao dragon, but not quite a Jiao dragon. It resembled a fleshy worm without scales, covered in a sticky substance, and its skin was adorned with bone lotus flowers. If it weren't for the Jiao dragon's head and limbs, it would have been unrecognizable.
Upon closer inspection, the "lotus flowers" on its skin were actually human heads, with the upper halves blooming to reveal the brain as the central lotus pod.
"Run!!!"
In an instant, all the students scattered like birds and beasts, their greed long forgotten.
At this moment, everyone knew where the Liu Family members and the special forces had disappeared to—they were all on the body of this Jiao dragon.
"Roar~"
A roar erupted from the Jiao dragon, and everyone's minds were filled with two overlapping voices chanting:
"I have often heard that it is not the diligent who seek knowledge, but the knowledgeable who seek the diligent."
In that moment, everyone seemed to see a lotus flower blooming in the Netherworld, made of flesh, bones, and ghostly spirits.
On top of the lotus, a figure held a mudra with closed eyes, while the Netherworld shook around him, forming massive waves.
In another moment of dizziness, everyone recovered, as if the previous scene had been nothing but an illusion.
Even Ji Shan saw that scene, but as a direct descendant, he experienced no issues. Instead, he was taken aback: 'What the hell is my dad doing in the Netherworld?'
He knew that neither the lotus nor the figure on the lotus was Qin Muye; the true Qin Muye was the endless abyss beneath the lotus.
That thing was probably just a lure similar to the anglerfish's headlight.
But now was not the time to think about these things, as the Jiao dragon summoned from the Earthly Might Examination had already taken action.
Each time it swallowed a person, a new lotus flower would appear on its body.
Ji Shan knew that both the Earthly Might Examination and the Jiao dragon were creations of Qin Muye, and they lacked rationality. If he thought his father wouldn't target him, he would be gravely mistaken. He wouldn't die, but it would definitely be painful.
Moreover, the Jiao dragon's strength was at the 6th stage.
There was a way to deal with it, though: if he could master the Earthly Might Examination, he might be able to control the Jiao dragon.
It was a good idea, but he also understood that he lacked the main principles and techniques, as the Earthly Might Examination was just a part of a certain cultivation method, a technique rather than a law.
Although the bearded man's words were correct, if he used it, given Qin Muye's character, he would likely be marked by the Jiao dragon rather than controlling it.
So, he could only let his companions die and not himself.
As one of the rear guards, he had a convenient escape route. In just a few breaths, he had rushed out of the Liu Family estate.
Many others left with him, and no one got into the vehicles; they all ran frantically using their techniques.
Those who ran a bit slower were now all left behind in the Liu Family estate.
Although the Jiao dragon was not as powerful as a true dragon, it still possessed dragon's might. When the 6th-stage pressure erupted, these 2nd to 3rd-stage novices had no chance of withstanding it.
Those who were close and weak were immediately stunned into idiocy by the pressure, while those a bit farther away were paralyzed.
Even Ji Shan was affected, but thanks to the strength of a cultivator and his distance, he only shuddered and then hurriedly ran away.
'Fk~ With the strength of this mastermind, which protagonist could possibly defeat him? Even a Chosen One would be useless!'
Ji Shan, rolling and crawling, cursed inwardly. If he were to show filial piety, Qin Muye would definitely teach him what it means to have a father who is always your father.
He couldn't even defeat a derivative of a polluted cultivation technique, let alone the one who created it.
(End of Chapter)
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