The Forbidden Path to Immortality - Chapter 101

Chapter 4: The Lost God

One look at her posture told everyone present that at least 30% of her bones were broken, leaving her completely powerless to fight back.

However, Tianzhi didn’t press her advantage, for in front of her stood a pitch-black demon.

This demon, too, looked utterly miserable: its body, like a withered tree, half-knelt on the ground, the slender bone spurs on its left shoulder completely broken, and Tianzhi had forcibly ripped a piece of its chest, revealing the bright red flesh beneath.

The scene stunned everyone, but Yaofeng reacted faster, leaping forward to protect Gu Yin. The suddenly

appearing Demon Hou also retreated a distance with a low growl.

Its crimson, ghostly eyes fixed on Tianzhi’s face, as if intent on etching the image of the murderer who had so severely injured it into its very bones!

Li Xun felt his brains were running out of steam as Shui Die Lan bit his earlobe, causing him to groan in pain. But before he could even react with anger, his mind was drawn away by Shui Die Lan’s whispered words: “Oh my god, the Innate Five-Colored Divine Light!”

“Huh?”

“It truly is the Five-Colored Divine Light. The most impressive sight in this world, and the very method I most desire to learn!”

Li Xun rolled his eyes. At that moment, a series of choking coughs erupted from Gu Yin. She leaned against Yao Feng’s embrace, coughing up blood in large gulps. Her chest was a bloody mess, her usual elegance and grace gone.

Li Xun had once believed that Gu Yin possessed the most perfect hands he had ever seen.

But now, her left hand was suspended across her chest, her wrist twisted at an odd angle. Her right hand still tightly grasped the flute, but it was now broken in half, completely useless.

Seeing her like this, even though Li Xun hated her to the core, he was still horrified.

However, a smile unexpectedly broke across her face, pale from severe injuries, and she spoke softly, her tone as if chatting with a friend.

“Are you surprised to see Mara Hou? Yes, you’re still as quick-witted as ever! But you also really surprised me… The Heart Demon Refining Method, I finally underestimated it!”

She spoke too much and coughed a few more times, but ignored Yao Feng’s whispered reassurances and continued with a smile, “That’s right, hatred is the most delicious tonic for the Heart Demon. With your talent and the immense humiliation you’ve endured, it’s no wonder you’ve transformed from a True Person into a Child for nearly two hundred years.”

Li Xun was shocked.

A True Person transforming into a Child, a Child is the True One. Could it be that Master Tianzhi has already reached the level of a True One Grandmaster?

If that were the case, how could she, the head of a sect, a true master, have just willingly submitted to the humiliation and ridicule of so many? Was it all for a thunderbolt strike?

Surprisingly, Master Tianzhi remained silent, staring coldly at Gu Yin’s increasingly pale face, as if considering her next move.

Gu Yin simply smiled softly, “Tianzhi, given our relationship, why would it have come to this? There are people in this world who are more…”

Two icy, snowy gazes struck her face, cutting off the rest of her words.

Li Xun was still wondering at Gu Yin’s weakness, when he saw Master Tianzhi’s figure sway slightly, her clothes stained with blood.

“How did you face the enemy head-on and get injured?”

Li Xun hadn’t figured it out when another change occurred.

Tianzhi’s figure flashed, plunging directly into the icy mist. She had just appeared determined to perish together, but now she suddenly retreated, a move no one had expected.

Everyone in the room gasped. The Ice Demon Lady, having just lost face, had been trying to redeem herself. She had been keeping a close eye on Tianzhi, and when she saw her retreat, she was the first to react.

With a low shout, the Ice Demon Lady shot out a crystal-clear jade tablet. Silently, it pierced the icy mist and reached several feet behind Tianzhi. With a humming sound, it transformed into a thousand tablets, their aura pulsing and transforming, sharp as a knife, enveloping Tianzhi.

Tianzhi didn’t pause, but simply flicked her sleeve. Another burst of five-colored light suddenly appeared and vanished. With another subtle “swish,” the thousands of tablets vanished like bubbles, while the jade tablet itself was swept away by the edge of her sleeve, landing in an unknown location.

The Ice Demon Lady was stunned. This was one of her prized magical instruments, and she had never expected Tianzhi to break it so easily!

In just a moment’s pause, Tianzhi’s figure vanished into the icy mist.

“Stop chasing!”

Gu Yin said coldly, as if those gentle words were merely illusions.

Between small coughs, she said quietly, “There’s no need for any more meaningless activities. For now, we just need to focus on Old Kunpeng!”

Although she wasn’t a member of the Loose Cultivator Alliance, everyone knew her position within it was so high that her word was almost unwavering. Seeing her speak, everyone fell silent.

Meanwhile, Old Kunpeng, temporarily ignored by Master Tianzhi’s attack, had recovered from the frenzy of a severed throat and launched a new attack.

The atmosphere quickly became tense again, and even the awkward Three-Headed Dragon Monster secretly sought out Taoist Jia, with whom he had some acquaintance, to find a temporary job.

Gu Yin, however, seemed completely out of place. Lying on her back in Yao Feng’s arms, her eyes half-closed, she seemed to be asleep, but Yao Feng knew she was mulling over a complex problem.

Yao Feng remained silent, simply channeling a stream of warm, invigorating vital energy into her body, slowly repairing her damaged form.

After a long pause, Gu Yin groaned, “Finally, I made a wrong move…”

Yao Feng smiled softly, soothing her, “It can still be fixed. At least the general trend hasn’t changed. Besides, we still have a backup plan, right?”

Gu Yin smiled faintly and was about to speak when Yao Feng’s expression suddenly changed and she turned her head abruptly. She was startled for a moment, then a surge of foreboding erupted from the depths of her heart.

A leisurely, elegant, and deeply magnetic voice echoed through the tangled icy mist. “Excuse me, is Gu Zhixuan home?”

“What did you do just now? What do you want to do now?”

Shui Dielan posed questions to Li Xun as she navigated the icy mist.

Li Xun, in fact, had many questions in mind, but navigating this deadly icy fog had already drained too much of his energy. He temporarily shut his mouth and focused on battling the cold poison.

When Master Tianzhi fled into the icy mist, Li Xun grabbed Shui Dielan and chased after her.

He had so many questions that needed Tianzhi’s answers, and now was the perfect opportunity.

Therefore, even as the icy poison in the vast icy mist chilled his limbs, his heart continued to beat rapidly, giving him incredible energy.

Master Tianzhi’s figure had vanished from sight, but the strong scent of blood could not escape Shui Dielan’s uncanny senses.

Finally, when Li Xun’s eyes once again saw the glacier under the darkness, Shui Dielan said, “Right here! Hey, you haven’t answered yet. Did you do something just now…”

Li Xun looked at the hole dug out in the shadow of the glacier and hummed absentmindedly. He was just thinking in his heart that this hole was not naturally formed, and certainly not newly dug. It seemed that Master Tianzhi had more plans than just a short time

. So, how to use the current situation to obtain more information later would require more careful consideration.

However, he was soon hit hard on the waist.

When he cried out in pain, Shui Dielan narrowed her eyes, leaned over, and said viciously: “Am I not as good as that half-dead crazy woman? Answer my question first, or I will go in and take her head to Guyin for discussion!”

Looking at Shui Dielan like this, Li Xun laughed dumbly. No matter how delicate the relationship between the two sides was, Shui Dielan looked quite… cute at the moment.

This absurd thought made him grin. “It’s nothing, really. Yin Sanren’s been looking for trouble with Yu Sanren lately, and I happened to run into this, so I sent her along for the fun!” Anyone

who didn’t know his background would have thought him a lunatic. But Shui Dielan understood, shaking her head.

“Sores on your head and pus on your feet is a good way to describe you, kid! Gu Yin has put a lot of thought into this, you…” Before he

could finish his words, the majestic glacier before them suddenly trembled, shattered ice and snow splattering in a startling display.

Li Xun and Shui Dielan looked back simultaneously, seeing a blinding light rising from the distant horizon, where the sky met the earth. Soon, the already dark sky darkened even further, and a heavy pressure, like dark clouds whipped by a strong wind, flashed overhead and then vanished thousands of miles away.

Li Xun looked up at the sky, then down at the glaring bloodstains that had just fallen from the sky onto the snow-white glacier. Finally, he chuckled softly, a triumphant smile.

Shui Dielan shook her head. “What’s your grudge against them? Even if you save Kunpeng, that old fellow won’t be grateful…”

“But Gu Yin and the others won’t be happy, and their plans will be completely thwarted. That’s enough.”

Although Li Xun said this, he had other plans in mind. For

decades, he had been treated like a dog by Gu Yin and the others. Although he had dispelled their suspicions, he had been unable to find the thread or flaws in their actions, making it impossible to start.

Now that their plans had changed, the flaws that had been hidden before would surely appear.

From now on, he needed to observe calmly, gathering enough and crucial information to prepare for a counterattack.

The starting point and key to everything lay with Tian Zhi in this ice cave.

He tilted his head slightly and whispered in Shui Dielan’s ear, “Cooperate with me for a moment, thank you!”

After receiving Shui Dielan’s unpleasant response, he blinked, took a deep breath, and floated to the entrance of the ice cave. He knocked on the ice wall, making a tapping sound. “Master, are you all right? Is there a fellow practitioner who wishes to see you… Master?”

Li Xun frowned and peered inside. The next moment, he let out a low cry and lurched backward. A blazing bolt of light grazed his scalp, striking the ice wall hundreds of feet away with a crackling sound.

He wasn’t in any great condition, but Shui Dielan was startled into a cold sweat.

If Li Xun had reacted any slower, they would have truly become a pair of lovebirds with the same fate. This feeling of entrusting one’s life to someone else was damn depressing!

She cursed softly, grabbed Li Xun by the collar, and pulled him behind her, saying angrily, “Stay away, watch me…”

Before she could finish her words, she saw Li Xun gesture to her. Before she could understand what was happening, he pulled her back behind him. His slender figure immediately obscured her. At the same time, a figure flashed at the entrance of the ice cave.

Master Tianzhi appeared at the cave entrance with a cold look, his eyes flashing with a chilling light. Shui Dielan only heard Li Xun shout, “She’s not hurt, run!” Unbeknownst to her, he was dragged away.

Behind her, a sharp icy wind roared, and at least seven or eight glaciers collapsed in the sudden storm, a terrifying roar.

Shui Dielan looked back and saw the icy fog and snow powder flying behind her, but she just sneered, shook off Li Xun’s hand and stopped: “What are you doing! She is clearly bluffing, why are we afraid of her?”

Li Xun also stopped in mid-air, and calmly adjusted his rather embarrassed appearance, then smiled: “Why do you have to confront her head-on? The courage of blood and flesh can’t escape the dilemma of prosperity, decline and exhaustion. If we take it easy, can’t we avoid a dispute?”

“Cunning!” Shui Dielan snorted, and suddenly laughed strangely: “You are right, but I want to tell you that Tianzhi just ran away again. It’s still uncertain whether we can catch up with her.”

“Escaped far?” Li Xun was stunned for a moment, then shook his head and smiled: “You have made a mistake this time, this is impossible.”

Shui Dielan frowned and said: “How is it impossible? The smell of her blood has just escaped a hundred miles away. This smell came with the wind and can’t be hidden from me!”

Li Xun could only shake his head: “Smell can also deceive people, the only thing that can’t deceive people is reason. Do you think she still has the ability to control the air? Now she is afraid that she can’t even fly over the North Sea. Otherwise, as long as she crashes into the area of “Eternal Night Aurora” that has just been set up, wouldn’t it be a hundred times safer than here? Seeing that

Shui Dielan still looked unconvinced, he thought for a moment and said with a smile, “How about this? Let’s have a bet. You do your thing, I’ll do mine. We’ll each act separately, and we’ll have a quarter of an hour. Whoever finds Tianzhi wins. How about it?”

Shui Dielan raised an eyebrow, clearly interested. “What’s the bet?”

Li Xun smiled slightly and said, “No big deal. Just promise them something. For example, you can let me teach you how to control the core of ‘Wu Yin Xuan,’ and I can let you teach me ‘Niying Dunfa’ or something like that. No one is allowed to refuse!” As soon as

he said this, he suddenly remembered that he had been busy these past few days and had not yet informed Shui Dielan about the breach of ‘Wu Yin Xuan’s’ secret.

But now was not the time to bring up this, so he put it aside for the time being, just watching Shui Dielan’s reaction with a smile.

Shui Dielan was clearly very interested. She rolled her eyes and agreed very straightforwardly.

Li Xun smiled again, stretched out his arm slightly, and made a “please go first” gesture. Shui Dielan glanced at him, her figure flashed, and disappeared in a flash.

Li Xun sighed and said softly to the void to one side: “You’re back?”

Yin Sanren stepped out of the void silently and nodded slightly: “Everything went well.”

“How did Gu Yin react when you appeared?”

“There were many problems. Both Gu Yin and Yao Feng were a little confused. That’s why I successfully rescued old Kunpeng. Even the three-headed dragon monster took the opportunity to escape. It was like a nine-tenths-foot mountain, but it fell short at the last moment. At this time, all the cultivators in the Loose Cultivator Alliance have been ordered to restrict their activities and cannot be moved around for a while. In addition, there is the matter of Gu Zhixuan…”

Li Xun’s mind immediately focused. Yin Sanren glanced at him and said cautiously: “If Gu Zhixuan was still alive, the situation would not have come to this point. Especially when I discussed with Gu Yin at the beginning, asking her to ask Gu Zhixuan to come out and retrieve the Lingmie Silk, and I would not care about what happened here.”

She paused, and seeing Li Xun’s expression unchanged, she continued, “Common sense suggests that Gu Zhixuan should have stepped out to stabilize the situation long ago. However, he’s been nowhere to be seen from beginning to end, which contradicts his character. In my opinion, either he’s in seclusion, as Gu Yin and the others claim, or he’s really…”

Even Yin Sanren said the same thing!

From Niu Lishi to Tianzhi Shangren, no one had actually mentioned Yu Sanren’s death, yet their reactions all revolved around this key point.

Could it be that Gu Zhixuan was truly dead?

For a moment, Li Xun was bewildered.

Honestly, he was completely unfamiliar with Yu Sanren. Everything he knew about him came from others, heavily tainted with subjective information.

Li Xun had tried to piece together the information, but the conclusion ultimately boiled down to two things: power and lust!

Such conclusions were undoubtedly pale and weak.

So, even now, Yu San Ren remained a hazy figure to him, a mere outline, devoid of substance.

Precisely because of this, Li Xun couldn’t quite muster the hatred he felt for this theoretical “enemy,” a far cry from the genuine feelings he felt for Gu Yin, Yao Feng, and Qing Yin.

The problem was that, due to his childhood experiences, he subconsciously compared himself to Yu San Ren, inevitably entertaining questions like, “Am I related to him?”

While this might have been the case with others, even Yao Feng, Gu Yin, and the others hadn’t expressed any such concern. Thus, he could reason, “At least Yu San Ren’s still alive!”

And now… shaking his head, he forced this absurd thought out of his mind, pretending he didn’t see Yin San Ren’s probing gaze, trying to maintain a composed demeanor.

“Really? And what about you? What are your thoughts on Gu Zhixuan’s life or death?”

“No matter what happens, it won’t be unacceptable.” Yin Sanren’s attitude was realistic. She chuckled self-deprecatingly, “After all, the will of heaven is unpredictable. If I can handle it, then what’s the big deal about Gu Zhixuan’s life or death?”

Li Xun chuckled, not dwelling on the question. Simply saying, “Follow me,” he flew towards the devastated glacier.

Upon arrival, he gestured to Yin Sanren to stand guard while he landed. He stomped his feet a few times on the ground, and the sounds he heard echoed back, his heart growing more reassured.

“What are we going to get from Shui Dielan later?”

With a slight smile, he shrank back, casting his spell to escape beneath the ice.

“It’s so hot…”

Even hidden beneath the thick ice, a torrent of scorching heat, like magma, continued to surge through his body, steaming his vital energy bit by bit.

Especially the Seven Emotions Fire, mingling with the strange poison from the broken jade flute that had penetrated her chest, instantly ruptured her heart meridians, then fed back to her mind, pushing her step by step into the abyss of death.

Tianzhi felt a toxic methane permeate her skull, and the rising heart fire sent a burning pain that dried out her brain juices.

Only the tiny bit of icy spiritual wisdom, tempered over centuries, remained firmly anchored to her spiritual altar, struggling to hold it together.

She gasped softly, feeling the poisonous fire bubbling from her internal organs, her mouth and tongue dreadfully dry. Perhaps a single gust of wind would dissolve her into dust.

“You bastard… Changkong Flying Snow Flute, Gu Zhixuan, even in death, you won’t let me rest in peace!”

With a gritted smile, she struggled to control her now largely stiff body and reached into her bosom. There lay the “Golden Elixir of Creation” she had previously begged from Master Xuanhua. Her life depended entirely on it.

Perhaps a day had passed before her numb fingers miraculously uncorked the jade bottle. The elixir’s spiritual energy gushed out, like a glass of ice water poured over her head.

While this temporary relief was a drop in the bucket, it was better than nothing, and even the act of drawing the elixir became smoother. She

heard a voice, but the fire burning in her brain left her no room for anything else. Her only thought was, “Swallow the elixir!”

The aroma grew stronger, but her mind grew increasingly hazy. Her stiff fingers trembled constantly, as if the jade bottle were already touching her lips. She only needed to inhale, inhale…

All she breathed was the chilling air from the ice.

The jade bottle slipped coldly, and she couldn’t even hear the sound of it hitting the ground. She tensed, instinctively reaching out to grab it, but a sudden clatter filled her head, and a surge of blood and energy rushed in, instantly closing her senses and slamming her to the ground like a muffled hammer.

Her body, barely able to rise, fell like a log onto the ice.

The aroma of the medicine vanished.

Pure darkness and emptiness instantly enveloped her. The last shred of light that had seeped through the ice was wiped from her eyes, and her limbs were numb. This time, she couldn’t even lift a finger.

The poisonous fire blazed through the sky, and Tianzhi could almost hear the chirping of ghosts. The most vulnerable meridians in her eyes had been burned, and her sense of smell was also dulled. She had no idea where the pill bottle had fallen.

She let out a “hehe” sound from her throat, a mixture of laughter and tears, only a hint of self-deprecation. She had no intention of resigning herself to death. Instead, she pressed her cheek against the ice, moving slightly, relying on the gradually numbing touch, to search for the pill bottle.

“Hmm? Are you looking for this?”

A sound like beads rolling on a jade plate echoed, the sound of the pills bouncing back and forth in the bottle. Tianzhi’s body stiffened, and then she heard a low sigh from above.

“Who could have imagined that the once-arrogant Lord of the City That Never Sleeps would meet this day?”

Before she could finish her words, there was a sound of ripping silk, and the clothing on Tianzhi’s back was torn in two. A chill pounced on her exposed skin, then faded into numbness.

The thought of resistance had just begun to form, but it gradually faded in waves of drowsiness. She could only vaguely formulate a simple thought: “Whose hands have I fallen into… Can I still survive?”

In her drowsiness, someone gently tapped her back several times. A warmth like warm soup seeped in from the touched points, effortlessly suppressing the toxic fire that had spread throughout her body, transforming it into a gentle warmth that protected her already fragile heart.

In that instant, her six senses, which had been on the verge of collapse, were largely restored, and her skin became sensitive, though she still couldn’t see.

“This technique… is amazing!”

She vaguely sensed that the person behind her had some impressive skills, but she couldn’t come up with a definitive answer.

However, to view this act of expelling the poison as a gesture of kindness would be too naive.

She could sense that while expelling the poison, the person was also restraining at least several of her vital meridians, and the finger behind her head could kill her at any moment.

After dispelling the Seven Emotions Fire Poison, his powerful and pure true energy converged and attacked the heart meridian. With a perfectly precise, penetrating shockwave, he pushed the broken flute that had pierced his heart out through the wound on his back.

Without the constant blast of poison, Tianzhi felt a sudden sense of relief. However, the fingers on the vital points behind her also increased their pressure, making the person’s intentions behind her even more confusing.

“There are only a few people with such cultivation in the world. He…”

A figure seemed to flash, but was quickly dismissed. At this moment, a wave of sound suddenly filled her ears, like the whistling of wind through ice cracks, but the twists and turns were so strange that she couldn’t help but want to hear it. Just as

an indescribable thought arose in her mind, a laugh echoed from the outside world: “Gu Yin is really so cruel, so heavy-handed!”

That sounded familiar? Why…

Just as she was confused, the voice suddenly distorted strangely in space, as if it had instantly generated a wave of sound, resonating in the small space. Ultimately, even its original meaning was blurred, and only the strange yet familiar voice echoed in her ears.

A faint light seemed to appear before Tianzhi’s eyes, but the shadows within it were blurry and turbulent, indistinct. As her attention naturally shifted, the voice beside her suddenly became clearer.

“I never thought she could do such a thing…”

“Gu Zhixuan!”

A wave of intense shock surged from deep within her heart. In an instant, the world shifted, and she seemed no longer to dwell within the cold, icy cave. The darkness before her transformed into a deep, endless night sky, with countless stars gleaming and cold eyes.

A crescent moon floated across the water, its shadows shimmering across the lake. The clear melody of wind chimes seemed to echo in her ears, and a voice, in perfect harmony with the lingering rhythm, echoed slowly—”You can’t pick my Yuanhong, so use this one… okay?”

Ancient voice! Mo Xuanye!

Tianzhi screamed shrilly, and the shock surging from within her heart shattered her already fragile consciousness. Her mind was irreversibly mired in endless thoughts, tumbling and surging in those unbearable memories.

Misty Langlian Lake, a bright moon over a small building. Within this dreamlike beauty lies a nightmare, shattered by pain and shame.

Tianzhi’s soul seemed to be split into a thousand pieces, each fragment holding a thread of painful scenes, resonating with them.

Her body twitched uncontrollably, and a moment later, that cold, sarcastic and casual voice sounded again: “I didn’t know about it beforehand, but I won’t apologize. Because, this is the price you have to pay for using me as a whetstone.”

…

“Of course, I don’t deny, it was me who restrained you, it was me who pushed you, and that’s why I’ll save you today. But before that, you have to swear an oath first!”

…

“What oath? It’s this – as long as I, Gu Zhixuan, am alive, you can’t seek revenge on Gu Yin, otherwise, the City That Never Sleeps will be forever reduced to a dark place, the family line will be cut off, and there will be no chance of turning over!”

…

“Not happy? Well, do you want to die? Or live?”

…

“Hope I die soon, who knows, that day will come soon? Ha…”

The low and gradually unbridled laughter rumbled, making her internal organs turn upside down.

She gritted her teeth, and before she knew it, the scent of blood spread between her lips and teeth. The pungent taste made her growl like a beast, and her body instinctively struggled. The unique reaction of the outside world made her mind jump.

“What’s going on?”

In an instant, the moon in the small building shattered. The surrounding body was no longer surrounded by the sweet and ambiguous body fragrance, but by the dark vision and icy cold air. Her body shook violently, and her groggy mind suddenly cleared.

A sigh came from the darkness: “What a pity, he woke up so quickly!”