Chapter 168: Riding on the Black Snake

The painting seemed to ripple as if a dragonfly had lightly touched its surface, ceaseless waves spreading. The scroll briefly brightened, then gradually dimmed.

The rice paper’s blank spaces resembled clouds, where the faded feathers of the azure bird were concealed.

Ning Changjiu’s figure vanished before the painting.

The space felt like a wavering feather of an azure bird.

Ning Changjiu’s figure descended as if a feather falling to the ground.

On the streets of Lotus Pond Town, the weather was fine. The rabbit spirit with a carrot stuck in its head was still on patrol, though it looked disheveled, as if a fierce battle had recently occurred in the town.

Sword marks scarred the nearby walls, and bloodstains on the ground had not been entirely wiped away. In one corner, even fragments of purple clothing were visible.

Had all the members of the Purple Heaven Dao Sect died here?

He thought silently, his gaze sweeping across the familiar town.

The town was quiet and peaceful, and his arrival caused no stir.

Ning Changjiu glanced towards the lotus pond. After a moment of hesitation, he decided to go to Zhang Qiyu’s house first.

The door was ajar. Ning Changjiu knocked perfunctorily before pushing it open and stepping inside.

Qiusheng, who was tidying up the room, heard movement behind him. Startled, he turned, rubbed his eyes, and recognized the visitor. "Immortal Master, you're back?" he exclaimed.

Ning Changjiu noticed his eyes were red, as if he had been crying.

"What happened?" Ning Changjiu asked, glancing at the luggage on the floor.

Qiusheng lowered his head.

From behind the door, the little girl holding a black cat peeked out. Seeing it was Ning Changjiu, she cautiously walked over.

"Are you moving?" Ning Changjiu asked again.

Qiusheng hummed and said, "Grandpa is gone. Before he left, he told me to go live with the town chief."

"Gone?" Ning Changjiu was slightly startled, thinking that True Man Hanchi had indeed killed Zhang Qiyu and taken the Nine Infants.

Qiusheng realized Ning Changjiu had misunderstood and quickly explained, "No, Grandpa... Grandpa just left. He said he was going to a very distant place and doesn't know if he'll ever come back."

Ning Changjiu thought of something and asked, "Did someone take him away?"

Qiusheng nodded.

Ning Changjiu asked, "Who was it?"

Qiusheng thought seriously for a moment but couldn't recall the person's appearance. He shook his head and said, "I don't remember."

Ning Changjiu now understood.

As expected, Zhang Qiyu would eventually go to Grand River Town, but in this life, his departure was eight years later. So who had come for him?

Ning Changjiu briefly recalled that only Fourth Senior Sister and Fifth Senior Brother frequently descended the mountain. It must have been one of them. Eight years ago, it was Fourth Senior Sister; perhaps it was her again this time.

No wonder...

Ning Changjiu had figured out many things that had previously seemed unreasonable.

Ning Changjiu comforted him, "The place your grandpa went to is very safe. Wait a few more years, and you should meet him."

Qiusheng's eyes brightened slightly, still a little distrustful. "Really?"

Ning Changjiu said, "Immortals don't lie."

Qiusheng nodded vigorously.

Little Lian, beside them, also seemed to have heard something joyful. With both hands, she clutched Little Black's elbows, extending her arms as if offering it as a gift for Ning Changjiu to pet. Held in her hands, Little Black's limbs sprawled, its body hanging limply, and it let out a soft whine.

Ning Changjiu reached out and scratched Little Black's belly. Although a faint smile touched his lips, his expression was profound, and he was absently pondering something.

Ning Changjiu suddenly asked, "What about that big black snake? Is it still here?"

Since Nine Infants was still alive, it meant the Abbot's task for them was merely to take Zhang Qiyu. The Abbot always kept his word, and his senior siblings didn't have a habit of doing more than necessary, so the Xiangliu snake should also still be alive...

Qiusheng hadn't expected him to ask about that.

It was now common knowledge among the townspeople that a great demon battle had occurred in the lotus pond.

Most of the lotus leaves in the pond were churned to pieces, and the silt hadn't settled, still muddying the water. Many people were heartbroken, unsure if this year's Lotus Seed Festival could still be held.

Regarding the details of that battle, many people had differing accounts, and no one could give a definitive answer.

Qiusheng shook his head, "I don't know, but that big black snake is so huge, surely no one could harm it, right?"

Ning Changjiu nodded, "I see. Take good care of yourselves. If there's an opportunity in the future, I can take you to see your grandpa."

Qiusheng felt he was probably just comforting him, but still nodded thankfully. "Immortal Master, are you leaving so soon after arriving? How about a fish?"

Ning Changjiu shook his head, declining, and hurried towards the lotus pond without delay.

He untied a lotus boat and boarded it, entering the water. The lotus pond was no longer clear and emerald green; it looked murky.

The lotus boat cut through the water, quickly reaching the center. Ning Changjiu extended his divine sense but couldn't detect the black snake's location on his spiritual map.

He pondered for a moment, not giving up. He formed a water-repelling spell and dove beneath the lotus pond.

This lotus pond was surprisingly vast. Even with his sword eyes open, Ning Changjiu couldn't see the bottom. The lotus stems were also highly unusual; seemingly slender and delicate, they extended to the extreme depths of the pond, countless fathoms long. Viewed underwater, they resembled sky-supporting dragon-entwined pillars in a world of chaos.

After entering the water, Ning Changjiu's figure rapidly dove downwards.

After traveling a distance, he reached the pond's bottom, which was almost entirely visible at a glance. Various sizes of river snails and shells were buried among the mud and sand. Surviving fish continuously pecked at the sandy bottom with their lips, searching for something unknown. Ning Changjiu continued to cast his vast net of divine sense, attempting to search for any traces of large life activity, but still received no response.

The underwater world was murky, as if only cold lake water enveloped him.

Ning Changjiu struggled to dispel the worry in his heart, calming himself. He moved like a dark shadow drifting through water, stirring up swirls of river sand as he sped along.

But the search yielded no results.

If Xiangliu were truly dead, its remains should be in the lotus pond. Its bones couldn't possibly be taken back to the Unseen Temple. His senior siblings didn't have a habit of eating meat. If the Xiangliu snake were brought back, wouldn't they be eating snake meat for the next half year? If Sixth Senior Brother, who was also born a demon, found out, wouldn't he be furious for half a year?

Thinking this, Ning Changjiu resurfaced. He closed his eyes, recalling the first time he had seen the Xiangliu snake.

He knew there must be a mystery beneath the lotus pond. For a creature as important as Xiangliu, Zhang Qiyu must have a way to hide it well.

He retrieved the floating lotus boat and returned to the spot where he first remembered seeing Xiangliu.

Ning Changjiu drew the sword from his waist, carved a symbol onto the boat, and then dropped the sword into the water along that mark.

A sword had no emotions, so it could not be deceived.

Ning Changjiu sensed the sword's descent and let out a soft "咦." The sword was clearly falling vertically, yet its position shifted with each layer it passed through. Soon, the sword's location was far from the symbol carved on the boat.

Ning Changjiu maneuvered the lotus boat, sensing the sword's true position. He rediscovered the spot where the boat's marking aligned with the sword, then disembarked from that marked point and entered the water to retrieve the sword.

He used the "Mirror in Water, Moon in Sky" technique to project himself as an illusion, preventing Zhang Qiyu's spatial laws from interfering.

His divine sense connected the mark on the lotus boat and the sword's position, forming an absolutely straight line. He followed this line of divine sense downwards and successfully reached the sword's location.

Ning Changjiu opened his eyes and found half of the sword hilt buried in the mud.

Ning Changjiu understood.

He pushed aside the thick mud and sand with his hand and found a stone slab carving beneath. The carving depicted the Xiangliu snake devouring an elephant, but this depiction was far more detailed. In the carving, the Xiangliu snake was at the peak of its power, coiled around an impossibly tall mountain, its mouth agape as if to swallow the entire peak. Beneath the mountain, four gigantic, elephant-like hooves emerged.

Humans stood below the mountain, holding found stone tools and bows, too fearful to advance.

Ning Changjiu had no time to admire it; he already vaguely understood the meaning behind Zhang Qiyu's painting technique.

Zhang Qiyu's ability was to open up space. This ability wasn't particularly unique on its own, but through diligent effort, he had independently developed a miraculous painting technique. He used this technique as a "lock" for each space, and the Xuan paper he painted on mimicked mirrors, allowing spaces to reflect and invert each other. With just two opposing "mirrors," he could construct a layered, infinite spatial box.

Ning Changjiu was the person most familiar with this "lock" in the world, apart from Zhang Qiyu himself.

He quickly found an anomaly in the mural and, using his finger as a carving knife, restored the mural's original appearance: he drew swords into the empty, cupped hands of two unarmed humans.

Ripples surged again.

Ning Changjiu’s figure passed through the mural and swam backward.

Beneath the lotus pond was a hidden world.

It was a towering, sturdy mountain with many broken gaps in its hard rock, and through these gaps, eerie bones were revealed.

After a brief surprise, Ning Changjiu understood: this was the skeleton of the divine elephant.

After three thousand years, they were still largely intact.

Even the highest mountains in this world would eventually sink into the sea. For it to remain so intact after eons of change was a miracle of time.

And the Xiangliu snake was coiled around the divine elephant's body. Its current cultivation was far from its peak, so its size appeared much smaller, utterly lacking the imposing, world-devouring aura depicted in the scroll.

Xiangliu's body bore countless battle scars; white flesh protruded from beneath its scales, and broken scales continued to fall off with its body's undulations.

Xiangliu gazed at the human with a familiar aura, its snake head slightly retracted, subtly hinting at hostility.

Ning Changjiu approached it and stated directly, "Three thousand years ago, Nine Infants and Yaoyu betrayed you."

"During the Beast Hunt War back then, Nine Infants and Yaoyu pretended to deal with other guardian gods, leaving you alone to face the divine elephant. At your peak, you were incredibly powerful, and that divine elephant was indeed no match for you."

"But you ultimately won, swallowing the divine elephant, yet you couldn't destroy it immediately, leaving a source of trouble. After swallowing the divine elephant, you were at your weakest—that was your greatest vulnerability."

"Nine Infants and Yaoyu were actually hidden among those humans."

"On the mural that leads to this place, the painting by Yaoyu clearly shows two different brushstrokes. These details were left deliberately, perhaps as a smug display regarding that ambush back then."

"Yaoyu is gone now, but Nine Infants still exists. I can take you to get your revenge."

Ning Changjiu spoke quickly, yet his words were clear.

He wasn't sure if what he said was true, but it certainly sounded logical and well-reasoned.

Xiangliu stared at him without blinking.

Even though its body was no longer as massive as before, in this deep lake, its huge form coiled around the stone statue still resembled an ancient god, each dark stretch of water a layer of historical mist.

Xiangliu opened its mouth, and wave-like patterns emerged from its throat.

This was Xiangliu's speech. Ning Changjiu couldn't understand it, but he could sense a clear reluctance.

This reluctance wasn't aggressive; it was because it didn't want to leave the bottom of the water.

Ning Changjiu understood: this was likely a trick by his senior siblings from the Unseen Temple.

He closed his eyes. When he opened them again, they blazed with a scorching golden color, like the sun just crossing the horizon.

A Golden Crow flew onto his shoulder.

Xiangliu's vertical pupils suddenly narrowed.

It seemed to sense a terrifying presence. Its body, coiled around the stone elephant, twisted incessantly, and its already shattered scales flaked off, falling like snow into the deep lake bottom.

The Golden Crow flew out, devouring all the gloom in the water.

Then, as if dissolving into the water, large sections of the lake turned a shimmering gold, coiling around Xiangliu.

Xiangliu struggled incessantly in the water, but it was like a venomous snake encountering an eagle—it had no chance of resistance.

It was a natural suppression of bloodline.

However, this action severely drained his spiritual energy; Ning Changjiu's face quickly turned paler than his clothes.

Xiangliu resisted fiercely.

Yet the Golden Crow was like sunlight passing through stained glass; no matter how thick the glass, it penetrated unhindered.

The Golden Crow coiled around Xiangliu's vulnerable spot, transforming into reins.

Ning Changjiu's divine consciousness connected with the Golden Crow. In the next moment, his figure appeared on Xiangliu's back. He gripped one end of the reins, forcefully injecting the words he had previously spoken into Xiangliu's mind through the Golden Crow, attempting to replace the prophecies set by his senior siblings and implant a new imprint.

In the world of demonic beasts, bloodline suppression could sometimes be more terrifying than cultivation-level suppression. The fear instilled by the Golden Crow prevented Xiangliu from even conceiving of resistance, as if it had been born a servant to this golden divine bird.

Soon after, the lotus pond's surface would erupt again, and Ning Changjiu, holding the golden reins, would ascend like a deity riding a black dragon into the sky.

Inside the hollow of an ancient tree, Lu Jiajia's sword robe was stained red with blood. She hid in this hollow, trying desperately to stabilize her injuries.

She had originally believed that once her sword body was cultivated, she could completely disregard her body's meridians, truly allowing spiritual energy to flow as she pleased.

But repeated body tempering had not truly granted her an indestructible physique. A full day of fighting, compounded by the tribulation lightning coursing through her body, finally caused her previously hidden injuries to give way. The re-opened wounds almost cost her life.

She had briefly eluded Nine Infants' pursuit, hiding in the tree hollow to heal her wounds.

She knew Nine Infants would soon catch up again. This inevitable outcome agitated her, for while she could temporarily suppress her physical injuries, it didn't solve the core problem. Her battle with Nine Infants had already been extremely strenuous, and with her injuries worsening, her last chances of victory were erased.

Was she going to die like this? Lu Jiajia thought of her earlier exhilaration when her sword body had fully matured. Leaning back against the tree trunk, she let out a bitter laugh.

In the past, she hadn't greatly feared death, but now she was increasingly clinging to life.

She still had so many things left undone.

For some reason, at this critical juncture, she recalled that inner demon tribulation.

During the inner demon tribulation, she and Ning Changjiu had spent many years together as master and disciple: boating on a clear lake, walking through fields, sharing shelter during heavy rain, sharing an umbrella in deep snow, the steam from hot porridge in winter, and ice stored in cups in summer...

Those scenes were clearly fake, yet they made her so nostalgic.

Perhaps that was also why her subconscious had been so reluctant to awaken.

She felt some regret. If she hadn't been so obsessed and had woken up earlier, could she have interrupted True Man Hanchi's fusion with Nine Infants and prevented all this from happening?

It was all that wicked disciple Ning Changjiu's fault... She silently shifted the blame in her mind, yet a subtle curve played on her lips.

Behind her, the thunderous sound of Nine Infants crushing trees echoed.

Yet, another voice drowned it out in her ears.

It was the poem Ning Changjiu had gently recited to her when she was still young, on a snow-covered sword practice field, during the inner demon tribulation.

"Time flows like a river, how many years does one live? In the morning, I watch traveling swallows, my heart travels to Jianghuai. In the evening, I gaze at the Cowherd star, my feelings wander to Yangyue. By day, a thousand sorrows make me weep, by night, myriad thoughts twist my gut. Unknowing of life, unknowing of death..."

The age of this poem was untraceable, and many of its place names could no longer be matched. Yet, the emotions woven into its rhymes seemed capable of easily transcending the barriers of time, washing over her heart like spring rain, again and again.

Lu Jiajia's heart returned to peace once more.

She drew Minglan.

The moment Nine Infants' massive body bore down, Lu Jiajia pushed off the tree trunk, her figure darting out like a white streak, soaring forward once more.

Nine Infants, with its nine lives, was something she, in her current state, absolutely could not contend with.

Therefore, the direction she fled was the Southern Wilderness, bordered by the Red River.

That was the only chance she could think of.

But she still overestimated her current physical condition.

After all, she was not a truly emotionless cold weapon.

The injury on her back was a burden.

On the horizon, the sun gradually changed color, sinking westward.

Without the concealing white light, Lu Jiajia's snow-shadow-like movement became much clearer on the open field, and Nine Infants' shadow drew closer and closer to hers.

The noisy, chattering voices were like pebbles tossed onto the surface of her heart's lake, attempting to disturb her composure.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Nine Infants' colossal paws stomped across the ground, leaving behind immense imprints wherever they passed.

To move faster, it even used its other eight heads as claws, galloping swiftly on all fours.

Lu Jiajia glanced at the ground.

In the sun's elongated shadow, the mountain-like silhouette was nearly overlapping with hers.

Nine Infants slammed its head into the ground again.

Lu Jiajia's figure dodged left and right amidst Nine Infants' frenzied attacks, her pristine white clothes splattered with large patches of dust.

Nine Infants' clamorous voices grew closer again, practically roaring into her ear.

"Kill her, kill her!"

"Kill her..."

The Nine Infants' nine heads emotionlessly repeated the same phrase, but it carried a concise yet awe-inspiring power, like a divine pronouncement.

Lu Jiajia felt her body growing heavier and heavier.

Her heart also sank bit by bit to rock bottom.

With another deafening crash, Lu Jiajia was finally struck by one of Nine Infants' heads, her body flung forward at high speed. Then, she was imprisoned by another of Nine Infants' heads using spatial laws, hurled to the other side. Lu Jiajia's innate sword body, due to her current physical state, suffered a flaw, and under the ball-tossing collisions from Nine Infants' heads, it quickly became precarious.

Pain gnawed at her entire body; the world spun; Lu Jiajia's consciousness reeled, her wrist numb, and the Minglan sword nearly slipped from her grasp.

Nine Infants used space as a shackles, imprisoning Lu Jiajia, tossing her high. Its central head finally opened its bloody maw, intending to crush her with its sharp teeth and then devour her.

"Blood... the white-robed woman's blood..."

"Isn't it a shame to kill her like this..."

"Don't entertain other thoughts! The divine kingdom in the sky might have already noticed our existence!"

"Kill her..."

The voices abruptly ceased.

In Lu Jiajia's peripheral vision, a black torrent roared from beneath her robes.

That torrent slammed into Nine Infants, actually overturning it.

As Lu Jiajia's body fell, a hand snatched her numb wrist mid-air. Her body was abruptly pulled, then collided with a chest that wasn't warm but felt incredibly steady.

She opened her eyes and saw Ning Changjiu's face. For a moment, unable to distinguish reality from dream, she instinctively cried out, "Master..."

"Hm?" Ning Changjiu was also surprised. Looking at the woman's pale, injured face in his arms, he thought with affection that the master he had acknowledged in this life was indeed a fool.

"I... I called out wrongly." Lu Jiajia instantly sobered, knowing she had misspoken. Even in this critical situation, she took a moment to explain, trying to preserve her extremely precarious dignity.

Ning Changjiu's tense heartstrings relaxed a little. He smiled faintly, "You didn't call out wrongly. Call me that from now on, my good disciple."

"You wish!" Lu Jiajia retorted, her shoulders twitching as she tried to break free, but Ning Changjiu held her tightly.

Ning Changjiu chuckled softly, "You already called me that, no backing out now. If my disciple isn't good in the future, watch out, Master won't show mercy and will deal with you according to the sect rules."

Lu Jiajia, flushing with anger, wanted to scold him, but their bodies suddenly soared into the air.

Only then did Lu Jiajia realize they were on the back of a giant snake, which was now raising its head high.

Xiangliu... Lu Jiajia instantly understood its identity. She felt even more strongly that Ning Changjiu possessed vast supernatural powers, able to conjure up strange creatures like golden birds and giant black pythons for his use.

Xiangliu's body was larger than Nine Infants'. The moment it suddenly appeared, it met Nine Infants' rapidly moving body. The impact of their collision was almost devastating. Nine Infants' skeleton, after all, was pieced together from fragments, its bones not as strong as Xiangliu's. Not only was its body overturned, but its chest also caved in due to shattered bones.

However, three thousand years ago, Nine Infants was the elder brother, and the authority it wielded surpassed Xiangliu's. Now, Xiangliu's cultivation realm was even lower than Nine Infants'. Its victory in this collision was solely due to its superior physical size and might.

Nine Infants lay on the ground, its heads hissing wildly. Xiangliu coiled around it, intent on crushing it completely, while Nine Infants stretched its other heads, mouths wide open, saw-like teeth falling, shattering Xiangliu's scales and embedding deep into its flesh.

Ning Changjiu, holding the golden reins with one hand and Lu Jiajia with the other, continuously dodged Nine Infants' bites.

The sound of Nine Infants' bones being crushed echoed startlingly, and countless pieces were torn from Xiangliu's massive body by bites.

The crisp sound of scales being pierced rang in their ears.

Ning Changjiu narrowly dodged the Nine Infants' head attack, and Nine Infants' sharp teeth were deeply embedded in Xiangliu's flesh.

Ning Changjiu released his grip on Lu Jiajia's waist and roared, "Decapitate them!!!"

Lu Jiajia used the previous few breaths to calm her mind.

Understanding Ning Changjiu's words, she momentarily suppressed her injuries and soared into the air.

The woman raised her sword with both hands, wind filling her sleeves, revealing her fair, slender arms. Like a divine envoy from legend who executes heaven's judgment, she brought her immortal sword, blazing with holy flame, down upon that head and torso.