Chapter 588: Painting Screen

Li Xuanfeng saw his appearance and frowned slightly. He watched Si Yuanli fly at an extremely high speed, showing no signs of vigilance, and pondered:

"Does this person have some kind of backing to be so confident, or has he always been protected by a True Master, making him naive and careless, without any vigilance?"

The Si family members were generally low-key and reserved within the sect, so Li Xuanfeng hadn't seen much of them. He had no prior contact with Si Yuanli and had never even heard his name. He feared Si Yuanli might be a reckless individual who would ultimately harm himself.

He followed closely, his golden bow in hand. His keen eyes scanned the surroundings, activating his ocular technique, sweeping over the scenery of a lake. After flying for only a dozen breaths, they soon saw the faint outline of a cerulean palace built on the water, with a golden light dimly hovering above it.

"A Buddhist cultivator!"

The Buddhist cultivator's golden light was unmistakable. Si Yuanli recognized it at a glance, a look of distaste rising on his face. He turned to Li Xuanfeng and whispered, "Brother Xuanfeng, don't let him get ahead of us!"

Li Xuanfeng was naturally not afraid of offending a Buddhist cultivator. The golden bowstring vibrated, a golden arrow materialized at his waist, and he swiftly condensed Geng Qi. The string hummed loudly. As he released his finger, the golden light in the distance flew away like startled hair, scattering a rain of petals.

"You motherf—! What fiend dares to harm this old monk with evil magic!"

The golden light let out a cold shout and leaped into the air. Li Xuanfeng and Si Yuanli arrived instantly. Li Xuanfeng's gaze met the old monk in the golden light coldly, and he raised his golden bow, pointing it at the man.

"This old monk... I..."

The monk's gaze was dark, and burning rage shot from his eyes. When it met Li Xuanfeng's cold stare, his tone instantly softened, and his fierce gaze transformed into terror in a blink, as he exclaimed in horror: "Li Xuanfeng! I... this humble monk... does not wish to make an enemy of fellow Daoist. This karmic opportunity is yours!"

He vanished into the golden light, fleeing in a flash and leaving behind a trail of flower petals, clearly not even bothering to conceal his injuries.

The light on Li Xuanfeng's bowstring slowly dissipated. Unsure how much more fighting lay ahead in this area, he decided not to waste further spiritual power on this villain. Si Yuanli glanced at him, paused for a full breath, then said, "Fellow Daoist... Brother Xuanfeng... please..."

The two descended together, stopping before the palace entrance. Si Yuanli simply swept his sleeve to push open the doors. In the center of the grand hall stood a large table, surrounded by several luxurious and grand jade chairs. A classical, clean incense burner sat among them.

"Xuan..."

As Si Yuanli began to speak, Li Xuanfeng quietly interjected: "Fellow Daoist, hurry and collect the items, then proceed quickly to the center."

"Understood."

Si Yuanli paused, then quickly moved along the corridor over the water. Li Xuanfeng watched as his spiritual sense rapidly swept through the entire hall, artifact after artifact flying into his storage bag, trailing streams of colored light in the air. Not a single item was missed, as he unceremoniously crammed them into his bag.

Li Xuanfeng immediately gained some insight into this person's character. He raised a hand and looked towards the screen at the very center of the hall. It depicted an armored man, holding a strange beast in each hand, turning his head to look back with a heroic spirit.

The screen was indeed an ordinary one, with nothing remarkable about it except for the powerful figure painted on it. Beside it was a line of small, elegantly written text: "Emperor Liang established the nation, gifted to Brother Jiang." And at the end, the signature: "Chen Xuanli."

Li Xuanfeng looked at it with interest, then casually picked it up. Si Yuanli had just finished collecting the treasures in the hall and hurried over, his eyes fixed on the item in Li Xuanfeng's hand. He asked, "Fellow Daoist, what is that...?"

"It looks somewhat interesting."

Li Xuanfeng flipped his hand, putting it away. The two didn't stop, soaring into the air on the wind and rushing towards the center. The scenery of the lake below them quickly blurred past. After flying for about a dozen breaths, another palace appeared before them.

This palace was smaller than the previous one, yet Si Yuanli was enthusiastic and led the way down on the wind. Li Xuanfeng had no choice but to follow. His spiritual sense quickly swept through the hall, confirming it was indeed empty.

Si Yuanli showed a look of regret. Li Xuanfeng looked at him and said softly: "Fellow Daoist, there's no need for that. These palaces appear this way, likely because most have already been visited. It's truly not advisable to delay any further. We should head immediately for the central cliff. If we procrastinate, we might not get anything at all."

Si Yuanli rose into the air with him, a hint of difficulty on his face, as if he had some reservations. After a few breaths, he nodded and sighed: "Fellow Daoist is right! Let's hurry onward!"

Although Li Xuanfeng kept looking forward, he secretly noted Si Yuanli's expression, deep in thought. Their escape light instantly streaked across the sky, leaving two long contrails as they flew directly towards the cliff.

After about half an incense stick's time, the cliff abruptly appeared before them. Li Xuanfeng vaguely saw figures descending and secretly nodded to himself: "Although Great Tranquility Palace is vast, it cannot compare to a true Grotto-heaven. These cultivators are no ordinary individuals; wherever they go, it's like a locust plague. It hasn't even been an incense stick's time since we entered the Grotto-heaven, and only a few palaces on this mountain are left to search."

Everyone would undoubtedly fight on the mountain; that was the main event within this Grotto-heaven. It was no longer like their previous Grotto-heaven explorations, where they would wander for days without encountering anyone.

And throughout their journey, he had come to understand that perhaps due to changes in the heavens and earth, the Purple Mansion's intervention, or some other issue, none of Great Tranquility Palace's formations were active; they had all become mere decorations. Cultivators came and went freely, as if strolling through their own backyards.

This cliff was the center of Great Tranquility Palace and the most crucial part of the entire immortal palace. Yet, as he looked around, the radiance on the entire cliff was still sparse, countable on one hand, and still dim—a matter that could be resolved with a few arrows.

"It's truly comfortable... incomparable to the Mirage Heaven of Qing Song Daoist Temple... The direct descendants of the various families all have their methods, and everything has been prepared by the Purple Mansion. The real essence lies in the struggles between them..."

He took out his bow and descended with Si Yuanli. His spiritual sense swept across the area; the mountain was covered with green halls. He found a nearby palace to land. Si Yuanli quickly followed him, finally showing a hint of vigilance.

As Li Xuanfeng entered the hall, a chill immediately came over him. A rich spiritual energy surged forward; the formation core in the center of the hall continuously spewed out spiritual energy so dense that it transformed into pure spiritual mist, rushing out of the hall and forming a pure white flow.

Around the formation core in the hall stood four large cauldrons, all emitting white mist. Treasures were abundant, and jade seats were opulent. Above the main hall was a massive yet intricately carved immortal throne, with six green square cauldrons on either side, piled high with various spiritual items.

Two of the square cauldrons in front of the steps had already been overturned, lying haphazardly. Treasures clattered as they rolled out, scattering a dazzling, almost intoxicating array of colorful light that made it hard to open one's eyes.

Several cultivators were already standing in the hall, confronting each other. However, Li Xuanfeng's gaze did not fall upon them but swiftly passed over them, settling directly on the screen behind the immortal throne.

This screen emitted a faint green glow. It was crafted from a dark, profound emerald green, with complex runic patterns adorning its edges. There were a total of eight panels, which blocked spiritual sense, preventing one from seeing behind them.

This screen seemed to possess a unique charm, immediately captivating his gaze, making it difficult to look away. The eight panels were interconnected, forming the appearance of a grand hall, causing dizziness to anyone who looked upon it. Before Li Xuanfeng could examine it closely, the sense of familiarity the hall evoked made him unable to tear his eyes away.

"This is..."

This strong sense of familiarity stirred a feeling in his heart. Although he had never seen it before, this ancient design felt familiar. His gaze followed the painted screen to the very last panel, which depicted the scenery outside the hall, showing a man listening intently with his head tilted.

Only then did Li Xuanfeng's mind reel. He finally remembered where this sense of familiarity came from: he had clearly seen the scenery outside the hall before. It depicted the heavy abyss wind in black and green, and the pine forest swaying slightly in the wind...

"Chongming Hall! These screens depict the Six Sons of Chongming!"

He quickly withdrew his gaze and nonchalantly swept it back across the hall. The cultivators within the hall all turned to look at him, some emanating demonic aura, others blazing with true fire, or rippling with Buddhist light, their gazes fixed intently on him.

Li Xuanfeng's gray eyes narrowed slightly, and he swept his gaze across them mercilessly, completely disregarding the warning in their eyes. He stepped grandly forward, entering the main hall, one hand holding his bow, the other clasped behind his back.

Si Yuanli followed closely, his expression slightly nervous. The long sword in his hand glowed brightly, almost touching his armor, his gaze fixed on the four large cauldrons in the center.

"So it's fellow Daoist Xuanfeng..."

The atmosphere in the hall had been tense and still. Finally, someone spoke. This person, clad in a dark red robe and holding a long spear, was Gao Fangjing of the True Fire lineage.

Seeing his attire, many demonic cultivators and Buddhist cultivators were already suspicious. His words made them wary, and their gazes, which had been directed at him, now shifted away one by one, casually turning to each other.

Li Xuanfeng had annihilated Murong Wu's physical and spiritual forms in fifteen minutes, shattered Yu Qian's dharma body, and torn apart demonic creatures, causing a rain of blood to fall from the sky. These feats had already sent a shockwave through the northern demonic cultivators.

Later, he even forcefully killed Tang Shedu, a Buddhist cultivator, elevating his reputation to its peak. Although some demonic cultivators had not met him in person, they had heard his name and knew he was not someone to provoke, so they were unwilling to confront him.

Gao Fangjing surveyed the hall, his true fire burning brightly around him, and finally spoke: "There's no need for everyone to drag this out. More and more cultivators will arrive. If we delay any longer, even if you are powerful, how many things can you really seize? And how many injuries will you sustain?"

As his voice fell, he raised the long spear in his hand high and chuckled: "Now that fellow Daoist Xuanfeng is here, there are exactly eight of us. How about we have two-on-two duels, and each pair claims one cauldron!"

These words were clear, completely disregarding Si Yuanli's presence, causing him to inwardly choke. Li Xuanfeng simply extended a hand to shield him and said softly: "Fellow Daoist, just protect yourself."

Before his words had fully faded, a burst of light erupted in the hall. Li Xuanfeng stepped forward, reaching out a hand towards the nearest large cauldron. He raised an eyebrow slightly, realizing that not a single person was willing to contend with him for it.

Instead, two nearby demonic cultivators exchanged glances, then suddenly burst into action. One released surging purple mist, while the other caused demonic smoke to rise, encircling Gao Fangjing, who was ablaze with true fire, creating a violent roar.

'An acquaintance, then...'

Li Xuanfeng saw clearly. One hand had already lifted the large cauldron. The cauldron was a deep cerulean blue, warm to the touch, and covered in intricate patterns of birds and beasts, depicting dragons and phoenixes in flight—very magnificent.

One of the demonic cultivators attacking Gao Fangjing cultivated Purple Qi; it was Murong Gong, with whom he had briefly exchanged blows a few days ago. His figure was concealed within the purple clouds, from which he unleashed a wave of demonic light.

"Hahahahaha..."

Gao Fangjing laughed in extreme anger. The long spear in his hand burned fiercely like a scorching spiritual flame, emitting dazzling golden-red light, and he let out a low roar: "Old dog Murong has always been despicable and shameless! I knew you'd pull something like this!"

Seven of the most outstanding Foundation Establishment cultivators fought in the hall, unleashing immense roars. Golden light, white light, immortal qi, and demonic qi intertwined and burst forth, yet the grand hall remained as stable as a mountain, unmoving.

"Boom!"

As they made their moves, vast roars echoed from afar almost simultaneously. The entire Great Tranquility Palace began a chain reaction; moments earlier, it had been calm as water, with silent standoffs, but now all areas erupted at once. Spiritual energy was inverted and distorted, creating utter chaos.

Li Xuanfeng weighed the large cauldron. Not only was its lid tightly sealed and immovable, but even his spiritual sense couldn't penetrate it. It silently emitted mysterious light, seemingly containing a separate realm within, and could not be put into a storage bag.

He had no interest in this cauldron; after all, even if it contained the best items, there was an eighty to ninety percent chance they wouldn't end up in his own hands. Si Yuanli's eyes, however, were almost glued to the cauldron. Li Xuanfeng casually handed the cauldron to him and whispered: "Stay close to me!"

Si Yuanli nodded hurriedly, satisfaction practically radiating from his face. There was no hint of reluctance. He mumbled: "Fellow Daoist, your righteousness is great! I will surely speak highly of you before our ancestor. There will definitely be a generous reward once we leave this Grotto-heaven..."

Li Xuanfeng responded vaguely, but his spiritual sense was silently locked onto the painted screen behind the immortal throne, his attention not on Si Yuanli.

Perhaps stimulated by the various demonic and spiritual lights, the dark emerald green of the painted screen was now even more vibrant, somewhat resembling an ancient bronze green. It stood firmly behind the main hall, not wavering despite the surging residual spiritual power.

Li Xuanfeng no longer hesitated. His gaze did not linger on the mountain of treasures piled on the ground. His figure swiftly flew towards the immortal throne, reaching for the painted screen.

"Hmm?"

Li Xuanfeng narrowed his eyes slightly. Platinum-colored patterns suddenly lit up on his chin, flowing down his chest to form a simple yet elegant Celestial Golden Armor. His eyes also flickered with a hidden glow as he focused his gaze.

"Benefactor..."

A person abruptly appeared before him, quietly blocking his path. This burly man had thin, long eyebrows, a clean-shaven head, and was clad in a golden kasaya. He looked over and said softly: "This humble monk has long heard of Benefactor's name and harbored admiration. However, fate has been unkind, preventing us from meeting repeatedly... Now, at last, I have awaited Benefactor..."

Li Xuanfeng scowled coldly. One hand had already seized his golden bow. Without another word, golden light flowed, and five golden arrows simultaneously leaped onto the golden string. A piercing hum reverberated throughout the entire hall, causing all the cultivators present to fall silent.

"Clang!"