BW Chapter 170

What is Sought (2)

Ning City, Xun Prefecture had once been the most prosperous city in all seventeen states.

The magnificent city towers stood majestically under the misty clouds, multi-layered painted pavilions with light curtains swaying, golden jade flutes and drums singing long songs into the clouds, immortal cranes flying in formation across the sky, flying spirit boats beyond count, luxury and decadence flowing in circles around Ning Mansion as the center…

Broad roads led to gates, neighborhoods and nine markets, a hundred thousand households, constructing the earliest memories of the bustling mortal world that Ning Buwei remembered, to the point that he had once stubbornly believed that the human world should be exactly this lively and noisy, extravagant and prosperous.

But now five hundred years had passed, and the vast Ning City was left with only broken walls and ruins, restless souls lingered beneath the forest of bones, extreme prosperity followed by sudden decline, leaving only desolation and devastation everywhere.

Boots stepped over a half-broken withered branch, the decayed and heavy snapping sound rang out abruptly in the silence, stirring up a circle of thick dust accumulated over many years.

“Cough cough—–-” Big Yellow was caught off guard and choked, waving his sleeve to cover his mouth and nose, speaking in a muffled voice, “How do you know Pei Heguang is in Ning City?”

“Ning Xingyuan’s corpse was buried by Yan Lanpei in Chenyue Mountain.” Ning Buwei looked up at the withered towering vines and took out the seed that Yan Lanpei had given him before his death. This seed was dim and lifeless, later, Ning Xiu had accidentally found it and tried to use his own spiritual power to restore the seed’s vitality,

but all efforts were in vain.

“For someone like him, having Ning Xingyuan ‘witness’ his success with his own eyes is far more important than success itself.”

As soon as he finished speaking, noisy voices suddenly rang out from outside the city gate.

Countless cultivators with disheveled appearances fled toward them on swords, with countless red-eyed monsters emerging from underground chasing closely behind them. Once a cultivator was caught by these creatures, it was almost a one-sided slaughter.

When he saw clearly what those monsters looked like, Big Yellow’s pupils contracted sharply. He grabbed Ning Buwei and ran forward, “Run! They’re blood demons!”

Ning Buwei threw out the Heavenly Wave Ruler and pulled him up together. Someone nearby fell heavily from high altitude, and Ning Buwei quickly grabbed the person and pulled them up. The blood demon’s claws barely grazed past the person’s throat.

Shen Xi sat on the Heavenly Wave Ruler in shock, still shaken. After seeing clearly who had saved her, the breath she had just released was instantly caught in her throat again.

“Don’t be so surprised.” Ning Buwei turned to look at her, “You helped Chu Jun block Xie Jiu’s sneak attack before, consider this my thanks.”

Only then did Shen Xi truly relax, cupping her hands in salute. “Regardless, many thanks to Fellow Cultivator Ning for saving my life.”

Ning Buwei waved his hand casually, “Fellow Cultivator is too much, we are righteous and evil, incompatible.”

Shen Xi was speechless for a moment, then covered her abdomen with a pained expression, hurriedly stuffing several pills into her mouth. Seeing Big Yellow watching her curiously, she said embarrassedly, “I was carelessly ambushed by someone, Fellow Cultivator must find this amusing.”

Big Yellow nodded in sudden understanding.

Seeing his expression, Ning Buwei knew he hadn’t understood at all, “You said those things are blood demons earlier, have you seen them before?”

“Yeah, I’ve seen them.” Big Yellow looked with lingering fear at those creatures in relentless pursuit, saying gloomily, “But that’s a long story.”

“Sect Master Shen! Are you alright?” Hehuan Sect’s sect master Qing Mian flew alongside the Heavenly Wave Ruler on her sword.

“I’m fine.” Shen Xi nodded at her, even nimbly catching two people, one large and one small, who were falling.

“Th-thank you, Sect Master Shen!” Xie Jiangnan clutched Xie Changming tightly and breathed a sigh of relief, angrily scolding Xie Changming. “Xie Changming! Can’t you pick a proper time to throw tantrums?! Don’t drag me down if you want to die!”

“Hmph!” Xie Changming’s eyes were red as he sniffled and turned his head to the side, but came face to face with Ning Buwei, immediately stepping back in fright, “Great Demon!”

Xie Jiangnan quickly covered his mouth and shielded him behind his back. Looking at Ning Buwei who was less than ten feet away, cold sweat “whooshed” down his back.

“You two are just causing——” Xie Zhi carried Xie Chang’an on his sword as he flew over, but fell silent the moment he saw Ning Buwei.

Ning Buwei looked expressionlessly at Shen Xi, hoping this new sect master of Wushi Sect would quickly take these messy people and get lost.

However, Shen Xi stiffly averted her gaze and asked Big Yellow, “Fellow Cultivator said these monsters are blood demons, could you elaborate?”

Ning Buwei: “…………”

Big Yellow completely failed to notice Ning Buwei’s warning gaze and nodded his head rapidly, “Thirty thousand years ago, the demon Di Huai refined the original Linglong Bone to create the Heaven-Piercing Blood Formation, bringing catastrophe to the entire cultivation world. These blood demons were created by him fusing the demonic creatures of that time… Now that blood demons have appeared, I’m afraid the Heaven-Piercing Blood Formation has reappeared in the world.”

The cultivators of the seventeen states were not unfamiliar with the name Di Huai and the Heaven-Piercing Blood Formation, after all, cultivation history used an entire page to write about his countless evil deeds. However, the books never mentioned that the Linglong Bone was involved.

“But isn’t the Linglong Bone——” Qing Mian nearby turned to look at Ning Xiu in Ning Buwei’s arms, but meeting the great demon’s cold gaze, she swallowed the rest of her words.

“……In any case, blood demons are extremely difficult to deal with. Once scratched by them, no matter how strong a cultivator’s cultivation, the final result can only be becoming nourishment for the blood formation.” Big Yellow scratched his hair, “And these things are neither alive nor dead, impossible to eliminate.”

The blood demons trailing behind them grew more and more numerous. They resembled humans but had abnormally long limbs, their entire bodies covered in dripping flesh and blood. That flesh seemed alive, constantly writhing, wrapping around isolated cultivators’ bodies and rapidly devouring them. Moments later, only stark white skeletal frames remained, a sight that chilled one to the bone.

“But how did this Heaven-Piercing Blood Formation and blood demons suddenly appear again? Haven’t they been gone for tens of thousands of years?” Xie Jiangnan was puzzled.

“The Eight Trigrams Formation was originally used to suppress the blood formation and the blood demons inside. Now that the Eight Trigrams Formation is destroyed, they naturally reappear in the world.” Hao Zheng led Shang Nuanwei and many elders from Wanxuan Academy in a dark mass flying above the Heavenly Wave Ruler.

“Didn’t Sect Master Chu and the others repair the Eight Trigrams Formation? How could it——” Xie Zhi was confused.

“They only confined spiritual power to the seventeen states, using the spiritually barren Xun Prefecture as a buffer. If spiritual power cannot circulate freely within the seventeen states, all previous efforts would be wasted. The Eight Trigrams Formation still lacks one final step to be fully repaired.” Hao Zheng looked toward the magnificent mansion ruins ahead, then fixed his gaze on the Suzaku Knife in Ning Buwei’s hand.

The others didn’t understand, but all turned to look at Ning Buwei.

The great demon, unknowingly surrounded by a group of righteous cultivators: “…………”

Can you all please wake up?

Losing patience, Ning Buwei was just about to throw people off the Heavenly Wave Ruler when a long dragon’s roar echoed from far to near across the sky. Everyone looked toward the sound in unison——

They saw a massive ancient dragon with tears streaming from both eyes, its four short legs flailing as it fell straight toward their location, occasionally mixed with terrified urgent roars:

“Father——save ah ah ah ah——“