Chapter 1 To Seek

Hu...

It seemed as if a cold current descended from the sky, and the already silent city became even more desolate.

The entire tavern turned as cold as an ice cave in an instant.

Gongyang Yan and the others felt a chill in their hearts, and the large flowered donkey staggered backward. The one-eyed kitten, seemingly asleep in the basket under its neck, also bristled.

In that instant, the group seemed to see mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and endless cold and desolate intent filled their world, as if their hearts were being squeezed tightly.

They were almost suffocating.

"Heh, heh heh, hahaha..."

Amidst the chilling and cruel aura, Fan Wu Yi slowly raised his head. This time, there was no trace of humanity in his eyes, replaced by a desolate and silent void like a dead sea:

"You, can see it?"

At this moment, Fan Wu Yi's voice no longer had any inflections, devoid of any tone, so calm that it chilled anyone who heard it to the bone.

This was not the sound of a human.

An Qisheng remained calm, without joy or sorrow. His gaze shifted outward, staring out the window. A glimmer of light flashed, and all external manifestations dissipated:

"Naturally, I can see it!"

Buzz~

Before An Qisheng's words could land, the surrounding world underwent a drastic change.

Wave-like ripples rolled and surged in the void, spreading out layer by layer, from the tavern to the streets, to the entire city, and even to more distant places.

In an instant, it seemed as if heaven and earth were overturned, and the stars shifted.

The light of the six great suns hanging high in the sky was obscured by a shadow, replaced by a huge halo, dark red in color, with a bean-sized core and ten layers of outer manifestation!

That halo was like the halo of wisdom behind a Buddha, and like the nine revolutions of the Golden Elixir, the outer manifestation of the immortal technique formed by the unification of the ten supernatural powers, expanding layer by layer, from top to bottom.

Like a pagoda, it completely enveloped this city, this place, this void!

The moment this halo appeared, this place seemed to have lost all connection with the outside world. Even cultivators like Tu Ba and Gongyang Yan could no longer sense the existence of the outside world!

"This, this..."

Gongyang Yan was horrified, watching the drastic changes in the city with his own eyes, his eyes full of disbelief: "How could this be..."

He saw everything that had disappeared before, returning once again.

The tavern's diners, the storyteller, the waiter, the hawkers selling goods along the street, the passing pedestrians, and the 'human atmosphere' that was invisible to the naked eye but truly felt.

But what shocked him was.

Just like their previous disappearance, he couldn't see the slightest flaw in the reappearance of these 'people', and he couldn't even distinguish whether these people were real or fake!

Even though he saw it with his own eyes, and his divine sense perception had been amplified to the limit!

"This, is this an immortal technique..."

Tu Ba hugged Cai Xiaobai tightly, his body trembling. The scene before him had already exceeded his comprehension.

He had heard of the legendary immortal techniques, which had the means to materialize the void and create objects out of thin air, but seeing it with his own eyes, he still couldn't believe it.

"Candied hawthorns, oh~~~"

"Old ginseng harvested from the mountains, full of spiritual energy, a rare treasure for prolonging life!"

"Haha! Brother Wang's words are to my liking, come, cheers!"

"Speaking of the Great Zhou Ancestor, he swept across the world with his Panlong Staff, invincible! Even Qi, the crown prince of the former dynasty, wielding the 'Lingyang Staff' that his father used to open thousands of mountains and break ten thousand waters, was beaten to death!"

......

The sounds of hawking, conversations, storytelling, and noise... all kinds of sounds came along with it, captured by the group's ears.

A desolate world did not become vibrant after the bustling noise.

On the contrary, it became even more eerie.

"Guest, your wine and dishes..."

Amidst the light footsteps, the waiter boy smilingly presented the wine and dishes, bowing and scraping as he retreated.

He didn't feel the tense atmosphere at all.

The diners at the next table joked and drank, discussing the past and present, talking happily.

"A forbidden dead land, no one has entered for ten thousand years. Suddenly seeing someone, naturally gives rise to evil thoughts, it's only normal."

Under Fan Wu Yi's increasingly gloomy gaze, An Qisheng slowly turned his head, his eyes like a mirror, reflecting all things, his tone deep:

"It's just that, I heard that Fan Wu Yi cultivated martial arts while being devoted to Buddhism, with a strong will, combining Buddhist and martial arts. Such a person, even in death, is unlikely to peek into people's homes.

Although you borrow his name, you can't imitate his aura in your words. With just a few words, you've already exposed the fact that you're just a lonely soul imprisoned here..."

An Qisheng stated plainly, without much change in his tone.

Hearing this, Gongyang Yan and the others' restless hearts calmed down. Looking at An Qisheng, who was as before, they were both surprised and fearful.

They only felt that this Taoist was like a sea of stars, with endless waves within, but the external manifestation was always so calm.

He was terrifying and awe-inspiring to the extreme.

Saying that, An Qisheng stared into his eyes and asked faintly:

"Am I right?"

Half a year was still short for ordinary people in this world who lived to be three hundred years old, not to mention cultivators.

But this time was already long for An Qisheng.

He dreamed of entering various realms, seeking only the Dao. Until now, his realm had not fallen.

Even if his physical body changed and his primordial spirit was self-severed, as long as a wisp of spiritual light did not slumber, all kinds of supernatural powers and secret arts would naturally remain forever.

Half a year was certainly not enough for him to sort out another path to the heavens that was free from spiritual energy.

But it was also enough for him to cultivate his body to a level far beyond the imagination of ordinary people, without being afraid of spiritual energy.

Perhaps there were still things in the world that could deceive him at this time.

But that did not include the city and the ghost in front of him.

Before entering the city, he had already seen through the essence of the city in his heart. After a few words of conversation, without needing the Dao Yi Diagram to peek, he had already vaguely deduced the details of this person.

It was just that there were still some things that he had not deduced.

With the words to this point.

Fan Wu Yi had completely lost all expression, and his eyes were covered in gray, lifeless: "You, you're right, very right..."

In a low, indifferent voice, Fan Wu Yi lightly tapped the table, making a rapid and long 'da da' sound, spreading and spreading:

"But there is one thing, that is wrong!"

"Oh?"

An Qisheng glanced at Gongyang Yan and the others who were retreating silently, and then said, "Is that so?"

'Sect Leader...'

Gongyang Yan had already left the tavern, but his expression became more and more heavy.

His true identity had been exposed, and the atmosphere had been suppressed to the limit. Yet, the two of them were talking even more happily than before.

This scene made Gongyang Yan and the others feel more and more uneasy, and their speed of retreat was also faster.

Although they knew that Fan Wu Yi's posture meant that they could not leave this city, they didn't want to stay in that place that made them feel like they were sitting on pins and needles.

At this time, they retreated a little further, and the group looked at each other, all feeling a little frightened.

Vaguely, they felt that an earth-shattering storm was brewing.

"You see that I can't leave this city, this place, you see that this place is a prison, you see that I am a lonely soul, but if you think that I am imprisoned here."

Fan Wu Yi naturally didn't care about the departure of one person, one donkey, one cat, and one cabbage. All his attention was focused on the Taoist in front of him, who spoke calmly, like clouds and smoke:

"Then, you are wrong. Fan is self-imposed!"

He was almost omnipotent in this city, and his perception was far beyond that of ordinary people.

Just like now.

He could clearly perceive that under the calm and amiable appearance of this Taoist, there was an incredibly powerful force of Qi and blood!

That Qi and blood were like pillars and waterfalls, extremely vigorous, restrained but not released, and the tyrannical will within seemed to be about to tear this world apart!

He had only seen such a strong physical body in fragmented memories.

It made him feel apprehensive.

"Tens of thousands of years ago, the former dynasty was unrighteous, and the world jointly attacked it! At that time, dragons and snakes rose together, and countless geniuses and heroes emerged, and even countless demons and monsters roamed rampant..."

Fan Wu Yi slowly recounted, and the gray and white color in his eyes seemed to have ripples:

"Xia Yu was invincible, even in death he was a majestic peak. Just the 'Lingyang Staff' left after his death continued the life of the remnant Xia for ten thousand years. Qi, the crown prince of Xia, although mediocre, relied on this staff to suppress the world for ten thousand years. Even if all the Dharma bodies attacked him together, they could not defeat him..."

Fan Wu Yi changed the subject and talked about the past.

An Qisheng's eyes moved, but he calmed down again.

"...But the heavens cannot be defied. The destruction of Xia was a divine decree, and the mandate of heaven belonged to it. Three great emperors and seventy-two Manifest Saints joined forces, and the Buddhist and Taoist holy lands also offered advice. Finally, they jointly attacked Xia Qi. In one battle, Qi destroyed Mingtiao Mountain, and the Great Xia finally perished...

But only one-third of those who participated in the war remained, and many had irreversible Dao injuries..."

With the words to this point, Fan Wu Yi sighed long:

"Human desires are endless, who wants to die...? In order to not die, I sought help from the Buddhist and Taoist holy lands, first ascending to the Taoist Palace, then ascending to Mount Sumeru..."

There were ripples in Fan Wu Yi's heart, and in a trance, he recalled the past.

He was born in the chaotic borderlands of the crumbling Great Xia after the death of Yu. His family was poor and extremely distressed.

Later, he received help from others, and his hunger could be satisfied.

However, human desires were endless. In the chaotic times, and with a stroke of good fortune, he actually integrated the Great Xia martial arts and the Sumeru Buddhism in just ten thousand years.

He refined the Buddhist and martial arts Dharma body, and even ascended to the Manifest Saint realm.

In the human world, he was already below one person and above tens of millions of people. In terms of cultivation, he had already achieved the Dharma body and ascended to the Manifest Saint.

If it was in ancient times, he could already invite immortals to play chess and ascend to heaven to become a god!

Taking it a step further, he could even become a Buddha or an ancestor.

How could he be willing to die?

How could he be willing to die?!

"I... huh?!"

Fan Wu Yi was originally telling the story, but suddenly he felt something was wrong, and his expression changed drastically.

Why would he say these things?!

Clearly...

His heart trembled, and his long white eyebrows instantly twisted. The gray and white color in his eyes surged, bursting out with thunderous rage:

"Prying into me, how dare you do this?!"

Anger!

Rage!

Fan Wu Yi was extremely shocked and angry. He never expected that he would be plotted against in silence.

With this anger, the wind and clouds in the world suddenly changed!

Rumble!!

Gongyang Yan and the others were looking for a way to leave the city when they suddenly heard a collision sound that resounded throughout the universe.

They suddenly turned their heads.

They saw that the world suddenly lit up with a ten thousand zhang light!

The magnificent and dazzling golden color instantly overwhelmed the scarlet color that flowed down from the ten-layered halo!

A supreme yang and supreme masculine blood energy expanded rapidly under the ten-layered halo that covered this world like a pagoda!

And, along with it, was a grand voice that filled the world:

"You are even more foolish than I imagined!"