PID Chapter 109

(5/5)

<(˶ᵔᵕᵔ˶)>

 

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When Xiao Mo was still in his inner demon form, he could place the East Clear Pearl directly within his spiritual body, making it incredibly convenient to use. Chu Jinglan couldn’t do that, but keeping the pearl in a pocket inside his sleeve allowed him to access its energy whenever needed.

 

Over the years, Chu Jinglan had purchased East Clear Pearls before to stabilize his spiritual consciousness. However, when Xiao Mo explained its usage methods to him this time, he listened carefully and accepted the pearl imbued with Xiao Mo’s spiritual energy—keeping it close to him.

 

The East Clear Pearl nurtured by water-aligned spiritual energy felt far more comfortable than any other pearl he had used before. With this one pearl, he no longer needed any others.

 

Chu Jinglan adjusted his routine for cultivating his spiritual consciousness, breaking it into smaller sessions. Whenever the group stopped to rest, he would begin training. The increasing frequency of attacks signaled that their peace had been broken.

 

Meanwhile, Xiao Mo used the time when Chu Jinglan closed his eyes to take out the Xuan Ice Stone and continue carving. The ornament for the sword tassel couldn’t be too large. After working meticulously at every opportunity, Xiao Mo finally finished carving the small lotus flower.

 

All that remained now was extracting threads of spiritual silk from the Tianyuan Secret Realm to weave into the tassel.

 

Before Chu Jinglan opened his eyes again, Xiao Mo quickly put everything away. This was part of the remaining surprise—he couldn’t let it be discovered yet.

 

In the following days, as expected, more and more attackers came after their group—and they grew increasingly powerful. By the fifth day, several groups collided with each other during an attack, and many Great Perfection stage cultivators appeared on the scene.

 

Some came simply to collect Fenxiu’s blood without caring whether he lived or died. Others came with the intent of rescuing him.

 

The ambushes set along the route finally came into play. The opposing side had brought a considerable number of people, and hundreds of cultivators were engaged in chaotic battles. In the early stages of the Great Perfection cultivators’ confrontation, those at Divided Spirit stage couldn’t intervene. Xiao Mo, along with the other Divided Spirit cultivators, focused on handling the opposing Divided Spirit and Golden Core cultivators.

 

Although Du-E Sect had fewer people, its reputation carried weight due to Xianzun’s presence. Yue Ming entrusted the Divided Spirit-level matters to Xiao Mo, and the other Divided Spirit cultivators were willing to follow his lead. After several days of teamwork, they had witnessed Xiao Mo’s abilities and respected him.

 

Meanwhile, the Great Perfection cultivators were already locked in an intense battle. To avoid being caught in the crossfire, Xiao Mo and Chu Jinglan led their group to a different battlefield further away.

 

Among the enemies, Su Baimo was still nowhere to be seen. It was unclear whether he was hiding in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to strike, or if he truly wasn’t present today.

 

The sheer number of enemy factions made things chaotic. After dealing with one group, they turned to face another—a particularly unusual team.

 

What made this group special was that it included Nascent Soul and Golden Core cultivators.

 

In battles of this scale, Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators typically wouldn’t participate. Seeing them here immediately raised Xiao Mo’s suspicions. Something felt off, and his vigilance heightened.

 

Nearby, a disciple from the Immortal Alliance also commented: “Nascent Soul peak cultivators—I can barely see how they might have some tricks up their sleeves that could be useful. But Golden Core cultivators? What are they even doing here? Are they just here to die? Are they out of manpower?”

 

In their escort team and among the ambushers, there were no cultivators below Divided Spirit stage.

 

Xiao Mo twirled his flute thoughtfully and said: “Perhaps there’s some sort of special formation involved. Don’t let your guard down.”

 

When accepting this mission, everyone had already been briefed on its dangers—no one would underestimate their opponents.

 

Just as Xiao Mo raised his flute horizontally in front of him, he noticed that the Nascent Soul and Golden Core cultivators weren’t staying at the rear to wait for an opportunity but were instead charging straight toward them.

 

Looking closer, he saw expressions of despair and terror on their faces. Many gritted their teeth with bloodshot eyes while trembling violently.

 

It was clear that they didn’t want to charge forward—they were either being controlled or threatened into doing so. Moreover, they weren’t using any defensive measures…

 

In a flash of realization, Xiao Mo’s thoughts raced as he noticed their spiritual energy becoming increasingly unstable. He immediately shouted: “Fall back—they’re going to self-destruct!”

 

Golden Core cultivators might not pose much threat to Divided Spirit-level opponents while alive, but their self-destruction carried immense power—even Divided Spirit cultivators would need to retreat to avoid serious harm.

 

At Xiao Mo’s warning, everyone’s pupils contracted sharply. While retreating, they simultaneously activated various defensive measures. Some launched attacks directly at the incoming enemies in an attempt to kill them before they could self-destruct.

 

However, there were too many Nascent Soul and Golden Core cultivators on the opposing side. Despite their efforts, they couldn’t kill them all in time. Within moments, dozens of Nascent Souls and Golden Cores exploded simultaneously—unleashing devastating force that even drew the attention of distant Great Perfection stage cultivators.

 

The Divided Spirit cultivators scrambled desperately to protect themselves while others threw out numerous magical artifacts to counteract the explosive power. Yet some couldn’t dodge quickly enough—panic filled their wide-open eyes as they braced for impact.

 

Suddenly, with a “swish”, a towering wall rose in front of them—buying precious time for everyone.

 

The spiritual energy fluctuations from this wall were familiar after several days of teamwork—it was Hong Lan (Xiao Mo).

 

Xiao Mo wielded a magical artifact capable of creating illusions that combined reality with fantasy. He had just used it earlier during coordinated efforts with the group.

 

Taking advantage of this momentary reprieve, everyone retreated further while Xiao Mo reinforced the illusionary wall with dense spiritual energy. Despite its strength, five layers of walls shattered consecutively under the relentless force of the explosions. Without hesitation, Xiao Mo threw out ten earth-tier magical artifacts—detonating them to counteract the remaining power.

 

When the sixth wall rose, its surface trembled slightly from residual energy but held firm without breaking. Finally, the chaos beyond the wall subsided completely.

 

Taking advantage of the brief reprieve, the group retreated further while Xiao Mo continued to raise walls within the illusionary realm. Each wall was reinforced with dense spiritual energy, but five consecutive walls were shattered under the relentless impact of the explosions. Without hesitation, Xiao Mo unleashed ten earth-tier magical artifacts, detonating them to counteract the destructive force.

 

When the sixth wall rose, its surface trembled slightly under the spiritual energy’s fluctuations but held firm without breaking. Finally, the chaos beyond the wall subsided entirely.

 

The cultivators, having narrowly escaped death, finally had time to vent their frustrations.

 

“Damn it! Using lives as fodder—how despicable!”

 

“Whose bastard idea was this?!”

 

Even those who were normally composed found themselves cursing after such a life-threatening ordeal. Xiao Mo spread his spiritual consciousness outward and activated his Phantom Moon Core artifact, expanding the illusionary realm and enveloping the demon cultivators and demons waiting behind the Nascent Soul and Golden Core cultivators.

 

Xiao Mo said coldly: “Same as before—drag them into the illusion and kill them.”

 

Someone nearby handed him a bottle of energy-replenishing pills. “Do you have enough spiritual energy left?”

 

Xiao Mo declined politely: “I have enough—I brought my own. You keep yours.”

 

The cultivator nodded and took one of the pills himself before charging into the illusion with his weapon raised, his killing intent surging.

 

In his previous life, Xiao Mo had been exposed prematurely to the old Heaven’s Will, which led to relentless pursuit and countless battles. He had killed many in retaliation, but witnessing such large-scale self-destruction was a first for him. His expression turned cold.

 

Killing was common in the cultivation world, but there were rules to follow under Heaven’s Way. Such tactics showed blatant disregard for human life.

 

Xiao Mo and Chu Jinglan entered the illusion together. In the past, when Xiao Mo was still a inner demon, he couldn’t harm others—his illusions could only trap enemies. But now, with no restrictions on him anymore, Xiao Mo controlled the illusion and filled it with deadly traps.

 

To trap all enemies within required not only spiritual energy but also immense focus and precision from his spiritual consciousness. The entire battlefield was under his control—where to launch attacks, where to adjust illusions as cover for allies—all fell under his purview. Hovering in mid-air with wind swirling around him, Xiao Mo played his flute to further suppress the enemies’ spiritual consciousness.

 

He became an enormous threat to the opposing side. Realizing this, several enemies who had temporarily escaped his suppression charged toward him directly.

 

Aside from Chu Jinglan, another cultivator remained near Xiao Mo to provide support. Reacting quickly to the incoming enemies, he shouted: “Watch out!”

 

The sheer number of attacks made it impossible for even three people to block them all. The cultivator chose one or two opponents to engage while retreating strategically to reposition himself. Resolutely stepping forward to confront them head-on, he prepared to strike—but before his magical artifact could connect with their attacks, a surge of icy and overwhelming spiritual energy suddenly swept past him from behind.

 

The cultivator froze in terror as he felt an immense killing intent engulf him—a force so vast and murderous that he thought his life was over. Just as despair began to set in, sword energy shot past him like a storm—obliterating all enemies in front of him with a single strike.

 

His magical artifact struck nothing but air.

 

Though his skin stung from the residual force of the attack, he wasn’t injured. Stunned, he turned around and saw Du-E Sect’s other disciple—you Yetan (Chu Jinglan)—standing with a sword in hand. In Chu Jinglan’s pitch-black eyes swirled unrelenting hatred and killing intent as he thrust his blade toward the incoming enemies with devastating precision.

 

The group of enemies had already been reduced to lifeless corpses, leaving only one living person standing in front of Chu Jinglan.

 

The cultivator found himself locking eyes with You Yetan (Chu Jinglan).

 

His hand trembled instantly, but he forced himself to grip his magical artifact tightly. Every fiber of his being screamed danger, and he instinctively stepped back. Though reason told him this was his ally, his body had already entered a state of unconscious vigilance.

 

Chu Jinglan felt as though the scene before him was drenched in blood.

 

So many blades, each strike aimed to kill—all directed at Xiao Mo. How dare they? How could they?

 

They want to kill Xiao Mo?

 

No one can take him from me. No one can hurt him—except me.

 

As for the rest… they deserve no mercy.

 

Chu Jinglan raised his sword and stepped forward. The aura of his disguised presence began to shift—it seemed on the verge of breaking through entirely and surging outward. The cultivator wanted to say something to You Yetan but found himself unable to muster the strength even to open his mouth.

 

Is this pressure really coming from someone at early-stage Divided Spirit?

 

Just as Chu Jinglan was about to take another step, his sea of consciousness rippled suddenly. A golden chain shot out from behind him, wrapping several times around his wrist before tightening and pulling him back slightly.

 

The force wasn’t strong enough to make him retreat physically, but it was enough to make him turn around.

 

When Chu Jinglan turned, he met Xiao Mo’s gaze.

 

Xiao Mo, multitasking on the battlefield with his attention split into countless fragments, had his flute raised horizontally at his lips. He lifted his eyes and called out silently with his gaze: Chu Jinglan.

 

The golden chain bound Xiao Mo—and it bound Chu Jinglan as well.

 

The disturbance in Chu Jinglan’s sea of consciousness had been caused by Xiao Mo activating their Dao companion mark. Through it, he transferred some of his spiritual energy to Chu Jinglan, silently soothing him. Both the Dao companion mark and the golden chain conveyed the same message: I’m here—with you—safe and sound.

 

Gradually, the blood-red haze in Chu Jinglan’s vision began to fade. The crimson gathered at Xiao Mo’s brow, transforming into a blooming red lotus.

 

The killing intent surrounding Chu Jinglan receded, and the raging storm around him settled into serene ice and snow—cold yet calm.

 

Chu Jinglan suppressed the roaring beast within him.

 

What the beast had said was wrong, Chu Jinglan thought: No one in this world can harm Xiao Mo—not even me.

 

As his oppressive aura and murderous intent dissipated, the nearby cultivator finally regained his composure. Tentatively stepping closer, he asked nervously: “Uh…Daoist friend You, are you alright?”

 

Chu Jinglan shook his head lightly.

 

“Battlefields are like this,” the cultivator said after confirming that the danger had passed. Relaxing slightly, he added in a tone of understanding: “You were worried about Hong Lan and got angry, right? I get it—though it was a bit scary… Ahem, I mean you’re really impressive.”

 

Everyone who came out of Du-E Sect seemed extraordinary—a Hong Lan and a You Yetan. Why they were so powerful wasn’t something he could delve into—but he couldn’t help envying them for receiving Xianzun’s guidance. It truly set them apart.

 

 

The golden chain wrapped around Chu Jinglan’s wrist extended far enough to connect with Xiao Mo. For now, Xiao Mo didn’t retract it. Meanwhile, Chu Jinglan looped the chain around his wrist two more times and tightened it further.

 

The nearby cultivator glanced at the chain out of the corner of his eye and wondered: Does this chain have some sort of protective or spiritual energy-linking function?

 

Xiao Mo killed another enemy within the illusionary realm while continuing to play his flute. The melody grew fierce—like a storm raging through rain and wind—sharp and relentless like thunderous war drums pounding against their enemies’ hearts.

 

Chu Jinglan raised his sword and said coldly: “They’re here.”

 

The cultivator had only spared a momentary glance before noticing another wave of enemies attempting to break through the illusion by targeting Xiao Mo directly. Fully focused now, he shouted: “Make sure none of them leave alive!”

 

Chu Jinglan enveloped himself in a dense and harmonious sword intent, while Xiao Mo’s flute melody, destructive to their enemies, was like a soothing balm to him.

 

With Xiao Mo by his side, Chu Jinglan was certain he wouldn’t lose control. As long as his mind remained calm—he would be invincible.

 

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1 Kofi = 1 Extra Chapter