noveltune Chapter 107 Settling the Karma
Chapter 107 Settling the Karma
Chapter 107 Settling the Karma
The situation is changing rapidly.
Qin Chengcheng's sudden arrival caught several prodigies completely off guard.
Chen Yi, who was preparing to unleash ninety percent of his strength, once again withdrew his attack and quietly retreated back to Qin Chengcheng's side.
Just as the parties were locked in a standoff,
From the core of the frozen pool in the forbidden land, an extremely strong aura of spiritual energy emanated.
The thunderclouds in the sky suddenly contracted, and the pressure of the third rank crashed down as if it were a tangible force.
A bolt of lightning as thick as a water bucket pierced the sky and struck the depths of the icy pool, its blue and white flashes illuminating the ice surface.
This lightning pillar was at least a mid-grade third-tier lightning bolt, and it consumed almost half of the energy accumulated in the lightning array.
"ah--"
A bloodcurdling scream exploded on the soul level.
The entire abyss's ice and lightning spiritual energy was rippled outwards by this soul-piercing scream, creating a visible ripple.
The ice crystals trembled, and the lightning chains shattered.
The power of the soul directly affects reality; this requires a soul of level three or higher and profound cultivation in the soul path.
Chen Yi's expression was serious as he silently retreated behind the others.
Whatever requires a mid-grade third-tier lightning strike to destroy, it's not something to be trifled with.
The changes in the desperate situation were not yet over. The lightning array overhead weakened after unleashing a mid-grade third-tier lightning strike.
The chilling aura emanating from the ancient ice beneath our feet seemed to be weakening.
However, from the depths of the icy pool came extremely strong icy fluctuations.
The three prodigies, Qi Wuba, Qi Yourong, and Qi Yunxi, simultaneously retreated slightly, staring at the powerful fluctuations in that area, their eyes gleaming with excitement.
They seem to have triggered the appearance of a hidden treasure.
Sure enough, not long after,
The icy pool suddenly exploded.
A puppet ape, over ten feet tall, broke through the water's surface and flew out.
Enveloped in endless cold air, its feet were frozen solid with blue ice.
Its hands each held a palm-sized, transparent block of ice, containing silver lightning patterns. Frost flowers condensed in the surrounding air, and the temperature within the three realms plummeted, turning breath into ice.
It emitted blue mist and spiderweb-like arcs of electricity, with ice and lightning attributes resonating in a balanced manner. The third-tier pressure caused a stinging sensation to the consciousness of Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Mystic Ice Thunder Soul!
These wondrous materials from heaven and earth are the core ingredients for crafting ice thunder.
Each one is at least Tier 3, worth around 10,000 to 20,000 spirit stones.
The gazes of the Qi siblings and Qi Yunxi suddenly became intense.
As core disciples of a top-tier power, the Crystal Condensation Pill was not a rare item for them.
But these two third-tier Xuanbing Thunder Souls before us are truly rare treasures of heaven and earth.
Even within a powerful force like theirs, it would be considered an extremely precious treasure.
If taken back, whether used to craft ice and lightning magic weapons or handed over for exchange resources, its value would exceed that of the Crystallization Fruit.
The three of them immediately stared at the ape-like puppet, eager to try their luck.
Unbeknownst to them, the ape-like puppet seemed to have undergone a subtle change after emerging from the water.
Chen Yi couldn't explain why, but he just felt something was different.
It seemed to possess lively eyes and senses, and when it scanned its surroundings in the air, Chen Yi even noticed that the puppet's expression seemed to have become more vivid.
Although the puppet ape does not show any changes in expression,
But Chen Yi sensed a certain liveliness in the other party.
Qin Chengcheng also noticed something was wrong.
Her Lesser Five Elements level divine sense sent a warning, and she immediately transmitted her voice to Chen Yi: "The situation has changed, how should we respond?"
"withdraw!"
Chen Yi answered without hesitation.
After discovering the anomaly, he decided not to participate in the follow-up.
Although the Xuanbing Thunder Soul is precious, it faces unknown risks, especially the scream of the divine soul and the mid-grade third-tier lightning.
Chen Yi was not confident he could escape unscathed.
He chose to quit while he was ahead.
Now that we have obtained a Crystal Fruit, there is no need to take risks for additional opportunities.
At this moment, the three people in front simultaneously attacked the puppet.
The aerial lightning array weakened, and Qi Yunxi's attack diminished somewhat, but her own strength was not to be underestimated. She took out a talisman, which instantly transformed into terrifying lightning fluctuations.
A bolt of lightning struck from a clear sky, shooting from her hand towards the puppet ape.
The third-tier lightning strike talisman, while perhaps not as powerful as the strongest strike from the previous lightning array, surpassed the accuracy and intensity of a third-tier lightning strike from the most ordinary lightning array within the forbidden zone.
Furthermore, the puppet ape seemed to have been grazed by the mid-grade third-tier lightning strike earlier, causing its body to sluggish, and thus it failed to dodge this lightning strike.
The magical shield emanating from his body was instantly shattered.
The puppet ape was struck in mid-air and sent flying backward, one arm rising uncontrollably high into the air.
Qi Yunxi quickly enveloped her body with the power of thunder spirit, transforming into a bolt of lightning that instantly propelled her dozens of feet away.
He snatched a Mystic Ice Thunder Soul from the raised arm, then retreated to the perimeter to observe the battle.
The Qi siblings were not to be outdone.
Qi Yourong activated his sword technique, and the Purple Cloud Sword transformed into a stream of light to restrain the puppet ape's movements.
Qi Wuba also unleashed his strongest attack, instantly igniting all the fire magic power within him and merging it with the fire body-refining energy surrounding him.
In that instant, he briefly transformed into a humanoid flame, rushing towards the puppet ape with speed and power far exceeding his usual level, initially reaching the threshold of the third tier.
only,
The puppet ape was already at the third-tier level, possessing a third-tier strength foundation for both its defense and physical attacks.
Its defense against flying swords and physical cultivators is arguably the strongest.
After being struck by lightning, it seemed to have taken a short rest and its mind was clearer.
He easily blocked the flying sword with a simple wave of his arm, but a deep sword wound appeared on his arm.
Facing Qi Wuba, who transformed into flames and charged at it, it was even less afraid.
A glint of light flashed in the ape's eyes, and it immediately crossed its arms to protect itself, charging headlong into Qi Wuba.
boom--
The flames dissipated.
A tower-shaped figure flew backward. Qi Wuba felt a sweet taste in his throat, blood spurted out, and his bones seemed to be shattered by a tremendous force, his internal organs churning violently.
The puppet ape was also seriously injured; Qi Wuba's attack contained the power of a third-tier weapon, and under the corrosive influence of the blazing fire attribute...
The metal shell of the puppet ape's front half was charred and deformed, with some parts even melting into molten iron. Its massive body was also thrown backward several feet by the impact.
If it were to withstand several more attacks of the same intensity, this puppet would likely disintegrate completely.
However, Qi Wuba was clearly unable to unleash such a powerful move multiple times.
He turned around anxiously and shouted:
"Brother Xu! Come quickly and help me!"
This puppet has mutated; I can't handle it alone!
"Your golden bones can withstand their attacks. Then, let that fellow Daoist use his Xuan Yin Domain to directly strike the puppeteer hiding within. We'll surely achieve victory in one fell swoop!"
He quickly added, "The value of that Mystic Ice Thunder Soul is no less than that of the Crystallized Fruit; we'll split it equally after we get it!"
As a result, there was no response after calling for a long time.
When I looked back,
But they saw that the bald Xu Jiu had already retreated more than a hundred feet away and was pulling the female cultivator in the white dress away from the battlefield.
"Brother Xu?!" Qi Wuba exclaimed in astonishment. "You are a fully matured Golden Bone cultivator with a thunder spirit within you, what are you afraid of?"
Chen Yi waved his hand without turning his head:
"Excuse me, Brother Ta Nan, there's an emergency at home, so we'll have to head back now."
At this moment, Chen Yi and Qin Chengcheng had retreated to the edge of the dead end, almost outside the original coverage area of the lightning array.
Qi Wu, utterly domineering, called him a "coward!"
He looked at Qi Yourong and telepathically signaled her to use the hidden magic weapon.
Qi Yourong shook her head almost imperceptibly, her lips moving slightly to convey her thoughts:
"Although the Xuanbing Thunder Soul is precious, the core area of the secret realm has not yet been opened, so it is too early to use that item now."
Qi Wuba sighed, looking regretfully at the Xuanbing Leipo in the puppet ape's hand.
"Hahaha! Here I come!"
Suddenly, a long laugh ripped through the sky, and before the echo had faded, a streak of azure light shot through the air like lightning.
Within that condensed, almost tangible, half-zhang-long blue light, Feng Qingjun's slender figure appeared and disappeared.
"Brother Xu, we agreed to join forces to seize the treasure, why did you act alone? I'll retrieve it for you right away!"
The sound echoed throughout the entire wasteland. In the blink of an eye, before anyone could react...
The azure light had instantly covered hundreds of feet, heading straight for the puppet ape.
"That speed? How come Feng Qingjun's speed has increased again?"
Qi Wuba was stunned. He naturally did not know that this was the effect of the Azure Wind Escape that Chen Yi had improved after his transaction with Feng Qingjun.
"court death!"
Ning Bu'er's cold rebuke emanated from within the puppet ape's body.
The puppeteer Ning Bu'er was extremely frustrated. First, she was kicked into the icy pool by two body cultivators. The puppet ape was unharmed, but she was nearly frozen to death. She had to consume a precious pill to barely protect herself.
Underwater, she was nearly possessed by an inexplicable demonic force, but thanks to her hidden and powerful inheritance, she managed to withstand it for a moment.
The demonic thought's unusual movement attracted the strongest attack from the third-tier lightning array. At the critical moment, the demonic thought hid within the divine consciousness array on the puppet ape's head, merging with the puppet to avoid the fatal attack.
Ning Bu'er was also implicated; even though a mid-grade third-order lightning bolt only grazed her, the aftershocks still paralyzed her entire body.
After barely regaining consciousness, she discovered that the core of her puppet ape's head, which should have been controlled by her divine sense, had been occupied by someone else, who was now challenging her divine will.
She communicated with the demonic thought on a spiritual level for a long time, but she couldn't do anything about it. The demonic thought was also afraid that she would expose the matter and be destroyed by the powerful righteous forces.
The two had no choice but to cooperate and coexist for the time being.
The condition was that the demonic thought agreed to help her control the puppet ape and help her gain more from the secret realm.
Of course, it hadn't experienced combat for tens of thousands of years, and was only just regaining consciousness. It needed time to recover and familiarize itself with operating the puppet ape; it couldn't unleash its full power yet.
Ning Bu'er had her own difficulties; she couldn't fully expose the puppet's secret for the time being, so she had no choice but to compromise.
Fortunately, with the help of the demonic thought, the puppet ape managed to snatch two Xuanbing Thunder Souls from the bottom of the icy pool, which were quite valuable.
Unexpectedly, just as it emerged from the water,
Qi Yunxi launched a sneak attack; her lightning strike technique was imprinted with demonic intent, and the opponent, hiding inside the ape's brain, dared not show its face.
As a result, she stole one of the Mystic Ice Thunder Souls.
Then Qi Wuba came over to snatch it, and the demonic thought unleashed its power to block him, but the puppet ape itself also suffered some minor injuries.
But it was one thing for these people to try and take him, one of them was a prodigy with a lightning spiritual root, which was the perfect counter to demonic intent, and the other was Qi Wuba, the desperate warrior, who unleashed his strongest attack at the third tier, resulting in a draw with him.
But what gives you, Feng Qingjun, the right?
A clown who steals things by speed; normally, people would stay far away from heavily armored puppets like him.
Now you actually dare to step forward on your own?
Even if his puppet ape is injured, it's not something you can just take advantage of with a Wind Release technique.
A ball of azure light arrived swiftly, and as it drew near, the puppet ape raised an arm and slapped it towards the light.
She had long known that the Azure Light Escape technique's defensive power was at most at the peak of the second tier, and would inevitably shatter under a third-tier physical attack.
However, just as the arm approached the blue light, there was no shattering or the figure flying out.
Instead, the azure light, like a bouncy ball, was compressed and forced inwards, seemingly trying to eject the cultivator inside.
"Huh? How come its defense has gotten stronger? It's almost at the third tier now?"
Just as Ning Bu'er let out a soft exclamation,
The azure light accelerated instantly, splitting in two, bypassing the puppet ape's arm, and arriving behind it.
The puppet ape had no time to react.
A beam of light pierced out, severing one of the puppet ape's fingers and forcibly snatching the other Xuanbing Thunder Soul.
"Hahahaha! A mere Tier 3 puppet monkey, nothing special. Go ahead and chase me if you dare!"
From within the blue light came Feng Qingjun's triumphant laughter.
Ning Bu'er was both stunned and furious. "Feng Qingjun, you just wait!"
and also,
Qi Wuba, Qi Yunxi, Bald Xu Jiu, I've got you all remembered!
Ning Bu'er was furious. She had obtained two Crystal Condensation Fruits and two Xuanbing Thunder Souls, all of which had been stolen.
Qi Wuba and the others also looked much more serious.
"How did Feng Qingjun's Wind Release technique improve so much in such a short time? He was actually able to withstand an attack from that puppet ape?"
In Qi Wuba's memory, let alone the puppet ape, even his attack with 80% of his power seemed unable to be blocked head-on by the wind escape technique.
Feng Qingjun, having exhausted the last of the power of that third-tier golden sword talisman...
But they felt they had made a huge profit.
If I return this Xuanbing Lei Soul to my master, I can exchange it for at least three Tier 3 Ice and Lightning Talismans, which are even more powerful Tier 3 treasure talismans than the Golden Sword Talisman!
"Brother Xu, I've succeeded. See you at the usual place, we'll split the profits fifty-fifty! Hahaha!"
Before leaving, Feng Qingjun didn't forget to give Chen Yi a piece of his mind.
Chen Yi reacted quickly; although he had already retreated from the perilous area, he was unwilling to take the blame for nothing.
"Feng Qingjun, stop framing me! If you're truly in cahoots with me, leave the stuff here now!"
As expected, Feng Qingjun did not stop after Chen Yi shouted.
The others weren't stupid either; they knew that Lord Feng Qing was most likely trying to shift the blame.
At this moment, Chen Yi and Qin Chengcheng's combination of formation master and warrior was no weaker than any of the eight great prodigies.
Furthermore, Chen Yi only obtained one Xuanbing Fruit, which was almost equivalent to the gains of Qi Wuba, Qi Yunxi, and Feng Qingjun.
Others naturally had no intention of engaging in a death battle with Chen Yi and his companion.
As for the puppeteer Ning Bu'er, she needs some time to allow the demonic thought in the puppet ape's brain to recover its power and combat skills, so it's not convenient for her to take action for the time being.
She retreated silently, seemingly at a disadvantage, but in reality, possessing a powerful demonic thought from ten thousand years ago, her gains were no less than those of others.
Even the onlookers, who were watching intently, were dazzled by the changes that had occurred in such a short time.
Regardless, they had certainly broadened their horizons. Five of the eight great prodigies had appeared, and if you included the bald Xu Jiu and the female sound array master, it was practically a gathering of all six.
In this competition, everyone gained something:
Two mid-grade, third-tier Xuanbing Condensing Crystal Fruits have appeared in the world, and even more valuable Xuanbing Thunder Souls, a rare treasure of heaven and earth, have emerged. This item is sufficient to be used as the main material for refining magic weapons.
Moreover, the various techniques employed by the prodigies, the terrifying power of the third-tier Absolute Land Ice and Thunder Array, and the unknown dangers lurking in the Ten Thousand Year Cold Pool were all breathtaking.
Faced with this outcome, the cultivators were finally convinced.
"I'm convinced. True treasures can only be obtained by geniuses."
We mediocre people are only fit to watch from afar!
"Hey! You bald little strongman, where are you going? You lost the bet and you're too scared to lick my shoes, huh?"
In the crowd, a bald young man who had made a bet with the old Taoist priest was trying to slip away quietly, but was stopped by the other bald man.
The cultivators were also sensible; they immediately made way, leaving the little bald boy nowhere to hide.
The bald boy looked embarrassed, his face slightly red.
"Who said Xu Lishi won? He only managed to grab one Xuanbing Fruit. He didn't manage to grab any of the other items, and he didn't even dare to step forward when it came to grabbing the Xuanbing Thunder Soul at the end."
"Tch, he's just a rogue cultivator. He managed to snatch food from the jaws of several geniuses. That's enough for him to brag about for a lifetime!"
Tell me about these shoe soles, are you going to lick them or not?!
"I won't fawn over her! At most, I'll agree to be that ugly, cough-cough, sonic fairy's gigolo!"
The bald man is still persisting.
"snort!"
A clear, low shout suddenly rang out, followed by a sonic wave that shot through the air with a "pop."
Caught off guard, the bald-headed cultivator was thrown to the ground, stumbling and falling in a sorry state.
"Speaking recklessly, if you dare to spout nonsense again, you will be severely punished!"
Not far away, Qin Chengcheng glanced at them with her cool, aloof eyes.
The previously noisy discussion instantly froze.
They dared to joke around before because they thought Qin Chengcheng was just like them, an ordinary cultivator who only dared to observe from the sidelines.
Now that Qin Chengcheng has entered the arena, she has already proven her strength through her powerful array formation.
When she came out again, everyone else naturally fell silent, especially since they were just joking about her.
After being hit, the bald boy also knelt down on the ground, not daring to raise his head, and kept admitting his mistake.
That being said, they were genuinely afraid of such exceptional individuals.
Qin Chengcheng ignored these people and he and Chen Yi left quickly.
But just as they left the crowd and had traveled less than a mile,
A thunderous sound rang out from behind.
Qi Yunxi arrived, riding a lightning-light flying sword.
Standing frozen in mid-air,
Her cyan skirt fluttered wildly under the surging spiritual pressure, the flying sword beneath her feet was wreathed in fine lightning, and wisps of lightning spiritual power flowed around her like snakes.
Her stunningly beautiful face was aloof and cold; her long, slender eyes were fixed on Chen Yi.
He said in a cold voice:
"Baldy! When did you become a strongman raised by the Qi family? Why did you say that just now, making me take several flying swords for you!"
Qi Yunxi has come to settle scores after the fact.
Under normal circumstances, if any rogue cultivator dared to spread such rumors and make her take the blame, she would have been struck by lightning long ago.
However, the bald man and the fairy zither are quite powerful now, which makes her quite wary, so she questioned them first.
"Fairy Qi. Just because you don't know doesn't mean your brother doesn't know."
Back then, on the outskirts of this Medicine Valley, when my cultivation was still weak, your younger brother captured me and made me do hard labor for him.
He publicly declared that I was his hired strongman, sent to accompany his treasure-hunting rat to dig for copper ore underground.
At this time, quite a few cultivators witnessed it back then.
Later, after I emerged from the secret realm, I told your younger brother that it might harbor ancient demonic shadows.
Your younger brother told me to keep it a secret and not tell anyone. Later, the news quickly reached the royal family of Qi, and even the Emperor of Qi came in person.
As everyone knows, this place became the secret realm of the ancient Thunder Soul Sect.
I don't believe that your brother or Fairy Qi didn't benefit from this news?
At this point in Chen Yi's explanation, Qi Yunxi understood the whole story; it was all caused by her younger brother.
She couldn't refute Chen Yi's claim that their cover-up of the news meant his Xuanxiao Sect had indeed benefited.
And this cause and effect was something her brother had snatched from the person in front of him.
If this bald guy still had the same average strength as back then, that would be fine, but now...
No wonder this bald guy came to cause her trouble.
"Fairy Qi, I've heard that you enjoy smoothing over your brother's karma. Go to every house in the city and apologize to him."
It's impossible for others not to accept it.
What's wrong, fairy? Have you forgotten about this cause and effect in my family?
Originally, I thought I'd just shout a few things in the secret realm, and the fairy would take a few hits for me, and that would be it. I didn't want to argue with her any further.
But since the fairy has come to our door to question us...
"Then I'd like to ask the fairy, how will the benefits of exclusively possessing the secrets of the ancient demonic shadow be calculated? Will I get a share?"
Qi Yunxi's face was extremely ugly. Being questioned in front of everyone made her feel like she had swallowed a fly.
If she had known all this, she wouldn't have chased after him.
This time, however, she didn't scold her foolish younger brother; after all, they had already received their benefits.
She squinted at Chen Yi, feeling very uncomfortable being questioned in public by this bald man.
As the chief disciple of the Xuanxiao Sect, a genius with a unique lightning spiritual root, and one of the eight greatest prodigies in the Qi Kingdom's cultivation world, she rarely faced such public humiliation.
Her body was surrounded by surging lightning, and her face was somber.
"What, does the fairy want to make a move?"
Fairy, have you forgotten that someone has a high resistance to your lightning spells?
My friend didn't even need to lift a finger; one person from my family could handle the fairy.
Of course, given the fairy's abilities, there's not much that I can do about her.
But surely the fairy's younger brother won't stay holed up in the sect forever?
Since the fairy acknowledges the concept of cause and effect, then I will inevitably have to investigate the causes and effects of the past sooner or later.
That company is so annoying!
Qi Yunxi was extremely annoyed, but thinking of Chen Yi's performance in the desperate situation, she managed to restrain herself from making a move.
She looked at Chen Yi with a cold expression:
"What do you want?"
"I've heard that fairies like to force things on others to settle karmic debts."
Today, I'd like to ask for something: the Mystic Ice Thunder Soul. I won't accept anything else.
This is what you need to resolve past karmic debts.
Chen Yi also showed some strength this time, not to show off, but simply to resolve the knot in his heart.
Several months ago, in his private kitchen, he was forced to accept a broken shield and be asked to sever the karmic ties, which left him quite unhappy.
I demanded something today, which can be considered as smoothing over both causes and effects.
Qi Yunxi's expression shifted between light and dark.
If it were any of the other eight prodigies, she would definitely have made a move; whether or not she would give anything, she would have fought first.
But this bald man, I don't know where he cultivated to the pinnacle of Golden Bone, and he also possesses lightning pattern carvings and a treasure like the Magnetic Lightning Pearl within his body.
It's specifically designed to counter her lightning-based attacks.
And just as the bald man said, her brother had gotten into so much trouble, and she had dealt with it all by force, almost like she was forcing him to.
He only sought to perfect his Dao heart, ensuring he would have no future troubles when attempting to break through to the Core Formation stage, and focused all his efforts on achieving the Purple-Gold True Core.
Now that all the causes and effects have been resolved, a thorny problem has suddenly arisen.
She really didn't want to provoke someone of her level who could also counter her cultivation technique.
But giving away the Xuanbing Lei Po like that felt stifling.
She had paid a price—a third-tier lightning strike talisman—and offended the puppeteer to snatch it away with great difficulty.
Today, in this minefield, which should have been her home turf, she was targeted by the Qi family and suffered a beating. Now she can't even keep what she had in her hands, so she must be very unhappy.
She's now in a bit of a dilemma.
Why did I even bother chasing this bald guy?!
She felt deep regret.
(End of this chapter)