White-Robed Chief

Chu Li knew this feeling very well as he had experienced it too many times in the Inner Mausoleum. This was an Enlightened Master’s powerful aura which indicated that an Enlightened Master was drawing near.

He used the Omniscient Mirror to observe his surroundings within a thirty-mile radius and saw the Emperor going up against an elder with a white beard and white eyebrows miles up in the sky. As soon as their palms collided, the Emperor and the elder both glided backward before disappearing back into the clouds.

When their palms collided, the impact did not produce an earth-shattering force. On the contrary, it felt as though they had not used any inner energy at all. They seemed like two men who did not know any martial arts fighting each other.

The suffocating force from earlier had vanished completely as if nothing had happened in the first place and Chu Li had merely been hallucinating that scene he had just witnessed.

Chu Li sighed in relief. Fortunately, the Fu Dynasty’s Emperor had reacted quick enough in a decisive and resolute manner. If the Fu Dynasty’s Emperor had arrived slightly later and the Ji Dynasty’s Emperor happened to deal another crushing blow to Chu Li, there was no way Chu Li could have survived. Chu Li would have probably been smashed into pieces immediately and by then, even the Life and Death Scripture would not be able to revive him.

Chu Li vanished from his original spot before appearing in another residence.

He did not want the Emperors of the Ji Dynasty and the Fu Dynasty watching him closely. After all, he was nothing more than an ant in their eyes and they could easily squash him to death at any time.

This powerless feeling filled him with rage and indignation. It was also one of the reasons he was striving to become an Enlightened Master.

Chu Li bent over and continued spitting out blood and pieces of flesh in this residence.

His heart trembled in fear as out came more blood; what had happened earlier was too terrifying. He nearly failed to get out of the situation alive.

If Chu Li had not used the Heavenly Demonic Spirit Devouring Technique to devour that bout of Enlightened Master’s energy, he would not have done much harm to the Emperor with his counterattack. In that case, it would have been impossible for him to unseal the space around himself to escape, thus sealing his death. The power of an Enlightened Master was formidable and fearsome indeed.

As the Life and Death Scripture started to circulate, spiritual energy surged towards Chu Li from all directions to heal his injuries. Although he was on the verge of dying, he stubbornly hung on to his last breath as he retrieved a jade bottle from his inner pocket before pouring all of the pills inside the bottle into his mouth.

The spiritual energy from his surroundings continued to surge into him while the spiritual energy from the spirit pills circulated his vital organs to repair them and to ward off further damage.

However, the Enlightened Master’s energy inside his body was like a firm and sharp knife that was slicing away at his vital organs without stopping. Its destructive force was far greater than the healing effects of both the spiritual energy and the spirit pills so his body continued to deteriorate rapidly.

Originally, he could have used the Heavenly Demonic Spirit Devouring Technique to devour this Enlightened Master’s energy. Unfortunately, his Heavenly Demonic Orb had been shattered by the Enlightened Master’s energy. Thus, he was unable to perform the Heavenly Demonic Spirit Devouring Technique and could only look on helplessly while the Enlightened Master’s energy wreaked havoc within him.

Chu Li tried his best to use the Earth Matrix and Reincarnation Scripture to convert this energy into his own. However, just as he almost succeeded in turning its destructive and deadly nature into a healing and life-giving force, it instantly went back to its original state. It was as though this Enlightened Master’s energy had a consciousness of its own and was made out of sheer willpower for the Earth Matrix and Reincarnation Scripture could only convert this energy momentarily and not permanently.

Chu Li laughed bitterly as he realized how destructive an Enlightened Master’s attack could be and how unlikely it was for a person to survive such an attack. He helplessly watched his own body deteriorate further while his death neared. At this rate, he would die in the next fifteen minutes!

His mind began spinning in a million different directions as he refused to give up just yet.

Suddenly, inspiration struck Chu Li and he started circulating the Earth Matrix and Reincarnation Scripture in reverse, making his body the main target of its effects while paying no further attention to the Enlightened Master’s energy.

Circulating the Earth Matrix and Reincarnation Scripture would destroy his body alongside the Enlightened Master’s energy instead of healing it. As a result, his body’s deterioration rate sped up abruptly. Ten minutes later, he was already on the brink of death.

Then, he started circulating the Earth Matrix and Reincarnation Scripture in the right order. A bout of vitality miraculously appeared and rapidly repaired his vital organs.

Chu Li’s spirits lifted instantly. However, the Enlightened Master’s energy was still present in his body and it continued to destroy his vital organs.

He ignored the Enlightened Master’s energy and focused on circulating the Earth Matrix and Reincarnation Scripture in the right order. As more vitality proceeded to spring up within him, a Heavenly Demonic Orb tinier than a speck of dust suddenly appeared in his chest and quickly spread all over his body. Instantly, the Heavenly Demonic Field emerged.

Chu Li was overjoyed when his Heavenly Demonic Spirit Devouring Technique started circulating and devouring the Enlightened Master’s energy.

As the Heavenly Demonic Spirit Devouring Technique gradually devoured the Enlightened Master’s energy, it slowly reduced the energy’s damaging effects on his vital organs. In the meantime, the spiritual energy from his surroundings as well as the spirit pills surged into his vital organs to heal and repair them. He had finally managed to stop his situation from worsening.

As the Enlightened Master’s energy declined, the spiritual energy in his body started gaining the upper hand. Eventually, the Enlightened Master’s energy was completely devoured, and the spiritual energy within him was able to continue repairing his vital organs without much difficulty.

Chu Li heaved a sigh of relief. As it turned out, he was not going to lose his life after all!

On the morning of the next day, Chu Li had healed and recovered completely. He showed no signs of injury at all, as though the person who had been on the verge of dying yesterday was not him. His condition had improved dramatically since the previous day.

Chu Li frowned as he sat in the courtyard to bury all the blood he had spat onto the ground there. His eyebrows were knitted tightly together while he fell into deep thought.

He had examined his body after fully recovering from his injuries and had noticed a faintly discernible trace of force lingering in the void of his mind. It was hardly noticeable, like a soft breeze blowing through the night sky. He might not have managed to detect this force if it had not been for his incredibly tough soul.

After much deliberation, he figured that this force had most likely been left behind by the Enlightened Master’s energy. It was the Emperor’s mark.

The moment he left the Fu Dynasty, the Emperor would surely be able to use this mark to track him down. Thus, the Emperor would discover and kill Chu Li right away even if he tried to change his appearance. Fortunately, his soul was strong enough so he was able to detect this force. Otherwise, he might have died already!

He thought of many ways to overcome this force, including using the Omniscient Mirror to suppress it as well as having the Buddha and the Heavenly Demon try to seize it. However, he still could not get rid of this force. It felt like a gentle breeze, a cloud of mist, and smoke all at once. Chu Li could neither grasp nor catch it.

In the end, he was left with no choice but to use his last option—he was going to transform into Zhe Ying so that he could visit Heavenly Demonic Sect.

…

He glided to Heavenly Demonic Sect and went directly to the basilica before saying in a loud voice, “Disciple Zhe Ying would like to speak to Honorable Master Li.”

“Zhe Ying?” A voice echoed from inside.

After Chu Li pushed the door open and entered the basilica, he gave a fist salute and bowed. “Greetings, Honorable Master Li.”

“You really succeeded in getting out of Ill Wind Valley?” Elder Li scrutinized him from head to toe with a serious expression.

Elder Li knew very well what kind of place Ill Wind Valley was. Hardly anyone had ever gotten out of that place alive and yet Zhe Ying was capable of doing so. This was indeed an unexpected turn of events.

“Yes,” Chu Li replied.

Elder Li asked calmly, “Since you managed to leave Ill Wind Valley, why have you returned to the sect?”

Chu Li replied, “I wanted to see Honorable Masters.”

“Humph!” Elder Li muttered angrily, “You’ve purposely come here to infuriate us, right? Scoundrel!”

Chu Li smiled faintly and did not reply.

Elder Li examined him again and frowned as he asked, “You’ve reached the ninth level of your Heavenly Demonic Power?”

“Yes.” Chu Li nodded.

“Your cultivation method is nothing to be proud of!” Elder Li huffed. “You still wish to stay in Heavenly Demonic Sect?”

“Of course,” Chu Li replied. “Sect Leader said that if I manage to leave Ill Wind Valley, everything that has happened before this will be considered over and done with. So, I’m still a disciple of Heavenly Demonic Sect!”

“Well then, you may go back and rest now,” Elder Li replied.

Chu Li responded obediently. Suddenly, he took a step backward and seemed to touch the Heavenly Demonic Statue by accident.

“Bang!” He was sent flying before he fell unconscious at once.

Elder Li was startled and anxiously summoned a few other disciples over to carry Chu Li back to his own room.

When Chu Li regained consciousness, he saw the sun shining brightly outside. Judging by the shadow cast from the window, he knew that it was high noon.

He had a splitting headache and could not use the Omniscient Mirror, so he knew that the void of his mind had been severely injured again.

Chu Li had been aiming to cause destruction to both himself and the force left behind by the Enlightened Master but was not sure if the damage he had suffered this time was sufficient to erase the Emperor’s mark on him.

If this idea failed as well, he would have to go and challenge another Enlightened Master. Hopefully, he would be able to use the energy of this other Enlightened Master to get rid of the Emperor’s mark. Otherwise, he could not return to the Ji Dynasty and would have to continue staying here.

He could not help but think about how worried Xiao Qi was at that moment!