Chapter 65: Piercing Bamboo, Raising Waves, Shaking the Forest!

Beneath the firmament, bizarre and eerie wisps of gas drifted leisurely as a red-and-black Rubik's cube spun rapidly, casting down wisps of enchanting fragrance in a silent descent.

A golden light barrier covered a section of the alley, while weird and frenzied cries filled every corner of the courtyard.

Li Yi's eyes were bloodshot, his right hand leaning heavily upon his sword as his entire body weight pressed down, causing the blade to bow slightly.

He shook his head hard, tugging at the wound on his left arm in an attempt to regain a semblance of sobriety.

Yet his vision blurred with double images, his mind felt like mush, and his five senses were in utter disarray, leaving him unable to distinguish between illusion and reality.

Not far away, dozens of human-faced rats rubbed their paws together, their burning gazes fixed intently on the struggling figure as saliva continuously dripped from the corners of their mouths.

Having gorged on rotting corpses down below, fresh human flesh was a rare delicacy indeed.

They pressed their hands together in a mocking prayer toward the cube in midair, grinding their sharp fangs with a grating crunch. Then, dropping onto their blood-spattered hands and feet, they scrambled forward on all fours, pouncing toward Li Yi.

Li Yi propped himself up with his sword, his fingers slowly tightening, the veins on his wrist protruding. His body remained motionless, as though completely devoid of sensation.

The memory of his mother sewing clothes for him beside the lamp flickered intermittently across his mind, causing the corners of his lips to curve upward.

Spiritual power quietly gathered in the palm of his left hand, and amidst the blood-drenched flesh, a flash of pristine white spiritual light suddenly appeared.

He was merely waiting for the rats to pounce and bite him before detonating his core; a Golden Core stage self-detonation would blow a whole pack of these mongrel scum to pieces without the slightest problem.

He tried his utmost to perceive his surroundings, concentrating his rapidly dwindling awareness solely upon the pain.

This time, he would not fight for the common people of the world.

He only wished to protect that mother who sat sewing clothes.

The blood between his fingers trickled down along the blade, staining the snowy-white edge with a few beads of crimson that slipped down one by one into the earth.

A look of steadfast determination flashed through his hazy eyes, and the smile at the corner of his mouth bloomed.

After waiting for a long while, the excruciating pain he expected never struck his body. Instead, a silvery, bell-like laugh pierced through his chaotic thoughts, crashing deep into his spiritual consciousness.

"Hey~ rats, we meet again."

A figure clad in black and red leaped forth from the void, fingers gripping the hilt as she drew the blade two inches, a pristine white silhouette slicing through the dark fog.

Lingxi's tattered garments fluttered in the wind, the silver bell at her waist chiming merrily, as she stood before the rats with a profound and steady gaze.

The sprinting human-faced rats paused slightly, fear flashing within their blood-red pupils. Yet, glancing at Li Yi once more, they lunged forward all the same.

Perhaps these newcomers merely looked terrifying while actually being utterly incompetent.

hampered by the Nightmare Cube, even someone whose cultivation had reached the Spirit Transformation stage would ultimately succumb to mental derangement.

No one could ever be a match for Lord Nightmare!

The hesitating human-faced rats licked the wounds on their paws, the depths of their eyes once again erupting with greed.

Lingxi slashed forth with her sword, sending out a crescent-shaped wave of blade energy. Shadows of bamboo swayed behind her, and a faint fragrance of bamboo drifted with the flowing spiritual Qi.

"Breaking Bamboo!"

Following Lingxi's low cry, the sound of a sharp blade cleaving through bamboo stalks rang out in rapid succession, popping like firecrackers, each louder than the last.

"Surging Waves!!"

Lingxi shifted her hand seals, and her sword technique transformed accordingly. The spiritual power along the edge of the blade surged explosively, immaculate and snow-white.

Countless bamboo stalks swayed wildly across the sky behind her, their afterimages eclipsing more than half the firmament.

"Suppressing the Forest!!!"

The sword form in Lingxi's hand shifted once more, and the spiritual energy upon the blade flared violently. The pristine white light pierced through the dark fog, illuminating the entire alley.

A fierce gale whipped the bamboo groves into a frenzy as millions of bamboo leaves showered down, and streaks of flowing light soared out from behind her, heading straight for the human-faced rats.

Amidst overlapping shrieks, dead rats littered the ground, their chests pierced clean through. Dark red blood flowed in a steady stream, and their bloodshot eyes stared in disbelief at Lingxi.

They truly died with their grievances unredressed.

Lingxi flicked the bloodstains from her blade, and with a crisp *clack*, she sheathed her sword. She turned, raised an eyebrow, and offered Luochen a smile.

"How was that, Master? I told you I could handle it."

"Mm-hmm, not bad. Tonight, I shall certainly cook a few fine dishes to reward you." Luochen also smiled, raising an eyebrow.

Lingxi's mouth twitched, and she hastily changed the subject, walking over toward Li Yi.

"How is he? Covered in blood like this, with teeth marks all over his arms—is he really going to be alright?"

Li Yi found the voice somewhat familiar. He opened his eyes weakly, scanning the young girl standing before him with a messy bird's nest of hair.

If not for her pair of startlingly bright eyes, he would have thought she was a child crawling out of a pauper's grave and returning from the dead.

"Many thanks, cough, cough, cough—"

Lingxi puffed out her cheeks and frowned, "I advise you not to thank me, because lately, everyone who has thanked me has ended up meeting ghosts."

Li Yi let out a chuckle, his gaze falling upon his left hand, which Luochen had frozen in place. "...What is there to fear? If you hadn't come, I would have met ghosts anyway. Since you're here, we can at least have a bit of a chat."

Luochen raised a hand and injected a trace of spiritual power into Li Yi's glabella, the corners of his lips curving upward. "It is rather a pity. My strike just now was a bit too fast; it seems you are fated not to become a ghost just yet. Next time, I shall strive to let you see one."

This was the first time Li Yi had ever heard someone speak in such a manner, yet he did not feel angry. After a bout of violent coughing, he merely offered a reminder.

"This fellow Daoist, you saved my life. It matters little to me, but when you speak to others in the future, you ought not to phrase things quite like this."

Lingxi shrugged and spread her hands, "There's nothing to be done; my Master has always spoken so bluntly."

Luochen smiled as well, "I think it is quite fine. Scarcely anyone ever feels uncomfortable with my speech; perhaps you are simply unaccustomed to it."

Lingxi: "..."

Having larger fists truly was the ultimate truth.

Luochen tossed a white jade medicine bottle to Li Yi, "Swallow a few Mind-Cleansing Pills first; they were specially refined by my second disciple.

I have already forced out the majority of the toxins for you. For the remainder, you must find some treasures capable of neutralizing corrosive poisons on your own and slowly dissipate them.

Though you will not die, you must not mobilize your spiritual power for long periods, otherwise the poison will pierce your heart, and you truly will have to go and pay your respects at the gates of King Yama.

Your life is your own; whether you wish to live or die is entirely up to you."

Luochen's tone remained flat, devoid of any discernible emotional fluctuation.

A flash of golden light crossed his eyes, and glancing sideways, he tightened the mask on his face, grabbed Lingxi's arm, and flew off in the direction of the Dingkun Sect.

Lingxi scooped up the Rubik's cube drifting amidst the black clouds with one hand. The swirling dark fog gradually dissipated, and the moon revealed its smiling face once more.

Leaning against the corner of the wall, Li Yi looked up at the two retreating figures, only then remembering that he had forgotten to ask their esteemed names.

"Two fellow Daoists, what are your honorable names?"

Luochen replied with a smile, "We shall meet again hereafter; there is no need to rush."

The white and the black-and-red figures gradually dwindled into two tiny dots before vanishing entirely from sight.

As the barrier faded, Li Yi turned his gaze toward the window. The orange-yellow candlelight still burned, and the stooped figure of a woman was busy threading a needle.

Whether it was fortune or misfortune, he had ultimately not gone down to keep his mother company below.

It must be that his mother missed him, which was why everyone he looked at reminded him of her.

He would find time to visit her grave and properly accompany her; in the past, he had spent very little time by her side.

"Xiao Yi! Xiao Yi!! Are you still there?! Don't scare us like this!"

The ghostly bronze coin bounced, transmitting the anxious voice of Zhang Qi.

Bright light streamed in from the entrance of the alley, casting the illumination of a night-luminescent pearl upon Li Yi's face.

He raised a hand to shield his eyes, a smiling tug playing at the corners of his mouth, "Big Brother Zhang, you've arrived!"