Chapter 141: New Shoots on Withered Wood

"Master, this is the Phoenix Gallbladder. Keep it safe. Weiyang... she will definitely return!"

The elderly matriarch spoke, her voice growing increasingly feeble as she tremblingly placed the Phoenix Gallbladder into my hand. The gallbladder burned with heat, much like the hot tears welling up in my eyes.

She glanced out of the wooden building once more and said, "Bury me in the parasol tree forest..."

With those words, the matriarch closed her eyes. The hand that had just delivered the Phoenix Gallbladder into mine drifted downward and went limp.

"Matriarch!"

I cried out, but the matriarch was already devoid of all life.

She was gone.

At that moment, weeping filled the withered forest. Every member of the Phoenix clan knelt upon the ground.

I cupped my hands in a formal salute to the late matriarch, bowing deeply to pay my respects.

Gazing at the Phoenix Gallbladder in my hand, an ache pierced my heart.

One by one, the members of the Phoenix clan came forward to bid their final farewells to the matriarch. Following her instructions, we laid her to rest deep within the withered forest.

The withered forest was what used to be the lush parasol tree forest.

Once the matriarch was buried, I prepared to set off and leave the withered forest.

For now, the Phoenix clan could only temporarily reside here. Once I found them another suitable ley line, they would be able to relocate in their entirety and multiply there.

This was a promise I had made to the matriarch, and an oath I had sworn to the entire Phoenix clan!

As I departed, the entire clan came to see me off.

Lixi looked at me, her gaze burning with intensity.

When I turned back, Lixi said, "Don't worry, Master, I will take good care of Daoist Priest Li."

With those words spoken, Shancha, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Lin Yi, look! The withered trees nearby, right around the matriarch's grave..." She pointed toward a specific spot, and everyone turned their eyes in that direction.

For upon the withered parasol trees surrounding the matriarch's grave, fresh buds were sprouting.

A vibrant, newborn green stood out with striking brilliance amidst the lifeless expanse of the withered forest.

Seeing this, I immediately stepped forward to investigate.

To my astonishment, I discovered that it was not only the trees near the matriarch's grave; the withered parasol trees all around us were likewise sprouting fresh, verdant green buds.

These withered parasol trees were showing signs of returning to life.

A surge of joy filled my heart. If this truly held true, the parasol tree forest would undoubtedly be restored to its former glory.

Furthermore, on the other side of the parasol tree forest, within the canyon, a stream bubbled with clear, flowing water.

Everything seemed to have returned to my dream.

Returned to the past.

Upon closer reflection, this must have been the matriarch's final parting gift.

No wonder her last request was to be buried in the parasol tree forest rather than the withered forest. She had known these events would transpire; she seemed to have prepared for this long in advance.

The God-Slaying Spear had been taken away, cutting off the source of the malevolent Qi here. Therefore, the method the matriarch spoke of was to use her own body—millennia-old ancestral phoenix flesh—to reshape a new dragon vein for the withered forest.

A vibrant, living new dragon.

Lixi walked over, reached out to gently touch a tender bud on the tree, and wept tears of emotion. "Master, with the parasol tree sprouting anew, she will definitely return!"

"I only wonder when Weiyang will come back," I murmured, though my heart was already surging with emotion.

Lixi looked into the distance toward the depths of the parasol tree forest and said, "When the parasol tree forest grows lush once more and is wreathed in immortal mist, a woman will sing of the courtship of phoenixes by the banks of the parasol river. That will surely be her."

Wasn't what she described precisely the dream I had experienced?

Niu Dahuang possessed remarkable medical skills, and Daoist Priest Li woke up the very next day. However, his previous injuries had been quite severe, leaving him relatively weak for the time being.

I temporarily left him in the parasol tree forest to recuperate.

Lixi naturally took it upon herself to care for Daoist Priest Li; after all, a certain tenderness lingered in her eyes whenever she looked at him. Following that, Niu Dahuang and I, accompanied by Hua Yuyan, returned to the Female Dong Village. Mountain ghosts excelled in both sorcery and its removal, and since Hua Yuyan had been afflicted with the venom of the Six-Yao insects, only a mountain ghost possessed the means to cure it.

Upon arriving at the Female Dong Village with Hua Yuyan, I questioned the mountain ghost.

She informed me, "The reason the venom of the Six-Yao insects is considered incurable is because its antidote requires a specific catalyst. Yet, that catalyst no longer exists in this world today."

"What kind of catalyst are you talking about?" I asked.

"Dragon blood."

She paused before elaborating, "The venom of the Six-Yao insects is intensely Yin and freezing cold, whereas dragon blood is supremely vigorous and Yang. Only dragon blood can completely suppress the toxicity of the Six-Yao insects. Once the toxicity is suppressed, as long as it has not invaded the heart, I can use dragon blood as the catalyst to employ other methods and completely cleanse the venom."

When the mountain ghost finished, I asked her, "Will my blood suffice?"

"Your blood?" The mountain ghost looked somewhat surprised, failing to understand why I would suddenly make such a claim, as she believed that dragons had been completely annihilated during the ancient Lich War, and that dragons no longer existed.

Without answering, I clenched my right fist. True Qi surged through my right hand, and the white dragon scales along my entire arm manifested in response.

"Will this work?" I asked.

"You possess a dragon's body?" The mountain ghost was struck with even greater astonishment.

I nodded. My mother was a white dragon, so naturally, I possessed a dragon's body.

"Very well! With dragon blood, the venom can certainly be cured. Rest assured!" The mountain ghost spoke, her voice tinged with a degree of excitement. She then handed me a bamboo tube roughly the thickness of a finger to collect the blood.

Once the collection was complete, she tested it using a single drop and nodded affirmatively at me. It appeared there would be no problems.

The remaining tasks were left in the hands of the mountain ghost. Since she specialized in sorcery and I could offer no assistance, Niu Dahuang, who found her arts rather fascinating, hovered around her like an enthusiastic student.

Left alone, I leaned my back against the exterior of the wooden building and gazed into the distance.

Too many events had occurred recently. For reasons unknown, a profound sense of physical and mental exhaustion washed over me. Leaning there like that, I unexpectedly drifted off to sleep.

Meanwhile.

Having secured the God-Slaying Spear, Erpang made his entire journey back to the dark abyss.

Within the dark abyss.

Erpang stood at the edge of the sea of blood, gripping the God-Slaying Spear tightly in his hand. At that moment, the golden coffin resting within the sea of blood stirred once more. This violent shaking caused the blood sea to churn with turbulent waves.

In an instant, the dark abyss was choked with billowing red mist.

"Ancestor of Demons!"

Erpang held up the God-Slaying Spear and offered a cupped-fist salute.

A voice resonated from within the golden coffin, rumbling continuously like distant thunder rolling across the heavens.

"This deity truly did not misjudge you. You have rendered a monumental service by retrieving the God-Slaying Spear this time. Henceforth, you shall be the Demon Lord of my Demon Clan, ranking beneath myself alone and above tens of thousands of our kind!"

These words failed to bring a smile to Erpang's face. He merely grunted in acknowledgment, then inquired, "Ancestor of Demons, what must I do so that you may break free from the golden coffin?"

"The Four Swords of诛仙 (Executing Immortals) can only seal four sides of the golden coffin; there remains one side—the weakest side of all. Now that the God-Slaying Spear is in your hands, that weakest side cannot withstand its might. You need only thrust the spear into it, and both the golden coffin and the Immortal-Executing Sword Formation will be shattered, granting me my freedom naturally!"

As Luo Hu finished speaking, the sea of blood churned with even greater ferocity. The swords planted upon the golden coffin began to tremble individually, radiating dazzling, blinding light.

The Four Swords of Executing Immortals—the Executioner Sword, the Slaughterer Sword, the Trapper Sword, and the Extinction Sword—sealed the front, back, left, and right sides of the golden coffin.

Yet, the ceiling of the golden coffin bore no swords. Consequently, the weakest side Luo Hu referred to was precisely the ceiling of the golden coffin.

Realizing this, Erpang hesitated no longer and leaped into the air.

His bargain with Luo Hu was that Luo Hu would help elevate his strength, while he would find a way to retrieve the God-Slaying Spear for Luo Hu and restore the freedom of the Demon Ancestor.

Erpang leaped into the sky, skimming across the surface of the sea of blood.

However, the moment he approached the Immortal-Executing Sword Formation, it instantly blazed with an extraordinarily brilliant light. This was the sword intent of the formation—immensely formidable and forbidding Erpang from drawing near.

This forced Erpang to halt his advance and land upon the nearby mountain cliffs and stone reefs.

The Immortal-Executing Sword Formation was extraordinary; if one were careless and wounded by any of the swords, there was every likelihood of perishing entirely, with both body and soul annihilated.

"Use the power of the God-Slaying Spear to suppress the Immortal-Executing Sword Formation, and you will be able to approach!"

The reminder echoed once more from within the coffin.

Taking a deep breath, Erpang concentrated his vital energy, causing the malevolent Qi surrounding the God-Slaying Spear to seethe violently. With an angry roar, the dark energy surged outward in all directions, and the spear in his hand emitted a dazzling, blood-red glare.

The next moment, he pointed the spear directly at the golden coffin.

A torrent of fierce, malevolent Qi rushed forward like a tidal wave.

Riding in the wake of that raging wave, Erpang soared forward.

Upon the ceiling of the coffin rested a diagram of the Taiji Demon-Subduing Chart.

The instant he drew close to the coffin's ceiling, a stream of golden light instantly enveloped Erpang. For a moment, he found himself utterly unable to move.

He even had the terrifying sensation that, under the illumination of that golden light, his very being was about to melt away.