Chapter 90: Seeking but Not Obtaining
The cold gaze mixed with too many emotions made Feng Li Xi choke for a moment.
The monks present looked at Feng Ri Xi with inquiring eyes.
Shan Jiu Ling, this name still resonates in the Ling Xiao Sect, not only because she is the personal outer granddaughter of the sect leader Su Yu Zhen Jun, nor because of her stunning beauty that surpasses all under heaven, but also not because she is the youngest disciple of Wu Yun Zhen Ren. It's because she is the dual cultivation Dao companion of Feng Zhuo, the peak master of Ruo Yun Peak.
Some new disciples of the Ling Xiao Sect who heard the most rumors about Shan Jiu Ling were that after marrying Wu Yun Zhenren, she got into a big fight with her husband and ancestor on the second day because of a demon cultivator, and was eventually demoted to Si Ming Tai for reflection.
Therefore, some of the cultivators who had a crush on Xiǎo Yuè Wǔ Yún naturally stood up for her and didn't have any good feelings towards Shān Jiǔ Líng, who they had never met before. Now, seeing this woman kneeling in the great hall, being despised by others, some of the cultivators who used to bully Xiǎo Yuè Wǔ Yún couldn't bear to scold her anymore.
Such a weak yet strong, beautiful and unparalleled woman, kneeling there with a pitiful appearance that touches people's hearts, making one unable to bear the thought of troubling her again.
In terms of appearance alone, everyone present had to admit that Shanjiuming was indeed worthy of the stunningly beautiful Dance Fairy. The two stood together, one as cold and detached as a rare, isolated ice lotus, the other as delicate and charming as a mandrake flower with its deadly toxic sap. One was aloof and proud, the other gentle and elegant, one introverted, the other extroverted. They seemed worlds apart, yet standing together, they somehow didn't clash, but instead, their vastly different styles mysteriously blended together, inexplicably winning people's hearts.
Mo Junya, who had always been standing beside Xi Yue, gazed faintly at Feng Li Xi with a flash of disgust in her eyes.
Even if it's been 300 years since they last met, the wind still brings her an inexplicable sense of oppression. But what can be done about it?!
For the nun, 300 years was not a fleeting moment. Throughout these 300 years, the one who accompanied Xi Yue Xiang was always Mo Junya! She wrote, directed and acted in that great play 300 years ago, even to the point of exhaustion, but Mo Junya never regretted it! At least, she won this bet of 300 years! She had confidence, and could thoroughly defeat Feng Li Xi!
At this thought, Mo Junya's heart was filled with joy, and even the corners of her mouth slightly curled up, as she gave Xiang Fengli a haughty glance.
Feng Li Xi naturally didn't know about Mo Jun Ya's thoughts and worries.
She silently gazed at Xi Yu Wu.
In the past 100 years on Siming Island, what Feng Lixiang thought about most was not how to advance, nor was it Qiao Mingying who had already disappeared, but rather Xie Wuyu, this revered and beloved master, her destined yet unattainable husband!
She vaguely remembered that 300 years ago, Xi Yue danced with her own cognitive sea and merged with hers. From then on, her life was linked to his, she lived, he lived, she died, and he would surely die.
Facing the entrustment of her life to Xi Yue Wu Yun, Feng Li Xi has always felt a deep sense of pressure. Especially in these last moments of her life, if she cannot return Xi Yue Wu Yun's recognition to its rightful owner, she will die with her eyes open.
Now, although Feng Rixue appears to be perfectly fine on the surface, in reality, her life is already hanging by a thread!
If she wants to continue living, there are only two paths to take. One is to break through the Golden Elixir in a short period of time, which can increase her lifespan by thousands of years. The other is to break through the Destruction of Gods phase and ascend to immortality, obtaining endless lifespan. Unlike Dao cultivation, where every advancement increases lifespan, as a Leixiu cultivator, whether it's the beginner's Jingyuan phase or the advanced Destruction of Gods phase, the maximum lifespan is only 400 years. Only by ascending can one obtain an endless life. Originally, Leixiu was already more difficult to advance than Dao cultivation, and with its short lifespan, this has led to the current situation where almost no one practices Leixiu.
A foundation-building cultivator's lifespan is at most 400 years, and Feng Ri Xi has been stuck in the Thoughtless Platform for 300 years, with his cultivation maintaining the Great Perfection of Foundation Building. Several times he tried to break through to the Golden Elixir, but each time ended in failure.
Because she is the soul that has entered into Shanjiuming's body, if the soul cannot fully merge with Shanjiuming's body, their hearts will not be as one, and their cultivation will not be able to advance any further. If they want to unite their spirit and flesh, they must discard Fengli Xi's past experiences and emotions, thoroughly accept this identity of Shanjiuming, and from now on truly live as Shanjiuming.
However, as a 21st-century person, Fengri Xi's heart is set on returning to her original world, making it impossible for her to abandon her emotions and thoroughly let go of her love for Qiao Mingying.
Therefore, in the face of those repeated failures of the Golden Elixir, Fengli Xi had long broken through life and death.
It's been about fifty years since her physical body showed signs of aging, if it weren't for Lingshuang exhausting her spiritual energy to forcibly cast a spell, restoring her youthful appearance. Otherwise, by now, her raven-black long hair would have turned completely white, and wrinkles would have crawled all over her delicate face.
The climate in the Xiu Zhen realm is extremely harsh, with temperatures soaring to 120 degrees at its hottest and plummeting to -200 degrees at its coldest. As a cultivator, one is not afraid of extreme heat or cold, so such drastic temperature fluctuations are nothing to worry about for a cultivator. However, for Feng Li Xi now, it's a huge test. Currently, it's the midst of scorching weather, with surface temperatures exceeding 70 degrees, and for Feng Li Xi, who has long lost her spiritual energy to protect her body, it's a kind of severe torture. Every day, she has to rely on "Clear Heat Pills" to maintain her body's heat resistance; otherwise, she would have been roasted dry long ago. This time, leaving Si Ming Tai is also to search for the medicinal materials needed to refine the "Clear Heat Pills".
Although her life was not long, although "life" was a kind of torture for Fengli Xi now, but Fengli Xi didn't have too much emotion, the only thing she worried about was Xie Wu Yu. Once she disappeared, how could she drag Xie Wu Yu down with her?!
Just thinking about Xī Yuè Wǔ Yún also falling, a suffocating pain spread through Fēng Lǐ Xī's heart once again...
No! At least for now, she can't die! Even if it's for the sake of Xiang Yu's dance, she can't die!
With a painful closure of his slightly moistened eyes, Feng Li Xian reopened them once more, having concealed all emotions.
"You wretched creature, did you only just now realize to roll back from Siming Tai?" Xuan Yu Zhen Jun gritted her teeth with a face full of resentment. Although the voice was cold and hard, it was mixed with an inexplicable choking sound.
"I'm sorry, Ancestor! Ling'er knows her mistake!" Kneeling down again with sincerity, Fengli pleaded, "This time I've come to ask for your permission, Ancestor, to allow me to take Father's place in the Nameless Trial!"
Long ago, at the entrance of Taigu Peak, she had heard the news that Shan Liu Yue was running for the new master of Xuan Yu Peak and Shan Liu Yue's closed-door retreat to impact Yuan Ying. Xuan Yu Peak is a place filled with childhood memories of Shan Jiu Ling, and also where her father and mother fell in love. If it weren't for the fact that her cultivation wasn't enough back then, Shan Liu Yue would have definitely fought with all her might for the position of master of Xuan Yu Peak. Now, Zhang Zhenren, who had taken over as the new master after her mother's death, had also died and disappeared, this was an opportunity that Shan Liu Yue couldn't afford to miss.
Fengri Xi, as a daughter, would regard it as the last thing she did for her father before his death, and she must take down the position of the master of Xuan Yu Peak.
"Ling'er, don't be reckless!" Upon hearing this, Su Yu Zhen Jun didn't even think before immediately rebuking, "This trial is only for cultivators above the Golden Elixir stage! You..."
But little did I expect -
At this moment, Su Yu's rebuke came to an abrupt halt.
It was just because he suddenly saw a golden elixir hovering in the wind in the field of Hei Dan.
"Ling'er, you've already formed your elixir?!" Seeing this, Xu Yu Zhen Jun was overjoyed. She didn't disappoint him as Lin Xu Yu's granddaughter, even in the poor conditions of Si Ming Tai, she still managed to successfully form her elixir.
During the foundation-building period, a cultivator's lifespan was only 400 years. Now, Ling'er had already exceeded this limit by far. If she hadn't broken through to the Golden Dan stage, her true yuan would have dissipated long ago and she should have passed away naturally.
Upon hearing this, Fengli Xi smiled wryly and made no comment.
Although she doesn't show it on her face, in fact, her heart has been surging and turbulent.
No one is clearer than her, and what revolves inside her Dantian is not the Golden Elixir, but the pure Yang spiritual energy of Lixuan.
Ling Xuan forcibly sealed the true yuan in her dantian with pure yang energy to prevent it from dissipating further.
"Since Ling'er is already a Golden Elixir cultivator, I beg of you, Ancestor, to grant Ling'er's request!" After much deliberation, Fengli spoke out in a soft and gentle tone.
For her, this trial in place of her father was not only to fulfill Sanluo Yue's long-held wish but also to find an opportunity, a way to prolong her life. If she could survive, who would willingly go to their death?
Facing Wendy's repeated requests, all the real people present looked at her in silence.
Who would have thought that there are still people rushing to send themselves to death?! This nameless trial, completely beyond all imagination and rules, no one knows what kind of cruel situation they will face next, yet the beautiful woman kneeling in front of me doesn't show a single hint of fear or worry, it's really puzzling.
Facing Fengri Xi's determination, Su Yu Zhenjun seemed to see the figure of Shan Jiu Ling who rushed to Si Ming Tai 300 years ago once again.
The same determination, the same stubbornness, the same unwavering resolve!
In these 300 years, Su Yu Zhen Jun had wanted to go to Si Ming Tai countless times to bring Feng Li Xi La back. Unfortunately, Si Ming Tai has a powerful spiritual array that protects it, and even as the sect leader, he cannot easily rush in. Fortunately, she is now a Golden Elixir cultivator; if she were to fail to advance at Si Ming Tai and lose her life, he would absolutely not forgive himself.
"Ling'er, undergoing the Nameless Trial is not just your personal matter. Even if I agree to it, you should still consult with your master!" Facing Fengri Xi's stubbornness, Su Yu True Lord suddenly felt defeated and powerless.
"Not allowed!" At this time, the always silent Xi Yue Wu finally uttered two words in a light tone. He was still concise and to the point as usual.
"Why?! Master...!" Upon hearing this, Fengli Xi's heart skipped a beat as she immediately stood up and stepped forward, grasping the pale purple cloud sleeve of Xue'er. "As a daughter, sharing her father's worries is a duty that children should fulfill, isn't it? I hope Master will support me!"
He gazed at the cloud sleeve that was tightly grasped in the wind, its delicate folds already creased by someone. Yet his face remained expressionless, and the purple glint in his eyes flashed with a fleeting illusion before returning to calmness.
Half a moment later, Xi Yue's dance stopped, and she faintly said to Feng Li in her divine sense, "You only know the duty of being someone's child, but do you understand the duty of being a parent?!"
After finishing speaking, Xi Yue Wu Yan stood up on her own and pulled out the cloud sleeve that was tied by Feng Ri Xue, then she floated out of the Tai Gu Great Hall without saying goodbye.
Staring blankly at the figure of Xi Yue dancing and fluttering away, Feng Li looked again at his empty palm, the feeling that had just been there suddenly vanished, and an acid pain rose up in his heart.
The monks present naturally did not know what Xī Yuè Wǔ Yún and Fēng Lǐ Xī said, they only saw that Wǔ Yún ignored the face of the sect leader and walked away with a slap in the face. Moreover... Fēng Lǐ Xī looked like he had lost his soul after hearing the words.
