Chapter Sixty: The Purple Crystal's Bewitching Heart

  "For thousands of years, my sect has been cultivating immortality. How many outstanding talents have spent their entire lives without even catching a glimpse of the immortal realm? And how many predecessors have shed blood and sweat only to fall short at the last hurdle? The heavenly light is above, yet it's something we can only aspire to but not attain. In this life of over a hundred years, who among us cultivators isn't striving for immortality and eternal life? Now, an opportunity to elevate our entire sect to immortality is right before our eyes. Everything is in place, all we need is the east wind. We just need to conquer that demon realm, seize its spiritual energy, and our thousand-year-old wish will be fulfilled!"

  In front of the Lotus Platform, in mid-air, an old man with silver hair and a solemn expression looked down at the young faces below. His eyes shone brightly under his long eyebrows, filled with encouragement. The blue-white Taoist robe fluttered in the wind as he raised his hand to stroke his flowing white beard. In a loud voice, he said: "You have cultivated for so long, what are you waiting for? Isn't it for today?! Evil cannot defeat righteousness! As descendants of a prestigious sect, why fear the evil spirits' dominance? You should take the lead and be the first to charge forward, killing that demon!"

  The cold wind is biting, like a knife scraping bones, the chill piercing to the bottom of one's heart. But on each person's heart, it seems as if a fire has been lit, the pounding heartbeat, also resonating more and more strongly in the ears.

  Everyone's gaze followed the wind, and with the wind, the blades of grass were blown up, passing over the mud on which the blood had long since congealed and dried, passing over the fellow disciples who were curled up beside them, not knowing whether they were dead or alive, passing over the bodies of the demon beasts that lay scattered all over the ground, growing higher and higher, more and more expectant, casting towards the sky that purple light mass that was struggling restlessly.

  "Kill! Enter the Demon Realm——"

  It was as if someone couldn't hold back the hot blood in their chest, and let out a loud roar among the crowd. The disciples responded with thunderous cheers, long swords were drawn from their scabbards with a clanging sound, and various colors of light flashed, turning into streaks that traversed the sky, like a dragon flying across the sky, like a rainbow piercing through the sun, shooting towards the demon realm that had already been bound by the net in mid-air.

  Xuan Zhen was also among these people, stepping on the spring water that rose into the air. The closer he got to the purple light, the more violent the wind became. If not for him having raised a wind barrier early on to wrap himself and the spring water inside, he feared he would have been blown away like his fellow disciples, unable to even stand stably on his sword.

  In an instant, the purple light was right in front of him, with a loud whistling sound, and amidst it, there were also bursts of spiritual energy. As soon as Xuanshen absorbed it, he felt refreshed and invigorated, and his spirit was greatly lifted. He thought to himself: Master really didn't say anything wrong, this demon realm indeed contains a vast amount of spiritual energy, which is several times more concentrated than the Kunlun Mountains! It's truly a rare and wonderful place!

  Just as he was thinking, the purple light in front of him had already covered him like a curtain or a screen. Xuan Zhen only felt a chill all over his body, and when he opened his eyes again, he had already passed through the purple barrier and arrived at another location.

  The wind suddenly stopped. The surroundings were quiet for a moment, and Xuān Zhèn and the other disciples flew in with their swords, suspended in this silent void. Everything in sight was covered in a vast expanse of purple.

  "Big brother, look! What's that?" Suddenly, a younger fellow disciple beside him lowered his head to look down and immediately let out a startled cry.

  The crowd followed the direction of his pointing hand, and saw that in the midst of the purple mist, there was something crystal clear, flashing once or twice... The sparkling light was holy and beautiful, like a white flower blooming in the black night, a lamp lit on the ice river, attracting everyone's gaze, making them involuntarily moved.

  Xuan Zhen gazed intently for a while, then led the way by flying down on his sword. When the clear wind he summoned with a wave of his sleeve dispersed the fog, he finally saw clearly that the twinkling objects were actually purple crystal stones, scattered all over the ground like bamboo shoots. The crystal stones were translucent and smooth, and apart from these clusters of purple crystals, the place was desolate and empty, devoid of anything else.

  He stared at these crystals, and suddenly his heart moved, thinking: These stones... look a bit familiar...

  Xuan Zhen was stunned, and for a moment, he forgot to greet his fellow disciples. Many of the disciples had shallow cultivation, and even when they used their full strength, they could only barely float in mid-air for a short while. Suddenly seeing Xuan Zhen appear on the ground, they didn't wait for him to give an order before they simultaneously flew down on their swords. They landed on the ground, saw the many crystal stones, and all had looks of surprise and delight on their faces. Those with strong curiosity even leaned in to touch and gently stroke them with their hands.

  "Senior brother, this purple crystal seems to be filled with spiritual energy. I just got a little closer and felt my whole body relax, even the wound doesn't hurt as much!" The first disciple who landed on the ground picked up a small piece of crystal and smiled at Xuan Zhen.

  Xuan Zhen was taken aback, and before he could respond, he saw the young disciples beside him suddenly come to their senses, rushing to cut and chop at the crystal stones with their swords. Some were not satisfied with just one piece and grabbed handfuls, stuffing them into their sleeves. The others followed suit, and soon the air was filled with flying purple fragments and the sound of clashing steel. In an instant, all talk of "flying immortals" and "killing demons to bring peace" was thrown out the window.

  The disciple who had previously discovered the wonders of the purple crystal saw this and was even more afraid that others would take advantage of him, so he hastily drew his sword and started chopping down. Since most of the crystals nearby had already been snatched up by others, he looked around and saw a cluster of crystals growing extremely tall on the east side. They seemed to be several times more beautiful than the few pieces he had picked up earlier. Without hesitation, he rushed over and started chopping with his sword.

  Just as he was chopping with a satisfying clang, a strong gust of wind suddenly came from behind the stone, accompanied by heavy breathing sounds. The man raised his head again and was immediately frightened out of his wits. In front of him, a pair of purple-red beastly eyes stared down at him in anger, and a bloody big mouth slowly opened, revealing two rows of sharp teeth inside...

  "Ah, Brother Shifu save me!"

  Far away, someone's shrill cry pierced the air, filled with alarm. Xuanshen furrowed his brow slightly, turned his head to look over, and his heart skipped a beat.

  But as they saw the crystal stones on the east side, a group of demonic beasts gradually emerged, each one was several meters high, with sharp teeth and staring eyes, emitting an aura of hostility, which was quite frightening to behold.

  One of them was particularly tall and powerful, and suddenly it pounced forward, pinning the young man who had been rolling and crawling towards this side under its paw. The fierce light flashed in those demon eyes, and all that could be heard was a long howl, after which it lowered its head and began to fiercely tear at the man's body.

  The disciples heard the mournful cry growing more and more sorrowful, already frightened pale, legs and feet soft, and several female disciples hid behind and retched, where was the courage to rescue people? Only Xuan Zhen's eyes were wide open, angrily rebuking, turning his eyes to spring water, stabbing at the beast.

  That monster's ears perked up, hearing the sound of breaking air approaching, and it dodged the sword with great agility. But Chunshui was no ordinary weapon; in one strike, it didn't hit its mark, but in mid-air, it spun around, bringing a string of green shadows to stab down once again.

  The monster entwined with Chunshui several times before realizing its ferocity, raised its head and let out a long whistle, suddenly rolled to the ground, and saw a purple mist burst open, from which a figure emerged, surprisingly it was the monster transformed into human form, dodging Chunshui's sword light, and stood up.

  That monster was several tens of feet tall when it took the form of a beast, and when it transformed into human form, it became an extremely tall and robust man. He wore leather armor and draped a crimson cloak over his shoulders. His facial features were deeply chiseled, with white hair flowing like a waterfall down his back, fluttering in the windless air. If not for the several red stripes on his cheek, he would have looked no different from an ordinary person.

  "What kind of people are you? How dare you trespass on the Phantom Boundary!" The demon beast pointed at Xuan Zhen and the others with one hand, while the other hand had already reached behind its back, pulling out a seven-foot steel spear from somewhere. The spearhead shone with golden light, occasionally tapping against the ground and nearby crystals, producing a continuous ringing sound.

  "Monster, let go of my junior brother!"

  Perhaps it was because the monster had transformed into a human shape, making it look less terrifying than when it was in its beast form. The courage that had already dissipated among the crowd suddenly rekindled to some extent. One of the male disciples couldn't wait any longer and jumped out, drawing his sword with a "ting" sound, shouting loudly: "The True Person of the Sect Gate was right! You monsters have harmed people without restraint, you truly deserve to be killed off!"

  "You dare to intrude on my territory, kill my clansmen, and yet you say we're the ones harming humans?" The demon sneered, his facial markings spreading further. He glanced down at the young disciple lying motionless on the ground, and suddenly revealed a cruel smile, tauntingly saying, "You want your junior brother? I'll give him to you!" With that, he thrust his spear upwards, impaling the disciple on its tip, spinning him around in mid-air before slamming him brutally to the ground in front of Xuan Chen and the others, sending dust flying everywhere.

  That monster held the gun with one hand and could lift a not-so-light man so easily, showing his strong arm strength. Looking at the young disciple on the ground again, he was already covered in blood and had no breath left. This first move was indeed intimidating, the male disciple who spoke was suddenly scared and took several steps back, and the others also showed fear again, their underestimating hearts were only slightly revealed before being retracted.

  "Hah, wasn't it just a moment ago that you were so arrogant? Now you're all shrinking back like turtles! The demon's eyes gleamed with mockery, and the long spear in his hand swept through the air, creating a whistling sound. "You have nothing to say, so now it's my turn. You dare to intrude on the Phantom Boundary of our Qiong Yao clan? Today, you won't be leaving alive! Leave your lives behind——"

  Before he could finish speaking, a strong gust of wind suddenly blew from behind the group of demonic beasts, blowing the demon's cloak backwards and covering half of its head. The demon was just about to unleash its fury with a fierce expression when it was suddenly plunged into darkness, and it frantically struggled to free itself from the cloak. With a ripping sound, it finally managed to tear open the cloak, and its shoulder felt a chill.

  As he opened his eyes again, he just caught a glimpse of a fleeting flash of green light. He lowered his head and only then discovered that the armor on his shoulder had been broken, with fresh blood slowly seeping through the leather. The delayed pain gradually spread out from there.

  He had originally intended to wipe out the people in front of him, but unexpectedly he was struck by someone first and suffered a severe blow. The demon's face suddenly turned black, and his vertical pupils narrowed into two extremely thin lines due to anger. He covered the wound with one hand and gripped the long spear tightly with the other, looking up at the group of Qinghua disciples, waiting for the person who had wounded him to take revenge as soon as he found them.

  In the blink of an eye, the target was locked in. The familiar cyan light hovered in the air for a few moments before descending smoothly and stopping right in front of a young man standing at the forefront of the group of Qinghua disciples. A slender long sword emerged from within, its surface as transparent as ice, with only the tip stained with a few drops of crimson red. As the sword tip trembled, several more droplets of red fell off.

  Deep red blood, transparent sword edge, set against the white jade-like face behind it, those eyes with ink-colored pupils, for a moment, actually revealed a few points of extraordinary and refined aura. The demon looked at him and couldn't help but shake his head, only to feel that this young man not only had unusual abilities, but also gave him an inexplicable sense of familiarity. Suddenly, a severe pain in his shoulder made him come back to himself, thinking secretly that this kid might actually understand the art of bewildering spirits, instantly giving rise to many cautious thoughts.

  Xuan Zhen stretched out his hand and grasped Chun Shui in his palm, suddenly feeling a light and nimble breath of air surging up from the point where his hand and the hilt met, swiftly flowing through his meridians, bringing comfort wherever it passed. Unexpectedly, Chun Shui had absorbed so much spiritual energy after only briefly staying in this spiritual realm overflowing with spiritual energy, and could even nourish its master and lend him a helping hand. Xuan Zhen was both shocked and delighted, his gaze involuntarily sweeping over the crystal stones that condensed the purest and most abundant spiritual energy, vaguely understanding something in his heart - the spiritual energy of the Huan Yin realm was dense, probably inseparable from these purple crystals.

  But then a hidden worry rose to his heart. Even someone as indifferent to external things as him couldn't help but be moved by the wonderful uses of the Purple Crystal Stones, and his fellow disciples' behavior was even more greedy. If others in the sect, or even the master himself, knew about the benefits of these stones, they probably wouldn't let go of this Illusory Realm either.

  He stared at the purple crystal stones, deep in thought. The demon's eyes saw his contemplative expression as if he was secretly plotting something. The demon raised an eyebrow and immediately let out a loud shout: "You little brat, come over here and meet your death!" He charged forward with his spear, and the demonic beasts behind him had been watching for a long time, seeing that they couldn't rush forward first, also let out a chorus of cheers, eagerly following close behind to pounce on those people who were extremely detestable in their eyes.

  Qiong Hua's disciples, who were new to the demon realm, first saw the purple crystal stone and burst into wild joy. Later, they encountered a group of demons and fell into fear. At this time, the demonic beasts rushed up, and they were even more frightened, with their hearts trembling with fear. The few people closest to them...

  P.S. Rushing again, YY's full Han banquet is killing people ┭┮﹏┭┮, please ignore the typos

  PPS. Recently this collection is going to be a mess, every time I log in, one or two will drop... Are you all finally going to abandon the pit? ┭┮﹏┭┮