Chapter Fourteen: The Bell-like Sound of Fire

  A mysterious voice that Xiao Qiu had never heard before appeared in his mind, he held the dagger and looked around blankly, still hoping to find the source of the sound from outside.

  Fang Fang was tightly grasped by Er Liang and Er Shuan, unable to break free, with tears streaming down her face. "Listen to him, don't hurt yourself."

  "Er Lang Yi Dang", "Whose words should I listen to?"

  Er Bao's face revealed terror, "Fang Fang, what did you hear?"

  Xiao Qiu was more bewildered than anyone else, because he was very clear that the voice came from his own mind.

  Fang Fang heard many things: the majestic voice ordering Xia Qiu to put down the dagger, the urgent hissing sound of the demon occupying Xia Qiu's body, the rapid spinning sound of the inner elixir about to lose control, and the faint thunderclap in the sky. Everything, although not very clear, was transmitted to her ears in a real and solid way.

  "You guys listen." Fangfang didn't understand why everyone was in doubt, "Someone is coming to save us."

  The boys leaned in, their faces first shocked and then amazed. They too had heard many sounds that they couldn't normally hear, even the faint rustling of earthworms crawling underground. Then they became even more frightened.

  "We're all going to become monsters!" Da Liang's voice trembled, looking like he would become a timid monster.

  "The light shines for thousands of miles, and the demons disperse in all directions."

  A thunder-like sound came from the sky, and this time everyone heard it. The young men looked up at the starry night sky, which didn't change in the slightest. The owner of the voice seemed to be coming from an extremely high and invisible place, yet also seemed to be hiding right next to everyone.

  Xiao Qiu, however, felt something was amiss. The blue flower in his hand was trembling, and a strong sense of anger accompanied by an uncontrollable fear, like a liquid, flowed from the stem into Xiao Qiu's body, quickly spreading throughout his entire being. This emotion, which did not belong to him, issued a command to him.

  Xiao Qiu involuntarily opened her mouth, the inner elixir in her chest was still rapidly rotating, but the originally small range of motion had become even smaller, gradually moving upwards, preparing to escape from the temporary residence.

  Xiao Qiu suppressed a surge of energy, countering the foreign emotions and the upward-moving inner elixir, but his strength was too small, having almost no impact on the situation.

  "Immortal, where are you? Come out quickly!" Er Bao shouted loudly. In his opinion, someone who could produce thunder-like sounds must be an immortal.

  "Immortal!" The young men shouted in unison.

  What arrived in response was not an immortal being, but a beam of white light.

  A very fine white light, if not for Fang Fang's meticulous observation, almost no one could see it. This light came from the southeast sky, swept over the treetops and fell on that blue flower.

  The blue flower had withered more than half, revealing black spots here and there. It didn't care about the boy's resistance at all, but was wholeheartedly launching an attack on the inner elixir, yet couldn't help but react to the white light.

  The blue flower burst into bloom once again, and the dim light surged up more than ten feet high. The part above the root shook violently, engaging in a fierce battle with the white light that descended from the sky.

  Xiao Qiu's body was enveloped in a blue misty light, and her entire person swayed back and forth along with it.

  White light, like a long spear that has just been pulled out of the fire, pierced deep into the blue light, avoiding Xia Qiu and pressing straight to the core of the flower, stirring up swirling misty air.

  The blue light swayed more violently, but the faint glow it emitted was weakening bit by bit.

  "It's almost gone!" Erliang exclaimed excitedly. They had already acknowledged the judgment of the young officer, Xin Youtao - this blue flower was indeed a demon species.

  "Little Autumn... seems like it's almost over too." Er Miao said.

  As the dim light faded, Xiao Qiu's head appeared, his face as white as paper. He was like a small boat drifting on the waves, swaying left and right with the blue flower, rising and falling unpredictably.

  "Immortal, you'd better hurry up!" Er Liang shouted towards the direction of the white light.

  Fang Fang closed her eyes and whispered a prayer, "He said he's on his way, almost here, Xia Qiu, you must hold on."

  Although everyone can hear some faint movements, Fangfang's ability is a bit stronger, always the first to hear the voice of the white light master, after she finishes speaking, other young people will hear the same content one after another.

  Only Xiao Qiu couldn't hear it, he was almost completely controlled by that foreign emotion, even if his five organs and six entrails were about to shatter, he still kept following the blue flower's movement, his internal elixir had risen to his throat, only one more breath away from leaving him.

  Just as all hope was about to be lost, Xia Qiu regained control of her left arm. Without thinking or planning, she grasped the dagger and slashed at the flower stem.

  This should have been the strategy that young people should have adopted from the beginning, but they were previously infatuated with Blue Flower and never thought of harming Blue Flower itself. Until Xia Qiu was controlled, all thoughts of hurting Blue Flower would be dispelled as soon as they emerged.

  Opportunity only exists in this moment, Blue Flower is increasingly at a disadvantage in the struggle with White Light, and at the same time, it will soon obtain that long-awaited inner elixir, adding to its complacency.

  In its view, the temporary master of Neidan was just an extremely insignificant human being, with a power so weak that it could be ignored. Xia Qiu's will suddenly became strong, catching it off guard.

  Xiao Qiu's stubbornness saved him, but his father Lao Qiu disliked this personality and had broken countless rods for it. Fang Fang's father, Mr. Qin, also didn't like it and strictly forbade Xiao Qiu from entering the school by half a step. The town's leading figure, Shen Lao Ye, liked it even less and even hinted that he didn't want Xiao Qiu to graze Shen's horses.

  Ke Xiao Qiu was just unable to change, he was unwilling to bow his head easily, and even more reluctant to admit defeat. As long as there was still a glimmer of hope, he would never give up.

  It was just an instant, the blue flower was cut off by a dagger, the faint light suddenly disappeared, and the white light pierced through the center of the flower, making a loud "bang" sound.

  Xiao Qiu shot up into the sky like an arrow off the string, and all the young men were shocked, scared to sit down on the ground, looking up at the night sky for Xiao Qiu's shadow.

  A moment later, the blue flower descended from the sky alone, without a single withered sign, complete and intact, its petals fully open, as if the entire world was in its grasp.

  "How beautiful!" exclaimed Erbai sincerely.

  The blue flower touched the ground for a moment, its color changed from blue to black, and with a gentle breeze, it turned into a wisp of smoke and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

  "Where's Little Autumn Brother gone?" Er Liang asked, gazing up at the starry sky.

  "Look." Fangfang stretched out her hand and pointed in a direction.

  A star in the night sky suddenly became extremely bright and then bigger, shooting straight down to the ground. The boys scattered and ran away, making way.

  A starlight fell to the ground, revealing a tall figure. He let go of his hand, and Xiao Qiu flew towards his companions. Er Liang stretched out his hand to support him.

  It was a strange experience, but Xia Qiu didn't feel anything special. He didn't even know he had flown into the air, only that his body felt light and airy before bumping into Er Liang's chest. Turning back to look, he saw a stranger in Taoist robes.

  The Taoist's attire was almost identical to that of the Five Elements Master, Li Yuechi. He had a high bun on his head, with a long hairpin inserted into it, and wore a blue, cross-collared robe that was slightly longer than usual, its hem reaching down to his feet. However, he did not have a sword slung over his back, and in his left hand, he held an extraordinary bell.

  The gong was neither copper nor iron, but a small cluster of fire that took the shape of a gong. However, the fire seemed to have no heat, at least the Taoist didn't feel any scorching sensation.

  The white light was emitted from this peculiar bell, and under the gaze of the young men, the white light gradually disappeared, and finally even the fiery bell disappeared.

  The young men forgot the danger they had just experienced and stared blankly at the Taoist priest.

  The Taoist had thick eyebrows and fine eyes, a square face with a straight nose, and a handful of whiskers hanging down on his chest. From head to toe, he was enveloped in a soft and gentle glow.

  "Are you a fairy?" Xia Qiu asked with a hint of expectation and respect.

  The Taoist shook his head, and then the soft light on his body disappeared. He was still tall and majestic, but no longer had a divine aura.

  The Taoist cast a glance at Feng Popo's house and let out an extremely faint sigh.

  "Do you know Grandma Wind?" Fangfang asked timidly.

  The Taoist nodded, two days ago, he was here talking to the Wind Granny about whether or not to intervene in the life and death of mortals. The two had a small dispute, neither convincing the other, and he still held his original view: when the great building collapses, the most important thing is to preserve the foundation, rather than worrying about the survival of ants.

  This time, however, the ant crawled onto his arm for refuge, and the Taoist hesitated.

  He walked to where the blue flowers grew, but only a few inches of stem were left, still blue, but no longer emitting a faint glow.

  He stretched out his palm, flat and hovering above the blue flower stem, with his palm facing downwards. Without seeing him cast any spells, the stem slowly rose, bringing out the roots from the mud.

  The roots are very long and become larger as they go down, causing the mud to rise in a radius of seven or eight feet, until finally a huge root mass breaks through the earth.

  The boys shouted out in unison, and what they saw was not an ordinary root, but a living creature about six or seven feet long. It looked like a wild beast that had been stripped of its skin, with bloodstains all over its body, which was covered in mud. It wasn't dead yet, and it was still struggling weakly, as if it didn't like being pulled out.

  The roots of the blue flower grow on its back, absorbing its vital energy.

  "Look, the demon seed has turned it into what?" The Taoist spoke up, with a stern voice that the young men had heard before. "It was once a great demon in the north, with powerful magic and commanding countless small demons. Now, however, it is willing to sacrifice itself for the demon seed, living a life worse than death."

  As soon as the words left his mouth, the Daoist's palm, which had been held flat, clenched into a fist. The large demon below let out a muffled cry and fell to the ground, no longer moving. The remaining blue flower stem and roots turned to ash and scattered in the wind.

  "Is the Devil's Seed... completely dead?" Da Liang's voice trembled with a bad premonition.

  The Taoist lifted his head, as if speaking to someone in the distance. "Devil's spawn, devil's spawn, why are you called 'spawn'? Because it is like a seed, and even with just a tiny bit left, it will patiently lie dormant, slowly take root, sprout, bloom, and bear fruit, eventually completely controlling those who invaded it. The devil's spawn you encountered can produce forms and transform into blue, indicating that it is a rare devil king. Unfortunately..." The Taoist paused for a moment - there was nothing in this world that could truly make him feel regretful. "You will all die."

  (Collection wanted Recommendation wanted)