Chapter Twenty-One: Illusory Moon Cave

  Qili Village is located on the southern border of Xinjiang. If it weren't for the great disaster, this would be a paradise on earth.

  "Ah——" Zhang Yufan looked at the miserable scene below, feeling a chill in his heart. Is this what's left after the beast demon passed through? This is even more brutal than World War II.

  He thought of the distant Miao people seeing him again and passing on a commotion, I don't know why this person appeared at the altar.

  "How did you end up here?" someone behind him asked in surprise.

  Zhang Yufan was taken aback for a moment, but quickly reacted and realized that the only one who could come and go freely on this altar was the great witch doctor of the Miao tribe, Tu Ma Gu. He slowly turned around, smiled and greeted the chief, "Hello." Tu Ma Gu was shocked to see that the person in front of him was actually Gui Li, but the blue robe made him somewhat mistaken. Although he didn't understand how he suddenly appeared on the altar, the great witch doctor had instructed the Miao tribe before his departure that they would have to rely on this person and must not offend him.

  Two people had a brief and shallow conversation, then walked out in high spirits, with the great witch following behind them. The four of them exchanged a glance, each with their own thoughts.

  "How is it?" Zhang Yufan suddenly asked, and with the appearance of Xiaobai, he suddenly wanted to see Biyao, the woman who softly chanted "Nine Yin Spirits, all heavenly demons, with my blood body, as a sacrifice..." What does the woman who cast the lovesick spell look like now? Except for Lu Xueqi, she is the second most beautiful in "Jade Dynasty".

  Zhang Yu Fan was thinking like this when he suddenly felt a shock, and quietly glanced at Xiao Bai. He saw that the little girl had fiercely stared at him, if there were others in front of them, he would have been beaten up by her again. Suddenly his heart was in a mess, not daring to say or think anything.

  Xiaobai bid farewell to the tribal chief and the great shaman, leaving behind a treasured item he had carried with him, the "镇魂幡" (Soul-Calming Banner), which could suppress the vengeful spirits and ghosts in the mountains. The two were overjoyed and thanked him, trying to persuade him to stay longer, but Xiaobai was worried about Biyao and refused to delay even for a moment. He grasped Zhang Yufan's hand and soared into the sky.

  After the two figures gradually disappeared, Tuma Bone looked at the Great Shaman with great incomprehension in his heart.

  "Tribe leader, why are you looking at me like this!" The great shaman suddenly said.

  Tu Ma Gu looked at the "Town Soul Flag" in his hand and slowly said, "He used this treasure to exchange for the Soul-Calling Banner?"

  The great wizard shook his head and said, "No, the former master had instructed us not to offend this woman. He said that her magical powers are unparalleled and should not be underestimated. Moreover, most of our tribe's witchcraft has been lost, and the 'Soul Summoning' secret technique requires a high level of spiritual power and is extremely difficult to comprehend. Without a certain innate talent and opportunity, even if one obtains the cultivation method, they may not necessarily be able to use it!"

  Tu Ma Gu's helpless shook his head and let out a sigh before turning around and walking down the mountain.

  Blue Clouds, Tongtian Peak.

  An old man with a hunchback stood like a stone statue at the entrance of the cave for a whole day and night, he hadn't left since the blue mang appeared in the Fantian Cave last night, quietly waiting for the people inside to come out.

  The Illusory Moon Cave is a forbidden place of the Qingyun Sect, where the ancient sword that killed the immortal is hidden. No one can enter except for the sect leader, and the cave is filled with illusions, making it difficult to control oneself and leave safely. Therefore, in all these years, there hasn't been a single guard inside the Illusory Moon Cave.

  In the cave, a beautiful woman in white clothes like snow slowly stood up, rubbing her somewhat dizzy head, and looked around. She saw that she was in a stone cave with faint mist swirling around, which seemed quite strange. She suddenly thought to herself, "Wasn't I in the Heavenly Emperor's palace? After losing all my senses, how did I end up here? Where is this place? And where did that person who looked like Xiao Fang go? Why didn't he appear with me in this cave?"

  "Xue Qi, are you okay......" A black figure slowly emerged in the distance, with a gray-haired monkey on his shoulder eating a red wild fruit curiously looking into the cave. His face was still cold and unreadable, making it impossible to tell what he was thinking. Who was this person, not Ghost Ji?

  Lu Xueqi was overjoyed and exclaimed: "Xiao Fan, is it really you?"

  "It's me, Xue Qi. You've lost weight and look haggard!" As he spoke, Gui Li had already arrived by her side, Xiao Hui making a face at her with his mouth twisted in a scowl. Hearing these words, she could hardly believe they were coming from Gui Li's mouth. She had once longed for him to say such things to her, to never be apart, just like that person on the Moon-Watching Pavilion, embracing each other forever and never letting go. That was all he wanted.

  Always invincibly strong Lu Xueqi suddenly collapsed spiritually after saying such a sentence, her face as frosty as ever had hot tears rolling down, as if they were going to destroy her looks and also destroy this heart that was originally icy and pure.

  "Xue Qi, can I hold you?" Gui Li said deeply and passionately, his words full of tender emotions that were impossible to resist.

  Lu Xueqi was taken aback, this was his dream for many days and nights, just quietly nestled in the arms of this man, selfishly occupying him forever.

  Maybe love is selfish from the start.

  This warmth seems to be eternal, and apart from this warmth, she doesn't want anything else. There's no need for any rules or etiquette that would make her gasp for breath, nor does she need the respect and admiration of thousands of people gained through cultivation and Taoist practice. All she wants is this man.

  Suddenly, Xiao Hui jumped down from Gui Li's shoulder with a squeak, and Lu Xueqi saw it clearly. The monkey actually rushed into the stone wall and never came out again. She suddenly felt that Gui Li's body was gradually getting colder, and her heart was shocked. She didn't dare to think about it anymore.

  But that cruel reality still arrived.

  "Xue Qi, I should go..." Gui Li said suddenly.

  Lu Xueqi was shocked. Despite his reluctance to let go, Gui Li's body temperature continued to drop, and soon he turned into a stone statue with no signs of life.

  "Why is it like this?" She asked herself thousands of times in her heart, does love really make people so painful? Just as she was staring at the stone statue in front of her and couldn't help herself, the blue gemstone on the hilt of the white Tianjue sword suddenly burst into brilliant light, sweeping away all the fantasies in the entire cave.

  It wasn't until much later that Lu Xueqi slowly came to her senses from the infatuation of love, muttering to herself: "This cave is very strange, it seems like the legendary Phantom Moon Cave in Qingyun legend. Can I die here? No! I can't die in this illusion, the world is still waiting for me, Qingyun is still waiting for me, Xiao Fan is still waiting for me!"

  She stood up strongly, and after the illusion disappeared, everything in the cave was fully revealed. On a stone platform not far from her, an eight trigrams diagram of the Three Pure Ones was actually worshipped, with an ancient sword quietly inserted into the altar in the middle. The sword seemed to have countless words on its body, very faint but invisible. However, the two characters "Zhēn Xiān" (meaning "to slay the immortal") as big as a fist deeply touched his heart.

  "Zhu Xian, this is actually the Huan Yue Cave!" She shook her body and retreated two steps, not daring to believe this strange reality. What kind of relationship did the Heavenly Emperor's Palace have with the Qing Yun Huan Yue Cave? Could it be that the Heavenly Emperor had also been here to hide his sword and set up this soul-capturing illusion to prevent outsiders from approaching the Zhu Xian Sword?

  No! This is a secret of the Qingyun, how can I, a junior, dare to suspect and intrude on my own? I've already broken the rules by entering this place privately. It's better to leave early and avoid any more trouble. Simply tidying up her clothes, she walked towards the outside of the cave.

  The old man outside the Moon Cave still stood guard, he had been motionless for two days and two nights. What gave him such determination? The person he was waiting for finally came out.

  It's been four days and four nights, Lu Xueqi hasn't drunk a drop of water, her face as pale as frost, with an even more wan complexion.

  As soon as she walked out of the cave, the long-missed mountain breeze woke up her somewhat stuffy head. The big bamboo peak and small bamboo peak not far away looked so familiar at this moment, it was where she grew up since childhood.

  "Halt!" Just as Lu Xueqi had walked three zhang out of the Huan Yue Cave, a hoarse voice suddenly rang out.

  Lu Xueqi's body shook, and he quickly turned his head around, only to see a hunched old man standing not far away from him, covered in fallen leaves and dust. With Lu Xueqi's cultivation, it was strange that he hadn't noticed the old man standing behind him.

  The old man moved his body, shaking off the dust on his body, and said coldly: "You've entered the Illusory Moon Cave!"

  Lu Xueqi was shocked, although the old man in front of her was just guarding the mourning hall, she couldn't deny that she had secretly entered the restricted area and broken the rules. She nodded slightly and said: "Yes, please punish me, senior!" After speaking, she knelt down towards the direction of the mourning hall.

  The old man said: "With your superior Taoist practice, you can actually retreat from the Illusory Moon Cave unscathed, which is rare. But I don't know which sect's disciple you are!"

  "Disciple Lu Xueqi, my master is Xiaozhu Feng Shui Daoshi!" Lu Xueqi said slowly, as if a thousand pounds of weight were pressing on her chest, making it hard for her to breathe. Her emotions were still somewhat flustered, and she continued: "Please, senior, don't involve my master in this. This time entering the cave, my master doesn't know..." She trailed off, then smiled wryly and said: "Even I, as a disciple, find it strange and inexplicable, I don't know how to enter the cave safely, surrounded by danger!"

  The old man slightly furrowed his brow, carefully sizing up Lu Xueqi, but his attention was all on the white Tian Jue on her back. "Your words sound absurd, perhaps others wouldn't believe them, but encountering me, a living dead person, is an exception!"

  Lu Xueqi was taken aback, and the hunchbacked old man in front of her became even more mysterious. She bowed down to Yu Cheng's spirit tablet and knocked her head on the ground, saying: "Disciple indeed came out from Huan Yue Cave, as for the reason why, I don't want to explain nor can I explain it, just ask senior to punish me!"

  The old man suddenly burst out laughing, and Lu Xueqi felt inexplicable but still knelt there. The old man said again: "I can ignore the fact that you secretly entered the forbidden land of Qingyun, and I won't mention it to anyone at this time. It's just a stone cave, what's so special about it? But I want to know if the sword on your back is Tianjue?"

  Lu Xueqi was still kneeling on the ground, her body trembling slightly as she cried out in a mournful voice: "It's really Tianyuan!"

  The old man was shocked, and he carefully examined Tian Jue again. His face was puzzled, and he called Lu Xueqi to get up and answer him. He also said: "It's really unbelievable that the blue Tian Jue turned white!"

  Lu Xueqi reluctantly got up and explained the reason in detail.