The Aloof Lord's Mysterious Wife
Chapter 561: The First Sword Cultivator of the Immortal World from a Thousand Years Ago

Chapter 561: The First Sword Cultivator of the Immortal World from a Thousand Years Ago

The snowstorm, which had lasted for almost two months, finally stopped.

That night, the wind and snow outside ceased, and the bitter cold subsided. The common people could finally sleep soundly through the night.

The next day, the sun’s rays shone down, and the snow showed signs of melting.

Though the snow had stopped, the melting process brought even colder weather. With not enough warm clothing, Nanli had to draw more Warming Talismans to help the people survive the harsh conditions.

These Warming Talismans weren’t difficult to create, and the junior priests quickly learned how to make them, lightening Nanli’s workload.

Chong Jiu was leading the relief efforts in Lian State.

He heard that the priests of Xuanyue Temple had also taken in many refugees, so he planned to visit them to see if they needed assistance.

Nanli had previously earned silver while staying at Xuanyue Temple and used it to repair the temple thoroughly.

So, despite the heavy snowfall, many of the houses in the nearby villages had collapsed under the weight, but Xuanyue Temple remained intact.

However, a significant number of refugees had sought shelter there, and after holding out for about a month, the temple’s warehouse was now running low on supplies.

A priest approached and asked, "Master, don’t you still have the Transfer Talisman? Why don’t you use it to seek help from the Ninth Princess?"

Qing Xu, wearing gray-white cotton clothes, trembled slightly as he held them.

He looked up and suddenly called out, "You, come in."

The priest pushed the door open and entered.

Seeing the deathly pallor on the priest’s face, Qing Xu’s expression darkened further.

"Master?" the priest asked, puzzled. "We still have enough food for three or four more days, there’s no need to worry so much, is there?"

Qing Xu picked up the copper coins from his earlier divination, placed them back into the turtle shell, and handed them to the priest, saying, "You shake it."

The priest dared not disobey and did as instructed.

As the priest shook the turtle shell, Qing Xu muttered under his breath, "Oh heavens, I am willing to sacrifice my soul. Please show me the way!"

The priest’s heart trembled.

What was his master saying?

Suddenly, Qing Xu sternly reprimanded, "Focus!"

The priest quickly gathered his thoughts.

The copper coins inside the turtle shell finally fell onto the table.

Qing Xu looked at their arrangement, then at the priest’s face, noticing the fading deathly aura. He grabbed the priest’s shoulders. "Zhixi, what I am about to say, you must remember carefully, understand?"

Zhixi, now frightened, asked, "Master, you rarely look this serious. You’re... you’re scaring me."

"I’m not trying to scare you. Xuanyue Temple is facing a disaster, and no one here can escape it. But I just prayed to the heavens with my own soul to create a way out for you and the common people."

Zhixi was shocked. "What? I am a member of Xuanyue Temple! I want to stand with you, Master! I refuse to leave!"

Qing Xu’s face darkened. "Foolish! If it were only about you, I wouldn’t bother. But what about the innocent people? How can they be caught up in Xuanyue Temple’s calamity? Remember, this is not about you. It’s about saving the common people! Zhixi, you must lead them away, or you will waste my sacrifice. Do you understand?"

Tears streamed down Zhixi’s face.

He grasped Qing Xu’s hands tightly, choking up. "Master..."

"Listen to me," Qing Xu softened his tone. "Zhixi, I’ve already passed the head priest’s token to the Ninth Princess. You must go to Ye City and never look back, understand?"

Zhixi stiffened his neck, unwilling to nod or agree.

Just then, a loud noise echoed from the back mountain.

The whole mountain trembled!

Qing Xu’s face changed, and he shouted, "Hurry and take the people away!"

The location of Xuanyue Temple had always been peaceful and blessed, but now, with such an unexpected disturbance, even Zhixi, despite his young age, was filled with anxiety.

Still, he didn’t want to leave and gently shook his head. "Master, you have the Transfer Talisman. Let me take it and find the Ninth Princess!"

He could feel a terrifying presence from the back mountain. Something evil must be stirring, and Master might be powerless, but surely the Ninth Princess could help!

Qing Xu looked at him deeply and hesitated before handing over the Transfer Talisman.

But he also said, "Zhixi, sometimes you must understand what destiny truly means."

When fate calls for death, not even the gods themselves can prevent it.

Zhixi didn’t pay much attention to these words and quickly pocketed the talisman, saying, "Master, I’ll take the people down the mountain first. You must hold on!"

"Hurry," Qing Xu urged once more. "And don’t look back!"

"I know!" Zhixi replied.

The entire mountain continued to shake.

As he rushed outside, he saw that many of the common folk had already emerged from the temple, gathered in the square, looking terrified and asking what was happening.

Zhixi told them there was an earthquake and urged them to follow him down the mountain.

The people didn’t doubt him. Ignoring the cold, they braved the winds and began descending the mountain.

Meanwhile, Qing Xu led the junior priests to the back mountain. There was an ancient well there, covered with a stone slab engraved with the Five Elements Trigram Formation.

Normally, the Heaven and Earth Formation glowed with golden light and turned slowly, sealing whatever was beneath the well.

But somehow, a crack had appeared in the formation.

Because of this, although the golden light still flowed, it had stopped rotating.

The formation was no longer effective.

Whatever was sealed below was about to break free!

The tremors grew more intense.

The remaining junior priests were from the Northern Peak Temple and had been cultivating for some time. Their skills and discipline had improved significantly.

Now, instead of showing fear, they said, "Master, let’s set up a formation!"

They needed to find a way to repair the crack and reseal the evil spirit inside.

Qing Xu, seeing the deathly aura on their faces, felt an immense heartache.

After all, they were now his disciples, calling him Master.

But this evil spirit... someone had to stop it!

Qing Xu gritted his teeth and rushed forward, pulling out a sealing talisman. He formed hand seals to activate the talisman’s power to the fullest.

The other junior priests followed suit, adding their own hand seals.

Golden light gathered and fell upon the stone slab’s formation.

The tremors subsided significantly.

Eventually, the mountain stopped shaking.

The formation on the stone slab began turning once again, as it had before.

Was it suppressed?

Qing Xu was astonished.

Could fate be defied?

High in the sky, Yan Luo leaned forward slightly, irritated. "She’s been sealed for so many years. Could it be that she’s grown foolish from the sealing? Even with a crack in the formation, she still can’t break through?"

Yan Luo had spent a long time in the mortal realm, using considerable effort to create a crack in the formation.

An inner disciple asked, "Fourth Miss, are you sure the information is accurate? Could someone like this really have been the number one Sword Cultivator in the Immortal World a thousand years ago?"

"It’s what Father said. How could it be wrong?" Yan Luo replied.

Yet, as she said this, a trace of doubt crept into her mind.

The number one Sword Cultivator?

That must have been an exaggeration, right?

Just as this thought crossed her mind, a strange sound emerged from the bottom of the well, and the golden light of the formation was torn apart from below.

As the light receded, the stone slab shattered into pieces!

Boom!

The well exploded.

The sealing talisman turned to ashes.

Qing Xu and the junior priests were thrown backward, crashing to the ground, spitting blood.

Seeing this, Yan Luo smiled. "She’s out, she’s finally out!"