Mo Tiange was somewhat surprised. Had she misjudged Jing Xingzhi's intentions earlier? Was he actually willing to travel with them and not mind her low cultivation level?
Upon second thought, the situation had changed. Apart from them, Jing Xingzhi had no other potential partners to choose from. Even if her cultivation was lower, the three of them could still venture up together.
Qin Xi's face betrayed neither joy nor anger as he asked, "Fellow Daoist Jing, didn't you just narrowly escape with your life? Why do you still want to go up?"
Jing Xingzhi rubbed his nose and said, "Alone, it was impossible. But since I've run into you two, of course I want to go back and see if there's any advantage to be gained. After all, the Ruins of All Immortals isn't easy to reach." He blinked then added, "I say, you're so confident you can get your Junior Sister out of here. You must already have a plan in mind, right?"
"..."
Qin Xi remained silent for a moment. Judging by his expression, he wasn't displeased, but he didn't agree immediately either.
Mo Tiange looked at Jing Xingzhi and suddenly felt a sense of familiarity—that's right. Qin Xi had made similar gestures before. Speaking of which, although their personalities didn't quite mesh, their conversations always gave off a feeling of deep familiarity... What kind of familiar relationship could these two have? Their personalities were completely different, and they didn't approve of each other's ways of handling things at all.
"Let me make this clear first," Qin Xi said. "Once we're up there, the place we're going is just a corner of the Ruins of All Immortals. If you want to go elsewhere, we absolutely will not accompany you."
Jing Xingzhi waved a dismissive hand. "Whatever."
"Fine, then we'll join forces." Qin Xi stated calmly. Jing Xingzhi merely smiled. They didn't seal the deal with a handshake or make any formal promise, then each went about their own business.
The earth-shaking tremors this time lasted a full day. By the time the mountain stabilized, all three of them were utterly exhausted.
Each had employed their strongest defensive measures and remained ready to strike at any moment. Although they had escaped danger, their Spiritual Qi consumption was immense. Moreover, drifting Demonic Qi along the way had further drained their reserves.
The trio rested inside the small cave for a day, waiting until their Spiritual Qi was replenished before continuing their flight towards the peak.
With Jing Xingzhi joining them, the journey became much easier. Qin Xi's Three Yang True Fire Sword Array, Mo Tiange's White Silk Handkerchief, and Jing Xingzhi's protective sword radiance combined their efforts. What they had estimated would take over a day to reach the summit was accomplished in just one. If not for the massive release of Demonic Qi from the collapsing restrictions at the peak, which made them wary of approaching, they might have been even faster.
Upon reaching the peak, Mo Tiange was taken aback. "Is this... the Ruins of All Immortals?"
All she saw were scattered rocks, a chaotic mix of spiritual and demonic energies, and utter desolation. How could this be worthy of the word 'Immortal'?
Qin Xi explained, "The so-called Ruins of All Immortals is just a name we descendants gave it. Tianmo Mountain has been a battlefield since ancient times. It's said to be the burial ground of all immortals, but it's really just the place where they fell."
Mo Tiange sighed. Before Immortals and Demons were divided, those who perished here were genuine Immortals, whose achievements she might never reach in her entire life. Yet even these Immortals had ended up in such a state.
Jing Xingzhi said with a grin, "Don't underestimate this place. Even after all these years, many treasures of the All Immortals remain. It just depends on whether you have the fate to obtain them."
"Is that so?" Mo Tiange gazed into the distance but couldn't see anything particularly special. There was only one thing: the Spiritual Qi here was too intense. A transparent layer of Spiritual Qi floated in the sky, purer and cleaner than any she had ever seen. Within the area covered by this Spiritual Qi Layer, Demonic Qi could only drift around the periphery.
"What is that? I've never seen such peculiar Spiritual Qi before."
"That's Immortal Qi," Qin Xi said. "Too many Immortals died here. After their deaths, their bodies didn't remain; they all transformed into Immortal Qi."
"...I see."
"Alright, save your chatter for later. Time to get to work." Jing Xingzhi waved a hand. The flying sword behind him unsheathed, poised and ready. He took the lead and walked forward.
Qin Xi also nodded to her. "Let's go."
Although there was no Demonic Qi, Immortal Qi was equally terrifying. They were merely cultivators, not Immortals. The immense power contained within Immortal Qi was something they couldn't withstand. If their bodies were invaded by Immortal Qi, they would explode and die.
The three activated various defensive measures and cautiously entered the field of scattered rocks.
Before reaching Wanren Peak, they had occasionally seen skeletal remains in places. But here at the summit of Wanren Peak, it was completely clean. Because after an Immortal died, not even bones remained; they directly transformed into Immortal Qi.
All around were traces left behind by spells. Even after a million years, these marks could still be clearly distinguished. Because Immortals possessed the power to move mountains and drain seas, the might of their spells was too great, leaving behind naturally spectacular traces.
For example, Wanren Peak was originally connected to the other mountain ranges, but it had been severed horizontally by some Immortal artifact, becoming this solitary peak. The rocks on Wanren Peak were so hard they couldn't easily remove even a single piece, yet for an Immortal, splitting it was effortless.
There was also a massive lake on the peak. Upon closer inspection, it was a trace left by a water-based spell, still present after a million years.
And those scattered rocks, those charred marks, those enormous craters—all were traces of spells.
Although she didn't see the skeletal remains of Immortals, Mo Tiange truly witnessed the grandeur of that great battle from a million years ago. It gave her a strange feeling, as if she were personally experiencing that battle, seeing spells flying and Immortal artifacts clashing.
Qin Xi deliberately walked slowly, seemingly to let her fully savor this sensation. Jing Xingzhi wore an uncharacteristically solemn expression, silently observing the scene before him.
The trio's nearly leisurely pace was disrupted by a sudden attack.
Jing Xingzhi, walking at the front, suddenly stepped down and heard a faint *click*, followed by a wisp of light smoke rising.
Jing Xingzhi reacted swiftly. His flying sword shot out as he leaped into mid-air, narrowly dodging a bolt of lightning.
Mo Tiange and Qin Xi instantly flew apart. Qin Xi's Three Yang True Fire Sword immediately counterattacked. Mo Tiange waved her hand, and the White Silk Handkerchief transformed into a wisp of smoke, coiling forward. Simultaneously, she gripped a magic treasure in her hand, ready to strike at any moment.
Then, all three of them paused in surprise.
Because it wasn't a demon beast, nor was it a restriction... it was just a wisp of smoke?
Jing Xingzhi's sword radiance had already stabbed towards it, and Qin Xi's Three Yang True Fire Sword instantly flared with fiery red light. However, the wisp of smoke scattered when struck, only to instantly coalesce again.
"What is this?" Jing Xingzhi asked in astonishment, looking at Qin Xi. "Did you see this last time you were here?"
Qin Xi shook his head. "I don't know either."
Mo Tiange, of course, knew even less.
Just after these few words were spoken, the wisp of smoke slowly began to surge towards them.
The three didn't dare be careless and each retreated. Mo Tiange was slightly slower. She felt a sharp pain on her arm. Looking down, she saw that where the smoke had drifted past, a patch of the mist from her White Silk Handkerchief had been corroded, and her sleeve was scorched.
Qin Xi stepped forward, grabbed her, and pulled her back a distance. He lifted her sleeve to see that her originally smooth arm was similarly scorched black.
Qin Xi's expression changed. "Does it hurt?"
Mo Tiange frowned. "Never mind that for now. What do we do about this thing?"
Jing Xingzhi wore that half-smiling, half-mocking expression again, glancing over. "Flying swords can't cut it, spells can't burn it. What other options are there? We can only run!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, he summoned his flying sword and fled at full speed.
Seeing this, Qin Xi shook his head. The next moment, he flicked his sleeve, summoned his flying cloud, and pulling Mo Tiange along, also made a hasty escape.
The wisp of smoke gave chase, its speed not slow. But whether it was Jing Xingzhi's flying sword or Qin Xi's flying cloud, both were extremely fast. Before long, the smoke finally stopped pursuing them.
The three stopped, all breathing sighs of relief.
"What kind of strange thing was that?" Jing Xingzhi muttered.
No one answered him. Qin Xi pulled back Mo Tiange's sleeve, looking at the skin corroded by the smoke, and frowned. "Something's not right. This thing..."
At first, it only hurt a little, but now Mo Tiange felt a burning, searing pain that was growing increasingly intense. She had originally endured it, but finally couldn't hold back any longer. Clutching Qin Xi's sleeve, cold sweat broke out on her forehead. "It hurts terribly."
Qin Xi knew her temperament. If it weren't truly painful, she would never cry out. He immediately took a pill from his Qiankun Bag. "Take this."
Mo Tiange swallowed it as instructed and felt somewhat better.
Qin Xi pressed on her arm, slowly releasing Spiritual Qi. Starting from the wound, he meticulously examined it bit by bit.
"What? Is there something strange about this thing?" Jing Xingzhi asked, seeing their serious expressions.
Qin Xi didn't speak. After a while, he suddenly formed a hand seal. A strand of True Fire emerged from his palm and attached itself to the scorched black area.
Mo Tiange flinched. His True Fire wasn't an ordinary cultivator's True Fire. He originally cultivated a fire-attribute technique and possessed refined Yang Spiritual Qi. When this fire came into contact with her, her already numb and painful arm felt another kind of agony.
Qin Xi noticed. He paused, then mobilized Yang Spiritual Qi to envelop the True Fire before slowly applying it.
The pain eased slightly. Mo Tiange gradually felt the Yang Spiritual Qi entering her body. Without her needing to mobilize it herself, the Yin Spiritual Qi within her welcomed it, and the two converged. Qin Xi's True Fire, wrapped by the dual Yin and Yang Spiritual Qi, slowly swept over the area. She didn't know how much time passed before the scorched black finally began to shrink.
By the time the blackened color completely disappeared from Mo Tiange's arm, the two had already expended over half of their Spiritual Qi.
Jing Xingzhi didn't understand what had happened. Seeing them stop, he asked, "What's going on? If your True Fire can burn it away, why couldn't you do it earlier?"
Qin Xi replied, "This is the Extreme Yang True Fire I comprehended when I formed my Nascent Soul. It's different from the True Fire on my Three Yang True Fire Sword."
"Then why didn't you use it earlier?"
This question drew a light snort from Qin Xi. "You make it sound easy. Mobilizing this True Fire is very troublesome. That smoke was too fast; there simply wasn't enough time."
"Oh, I see." Jing Xingzhi nodded. "Since you can heal the injury, I'm relieved."
"Don't celebrate too soon." Qin Xi glanced at him indifferently. "If it were you, I would be powerless."
"Huh?" Jing Xingzhi was puzzled. "Why is that?"
Qin Xi didn't answer, merely shaking his head. He said to Mo Tiange, "Rest for a while first and recover your Spiritual Qi."
His Extreme Yang True Fire was extremely domineering. If not for the fact that his and Mo Tiange's dual Yin and Yang Spiritual Qi could act as a buffer, he might have burned off Mo Tiange's arm before managing to eliminate that black energy.