When Mo Tiange received Nie Wushang's long-range message talisman, she was startled. It contained only two words: 'Save me,' and the location was actually Langtu Mountain.
She had previously confirmed with Nie Wushang that Venerable Songfeng's secret cave abode was located on Langtu Mountain.
"I have to go to Langtu Mountain," Mo Tiange said, putting down the message talisman.
"What's wrong?" Qin Xi asked in surprise. "Langtu Mountain is no ordinary place."
"Wushang is calling for help. She's on Langtu Mountain," Mo Tiange said succinctly, already rising to prepare.
Qin Xi was taken aback for a moment, then quickly grasped the key point. "Wait. Let Master accompany you."
Mo Tiange paused, not insisting on going alone. "Alright."
A teleportation formation had been established between Taikang Mountain and the Xuanqing Sect. Dao Lord Jinghe returned swiftly upon receiving the message, arriving back at the sect in just two hours. After hearing Mo Tiange's explanation, he wasted no words. "Let's go."
With a late-Nascent Soul cultivator accompanying her, Mo Tiange felt much more confident. In less than two days, they set foot on Langtu Mountain.
"This is..."
Langtu Mountain was named for its shape resembling a wolf in full sprint. But now, Langtu Mountain was unrecognizable. The area that should have been the wolf's head was bare and bald, and the cliff that formed its tail had vanished. Demonic Qi permeated everywhere. The neighboring Xiling Mountain Range was the first to suffer; all flowers, plants, and trees were corroded by the Demonic Qi mixed with Death Qi.
Dao Lord Jinghe flicked his sleeve, shaking off the yellow sand, and complained, "What is Old Man Songfeng up to? Is he afraid people won't know he's here?"
Mo Tiange raised her Lotus Parasol, isolating the surrounding Demonic Qi. "It seems Wushang has returned for revenge."
Dao Lord Jinghe agreed. The state of Langtu Mountain clearly indicated a fierce battle had taken place.
"That girl, to be able to fight Old Man Songfeng to such an extent, her strength is remarkable," Dao Lord Jinghe remarked with a sigh, then frowned and descended towards a specific spot.
"Master?"
"Come," Dao Lord Jinghe said with just one word.
Mo Tiange fell silent, quickly sensing something amiss as well.
Landing on the yellow sand, Dao Lord Jinghe swept his sleeve, blowing the sand away to reveal two figures—or rather, one person and one skeleton.
"Is this Old Man Songfeng?" Dao Lord Jinghe looked at the skeleton in astonishment. Although Demonic Qi still lingered around it, it was clearly dead, its body already decayed.
"Wushang!" Seeing the other person, Mo Tiange hurriedly rushed forward.
Nie Wushang's face was deathly pale, her entire body stiff as if lifeless, with Demonic Qi gathered around her but not condensed.
"This girl is truly impressive!" Dao Lord Jinghe clicked his tongue in admiration. "Even I couldn't finish off Old Man Songfeng, yet she actually managed it!"
Mo Tiange had no time for sentiments. She wanted to grasp Nie Wushang's pulse gate to check her meridians, but suddenly remembered she was a demonic cultivator. Mo Tiange didn't know much about demonic cultivators and couldn't use her own Spiritual Qi to examine Nie Wushang's meridians. After a moment's hesitation, she asked, "Master, what should we do about this?"
Mo Tiange's plea for help made Dao Lord Jinghe immensely pleased. "In critical moments, your master still has to step in. Wait."
As he spoke, a gleam flashed in his eyes. He swept his gaze over Nie Wushang, then withdrew his power and returned to normal. "She's fine. Although her injuries are somewhat severe, they haven't damaged her Nascent Soul. With thirty to fifty years of recuperation, she should recover."
"Thirty to fifty years?"
"That's without external aids. If she has demonic pills or other healing elixirs, perhaps ten to twenty years will suffice."
Mo Tiange nodded. "Then let's take her back."
Dao Lord Jinghe didn't answer immediately. He looked at her for several moments before saying, "Girl, you really treat her differently. She's a demonic cultivator, and Old Man Songfeng's disciple at that. You actually want to take her back to the sect to recuperate?"
Mo Tiange said, "What else should we do? Watch her die here?"
"..."
"Does Master think it's unwise?"
Dao Lord Jinghe thought for a moment. "It's fine. That old man Zhenyang won't dare to object."
"..."
With just a few words between master and disciple, the matter was decided. The two of them brought Nie Wushang back to the Xuanqing Sect. Upon arrival, Dao Lord Jinghe didn't bother with anything else and went to Kunzhong City.
Mo Tiange, meanwhile, opened a stone chamber and placed Nie Wushang inside. She couldn't help with a demonic cultivator's recuperation.
"How is it?" Qin Xi asked when she returned to the cultivation chamber after settling Nie Wushang.
Mo Tiange said, "She killed Venerable Songfeng."
"What?" Qin Xi thought he had misheard.
Mo Tiange repeated, "She killed Venerable Songfeng, which is why she's severely injured."
Qin Xi collected himself, still finding it incredible. "She really killed Venerable Songfeng? I sensed earlier she's only just reached the mid-stage. How on earth did she manage it?"
"I'm not sure about that. We'll have to ask her when she wakes up," Mo Tiange said after a moment's thought. "After all, she followed Venerable Songfeng for so many years. Perhaps she knows some hidden weakness of his?"
Qin Xi nodded and pointed to the table. "Never mind her for now. Come look at this."
Mo Tiange looked. On the desk were several items: first, Spirit-Tempering Water; second, the Spirit-Absorbing Powder from the Falling God Abyss; third, that crystal obtained from the ancient sect's treasury beside the White Tiger Sacrificial Temple. The Spirit-Tempering Water could be set aside for now. They still hadn't figured out how to use the Spirit-Absorbing Powder, and the crystal was even more of a mystery—they had asked everyone but no one knew what it was.
"What is it?"
Qin Xi didn't speak. He picked up the Spirit-Tempering Water and dripped it onto the crystal. There was already a small concave dent on the crystal's surface. As the Spirit-Tempering Water dripped down, the dent slowly melted away. By the time a cupful of Spirit-Tempering Water was used up, a hole had been melted through.
"So it was just a shell," Mo Tiange observed. The upper layer of crystal had been dissolved by the Spirit-Tempering Water, revealing something inside that resembled both mist and water. It held no Spiritual Qi, yet emanated an incredibly profound aura. "What is this?"
Qin Xi glanced at the piles of books and jade slips beside them. "We were misled. Without knowing its true form, how could we possibly identify it? After discovering this, I consulted ancient texts and found it might be one thing."
"What thing?"
"Chaos Qi," Qin Xi said. "In the beginning of heaven and earth, Chaos opened."
Mo Tiange was silent for a long time, utterly stunned. After a good while, she found her voice again. "According to you, even in the Immortal Realm, Chaos Qi is a top-tier treasure. How could it possibly end up in the Mortal Realm?"
Qin Xi shook his head. "Pondering that is meaningless. Come look at this."
As he spoke, he casually picked up a few spirit stones and tossed them in. Immediately, the gas rapidly melted the stones at a speed visible to the naked eye, leaving nothing behind.
"Like this, it can melt almost anything."
"Really?" Mo Tiange's expression turned serious. She took out a few unimportant materials from her Qiankun Ring and threw them in. Sure enough, they all vanished without a trace, not even leaving residue. After watching for a moment, she suddenly said, "The Spirit-Absorbing Powder can absorb any spell. This Chaos Qi can melt anything. What would happen if we put them together?"
Qin Xi smiled. "That's exactly what I was thinking. I just hadn't tried it yet before you returned."
"Then let's try it quickly!"
Qin Xi nodded. Seeing that the crystal encasing the Chaos Qi had begun to heal itself, he took the Spirit-Tempering Water and melted it open again.
"So this thing can regenerate on its own," Mo Tiange seemed to realize something. "No wonder it can be used to contain Chaos Qi."
After melting the outer crystal once more, Qin Xi carefully used his Spiritual Qi to wrap a small amount of Chaos Qi, suspending it in mid-air. Then he took some Spirit-Absorbing Powder and sprinkled it on...
A sizzling sound filled the air, as if something were boiling and burning. The Spirit-Absorbing Powder and the Chaos Qi intertwined, each trying to consume the other, locked in a fierce battle.
The two of them watched unblinkingly. Before long, the sound gradually weakened. From bottom to top, a transparent, ice-crystal-like color was revealed, finally merging into a single crystal.
They were speechless for a long moment. Mo Tiange tapped the shell that had contained the Chaos Qi. "So this thing is made from Spirit-Absorbing Powder?"
Qin Xi also touched it, feeling that it looked no different. It wasn't until he tried to channel Spiritual Qi into it that he suddenly thought of something.
"What's wrong?" Mo Tiange asked hastily, noticing his strange expression.
Qin Xi didn't answer immediately. After some effort to withdraw his Spiritual Qi, he said, "Spirit-Absorbing Powder can absorb Spiritual Qi. Chaos Qi can dissolve all things. Combining these two... it would be a formidable defensive tool!"
Mo Tiange tapped the crystal. "You mean, to make a defensive Magical Treasure?"
Qin Xi nodded. "Exactly. We originally thought Spirit-Absorbing Powder would be best for defensive Magical Treasures. Now, with the addition of Chaos Qi, the effect would be more than doubled."
Mo Tiange thought for a while, then said, "I actually think it would make a good offensive Magical Treasure."
"Oh?"
Mo Tiange took an ordinary Magical Treasure and tossed it into the Chaos Qi. Quickly, the Magical Treasure vanished without a trace.
Qin Xi watched for a moment and understood. "You mean..."
"What Magical Treasure is so domineering? It would be a pity not to use it for offense."
Qin Xi looked at her for a long while. "Tian Ge, you seem different from before?"
"Different?" Mo Tiange raised her eyebrows slightly in surprise. "How so?"
"It seems... sharper," he said, smiling as he recalled. "Before, you tended to adopt a defensive stance, cautious and calculating every step. But now, you also possess an unstoppable momentum."
Mo Tiange thought carefully and realized it was true. She smiled. "Perhaps I've been influenced by all of you? Isn't this better?"
"Mm," Qin Xi responded with a smile. Looking at the crystal in his hand, he pondered for a moment. "How to actually refine this thing... I'm not sure yet. Should I go to Kunzhong City? Consult a few Senior Brothers and Sisters, pool our wisdom... Also, I could exchange ideas with others at the trade fair. Perhaps we can find other clues."
Mo Tiange thought for a moment and agreed. "With the teleportation formation here, Senior Brother Lingxi and I can hold down the fort at the sect. You being gone for a month or so shouldn't be a problem."
"Good." Qin Xi stored the newly formed crystal, along with a tube of Spirit-Tempering Water and a small amount of Spirit-Absorbing Powder, into his Qiankun Ring. "I'll leave now."
"So soon?" Mo Tiange was surprised.
"The sooner I go, the sooner I'll return." Qin Xi paused, then reminded her in a low voice, "With Nie Wushang in this state, be extra vigilant. Her identity is sensitive; it wouldn't be good if word got out. Also, while your friendship with her is good, she is after all a demonic cultivator and Old Man Songfeng's disciple. Old Man Songfeng's crazy and vengeful personality is said to have been influenced by his cultivation method. I'm genuinely a bit worried..."
"I know," Mo Tiange said rationally. "I've already prepared. I've set up many defensive formations in the stone chamber where she's recuperating. Don't worry."
Qin Xi nodded, said no more, collected his things, left the cave abode, and headed for Kunzhong City.