Chapter 143: No Longer Intimate

Boom! Boom!

Shadows intertwined as the dragons of lightning and sword radiance engaged in a fierce battle.

Both Linghu Jinjiu and Luoshi Daolang wore fierce, gritting expressions, as if they wanted to devour each other alive.

However, Fang Junmei knew that Linghu Jinjiu genuinely wanted to devour Luoshi Daolang, whereas Luoshi Daolang was merely acting out of anger and had already held back significantly—at the very least, he had not unleashed the Sword-Bone Realm, or rather, the Blade-Bone Realm.

"Third Senior Brother, Daolang, stop fighting!"

Fang Junmei shouted loudly, "You two have no deep enmity. What on earth is the meaning of this fight?"

Fang Junmei was left between laughter and tears; what kind of absurdity was this?

Yang Xiaoman also cried out, "Senior Brother Linghu, both Daolang and Liangyan are not ordinary demonic cultivators. On the contrary, they possess absolute sincerity. Stop fighting."

If the two of them had remained silent, it might have been fine, but their words only poured oil onto the fire in Linghu Jinjiu's heart. Instead of stopping, he renewed his attacks with even greater frenzy.

"Am I the one who wants to fight? You bastard of a senior brother, your state of mind is lost and you don't even realize it! Sooner or later, you'll become someone even more cruel and violent than us demonic cultivators!"

Luoshi Daolang cursed sternly.

Screech!

Just as his voice fell, Linghu Jinjiu slashed open his arm with a sword, sending fresh blood spraying into the air.

Clang!

Silver radiance finally burst forth brilliantly.

Luoshi Daolang had finally unleashed the Blade-Bone Realm. Without the Blade-Bone Realm, he might not necessarily have been a match for Linghu Jinjiu.

Boom!

Following a thunderous roar, Linghu Jinjiu was blasted backward, blood spraying from the corners of his mouth. That Luoshi Daolang had attained the Blade-Bone Realm was completely beyond his expectations.

Having blasted Linghu Jinjiu away, Luoshi Daolang stood firm in the void, gazing fixedly at him without making any further moves.

"Brother!"

Luoshi Daolang swept over to Luoshi Daolang's side.

...

"You two, make your move and slaughter these two demonic fiends!"

Linghu Jinjiu said to the two cultivators from the White Cloud Immortal Sect.

"If the two of you make a move, you will become the enemies of Fang Junmei!"

At that moment, Fang Junmei shouted loudly, golden radiance erupting from his body as he unleashed the power of the Sword-Bone Realm.

The expressions of Linghu Jinjiu and the other three shifted simultaneously. They had not expected that right after the manifestation of the Blade-Bone Realm, another cultivator would display the Sword-Bone Realm, and both were at the late Dust-Vanquishing stage.

Linghu Jinjiu's expression was the most complex. Among the five individuals of the Unmoving Peak, he ranked third, but now, not only had Yang Xiaoman attained the Sword-Bone Realm, even Fang Junmei had reached the Sword-Bone Realm. A deep sense of desolation began to flood his heart.

Under normal circumstances, this sense of desolation might have passed, but today, in this particular situation, it filled Linghu Jinjiu with a profound sense of humiliation.

"Junior Fifth, are you utterly determined to mingle with these two demonic cultivators and completely sever ties with me? Are you planning to betray the Taoyuan Sword Sect as well?"

Linghu Jinjiu roared.

Fang Junmei was speechless, utterly unable to understand how the usually forthright Linghu Jinjiu had turned into this state. His heart was filled with difficulty; how was he to answer such a question?

Not far away, Luoshi Daolang gazed deeply at Fang Junmei, as if he could comprehend his predicament. After his gaze flickered a few times, he said to Luoshi Liangyan, "Liangyan, let's go."

With that, he grabbed her hand and flew off in another direction.

...

"Brother, but—"

Luoshi Liangyan wanted to say something more.

"Say no more. Come with me."

Luoshi Daolang's voice was firm, carrying a resolute expression; he willingly gave up even the Longevity-Delaying Fruits.

"Daolang!"

"Liangyan!"

Watching the figures of the two flying away, Fang Junmei and Yang Xiaoman called out, wanting to chase after them. Yet their footsteps felt so heavy—what should they do even if they brought them back? A wave of desolation filled their hearts.

Linghu Jinjiu also remained silent, his gaze gloomy, and he did not pursue them further.

As for the two cultivators from the White Cloud Immortal Sect, they did not give chase either, knowing that it was better to leave such matters for the three members of the Taoyuan Sword Sect to handle themselves.

Fang Junmei looked at Linghu Jinjiu with an exceptionally complex expression, then turned his gaze to the other two.

The pair immediately felt extremely awkward. After a dry cough, the male cultivator cupped his fists toward Linghu Jinjiu and said, "Brother Linghu, since you have already reunited with your junior brother and junior sister, the two of us should take our leave."

With that, the two departed, choosing a direction different from that of the Luoshi siblings. Fang Junmei and Yang Xiaoman alone were already more than they could handle; if the White Horse Lightning were to attack them as well, there would be no way to survive.

Above the wild mountains, only Fang Junmei, Yang Xiaoman, and Linghu Jinjiu remained.

The three of them looked at each other in dismay, neither knowing what to say. Suddenly, the familiar intimacy of the past was completely gone.

As for the White Horse Lightning, it had finally gained some leisure, looking around at the surrounding world with a strange expression, occasionally glancing in this direction and that, as if searching for something.

...

After a long while, Linghu Jinjiu first produced a few medicinal pills and swallowed them. Then he descended to the side of the old man's corpse, removed the man's storage bag, and without even glancing at it, tossed it toward Fang Junmei.

"Let's find a place to rest for a while. I've been searching for you two for a long time."

Linghu Jinjiu said in a deep voice, his tone having grown much gentler.

Hearing his words, the hearts of the two softened slightly. They believed that he truly had spent a long time searching for them; an Linghu Jinjiu unconsumed by the past and by hatred remained a person worthy of trust.

The three of them and the horse chose a direction and departed.

After finding a secluded spot, Linghu Jinjiu naturally set about healing his wounds, while Fang Junmei and Yang Xiaoman stood side by side in a small grotto, once again at a loss for words.

"……Junior Younger Brother, the belongings of those four fellows."

Yang Xiaoman said, producing four storage bags and handing them to her junior brother.

For fellows who traveled in groups and made a living by plundering, the items in their possession were bound to be numerous. However, Fang Junmei no longer had the heart to examine them, nor could he summon any joy. Including the one belonging to the Dust-Vanquishing old man, he divided them into four portions: one for Yang Xiaoman, one for himself, and two reserved to give to the Luoshi Daolang siblings should the opportunity arise.

Suddenly remembering something, he turned to Lightning, who was crouching nearby, and said, "Lightning, spit out the fruit you swallowed just now."

"So stingy! What kind of damn fruit is that? This young master doesn't even want it!"

Lightning grumbled a few times, then opened its mouth and spat out the nine Longevity-Delaying Fruits. Their surfaces were covered in sticky, disgusting saliva, causing Yang Xiaoman's forehead to crease with lines of exasperation.

Fang Junmei gathered them up in a single motion, paused to think, and wondered how to divide them.

"You and those two can take two each, and you should take three. The greatest credit for this goes to you, and I believe Daolang and Liangyan won't have any objections to this distribution."

Yang Xiaoman said.

Fang Junmei thought for a moment, offered no further refusal, nodded, handed two Longevity-Delaying Fruits to her, and put the rest away for now.

"Junior Younger Brother, Senior Brother Linghu's experiences during his mortal days were truly rather tragic. You shouldn't blame him too harshly. Fortunately, Daolang and their group were not injured, and along the way, their strength has also increased somewhat. Even if they part ways with us, there's no need to worry too much."

Yang Xiaoman gently persuaded him, her voice unusually soft like water.

Fang Junmei nodded, but naturally, he could not let go of the matter so easily.

...

After chatting a bit more, the two entered the grotto to meditate. Since Lightning had already shown its capability, Fang Junmei did not summon it back into the Beast-Sealing Tablet.

"Hey, Fang, where on earth is this place?"

Following closely behind Fang Junmei into the small grotto, Lightning asked.

"Just a secret realm. Your inheritance is so formidable; don't tell me you've never even heard of a secret realm?"

Fang Junmei replied.

"Of course I know it's a secret realm, but this place is nowhere near as simple as you make it sound!"

Lightning retorted, clearly displeased.

Hearing this, Fang Junmei's pupils contracted slightly, a sharp glint flashed through his eyes, and he immediately asked, "What have you discovered? According to our previous explorations, this might be the lingering domain of a lost sect or race. Aside from that, I have no further information to share with you."

Lightning nodded and said, "The spatial power here is somewhat unusual, though extremely faint. Even I can only catch the slightest traces of it."

"How is it unusual?"

Fang Junmei's interest was piqued. Could this be a clue to some grand fortuitous encounter? Whether it was the generation of Daoist Chuo Tuo or cultivators from an even more ancient era, no one could clearly state what kind of supreme encounter existed here, or what the ultimate opportunity was. If Lightning could provide some clues, it would undoubtedly be a great blessing.

"Fluctuations. There is a trace of spatial fluctuation in the air, as if someone in a distant direction is striking against space itself."

For a moment, Lightning clearly struggled to articulate it clearly.

"Which direction is it coming from?"

Fang Junmei asked again, his mind spinning rapidly.

Lightning raised a hoof and pointed in a certain direction.

Following the direction of its hoof, a sharp light appeared in Fang Junmei's eyes. That direction was precisely the general course they had been advancing along—the direction toward the center of this world. In truth, however, none of the figures like Daoist Tianhe could clearly state what existed there.

Because prior to that point, their journeys into the secret realm had always come to an end—either due to injuries, excessively slow progress, or other insurmountable hardships that blocked their path.

Of course, it was also possible that some had reached it, but rather than sharing the secrets of that place with others, they kept them exclusively for the disciples and subordinates they valued most.

"Can you calculate how far away it is from here?"

Fang Junmei pondered before asking again.

Lightning shook its head and said, "I need to travel a considerable distance across this place before I can roughly calculate the distance based on the strength variations of the spatial fluctuations."

Fang Junmei acknowledged this with an "oh" and said, "Starting today, you won't be entering the Beast-Sealing Tablet for the time being."

"Now that you have a use for me, you finally remember to return my freedom."

The white horse glared at him with a side-eye and said, "However, let me warn you first: if calculations show that you don't have enough time to get there, don't even think about riding on my back. Even if I die, I will never agree to that demand."

Its expression was incomparably serious; this steed possessed its own dignity and racial pride.

Fang Junmei forced a bitter smile, nodded in agreement, and dropping the conversation, sat down to cultivate.

...

Several hours later, Fang Junmei, Yang Xiaoman, and Linghu Jinjiu took to the road once more, probing ahead. The scenery looked much the same as when they had first entered the Boundary of Bottomless Light, save for the addition of a white horse.

Yet the silence, awkwardness, and wordless atmosphere—coupled with that peculiar ambiance—were clearly perceptible not just to the three humans, but even to Lightning.