A Pawn's Passage

Two rounds of Grade-A Series Three Dragon Eye Bullet and a single Grade-A Series Two Dragon Eye Bullet could not kill an Immortal, but they were more than enough to injure one.

Chen Shuhua, who had only just restored her peak condition, was immediately wounded by Daoist firepower.

In the past, she was always the one ordering attacks using Daoist firearms. Never had she tasted their true power herself, until today.

Oftentimes, it was only after one left the Daoist Order and stood as an enemy that one would feel the immense, suffocating pressure that they brought.

The Golden Patriarch only obeyed the Imperial Preceptor because the latter had the power to mobilize armies.

This was why Madam Qi always told Qi Xuansu that roaming Jianghu would never bring true status. Only by rising within the Daoist Order could one truly stand above others.

The Golden Patriarch was the foremost figure in Jianghu, revered like a god. However, even he could not compare to a Deputy Grand Master of the Daoist Order.

Since the Golden Patriarch had agreed to the Quanzhen Sect’s request and had received the Taiping Sect’s tacit approval, he naturally would not hold back now. Thus, he struck for the third time.

But this time, it was a fist, not a palm strike.

The fist descended from the heavens. But unlike a Martial Arts Practitioner’s brute force, it used the surrounding elemental energy. As the fist descended, it grew larger until it blotted out the entire night sky.

Chen Shuhua had no choice but to summon the Longevity Stone. Billowing, corrupted dragon qi erupted and spread outward.

The Longevity Stone was considered an immortal object, but it was far too peculiar. It had two ways of being used.

The first way was to use it as a separate external tool, but this would not boost one’s cultivation. Most Immortals typically preferred this method.

Another way was by fusing the stone into oneself to attain true immortality.

Without a doubt, Chen Shuhua had chosen the second method. The Longevity Stone was now inseparable from her cultivation, similar to a permanent Qinghuo Pearl. Thus, it could not be counted as a second immortal object in a fight. It was just as how Qi Xuansu’s Longevity Stone Heart was not counted as an immortal object in battle.

The descending fist tore through layer after layer of dragon qi, but its speed slowed and eventually halted. The fist itself remained pure as glazed crystal, untouched despite the raging dragon qi around it.

Spirit Guard Jia Yin and Spirit Guard Ding Chou each drew their bows, condensing arrows from pure divine power and firing them toward Chen Shuhua.

Such was the advantage of outnumbering the enemy. Chen Shuhua could only block one side, but not the other.

Arrows forged of divine power should not be ignored, even by an Immortal. With most of her focus fixed on the Golden Patriarch’s falling fist, Chen Shuhua could only block one arrow with her immortal sword. The other arrow pierced clean through her chest.

The Taisu Mystical Arts could not remove the suffering of a rebirth, as it was an inevitable step in shedding the mortal shell to form an immortal body. Strictly speaking, it was not harmful but a benefit. Hence why the Taisu Mystical Arts would never remedy it. In Chen Shuhua’s case, the rebirth was simply happening at the worst possible time.

Her “illness” surged again. Worse still, she was showing signs of poisoning.

This was thanks to Qi Xuansu. Before he joined the fray, he coated the Grade-A Series Three Dragon Eye Bullet with poison. Normally, the scorching heat produced by firing would vaporize most toxins instantly. Moreover, only a few poisons could affect an Immortal in the first place.

But Qi Xuansu had a vial of Shebishi Venom gifted by Sage Donghua.

The Daoist Order had designed this toxin specifically to deal with Pseudo-Immortals and Immortals.

Though the dosage was insufficient to kill Chen Shuhua outright, the poison still affected her and weakened her further.

Madam Qi was notorious for attacking wounded foes, so how could she let such a chance slip?

She appeared once more behind Chen Shuhua and fired another Grade-A Series Three Dragon Eye Bullet straight at her.

Chen Shuhua fell into a disadvantage. She had just barely recovered, but she was grievously wounded once more.

She was forced to activate the second stage of Taisu Mystical Arts, walking once again through the four stages of life.

Before their eyes, Chen Shuhua shifted from a little girl to a young woman, then to a middle-aged matron and an old crone before finally transforming back to a teenage girl in her prime.

All injuries and traces of Shebishi Venom were erased by the Taisu Mystical Arts. Aside from the unavoidable rebirth “illness,” Chen Shuhua once again stood restored to her peak.

Just as the Taiyi Supreme Technique grew stronger from its first to fourth stages, the Taisu Mystical Arts’ cleansing abilities also accumulated through four stages.

The first activation of the Taisu Mystical Arts granted brief immunity to all evils, allowing Chen Shuhua to resist spirit possession, like Master Yin did to True Lord Siming. However, since protection against firearms and pure divine power was not included in the first stage, she was still injured.

The second activation, on top of immunity to all evils, allowed protection from all illusion-based spells. However, it could not block fist intention, innate qi, or physical weapons.

The third stage of the Taisu Mystical Arts allowed one’s body to be indestructible, rendering fist intention, innate qi, and all physical weapons ineffective. In this stage, one’s body would become comparable to a First-Tribulation Immortal. However, the effect was short-lived, lasting only about a few minutes.

The fourth stage was akin to a perfected Manly Immortal True Form, allowing any injury to heal instantly, returning one to an unblemished state. But again, it lasted only a few minutes.

Chen Shuhua knew that Great Sage Lan had once used all four stages of the Taiyi Supreme Technique in rapid succession, which caused a backlash so great that he had yet to emerge from seclusion.

Great Sage Lan had been a long-established Immortal in the Longevity stage, yet she was a newbie Immortal. Thus, her mastery of the Five Innate Tais was far inferior to the Great Sage.

If she were to use the Taisu Mystical Arts four times in a row, her fate would be no better than Great Sage Lan’s and likely worse off than him.

Now, besieged on all sides, she would have to face death if her Three Corpses also rioted at this time.

She knew she could not delay any longer.

......

Elsewhere, Wang Jiaohe, who had been watching from the sidelines, suddenly said, “Almost there.”

Wang Danqing, who was still stunned by how fast the situation escalated, blurted instinctively, “Almost what?”

Wang Jiaohe replied, “It’s about time for us to step in.”

Wang Danqing froze. “Why would we jump in now to help Chen Shuhua?”

“Idiot!” Wang Jiaohe finally snapped. “Who said we’re helping Chen Shuhua? We have to help Qi Xuansu. How can I, the Mansion Master, remain unmoved when something of this scale happens in Thanglong Prefecture? How will we cover our tracks later and survive the investigation? When the Golden Tower Council investigates, Great Sage Lan won’t bear the blame because he has already destroyed two immortal-level vessels. As a Virtuous Great Sage, he’ll be forgiven for this oversight. If so, the entire blame will fall on us.”

Wang Danqing finally understood. But he was still worried. “If Chen Shuhua ends up resenting us for this...”

Wang Jiaohe said grimly, “We can’t afford to worry about that now. As long as we keep our Daoist identities intact, we still have hope. Besides, one person dying is better than all of us dying...”

With that, Wang Jiaohe rose into the air and flew toward the battlefield above.

At this moment, there were four Pseudo-Immortals excluding Qi Xuansu—Madam Qi, Spirit Guard Jia Yin, Spirit Guard Ding Chou, and Wang Jiaohe. Adding Golden Patriarch, who was an Immortal, Chen Shuhua should have perished long ago if not for her life-preserving Taisu Mystical Arts.

Once Wang Jiaohe joined the battle, the scales were instantly tipped. Chen Shuhua could only defend herself, unable to counterattack. Under the siege of the group, she was soon grievously injured and on the verge of collapse.

Chen Shuhua was forced to activate the third stage of the Taisu Mystical Arts, which restored her true appearance as a middle-aged woman.

The third stage granted an indestructible body, giving her a physique comparable to a First-Tribulation Immortal. Its only flaw was that it could only last for a few minutes.

In other words, unless struck by an offensive immortal object or something like the Taiyi Supreme Technique, Chen Shuhua was essentially invincible in this short window.

Knowing this was her final chance, Chen Shuhua unleashed the immortal sword without a care, pushing it to its maximum potential.

For a moment, none of the Pseudo-Immortals dared approach her.

To the Golden Patriarch, this was merely a transaction, so there was no need to risk his life. Even if he struck again, he could not restrain Chen Shuhua’s indestructible body.

Thus, Chen Shuhua broke through the encirclement and turned into a streak of sword light, vanishing into the night. The roar of her escaping sword qi echoed for a long time.

After she left, Golden Patriarch’s aura quickly faded as well. As the elder of the Heavenly Court, he had no intention of lingering in Great Sage Lan’s territory.

Qi Xuansu finally went over to Madam Qi. He sighed and lamented, “It’s a pity that Golden Patriarch didn’t use his Five Innate Tais. He might have been able to keep Chen Shuhua from escaping.”

Madam Qi laughed. “It’s not that the old man didn’t want to. His Five Innate Tais happens to be the Taiji Golden Diagram, which is the strongest defensive art, like a turtle shell. Using it would’ve made no difference.”

Just as Qi Xuansu was about to speak, a sudden wave of weakness surged over him. His vision went dark, and he plummeted headfirst downward.