Imperial Cultivation

Chapter 1123: Chapter 1119: Route

Chu Zhiyuan shook his head.

His plans had fallen through; the two Giant Demons would not engage in a fight.

This was understandable.

Giant Demons were akin to top human Venerables, much like how top human Venerables would avoid reckless fighting to prevent mutual destruction.

Standing atop the mountain, Chu Zhiyuan pondered deeply.

At the same time, Insight covered a hundred-mile radius.

He then blinked and appeared at the foot of a mountain, drifting forward.

As he moved, ten Flying Knives formed a cluster of shadows, hunting down Demons everywhere.

But he did not wield the Jade Heaven Sword.

Even when encountering a Pig Demon, he simply quickened his pace to flee, without wielding the Jade Heaven Sword.

Along the way, he passed by a cave where a Giant Bear Demon, two sizes larger than the previous, slept undisturbed.

This confirmed Chu Zhiyuan’s suspicion that the Jade Heaven Sword would alarm Giant Demons.

Ordinary powers, even the Demon Suppressing Saber obliterating Demons with their wails, couldn’t awaken them.

Only the aura of the Jade Heaven Sword could make them feel threatened, hence awakening them.

It seemed that the Qinglian Sea wasn’t so dangerous, as long as the Jade Heaven Sword and Bright Moon Divine Sword weren’t used.

If encountering a Great Demon, one should use the Glazed Glass Blade, using the aura of the Demon Suppressing Divine Tree to kill it.

However, there was still peril; against Giant Demons, it would be difficult for the ladies to escape.

...

When he floated to Qi Qingmei and the others, and saluted, Lu Xiaolu curiously asked, ”Junior Brother, have you advanced again?”

She could clearly sense the change in Chu Zhiyuan.

Chu Zhiyuan nodded with a smile.

Qi Qingmei laughed, ”Congratulations, your rate of advancement is astonishing.”

Chu Zhiyuan felt embarrassed, ”It might be because I’ve slain many Demons; I naturally advanced.”

Qi Qingmei said, ”If you can advance by slaying Demons, that’s all the better.”

Lu Xiaolu asked, ”How many have you slain?”

”Over a hundred,” Chu Zhiyuan smiled, immediately describing the situation inside.

Hearing that within fifty miles there were Giant Demons and Great Demons.

They were shocked.

The density far exceeded their expectation.

If there are really so many Great and Giant Demons, they simply could not clear them out.

Qi Qingmei pondered in silence.

Lu Xiaolu curiously asked, ”Junior Brother, are there really so many giant Demons?”

Chu Zhiyuan said, ”I didn’t expect there to be so many Giant Demons either, if really encountered, besides the Jade Heaven Sword and Bright Moon Divine Sword, everything else is just a scratch.”

”The Bright Moon Divine Sword can’t always be used, and neither can your Jade Heaven Sword,” Lu Xiaolu said. ”Wouldn’t that be a death sentence for us?”

She then curiously asked, ”Can you really detect them?”

Chu Zhiyuan smiled, ”Previously, I couldn’t detect Great Demons, let alone Giant Demons, but now I can sense them in advance.”

Lu Xiaolu turned to Qi Qingmei, ”Then should we bypass them and eliminate the regular Demons first?”

Qi Qingmei gave her a side glance.

Killing other Demons without alarming the Great Demons was not possible.

Lu Xiaolu tilted her head in thought, ”Then should I lure away the Great Demons and Giant Demons?”

This earned another sideways look from Qi Qingmei.

Another bad idea.

Chu Zhiyuan said, ”Senior Sister Lu, the speed of Great Demons and Giant Demons is very fast, and they’re cunning.”

”Junior Brother, if you can escape, can’t I?” Lu Xiaolu retorted.

Chu Zhiyuan shook his head.

”...Okay then, what do we do? We can’t just retreat, can we?” Lu Xiaolu huffed.

She recalled how Chu Zhiyuan’s Qinggong was far superior to hers, and now having advanced, it was surely even stronger.

This kind of progress was hard to adapt to.

Chu Zhiyuan pulled out a piece of paper from his sleeve and handed it to Qi Qingmei.

Qi Qingmei glanced at it and looked up curiously at him.

Chu Zhiyuan said, ”This is a route map I drew. Following this path should avoid the Giant Demons and Great Demons, but there’s still great risk.”

Lu Xiaolu leaned over to look and curiously asked, ”Can it really avoid those Giant Demons?”

As of now, they were not troubled by Great Demons, only feared the Giant Demons.

Even more so when fearing that Giant Demons might awaken during a fight with a Great Demon.

Chu Zhiyuan said, ”Great and Giant Demons each have their own territories. This route narrowly avoids their territories but can only go about a hundred miles forward; beyond that, more exploration is needed.”

”Good idea!” Lu Xiaolu exclaimed excitedly, ”As long as we can avoid those Giant Demons, it’ll be fine.”

Chu Zhiyuan shook his head, ”In my opinion, it’s still best not to enter. This map isn’t foolproof; there are numerous variables and great danger.”

Qi Qingmei handed the map to the others.

After looking it over, they all fell silent, unable to discuss.

After all, they hadn’t seen what was drawn; it was totally foreign, and they had nothing to say.

Chu Zhiyuan stated, ”If we plan to advance, we should first rest and recover. The Jade Heaven Sword needs until tomorrow to be usable again. Senior Sister Qi, your Bright Moon Divine Sword...?”

Qi Qingmei replied, ”The Bright Moon Divine Sword also needs a night to recover.”

Chu Zhiyuan smiled, ”Then let’s explore the path tomorrow first. If everything’s alright, the rest of the Senior Sisters can proceed. How about that?”

”Very well.” Qi Qingmei slowly nodded.

This was the most prudent course of action.

Chu Zhiyuan looked at her, then at the other ladies, gently shaking his head.

Even so, this route was full of dangers.

However, judging by their determination, retreating was out of the question; they were set on advancing.

This was the safest method possible.

——

They found a mountain peak, sat cross-legged, and quietly meditated while waiting.

Chu Zhiyuan went to a nearby forest, leapt onto a branch, and sat cross-legged.

Lu Xiaolu and Qi Qingmei sat together.

As time passed, the sun set, darkness blanketed the setting, then the Bright Moon rose.

Qi Qingmei drew the Bright Moon Divine Sword and laid it across her knees.

A moonbeam descended, landing on the Bright Moon Divine Sword.

This moonbeam perfectly enveloped the Bright Moon Divine Sword, not too big, not too small.

The Bright Moon Divine Sword grew visibly brighter, as if the moonbeam was being absorbed into the sword.

Chu Zhiyuan saw even more.

Under Super Sensing Illumination, the Bright Moon Divine Sword’s sword had nine small vortexes, swiftly extracting moonlight.

This scene resembled Chu Liezhao’s Sky Dragon Whale Absorbing Spirit Qi style.

Just different in scale, but with similar principles.

He withdrew his Insight and began to observe his own Jade Heaven Sword.

The Jade Heaven Sword was also recovering.

This sword had been fully refined, so its operation speed was determined by him.

By consuming spiritual power, he could accelerate its recovery.

Its restoration path was through energy absorption.

Absorbing two kinds of energy: nature’s spiritual energy and the Light of Merit.

Following the Light of Merit, he traced its origin back to the location of Heavenly Sword Peak.

He immediately understood that the Light of Merit originated from the Heavenly Sword.

He attempted to merge his Light of Merit into it and found the recovery speed increased dramatically.

Therefore, he unhesitatingly injected the Light of Merit from the Demon Suppression Divine Palace into the sword.

Come dawn, the Jade Heaven Sword had fully recovered, capable of three strikes.

The Bright Moon Divine Sword regained its lustrous state, completely concealing its aura.

As the morning sun rose, casting its Golden Light.

Chu Zhiyuan floated down from the branch, approaching Qi Qingmei.

Qi Qingmei opened her bright eyes, sheathed her sword, and stood gracefully. ”Let’s go.”

She turned to look at Lu Xiaolu and the others, ”You all conserve your strength and remain vigilant of the surroundings.”

”Yes,” the ladies responded solemnly.

Qi Qingmei looked at Lu Xiaolu.

Lu Xiaolu took out a silver tube from her sleeve, smiling, ”If there’s any danger, I’ll send a signal immediately.”

Qi Qingmei nodded in satisfaction and turned to Chu Zhiyuan, ”Let’s go.”

Chu Zhiyuan nodded with a smile, saluted the ladies with a clasped hand, and floated away with Qi Qingmei.

Qi Qingmei took out the map, comparing it as they sped along.

After ten miles, Chu Zhiyuan pointed to the left, ”There’s a Great Demon over there, a Wolf Demon.”

Qi Qingmei looked to the left and whispered, ”Will it come over?”

Chu Zhiyuan shook his head, ”It’s resting and has no intention of coming over.”

Qi Qingmei asked, ”Can you sense it so clearly now?”

Chu Zhiyuan smiled, ”After my spiritual power increased, my sensing ability improved a lot.”

”That’s incredibly important,” Qi Qingmei said.

The terror of Great Demons lay in their ability to conceal their presence. Sensing Great Demons was the most crucial step in dealing with them.

Being able to sense Great Demons reduced their threat from ten parts to six.