Chapter 89

Amu bid farewell to Han Bingyi and others, and rushed straight back to the small courtyard at the back of the mountain.

The demonic aura on his body gradually subsided. This time, the battle was different from the one with Yang Yun. Using the black vine did not injure Amu at all. Instead, he felt that either the Ten Thousand Demons Transforming Immortal Technique had absorbed some of Han Bingyi's cultivation power, or the effect of the Wasteland Demon Scripture had made the demonic qi in his dantian surge, making him feel incredibly full, even to the point where he might break through again.

At this moment, in the small courtyard at the back of the mountain, Li Shui was meditating. This courtyard was rarely visited by people, so it was abnormally quiet.

"Amu, you're back!" As soon as Amu landed, Li Shui opened his eyes. "How did it go? What did White Senior say?"

Amu recounted everything that happened with White Yifeng to Li Shui.

When Li Shui heard that White Yifeng wanted Amu to kill Han Zixiang and even gave him the Spirit-Extinguishing Silver Thunder, he was greatly surprised.

"I didn't expect that Han Zixiang was actually involved in the assassination attempt on you. It seems that the matter with Han Zixiang is far more complicated than just Liruo! His target is likely still you!"

"Exactly! So, Senior Brother Li Shui, we must be extra cautious on the arena three days from now. He invited us to fight together, which must be a plot. Moreover, White Senior's words hinted that something significant might happen in the Northern Cold Sect. On the life-and-death stage, we don't need to hold back; we should adapt as the situation changes. I think no matter how many calculations he makes, he won't expect you to have the ability to fight him!"

"Um!" Li Shui nodded, a killing intent flashing in his eyes. "If Han Zixiang wants to kill you, he will surely die!"

"Senior Brother Li Shui, look at this!" At this moment, Amu took out the Cold Moon Divine Sword from the Heaven-Earth如意 Bracelet, its light shining brilliantly, captivating the eyes.

"Is this a spirit treasure?" Li Shui did not recognize the Cold Moon Divine Sword but made a judgment based on his feelings.

"Exactly! A high-grade spirit treasure, the Cold Moon Divine Sword!" Amu smiled and said.

"Cold Moon Divine Sword? Isn't that Han Bingyi's most precious treasure?" Li Shui was somewhat surprised. Most cultivators valued their magical treasures as much as their lives. How could Amu have Han Bingyi's beloved item in his hands?

"Your seed hasn't bloomed, and you don't have a suitable magical treasure! Senior Sister Han specially lent this sword to you!" Amu did not mention the battle he had with Han Bingyi.

"Oh?" Li Shui naturally understood the implications and said with a smile, "Amu, since you have such a favor, I won't be polite!"

Li Shui took the Cold Moon Divine Sword, and with a slight release of his cultivation power, a sword beam over ten feet long appeared, scattering snowflakes.

"High-grade spirit treasure, well-deserved!" Li Shui praised. With the Cold Moon Divine Sword, Li Shui's strength was greatly enhanced, and he could now use many higher-level techniques, raising his combat power to a new level.

Although Li Shui's seed had not bloomed, the problem of his magical treasure was now basically solved.

The next three days were very peaceful. For three days, Amu and Li Shui stayed indoors, focusing on their cultivation. Although both were rapid cultivators, neither of them broke through in these three days. After all, one needed to break through the initial cultivation stage, and the other needed to break through the initial stage of the fixed cultivation realm, both of which were very difficult bottlenecks. Moreover, such breakthroughs often happened in a moment and could not be forced.

That night, after their cultivation, the two brothers rested for a while. Li Shui took the seed pot in his hand and cast a spell to water it. The flower had sprouted on the first night, but its growth was extremely slow. It was now only about three inches tall, and the most noticeable change was that the sprout was becoming increasingly radiant, but there was no significant progress.

"Ah!" Li Shui shook his head, realizing that this miraculous seed would not be of much help on the life-and-death stage.

"It's fine! Senior Brother Li Shui, Grandmother Qianye said, 'The ancient holy lotus blooms with a single thought.' Your lotus will likely bloom in a moment."

Hearing Amu's words, Li Shui neither confirmed nor denied them, and could only wait patiently.

The night passed quietly, and it was already the second day.

The Northern Cold Sect's minor examination took place once a year at the Falling Cloud Cliff. The minor examination was for selecting cultivation children whose root cultivation was already formed. According to the Northern Cold Sect's rules, this selection was mutual. That is, each lineage could choose disciples, and disciples could choose lineages. Both parties had to agree for the disciples to officially join the lineages.

Among the eight lineages of the Northern Cold Sect, the most sought-after were naturally the three peaks of Tongtian, Wangnan, and Luorui. However, these three lineages had strict selection criteria, and not all who wanted to join could. The remaining caves would then make their selections. Occasionally, some disciples would be so determined to join a particular lineage that they would try again the following year, and some lineages would have no disciples to take. Female disciples, on the other hand, almost always joined the Tianzi Peak, with a few joining the Zixue Cave.

Amu and Li Shui flew to the Falling Cloud Cliff on the Heavenly Profound Flying Disc, neither too fast nor too slow. Today, they were not participating in the selection but were there to kill.

By this time, it was past the hour of Chen, and hundreds of white-robed cultivation children stood at the base of the Falling Cloud Cliff, all of whom were participating in this minor examination. The Northern Cold Sect had over ten thousand cultivation children, but only two to three hundred could participate in the minor examination each year.

In addition to these hundreds of cultivation children, the mountains and the air around the Falling Cloud Cliff were filled with blue and purple-robed cultivators, numbering in the thousands.

Actually, the Northern Cold Sect's minor examination was not a major event. According to past practices, spirit realm cultivators generally did not appear, and even someone like Iron Cloud would not personally attend. Each lineage usually sent one or two mid-stage fixed cultivation cultivators to make the selections. Only if a cultivator with a seventh-grade or higher immortal root appeared would it attract the attention of spirit realm cultivators.

However, as soon as Amu and Li Shui appeared, they caused a stir.

"Amu, Li Shui?" Many of the white-robed cultivation children at the base of the Falling Cloud Cliff recognized them.

"Without an immortal root, can't they participate in the minor examination?"

"I heard Li Shui comes every year!"

"Amu is already a named disciple of the sect leader. Whether he comes or not doesn't matter much! He's already part of the Tongtian Peak."

"Stop staring. They're here for their own reasons. What does it have to do with us?"

"Are you guys blind? Haven't you heard that Amu is going to challenge Han Zixiang on the life-and-death stage today?"

"Who is Han Zixiang?"

"Not very clear, but he's definitely a formidable figure! They call him the Zixue Demon!"

Compared to ordinary initial and fixed cultivation cultivators, these cultivation children were just beginning to form their immortal roots and had not yet developed any arrogance. They were not very familiar with the Northern Cold Sect, so they discussed Amu and Li Shui quite politely, and many were even envious of Amu's achievements.

However, the high-stage initial and fixed cultivation cultivators standing around the Falling Cloud Cliff looked at Amu with different eyes.

"Challenging a high-stage fixed cultivation? Humph! Truly ignorant of the vastness of heaven and earth!"

"I once saw Senior Brother Han's might. I believe he is the best among the younger generation of the Northern Cold Sect. Even Senior Brother Mei from the Wangnan Peak and Senior Sister Han from the Tongtian Peak might not match him!"

"Not necessarily! But killing Amu should be effortless!"

"Don't speculate. Yang Feng and Yang Yun are cautionary tales. I see that Amu is full of killing intent. He cannot be judged by ordinary standards! Hasn't he already brought enough surprises to the Northern Cold Sect?"

Among these people, there were also some steady and insightful individuals. The words of a mid-stage fixed cultivation middle-aged cultivator calmed many of the discussions.

In front of the white-robed cultivation children at the base of the Falling Cloud Cliff, there were also many initial cultivation disciples. They were mostly dispatched by the lineages to maintain order at the event, including Deng Yan, Zhao Xian, and Li Tong.

"Hehe!" Upon seeing Amu and Li Shui, the three of them exchanged glances and smiled. "The ones who came to die are here!"

Deng Yan was the first to step forward and said to Amu and Li Shui, "What? No immortal root, and you still want to participate in the minor examination?"

"I have already joined the sect leader's disciples. Do I still need to participate in the minor examination? I should be exempted!" Amu smiled and asked Deng Yan.

Hearing this, Deng Yan looked back at Zhao Xian and Li Tong, then unexpectedly laughed, "Ha ha! Amu, I have some good news for you. My master emerged from seclusion last night, a spirit realm cultivator!"

"Oh?" Amu was inwardly moved. Deng Yan's master really chose a good time to emerge from seclusion, but he still smiled and said, "That's great! It's time for your master to teach you properly, so you don't always get beaten and run away!"

"Humph! Amu, I wonder how long you can remain arrogant! I'm afraid you won't be able to leave the life-and-death stage alive today!" Deng Yan, with a look of disdain, turned and left, and Zhao Xian and Li Tong behind him did not say a word, only giving Amu and Li Shui a sinister smile.

Amu coldly laughed and ignored them. Perhaps in their eyes, Amu was already a dead man.

At this moment, there was a sudden commotion in the crowd.

Look! The Zixue Demon, Han Zixiang, is here!

Amu and Li Shui also looked up. In the air, seven cultivators flew from the direction of the Zixue Cave. The leader wore a green robe, held a folding fan, and had a soft and gentle demeanor. It was the Zixue Demon, Han Zixiang.

Behind him, six cultivators were all dressed in purple robes. They were fixed cultivation guards, all mid-stage fixed cultivation. It was worth noting that mid-stage fixed cultivation cultivators were not common. Among the four caves, the Wanling Cave and the Tiancang Cave combined had only a dozen or so fixed cultivation cultivators, and today Han Zixiang alone brought six mid-stage fixed cultivation cultivators, demonstrating the strength of the Zixue Cave.

One person's entrance, accompanied by six mid-stage fixed cultivation guards, was a formidable presence.

"That's the legendary Han Zixiang!"

"The Zixue Demon, who has been in seclusion for fifteen years, is indeed extraordinary."

"Yes! He seems even stronger than before, but more soft and gentle!"

"A genius of a thousand years!"

Han Zixiang smiled and looked around, with a somewhat lonely air, as if no one could match him. Finally, his gaze fell on Amu and Li Shui, and he approached them.

"You two are early! Are you eager to go? It's not too late to regret!" Han Zixiang said with a sinister smile, his tone neither cold nor warm.

"Mutual! Mutual!" Amu looked at Han Zixiang's followers and smiled, "Senior Brother Han brought quite a few people! Did you prepare the body collectors already?"

"Hehe!" Han Zixiang looked at Amu and coldly laughed, "They are prepared, but who will be collected is uncertain! After the minor examination, we'll meet on the life-and-death stage!"

Han Zixiang then looked at Li Shui, "I doubt you'll have the chance to see me and Liruo enter the bridal chamber. What a pity!"

With that, Han Zixiang turned and a disgusting fragrance spread, and he led the six fixed cultivation cultivators to another direction of the arena.

"You won't have the chance to see it, because you will surely die today!" Li Shui looked at Han Zixiang's back, his eyes emitting a cold killing intent.

The people from the Tianzi Peak have arrived! Someone shouted.

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