The milky fish soup was seething in the copper tripod, with translucent oil floating in it, reflecting the sunlight from the sky and condensing into a tiny golden dragon.
Click.
A pair of wooden chopsticks reached into the bronze tripod, minced the golden dragon, then picked up a piece of fat and tender fish meat and put it into the mouth. Then the person holding the chopsticks leaned back in the chair, looking quite relaxed.
"Why are you here?" he asked.
"Didn't you ask me to come?" Lu Qingshan sat down opposite Chu Mushen very naturally, pulled out a pair of chopsticks from the wooden tube on the table, then reached into the bronze tripod, picked up a piece of fish and put it into his mouth.
The fish meat melts in your mouth, with a wave of heat flowing throughout the body.
Lu Qingshan narrowed his eyes slightly, revealing the same leisurely attitude as Chu Mushen.
It is clearly just a piece of fish meat, but it contains everything, as if there are flowers, plants, fish, birds, wind, frost, rain, snow, the sizzling sound in the noodle shop, and the sizzling steam rising from the bun stall.
This is the breath of life.
It is not simple, nor does it have the so-called fairy air, but it is precisely because of this down-to-earthness that it appears particularly vivid.
People need this kind of freshness.
Live fish, the name of the fish in the cauldron, is vivid and descriptive.
"When did I..." Chu Mushen saw Lu Qingshan put the chopsticks into the cauldron again, and said subconsciously, but he stopped halfway through the words.
He finally remembered something.
So he released his spiritual sense and probed into Lu Qingshan.
Lu Qingshan did not conceal his own breath.
Thus, his cultivation was fully revealed.
"Eight Tribulations Realm?"
When Lu Qingshan left Tianhe City, he specifically told Lu Qingshan that when he was ready to be promoted to the Nine Tribulations Realm, he would come to Tianhe City to endure the nine-nine heavenly tribulations.
But Chu Mushen never expected that Lu Qingshan would come so soon.
If he remembered correctly, this guy seemed to be only in the fifth calamity realm when he left?
"This guy..." Chu Mushen couldn't help but mutter.
Even for someone like him who is already an unparalleled genius, he would feel a sense of unreality when he thought about Lu Qingshan's progress in cultivation, let alone others?
"I'm here now , what's next?" Lu Qingshan asked.
"Wait." Chu Mushen replied.
"What are you waiting for?" Lu Qingshan asked again.
"Waiting for someone." Chu Mushen answered again.
"Who are you waiting for?" Lu Qingshan asked again.
"Who else could it be?" After saying this, Chu Mushen finally put down his chopsticks and looked behind Lu Qingshan.
"It's me." A tall figure came quietly.
Lu Qingshan turned his head and looked.
The contemporary master of Tianji Temple is Qi Butian.
Qi Butian also looked at Lu Qingshan and said with a little worry: "As expected of you, you are Sect Master Lu, who is known as the one with unparalleled talent in cultivation. Not only is your cultivation progressing by leaps and bounds, but even this head of white hair is catching up with me. You are better than me."
"Greetings, Master Qi." Lu Qingshan just laughed off Qi Butian's teasing. "As the saying goes, as long as the green mountains remain, there will be no shortage of firewood."
"That makes sense." Qi Butian gave a thumbs up and praised.
His eyes silently glowed with golden light, and the golden light was filled with starlight.
Therefore, at this moment, Lu Qingshan in Qi Butian's eyes was very different from that in the eyes of others.
Now, in his eyes, Lu Qingshan's body was filled with purple-gold energy, with a dragon hanging from his head, and a pair of eyes looked at him half-opened, as if he was taking a nap and had not yet woken up.
This is clearly a sign of one's luck having reached an extremely high level.
"very good."
"Everything is ready, only the east wind is missing." Qi Butian nodded to Chu Mushen.
Lu Qingshan put down his chopsticks, spread his hands, and said helplessly: "How come you two, big shots, still have the bad habit of playing dumb with the parties involved?"
"You young people are too impatient. As old people like us who have lived for thousands of years, we naturally have to speak more slowly." Qi Butian said slowly.
"My hair is whiter than yours," Lu Qingshan said affirmatively.
Ever since the massive invasion of the Soldier Demon Clan, he has been in a state of extreme tension and anxiety.
It was not until he met Chu Mushen and Qi Butian, two of the most magical cultivators of the time, that Lu Qingshan finally felt relaxed and safe, and even had the leisure to "compete" with Qi Butian.
Whether it was the explanation from Shenlan, Chu Mushen's instructions, or his inspiration, they were all reminding him that the nine-nine heavenly tribulations he was about to face were extraordinary and had never appeared in this world before.
"Yes, if you continue like this, you might die before me." Qi Butian said seriously.
Lu Qingshan had no choice but to surrender.
Qi Butian then said seriously: "The Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulations are absolutely different from other heavenly tribulations."
"I know."
"No, you don't know." Qi Butian asserted.
"The so-called thunderbolt is just a type of calamity, a normal form of heavenly calamity."
"But in fact, there are many forms of robbery, but for it," Qi Butian looked up at the sky above his head, "this is the most labor-saving and cost-effective way."
“But you are different, and the Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation is also different, so this time, it will stop at nothing to stop you.”
"It will use any means possible," Qi Butian pointed at the boiling fish soup in the copper cauldron. "It will treat you like a fish and use any possible means to cook you in exchange for the most delicious taste."
“It could be an enemy from outside, it could be an enemy from within, or it could even be an enemy you wouldn’t expect.”
Lu Qingshan looked at the fish soup that was bubbling and condensed like a gel, and he seemed to see the dying struggle of a fish.
"So, we will help you eliminate any possible external factors that may affect you, leaving it helpless and unable to rely on the thunder to test you."
"As for the thunderbolt, we can't help you with anything."
"The thunder can't do anything to me. Don't say it's ninety-nine, ninety-nine are all the same." Lu Qingshan was very calm.
"That's good."
"First of all, the place where the tribulation is passed cannot be in Cangqiongtian, because Cangqiongtian is its home ground. Fighting at home always has some conveniences, and it may even violate certain rules." Qi Butian explained.
Lu Qingshan expressed his understanding, such as the famous black whistle in a certain Korean country.
"This is also the purpose of having you come to Tianhe City when you are going through the tribulation."
"What do you mean?" Lu Qingshan already understood what Qi Butian meant and looked at the vast sea outside Tianhe City.
"Yes, you are right. We will survive the tribulation in Tianhe Sea."
Indeed, if the place to undergo the tribulation is not chosen in the sky, where else can it be except on the Tianhe Sea, which serves as the boundary sea?
You can't go through the ninety-nine heavenly tribulations in the abyss like you did the seventy-nine heavenly tribulations, right?
"As for the specific place for you to cross the tribulation, I have already chosen it for you. It is a place of absolute beauty that I discovered a long time ago in the Tianhe Sea. It can isolate all the mysteries of heaven and destiny. Even if your nine-nine heavenly tribulations are magnificent, not a single sound will be leaked to the outside world."
"At present, only he and I know this location. When the time comes, he will personally take you to that desolate place." Qi Butian pointed at Chu Mushen.
"At the same time, he will protect you. Even if something unexpected happens, he will be able to clear it up for you."
…
A dim light.
The bronze base, the black iron lamp body, and the ghostly fire emitting black light flickered and swayed.
Among the will-o'-the-wisp fire, there were seven star-like spots of light shining brightly.
In front of the ancient lamp, the incarnation of Luohou, who had four eyes and four arms, a dark complexion and was extremely ugly, stood quietly, with a mysterious Taoist seal condensed in his hands. All four eyes were staring at the ancient lamp intently, as if there was some big secret in it.
After a long time, the ancient lamp went out.
In the barracks in the Beimang royal city, all six Beimang masters are present.
"You're here," Xie Zun looked at Luo Hou who opened the door and walked in, and greeted him casually, "King Luo Hou, don't worry. In another half a month, my Beimang tribe will be able to officially send troops to Tianhe City."
"I'm not in a hurry," Luo Hou shook his head, sat down on an empty chair, and stroked the black chess piece in his hand. "I came here today because I have important news to tell you."
"Important news?" Xie Zun raised his eyebrows. If Luohou called it important, it certainly couldn't be a joke.
"Lu Qingshan has to go through nine-nine heavenly tribulations, and the god Chu Mu will personally protect him." Luohou did not bother to be mysterious and went straight to the point.
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone held their breath, not knowing what to say for a moment.
At this moment, everyone in the field looked strange, their hearts could not calm down, and their expressions were different.
“Hehe, it’s incredible. He’s so young, yet he’s about to impact the unprecedented Nine Tribulations Realm. He’s so anxious. Is he really ready? I’m afraid he doesn’t have enough foundation and is likely to fail.” Yuan Zun smiled, and it was unclear whether it was a mockery or a sincere compliment.
They knew in their hearts that Lu Qingshan had to make this choice because of the pressure they put on him.
The second battle between Taoism and Demons was about to break out, and the young sect leader was running out of time.
"He has encountered too many impossible things along the way. In my opinion, there is a high probability that he will succeed in overcoming the tribulation this time." Xie Zun, who had met Lu Qingshan before, said.
It was after the fight with Lu Qingshan that he understood more clearly the complexity of this young sect leader.
“This person is indeed cruel and terrifying. He is actually trying to reach the Ninth Tribulation Realm at this age. I have never seen or heard of a cultivator who makes such rapid progress in cultivation before.” Hong Zun sighed, giving a very fair evaluation.
Everyone present was a top demon lord, but after hearing the news from Luohou, they were still stunned, shocked and astonished.
Is there really a cultivator who can reach this level at the age of less than fifty?
“If Lu Qingshan succeeds in breaking through the barrier, it will mean that the human race is likely to have an unprecedented Nine Tribulations Sword Immortal in the future. By then, he will join forces with Chu Mushen. A Half-Ancestor Sword Immortal and a Nine Tribulations Sword Immortal will be enough to be the twin pillars of the human race, and may even break the existing situation.” Yu Zun's face was extremely ugly, and he had a longer-term vision.
This is not an unfounded concern.
Because, Lu Qingshan, who has not yet achieved the status of a sword immortal, can kill two top demon lords, Ming Zun and Luo Qiantuo. What will it be like if he achieves the status of a sword immortal at the Nine Tribulations Realm?
Perhaps one doesn't even need to become a sword immortal. Just reaching the ninth calamity realm is enough to look down upon the crowd.
This is unimaginable.
“I don’t care whether he can succeed in breaking through the barrier or not. Even if he succeeds, he is just a sword cultivator in the Ninth Tribulation Realm. To me, he is not worth mentioning.” Luo Hou looked at everyone, “What I care about is that Lu Qingshan’s breakthrough this time is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us demons.”
"Hmm? What does this mean?" Xie Zun asked with a frown.
Luo Hou played with the black chess piece in his hand, "Chu Mushen, the human race's Dinghai Shenzhen, a half-ancestor, the strongest among the Cangqiongtian cultivators. Even if the six of you were added together, you could only barely hold him back."
"As long as this Tianhe Sword Immortal is still alive, the battle between Taoism and Demonism will never be won."
"If he wants to win this battle between Taoism and Demonism, he must die."
"That's easy to say. Even if the six of us join forces, we are no match for the Tianhe Sword Immortal who has the cultivation level of a semi-ancestor. How can we kill him?"
"If six people are not enough, then we can add more people," Luo Hou's eyes flashed with a gleam of light, "In the name of Beimang and the Asura tribe, invite other holy demon tribes to join forces with us to suppress and kill Tianhe Sword Immortal."
"Six people are not enough, but with me and the other demon lords of the Holy Demon Clan, it will definitely be enough."
Upon hearing this, the six Northern Mang Demon Lords all began to ponder the feasibility of this proposal and the possible troubles that might be encountered in its implementation.
"Then Chu Mushen is not a fool. Seeing that there are so many of us, he could have stayed in Tianhe City and attacked us with his back to the Tianhe formation."
"With the Tianhe Sword Immortal and the Tianhe Formation, what can we do even if all the races join forces?" Yuan Zun discovered the loophole and questioned.
"The place where Lu Qingshan breaks through is in Tianhe Sea." Luohou did not take Yuan Zun's words seriously, but said slowly.
One word breaks all doubts.
"Is the information reliable? How do you know all this?" Yuan Zun stood up from his seat in surprise and exclaimed.
Such important news, even among the human race, there are probably no more than a handful of people who know about it, so where did Luohou get the news from?
Luohou just played with the chess piece in his hand expressionlessly and did not answer.
…
In the sky, in the middle spiritual realm, there is a hidden cold lake that is bottomless.
The mirror-like surface of the water suddenly began to ripple in circles, which then expanded into long-lasting whirlpools, as if something terrifying was about to break out of the lake.
A moment later.
There really was something breaking through the water.
The dragon raises its head!
It stared into the distance.
The eyes contain the sun and the moon, and are shining with golden colors.
"Finally, finally...it's about to begin."
Although the start time was much earlier than it expected, it still had a feeling of "I finally waited for you".
After so many years of planting seeds, it is finally time to harvest the fruits.
A small clue can lead to a great discovery.