Xiao An had been very prepared. Pointing at her hundred treasures pouch, the corpse of a night roamer flew out and merged with the Samādhi Flames of White Bone. It was the matriarch of the Bat Shadow clan that Li Qingshan had killed with a single strike, Ye Laixiang.
The fear when she was killed was frozen on her face. As the Samādhi Flames of White Bone roasted her, her face twisted very soon, becoming part of it. The flames burned even more vigorously, only leaving behind a set of white bones, which then became a droplet of bone fluid that merged with the Blood Sea Banner.
Even more corpses followed, flying into the Samādhi Flames of White Bone one by one.
Just like this, she went through who knew how many corpses in who knew how long.
A thick, curved array of bones ran through the entire Blood Sea Banner like a backbone, with over a dozen white bones that were slightly more slender propping up the Blood Sea Banner like ribs. At the top of the spine was a vicious skull that bit down on the Blood Sea Banner with its jaws lined with sharp teeth.
At first glance, it seemed like the skeletal structure of half a person, with their arms spread open and ribs parted, having merged completely with the Blood Sea Banner. The spine extended downwards into Xiao An’s hand.
The flagpole was complete, but something still seemed to be missing.
The little finger on Xiao An’s right hand suddenly snapped off. Blood, flesh, and bone all merged into the Blood Sea Banner. The flagpole immediately became coated with a translucent cover, and the redness of the banner became even brighter.
The roaring Samādhi Flames of White Bone surged into the skull on the top of the Blood Sea Banner violently. Its two eye sockets suddenly lit up with flames.
Xiao An waved her hand again, spitting out a mist-like figure. It was Bloodshadow’s wailing soul. It sank into the surging sea of blood and immediately merged with it.
The Blood Sea Banner was complete!
Xiao An stowed the Blood Sea Banner away and stepped out of the dwelling. She took out the Glazed Mirror of Invisibility and concealed herself before taking off in the direction of Moon Court lake.
The curtain of night descended over Moon Court lake. The fishermen in the lake all reeled in their nets, returning home.
Their lives had not been affected, not even in the slightest. Instead, they discovered that ever since the god of Moon Court lake arrived, the lake had been much more peaceful.
The aquatic monsters that originally made trouble had all vanished. They all developed more and more respect towards the god of Moon Court lake. Many of the fishermen had already begun worshipping the lake god on their boats.
As for the water dwelling of Moon Court in the centre of the lake, it all seemed like they had awakened from a dream.
Night roamers emerged from their residences in groups of threes and twos, both men and women getting along and talking at ease. They could raise their heads to look at the stars from time to time, and their faces would be filled with amazement and enchantment.
The island had an extremely vast area, so housing several tens of thousand night roamers was no trouble at all. After completing the unification, Ye Liusu had been constantly migrating night roamers over.
The shade of death that once enveloped the entire race no longer existed. Ye Liusu established law and order here. They no longer had to cling onto their weapons firmly to protect themselves from the possibility of assassinations and sneak attacks at any time.
“Compared to where I grew up, this place is basically like a dream!”
Two figures stood in a delicate pavilion built into the side of a mountain. As Ye Liubo watched a group of kids have fun, she said to Ye Liusu beside her, “Sister, your dream has finally come true.”
The corner of Ye Liusu’s lips curled slightly, only to be drowned out by worry immediately. She glanced back at the centre of the island. There was a small inner lake there, which was connected to Moon Court lake underneath.
The surroundings of the small lake was a forbidden zone that no night roamers could set foot in. Even she would not set foot in there unless something urgent came up, as that was where Li Qingshan cultivated.
“Are you worried about master? Don’t worry, master will never lose!” Ye Liubo said with complete confidence.
“You, oh you!” Ye Liusu sighed with a smile. She patted Ye Liubo’s head. “What a great pet of his!”
Ye Liubo refused to play along. “Even you call me that too, sister!”
That’s because I’m being jealous of you! Ye Liusu sighed inside. She was able to entrust everything to him, to believe in him with everything she had, without anything to worry for at all. Yet, Ye Liusu had many more needs, which were difficult to realise like her dream.
At the end of the day, it was still because of the difference in their backgrounds. Ye Liusu’s background was noble and prosperous. She possessed extraordinary talent, which was why she developed dreams that regular night roamers did not have, which was why she could come into contact with human literature, which was why she developed a concept of love that resembled human females.
Ye Liubo, on the other hand, was essentially born in the slums of Blacklustre city. She had climbed her way out of there herself, so her thoughts were much simpler and more realistic. She was already satisfied with the affection she received.
Ye Liusu’s expression suddenly stiffened. She sensed someone touch the formation. Raising her head, she saw a white blur passing through the formation before sailing through the air, rushing past the pavilion and landing in the small lake in the centre of the island.
It moved so quickly that even Ye Liusu had failed to make out what it was. And, it did not give off the slightest aura either, so she could not even tell whether it was a human or a daemon.
Most of the night roamers on the island failed to sense a single thing.
The central control of the formation was obviously in Li Qingshan’s possession, while Ye Liusu and Ye Liubo had been granted partial control. Any other humans or daemons could not pass through the formation so easily.
“In other words, he let in the white figure!”
Ye Liusu leapt off the pavilion. Her elegant, nimble movements made her seem like a leaping carp. She merged with the darkness, leaving behind ripples of black.
Ye Liubo called out, “Sister, didn’t master say that no one should disturb him?”
Ye Liusu completely ignored her. She could not control her desire to learn everything about him.
“And I had thought you wouldn’t make it in time!”
Li Qingshan sat in the centre of the lake with the Watermirror disc in his lap. Suddenly, he felt a response from the formation, and he became slightly delighted. In the blink of an eye, Xiao An had arrived before him. She had returned to her skeletal form, but she could now switch between the forms of great beauty and white bone freely. There was no longer an issue of having to refine her body again.
Xiao An said nothing. She simply sat in his arms, fiddling around with the tiny Blood Sea Banner in her hand like she was showing off.
How could she not come? Last time when he faced death, she was unable to be by his side, so she had been filled with regret. Didn’t she cultivate all this time just so she could remain by his side and assist him in reaching beyond the Nine Heavens? Otherwise, what was the meaning of living?
The moment he saw Xiao An, the omen of warning from the spirit turtle’s daemon core in Li Qingshan’s body immediately weakened. More importantly, his heart settled down.
From the beginning to now, who knew how many times they had confronted death together. As long as she was watching over him, he was confident he could escape whatever danger he faced.
As a result, when Ye Liusu arrived on the edge of the lake, she saw the flawlessly handsome Northmoon embracing a translucent skeleton in his arms. He revealed comfort and peace she had never seen before, and tender feelings that could not be described with words filled his eyes. This was purely a gaze without any distracting thoughts.
Reflected in the calm waters, this formed a rather eerie sight that gave off a strange atmosphere.
Ye Liusu could not help but develop a feeling that there was nothing in the world that he would cherish more than the skeleton in his arms, and there was no one who could get between them.
“Liusu, why have you come here?”
Li Qingshan raised his head and peered through the bushes along the edge of the lake.
“Ah, nothing. I was just worried for you, master, so I came to take a look.”
Ye Liusu emerged from the darkness. The skeleton in his arms turned its head. Its eye sockets burned with pale-white flames that were almost transparent, glancing past her gently.
She shivered inside, immediately lowering her head. She was not a little girl who had not seen the darkness of the world. Who knew how many brutal and horrific sights of the underground world she had witnessed a long time ago already, but the moment her eyes met with the small skeleton’s, indescribable terror assaulted her heart. But at the same time, she happened to feel something else, an eerie feeling of holiness.
“Croak, croak! Vice leader!”
Vice leader? Ye Liusu suddenly remembered. Wasn’t that the tiny skeleton that had accompanied him the first time he had appeared underground? It was strange that she had not thought of this immediately.
“It’s time!”
Li Qingshan said that as he stood up and strode across the calm lake surface. Just like in the past, Xiao An sat on his left shoulder, clinging onto his head with her right arm. This was a rather strange combination, but as he walked, there was also a strange sense of harmony as if it was natural.
“Mind the house. Wait for me to return.”
Li Qingshan smiled. With that, the wings of wind abruptly unfurled behind him, and he vanished from where he was in an instant.
Only a while later did wild gusts of wind arrive, blowing Ye Liusu’s long hair in the air. Looking over, he was already nowhere to be seen.
“Sister, just what was that?” Ye Liubo hurried over, also having spotted Xiao An on Li Qingshan’s shoulder.
“I don’t know either. You should be asking who that is. I only know that it seems to be as important to him as he is to you.” Ye Liusu shook her head gently as her feelings became mixed.
Li Qingshan did not take off. Instead, he moved like a zigzag, making a few turns around the structures and people in his way before plunging into Moon Court lake, heading towards the hidden river.
His control over the wings of wind had strengthened yet again. Part of it was because he had gradually grown accustomed to the fourth layer of the tiger demon’s power, but the most important part was the deepening of his comprehension of the Spirit Turtle Transformation. As his thoughts grew more intricate, all of his innate abilities became more intricate when he used them.
The wings of wind that could allow him to accelerate instantly would definitely become even more practical in the future. They were also one of his decisive trump cards to winning this battle, or the greatest ability for his escape.
Moving through the underground river, he made his way to the end along the channel he had used when he visited Cobweb city the first time. The flow turned into a waterfall.
Li Qingshan spotted Lolth at first glance. She currently stood on the top of Cobweb city, on a pointy tower.
Lolth was no longer dressed in her long, red dress that seemed more like an evening dress. Instead, she wore something that resembled a set of black tights, covering every inch of her body. However, it still clearly outlined every bewitching curve of hers. It was perfect.
Li Qingshan admired her figure once again. Is this the trump card she’s spent over half a year preparing for me? She’s just woven a sexy set of tights?
No, that definitely isn’t everything. No matter how powerful the defences of this garment are, it’s impossible for the spirit turtle to feel so threatened.
There must be something else.
