Lighting Lanterns in the Mountains and Seas

Loss of composure!

That's right, it's a loss of composure!

Dao Zhen noticed a hint of loss of composure from the Demon Queen's tone, expressing dissatisfaction and even reaching the point of cursing.

Given the status of this Lady, the curse was quite something, even amounting to a personal attack.

The curse was naturally aimed at Shi Chun, seemingly criticizing Shi Chun for meddling.

Dao Zhen, with his head tilted, had to make an effort to understand the Lady's thoughts and soon somewhat grasped it, as this wasn't the first time Shi Chun had rescued Li Hongjiu; one could say he had repeatedly thwarted their plans.

After skimming through the contents on the Jade Scroll, the dismissive and sarcastic smile on the Demon Queen's lips gradually faded, revealing a look of surprise or something else, and finally said slowly: "A bunch of useless people, even with several teams gathered together, being toyed with by such a minor figure, what a disgrace!"

Dao Zhen: "In hindsight, Mulan Jin indeed has foresight, no wonder he went through great efforts to rescue Shi Chun from Life Prison."

The Demon Queen shook the Jade Scroll in her hand, turned to him, "Li Hongjiu was struck by Demon Dew and isn't dead?"

Dao Zhen slightly bowed, "The Centurion Token's marker on the Mountain River Map hasn't vanished yet; no one has tried to see if removing the Demon Queen would cause the marker to disappear."

The Demon Queen paced in front of the palace gate, making the sound of crushing dried leaves underfoot, while toying with the Jade Scroll and pondering for a moment, then asked: "Why does Shi Chun repeatedly risk his life to save Li Hongjiu? Are their relations truly so good that they'd pledge their lives for each other, or is there something hidden behind the scenes worth Shi Chun's risk? No matter how much he wants to cling to the Yanbao Sect, it shouldn't be worth such reckless desperation."

Dao Zhen: "This is difficult to determine, but a message has already been passed to Niu Qian, and as long as there's an opportunity, Niu Qian will still try to find a way to eliminate Li Hongjiu."

He still had some difficulty truly grasping why this person was intent on putting Li Hongjiu to death; their only connection seemed to be the Book Collection Pavilion, probably that guy somehow offended the Lady.

"Forget it." The Demon Queen weighed the Jade Scroll in her hand and said slowly: "No need to go on and on about such a minor figure; going further makes me look petty. If Li Hongjiu evades the disaster of Demon Dew, I'm curious about how he resolves it. Li Hongjiu's issue is over, don't mention it again, let Niu Qian focus on his own affairs."

"..." Dao Zhen was stunned for a moment, then bowed to accept the order, "Yes, I will relay this immediately."

Once again, the sea stirred waves against the shore, while Li Hongjiu, standing on a reef, had garments fluttering in the wind, his face feeling slightly restored; he had indeed previously exhausted his body too greatly.

Turning back towards the beach where Shi Chun was approaching, he asked, "Why have you come to the sea again?"

Shi Chun knew he might be recalling some unpleasant memories, sighed, and said, "I didn't wish to travel so far either, but this time there are simply too many Heavenly Mirrors, with five of them focused on observation; being in the sea makes it easy, as diving underwater makes us invisible, allowing easy escape."

This reasoning had Li Hongjiu unable to find any fault; though the scene seemed familiar, he couldn't help but give Shi Chun a side glance from head to toe, if not for this guy desperately saving him, he would definitely suspect some ulterior motive.

Without saying anything more, the vast heavens and boundless sea lay in front, shrouded in silence as he stood gazing afar.

Soon, Feng Chi arrived, standing a little behind the two, waiting quietly. Li Hongjiu glanced back, understanding she possibly had some business with Shi Chun, so he turned around and headed back to the newly opened cave to tend to his injuries.

Feng Chi approached Shi Chun and whispered: "The higher-ups are getting impatient, saying you took the money but haven't acted, and not even responding to their messages. They said if you continue like this, don't blame them for turning against you. I can't hold them off any longer. Master, we can't keep delaying; their patience has worn thin, and you're pushing too far."

Shi Chun: "Tell them, me taking their money doesn't justify them sending someone to kill me."

"—" Feng Chi was shocked and somewhat amazed, "Impossible, how could they send someone to kill you?"

Shi Chun tilted his chin towards the cave entrance, "Do you think that captured cripple is just anyone? A Demon Cultivator, even at the Earth Immortal Great Success Realm; before this is clarified, do you think I should easily trust them?"

"A Demon Cultivator at the Earth Immortal Great Success Realm?" Feng Chi, surprised, flashed to verify personally, but upon reaching the cave entrance saw Chu Jingtang and Lao Changtai guarding it, saying that without Shi Chun's consent, no one was allowed to approach the cripple inside.

Ultimately, Shi Chun came over personally to accompany her inside.

At the cave's depths where the cripple lay comatose, Feng Chi immediately used Demon Skill to connect, pressing on the cripple's Dantian position to inspect. Rising afterward with a solemn expression, she found it indeed was a high-level Demon Cultivator.

Despite this, she whispered: "Master, this doesn't prove it's sent by the higher-ups."

Shi Chun: "At least there's no proof it's not from them, tell your higher-ups I need to know the true purpose of this mission."

Feng Chi understood his point, the higher-ups, if wanting to prove the assassin wasn't from them, must first show sincerity indeed!

She immediately nodded and took out the Mother-child Talisman.

Shi Chun added, "You won't reveal our hiding place, will you?"

Feng Chi sighed: "Master, you're overthinking; they did want me to mention it, but I said someone was watching during communication."

While making contact, she didn't avoid Shi Chun, letting him see both the incoming and outgoing messages.

Upon hearing of this matter, they were evidently shocked and immediately denied involvement, saying it wasn't related to them and definitely wasn't their doing, asking Shi Chun not to misunderstand.

This couldn't be something easily explained with words; Shi Chun insisted on disbelief, making the other side powerless and understanding Shi Chun's concerns, anyone encountering such a situation would remain cautious.

Regarding the demanded sincerity from them to reveal the real purpose, they hesitated, saying they need to consider.

Just then, footsteps were heard outside the cave, along with Wu Jinliang greeting the two at the entrance.

Wu Jinliang hadn't come here together before, it was unfeasible to let Huang Yingying meet with this side.

Entering the cave, Wu Jinliang immediately squatted down with a chuckle, scrutinizing the person on the ground.

Shi Chun dismissed Feng Chi, asking, "Is Old Huang settled?"

"Hmm, alright, it's not too far from this island," Wu Jinliang acknowledged, poking at the unconscious person with his finger, asking, "Has he spoken? What's his situation?"

Shi Chun tilted his head, indicating for him to leave first. "I'll interrogate him and let you know," he said.

He was just waiting for Wu to stand guard. He didn't want anyone else to know about him absorbing demonic qi.

Wu Jinliang chuckled, got up, and left.

With no one else in the cave, Shi Chun squatted down to wake Jie Yunzhao.

Their eyes met, and a strong resentment exploded in Jie Yunzhao's eyes, followed by regret and self-mockery. Never in his dreams did he think he'd fall into the hands of such a character.

Understandable, Shi Chun asked, "What's your name? What's your background?"

Jie Yunzhao snorted weakly, "No need to ask. I know I'm not going to survive. Just make it quick."

Shi Chun was pretty easygoing, since the guy said so. He didn't force him, but simply sealed his mouth with an acupoint, then sat beside him cross-legged, pressing one hand on his Dantian and injecting mana, exercising Bath Demon Skill to forcibly absorb his demon essence.

Unable to move or speak, Jie Yunzhao's eyes widened instantly, his eyeballs rolling wildly. There were whimpers from his nose, but it was unclear what he wanted to say.

But Shi Chun paid him no mind, focusing on what he wanted to do.

He absorbed for quite a while before stopping, feeling a bit overfilled and regretfully patted his belly. He thought since his cultivation had reached the Human Immortal Realm, his capacity should have greatly increased. But facing this Earth Immortal Great Success Realm, it seemed he'd need to absorb thirty more times to drain his demon essence.

The problem now is Li Hongjiu's injury hasn't healed yet.

Still, he got up and left, heading straight to the cave where Li Hongjiu was, standing outside and calling, "Brother Jiu."

Inside, Li Hongjiu, meditating cross-legged, responded with a "Hmm, what's up?"

Shi Chun hurriedly entered, took out a medicine bottle, and knelt before him, saying, "Here's some excellent healing medicine; it'll heal faster when taken." He handed it over.

Li Hongjiu took the bottle, slowly examining it, occasionally glancing at the obsequious smile on Shi Chun's face, expressing suspicion, "You sure you don't want anything?"

Shi Chun immediately nodded without hesitation, "Indeed, I do want something, but since your injury isn't healed, I don't know if it's appropriate to mention it."

Li Hongjiu also wanted to know what the guy was up to and chuckled, "If you know it's inappropriate, then don't say it."

Shi Chun laughed awkwardly but didn't leave, instead sighing, "Brother Jiu, it's like this. Didn't I mention last time, when you struck me with the Thunder Sword, I felt an epiphany but felt it was still lacking. So I want to trouble you a bit more. But with your current injury, I wonder if you can still wield the Thunder Sword?"

Li Hongjiu remained silent and stared him down. After a long time, he snorted, "And I was wondering why we're back on the ocean."

Shi Chun quickly denied, "Really not. The feeling suddenly came when we reached the seaside. Cultivators understand that sometimes fleeting inspiration is hard to come by. If you catch it, you catch it. Missed, who knows how long you'll have to wait." Saying this, he got up, nodded, and bowed, saying, "I was too eager. If it doesn't work, we'll wait until Brother Jiu is better."

Saying so, he retreated but kept staring at Li Hongjiu, unwilling to fully leave.

Li Hongjiu felt quite annoyed because not agreeing made him seem ungrateful. He didn't understand what sort of enlightenment Shi Chun was pursuing, having to be struck by lightning.

Seeing Shi Chun retreat until he hit a wall, Li Hongjiu shook his head and stood up, casually saying, "Borrowing the technique doesn't consume much mana."

Shi Chun eagerly followed, continuously thanking, "Thank you, Brother Jiu, thank you Brother Jiu..."

They didn't do it on the island because the noise from gathering the Thunder Sword was too loud. Shi Chun personally controlled the Wind Scale, carrying Li Hongjiu far away before attempting it.

Knowing what to do, the two were well-practiced, so in the distant sky above the ocean, the massive dark clouds gathered again, and lightning flashed.

After a ray that seemed to illuminate the world, Shi Chun flew out from the vortex of mist cheerfully, alone. He promptly handed Li Hongjiu a Mother-child Talisman and ran off, saying he found the feeling and would return to ponder it.

Returning to the island base, he immediately entered the cave holding Jie Yunzhao, quickly sitting beside him, reaching out to again absorb demon essence, fully unleashing and absorbing at full speed. He ignored Jie Yunzhao's rolling eyeballs and intentions to speak, putting aside the interrogation.

After getting full, he immediately flew out of the cave, in quite a hurry, startling Lao Changtai and Chu Jingtang guarding the entrance. Only Wu Jinliang chuckled watching him, seeing the thunderclouds far away.

Beneath the thunderclouds' tornado, Li Hongjiu floated, supported by the wind, fingers pointing consecutively in front, as if asleep.

Charging through the misty whirlwind, Shi Chun looked up to see Li Hongjiu still there and flew up, shouting, "Brother Jiu, feeling found, let's do it again!"

Li Hongjiu opened his eyes, moved with intent, and above, numerous electric snakes immediately gathered.

Soon, another huge electric light sword shadow blasted towards Shi Chun.

Li Hongjiu watched as the Thunder Sword struck the green lotus shadow from Shi Chun's body again.

After the Thunder Sword dissipated, Shi Chun's face was full of excitement, shouting, "That's it, that's the feeling. Brother Jiu, if you can hold out, let me savor it again; I'll be back soon."

With that, he broke through the mist and whirlwind, swiftly flying away.

Seeing his excitement, Li Hongjiu guessed that perhaps Shi Chun really did comprehend something.

Of course, there weren't many in the world he'd cooperate with so generously.

Charged back and forth like this, when the fourth Thunder Sword came down, Li Hongjiu wondered if it was his imagination that the petals of the green lotus shadow seemed to open slightly.

And Shi Chun, in the midst of the lightning, let out an involuntary long howl to the sky, basking in the breakthrough to the Human Immortal Upper Realm with elation!