Chapter 680: Rebirth
Jian Wushuang couldn't help but let go of the bow in her hand. She heaved a long sigh of relief after seeing the arrow pierce his True Fate. She had always been arrogant and confident. However, she was thoroughly horror-struck this time. Li Qiye never did anything as she unleashed her bombardment upon him, yet she still struggled to kill him. If Li Qiye actually took action, then the consequences would have been unthinkable.
She became relieved as her ultimate arrow attack was finally able to kill Li Qiye.
However, just when her sigh came out, a faint peeling sound appeared. A white flower with eighteen petals emerged from Li Qiye's forehead. In this very instant, the white flower slowly bloomed, and one of the petals lit up with a shining light.
In just a moment, a white petal appeared inside Li Qiye's true fate. As the light radiating from the petal descended on the true fate, a loud blast occurred. The dead Li Qiye with a shattered true fate emitted myriad laws into the sky like an endless flood as his true fate once again derived a boundless grand dao. With that, the true fate flew back into his palace, then Li Qiye stood upright.
Amidst the commotion, Li Qiye's entire body was shrouded by a lingering gray death energy. Inside this death energy, Li Qiye immediately recovered his original form, including his shattered fate palaces and pierced head; all of them returned back to their initial state as if nothing had happened. Inside the death energy, all reverted back to their origin!
"The taste of death…" Li Qiye emotionally commented as the white flower flew back inside his forehead before instantly disappearing. Only one of the eighteen petals on the flower had a flashing glimmer at this moment.
"Thud!" Jian Wushuang was shaken and staggered a couple of steps backward after witnessing Li Qiye's rebirth.
The proud girl had never been afraid of anything, not even someone stronger than her and capable of defeating her. She came from an imperial lineage and knew that defeat was not something to be shameful about. Even Immortal Emperors had lost at times, let alone other people.
Therefore, she had never been afraid to fail. As long as she had this invincible heart, she would never falter; as long as she had her confidence, she would not be afraid of defeat!
However, defeat had nothing to do with the current situation. The fearless girl had finally been frightened to the point of having a pale complexion.
Death was a common sight to her, but this was her first time seeing someone be reborn after being killed by her. She was absolutely sure that her last arrow had killed Li Qiye and that those who were killed by her, no matter if they were Virtuous Paragons or a top genius like Ye Qingcheng, wouldn't be able to revive themselves.
Under her ultimate arrow, death was assured! Even a Golden Immortal of the Great Firmament wouldn't be able to save them! 1
However, Li Qiye was still alive and well without any injury as if nothing had happened!
This was absolutely impossible. There was no merit law in this world that could allow people to come back from death. Of course, this was referring to a true state of death.
With a blanched expression, it was as if Jian Wushuang had seen the most unbelievable thing in this world.
Of course, she didn't know that Li Qiye cultivated the Death Scripture, and the Death Record was one of the four great arts within. The white flower with eighteen petals from earlier was the Death Record. The moment when Li Qiye died, it lit up one of the petals.
For the Death Record, death was a good thing. There was a mantra inside the technique: One fate accumulated from three deaths, one item formed from six deaths, one life changed from nine deaths, and eighteen deaths to reach the high heavens.
Of course, it was not so easy to die. For example, with Li Qiye at his current level, how could it be easy to kill him? Moreover, it would become progressively more difficult to die. Even if Li Qiye wanted to commit suicide, he wouldn't be able to do so. Of course, dying from old age didn't count since even the four arts of the Death Scripture wouldn't be able to save one from a depleted lifespan.
Li Qiye took a long breath. He had finally died once — this was indeed not easy. He truly chose the right person; Jian Wushuang was an excellent grindstone.
"It is unfortunate that you are still weak. If that arrow was like your patriarch's when he was younger and dominating, then I wouldn't be so comfortable right now. Even if I could come back to life, I would be bedridden for one or two years. You are still lacking a bit, so you need to try harder in the future. Of course, you have to leave alive today to have that chance." Said Li Qiye with a very comfortable appearance.
Death was a terrible thing for other people, but it seemed that Li Qiye was enjoying the sensation very much.
Jian Wushuang didn't know that Li Qiye was telling the truth. If she was too strong, then the arrow that had killed him would leave behind an eternal wound that even the rebirth via the Death Record wouldn't be able to expel. Only time would be able to heal such a wound.
Jian Wushuang's strength was too fitting for Li Qiye since her ultimate arrow was able to kill him without leaving an eternal wound.
"You, you, what evil arts are you practicing?" With a shocked expression and great anxiety, she glared at Li Qiye.
"Evil arts?" Li Qiye couldn't help but laugh and say: "If I am cultivating an evil art, then all the merit laws in this world are worse than elementary evil arts. Ugly girl, I cultivate the most righteous and proper merit law in this world, the ultimate profundity of the dao, got it?"
Normally, Jian Wushuang would definitely become angry at being called an ugly girl like before. However, she had no reaction this time, she could only stare at Li Qiye with a solemn expression without saying anything.
After a while, she coldly stated: "You purposely tricked me here to test your evil art, using me as a grindstone!"
"Correct. It looks like you aren't too dumb, you finally guessed it." Li Qiye leisurely smiled and said: "Unfortunately, there is no prize."
Jian Wushuang snorted while looking at him with her sharp and pretty eyes.
"If you run away now, maybe there is a chance that I will spare your life. After all, I am in a good mood." Li Qiye cheerfully said while looking at the still-proud Jian Wushuang.
Jian Wushuang's expression darkened. However, she was still arrogant, and with complete confidence, she coldly replied: "Run? I have never ran before. If I can kill you once, then I can kill you a second time. Hmph! I want to see how many more times you can revive yourself. Revive again and I'll kill you again until you can't revive anymore!"
"You are mistaken." Li Qiye smiled and gently shook his head: "If you continue to use your Starshattering Bow, then it won't be easy to kill me a second time. Since you have killed me once with it, it is essentially impossible to kill me a second time, unless you step into the Virtuous Paragon realm right now. If not, then you have to change your weapon. Of course, it needs to be much stronger than the Starshattering Bow at the very least."
Having said that, Li Qiye laughed and said: "Even if you bring your patriarch's Immortal Emperor Life Treasure here, its attack would not be much more powerful than that last arrow, unless you could unleash an Imperial Massacre. Another option would be if you had that bow from him. Otherwise, it truly wouldn't be easy for you to kill me again."
Li Qiye's words left Jian Wushuang gritting her teeth. She wished that she could take a good bite of his flesh right now.
"Fine, you are very amazing. If you dare, then name your merit law and I will definitely have a way to kill you so that you will never get up again. Of course, if you are a coward who is afraid of death, then forget it." Said Jian Wushuang with a sneer.
Li Qiye burst out in laughter and clapped his hands after hearing this and responded: "Ugly girl, although you are very annoying with no likable qualities, at least you aren't an idiot like those girls with big breasts and no brain. You're just a little bit better since you know how to goad others…"
"… But I'm sorry to say that this type of goading is completely useless against me." Li Qiye paused for a bit at this point before continuing: "It is not that I don't want to tell you, it's just that even if I did, I'm afraid you wouldn't know what it is. If I told you and you hadn't even heard of it, then it would be too much of a blow to your confidence. I mean, you come from an imperial lineage, so if you are so ignorant, wouldn't you lose all face?"
Jian Wushuang wanted to vomit blood after hearing this. These were the words that drove her crazy the most. Moreover, there were also praises mixed in as well, causing her face to be flushed red from anger.
However, this was not her first time experiencing Li Qiye's vicious speech. She took a deep breath and coldly glared at him to say: "What else can you do outside of having a sharp tongue?!"
"I'm very capable with regards to many things." Li Qiye comfortably smiled and slowly said: "However, I'm a little reluctant to kill you right now. Of course, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that I like you, it's just that I don't really want to throw away such a good sharpening stone. At least right now, it is not that easy to find such a suitable one like you."
Jian Wushuang was gritting her teeth to the point where you could hear them rattle. At the moment, she was itching to bite his flesh off. Otherwise, it would be difficult to erase this anger in her heart!
How could she not be full of grievances? She was proud and arrogant not only due to her power and great talents, but because she was also very beautiful as well. It could be said that she was known as one of the great beauties of the Stone Medicine World.
680 Teaser [collapse] Just a saying about difficulty. A Golden Immortal of the Great Firmament is ranked fairly high in the classics. ↩Chapter 681: Mantra Arrow
Over the years, countless people praised her beauty with all sorts of compliments. But today, she was only a grindstone to Li Qiye. This was even more rage-inducing than him calling her an ugly girl. At the very least, an ugly girl was still a person; a sharpening stone was hardly anything.
Jian Wushuang couldn't bear it any longer any angrily shouted: "Li! If I don't kill you, I vow to cease being human!"
"Cease being human?" Li Qiye couldn't help but laugh before retorting: "Ugly girl, you weren't a human from the start. Your Jian Clan are all golems, yet you think you are human?" 1
Jian Wushuang nearly vomited blood as she hatefully responded: "Li! Less wasting words. Make your move. Show me what you have, and I'll handle all of it!"
"If that is the case, then I have no choice but to pluck the flower." Li Qiye smiled while looking at Jian Wushuang and said: "Ugly girl, listen to my advice. Although your Jian Clan is renowned for its peerless archery, you won't be able to handle my next arrow. Even your ultimate arrow wouldn't be able to stop it. I gave you a chance earlier, and now I'm giving you one more chance. Before I make my move, change your weapon and you might have a small chance of survival." 2
"Such a big tone!" Jian Wushuang couldn't help but coldly snort. It wasn't just her, if a third person was present, they would also think that his words were too outrageous.
If he said that his merit law was better than Jian Wushuang's, then other people would have thought that this was plausible. However, not many people or lineages in the entire Stone Medicine World or even all of the nine worlds would dare to compete with the Jian Clan in terms of the dao of archery.
Immortal Emperor Diyi Jian was called the number one archer for a reason. His archery was indeed peerless across the eons.
"Li, utilize all of your abilities. Today, I will use this bow in my hand to battle it out to the very end!" Jian Wushuang coldly spoke: "I want to see if your arrow is invincible, or if my Jian Clan's archery is invincible!"
Without a doubt, she was ready to protect her clan's prestige regarding the dao of archery. If she changed her weapon, then wouldn't she be backing down before Li Qiye? Wouldn't that imply that the Jian Clan's dao of archery was not as good as his?
"Very courageous. It is a shame that you have met me." Li Qiye said with a smile: "I can't deny that your Jian Clan's archery is indeed unbeatable. Unfortunately, the bow in your hand is not the bow of your patriarch. If it was, then you indeed have a chance to compete with me, but the Starshattering Bow won't do."
"Give it a try and find out for yourself." Jian Wushuang coldly said: "Remember, I will cut off your dog head and slay you!"
"So confident, although a bit arrogant. It is certainly not a bad thing to be this confident." Li Qiye touched his chin and said: "At this moment, I do kinda like you, ugly girl. It is not too late for you to surrender now. I am missing a follower who likes to bear their fangs like you. No, to be more exact, I am lacking a courageous general with great spirit and pride. Swear loyalty to me and perhaps the seat of the number one general shall be yours in the future."
Jian Wushuang was speechless from anger at this point. She was arrogant, but this young man ahead was even more arrogant than her, and this was enraging her! He actually wanted to take her in as a follower, but she was the Jian Clan's golden daughter and not just some random plebeian from the streets!
"Quit your rubbish and unleash your arrow already!" Jian Wushuang coolly shouted.
Li Qiye looked at her and slightly shook his head before speaking: "What a shame. Since you are courting death, then I'll lend you a hand." With that, he slowly pulled the string back on his Nine Words True Bow.
"Pluff!" At this time, he unleashed one arrow created from four different true words: Celestial, Soldier, Fighter, and Descend. Until now, Li Qiye had always only used one word from this mantra to form an arrow, but at the moment, he used a combination of four words to form one mantra, so the power of this bow was unfathomable. 3
The arrow made out of the four words mantra appeared to be very ordinary and traveled at a very slow speed as if it was shot by a regular archer.
However, Jian Wushuang did not dare to be careless at this time as she was on guard. If she lost to Li Qiye this time, then it would besmirch the reputation of the Jian Clan's archery.
"Buzzz!" In the blink of an eye, Jian Wushuang also unleashed her own arrow. This time, it was also not a domineering attack and traveled at a slow speed as well.
However, the moment the two arrows met, Jian Wushuang's arrow suddenly became dazzling and turned into a true immortal that swept through the world and was capable of protecting myriad realms and sealing the nine worlds.
Only now would others discover that Jian Wushuang's arrow was a defensive one, the most terrifying defensive arrow in this world.
Immortal Guarding The Celestial City! This arrow was the strongest defensive archery technique from the Jian Clan and was capable of withstanding an attack from an Immortal Emperor's Life Treasure. Its might acted like an impregnable fortress.
Before this "Immortal Guarding The Celestial City" technique, Li Qiye's "Celestial, Soldier, Fighter, and Descend" arrow also erupted and turned into a bloody arrow. This arrow immediately caused the true immortal to shed his divine blood.
"Boom!" The true immortal instantly disappeared along with Li Qiye's bloody arrow.
"Ahh…" Jian Wushuang opened her mouth, wanting to cry out, but words couldn't form. At this time, her dress was slowly stained with blood.
She was shot by Li Qiye's mantra arrow. The arrow didn't only destroy the true immortal, it also killed Jian Wushuang.
At this moment, her life force was slowly dissipating, and she could feel death approaching as her pretty eyes began to slowly close.
"Buzz!" Right at the moment of her death, an immortal light erupted from her body along with an imperial and righteous force as if an Immortal Emperor was coming back to life inside her body.
In the blink of an eye, the immortal light shrouded her body and, with a flash, it instantly carried her away.
Li Qiye didn't give chase after seeing Jian Wushuang being carried away by this encompassing light. He only watched as she disappeared into the horizon.
After she was gone, he rubbed his nose and murmured: "The Jian Clan, they're worthy of their name. They're actually able to bring someone back from near death, what a truly extraordinary act! Although it is a bit worse than rebirth, it is already heaven-defying enough."
Li Qiye was well aware of the power of his arrow; it was capable of killing gods and devils. Very few existences could withstand such power, no matter how tough their body or true fate might be. When struck, death was the only outcome.
However, Jian Wushuang was the golden daughter of the Jian Clan after all, so all of their adoration and love was focused on her. She was their beloved jewel, so the clan used an extremely heaven-defying method to protect her. Once she received a fatal blow, it would instantly save her as well as bring her back to the Jian Clan.
The Jian Clan was still ultimately an imperial lineage with a great heritage, so it was not strange for them to possess such a magnificent ability.
Li Qiye put away his bow and turned around to leave. However, before leaving, he narrowed his eyes and gazed towards a direction in the far horizon. He didn't say anything and only chuckled before leaving.
Outside of the Celestial Peak Mountain in a very secretive spot rested a very ordinary looking carriage. This was a carriage that wouldn't garner attention no matter where it went.
An old woman with an indeterminable age was seated outside in front of the carriage. She gave off a feeble feeling as if her sun was about to set in the west. 4
At this time, a soft sigh came from inside the carriage. Although it was very brief, it had a particular rhythm that was very pleasant to the ears.
Others would immediately know that the person inside was a girl. Although they couldn’t see her appearance, her sigh was already charming enough.
After hearing the sigh, the seemingly sleeping old woman immediately woke up and asked: "Young Miss, how is it going?"
"It is over, he has already left." An answer came from inside. This was a girl's voice, a voice with a very melodious touch that couldn't be described by words. This voice was capable of bewildering people, and it alone was enough to charm them all even when they didn't know what she looked like!
"Who won?" The old woman couldn't help but ask: "The girl from the Jian Clan?"
"No…" The girl's voice from inside the carriage appeared again: "Li Qiye won. If it wasn't for the Jian Clan protecting Jian Wushuang with an extremely heaven-defying spell, I'm afraid she would have died already."
"That brat is quite capable then." The old woman was a bit surprised and said: "Although the girl from the Jian Clan is arrogant and doesn't put anyone in her eyes, she is indeed talented. I'm afraid not many from the younger generation would be her match."
"He's more than just capable." The girl from the carriage answered: "I'm afraid this Li Qiye is absolutely terrifying, more terrifying than anyone else."
"Young Miss, that is too much. He only defeated the Jian girl, nothing more." The old woman couldn't help but say. Both of them had astonishing origins that were capable of scaring the rest of the world.
"No." The girl in the carriage deepened her tone and said: "Although I couldn't see the battle with my own eyes, I more or less felt it. Li Qiye didn't actually fight seriously and only used Jian Wushuang to train himself. If he actually fought for real, then it would be very hard to tell…"
The word for human and person is the same. ↩ Pluck the flower is a nice four words idiom that doesn't translate so well. It means not showing any mercy for the fairer sex. ↩ “(Celestial) soldiers/fighters descend and arrange yourselves in front of me” is the nine words mantra – lín bīng dǒu zhě jiē zhèn liè qián háng. The four words used here are the first four. This is a rough translation of the nine words; by arranging these words into an acceptable English form with connectors, we can't really use it with the same usage as the original version, but this will do. ↩ Just a phrase saying that she was very old and weak looking as if she could die any time. ↩Chapter 682: Parting
"Could he actually be stronger than Young Miss?" The old woman said: "Even if he was stronger, he can't compare to you. No one can in the current younger generation."
"Not necessarily." The girl answered: "At least, until now, I still don't know the limit of his power, so I can't make any conclusions. In my eyes, Li Qiye himself is shrouded in a mist and is completely unfathomable. Not even I can see through him."
"How does he compare to Ye Qingcheng of the Stony Peak Kingdom?" The old woman had to ask.
"Compared to Ye Qingcheng?" The girl in the carriage paused for a bit before answering: "I can't say in detail since I have no way of knowing just how strong Li Qiye is. However, my intuition is telling me that Li Qiye can only be stronger than Ye Qingcheng."
"That can't be." The old woman's expression visibly changed as she said: "The Stony Peak Kingdom spared nothing when it came to Ye Qingcheng. He is a supreme celestial being who is adored by the heavens. In the Stone Medicine World, outside of Young Miss, only the girl from the Jian Clan can compete with him. How could this nobody Li Qiye compare to Ye Qingcheng?"
Ye Qingcheng was quite renowned in the Stone Medicine World and was considered the number one man, at least among the younger generation. Countless geniuses in this world would dim before his presence; others simply did not dare to compare themselves to him, and many of them were willing to work under his banner.
"I'm afraid so." The girl in the carriage continued: "Ye Qingcheng's power can be estimated and measured, thus it is possible to compare. However, this Li Qiye is unfathomable; I simply can't gauge just how strong he is. Despite not being able to calculate his true strength, my intuition is telling me that he can only be stronger than Ye Qingcheng."
The old woman couldn't help but contemplate in silence for a moment after hearing the girl's answer. She knew her Young Miss's abilities very well and had full confidence in her.
The girl in the carriage said: "Let us go, he found us."
"Even if he makes it here, we aren't afraid of him." The old woman's momentum peaked. At this moment, she no longer resembled an old carriage driver on the verge of death. The aura her body emitted was extremely frightening.
"No, Grandma. We don't need to fight him." The girl in the carriage said: "Even though we are not afraid of anyone, we stand to gain nothing from fighting with Li Qiye. Before he makes it here, we should leave first." 1
The old woman didn't say anything else as she sat up straight and controlled the carriage to leave. With the sound of the wheels turning, the carriage traveled very far before disappearing over the horizon without leaving any traces behind.
Li Qiye ran back to the Celestial Peak River and found that there were no cultivators here. Only Yuan Caihe was there, waiting.
She saw him getting down from the carriage and was a little surprised. However, she didn't ask any questions and only revealed a calm smile, saying: "Did Brother Li get any immortal sulfur?"
"What about you?" Li Qiye didn't answer and only smiled back.
Yuan Caihe nodded her head and replied: "I obtained two pieces of very old immortal sulfur. This will be enough to use for one batch."
"Nothing can be better. Let us go." Li Qiye smiled and gently nodded.
Yuan Caihe couldn't help but take a look around before saying: "I don't know where Tie Yi had run off to. Are we not waiting for him?"
"He doesn't need us waiting for him." Li Qiye shook his head and said: "If he really wants to leave with us, then he would have shown himself already. I'm afraid he does not wish to go with us, he must have gone ahead already."
Yuan Caihe was a clever person, so she thought about it for a second before revealing a faint and natural smile. She didn't say anything else and sat inside Li Qiye's carriage.
With a creaking sound, the Imperial Draco-Bull pulled the carriage far away — not too fast, not too slow. Li Qiye sat inside with his eyes closed; he didn't make any conversation.
Yuan Caihe seemed to be enjoying this silence as well since she didn't say anything either.
Although the bull was going neither fast nor slow, they quickly left the Celestial Peak Mountain. The moment they left the area, Li Qiye immediately opened his eyes and asked with a light smile while looking at Yuan Caihe: "Do you have to go back to the Serene Garden?"
She gently nodded her head and said: "Yes, I plan to go into isolated cultivation after I return since I need to refine a batch of medicines that will take some time. Where does Brother Li want to go? Maybe if you have time, you can come visit my Serene Garden?"
There was an indescribable sense of closeness that she felt towards Li Qiye. Although they only became acquainted recently, in her heart, it felt like they had known each other for a very long time, like old friends.
"I'm afraid I can't go to your Serene Garden right now since I have to take a trip to the Allpine Mountain." Li Qiye smiled and said: "After the Allpine Mountain, I have to go to the alchemy conference at the Alchemy Kingdom as well."
"Ah, are you going there to celebrate Allpine Treefather's birthday?" Yuan Caihe asked.
"Yes, I have made plans to meet with someone at the Allpine Mountain. If it wasn't for this previous arranged, I would have really liked to come take a look at your Serene Garden since it is famed for its unrivaled plant and medicine cultivation." Li Qiye answered.
His words were not flattery since this was indeed the truth. Many spirit medicines grew inside the Serene Garden that would cause people to salivate. Countless great characters had wanted to take a look but couldn't.
"It still wouldn't be too late to visit later." Yuan Caihe revealed a calming smile and said: "The Allpine Mountain is definitely worth a trip. It is protected by the Allpine Treefather and also contains great spirit medicines everywhere. It is quite famous for having a lot of great plants."
Li Qiye couldn't help but smile while looking at Yuan Caihe. He gently brushed the hair on her shoulders back. It seemed that they had an indescribable harmony.
"We'll meet again later." Eventually, he smiled and bid his farewell. Yuan Caihe left the carriage and waved at him as they went their separate ways.
Afterward, Li Qiye sat in the carriage once again with his eyes closed. He commanded the bull: "To the Allpine Mountain!"
There was no need for Li Qiye to drive since the bull could pull the carriage towards the Allpine Mountain.
The Allpine Mountain was a very general indicator. Some said that the mountain was the location where the Allpine Forefather was born and grew up. Some said that the Allpine Mountain was referring to the Allpine Mountain's vein.
In fact, the truth was not far off from this. The mountain range and the entire vein were all territories that belonged to the treefather. Although the treefather didn't establish a sect at this location, his followers and disciples were just as strong as any great power.
The Allpine Mountain was also called the Allpine Grand Vein, one of the eight great veins in the Stone Medicine World; it was on the same level as the Elegant Azure Grand Vein. It stretched far across the Alchemy Realm like a sleeping dragon.
It was grand and magnificent with incredible peaks and mountains everywhere. There were many spirit deers walking around, golden birds flying above, and flood dragons below the marshes…
Meanwhile, spirit medicines were in abundance here. As one of the eight grand veins, plenty of spirit energy had accumulated from millions of miles. The energy was as vast as an ocean.
Moreover, under the protection of the Allpine Treefather, the plants here were able to thrive and flourish, thus this land was famous for having a lot of plants.
Of course, one had to talk about the treefather when the topic of the Allpine Mountain was ever brought up in this world. The Giant Bamboo Tree and the Allpine Treefather were referred to as the two great Demon Forefathers. Although the Allpine Treefather was much younger than the ancient Giant Bamboo tree, his fame was much more widespread.
In fact, this was quite understandable because, for millions of years now, the Giant Bamboo tree had never taken shape. It had always silently stood there, so the world had forgotten about its existence or had just gotten used to it.
The Allpine Treefather was completely different. He had gained intelligence from the dao and also passed down his dao heritage. This caused his reputation to spread along with countless students. For several hundred thousand years now, living beings that were born at this location had heard the treefather preach the dao many times. Some of them were Demon Monarchs. Of course, the beasts and vegetation that had yet to reach the dao listened as well.
During this period, many golems traveled for countless miles just to beseech the treefather for a chance to listen to him preach the dao. Because of this, although the treefather had not left the Allpine Mountain's territory for a very long time now, he had students everywhere in the world, across the three grand realms. Moreover, some of his students even became Virtuous Paragons.
Thus, it was easy to imagine the treefather's great influence. As for his cultivation, no outsiders were privy to this. Some said that the treefather could be bestowed the Godking title. Some also said that outside of Immortal Emperors, no one else could compete with the treefather.
Regardless of how great his cultivation was, as a Demon Forefather that had lived for 500,000 years, this was more than enough to earn everyone's respect. Therefore, in the entire Stone Medicine World, numerous great powers and imperial lineages and even a monster like the Alchemy Kingdom were very respectful to the Allpine Treefather.
His 500,000th birthday was a huge event for the entire Stone Medicine World. All the great powers and imperial lineages, as well as renowned cultivators from all over the place, quickly traveled great lengths to give him their best wishes.
Even those from far away places like the Beast Realm and the Stone Realm began their departure early in order to make it on time for the celebration. Some had even left as early as one year ago.
His great birthday celebration caused the entire territory that spanned for millions of miles to become rowdy since many lineages were on their way.
In just a moment, the normally quiet Allpine Mountain became very busy and was overcrowded with newly arriving guests. The usually deserted valleys now contained many guests from far away.
Grandma here is more of a wet nurse/way to call an older servant respectfully in this usage. ↩Chapter 683: Allpine Mountain
Fortunately, the Allpine Mountain was vast with countless mountains and valleys. Even though guests came from all over the world, there were still plenty of places for them to stay.
Although there was still some time before the treefather's birthday, the place was already packed with people, and more arrived on a daily basis.
Even the low-key imperial family of the Alchemy Kingdom, the reclusive Jianlong Clan, and the Beastmaster Citadel that never cared for mundane matters… All of these behemoths sent experts to come congratulate the treefather.
From this, one could see the treefather's frightening position in the Stone Medicine World.
"Squeakk—" A carriage slowly approached a small town below the Allpine Mountain. Li Qiye was still resting inside the carriage as if he was sleeping. He immersed himself in the carriage's rhythm. The bull took its time dragging the carriage towards the mountain.
This little town was normally deserted, but now, it was bustling with cultivators staying here. Some of them ran out of the mountain for a breath of fresh air while others were here to trade items.
Li Qiye turned a deaf ear to the commodious town and continued to stay in the carriage as it kept on moving towards the mountain base.
In fact, at this time, new guests filled the mountain base like carps jumping in a river. With this being the case, no one noticed Li Qiye mixing in with the crowd.
Once the carriage finally entered the mountain, Li Qiye immediately opened his eyes to look at the sight before him.
One could only see a verdant scenery with rolling hills and peaks that soared to the sky. There were also straight waterfalls that were three thousand feet high. There were also ancient pines that resembled horned dragons growing on the precipices…
No matter who they might be, they would be praising the majestic scenery before them. This place was different from other locations with its countless clusters of green lights floating in the sky. They were around the size of needles and appeared to be extremely lifelike. Because of these little glimmers of green light, it made the entire Allpine Mountain appear even more magical and exceptionally beautiful.
At this time, Li Qiye's brows furrowed. In this split second, it was as if his eyes were able to see through the entire mountain range. His gaze stretched across everything and fell upon an old pine tree; it was not a big pine tree, but it was definitely extremely ancient.
After a while, Li Qiye withdrew his gaze and murmured: "Allpine Mountain, Allpine Treefather… A bit interesting… What a shame that after such a long time, he still isn't able to leave the Allpine Mountain."
The treefather's fame had spread across the entire world, but for hundreds of thousands of years, he had never left the Allpine Mountain. Although he could appear anywhere in the millions of miles of the mountain range, he couldn't actually leave it.
As for the reason why, there had been many different theories. The most plausible and widely accepted one was that before the treefather had gained intelligence from the dao, his root was entrenched in the deepest parts of the Allpine Grand Vein and had fused together with the vein.
Because his root and the grand vein had become one, this allowed for him to appear anywhere inside the Allpine Mountain, but he wouldn't be able to take a single step outside.
"Squeak…" At this time, the journey continued with the bull dragging the carriage along while Li Qiye kept his eyes shut inside.
However, before they could reach the gate of the mountain, they were stopped by someone.
"You're still not dead…" A cold, hateful voice appeared. Some bloodlust was even present.
After hearing this cold voice, Li Qiye opened his eyes and saw the Dragon Princess with some disciples blocking his path.
At this point, she glared at him with a chilling gaze and flashed her murderous intent as if she wanted nothing more than to kill him at this moment.
The princess's deep hatred towards Li Qiye was understandable. Despite her noble birth and high status, she was still slapped by this nobody Li Qiye before the eyes of others — nothing could be more humiliating than this.
If Jian Wushuang didn't stop her at that time, then she would have killed him already. Since Jian Wushuang wanted his insignificant life, the Dragon Princess thought that he wouldn't be able to leave the Celestial Peak Mountain alive. Who would have thought that she would be able to see him here fine and well at this place!
She was quite famous in the Alchemy Realm. As a princess and an excellent disciple with a great cultivation from the Radiant-Sea Sect, it could be said that she stood out among others of the younger generation.
And now, this very princess was blocking the path of a nobody with a crew, so this attracted a lot of attention from the guests. Many of them were curious about how this unknown human had offended her. Some even began to quietly discuss with others.
As for Li Qiye, he only blinked an eye and slowly said: "I'm quite tough. The king of hell and all the little devils couldn't take it, so it shouldn't be strange that I'm still alive now, right?"
"The king of hell and all the little devils can't take your life?!" The princess snorted, exuding a sharp killing intent as she coldly said: "Then today, this princess will take your dog life!"
Li Qiye was too lazy to take another glimpse of her. He leisurely sat in his carriage and said: "With just you and your insignificant skills? Stand side. Today, I am here to celebrate and my mood is especially good, so I'll spare your life for now. Of course, if you really want to die, then I can help you. Alas, painting the earth red with blood is bad luck at a birthday celebration."
These words enraged the princess. She had already been slapped by him in front of everyone back at the Celestial Peak River and now he dared to utter these boisterous words? How could this not drive her mad?
Many guests even halted their steps after hearing Li Qiye's raving and couldn't help but click their tongues while glancing at each other. They wondered what the origin of this junior could possibly be for him to say these blustering words. He truly didn't know life from death.
"Junior, don't be arrogant!" An expert by the princess's side cried out. He wanted to rush forward to decapitate Li Qiye.
However, the princess stopped him and took a step forward herself. With a chilling visage like a vicious, unsheathed sword, she said: "I want to personally kill this little animal. I want to peel his skin and shred his tendons, to shed and drink his blood!" She gnashed her teeth while speaking these words. Nothing else could appease her anger besides doing so!
As for Li Qiye, he continued to keep his eyes closed and rested as if he didn't hear what she had said.
"Little animal, hand your life over!" The Dragon Princess cried out as her vitality erupted all the way to the sky like a flood dragon. Such powerful vitality was enough to illustrate her amazing strength.
"Worthy of being a dynasty's princess and an excellent disciple of the Radiant-Sea Sect." Even a cultivator from the previous generation had to voice his praise after seeing her powerful blood energy.
"Fellow Daoists, please take it easy." The moment the princess took action, a great character from the Allpine Mountain stepped out and told them to stop.
"Moo!" However, in this split second, a moo came about, followed by a popping sound. The princess was kicked flying by a hoof, shooting all the way to the sky and eventually disappearing into the horizon.
Her fate was unknown, one could only see blood dripping down from the sky. She didn't even have the chance to scream.
The great character from the mountain was a Demon Monarch, but before he could finish his words, the princess had been blown away and disappeared, causing him to swallow his words.
Everyone stood there looking silly. In the beginning, all eyes were on Li Qiye and the Dragon Princess. They began to guess his background since he was extremely arrogant, not to mention that they all thought that he was tired of living for opposing the Dragon Princess.
None of them looked at the Imperial Draco-Bull pulling the carriage. In their view, it was not worthy of attention. It was just a regular common buffalo, so what was there to look at?
They didn't expect that this ordinary looking buffalo could casually kick the princess flying with just one hoof.
Li Qiye opened his eyes at this time and calmly spoke: "Excuse me, you came a bit late. I was going to show mercy, but unfortunately, my divine bull accidentally kicked the girl flying."
The Demon Monarch from the Allpine Mountain was completely speechless. What else could he say now? The person had been kicked away already, so it was too late for him to resolve this conflict.
"Little animal, we'll cut you into little pieces!" At this time, the experts who were with the princess regained their sanity and shouted at Li Qiye.
The Demon Monarch quickly stopped them and said: "Fellow Daoists, everyone here are guests of the Allpine Mountain. I hope that everyone can change feuds into friendships and get along with each other. If you all are hell-bent on seeking revenge, then wait until after the celebration. Besides, you all should be focusing on saving the Dragon Princess, don't let a less important matter delay saving her life."