The Transmigrator’s Cultivation

Arc 24: Nine Void Battlefield | Chapter 459: Return to Central Sword Domain

Once the battle was over, Xu Ziqing and Yun Lie followed Li Xiuzhu and the others to the Li family’s military camp.

There were already several soldiers stationed there, but their casualties were so severe that their situation was only slightly better than that of other corps. The low-level and mid-level demons that had escaped after being killed caused them quite a bit of trouble, and many of the other cultivators temporarily staying at the camp had also suffered significant losses.

Xu Ziqing glanced around and noticed many cultivators with grave expressions. It was not merely a cloud of sorrow hanging over them; there was also a sense of anger.

Since the two had fought alongside Li Xiuzhu and shared life-and-death experiences, some people recognized them, allowing them to enter the military camp smoothly. The two brothers soon saw Tianfu.

Xu Ziqing breathed a small sigh of relief; it seemed that Tianfu had been well protected.

Seeing Xu Ziqing, Tianfu hurried over, wrapping his small arms around his thigh, “Uncle, are you okay?”

Xu Ziqing smiled gently and stroked the top of his head, “I’m fine, and your father is fine too.”

Tianfu grinned back, looking a bit shy.

Soon, the group entered Tianfu’s tent. The soldiers brought by the two brothers, seeing Xu Ziqing and Li Xiuzhu getting along, felt reassured and went off to do their tasks, leaving just the three of them.

Tianfu was picked up and sat on Xu Ziqing’s lap, tilting his head to look at Yun Lie, “Uncle, who is that uncle?”

Xu Ziqing glanced at Yun Lie and chuckled, “This is my shixiong; you can call him Uncle Yun.”

Tianfu looked at Yun Lie, feeling that this uncle seemed a bit distant, but he quickly broke into a small smile and chirped, “Uncle Yun!”

Yun Lie nodded slightly in response.

Tianfu grew even more excited, jumping down from Xu Ziqing’s lap, dragging over a chessboard, and eagerly asking, “Uncle Yun, will you play chess with me?”

Yun Lie paused for a moment and then took out a chess piece.

Then, Tianfu mimicked the motions, setting up the pieces and softly saying, “I’ll go first, and Uncle Yun will follow. Whoever gets five in a row wins…”

Yun Lie remained expressionless but placed his piece next to Tianfu’s white piece.

Xu Ziqing found this amusing.

His shixiong had a cold demeanor, and since their time at the Wuling Immortal Sect, his excessive killing intent had made him difficult to approach, causing others to avoid looking directly at him. Among peers, he had no rivals and often inspired awe, leading people to keep their distance.

Yet, it was strange that whenever he encountered children, he was always quite affectionate, whether it was Yun Zhengrui from the Hengwu Small World or now Li Tianfu, he treated them similarly… It seemed that the younger the child, the less fear they felt around him.

However, upon reflection, Xu Ziqing found this was not so surprising.

Children have a pure heart that easily discerns right from wrong, good from bad. Although his shixiong’s personality was a bit cold, his true nature was upright. Even if his sword path was one of killing, it was a righteous killing path without any deceit. Thus, young children, knowing his true nature, naturally would not be afraid.

With this thought settled, he sat aside, smiling as he watched.

After that, Xu Ziqing and Yun Lie both stayed with Tianfu.

However, starting from the second day, the two brothers no longer played with Tianfu but instead joined the remaining soldiers of the Li family army, splitting into several groups to hunt down the stragglers of the demon tide.

The entire Nine Void Battlefield was filled with a sense of danger. After careful investigation, it was clear that apart from the countless injured soldiers during the battle, there were even more casualties among the small military corps and the scattered cultivators temporarily staying in the camps. Many small corps, totaling five thousand or even ten thousand, had been completely wiped out, along with their camps, which no longer existed.

The threat posed by the demons was evident.

Everyone who had experienced this kind of demon tide knew that if those outer demons truly broke through the Nine Void Battlefield and entered the Nine Void Realm, it would lead to a catastrophic disaster, sweeping everyone into chaos!

This chaotic period lasted for more than two years.

Xu Ziqing and Yun Lie went in and out together. One focused on refining his newly consolidated divine ability, the Wanlong Fist, accumulating true essence in an attempt to make the Ten Thousand Woods Transformation Technique more sustainable; the other continuously honed his swordsmanship, strengthening his sword soul, gradually reaching the pinnacle of the fourth refinement of the sword soul.

At the same time, Xu Ziqing also collected a significant amount of crystallized time and space power.

On this battlefield, many small stems and plants began to grow, silently sweeping away numerous demon corpses, taking with them tiny crystals from the shattered cavities in their chests.

In the end, Xu Ziqing obtained several types of crystals.

The crystals from low-level demons were only the size of a grain of rice, those from mid-level demons were like beans, high-level demons yielded pearls, and the crystals from great demons were as large as pigeon eggs, glossy and beautiful.

While each type of crystal was pure, the higher the grade, the more powerful the time and space energy contained within, and the harder it was. With Xu Ziqing’s current cultivation, he could only refine the first three types of crystals using Ying fire, while he was completely powerless against the crystals from great demons.

However, once he advanced to the Divine Transformation stage, he wouldn’t have to worry, so there was no need to rush.

Every day, during the day, the two brothers exterminated demons to collect crystals, which Xu Ziqing accumulated. At night, Xu Ziqing entered meditation to refine them. Since he had already broken through and was now at the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul, his infant fire was even purer. Although initially he could only refine four crystals a day and five would exhaust his true essence, requiring him to retain some strength for potential dangers, he could now refine twenty crystals daily without needing to hold back, especially with his shixiong providing protection.

As a result, over time, Xu Ziqing made considerable progress and could sense that the world laws within the Ten Thousand Woods Realm were becoming more solidified.

Continuing on this path would undoubtedly bring numerous benefits.

Unbeknownst to them, three years had passed since the two had arrived at the Nine Void Battlefield with the War God Token.

The two brothers had developed a bond with the Li family army, and Tianfu had grown increasingly close to them. When Li Xiuzhu saw his son so happy, and recalled Xu Ziqing’s life-saving grace and Yun Lie’s assistance, he became friends with them as well.

Thus, when the time came for the two brothers to take their leave, General Li Xinglong prepared a generous gift on their behalf.

This generous gift included two sets of armor made from the bodies of great demons, containing the power of Tribulation Transformation Realm shen cultivators, capable of protecting the wearer. Moreover, with the hardness of great demon steel, even after undergoing many exquisite refinements, it would be difficult to damage them, even as top-grade treasures. Furthermore, activating the War God Token typically required the presence of a shen cultivator, but if someone wore the armor and utilized its divine power, there would be no need for that.

Additionally, there was a substantial amount of top-grade spirit stones, amounting to several million. With the aftermath of the war requiring much rebuilding, the Li family army’s willingness to offer this was a genuine kindness. After all, shen cultivators had different needs for treasures than regular cultivators; it was more convenient to give spirit stones.

All of this clearly demonstrated their thoughtful intentions.

Xu Ziqing and Yun Lie accepted these gifts, but after a moment, they took out a late-stage Divine Transformation puppet and presented it to Tianfu.

Li Xiuzhu was deeply concerned about his beloved son, but unfortunately, Tianfu was still too young. If he were to cultivate successfully, it would take a considerable number of years. The shen cultivators in the corps also had their own training and responsibilities and couldn’t be there to protect Tianfu all the time. However, with this puppet, once Tianfu recognized it as his master and learned the necessary techniques, he could control it simply by having spirit stones, which were relatively easy to obtain…

Li Xiuzhu naturally appreciated their kindness, and Li Xinglong even gifted them a token inscribed with the words “Li Family Army.” The Li family had immense influence in the Nine Void Realm after years of battling in the Nine Void Battlefield. With this token in hand, if the two brothers encountered any difficulties during their training, they could seek assistance from the Li family.

With time passing, both sides had developed considerable sincerity, naturally deepening their bond.

Everyone present was a cultivator, so there was no need for lengthy farewells.

Although the War God Token was difficult to activate when arriving, departing was much simpler; the owner of the token just needed to use their divine soul to activate it and could easily leave.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Xu Ziqing’s forehead glowed with green light, causing the War God Token to shine brightly, enveloping the two of them.

After the brilliance faded, the two figures had vanished.

After two or three breaths, Xu Ziqing and Yun Lie found their feet firmly planted on the ground. When they looked around, they were greeted by a vast expanse of peach orchards.

They had returned to a secluded area near the War God Tower, deep within the peach grove.

Xu Ziqing glanced around and sighed softly, “It didn’t feel like it on the battlefield, but now that we’re out, I realize how refreshing the air is.”

Unlike on the battlefield, where lingering for too long would fill a person with the iron-blooded aura and the smell of blood, it was truly uncomfortable.

Yun Lie nodded slightly, “Let’s go.”

Xu Ziqing smiled, circulating his true essence, dispersing the remnants of killing intent and death energy around him. When he looked again, he appeared charming and approachable, though those who looked closely would notice he now bore a bit more resilience and determination than before.

The two then did not linger in that place. After exchanging a glance, they joined hands and vanished.

A day later, they returned to Central Sword Domain.

The Sword Pagoda was in sight, but they wondered how Tu Jin and the others were doing now.

Without overthinking it, Xu Ziqing and Yun Lie entered the city and arrived at the Sword Pagoda.

Upon raising his eyes, Xu Ziqing saw the ninety-nine-story treasure tower and the mirror-like Sword Spirit Wall.

Xu Ziqing scanned the area, spreading his divine sense like flowing water in search of their companions.

…But surprisingly, none of them were there?

This was indeed unexpected.

Yun Lie noticed this too and looked at Xu Ziqing.

Xu Ziqing frowned, “Shixiong, could they have gone to another region?”

The Nine Void Realm consisted of one hundred and eight domains, so it wasn’t impossible.

However, the three of them were all sword cultivators, likely devoted to the sword path. It had only been three years; they surely still had room for improvement here. Why would they suddenly leave for elsewhere?

This was truly unreasonable.

Though Xu Ziqing thought this, he couldn’t ignore the matter. Tu Jin and the others were friends of their shixiong, and with them now missing, they needed to search for them. Otherwise, if the two of them left the Nine Void Realm, wouldn’t those three be trapped here?

After a moment’s contemplation, Xu Ziqing said, “Shixiong, you stay by the Sword Spirit Wall and meditate. I’ll head to Qian Er Workshop to inquire.”

That place was known for selling information, and it was unlikely that they would overlook any events concerning sword cultivators from the lower realms.

Upon hearing this, Yun Lie nodded slightly and walked toward the Sword Spirit Wall, saying, “Be careful.”

Xu Ziqing smiled and replied softly, “I understand, Shixiong.”

<End of Arc 24: Nine Void Battlefield>

Translator: Lynn

Translations are not 100% correct. Please let me know if there are typos/mistakes in the chapter.

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