Chapter 111: Bird in a Cage [5K]
"Xuan Ling Sanren arranged the formation on Xuan Ling Island for the sake of Bright Moon Shell, but that formation does not seem to be a method used by the Tian Xing Sword Sect. This shows that there is someone behind this person who arranged the formation."
"For such an unfathomable person, his plan is definitely not for a mere Bright Moon Shell. So what is his real purpose?"
Ye Linyuan pondered for a long time, and finally shook his head slowly.
Unable to figure it out for a moment, he put the thought aside and took out another chess piece and placed it on the chessboard: "The Five Elements Return to Origin terrain is definitely not something that an ordinary foundation-building cultivator can lay out."
"Did this person set up this terrain just to cultivate the Five-Colored Black Snail, or is there some other purpose behind this?"
"And that demon cultivator hiding in the dark, is he also planning something?"
Ye Linyuan held his forehead and placed six chess pieces one by one.
The first white piece represents Minghuang Jianzi. This person has the clearest positioning and has been setting up the plan for Jiuqu Linghe for many years.
The second one is also white, representing the Heikui Islands. This lineage is also clearly positioned. The Heikui Python and the Qinghe Immortal Sect are hostile forces, so it is reasonable for it to help Minghuang Jianzi deal with the Qingque Immortal Sect...
"Wait, the Black Flood Demon King and the Tianxing Sword Sect are hostile forces, and the Black Kui Python is the bloodline of the Black Flood Demon King, so why would it help Minghuang Sword Master?"
Ye Linyuan frowned slightly, slowly put away the white piece, took out a black piece representing uncertainty and placed it down.
Then, he took out the third black piece, which represented Xuanling Sanren and the forces behind him. This lineage had been secretly planning for a long time, but it was always hidden very deeply, and it was difficult to tell anything about their identity and status.
As for the fourth one, Ye Linyuan took out another black piece, which represented the existence behind the Five Elements Return to Origin terrain.
The fifth chess piece was also black, and Ye Linyuan positioned it on the mysterious demon monk.
Finally, the sixth chess piece Ye Linyuan took out was a white piece, which represented the identity of Qinghe Immortal Sect.
After placing five chess pieces, Ye Linyuan looked at the five chess pieces in turn, and then analyzed them one by one.
"Minghuang Jianzi is the mastermind who has been planning for many years just for today. If there is no external interference, he should be 100% sure to capture the Nine-Bend Spirit Crane."
"external force?"
Ye Linyuan's eyes lit up slightly, and then he looked at the third chess piece representing Xuanling Sanren, and said thoughtfully: "The one who can set up the Xuanling Island formation must be a Jindan-level force."
"If there is anyone who can see through Minghuang Jianzi's plan, the person behind Xuanling Sanren must be one of them. This person is most likely the opponent, or the troublemaker, and is helping his disciples plan for the Bright Moon Shell."
After this analysis, Ye Linyuan suddenly understood the situation of Xuanling Sanren.
Having practiced for 800 years in his previous life, Ye Linyuan was too familiar with this kind of planning. High-level cultivators planned against their fellow practitioners, and after years of planning, they only wanted to swallow the Tao in one day.
But high-level cultivators are not without rivals, such as Ye Linyuan in his previous life. The Yuanying Zhenjun behind the scenes had set up a chess game for him for hundreds of years, and he would reap the rewards as soon as Ye Linyuan broke through.
But there are also people who do not want to see him complete the harvest and secretly interfere to destroy his plan. Otherwise, Ye Linyuan would not have easily stepped into the forbidden area of Jiexu.
So after a simple analysis, Ye Linyuan understood Xuanling Sanren's move.
He replaced Xuanling Sanren's chess piece with a white chess piece, and then looked at the remaining chess pieces. The chess piece representing the Heikui Islands was very special.
He should be the enemy of the Tianxing Islands, but for some reason he helped Minghuang Jianzi to kill the Jiuqu Linghe. This kind of behavior of aiding the enemy is against common sense.
"Unless, that's the possibility."
Ye Linyuan whispered, casually turned the chess piece of the Black Kui Islands over, and calmly left three words: "Trader."
"Ugh."
Ye Linyuan sighed slightly and had a clear understanding of this chess piece.
Trader means that this is a deal. The Black Dragon lineage is fueling Minghuang Jianzi's goal, and the Tianxing lineage will also help them achieve their wish.
Only this reason can explain why the Hei Kui lineage would help an enemy like Minghuang Jianzi to set up a plan.
There are six pieces in total, three white pieces have appeared on the field, and the remaining three are easy to find.
Ye Linyuan casually found the Qinghe Immortal Sect chess piece and said to himself calmly, "Minghuang Sword Master set up the game, and Jiuqu Linghe is just a chess piece on the board. Logically, there should be no identity issues."
"But the Nine-Curved Spirit Crane has lived for more than three hundred years. Could it be that he really can't see that this chess game was set up for him?"
Ye Linyuan shook his head, then said with a firm look: "It must be able to see and know that this is a trap set for it, but it still wants to get involved."
"Because this is its chance to achieve enlightenment, and it also believes that it has a glimmer of chance of success."
"In that case, these two pieces of chess are clear."
Ye Linyuan whispered, and casually turned over the Five Elements Return to Origin Earth Vein and the Qinghe Immortal Sect.
He named the Qinghe Immortal Sect's chess piece "Bird in the Cage" and the Wuyun Islands' chess piece "The Helper".
The reason why the chess piece in the Five Elements Islands was confirmed to be the helper was because although the formation pattern of the Five Elements Guiyuan Earth Vein was of extremely high attainments, it did not seem to be the work of a Jindan force. Instead, it seemed to be left behind by a foundation-building cultivator with extremely high attainments in formations.
Looking at the last chess piece representing the demonic monk, Ye Linyuan finally left three words for it: [Speculator].
There is no other reason. The demon monks are insidious and cunning, with no character or credibility, and no one is willing to cooperate with them.
Judging from the fact that this person took the opportunity to practice the Blood Soul Banner, he was most likely an opportunist who wanted to fish in troubled waters. I just don't know if the devil has seen the situation clearly.
At this point, the positions of the six chess pieces finally became clear in Ye Linyuan's eyes.
"【Planner】, 【Player】, 【Trader】, 【Bird in a Cage】, 【Assister】, 【Speculator】."
Ye Linyuan muttered his ideas to himself and positioned the forces of several parties. A clear chess game emerged in his mind.
Then he used divination and astrology to verify the identities of several parties one by one, and suddenly the originally unpredictable situation became clear.
[The Planner] set up a cage, wanting to completely lock up the bird in the cage.
[Traders] cooperate with the layout only for the opportunity to achieve success in the future.
[The chess player] didn't want the bird to get what it wanted, so he placed an idle chess piece to intervene and bring a chance of life to the bird in the cage.
[Bird in the Cage] The bird is unwilling to give in and wants to find a glimmer of hope for survival through the cracks. It is willing to give up the things it cherishes just to break free from the shackles of the cage.
[Rescuer] Saving others is saving yourself. Making all kinds of plans and arrangements to save others may just be a way to hope for a glimmer of hope for yourself.
[Speculator] He is vicious and cruel, and likes to fish in troubled waters in various situations. As long as he can make himself a little bit stronger than he is now, he will not mind sacrificing the blood of all living things. However, he seems to have a fatal weakness that cannot be touched.
"This situation is quite interesting."
"If you can use your Qi training to take advantage of this situation, it would be a great achievement."
Ye Linyuan clapped his hands, then stood up and prepared to leave.
But before leaving, he paused, casually took out a black chess piece from his sleeve, and calmly placed it on the chessboard.
"This is——【Dragon in the Abyss】."
"..."
The army went straight to the deep sea without resting.
They soon left the Heikui Islands and crossed hundreds of miles of vast ocean, and unknowingly arrived outside the Conch Five Islands.
What surprised them was that a large formation had appeared in the five conch islands at some point.
In the central sea area of the Five Conch Islands, an array formation emitting colorless light covered the sky and the sun. Jiuqu Linghe, Minghuang Jianzi, and six foundation-building figures from the human and demon races were fighting fiercely in the array.
On the five islands, there are more than two hundred Qi-cultivating monks blessing the formation, adding their own true Qi to the formation, as if to increase the power of this formation.
"This is?"
Seeing this scene, many people in the fleet were surprised, and many monks were shocked.
The three elders of Qinghe Xianmen and Su Shaoyu seemed to have anticipated this. Su Shaoyu looked at everyone calmly and said, "In order to guard against Minghuang Jianzi, Qinghe Xianmen has already made a backup plan."
"This formation is formed by gathering the five elements of earth veins and arranged with five high-grade spiritual eyes. With the support of a large number of Qi training monks, it can fight even against foundation building cultivators."
Having said this, the great elder immediately issued an order: "Everyone, follow me into the formation immediately and help the ancestor of Qinghe Immortal Sect."
As soon as the words fell, the cultivators of Qinghe Immortal Sect immediately drove the major families and independent cultivators into the formation.
At this time, many cultivators were still a little hesitant. The level of the struggle between Qinghe Xianmen and Minghuang Jianzi was too high, and many of them did not dare to take action. But Su Shaoyu was decisive and killed several Qi training cultivators on the spot. He said with a cold face: "In today's battle, if you don't take action today, I will kill you first."
"Even if you escape, I will kill all of you and your entire clan when you return to the Qinghe Islands."
Seeing this, the many cultivators present became even more frightened. Thinking that they still had to practice in the Qinghe Islands, they could only grit their teeth and enter the Five Conch Islands.
Qi training cultivators are only at the bottom of the immortal cultivation world. They have no choice at all in the face of such a powerful force. They can only endure it in order to have a glimmer of hope of survival.
Ye Linyuan also stepped into the Five Elements Return to Origin Earth Vein, and the moment he stepped into the Five Elements Return to Origin Earth Vein, he felt an invisible field sucking his true energy and continuously transmitting it towards the formation in the center of the battlefield.
This made Ye Linyuan frown slightly, but he did not resist the suction. He just controlled the flow rate of the true energy in his body while refining the water vapor to restore the true energy.
Afterwards, Ye Linyuan observed the formation of the Five Conch Islands again. This time, each of the Five Conch Islands had an additional top-grade spiritual eye.
It was obvious that the five top-grade spirit eyes here were obviously cultivated secretly by the helper with the spirit gathering beads a long time ago, but their spiritual energy had been hidden by the concealing formation.
At this time, the five spiritual eyes were fully opened, and with the help of the power of the Five Elements Return to Origin Earth Vein, they continuously gathered the Five Elements' Qi, transforming it into a very sophisticated large-scale complex formation.
At the core of this formation, where the vital energy of heaven and earth converges, a colorful conch the size of a house is suspended in mid-air, constantly inhaling and exhaling the energy of the five elements of heaven and earth, transforming into a sky full of colorful clouds that cover the world.
"Based on the Five Elements Returning to Origin Earth Vein, the five great spirit eyes and the true qi of thousands of cultivators, and the rare spirit beast Five-Colored Black Snail as the core of the formation, this formation is pretty good."
Ye Linyuan whispered in his heart, even from his perspective, this formation was quite impressive.
Thinking of this, Ye Linyuan raised his head and looked towards the center of the battlefield, only to see that the battle at the core of the battlefield was particularly fierce.
The three great monsters from the Heikui Islands, the three foundation-building masters from the Qinghe Immortal Sect, as well as Minghuang Jianzi and Jiuqu Linghe were all fighting fiercely.
In terms of overall strength of both sides, Minghuang Jianzi's side should be stronger. The Nine-Curved Spirit Crane seems to have suffered serious injuries now, obviously injured by Minghuang Jianzi in the previous chase.
However, at this time, the Jiuqu Linghe side did not fall into too great a disadvantage, because with the blessing of the formation, their strength had been greatly improved, and they were able to fight even against Minghuang Jianzi and others.
The most crucial thing is that next to the Jiuqu Linghe, there is a Taoist in a purple robe. This person is fighting side by side with the Jiuqu Linghe, and together they are fighting against the Minghuang Swordsman who is so powerful in the Tianxing Sea.
"A cultivator who has reached the perfection of the middle stage of foundation building. It seems that this person is the helper of Jiuqu Linghe."
Ye Linyuan whispered in his heart that among the six pieces he saw, three had already appeared completely, confirming some of his guesses.
At this time, Ye Linyuan also roughly understood the situation.
Minghuang Jianzi had been planning for many years, and from the beginning he was aiming for the Green Bird Soul of the Nine-Curved Spirit Crane, so naturally he had a great chance of success.
In the previous chase, Minghuang Jianzi severely injured the Nine-Bend Spirit Crane, forcing it to be unable to escape.
So the Nine-Curved Spirit Crane activated its backup plan, relying on the formation and the help of the purple-robed Taoist priest to fight against Minghuang Jianzi.
At this time, the purple-robed Taoist priest used all his strength to mobilize the power of the formation to suppress the Minghuang swordsman, intending to completely trap this peerless genius of the Tianxing Sword Sect here.
But Minghuang Jianzi is worthy of being a genius of his generation. He is not afraid at all even when facing two powerful enemies and the suppression of the formation.
He activated the Minghuang ancient sword, and a yellow dragon that looked down on the world soared into the sky, colliding with the purple-robed Taoist's formation, causing a shock wave that swept thousands of feet above the sky.
In an instant, several great demon cultivators and those who had established their foundation were all blown away by the shock wave.
"Wu Yun Sanren, do you really want to stop me?"
After defeating everyone with one move, Minghuang Jianzi did not pursue the victory. He just glanced at everyone calmly, and finally looked at the purple-robed Taoist with a burning gaze and asked.
When Ye Linyuan heard this, a hint of understanding appeared in his eyes.
This Wuyun Sanren is a well-known independent cultivator in the Tianxing Sea. He is a genius independent cultivator of his generation and is proficient in the art of formations. It is said that he has inherited the legacy of a Jindan cultivator.
Of course, the most legendary thing is that this Wuyun Sanren is a cultivator with five spiritual roots, so he is hailed as one of the most amazing people in the Tianxing Sea in the past hundred years.
"Self-cultivator, five spiritual roots, middle stage of foundation building, good at formation, golden elixir inheritance."
Ye Linyuan recalled the information about Wu Yun San Ren and looked at him with a hint of pity in his eyes.
Each of these features is insignificant on its own, but when combined together they become something special.
He is just a casual cultivator, but he can reach such a level with five spiritual roots. There must be a huge secret behind this.
Adding to that the so-called golden elixir inheritance, this Wuyun Sanren is probably like the Nine-bend Spirit Crane, and is also someone else's "bird in a cage".
"The one who helps others is saving himself. The hexagram is indeed true."
Ye Linyuan's eyes moved slightly, and he looked at the Taoist Wuyun again.
At this time, Wuyun Sanren was seen fluttering in the wind in a purple robe. He looked at Minghuang Jianzi with a somewhat sad face and said, "Daoyou Minghuang, Daoyou Jiuqu's lifelong practice has not been easy to come by. I hope Daoyou can show mercy and spare his life."
"Ah--"
Minghuang Jianzi smiled and said calmly, "For cultivators of my generation, we can only advance and not retreat in the struggle for the Great Dao. If we were in different places, do you think he would let me go?"
"Ugh."
Wu Yun San Ren was silent for a moment, but still sighed and said, "I'm sorry!"
Having said this, Wuyun Sanren activated the formation once again and started a fierce battle with Minghuang Jianzi.
"Stubborn!"
When Minghuang Jianzi saw this, he immediately revealed a hint of murderous intent.
Then he rose into the sky, like a bright sun rising into the sky, with endless golden light crossing the mountains and rivers.
In an instant, a sword chant was heard, followed by a sword light that broke through the sky and slashed straight towards Wuyun Sanli.
"Get out of my way!"
Faced with such an attack, Wuyun Sanren activated the formation with great solemnity to protect himself from it.
But at this moment, the formation suddenly shook violently, and most of the power bestowed on him suddenly dissipated.
"not good."
Wuyun Sanren's heart skipped a beat, but it was too late.
But when he saw the monstrous sword energy coming at him, he was hit so hard that blood flew out and most of his bones were shattered in an instant.
"puff--"
After one move, Wuyun Sanren was seriously injured. He looked towards the center of the formation in disbelief.
But at this time, the five-colored black conch was already hovering above the sky, looking at him with a hint of coldness in its eyes.
"Five-Colored Black Snail, why did you betray me?"
Wuyun Sanren couldn't believe it. This five-colored black conch was cultivated by him personally, so how could it give him a fatal blow at such a critical moment?
Suddenly, he suddenly thought of something, and couldn't help but look at Jiuqu Linghe and said, "The five-colored spiritual liquid you gave me, is there something mixed in it?"
"impossible."
Jiuqu Linghe showed a look of disbelief, and couldn't help but exclaimed in anger: "The five-colored spiritual liquid is a rare treasure that I paid a huge price to buy, and you and I are grasshoppers on the same rope, how could I harm myself."
"You don't have to argue."
At this moment, Minghuang Jianzi above the sky said calmly: "I was the one who secretly released the five-colored spiritual liquid, and I just added a drop of 'Pure Spiritual Liquid' into it."
After hearing this, Ye Linyuan roughly understood the whole story.
This five-colored black conch is a spiritual beast cultivated by Wuyun Sanren, and it is also an opportunity for Wuyun Sanren to advance to the late stage of foundation building.
The Five-Colored Spirit Liquid is a rare first-class treasure. This treasure can greatly enhance the bloodline of the Five-Colored Black Snail and greatly increase the probability of it transforming into a rare bloodline.
It turned out that Jiuqu Linghe paid a huge price to purchase this five-colored spiritual liquid in order to ask Wuyun Sanren for help.
As for setting up this formation with the Five-Colored Mysterious Conch as the core in this kind of terrain, it had already been in the plan of Jiuqu Linghe and Wuyun Sanren.
It was precisely because of this plan that Jiuqu Linghe, knowing full well the dangers, still dared to take the risk and plan for the Bright Moon Shell.
But he never imagined that the five-colored spiritual liquid was secretly released by Minghuang Jianzi, and a drop of pure spiritual liquid was added to it.
The Spirit Purifying Liquid is a second-level spiritual medicine that can dissolve the beast-controlling soul seal in the sea of consciousness of spiritual beasts, freeing them from the control of their owners.
(End of this chapter)
