A group of six people stepped forward in silence.
The high cliffs on both sides carried a fierce aura, presenting translucent ice and snow colors, while the sky above the canyon was a heart-stirring blue.
Along the way, there were only the sounds of several people’s footsteps on the ice surface and the wind passing through the cold air—very quiet indeed.
Before long, they had already approached the end of the canyon.
There was no need to walk all the way out; just standing inside the canyon’s opening, they could see the magnificent and eerily strange building ahead.
The vast mountain ice fields actually had an end here.
A stretch of flat ice and snow spread out like a carpet, but at a certain point ahead, it simply broke off, as if someone painting a picture had suddenly stopped.
The edge between earth and sky was swallowed by nothingness, merging into a mass of dark, gray chaos.
A towering structure with a fierce and imposing design stood abruptly at the end of their line of sight.
The black tower body was covered with ice and snow that had accumulated over the years in the Ice Prison, impossible to melt away. On the tower eaves, wall tiles, and even on the carved evil spirits on the open gate, large and small icicles hung everywhere.
A large plaque inscribed with the five characters “Ice Prison Warden Office” hung high above the gate.
Even from a distance, they could see ice-blue flames flickering inside the gate, but there wasn’t half a human figure—it looked like a cold, dead tower.
This must be the Warden Office.
Looking at it, Jian Chou gradually frowned.
“What’s wrong?”
Chen Tingyan noticed Jian Chou’s expression and couldn’t help asking.
Jian Chou shook her head, a shifting divine light in her eyes. She drew the Tunfeng Sword that her left hand had been gripping from its sheath, holding it in her hand as she said: “We’re limited by the canyon’s view and can only see a little ahead. We don’t know the situation on both sides, and we can’t see clearly what’s inside the Warden Office’s gate either. We should be more careful when we go out.”
It’s better to be safe than sorry.
Moreover, Jian Chou still needed to preserve her life for the Nineteen Continents. When she saw that open-gated Warden Office tower, she felt a very strange trembling sensation.
She couldn’t say exactly what it was—it might just be intuition, or perhaps an overreaction.
But being a little more careful was never wrong.
Hearing this, everyone nodded and became alert.
Only Wang Renjie, upon hearing this, felt they were making a big fuss over nothing.
Pan Hexun had passed by here just a little ahead of them without encountering any danger. If there had been any, they should have heard something. Moreover, this canyon was a necessary passage, and no one had come through during this time.
To say there was danger ahead?
Pure nonsense.
Therefore, while others heightened their vigilance, he just stood aside impatiently, watching coldly.
Everyone naturally noticed his unsociable behavior.
Originally, they were a team, and Wang Renjie was also a cultivator of the Day Wandering Clan, traveling with Chen Tingyan. Jian Chou had wanted to remind him, but seeing his attitude, she dismissed the thought.
Having entered the Eighteen Levels of Hell, they were walking the path of the Eighteen Levels of Hell.
People’s life and death each had their own fate.
If he didn’t treasure it himself and didn’t care at all, what obligation did she have to remind him?
As these thoughts turned in Jian Chou’s mind, she saw that except for Wang Renjie, everyone had become alert. Gu Ling had even directly taken out a seven-colored feather fan, her expression somewhat uneasy, obviously nervous.
So she said no more, only: “Let’s go.”
And took the lead in stepping forward.
The place where they had stopped earlier was right at the canyon mouth. To walk outside this long canyon would only take two or three steps.
Everyone held their breath and concentrated. The old woman even walked directly beside Gu Ling, afraid that in case of an accident, she wouldn’t be able to protect her in time.
Step by step, they walked extremely carefully.
The canyon mouth drew closer and closer. Just two more steps, and the Ice Warden Office was right before them. Standing here, they could even see the carved patterns of demons and spirits on the gate.
“Isn’t nothing happening at all?”
Wang Renjie looked and laughed.
“I wanted to say earlier that you were making a fuss over nothing—”
“Be careful!”
Before Wang Renjie’s words had finished, Jian Chou, walking ahead, suddenly shouted!
At the same time, the situation at the canyon mouth changed dramatically!
Cackling strange laughter suddenly came from the left and right sides, interweaving and echoing, reverberating throughout this deep, vast canyon!
Above everyone’s heads, there was actually a deep red net, emanating a heart-trembling dark red glow, descending from above to cover them all!
Wang Renjie was immediately dumbfounded.
But Jian Chou couldn’t care about much else. Hearing the sounds around her, she knew there were definitely quite a few people nearby.
There was actually an ambush here!
When Pan Hexun had passed through this place earlier, he had been completely safe.
Where had this group of people come from now?
Such a question flashed through Jian Chou’s mind like lightning, shocking her beyond measure.
But in this critical moment, there was no more time to think.
“Scatter!”
She shouted decisively, and the moment she saw the net clearly, she exerted force with her feet.
The Thousand Li Travel Talisman immediately burned at her feet, and a burst of propulsive force immediately pushed her forward in this hair’s breadth moment!
The others all had higher cultivation than Jian Chou. Even if their reactions were half a beat slower, they could still rely on their deep soul power to force out a burst of speed.
In just the blink of an eye, the people who had been gathered together had already scattered like meteors, flying toward different directions.
“Crack, crack, crack…”
How fierce was the net’s momentum?
What appeared to be a light, floating net—every rope actually carried sharp, deep red barbs that collided with each other as it descended, producing terrifying sounds.
Terrible!
Wang Renjie’s soul nearly left his body in terror!
He had originally thought Jian Chou and the others’ vigilance was unnecessary, maintaining only the most ordinary alertness. He hadn’t expected they would encounter an ambush at all!
In this brief moment, how could he possibly react in time?
First, the others were on the outside while he was inside, so naturally he wasn’t as well-positioned to escape as the others. Second, his mind was unguarded and his body undefended—to suddenly gather soul power and flee was already too slow!
Only a thunderous “boom” was heard as the giant net thrown down from the peaks on both sides of the canyon completely enveloped Wang Renjie!
Countless barbs growing on the net seemed to come alive, drilling madly downward after hitting the ground.
“Ahhhhh—”
Wang Renjie, trapped in the net, was immediately pierced through by dozens of barbs, letting out agonized screams!
“Save me, save me!”
“Crack, crack, crack!”
The hard ice layer on the ground was also pierced by the barbs, immediately cracking like an eggshell, leaving horrifying scars on the ice surface.
At this moment, everyone was too busy saving themselves to spare any attention for Wang Renjie.
They could hear the constant strange laughter around them, but it was moving rapidly.
Looking up, they saw over ten brilliant lights from magical artifacts emerging from both sides of the canyon, all converging toward the canyon mouth.
“We waited so long for you, but unexpectedly, casting one net only caught a small fish!”
Leading them was a man standing in the middle of the canyon, perfectly blocking everyone’s path.
He wore a deep blue double-breasted cloak and carried an unlit human skin lantern. Half his face was handsome and beautiful, while the other half was covered with ugly scars. A cruel, cold smile hung at the corner of his lips as he gazed at everyone in the field.
“Sima Languan!”
The moment she saw him, Jian Chou drew in a sharp breath.
Her excellent memory immediately told her the opponent’s identity!
Her face immediately showed extreme wariness and shock, while waves of despair slowly poured into her heart.
Among the six people in the field, except for Wang Renjie who was still screaming under the net, everyone’s faces showed gloom.
No one had expected that at this critical moment when they were about to pass the first level, such a terrifying variable would emerge!
Human skin lantern, Fengdu Ghost King.
Divine-Demonic Face, Sima Languan!
The one leading people to block their path was none other than the long-famous first person of the Ghost King Clan, Sima Languan!
Before Lihan and Zhong Lanling appeared, his prominence was unmatched.
Even after Lihan and Zhong Lanling appeared, too many people still believed that his combat power had never been fully revealed and should far exceed those two latecomers.
A formidable enemy!
And murderous intent was already exposed!
Jian Chou didn’t need to waste time thinking to know that the current situation was extremely unfavorable for their side.
Because they had been forced to scatter while avoiding the net that fell from the sky, they were now awkwardly positioned at this canyon mouth.
Sima Languan had three people each on his left and right, and four more people stood on the cliff walls above on both sides. A glance revealed they were all cultivators from Fengdu City.
They just didn’t know what kind of concealment methods they had used to completely escape their detection!
They couldn’t advance or retreat.
The enemy was strong while they were weak; the enemy was numerous while they were few.
A series of judgments instantly appeared in Jian Chou’s mind—
A hard battle!
Zhang Tang was on the left, with a deep vertical mark between his brows, and a faint trace of deep blue flame light flashed, making his bland features appear more profoundly mysterious.
Opening his five fingers, sharp snow-bright light flashed.
A thin bone-cutting blade was already between his fingers.
Chen Tingyan was on the right, his body already lowered, his folding fan replaced with a black iron fan decorated with gold. At the same time, colorful lights flashed around him.
Without thinking, one could tell that this ancestor with a bulging money pouch had thrown out all his protective magical artifacts.
Gu Ling and the old woman were slightly behind, inside the canyon mouth, but they had also been forced apart.
Gu Ling held the seven-colored feather fan from before, while her flowing light feather robe immediately spread out a burning wind, with flames faintly burning around her—quite an impressive sight at first glance.
However, she had rarely seen such big scenes and had never experienced any life-or-death crises.
At this moment, her small face was deathly pale, and even her hands and feet were trembling.
The old woman wanted to go to her side, but there were two watchful Fengdu City cultivators nearby, so she dared not make any excessive movements.
She held her cleaver, her face dark as water, even the wrinkles on her face filled with deep anger.
And Jian Chou at the very front was the most composed of all.
She only secretly opened the protective array hidden in her palm to the highest defense level, held her sword in her right hand maintaining readiness to strike like lightning at any moment, while her left hand fingers were positioned at her waist, ready to draw out her deadly trump card at any time.
Her usually gentle, delicate eyebrows added several degrees of blade-like frost in this murderous atmosphere.
Jian Chou’s body remained motionless, her entire being settling down like a pool of water in an ancient well, possessing an extraordinary depth and profundity that stood apart from the mundane.
Sima Languan, facing her directly ahead, noticed immediately.
Among all the people surrounded at the canyon mouth, this female cultivator had the weakest cultivation and really couldn’t be taken seriously. But at this moment when swords were drawn and battle was about to erupt, she raised her sword with the most composed aura.
This was different from all her companions.
Without being battle-tested with an unshakable will, she would never have such a reaction!
Her entire being was precisely positioned between release and restraint.
Her qi was contained without being released, like a blade drawn two inches from its sheath—its edge about to show but not yet shown, its sword light about to emerge but not yet emerged, ready to draw the sword at any moment, yet also ready to sheath it at any moment.
…
Sima Languan watched like this, and slowly a strange brilliance bloomed in his eyes.
The human skin on his lantern hadn’t been changed for quite some time.
The current one was still from two years ago on the eighteenth floor above ground, when he had taken a fancy to a bearded man and specially peeled it from his body.
But because this person’s skin was dark, this human skin lantern was always very dim when lit.
Now…
His gaze slowly swept across Jian Chou’s fair skin, like a delicate carving knife tracing her form.
Perhaps it was time to replace it with a translucent beauty’s skin.
Sima Languan held his lantern, standing at the canyon mouth, finally slowly spreading into a smile.
His left face was enchantingly beautiful, but his right face became hideous and sinister!
Jian Chou and the others, who had been closely watching him in the field, saw his true smile and almost all felt their hearts chill simultaneously!
Almost at the same time, Sima Languan directly waved his hand, his wide sleeves billowing: “Before the Warden Office, under the malevolent stars, this is the perfect time for killing. Since you want to go to hell, I’ll send you on your way. Attack!”
“Kill!”
Several voices merged into a fierce shout!
Before the Warden Office, at the canyon mouth, figures suddenly flickered with murderous intent!
Jian Chou only saw a black shadow flash before her eyes—a thin, monkey-like gray-clothed youth wielding a five-foot nine-ring black cleaver completely disproportionate to his frame, charging at her!
“Hehe! You’re weaker, so I’ll chop you up!”
Hearing this, Jian Chou felt only a strange amazement in her heart, finding it almost amusing. A surge of hot blood flowed against the current, making her whole body boil!
Weaker?
“I think so too!”
She actually laughed aloud, her eyes burning like fire, her aura fully unleashed, like a treasured sword leaving its sheath, its cold light spanning ten thousand li!
The gray-clothed youth was immediately stunned.
In a flash, Jian Chou had already released her left hand, abandoning the trump card she had been gripping, and instead gripped her sword with both hands, as if holding a great axe, a heavy sword!
“Clang!”
An extremely crisp, even somewhat deafening collision sound!
Jian Chou didn’t retreat but advanced, wielding the Tunfeng Sword and chopping down directly at the nine-ring cleaver!
“Ding-ling-dang-lang!”
The nine deep red copper rings hanging on the blade’s back immediately collided with each other due to instability, producing a series of crisp sounds.
The gray-clothed youth’s expression immediately changed drastically. He felt his palm violently shake, becoming somewhat numb.
An extremely refined soul power actually surged from the opponent’s black sword, inexplicably making his heart tremble!
The nine-ring cleaver was naturally one of the heavier types among swords and blades. He had charged with momentum, carrying the aura of a surprise attack, yet was actually blocked by the opponent’s single sword strike!
It was a sword!
And a light, agile three-foot narrow sword at that!
The gray-clothed youth could hardly believe it, even suspecting there was something mysterious about Jian Chou’s sword.
But Jian Chou didn’t give him more time to react.
When she had seen his cleaver earlier, she inevitably recalled some other things. Almost with a single thought, she completely abandoned the path of “sword walks with lightness” and turned to rigidity instead.
One sword strike, landing on the opponent’s nine-ring blade, immediately transmitted a rebound force.
Jian Chou then borrowed this force to quickly withdraw the black Tunfeng Sword. Due to the sword’s special structure, it moved through the air without any resistance, actually gaining speed from the wind, swift as lightning!
She twisted her wrist and exerted force suddenly, borrowing the momentum of the swift wind circulating within the sword to pull it back, then quickly slashed forward again!
Seeing this, the youth’s formation was already in chaos.
In his haste, he only managed to raise his blade to block!
“Clang!”
Another heavy sound!
Jian Chou withdrew her sword swift as lightning, returned it floating like wind, and struck again with the force of thunder, heavy as mountains!
How could the gray-clothed youth have expected this sword to be even heavier than the previous one?
In his haste, he was actually chopped back a step!
A great opportunity!
Jian Chou’s eyes sparkled with brilliant light, momentarily blazing like the sun. Without hesitation, she pressed her advantage!
“Clang!”
“Clang!”
“Clang!”
Each sound faster than the last, each sword heavier than the previous!
For a moment, it was like frequent thunder and sudden storm!
Due to excessive shock, the monkey-like gray-clothed youth was nearly stupefied by these consecutive sword strikes!
This female cultivator!
She completely defied conventional logic!
Her sword withdrawals were light and agile, but her strikes were necessarily bold and expansive, more substantial and heavier than even his barbaric cleaver!
How could he know that this was nothing to Jian Chou at all?
The Ghost Axe weighed as much as a thousand jun—she had long been accustomed to wielding it. Even single-handed, the axe had the power to split stones and cleave mountains.
Speaking of bold and expansive moves?
How could a mere nine-ring blade compare to the Ghost Axe, yet dare to show off before her?
Jian Chou once again borrowed the collision force to withdraw her sword, then channeled wind power into it, instantly striking out again!
Due to the accumulation of the previous strikes, this sword’s momentum and power had almost reached an extreme, like Mount Tai collapsing, smashing toward the opponent!
“Clang!”
This thunderous sound was more terrifying than any before.
A tremendous force transmitted from that strangely-shaped Tunfeng narrow sword, shaking the youth’s entire arm numb!
“Clang!”
Caught off guard, the heavy five-foot nine-ring blade actually flew from his hands.
The distant ice surface was instantly smashed into a large crater, with shattered ice crystals scattering snow-white fragments!
The gray-clothed youth’s face immediately turned deathly pale!
He didn’t even have time to look back, only managing to raise his head in terror—
Jian Chou had already risen with the wind, sword raised high.
Because her sword was so swift, hurricanes faintly surrounded the blade, carrying low roars and howls!
Yet her form was light and ethereal like a crane, her eyes clear as pure snow, as she gently thrust one sword toward his throat!
Author’s Note: This book still has a long way to go. The current outline covers at most half the story, and important character designs and endings have already been planned. Please don’t worry about me abandoning this book due to starting a new one.
“I Will Not Become Immortal” is very important to you all, and it’s very important to me too. It represents a breakthrough in my writing of this genre, and I will finish it properly.
It’s just that writing long novels is truly exhausting. I couldn’t resist wanting to write something romantic recently, so I secretly started another book.
Since I’ve mentioned it, let me smoothly advertise:
“The Concubine’s Original Coolness,” ancient romance, love storyline. Here’s a few hundred words for preview. If you like it, you can return to the catalog, click my pen name [Time Mirror] on the article details page to enter my column, or directly search for the title.
Chapter 001: So It Was Her
Spring had just begun, but the weather hadn’t warmed yet.
Last night brought snow that covered the mountains in silver white.
The famous Great Zhao Temple of the capital was built on the mountainside.
Thick snow piled on the golden glazed roof, and only after noon did snowwater begin dripping from the eaves.
The sky was leaden gray, somewhat gloomy and oppressive, with no sign of clearing.
Abbot Jueyuan was very old, his face full of wrinkles.
Walking on the mountain path, he looked down, then glanced at the figure ahead, saying: “In ten days, it will be his fiftieth birthday… you should go back, shouldn’t you?”
Gu Juefei didn’t speak.
He was a scholar, but without that scholarly weakness.
His spine was straight as green bamboo, bright and clear.
Tall in stature, wearing a dark blue satin robe with hidden bamboo leaf patterns, and though he wore a dark blue cloak with cloud-crane designs over it, it couldn’t hide his broad shoulders and narrow waist.
Eyebrows like ink paintings, temples sharp as blade-cuts.
His eyes held a lonely depth, naturally blessed with good looks.
The wild arrogance of his youth six years ago had been completely washed away. Under time’s grinding, he now possessed depths like an abyss and steadiness like Mount Tai.
If one hadn’t personally witnessed his transformation, even Abbot Jueyuan would find it difficult to connect those past events with the present man.
Seeing the other party wouldn’t speak, Jueyuan sighed.
“Though I don’t know why you came to the mountain, between father and son, what grudges last overnight? Besides, six years have already passed. In a few more years, he’ll reach retirement age.”
“I heard your manor’s second young master is promising—he passed the provincial examination last year, and this year there’s another imperial examination, so he should participate in the spring examination.”
“You are the legitimate eldest son. If you returned to guide him…”
“From whom did you hear this?”
When Gu Juefei heard the words “legitimate eldest,” he finally lost patience. Lifting his eyelids to glance at Jueyuan with a seemingly amused expression, he interrupted.
If one looked carefully, they would see his eyes were covered with a layer of ice, without a trace of real amusement.
Jueyuan knew he couldn’t hide it from him: “Your father. He came yesterday afternoon and talked with me in the meditation room for a long time, not leaving until the hour of the pig. At that time, the snow was very heavy…”
Current Grand Tutor Gu Chengqian held the first rank among officials, among the highest tier of civil servants.
Thirteen years ago during the palace upheaval, he was shot by a stray arrow while protecting the then-Third Prince.
Later, when the Third Prince ascended the throne, he was promoted to Grand Tutor, but the injury left lasting effects. Every cold, damp season brought pain like needles and axes, unbearable agony that even renowned physicians couldn’t cure.
The new emperor, grateful for his past protection and sympathetic to his current service to the state, specially exempted him from court attendance during rain and snow.
But last night’s bitter cold and snowy conditions—what must his state have been, braving the snow down the mountain?
Abbot Jueyuan still remembered that when this powerful court minister bid farewell at the door, his silver-white hair looked exactly the same color as the snowflakes flying in the cold night.
Sometimes words need not be spoken completely, especially to intelligent people.
Jueyuan glanced at Gu Juefei, and he indeed fell into silence.