CHAPTER 369: CHAPTER 354: ZHENREN BESTOWS TREASURE [SEEKING SUBSCRIPTION!]

Zhouyang naturally did not know that the reason Master Cyan Yang sent him on the journey to the "Sealed Demon Cave" had such deep implications behind it.

After leaving Ghostly Mist Peak, he smoothly returned to the place where he had parted with Xu Zhengyang.

As he expected, that Chen Style had not returned, clearly still making efforts to eliminate demons.

"Why have you returned so quickly? Did you encounter a powerful demon?"

Xu Zhengyang looked at Zhouyang with concern in his eyes, noting Zhouyang’s somewhat strange complexion and asked about the reason.

"Indeed, I encountered a formidable adversary and suffered a slight loss of primordial qi."

Zhouyang smiled lightly, his tone rather relaxed.

Upon hearing this, Xu Zhengyang immediately understood that Zhouyang’s injuries were not severe, so he nodded and said, "Knowing when to advance and retreat allows for great achievements, you need not worry too much. Even if you ultimately lose, the Chen Family will still have to apologize to you."

He obviously did not understand Zhouyang’s true combat strength and simply assumed Zhouyang had poor performance due to injuries, needing to retreat to recuperate.

Zhouyang did not explain further, instead handing the Demon-Examination Copper Mirror hanging from his chest over, saying, "All of the younger generation’s experiences in the Sealed Demon Cave are recorded in this copper mirror, the elder can see for himself."

Xu Zhengyang, seeing this, did not think much and immediately reached out to take the Demon-Examination Copper Mirror, preparing to use magic to view Zhouyang’s experiences.

However, at that moment, a Flying Sword Communication from Master Cyan Yang suddenly arrived in Xu Zhengyang’s hand.

After reading it, his expression changed, and he quickly handed the Demon-Examination Copper Mirror back to Zhouyang, saying, "Junior Martial Uncle Qingyang wants you to take this copper mirror to personally meet him."

Zhouyang was momentarily stunned and then nodded thoughtfully, saying, "The younger generation understands."

Afterwards, Xu Zhengyang directly allowed Zhouyang to leave the Sealed Demon Cave through the grotto heaven passageway, while he himself continued to wait for Chen Style’s return.

Of course, in his heart, it did not matter when Chen Style returned, as the result was already determined.

That one arm, he was certain of it!

On the other side, after Zhouyang left the Sealed Demon Cave and before he could steady himself, Master Cyan Yang immediately captured him and flew him to an unnamed mountain in the Profound Sun Mountain Range.

"Alright, now tell me about your experiences in the Sealed Demon Cave."

On the unnamed mountain, Master Cyan Yang put Zhouyang down and asked about his experiences with a calm demeanor.

"Elder Ming Jian, the younger generation..."

Zhouyang dared not delay and immediately recounted his experiences in the Sealed Demon Cave in detail.

After finishing, he also took off his storage bag and handed it along with the Demon-Examination Copper Mirror to Master Cyan Yang, saying, "Everything I said is true, if the elder does not believe, he can verify with the Dharma Mirror."

Master Cyan Yang, hearing this, actually accepted the storage bag and Demon-Examination Copper Mirror with a wave of his sleeve and began to examine them.

Then, Master Cyan Yang somehow managed to view Zhouyang’s entire twenty-plus day experience in the Sealed Demon Cave within just half an hour, and inspected the various items taken from the storage bag.

After examining all these items, Master Cyan Yang only kept the Ghost Luo Banner demon artifact and Demon-Examination Copper Mirror, returning everything else to Zhouyang in the storage bag.

Then he looked at Zhouyang and slowly spoke, "This journey to the Sealed Demon Cave, you did very well. However, remember not to divulge this experience, do you understand?"

Hearing this, Zhouyang assumed he did not want him to reveal the secrets of the Profound Sun Immortal Sect or the matter of the Ghost Luo Banner, so he promptly replied respectfully, "The younger generation understands."

"Additionally, your cultivation is advancing rather rapidly, you must know that haste makes waste."

"I do not know how you managed to mitigate the threat of erysipelas, but I must warn you that erysipelas is not as simple as you think. Absolutely no method can completely eradicate it, and excessive use of spirit pills to enhance your cultivation will only make forming a golden core even more difficult in the future!"

"Remember, the purer the magical power, the easier core formation will be. If you solely rely on elixirs and spiritual objects to enhance your cultivation, neglecting the refinement and tempering of your magical power, you might suffer a huge setback when trying to form a core!"

Master Cyan Yang shifted the conversation to Zhouyang’s cultivation.

Zhouyang’s cultivation advancing by three levels in ten years was certainly abnormal.

Master Cyan Yang believed that Zhouyang, being able to cultivate to the Purple Mansion Stage, could not be unaware of erysipelas’ dangers and would not destroy his future path for immediate gain.

Thus, he merely pointed out the stakes to prevent Zhouyang from straying.

After all, he was counting on Zhouyang to help the Profound Sun Immortal Sect eliminate and refine the Heaven-Sundering True Demon after he condenses a golden core.

Zhouyang, of course, was entirely unaware of Master Cyan Yang’s true intentions. Despite internally dismissing it, he solemnly replied with a serious face, "The elder’s words are correct, the younger generation will definitely heed these warnings and will not gamble with his future path."

Master Cyan Yang did not know that he used the Qianyang Immortal Light, an immortal artifact’s divine technique, to purify the erysipelas within him, so he was deceived by this sincere attitude and did not continue to pursue the matter.

He simply continued, "Regarding your being wanted by the Beast Taming Sect, I have heard as well. I cannot personally resolve this for you since you are not an official disciple of the Profound Sun Immortal Sect."

"However, I highly regard your potential and do not wish for your premature demise, so here is a Thunder Talisman for you. If you encounter an inescapable danger, you may use it to aid in defeating your enemies."

"Additionally, should you have any needs, feel free to seek assistance from Junior Xu. I’ve instructed him to assist you to the best of his ability within feasible grounds!"

With a wave of his hand, a purple jade talisman fell into Zhouyang’s hand.

This purple jade talisman was only half a foot long and one and a half inches wide.

Although it was just such a thing, neither too big nor too small, the aura it exuded made Zhouyang’s heart race, and his palms holding the talisman sweat slightly.

He felt that what he was holding was not a small talisman, but a volcano ready to erupt at any moment; once he released the talisman’s seal, the sealed volcano inside would explode.

"There is only one chance, make good use of it."

Master Cyan Yang gave him a meaningful look, left this remark that seemed to have an implicit meaning, and then his figure blurred and he disappeared directly before Zhouyang’s eyes.

Not long after Master Cyan Yang left, Xu Zhengyang brought the sullen-faced Chen Style to this nameless hill.

"Fellow Daoist Zhou, Junior Martial Uncle Qingyang instructed me to bring this boy here for your disposal. Tell me, do you want his left hand or right hand?"

Xu Zhengyang came riding on a cloud, and as soon as he landed, he pushed Chen Style in front of Zhouyang, directly asking for a decision regarding his disposition.

Once a Nascent Soul Stage Zhenren speaks, it is akin to a golden decree that cannot be changed.

Therefore, even though Xu Zhengyang was not clear about Zhouyang’s gains in the "Sealed Demon Cave," it did not stop him from declaring Zhouyang the winner and bringing Chen Style before Zhouyang for disposal.

Upon hearing Xu Zhengyang’s words, Zhouyang had yet to react, but Chen Style’s expression changed drastically. A flash of terror appeared in his eyes, and he hastily shouted at Zhouyang, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, Fellow Daoist Zhou, please spare me. If you let me go, I am willing to offer you a hundred thousand Spirit Stones as a token of apology!"

Cultivators, as long as they have not become a Tribulation Crossing True Immortal, cannot completely cast off their dependence on their physical body.

While things like severed arms don’t greatly affect the daily life of cultivators, it can slow down their cultivation, and possibly even sever their path to enlightenment.

After all, losing an arm means losing a portion of meridians, making it less efficient for such cultivators to absorb spiritual qi compared to those with intact meridians.

If Chen Style were to lose an arm at this time, his future in Core Formation would undoubtedly face many more hurdles, and he might even lose the possibility of forming a Golden Core.

Therefore, hearing Xu Zhengyang’s words made him panic.

"Spirit Stones, I have plenty. You know full well that Ying’Er is my Dao Companion, yet you still dared to have designs on her. If I don’t teach you a lesson, wouldn’t people laugh at my incompetence?"

Zhouyang coldly looked at the clamoring Chen Style, his icy words instantly extinguishing the small hope in Chen Style’s heart.

After finishing his words, he nodded at Xu Zhengyang, saying, "Elder Xu, trouble yourself to sever his left arm, let this be a reminder for him to be cautious in his future conduct!"

"No!"

Chen Style screamed in terror and hastily unleashed his flying sword to escape.

Unfortunately, as soon as he took to the sky with sword control, a sharp sword light flashed past him, directly severing his left arm at the shoulder.

Bright red blood, along with an arm, fell from mid-air, accompanied by Chen Style’s heart-wrenching scream.

"Let’s go, we’ll return to Zhengyang Peak first."

Xu Zhengyang severed Chen Style’s left arm with one strike, his expression unchanged as he retracted the flying sword, then slightly nodded at Zhouyang. Before Zhouyang could react, he grabbed him, stepped onto a cloud, and flew directly towards Zhengyang Peak.

And not long after they left, a middle-aged Golden Core Stage cultivator in a fiery red magic robe arrived on a cloud, with the fleeing, armless Chen Style also on the cloud.

Upon reaching the airspace above the nameless hill, the red-clothed Golden Core cultivator waved his hand, directly capturing the arm Chen Style had dropped on the ground.

He then glanced with relief at the pale-faced Chen Style beside him, saying, "Fortunately, that scoundrel Xu Zhengyang showed some mercy and didn’t completely destroy your severed arm, or else I would have had to shamelessly plead for a Limb Regeneration Pill from Junior Martial Uncle Changqing to regenerate your arm!"

After speaking, he first used a spell to clean the dirt from the site of the severed arm, and then he reattached the arm to Chen Style’s wound, directly using a magic to reconnect the severed arm back to Chen Style.

After doing all this, the red-clothed Golden Core cultivator looked at his beloved grandson and said, "You have your own pills for blood circulation and wound healing on you; I won’t give you more."

"I hope this incident can teach you a lesson, otherwise, if you offend someone you shouldn’t again, don’t expect the old man or the Chen Family to back you up!"

"This matter ends here!"

He had no intention of standing up for Chen Style for revenge.

Master Cyan Yang’s decision, once made, can’t be altered as long as the other eight Nascent Soul Stage cultivators in the Profound Sun Immortal Sect remain silent.

Though the red-clothed Golden Core cultivator resented Zhouyang and Xu Zhengyang’s ruthlessness, he didn’t dare to act against them directly, lest serious consequences follow if discovered.

He even had to caution his disadvantaged descendant, ensuring he understood the gravity of the situation and didn’t let hatred cloud his judgment, leading to foolish decisions.

"Grandson understands, please don’t worry, Grandpa. I will announce a retreat for healing upon returning!"

Chen Style gritted his teeth, and with a dejected look, lowered his head to show his resolve.

"That would be best."

The red-clothed Golden Core cultivator nodded in satisfaction, then took Chen Style and left the nameless hill.