Gu Xu had already guessed that the "Longevity Sect" and the cultivation methods of the Youzhou Zhao Clan were essentially homologous and had an extremely close connection.

Even the gods they believe in are all named after "fire", and they are not immortals who are high above and look down on all living beings like "Shangcan", but mortals who have achieved cultivation, which can be described as quite "down-to-earth".

And today, in the process of assisting Zhao Yan in awakening the power of the bloodline with the help of the "Huilu" rune and the improved "Red Flame True Technique", he deeply realized this.

The "Karmic Fire Sutra" and the "Nirvana Sutra" are like two fragments of the same path, the former focuses on "hell karmic fire" as the key, focusing on "cleansing oneself from sins and achieving spiritual detachment and physical immortality", while the latter uses "phoenix" as an image, emphasizing "resurrection from the ashes, becoming stronger and more beautiful".

There are many similarities between the two and they complement each other in many ways.

"And what do they have in common?" Gu Xu thought to himself silently, "If I extract all the essence of it and integrate it, can I take my Red Flame True Recipe to the next level?" ”

He pondered for a moment, and quickly got an answer—

That is "power", "metamorphosis" and "subversion".

Thinking of this, he immediately made a decision, and based on his new understanding, he began to revise the scriptures of the "Red Flame True Technique" again.

If there was a high-level monk by his side at this time, he would definitely be surprised by what he had done—because in the scriptures he had rewritten, there was already an aura of great avenue meaning, and this was usually something that only a strong saint could do.

It can be said that the current "Chiyan True Technique" is very close to the real high-grade exercises. And because it was rewritten by Gu Xu himself, rather than directly copying the exercises created by others, it has a very high degree of compatibility with him, and the improvement of his cultivation efficiency is even better than most of the high-grade exercises.

Gu Xu felt that if one day in the future, he could completely digest the mysteries of the Great Dao, then he would not be far from the realm of a saint.

If Gu Xu's experience at this time can be described as "Daigo empowerment", then Zhao Yan's feelings can be described as "cutting bones and washing the marrow".

The heat flowed from her palm, along her meridians, surging all over the Queqiao, Jianggong, Huangting, Mingtang and other acupoints, and the true yuan aura penetrated, making her tremble.

She felt as if there was a secret treasure buried deep in her body, which she had never discovered before. But today, this treasure was dug out of the ground, quietly opened by an invisible key, and the power inside poured out, making her feel more powerful than ever.

And in addition to her strength, there were countless messy memory fragments pouring into her mind—the content of these memories was quite similar to the illusions that appeared during her cultivation.

She saw the familiar black wasteland, the white bones lying at her feet, and heard the howling wind and the creepy howl of ghosts and wolves.

"Master, do you really want to leave?" She heard her own small voice say this, and there was a little crying in her voice.

Then she heard a man sigh softly, "Yes." I should never come back after I leave today. So you have to be strong to protect everyone. ”

Most of Zhao Yan's martial arts were taught to her by her parents and Cai Jiaotou, and some of them were learned by herself through books. She has never specifically worshipped a teacher, let alone called anyone "Master".

But for some reason, the voice of this man she called "Shizun" made her feel inexplicably familiar.

"Could it be that this is the legendary memory of a past life?" She secretly speculated, "Could it be that I am really the reincarnation of the 'holy woman' they say?"

"If I was really a 'saint' in my previous life, then this 'master' ...... Could it be the legendary 'Vulcan' deity? ”

Zhao Yan was thinking about the problem while trying to adapt to the changes in the strength in her body.

In an instant, a pair of dazzling wings spread out behind her.

Each feather is condensed by flames, and the lines are extremely clear, glowing with red, orange and yellow brilliance.

The temperature in the room rose sharply, and the candlelight was dimmed in front of the wings of fire. The dust in the air reflected the firelight, slowly fluttering around her, like a thousand newborn fireflies.

Zhao Yan opened her eyes.

At this moment, her childlike benevolence is no longer a deep black, but a brilliant gold.

"Is this the true power of the 'Fire Spirit Body'?" She took a deep breath and sighed silently in her heart.

She felt that she had already stood at the peak of the Fifth Realm, and even when she encountered an ordinary Sixth Realm cultivator, she had the strength to fight. If you go to the eldest prince Xiao Shangyuan to challenge it now, it is really hard to say whether you will win or lose.

Then her gaze fell on Gu Xu.

The young man in front of him was still immersed in the world of cultivation. She could see the tiny beads of sweat on his cheeks, a soft glow glistening in the light of the wings of the flames.

She couldn't help but sigh that the gods must have been eccentric when they created the human race—Gu Xu's face, which had good facial features and couldn't pick out the slightest flaw, must have been a work of art that he had painstakingly fabricated; And the rest of the living beings were the mud she threw on the ground casually.

"He's really a mystery," she thought, "not only can he slightly outperform me in the heads-up of the same realm, but he can also act as a humanoid 'flint' to help me awaken the power of my bloodline."

"If I am really the reincarnation of the 'Phoenix Girl', then who is he? How can you master the principles of fire that are so close to the essence? ”

Zhao Yan was puzzled.

Suddenly, she thought of the Tsing Yi man she had met in the lava cave of Daguguan not long ago—he had absorbed all the research in the earth river and destroyed one of her cultivation treasures.

"The man...... Could it be Gu Xu? She guessed.

Before, she felt that that Tsing Yi was profound, and it could interfere with her spiritual perception, and the realm must not be low, and it might even be higher than her, so she didn't associate it with Gu Xu, who only had the third realm.

But now, she deeply understands that Gu Xu must not use common sense.

"I have considered that if I find the man in Tsing Yi who has drained the magma in the future, I will definitely settle this account with him and show no mercy," she looked at the handsome face of the young man in front of her, and thought silently, "But if that person is you, I will let you go for the time being......

"Who...... Who called you my benefactor? ”

Zhao Yan has an independent and arrogant personality, and has always disliked to owe favors to others. She will return the help of others to her little by little.

Today, Gu Xu helped her awaken her bloodline, which was just an attempt without much certainty. But since it has succeeded, then for her, it is Entong reconstruction.

It's just that...... How can we repay this kindness?

If she just helped him protect the Dharma as agreed, it would be too easy, and it would seem like she was taking advantage.

After about a quarter of an hour, Gu Xu finally opened his eyes.

"Thank you for your hard work." He withdrew his right hand and smiled apologetically.

Only then did Zhao Yan feel that in order to avoid affecting his cultivation just now, she had been holding her arm motionless, so that now her arm was slightly sore.

And the moment Gu Xu withdrew his right hand, the mysterious connection between the two was interrupted, and the boiling true yuan gradually fell silent.

"I'm fine," she said in a nonchalant tone, "aren't you planning to break the border?" I'll help you protect the Dharma right now. ”

Her crisp and neat attitude made Gu Xu have to take back the words that he was about to blurt out, then nodded and said, "Well, that's right." ”

"Then hurry up," Zhao Yan said, "The Ghost King of Bishan is estimated to have already started a killing spree in Luojing City." ”

Maybe it's because she has always been withdrawn and perverse, and she is not used to expressing feelings such as gratitude and closeness; Or maybe after awakening her bloodline, she instinctively used a hard shell to cover the fragility of her heart.

Although she had already kept Gu Xu's kindness in her heart, she wanted to say a few words of sincere gratitude, but when the words came to her mouth, she couldn't help but swallow them back. Eventually, she had to talk about serious business in this cold and stiff tone.

Hearing her words, Gu Xu no longer delayed time. With a thought in his mind, he took out the "Forgetting Dust Pill" prepared in advance from the "Xianyun Dwelling" for breaking the realm, and swallowed it into his mouth.

Then, he took a deep breath and prepared to enter the familiar netherworld again, to climb the last leg of the "Homesick Ridge".

However, at this moment, Zhao Yan's voice sounded in his ears again.

"Thank you," she said, "for today...... If you weren't here today, I'd ......."

Her voice was soft, like a spring wind that would be missed if you weren't careful, very different from the aggressiveness of the past.

"You're welcome," Gu Xu smiled and interrupted her, then he paused and added, "By the way, your wings are so beautiful." ”

Hearing his words, Zhao Yan realized that he had forgotten to take back the pair of Fire Phoenix Wings, and let it glow behind him, illuminating the entire imperial treasury as bright as day.

She immediately withdrew her wings, and the feeling of "embarrassment" was extremely rare in her heart.

…………

Gu Xu closed his eyes.

In the world of consciousness, he was standing on the steps of the "Homesick Ridge", looking at the "Wangxiang Terrace" not far ahead.

There are 4,999 stairs in this steep mountain.

Gu Xu had already climbed the four thousand nine hundred and eighty-ninth levels, and he was only ten steps away from reaching the top of the mountain.

He still remembers that at the beginning of the "Nai He Bridge", the white-haired young man once said to him - "I will wait for you on the 'Wangxiang Terrace'." ”

The white-haired boy also said that the four nails on his body represented the four sealed "powers".

When Gu Xu entered the third realm, he pulled out one of them and obtained a "time" that could change the flow of time.

So, what kind of power is sealed by the remaining three nails? Can you help him out of this situation?

In addition, as of now, Gu Xu has some guesses in his mind about the true identity of the white-haired boy and the relationship between him and himself. It's just that he still needs more evidence to confirm his conjectures.

He thought as he continued down the stairs.

Level 1, Level 2, Level 3, Level 4......

"Wangxiangtai" is a strange shape of the building, its upper width and lower narrow, the face is like the back of the bow, the back is like the bowstring, the eaves are anti-Yu, the special shape is treacherous.

There is a poem: "The ghosts on the Wangxiang platform are in a hurry, and the eyes are in tears." Wives and children sit on the side of the coffin, and relatives and friends gather in the mourning hall. ”

Legend has it that "Wangxiangtai" is a place where ghosts who are about to enter the underworld look back at their hometown in the sun.

In the cultivation system of the Great Wilderness, the "Wangxiangtai" is also an important checkpoint, where the monk will review the mortal dust for the last time. After that, they will gradually break free from the shackles of the mundane and gradually enter the realm of the transcendent.

After Gu Xu boarded the "Wangxiang Platform", he also glanced back.

He found that his vision suddenly became brighter and broader. The fog in the mountains dissipated in an instant, and the dim sky suddenly became clear and clear.

In addition to the steep cliffs of the netherworld, the rugged mountain roads, the rolling Lethe River, and the blood-red sea of flowers on the other side, various scenes in the real world also came into his eyes—the entire wilderness was presented in the distant sky, like a colorful canvas, and every building, everyone, and everything was exceptionally clear.

His gaze first fell on the location of Yishui County. After the "Nine Infants Disaster", the county seat has been rapidly rebuilt with the assistance of the imperial court monks, and the new buildings and old houses are staggered.

He saw Chen Jisheng in the Yamen of the Exorcism Division, sitting behind the familiar desk, frowning and flipping through the documents in front of him; He saw Wang Yang, the junior official of the Exorcism Division, who had now been promoted to the rank of "Detective", and was on a mission on the outskirts of the county, holding a stack of "Taishang Arctic Town Demon Slaying Talismans" left by Gu Xu in his hand, and his expression was more confident than in his memory.

He saw the rich and spacious mansion of the Shi family, the owner of which had long since lived in it, and only the plane tree stood alone in the courtyard. He remembered that not long ago, he and Shi Xiaohan set off fireworks under the tree, and the stupid girl told him seriously that she would protect him for the rest of her life, so that he could stay at home with peace of mind and make cookies for her for a lifetime.

He saw that the cemetery on the outskirts of Yishui was still silent, and the tombstones that had been exposed to the sun and rain were engraved with names such as Zheng Yu and Pan Xiaopeng that he knew or did not know. Some tombstones have tributes and white bouquets in front of them, while others have been forgotten by the world over time.

Then his gaze moved a little north, and he saw the Yishan Mountain standing with dangerous peaks. Perhaps because the altar of the Kongxuansan had been destroyed by him, the black clouds on the top of the mountain had long disappeared without a trace, and the blue sky lined the snow on the mountain white and pure.

Zhao Changying, the Duke of Yanguo, had told a lot of lies, but there was one thing he told the truth - Yishan Snow Girl was indeed injured and fell into a dormant state.

She lay quietly in the open cave on the top of the mountain, her eyes closed, her beauty was like frost, the green silk was like ink, her white clothes were better than snow, her slender hands were folded, and she was placed on her chest, beautiful and delicate, beautiful and holy. Like a statue of a goddess carved from ice and snow, or like a sleeping beauty in a fairy tale, waiting for a prince to wake her up in her sleep. _&