Roaming the Four Seas Chapter 147: Breaking the Demon Formation with Bull Fighting

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The Big Dipper is known as the Northern Dipper, and the Ox corresponds to the Cowherd Star. Originally, this city was not called Douniu. It earned its name because Song Yang once practiced swordsmanship here. His sword’s energy pierced through the sky, dispersing the clouds on the horizon. The glow of the sunset bathed the land, becoming an epithet for Song Yang himself. Decades later, Song Yang ascended to immortality. Besides renaming the Huangque Tower to the Sword Inquiry Tower, he also gave the city its name: Douniu City. What seemed like reverence for the stars was, in truth, a commemoration of the Sword Saint’s heroic feats.

Song Yang hailed from the Yuntian Sect. On the mysterious Qing Peak of Tiandao Mountain stands a towering statue of the Sword Saint, reaching dozens of meters high. Even disciples of the sect’s inner courtyard, who might not agree with the Sword Saint’s path, are required to bathe, change clothes, and pay homage to the sage every year on the sixth day of the sixth lunar month. At other times, the peak is a forbidden sanctuary, strictly off-limits.

Su Ye had yet to achieve the fusion of primal energies; his body felt as heavy as that of an ordinary person, unable to ride the clouds. Following Lin Tai Xuan’s orders, he shared a precious sword with the dogmatic Taoist Chen Mu. With Lin Tai Xuan as the commanding presence, Chen Mu reluctantly suppressed his arrogance, though he refused to enhance the sword’s power to make Su Ye’s ride more comfortable.

Su Ye gazed at the dense, sinister aura hovering over Douniu City, a mixture of anger and anticipation stirring within him.

“Disembark!” Lin Tai Xuan’s voice rang clear.

Su Ye’s mind drifted momentarily. Upon hearing those words, a private thought crossed his mind: “Who is Lin Daoist scolding?”

He saw Lin Tai Xuan press down on the cloud’s crest. Chen Mu’s voice sounded sharp from atop the sword: “Stand steady, don’t fall.”

At that moment, the sword’s tip angled toward the ground. Only then did Su Ye realize they were to dismount.

The eight of them returned to the earth.

Lin Tai Xuan asked, “Disciples, do you know the legend behind Douniu City?”

“The Patriarch Song once practiced swordsmanship here,” six Taoists answered in unison.

“Let us pay respects to Patriarch Song,” Lin Tai Xuan softly commanded.

They all complied. Su Ye stood with his hands behind his back, staring absentmindedly at the evil aura above the city.

The youngest female disciple glanced at Su Ye and whispered, “Since you’ve joined us, why don’t you pay respects?”

Su Ye replied quietly, “I do not honor Patriarch Song.”

The “Three Swords” had each taken different paths. Aside from wielding swords, they shared almost nothing in common. Different paths meant no common cause.

Suddenly recalling he was not truly Su Ye but Su Wuming of the Jade Mysterious Sect, he hurriedly feigned ignorance and asked the furrowed-browed female Taoist, “Who exactly is this Patriarch Song you speak of?”

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“You’re just an outer sect disciple from a minor sect who can’t make the cut,” Chen Mu said impatiently. “Have you never heard of the Sword Saint?”

“So it’s the Sword Saint, my apologies,” Su Ye closed his eyes, forming a hand seal. He wasn’t truly paying homage to Song Yang but was instead observing the anomalies lingering over Douniu City.

Within that thick demonic aura, there seemed to be an extremely dangerous formation concealed. Neither the Qimen Dunjia nor the Fuxi Eight Trigrams made mention of it. Yet, the shape of the demonic clouds felt oddly familiar.

Pondering deeply, he lost track of the fact they were supposed to be paying respects to Song Yang.

A light tap fell on Su Ye’s arm. Chen Mu smiled, saying, “No matter how much you revere Patriarch Song, there’s no need to linger so long… Prepare your protective spiritual treasures; we’re entering Douniu City.”

Su Ye opened his eyes, still uneasy.

“Senior Lin, the demonic aura over Douniu City is rather sinister. It’s best not to rush inside.”

Chen Mu sneered, “You, Su Wuming, only at the initial stage of the Return to Origin realm, with courage as small as a sparrow’s egg—why stubbornly force your way into the Yuntian Sect’s demon-hunting team? Planning to betray your sect and join Yuntian Sect instead?”

Lin Tai Xuan frowned and rebuked sharply, “Chen Mu, show some respect!”

Chen Mu’s eyes flashed cold. He straightened, clasped his fists, and said tremblingly, “I obey your command, Senior Brother.”

Lin Tai Xuan turned to Su Ye and asked, “Daoist Su, what made you sense the ominous nature of the demonic clouds over Douniu City?”

Su Ye extended his right hand, pointing to a black cloud in the distance shaped like a flying bird.

“Senior Lin, look at this cloud—it resembles a bird in flight, yet it lacks a head… Can a headless bird be a good omen?”

Lin Tai Xuan looked where Su Ye pointed and saw the demonic cloud, indeed shaped like a bird but without feet or a head. Though it seemed a natural formation, it exuded a subtle, insidious malevolence.

Chen Mu hesitated, “Cloud formations are naturally diverse… It’s unwise to judge auspiciousness or ill omen based solely on shape.”

“Senior Chen, has the blood spilled by our companions in the forest not awakened you?” Su Ye’s irritation with Chen Mu’s stubbornness grew. Despite the bloody lessons learned, the arrogance of a disciple from a great sect remained unchanged.

Chen Mu’s eyes flickered with anger and sorrow, tinged with shame. He avoided Su Ye’s gaze, unwilling to speak nonsense any longer.

The younger female Taoist of Yuntian Sect looked at Su Ye anew, feeling a certain admiration for his handsome features and naturally developing a degree of fondness. Yet, like Chen Mu, she held fast to the disdain for minor sect disciples, so her feelings stopped short of affection.

Unlike these shallow-hearted juniors, Lin Tai Xuan glimpsed Su Ye’s thoughts as though peering into a profound ocean, sensing unfathomable depths. Though unaware of Su Ye’s true identity, he sensed his capabilities far exceeded those of a mere initial Return to Origin cultivator.

In the ensuing silence, a flash of spiritual light flickered within Su Ye’s sea of consciousness.

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The demonic clouds above conformed precisely to the numerology of the Life and Death Gate from the Great Evolution and Creation Technique.

“Righteous veins of spirit, tainted by evil poison, those caught within are doomed.”

Su Ye silently recited this phrase, secretly grateful Lin Tai Xuan was a man who heeded advice. Had someone like Chen Mu led the team—looking down on Su Ye and refusing to listen—the seven Taoists would surely meet a tragic end.

“I once encountered a master during my travels,” Su Ye casually fabricated, “who, in a half-drunken state, spoke of this kind of demonic cloud…”

Lin Tai Xuan began, “When exorcising demons and suppressing evil, one must avoid overcomplication. Daoist Su need not explain further. Since you recognize these clouds, just dispel them.”

Hearing this, Su Ye did not find Lin Tai Xuan’s straightforwardness blunt but rather welcomed the kindred spirit.

Lin Tai Xuan reached out, lightly pressing Su Ye’s shoulder.

In an instant, they arrived at the outskirts of Douniu City.

The other six Taoists rode their swords, soaring on the wind.

Su Ye summoned the Great Luo Fire Shield, raising his right palm upward to launch a ring of fire into the sky. It transformed into a fiery bird flying from south to north, its flames spreading across the heavens, fiercely devouring the malevolent clouds.

A plume of black smoke erupted from the ground, like a reverse torrent, striking against the shield’s barrier.

In mere moments, the city’s sinister aura revealed its strength.

Lin Tai Xuan furrowed his brow, watching the black cloud surge upward.

Chen Mu felt a chill run down his spine, sensing overwhelming resentment. He silently thanked his senior’s admonition. To rush into the city recklessly would mean suffering a harsh fate even in the next reincarnation.

The Great Luo Fire Shield’s pure Vajra Buddha power dispersed the malevolent clouds and the vengeful formation’s hatred.

Su Ye withdrew his divine treasure, feeling no triumph but only deeper confusion.

Why would the Great Evolution and Creation Technique, created by Ouyang Zhi, contain records of demonic formations?

What hidden secrets lay within the Sword Demon’s decades-long journey to the grand perfection of the Celestial Realm?

Did the minor leaders beneath the Lord of the Yellow Springs Cult know the cult leader’s intelligence?

…

The tangled questions in Su Ye’s consciousness resembled a knotted ball of thread, impossible to unravel.

Lin Tai Xuan stepped forward first, crossing through the somewhat dilapidated southern gate of Douniu City.

Chen Mu, feeling ashamed, avoided Su Ye and followed his senior’s footsteps into the city.

The female Taoist softly said, “Daoist Su, we should enter the city too.”

Snapping back to reality, Su Ye discovered only the two of them remained.

With no choice, he entered the city alongside the female Taoist.

Upon stepping inside, they were greeted by a vast, white expanse of mist, with no sign of the others.