Chapter 85: The Edge of the Vast Ocean

"Liushaji" is the last market town in the west of the "Death Sea". After leaving the market, you can see the vast sand and gravel, desolate and gloomy. The few stubborn and twisted greens not only cannot bring the pulse of life, but also set off the vastness and silence of the Gobi Desert.

"Western Regions" is a general term for the vast areas west of the Jin Dynasty and the Northern Zhou Dynasty. It is not actually a holistic concept. After leaving the "Yumen Pass", hundreds of thousands of countries have been established, and deserts and Gobi are everywhere. Among them, there are several places such as the "Death Sea", "Desert of Burial Gods", and "Western Desert" that stretch thousands of miles. There are also many oases and underground rivers in their hinterlands, forming a wonderful exotic style.

A former location expert who traveled to the Western Regions once said that the "Western Regions" can be said to be deserts and Gobi wrapped around oases and countries, or it can be said that there are deserts and Gobi between countless countries. The only exception is the Great Snow Mountain in the north, which stretches from the "Endless Abyss" to the "Yumen Pass" for countless miles, running through the entire Western Regions.

In the depths of the Great Snow Mountain, it is rumored that there are tombs of nine immortals in the ancient mythological era, which suppress the "Endless Abyss". The "Snow Mountain Sect" among the six sword-wielding sects is said to have grown from the tomb keepers who have been passed down from generation to generation.

The strong wind mixed with sand and gravel was as icy as ice, blowing towards the "Liushaji", making this market town shrouded in sand and dust, and it was impossible to see three feet away, and it was difficult to hear in all directions.

"Is this the 'sandstorm'..." Meng Qi, who had never experienced it before, tightened his thick monk robe. He was not afraid of the cold, but felt that after being covered with dust and gravel, he lost his chic and elegant temperament, like an old shepherd.

Since leaving Shaolin in the autumn, Xuanbei has been traveling at a leisurely pace, leaving ample time for the monks who went to other sects to explain the matter. Therefore, it was not until March that the master and his apprentices arrived at "Liushaji". However, March in the Western Regions is still as cold as winter.

Zhenhui opened his big eyes and looked curiously at the dust around him, the trees that were stained and dim, and the camels with bells swinging, and he exclaimed from time to time.

There were few pedestrians in the market. The people who lived here had returned to their homes to avoid the strong wind and gravel. Only merchants, rangers, travelers, etc. were still walking towards the only inn in the market against the wind and sand.

"Brother, they look different from us!" Zhenhui finally couldn't help asking.

Many pedestrians had high noses and deep eyes, and their hair and pupils were of different colors, which were rare among the people in the Central Plains. What's more, some had double horns on their heads and eyes between their eyebrows, which looked like monsters.

Meng Qi was overwhelmed by what he saw, but he didn't know how to answer Zhenhui.

"Amitabha, people are different in different places, and some people in the Western Regions are called descendants of gods and demons, so they inevitably have special shapes." Xuanbei said in a calm voice.

The former refers to normal people in the Western Regions, and the latter refers to those "strange people" with double horns on their heads and eyes between their eyebrows.

"Descendants of gods and demons, do they have any special abilities?" Meng Qi asked with great interest. Could it be that the exchange chart of "Lord of the Six Paths of Reincarnation" also hides bloodline options such as "descendants of gods and demons"?

The wind and sand came together, but Xuanbei was spotless and smiled, "Of course there are."

As they spoke, the three masters and apprentices had arrived at the inn. This was a three-story house with an old appearance and traces of wind and sand. It was inscribed with "The First House in the Vast Sea".

Stepping into the inn, Meng Qi first saw the counter, which was right next to the door, and it was cluttered with papers, brushes, account books and other items.

The shopkeeper was a woman in a black dress. She was about 27 or 28 years old. She was dressed like a woman, with willow eyebrows and phoenix eyes. Her face was beautiful, like a blooming flower, full of femininity, attracting the guests to look at her openly or furtively.

She supported her chin with her right hand and looked at the account book lazily. Her face, which was made even whiter by the black dress, had a cold expression, as if everyone in the inn owed her a hundred taels of silver.

"Amitabha, shopkeeper, stay and eat." As the relatively reliable disciple, Meng Qi went up and said. In fact, he wanted to call her the boss lady directly, but unfortunately the master was watching from behind.

The woman in the black dress did not even raise her head and said indifferently: "Five taels of silver a night, meals are charged separately."

Damn, you are robbing! Meng Qi really wanted to teach her what "customers are God", but unfortunately the master was watching from behind.

Thinking that there was only this inn here, and there was not even a ruined temple, and it was a "monopoly industry", Meng Qi looked back at his master and saw him nod slightly, so he took out the silver from the package and put it on the counter: "Fifteen taels of silver, three rooms."

"Only two rooms." The woman in black skirt still ignored him.

Meng Qi thought it was no problem. The master would take one room, and he and Zhenhui would just squeeze in. Anyway, there were many times of eating and sleeping in the open on this road, and now it was good to have two rooms: "Okay, here are ten taels of silver, two rooms."

He reached out to take back five taels of silver.

The woman in black skirt squinted at Meng Qi: "It's calculated per person."

Meng Qi's mouth twitched, and he really wanted to teach her how to be a man, but unfortunately the master was watching behind him.

After obtaining the master's consent, Meng Qi nodded and said: "Fifteen taels of silver, two rooms."

The woman in black skirt slowly gathered the silver and said without raising her eyelids: "Two unlocked rooms on the second floor, on the west side, go by yourself."

Don't think that I won't dare to hit you just because you are a beautiful woman! It’s a pity that the master is watching from behind... Meng Qi thought this with resentment countless times. This was a subconscious thought he developed along the way.

In the lobby of the inn, there were more than 20 tables, all filled with people, some playing finger-guessing games and drinking, some talking loudly, and some whispering to each other, it was very lively.

Some of these guests were wearing tight shorts, and they looked like martial artists at first glance, some had dusty faces, but the details showed a sense of wealth, some wore Confucian robes, and they looked like scholars even in the hustle and bustle, and some had their heads wrapped and their bodies covered with long robes, dressed as "Shake" - the people of Dajin called those who traveled through the deserts and Gobi in the Western Regions all year round to make a living "Shake", and there were many horse bandits and robbers among them.

When Xuan Bei led his two apprentices through the lobby, many guests took a hidden look. After noticing anything special, they retracted their gazes and continued their efforts to make noise:

"Five, five, five!"

"Haha, three sixes! Drink three bowls!"

"Damn, how did I lose again!"

In such a noisy environment, a man who looked quite young took a sip of wine, frowned and slapped the bowl, stood up and shouted: "Boss, your wine is not strong enough, is it mixed with water?"

Suddenly, all the sounds in the lobby stopped abruptly. Those who were playing drinking games, throwing dice, talking, drinking alone, and eating food all kept their original movements for a short time as if time had frozen.

The woman in a black dress, who might be the shopkeeper or the proprietress, raised her head, her eyebrows raised, her eyes wide open:

"Drink if you want, drink if you don't want to, get out!"

Poof, Meng Qi almost spit out saliva, this proprietress is really unique!

The young man who complained about the strong liquor being mixed with water did not expect such an answer at all, and stood there stupidly for a while.

"Haha." The stiff crowd burst into laughter, as if they had expected the young man to be treated like this.

"Haha, I'm dying of laughter. Someone actually dared to yell at Jiu Niang."

"Don't talk to me. I'm almost laughing. Where did this young man come from?"

"Jiu Niang didn't mix water into the wine. It was clearly water... Um, don't cover my mouth."

"If I don't cover your mouth, do you want to be kicked out, or drink a basin of Jiu Niang's foot washing water?"

The young man was probably walking in the martial arts world for the first time. Facing such a situation, his face turned red. He couldn't get angry, nor could he endure it...

Fortunately, there was an old martial arts man who often walked here as his companion. He stood up and whispered a few words in his ear, persuading him to sit down again.

The young man buried his head and gritted his teeth, but he didn't dare to get angry, which surprised Meng Qi.

After walking up the stairs, Xuan Bei, who was walking in front, suddenly spoke, with a rare smile in his tone: "Qu Jiuniang, whose background is unknown, opened the "First Inn in the Vast Sea" here ten years ago. At first, she was alone and had outstanding appearance, which caused a lot of trouble, but all those who dared to take advantage of her, regardless of the severity, were killed, some were left outside the corpse collection, and some were hung naked on the wine banner of the inn. After that, the troubles decreased. Everyone knew that Qu Jiuniang was not a character to be messed with, and suspected that she was a master of the Outer Scenery Realm."

"Outer Scenery Realm? How old is she?" Meng Qi was shocked, and secretly complained, Master, you didn't show any mercy when you talked about the Outer Scenery Realm, and your mortal heart is still there!

Xuan Bei stepped on the last step of the stairs: "Probably thirty-five or thirty-six, I haven't used my clairvoyance to see, so I'm not sure."

Uh, she is well maintained, but this kind of Outer Scenery Realm master may still look like this in another ten years... Meng Qi nodded gently.

When they got to the guest room, Xuan Bei turned to Meng Qi and Zhen Hui and said, "I have to do evening lessons, so you should not relax either."

"Yes, Master." The two of them answered respectfully and pushed the door open to enter their own room.

There was only a bed, a table and two chairs in the room, which was old but not messy. Meng Qi and Zhen Hui did not say much, one sitting on a chair and the other on the bed, and began to meditate.

Meng Qi did not practice other kung fu, but focused on the ancestral orifice, and the true qi went up, slowly stimulating this entrance.

In the past six months, Meng Qi has condensed the remaining three orifices of the eye orifice. He only needs to take the "Tian Cong Pill" after adjusting his body and mind in the next few days to break through.

He had already mastered the art of "catching the wind and catching the shadows" and had completed the first few sections of "Yi Jin Duan Gu Pian". Even though he had not broken through, his martial arts such as the Golden Bell Cover and Arhat Fist had increased their power by 30%. What was even more gratifying was that after practicing "Yi Jin Duan Gu Pian", Meng Qi felt that it was much easier to condense the acupoints, and even the illusory and looming eye acupoints seemed to be able to be grasped a little.

Therefore, Meng Qi did not rush to take the "Tian Cong Pill" to break through after the acupoints were condensed, but continued to practice "Yi Jin Duan Gu Pian" patiently until he could grasp the eye acupoints more and more recently, and then he began to prepare for the breakthrough.

This time, Meng Qi felt that he had a good grasp of it.

As for the "Illusionary Form Method", Meng Qi had no reaction at all when he first practiced it. After practicing it once, he would feel very tired and his spirit would become sleepy. But as time went by, he persisted every day, and "Yi Jin Duan Gu Pian" slowly improved himself, Meng Qi gradually felt that his eyebrows were swelling, as if something was brewing.

This is a good thing, but it is not a good thing either, because it is an illusion caused by the stimulation of the ancestral acupoint between the eyebrows. If you indulge in it, you may go astray. However, the appearance of this illusion also means that Meng Qi has begun to learn the "illusion method".

So, Meng Qi restrained his mind, ignored this illusion, and continued to practice step by step.

There was a dark and chaotic scene in front of his eyes, like a trance. Meng Qi seemed to be awake and half awake, and suddenly felt a trace of true energy seeping in. The chaos suddenly cracked, and something slowly rose up, round and golden, and then shone brightly.

When the light flashed, Meng Qi's eyebrows rose, and the surrounding scenes vaguely emerged in his mind: a table, a bed, two chairs, the junior brother sitting cross-legged on the bed, and the teapot and teacups on the table...

This feeling flashed by, Meng Qi's eyebrows swelled and hurt, and he had to stop practicing. He opened his eyes. This time, although he saw the original scene, he had a completely different feeling. He saw that the mountain was not a mountain, and the water was not water.

"Haha, the "Illusionary Form" has achieved a small success." Meng Qi was quite proud of himself. This is the level of the cold envoy. He can sense the surrounding objects through the Yuanshen of the ancestral orifice in the eyebrow center and slightly interfere with other people's senses.

The cold envoy's martial arts is not high. It took seven or eight years to achieve a small success in the Illusionary Form. Meng Qi achieved it in half a year, so he was naturally proud. Once he achieved a small success, with the subsequent practice chapters, Meng Qi was confident that he would complete the Illusionary Form within the next year. If he exchanged for the corresponding elixir for assistance, it would be faster. It is possible to succeed in three or four months.

"The cultivation in the main world is indeed much faster than that in Lao Duan's world..." Meng Qi stood up in confusion, then looked around and prepared to start his 103rd attempt to escape.

Now that he has achieved a small success in the illusion technique, he should be able to make the master's mental lock appear flawed, right?

He used the illusion technique, the ancestral orifice between his eyebrows swelled, and his spirit spread out, wrapping himself, and then walked carefully to the door.

"Brother, you want to go out and play, why don't you call me?" Zhenhui's voice suddenly sounded behind him.

Meng Qi's smile froze on his face.

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