Refining the Mountains and Rivers

In the gray and gloomy palace, the air was filled with mystery as if some kind of invisible fluid was emitting a cold aura.

A circular platform stood in the middle of the hall. There were no marks around its side as if this platform was a part of the huge hall that had grown out from it.

There were two figures dressed completely in black, standing across each other on the circular platform. Both their hands faced forwards and similar crescent moons floated between their fingertips.

One of the figures said, "Dusk."

After a few moments, the other person continued, "Order."

Buzz -

On the surface of the crescent moons, blood lines appeared and spread outwards, eventually covering the entire thing.

……

Thousand Faces' expression changed as she sensed elder apprentice brother's aura. It suddenly became chaotic and messy, seeming to lose control.

She rushed forwards but before she could near elder apprentice brother's small courtyard, she was pushed away by an invisible force. She was unable to get closer.

It was not impossible for her to force her way through but this would definitely increase the danger elder apprentice brother was in.

Taking a deep breath, she suppressed the anxiety she was feeling as she turned and shrieked, "Elder apprentice brother is in danger!"

Very soon, White Phoenix, who was managing the shield, as well as the other disciples gathered outside the courtyard. Everyone who tried to get near the courtyard was pushed back.

Second apprentice brother's face was serious as he knew a bit about elder apprentice brother's secret. It was because he knew that he understood what kind of danger elder apprentice brother was facing now. To break through two realms…if he failed, there was no turning back!

Taking a deep breath, he spoke lowly, "Guard this place, I will ask Zhou Saint. Now, only he might be able to help elder apprentice brother over this."

Wooosh -

Second apprentice brother turned and left, rushing out of the Peach Garden as fast as he could and going to look for Zhou Saint.

With a single thought, the air shifted and the area the two of them were in was sealed. He lifted his head to look at Zhou Saint, who was frowning slightly. He bowed, "There is an urgent matter, please forgive my intrusion."

Zhou Saint replied, "What happened?"

Second apprentice brother took a deep breath, "Elder apprentice brother was trying to break through but his aura suddenly went out of control. Zhou Saint, please help!"

Zhou Saint was frowning. As he thought of something he frowned even harder, "Breaking through two realms?" Seeing second apprentice brother nod, he growled, "Nonsense!"

He immediately stood, "Bring me there immediately!"

Second apprentice brother relaxed slightly, "Thank you Zhou Saint. Please follow me." Perhaps they had worried too much. Thankfully, Zhou Saint was not one to bear grudges.

"Wait!" Zhou Saint lifted his hand to touch the space between his eyebrows and he instantly emitted a glow. An almost see-through illusion appeared and quickly became solid as it was exposed to the air. It looked exactly like Zhou Saint.

Second apprentice brother seemed to come to a realization. Zhou Saint was worried that once he left, someone would do something to the Peach Garden and intentionally left an avatar.

"Let's go!"

Woosh -

The two of them flew through the shield and entered the Peach Garden. With Thousand Battles leading the way, they did not hesitate as they moved to elder apprentice brother's residence.

Thousand Faces and Lei Xiaoyu, who were on guard outside, quickly bowed, "Greetings, Zhou Saint!"

Zhou Saint nodded seriously and as he looked at the residence, he became solemn, "I have no guarantee when it comes to breaking through; I can only try my best." He looked at everyone, "I will enter and try to help him with his situation but I can't promise anything. Later on, no matter what you sense, do not come in. When powers of True Saints clash, you are not qualified to interfere."

Thousand Faces opened her mouth to say something but ended up keeping quiet.

Thousand Battles said seriously, "We understand. Zhou Saint, please help immediately!"

Zhou Saint turned and entered the courtyard. A violent wind blew and rustled his long robe, making it stick to his body. It was obvious that he was also facing the pushback from the invisible force. Frowning, Zhou Saint lifted his hand and touched the air. 'Pop' the invisible restriction disappeared and he took a step forward. The courtyard door opened before closing again, blocking everyone else outside.

Second apprentice brother said, "Zhou Saint was a long time friend of Master. In today's situation, he is also willing to help the Peach Garden and is worthy of being trusted. With him helping, elder apprentice brother should be fine." He then looked at Thousand Faces, "Seventh apprentice sister, you have just recovered and cannot be too emotional."

Thousand Faces replied, "Thank you for your reminder." However, she still continued to look at the small courtyard, not willing to turn away.

Second apprentice brother sighed lightly, not saying anything else. Everyone fell silent.

If elder apprentice brother could successfully break through, the danger the Peach Garden was currently in would disappear. But this happened…and junior-apprentice brother was still missing and there was still no news about him.

Perhaps this was the fate of the Peach Garden. After their master died, were they going to be destroyed?

……

In the moment that the courtyard door closed, Zhou Saint lifted his head to look at the peach blossoms. All the leaves and flowers were wilted and seemed to be dyed a blood red. They emitted an aura that made one's heart palpitate.

"Zhou Saint?"

From the room, elder apprentice brother's voice could be heard. Although he sounded weak, he was calm.

Zhou Saint replied with an 'mmhm'. "Tall Sostrong, how are you doing?"

Elder apprentice brother was silent for a moment before replying, "Thank you for your concern. Some deviation occurred when I was breaking through but it is within my control…on the other hand, you probably know that I don't like this name; you can just call me Tall."

Zhou Saint's mouth twitched, "You are still in the mood to joke now. It seems like you are in control. But to break through two realms and reach the shore is something that has never happened before, it is too dangerous!"

He took a step forward, "I have done some research on the backlash from breaking through before. I should be able to help you to control the internal chaos."

Elder apprentice brother replied, "I do not want to trouble you, Zhou Saint. I can deal with it myself."

Zhou Saint stopped, "Perhaps you can deal with it, but now, there is not enough time for you. The Peach Garden is in extreme danger and things may spiral out of control at any time." He frowned, "Or do you not trust me?"

"You know that the situation is dangerous now, yet you are willing to help the Peach Garden; how can I disrespect you…then I will have to trouble you."

The room door opened automatically and Zhou Saint could see Tall Sostrong sitting at a round table behind the door. His face was pale as he smiled lightly.

As he stepped in, Zhou Saint frowned. He lifted his hand to touch him, "I will momentarily stop controlling my own power and you can take control. After all, it is your body and you know the situation best."

Elder apprentice brother nodded, "Thank you Zhou Saint."

A majestic and warm energy entered elder apprentice brother's body. It flowed smoothly according to his will. With Zhou Saint's help, elder apprentice brother very quickly stabilized his internal condition. His pale face slowly regained its color. The strange contaminated power that had entered his body was quickly being cleared.

The tense feeling he had slowly released. Elder apprentice brother frowned slightly. Perhaps he had targeted the wrong person. The danger did not come from Zhou Saint.

Then who was the one moving behind the scenes?

The sense of danger still did not subside. Although the contaminated power was quickly being banished, he felt even more uneasy.

This meant the danger was not over.

Forget it. With Zhou Saint's help, the contaminated power would slowly be completely cleared out. After that, he would be able to take the last step and reach the shore to become a True Saint. When that time came, he would be able to protect the Peach Garden, as long as a Ruler did not appear.

"Concentrate!" Behind him, Zhou Saint growled.

Elder apprentice brother took a deep breath as he closed his eyes and focused on pushing out all the contaminated power in his body. He was reaching the end.

Finally, he managed to clear the last of the contaminated power out of his body. Elder apprentice brother groaned as he opened his mouth and spat out a thick blood clot. As it landed on the ground, it evaporated with green smoke and a loud decomposing sound could be heard.

He opened his eyes and looked relaxed, "Thank you Saint…" He only managed to speak halfway before he groaned and paled instantly.

Zhou Saint's palm on him suddenly became like a sword cutting into his flesh. It sunk deep into his body!

Bom -

Bom -

In his chest, his heart beat rapidly. At the same time, the energy that Zhou Saint poured into Tall Sostrong started to rampage out of control.

In a flash, the warmth changed as if it were poisonous snakes that had awakened and were baring their fangs.

Moreover, icy cold webs seemed to grow from these snakes' bodies and spread outwards.

In order to get rid of the contaminated energy earlier, Zhou Saint's power had spread through elder apprentice brother's entire body, so in an instant, elder apprentice brother completely lost control.

Gulp -

Gulp -

An extremely greedy gulping sound filled his ears. Elder apprentice brother could feel that he was being swallowed. Of course, there was no need to mention who was causing all this.

He chuckled bitterly, "Why are you doing this?"

The gulping sound did not stop. There was an intensity in Zhou Saint's calm voice, "Because I don't want to share with others. And the power of a new True Saint will help me break through my current realm."

A black flame burned deep in his eyes, and an icy, silent and deathly aura emitted from within him. With the two of them as the center, ice quietly condensed and the frostiness expanded outwards, slowly covering everything.

Ghost Path cultivator!

If Qin Yu were here, he would immediately recognize that the frightening aura coming from Zhou Saint belonged to the Ghost Path.

It was slightly different from Close Saint yet it was equally horrifying!

Tall Sostrong's closed eyes opened once more. There was still pain within him but more of him was now frozen, "Strictly speaking, I am now at the level of a True Saint; are you certain that you can destroy me?"

Zhou Saint sneered and seemed extremely confident, "Of course, since I have already taken action, I will not give you any chance to fight back. Give up! After I swallow you, I will tell everyone that you failed to break through and eventually died. To repay you, I promise to help the Peach Garden through this calamity…of course, you can try to resist but this will mean that you reject my good intentions and I will kill everyone in the Peach Garden to repay you.

"You have already had a taste of my power in addition to how well I am able to hide. If I want to, no one from the Peach Garden will be able to escape. For example, the seventh disciple, Thousand Faces…"

Elder apprentice brother's pupils shrunk as he frowned, his emotions extremely conflicted. His body stiffened.

"I don't trust you!"

Zhou Saint chuckled lowly, "I am willing to swear on my Great Dao. As long as you don't resist, I will do everything I said."

There was silence and only the gulping sounds filled the air. The room was covered in ice.

Elder apprentice brother struggled to speak, "Okay!" He closed his eyes, covering the scarlet color that had appeared deep in his eyes.

……

The frightening cold emitted from the house and everything around it turned icy. It was so cold that it made everyone's hearts go still from the horrifying aura.

This was…the scent of death!

Thousand Faces' expression changed as she closed her eyes and used her senses. However, her ability to sense was blocked by the frightening cold.

"Elder apprentice brother is in trouble!"

Without waiting for her to say more, Thousand Battles' eyes instantly turned blood red as an immense power erupted from him.

He stared at the courtyard as if seeing through all the barriers. He saw elder apprentice brother leaning completely on Zhou Saint.

"Ghost Path!"

As he spat out these bitter words, Thousand Battles did not hesitate as he threw out a blow.

Bom -

The ice instantly shattered and the courtyard door shook violently before being forcefully thrown open.

"Third apprentice brother!" Thousand Battles shouted.

Boom boom boom -

The Peach Garden's shield was activated and endless peach flower petals fell like a peach blossom shower.