Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Li Ruhua was silent.

Holding his sword, Li Ge suddenly said, "Isn't Seascape City one of the 108 cities of the West Desolate?"

Li Chenghao nodded, "That's right, it is exactly as you said."

Li Ge glanced at the silent Li Ruhua beside him. He gently flicked his fingers, "A nine-tailed fox recently appeared in the capital of the West Desolate and a disciple died in Seascape City. Could there be a connection between these events?"

Li Chenghao was focused and he stared closely at the Young Ancestor of the Li Family. Where did this logic come from?

Of course, he could only make casual comments but he did not dare to refute the Young Ancestor. In the end, he could only praise the Young Ancestor for being intelligent and creative.

Li Ge glanced over, "What do you think?"

Li Ruhua nodded, "Although it was only a young junior of the Li Family in Parasol County, he was still a descendant of the Li Family. His death must be justified."

The two Young Ancestors wanted to avenge the young brat, Li Cangzhou. There was no reason for the Li Family in Parasol County to reject it.

After he bowed, he left to arrange things. A long while later, Li Chenghao's expression finally returned to normal.

He knew his value in front of the two Young Ancestors. If he was killed, they would not bat an eyelid. Vengeance for Li Cangzhou? There was definitely another reason for this.

Once Li Ge returned to his living quarters, he flicked the handle of his sword and a soft hum started to play from the sword. Numerous streaks of sword energy flew out and encircled the two of them.

He turned around and frowned, "You have a feeling about the death of the junior from the Li Family of Parasol County?"

Li Ruhua nodded but a hint of hesitation crossed her face before she shook her head, "I have a vague feeling but it is not very clear. It feels like the reflection of the moon in a lake…somehow, it feels like it is always changing and dispersing."

Li Ge's expression turned calm, "Then we have to hurry. No wonder you are in a rush. We won't have time if we try to cover things up."

Li Ruhua answered, "The Li Family of Parasol County was exiled in the past and they must still hold grudges over that. However, they aren't foolish and they will know what to do. Until we find the Barbarian King, we can temporarily trust them."

Li Ge nodded, "If you say they can be trusted, then there shan't be a problem." He suddenly chuckled, "I can't believe a nine-tailed fox appeared in the capital of the West Desolate. Through this incident, I might even be able to buy her over. It will be really pleasant if I can enjoy my future days."

Glancing at him, Li Ruhua said, "The fox demon is still a demon. Although it is rumored that she is very pretty, a demon will always eat men."

……

There was a big stone by a small river bend. Through the constant grinding of the currents, its surface had been polished cleanly and there weren't any spots where rough edges were revealed.

A scholar held a shabby scroll in his hand. It was so battered and old but it still held its shape. Occasionally, the scholar would shake his head and mumble to himself. It seemed as though the scripture in the scroll was truly wondrous.

All of a sudden, there was a 'boom'. It sounded as if thunder had rumbled deep in the earth. It also felt like a great creature that had been in a slumber for a long time had finally woken up. It started to throw a tantrum the moment it woke up.

The meandering river in front of the scholar suddenly turned into a violent beast. Water gushed out of the earth and shot into the air like pillars. In an instant, the stream had turned into a great river.

Strong currents from the river whipped away all the stones nearby. Those which weren't strong enough tumbled away violently.

Yet, the big stone beneath the scholar remained unmoving. He finally finished reading the scroll and he wrapped it up in satisfaction. After casually securing it to his waistband, he stood up and looked at the roaring river before him. It felt like it was having an outburst and its deafening roars shook the sky.

"Stop making a ruckus. What is the use in hiding in the water? Since I am here, you will eventually be struck by a sword. Why don't you show yourself quickly? Firstly, you won't miss the hour. Secondly, I will also be able to leave here early and find a place to eat."

The scholar patted his tummy, "Look at this, it is flat."

The roars from the river sounded more ferocious and wild currents crashed over the river banks.

As though the scholar heard something, he smiled, "You feel wronged? The academy doesn't care about that. It is merely retribution."

"Oh, you claim you are not related to it and you don't know anything…I know that, but so what? Demons are a family. Which ancient demon king said this in the past? Although I can't remember who it was, these words are very wise. Since you are all a family, there isn't an issue with looking for you."

The river continued to protest but there wasn't any consciousness. Evidently, the great demon who hid in the river and endured hardships just to wait for the day when it broke through felt at a loss for words…the alternative was that it was so scared, it was speechless.

The scholar shook his head and wore a helpless look, "All you great demons are strong, but you are much less daring than your ancestors. The scrolls say that you guys almost became the masters of this world. How glorious that would have been."

The great demon in the water remained silent and pretended to be ignorant. It would rather miss the hour of opportunity than reveal itself.

The scholar sighed, "If that is the case, then I can only put in some effort. But you had better think of the consequences carefully."

There wasn't a reply and the scholar stood up and tidied his sleeves. Without seeming to have moved, a flash of sword light zipped through the air and sliced through the river.

Instantly, the river seemed to have paused and there was complete silence. In the next instant, it was split into two right where the sword flash went.

A big corpse of a fish appeared. It was large and spanned a few thousand feet long. Its scales reflected the light from the sun and it carried a rich aura where its scales reflected brilliantly. At the edge of its mouth, two long whiskers grew out and there appeared to be a pair of horns on its head.

Looking at it, it felt like it was almost going to become a dragon. If it broke through successfully, it would have transformed into a dragon.

A new great demon would have appeared on the divine plane of the Central Desolate a few years later.

However, at the last step before it could transform into a dragon, someone cut the river in half and killed it.

The scholar shook his head, "Why did you protest? You made me expend my energy."

He jumped off the stone but did not enter the water. As the great demon was killed, the river also disappeared and it returned to its original form of a small stream. With that, a foot-long golden fish floated to the surface of the water.

Somehow, the scholar retrieved a black wooden rod. He moved skillfully as he stuck the rod into the river and pierced through the fish from its mouth to its tail. As he lifted the fish up, he chuckled to himself, "Tasty, tasty."

Cooking the fish on a real fire with oil created a deep fragrance.

Many eyes started to gather towards him from all directions. There was silence in the world and even the wind stopped. There was fear in the air and it felt like the world itself was afraid that it would be smashed into pieces in the next instant.

The scholar picked up the gourd that hung from his waistband. He tilted his head and drank it. Then, he scanned his surroundings and said, "Do you want to eat too? Come over, you won't achieve anything by being so far away."

No one replied and the air felt even more silent.

The scholar shook his head and smiled, "If you guys aren't going to move, then I will help myself." He lifted the wooden rod and directed the meat into his mouth. He gulped down the food, "People say that dragon meat is really good. They weren't exaggerating."

With one bite, he savored the juicy meat. Fragrance exploded from it and wafted into his nose.

Instantly, anger and annoyance started to fill the eyes that were staring at him from all directions…there was undeniable greed and want from them.

The scholar continued to eat and drink by himself. He ate until his mouth was completely filled, and then, he lifted his finger and pointed around him, "You guys are so fake. You obviously want to eat each other but still call each other family. How laughable."

He was answered by silence again and no one dared to take action. They did not even dare to vent their anger nor let any aura be revealed in fear that they would be locked down by him.

After the feast, the scholar seemed to be a little drunk. His eyes looked unfocused and he started to mutter to himself. His mind was fuzzled and after he drank, it seemed like his hearing was not as sharp.

Later on, he grew silent.

The eyes that gathered on him suddenly sensed danger and the demons wanted to run. However, they were gone in the blink of an eye.

The scholar sat down cross-legged and used a corner of his sleeve to wipe his mouth. Regardless of how dirty he was, the long sleeve remained as clean as a sheet and it was not stained at all.

"Little Zhou…I told you already…demons are demons…they cannot be trusted…

"You said you understood back then, but that was nonsense. Otherwise, you would not have ended up like that."

With one last bite, the scholar finished his meal. At that moment, the ground suddenly shook and a sharp, painful scream pierced his ears.

There was despair, fear, and anger in the scream.

The golden fish was just about to break through its realm and transform into a dragon. It would have become a top great demon of the world.

However, it died today and every mark it had in this world was wiped clean with the final mouthful the scholar took of his meal.

From this moment on, it would be truly dead and there would be no way for it to be reincarnated. Even if time was reversed via the great river, there would be no trace of it anymore.

This was also the outcome the scholar was referring to when he talked about the consequences of his efforts.

After he was full, the scholar lay on the floor and entered a deep sleep.

The wind blew again and gently caressed his face. Peace resumed in the world.

Even at this moment, no one dared to attack the scholar despite their hatred.

……

Dense clouds in the sky gathered rain and soon, it fell. Rain droplets shimmered with golden light as they fell into the lake, to the joy of the fishes in it. Occasionally, some fish would burst out of the water's surface and drink the shining raindrops.

Many cultivators were gathered around the lake. Some of them had ordinary cultivation ranks, but there were also those who were strong and held themselves well. They were all here to spectate the 'rain gift from heavens' that happened once in a hundred years.

A few large fishes in the lake had grown two claws and they were able to climb out of the water. They faced the clouds and continuously bowed towards them, thanking the heavenly Old Ancestor for his grace. This was their opportunity to pass down spiritual intelligence to their descendants.

Every drop of golden rain was an opportunity for them. No wonder the goldfishes in the lake were so emotional.

This was the real art of a heavenly being. In the entire Divine Zhou continent, there were only a few who could do this. They were really lucky to have an Old Ancestor look after them and deter threats in all directions. This was how they were able to cultivate peacefully without the fear of a catastrophe.

All of a sudden, the few fishes with two claws that climbed out of the water fell to the ground with a 'slap'. Their eyes were still filled with joy and emotion but they had no more aura.

Then, numerous goldfishes that were jumping out of the water to capture the gold rain droplets flipped over on their stomachs and floated to the surface. The entire lake surface was covered with dead fishes.

There was utter silence!

Not only did the lake fall silent, every cultivator surrounding the lake wore a face of disbelief as their eyes bulged wide open.

None of them knew what happen.

The next scene made all their hearts clench and they could not help shivering. The corpses of the fishes both in the lake and outside it turned to a cloud of mist and they rapidly dispersed and disappeared. In the blink of an eye, all of them were gone.

More frightening, the cultivators' memories were starting to become hazy. It felt like an invisible force was forcefully erasing their memories and getting rid of any evidence of what happened here.

"Hmph!"

There was a cold scoff and the rain clouds above were suddenly split apart. Sunlight fell down, revealing the main peak hidden within. At that instant, everyone around the lake lost their consciousness and they sat on the floor cross-legged as though they were all cultivating.

An old man in a long robe appeared by the lake. His eyes scanned the surroundings and his expression darkened.

"Crazy idiot of the academy, what in the world are you doing? I truly wonder how long you can continue to be so outrageous!"

A lake of goldfishes was nothing much. Once dead, they were dead. At most, he would only consider it a pity. However, using Great Dao to erase memories would unavoidably harm the souls of the disciples; it would affect their future Great Dao.

He could not tolerate this anymore!

However, as outraged as the old man was now, he did not step forward to demand an answer from the crazy idiot of the academy.

Firstly, it was hard to enter and exit that place now. Secondly, he was not confident that he could beat that idiot even if he went there.

This caused the old man's face to grow darker and he gritted his teeth angrily. In the end, he swept his sleeve aside in a huff and left.

At the same time as he disappeared, the people around the lake woke up. Nothing appeared amiss to anyone and a few moments later, they cupped their hands together to each other and bade farewells before they left.

Their memories had been thoroughly wiped.