"Flowing Sand Collection", the last settlement entering the "Sea of Death", after leaving the collection, you can see the endless sand and gravel, desolate and depressing, with only a few clusters of stubborn and twisted greenery that cannot bring life's pulse, but instead set off the vast and silent Gobi.

  "The Western Regions" is a general term for the vast western regions of the Great Jin and Northern Zhou, but it cannot be considered a unified concept. After passing through the "Jade Gate", there are hundreds or thousands of countries standing, with deserts and Gobi deserts everywhere. Among them, there are several places like the "Sea of Death", "Burial God Desert" and "Western Extreme Wilderness". However, their hinterland is not lacking in oases and underground rivers, forming a wonderful exotic landscape.

  In the past, a master of landscape photography who traveled to the Western Regions once said that the "Western Regions" can be described as deserts and Gobi wrapping around oases and countries, or it can also be said that countless countries are sandwiched between deserts and Gobi, with the only exception being the Great Snowy Mountains in the north. It starts from the "Endless Ocean" and ends at the "Jade Gate Pass", stretching for tens of thousands of miles, passing through the entire Western Regions.

  In the depths of the Great Snowy Mountains, legend has it that there are nine mausoleums of the ancient divine era's nine immortal lords, suppressing the "Endless Abyss". The "Snow Mountain Sect", one of the six sword sects, is said to be the guardian of the tombs, passed down through generations and growing stronger.

  The gale mixed with sand and gravel was as sharp as ice, blowing towards "Liu Sha Ji", shrouding the town in dust, visibility less than three zhang, ears hard to hear eight directions.

  "Is this a sandstorm?" Meng Qi, who had never experienced it before, tightened his thick monk's robe. He wasn't afraid of the cold, but felt that after being covered in dust and gravel, he would lose his elegant and carefree demeanor, looking like an old shepherd instead.

  Since leaving Shaolin at the end of autumn, Xuan Bei had been traveling at a steady pace, giving the monks who were going to other sects to explain this matter ample time. Therefore, it wasn't until the third month of spring that the three of them arrived at "Liu Sha Ji", and in the western regions, March was still as cold as the depths of winter.

  Zhen Hui opened her big eyes, curiously looking at the surrounding sand and dust, watching the trees around her that were stained with a bleak and dull color, watching those camels shaking their bells from time to time, occasionally making soft exclamations.

  The streets were deserted, with people having returned to their homes to avoid the strong winds and sandstorms. Only merchants, knights-errant, and travelers continued on their way to the only inn in town, braving the wind and sand.

  "Senior brother, they look different from us!" Zhen Hui finally couldn't help but ask.

  Many pedestrians have high noses and deep eyes, with pupils of different colors, which are quite different from the people in the Central Plains. What's more, some even grow a pair of horns on their heads, with an eye opening between their eyebrows, resembling a monster.

  Meng Qi watched with wide eyes, but didn't know how to respond to Zhen Hui.

  "Amitabha, the land and water of one place nurture the people of that place, and there are bound to be differences. Some Westerners claim to be descendants of gods and demons, so it's inevitable that they have unusual appearances." Xuan Bei said calmly.

  The former refers to normal Westerners, while the latter is aimed at those "alien people" with two horns on their heads and eyes that open in the middle of their eyebrows.

  "What special abilities do the descendants of gods and demons have?" Meng Qi asked with great interest, wondering if the exchange spectrum of "Master of the Six Paths" still hid options such as "Descendants of Gods and Demons"?

  The wind and sand arrived together, but Xuan Bei's body was spotless, and he smiled: "Of course there is."

  As they spoke, the three of them arrived at an inn, a three-story building with a worn-out exterior and marks of wind and sand erosion, with the sign "First House in the Vast Sea".

  As soon as Meng Qi stepped into the inn, he saw the counter, which was right by the door. It was cluttered with papers, brushes and account books.

  The shopkeeper was a woman in her late twenties, dressed in a black skirt, with a feminine appearance, slender eyebrows and phoenix eyes, delicate and charming, like a blooming flower, full of femininity, attracting passing customers to steal glances at her openly or secretly.

  She rested her chin on her right hand, lazily staring at the account book, with a cold expression on her face, which was made even whiter by the black dress, as if everyone in the inn owed her one hundred and two silver coins.

  "Amitabha, shopkeeper, I'll be staying and dining here." Meng Qi said, as the more reliable of the two disciples. In fact, he wanted to address the female boss directly, but unfortunately, his master was watching from behind.

  The woman in black skirt didn't even lift her head and said indifferently: "Five taels of silver for one night, meals are extra."

  You're robbing me! Meng Qi really wanted to teach her what "the customer is God" means, but unfortunately, the master was watching from behind.

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

  "There are only two rooms." The woman in black skirt still seemed indifferent.

  Meng Qi thought it was no problem, the master had one room, and he and Zhen Hui squeezed into another, anyway they didn't have many chances to rest on this journey, now having two rooms was not bad: "Alright, here are ten taels of silver, two rooms."

  He reached out his hand to take back the five taels of silver.

  The woman in black skirt looked at Meng Qi with a slanted eye: "Count by head."

  Meng Qi's mouth twitched slightly, and he really wanted to teach her how to be a human being, but unfortunately, his master was watching from behind.

  Having obtained Master's consent, Meng Qi nodded and said: "Fifteen taels of silver for two rooms."

  The woman in black skirt slowly gathered the silver and said without raising her eyelids, "Second floor, west side, two unlocked rooms, go yourself."

  Don't think that just because you're a beauty, I won't dare to hit you! Unfortunately, Master is watching from behind... Meng Qi had thought this way countless times, it was an unconscious idea formed along the way.

  Inside the inn's main hall, there were over twenty tables, all of which were filled with people. Some were playing finger-guessing games and drinking wine, others were engaged in loud discussions, while some were whispering to each other in hushed tones. The atmosphere was lively and bustling.

  These guests, some were dressed in a simple and unadorned manner, looking like seasoned travelers. Some had the look of wind and dust on their faces, but with subtle hints of wealth and nobility. Some wore Confucian robes, and even amidst the noise and chaos, they still exuded an air of scholarly refinement. Others wrapped their heads and wore long gowns, dressed as "desert guests" - a term used by the people of the Great Jin to refer to those who made a living traveling through the deserts and plateaus of the Western Regions, among whom were not a few bandits on horseback.

  Xuan Bei led two apprentices through the main hall, and many guests couldn't help but steal a glance, but after failing to notice anything special, they withdrew their gaze and continued making noise.

  "Five, five, five!"

  "Haha, three sixes! Drink three bowls!"

  "Damn it, how did I lose again?!"

  In such a noisy environment, a young-looking man sipped his wine, frowned and slammed the bowl down, stood up and shouted: "Shopkeeper, your wine is not strong enough, did you dilute it with water?"

  In an instant, all the sounds in the hall came to a sudden stop. The wine drinkers, the dice throwers, the talkers, the wine gulpers, and the food eaters all froze in their original movements as if time had solidified.

  It was possible that she was the shopkeeper or the boss's wife, a woman in black skirt who raised her head, with inverted willow eyebrows and round almond eyes staring.

  "Love to drink, don't drink then get out!"

  Pfft, Meng Qi almost spat out his saliva, this old lady has quite a personality!

  The young man who complained about the liquor being diluted with water did not expect such a response and stood there stupidly for a moment.

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

  "Haha, I'm dying of laughter, someone actually dared to yell at Jiuniang."

  "Don't talk to me, I'm about to burst out laughing, where did this young punk come from?"

  "Jiuniang, it's not wine mixed with water, but rather... mmm, don't cover my mouth."

  "Are you looking to be thrown out or drink a basin of Jiuniang's foot-washing water?"

  A young man, probably on his first journey, faced with this situation, apart from having a red face, getting angry was not an option, nor was enduring it...

  Fortunately, there was an old fellow traveler who often walked this way as his companion, got up and whispered a few words in his ear, advising him to sit down again.

  The young man buried his head, gritted his teeth, but did not dare to make a move, which made Meng Qi feel quite surprised.

  After walking up the stairs, Xuan Bei suddenly spoke up with a hint of smile in his tone: "Qiu Jiuniang, with an unknown background, opened 'Hanhai's First Inn' ten years ago. At first, she was alone and had an outstanding appearance, which attracted a lot of trouble. However, all those who dared to have ideas about her were dealt with severely, some were found dead outside, while others were hung naked on the inn's wine signboard, none were spared. Afterwards, troubles decreased, everyone knew that Qiu Jiuniang was not someone to be trifled with, and suspected that she was a high-ranking expert from the outside world."

  "What's the big deal? How old is she anyway?" Meng Qi was startled, and secretly thought to himself, Master, when you mentioned Chen Shi's death earlier, you didn't show any compassion, your worldly heart hasn't been washed away yet!

  Xuan Bei stepped up onto the last step of the stairs: "Probably thirty-five or six, Master didn't use Heaven's Eye to take a look, not very clear."

  Wow, well-maintained indeed. But for a master of outdoor scenes like this, maybe even after another ten years, it'll still be the same... Meng Qi nodded lightly.

  Outside the guest room, Xuan Bei turned his head and said to Meng Qi and Zhen Hui: "The master has to do evening lessons, you two shouldn't slack off either."

  "Yes, Master." The two replied respectfully and then pushed open the door to enter their own room.

  Inside the room, there was only one bed, one table and two chairs. Although they were old, they were not dirty or messy. Meng Qi and Zhen Hui didn't say much, one sat on the chair and the other sat on the bed, starting to meditate and cultivate.

  Meng Qi didn't practice any other skills, but instead focused his mind on the ancestral orifice, letting his true energy rise up and slowly stimulate this mysterious acupoint.

  In nearly half a year, Meng Qi had already refined the remaining three acupoints of his eyes, and was waiting for these few days to adjust his body and mind before finding an opportunity to take the "Tian Cong Pill" to break through.

  His "Wind and Shadow" had already entered the door, and the first few sections of "Easy Tendon and Bone Tempering Chapter" had also been practiced. Even if his realm hadn't broken through, his martial arts like Golden Bell Shield and Arhat Fist had increased in power by 30%. What's more delightful was that after cultivating "Easy Tendon and Bone Tempering Chapter", Meng Qi felt much easier when condensing his acupoints, and even the elusive and vague eye acupoint seemed to be grasped a little.

  So, Meng Qi didn't hastily take the "Tian Cong Pill" to break through after completing his cultivation in the cave, but instead patiently continued to practice the "Easy Tendon and Bone Tempering Chapter", until recently when his eyes were able to grasp it more and more, he began to prepare for breaking through.

  This time, Meng Qi felt quite confident.

  As for the "Fantasy Form Great Method", when Meng Qi first started practicing, he had no reaction at all. After one round, his whole body would be extremely tired and his spirit would become sluggish. However, as time passed by, with daily persistence, and the slow improvement of himself through the "Easy Tendon and Bone Tempering Chapter", Meng Qi gradually felt a slight swelling in his eyebrows, as if something was brewing inside him.

  This is a good thing, but it's not a good thing either, because it's an illusion produced by the stimulation of the Yintang acupoint. If you get obsessed with this, you might go crazy, however, the appearance of such illusions also means that Meng Qi's "Fantasy Shape Method" has begun to take shape.

  Meng Qi calmed his mind and ignored this illusion, continuing to cultivate as usual.

  Before his tightly closed eyes, all was dark and obscure, like the primordial chaos. Meng Qi seemed to be in a state of being both awake and asleep when he suddenly felt a wisp of true energy seep in. The darkness instantly split open, and an object slowly rose up, round and golden, then burst forth with great radiance.

  A flash of light, Meng Qi's eyebrows suddenly rose, and the scene around him vaguely appeared in his mind: a table, a bed, two chairs, his younger brother sat cross-legged on the bed, a teapot and tea cups were placed on the table...

  This feeling flashed by, Meng Qi's eyebrows were severely painful, and he had to stop his cultivation. He opened his eyes, and this time, although what he saw was the original scene, it had a completely different feeling. The mountains were not mountains, the water was not water.

  "Haha, 'Phantom Technique' has made some progress." Meng Qi was quite pleased with himself. This was the standard of a Cold Messenger, able to sense objects around him through his ancestral aperture at the center of his brow and slightly interfere with others' senses.

  Han's martial arts skills were not high, and it took him seven or eight years to barely master the Phantom Transformation Technique. Meng Qi, on the other hand, mastered it in just half a year, which was naturally impressive. Moreover, once he had made some progress, there would be more chapters to his cultivation journey. Meng Qi was confident that he could fully master the Phantom Transformation Technique within the next year, and if he were to exchange for corresponding elixirs to aid him, it would be even faster - perhaps just three or four months would be enough to succeed.

  "The main world's cultivation is indeed much faster than the old segment's world..." Meng Qi got up in confusion, then looked around and prepared to start his 103rd attempt at escaping.

  I have now slightly mastered the Phantom Shape Great Technique, and I should be able to make Master's Spiritual Lock appear flawed, right?

  He activated his Phantom Shape Great Technique, and the ancestral orifice between his eyebrows emitted a swelling energy. His spirit spread outwards, enveloping himself, as he carefully made his way to the edge of the door.

  "Big brother, you're going out to have fun, why didn't you call me?" Zhen Hui's voice suddenly sounded from behind him.

  Meng Qi's smile suddenly froze on his face.

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