Chapter 160: The Eleventh Tier of the Golden Bell Shield!

Wuku transformed his figure and quickly broke away from the battlefield. At the same time, he produced a blood-red jade flute and brought it to his lips, lowering his head to play.

Ning Xiu felt a stream of flute music echoing in his ears, lingering persistently. Raising his head, he saw the bright moon in the sky beginning to be stained with a trace of crimson.

He steadied his mind and looked again; the bright moon hung high in the sky as usual, with no sign of any bloody moon.

The flute music drifted now near, now far, making people feel as if they were trapped in a dream.

"Using sound waves to manipulate human minds?" Ning Xiu whispered.

"There are one hundred thousand believers present here; if you have the ability, slaughter every single one of them!" Standing on a distant high platform and glaring fiercely at Ning Xiu and Yu Wenxiao below, Wuku sneered savagely.

Upon hearing the flute music, tens of thousands of ordinary believers turned crimson in the eyes, emitting low, rumbling growls from their throats.

Clearly, they had completely lost their sanity, transforming into mere tools whose only purpose was to kill.

"What should we do?" Yu Wenxiao approached Ning Xiu, his expression grave as he asked.

"Kill them." Ning Xiu glanced back, watching Yu Wenxiao's face grow increasingly grim. After a brief pause, he smiled and said, "Of course that's impossible. Even if you aren't tired, I would be."

"Did you feel a gentle breeze brush against your face?" Ning Xiu looked toward the rioting crowd of believers and suddenly asked.

Clearly failing to understand why Ning Xiu would ask such an irrelevant question at a time like this, Yu Wenxiao was about to speak when he actually felt a gentle breeze sweep past.

His expression changed slightly as he asked, "This is..."

"You poisoned them!"

"Mm, this is called the Sorrow-Free Breeze," Ning Xiu nodded slightly.

"Didn't you feel a slight stinging sensation in your eyes? Of course, this poison doesn't have much effect on cultivators of our caliber."

It was only then that Yu Wenxiao realized the period during which Ning Xiu had vanished earlier was actually spent secretly spreading poison.

The Sorrow-Free Breeze was a colorless and odorless toxic gas. It was brewed into liquid from venomous creatures collected in the Joyful Valley of the Great Snowy Mountains in Xixia, usually stored in a flask. When used, upon pulling the stopper, the poisonous liquid turned into vapor and drifted out like a gentle breeze, leaving even the shrewdest of individuals completely unaware. By the time their eyes began to sting, the toxic gas had already invaded their minds.

Its antidote was also a gaseous substance stored in a porcelain bottle, emitting an extremely foul odor. Below the Mortal Realm, once poisoned, no amount of inner energy could force the toxins out.

Ning Xiu had previously drawn quite a few strange and unusual poisons, and he had acquired several bottles of this Sorrow-Free Breeze alone.

Just moments ago, he had opened a bottle at every corner of the plaza—eight bottles in total.

Initially, he had worried that with so many people present, it might fail to work, but now it seemed his worries were unfounded.

The Sorrow-Free Breeze spread with the wind, and the plaza in front of the Lunar Wheel Temple was relatively enclosed and densely packed.

Since this breeze had already blown from all directions to the altar at the very center, it meant everyone present had inhaled the toxic gas.

Some people in the crowd began to collapse first, followed by others falling like dominoes. Soon, across the entire plaza, aside from the Transcending Mortality realm experts like Ning Xiu, not a single person was spared.

Even though those believers bewitched by Wuku's flute music lay paralyzed and powerless on the ground, their faces still bore terrifying expressions, and low growls escaped their throats, resembling bloodthirsty beasts to the extreme.

Yet these beasts had now had their fangs pulled and their limbs bound, posing no further threat whatsoever.

Ning Xiu looked up at Wuku and said, "If this is your final trick, then it seems your journey ends here today."

Before his voice had even faded, Yu Wenxiao, standing beside him, felt a gentle breeze brush past.

Ning Xiu suddenly vanished from where he stood.

When he reappeared, he was already right in front of Wuku.

A flash of sword light illuminated the space.

Countless flashes of sword light illuminated the space.

In an instant, countless sword holes pierced through Wuku's entire body, and moonlight shone straight through him, stained a desolate, brilliant red, making it seem as though the moon in the sky had truly transformed into a crimson moon.

...

With this, all four Transcending Mortality realm experts of the Lunar Wheel Temple were dead. As for the remaining mortal-realm temple attendants, even if they could endure the toxicity of the Sorrow-Free Breeze, they could no longer accomplish anything.

This operation by the Loulan remnants, which had fluctuated wildly due to Ning Xiu, ultimately achieved success because of Ning Xiu.

"Brother Ding, thanks to you this time, our Loulan people owe you a debt of gratitude," Yu Wenxiao said.

"I hope you will still remember what you said today when the time comes." Ning Xiu glanced at Yu Wenxiao, waved his hand, and turned to leave.

A howling wind and drifting sand swept past, swallowing Ning Xiu's retreating figure.

Until Ning Xiu's figure completely vanished from everyone's sight, one of the Loulan remnants quietly spoke to Yu Wenxiao: "Leader, why didn't we keep him just now? Eight chances out of ten, he is the person the Young Mistress spoke of. The Twin-Life Flower is on him."

Ning Xiu's intervention this time had clearly exposed his identity.

The Death Desert was vast, but to the Loulan remnants rooted deep within this great desert, any disturbance whatsoever could not escape their eyes.

Ning Xiu's appearance had already greatly exceeded their expectations; it was impossible for another figure of such terrifying prowess to suddenly pop out of nowhere.

Thus, there was only one possibility: this Ding Mu before them was precisely the person they were searching for.

Yu Wenxiao gazed in the direction where Ning Xiu had vanished, remaining silent for a long time before turning back to say, "He saved our lives this time. We Loulan people will never act as ungrateful ingrates; that is our ancestral precept."

"Understood, Leader!"

...

Ning Xiu felt not the slightest bit of concern regarding the possibility of his identity being exposed.

If these Loulan remnants truly dared to come looking for trouble, he would simply slaughter them.

After killing those four Transcending Mortality realm experts of the Lunar Wheel Temple, Ning Xiu had not only directly gathered the 4,000 ingots needed to advance the eleventh stage of the Golden Bell Shield, but even had some to spare.

His VIP level had also increased to V4 (with a cumulative recharge of 10,000 ingots), and the system rewarded him with 5 remnant pages of the Seven Great Limits as usual.

Without the slightest hesitation, Ning Xiu directly chose to upgrade the level of the Golden Bell Shield. After all, for him at present, only this cultivation technique could serve as his foundational art.

Boom!

A stream of golden light circulated throughout Ning Xiu's body. He clearly felt this golden light refining his physical form, growing increasingly brilliant. A series of cracking pops echoed across his entire body as the very last remnants of impurities within him were purged outward.

With a final, earth-shaking roar, a massive golden bell suddenly manifested, towering between heaven and earth.

This was the manifestation of the eleventh stage of the Golden Bell Shield reaching perfection!

It was also the highest realm that anyone practicing this technique throughout history could achieve, aside from its creator, Bodhidharma.

At this stage, his entire body's vulnerable acupuncture points were reduced to a mere half-inch. His muscles, when taut, were as hard as steel, yet when relaxed, they were as soft as cotton wool. He was impervious to blades, spears, water, and fire; his strikes carried the force of wind and thunder, and his movement arts were as light as a goose feather, allowing him to sprint across the surface of water without sinking.

Furthermore, after the update of the "Martial God" system, cultivation techniques had become even more seamlessly integrated with this world.

Upon mastering the eleventh stage, Ning Xiu directly unblocked his eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and body, achieving a triple leap and reaching the eighth heaven of the Transcending Mortality realm.

Ning Xiu was confident that if he were to encounter Shen Sanqian again at this moment, even without using the Seven Great Limits, he could defeat him in battle!

Yet when he saw the cost required for the final stage of the Golden Bell Shield, his eyelids twitched involuntarily. The cost required for this final stage was actually greater than the sum of the previous eleven stages combined.

It seemed making money was his primary task now.

Murmuring softly to himself, Ning Xiu locked his target onto the Lunar Wheel Temple.

In his view, this Lunar Wheel Temple was entirely a cult, as could be seen from the actions of Wuku, the master of the Black Gold City branch.

Moreover, this so-called Moon Deity was, in his eyes, likewise an evil deity.

...

On the day of the Crimson Moon, attacks were launched by the Loulan remnants across nearly every oasis city, not just Black Gold City.

There were victories and defeats, with far more defeats than victories.

However, the events that transpired in Black Gold City shocked the entire Death Desert. Three divine envoys fell in battle, branch master Wuku fell in battle, and in the end, even Lieying, the foremost of the Lunar Wheel Temple's four great divine envoys, fell in battle.

Following this incident, the Lunar Wheel Temple would only grow increasingly vigilant, and its defenses would become ever more heavily guarded.

On this very day, Mo City welcomed an uninvited guest.

"Excuse me, which way is the Lunar Wheel Temple?" Ning Xiu stopped a passerby and asked.

Although somewhat surprised that anyone still did not know the location of the temple, the passerby pointed and replied, "Follow this street all the way to the end, then turn left and go two more streets."

In his view, Ning Xiu must have been a believer who had come from afar out of admiration.

Ning Xiu nodded slightly and, following the directions given by the passerby, walked through several streets. Ten minutes later, the heavily guarded Lunar Wheel Temple branch, fortified like an iron fortress, finally came into his view.

By this time, the Mo City branch of the Lunar Wheel Temple had clearly received intelligence regarding the deaths of Lieying and the others, so at the entrance of the temple, a large number of temple attendants were patrolling with gleaming curved sabers in hand.

Everyone's face was taut and solemn, and the atmosphere at the scene was exceptionally grim and murderous.

They naturally noticed Ning Xiu walking toward them.

"This is the Lunar Wheel Temple; idlers are forbidden to enter," one of the attendants pointed at Ning Xiu and sternly reprimanded him.

Judging from Ning Xiu's attire and grooming, he was not a believer of the Moon Deity. Under normal circumstances, they wouldn't have been so sensitive, but given the special current situation, they could not afford to be careless.

Ning Xiu calmly gazed at the group of attendants at the temple entrance and stopped right in front of the massive gates.

"I've come to see your temple master. Is he in?"

Without waiting for a reply, Ning Xiu shook his head and slowly took a step forward.

"Never mind, I'll go inside and find him myself."

"Step any further and you will be executed without mercy."

The attendant shouted sternly. Seeing that Ning Xiu paid no heed and continued forward, he directly drew the curved saber at his waist and slashed toward Ning Xiu.

Clang!

A crisp sound of colliding metal rang out.

Looking at the curved saber in his hand snapped into two halves, horror filled the attendant's eyes. The next moment, he felt a violent gust of wind strike his chest, and his entire body flew backward, slamming heavily against the doors behind him.

The commotion on Ning Xiu's side finally drew the attention of the others.

"We are under attack! Everyone, kill him!"

As this shout fell, the group of attendants at the entrance uniformly drew the chilling blades at their waist and charged toward Ning Xiu.

Ning Xiu's expression remained unchanged as he glanced back at them.

Cisscrossing sword qi suddenly manifested all around his body.

"Puff, puff..."

Those charging attendants who stepped within a five-meter radius of Ning Xiu were instantly pierced through by the fierce sword qi, and scarlet blood gushed forth like springs.

It looked as though a shower of blood was raining down upon the scene.

After a dozen people were killed, no one else dared to cross the forbidden line another step.

Ning Xiu glanced at them and took another step forward.

"Swish, swish..."

As Ning Xiu stepped forward, the temple attendants guarding the entrance retreated a step in sheer panic, their uniform footsteps sounding rather comical.

A few even scrambled on hands and feet into the gates, running away at top speed to report the news.

...

Half a joss stick's time later, Ning Xiu stood inside the Lunar Wheel Temple, looking up at the divine statue.

Meanwhile, Ye Zhan, the master of the branch temple, lay collapsed on the ground nearby.

"I will never allow you to desecrate my lord!"

With a fierce shout, Ye Zhan slammed his right palm against the ground, his entire body soaring into the air. He lunged ferociously toward Ning Xiu, raising his fist to smash down viciously.

Feeling the intensely ferocious force emanating from his opponent's fist, Ning Xiu's expression remained calm. He turned around to coldly gaze at the incoming man and similarly raised his right fist to smash forward.

A surge of golden horned-ox qi instantly pulverized his opponent's fist force with unstoppable momentum.

It slammed violently into Ye Zhan's chest.

The kinetic energy pierced straight through his body, and after a brief moment, it erupted, blasting him into smithereens.

Ning Xiu turned back around to silently gaze at the statue before him; the statue likewise silently gazed back at him.

After a long silence, a stunning flash of sword light illuminated the space.

The divine statue was severed at the waist and crashed to the ground, kicking up a flurry of dust...

Ning Xiu was after all unfamiliar with this Death Desert. He had originally intended to flatten these branches of the Lunar Wheel Temple one by one, but not long after leaving Mo City, he was intercepted and pursued by people from the temple.

After transcending mortality, the sharpness of Ning Xiu's hearing and the clarity of his vision were clearly far beyond what ordinary mortals could compare to.

He could perceive many things that ordinary people could not detect.

At this moment, riding a camel, he suddenly came to a halt.

"Since you have all arrived, there's no need to play hide-and-seek."

Not far ahead, a gust of wind-blown sand suddenly whipped up.

A human figure slowly materialized within the swirling sand.

"To think you still managed to discover us."

A burly man with high cheekbones, a pale golden complexion, and the gaze of a peerless lion stepped out in stride from the sandstorm.

Simultaneously, another figure suddenly appeared to Ning Xiu's right. This person was withered and thin, with rare and eerie slit pupils in both eyes, and a chilling aura emanating from his entire body. If the previous burly man resembled a fierce lion, then this person was undoubtedly a venomous snake.

Ning Xiu glanced over and noticed that as this man walked from afar, not a single footprint was left on the sandy ground. For someone in the Transcending Mortality realm, leaving no trace upon snow was not difficult to achieve; what was difficult was maintaining this state at every single moment.

As for the burly man on the other side, his steps were heavy and uneven, projecting a powerful sense of raw strength.

Looking at the two of them, Ning Xiu chuckled lightly, "To think that the remaining three of the four great divine envoys of the Lunar Wheel Temple would strike simultaneously—it seems I hold quite a high status indeed."

These two were precisely the Mad Lion and the Venomous Snake among the four great divine envoys.

A faint glint flashed through Venomous Snake's eyes. He smiled gloomily at Ning Xiu and said, "If the temple master hadn't been genuinely caught up in matters and unable to spare the time, his venerable self would have wanted to come personally. Now, you only have to face the two of us; you should consider yourself very fortunate."

Ning Xiu's expression remained unchanged as he looked up into the distance and spoke, "Are you still not going to come out?"

The moment his voice fell, a woman's crisp, giggling laughter suddenly echoed from afar.