Gu Baiqing, once outside, realized that this place was still some distance away from the immortal’s cave dwelling he had seen before. He planned to head over and check the situation.
But he ran into Li Xiuran, who seemed to be searching for something.
“Elder Luofeng,” Li Xiuran hurriedly bowed. “Thank you just now for saving me.”
“It was nothing. The others…” Gu Baiqing asked evenly while observing him. This boy—seemed he had picked up quite the windfall thanks to him. Truly lucky.
“The disciples of Zixiao Sect are all at the immortal’s cave dwelling. Most of the cultivators in the secret realm have gathered there now. By the way… Young Master Mo…” Li Xiuran looked somewhat concerned for Mo Xuanli.
“He’s fine…” Gu Baiqing suddenly remembered. Right, wasn’t it in the original that Li Xiuran later grew fond of Mo Xuanli? Why not just send him over—kill two birds with one stone.
But after turning the thought over in his head, it felt strange, as if he were selling off his disciple.
Forget it. Best not to meddle without a foundation of feelings.
Just then, he noticed Li Xiuran staring blankly at his neck. Gu Baiqing frowned, instinctively raising a hand to touch, but at that moment, a loud crash of a massive body falling shook the ground nearby. He turned and saw a man emerge.
“What are you doing here? Alone? Where’s your disciple?” Chu Fei had just slain a beast, his whole body drenched in blood. Seeing Gu Baiqing, he shot off three questions in a row. After all, Baiqing had suddenly gone missing for a long while, and his spiritual power was uncertain—so Second Senior Brother had sent Chu Fei to look for him.
“Mo Xuanli fell under a spell and fainted. He’ll come out on his own later. The other disciples…” Gu Baiqing asked.
“Other than Nan Zhi, who was badly injured earlier, everyone else is fine. Second Senior Brother is at the immortal’s cave dwelling too. Since you’re alright, go there as well. I’ll keep hunting the beasts.” Right now, cultivators’ work was to slay rampaging beasts and check for lingering demons.
“How did fighting one beast leave you in such a state? Your clothes are in tatters.” Gu Baiqing frowned at Chu Fei’s ragged garments, like some beggar.
“No choice—ran into a beast that spat corrosive fluid. Clothes were bound to get eaten away. And you’re one to talk—your clothes are torn too!”
Chu Fei had just finished when, before Gu Baiqing could answer, Li Xiuran suddenly coughed, startled and choking.
Gu Baiqing looked down at the spot Chu Fei pointed out—and froze. Since when had the front of his robe been torn away? And his sash… it was crooked. Right—that brat had yanked it earlier.
Thinking of how Li Xiuran had been staring dazedly at him just now, it must have been because of his disheveled state. After all, he was a revered senior; appearances had to be kept.
Feeling a little embarrassed, Gu Baiqing straightened himself up. “Enough. I’ll head back, you keep busy.”
Chu Fei nodded and flew off.
“This junior… still needs to find my sectmates. I’ll take my leave as well,” Li Xiuran said, stammering.
Why was he suddenly so nervous around him? Gu Baiqing, puzzled, simply nodded. Li Xiuran quickly took off.
If Gu Baiqing knew what was running through Li Xiuran’s mind right now, he would have spat blood on the spot.
As Li Xiuran walked forward with a pale, shocked face, the images replayed in his head.
The bite mark at the neck, the torn robe, the crooked sash… He remembered—Mo Xuanli had been struck down by a succubus. And the succubus’s spell most likely was…
And now, Mo Xuanli lay unconscious elsewhere, inconvenient for Gu Baiqing to bring back—could it be… some kind of situation?
Li Xiuran’s mind couldn’t keep up. Gu Baiqing and Mo Xuanli were both men… and still master and disciple, it shouldn’t be possible… Yet he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong between the two. And just now, why hadn’t Elder Chunyang shown the slightest surprise—could it be there had already been something before? Surely he couldn’t have been too dull to notice those were ambiguous bite marks.
Had he stumbled upon some shocking secret? This was really…
He had even thought of reminding the Immortal Venerable—after all, he himself had been saved, and it wouldn’t do to let the Venerable lose face before others. He just didn’t know how to bring it up. Fortunately, the Venerable had adjusted his clothes afterward, covering most of it. That whole experience had embarrassed Li Xiuran to death.
Forget it, better to pretend he knew nothing and saw nothing. After all, dealings with others had nothing to do with such matters. He’d better go look for Senior Brother He Jing.
On the other side, Gu Baiqing didn’t think too deeply about Li Xiuran’s odd behavior and headed straight toward the Immortal’s cave dwelling.
Suddenly, a sound inexplicably rang out in his mind.
【Demonization Value +1】
Gu Baiqing’s steps faltered slightly, then returned to normal.
Before, things had been too chaotic for him to think carefully, but it seemed that when they had fallen into the ruins, it had risen once as well.
Now the demonization value was 9—still not enough to cause concern.
But what puzzled Gu Baiqing was the triggers for Mo Xuanli’s demonization increases.
Honestly, several times when Gu Baiqing thought the protagonist was being bullied and feared the value might rise, there had been no reaction. Yet occasionally, for the flimsiest reasons, it did increase. Most of the time, it seemed delayed—as if being beaten half to death by a demon didn’t raise it, yet it suddenly jumped afterward. Surely it couldn’t be that simply feeling unwell would cause demonization?
Gu Baiqing really couldn’t find the pattern. What exactly caused the demonization value to change? Didn’t the system have any standard? Even if he wanted to guard against it, he couldn’t.
After grumbling to himself for a while, he still couldn’t figure it out, so he simply stopped thinking about it. At least the frequency of increases was still low for now.
Arriving at the Immortal’s cave dwelling, he indeed found it filled with cultivators. The area of safe habitation had already doubled, with the central spot naturally given to the gravely injured. Most of the younger disciples remained here as well, with several elders and leaders keeping watch to ensure security, while the stronger cultivators, like Chu Fei, had gone out to patrol.
As soon as Gu Baiqing stepped into the area, before he even found Second Senior Brother, he first encountered people from Wuxiang Temple.
His mood instantly sank.
A Wuxiang Temple elder stepped forward, saluted him with palms together, and spoke with a calm expression.
“Greetings, Master. Regarding little Master Qian Yue, we are sorry—we could not save him.”
“Everyone else witnessed it, and all have testified to the situation. Elder Luofeng and Young Master Mo did their utmost. Whether successful or not, our Wuxiang Temple owes them a debt. This humble monk is grateful.”
“You intend to rescue him? If you have any lead, I am willing to lend a hand.” In truth, Gu Baiqing also didn’t wish for Qian Yue to be harmed. The closer things came to following the original story, the more uneasy he felt. In the original, Qian Yue’s death was one of the major charges that condemned Mo Xuanli as demonkind.
“We will send people to seek news. Since the demons went to the trouble of taking Qian Yue alive, they should not kill him immediately. This may well be the tribulation fated for Qian Yue. If he survives it, attaining the Dao will not be difficult. It must be resolved by him alone, so Elder Luofeng need not concern yourself.”
Having said this, the master walked away lightly. But Gu Baiqing really couldn’t understand Wuxiang Temple’s teaching philosophy. If his own disciple were in trouble, he would… forget it. Since their own people wouldn’t intervene, he wouldn’t meddle either. If word came and help was needed, he would bring a full bag of spirit treasures to act.
At last, he found Second Senior Brother, with Jingcheng also present, but discovered they and the other elders were in heated discussion.
As soon as Gu Baiqing arrived, everyone’s eyes turned to him.
“What’s wrong?” Gu Baiqing asked.
Second Senior Brother came forward to explain: they couldn’t get out.
The secret realm had its own rules. The barrier broken when they entered had already been automatically repaired. Since the trial time wasn’t over, everyone was trapped inside. The higher cultivators had already tried attacking it, but without the demons’ formations affecting the barrier, they couldn’t break it at all.
“So we have to wait until the trial time ends?” Gu Baiqing followed along. Indeed, it would be two more days before they could leave.
In the original story, Gu Baiqing and Mo Xuanli had stayed in the ruins for two days and nights, and not long after they came out, the secret realm opened and everyone was transmitted out.
Since he had already decided to cut that part of the plot, Gu Baiqing had reserved these two days from the start—for proper business!
“Why aren’t you anxious at all?” Fu Zhiyi stomped his foot in agitation.
For a moment, Gu Baiqing didn’t understand what had them all so worried.
Then Jingcheng spoke with a grave face: “We fear this may be another feint. With half of the cultivation world’s strength trapped here, the outside sects are at their weakest. If the demons use this time to turn back and attack other sects, who knows how many will withstand it?”
“That’s right. The sects are far apart. Even if they knew in advance and took precautions, even with protective formations, two days is still far too long.”
The four great immortal sects might fare better, but the elders of smaller sects all looked ashen, afraid theirs would be the next target.
Gu Baiqing realized then. In the original, once the demons disappeared, they vanished completely, so he hadn’t considered others might worry. But he couldn’t outright declare the demons wouldn’t strike again, so he could only remain silent.
“Elder Luofeng, it was you who first noticed the barrier’s problem. Do you have any other methods?”
No wonder they had looked at him with such fervor just now—they were hoping he would work another miracle.
Gu Baiqing silently shook his head.
There was nothing he could do—truly nothing. In the original story, after Gu Baiqing and the others came out of the ruins, everyone else in the secret realm had already tried every possible method. He was only a bit stronger in cultivation, but he wasn’t the only one of that level in the cultivation world. During those two days, many other experts had also arrived at the boundary of the secret realm and tried to open it early, but it was all useless.
Still, the crowd refused to give up. After all, only the first day of waiting had begun, so they could only urge Gu Baiqing to “think again.”
At this point, Fu Zhiyi pulled Gu Baiqing aside to ask about his spiritual power, and naturally ended up asking about Mo Xuanli.
“He was hit by a succubus’ spell and thrown into the ruins—handling it himself.”
Fu Zhiyi’s face twisted. “What rotten luck. You weren’t affected, were you?”
Gu Baiqing’s heart skipped a beat. “Of course not.”
Fu Zhiyi wanted to probe further, but Gu Baiqing couldn’t hold up any longer. He made an excuse and left.
Before leaving, he glanced at the disciples of Zixiao Sect. The others were fine; Yun Yue was tending to the gravely injured Nan Zhi. Naturally, upon seeing him, the questioning turned once again to Mo Xuanli.
Gu Baiqing felt a headache. He really didn’t want to talk about Mo Xuanli anymore, because every time his name came up, Gu Baiqing couldn’t help but think—what was Mo Xuanli doing right now? He didn’t want to think about that at all, okay!
But the disciples didn’t dare press Gu Baiqing too hard. Once they were sure nothing was wrong, they were relieved. Just as Gu Baiqing was about to leave, he suddenly heard a cry from not far away.
It was that He Zixiao again—only this time, the situation was different.
“He Jing, what’s…”
He saw that Li Xiuran had already returned, carrying a body wrapped in cloth, the mangled, rotting remains of He Jing’s corpse.
“When I found him, Senior Brother was already… It was from gu worms. It must have been planted by that demon girl when she threw him down.”
Looking at the way the corpse was curled up, he must have endured terrible agony before death.
Even the people of Zixiao Sect were stunned—even Nan Zhi froze upon seeing it. His death was just too gruesome.
Yun Yue buried her face against Nan Zhi’s shoulder, seemingly not daring to look, while Nan Zhi worried about Yun Yue instead—fearing she might also have been infested with gu worms.
But Yun Yue was a medical cultivator. Since she was certain she had none, then she truly had none.
One could only say her luck had been good.
Nearby, someone began recording the dead. Besides He Jing, another familiar name was among them—Ma Chuan’s group.
Gu Baiqing didn’t linger. The secret realm was already safe, and there were still two days left. He had a far more important task to do.
Five hundred thousand spirit stones—here I come.
Gu Baiqing took out his little notebook, face solemn, and flew on his sword as if about to embark on some great mission, arriving at his first target location to begin his sweep-and-loot journey.
Because he kept stirring up enormous commotions, at first people thought Elder Luofeng was trying to find a way to break out.
Everyone was moved to tears.
But when cultivators who had run into Gu Baiqing came back and told the truth, the crowd finally understood.
Elder Luofeng was… was… searching for spirit plants, hunting spirit beasts. And not just any—but the most valuable ones.
When everyone heard this, their cheeks twitched.
They all remembered: Elder Luofeng still owed Ten Thousand Swords Island five hundred thousand spirit stones.
So instead of thinking of ways to leave the secret realm, he was… he was actually plundering everything valuable inside to pay off his debt?!
Was this still the lofty Elder Luofeng?
Was he really… this… realistic?
Watching him strike lightning on the left and unleash thunderous might on the right, the crowd trembled… Was this because, since it was a wild secret realm, he didn’t have to pay for damages, so he was just letting loose without restraint?
It almost felt like the air itself carried the wails of spirit beasts and plants—the despairing cries of five hundred thousand spirit stones in motion. Originally, they only had to face Golden Core cultivators, but now a walking bug had arrived—a Tribulation-stage cultivator. Wouldn’t he squeeze the secret realm completely dry?
Half a day passed, night had deepened, and the thunder hadn’t stopped at all—it only grew more rampant. Many cultivators who had gone out returned.
Fu Zhiyi looked at Chu Fei. “What’s…”
“Senior Brother said I was in the way…” Chu Fei said irritably.
Fu Zhiyi: …More like he was afraid you’d kill the prey first so he couldn’t snatch it later! Since when did his junior brother become this shameless? Ever since being struck by lightning, it felt like he had less and less bottom line—practically cut from the same cloth as their Sect Master Senior Sister.
The crowd dared to think it but not say it. At last, someone of high virtue couldn’t hold back. “Fu Zhiyi, Gu Baiqing is the strongest among us. Instead of finding a way to get us out, he’s doing this… Could it be he planned this from the start? Putting aside righteousness for his own gain?”
Fu Zhiyi didn’t even know how to respond.
Jingcheng stepped forward and coughed. “Originally none of us could enter, and now none of us can leave. Gu Baiqing just wants to do something else to pass the time—killing two birds with one stone. Why not? Should he suffer in anxiety like the rest of us?”
Fu Zhiyi immediately echoed him. But the others still couldn’t hold back. Just as they were about to speak, something unusual happened in the sky.
Golden light began to flash, spreading across the entire secret realm’s heavens. All the spirit beasts roared together, and the spirit plants shone with radiance.
A deep voice rang out from nowhere, echoing through every corner of the realm.
“Gu Baiqing, you d*mned scourge! Do you mean to destroy my secret realm?! OUT! OUT! OUT! All of you, out!”
The crowd was utterly shocked.
This was… the remnant will of the Void Spirit Secret Realm’s master?
Had Gu Baiqing actually enraged the secret realm itself into expelling them?
Wait… did this mean they could leave????
Countless formations appeared before them. An invisible brute force struck like a dog-beating staff, tossing everyone into the arrays.
In a flash of light, they were outside.
