Chapter 100
Shoutout to nyanmaru for the commission!
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
“I said,” Gong Wei said calmly.
“Yuchi Rui, “……”
“Do you still have any problem with the principle of ‘When in doubt, hit Qu Xie’ that I, as your superior, established?”
“……….”
Guicheng welcomed another night. The pale moonlight shone on the empty streets, littered with debris left behind by fleeing people. The doors of the houses on both sides were wide open, and the low courtyard gates were pushed by the wind, constantly making a “bang” “bang” sound.
About a dozen living corpses shuffled aimlessly at the street corners.
Further away, countless figures were hidden in the darkness. Only the intermittent wails and occasional screams were carried by the wind, indicating everything happening in the city at the moment.
Yuchi Rui was suspicious, “What is he doing?”
On the top of the temple’s golden hall, Qu Xie sat on the ground with his back to the moonlight, one hand holding Xuan Jinghe, the other playing with his icy-cool hair, softly chanting a long and strange ballad.
There seemed to be a kind of enchanting magic in the melody, turning into strands of divine light that entered Xuan Jinghe’s brow, causing his furrowed brows to relax gradually, revealing a bewildered expression.
Gong Wei said, “Mind and Soul Shifting.”
“Ah?”
“In fact, it’s a secret technique of ghost cultivation.” Gong Wei stood with his hands behind his back in mid-air, bending down to examine Xuan Jinghe’s pale face. “It can take advantage of a person’s confusion due to severe injury and unclear consciousness to intrude into his soul forcibly, deceive his mind, and make him inexplicably feel familiar with the practitioner after waking up, as if the other party were an old friend not seen for many years, thereby further gaining trust or even affection.”
Yuchi Rui couldn’t help but pause, astonished as he said, “Is he still planning to continue pretending in front of Xuan Jinghe?”
Gong Wei replied, “Of course. For Qu Xie, it’s impossible not to act. He will never stop acting in his whole life. He can’t behave properly, so he can only take the opportunity while Xuan Jinghe is asleep to quickly sing a hypnotic melody in his ear—dozens of Zhao family cultivators mysteriously disappeared. When Xuan Jinghe wakes up and asks about it later, even if his brain is fried, he’ll notice that something’s not right. So, he can only take advantage of this time to forcibly increase his favorability using secret techniques and try to bluff our way through later.”
Yuchi Rui couldn’t help but be stunned. He asked incredulously, “Does this sorcery make people feel fond of you?”
Gong Wei nodded deeply.
To think there was such an shameless sorcery in the world!
Yuchi Rui seemed to suddenly understand something and turned his head back. He saw Xu Shuangce standing tall in the moonlight, with an extraordinary aura, like an exiled immortal. Although he didn’t smile on the surface, his gaze never left Gong Wei, as if nothing else in the world could distract him.
“……”
Yuchi Rui covered his mouth with one hand and whispered to Gong Wei’s ear, “Tell me honestly, how many times have you used this sorcery on Xu Shuangce?”
Gong Wei seemed to have been greatly slandered: “Nonsense, I used my skills to win over Xu Shuangce!”
Xu Shuangce: “…”
Yuchi Rui looked completely unconvinced: “Oh?”
“What’s with the ‘oh’? What’s with the ‘oh’?” Gong Wei felt wronged, gesturing emphatically as he swore, “Every Mid-Autumn Festival, I’ve been the top-ranked in the ‘Favorite Celestial Being in the Entire Realm’ competition! Even the God of Wealth is no match for me! With someone like Xu Bai pretending to be righteous, do you think I need to use a hypnotic melody to seduce him? I just wiggle my little finger, and he surrenders!”
Xu Shuangce: “…………”
Yuchi Rui’s face was full of undisguised distrust. He couldn’t help but turn his head to ask Xu Shuangce, “Is it true?”
“False.” Xu Shuangce said lightly, “There was one year when he was still a child, just after Xuan Jinghe ascended, he won the top spot with overwhelming votes, leaving Gong Wei trailing behind. It angered Gong Wei so much that he ate two fewer bowls of rice at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet that year.”
Gong Wei blushed with embarrassment and anger. “That never happened!”
At this moment, Qu Xie’s humming stopped abruptly, as if sensing something. He looked up and glanced at the void.
The three of them came here following the thread of destiny, belonging to illusory projections from another time and space, and should theoretically be invisible. However, as an adult deity, Qu Xie’s senses were too keen, and his gaze fell directly on Gong Wei’s direction in mid-air, his brows furrowed with suspicion.
The three of them quieted down simultaneously, neither speaking nor moving, only the mournful wind whistling between them and Qu Xie.
“……”
Qu Xie propped himself up, seeming to want to stand up, but at this moment, Xuan Jinghe in his arms suddenly moved, slightly opening his eyes.
“Lord Iron Sect Master?” Qu Xie’s expression immediately changed to one of concern mixed with joy. “Are you awake?”
Xuan Jinghe’s damaged golden core had not been repaired, but the fatal sword wound from before had completely healed, leaving no trace of injury. Therefore, waking up again did not bring severe pain, only a feeling of exhaustion all over, which was normal after extreme fatigue.
Qu Xie asked anxiously, “How are you feeling?”
Xuan Jinghe laid in the arms of the Ghost Crown Prince, gazing at him blankly.
The eerie incantation still lingered in Xuan Jinghe’s subconscious, causing his mind to fluctuate between clarity and confusion. He felt as if the youth before him was a long-lost friend, a companion in life and death, evoking feelings of warmth and dependence that welled up from deep within. Almost involuntarily, he raised his hand.
It wasn’t until his fingertips touched something that he abruptly regained clarity. He realized he had inadvertently touched the side of Qu Xie’s face and quickly withdrew his hand. “I…”
He started, but Qu Xie timely caught his wrist, holding it firmly in his hand. There was a subtle hint of redness in Qu Xie’s eyes as he spoke with a mixture of relief and worry, “It’s good that you’re awake! I thought… I thought…”
Xuan Jinghe struggled to speak, his voice hoarse, “What happened?”
“Don’t you remember? We encountered Zhao family cultivators in the mountains, they tried to kill us. You brought me back to Guicheng on your flying sword, we reached the top of the observatory tower, and we were about to send a warning signal to the Dai Mountain Immortal Alliance?”
Xuan Jinghe still retained some fragments of this experience in his memory and softly murmured, “Ah…”
“The Zhao family cultivators followed us and did their best to obstruct, but at the critical moment, you still threw the token into the transmission array. The array immediately emitted a strong light, and we even heard the bells of the Immortal Alliance from thousands of miles away. I believe the message has finally been transmitted. Thank heaven!”
Xuan Jinghe’s memory seemed to have been washed away, looking at Qu Xiw in confusion.
Did this passage really happen? He had no recollection at all.
But Qu Xie looked straight at him, patiently, with a gaze that seemed to contain an indiscernible magic.
When Xuan Jinghe’s gaze met his, fragmented images suddenly appeared in his mind for no reason. Even the scene of himself throwing the token into the transmission array was exceptionally clear, vivid in his mind.
“….And then?” he asked involuntarily, hoarse.
Qu Xie sincerely replied, “The Zhao family cultivators were shocked to see their crimes exposed on the spot. Some of them, feeling cornered, attempted to take you hostage. When the Immortal Alliance arrived at Guicheng, negotiations were attempted, but they failed due to the urgency of the situation.”
Xuan Jinghe felt a slight dizziness in his mind, murmuring, “I remember I seemed to have suffered a serious injury…”
Qu Xie leaned down.
They were already very close, almost touching foreheads. Qu Xie’s eyes flickered with a strange blood-red light, but his tone was gentle, “It’s okay, it’s all in the past now.”
“….”
Xuan Jinghe closed his eyes, feeling faint, and said, “Yes, it’s all in the past now.”
Qu Xie’s lips curled imperceptibly, saying, “The Zhao family cultivators realized there was no way out of their guilt and feared being caught by the Immortal Alliance. They immediately scattered. You wanted to stay at the top of the watchtower and wait for the Immortal Alliance to arrive, but the Zhao family cultivators, enraged by the exposure of their crimes, launched gunpowder from a distance and forcibly destroyed the watchtower.”
He paused, seeming to be filled with remorse, and continued, “Fortunately, just before the explosion, you took me with you on your sword and rushed down from the top of the tower. We managed to escape to this place before you collapsed…”
“Since then, I’ve been waiting here. Fortunately, you finally woke up. It’s a good omen.”
Xuan Jinghe opened his eyes.
Above him stretched the vast and silent night sky, devoid of stars and moon, pitch-black and deep. In the distance, the sharp howls of the living dead mingled with the wind.
“Has the signal really been sent through the formation?”
“Yes.”
Xuan Jinghe’s face was unusually grim, and he forced himself to sit up, his voice even trembling slightly, “Then why hasn’t the Immortal Alliance sent anyone yet?”
—Guicheng was shrouded in pitch darkness, with no lights visible in any direction, no signs of life or reinforcements arriving!
“Not only that, during the time you were unconscious, I noticed something.” Qu Xie paused, as if struggling to find the right words, but eventually decided to speak, his tone heavy with reluctance, “I’m afraid there may not be… many survivors left in the city.”
“What?!” Xuan Jinghe exclaimed in disbelief.
“During the daytime when the watchtower collapsed, such a seismic event should have drawn nearby residents to investigate. Yet, as we fled to this place, we encountered no one along the way. I’ve been on the top of this temple from morning till midnight, and not a single person, not even a cat or a dog, was seen. Only at night did the living dead emerge from every corner.”
Qu Xie gazed at Xuan Jinghe’s pale face, his expression solemn, “Everyone knows that the living dead are active at night and should be gathered and incinerated during the day. But even during the day, there were no signs of people, let alone the smoke of cremation. If it weren’t for survivors hiding in some refuge, then it can only mean…”
Because there are simply no survivors left.
Zhao Zhaoyuan claimed that Guicheng was “ten households with five empty,” but even this was a deceptive lie. The horrifying truth was that in the city, nine out of ten households were empty, with hardly any living people left!
Xuan Jinghe’s lips trembled uncontrollably. Suddenly, he forced himself to sit up, but a sharp pain pierced through his chest. He gritted his teeth, pressing a hand against his chest, and staggered out.
Qu Xie’s expression changed. “Iron Sect Master!”
Ignoring Qu Xie’s words, Xuan Jinghe paid no attention to the living dead that were closing in on the nearby streets. He leaped down from the eaves, barely touching the heads of the densely packed living dead below. With several leaps, he reached the roof of a nearby house. With one hand lifting the tiles and the other holding a spiritual light, he peered into the house below, clearly witnessing a gruesome scene. His complexion grew even worse, but without hesitation, he leaped toward the next house… This continued for four or five households in a row, all the way down the street until its end. Every household was either empty or filled with blood, and one household even showed signs of despair, with a family of four hanging neatly from the rafters!
“Iron Sect Master!” Qu Xie leaped down from the neighboring rooftop, panting as he caught up, anxiously saying, “You must not take risks, you must take care of yourself. Perhaps if we wait for two more days…”
Xuan Jinghe seemed to suddenly hear something and raised his hand to stop him.
“Waa… Waa…”
A faint sound of a baby crying in the night wind reached Xuan Jinghe’s ears.
Xuan Jinghe keenly searched for the sound and saw, beyond the living dead swarming around him, a female living dead staggering towards him with a small bundle strapped to her back. The crying was coming from the bundle.
“Be careful!”
Qu Xie tried to stop him, but Xuan Jinghe drew his sword without hesitation. He leaped off the eaves, almost stepping on the heads of the numerous living dead, and landed in front of the woman dozens of yards away. Countless rotten claws reached out toward him from all directions, but Xuan Jinghe was faster. He stepped heavily on the shoulder of the living dead, used the momentum to leap into the air, and reached out to cut the cloth on the woman’s back in an instant, retrieving the bundle. Then, he landed on one knee, swinging his sword to clear the surrounding living dead!
This series of actions happened in the blink of an eye, faster than lightning.
He then stood up, stepped on a tree trunk, spun in mid-air like a bird, and landed on the wall of the courtyard next to the tree.
Countless living dead crowded beneath the courtyard wall, reaching out desperately, but Xuan Jinghe ignored them. With one hand holding the bundle and the other wielding his sword, he returned the way he came, landing silently in front of Qu Xie like a feather.
“Waa…”
Xuan Jinghe knelt down, his hands trembling violently as he opened the blood-stained bundle.
A bruised baby appeared before him, its abdomen already rotten, its mouth almost horizontally split across its face. Its eyes stared straight at Xuan Jinghe, crying loudly while desperately reaching out its blackened little hands.
“…”
Xuan Jinghe slowly turned his head, looking towards the outskirts of the city.
The night was as dark as ink, but with the faint light, he could see a stone tower standing on high ground in the outskirts of the city. It was the watchtower.
Even from such a distance, he could clearly see that the upper half of the tower had been completely destroyed, with the remaining rubble silently pointing towards the night sky.
“…Iron Sect Master,” Qu Xie whispered, unable to bear it, “you’re still heavily injured. Why don’t we find a place to rest first? We can leave the city at dawn and head through the valley, then find a boat down the river to seek help in Yangzhou…”
“There’s no time.” Xuan Jinghe’s voice was hoarse.
There was no color on his face, and he was eerily calm. “The reason why this plague has been kept hidden for four days is because Guicheng is surrounded by mountains, making it impossible to cross easily. But last night, the tide of the living dead reached the lakeside in the deep mountains. At most, by dawn tomorrow, they will be able to land in Yangzhou… By then, a new round of the epidemic will break out, and the entire Jiangnan region will fall. It will be impossible to control.”
Qu Xie tried to comfort him. “It might not happen so quickly. Perhaps the reinforcements from the Immortal Alliance are already on their way. We just need to wait a little longer…”
Xuan Jinghe interrupted, “Do you know what it means if the reinforcements haven’t arrived yet?”
“…”
“Using the teleportation array from the Immortal Alliance to Guicheng, it takes at most half a day. If reinforcements are sent from nearby cities, it only takes two hours. The fact that reinforcements haven’t arrived yet means only two possibilities: either the token wasn’t teleported to Dai Mountain, or the Immortal Alliance is in trouble themselves and can’t spare any manpower. Because… the plague hasn’t only broken out in Guicheng.”
Countless living dead gathered beneath them, and the scene was horrifying.
“If the plague has already spread downstream to Yangzhou, and if the Immortal Alliance has also been infiltrated by the living dead…”
Xuan Jinghe looked at the densely packed tide of zombies under the eaves, clearly describing the most terrifying and unimaginable possibilities, yet every sentence was clear and calm, without any emotional fluctuations: “If the plague were to break out everywhere next, what should I do now?”
“How can I make the most of the remaining few hours to turn the situation around and buy time for the people outside who are still alive?”
Qu Xie thought he had a good understanding of human nature, but in this moment, in this night filled with death, despair, and blood, he found himself gazing at Xuan Jinghe’s side profile, as cold and distant as ice, and suddenly sinking into a strange, unfamiliar emotion.
He stared intently at Xuan Jinghe’s lowered long lashes, involuntarily leaning forward. When Xuan Jinghe raised his eyes slightly, he leaned back slightly, “What’s wrong?”
Qu Xie snapped out of his reverie and chuckled, “Nothing. Oh, look, there seems to be a fire over there?”
Xuan Jinghe turned his head.
Several miles away, to the southeast of Guicheng, on a strategically located high ground, sat a mansion, obviously the residence of a prominent family. At this moment, flames rose within the continuous walls, faintly illuminating a portion of the night sky, visible for miles around.
“…The Zhao Family,” Xuan Jinghe murmured softly.
Was the Zhao Family suddenly on fire?
What was going on?
But before they could discern more, the horde of living dead reacted first. Like a swarm of moths drawn to a flame in the darkness of the night, they emitted a long, mournful howl and lumbered with heavy steps, like a tidal wave, towards the Zhao Family mansion in the south of the city!
Was the Zhao Family intentionally provoking the living dead?
Xuan Jinghe grabbed Qu Xie’s shoulder, “Hold on tight!”
The two soared into the air on their swords, the night wind whistling past their ears as they swiftly flew over the heads of the undead tide towards the Zhao Family mansion in the south of the city.
As they covered the ten-mile distance in a flash, still some distance away from the Zhao Family mansion, they simultaneously noticed where the fire was coming from—not from a fire in the Zhao Family’s buildings, but from a large fire ring set ablaze in the courtyard at the center of the mansion, with logs soaked in oil.
In the center of this huge fire ring stood a tall flagpole. Qu Xie’s gaze followed it upward, and even someone as knowledgeable as the Ghost Crown Prince couldn’t help but click his tongue in his mind.
——At the top of the flagpole hung about a dozen bodies dressed as commoners, obviously freshly dead. Each of them had their throats pierced by a knife, their bodies soaked in blood, and their weak feet still dripping blood.
The fresh blood and flesh attracted the undead from outside the city, but they were blocked by the bluestone mansion walls, forming a roaring wave!
Qu Xie thought they were playing a cruel game, but he looked like a trembling white flower, his voice even trembling, “Lord Iron Sect Master…”
Xuan Jinghe’s face had never looked so grim. He suddenly raised his hand to silence him, and their swords flew over the tall mansion walls. After landing, he didn’t utter a word, but grabbed Qu Xie’s arm and swiftly darted into the dark corner out of the reach of the firelight.
“There’s someone,” he said hoarsely.
Following his gaze, he saw a tower towering at the edge of the parade ground, reaching a height of ten zhang, with a lookout at the top, faintly seeing shadows moving, it was indeed the Zhao family cultivators.
Qu Xie exclaimed, filled with righteous indignation, “That Zhao surname really lied, they still have so many people!”
Xuan Jinghe’s face was as calm as water, without answering.
Qu Xie’s eyes turned, and he asked cautiously, “My Lord, what are they doing? Do they want to attract the living dead and burn them all? What should we do now?”
“No,” Xuan Jinghe looked towards the distant tower where figures were moving, “They are trying to find Zhao Yuanliang from the tide of the living dead.”
Qu Xie was suddenly stunned.
Outside were mountains of corpses, numbering in the tens of thousands, almost attracting even the living dead from deep in the mountains into Guicheng. The Zhao family hadn’t given up on their family head, Zhao Yuanliang’s, golden core!
This wasn’t just disregarding life and death; it was madness!
At that moment, a particularly loud and piercing whistle suddenly came from the night sky, almost overwhelming the entire tide of the living dead. Xuan Jinghe’s face changed slightly, and he turned to look for the source of the sound. Then, they saw a figure like a sharp arrow piercing through the night air, leaping over the Zhao family mansion wall and landing in the courtyard.
At the moment it landed, the entire body was illuminated by the firelight—
It was an unusually tall living dead, clad in chainmail armor. Its body looked no different from that of a living person, but half of its face was rotten, revealing crimson gums and two rows of sharp teeth. Its murky eyes stared directly at the fresh corpse atop the flagpole.
It was Zhao Yuanliang.
The Zhao family head no longer had the imposing appearance he had in life; now, he looked more like a massive, rotting ape. With just one leap, he soared over the six to seven zhang fire ring, “Boom!” and firmly grabbed onto the middle of the flagpole.
Then, it climbed up with its limbs, quickly reaching the top, grabbing onto the nearest dead body’s legs, and voraciously chewing on them without hesitation!
Xuan Jinghe suddenly covered his mouth, forcibly suppressing the urge to retch in his throat, his face as pale as snow in the firelight.
“…”
Qu Xie remained strangely silent for a moment, slightly turning sideways to shield him, patting his back gently, shaking his head and sighing, “This is too disgusting, how could they be so cruel, it’s really disgusting…”
At the same time, the top of the tower was bustling with activity. Everyone was both shocked and delighted, “He’s here!”
“The family head has finally arrived!”
“Quick, quick, go inform Senior Zhao Zhaoyuan!”
Immediately, cultivators flew out of the tower on their swords, soaring into the air to deliver the message to the rear courtyard.
Xuan Jinghe paused for a moment, his gaze passing over Qu Xie’s shoulder, towards the living dead at the top of the flagpole, reflected in the flickering firelight. “…Zhao Zhaoyuan won’t die; it was my arrow that brought him down from the sky.”
The poisoned silver arrow only brought Zhao Zhaoyuan down from the sky, but he was rescued by his disciples midway. He must have had an antidote on him, which saved his life.
Since he had torn his face with Xuan Jinghe, the Zhao family had become completely unrestrained, even daring to resort to setting fires and killing people to attract the entire city’s living dead, all to find their family head, Zhao Yuanliang’s golden core!
The living dead Zhao family head had no idea that he had become a turtle in a jar, greedily tearing and devouring the corpse’s face buried in his abdomen. Suddenly, there were “click, click” sounds by his ears, and a shimmering Immortal Net descended, instantly capturing him.
“We got him!”
“Hurry, send him to Senior Zhao Zhaoyuan!”
“Roar—”
The living dead let out earth-shattering screams, struggling desperately, but the Immortal Net was unbreakable. With a roll of the pulley at the top of the flagpole, it swiftly traversed the night sky.
Then, four cultivators flew over on their swords, grabbing the four corners of the Immortal Net in mid-air, carrying the struggling living dead in the net, and flew straight towards the inner courtyard!
In the dark corner, Xuan Jinghe turned to look at Qu Xie, and as if they were of one mind, Qu Xie tightened his grip on Xuan Jinghe’s cold hand, hearing him softly say, “Follow and observe.”
Inside the Zhao Family mansion, with its intricate pavilions and buildings, Xuan Jinghe stealthily tracked to the back of a magnificent mansion. He dared not reveal his presence easily and silently hid among the treetops like a falling feather, witnessing the four Zhao family disciples dragging a living dead person into the backyard and disappearing through the hanging flower gate.
Xuan Jinghe reached behind his waist and pulled out a short dagger, placing it in Qu Xie’s hand. He leaned close to Qu Xie’s ear and whispered, “Stay hidden here, and wait for my return.”
As he spoke, the cool breath between his lips brushed against Qu Xie’s earlobe. Qu Xie’s lips curled into a smirk, but he quickly suppressed it himself, his voice trembling with anxiety, “Alright.”
With a graceful glide, Xuan Jinghe descended from the treetops.
Inside the mansion, every detail was exquisite, with the scent of blood lingering faintly in the air, along with the piercing screams of the living dead Zhao family head.
Xuan Jinghe moved with utmost stealth, blending into the shadows of the walls, following the terrifying screams until he reached the front hall. The front hall’s large doors were securely locked, but through the windows, he could see the bright lights inside. After a moment of contemplation, Xuan Jinghe leaped onto the roof, landing silently, and effortlessly removed two iron-sealed green tiles.
In an instant, from the gap in the roof tiles, not only the light from inside leaked out, but also the overwhelming scent of blood.
Looking down from the roof, Xuan Jinghe saw a vast hall with thousands of eerie runes drawn in blood on the ground, forming a huge array. Within the array, sinister winds howled, and an evil aura filled the air. Zhao Zhaoyuan, wrapped in bandages, stood supported by disciples at the center of the array. Before him stood a bronze pool, engraved with strange runes, filled with a pool of bloody liquid—
Xuan Jinghe’s breath caught, a chilling sensation enveloping his heart.
“Of ten rooms, five empty in the city”—where did the remaining living people go?
In the bronze pool beneath him, there laid a pool of human blood used to suppress the array!
“The secret method of refining the golden core of the deceased with the bronze blood pool, said to be created by the Ghost Crown Prince himself hundreds of years ago and passed down to the mortal realm, but has always been strictly prohibited by the Immortal Alliance, regarded as a forbidden technique of the ghost path. All the cultivators who dared to use this method were personally executed by the Alliance leader.” Zhao Zhaoyuan laughed bitterly and instructed those around him, “After I die, you must use this method to extract my golden core and hand it over to the next head of the Zhao family, ensuring the continuous glory and prosperity of our Zhao family for generations to come. Do you understand?”
More than ten disciples couldn’t help but be moved, bowing deeply, “Understood!”
At this moment, someone pulled the Immortal Net into the main hall. Zhao Zhaoyuan suddenly straightened up, leading all the disciples present in devoutly kneeling before the grotesque and decayed Zhao family head trapped in the net, even though all they received in response was the deafening roar of the living dead.
Immediately, several disciples lifted the Immortal Net and placed it into the bronze blood pool. Simultaneously, tens of thousands of eerie characters in the array emitted a blood-red light.
The scene was extremely eerie, as the living dead, immersed in human blood, became extremely frenzied. With both hands grasping tightly onto the net, they eagerly drank the blood, mixing it with their own putrid blood, which continued to flow from their ruptured intestines.
At the same time, the array grew brighter and more terrifying, as if millions of resentful spirits were twisted into an invisible ghostly hand, forcibly reaching into the living dead’s chests and seizing a brightly shining golden core, seemingly about to forcibly extract it from their bodies.
“Roar—”
The living dead suddenly let out a deafening roar, their murky eyes almost popping out of their sockets. Under the dual stimulation of human blood and resentful spirits, they actually struggled desperately, their hands firmly grasping the net, instantly pulling it taut to its limit.
Zhao Zhaoyuan’s expression changed drastically, “Not good—”
With a sharp sound!
The Immortal Net in the hands of the living dead emitted a piercing tearing sound, and for a moment, everyone’s heart stopped beating. Then, the rope tightened again!
The expressions of everyone relaxed simultaneously, but before they could feel their hearts start beating again, on the roof, Xuan Jinghe’s face turned pale as he flicked his finger, shooting out a sharp light.
In front of everyone’s eyes, the sharp light cut through the precarious net, causing blood to splash everywhere as the living dead broke free from the net!
“Who’s there?!”
“Run, run!!”
Zhao Zhaoyuan’s roar had barely echoed when the living dead lunged at him. At the critical moment, a disciple behind him rushed forward to block, only to be grabbed by the living dead and, with a powerful twist, had their head separated from their body, blood spraying onto the ceiling.
“Ahhhh—”
Chaos ensued in the hall as all the disciples rushed forward to try to capture the living dead. However, ordinary immortal swords couldn’t penetrate the armor worn by the transformed Zhao family head. The fresh scent of human flesh from all directions further agitated the Zhao family head, who smashed the bloody head in their hand and then grabbed another approaching cultivator, viciously biting off their throat, tearing off a large chunk of flesh!
Blood sprayed two yards away, and someone roared, “Cut off their heads! We must cut off their heads!”
But cutting off heads was easier said than done. The living dead transformed by Zhao family head stood close to nine feet tall. Even with four or five swords simultaneously slashing at its breastplate, it remained unfazed, effortlessly grabbing the disciple closest to it and tearing their flesh and organs apart in mid-air, splattering blood and guts all over the floor!
Zhao Zhaoyuan roared, “Run!” then, enduring the pain from his shoulder wound, drew his sword with his left hand, intending to charge at the living dead.
However, before he could move, two disciples rushed up and held him, selflessly shielding him as they retreated backward, “Go!” “Senior, run!”
The scene had turned into a real h*ll on earth, with blood and flesh everywhere, screams of agony, and the sounds of limbs being torn apart and the living dead gnawing on them filling the air. Zhao Zhaoyuan, staggering, was pushed by two disciples towards the east end of the hall. Overwhelmed by immense grief, his mind went blank. Suddenly, from the corner of his eye, he saw a figure in white descending from the roof.
The disciple, alert, turned around but immediately fell silent: “Xuan—”
His voice abruptly cut off.
Xuan Jinghe landed, drew his sword, and a fierce wind rushed forward. The disciple only felt a flash of cold light before his head was already spinning in the air. As he watched his headless corpse fall to the ground, he never realized what had happened.
Another disciple rushed forward to fight desperately, but Xuan Jinghe kicked him in the chest. The entire person flew several yards away and, in the chaos, collided with the feet of the living dead Zhao family head!
Zhao Zhaoyuan exclaimed in shock and anger, “It’s you?!”
Before he could finish his words, his throat tightened as Xuan Jinghe tightly grabbed him from behind, the blade of his sword pressing against his throat: “Are there any more living people in the city? Where are they being kept?!”
“…” Zhao Zhaoyuan was forced to step back, his chest heaving rapidly, a twisted smirk appearing on his face, “Living people? In Guicheng? There are no living people left in Guicheng.”
He tremblingly pointed his hand towards the distant bronze blood pool, gritting his teeth, “The remaining living people are all there. What? Does Lord Iron Sect Master want to go and save them?”
Xuan Jinghe said indifferently, “If that’s the case, then you can go down and apologize to them yourself.” With that, without hesitation, he swept his sword downwards.
Xuan Jinghe wasn’t one to easily kill, but when he did, he didn’t hesitate. However, at the moment when blood splattered five feet away from the throat, Zhao Zhaoyuan unexpectedly grabbed the blade of the sword, his ten fingers turning white as all of them were almost completely broken.
“I go down? Let’s go down together!” The intense pain made his voice sound like that of a ghost, “Since everything is over, no one can escape! No one can escape!!”
Not far away, a terrifying roar sounded as the living dead almost slaughtered all the cultivators. It came rushing forward, leaping towards Zhao Zhaoyuan and Xuan Jinghe!
Time seemed to freeze at this moment, with only the grimacing face of the living dead getting closer and closer in Xuan Jinghe’s pupils.
At this critical moment, a figure in black rushed from the left like an arrow, pushing Xuan Jinghe a few steps away, narrowly avoiding the living dead as it passed by.
With a loud rumble, the living dead crashed into the marble screen, and the heavy screen collapsed completely!
Xuan Jinghe was knocked down, his forehead about to hit the floor tiles, but the newcomer’s hand steadied him just in time, and his forehead slammed into the palm of the other person.
“Qu…”
Xuan Jinghe tried to speak, but before he could express his surprise, he saw the marble screen not far away crumbling, and the living dead swaying back to its feet.
The newcomer was Qu Xie, but the situation was already critical, and there was no time to speak. Xuan Jinghe pressed down on Qu Xie’s arm and was about to take him away from the shattered roof tiles of this hell-like main hall, but Qu Xie broke out and shouted sternly, “There! Don’t let him get away!”
Xuan Jinghe turned around and saw Zhao Zhaoyuan, who had been thrown out earlier, had somehow climbed up and was hiding behind the gilded armchair at the east end of the main hall, using his shoulder to forcefully support a framed painting hanging on the wall — it was actually a hidden door.
In the blink of an eye, Xuan Jinghe realized what was behind the hidden door.
The living dead erupted into a frenzy of screams and charged forward with their murky, lifeless eyes fixed on their targets. In the nick of time, Xuan Jinghe grabbed Qu Xie and rolled to the ground, narrowly avoiding the fatal scratch of the living dead, then got up and leaped over the gilded armchair.
At that moment, Zhao Zhaoyuan managed to pry open the mechanism of the hidden door, and behind him, Xuan Jinghe pulled Qu Xie down from above, slamming him forcefully into the door, and the three of them rolled into the hidden passage behind the door together!
In the next moment, all three of them felt the ground beneath them disappear.
Xuan Jinghe didn’t even have time to say “be careful”, instinctively holding onto Qu Xie tightly, and they plummeted straight down!
Thud—
In the human realm, there was only one sound as they hit the ground, but it seemed to reverberate endlessly deep within their eardrums.
As if a long, long time had passed, yet also just a fleeting moment, Xuan Jinghe finally regained consciousness amidst severe dizziness, and the pain in his bones slowly subsided.
It was very dim around them, and the ground beneath them was made of hard blue bricks.
And the hidden door they had entered through, high above their heads, had closed shut under the action of the mechanism, sealing the raging living dead outside.
“….Lord Iron Sect Master… cough, cough!” Qu Xie coughed a few times, staggered to his feet from where he had fallen on Xuan Jinghe’s body, and although he didn’t seem to be injured, his voice was extremely hoarse and anxious: “Are you alright?”
When they fell, Xuan Jinghe had used his entire body to shield Qu Xie, hitting the ground with his right back, and his right elbow had hit the floor hard, with his joint now showing a rather twisted angle, indicating it was dislocated.
Qu Xie knelt on one knee, looking down at Xuan Jinghe. For several seconds, his eyes were very heavy, as if they were surging with indescribable undercurrents, but soon he looked away, took a deep breath, and when he looked back, he had returned to his usual sincere, fearful, and self-blaming expression: “It’s all my fault. Fortunately, you protected me with all your strength…”
“It’s okay.” Xuan Jinghe endured the dizziness, gritted his teeth, and sat up, “Crack, crack,” two crisp sounds, cleanly resetting the bones of his right elbow. He sighed deeply, exhaustedly, “But why are you so heavy?”
“…”
Qu Xie’s mouth twitched as if he wanted to laugh but held back, speaking gently, “It’s because you’re too light.”
The narrow and cold passage was lit only by torches on the walls, flickering incessantly, and it was so deep that nothing could be seen ahead or behind. Not far away lay a familiar figure on the ground, Zhao Zhaoyuan — he must have hit his head when he fell, and he was still unconscious, covered in blood and looking extremely miserable. Compared to the generous and calm patriarch of the family on ordinary days, he was almost unrecognizable as the same person.
Above their heads and on the ground, there were faint sharp screams and dull impacts, which were from the living dead, Zhao family head.
But opening the mechanism required using skillful techniques step by step, and it couldn’t be opened at all, so it could only continuously strike the hidden door tirelessly.
“Cough! Cough—” Xuan Jinghe had just gotten up to move forward when he unexpectedly coughed up two mouthfuls of blood, and he had to press his chest tightly with one hand, panting against the wall, and was supported by Qu Xie, who had stepped forward quickly.
“You should rest for a moment.” Qu Xie’s brow was full of worry. “Anyway, we can’t get out now. Maybe there will be a breakthrough by dawn.”
But Xuan Jinghe tiredly withdrew his hand and gestured casually, indicating that it was unnecessary, and slowly sat down against the wall.
“Do you know where this place is?” he asked hoarsely.
Qu Xie asked, “The secret passage?”
“Powerful families, because they have hidden treasures passed down through generations and secret family cultivation methods, store astonishing wealth in their warehouses. If the family encounters a crisis, these treasures may fall into the hands of outsiders or even enemies, becoming a weapon to exterminate their own descendants.”
“So, most powerful families will set up mechanisms in their underground vaults. Once they encounter a life-or-death situation, they activate the mechanism to destroy the treasures, or even perish with the enemy.”
Xuan Jinghe’s gaze met Qu Xie’s eyes, and he said word by word, “What the Zhao family has stored in this secret passage is thousands of kilograms of gunpowder, enough to turn half of Guicheng into ruins.”
“….”
Qu Xie fell silent for a moment and sighed, “For one family’s downfall to lead to the destruction of the whole city, the scale is quite grand indeed.”
Xuan Jinghe just shook his head, his voice calm and steady as usual, “Nearby, the living dead from the deep mountains are being attracted by the Zhao family. At this moment, large numbers are gathering towards Guicheng, so before dawn is the only opportunity to completely clear out the tide of living dead. When Zhao Zhaoyuan wakes up later, I’ll ask him about the specific location of the gunpowder ignition point, and then I’ll immediately send you out of the city.”
“It’s probably just past midnight now. With one trip back and forth with my sword, I can make it back here before dawn.”
The air seemed to grow heavier by the moment, pressing heavily between the two, and even the slightest breath of each other could be heard clearly.
After a long silence, Qu Xie hoarsely repeated, “….what about you?”
Xuan Jinghe’s face was beautiful yet stern, as if wrapped in the finest silk was a heart as hard as iron, naturally never showing any emotion in front of anyone, even in such a situation without any hesitation, he said briefly, “Young Master Qu, you’re still young, and I don’t want to drag you into this mess.”
“….”
Qu Xie opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something but swallowed it back.
After a moment of silence, he suddenly looked up at Xuan Jinghe and said for no apparent reason, “Sect Master Xuan, there’s something I don’t understand, and I’d like to ask you about it.”
“What is it?”
“I overheard a conversation between two night patrol cultivators while waiting for you outside in the tree just now. It was about those four Zhao family disciples who were the first to spread the plague.”
Qu Xie paused for a moment before saying, “About what happened to them during the more than ten days they were trapped in the deep mountains, and why they turned into living corpses after returning to the city.”
— Those four Zhao family disciples who were trapped in the mountains due to the heavy rain and spread the plague throughout the city upon their return!
Xuan Jinghe frowned and asked, “What did you hear?”
Qu Xie half knelt beside Xuan Jinghe, and the two were extremely close to each other. There seemed to be a faint ghostly aura emanating from the young man, but it wasn’t obvious in the dim underground, only the flickering firelight reflected his handsome yet eerie face. “Those four people are all direct descendants of the Zhao family, and they are all very young, so they haven’t fully practiced abstaining from grains.”
“And those trapped in the cave were not only them but also a woodcutter from a nearby village.”
“As he earned his living by gathering firewood, the woodcutter was already somewhat frail from overwork and fell ill from exhaustion and hunger on the third day of being trapped in the cave. By this time, his food had run out, and he was starving to the point of agony, he begged the other four noblemen from wealthy families in the cave for a little food.”
“However, the dry rations carried by these four Zhao family nobles were also running out, and the torrential rain and flooding outside showed no signs of stopping. If they shared their food with the woodcutter, it might not save his life, but if they didn’t, they themselves might have a little more chance of holding out until rescue.”
“They didn’t share.” There was a hint of regret in Qu Xie’s tone. “So on the seventh night, the woodcutter died.”
In the silence of the tunnel, after a while, Xuan Jinghe said gently, “At a critical moment, one must prioritize oneself, and there is nothing to blame.”
Qu Xie sighed in agreement. “Yes, human nature is like that.”
“What happened after the seventh day?” Xuan Jinghe asked.
— After the seventh day, there was still the eighth day, the ninth day… According to what Zhao Zhaoyuan said before, those four Zhao family disciples spent more than twenty days from being trapped in the cave to finally being rescued!
Perhaps because the flickering firelight was unclear, a slight curve seemed to appear at the corners of Qu Xie’s thin lips, but it disappeared after that moment, leaving his face with a solemn expression:
“After the seventh day, the four young noblemen felt the threat of death personally. They reduced their energy consumption to the minimum by sitting quietly, relied on rainwater to survive day by day, endured several days of despair, and were finally knocked down by hunger one by one, truly entering a life-threatening situation.”
“In order to survive, they all turned their eyes to the last remaining food in the cave — can you guess what it was?”
“…”
As their eyes met, Xuan Jinghe spoke slowly, “That woodcutter.”
Qu Xie said, “Right. By eating raw human flesh, they finally endured until the twenty-eighth day when they were rescued.”
An indescribable silence enveloped the deep tunnel.
“When those four people were rescued, they were still conscious. Zhao family cultivators found beside them a skeleton that had been gnawed on, along with decaying flesh and blood. This incident became known to others only then. That very night after returning home, those four individuals began to develop fever, convulsions, and severe vomiting. Their vomit was filled with the remains of the woodcutter’s bones. Shortly after, they turned into the first batch of living corpses.”
“Everyone says that it was the vengeful spirit of that woodcutter, unable to rest in peace, causing this entire plague. But there’s something I don’t understand.”
Qu Xie stared straight into Xuan Jinghe’s eyes and asked, “Sect Master Xuan, if you were in that cave at that time, what would you do?”
Xuan Jinghe remained silent for a moment. Then, with a slight roll of his throat, he spoke softly, “I have long abstained from grains completely. Even if I were to share food with others, it wouldn’t matter. There’s no need to resort to cannibalism to survive.”
Qu Xie spoke gently, “I understand. I also know that someone like you, even without abstaining from grains, would still share food with that woodcutter. But that’s not what I’m asking.”
“…”
“What I want to know is, if you were the woodcutter who was being eaten, what would you do?”
***
The tunnel was eerily quiet, with only the flickering torches casting shadows on their faces.
Xuan Jinghe remained silent for a long time under Qu Xie’s gaze before finally speaking, “Dying with resentment, unable to find peace, and seeking revenge on those who feasted on one’s flesh, resulting in countless deaths from the plague… The crime is unforgivable, yet the sentiment behind it is understandable.”
Qu Xie seemed amused by his response, subtly repeating, “Understandable?”
“But, in this world, everyone only has one life. Others refusing to share life-and-death food with me cannot be considered a good deed; nor can it be considered a bad deed to eat my flesh to survive. When facing a crisis, human nature can be judged as superior or inferior, but there is no absolute right or wrong.”
Xuan Jinghe looked down at the dark void in front of him and said slowly, “If I were that woodcutter, perhaps I would just accept my fate. This plague would never have happened from the beginning.”
A hint of a smile flashed through Qu Xie’s eyes, but he didn’t show it on his face. Instead, he sighed softly and said, “I understand now. Thank you, Lord Iron Sect Master.”
Xuan Jinghe asked, “And what would you do, Young Master Qu?”
Qu Xie replied sincerely, “I respect you as my mentor, so naturally, I will follow your lead. Whatever you decide, I will do the same.”
Xuan Jinghe had a gut feeling that there was more to his words. “—With me all the way?”
“Yeah,” the gleam in Qu Xie’s eyes deepened, and he spoke calmly, “If you want to escape the city with me, I’ll accompany you all the way. But if you intend to send me away and return alone to ignite the explosives in this tunnel… Well, I’ll naturally come back to you. Is there a problem?”
“….”
Xuan Jinghe looked at the young man before him, a hint of helplessness gradually emerging in his eyes.
But he didn’t know how to explain it. After a long while, he sighed lightly and said, “No, Young Master Qu, you have a very big misunderstanding about me… We are not on the same path.”
Qu Xie raised an eyebrow. “How so?”
As the Ghost Crown Prince, unmatched in sophistry and never lacking an opponent, he was confident that he could refute anything Xuan Jinghe said. However, he was caught off guard when Xuan Jinghe paused for a moment before slowly speaking, “… You just said that even if I hadn’t abstained from grains, I would still share food with others. But that inference is wrong.”
“The truth is, even if I were a disciple of the Zhao family, I also might not necessarily share food with the woodcutter.”
Qu Xie was taken aback by this unexpected response. He froze for a moment.
“Those four disciples had shallow cultivation and couldn’t be considered true cultivators; they were closer to ordinary people. Ordinary people have limited abilities and limited responsibilities. They shouldn’t be blamed for whatever choice they make when their humanity is tested because everyone has the right to survival.”
“But I’m different. I am a cultivator, with abilities far surpassing yours, and I have many more responsibilities to fulfill. It is my duty to stay behind and detonate the explosives, but I cannot let you accompany me down this irreversible path.”
The tunnel echoed with the faint crackling of burning torches. Xuan Jinghe’s eyes held a hint of warmth as he reached out and gently stroked Qu Xie’s hair at the back of his head, then pulled him closer, patting the young man’s back.
It was a very tight embrace, like entrusting one’s final wishes to a loved one.
“I’m sorry, Qu Xie, but you won’t be my disciple in this lifetime,” Xuan Jinghe said softly. “I just hope that you can live on, have a long life, and be safe and sound.”
Qu Xie remained motionless, leaning on his shoulder, his nose filled with the scent of lotus flowers, and his muscles seemed to stiffen.
***
“—What do you think Qu Xie is feeling right now?” In the tunnel not far away, Gong Wei sat cross-legged in mid-air, shaking his head with a sigh.
Xu Shuangce chuckled.
Yuchi Rui leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, looking at Qu Xie’s profile buried in the shadows in the distance. He rubbed his chin and speculated, “Moved to tears to death?”
Gong Wei smiled faintly. “Furious to death.”
Yuchi Rui exclaimed, “Huh?”
“If Xuan Jinghe had agreed to let Qu Xie stay just now, then his chance of achieving enlightenment in this lifetime would have been doomed. Allowing a mortal who could have survived to die alongside him would have tainted Xuan Jinghe’s ‘Dao’—Xuan Jinghe is different from everyone else in the heavenly realm. He doesn’t have the fate of ascension; his path to godhead relies solely on the steadfastness of his Dao. No one in the world can match him in this aspect, and Qu Xie also saw this.”
“So, if Xuan Jinghe’s unique ‘Dao’ were tainted, he would lose all hope of ascension, and the future foretold in the Three Thousand Mirrors would no longer exist.” Gong Wei propped his chin with one hand, shaking his head teasingly. “Qu Xie went to great lengths to change the future without causing Xuan Jinghe’s death, but Xuan Jinghe has managed to thwart him… Can you blame Qu Xie for being furious? If I were him, I might jump up and slap myself in the face out of anger.”
Gong Wei and Yuchi Rui were indeed good friends who had been causing mischief together since childhood. Before he finished speaking, Yuchi Rui had already crouched in front of Qu Xie, slapping his hands together from a distance, hitting him on both sides.
Gong Wei said, “Make some room, I want to join in too…”
At that moment, Qu Xie suddenly moved. His right hand, hanging by his side, trembled slightly, and he lifted it silently.
The two in mid-air were startled at the same time. Xu Shuangce swiftly grabbed one of them with each hand from behind, pulling them several steps away and cautiously stopping.
Qu Xie’s face was buried in Xuan Jinghe’s shoulder, and his expression couldn’t be seen in the shadows. He took a deep breath, and his voice carried a strange tremor, impossible to discern whether it was anger, disappointment, or a peculiar joy:
“It’s okay, Sect Master Xuan. I’m really happy with what you just said.”
Then, he snapped his fingers next to Xuan Jinghe’s ear with a “pop!”
“What is he up to now?” Yuchi Rui was shocked.
In this time and space, they had only seen the Ghost Crown Prince snap his fingers three times. The first time was in the hunter’s courtyard, controlling the living dead to attack Daoist Xuancheng, ultimately turning Xuancheng into a living corpse; the second time was at the transmission array by the watch tower, forcibly distorting time and space to open a gateway to h*ll, suspending over a dozen Zhao family cultivators in mid-air, where they were devoured by a horde of corpses.
Now he snapped his fingers for the third time, right next to Xuan Jinghe’s ear.
What is he trying to do?
Xuan Jinghe seemed to sense something, but before he could react, his whole body stiffened suddenly, and then silently began to lean forward.
So, with this embracing posture, Qu Xie bent his left arm to support his body, while his right hand reached into the back of Xuan Jinghe’s head. His fingertips hooked out a faint silver light from his mind.
The light was clear, warm, and incredibly intimate to Qu Xie. He gathered it into a small ball and tucked it into his sleeve.
“That is…”
“Human emotions,” Xu Shuangce frowned. Yuchi Rui asked puzzledly, “What, is he collecting Sect Master Xuan’s emotions?”
Although Qu Xie had always been mysterious in his actions, this move was too bizarre, and no one could understand the intricacies of it for a moment. After a moment of confusion, it was Gong Wei, who was most familiar with the Ghost Crown Prince, who seemed to realize something. He softly exclaimed, “Ah, I see now. I know what he’s trying to do.”
The other two looked at him simultaneously.
Gong Wei remained silent, casting a new look at the Ghost Crown Prince for a moment. Finally, he sighed and said, “Qu Xie, oh Qu Xie, you’ve truly outdone yourself… You’ve impressed me in a way I never thought possible.”
Want to show your support? Come donate at Paypal or Ko-fi to show your appreciation! :)
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
Thank You for the new chapter ♡ƪ(ˆ◡ˆ)ʃ♡