Chapter 60
Shoutout to nyanmaru for the commission!
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
After an unknown amount of time, the shaking earth gradually subsided.
“Cough cough!….”
Xu Shuangce choked out a large amount of hot blood, barely managing to stop after a while, heavily driving No Way Out into the ground, panting as he got up.
At the moment the World Ending Soldier Puppet was destroyed, its momentum shot straight up into the sky, tearing through the black rainbow and the sun, finally revealing the gray and distant sky.
Looking around, the ice field was riddled with holes, and when the giant was split open, countless mechanical soldier parts burst out into the sky, smashing the earth into numerous smoky craters; further away, the summit of the ice mountain had already collapsed due to Ying Kai’s collision, and a mountain-like object rose from the stone mill, standing alone under the sky.
That was the head of the World Ending Soldier Puppet, refusing to die.
Xu Shuangce cleared the last clot of blood from his chest, took a moment to adjust his breath, and approached with his sword.
The iron head was already half destroyed, with only the right eye remaining, the blood faded away, turning into a burnt giant hole, emptying into the sky. There was a deep crack in the center of the brow, extending for a dozen yards, occasionally emitting remnants of black fire, which should be the last sword cut by Xuan Jinghe when they perished together thousands of years ago.
—It was already dead, but this time and space was just an illusion.
So, in the distant, forcibly suspended real world, was this humanoid still buried deep beneath the earth, yet to be unearthed?
Xu Shuangce stared at it, a hint of doubt rising in his heart.
Why did Law Flower Immortal’s method of preventing disaster involve pulling the entire world into a grand illusion?
Why did the ghost cultivator painstakingly plan to bring out the Soldier puppet from the depths of the illusion?
In this huge chessboard intertwined with reality and illusion, behind the heavy fog, two hands of the game were vaguely revealed, one belonging to Law Flower Immortal of the real world, and the other to the unidentified ghost cultivator.
But the illusion was just an illusion after all, no matter what happened, it couldn’t change the facts that had already happened in the real world.
So, what kind of secretive but crucial significance did the fierce game between Law Flower Immortal and the ghost cultivator have?
Hoo!
Another burst of black fire erupted from the crack between the eyebrows of the humanoid, interrupting Xu Shuangce’s thoughts. He exhaled hoarsely, called out to Ying Kai a few times, but received no response, then got up and leaped onto the top of the skull. After a few moments of searching around, he saw a familiar silhouette half-shadowed in the corner of the humanoid’s right eye socket, which was surprisingly the unconscious leader of the Immortal Alliance.
Xu Shuangce quickly stepped forward to support him: “Ying Kai?”
Ying Kai was not injured, but with a touch of his hand, it was clear that his primordial spirit was unstable, probably because the sword that had just beheaded the soldier puppet reached pinnacle, exhausting all his spiritual power. At the moment, Xu Shuangce also had no spiritual power to immediately awaken him. Just as he was about to lift him up and send him away, he suddenly caught sight of something, and his movements abruptly stopped.
He saw a piece of Ying Kai’s forehead scorched by black fire, and as his posture changed, the wound cracked open, and a stream of blood gushed out, dripping onto the armor beneath him.
Then, just like the first string of blood Xu Shuangce shed over the abyss, and the second string of blood shed from Law Flower Immortal’s corpse, the same scene appeared again—the blood was actually absorbed.
The third blood!
Xu Shuangce subconsciously took a half step back, his pupils shrinking—Ying Kai actually had a connection with the World Ending Soldier Puppet?
How is this possible?
Without allowing himself to ponder further, at this moment, as the blood was completely absorbed, it seemed as if an invisible seal within the humanoid’s skull was completely lifted. There were several mechanical sounds of gears turning within the crack on its brow, and the heavy mechanisms were sequentially opened, revealing something deep inside, and suddenly a blood-red light flashed.
“…”
Xu Shuangce tightly gripped the No Way Out Sword, and after a long time, he slowly approached, stood still, and took a moment to catch his breath, finally reaching into the crack and retrieving a palm-sized bronze box.
Underneath the abyss, the cold and hoarse breath of Du Kaixun once again sounded from his ear: “That’s not an object, it’s a path.”
“A path leading to the real world, a path of no return.”
Could this be the key to unlocking the illusion?
Xu Shuangce stared at the bronze box, the veins on the back of his hand bulging. Just then, there was a rustling sound behind him. Ying Kai, who was still dazed, woke up and murmured, “….Shuangce?”
Xu Shuangce, with his back to him, put the bronze box into his sleeve, steadied himself for a moment, and finally turned around.
“How are you?” he asked in a deep voice.
Ying Kai, with one hand covering his forehead, struggled to sit up, forcefully coughed up a few clots of blood, and finally managed to catch his breath, exhausted: “I’m… I’m fine. How about you? Gong… What about your disciple and Liu Xuzhi? And Du Kaixun and Daoist Spiritual Master Bai…”
Xu Shuangce said, “Bai Xian exchanged his soldier thread to the Ghost Cultivator, in exchange for the opportunity to expose Du Kaixun’s crime of killing his brother and seizing his body. Both of them have confessed and their whereabouts are clear.”
Ying Kai immediately became alert: “Where are they now?”
Xu Shuangce looked towards the rugged ice field in the distance, and did not answer directly, just shook his head.
The cold wind blew with a sharp whistle, swept across the scarred frozen soil, and disappeared on the distant horizon.
Ying Kai understood what was going on, his heart filled with mixed feelings. After a moment of silence, he had to temporarily set aside his questions and brought up the more important matter: “What about Xiang Xiaoyuan and Liu Xuzhi—-“
Xu Shuangce glanced at him, and for some reason, Ying Kai always felt a hint of mocking expression in his eyes. But before he could see it clearly, Xu Shuangce calmly said, “I’ve sent them back with the Blood River Carriage.”
“Sent back?!” Ying Kai almost choked, quickly suppressing his expression, and forced out a smile, “Back… back to the Cangyang Sect? Why the rush?”
Xu Shuangce’s seemingly smiling eyes became even more obvious: “Xiang Xiaoyuan is a disciple of my Cangyang Sect. If he’s injured, he naturally has to be sent back to Cangyang Mountain. What’s the hurry?”
Ying Kai couldn’t even articulate a complete sentence: “That’s true, but without Brother Mu personally taking care of him, how can it be? Shouldn’t we bring him to the Tui’e Pavilion? I’ll invite Brother Mu right away…”
Xu Shuangce said lightly, “Your Brother Mu has already arrived.”
Ying Kai turned around in surprise, only to see a purple light suddenly appearing in the gray-white sky, then rapidly enlarging, plunging down from above, surprisingly a small boat made of golden purple wood!
“Today’s events involve many factors and are difficult to explain in a moment. Let’s go over them one by one in Tui’e Pavilion seven days from now.” Xu Shuangce paused and said, “Your primordial spirit is not yet recovered, so it’s not easy to overexert yourself. Take a short rest first.”
Ying Kai actually heard a hint of gentleness in his tone, which surprised him. He was about to turn around when he said, “It’s nothing, I just bumped my head a little and got dizzy for a moment, it doesn’t…”
Before he could finish his sentence, Xu Shuangce cleanly brushed past the vital point behind his head.
Ying Kai: “…………”
Ying Kai had never been prepared for Xu Shuangce to stand behind him, and his vision went black on the spot. He fell backwards without even having a chance to curse, instantly falling into a deep sleep.
At this moment, the boat descended rapidly, and on the boat were two disciples of the Medical Sect in purple robes. Seeing the situation, they hurriedly saluted in shock, rushed out, and helped Ying Kai onto the boat: “Alliance Leader Ying!” “What happened to the Alliance Leader?” “Is Sect Master Xu alright?”
Xu Shuangce stood with his hands behind his back, calmly instructing, “The Alliance Leader has expended a great deal of spiritual energy and needs rest urgently. You two must not disturb him with any noise. Let him sleep for a while.”
The disciples of the Medical Sect were deeply moved by his words. “The two Sect Masters indeed have deep camaraderie. We will certainly follow your instructions carefully!”
Xu Shuangce nodded silently. The disciples of the Medical Sect cautiously asked for permission again, “Sect Master, the journey back to Cangyang Mountain from Tianmen Pass is long and difficult. Why don’t you deign to ride with us on this boat?”
This golden-purple boat was specially used by the Medical Sect for rapid travel. Especially in treacherous places like Tianmen Pass, where the spiritual energy was sparse, the large golden boat could not enter. Therefore, they deliberately chose the smallest and lightest boat, regardless of the cost, to forcefully activate it with blood, which would burn up a huge amount of spiritual energy equivalent to half a year’s worth of travel for ordinary boats with just one round trip. Therefore, it could only be used to save lives at the most critical moments.
However, Xu Shuangce shook his head. “No need.”
“But then you…”
Xu Shuangce raised his eyelids slightly. “Blood River Carriage.”
Before the last note fell, the four divine birds that had been hovering nearby reappeared, swooping down from the sky and arriving in an instant. With a wave of his sleeve, the unconscious Liu Xuzhi floated out of the carriage door, and the disciples hurriedly caught him and checked him over. Seeing that there was no imminent danger to his life, they breathed a sigh of relief and also sent Music Saint onto the golden-purple boat.
Xu Shuangce stepped onto the carriage door in one step, without looking back, and said, “Be careful to escort the Alliance Leader and Music Saint. There must be no mistakes.”
The two disciples of the Medical Sect quickly bowed and saluted, respectfully sending off the Blood River Carriage as it took off again, whistling straight up into the sky.
***
Hua—-
The interior of the Blood River Carriage was spacious, resembling a bedroom, and the golden crane paper door was gently closed.
Xu Shuangce’s profile stood by the door, the light only rendering half of his handsome face visible. The bronze box slipped from his sleeve and was tightly held in his palm.
The gamble between the Easter God and the God of the Northern Wall, the life and death game between the Mirror Spirit and the Ghost Cultivator, the intertwining of reality and illusion… Countless threads came from the void, weaving into a complex web in his mind, and then disappearing into the distant void with the dripping blood.
And at the deepest part of this elusive web, a vivid picture gradually emerged.
It was the dripping blood of Ying Kai.
—”The Eastern God, compassionate by nature, took pity on the suffering of the world from endless wars, and therefore sent down heavenly tribulations to destroy the Ghost King beyond recovery…”
—”The Eastern God fought the God of the Northern Wall to a draw in order to protect the mortal world…”
—”The Eastern God descended a treasure to protect the Iron Sect and sealed the evil thoughts of the God of the Northern Wall in the depths of the earth, thus quelling the calamity of destruction…”
A coldness suddenly pierced his heart, and Xu Shuangce couldn’t help but have a thought—did the Eastern God really end things by just sealing the evil thoughts of the God of the Northern Wall in the depths of the earth?
If the Mirror Spirit followed the God of the Northern Wall into the world, always guarding against the reappearance of calamity, then could it be that the legendary Eastern God did not return to the heavenly realm but instead followed the God of the Northern Wall like a shadow and came to the mortal world?
Could it be Ying Kai?
Xu Shuangce closed his eyes tightly, his brow furrowed with solemnity and killing intent, and in the hazy light, only a clearly tightened jawline could be seen.
Just then, there was a faint murmur in the room, as if an invisible force lifted him out of the cold black water. Xu Shuangce opened his eyes, and his stiff body finally moved slightly.
He walked to the soft couch in the room, half kneeling down, and the warm yellow light outlined the sleeping figure in front of him.
“…”
Gong Wei murmured a few more words, as if sensing a familiar breath, turned over in his drowsiness, and his slender white fingers tightly grasped the hem of Xu Shuangce’s clothes.
This body couldn’t support the powerful Golden core in his primordial spirit; he needed spiritual energy.
Even in his unconsciousness, he would instinctively move towards the person with the strongest spiritual energy.
Gong Wei’s eyebrows were long, fading from dark to light, like a slender ink stroke melting into the ice and snow. When he slept, his brows were flat, as if he was born without any worries and had never tasted the bitterness of anxiety. Because of the blood loss, his lips were pale, slightly open, completely defenseless, showing a very deep sleep.
Xu Shuangce’s breathing grew deeper.
Silently, he reached out his hand and hovered his fingertips over those lips, as if he wanted to touch them, but was blocked by an invisible force.
“….Xu Shuangce, I like you…” The Law Flower Immortal was bathed in blood, but the sword tip had already pierced his heart.
“You can’t do this to me…”
He pleaded bitterly, but to no avail. In the end, he could only exhaust all his strength and suspend time.
—But death did not end. Death was just interrupted in its course.
Xu Shuangce painstakingly, almost forcibly, retracted his fingers inch by inch. However, at this moment, Gong Wei slightly opened his eyes. He seemed not to understand where he was, looking confusedly at Xu Shuangce by the candlelight, his face indistinct. After a while, he murmured, “Xu Bai?”
That call, rather than being directed at him, seemed more like some kind of instinct.
Xu Shuangce remained silent.
“…I feel so uncomfortable,” Gong Wei lowered his eyelashes and murmured faintly, as if in a dream.
Xu Shuangce said, “You’ve overdrawn your spiritual energy.”
Gong Wei seemed to understand but not really. In his daze, he seemed to have forgotten the fierce battle just now, forgotten the complex love-hate between them, and even forgotten that it had been sixteen long years since his last death; in this instant, he seemed to have turned back into the youth from those years ago in Tui’e, hanging his hands around Sect Master Xu’s neck, able to demand any intimacy without paying any price.
He slowly approached, almost pressing his face against the edge of Xu Shuangce’s knee, rubbing against it, his breath even spraying on the inside of his thigh, as if expressing a silent longing.
Xu Shuangce slightly moved back half an inch, and said in a low voice, “Stop it.”
However, Gong Wei tightly grasped the hem of his clothes and didn’t let go. He even slightly propped up his upper body, leaning on Xu Shuangce’s knee like that, looking up at him, and said softly, “I miss you so much, Xu Bai.”
“…”
Xu Shuangce looked down at the face so close to him. There was no joy or anger on the cold face of the Sect Master of Cangyang Sect, and no one knew that the muscles under his robe were slightly tense.
He repeated, “Stop the nonsense.”
But the next moment, dreams that had reincarnated countless times over sixteen years rushed back. Gong Wei’s hands were on his thighs, using them for leverage to lift himself up, and the fresh fragrance of peach blossoms after the snow drifted into Xu Shuangce’s neck.
Outside the carriage, in the sky thousands of feet high, the wind surged like a tide, but inside the carriage, it was intimate and dim, with only the distant and hazy sound of the wind.
“Xu Bai,” Gong Wei’s soft lips touched Xu Shuangce’s ear, and he whispered gently, “Let’s dual cultivate together.”
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 chapter ❤٩(•౪•٩)
ヽ(°〇°)ﾉ