Chapter 27: Regret, I wish you can follow your heart and be spontaneous in the future...

Gu Congxing and Zhong Ming hugged each other for a long time. He patted the boy's back to let him go, and took out the Sanskrit bell from his arms.

"If you dare to give it back to me again..."

"Don't worry, Brother, I will never be separated from it again."

Zhong Ming unexpectedly pulled out an extremely thin vine from somewhere. The surface of the vine was extremely smooth and tough. He carefully threaded it onto the Fanyin Bell like a necklace.

He smiled brightly at Gu Congxing and put the Fanyin bell around his neck.

"Brother, look, this is the perfect length. The Brahma Bell rests right on my heart."

Zhong Ming hugged Gu Congxing's arm and leaned against him: "This way, my heart will always be able to hear the ringing sound brought by my senior brother."

When Gu Congxing heard his words, ripples appeared in his heart.

He smiled and rubbed Zhong Ming's head: "You guy."

At this moment, the system's voice slowly sounded in his ears.

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the hidden mission: Save Zhong Ming and avoid suicide!]

[In this mission, the host can choose to increase their points or redeem a mysterious item! This item will help Zhong Ming become immune to the Frenzy Technique!]

Gu Congxing's eyes lit up.

He held Zhong Ming's head so that he couldn't see his facial movements and silently said to the system, "I want props."

[Ding! Host selection confirmed! The reward "Ming Shen Jue" has been sent to your storage ring.]

Gu Congxing heard a cheerful and melodious tune again. The last time this tune sounded was when he signed a contract with the system. Now it seemed even more pleasant.

Could it be related to the completion of my mission?

He felt something in his heart, and the so-called dark cloud of fate surrounding his junior brother had faded a lot.

Very good.

He was sincerely glad that he was not too late. He hugged Zhong Ming tightly, and the two of them listened to each other's heartbeats silently.

"Junior Brother, there's a set of mantras that will be extremely helpful to you. I'll teach them to you now."

Seeing Zhong Ming looking up with some doubt, Gu Congxing said slowly: "With this technique, you don't have to worry about being interfered with by the Madness Technique and having your bloodline forcibly awakened by others."

Since his bloodline will not be forcibly awakened, his dragon form will naturally not be exposed.

Zhong Ming's expression brightened, and a light flashed in his eyes.

"good!"

***

After being taught the Mingshen Jue, Zhong Ming's spiritual power became stable, his mind became clear, and there were signs of advancement.

He advanced from the early stage of foundation building to the middle stage in a short period of time. He is truly gifted.

Even though he knew that he would be able to advance smoothly in his own cave, Gu Congxing still set up a barrier outside his cave to protect him. He did not return to his own residence until he felt that his spiritual power fluctuations had stabilized.

He regulated his breathing and relaxed his mind in the bamboo forest, sorting out the scenes he had seen in his previous life over and over again in his mind.

Even though it was painful, he did gain a lot of information.

First, Master unexpectedly had the Forgetfulness Vine pattern on his body. It was said to be a lost secret technique of the Jiang family, so why was it on Master's body?

Gu Congxing's eyes flickered. It might not be appropriate to ask the master directly, but he could try to find out indirectly.

Secondly, Junior Brother did not become a demon cultivator due to his own infatuation, but was born with dragon blood. This also explains why he was swept away by the demon dragon and became a demon lord.

Third, the eldest brother had actually placed a blood curse on himself in his previous life to prevent the loss of his memory. I wonder if his eventual demise was related to this...

Finally, there were Xiao Wangyou's methods and helpers. The voice of the Out-of-Body Stage Black Shadow Monk seemed familiar. Could it be that he had heard it somewhere before?

Gu Congxing pondered for a while, but still couldn't figure it out. He looked up at the sky and let out a long breath.

The further we advance, the more new problems we encounter, as if we are lost in a thorny wasteland.

"...But no matter what, I will persevere to the end. Not for atonement, but for the future."

"—For us, so we can have a future."

His dark eyes beneath his eyelashes were filled with sunlight, reflecting a breathtaking brilliance like obsidian.

Amid the rustling sound of bamboo leaves, Gu Congxing did not notice a moon-white figure that briefly stopped and disappeared after a moment.

The next day, Gu Congxing went to Lengquan Xuanbing Palace, but did not find his master.

He didn't give up and searched around, and unexpectedly met Lan Jue.

Lan Jue was wearing a sky-blue robe. As soon as he saw Gu Congxing, he smiled faintly and came to his side.

"Cong Xing is also here to look for Master?"

"Yes. But he doesn't seem to be in the Ice Palace."

"From what I understand, after Master sent a message to the Tianlin Sect last time, the elders there were all shocked and even invited Master to discuss countermeasures together. Perhaps Master has already set off."

"……so."

Gu Congxing lowered his eyelids, not realizing that his voice was full of loss.

Lan Jue stared silently at Gu Congxing's expression, his clear eyes depicting the eyebrows of the young man in front of him.

After a moment, he said softly, "Cong Xing, I've been feeling a bit sluggish in my swordplay lately. If you have time, could you spar with me?"

Gu Congxing looked at Lan Jue in surprise.

He had never practiced against Lan Jue before. After all, there was a huge difference in their cultivation levels, and they were not familiar with each other.

However, seeing his sincere expression, Gu Congxing still agreed.

"Of course. Shall we fight here?"

Lan Jue took his hand and chuckled, "This opportunity is rare, why not find a place where few people go?"

He winked cunningly, causing Gu Congxing to burst out laughing.

The two of them rode on the Sword of Forgetfulness and soon arrived at their destination.

"Is this... the summit of Zhuoguang Peak?"

As Gu Congxing looked around, all he saw was lush greenery, with endless maple leaves slowly falling, forming a golden stream on the ground.

There is a wide open plain ahead, which seems to have been deliberately opened up by someone, right in the middle of the peak.

"How is it? Not bad, right?" Lan Jue's voice was bright and a bit boastful.

"It seems that this place is a blessing from my senior brother."

"Well, Cong Xing is indeed smart."

Lan Jue walked slowly forward with a sword in hand. When he reached the center of the flat ground, he turned around and looked back at Gu Congxing.

His sleeves fluttered, his black hair fluttered in the wind, and his amber eyes met Gu Congxing's gaze.

"I will suppress my cultivation to the early stage of the Golden Core. Can Cong Xing defeat me?"

Gu Congxing was filled with fighting spirit, and the Whale-Slaying Sword made a buzzing sound.

“You’ll know once you try it!”

"boom--"

The golden sword intent and the azure sword light connected, and the opposing spiritual power waves swept away the fallen leaves around!

After a sword move, Gu Congxing immediately turned around and took a step forward, stabbing forward with the sword!

Lan Jue frowned, turned the long sword in his hand, and used the sword horizontally to block Gu Congxing's attack!

Spiritual power surged throughout his body, the air was filled with mist, and a water blade condensed behind Gu Congxing.

Gu Congxing felt something happening behind him, but instead of taking a step back, he smiled.

He had never tried the "Endless Art of Fantasy Sword" in this life, and this was exactly what he wanted!

Golden spiritual power surged around Gu Congxing, broken gold floated up, and a sharp sword condensed in the air!

“Swish——”

The golden sword and the water blade collided fiercely, stirring up another cloud of dust!

A hint of surprise flashed in Lan Jue's eyes, and he attacked even faster.

The two men were as fast as flying swallows, one had a light and nimble sword, the other was fierce and unstoppable, and the fight was hard to separate.

Gu Congxing's mind was completely immersed in the battle, and he felt a sense of joy in his heart!

Fight! Fight! Fight!

Don’t think about anything else, just act based on your instinct!

Beads of sweat dripped down his forehead, but golden light surged in his eyes and there was a casual smile on the corners of his mouth!

"Bang!"

A falling maple leaf was divided into three petals. Gu Congxing and Lan Jue both stood with swords in their hands, looking energetic.

The Whale-Slaying Sword was less than an inch away from Lan Yude's mouth, and the Forget Love Sword was also close to Gu Congxing's neck.

"Cong Xing, good swordsmanship."

"Big Brother is the one. Today I'm enjoying the high-level techniques of the Gentleman Sword. It's so satisfying!"

The two men put away their swords at the same time and bumped fists in perfect tacit understanding.

It was already dusk at this time. A huge red sun was setting in the west, and the sky looked like a blazing fire. It was particularly magnificent when viewed from the top of the mountain.

Lan Jue and Gu Congxing performed a body cleansing technique and silently watched the setting sun in the sky fade from red to crimson purple and then to ink.

Gu Congxing was quietly gazing at the boundless sky when he felt his hand being touched by something cold.

"In this situation, how about some wine?"

Lan Jue blinked and raised the glass of plum wine in his hand.

Gu Congxing was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "I never thought that the elegant and graceful Junzijian would also secretly hide alcohol."

"What gentleman can live without wine?"

Lan Jue summoned two small tables from the storage ring, took out the wine bottle, and poured half a glass for Gu Congxing.

"Senior brother, your equipment is really complete." Gu Congxing said jokingly.

The two of them sat on the ground, facing the overlapping mountains and the vast sky.

It was already dusk, and the mountain breeze rustled a few maple leaves and startled two or three night birds.

The green plum wine was refreshing and had a sweet aftertaste. Gu Congxing found it delicious and poured himself a few more glasses.

As the two of them sipped their wine, Lan Jue said leisurely:

"Congxing, this place used to be my retreat."

"From now on, it's ours."

Gu Congxing's hands moved slightly and he said with a smile, "Brother, you are so young, why do you want to retire?"

Lan Jue feigned profoundness as he shook his head. "You don't understand. Renowned ministers in the mortal world, regardless of age, all went into seclusion. If an emperor could invite someone out of seclusion, they would be a great scholar whose reputation would spread throughout the world."

“What if no one invites you?”

"That's even better. A bamboo stick and straw sandals, free and easy."

Gu Congxing looked at Lan Jue's bright smile, and his heart also brightened up as he sipped the sake in the cup.

"What about Cong Xing? If it were you, would you choose to shoulder the heavy responsibility of saving the world and bringing peace to the people, or live a free and independent life?"

After hearing this question, Gu Congxing shook the wine bottle in his hand, and his face was reflected in the wine.

"As for me, I don't have the ability to save the world and bring peace to the people. I just hope to protect a few people, that's enough."

Lan Jue lowered his eyes upon hearing this and said softly, "So that's how it is."

He propped up his head and looked at Gu Congxing for a moment. He seemed a little drunk, but his eyes were still bright.

"Cong Xing, you can also rely on me."

Gu Congxing heard the gentle whisper and asked unconsciously, "What?"

"Cong Xing always carries heavy responsibilities, and I can't take them all, but I hope... you can rely on me for a while."

Gu Congxing's heart trembled slightly.

The air was filled with the aroma of green plum wine and the faint fragrance of winter plums. There was silence between the two, as they stared at each other's faces.

Lan Jue suddenly came close to Gu Congxing.

His eyes reflected the bright starlight, like a pool of spring water, and he stared at Gu Congxing face to face.

Gu Congxing held his breath unconsciously.

Ke Lan Jue did not come any closer. He curled his eyes and reached out to gently stroke Gu Congxing's head.

Gu Congxing felt a weight in his hair; it turned out to be a hairpin inserted. Even without seeing it, he could feel his mind suddenly become clearer, his whole body relaxed, and his mind became more clear.

It’s like being moistened by the clearest living water in the world.

Lan Jue looked at Gu Congxing and nodded with satisfaction.

Gu Congxing felt relieved for some reason, yet also a little disappointed. He said, "Thank you, Master—eh?"

Before he could finish his words, he was embraced in a warm and broad embrace.

Warm breath fell beside his ears, and Gu Congxing heard his whisper like a prayer.

"Cong Xing, I hope you can follow your heart and live freely in the future."

At this time, the mountain breeze blew by, bringing the faint fragrance of green plums.

Gu Congxing raised his eyes and saw the vast and dazzling starry sky, and the silver light also fell into his eyes.

He had never seen such a moving starry sky.

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The author has something to say: Heal [cat head]