Chapter 62 Don't Hide It From Me, Don't Be Afraid

Although highly skilled cultivators can freeze their appearance in their youth, her master never did that.

In her memory, her master, Jiang Xingwei, was clearly a white-haired, unkempt old man who loved to drink. He was lucky if he dressed decently each day; he would never look like this—

They look like they're doing something nice.

She quickly took a step back, then looked at Yun Ning on the other side: "Senior brother, are you sure this person is our master?!"

"Or has Master been possessed?!"

Yun Ning: "..."

His temple twitched, and his face was full of impatience: "How could you say such treasonous things!"

"He's the master, are you blind? Can't you even see that?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Songyun looked completely innocent: "Senior brother, have you forgotten? I really am blind."

Yun Ning: "..."

"Alright!" Jiang Xingwei said, then slowly landed. He had black hair and wore white clothes, his hands behind his back as he looked at the four people in front of him, exuding an air of superiority.

His gaze swept across the faces of the four people, lingering on Gu Xiaozhu for a moment before finally settling on Zhu Songyun.

"Yun'er, do you know your crime?!"

Zhu Songyun immediately straightened his back, his face full of righteous indignation: "Master! You must see this clearly! Heaven and earth bear witness, I really did not collude with the demons, much less bring any demons in!"

Her overly confident demeanor, coupled with the complete lack of apprehension on her face, caused even the disciples who were on high alert to waver slightly.

Sister Zhu doesn't seem to be lying, does she?

Besides, Senior Sister Zhu has always treated them well, and she doesn't seem like the type to treason!

Could it be... that Master really wronged her?

Jiang Xingwei frowned, and his hand instinctively reached for the gourd at his waist, but then he remembered something and stopped abruptly.

"Yun'er, let me ask you, you—"

"Do you know your crime?"

He asked again, this time in an even louder voice, with a strange hint of gritted teeth.

At the same time, his previously indifferent gaze instantly crumbled, and he kept glancing at Yun Ning beside him, frantically gesturing at her.

Yun Ning realized what was happening and immediately turned around and shouted, "Zhu Songyun! Quickly confess your sins! If you don't confess, you'll be in big trouble!"

He glanced quickly at his master beside him, noticing the twitching of his fingers. His lips twitched, and he quickened his pace, saying, "We'll lock you up in the basement of the treasure vault. It's heavily guarded, dark, and damp, and you'll find nothing there except the access pass deep inside!"

"We will keep you there forever in that eternal darkness!"

Zhu Songyun looked at the two people over there. He sensed through his spiritual power that their facial expressions seemed to have moved, but it was too subtle.

Are the two of them communicating with their eyes?

Why can't we just say it directly? After all, everyone here is one of their people, right?

Moreover, what Yun Ning said... why would they put prisoners in the basement of the Treasure Pavilion when they'd be imprisoned in jail?

……etc.

Her eyes darkened, and she suddenly realized something.

Are they really the only people here?

Or is it...?

She looked up at the empty sky.

Just then, she felt her sleeve being tugged. She turned her head and saw Gu Xiaozhu nodding at her.

She closed her eyes, sighed, and turned to the two people over there, saying, "Alright, I plead guilty, okay?"

Upon hearing this, everyone present breathed a sigh of relief.

Jiang Xingwei: That's great, this traitor has finally changed his tune.

Yun Ning: Great! Master finally stopped threatening me and let me force her to admit it... Well, it still feels pretty good!

Disciples: That's great! Senior Sister is finally...

Is he going to be locked in the treasure vault?

Wait, isn't something wrong?

Even if they didn't believe that Zhu Songyun would betray Qianji Pavilion, since the Pavilion Master had spoken, they had no choice but to obey.

However, on the way to the treasure pavilion, disciples kept approaching Zhu Songyun and using their spiritual power to transmit their thoughts to her:

"Don't worry, senior sister! It's dark there, I'll secretly bring you a lamp!"

Zhusongyun: Touched!

"Don't worry, senior sister, I'll secretly bring you food!"

Zhusongyun: I'm so pleased!

"Senior sister, I'll help you with your studies so you won't fall behind on all the classes you've missed over the years!"

Zhusongyun: Devil!!!

The Thousand Machines Pavilion is located above the Boundless Sea and consists of several floating mechanisms and islands. These floating mechanisms are maintained by arrays and spiritual power, which connect the islands to each other, making the structure stable and preventing it from falling from the sky.

Soon, after passing through a small bamboo grove, a delicate wooden pavilion came into view.

Jiang Xingwei arrived in front of the pavilion, waved his hand lightly, and a mechanical "click" sound rang out. Then the array around the pavilion gradually dissipated.

He turned around, looked at the four of them, his hands still behind his back: "Yun Ning, go and take them to the first basement level of the Treasure Pavilion and lock them up."

Yun Ning suddenly turned her head to look at her: "Huh? Me?"

Jiang Xingwei replied calmly, "Otherwise what?"

Yun Ning hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back, her embarrassment evident on her face.

Finally, he nodded, his face ashen, and said to the group with a sour expression, "Let's go!"

The four exchanged glances, their faces showing some confusion, but they did not resist.

Yun Ning led the group in familiarly, staring intently ahead amidst a dazzling array of treasures, his pace hurried and his whole being radiating restlessness.

He approached the bookshelf with a clear purpose, precisely located a scroll of bamboo slips, grabbed it, and pulled it out—

“Clatter.”

The bookshelf in front of them, along with the wall behind it, slowly separated and moved to the left and right. Soon, a dark staircase extending downwards appeared before them.

Throughout the entire process, Yun Ning acted with utmost integrity, making no attempt to conceal anything. He took a step to the side and pointed to the staircase: "The basement level is right here. If you know what's good for you, go in yourselves!"

After uttering those impolite words, he felt as if he had been liberated and immediately ran out of the treasure pavilion.

"Remember this! You all better behave yourselves! Or you'll be in big trouble!!!"

Yun Ning's indistinct voice drifted from afar, then vanished completely with a loud "bang" as the door slammed shut.

The group looked at each other, and after a moment of silence, they finally stepped onto the dark staircase.

"His acting is really bad," Teng Shao said bluntly.

Zhu Songyun couldn't help but laugh: "To be honest, this is the first time I've seen Master like that. He must have been in so much pain, hahaha."

Jiang Zhihe shrugged: "I don't know why they put on this show..." He pondered for a moment, then said, "Could it be related to [He]?"

Zhu Songyun: "[He]?...The Law?"

"You actually knew that?" Teng Shao was somewhat surprised.

Zhu Songyun said with a smug look on his face: "I am a divination cultivator!"

Teng Shao rolled his eyes.

“They definitely didn’t do this voluntarily. So something must be forcing them to do it,” Jiang Zhihe said, but quickly frowned. “But…why? Even if it’s the law that’s forcing them to do this, what good does it do to the law?”

Zhu Songyun and Teng Shao both shrugged, indicating that they didn't know either.

What are the benefits?

Gu Xiaozhu's heart stirred slightly.

If the plot of the Boundless Sea goes wrong, and the laws force everyone in the Thousand Machines Pavilion, including Jiang Xingwei, to join forces to attack Zhu Songyun, they will definitely not come out on top when a real fight breaks out.

After all, Jiang Xingwei's cultivation level is considerable, and moreover, he is a divination cultivator; no one knows how far he can predict the future.

She will be the only one who can help them get out of trouble.

His fingertips curled up, and his eyes darkened slightly.

The law wanted to force her to revise the plot again, exhausting her last bit of power and causing her death.

This is His purpose.

[Host, your power is running low. You cannot use it unless absolutely necessary.] The system reminded you.

"Mmm," she replied.

However, given the current situation, she doesn't need to do that. After all, the attitude of the Thousand Machines Pavilion members is quite clear: the disciples are probably completely unaware, and the ones mainly under control... no, under restraint are Jiang Xingwei and Yun Ning.

However, the law likely only threatened them and didn't take any concrete action. Perhaps even [He] didn't expect these two to put on such a perfunctory act?

Moreover, as the number one divination cultivator, Jiang Xing must have already foreseen their purpose. However, he was bound by the laws and could not directly help them. Therefore, he "locked" them in the underground floor of the Treasure Pavilion so that they could obtain the pass to the Boundless Sea.

Gu Xiaozhu's mind raced, and she silently followed behind the group. The pain in her collarbone was intensifying, now extending to her neck. Her left arm was also trembling uncontrollably; had she not kept it hidden in her sleeve, it would have been discovered long ago.

"Xiaozhu, are you alright?"

A warm breath brushed against her ear, sending a shiver down her spine. She turned her head and found the boy's face extremely close, so close that she could see his long eyelashes and the fine downy hairs on his skin.

But Jiang Zhihe frowned at this moment, his slender fingers caressing the girl's cheek. His cool fingertips touched her skin, and although the movement was very gentle, it carried an irresistible force.

You look terrible.

He spoke.

"...I'm fine." She lowered her eyelashes slightly, her gaze unconsciously shifting away.

Jiang Zhihe sighed: "Xiaozhu, when you lie, you can't even look people in the eye."

"Don't hide it from me, okay?"

Gu Xiaozhu pursed her lips. The boy's gaze was intense, staring intently at her, as if trying to pierce through her heart, leaving her no chance to escape.

"I……"

"Boom—!"

Before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted as the entire staircase shook violently. With the stairs and walls collapsing in an instant, his body was lifted into the air!

"Holy crap! When was an anti-flight formation set up down here?!" Zhu Songyun shouted through gritted teeth, quickly scanning her surroundings. There was nowhere she could find shelter. Finally, she turned her gaze to Teng Shao beside her.

Teng Shao's twin swords were deeply embedded in the wall. He grabbed the hilts with one hand and braced himself against the wall.

But before he could catch his breath, he felt a weight on the hem of his clothes.

He was caught off guard and almost dropped it!

Gritting his teeth, he looked down at Zhu Songyun, who was clinging tightly to his clothes, and said with a dark face, "Can you let go?"

Instead of seeing her off, Zhu Songyun went even further and grabbed Teng Shao's leg, saying, "Don't even think about it! If I let go, I'll fall! I don't want to deliberately seek death."

No sooner had he finished speaking than he caught a glimpse of a figure in red jumping down.

Zhu Songyun stared in disbelief at the scene, finally muttering, "So there really are people who willingly seek death..."

… …

A feeling of weightlessness washed over her, her hair flying through the dust. She instinctively tried to grab the nearest boy, but as she raised her left hand, her sleeve slipped down slightly, revealing the glaring tear.

Her pupils contracted, and she instantly pulled her hand back, her sleeve, which hadn't yet slipped down, now completely covered her arm again. But at the same time, because she had nothing to support her, she fell downwards along with the rubble.

But what came even faster than panic was...

—It is a warm embrace.

The boy held her tightly, his bright red clothes fluttering wildly behind him.

She couldn't see the boy's face clearly, only feel his warm breath on her neck and a whisper almost touching her ear:

"Don't be afraid."