Chapter 21 The Southern Border Holy Son Obsessed with Gu Poison 21

A strange couple recently arrived in Bishan Village.

The couple were both men. One was strong and looked like he was good at farming, while the other looked young, with fair skin and a beautiful face. He wore different clothes and headdresses every day, making him more attractive than the Bodhisattvas enshrined in temples!

Many men in the village were still unmarried. Whenever they couldn't resist the urge to marry, they would deliberately pass by this family's yard and always bump into that delicate beauty holding a feather duster, hitting and cursing. The tall man would kneel on the ground without saying a word, like a silent gourd, which was extremely boring.

For the past six months, whenever they encountered a man going out to work in the fields, no matter how warmly they greeted him, he always had a blank, wooden face. However, for some reason, the wall of the courtyard had grown taller.

This morning, before dawn, the candles in that house were lit again.

In Bishan Village, candles are a rare commodity, and few households can afford them. But this particular household keeps their candles lit from morning till night.

I overheard an old man selling candles at the market mention that the young wife of that family had to comb her hair every morning, and it would be crooked if she didn't light a lamp. She also had to read and bathe every morning and evening, and she couldn't see clearly without a lamp.

Good heavens! Firewood is essential for starting a fire in the stove. Who would be so extravagant as to use firewood to heat water for a bath twice a day? How could they possibly make a living like that?

The men whispered among themselves, watching as the man carried his bow and arrows up the back mountain to hunt. Then they sneaked over to the tall green wall and peered through the crack in the gate.

There were two orange trees planted on the left and right sides of the yard. The boy was wearing a short vest that exposed his waist, and his silver ornaments jingled on his head and body. He was sitting on a rocking chair under the orange tree on the left, propping his head up with one hand and pretending to doze off.

Those jade-like feet were dazzlingly white, and the water droplets on her slightly pink toes were still wet, clearly indicating that she had just finished bathing.

Several men stared wide-eyed, swallowing hard, and eagerly pushed their way forward.

With a loud crash, the half-closed courtyard gate was forced open, and several men collapsed to the ground like a human pyramid.

The people under the tree looked over at the sound, their already dark faces flushed red, and they stood in a row. Just moments ago they had been laughing at the man for being a taciturn fellow, but now, smelling the increasingly close fragrance, the tall and burly man couldn't utter a single word.

[Host, they're spying on you!]

Xie Rong looked the group of people up and down, a smirk playing on his lips.

They are all excellent materials for refining Gu poison.

Although Lu Yi tirelessly feeds him yang energy every night, even when the yang energy overflows and his stomach is always very full, he doesn't lack yang energy to refine Gu. But Xie Rong has been raising Gu for so many years, so the more men he refines Gu, the better.

He glanced sideways and saw several snakes inside the tightly closed bamboo house, eager to crawl out and find him, but they were forced to silently retreat by his gaze.

Although this place is poor and dilapidated, there are plenty of snakes.

In the past six months, Xie Rong has had Lu Yi catch all the snakes in the mountains behind the village, and now he has many baby snakes.

Xie Rong had recently learned some ways to entertain guests, especially when he was in the mood to brew tea. He asked a few men to wait in the courtyard for a moment, then pushed open the door and went in to brew tea.

The men waiting outside looked around, but before they could even get the beauty's tea, the man who had just left returned!

"What are you doing in my yard?" Lu Yi frowned, looking fierce. "Get out."

When Xie Rong came out carrying the tea with the insect eggs inside, only Lu Yi, who had returned, was left in the courtyard.

Xie Rong picked up the teacup and poured the hot tea onto the man.

"Are you angry?" Lu Yi stepped forward and grabbed his hand.

Xie Rong pulled her hand back and slapped him across the face. "Go catch the snake and don't bother me."

"My yang energy isn't enough for you?" Lu Yi persisted, grabbing his waist and pinning him against the door. "Their yang energy isn't as good as mine."

Xie Rong said impatiently, "Why are you back again?"

Lu Yi paused for a moment, then said, "Just now, I saw a squad of Xiaoling Guards searching house to house in the market. We..."

Xie Rong suddenly felt dizzy and fell into his arms, unconscious.

"Xie Rong?!"

...

When Xie Rong woke up, the sky was still dark and gloomy.

He rubbed his temples, trying to force himself to sit up, but found his limbs weak and unable to fall back into the soft bedding.

[The plot has been completely deviated from its intended path; forced exit has been activated.]

[Countdown to forced departure from this world: 3 days, 2 hours, 35 minutes, and 10 seconds]

[The host must accumulate enough of the protagonist's pain value before the countdown ends, otherwise they will fail to escape and remain in this world forever.]

Xie Rong's face remained expressionless, still looking lazy.

The muffled thuds of fists and feet colliding came from outside. Xie Rong forced himself to climb to the window and pushed it open. It was clearly the simplest action, but it made his heart race and he leaned weakly against the wall.

"Is this how you take care of him?!" Under the orange tree, Jin Jiuzhou, who had arrived at some point, punched Lu Yi in the face. "If I had known it would turn out like this, I would have preferred to hide him in the Jin family's place! At least he wouldn't have to live in this wretched place and end up like this!"

Xie Rong frowned.

What's wrong with him? Is he ugly?

He turned his head to look at the bronze mirror on the table.

The person in the bronze mirror wasn't ugly, but his lips were pale and bloodless, giving him a look that suggested he would die young.

Oh, it was the same when his cultivation was destroyed in his previous life.

Thinking about it this way, I do feel a little nostalgic.

Xie Rong suddenly coughed softly.

The two men fighting outside stopped and hurriedly went inside.

"Xie Rong, how are you?" Jin Jiuzhou pushed Lu Yi aside, his eyes red and pleading as he looked at him. "Do you still recognize me?"

There were so many men in the Misty Valley back then that they were countless, and he was afraid that Xie Rong wouldn't remember him.

Before Xie Rong could answer, Jin Jiuzhou continued, "Xie Rong, the Empress Dowager has gone mad."

"Um?"

Jin Jiuzhou told him what had happened in the past six months.

The Empress Dowager searched desperately for the Holy Son of the Southern Frontier but could not find him. People in the court were already restless and complaining. Just then, Liu Zhanyi stepped forward, claiming to be the Holy Son of the Southern Frontier and able to help the Empress Dowager cultivate the art of immortality.

At first, the Empress Dowager did indeed grow younger day by day, and even Xie Rong and Lu Yi, the pair of star-crossed lovers who had provoked her, became too lazy to pursue the matter any further.

But just a month ago, the Empress Dowager's face began to fester, and even insect eggs crawled out of the wound.

When the Empress Dowager ordered people to arrest Liu Zhanyi, they discovered that the man had already become a corpse possessed by Gu worms.

The old people in the palace said it was all retribution.

Ten years ago, the newly appointed Empress Dowager, in order to gain the trust of her subjects, attempted to control people's hearts by practicing evil Gu poison. So she secretly captured the Holy Maiden of the Southern Frontier and forced her to practice Gu poison. However, the Holy Maiden of the Southern Frontier was strong-willed and refused to comply, starving herself to death.

Ten years later, the Empress Dowager wanted to capture the Holy Son of Southern Xinjiang to refine the Longevity Gu for herself. However, the Holy Son of Southern Xinjiang had already learned the truth of what happened back then and came specifically to avenge his mother. It can be said that karma is a cycle of cause and effect.

Now that the Empress Dowager has been poisoned by the Gu worm and is not far from death, the Emperor has regained power. Thinking of the commander who is still on the run, he issued an edict to pardon Lu Yi and ordered Jin Jiuzhou to come and pick him up. As long as he returns, he can be reinstated to his original position.