Chapter 63 She Wants the Lonely Moon to Hang High Forever

The puppet talisman turned to ashes as soon as it was removed. Ling Shu had intended to keep it as a clue, but it was a pity.

Li Chang was stunned. By the time she came to her senses, Ling Shu had already reached Hai Gu's side before her.

Li Chang was anxious and didn't know what to do, so she just cried, "Hai Gu, how are you feeling?"

The sea maiden stared blankly ahead, her face expressionless, her body frozen in mid-air, before suddenly plummeting downwards.

"Hey! Hey! Hey! Hai Gu!" Li Chang was completely flustered and even more frightened.

Ling Shu reacted quickly, pulling Hai Gu back. Hai Gu was plump and couldn't be held. She shouted to the people above, "What are you standing there for? Come help!"

Li Chang then wiped away her tears and flew down to help.

The two of them worked together to pull Hai Gu to the ground and landed safely.

The sea maiden was pierced through by seven arrows, her eyes wide open, still clutching the array-destroying pestle tightly in her hand.

Li Chang dared not look directly at her, and was terrified: "It's over, it's over, Hai Gu will die with her eyes wide open in anger."

Ling Shu acted as if nothing had happened, supporting Hai Gu with one hand and pulling the arrow out with the other, saying, "Come and help."

Li Chang glanced back and met Hai Gu's "unseemly" eyes. She quickly closed her eyes and turned away, but then she kindly asked, "What can I do to help..."

"Pull out the arrow."

Li Chang let out an "Ah..." and still came to help. When she pulled out the arrow, she felt something was wrong. Why wasn't Hai Gu bleeding after being shot?

After pulling out one, Li Chang stared at the arrow for a long time, and there really wasn't a single drop of blood on it.

Ling Shu: "What are you standing there like an idiot for? Hai Gu isn't dead."

Li Chang asked in confusion, "Hai Gu isn't dead?"

Ling Shu said, "The sea maiden is like ginseng, her body is not made of flesh and blood. She won't die from being shot by an arrow, she just needs some time to react. Hurry up and pull out the arrow, we haven't finished our business yet." After saying that, she pointed to the Desolate Calamity Formation in the sky.

The two worked together to pull the arrow out of the sea maiden's body. Ling Shu put the arrow away and went to find the bow that she had knocked away, planning to investigate who had tried to assassinate her. The rabbit demon couldn't possibly make another move, so there must be someone else who wanted her dead. But who was it?!

Li Chang: "Who exactly wants to kill you?"

Ling Shu frowned and said, "This person's magic power is stronger than Li's... stronger than that rabbit demon's. He has at least the cultivation level of the late Nascent Soul stage. I am also unfamiliar with the aura attached to him. Moreover, being able to approach Bi Tan Mountain at this time means he is definitely not an ordinary cultivator. He must be at least an elder. I don't remember offending any elder."

Li Chang: "My God, this is a formidable opponent."

Ling Shu: "Well, all I can say is to be careful in everything."

When the bow was found, Hai Gu returned to normal. She looked at the sky and said, "The Desolate Calamity Array has stopped splitting."

——

Qingxi Mountain.

Wang Lifu: "Hai Gu saved Ling Shu."

Zhuang Jinfu finally breathed a sigh of relief upon receiving the news.

Wang Lifu and the other elders in the side hall reported the number of casualties. This time the response was timely and no one was injured. She listened to the news in the hall, thinking about the situation on Bi Tanshan Ling Shu's side. The rabbit demon had been rescued and she wanted to call Cang Luo over to check on the situation.

They sent people to look for her everywhere, but they couldn't find her.

Upon hearing that the rabbit demon's poison had been cured and the desolate calamity array had stopped splitting, Zhuang Jinfu wanted to go to Bitan Mountain, but he couldn't make it this time because Wang Lifu stopped him in the main hall.

Wang Lifu: "Do you want to announce your selfish motives to the world?"

“Look at those people outside the hall. Every single one of them is watching your every move. Afu, Ling Shu’s life has just begun. If she succeeds in rescuing people this time, she will be able to establish herself in Shangqing Mountain. Are you going to let all her efforts go to waste and let her bear the reputation of being a femme fatale?”

She withdrew her foot and silently retreated into the house, her back to the door. Looking at the throne in the main seat, she felt as if she were bound by a thousand shackles. The intimacy in the Tongxuan Secret Realm was like drinking poison to quench thirst, the poison piercing her lungs and heart, yet also causing her deep longing.

She slowly ascended the steps, stopped before the throne, turned around, and looked down at the empty hall.

The hall was warm as spring, but she felt chilled to the bone and longed for that warm body to embrace her waist without any restraint and sweetly call her "Master" to dispel the cold of standing alone on the high throne.

As the sun began to set in the west, news finally arrived: the calamity formation at Bitan Mountain had been completely eradicated.

With the matter settled, Ling Shu should return to Qingxi Mountain.

"They're back!" someone shouted from outside the hall.

Zhuang Jinfu hurriedly got up from his seat and went to the door, only to see Hai Gu returning alone.

The cultivators exclaimed with delight, "It's the fairy maiden under the Immortal Venerable's command who has returned!"

No one knows what methods Wang Lifu used to deceive Hai Gu into revealing her identity.

Hai Gu came straight to her as soon as she entered the room. Before Zhuang Jinfu could ask, Hai Gu already knew what she was concerned about: "Miss Ling is not feeling well and has gone to the Medical Pulse Apricot Forest Peak to recuperate. Li Chang is also there."

Zhuang Jinfu asked anxiously, "Is she feeling unwell? What's wrong with her?"

Hai Gu originally wanted to tell the story of the assassination attempt, but there were too many people around, and she was afraid of alerting the attacker. She decided to find another time to report it to the Immortal Venerable.

She smiled and replied, "Don't worry, Miss Ling's cultivation is insufficient to support the body of a Golden Core stage cultivator. Fortunately, she has only lost half of her cultivation. Now, with the help of the medical elders, she can drink some medicine and replenish her with a lot of spiritual energy. She can rest and recuperate, and then slowly restore her cultivation."

Zhuang Jinfu responded and was about to leave, but stopped in front of the door.

Hai Gu was puzzled. She and her master had always been very close, wishing they could be inseparable and sticking together all day long. But after this life-or-death ordeal, she didn't visit him. She suspected they had a falling out: "Immortal Venerable, aren't you going to go and see him?"

"She doesn't want to see me." These words sounded like a sigh, a self-deprecating remark, but were mostly filled with helplessness.

Upon hearing the news, Zhao Chi happily came over to ask which ward Ling Shu was in. Hai Gu told her, and she readily agreed to deliver food to Ling Shu.

Zhuang Jinfu admired this composure.

Zhao Chi followed Hai Gu into the kitchen, only to be chased out by Hai Gu once again.

Hai Gu sees Zhao Chi as a competitor to the Immortal Venerable, and as the Immortal Venerable's protector, she is determined to drive the competitor out.

No sooner had Zhao Chi left than someone else came in.

Hai Gu laughed and said, "Oh, the sun has risen in the west! Immortal Venerable, you actually dare to grace this humble place with your presence? What, are you going to cook?"

Zhuang Jinfu has always been someone who never lifts a finger in the kitchen. He can cook, but he rarely lowers himself to do so. He just acts as a connoisseur of food, nitpicking that this isn't fresh enough or that isn't spicy enough. Hai Gu accepts all of this and tells her to get out if she doesn't like it. Then she falls silent and eats quietly.

Zhuang Jinfu's ears turned red, and she scolded him, "What are you babbling about? If you say that again, your wages will be halved next month."

——

Hai Gu couldn't resist Zhao Chi's persistent pestering. Suspecting that Li Chang had possessed her body and had even learned her shameless and spoiled manner, Hai Gu had no choice but to let her go with her.

Ling Shu leaned against the headboard, looking much better. The room was piled with flower and fruit baskets. Someone knocked on the door, and Hai Gu's voice came from outside, making her heart pound: "Come in."

The person outside pushed the door open and entered. Upon seeing Hai Gu, their eyes followed her closely, but they spotted Zhao Chi's face. Zhao Chi entered the door and closed it behind him.

Ling Shu's many expectations were shattered when the door closed.

Hai Gu put down the food box, opened the lid, and took out the food. Zhao Chi eagerly handed the bowl to Ling Shu.

She took it, listened to Hai Gu's endless admonitions that she was tired of hearing, picked up her favorite shrimp dumplings and ate them. In a bad mood, she chewed a few bites and found them tasteless.

"Hai Gu, did you change the recipe? The shrimp dumplings taste different from what I've had before."

"It doesn't taste good?"

"A little."

"You have to finish it even if it doesn't taste good!"

Ling Shu smacked her lips: "No, it's too salty, and the wrapper is too thick; it looks really ugly."

When Zhao Chi was chased away from the kitchen by Hai Gu, he thought about going back. Just as he turned around, he saw Zhuang Jinfu heading towards the kitchen.

Presumably, these shrimp dumplings were made by the Celestial Venerable.

She condescended to cook for her.

Perhaps Ling Shu's love is no longer one-sided.

Zhao Chi couldn't squeeze in.

"Ling Shu, you must finish it." Zhao Chi tried his best not to let the bitterness in his heart show through his smile.

Ling Shu paused with her chopsticks, which were holding a fried egg, and mumbled an "Mmm" in response. She then moved her chopsticks to the crystal shrimp dumplings, picked up a dumpling with slightly uneven pleats, and put it in her mouth to chew slowly.

Hai Gu disliked Zhao Chi entering the kitchen. She said that food should be prepared by her own people for peace of mind. Hai Gu never considered Zhao Chi as one of her own. She always remembered that Zhao Chi had tried to assassinate her, so she would not allow Zhao Chi into the kitchen.

So these crystal shrimp dumplings were made by Zhuang Jinfu.

The person she longed to see but dared not see was also thinking of her.

Hai Gu: "You eat first, I'll go deliver food to Li Chang, she's a pitiful child too."

"Um."

Ling Shu cannot let herself be overwhelmed by her emotions; she must find something else to distract herself.

As soon as Zhao Chi entered the room, Ling Shu noticed that her complexion was off. She had severe dark circles under her eyes, looked unwell, and had many bloodshot eyes, as if she hadn't been sleeping well.

Ling Shu put down her chopsticks and said, "I rescued you from prison. You shouldn't be showing yourself in public. You still have a criminal record. If you show yourself in public, the people at the execution platform won't let you off."

Zhao Chi looked rather uneasy, bowing his head repeatedly: "Yes, I know. You were the one who went to Bitan Mountain to save the Shangqing Sect. I couldn't just stand by and watch you fall into danger."

Ling Shu knew Zhao Chi's feelings for her, but she simply couldn't respond: "Zhao Chi, don't do anything for me anymore. We're just ordinary friends. You don't need to risk your life for me again and again. It's not worth it."

"I owe you my life, it's all worth it."

Zhao Chi finally looked up, her sincere gaze falling upon her. The setting sun outside the window couldn't reach her body; she was dressed in black, and on the darker side, she looked like a wandering soul, with only her sincere and clear eyes as the only light in her being.

Ling Shu was silent for a moment, then said, "Zhao Chi, you want me to turn around and look at you, but have you ever turned around and looked at Fire Sparrow?"

Zhao Chi lowered her head again. She had always lacked courage and could not withstand any questioning. Ling Shu and she were like her and Huo Que. In essence, she and Huo Que were the same kind of people.

"Firebird...I...I don't like her."

Ling Shu was very straightforward: "I don't like you."

"Don't waste your energy on me anymore."

Zhao Chi didn't leave. He lowered his head and smiled gently, "I know the food is getting cold. You should eat quickly."

After the meal, Zhao Chi went back with Hai Gu. Li Chang was fine. She and Ling Shu had resolved the crisis of the Desolate Calamity Array. Her demonic form had also earned the respect of other cultivators. This was the first time in her life that she had received recognition from others.

Li Chang was uneducated and incompetent, but she was not always an uneducated and incompetent playboy.

She tried her best, but her cultivation was always thwarted. Even with the same effort, her results in the same formation were always far inferior to those of others. She was not particularly talented and had only average comprehension. She always felt a blockage in her energy during cultivation, unable to rise. She did not know why. After seeking out a famous teacher, her cultivation still made no progress, so she simply gave up and became an idle and good-for-nothing playboy.

People called her a fool born with a silver spoon in her mouth, and she always felt powerless to change it.

Only now did she realize that the spiritual root within her body was not her own. The spiritual root was not compatible with her body, and at most she could only cultivate to the early stage of Foundation Establishment. She was destined to have her cultivation hindered throughout her life. She was not a person who was suitable for cultivation.

After learning that she was a demon, she finally made peace with herself.

Li Chang was playful and happy. When other cultivators invited her to play, she would go. In the past, everyone called her "Young Miss," which was a show of respect on the surface but a mockery in reality, laughing at her for not being worthy of the resources.

Now, people call her "Li Chang" instead of "Miss Li," which makes her seem more approachable by removing her former title.

Ling Shu was reading a storybook in her hospital room. She had set up a small spirit-suppressing device in the room, specially designed for her. She had lost half of her cultivation, so she was temporarily making up for the gap with spiritual energy. Once her body adapted, she would slowly resume her cultivation.

There was no snow falling outside the window, and the moon was unusually bright as the dark clouds did not obscure it. A solitary moon hung high in the sky, clear and cold, accompanied by countless stars. However, from the ground, even the brightest stars could not compare to its tiny bit of light.

She wanted the lonely moon to hang high forever.

But she couldn't bear the thoughts that lingered in the quiet of the night. She threw off the covers, got out of bed, slipped out of the ward, and headed straight for Qingxi Mountain, where she burst through the gates of Guyue Palace.