Chapter 197 Tell me, what are your thoughts?
At the hour of Yin (3-5 AM), the rosy dawn finally dissipated, and the sky returned to its original gray-blue color.
Bai Xiuming carried Achan out of the mountain god temple where they had spent the night. The long sword that had been stuck at the temple entrance and had lost its luster shattered silently.
At this time, all the vegetation in Ghost Cry Mountain was withered and dead, but as one walked through it, one could faintly hear the chirping of birds in the distance.
Bai Xiuming deliberately took a few detours to the location of the Ghost Gate. Now, all that remained was a bottomless pit, from which no trace of yin energy could be seen.
Although everything had already settled when he woke up, it didn't stop him from figuring out the cause and effect.
Achan used the Five Elements Elixir to summon her father, saving his life. The high-level evil spirits sealed here were all annihilated.
Bai Xiuming turned his head slightly, looking down at A Chan, who was sleeping soundly with her head resting on his shoulder. There were still tear stains on her face.
His lips lightly touched her forehead, and Bai Xiuming's figure flickered several times before disappearing into Ghost Cry Mountain.
After advancing to the fifth realm, a cultivator enters another level of life, and their cultivation level is vastly different from that of the fourth realm. He brought the person back to the capital from Liangzhou in just half an hour, shortly after the curfew in the capital had ended.
Upon entering the city, Bai Xiuming took Achan directly to the Mingjing Division. The two shifts of guards who were about to take their turn saw their commander return and stepped forward to bow in unison: "My lord."
"Is the Commander at the yamen?" Bai Xiuming asked.
At this hour, normal officials wouldn't be resting in the yamen, but Qin Heng was all alone, and when he needed to be in charge of the yamen, he almost never went back to his residence.
A guard from the Mingjing Division hurriedly replied, "The Commander did not leave the yamen last night."
“Go and invite him over, and tell him I’m back.”
"Yes." The guard from the Mingjing Division hurriedly ran into the yamen.
Bai Xiuming carried Achan back to his residence in the yamen, put her on the bed, and then washed a clean cloth to wipe her face and hands clean.
Throughout the entire process, Achan did not react at all.
Just then, there was a knock on the door. After only two knocks, the door was pushed open from the outside.
Qin Heng's gruff voice came at the same time: "Why are you back so soon? What about Qingzhou..."
He had just stepped one foot across the threshold when he looked up and saw someone lying on Bai Xiuming's bed. Despite his loud voice, the person didn't react at all.
He quickly stopped and stepped outside the door, lowering his voice as he asked, "What happened?"
"It's alright." Bai Xiuming set up a barrier around the bed, got up and walked towards the door.
Qin Heng frowned as he sized up Bai Xiuming. The man's clothes were tattered and stained with blood, suggesting he had encountered another accident on his way back. However…
After staring at him for a while, he asked hesitantly, "Have you grown taller?"
He hadn't just grown taller; his body shape and outline seemed to have changed slightly, very subtly, but it didn't escape his notice.
After saying that, Qin Heng seemed to realize something, hissed, and his eyes widened in shock: "You're the one who broke through to the fifth realm?"
When a cultivator breaks through the fifth realm, their physical body is reshaped and becomes one with their soul, bringing the physical body to perfection. This is how Bai Xiuming's body changed.
Qin Heng naturally saw the strange phenomenon in the heavens and earth, but he hadn't guessed that it was related to Bai Xiuming, after all, he was still so young.
Bai Xiuming nodded: "By luck."
"You've broken through, so why aren't you going to see the Prince? What are you doing at the yamen?" Qin Heng said, raising his chin. "And you even brought a girl back with you."
"I have things to do, so I feel more at ease leaving you here."
Achan's departure from the capital will inevitably involve coercion from Bai Zhanhuang. Although Bai Zhanhuang should no longer have many Fourth Realm experts at his disposal, Bai Xiuming is still uneasy.
As for my father, it's best not to meet him until this matter is over.
"Okay," Qin Heng readily agreed. "When will you be back?"
Bai Xiuming glanced at the sky outside: "Tomorrow at the latest."
Qin Heng then asked, "What's the girl's condition? How should we tell her if she wakes up?"
Bai Xiuming glanced into the room: "Don't worry, she won't wake up today."
Although the life force that entered Achan's body was gentle enough, it was simply too immense. It would take some time for her body and soul to merge with the life force, and she probably wouldn't wake up by this time tomorrow.
"That's good." Qin Heng breathed a sigh of relief; he really didn't know how to deal with girls.
Just as he was about to leave, he heard Bai Xiuming say, "Have someone send a knife over."
"Alright." Qin Heng didn't ask where his previous sword had gone, waved to him, and left.
Bai Xiuming went back to his room to change into a clean robe. When he came out, the person who delivered the knife had already arrived.
He took the long black sword, drew the blade, and flicked it with his fingertips, producing a buzzing sound.
"It's a fine sword." He said with a smile, sheathed the long sword, and then left the Mingjing Division with the sword in his hand.
More accurately, they left Beijing.
At this moment, two figures appeared on the official road at the border of Liangzhou and Tongzhou; they were none other than Bai Zhanhuang and Bei Huai.
The two of them were also trapped in Ghost Cry Mountain last night, but all the high-level evil spirits that escaped from the Ghost Gate were attracted to Bai Xiuming, and they easily got through the night.
What happened next was so shocking that the two of them are still deeply disturbed.
Those evil spirits died at the hands of the nine-tailed fox, and then strange phenomena appeared in the sky that lingered for a long time.
At this moment, Bai Zhanhuang felt extremely complicated. The nine-tailed fox was probably made by Achan. If Bai Xiuming hadn't come last night, would Achan have used such methods to deal with her?
He really underestimated Achan's vengefulness. When did she find out about Huangwu's weakness, and how long ago did she plan all of this?
"Your Highness, the returning caravan is still on its way. Should we wait?" Bei Huai glanced back at the deserted official road from time to time, his eyes filled with worry.
Last night he narrowly escaped death, almost dying at Ghost Cry Mountain like Huangwu and Beiyan.
He narrowly escaped death, but the strange celestial phenomenon that had occurred earlier still made him very nervous.
That Bai Xiuming... could it be that he broke through?
Common sense told Bei Huai that the possibility was extremely slim, but the timing was too perfect, leaving him no room for carelessness.
"No need to wait, let's go first and get back to the Northern Wilderness as quickly as possible." Bai Zhanhuang shared the same worries as Bei Huai.
He no longer cared about Achan; he just wanted to get back to his own territory immediately.
Regardless of whether the person who broke through was Bai Xiuming or not, he now has to find another way out for himself.
After making the decision, Bai Zhanhuang and Bei Huai continued to use their inner energy to travel. Since his cultivation was not as good as Bei Huai's, he would occasionally take a pill to replenish his inner energy.
The two of them did not dare to delay for the slightest while traveling from dawn to dusk. It was only just past midnight that they found a riverbank to rest for a while.
They have now entered Jeju territory, and at this rate, they should be able to leave the pass by dawn.
Along the way, no one came after them, and they finally stopped being as anxious as before.
Bai Zhanhuang washed his face by the river and looked up to see the moonlight reflected on the water, shimmering in the sunlight.
He stared at the river, lost in thought for a moment. His life had always been smooth sailing; even after his father's death, his struggle for the throne with his brothers hadn't seriously harmed him. Now, however, he felt like a stray dog.
No matter how much he planned, he couldn't overcome the biases in people's hearts.
Bai Zhanhuang shook the water droplets off his hands and was about to get up when his body suddenly froze.
A faint smell of blood wafted over on the night breeze. He slowly turned his head and saw Bei Huai sitting silently against a tree trunk not far away.
His eyes were wide open, staring intently in Bai Zhanhuang's direction, with two streaks of blood spreading from his eyes and across his cheeks.
Is Bei Huai dead?
A cultivator of the fourth realm, someone most people in the world would look up to, died right beside him, yet he was completely unaware.
The moment he realized it, Bai Zhanhuang felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave, and despair and fear spread uncontrollably from his heart.
The worst guess came true.
After staring blankly at Bei Huai's corpse for a long while, Bai Zhanhuang finally stood up, supporting himself on his knees. The surroundings were deathly silent; only the erratic pounding of his heart could be heard.
Bai Zhanhuang licked his dry lips and took a few steps forward: "Come out."
Bai Xiuming's figure suddenly appeared in front of him, and he didn't even see how the other party appeared.
"When did you catch up?" he asked.
"When you were in Tongzhou."
Bai Zhanhuang closed his eyes, his mouth filled with bitterness. This was the Fifth Realm.
"Why didn't you act then?" Asking these questions now is meaningless; he can't wait for any backup plan. He's just unwilling to give up.
Bai Xiuming rested his long sword on the ground and patiently answered his question: "It's rare to see the Northern Wilderness King fleeing for his life, so I found it interesting and watched for a while longer."
interesting……
These two words were an extreme insult to Bai Zhanhuang. His chest heaved violently several times. If it were someone else who said it, he would accept it as the victor taking all, but this person was Bai Xiuming!
"Anything else you want to ask? You can ask now." Bai Xiuming's voice was devoid of much emotion. "I need to go back to be with Achan before dawn. The Northern Wilderness King has one hour left to give his last words."
Hearing Achan's name uttered by Bai Xiuming, Bai Zhanhuang felt an indescribable mix of emotions.
He had once firmly believed that Achan would eventually stay by his side.
But she was like a shooting star streaking across the night sky, brilliant and beautiful, yet she only passed before his eyes and never belonged to him.
In the end, she still chose to die.
Bai Zhanhuang took a deep breath and finally spoke: "If I am willing to hand over the title of King of the Northern Wilderness and everything in the Northern Wilderness Royal Palace to any successor designated by the Emperor, would Lord Bai be willing to spare my life?"
Undoubtedly, this is a rather tempting offer.
The disappearance of the Northern Wilderness King and his replacement, along with his voluntary abdication and smooth succession, inevitably had some impact on the emperor's reputation.
If Bai Zhanhuang were standing before the emperor now, he might be able to persuade him.
Unfortunately, it was Bai Xiuming who stood here.
Bai Xiuming raised an eyebrow slightly: "Does the Northern Wilderness King think I would let you go?"
"This condition is entirely beneficial to you."
"Your existence is a hindrance to me." Bai Xiuming no longer concealed the murderous intent in his eyes.
For Bai Xiuming, Bai Zhanhuang's attempt to assassinate him was secondary; what he shouldn't have done was covet Achan.
Just as Bai Zhanhuang wanted his life, Bai Xiuming also wanted the other's life.
The long sword was drawn from its sheath, the moonlight shining on the cold blade. Bai Xiuming held the sword in reverse, the tip scraping against the pebbles on the riverbank with a piercing sound.
Bai Xiuming stepped forward, with the quietly flowing river behind him; he had nowhere to retreat.
Ironically, despite his cultivation level, he was utterly powerless against Bai Xiuming.
Only when you truly face the Fifth Realm will you realize that you've lost even the power to attack. His inner energy seemed to have stagnated, and he couldn't mobilize it at all.
As the other party approached step by step, Bai Zhanhuang suddenly smiled: "Achan has lived in my mansion for three years."
Bai Xiuming stopped wielding his knife and halted his steps.
“For the past three years, I have been with her every day. You should know her. If she really dislikes someone, she will never make herself suffer.”
Seeing the smug look in Bai Zhanhuang's eyes, Bai Xiuming said, "The shop owner next to Achan, Mr. Xu, has been seeing her every day for over a year, and I imagine it will continue in the future. She is always tolerant of unimportant people."
Bai Xiuming didn't give Bai Zhanhuang a chance to speak again. As he swung his longsword, his voice rang out: "King of the Northern Wilderness, remember to be law-abiding in your next life and don't covet what doesn't belong to you."
The blade flashed, and golden flames rose from where the blade tip sliced through the air, burning on Bai Zhanhuang's body.
Bai Zhanhuang did not die under Bai Xiuming's blade; he was ultimately burned to death by Bai Xiuming's scorching internal energy, which was like flames.
In the wilderness, no one heard his screams, and no one knew that the famous King of the Northern Wilderness had died in such a nameless desolate place.
The fire ignited by internal energy was difficult to extinguish. It burned Bai Zhanhuang's physical body and soul to ashes. Finally, it seemed to want to spread to Bei Huai. Just as the flames were about to land on Bei Huai, his foot suddenly stopped.
"Watching your master burn to death with your own eyes, don't you want to avenge him?" Bai Xiuming glanced at Bei Huai, his tone mocking.
Bei Huai wiped the blood from his face and immediately knelt down and kowtowed: "Your Excellency is joking. The Northern Wilderness King clearly died by accident, and it has nothing to do with Your Excellency."
Since Bai Xiuming didn't kill him, he naturally wanted to seize this opportunity to live.
I hope you can always be this smart.
"This humble subject will not disappoint you, sir."
Bai Xiuming glanced at him, ultimately letting Bei Huai go. There were still some things he hadn't asked, and this man needed to live.
He walked to Bai Zhanhuang's remaining skeleton and picked up two rings from the remains.
One was a storage ring, and the other was a gift he gave to Achan.
Bai Xiuming crushed the sealed black ring, and the dragon soul roared out. Sensing the familiar aura, the dragon soul circled twice in the air and then entered Bai Xiuming's sword.
Bai Xiuming turned around and said, "Clean up your master's remains and go to Liangzhou."
"yes."
At midnight, the two returned to Ghost Cry Mountain once again, and Bei Huai personally threw Bai Zhanhuang's remains into the unfathomable pit.
He knew that from then on, the cause of the Northern Wilderness King's death would only be that when he passed through Ghost Cry Mountain, the seal of the Ghost Gate was broken, and he was unfortunately devoured by evil spirits, which had absolutely nothing to do with Bai Xiuming.
At dawn, Bai Xiuming returned to the Mingjing Division.
Just as he said before he left, it only took him one day.
However, as soon as he stepped through the gates of the Mingjing Bureau and took a few steps, he saw a familiar figure.
Bai Xiuming paused in his steps: "Father, what brings you here?"
The King of Light turned around, his gaze sweeping over him: "On your first day of breakthrough, you killed your own cousin. Tell me, what were you thinking?"
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