game
A few steps away, a girl dressed in a bright purple gauze dress appeared out of nowhere.
She had a relaxed and casual posture, her skirt was embroidered with large datura flowers, and her small face was extremely beautiful.
Those beautiful almond-shaped eyes were now staring straight at Yun Wei, the light in them gradually fading.
Nangong Ya, the master of Wan Du Valley.
A year ago, Yun Wei, sword in hand, pursued the evil cultivator who used living people to refine souls, venturing deep into the Valley of Ten Thousand Poisons. The evil cultivator was exceptionally cunning, and after several twists and turns, she finally pierced his heart with her sword in the place where the miasma was densest.
She sheathed her sword and turned to leave, but out of the corner of her eye she caught sight of a girl in purple squatting on the ground at the edge of the miasma, frantically trying to save a child.
The child's face was bluish-purple, clearly from being bitten by a poisonous insect. He was barely breathing and was on the verge of death.
Yun Wei stepped forward silently, unleashing a burst of sword energy to expel the poisonous blood from the child's body, and then used her spiritual power to protect his heart meridian.
The girl looked up in astonishment, her almond-shaped eyes wide with surprise, her competitive spirit aroused by the girl's decisive and efficient methods.
"My Ten Thousand Poisons Valley has plenty of spiritual herbs, why would I need your help?" Nangong Ya said loudly, with the arrogance unique to the Valley Master, and reached out to stop her, her fingertips touching an old wound on her shoulder and arm.
When the girl saw that her wound was bleeding, her face suddenly turned pale. The panic in her eyes seemed genuine, but she offered to treat her old wound in a firm tone.
She does have many old wounds, which don't bother her normally, but they always slow down her swordplay during intense battles. If she can use this opportunity to eradicate them, she will be much more confident in eliminating evil spirits in the future.
Although this person is the master of Poison Valley, judging from his actions in saving children, his nature is not entirely evil.
After a moment's hesitation, she agreed to stay.
Three months after entering the valley, Nangong Ya personally delivered her medicine every day, always complaining with disgust, "Don't die in my valley and cause trouble." Yun Wei would tell her some anecdotes and interesting stories from the outside world.
Before leaving, Nangong Ya insisted on making a one-year promise, and Yun Wei silently agreed.
I never imagined that we would meet again in such a wretched state.
She broke the rules and left the valley; the backlash she suffered is likely already quite severe.
"Aya, when did you leave the valley?" Yunwei already understood seven or eight parts of the situation. Aya's appearance at this time and place was to question her and to settle scores.
Her gaze lingered briefly on Nangong Ya's face before turning to Xie Lanchen, who was barely breathing, and the five unconscious disciples beside him.
As long as the bond of life exists, if Xie Lanchen dies, my soul will also be scattered.
Nangong Ya took two steps forward, her lips pressed tightly together, as if a thousand words were stuck in her throat. After a long while, she finally squeezed out a few words filled with resentment: "Yunwei! I've waited for you for a whole year! Spring, summer, autumn, and winter, I pruned and moved those few best-blooming datura trees at the valley entrance every day, hoping that you would see them when you came! But what did I get? I got the 'good news' that Yunwei, the chief disciple of Guiyun Sect, had fallen into the demonic path, slaughtered the innocent, and died tragically in Shitang Town!"
Her chest heaved, her bright face was taut, and the corners of her eyes were red as if they were about to bleed, but she gritted her teeth and did not show any weakness.
"I don't believe it! Not even a little bit! The Yunwei I know is the leader of the sword path, whose sword light can ward off evil spirits! She is a Yunwei with a pure heart who cannot bear to see innocent children suffer! She would never fall into demonic ways! Nor would she indiscriminately kill innocent people!"
When his gaze swept over the boy beside him, there was a hint of barely perceptible disgust, as if he were looking at something that bothered him. He then spoke again, "But now, you are hiding in the sword, hanging out with this kid."
The girl was willing to break the rules of the valley and suffer so much in order to verify this matter.
In the valley during the third month of that year, she complained about the trouble, but delivered medicine every day. When Yunwei practiced swordsmanship, she would be playing with poisonous herbs not far away. Occasionally their eyes would meet, but they would quickly look away.
She didn't speak of those subtle, unprecedented moments of warmth, but she kept them in her heart.
Aya's current state is all because of her.
“Aya, the rumors are half true and half false.” Yunwei met her gaze and spoke steadily, “I did ‘die’ in Shitang Town, but the claim that the fallen demons slaughtered innocent people is a frame-up.”
"Framed? Who framed you? Who could frame you? Who could kill you? How long are you going to keep lying to me?"
Her gaze pierced Xie Lanchen once more, the boy's pale and fragile appearance now appearing only glaringly repulsive to her.
It must be him! This kid who suddenly appeared! Why did Yun Wei's sword end up in his hands? And why did Yun Wei use her remnant soul to protect him? There must be something strange between them!
"Is it because of him? Is it because of this kid? You fell in love with him, were bewitched by him, and that's why you fell into the demonic path, forgot our promise, and ended up like this?"
Before she finished speaking, Nangong Ya flicked her wrist, and a few specks of pale blue powder flew from her fingertips and into Xie Lanchen's mouth and nose.
The boy's already faint breath instantly vanished completely, and even the rise and fall of his chest became barely perceptible. His face quickly turned ashen.
Yun Wei's heart skipped a beat. As the master of the Valley of Ten Thousand Poisons, how could Nangong Ya not know the key to the Covenant of Life? If Xie Lanchen died, she would also be annihilated.
Was the girl's action a test? A threat? Or was she truly blinded by anger?
"Aya, where is the antidote?" Yun Wei asked coldly.
"What? Feeling sorry for him?" Nangong Ya raised her chin. "Don't worry, he won't die. At most, he'll feel like a million poisonous ants are gnawing at his body day and night, unable to live or die." She wanted to see just how much this kid, whom Yun Wei "cared about" so much, was really worth.
She's still the same person, always using the most extreme methods to force people to comply and test their hearts.
Yun Wei frowned slightly, feeling that her temperament was even more unpredictable than it had been back in the valley.
Nangong Ya suddenly chuckled, flicked her slender finger, and five dark lights flew out from her sleeve, striking the arms of the five disciples respectively.
"I want you to play a 'game' with me," Nangong Ya said, enunciating each word clearly, her voice carrying a hint of nonchalance. "If you win, I'll give you the antidote."
What will happen if we lose?
The girl's eyes darted around, and she drew out the last syllable:
If we lose—
"You have to come back to the Valley of Ten Thousand Poisons with me."
Before she could finish speaking, Yun Wei caught a glimpse of a cold light piercing her left shoulder.
They moved quickly, much more efficiently than they used to.
She had no intention of using the Lone Goose Sword. She simply raised her arm, brought her right index and middle fingers together like a sword, and pushed them unremarkably towards the pulse point on the inside of Nangong Ya's wrist where she held the blade.
The short blade in the girl's hand fell to the ground with a crisp clang.
Yun Wei didn't stop moving. She grabbed Nangong Ya's wrist with her right hand and pulled her back to the stone wall about ten feet behind her.
When her acupoints were restrained, Nangong Ya felt as if her shoulders and even half of her body were filled with a thousand pounds of mud and sand, incredibly heavy, and all her strength was instantly drained away.
She could only lean against the stone wall, stubbornly struggling as if to say: I will definitely defeat you today! I don't believe that you can still do this even with only a remnant soul left!
Yunwei looked at her quietly for a long time, then sighed: "Aya, you're still so impatient."
Nangong Ya clenched her fist, her knuckles turning white.
She knew Yun Wei had held back; if that blow had been even slightly stronger, her arm would be broken and completely useless by now.
But it was precisely this nonchalant crushing, this composure as if facing a mischievous child, that fueled her anger.
"You won! Okay, okay!" Nangong Ya suddenly lowered her head, her long hair falling down and covering most of her face. Her voice was full of frustration and resentment, but she stubbornly stuck her neck out and argued, "You got lucky this time! Next time... next time I'll definitely beat you down!" At the end, her voice even carried a slight, barely perceptible sob.
Did she give up on herself? Or... did she cry?
Yun Wei loosened her grip on her hand, took two steps back, and a subtle ripple finally appeared in her amber eyes.
She replied softly, "Okay, then I'll wait for next time."
Sure enough, the next moment, Yunwei saw the girl suddenly raise her head. Her beautiful almond-shaped eyes were now glistening with tears, and large tears rolled down uncontrollably, "plop plop" onto the gravel ground at her feet.
Her bright face was full of grievances. Was it because she lost?
Or is it because of...me? Yunwei couldn't help but wonder.
She died once, betrayed by her closest relatives and fellow disciples, and her remnant soul was attached to a sword. With only revenge left in her heart, she had long since abandoned all emotions and desires and acted only by weighing the pros and cons.
She naturally assumed that others were the same, but she overlooked the fact that this spoiled, willful, and hypocritical girl from the Valley of Ten Thousand Poisons would risk the danger of being devoured by ten thousand poisons just to find her and ask her the truth, all because of a promise.
"It's my fault, I've caused her this much trouble," Yunwei thought.
Yun Wei silently stepped forward, bent down slightly, and stretched out her right hand to gently pinch Nangong Ya's chin.
He raised his left hand and awkwardly wiped away the tear stains from the corner of her eye.
What needs to be said must eventually be said. Hiding it from her will only lead to misunderstandings.
"The one who killed me," Yun Wei stared directly into Nangong Ya's tear-filled eyes, her voice icy, enunciating each word clearly, "was Xie Qingfeng, the sect leader of Guiyun Sect."
Nangong Ya's expression changed instantly.
Xie Qingfeng? The Guiyun Sect Master, revered as a paragon of virtue and righteousness by the righteous sects of the world? Yun Wei's father?
The image of Yun Wei's barely perceptible, almost distant, conversation about her father and fellow disciples flashed through her mind...
It turns out that beneath those seemingly majestic and towering palaces, shrouded in ethereal beauty, lies a place of filth and depravity.
"Xie! Qing! Feng!" Nangong Ya spat out the name through gritted teeth, then broke free from Yun Wei's grasp. "I'm going to kill him! I'm going to Guiyun Sect right now to poison that old bastard! I'll let him taste what it's like to have ten thousand poisons devour his heart and his liver and intestines torn apart!"
"Impulsive suicide will not help," Yun Wei said at the right time.
This matter must be resolved by her personally.
But not now.
She paused, her gaze falling on Nangong Ya's tear-stained eyes, and a feeling of "apology" awkwardly surfaced within her.
"A year has not passed, but it is not because I have forgotten."
“I remember you once said that you were curious about the everyday life of ordinary people. There must be some novel things in the market. I originally wanted to collect some and bring them to you in the valley.”
Such is my nature: indifferent and detached, I weigh the pros and cons of everything, and my heart is filled with nothing but sword and Dao.
Yunwei never felt there was anything wrong with this. The leader of the sword path should be single-minded and detached from worldly affairs.
Unexpectedly, the girl would disregard the valley rules and risk being devoured by countless poisons to break the taboo and leave, just to find her and ask for an answer.
She didn't care that Nangong Ya hated her; that was only natural. She just felt that her cold nature had dragged others down with her, which was truly wrong.
"I'm sorry, it's my fault," Yunwei said again.
“My cold and aloof nature has caused you this much trouble. Breaking the rules and leaving the valley carries the immense danger of being devoured by countless poisons. You shouldn’t have come here, much less risked your life for me.”
This was her truest thought at that moment; she didn't want to burden anyone, especially this young girl who could have lived a peaceful life.
Nangong Ya sniffed hard, wiped her face haphazardly with her sleeve, and muttered, "Stop talking nonsense! You cold-hearted, sword-crazy bastard! You..." Before she could finish speaking, she was interrupted by a sob rising in her throat again.
The girl turned her face away, took a few deep breaths, wiped her face with her sleeve, and after a while turned back sullenly, glaring at Yun Wei: "What are you going to do next? Can I help you?"
She completely forgot about the rules and punishments of the valley at that moment.
All she knew was that the person in front of her was Yun Wei, the friend she had chosen, the Yun Wei who had saved the child from the edge of the miasma, and the Yun Wei who made her feel that the world outside the valley was not entirely boring.
She needs her! That's enough!
Yun Wei remained silent for a long while before finally speaking: "I'm going to find someone."
The Lone Goose Sword was her life-bound possession and the dwelling place of her remnant soul. Now, the sword is severely damaged, and although Yun Wei can barely take human form, her foundation is unstable.
The most urgent task is to find skilled craftsmen to reforge the sword and restore its spirit.
Otherwise, the day when his soul is scattered is not far off.
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