Chapter 59 He left on the moonless night.
(Fifty-nine)
The surrounding scene faded away like clouds and mist. Li Shanglu shivered with cold, his mind blank.
"You saw everything? If it weren't for Shen Changyi, your family wouldn't have died."
Qianxu's voice rang in my ears, like a devil trying to persuade me.
"It was he who attracted the demon cultivators. It was he who took so long to return that night. If he had returned earlier, your family would have survived. Even Chen Changyi couldn't eliminate your enemies in the end. He's truly useless."
Li Shanglu stood woodenly in the void, the scene of his parents' death constantly appearing before his eyes.
"Your parents must have died tragically. If they hadn't been involved with the Shen family, they'd probably still be alive and well, living as a family in that small town, and you'd still be the child doted on by your parents..." Qian Xu looked at her with pity and whispered, "I couldn't bear to see you being kept in the dark by Shen Changyi, so I created this illusion so you can live in it forever, with your parents."
Hearing this, Li Shanglu finally showed some reaction. She turned her head and slowly looked at Qianxu, "That demon cultivator is you."
Otherwise, how could Qianxu know everything so clearly? If it was Helan Jin who did it, he would have used this trick to alienate her and Shen Changyi when they first met, and he would never have never mentioned it until his death.
"Hmm?" Qianxu lowered his eyes to look at her and chuckled softly, "You are quite smart, not as stupid as the Demon Lord."
He did spread some rumors, causing Shen Changyi to mistakenly believe that Helan Jin was the demon cultivator who killed the Li and Chen families.
But unexpectedly, Helan Jin was so arrogant that he thought Shen Changyi was a cultivator who could be killed at will, just like those useless cultivators he had killed before.
He nonchalantly admitted to Shen Changyi that he was the one who did it, and was chopped to pieces until only a remnant of his soul escaped. Coincidentally, Qian Xu was also killed by Shen Changyi until only a remnant of his soul escaped.
The same thing happened twice, and Helan Jin became Qianxu's scapegoat.
"Even if you know the truth, you'll never be able to escape." Qianxu said with a faint smile, "Li Shanglu, enjoy the rest of your life in this illusion."
As soon as he finished speaking, Qian Xu's figure suddenly disappeared.
The next moment, Li Shanglu's arms suddenly felt itchy. She rolled up her sleeves and discovered that large red rashes began to appear on her body. Her clothes had also turned into the ochre silk dress she wore in the illusion.
The rash spread all over his body like a tide. He felt dizzy and had a fever. Li Shanglu collapsed to the ground with his vision blurred.
She stretched out her hand, but caught a piece of clothing out of thin air.
"Shanglu!"
A familiar voice called out urgently, and her vision finally returned.
Li Hanye held her hand tightly and hugged Li Shanglu into his arms.
Li Shanglu stared at him in a daze in the warm embrace with the fragrance of soapberries, tears rolling down his cheeks unconsciously.
When his fingertips touched her tears, Li Hanye's heart skipped a beat. Shang Lu rarely cried since she was a child. She was a wild girl who would be fine if she fell from a tree by rubbing her butt. Even when she fought with a boy a few years older than her and was pushed into a mud pit, she never cried.
If she was crying, she must be in great pain.
"Fuer, Fuer!"
Li Hanye panicked and hugged her. He found a large rash on her body and shouted anxiously, "Fu'er, come quickly! Shanglu's body is as red as a monkey's butt!"
Immediately afterwards, the door was pushed open. Jiang Fu was still holding the unfinished account book in her hand. Seeing Li Shanglu's appearance, she hurriedly threw the account book away and rushed over to support her.
"What's going on? Why did you break out in so many rashes?" Jiang Fu held Li Shanglu's face. Seeing her stunned and crying, she felt even more distressed. She shouted at Li Hanye, "Why don't you go find a doctor right away?"
Only then did Li Hanye calm down, put Li Shanglu into Jiang Fu's arms, and went outside to find a doctor.
"father!"
The heart-wrenching cry made Li Hanye stop suddenly.
Both the husband and wife were stunned and their eyes fell on Li Shanglu.
She reached out and grabbed Li Hanye's wrist.
"Don't go anywhere," Li Shanglu helplessly grabbed his hand and begged with a sob, "Don't leave Shanglu, don't leave me alone."
Jiang Fu looked at her in astonishment, tears streaming down her face. "Silly girl, what are you talking about? Daddy is going to find a doctor for you."
"No, no!" Li Shanglu seemed to see the tragic death of her parents again. She hugged Jiang Fu tightly, unable to bear it. "Don't go anywhere. Don't leave home. Please, go to the doctor tomorrow. Just for this day, don't go out, okay..."
After hearing her words, Jiang Fu wanted to say something else, but Li Hanye walked over to them and leaned down.
"Shanglu, calm down." Li Hanye stroked the top of her head, his voice gentle, but trembling. "Tell Dad, what happened?"
Li Shanglu couldn't control his tears, his voice intermittent, "Tonight, you will die."
After the words fell, Li Hanye and Jiang Fu looked at each other, and both saw a hint of confusion in each other's eyes.
Jiang Fu took out a handkerchief to wipe her tears distressedly and asked in a low voice, "Did Shang Lu have a nightmare?"
"No!" Li Shanglu looked up at her, trying to prove it to them, but her mind was in a mess, and she kept replaying the scene of her parents' death. She couldn't say anything useful. "I didn't have a nightmare. You have to believe me, just this once. Shanglu, I beg you..."
She cried so hard, as if her heart was broken, that she couldn't even hear what she said afterwards. Despite this, the sadness that penetrated deep into their bones was still clearly conveyed to the hearts of both of them.
After a while, Li Hanye pursed his lips and looked at Jiang Fu, "Just listen to Shang Lu."
Jiang Fu fell silent and sighed helplessly, "I'm going to the side room to find some herbs to reduce the fever. You take good care of the rhubarb."
Seeing that they promised not to leave home again, the strength that supported Li Shanglu completely relaxed. Fatigue swept over her body. She leaned weakly against Li Hanye, and the Shen family suddenly came to her mind.
She clenched her fingers again and forced herself to stand up straight.
"Shanglu?" Li Hanye didn't know what she was going to do, so he quickly pulled her back to his side. "You didn't allow your parents to leave, so where are you going? How can you walk around when you're still sick..."
Before he could finish his words, Li Shanglu interrupted him in a low voice, "Dad, my uncle and the others will die too. Please clean up the west room and let my uncle and aunt stay there tonight."
Hearing this, Li Hanye frowned slightly and said softly, "What exactly happened? If you tell your parents what you said, they will certainly believe you, but why would my uncle and aunt move in with us just because of these few unfounded words?"
What's more, it's really not appropriate to go up to someone and tell them that they are going to die tonight.
Li Shanglu didn't care about anything else. She broke free from Li Hanye's hand and said seriously, "No matter what, Dad and Mom, don't leave here. I'll find a way to deal with my uncle and aunt."
Seeing that she was determined to do so, Li Hanye was extremely anxious, but he could only grit his teeth and say, "Half an incense stick of time, you must come back home within half an incense stick of time."
The Shen family is just opposite the Li family, half an incense stick of time is enough.
Li Shanglu nodded and gave him a light hug. "Dad, it's so good to see you and Mom again."
Hearing her words, Li Hanye pursed his lips and looked at her, saying softly, "Silly girl, no matter what, your parents will not leave you."
Liar.
Li Shanglu wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, propped herself up and stepped out of the door. Looking back, she saw Li Hanye standing in the room, his eyes full of worry, but he still waved at her.
"Go quickly and come back soon."
She forced a small smile and looked away.
Shen Changyi said that the illusion was created through the deepest memory in someone's heart, but she didn't know this at all, so this illusion did not belong to her.
Qianxu must have used that wisp of Shen Changyi's soul to create this illusion. This is Shen Changyi's deepest and most painful memory.
In order to break the illusion, the owner of the illusion must wake up.
What she wanted to do was to make Shen Changyi's soul understand that everything here was fake. If that was the case, she couldn't let everything continue to evolve according to his memory.
She must find a way to leave.
After a while, Li Shanglu stood in front of the Shen family's gate and knocked on the door hurriedly.
The door opened quickly. Shen Kangnian was shocked when he saw her appearance and quickly supported her. “Shang Lu, what’s wrong with you?”
There was a large red rash on my face, which looked very serious.
"Hurry, I'll carry you to see a doctor!"
He was about to carry Li Shanglu on his back when he heard Li Shanglu's deep voice, "Uncle, is Chen Changyi at home?"
Chen Kangnian was stunned for a moment, then whispered, "Looking for Chang Yi? Chang Yi just left, why would Shang Lu look for him... Never mind, you're still sick and need to see a doctor as soon as possible!"
After all, he was a step too late and left anyway.
Li Shanglu's eyes were red, and he leaned weakly against the door frame and simply lied, "I'm fine, I've taken medicine. Where is my aunt? I have something important to tell you."
Hearing that she had taken the medicine, Shen Kangnian felt a little relieved and carefully supported her, "Okay, I'll go find my aunt, you come into the house quickly, don't be blown by the wind."
The two men entered the house, and Li Shanglu finally saw Chen Shuo.
"Shanglu, what's wrong with you?" Chen Shuo looked at her in surprise, took off his coat and put it on her. "Why do you have so many rashes? Have you seen a doctor?"
Li Shanglu took a deep breath and said slowly, "Aunt, I'm fine. I have something very important to tell you. Tonight, a demon cultivator will come to the Shen family to kill Shen Changyi. You should stay at my house tonight. That way you can avoid this disaster."
After these words were spoken, Chen Shuo and Shen Kangnian's reactions were exactly the same as Jiang Fu and Li Hanye's.
Chen Shuo reached out his hand and gently placed it on Li Shanglu's forehead, saying worriedly, "Shanglu, are you delirious with fever? Otherwise, why would you say such strange things? What kind of demonic cultivator is this?"
Upon hearing this, Li Shanglu suddenly remembered that at that time, the demonic cultivators were not so rampant. At most, there were only rumors of murderous demons circulating in Fangcao City, and no one knew that those demons were actually demonic cultivators.
In such a remote little town, words like cultivators and demon cultivators were unheard of in Fangcao City.
Although the fact that Shen Changyi was favored by the immortal was widely spread, the rumors also said that Shen Changyi was cured of a strange disease by the immortal, so he became different, possessed extraordinary strength, and could kill wild beasts in the mountains with just a few blows.
I think it was those rumors that led the evil cultivators to Fangcao City.
When Li Shanglu was thinking about how to coax them to go home with him, he heard Shen Kang's young voice say, "Shanglu, you just took the medicine, you should go home and have a good rest first."
What if they don't believe her?
Li Shanglu was about to explain again when he heard Chen Shuo say, "Yes, Shanglu, listen to your uncle and go back to rest. If you want your uncle and aunt to stay with you, we'll pack up and go over there later."
She was slightly stunned and didn't know what to say.
"I wonder if it would bother Brother Li if I rashly moved in like this..." Shen Kangnian scratched his head a little embarrassedly, "But, actually, I have something I want to discuss with Brother Li."
"Don't bother me," Li Shanglu said without hesitation. "I've already told my parents about this. Uncle, please feel free to come and stay. You must come. No need to pack, my father has already prepared everything."
Shen Kangnian and Chen Shuo smiled helplessly when they saw that she was determined to take them away.
"Okay, then let's listen to Shang Lu and go."
Li Shanglu didn't expect everything to go so smoothly. Both her parents and Shen Changyi's parents trusted her without any objection.
It took exactly half a minute to get back to Li's house from Shen's house.
Li Hanye was already extremely anxious. He was standing at the door and saw them coming back from afar. He quickly took Li Shanglu from Chen Shuo's arms.
"Brother Li, Shang Lu..."
Shen Kangnian wanted to ask what happened, but Li Hanye said, "I'll settle Shang Lu first. You and your sister-in-law go to the main hall and wait for a while."
After a while, Li Hanye hurried to the main hall.
"Brother Li."
Shen Kangnian stood up from his seat and asked gently, "How is Shanglu?"
"She refused to see a doctor, so Fu'er found some fever-reducing medicine at home and made her a drink." Li Hanye's face had become much more vicissitudes of life. He sat down next to Shen Kangnian and said, "Come and sit down. Has Shang Lu told you everything?"
Shen Kangnian and Chen Shuo looked at each other for a while, then asked in confusion, "Didn't Shang Lu see a doctor?"
Li Hanye sighed and said softly, "To be honest, Shang Lu begged me and her mother not to leave this house. We can only find a doctor for her tomorrow."
Li Shanglu's heartbroken look at that time scared them to death.
Hearing this, Chen Shuo frowned and whispered, "The illness cannot be delayed. No, I will go find a doctor."
Li Hanye gripped the armrest of the chair for a moment, then forced himself to say, "It's better not to go. Did Shang Lu tell you about what happened tonight?"
"Is that true?"
"I don't know whether it's true or not," Li Hanye's eyes darkened. "I only know that I never ask for help from others, and I certainly wouldn't be so desperate as to beg my parents not to leave me."
The couple had only this one daughter, whom they held in their hands for fear of dropping her and in their mouths for fear of her melting. Whatever Li Shanglu wanted, she could get it just by looking at him without asking.
So, she won't ask for help.
Once she asked for help, it meant that Shang Lu had reached a desperate point. She was so confused and helpless that she couldn't think calmly.
After hearing his words, Shen Kangnian and Chen Shuo's expressions turned ugly.
"Just now... Shang Lu said that there are demonic cultivators who want to kill Chang Yi."
Li Hanye's expression changed slightly, and he asked in horror, "Demon cultivator?"
He traveled far and wide selling medicinal herbs, and naturally heard rumors about the demonic cultivators. He heard that those demonic cultivators were brutal, cruel, and inhumane, treating human lives as worthless, and that only cultivators who knew how to practice could kill them.
Shang Lu grew up in Fangcao City, so how could he have heard of the word "demon cultivator"?
He pondered for a moment and couldn't help but become serious. "I'm afraid what Shang Lu said is true. Maybe he had a prophetic dream. For this night only, we'd better not go out."
Shen Kangnian and Chen Shuo were thinking about something else.
"But...what about Chang Yi?"
Chen Shuo's voice trembled a little as he whispered, "Chang Yi went to the Immortal Mountain this morning to visit the old immortal. Maybe he will be back in the evening."
Shang Lu said that the evil cultivator came to kill Chang Yi, and they were all hiding in the Li family, so what should we do with Chang Yi?
Shen Kangnian also said worriedly, "Although Changyi has learned some sword techniques from the old immortal, he has never fought with anyone since he was a child, let alone with such a ruthless demon cultivator."
In their eyes, Shen Changyi was just a child who had just recovered from a serious illness. At most, he was a little stronger than others and knew some martial arts. How could he deal with the demon cultivators?
Li Hanye tapped his fingertips on the table and suddenly thought of a solution. "Chang Yi will definitely pass through the city gate when he returns. We can ask someone to pass him a message at the city gate, telling him not to go home. That demon cultivator is coming for the Shen family, so he won't harm anyone else."
Hearing this, Shen Kangnian's eyes lit up, "That's a good idea. There's a tavern at the city gate, and I'm familiar with the owner. I'll ask him to help stop Chang Yi."
After a few people discussed it, Shen Kangnian hurried out and returned to the Li family in the afternoon.
"How's Shanglu?"
"I'm asleep. My fever has just gone away. I seem to be doing better, but the rash won't go away."
Li Hanye and Shen Kangnian stood outside the door, looking at the gradually darkening sky, and their expressions were not very good.
"I hope that's just Phytolacca's nightmare."
"Brother Li, don't worry. Everything will be fine."
Both families will be fine.
As night falls, the small window is illuminated by candlelight.
Today is a moonless night. Dark clouds have covered the sky, making it dark and dull. Wild winds blow through the streets and alleys, like the wails of evil spirits.
A figure in black clothes, surrounded by a gloomy and difficult-to-dispel demonic fog, quietly appeared in front of the Shen family's door.
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