Chapter 75 Anomaly: Keeping this thing around to reminisce about old flames every day?
Fu Yunshu had actually guessed this long ago.
After that horrific battle, Qingyuan Zong sent people to search for the bodies of Song Fu and his wife.
In the end, only Song Fu's body was found, not Nan Qing's. Master Liushuang didn't care about this. For cultivators, it was perfectly normal not to leave behind a body. Who knew what strange techniques the opponent used during the fight?
The life lamps left by Song Fu and Nan Qing at Qingyuan Sect have been extinguished, and their deaths are a fact. In addition, they left behind a two-year-old boy named Song Wenzhuo. Master Liushuang really has no energy to deal with the matter of their bodies.
Therefore, no one, including Fu Yunshu, expected that Nan Qing was not dead.
"Yan Ji, I will definitely cut you into a thousand pieces!" Fu Yunshu's voice was filled with intense hatred.
Song Fu and Nan Qing were his junior apprentices, and he had even attended their wedding banquet. Song Wenzhuo was also a beloved junior of his. Fu Yunshu would never let this deep-seated hatred go unpunished.
"Master," Yin Lisheng was also feeling uneasy, "Should we tell Sect Leader Song about this?"
Fu Yunshu thought for a moment and nodded, "Let's tell him. Although the truth is hard to accept, Wen Zhuo has the right to know."
Thus, they have found the answer they sought, and there is no need for them to stay.
Before closing the gate, Fu Yunshu suddenly called out to Yin Lisheng.
“Li Sheng,” his gaze met Yin Li Sheng’s, “I once used the Shadow Tracing Array in the Yin family.”
"Is that so...?" Yin Lisheng's body stiffened, and he unconsciously swallowed, his mouth agape with a mixture of nervousness and anticipation.
Helpless, Fu Yunshu simply shook his head. "If there were a result, I would have told you already."
Yin Lisheng lowered his head. Indeed, he should have thought of that.
“Li Sheng,” Fu Yunshu looked up. The sky of the Demon Realm had no stars, only dark clouds.
His voice was somewhat ethereal in the silence, "You are already capable of standing on your own."
Upon hearing this, Yin Lisheng panicked instantly, grabbed Fu Yunshu's hand anxiously, and said in a wronged tone, "Is Master trying to send me away?"
"What are you thinking about?" Fu Yunshu gently tapped his head and grasped Yin Lisheng's hand in return.
“Once this matter is settled, I will go to the Northern Border with you,” Fu Yunshu said earnestly, looking at Yin Lisheng. “We will thoroughly investigate the Yin family’s affairs.”
Fu Yunshu had always had this thought, and it had become increasingly clear recently. Besides Yin Lisheng's growing strength, there was another reason—
He fell in love with Yin Lisheng.
Fu Yunshu wasn't really bothered by the so-called official romantic relationship between Yin Lisheng and Duan Xuan, since he didn't care about the original plot anyway.
The woman he fell in love with was Yin Lisheng, who had been with him for many years and shared countless beautiful memories with him.
It's highly likely that Yin Lisheng also likes him; this is the conclusion Fu Yunshu reached after careful consideration.
However, the barriers of identity, status, and strength made Yin Lisheng hesitate, but Fu Yunshu naturally didn't care about these things. He could tell Yin Lisheng that these were not obstacles between the two of them.
However, there is one thing that can never be overcome—the massacre of the Yin family.
Fu Yunshu could sense that as long as this matter remained unresolved, Yin Lisheng would not have a moment of peace.
His years of diligent cultivation were partly due to the tragedy of the Yin family, a matter that remained a thorn in Yin Lisheng's side. As long as this thorn remained, Yin Lisheng could not wholeheartedly embrace new possibilities.
Fu Yunshu wanted to remove this thorn.
Yin Lisheng opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something but seemed to be blocked, and finally said in a hoarse voice, "Thank you, Master."
Oh Master, I think I'm growing to like you more and more.
On the other side, in the cultivation world's camp.
Yan Nanqiu opened his eyes. The physician beside him saw that he was awake and prepared to go out to find Ning Xuexi, but he politely declined.
"It's getting late, so let's not trouble Peak Master Ning any further. We can search again tomorrow." Yan Nanqiu smiled faintly.
Seeing that Yan Nanqiu's complexion was still good and that he spoke clearly, and considering that it was already late at night, the physician decided it was not appropriate to disturb the peak master. He gave him a few words of advice to rest well and then left the medical tent.
The moment the curtain fell, the faint, gentle smile on Yan Nanqiu's face vanished like the tide, leaving only indifference. He slowly sat up, the movement aggravating his internal injuries, and his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.
Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the tent curtains, casting dappled shadows on Yan Nanqiu's face. Compared to his carefree and flamboyant demeanor as "Qiu Nan" in Qingyuan Sect, he appeared unusually cold at this moment.
His skin was a deathly pallor, as if it had never seen the sun, and one could even vaguely see the pale blue veins beneath. His facial features remained delicate, and the pallor even added a touch of fragility to them, but the lines between his eyebrows and eyes had become cold and sharp.
He lifted the thin blanket covering him, got out of bed, and silently walked to the bed curtains. After listening for a moment to make sure no one was outside, he gently lifted a corner and slipped out.
Soon, Yan Nanqiu arrived near Gu Zhinan's tent. Warm orange light shone from inside the tent, and two figures could be vaguely seen projected onto the tent wall, seemingly very close together.
Yan Nanqiu stopped in the shadows, watching expressionlessly. His senses were sharp; even through the tent, he could clearly perceive the presence of the two people inside and their undisguised intimacy.
Inside the tent.
It's unclear who made the first move, perhaps it was the atmosphere, or perhaps it was the long-suppressed emotions finally finding an outlet. The distance between Gu Zhinan and Song Wenzhuo closed silently, their breaths mingling, and finally, their lips gently touched.
At first, it was just a tentative touch, filled with tentative exploration and careful reverence. But soon, things ignited like dry tinder, and the atmosphere heated up.
The kiss quickly became deep and passionate.
Gu Zhinan's hands gripped the back of Song Wenzhuo's neck, pulling him closer. His tongue pried open Song Wenzhuo's teeth, his kiss filled with undeniable force and deep affection. Song Wenzhuo initially responded somewhat awkwardly, but gradually he abandoned all restraint, wrapping his arms around Gu Zhinan's waist and returning the kiss almost fiercely, as if to confirm their existence in this way.
The temperature inside the tent rose quietly, and the soft rustling of clothes mingled with suppressed, rapid breathing, making it all the more distinct in the still night.
Yan Nanqiu moved a little further away, looked up at the sky, and his face was expressionless, without anger, jealousy, or even the slightest ripple.
If I had to say something, I'd only have one question.
How come this is different from what he knows?
Yan Nanqiu stood outside for a long time, and only stepped forward when he estimated that it was about time.
"Peak Master Gu, I have something I'd like to discuss with you."
A commotion came from inside the tent, like something being knocked over in a panic, but it quickly subsided.
After a long pause, he heard Gu Zhinan say, "Please come in."
Yan Nanqiu lifted the curtain and went in. It was fine; there was no strange smell.
Gu Zhinan and Song Wenzhuo had separated, each straightening their slightly disheveled clothes, and sat on either side of the table.
A faint blush still lingered on Song Wenzhuo's cheeks, but her eyes had regained their usual gentleness. Gu Zhinan remained composed, though a slight blush could be seen at the base of his ears. He calmly poured Yan Nanqiu a cup of hot tea.
"Fellow Daoist Yan," Gu Zhinan paused, but still chose this form of address, "coming so late at night, is it because your injuries have taken a toll?"
“I’ve come,” he said, his voice regaining its clarity, yet carrying a barely perceptible hoarseness, “to retrieve the Nine-Turn Essence Pill.”
"You guessed it?" Song Wenzhuo asked, somewhat surprised.
Yan Nanqiu's tone was calm and even, "I am well aware of Immortal Venerable Huaiwei's methods. The real elixir is probably still with Peak Master Gu."
Song Wenzhuo's eyes flickered slightly as he looked at Gu Zhinan. That pill was something he had painstakingly gathered and refined over hundreds of years. Now that Gu Zhinan had not yet regained his memories, Song Wenzhuo was worried about giving it away so rashly.
The tent fell silent for a moment.
The candlelight flickered, illuminating Yan Nanqiu's pale face. "Peak Master Gu, you should have had a premonition that the pill was originally made for me, and now it's simply being returned to its rightful owner."
Gu Zhinan's hands, resting on his knees, tightened slightly. Although he had not regained his memory, all the clues and intuition told him that what Yan Nanqiu said was true.
Song Wenzhuo's face darkened. He looked at Gu Zhinan, then at Yan Nanqiu, his voice suppressed: "Yan Nanqiu, what do you mean by that? Even if what you say is true, the pills were obtained by Zhinan with great effort. How can you just take them as you please?"
“Sect Leader Song, there’s no need to be angry,” Yan Nanqiu said, picking up his teacup and tracing the warm surface with his fingertips. His dark golden eyes were lowered, and his long eyelashes cast a faint shadow on his pale face. “I was born a half-demon, and in the Demon Realm… I am a symbol of lowliness and shame. Yan Ji regarded me as a stain and never showed me any kindness. In those years, it was a miracle that I survived.”
He raised his eyes and looked at Gu Zhinan, his gaze carrying a perfect blend of dependence and gratitude: "Until... I met Peak Master Gu."
"I accidentally saved the seriously injured Peak Master Gu at the edge of the Demon Realm. Those days were the warmest time of my life."
"Later..." Yan Nanqiu paused, and Song Wenzhuo was trembling with anger. Even a fool would know what he meant!
"Peak Master Gu said he would find a way to resolve the hidden dangers of my half-demon bloodline so that I could walk openly in the sunlight. So we started looking for the Mirror Moon Flower, wanting to refine the Nine Revolutions Condensing Pill to purify the demonic blood in my body."
“But… the good times didn’t last long.” Yan Nanqiu’s tone suddenly dropped, filled with deep sorrow and pain. “Later, Yan Ji somehow found out about this. He was furious and personally led men to arrest us. That battle… was very fierce.”
Yan Nanqiu closed her eyes, her body trembling almost imperceptibly, as if she had returned to that nightmarish moment. "Peak Master Gu fought desperately to protect me and was seriously injured... and I... I was captured by Yan Ji and forcibly taken back to the Demon Palace."
"Yan Ji sealed my memories. I was in a daze all day long, only vaguely remembering that I had to go to Qingyuan Sect, and that's how the later events happened."
He looked at Song Wenzhuo and said sincerely, "Sect Leader Song, I know it is presumptuous to say such things, but I sincerely wish you and Peak Leader Gu a harmonious and long-lasting marriage. As for the Nine-Turn Essence Pill... at least let me keep it as a memento."
Song Wenzhuo: "..." You're quite polite.
Inside the tent, the candlelight burned quietly.
Song Wenzhuo's face had turned ashen, his hands clenched into fists, his knuckles white.
"Give it to him," Song Wenzhuo said with a sneer.
Gu Zhinan gave a blank "Ah." Song Wenzhuo's anger flared even more. "I told you to give it to him, otherwise are you planning to keep this thing and reminisce about your old flame in front of me every day?"
Gu Zhinan remained silent and obediently handed over the Nine-Turn Essence Pill.
Yan Nanqiu left satisfied, a strange, complex, and hard-to-decipher smile slowly creeping onto his lips.
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Author's Note: Don't worry, everyone! Although Xiao Yan is a bit strange in this chapter, he's definitely a good person, and Gu Yan isn't an old flame with whom he had any feelings. The next chapter will explain everything [please!].
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