86 Demon World (VII)
◎Where are you going with outsiders?◎
The horse neighed loudly, then suddenly stopped moving and stopped moving forward. The only sound around was the sound of fallen leaves being blown across the ground by the wind.
Qiuyan's heart was still in her throat when suddenly, the carriage made of wooden boards made a crackling sound. The next moment, several cracks appeared in her sight. Then, with a loud "bang", the carriage broke into pieces, and debris and wood chips flew all over the sky.
"Where is Atang going with these outsiders?" The young man in white stood with his hands behind his back, blocking the road ahead. Wood chips and fallen leaves were flying around in the air, but he was spotless.
Li Jintang raised his head from the girl's arms and looked straight into the boy's eyes that were like a cold crescent moon.
He seemed to have sensed something suddenly and came hurriedly. His expression was still calm, but he didn't even have a sword at his side.
"Don't even think about taking her away!" Qiu Yan unsheathed her longsword with a swish, the tip pointed directly at the other man. This sword had been forged by her master after returning to the Celestial Realm. It was much more powerful than the one she had lost, but now it seemed like a dwarf compared to the mighty one. Her hand trembled slightly as she gripped the hilt.
Xie Changyan acted as if he hadn't seen her. He took a step closer, his voice coaxing, "Atang, will you come back with me?"
Li Jintang felt her head suddenly grow dizzy, as if her body didn't belong to her anymore. She struggled to hold Qiuyan's hand down. "Sister Qiuyan, you can't beat him, and I... don't want to see you two fighting with swords."
"Atang, you can't go with him." Qiuyan held her hand, frowning slightly.
"I-I have to go with him."
Li Jintang paused for a moment and nudged her: "Sister Qiuyan, please leave quickly. If you two start fighting, I really don't know who to help."
Her friend and the chance for revenge were both before her, yet she couldn't choose either. Qiuyan's knuckles turned white as she gripped the hilt of her sword, and veins bulged on her wrist. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, tears welled up in them. "I'm sorry, I...I couldn't take you away again..."
Li Jintang blinked, not understanding why the other party was like this.
She didn't want to leave.
"Atang!"
Li Jintang jumped off the carriage and, ignoring the people behind him trying to stop him, walked straight towards the murderous young man opposite.
"Xie An," she held his hand, but turned back to look at Qiu Yan, "Let's go home."
After they left, Sister Qiuyan should have gone back too, right? The world in the storybooks was truly complex. She didn't want to get involved in the feuds between the immortals and demons; she just hoped everyone would be well.
Xie Changyan pinched her jaw, forcing her to turn around and look directly at him, and said in a neutral tone, "Okay."
Is he unhappy? After they walked a distance, Li Jintang found that his pace was getting faster and faster, and she was having a hard time walking: "Xie An, please walk slower, I can hardly keep up."
Before he finished speaking, he really slowed down his pace, and his peripheral vision was still confirming whether she was catching up.
"Xie An, what's wrong with you?"
She struggled to catch up, tugging at the corner of his clothes to make him stop: "I'm tired, can you stop for a while?"
Xie Changyan glanced down at her, took the oil-paper umbrella from her hand, and said with a slightly relieved expression, "Atang, what did she just say to you?"
His voice even sounded trembling, and after saying this, he immediately turned his face away from her.
Will she believe what others say?
She would soon belong to him alone, but why were there always irrelevant people disturbing her? His eyes darkened, and he was reluctant to use force on the hand that held her wrist.
If he was left with no other options, even if he burned the puppet talisman to ashes, and the backlash corroded his bone marrow and shattered his soul, he would have no complaints, and would even... be happy to do it.
"Are you talking about Sister Qiuyan?" Li Jintang asked, looking up. "She didn't say anything to me. Xie An, why did you come here so suddenly?"
"Really?" He ignored her question and pressed on, "Aren't you happy to see me?"
Li Jintang was somewhat helpless: "I didn't say that..."
She had just been frightened, and her eyes were still red. He kept his gaze on them for a long time, and finally couldn't help but gently stroke the corners of her eyes with his fingers.
"If I hadn't come, would you have gone with her?" He stopped talking, then felt he shouldn't have asked. "You're willing to go back with me because you're afraid I'd do something to her, right?"
She seemed to be stumped by the question. She tilted her head and thought for a long time, then curved her eyes at him: "I should have gone back. I like Xie An, and I want to be with Xie An forever."
The boy's breathing stagnated slightly, his eyes fixed on her for a long time, and the corners of his lips involuntarily curled up, revealing a faint smile.
If only there were no puppet talisman, if only she had said these words willingly, how wonderful it would be...
He reached out to touch her cheek, but she caught it and kneaded it in her palms.
Xie Changyan smiled softly: "I'll carry you."
She did not refuse. After all, the task given by Brother Qu was completed, and there was nothing to worry about for the time being. She simply hugged his neck with both hands, leaned on his shoulder and closed her eyes.
His light breaths touched the back of her neck as he walked steadily. A cool breeze blew over her, making her feel sleepy. She couldn't hold on any longer and fell asleep.
*
“Master, Master!”
Qiuyan held up the hem of her skirt and ran up the stairs without stopping, even forgetting to knock on the door before rushing in.
"What are you so flustered about?" Immortal Xuande was watering the flowers calmly. He glanced up at her when he heard the sound. "Why are you so flustered? Didn't your master teach you not to be impatient when encountering things..."
"Master, now is not the time to talk about this," Qiuyan said, almost crying. "Why did Senior Brother go to the Demon Realm alone? Do you know anything about this?"
Immortal Xuande seemed to have anticipated her question and answered slowly, "It was my master who allowed him to go." After that, he went to water the flowers on the other side.
Qiu Yan's eyes widened in disbelief. "You asked him to go? How could you... You knew his cultivation wasn't very deep, and he'd only just recovered from his injuries. If that demon discovered him, wouldn't it be..."
She didn't say anything else. She couldn't think about the consequences, nor did she dare to think about it.
"I know you and your sister share a deep bond, so it's understandable that you're worried about him," Immortal Xuande finally put down the kettle and said in a leisurely voice, "Since I've let him go, I'm confident he won't get hurt. Could it be that you don't even trust your master?"
Without waiting for her to answer, he narrowed his eyes slightly and asked, "Or, in your heart, I don't care about my apprentice's life or death, and I can let him take risks?"
"Disciple has absolutely no such intention!" Qiu Yan never expected to hear these words from his master. His head made a "boom" and he almost fell to his knees.
In the past, the master's words always made people feel at ease, and she had never doubted the master, but this time... for some reason, she didn't want to doubt the master, but she couldn't help but miss her senior brother.
"Master, why don't you send me along too?" She hesitated for a moment, then suddenly called out to Immortal Xuande as he turned to leave. "I know you must have your reasons for making this arrangement, but...if something really happened to Senior Brother, wouldn't he be lonely without anyone to look after him?"
"Disciple will never cause trouble, I just want to be by your side." Seeing that he didn't say anything, she felt anxious and added another sentence.
"Forget it," Immortal Xuande waved his hand and sighed, "Your senior brother didn't even stay to say goodbye. He was afraid that once you knew about it, you would insist on following. If I let you go, wouldn't I be letting him down?"
"I……"
"No need to say more," he said in a tone that brooked no refusal. "If you can find the mysterious jade you lost in the demon world within three days, I will allow you to go."
"Xuanyu?" Qiuyan was stunned. She had never thought that such a precious thing would be used by their master to make a talisman for them, and they were so incompetent that they casually lost it. She felt extremely guilty. "Master, I didn't know it was such a treasure. I lost your things, so I should find them back. I will find a way now. Please wait for a few days."
After she left, Immortal Xuande resumed watering the flowers as if no one was around. Suddenly, a loud shout came from behind the door curtain: "Stinky old man, why don't you let me out quickly?!"
He frowned, ignored the shouting, and combed the branches of the potted plants.
"Junior brother, is there a rare guest in the room today?" A slightly teasing voice sounded. He looked up and saw an old man with a flowing white beard walking in. He bowed respectfully and said, "Greetings, Senior Brother."
"Since it's just the two of us here, all this formality is unnecessary," the visitor was his brother, Immortal Yunya. He smiled slightly, patted his shoulder, and looked towards the source of the voice. "Xuan De, what other goodies have you hidden in this room? Don't you want to show them to me, Senior Brother?"
"Brother, you are too kind," Xuande Immortal Venerable said with embarrassment. He walked into the house and took out the squeaking fortune book by a corner. "It's just a book. If you like it, take it."
Immortal Yunya glanced at it and saw that it was indeed a tattered book with mediocre spiritual power. He waved his hand and left: "What do you want to do with your things? But I just heard that your good disciple is going down the mountain to look for Xuanyu. If he finds it, do you plan to keep it for yourself, or..."
"What do you mean by that?" Immortal Xuande's expression changed upon hearing this, and the smile he had just maintained disappeared in an instant. "If you hadn't insisted on giving the Xuanyu to them when they went down the mountain, how could they have lost it?"
"Who stole the Xuanyu, and who are you protecting?" Yunya Immortal Venerable narrowed his eyes, not backing down at all. "Junior Brother, I generously gave this item to your disciple, yet you show no gratitude at all and instead accuse me of being foolish."
"I dare not," Immortal Xuande knew he was in the wrong and did not want to argue with him. He snorted and said, "Brother, take care."
Seeing that he was driving the guests away, Yun Ya was unwilling to stay. He just sneered and turned away.
"I'm talking to you!" The Book of Fate struggled to jump out of his hand, flipping the pages back and forth as if examining him. "You're half-human, half-ghost, with a mop of long white hair on your chin, and you dare to lock me up? Get me out right now!"
"And your so-called senior brother, you dare to call me a 'thing'? I am the Book of Destiny, and you are a bunch of ignorant people!"
"I personally raised you, and now you're leaning towards outsiders." Immortal Xuande ignored the book's insults. He narrowed his eyes and stroked his long white beard, feeling that this broken book was too noisy. "I might as well burn you now to prevent you from causing trouble in the future."
"Bah, you dare!" When Mingshu saw that he really caught fire, he was so anxious that he fell to the ground and rolled several times before he could barely extinguish the flames on the pages of the book.
"Can't I just stop talking?" Its voice was loud, but its momentum was noticeably weakened. Seeing that the old man had no intention of setting it on fire again, it wisely crawled back into the house, secretly taking note of the girl's words, and plotting how to catch up with her as she descended the mountain.
That girl must still remember me. Once I find her, it won’t be too late to beat up this old man.
【Author’s words】
I'm back. I was so exhausted from moving to the dorm yesterday [chin resting]
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