Chapter 115 A sword pierces Duan Lansheng's heart.
After a night's rest, the group from Shushan left Fengdu in the morning mist.
Thousands of miles away lies the vast southern border of the cultivation world. A boundless, desolate mountain range stretches out, its peaks steep and precipitous, reaching into the clouds. Valleys shrouded in mist and fog are so thick that ordinary people would perish within a short time, let alone the enormous snakes, insects, and rodents that inhabit it—truly a place where no living being should venture.
If the intelligence is correct and Yin Xiaozhu is indeed hiding in a place like this, it's certainly a very clever choice. Finding him would be harder than finding a needle in a haystack.
Fortunately, the sect leader of Shushan had the foresight to lend them the Three Pure Ones Bell. This magical artifact is extremely sensitive to evil energy. It can determine which direction has the strongest evil energy and then shake it wildly in that direction, ringing out a tinkling sound to guide everyone's steps.
After advancing for several days, everyone clearly felt that the light in the forest was becoming increasingly dim, and even during the day, it felt very eerie.
The air grew increasingly humid, infiltrating with a milky white mist. Thick moss covered the tree trunks, like dark green velvet carpets soaked in water. Every now and then, dark shadows could be seen darting swiftly across the branches above. One had to cut through the thorns and vines intertwined in front of them before continuing onward.
The demons also observe their opponents and bully the weak. Because they outnumbered each other and were all highly skilled cultivators, they did not encounter any attacks along the way.
However, as they ventured deeper into the southern territory, the density of the roaming evil spirits increased. Even if they didn't attack the Shu Mountain group, the omnipresent evil energy would still affect the effectiveness of the Three Pure Ones Bell. It's like trying to find a black dot on a faded ink painting—far more difficult than finding one on a pristine white sheet of paper.
After entering the heart of the southern territory, the Three Pure Bells had not rung for a whole day.
As Lu Yuanyuan walked in the group, she suddenly caught a glimpse out of the corner of her eye that something like gray fluff was fluttering down her cheek.
She paused, slightly surprised, and looked up at the gloomy sky in the distance.
Ever since she entered the Southern Territory, the sky had never cleared. But at this moment, she saw something different—strange patterns had appeared in the sky, winding and curving, somewhat like contour lines on a map.
Because the clouds and fog below obscured the view, the full picture could not be seen.
Lu Yuanyuan narrowed her eyes slightly, feeling a sense of familiarity, but she couldn't quite put her finger on where that familiarity came from.
Besides her, has anyone else noticed this strange phenomenon?
Lu Yuanyuan turned her head, her gaze passing over the crowd, and immediately saw Duan Lansheng in the distance.
That day, Duan Lansheng suddenly confessed his feelings to her. Naturally, she wasn't going to accept, but in order to buy time and keep him calm, she tactfully said that she needed to think about it.
She thought Duan Lansheng would feel frustrated. But instead of being disappointed, he smiled at her and said "Okay." From then on, he acted as if nothing had happened, remaining unchanged in his attitude and following her closely.
No, that's not right.
Actually, things have changed.
That is, every move he made inexplicably carried an air of legitimacy, and he seemed to be in a rather good mood.
However, after entering the heart of the southern territory today, Duan Lansheng unusually kept his distance from her and walked rather slowly.
At that moment, gazing at the strange clouds in the sky, he pursed his lips slightly. It was then that Lu Yuanyuan noticed his face was completely pale, and something seemed wrong with his body.
Suddenly, everyone heard the Sanqing Bell, which had been quiet all day, start to shake on its own without any wind. The crisp, metallic clanging sound, like the intense drumbeats before a battle, tightened everyone's nerves.
Qi Chang immediately stopped, focused his mind, and swept away the mist with a palm strike. Ahead lay a fork in the road, one large and one small, leading in two different directions. The roadsides were lined with crooked trees, their ends pointing into an unknown, dark place, like two gaping maws.
Among them, the Three Pure Bells reacted more strongly to the left-hand path. Qi Chang tentatively walked to the left, and sure enough, the closer he got, the more violently the golden bell in his arms shook. Conversely, the shaking gradually decreased as he moved away from the left.
A high-ranking disciple of the Sword Sect said in a deep voice, "It seems to be on the left. Everyone stay alert and follow me."
Qi Chang put away the golden bell. Seeing that the young disciples had all entered the left passage, he was about to follow when he heard Duan Lansheng's voice behind him: "Senior brother, I want to go and take a look in that direction."
Qi Chang turned around in surprise and saw Duan Lansheng a few steps away, looking at him, raising his hand, and pointing his fingertips towards the intersection on the right. The cold wind blowing from there billowed his robes.
Qi Chang was quite puzzled: "Why? The Three Pure Bell points to the left, and we've been following it all the way here."
Duan Lansheng withdrew his hand, lowered his eyes, and said, "It's just a... feeling. I want to go and see, and if I don't find anything, I'll come back."
If any other disciple had said this, Qi Chang might have rebuked them for "nonsense." But Duan Lansheng wasn't one to show off on a whim. Qi Chang looked in the direction he was pointing, squinted, and examined it for a moment: "This road... leads to that mountain in the distance. The mountain's shape is like a hook; it should be the Lihe Mountain on the Southern Territory map. Although you have the Sky-Gazing Mirror, going there alone is still too risky."
Before Duan Lansheng could speak, a voice came from the side: "I'll go too."
The two turned around and realized that Lu Yuanyuan hadn't followed the group into the left intersection. She was standing at the back, having overheard their conversation, her dark eyes gleaming: "If I'm with him, we can look out for each other, then there shouldn't be any problem, right?"
Duan Lansheng's eyes widened slightly. Qi Chang hesitated for a moment before agreeing: "Alright then, the two of you can keep each other company and move quickly. Don't go too deep. If you find anything amiss, come back immediately."
After Qi Chang left, only Lu Yuanyuan and Duan Lansheng remained standing face to face at the desolate crossroads.
Seeing that she had offered to stay and accompany him, Duan Lansheng seemed a little happy, but hesitated for a moment and said, "You should still go with Senior Brother Qi and the others."
Lu Yuanyuan shook her head, glanced at him, and took the lead into the right fork in the road: "Let's go. There are too many people over there, and you're all alone here."
These past few days, the group has been moving together. She hasn't been able to find an opportunity for Duan Lansheng to be alone. Perhaps, this is one such opportunity.
Duan Lansheng was taken aback for a moment, then quickly followed.
With fewer people around, the surroundings became much quieter. But Lu Yuanyuan could sense that it wasn't a stagnant stillness; many restless, unseen eyes were observing them. She secretly tightened her grip on the hilt of her sword and said, "The Three Pure Bells point to another path. Why did you tell Senior Brother Qi to come this way?"
"It's just... a gut feeling, I can't say for sure right now."
Lu Yuanyuan looked at him inquisitively: "You look terrible, are you sick?"
Duan Lansheng's expression softened further as he shook his head: "It's just a little discomfort, no need to worry."
After entering the heart of the Southern Territory, he did experience some strange sensations in his body, especially a dull ache in his chest. However, these sensations did not affect the flow of his spiritual energy.
The long forest path finally came to an end, and what appeared before them was a mountain with sharp angles, which should be the Lihe Mountain that Qi Chang had mentioned.
The sky seemed like an overturned bowl of ink, pressing down darkly, with rolling lightning and a deafening roar like the wrath of a Vajra. Lu Yuanyuan trembled, her mouth went dry, and her heart felt like it was in her throat.
What's wrong with her?
It was just thunder, so why did I feel an uncontrollable electric current rushing through my body? The area around my Golden Core was also slightly warm.
At this moment, Duan Lansheng seemed to sense something and interrupted her thoughts: "It's over there."
He grabbed Lu Yuanyuan's wrist and ran towards Lihe Mountain. Lihe Mountain was very high, and the higher they went, the narrower it became, giving it the appearance of a solitary peak. Once they reached such a high point, the other side of the mountain could be seen in the distance.
Lu Yuanyuan stopped in her tracks. As soon as she came to a stop, she felt Duan Lansheng tighten his grip on her hand. She followed his gaze and looked over.
On the shady side of Lihe Mountain, in that deep valley hundreds of feet deep, the sunlight clearly cannot penetrate, but there are streaks of shimmering dark light flashing, like a pitch-black galaxy.
Those are snake scales.
A thick, long, jet-black snake tail coiled on the ground, struggling to emerge from its translucent molt. Its head flicked its tongue.
Lu Yuanyuan's pupils suddenly contracted.
This was the first time she had seen Yin Xiaozhu completely transformed into a snake. But she was certain she couldn't be mistaken.
Yin Xiaozhu is shedding its skin.
In nature, snakes shed their skin in just a few hours, but Yin Xiaozhu is a demon. She had once witnessed him molting, a time when he was at his weakest. Especially now, with the molting only halfway complete, he couldn't move freely.
Lu Yuanyuan's face was pale, her mind went blank for a moment, and then many things became clear again.
The sect leader of Shushan asked them to find Yin Xiaozhu within half a month. Was it because he knew that Yin Xiaozhu was about to shed her skin?
But how could he so accurately predict that Yin Xiaozhu would molt at this time and place? Yin Xiaozhu couldn't possibly have written such a thing down on paper, could she?
Yin Xiaozhu disappeared because he needed to hide and weather his weakest period. He also roughly guessed what kind of magical artifact Shushan would use to find him. The Three Pure Bells are attracted to things with strong evil energy. However, this thing is not necessarily a single entity with immense energy; it could also be a collection of countless smaller entities. But the latter don't naturally coalesce into one force unless someone uses certain methods to bind them together, creating the illusion of overwhelming evil energy and misleading the Three Pure Bells' judgment.
Although it's only a matter of time before the Shu Mountain group realizes they've been deceived, misleading them for a few hours is enough to allow Yin Xiaozhu to complete her molting and recover from her immobility.
If Duan Lansheng hadn't insisted on coming here, he would have already succeeded.
So why did Duan Lansheng become so obsessed with coming here to see what was going on?
Just then, Yin Xiaozhu, below in the valley, had clearly spotted the intruders. Though he couldn't move, his scarlet forked tongue shot out hostilely. Duan Lansheng looked down, suddenly drew his sword, and whispered, "Yuanyuan, something's strange about this mountain. We've stepped into the Evil Gathering Formation. Quickly retreat and go find someone!"
Lu Yuanyuan was pushed back by his sleeve, and almost simultaneously, countless puppets and demons burst from the ground, frantically attacking that snow-white figure. Although they were numerous, they were no match for Duan Lansheng and could not harm him in the slightest. However, because of their sheer number, they hindered his progress, and he was unable to get close for the time being.
Because Duan Lansheng was guarding the front, no evil spirits could break through the defenses and get close to her.
Should we... take action now?
Just then, Lu Yuanyuan suddenly heard a muffled thunderclap from the sky, and the earth shook violently. She looked up abruptly.
The sky, which had been dark and gloomy just moments before, was now torn open with a jagged rift. As the clouds and smoke dissipated, the wavy lines became clear, revealing a vortex trapped within the crack, like a giant eye of a celestial being overlooking the world. Streaks of silver-purple lightning shot towards the earth, igniting flames wherever they struck.
Lu Yuanyuan froze.
She finally understood why this sky always seemed so familiar.
Because in her previous life, on the day Duan Lansheng suffered her heavenly tribulation, she also saw a sky like this, as if a whirlpool from the seabed had moved to the sky.
She had long known that Duan Lansheng's tribulation would arrive ahead of schedule, because all the landmark events closely related to his tribulation had occurred earlier than expected.
But fate is fickle, and Duan Lansheng's tribulation will descend upon him on this day and in this place.
Perhaps this is fate, it is fate!
The strange phenomenon in the sky also caught Duan Lansheng's attention. He swept his sword, wiping out a wave of puppets, and seemed extremely surprised.
Perhaps because the timing of the tribulation was different, his expression at this moment was different from that of his previous life, when he was confident, accomplished in his cultivation, and seemed to have already anticipated the tribulation.
Clusters of lightning shot towards the earth like streaks of meteors. Lu Yuanyuan felt as if every bone in her body was trembling. She swayed as she carried her sword, walking step by step towards the snow-white figure on the mountain.
In a daze, she seemed to have returned to her past life, seeing her beloved surrounded by thunder and lightning, and she was extremely anxious.
So, like a complete idiot, she rushed forward and fell at his feet.
In a flash, the scenes from her past life vanished, but she seemed to hear countless pitiful screams, some mocking her, some pitying her. She stopped, covered her ears, took a deep breath, and continued walking upwards.
Just then, from the trembling foot of the mountain, a terrified scream rang out: "Duan Lansheng! Watch out!"
A tiny figure rushed out of the woods, with leaves still stuck in her hair. It was Xiao Ruo, who had disappeared after the truth was revealed outside the Lingbao Secret Realm.
Xiao Ru's eyes widened as she saw Duan Lansheng on the mountain focused solely on fighting the enemy, leaving his back to Lu Yuanyuan. Anxious and frantic, she stamped her foot, suppressing her fear, and tried to run uphill through the horde of demons: "Hey—"
But the scream was drowned out by the deafening roar of the landslide.
Lu Yuanyuan's eyes were bloodshot, her past life's illusions overlapping with what she saw in this life. She took steps, one after another, towards Duan Lansheng, just like in her past life, approaching him without hesitation.
Duan Lansheng turned around and found that Lu Yuanyuan had not only not left, but had also chosen to return to his side in the face of danger. He paused for a moment, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes, a mixture of joy and worry. After defeating a puppet, he quickly grabbed her wrist and pulled her to his side: "Come to me! Here—"
The unfinished words vanished between his lips.
His dark blue eyes were wide open, and the sword in his hand fell to the ground with a clang.
A long sword gleaming with a beautiful silver light pierced his heart without missing a beat.
Tick-tock, tick-tock.
The sword didn't stop there; the man holding the sword continued to thrust with ferocious force, pushing it deeper. Finally, the tip of the sword emerged from his back.
Thick, scarlet blood slid down the tip of the sword, staining his robes red.
The illusion vanished, leaving behind only the bloody reality; everything stood still.
Duan Lansheng was stunned, as if he couldn't quite come to his senses.
His eyes dropped, then slowly rose again, as if he wanted to take a step forward to get closer to her, but was held back by the sword, unable to get any closer: "Why...?"
Lu Yuanyuan was also somewhat dazed.
When she was still restricted by the system, she thought Duan Lansheng was an invincible, indestructible being. Back then, even a hint of murderous intent towards him would send her flying by the system.
But it turns out that killing him was no different from killing anyone else.
He was just a being of flesh and blood.
Even the most powerful Golden Core cultivator will die if stabbed in the heart, as long as they haven't become immortals.
Lu Yuanyuan stared at his heart as if in a nightmare. Upon hearing this, she slowly raised her head, her lips devoid of color, and softly stated, "Because I swore to do this."
Duan Lansheng's throat seemed to move slightly.
Lu Yuanyuan gripped the sword hilt tightly, a deliberate, slight upturn at the corners of her lips: "Now that things have come to this, I'm not afraid to tell you the truth. From beginning to end, no one controlled me. I was conscious the whole time that day. I was the one who wanted to uproot all the flowers at the bottom of the pool. I deliberately set a trap to frame you because I swore that I would kill you. If I couldn't kill you, I would drive you out of Mount Shu and ruin your reputation. It was all my idea. You misjudged the person, trusted the wrong person, and liked the wrong person."
The sound of the blade sinking deeper into flesh was heard, but it wasn't that she was still frantically stabbing further in; rather, it was that Duan Lansheng took a step closer to her.
Blood gushed out even more, and he staggered, his hands trembling violently as he gripped the blade, as if he had lost all feeling of pain. His lips were withered and blue, and his voice was hoarse: "...I...don't understand."
The forced smile on Lu Yuanyuan's face slowly faded, she loosened her grip on the sword hilt, and slowly took a step back.
The sword has pierced too deeply; it won't slip out even without supporting it with your hand.
"You don't understand?" Lu Yuanyuan was expressionless at first, but gradually her eyes welled up with tears. Suddenly, her emotions broke down, and she shouted, "But I understand even less than you do!"
"Duan Lansheng, can you tell me why? I really don't understand. Was I really that bad and unworthy in my past life? Why did you hate me so much when I was sincere to you in my past life? And in this life, I scheme against you and hurt you, yet you say you like me? Why? I really don't understand."
To be fair, Duan Lansheng did not commit any major wrongdoings in this life, except for choosing to save others first when faced with a dilemma in the Lingbao Secret Realm.
He may appear cold, but he is warm-hearted, reliable, and upright. He never bullies the weak and is a very worthwhile friend to have.
Cause and effect, cause and effect, the cause changes, and the effect is different too. If there were no past life, then this life would be a good start. She would probably still fall for this person, only this time it would be love that grows over time instead of love at first sight.
That day, Duan Lansheng even told her that he loved her. Happiness in this life seemed to be just around the corner.
However, if she deceives herself and hypnotizes herself to forget everything from her past life and holds Duan Lansheng's hand, then she will be shamefully and completely betraying her former self, repeating the same mistakes, and betraying this precious rebirth.
Duan Lansheng has done nothing wrong in this life. But why did she have such a tragic ending in her past life?
The hatred is hard to quell. It's not just hers that is hard to quell, but also the child who came quietly and died quietly.
Blood soaked between her fingers and through her sleeves. A cold wind blew, and Lu Yuanyuan remembered this, saying softly, "Oh right, there's something else I want to show you."
Having lost too much blood, Duan Lansheng could no longer stand and collapsed to the ground. Mud and dust stained his face, and blood flowed into his eyes, making them appear extremely red, even his beautiful dark blue eyes seemed to have turned red. He slowly raised his eyes and saw her place her hand on her abdomen, silently reciting a spell.
Summoning the primordial spirit from within the abdomen causes no pain. However, it creates the illusion that all the strength in one's body is draining away.
She said it was fate, partly because today marks exactly one month.
A faint light appeared in the air. It had no facial features or body shape, just a pure white speck of light, radiating a pure and dazzling glow. After being pulled out, the speck of light seemed dazed for a moment, but quickly recognized its mother, and playfully and affectionately circled around her, nuzzling her shoulder. If it had a tail, it would probably be wagging it.
Lu Yuanyuan opened her palm, and it happily landed in her hand.
Such a light ball.
Before she could act, the dying man on the ground seemed to anticipate something, letting out a wheezing sound as he desperately crawled toward her. However, he couldn't support his body and could only wriggle, so naturally he couldn't reach her hand.
Lu Yuanyuan closed her eyes and crushed the ball of light in her palm.
It was as if a crisp sound of glass cracking rang in my ears, and the pure white light shattered into countless streaks, flying towards the distant mortal world.
Watching the person at her feet cough up blood, Lu Yuanyuan said softly, "Duan Lansheng, now we're truly even."
Clusters of silvery-purple lightning struck the mountainside, shattering Lihe Mountain and causing it to collapse, with boulders raining down. Those who remained, repelled by this cataclysmic upheaval, were doomed. Lu Yuanyuan finally regained her senses and rushed down the mountain. She tumbled and crawled for an unknown distance before being struck by something, falling heavily to the ground and plunging into darkness.
During that long period of darkness, she had a dream.
In her dream, she returned to the day she first met Duan Lansheng in her previous life.
This time, however, she did nothing. She simply stood quietly in the distance, watched him for a while, and then turned and left.
Without that initial encounter, there would have been no subsequent hurt.
The brilliant white light shrank smaller and smaller, soon disappearing into the bizarre dream. Gradually, she could see nothing at all, but her ears grew increasingly noisy, filled with many long-forgotten sounds.
...
"Don't just stay in your room playing computer games all day long as summer vacation starts. The food is getting cold, come out and eat."
"Your grandma's 70th birthday is this weekend. Your dad and I are going to the restaurant first. Come over early after your tutoring class..."
"Hey! Let's book a room for karaoke this weekend and try out the sound system at that new karaoke place downstairs from the office."
"Humans have other paths to overcome tribulations. Demons, however, can only achieve enlightenment through ruthlessness and rewrite their destiny. You are destined to have no relatives, no friends, no wife, and no children, so it suits you well..."
Suddenly, amidst the cacophony of voices, a trembling, broken voice grabbed her attention: "You said she would be reborn here, why?!"
"...Miscalculation...Pregnancy...Failed transfer..."
"Your fate with her has run its course. Even if you... the right person for her will never be you. There's no point in forcing it..."
...
There were many people talking. She thought she could hear her parents' voices and her friends' voices.
Did everyone come together to pick her up and take her home?
If so, then who is that last, seemingly crying voice?
Lu Yuanyuan had a splitting headache and difficulty breathing. She slowly opened her eyes and woke up, only to find that the tremors had stopped.
She fainted?
How long were you unconscious?
Before she could tell how much time had passed, a drop of water suddenly fell onto her forehead with a "plop".
Is it...raining?
Lu Yuanyuan looked up at the sky.
The sky had not yet returned to normal; it was as if a giant valley had split open, revealing a terrifying purplish-gray vortex, yet all was perfectly calm. The smoke, the flames, the lightning, the wailing of ghosts, the earth-shaking tremors… all vanished. Xiao Ruo was gone too.
In the vast天地 (heaven and earth), only she, so tiny, remained, gazing up at the sky.
It wasn't raining.
So, where did the drop of water that fell on her forehead come from?
Lu Yuanyuan was stunned, unable to understand.
She was lying on a patch of scorched earth. The world had changed color just now, and she remembered many stones falling down afterward, chasing after her.
Now everything was calm, and the blood-stained broken sword lay at her side. The Sky-Gazing Mirror had shattered and was buried in the soil some distance away.
Because Duan Lansheng was stabbed in the heart by her, he could no longer hold onto the Sky-Gazing Mirror.
He died.
She killed him with her own hands.
So, where did Yin Xiaozhu go?
Did he escape?
With a surge of strength she didn't know she possessed, Lu Yuanyuan, her breathing rapid, pushed herself up. Shaking her head, she picked up the broken sword and the dusty Sky-Gazing Mirror at her feet, and relying on her memory, limped towards Lihe Mountain.
Lihe Mountain has become a ruin, with smoke and dust billowing everywhere.
It didn't take her long to find the winding trail of blood on the ground. Following the drops of blood, she wandered around for a while and finally found Yin Xiaozhu in front of a broken rock on a cliff.
He had transformed back into human form; his snake tail was gone, indicating that the molting process was complete. He sat quietly against the mountain wall. However, the scales on his neck hadn't disappeared, and there was blood at the corner of his mouth. Despite his disheveled appearance, he seemed quite composed, at least compared to her disheveled state.
Seeing her appear with a sword, Yin Xiaozhu raised his eyes, seemingly unsurprised. But the first words he uttered stunned Lu Yuanyuan.
"I'm dying."
Yin Xiaozhu slightly curved her eyes.
"But before I die, I want to see you one more time. Luckily, you made it in time."
die?
The deceased was Duan Lansheng.
This person had only shed his skin once and hadn't suffered any fatal injuries, so of course he couldn't possibly die. He was probably hit by a rock, and since he had just finished molting, he was still a bit weak. Once he recovers, he'll be even stronger than before.
Therefore, after a moment of surprise, Lu Yuanyuan realized what was going on, her wrist trembling as she gripped the sword hilt tightly: "What trick are you trying to pull now? You lie without even thinking."
Yin Xiaozhu didn't speak, but quietly looked at her for a while before smiling with some regret: "You saw right through me."
Before he could finish speaking, a figure lunged forward, and a broken blade was suddenly pressed against his neck: "Enough with the nonsense, I have something to ask you."
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