In the blink of an eye, a group of cultivators caught up with Chu Guiyi and his companions.
Chu Guiyi stepped forward, blocking the crowd's path, and asked calmly, "What happened?"
One of them pointed in the direction Xie Shuci and the other had left and said, "Young Master Chu, you don't know this, but that Xie An is actually Xiao Xun from the Floating Pagoda Realm! Xiao Xun went on a killing spree in the city, slaughtering all the disciples of the Free and Unfettered Sect. They fought back fiercely before they died, and it looked like they could kill Xiao Xun right here, but Xie Shuci took advantage of the chaos and took him away!"
"Young Master Chu, don't be fooled by Xie Shuci. He definitely knows Xiao Xun's identity; he's in cahoots with Xiao Xun!"
"Once we report this matter to the authorities, he will definitely suffer the consequences!"
"I actually admired him sincerely before?! Bah!"
Chu Wenfeng gritted his teeth, threw Du Pingsheng aside, and walked to Chu Guiyi's side. "What evidence do you have that he and Xiao Xun are in cahoots?"
"What evidence do we need? He saved Xiao Xun in a critical moment, doesn't that prove they're in cahoots?"
"Young Master Chu, we will absolutely not tolerate a wicked person like Xiao Xun living in this world! Please make way!"
Chu Guiyi, wanting to stall for time, asked the crowd, "Is the person beside Xie Shuci really Xiao Xun?"
"It's absolutely true! Young Master Chu, you really didn't know about this."
"But the Records of Strange Tales state..."
"There isn't much information about Xie An in the Records of Strange Tales. We suspect that Du Pingsheng already knew Xiao Xun's identity. After this matter is over, we will definitely report it to the Hundred Gates and let the elders handle it."
Upon hearing this, Du Pingsheng's eyes widened in surprise, and he exclaimed from behind Chu Wenfeng, "What? What are you saying? Who is Xiao Xun?"
Du Pingsheng squeezed forward from behind, looking incredulous, and said, "Gentlemen, who did you just say was Xiao Xun?"
The man looked at him suspiciously. "Xie An, who are you?"
Du Pingsheng said incredulously, "How could he be Xiao Xun? This is impossible..."
As he spoke, he turned around and secretly gave his page a wink.
The pageboy immediately understood his meaning, squeezed out from behind Chu Wenfeng, and threw himself on Du Pingsheng, "Young Master! Young Master! How could this be? How could he be Xiao Xun? Xie Shuci never told you that Xie An was Xiao Xun! If you knew that Xie An was Xiao Xun, you would never have agreed to Xie Shuci's embellished account of what happened to them in the Dragon Fang Secret Realm! It's too despicable! They are so despicable! They actually dared to use you!"
The pageboy wept uncontrollably, snot and tears streaming down his face. Du Pingsheng was even more frank, his back hunched and his face ashen. "Xiao Xun... he's actually Xiao Xun... the character I created is actually Xiao Xun..."
"Young Master..."
Chu Wenfeng crossed his arms and looked at the two of them, his expression a half-smile.
After listening to their conversation, the crowd gradually began to doubt Du Pingsheng's identity and hesitated, asking, "You are..."
Suddenly, Du Pingsheng shouted and raised his hand, "I, Du Pingsheng, have been a kind and virtuous man all my life, but I never thought that one day I would be used like this by such despicable and shameless people! Bring me the knife! I, Du Pingsheng, am willing to cut off my own arm..."
He finished speaking, his emotions perfectly balanced, and turned around to find the pageboy standing there, motionless. He glared at him urgingly, and the pageboy snapped out of his daze, immediately hugging his waist and wailing, "Young master, please don't do anything rash! This isn't your fault, please don't do anything rash!"
The group of cultivators were completely taken aback by the two men's superb acting skills and couldn't help but offer words of comfort: "So you are Mr. Du Pingsheng."
“Mr. Du, you don’t need to blame yourself too much. You were just deceived by Xie Shuci. We believe you.”
"Yes, Xie Shuci is a despicable person who actually took advantage of Mr. Du."
One by one, they cast concerned and pitying glances at Du Pingsheng, who was so moved that his eyes welled up with tears. "Gentlemen..."
"Don't forget our business, Xie Shuci and the others are about to run far away!" someone at the back of the crowd reminded them.
As everyone came to their senses and was about to move forward, Du Pingsheng suddenly jumped in front of them.
"Please wait a moment, everyone. Please listen to what I have to say from the bottom of my heart."
Seeing Du Pingsheng's tragic expression, everyone stopped and looked at him.
Du Pingsheng said solemnly, "Don't you want to know how Xie Shuci and I met? Perhaps you can find some clues from it."
The others were puzzled: "What clue?"
"He might take Xiao Xun somewhere."
Seeing his serious expression, the cultivators felt a little insecure.
One person said, "But Mr. Du, Xie Shuci hasn't gone far yet. We should still be able to catch up with him. We don't need to know where they're going."
Du Pingsheng: "..."
How are you all so smart? You're not easy to fool at all!
Brother Xie, I have tried my best to buy you time, but alas, I cannot.
“That makes sense! Xie Shuci is injured and carrying someone who is also seriously injured. He definitely can't run as fast as you. Go! Take care!” Du Pingsheng nodded.
"Thank you, sir."
The group bypassed them and chased after them.
After everyone left, Chu Wenfeng frowned and asked, "Senior Brother, what do we do?"
Chu Guiyi looked in the direction they left, her gaze somewhat heavy. "Follow them."
After saying that, he turned back to look at Du Pingsheng and the other man, "Gentlemen, farewell."
Before he could finish speaking, Du Pingsheng said, "I'll go with you. If necessary, we can delay things a bit."
The pageboy looked at him in surprise. The young master was actually so loyal? This was so unlike him.
Du Pingsheng's expression became much more serious as he said, "I want to know why the Xiaoyao Sect attacked me. I suspect it might be related to the Banxia clan."
Chu Guiyi was taken aback, and Chu Wenfeng couldn't help but glance at him again.
After a long pause, Chu Guiyi nodded and said, "In that case, let's go."
——
With no one chasing after them for a long time, Xie Shuci breathed a sigh of relief, guessing that Chu Guiyi and the others had held off those people.
The king led the two to the city gate, only to be surprised to find a row of Meng family disciples standing guard by the gate.
Xie Shuci's heart sank. If they couldn't get Xie An away from here today, they probably wouldn't escape those people's clutches.
"Force your way in?" Sikongye asked from behind him.
Xie Shuci didn't want to hurt innocent people, but he had to take Xie An away from here today, no matter what the consequences might be.
"Force our way in," Xie Shuci said in a deep voice.
The king let out a roar, not intending to linger. In any case, the city gate had already been reduced to ruins, and these disciples from alchemy families couldn't stop Xie Shuci at all.
Unexpectedly, when the king arrived at the city gate, they did not stop him, but instead made way for him.
Xie Shuci stared at them blankly, and suddenly realized that although they were wearing the robes of the Meng family disciples, Xie Shuci felt that their appearances were very familiar.
"Senior brother..." Xie Shuci murmured as he looked at them.
The cultivators awkwardly turned their faces away, avoiding Xie Shuci's gaze. As Xie Shuci brushed past them, he overheard their faint conversation:
"What a terrible idea! I told you to put on your mask before you came."
"I thought he might not be able to see in the dark, but who knew he had such good eyesight."
"Is that young master really Xiao Xun?"
"Sigh, they don't look down on Xie Shuci, so why should we look down on their status..."
Their voices faded into the distance. Xie Shuci gritted his teeth, the wind stinging his eyes as if tears were about to fall.
Xie Shuci, oh Xie Shuci, what merit do you possess?
Xie Shuci and the other person left Jiyue City safely. The king had just recovered from his serious injuries and was exhausted after running for so long. His pace gradually slowed down.
Xie Shuci glanced back and found that the pursuing cultivators were blocked inside the city gate by his senior brothers.
"Old Master Meng has given instructions that no one is allowed to leave Jiyue City within the day."
A cultivator dressed in the robes of a Meng family disciple stepped forward to stop the crowd.
Since they were disciples of the Meng family, even if the crowd was dissatisfied, they did not dare to force their way in.
"Please step aside, we are tracking Xie Shuci and Xiao Xun."
The disciple said, "Elder Meng has already heard about what happened in the city tonight. The reason for closing Jiyue City is to trap Xie Shuci and Xiao Xun in the city. Please return."
Everyone asked in confusion, "Xie Shuci didn't go out?"
The disciple said, "Tonight, a few of us will guard the city gate. Not even a fly will be able to get out, let alone Xie Shuci and Xiao Xun."
Upon hearing this, the crowd could find no reason for the Meng family disciples to lie, so they did not make things difficult for them.
"Xie Shuci and Xiao Xun are still in Jiyue City, they should be nearby. Let's split up and search."
"yes!"
The group of cultivators dispersed in all directions.
When Chu Guiyi and his companions arrived at the city gate, there was no one else in sight.
"Please return, everyone..."
As the four approached, several bored disciples of the Meng family under the city gate looked up.
He was interrupted halfway through his sentence by someone else, who said, "They are Xie Shuci's friends."
Chu Guiyi was taken aback when he saw the group, then clasped his hands in greeting and said, "I am Chu Guiyi, and I greet you seniors."
These were Xie Shuci's fellow disciples whom they had met at the Meng family.
Despite being recognized by Chu Guiyi, the cultivators remained calm.
What do you want?
Chu Guiyi said, "I'll write a letter to him..."
The monk said, "He has already left Jiyue City."
Chu Guiyi and the other three immediately breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you."
The cultivator stared at them for a few moments and said, "You can only enter Rijiyue City, not leave. If you want to leave, do it now."
Chu Guiyi immediately bowed to the group and thanked them, saying, "Thank you for letting us leave, seniors."
The cultivators said nothing and made way for them.
Shortly after leaving Jiyue City, Xie Shuci, seeing that no one was chasing them, led Sikong Ye to hide in the place where they had first woken up.
The king was exhausted, Sikong Ye was also seriously injured, and Xie Shuci's own injuries had not yet healed. However, he was more worried about Xie An's condition at this moment.
After landing, he gave Sikong Ye a Soul-Returning Pill, then opened the Divine Ship and carried the King aboard.
Upon entering the cabin, Xie Shuci set the king aside and went to check on Xie An's condition.
He used his spiritual power to wash away the bloodstains from Xie An's body, revealing his pale face.
After taking the Resurrection Pill, he barely survived. The wound on his chest was too deep to heal quickly, but at least the bleeding stopped.
Xie Shuci doesn't have much spiritual energy left in his body, so he can't heal his wounds.
Besides the wound on his chest, there were two other deep, bone-revealing wounds. One was on his right shoulder, which was probably the one Chu Wenfeng slashed in a moment of panic. If it had been a little deeper, it could have almost severed his entire arm.
Another injury was on his heel. Chu Guiyi said that he had severed his Achilles tendon, and the wound was slowly healing. He wondered how he could still stand up after being injured like this. Didn't it hurt?
Indeed, Xie An was not afraid of pain.
Even though just being with him meant enduring constant, excruciating pain, he still stayed by her side and did such intimate things with her.
Xie Shuci knelt by the bed and touched his pale face with her hand. If it weren't for the faint breaths still coming from his nose, Xie Shuci would have almost thought he was dead.
Thinking of the image of Deng Xingsen stabbing his chest with a sword, Xie Shuci couldn't help but feel a chill of fear. If he had arrived any later, or if he hadn't come back at all, Xie An would really have died at someone else's hands. He couldn't imagine such a thing happening. He never wanted to see that scene again. He felt that his heart couldn't take it, that it would explode, and that he would die.
Gui Yi said that Xie An had already mastered the art of killing.
If Xie An were to die at the hands of someone else, or be struck dead by lightning during his ascension, he would be just like the Little Water God and the others, his soul scattered and his body destroyed, forever disappearing from Xie Shuci's world. The only thing that could save him, the only thing that could allow him to live, was the Book of Reincarnation, which Bixie had spent thousands of years refining.
However, the Book of Reincarnation requires the sacrifice of twelve people like the Little Water God.
"Destiny..."
Xie Shuci placed her fingers against Xie An's nose, feeling his weak but steady breathing, which calmed her unease.
He remembered the words the Water God had spoken to him before he fell unconscious.
—The will of Heaven cannot be defied.
The mark on his wrist was originally a glimmer of hope left to him by the Water God.
If the mark is triggered before the Immortal Sect Conference, it means that the glimmer of hope he left for Xie Shuci is also under the control of destiny.
Destiny already knew that Xie Shuci would face a life-altering tribulation before the Immortal Sect Assembly began, and it also foresaw that Ban Xiayin would help him resolve this tribulation. Therefore, within the Fangcun Realm, all that was visible was Xie Shuci's life-altering tribulation at the Immortal Sect Assembly.
This means that no matter what Xie Shuci does or how much he tries to avoid this fate, he will eventually appear at the Immortal Sect Assembly for various reasons and die there.
Xie Shuci himself is a believer in fate and reincarnation.
He knew that he could not escape this fate no matter what.
Moreover, he believed that his fate might be closely related to Xie An.
But thinking about all this now was obviously pointless. In any case, everyone dies eventually. He was just dying a little earlier than others, so what did it matter? Dying early or late was inevitable. Perhaps he couldn't change his own fate, but he could change Xie An's. What if Bixie forged the Book of Reincarnation before the Immortal Sect Assembly? As long as Xie An was alive and could be reincarnated, Xie Shuci believed that even if he died, Xie An could find his next life. So what did it matter whether he died or not? If he couldn't avoid it, he might as well not try to avoid it.
Xie Shuci finally understood why the dog demon told him before it died that Bixie could help him.
As long as he finds Bixie, as long as Bixie is willing to help him, and as long as he can refine the Book of Reincarnation, Xie An will not have to disappear.
In just one day and one night, Xie Shuci had experienced too much and was extremely exhausted. Now that he was relaxing, his body was starting to give out.
He clutched a corner of Xie An's sleeve, then lay down by the bed and fell into a deep sleep.
The king, still half asleep, walked to his side, snuggled into his arms, and began to snore loudly.
In the stillness, a ray of light shone in the dark cabin, emanating from the peach branch at Xie An's waist.
Xie Shuci didn't sleep well because he was worried that the cultivators in Jiyue City would catch up with him.
When he faintly heard footsteps around him, Xie Shuci immediately woke up from his dream. He went to check on Xie An's condition and found that the wound was still healing slowly, which made him breathe a sigh of relief.
The king was startled awake by his movement and raised his head in a daze.
Xie Shuci said to him, "You protect Brother Xie An, I'm going out to take a look."
"Awooo!" the king responded, immediately transforming back into his original form and lying down by the bed.
Xie Shuci was a little worried that those people had caught up with him. He didn't have any weapons on him, so he casually removed a stool leg, weighed it in his hand for a moment, and then walked out of the cabin.
He hunched over, carefully pressed himself against the ship's railing, not knowing where Sikong Ye was, and not daring to make a sound. He quietly peeked out half his head and looked back, vaguely seeing several people walking in their direction.
"How could there be a boat in this deep mountain forest?"
Upon hearing the voice, Xie Shuci froze for a moment. He suddenly stood up, staring at the newcomers with wide eyes, "You... why are you here?"
The visitors were none other than Chu Guiyi and her three companions whom she had parted ways with not long ago in Jiyue City.
Upon seeing Xie Shuci, Du Pingsheng's eyes widened with excitement. "Brother Xie! Are you alright? Brother Xie! I was so worried about you!"
The pageboy called out, "Young Master Xie, are you alright? We were so worried about you!"
Xie Shuci looked at them, her heart filled with overwhelming emotion, "You..."
He truly is his good brother, a friend even if we are far apart!
Chu Wenfeng said with a forced smile, "If I hadn't heard you all cursing Xie Shuci as despicable and shameless, I would have almost believed it."
Du Pingsheng: "..."
Pageboy: "..."
Xie Shuci: "..."
Give me back my gratitude!
Du Pingsheng chuckled dryly, "That was just a temporary measure. I, Du Pingsheng, admire Brother Xie from the bottom of my heart."
That's enough to make you admire them to the point of prostration, isn't it?
Even if he wasn't a cultivator, he knew that no one would want to fall in love with a cultivator of the Slaughter Path, since once you develop feelings for them, you'd be killed to prove your path. But Brother Xie is different; not only does he fall in love with a cultivator of the Slaughter Path, but he falls in love with a cultivator of the Slaughter Path who is feared by everyone. It's hard not to admire him.
Xie Shuci ignored him. Seeing Chu Guiyi and the others, he breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "Why are you here? Did those people catch up?"
Chu Wenfeng sneered and said, "Why are we here? Naturally, we've come to arrest you and Xie An and send them to the Hundred Gates to curry favor."
Xie Shuci glared at him and said to Chu Guiyi, "You shouldn't have come along. Xie An killed so many people in the city, there must be many people who want revenge on him. You shouldn't have gotten involved with us anymore."
Chu Guiyi said, "It's alright. They won't be able to leave Jiyue City within the next day."
"You guys come up first," Xie Shuci said.
Xie Shuci happened to have something he wanted to say to them.
The four of them went up to the deck, and Xie Shuci sat down on the floor, inviting the other four to sit down as well. "How is Young Master Xie?" Chu Guiyi asked.
Xie Shuci said, "I have several serious wounds on my body, and they are healing very slowly, but my life is not in danger."
"That's good." Chu Guiyi nodded.
“Shuci, Young Master Xie’s identity has been exposed. I’m afraid they will report you and him to the Hundred Sects soon, and you will become the target of everyone’s criticism.” Chu Guiyi sighed.
Chu Wenfeng glared at him, "Serves you right! You were so easily used and fell into someone else's trap."
Although she knew Chu Wenfeng meant no harm, Xie Shuci's mood still couldn't help but sink.
If the Dragon-Subduing Formation hadn't been activated, Xie An might not have...
Chu Guiyi said, "Deng Xingsen is really too despicable. I never expected that he would use his own disciples to set a trap."
Xie Shuci said, "Let's not talk about that now. When I killed Deng Xingsen..."
Upon hearing this, everyone looked at him in surprise.
"Did you kill him?"
Chu Wenfeng's face was filled with disbelief. "You actually killed someone?!"
Xie Shuci: "..."
"First of all, I don't think Deng Xingsen is human, he's a beast, so I don't count as killing someone; secondly, I am a cultivator, so what's wrong with killing someone; finally, don't interrupt me, let me finish what I have to say."
"What is it?"
Xie Shuci recalled the scene he had witnessed on Deng Xingsen, and his breathing became much heavier. He said, "After Deng Xingsen died, the spiritual power of the Banxia clan appeared in his body."
"The spiritual power of the Banxia clan?" Chu Guiyi asked, frowning.
"That's right."
Xie Shuci took a deep breath. "I told you before that the shaman who lured the villagers to burn the Banxia clan thousands of years ago carried a crimson longbow on his back. At that time, Liu Dazhuang also mentioned that the Xiaoyao Sect had a magic weapon called the Sunset Longbow, but none of us took it seriously then."
Upon hearing this, Chu Guiyi and the other person exchanged a glance, and then said, "Shuci, to be honest, Wen Feng and I had some suspicions before this, but it involved a wide range of issues and was of great importance, so we didn't mention it to you."
"Huh? You knew all along?"
Chu Wenfeng said in a deep voice, "The thing that appeared in Deng Xingsen's body after his death should be the luck that was stolen from the Banxia clan back then."
For a moment, Xie Shuci felt very complicated. "The wizard tricked the villagers into transferring their fortune to them, but in fact, the fortune of the Banxia clan was not on them at all, but on the disciples of the Xiaoyao Sect."
"Ban Xiaxi took those villagers away, but still couldn't let the clansmen be reincarnated, because their fortune still lies with the disciples of the Xiaoyao Sect."
"The Xiaoyao Sect was the one that killed the Banxia clan?" Du Pingsheng murmured, his face ashen.
The pageboy said, "No wonder the Xiaoyao Sect attacked you, young master. It's because you wrote down the truth about the disappearance of the Banxia clan in the Record of Strange Tales!"
Chu Guiyi shook his head and sighed: "Human greed is like a snake trying to swallow an elephant. The Banxia clan, once hailed as the 'Water Gods' by humans, ultimately perished because of human greed. They would stop at nothing to seize what did not belong to them. If the truth about the Banxia clan's demise were revealed, the foundation of the Xiaoyao Sect, built over thousands of years, would be destroyed in an instant."
“So, they’re afraid the truth will come out, so they want to kill me.” Du Pingsheng took a deep breath, his expression becoming much more serious.
The highest good is like water, which benefits all things without striving.
In the cultivation world back then, the Banxia clan was almost on par with the Jingyu Bird, which is why they were called the "Water Gods".
When later generations talk about them, they all hold a sense of awe. Even their mysterious disappearance at the end is simply believed to be that they lived in seclusion in some corner of the world, leading a life of peace and tranquility.
Who could have imagined that they died at the hands of human greed tens of thousands of years ago?
"I see."
A soft sigh suddenly rang out above everyone's heads.
Xie Shuci stood up warily and found that it was Sikong Ye sitting on a tree branch, leisurely swinging his legs in mid-air.
"Don't be so scary when you make your entrance!" Xie Shuci thought someone else had caught up with him, and he was almost scared to death.
Sikong Ye looked into the distance with a complicated expression. No wonder Ah Xin didn't tell the Siming Pavilion that Xiao Xun had already achieved great success. Instead, he deliberately spread the news to let the Xiaoyao Sect disciples hunt down Xiao Xun. He must have guessed long ago that the death of the Banxia clan was related to the Xiaoyao Sect. He couldn't tell Xie Shuci and the others directly, so he used this method to remind them.
Du Pingsheng sat up straight and said to Xie Shuci in a serious tone, "Brother Xie, please tell me everything that happened on Chunsheng Mountain and the fate of the Banxia clan. I must write the second part of the Strange Tales."
Xie Shuci looked at him in surprise, "Aren't you afraid of death? The Xiaoyao Sect will not let you go."
Du Pingsheng replied, "I am not talented, and although I am as timid as a mouse, if I can expose the true face of the Xiaoyao Sect and reveal the truth about the destruction of the Banxia clan, I, Du Pingsheng, will not care about losing my life."
“Young master…” The pageboy stared at him blankly.
Xie Shuci couldn't help but look at him with new respect.
Just then, the king suddenly rushed out of the cabin in a great hurry.
It ran to Xie Shuci's side, anxiously grabbed the corner of his clothes, and dragged him into the cabin without saying a word.
"Aww..."
Xie Shuci's heart skipped a beat, "Thank you!"
He didn't care about anything else and ran into the cabin, with Chu Guiyi and the others following closely behind.
Upon entering the cabin, Xie Shuci took out the pearl and quickly ran to the bedside. When he saw the scene on the bed, Xie Shuci froze on the spot.
What came into view was that there was now another body on Xie An's bed, which had previously only contained Xie An.
At that moment, Xie Shuci felt a chill run down his spine.
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