Su Wenji was always so good at predicting things in advance, so Qin Yan nodded, and it was not surprising.
Fu Changling followed behind him, twirling the fan in his hand and looking at the surrounding mountain flowers as if nothing happened.
The elder's voice rang out again, sighing, "If you don't really think so, why do you say that?"
Fu Changling's expression remained unchanged. He smiled and shifted his gaze to the back of the person walking in front of him. After staring for a moment, he said helplessly, "After all, I still can't bear to watch."
"What can't you see?"
"It's fine if I'm alone, why involve another person?"
"He's still young," Fu Changling's smile faded slowly. He stared at Qin Yan and whispered in his consciousness, "I should take good care of him."
So he took on all the emotions and smoothed over all the embarrassment. Qin Yan was just an eighteen-year-old boy now. He knew that this person was embarrassed by his emotions, so how could he bear it?
What's more, what Qin Yan said makes sense.
Qin Yan from the previous life died.
It's just that he himself, deep down in his heart, can't admit it after all.
The two followed the attendants to Su Wenji's villa. From a distance, they could see white walls and black tiles. White plum blossoms poked out from inside the walls, swaying gently in the wind. The black and white colors seemed like an ink painting, very much like the atmosphere in Su's territory.
Entering through the open gate and passing through the outer courtyard, there is a small lake. There are lotus-shaped stone piles on the lake for people to stand on. Next to the stone piles are uneven lotus leaves, and there are faint lotus flowers blooming in between.
At the end of the stone pile, a small house stood in the middle of the lake. Outside the house was a wooden corridor. Su Wenji was sitting on the corridor with a wooden table in front of him, making tea with his head down.
The attendants escorted the two to the lakeside and stood on either side, not going any further. Qin Yan led Fu Changling inside, stepping on the stone piles. Fu Changling followed behind, looked around, and said with a smile, "Young Master Su has very good taste."
"He's always fond of useless things."
Qin Yan spoke calmly, and Fu Changling's subsequent praise was blocked in his mouth.
The two of them walked up the corridor, Qin Yan kneeling in front of Su Wenji, and Fu Changling sitting a little behind Qin Yan. The three of them were silent, listening only to the trickling sound of water as Su Wenji poured tea.
Su Wenji poured the tea and pushed it in front of Qin Yan. A servant brought the teacup and gave it to Fu Changling who was standing behind him. Fu Changling thanked him and took it. Qin Yan lowered his eyes to look at the teacup and said calmly, "I came to see you. You should have guessed it."
"Yunyu's star is a little far away from Fellow Daoist Xie," Su Wenji said with a smile, "Is he missing?"
"Hmm." Qin Yan took the teacup and took a sip. Su Wenji listened to the sound of water and said gently, "What can I help you with?"
Qin Yan took out a stuffed doll from his sleeve and handed it to Su Wenji, "Take a look."
Su Wenji fumbled to pick up the little doll, rubbed it for a moment, and said slowly, "It's the Yue family's doll."
"It was left by Yunyu," Qin Yan said directly, "but I don't know which member of the Yue family did it."
Su Wenji didn't say anything nonsense. He continued to feel the blood that had already congealed on the puppet. After a long moment, he thought for a moment and threw the puppet into the lake. Water immediately surged up from the surface. Qin Yan didn't move, and Fu Changling followed behind to watch. He saw the water droplets gather under the puppet, then form a formation. The blood on the puppet seemed to suddenly come alive, flying off the puppet and falling into the water. Su Wenji pondered for a moment, then raised his hand again, and the puppet folded back and landed in his hand.
"I saw someone."
He spoke, his face pale. Qin Yan saw his expression, put down the teacup, frowned and said, "Are you okay?"
Su Wenji shook his head and continued, "The other party's cultivation is extremely high. I've exhausted myself just by watching him. Yunyu should be in a cave. He doesn't seem to be in any serious trouble for the time being."
"Do you know where he is?" Fu Changling heard this and knew that Su Wenji must have opened his Destiny Eye. Su Wenji paused and shook his head, saying, "I don't know yet, but there is someone with him."
"who?"
"I couldn't see her face clearly. I only knew she was a woman, dressed in purple. Her exposed hands looked very young, but her voice sounded like that of a fifty-year-old woman. There was a puppet sitting on her shoulder, and she exuded an evil aura. She didn't look like someone of the right path."
Su Wenji finished speaking in one breath, and Fu Changling and Qin Yan looked at each other.
"In Shangguan Villa," Fu Changling frowned, "Madam Shangguan mentioned that the one who came to their Shangguan family to destroy the formation was a woman in purple, holding a child in her arms. She looked to be in her twenties, but her voice was that of an old woman in her fifties."
As he spoke, Fu Changling couldn't help but wonder, "Could it be that the so-called child is actually this puppet?"
"Yeah." Qin Yan nodded and agreed, "It's very likely."
"If that's the case," Fu Changling continued his analysis, "if the person who took Yunyu away this time is also this person, then is she a member of the Yue family?"
As he spoke, he frowned, "Which member of the Yue family has such a high level of cultivation, yet is so elusive and unknown?"
"Blood Demon, Madam Yue."
Su Wenji spoke, and upon hearing this, Fu Changling fell silent.
He had memories of this Mrs. Yue.
This memory comes from two events that year: the death of Yue Sihua and the collapse of Hongmeng Palace.
After he destroyed the golden elixir in the Xuanji Secret Realm, Yue Sihua wanted to find a way to kill him, but before she could do so, she died in Taiping Town.
Taiping Town, located at the junction of the Yue and Fu clans' territories, was a lawless place, a moderately large town with a population of nearly 10,000. Rumor had it that Yue Sihua had passed through Taiping Town on her way back to her mother's home, rested for 10,000 days, and then died in the inn.
Not only she died that night, but everyone in the town was slaughtered. However, she was a little special. All the blood in her body was sucked out, and she was nailed to the wall with long nails. When her corpse was found, it was said that she was still alive.
Fu Changyan was in Yue Sihua's house at the time. He witnessed his mother's tragic death with his own eyes and was frightened to death. So the next year, when the Junzitai competition was held, the younger generation of the Fu family did not have a suitable person, so they let Fu Changling take over and won the championship in one fell swoop.
Although the identity of the murderer was not explicitly stated at that time, and Fu Changling had not seen it with his own eyes, a name was widely circulated within the Fu family: Madam Yue.
Because this act of sucking people's blood dry is exactly what Mrs. Yue usually does.
Madam Yue was a mysterious figure. After Yue Sihua's death, both the Yue and Fu families sent people to search for her, but all efforts were in vain. Madam Yue's name was not heard of for a long time. It wasn't until the arrival of the demonic cultivators from the Hell of Karma that Madam Yue emerged, joined the demonic cultivators, and became the chief commander of the attack on Hongmeng Heavenly Palace.
After she destroyed Hongmeng Heavenly Palace at all costs, the Lin family lifted the long-standing mountain closure ban and came out. The head of the Lin family, Lin Ya, personally killed Madam Yue with his sword, and then committed suicide on the battlefield while holding Madam Yue's body.
For many years, this Mrs. Yue has only existed in legends and few people have seen her.
All everyone knew was that she was bloodthirsty and had once killed thousands of cultivators to build a blood pool. When the Yunze Immortal Realm besieged her, she lay in the blood pool. When faced with questions, she smiled lazily, "Why did you kill so many people?"
"Because I'm tired and want to take a bath."
After that battle, she escaped and became the most wanted person on the Yunze Immortal Realm's wanted list. However, due to her elusive nature and her almost insignificant deeds in later life, the younger generation only vaguely knew of her existence.
No one knew where she came from, few people knew what she had done specifically, and even no one knew why her surname was Yue.
Fu Changling was not surprised to hear this name. He nodded and then listened to Qin Yan ask, "Why did she capture Yun Yu?"
Su Wenji shook his head. "This, perhaps we can only know when we catch her."
"Are you sure it's her?" Qin Yan asked again. Su Wenji took a sip of tea. "This is just speculation, but among the people I know, the only one who meets the requirements is Madam Yue."
If there is anyone in this world who is most familiar with the people of Yunze Immortal Realm, it is none other than Su Wenji. He said this, Qin Yan thought about it, and said to Su Wenji, "Draw the person you see."
Su Wenji was stunned for a moment, then he smiled and said, "You're the only one who asks so much. However," he raised his eyebrows, and his eyes, covered by the white silk, glanced at him as if he could see, "I need someone to help me grind it."
Qin Yan's eyes were filled with a smile, and he said, "You are always unwilling to suffer a little loss."
"You're wrong," Su Wenji said as he asked his attendants to prepare paper and pen. "Hasn't the amount of hardship I've suffered at your hands been enough?"
The two chatted casually. Fu Changling knelt behind Qin Yan and turned to look at the lotus flowers blooming in the lake.
A disciple wearing Su family clothing came over in a boat and was picking lotus pods not far away. Their voices were a little far away, but I could still vaguely hear their laughter.
Qin Yan's voice was very close. He was talking to Su Wenji. The two had known each other for a long time. Their conversation was light and calm, and combined with the warm afternoon sun, it presented a dreamy leisure.
Fu Changling was in such a peaceful and gentle atmosphere, but he suddenly felt a little dazed. He felt as if he was a person in a dream, and in this dream, he was being excluded by everyone.
He couldn't help but turn his head to look at Qin Yan, silently watching him and Su Wenji talking and laughing. Su Wenji had already mentioned this year's new tea. Qin Yan didn't drink tea, but Su Wenji loved it, so he listened quietly, then tasted the tea Su Wenji brewed for him, and then helplessly replied, "I really can't taste the difference."
As the two were talking, the servants brought up pen and ink and changed the small table. Qin Yan consciously reached out to take the grinding bar, but the next moment he touched the grinding bar, Fu Changling reached out his hand for some unknown reason.
Qin Yan was stunned for a moment. Fu Changling didn't expect himself to be like this, but he reacted very quickly and said with a smile, "You and Young Master Su continue chatting. This kind of work should be done by Junior Brother."
As he spoke, he pulled over the futon, knelt down beside the table, and began to grind for Su Wenji. Su Wenji heard the noise beside him. He picked up the pen, and as if he had a pair of eyes, he turned his head and "looked" in Qin Yan's direction, and said with a smile, "With this junior brother, Ah Yan's life is indeed different."
As Su Wenji spoke, he picked up his brush, dipped it in ink, and began to draw the portrait.
After he finished painting, Qin Yan took a look at it, raised his hand and brushed it, and the ink on the painting dried. Qin Yan stood up and bowed to Su Wenji. "I have other things to do. I'll take my leave now."
Fu Changling listened to him while taking the painting handed to him by Qin Yan. He stood up slowly and followed Qin Yan to say goodbye to Su Wenji.
Su Wenji nodded and watched the two people leave with a smile. After the two people walked away, the attendant brought grapes to Su Wenji and half-knelt down and said, "Young Master, do you want to help them find someone?"
"Um?"
Su Wenji turned to look at the attendant beside him. He picked up a grape and said with a smile, "Do they still need my help?"
"They probably know more than I do."
Su Wenji said as he threw the grape into his mouth.
Fu Changling followed Qin Yan. As soon as they left Tianxing Peak, they heard Qin Yan ask, "Do you know him?"
Fu Changling was stunned for a moment, then reacted. Since Qin Yan knew that he had been reborn, he naturally asked him if he knew this Madam Yue. He nodded and said decisively, "I've heard of her and seen her."
"How do I find her?"
Qin Yan continued to ask, and Fu Changling shook his head. "In a month, she might appear in Taiping Town, looking for my stepmother."
Qin Yan didn't say anything. Seeing that he didn't respond, Fu Changling couldn't help but look at him and asked, "What are you worried about?"
"I wonder if we need to split up."
Qin Yan's words made Fu Changling's heart tremble. He hadn't expected that even after all this, Qin Yan would still be estranged from him. He turned his head and whispered, "I'll see what Senior Brother arranges."
"Yunyu must be saved," Qin Yan frowned, feeling the wind caressing his cheek, completely unaware of the change in the mood of the person next to him. While Fu Changling was stunned, he continued, "But the matter of the seal can't be delayed. I think it would be better if I go to save Yunyu and you go to solve the seal." As he spoke, Qin Yan turned to look at him and said seriously, "How do you think?"
After hearing what he said, Fu Changling felt much better. In the midst of this ups and downs, his ordinary mood also became cheerful. He smiled and said gently, "Where is the next seal? Do you know?"
Qin Yan paused and said hesitantly, "I really don't have any clue, so I plan to investigate first."
"Then why not join me?"
Fu Changling took over the conversation, and Qin Yan immediately realized, "You mean, Madam Yue is related to the seal?"
"Possibly." Fu Changling fanned his palm and analyzed slowly, "Look, the first seal is in the Xuanji Secret Realm, which was opened using the Shangguan family's mother-child formation. And the Shangguan family's practice of evil magic was single-handedly forged by Madam Yue. The second seal is in the Ten Thousand Bone Cliff. Although it doesn't seem to have much to do with Madam Yue, she also appeared at the Cliff and took Yunyu away. More importantly, do you remember, in those soul memories, we once saw a young girl in the center of the human soul refining formation?"
After hearing this, Qin Yan quickly recalled and then looked up suddenly. "Is it Madam Yue?"
"Yes," Fu Changling nodded and said in a deep voice, "If I remember correctly, the girl's facial features are very similar to those in this portrait. Each seal is inextricably linked to Madam Yue, so the third seal may also be closely related to Madam Yue."
"You are absolutely right."
Qin Yan responded, and as he was speaking, the two of them arrived at the Wenyue Palace.
Qin Yan and Fu Changling put away their swords one after the other and walked to the door of the main hall according to etiquette. Qin Yan said respectfully at the door, "Master, disciple is back."
After a moment, a cold response came from inside: "Come in."
The two entered together and saw Jiang Yebai sitting on a cushion in meditation. He looked much thinner, but otherwise unchanged. The two disciples stood aside and waited for a moment. Jiang Yebai slowly withdrew his spiritual energy, opened his eyes, and then cast his gaze on the two disciples.
Both of them had already done their best to break through to the Spiritual Transformation stage through the Thunder Tribulation, and the changes were obvious. Qin Yan and Fu Changling had both grown slightly taller, and their facial features had transformed from their original somewhat rounded and soft appearance to the sharp and angular appearance of young men.
For Fu Changling, this change made him handsome and faded his original peach blossom color, but for Qin Yan, this change invisibly increased the beauty of his facial features.
Jiang Yebai glanced lightly, his eyes paused for a moment beside Qin Yan's ear, then moved away, and then glanced at Fu Changling again, and said calmly, "He has reached the Spiritual Transformation Stage."
"yes."
Qin Yan said respectfully, "I got some luck at the bottom of the Ten Thousand Bones Cliff."
Jiang Yebai nodded, but his eyes were looking at Fu Changling. "How about the seal?"
"Reporting to Master," Fu Changling replied respectfully, "The reinforcement has been completed."
"Are you sure there's nothing wrong?"
"No." Fu Changling answered seriously, "I took the formation diagram given by Master and made it according to Master's instructions. Just in case, I also left a small formation. If anyone touches the formation, I will sense it immediately to prevent the demonic cultivator from breaking the seal."
Jiang Yebai responded and nodded, "Yeah."
"Is there anything else to report?"
Jiang Yebai raised his eyes and looked at Qin Yan. Qin Yan took a step forward and said calmly, "Master, Yunyu is missing."
Jiang Yebai frowned. "How did you lose it?"
Qin Yan briefly explained the whole story. Jiang Yebai listened quietly for a moment. Hearing that they had found a clue, he seemed to relax a little and nodded, saying, "Since you already have a clue, then just investigate. I have given the Hongmeng Tiangong token to A Yan. If you need any help, just take the token."
"yes."
The two answered respectfully. Jiang Yebai looked at them and after a moment's silence, he slowly said, "I've been very busy lately and can't help you much. It's my fault. Especially Xiu Fan," he looked up at Fu Changling with a hint of apology, "Since you became my disciple, I haven't taught you anything."
"Master, there's no need to say that," Fu Changling immediately interrupted Jiang Yebai and said respectfully, "It's a great honor for me to be able to enter the Sword Immortal's sect. Master, your top priority now is to take care of your health. As for teaching, there's still a long way to go."
Jiang Yebai heard these words, and like Qin Yan, he was not going to say much. He nodded, and after hesitating for a moment, he sighed and said, "You should go and rest first, and do what you need to do later."
Qin Yan hesitated for a moment, then looked up at Jiang Yebai, as if hesitating about what to say. Seeing his expression, Jiang Yebai knew he was hesitating, so he said directly, "Just say whatever you want to say."
Qin Yan thought about it, and finally just bowed and said, "Take care, Master."
"There are too many empty formalities." Jiang Yebai smiled, his eyes softening a little. He raised his head and looked at Qin Yan's hair. After hesitating for a moment, he slowly said, "You used to wear a crown, why are you wearing a headband suddenly?"
"It's inconvenient to tie up my head at Wangu Cliff," Qin Yan answered honestly, "Junior brother gave me one, so I've been staying here ever since."
Jiang Yebai paused after hearing this, nodded, and replied, "I'm relieved that you brothers care about each other."
As he said that, he looked at the sky and said, "It's getting late, let's go back."
Having said that, Qin Yan did not stay any longer and led Fu Changling out of the Moon Palace. After leaving the palace, Fu Changling glanced at Qin Yan and saw that he was frowning. He could not help but ask, "Brother, what seems to be bothering you?"
"nothing."
Qin Yan answered subconsciously, but after speaking, he hesitated for a moment, then said carefully, "I see that Master doesn't seem to be in good health. Can you tell anything?"
"It's true that he's injured." Fu Changling was a magic cultivator, much more sensitive to the movement of spiritual energy than sword cultivators. The movement of a cultivator's spiritual energy was closely related to the functioning of his body. Fu Changling thought carefully for a moment and confirmed, "If he rests well in his current condition, he'll be fine."
Qin Yan nodded, but after thinking about it, he asked, "I have a question, but I don't know if I should ask it or not."
"If you ask like this, it means you're going to ask." Fu Changling said directly, "Go ahead."
"In the previous life, my master?"
Qin Yan pursed his lips, and Fu Changling fell silent. For a moment, he didn't know whether he should tell Qin Yan the truth, but Qin Yan still said directly, "Tell me the truth."
"Rumor has it that he died at your hands."
Qin Yan remained calm after hearing this, but his face still turned pale. He said seriously, "That's impossible."
"I thought that was the case back then, so I didn't look closely." Fu Changling sighed, "I'm sorry."
"Do you have any other clues?"
Qin Yan continued to ask, "Besides hearing that I killed him, is there anything else related?"
Fu Changling thought about it carefully. In his previous life, he had heard almost everything about Qin Yan before he fell into the devil's ways, and he didn't have any detailed information about Qin Yan's murder of his master. He thought for a long time and finally shook his head.
Qin Yan saw that he really had no clues. He seemed to be lost in thought. After a moment, he came to his senses and nodded, "Yeah."
The two of them returned to Wangyue Palace together. As soon as they reached the door, they saw Dahua running over, rubbing against Qin Yan's side, and circling around him. Qin Yan stroked Dahua for a while, and when Dahua was satisfied, she looked at Fu Changling as if she was showing mercy, raised her head towards him, and signaled that he could touch her.
Fu Changling was amused by the fox. He squatted down and petted him, saying as he did so, "Tsk tsk, I haven't seen you for more than half a month. You've grown plump and strong, with shiny fur. It's time to cook you. Oh, oh, oh, don't bite me! Don't chase me!"
Dahua chased Fu Changling and started playing with him. Qin Yan stood at the door. After watching for a while, he smiled and seemed tired. He told Qin Yan that he was going to sleep first, then turned and went into his room.
Fu Changling played with Dahua for a while, fed it some food, and coaxed it to sleep before returning to his room.
The room was covered in dust. Fu Changling raised his hand and swept the room with a cleaning spell, then vaguely heard Qin Yan's voice calling him.
He couldn't hear clearly what was said, but he felt that the tone seemed a little panicked. Fu Changling hurried into Qin Yan's bedroom, and only when he reached the door did he hear Qin Yan calling "Master".
He paused, not knowing whether to go in or not.
After hesitating for a moment, he saw Qin Yan's quilt fall at his feet. He thought about it and walked in.
Qin Yan seemed to be sleeping soundly. He curled up on the bed, his body twitching slightly, as if he was experiencing a nightmare from which he would never wake up. He kept repeating, "I'm sorry, Master, I'm sorry!"
Fu Changling pulled up the quilt and gently covered Qin Yan with it. At that moment, Qin Yan suddenly woke up and instinctively drew the sword beside the bed and pointed it directly at Fu Changling's neck.
Fu Changling's hair gently fell on his face. Fu Changling's expression was calm, without any ripples. He even slowly and soothingly raised his hand and held Qin Yan's hand holding the hilt of the sword. In a steady tone, he whispered, "Don't be afraid."
He slowly moved the sword away. "It's me, Fu Changling."
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