Chapter 23 After Lu Gu and the other two followed Tie Zhe into the crevice, they discovered...
After the three of them followed Tie Zhe into the crevice, they discovered that it was a narrow, dark passage.
Wu Chen reached out and touched the stone wall. It was covered with a thick, soft moss, indicating that few people had walked on it. He didn't say anything, but held Lu Qing's hand tightly, protecting her behind him.
Lu Qing was also terrified by Tie Zhe.
During this time, she held Wu Chen's hand every day, feeling comfortable and at ease, no different from holding her own left hand with her right. But now that Tie Zhe was holding her wrist, even though there was clothing between them, the feeling of unease was very strong.
Without comparison, there is no harm. Lu Qing silently repented in her heart, "Heavens above, earth below, I was unaware of my blessings, I truly know I was wrong."
Although Tie Zhe staggered, he was in a dazed state, preoccupied only with the unfulfilled regret in his heart. Therefore, he moved with incredible speed.
At the end of the secret passage was another hidden door. Tie Zhe reached out and opened the mechanism, and light and heat rushed in eagerly through the crack.
Tie Zhe grabbed Lu Qing's wrist and led her out. Outside the hidden door was a narrow natural cave, one end dark and gloomy, the other end brightly lit and sweltering.
Wu Chen wasn't interested in Tie Zhe's departing comrades. If he wanted to leave the Sword Forging Manor, there was probably nothing that could stop him. He was more curious about the secrets of the Sword Forging Manor and Lu Qing's hidden worries.
He pressed down on Tie Zhe's back of the neck. Tie Zhe immediately collapsed to the ground and fell into a deep sleep.
The three of them crouched low and groped their way towards the light. Before they could even see what lay ahead, they heard a heart-wrenching cry, "Father!"
Lu Qing shuddered at the scream. Wu Chen turned and glanced at her, squeezing her palm with his large hand. If the cave hadn't been so narrow and low, Lu Qing would have loved to leap onto Wu Chen's back.
"Father, I beg you. Xiaoyu is carrying your own grandson, the bloodline of the Tie family. I beg you, please spare Xiaoyu and her child!" Tie Zhilan roared like a trapped beast.
Tie Xiao's breathing was heavy. "Do you even know what you're saying?"
“I know.” Tie Zhilan was already crying. “Father, our Tie family has carried this secret for generations, but is such a sacrifice worth it? We can’t do this anymore! Even without a weapon spirit, we can still forge excellent weapons…”
"Shut up. You spineless coward. Do you think the Sword Forging Manor belongs to you alone? You can't just quit like that. Do you know how your ancestors sacrificed so much? Do you know what will happen to the entire Tie family once the Sword Forging Manor can no longer forge weapons with weapon spirits? We will be devoured by the major families. Everyone will stop at nothing to force us to reveal the secret of the weapon spirit. Is this the right choice you think you should make?"
"No, Father. That won't happen. We can just say that we've used up all the raw materials and can't find any more. No one can question that."
"Naive! Foolish!" Tie Xiao cursed angrily. "Who do you think those people are to you? Do you think they'll believe you just because you say so? They're cruel and cunning. They won't stop until they've squeezed you dry. Do you think your father can bear to do that? If I could take Xiaoyu's place, I wouldn't hesitate at all."
"Father," Du Xiaoyu finally spoke, her soft voice echoing in the cave with a heart-wrenching sorrow, "I have never regretted it. Since marrying into the Tie family, my husband and I have been deeply in love. He is willing to do anything for me, and I am willing to do the same for him. I only ask that you postpone it for a year so that I can give birth to the child in my womb. He is a member of the Tie family. Father, just one year, or even less than a year, as long as I give birth to the child, I am willing to jump into this Bilin Pond immediately."
Wu Chen stopped near the cave entrance, kneeling on one knee and looking down at the scene below. Lu Qingji carefully moved to his side and squatted down, cautiously looking down.
This is a huge cavern located inside the mountain. Even more amazing is that in the middle of the cavern, there is a naturally formed pond with a hollow bottom, which has been converted into a furnace. The embers below are burning fiercely, and the intense heat they feel coming from there is the source of the heat.
The pond was about ten feet square, and the solution inside had an eerie and gorgeous green color, not the green of lush vegetation, which was hard to describe.
Lu Qing frowned and stared intently at the green pool, where ripples spread out, forming strange and unpredictable patterns, like a book of secrets that no one could understand.
Is this the Bilin Pond? Why is Du Xiaoyu going to jump into the Bilin Pond?
Lu Qing couldn't understand the strangeness of this situation.
However, Wu Chen and Yu Jitang were among the few people in the world who were well-versed in the classics and secret texts. They couldn't help but exchange a glance, and simultaneously recalled the story of Gan Jiang and Mo Xie, handwritten by a certain priest in the Divine Palace's secret manual.
"Gan Jiang forged a sword for the king, obtaining the finest iron from the three mountains and six directions, yet it could not be melted even after a hundred forgings. Gan Jiang obtained a secret method and hired a woman as the furnace goddess to complete the work. Mo Xie then bravely threw herself into the furnace, and the metal became molten, thus becoming a weapon."
I initially thought it was just the priest's drunken ramblings, but it turns out this absurd and cruel story actually has a source.
Wu Chen frowned slightly, and his hand couldn't help but touch the hilt of the Taiyi Sword. At this moment, he was extremely grateful that the Taiyi Sword was a natural sword spirit; otherwise, if he had obtained it in this way, he probably would never have wanted to touch the Taiyi Sword again in his life.
The three continued listening.
Tie Xiao remained silent for a while before continuing, "Xiaoyu, actually, I also considered changing my mind today. Someone came to ask for a sword, the managers accepted the payment, and the sketch was completed and reported to me. I did refuse. I also want to change all of this so that you can live peacefully."
Wu Chen's eyes narrowed. Tie Xiao was lying. The uncle and nephew who asked for the sword had said that the exchange date was postponed for a year, meaning that Tie Xiao had not refused at all. He had already planned to wait until Du Xiaoyu gave birth before throwing her into the furnace.
"...But you shouldn't have, you absolutely shouldn't have mentioned the one-year deadline to that woman beside the Divine Servant. How shrewd are those who can become Divine Servants? You mentioned the one-year deadline, and he did indeed bring up the possibility of an extension at the banquet today."
Tie Zhilan pleaded, "Father, even he doesn't mind, why should we insist on this?"
Wu Chen sighed, “You’re too naive. You think he’s doing this out of kindness, but how do you know he’s not testing me? Once I agree, with their intelligence, how could they not see the connection? Even if we forge a divine weapon with a spirit to deliver, as long as he inquires about Xiaoyu’s whereabouts, he’ll find the key to this. At that point, our Sword Forging Manor will have handed over its weakness to him. If we disobey even slightly, the Sword Forging Manor will be ruined overnight. Then, we might become sword slaves, captured and tortured by various sects, forced to reveal the secrets of the Sword Forging Manor until we have no more secrets. Then they can force us to do the most menial and arduous work, burning charcoal and forging iron all day long. They might even test whether every member of the Iron Family can be forged into a weapon spirit by throwing them into the furnace…”
Tie Zhilan trembled all over from his words and couldn't say a word.
Tie Xiao asked again, "Xiaoyu, Zhilan is the young master of the manor. Those people will spare him, no matter who else they let go. Are you really willing to let him go..."
"No," Du Xiaoyu cried, "No, my husband." The two embraced and wept bitterly.
Tie Xiao looked at his son and daughter-in-law, breathed a sigh of relief, and said, "Father didn't want this either."
This hypocritical tone almost made Lu Qing vomit her dinner.
Just then, looking into her husband's tearful eyes, Du Xiaoyu finally felt utterly hopeless.
Tie Zhilan slipped away during the banquet, intending to help her escape, but all the paths down the mountain had been guarded by Tie Xiao's men (otherwise, there wouldn't have been only a few disciples serving at the banquet). Only a small path behind Wanlian Peak, used for dumping slag, offered a possible escape. However, after drinking, Tie Xiao went to check on her courtyard and, finding her missing, immediately came here. Even the naive Du Xiaoyu couldn't help but wonder if Tie Xiao had deliberately made an exception for them, luring them in.
But even if her guess was right, what good would it do? Tie Xiao didn't even care about the child in her womb.
That's enough. Since things have come to this point, he has done everything he could. Why should she struggle any longer?
In despair, Du Xiaoyu pushed Tie Zhilan away, got up, and rushed towards Bilin Pond.
"No, Xiaoyu~" Tie Zhilan reached out to grab her, but Tie Xiao held his son down firmly. He thought to himself, very soon, very soon, just a few more steps and this crisis will vanish without a trace. Even if there is a next time, it will be twenty years from now. If Tie Zhilan is incompetent, these twenty years will be enough for him to remarry and have children. Twenty years from now, he won't have to worry about finding a new furnace maid.
Lu Qing was taken aback and instinctively reached out to grab Du Xiaoyu, but even Tie Zhilan, who was next to Du Xiaoyu, couldn't grab her in time. Lu Qing and Du Xiaoyu were far apart, one above and one below, so how could Lu Qing possibly reach her?
Du Xiaoyu had already stepped over the edge of Bilin Pond and was falling into it.
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