Chapter 205 Life and Death Without Blame (Part Two)
A mansion somewhere in Duyuan City.
There was only one man and one woman in the room.
"Upon hearing that it could break the life-and-death pact, most of the brothers from the Burning Platform Hall were willing to follow me." Jin Yingxiu played with two fist-sized skulls in her hands. "However, many were stopped outside the border town. According to your method, only about a hundred people could be brought in, all of whom were at least Golden Immortal level. For safety reasons, I dispersed them to nearby cities."
Lu Liyu nodded, "A hundred or so people are enough."
“Lu Liyu, I’ve risked my life this time.” Jin Yingxiu glanced at him sideways. “If you dare to collude with these people to deceive me, you’ll be in big trouble.”
Lu Liyu smiled lazily and said, "You can rest assured. Although that Jiang guy is a greenhorn, he is quite steady and reliable. He needs people, and we need to resolve the contract. It's a win-win cooperation that won't go wrong."
"You and Jiang Xiangyun took your fake relationship into real life?" Jin Yingxiu looked at him mockingly.
"Heh." Lu Liyu chuckled lightly, "We both came from the Eight Pavilions, would you like to find someone to become your Daoist partner?"
Upon hearing this, Jin Yingxiu's face turned three shades green. "You might as well curse me to die."
“People like us have no connection to love.” Lu Liyu chuckled twice. “He has the Tenth Realm in his hands. What difference does it make who he works for? At least we can get our freedom back from him.”
Jin Yingxiu remained silent for a moment.
"Don't mess with Jiang Gu unless you have to. He's just as ruthless as we are, and he only has eyes for his monstrous disciple. It's best to stay away from him," Lu Liyu advised her. "These two are exactly the same—vindictive and vengeful. Be careful."
Jin Yingxiu looked at him and suddenly asked, "Are Luo Xiaoyuan and Bai Luan really dead?"
“She’s as dead as can be.” Lu Liyu patted the dust off her sleeves, her crimson eyes completely calm. “When she insisted on going up against Chu Guanshan, she should have foreseen her fate.”
"Chu Guanshan is dead too?" Jin Yingxiu asked in disbelief.
"His soul was scattered, yet he was still killed by those few mediocre kids outside." Lu Liyu paused. "I always thought he was like a mountain we could never cross, but in the end he died so easily and carelessly. Isn't that ridiculous?"
“We might not even be as good as him in the end,” Jin Yingxiu said.
"Pah, shut your crow's mouth!" Lu Liyu cursed. "I'm going to live for ten thousand or eight thousand years before ascending to immortality."
"If you can't ascend to immortality even after living for ten thousand years, you might as well just die." Jin Yingxiu couldn't help but roll her eyes.
Lu Liyu laughed heartily.
——
In another courtyard, Lin Feibai carefully removed the spirit pet pouch from his waist.
Hu Jingchen watched curiously from the side, "Brother Lin, you also keep a spirit pet?"
He had been staying with Lin Feibai the whole time and hadn't noticed that he had summoned any spirit pets. However, Lin Feibai had always been very gentle, so it wasn't surprising that he kept some spirit pets.
“It’s not a spirit pet.” Lin Feibai untied the bag, his gaze suddenly softening. “It’s my wife.”
A flash of white light appeared, and a woman's figure appeared in the room. It was Zhou Tingran, the Holy Maiden of the Zhou family. Hu Jingchen had seen her a few times on the flying boat that came to Wangyue, but she was very different from her previous spirited self.
Zhou Tingran was now emaciated, her spiritual power almost nonexistent. She nodded slightly to Hu Jingchen, and Lin Feibai helped her to the bed. "Tingran, you've suffered."
Zhou Tingran shook her head, her voice weak and hoarse, "It's my fault for dragging you into this."
"There's no such thing as being implicated or not between Daoist partners. On the contrary, it's me who's incapable of protecting you." Lin Feibai fed her a few pills.
"Where are we now? Didn't you come out to explore the temple?" Zhou Tingran asked.
"It's a long story, but we're safe for now." Lin Feibai held her hand. "Hold on a little longer, and once the life-and-death pact is broken, I'll take you back to Pingze."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Tingran's eyes welled up with tears, and she hesitated before asking, "Can we really go back to Pingze?"
"Of course," Lin Feibai laughed. "When we go back, you'll still be the little saintess of the Zhou family. I'll have my father propose marriage to the Zhou family, and we'll hold a grand ceremony to formally become Daoist partners. Don't you like cities where mortals live? Then we can go into seclusion and stop worrying about all this messy stuff. How about that?"
Zhou Tingran laughed along with him, her pale face regaining some vitality. "Okay."
Seeing the couple speaking softly, Hu Jingchen couldn't help but think of his own parents, who lived in seclusion deep in the mountains. If he hadn't been forcibly brought here by the people from Wangyue, the three of them would still be living a peaceful life in the mountains. He wondered how his parents were doing now...
Having experienced so many twists and turns in Wangyue, he was still just a teenager with no elders to protect him. He felt bitter and sad, so he silently left the room and went to a secluded corner of the courtyard, where he took out the jade pendant that he always wore around his neck.
After seeing many magical treasures and artifacts in Wangyue, this jade pendant was not a particularly good magical artifact, but it was the best magical artifact his parents could offer at the time. They had given him almost all their possessions, but unfortunately, most of them had already been destroyed by him to save their lives.
Hu Jingchen clutched the jade pendant, his eyes silently reddening, "Mother..."
He also wanted to go home.
"Tsk." A mocking laugh suddenly rang out from above.
Hu Jingchen suddenly raised his head, drew his long sword and pointed it at the other person, and saw the other person's face clearly.
It was Lei Jiusan, who had repeatedly opposed him before.
Lei Jiusan was tall and burly, squatting on the wall like a small mountain, his disdain in his eyes undisguised. "Kid, why are you crying?"
"I didn't cry." Hu Jingchen frowned, but didn't sheath his sword, asking suspiciously, "What are you doing here?"
Lei Jiu San narrowed his eyes, tilted his chin, and pointed to the courtyard next door. "Lu Li Yu and Jin Ying Xiu and those other people from the Burning Platform Hall are whispering together. I wonder what kind of wicked scheme they're plotting. I'll go over and listen. What do you think? Want to come along?"
Although he disliked Hu Jingchen, the other party had saved him after all, so he extended an invitation to him.
“Since we are already allies, don’t doubt others so easily.” Hu Jingchen didn’t appreciate his sentiment and said coldly, “If you go over there and are discovered, it will create a rift and make things difficult for the young master. I advise you to go back quickly.”
"Tch, who are you to lecture me? If you don't want to go, fine." Lei Jiusan's mockery deepened. "Go back and cry to your mother, you little brat."
After he finished speaking, before Hu Jingchen could retaliate, he sneakily jumped into the neighboring courtyard.
Hu Jingchen was both embarrassed and angry by his words, "You don't know a good heart!"
It would be better if he were dead.
He thought bitterly, but after a moment's thought, he decided to tell Jiang Xiangyun about it.
As soon as he entered Jiang Xiangyun's courtyard, he ran into Jiang Gu, who was coming out of there.
"Young Master Jiang Qi." He bowed politely.
Hu Jingchen's feelings for Jiang Gu were truly complicated. When they encountered danger on the flying boat, if Jiang Gu hadn't come to their rescue, he would probably have already lost his life. In the Wind and Moon Secret Realm, it was also Jiang Gu who personally saved him from Wei Feng's clutches. However, Jiang Gu was Wei Feng's master. Even though he had only been observing silently during this time, he could see that the relationship between the master and disciple was extraordinary. Not to mention that a master and disciple falling in love was against morality, Jiang Gu's favoritism and care for Wei Feng were obvious to all.
He was initially very grateful and close to Jiang Gu, but now he dares not get too involved.
Jiang Gu nodded slightly in return, then brushed past him.
Hu Jingchen couldn't help but turn back to look at him again, but a chill suddenly ran down his spine. His hair stood on end, and he rubbed his arms in confusion before hurrying on to find Jiang Xiangyun.
"Stop fooling around." Jiang Gu gathered the black mist that was full of murderous intent around his wrist.
Wei Feng said unhappily, "He even turned around to look at you, he must have ulterior motives towards you."
"Your heart was ripped out, not your brain," Jiang Gu said coldly.
Wei Feng was speechless and bit his hand in annoyance.
In the mist, sharp canine teeth ground against his fingertips, causing a slight itch and pain. Jiang Gu didn't even blink, letting him vent his anger by grinding his teeth. "What do you think of Jiang Xiangyun's plan?"
"No opinion," Wei Feng replied vaguely, his forked tongue licking the teeth marks on Wei Feng's fingertips through the mist, then licking Wei Feng's palm.
Jiang Gu didn't know what illness Wei Feng had recently developed, but he always liked to turn into mist and linger around him, occasionally conjuring up some "parts" to bother him. Jiang Gu just thought it was a whim and didn't take it to heart.
“Since you intend to save Qu Fengyu and Xuan Zhiyan, you must have your own plans.” Jiang Gu pinched his fangs, which were starting to twitch again. “Get down.”
"No, you're warm." Wei Feng refused, saying vaguely, "I have no plans. I'll just storm into the Life and Death Tower's secret prison and rescue them. Anyone who dares to stop me will be killed. No one from the Life and Death Tower will live."
Jiang Gu resisted the urge to grab the man and give him a good beating, and said patiently, "Can't you use your brain?"
"Tell me what to do," Wei Feng said shamelessly. "Even if I come up with a solution, it certainly won't be a tenth as good as yours."
"..." Jiang Gu was amused by his words. "You're the one who wants to save people, why should I help you find a way?"
“Because you’re my master,” Wei Feng said matter-of-factly. “Why should I waste my good brain and suffer for it, racking my brains to come up with a plan that might not even work? So you should help me think of one.”
Jiang Gu was at a loss for words, unsure whether to praise his wit or call him a good-for-nothing. "You really dare to say that," she said.
"Please, Master." Wei Feng huddled up his small, dark head and rubbed it against his palm in a pleading manner.
Jiang Gu raised his hand and pressed down on the little head. "I never do business empty-handed."
The mist condensed into a human shape behind him and wrapped around his waist from behind. Wei Feng leaned on his shoulder and said, "Master, you can have anything you want. As long as I have it, I will give it to you."
"Is this true?" Jiang Gu's eyebrows twitched slightly, and a hint of interest appeared in his eyes.
"Absolutely true." Wei Feng nodded, and tried to kiss his neck through the mist, but two fingers pressed against his brow.
"Then I'll remember this for you," Jiang Gu said cheerfully. "I'll make sure you get what you want later."
"Thank you, Master!" Wei Feng's foggy mind suddenly dissipated, and he reappeared in front of Jiang Gu, cupping his face and kissing him on the tip of his nose.
A cool breeze swept past his nose in an instant, but Jiang Gu didn't argue with him. "Jiang Xiangyun wants to join forces with the Burning Platform Hall to take down the Life and Death Tower. He must take advantage of Yan Huai'an's absence to finish the battle quickly. It should be a matter of the next few days, so you don't need to rush."
Wei Feng didn't want to use his brain, but he had to get serious. "With just a hundred or so people? Even if they can take down the Life and Death Tower, do they think the other towers are just sitting around doing nothing? Any one of the Eight Towers could wipe them out."
“Therefore, we need to act quickly. Jiang Xiangyun is currently short of manpower. Whether they are spirit beasts or cultivators imprisoned in the Life and Death Tower, they all hate Wangyue to the bone, making them the perfect targets for recruitment.” Jiang Gu said, “Starting the rebellion from the Life and Death Tower is the most suitable approach.”
"Start a rebellion?" Wei Feng vaguely understood what he meant. "Does Jiang Xiangyun really want to overthrow Yanyutai? Don't dream about it. With these old, weak, sick, and disabled people and the people from Fentai Hall, it's just wishful thinking."
“It’s not necessarily impossible. Right now, there are complaints and people are restless in the Ten Towers and Eight Pavilions. We have the Ten Realms that can break the Life and Death Contract.” Jiang Gu said, “You are very familiar with the Life and Death Tower. Jiang Xiangyun will ask you for help.”
"Ask me? Why should I? I won't help." Wei Feng refused coldly. "I haven't even settled the score with him for blocking me yet, let alone the fact that he's entangled with that stinking beggar. I'm only sparing his life because of you."
Jiang Gu lowered his eyes to look at the black mist entwined between his fingers and said calmly, "So I still have some face with you."
Hei Wu buried her face in his chest, wrapped her arms around his neck, and secretly kissed his chin.
Jiang Gu's lips curved slightly, but he suppressed it without making it obvious. "It's one thing for me to agree on your behalf, but you might not listen to everything I say. When he asks you for help, don't you make some demands on him?"
Wei Feng's eyes lit up. "Master means he should help save people?"
"It's more than just helping to save people; you can't let him call you 'nephew' so many times for nothing." Jiang Gu stopped there.
Wei Feng slowly narrowed his eyes. "Master is right."
Before he could finish accumulating his mischievous schemes, Jiang Gu suddenly gathered them into a cloud of black mist in his palm. "Why have you been turning into mist these past few days?"
Wei Feng calmly replied, "Becoming black mist is more comfortable. Doesn't Master like it?"
"It doesn't matter." Jiang Gu led him forward, saying casually, "I thought your primordial spirit was severely disintegrated and you could no longer maintain your human form."
Wei Feng was startled and almost broke out in a cold sweat. Judging from Jiang Gu's tone, it seemed that he already knew that he had separated his primordial spirit to save people, but Jiang Gu's attitude was very casual, as if he did not care at all. His master's face had turned black when his primordial spirit was so badly injured before... But he did not dare to ask openly.
"Of course not." He obediently passed through Jiang Gu's fingers and transformed into a long, soft wisp of mist that coiled around Jiang Gu's neck, looking from a distance just like a soft black fur collar. "It's just that once I become human, I can't get close to Master as I please. After all, with so many people watching, it's not very convenient."
Jiang Gu looked down at him, "When did you learn to have any shame?"
Wei Feng: "..."
Jiang Gu looked at him.
Wei Feng tensed up instantly. He was already feeling guilty, and being stared at like that by Jiang Gu made him even more nervous.
Jiang Gu gave a cryptic laugh.
The wisp of fur collar trembled, then drooped on his shoulder, pretending to be dead and motionless.
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