Chapter 55 [VIP]
Jiang Zhuochen felt a pang of sorrow and even more ashamed. But now was not the time for sentimental lamentations; he needed to forcefully suppress his shattered emotions and turn his attention to important matters.
He glanced at the trophy in his hand, sighed with mixed feelings, and silently put it back. This trophy represented the initial recognition of his talent, but also a symbol of deepening control. If he didn't run away at the beginning, he would never be able to escape again.
As he reached back, he touched a long, narrow object carefully wrapped in a soft cloth. Jiang Zhuochen unwrapped the cloth and found it was a set of oil painting brushes in extremely good condition. The brush handles were made of fine wood, and although signs of use were visible, they had been cleaned very thoroughly. At the end of the brush handles, a line of delicate characters was engraved.
Just as he was about to make a judgment, a painting was revealed beneath the paper that had been blown by the wind, and Jiang Zhuochen's entire attention was immediately drawn to it.
He pulled the painting out to take it away, but when his fingers touched the paper, he suddenly felt a sharp pain. He looked down to look, and then suddenly a sharp object pierced through his shoulder.
Jiang Zhuochen froze, his thoughts momentarily halting, and the intense pain exploded half a second later. He couldn't help but groan, and a mouthful of blood slowly spilled from the corner of his mouth.
At the same time, a cold and domineering power spread rapidly through the wound to every part of the body. The already limited spiritual power was tightly bound by an invisible shackle, instantly freezing and falling silent, and could no longer be felt at all.
Footsteps sounded slowly from the shadows behind him, and Li Mingtian walked in. His face was no longer the refined and proper person he was during the day, but rather icy cold. His eyes were sharp as an arrow piercing through his right shoulder, and he looked down at Jiang Zhuochen with a gloomy expression.
"So it was you who stole my ashes."
Jiang Zhuochen's face was deathly pale, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead from the pain. He barely managed to support himself on the easel with his uninjured hand, forcing a weak smile. "You knew all this? You didn't just reach in and touch it for no reason, did you?"
“That arrowhead was soaked in talisman water that the Taoist priest from Huangshan specially gave me,” Li Mingtian ignored his sarcasm, his voice indifferent yet chilling. “He said that even if a god came, being hit by this arrow would have all his meridians sealed for seven days. You were injured, so you couldn’t escape.”
He took a step closer and stretched out his hand: "I don't care what you want the ashes for, just give them back to me and I'll let you go."
"What nonsense are you spouting..." Jiang Zhuochen's vision went black. He admitted that the talisman water did have some power, but any senior brother could easily resist it. It was only because he was not skilled enough that he fell for it.
He forced his head up, looking directly into Li Mingtian's sinister eyes, his voice weak and almost defiant: "You...you really don't know what I need those ashes for?"
Li Mingtian's expression suddenly darkened, and an uncontrollable pain and a deeper struggle welled up in his eyes. He almost gritted his teeth as he said, word by word, "You want to let him go?"
This wasn't a question, but a definite statement. The air froze instantly, and a palpable killing intent filled the air.
Li Mingtian pulled a paper cutter from his waist. The blade was slender and reflected a cold, sharp edge in the moonlight, perfectly matching a cruel scene he had recently witnessed.
He walked step by step toward the boy who was swaying from blood loss, the last trace of feigned calm in his eyes completely vanishing. "Then don't blame me."
A sharp paper cutter was pressed against Jiang Zhuochen's neck; a few millimeters closer, and Li Mingtian's trembling hand would have left a mark. He gritted his teeth, his voice suppressing madness: "Tell me, where are your ashes hidden?"
Jiang Zhuochen, barely breathing, said, "If you kill me, you'll never find his ashes again."
Li Mingtian's hands remained motionless, but his eyes gradually reddened, and his tone became even more ferocious: "Give me back my ashes!"
"Even if he was guilty, you killed him and tormented him for over twenty years. Isn't that enough?" Jiang Zhuochen said weakly. "Besides, you don't even seem to hate him that much..."
"Not enough!" Li Mingtian roared, interrupting him as if his most painful nerve had been touched. "I'll torment him for as long as I live, a lifetime won't be enough!"
“Okay…” Jiang Zhuochen closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again as if he had given in. “Take me downstairs, and put my ashes in the car.”
Li Mingtian scanned the other person's expression with his eyes and asked warily, "Where's Xu Xing? Is he waiting in the car?"
Jiang Zhuochen twitched the corner of his mouth but did not answer him.
"Don't try any tricks," Li Mingtian sneered. With his meridians sealed and severely injured, he was certain that Jiang Zhuochen couldn't escape his grasp. "Take out your phone and give him a call."
Jiang Zhuochen did as instructed, and with great difficulty, he reached into his pocket and took out his phone. Even the slightest movement that involved his shoulder caused him to break out in a cold sweat.
After finally managing to dial the number and turn on speakerphone, the person on the other end answered immediately.
Li Mingtian snatched the phone, his tone icy: "Your man is in my hands now. If you want him to live, do as I say."
Xu Xing spoke with his usual calm and collected demeanor, revealing no trace of emotion. "Speak."
"Tomorrow at noon, you will take the ashes to the abandoned steel factory in the north of the city by yourself, and place them in the open space in the middle of the innermost part of the factory area. Once I have the items, I will release him."
Li Mingtian paused, then added threateningly, "Don't even think about calling the police or doing anything underhanded. You should know the value of the name Li Mingtian in the art world. Making a scene won't benefit anyone. Besides, Jiang Zhuochen's life is still in my hands."
There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone, followed by a very soft, blatantly mocking laugh.
"At this point, you still remember to cherish your reputation and worry about your name?" Xu Xing's calm voice echoed clearly through the receiver in the studio. "Fine. I'll deliver the goods. But Li Mingtian, you'd better remember, if he loses even a single hair, the damage you'll suffer will be far more than just your reputation."
Before the words were even finished, the phone was abruptly disconnected, leaving only a busy tone.
Jiang Zhuochen's already sluggish thoughts were momentarily stunned after hearing those words. He blinked slowly and confusedly, as if he did not understand the meaning of the words.
Li Mingtian was chilled by the coldness in Xu Xing's last words and unconsciously looked at Jiang Zhuochen. But he was immediately overwhelmed by an even stronger obsession. He roughly dragged the exhausted Jiang Zhuochen away from the studio, staggering all the way.
The abandoned steel plant in the north of the city is filled with rust in its empty factory buildings, and the air is filled with the smell of rust and dust.
Li Mingtian, holding the utterly weak Jiang Zhuochen in his arms, immediately spotted the urn containing ashes in the open space in the center of the factory. His breath hitched, becoming hot and labored.
Xu Xing stepped forward, his face darkening upon seeing Jiang Zhuochen's condition. Most of the man's clothes were soaked in blood, his lips were pale, and even his gaze towards Xu Xing was filled with an overwhelming weariness.
"Didn't I say that if he got hurt, I wouldn't let you get away with it?"
Jiang Zhuochen coughed awkwardly, lowered his head, and his thin heartbeat trembled again. Because of the master-disciple relationship between the two, and because of the ambiguous words spoken last night, he couldn't quite see Xu Xing's face right now.
Xu Xing was confused, but the action made his breathing falter, and he felt as if he had been pushed into water, feeling suffocated and agitated.
Is he in a lot of pain right now?
Li Mingtian held the paper cutter to Jiang Zhuochen's neck, his expression fierce: "Don't move! If you take another step forward, I'll use my weapon!"
Jiang Zhuochen remained silent, gently shaking his head at the person who had stopped in front of him. Xu Xing pursed his lips and met his gaze, then stepped aside after a few seconds.
Once they reached a safe distance, Li Mingtian finally relaxed. He shoved Jiang Zhuochen aside, rushed forward, and carefully picked up the jar.
Jiang Zhuochen stumbled, and just as he was about to reach out to grab the steel pipe beside him, a pair of long, strong hands caught him steadily and held him firmly in their arms.
Jiang Zhuochen lifted his head from Xu Xing's embrace, but before he could say anything, a dark light suddenly appeared in his peripheral vision.
The moment Li Mingtian touched the jar, a cold wind suddenly rose, and thick, ink-like black gas overflowed from the jar's mouth, quickly condensing in front of him into the shape he had tormented, hated, and... become familiar with for over twenty years.
Zhong Bai's figure was much more lively than at the art exhibition. The numbness in his eyes was replaced by anger as he stared intently at Li Mingtian.
"No...impossible!" Li Mingtian stared in disbelief, staggering backward as he clutched the urn. "You should be sealed away! How could you possibly have come out?!"
“Why not?” Zhong Bai moved closer to him. “Since you’re not willing to settle things once and for all, then let’s settle all the scores we’ve accumulated over the years.”
"You betrayed me first! You stole my idea and then looked down on me!" Li Mingtian roared like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, unleashing over twenty years of pent-up resentment. "I admired you so much, yet you treated me like a fool, a tool! Settle accounts? What right do you have to settle accounts!"
"Am I not good enough to you? What did I not give you that you wanted?" Zhong Bai's voice suddenly rose. "It's because you're disobedient. You'll never learn to be obedient!"
"How much more obedient can I be?" Li Mingtian's eyes were bloodshot, his hands clenched tightly, and he gave an incredulous smile. "Didn't you secretly learn the painting techniques you strictly forbade? Besides that, what have I done to wrong you? It's not a good feeling to be jealous of your student but still have to learn from him, is it, teacher?"
"Shut up!" This time it was Zhong Bai's turn to be furious. He raised his finger and pointed at the person opposite him: "You really haven't changed at all."
His gloomy expression carried a chilling intimidation, his emotionless eyes were filled with a fierce aura, and even the corners of his mouth were taut.
Even in death, seeing this angry face would still instinctively terrify Li Mingtian. He breathed heavily, extreme fear gripping his heart. He was afraid of retribution, and even more afraid of losing this 'lifeline' that had haunted him for over twenty years.
Li Mingtian's eyes suddenly turned cloudy and dark. He abruptly pulled a handful of talismans from his pocket and recklessly threw them at the ghost! "Go to hell! Go to hell again!"
"Get out of the way!" Jiang Zhuochen shouted to Zhong Bai, taking a deep breath. Just as Li Mingtian was waving his arm, the hem of his clothes was lifted by the movement, and he keenly saw that the other man had a small roll of drawing paper tucked behind his waist.
Zhong Bai's ghost clearly sensed it too. His resentment surged, and he nimbly dodged the randomly flying talismans, forcing Li Mingtian to have no time to pay attention to anything else.
Jiang Zhuochen wanted to pull Xu Xing's arm away from his and go help him. But the other man sensed his intention and frowned in disapproval.
Jiang Zhuochen had no choice but to change from pulling to stroking, explaining softly, "If Li Mingtian wins, we'll only become more difficult to deal with. Now we have someone to help keep things in check. I promise, I won't do anything reckless, okay?"
Xu Xing knew that this person would definitely go, and it was already quite an achievement that he was able to find the time to ask for his opinion. Even if he was unwilling, he could only let the other person have his way.
He pressed on the other person's side and said in a deep voice, "Don't be reckless."
The force on his waist made Jiang Zhuochen momentarily dazed, before he smiled and said, "Of course."
He dragged himself to the vicinity, waited for his opportunity, and flicked a pre-prepared burning talisman from between his fingers. The talisman shot precisely at the scroll of drawing paper, igniting a bright yellow flame the moment they touched.
"No...no!" Li Mingtian cried out in terror, trying to extinguish the flames, but it was too late.
The drawing paper quickly curled and charred in the flames, turning to ashes. As the last bit of ashes fell, scattered fragments of the soul drifted towards Zhong Bai's location.
Zhong Bai's ghost solidified in an instant, and a powerful resentment filled the entire space!
"No, don't come any closer!" Li Mingtian was terrified when he saw Zhong Bai, whose strength had been fully restored, approaching step by step.
Zhong Bai's eyes were sharp, and with a wave of his ghostly hand, he brought up a gust of cold wind and slammed it hard against Li Mingtian's crown!
"Ugh!" Li Mingtian shuddered violently, and a semi-transparent soul was forcibly shoved out of his body.
However, at the very moment his soul left his body, extreme resentment and madness appeared on Li Mingtian's face. His remaining consciousness manipulated his still-fallen body, pulled out the remaining talismans from his pocket, and with all his might, ignited himself!
boom!
His body was suddenly enveloped in ominous flames, and the talisman burned in the fire, bursting out with chaotic and powerful spiritual energy fluctuations.
"Oh no!" Jiang Zhuochen's vision went black. He quickly retreated to Xu Xing's side and was half-dragged and half-carried away from the disaster area.
He could hardly tell who the evil spirit was. How could someone be willing to have their soul scattered to drag someone else down with them? To avoid being caught in the crossfire, Jiang Zhuochen took out a stone ring from his Qiankun bag and set up a barrier around himself.
Li Mingtian, whose soul and body were forcibly burned by the talisman fire, temporarily gained terrifying power and began to attack indiscriminately. The entire steel plant was filled with howling winds and ghostly wails, and even the sky quickly darkened.
Although Zhong Bai's ghost was strong, it was difficult to completely suppress him in the face of this suicidal fighting style. His soul was burned and his breathing became slightly unstable.
A faint yet incredibly familiar aura leaked from Zhong Bai's soul... It was his master's soul!
Just at this critical moment, the longevity lamp that had been hidden on Jiang Zhuochen sensed the aura and flew out automatically, hovering above Zhong Bai's head.
The master's soul within the magical artifact resonated with the remnant soul within Zhong Bai's body, and they rapidly merged!
The powerful spiritual energy dispelled the tyranny of the resentment, restoring Zhong Bai's clarity for a moment, and bringing his power to its peak. He looked at Li Mingtian, who was roaring in the talisman fire, his soul about to be completely burned away, his eyes filled with complex and unfathomable emotions, which finally turned into resolute determination.
He gathered his strength, his ghostly hand like a knife, and pierced Li Mingtian's heart with unwavering aim.
Li Mingtian froze abruptly, looking down at his pierced heart. It was the same spot where he had plunged a box cutter into the other person's heart twenty-three years ago.
The weapon that delivered the fatal blow also stung his eyes.
"Heh...heh, this pen..." He stared at Zhong Bai's hand, which was still there, and murmured, "Everything started with this pen...it will end with it...it's fine...it's fine..."
The light in his eyes gradually faded, and there wasn't a trace of blood left in his wounds, but his vitality and the forcefully increased power receded like the tide. His body fell backward, and the talismanic flames on his body went out as well.
Zhong Bai stood there, staring intently at him, his eyes filled with a mixture of hatred and pleasure, and perhaps also a trace of the very first, most profound trace, worn away by the passage of time and now indistinguishable from the truth.
With his obsession gone, and considering the energy and damage he had just suffered, Zhong Bai's ghost could no longer be maintained.
He glanced at Li Mingtian one last time, then seemed to look through him away, his gaze returning to calm. Then, his entire soul transformed into shimmering specks of light, completely dissipating into the ruins of the steel mill.
Clang.
Something fell to the ground from where Zhong Bai had disappeared.
Jiang Zhuochen forced himself to walk over, bent down, and picked it up. It was the paintbrush he had found in Li Mingtian's studio last night, the one that had been treasured.
At the end of the pen, a line of small characters is engraved: "Gifted to my beloved student, may the brush remain evergreen."
He sighed silently, raised his heavy head, and suddenly his vision was blocked, revealing the figure he had been thinking about day and night.
It was not a body of light composed of wisps of ghosts, but a real, human-shaped soul.
A note from the author:
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