Chapter 85 Those who live in the mountains are not so easily won over.
Based on Jingzhou's location, this place should theoretically be a sparsely populated area. Not to mention a day, even ten days or half a month, there might not be many people entering the city. In addition, the legends of dangerous and forbidden areas within the territory make people even more hesitant to go.
However, due to various reasons, especially the orders received recently, the workload of the city defenders is really high. They have been carefully checking everything all day long until the city gates are locked, and they dare not make the slightest mistake.
In fact, from Jiang Geyun's current position, looking down, one can only vaguely see a tiny dot, and cannot see the entire city gate.
But seeing a single light go out in the distance, she breathed a sigh of relief. For the past few days, only when she saw this moment with her own eyes did she truly feel that she had successfully entered Jingzhou.
Someone nearby noticed her standing still and called out to her from afar, "Little girl?"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Ge turned around, nodded, and followed the person towards the dormitory.
Yes, dormitory.
She is currently at the Yuantian Shenjun Temple in Jingzhou.
Pei Xueyi gave her clear instructions, saying that this information was obtained from the Pei family, Xuandujian, and other sources. Even if she couldn't tell her the source of the information, she hoped that she could believe it. However, after she expressed her belief, Pei Xueyi... did not bring her to Jingzhou at all.
Pei Xueyi apologized to Jiang Geyun, saying that she did not want to implicate the Pei family and would stay in the capital to cover up the matter. She also said that if the Crown Prince later investigated Jiang Geyun's whereabouts, she could help cover it up.
Jiang Geyun naturally understood and did not want to force Pei Xueyi.
This girl has always had a great curiosity about new and interesting things, yet she still chose to avoid the limelight in this matter... It just goes to show that the villain is still a villain.
Jiang Geyun was already extremely grateful that she was able to share her secret knowledge with her and guide her on her path.
Jiang Geyun was already used to having to walk her own path from now on.
Besides, this was originally a matter between her and him, and she didn't want to involve others.
However, Pei Xueyi ultimately provided Jiang Geyun with a form of assistance—although she couldn't leverage the Pei family's power, she could smooth things over with the temple side.
She created the identity of a follower of the Divine Lord for Jiang Geyun, allowing her to enter the Yuantian Divine Lord Temple in Jingzhou through another passage, perfectly bypassing the city's guard checkpoints.
And so, a few days later, Jiang Geyun was now in the Yuantian God Temple in Jingzhou.
When she first arrived, everyone in the temple was startled upon seeing her.
There was no other reason than that Jiang Geyun's complexion was extremely poor; her lips were bloodless, and her skin had turned deathly pale.
She claimed that she was weak and exhausted from traveling for days, but in reality... she did look more like a dead person at that moment.
She's only able to remain half-alive thanks to her experience with the Night Watcher, plus the excellent location of this temple, which gathers the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to nourish her body. Without any of these conditions, she would probably be... hard to say.
Strictly speaking, Jiang Geyun's condition was like that of someone using a higher level of "turtle breathing technique," which allowed her to maintain her consciousness temporarily after suffering a fatal injury, while waiting to recuperate and "come back to life."
This is a special life-saving method used by Xuandujian, which is only used in extreme circumstances. Others use this method only as a last resort to save their lives.
Jiang Geyun is probably the first person to come up with such a solution and deliberately create such a situation, putting herself in an extreme condition.
Although her goal wasn't just to escape, she also wanted to defeat the system honestly and fairly on her own.
On her 101st day in this world, Jiang Geyun's mind returned to peace, and from then on, only her own inner voice could be heard.
But why?
The system selected her to transmigrate into the book and forced her to complete the task, otherwise it would separate her from the "original body". Now the system has "erased" her as promised.
Logically speaking, she should separate from her current body and return to her original world, right?
Why is she still in this world, still in this body?
"Are you really not going to eat anything? You still look very weak."
A concerned question from someone beside her interrupted Jiang Geyun's thoughts.
Jiang Geyun smiled and shook her head, saying, "Don't worry, as the old saying goes, illness comes like a landslide, but recovery is like pulling silk. I'm just not fully recovered yet, but I'm getting better. Take a closer look, isn't that right?"
The person next to her stared at her for a moment, then asked suspiciously, "It seems... yes?"
There isn't one at all.
If she doesn't find a specific rare medicine, or find her own heart to replenish her missing blood and recover properly, or is blessed by a god or immortal, or... finds an opportunity to become an immortal.
Then she will only get closer and closer to real death every day.
Before she could properly teach Su Heng a lesson, she needed to find a way to survive.
It's exhausting, but it's still better than being forced to do things you don't want to do.
As for how to survive, she would always try her best to find a way out; if she couldn't...
Then try to avoid temples and find a deserted place in the middle of nowhere, preferably where you won't be suddenly discovered and frighten people.
The person next to her muttered a few words in a low voice and then looked at Jiang Geyun carefully for several more times.
The night was deep, and Jiang Geyun was usually very low-key and rarely appeared in the public eye, so she couldn't make any comparisons and had to give up.
Jiang Geyun casually said, "This place is a rare blessed land. I live here thanks to the God. Even if I have any illness, I will eventually get better by diligently cultivating and devoutly worshipping the God."
The person beside him immediately nodded in conviction, straightened his expression, and bowed deeply towards the main hall of the temple. His tone changed as if he were possessed, and he said firmly, "Yes! You are right! The God will favor us!"
The person beside her had a gentle expression and was very approachable when talking to Jiang Geyun.
Both in appearance and demeanor, she resembled the kind aunt Jiang Geyun had met. She might have worried that Jiang Geyun would be nagging and domineering at first, but after spending time with her, she would feel warm at the sight of her thoughtfulness.
The fact that she took the initiative to care about Jiang Geyun, an "ordinary person" who deliberately hid herself, without any benefit to herself, shows that she is a kind-hearted person.
However, this ordinary, kind person's eyes would light up with an extremely fervent light whenever information about the God-King was mentioned.
Under her devout and ardent gaze, Jiang Geyun braced herself and followed suit, bowing towards the main hall.
Seeing Jiang Geyun's actions, the man finally showed a satisfied expression.
Everyone in the temple was well-behaved, looking out for each other and creating a harmonious atmosphere. In the past few days, Jiang Geyun had not encountered anyone with worldly desires like Master Peng of Yunshui Temple. Everyone was devout and sincere to the deity, and they seemed perfect.
But that's where the problem lies.
Jiang Geyun always felt that this god's followers seemed to be a little too devout.
While there are indeed ambitious people like Master Peng in Yunshui Temple, who have even done unforgivable extreme things, this state of being neither black nor white is what makes it feel like an ordinary environment.
But the followers of the Heavenly Lord...
She recalled what the priest in the temple in the capital had once said:
"When you seek guidance from the gods, you do so to ask for their advice. Whether the divination is auspicious or inauspicious, the gods have given you a response and hints. You should naturally be grateful for this guidance. If you were to consult a wise person and they told you that your future path would be difficult, wouldn't you be grateful to that wise person?"
She had initially thought that the man had seen all sorts of situations and was used to dealing with believers and pilgrims, which was why he said such things. But now, she wondered if that was really what he thought.
Jiang Geyun glanced at the aunt beside her, whose expression had returned to its kind and gentle state.
...Never mind, it's their belief, and she shouldn't interfere.
She roused herself and tentatively asked, "I wonder when the Hua family will send someone?"
Besides living a low-key life, Jiang Geyun also did not forget to collect information. When the topic of the forbidden area came up, although the people were not taboo, they really could not say anything. Their expressions did not seem to be fake. However, when the topic of the Hua family came up, Jiang Geyun had an unexpected gain.
She learned a common knowledge in Jingzhou—the Hua family always regarded family as the most important thing.
The Hua family is a rather closed-off family. Even the former Prince Jing, whose fiefdom was Jingzhou, could not persuade the Hua family to completely submit.
In that case, what about Su Heng?
Did the main villain truly gain the Hua family's allegiance, or... did the Hua family merely borrow the venue temporarily and not actually join the main villain's crew?
She needs to confirm it herself.
Who knows, she might be able to make the Hua family work for her.
The friendly aunt replied, "They'll be here in the next couple of days, but young lady, let me give you a piece of advice: the Hua family isn't so easy to curry favor with."
Jiang Geyun smiled and said, "I am not doing this to curry favor. Even if the Hua family invites me to leave, I will firmly stay in the temple and serve the God."
If it weren't for this blessed place, it's hard to say how long she could have lived. And then there's the Hua family's lakeside pavilion... she would never go there.
In other words, by taking advantage of his relationship with Hua Biezhi, he could see if he could use the Hua family to his advantage. Whether he could obtain more information about Jingzhou or more information about Su Heng, it would be worth it.
The kind auntie smiled sincerely and repeatedly praised her determination.
As night deepened, the two reached their lodgings, said their goodbyes, and rested.
*
The next day.
The young master in crimson robes stood before the temple, waved his hand, and his attendants silently withdrew.
Looking at the statue of the god sitting in the very center deep inside the hall behind the threshold, a hint of impatience appeared on his face.
This impatience was barely revealed before he quickly concealed it.
Fortunately, he was there as a routine and was familiar with the process, so he didn't have anyone follow him or have those crazy followers with him. Otherwise, with that expression on his face, he doesn't know how long those people would have lectured him with those creepy smiles...
That's really exaggerated.
He lifted his robes and stepped into the hall, where the temperature had noticeably dropped, becoming much more pleasant.
He didn't react much, taking everything before him for granted. He stepped forward, took out the incense he had prepared, lit it in front of the statue, and bowed in worship.
After bowing three times with his eyes closed, he got up, intending to quickly complete the ritual and leave, when suddenly a gust of wind blew out the incense.
He frowned and glanced down.
This is not a good sign.
What is the deity planning to do now?
The next instant, the doors of the main hall slammed shut with a few loud bangs, as if there was no wind.
Young Master Chu realized something was wrong, but his expression remained calm.
He shouted coldly, "Who's playing tricks on me!"
A soft laugh came from inside the hall.
Then, a clear and melodious voice said, "What do you mean by pretending to be a ghost? I have always been in front of you, young master."
The expression on Chu Yi Gongzi's face changed drastically.
He tightened his grip on the incense, staring intently at what lay before him, his gaze filled with doubt and uncertainty.
A man in white appeared before the incense table, smiling as he looked over.
Her temperament was ethereal, as bright as the sun and stars, truly like a divine being manifesting.
Pale and silent, the moonlight gathered like smoke, it resembled a mountain spirit formed from cold mist.
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Author's note: This is a trick that was used by Hua Biezhi before, Yun~
I knew I wouldn't be able to finish writing after working overtime yesterday (Friday), so I took a day off. Since I took a day off, I'll still send out red envelopes to everyone in the comments section of this chapter as usual. Also, since I didn't succeed in writing six chapters a day, there will be an update tomorrow as compensation. I hope the next chapter will feature Heng reappearing...!
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