Chapter 34 "I said it was a miracle I even got out..."
From their separation at the old house to their reunion today, not much time has passed; a long night has not yet completely ended, yet she feels as if a very long time has gone by.
It went on for so long that her whole body started to ache. The long journey had exhausted not only her body, but also her heart, which had been on guard against everything.
For some reason, she had a vague feeling that the days of cultivating immortality with Yun Xianqing in the haunted house and watching fireworks in the city affiliated with the Immortal Alliance were about to be gone forever.
She rushed here from one side of the secret realm. Her body was stained with countless drops of blood, her clothes were covered with layers of dust, and perhaps there was a sense of vicissitude in her eyes.
But all of that seemed to disappear the moment she saw that Yun Xianqing was still alive. The instant she heard him say that he missed her, it seemed that some emotion overwhelmed her and threatened to drown her in a wave.
"So Yun Xianqing remembers me too? Then my Buddhist prayer beads weren't a waste after all." She smiled, her heart clearly churning with complex emotions, yet she only showed a thin layer of them.
A glimmer of light finally appeared in her eyes, as if the world had been lit up. Though shaky, she could finally see a glimmer of peace.
What she really wanted to say was, "Thank goodness, the Immortal Lord is still alive! Thank goodness, I'm still alive too!" Life is so fragile. So fragile that she had faced death countless times, so fragile that even when she heard Yun Xianqing was dead, for a fleeting moment she believed it.
The creature was enormous, with two goat horns on its head. Although it had a human body, its hands and feet resembled bird claws, with two of them deeply embedded in the ground, while the other two were clasped together in a gesture of supplication.
It appears to be a mutated demon.
A water sword was wrapped around the rough skin on the side of its neck.
Yun Xianqing climbed down from the tree, her water sword darting through the air and plunging into the creature's neck. The bright red blood mingled with the turquoise water in the sword, creating a blood-stained painting.
The thing shouted something at the end, but Yun Xianqing didn't give it a second glance. With her robes fluttering, she was already in front of Meng Chiwan.
Then, he lowered his head and gently brushed the dust off Meng Chiwan's cheeks, his tenderness seemingly overflowing from his eyes.
“I keep thinking, if Chi Wan dies here, how can I bring you back from the brink of death? But then I think that Chi Wan will definitely survive. So I focus on thinking about what gift to prepare for Chi Wan.”
Yun Xianqing spoke slowly, his eyes fixed on her, and then took her hand, placing something in it just as she had done before when he had given her a Buddhist prayer bead.
The cold knuckles touched her warm palm, and her fingertips trembled slightly involuntarily.
Wen Liansong stood not far away, adjusting her breathing. Further away, the corpse of that thing slowly became transparent and then disappeared, and the surrounding plants and trees knelt down in reverence.
A pale golden blade of grass lay quietly in her palm, its slender leaves still slightly opening and closing.
She had clearly never seen the immortal herb before, yet at this moment she knew exactly what it was.
The person in front of her picked the magic herb and handed it to her.
Under Wen Liansong's surprised gaze, she clearly heard Yun Xianqing say, "Do you like it?"
She seemed a little slow to react, nodding blankly before asking, "How did you find it? Were you injured? Did you pay any price?"
Yun Xianqing gently shook her head: "There's no price to pay. There's no need to worry."
“But…” Meng Chiwan said, still worried.
But Yun Xianqing said earnestly, "My strength has recovered somewhat, Chi Wan, don't worry."
"Then how did you know I needed the immortal herb?" Meng Chiwan remembered that she had never told Yun Xianqing that she possessed the Heart of the Demon.
“I knew before that Chi Wan had a seal on her body, and later I heard Lin Ruyuan say that if you enter the Immortal Demon Secret Realm, the things on your body will be revealed, so I guessed what it was,” Yun Xianqing explained.
Meng Chiwan nodded, then looked at Wen Liansong, who was standing to the side, staring blankly at the herb in her hand.
She glanced at Yun Xianqing, then smiled gently: "Then may I dispose of this immortal herb as I see fit?"
Yun Xianqing's dark eyes moved slightly, as if she understood what she wanted to do. She paused for a moment, glanced at Wen Liansong, and then nodded.
"Wen Liansong, here you go." She handed the herb to Wen Liansong without the slightest hesitation, as if what she was giving away was not a magical herb at all, but a wild grass she had picked at random along the way.
Wen Liansong seemed startled. When she came to her senses, her eyelashes trembled, and then she suddenly raised her hand and waved it off, saying, "No, no, no, this is for Chi Wan. Chi Wan deserves it. How can you give it to me!"
“But you really need it, don’t you?” Meng Chiwan looked at her earnestly.
“But you need it too.” Wen Liansong looked nervous and somewhat flustered.
"There are priorities too. Only by eliminating the demonic thoughts in your heart can you rightfully return to the Immortal Alliance, and only then can Jiang Yi stay in the Immortal Alliance, right?" She had heard Lin Ruyuan mention some things before, and after entering the secret realm, she guessed some of them herself.
“…I cannot accept it.” Wen Liansong remained silent for a moment before firmly stating her position.
Meng Chiwan said helplessly, "...Is there only one immortal herb in the Immortal Demon Realm?"
She tilted her head and asked Yun Xianqing again, "Has the Immortal Lord seen any other immortal herbs?"
Yun Xianqing shook her head slightly.
Wen Liansong said, "I have never heard of the exact number of immortal herbs. I only know that only one person out of the Immortal Demon Secret Realm ever obtains an immortal herb."
"Did they absorb it immediately upon obtaining it, thus ending the secret realm, so that others haven't had a chance to collect it yet?" Meng Chiwan guessed.
"I don't know, but it's possible," Wen Liansong said after a moment's thought.
"Then you take it first, and we'll go look for it together, shall we?" Meng Chiwan placed the immortal herb in Wen Liansong's hand again, and then said.
“But…” Wen Liansong still hesitated.
"No buts. Who knows what might happen if we wait any longer, and besides..." Meng Chiwan's voice suddenly stopped, and she turned to ask Yun Xianqing, "Where is Zhong Huai? Have you seen Zhong Huai? And Jiang Yi... he's gone too."
Yun Xianqing lowered his eyes, slowly circling the water sword around his knuckles a few times before gently sliding it along. His dark pupils seemed devoid of emotion. He chuckled softly, seemingly indifferent: "Never seen it before. It must be dead."
Meng Chiwan: "..." Why does this sound so familiar?
She paused, then said, "But Jiang Yi said you and Zhong Huai were together."
As the water sword slid, it seemed to graze a layer of flesh, oozing a few drops of bright red blood. Yun Xianqing lifted her eyelids, her tone devoid of any guilt: "Oh, I forgot. But he should still be dead. In that kind of place... I'm lucky I even got out, but I wonder if he had the same luck."
Upon hearing these words, Meng Chiwan felt a sudden pang of tenderness in her heart, as if something within her had attacked her heart.
She couldn't control her words: "Didn't the Immortal Lord save him?"
The wound on his knuckles seemed to have grown larger. He suddenly curled his hand up, his pupils as dark as a night without starlight. He gently tugged at the corner of his lips, his tone ambiguous: "I said I'm already lucky to have gotten out. How can I save your brother Zhonghuai?"
Meng Chiwan suddenly fell silent, realizing that she had said the wrong thing, but in that instant she also felt some doubt, as if it was not something she could say.
She opened her mouth, wanting to explain, but Yun Xianqing spoke up again in an instant: "Chi Wan only cares about your Zhong Huai brother, but never thought about how I came out of there, or how I survived."
He lowered his eyes, looking somewhat hurt, and drops of blood dripped from his fingertips down his knuckles.
Meng Chiwan's heart skipped a beat, as if something densely packed was gnawing at her organs. She spoke, her voice trembling slightly, "I didn't... I didn't mean to blame you... I don't know what happened..."
Yun Xianqing raised his eyes, and the beauty mark under his eye twitched slightly. Then he said, "I never intended to blame Chi Wan. It's just that sometimes I feel sad. Why is it that even though Chi Wan is right in front of me, you're always worrying about others? I feel sorry for Chi Wan, and you feel sorry for him, but does your Zhong Huai brother really feel sorry for you too?"
"...Where is he?" Meng Chiwan asked.
But the moment the words left her lips, she widened her eyes in astonishment. How could she have said such a thing...?
She looked up, trying to make amends: "I...no...I love you the most, and you're the only person I ever think about. But Zhong Huai once..."
But the smile on Yun Xianqing's face had long since faded. He just stared at her intently, neither nodding nor shaking his head, and everything seemed very calm.
Meng Chiwan knew in her heart that he no longer believed her. This was probably the strongest emotion she had ever seen in Yun Xianqing. He seemed to be angry.
But now is not the time to dwell on these things; she needs to know where Zhong Huai and Jiang Yi are.
“Those words just now were not my intention, but I really do want to know where Zhong Huai and Jiang Yi are. Immortal Lord, could you please put these things aside for now, and wait until later…” Meng Chiwan’s anxiety grew stronger and stronger.
Wen Liansong, standing nearby, tried to smooth things over: "Jiang Yi has been missing for a long time. I suspect something bad has happened to him... Let's go check on him. It just so happens that the Immortal Lord is here too..."
Yun Xianqing completely sheathed the water sword, then stepped towards the place where it was concealed.
Meng Chiwan felt a tightness in her chest, as if something was pressing on her heart, but she couldn't understand why she had spoken that way. She could only assume that she was just too tired.
Why would she make Yun Xianqing angry for no reason? She herself couldn't understand it.
She gently closed her eyes, then held Jinglan in one hand and gently hooked Yun Xianqing's hand with the other.
Meeting Yun Xianqing's gaze, she smiled gently, as if all her apology was hidden in her eyes during this crisis.
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