86. Natural Barrier (XIV)
"You cultivated with her?!"
Qian Zhong stood in mid-air, his hair and beard bristling with rage. Lou Yi, standing beside him, also had his usually dignified face slightly distorted by his fury.
Lou Tinglan lowered her head, her figure appearing even thinner under the immense pressure, and the blood that kept seeping from the corner of her mouth gradually stained her front.
He continued, "This disciple lost control of his spiritual power and inadvertently damaged his spiritual veins. I am willing to accept all punishments."
"Accidentally affected?" Qian Zhong said sternly, "Dozens of spiritual veins were destroyed at the same time. Ting Lan, your grandfather is not a three-year-old child!"
Lou Guan, who had been silent all along, first glanced at Lou Tinglan, then looked at the still-unsettled spiritual energy in the distance, and said slowly:
“Tinglan, as the chief of the Discipline Hall, you should know what crime it is to destroy the sect’s spiritual veins. If dozens of spiritual veins are destroyed at the same time, even a ten-year prison sentence in the Tower of Babel would be more than enough.”
Lou Tinglan's expression remained unchanged upon hearing this, though his body swayed slightly. He had exhausted all his spiritual power to withstand Qian Zhong's attack, and he was clearly at his limit.
Seeing that he still insisted, Lou Guan's eyes also showed a hint of pain, and he said with disappointment, "I didn't know that the power of breaking through to the Nascent Soul realm not only damages the spiritual veins, but also destroys your Dao heart, is that right?"
What? ? ! !
Lou Yi was even more shocked. He immediately released a burst of spiritual energy, forcing Lou Tinglan to look up. When he saw that the tribulation mark on Lou Tinglan's forehead had disappeared, his eyes widened in fury.
Seeing this, he understood perfectly well that his good nephew, under the guise of seclusion, had actually gone to find Ran Qinghe.
"You cultivated together with her?!"
With no one else present, Lou Yi spoke without any restraint, asking questions directly and bluntly.
"No," Lou Tinglan hurriedly denied. "Disciple and Ran Qinghe have not bowed to heaven and earth, nor signed a contract, so it is absolutely impossible!"
These words sounded as if he couldn't wait to form a pact with Ran Qinghe.
"If there was no dual cultivation, then why did your tribulation seal disappear without a trace? How do you explain that?"
Unlike previous injuries that were too severe to be visible, his tribulation mark was completely shattered, and there was probably no trace of it left on his spiritual platform.
"This disciple has no such answer," Lou Tinglan replied stubbornly.
He himself was unaware of it, so he had no way to defend himself.
"Fine! Fine! Fine!" Lou Yi laughed in exasperation.
"What a fine saying, 'One is influenced by one's company.' You've been influenced by Ran Qinghe and now you're increasingly disregarding your uncle. And now you still want to argue."
"Since that's the case, I'll ask you one more time: did you actually engage in dual cultivation with Ran Qinghe?!"
"No."
This time, however, it was Ran Qinghe who answered.
She tore off the concealment talisman from her body, casually stepped out of her hiding place, and repeated:
"Old man, how many times do you want me to say it? You're getting old, and your hearing is getting worse and worse."
Lou Yi pointed his finger at Ran Qinghe in disbelief: "You! You! You!"
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Qian Zhong struck Ran Qinghe with a palm, but Lou Guan silently neutralized the force of the three palm strikes.
Qian Zhong angrily said, "Could it be that your Discipline Hall intends to protect this Ran Qinghe?"
The truth is obvious: Lou Tinglan was merely taking the blame for Ran Qinghe by destroying the spiritual vein. Ran Qinghe is not without a criminal record.
Lou Guan lifted his eyelids, his eyes filled with suppressed anger that seemed about to overflow, but it was unclear whether he was angry at Lou Tinglan for taking the blame or at him for losing his Dao heart.
But her voice remained steady. "The matter of Ran Qinghe should have been handled by the Discipline Hall. As for sentencing her to imprisonment in the Tower of Babel, that decision needs to be made after deliberation by the elders of the Discipline Hall."
"What is Sect Leader Qian planning to do? Where does he intend to take them?"
Ran Qinghe smiled confidently at Qian Zhong.
“I am no longer a disciple of Qingxiao. I have joined Feifeng. Right and wrong should be judged by Sect Leader Lingge. If Sect Leader Qian wants to overstep his bounds, he is going too far.”
"Or is there something about me that Sect Leader Qian would want?"
She turned to look at Lou Yi and Lou Guan: "I have never allowed anyone to suffer for me. As you can see, I destroyed the spiritual vein, and I made the mistake. You may choose any punishment you wish."
Qian Zhong glared angrily at Lou Guan, then said:
"Regarding the spiritual veins, I hope the Discipline Hall will give me an explanation. If the Tower of Babel is just a light and ineffective confinement, then there is no need for it."
"When Ran Qinghe escapes from prison, you'll chase after her, and even if you don't succeed, you'll still lose face for Qingxiao!"
Qianzhong angrily flung his sleeves and left.
Far behind, the disciples of the Discipline Hall arrived late.
Lou Guan ordered, "Take Ran Qinghe down and temporarily detain her in the solitary confinement room of the Discipline Hall to await further instructions."
The disciple in the lead was none other than Qi Feng, who had previously descended to the mortal realm with them.
He looked at Lou Yi, and seeing that Lou Yi nodded slightly, he cupped his hands in agreement.
Lou Guan glanced at Lou Yi indifferently, as if warning him something, and Lou Yi then let out a long sigh.
He knew that Lou Guan was blaming him for not taking good care of Tinglan. Before Lou Yunya left, he entrusted Tinglan to him, and now, Tinglan had even broken the Dao Heart Tribulation Seal.
He looked at Lou Tinglan. Since force didn't work, he would try a softer approach. He was about to offer some advice when, unexpectedly, Lou Tinglan collapsed straight down.
"Tinglan..."
Before he could even touch Lou Tinglan, Lou Guan stopped him without batting an eye. She took Lou Tinglan's arm and said calmly, "Since the hall master is so negligent in caring for his brother's son, then I will take care of him."
*
The room is completely closed off outdoors.
Qi Feng stood with his sword on his back, laughing rather nonchalantly, "Long time no see. I didn't expect Miss Lan Cao to be so determined to shake up the cultivation world."
Seeing that there was no response from the closed room for a long time, Qi Feng asked again, "Doesn't Miss Lan Cao want to know what Lou Tinglan's current situation is?"
Ran Qinghe's heart tightened. The situation that day was too chaotic, and now, thinking back on it carefully, she couldn't understand anything about it.
At the time of Fei Feng, Lou Tinglan should have been at the Golden Core Realm, so why was he able to break through her binding net? And why did he tell Qian Zhong that he lost control of his spiritual power because he had broken through to the Divine Transformation Realm?
However, since Lou Tinglan was able to withstand a full-force attack from Qian Zhong, his claim about his cultivation level was somewhat credible. But why, why did he suddenly leap from the Golden Core Realm to the Divine Transformation Realm?
And... is what Lou Guan said about falling into the Dao true or false? Lou Tinglan clearly told her it was because of serious injuries, and she clearly...
The thought of that possibility caused her heart to ache as if it were on fire.
Is it because of her?
“If Miss Bluegrass doesn’t want to know, then I’ll leave…” Qi Feng waited for a long time without a response, then shouted loudly.
"Speak." Ran Qinghe stopped him. Even if he was at the Nascent Soul stage, he would not be able to escape unscathed after blocking a thousand-bell attack.
"It seems that Bluegrass is still willing to talk to me. I thought we had become estranged after not seeing each other for so long."
Seeing that Qi Feng still couldn't get to the point, Ran Qinghe clenched her fingers: "How is he now?"
Qi Feng said, "With Elder Lou Guan watching over him, he's naturally fine. However, it seems unlikely that he'll be able to see Miss Lan Cao again."
"What happened?" Ran Qinghe asked nervously, her palms sweating.
Qi Feng said, "The Second Elder has issued a decree that no one is allowed to approach Senior Brother Lou's residence, including the Hall Master."
"Ah, to be able to force the Jade-Faced Bodhisattva to such an extent, I truly did not misjudge Miss Bluegrass."
Ran Qinghe felt increasingly strange as she listened, sensing that something was amiss, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
Ran Qinghe: "Jade-faced Bodhisattva?"
Qi Feng replied, "Elder Lou Guan is not only handsome but also kind and gentle. Does he not deserve the title of Jade-Faced Bodhisattva?"
"Is he really alright?" Ran Qinghe asked again to confirm.
"Perhaps?" Qi Feng replied, "The Second Elder forbids any disciples from visiting, so even if I wanted to inquire about Lan Cao's whereabouts, I am powerless to do so..."
Ran Qinghe sat cross-legged in the corner, pondering to herself, remaining silent.
Meanwhile, in a courtyard on Snowfall Peak.
Lou Guan silently gazed at the person on the bed with their eyes closed, and asked, "How long until he wakes up?"
Standing beside her, Yunxiu stroked his beard and replied, "Second Elder, there is no need to worry too much. Sect Leader Qian's palm strike did not harm Fellow Daoist Tinglan. His current state is merely due to the depletion of his spiritual energy."
"I have already performed the soul transfer for him. After the spiritual energy has circulated, he will naturally wake up."
Lou Guan nodded.
"In that case, you may leave."
Yunxiu smiled and said, "Second Elder, you must not forget the realm of selflessness."
The room fell silent once more.
Lou Guan slowly sat down on the edge of the couch, his gaze tracing Lou Tinglan's pale face. His usually cold and stern face softened at this moment, and although she had wiped away the bloodstains at the corner of his mouth, a faint red mark remained.
This face overlapped with another gentle, smiling face deep in her memory, then gradually separated, finally becoming the stubborn and silent young man she had watched grow up.
Her hand moved, and finally reached out, hovering above the shattered calamity mark on his forehead.
The foundation of the Dao remains, but the tribulation mark that sustained the Dao heart has truly vanished without a trace.
Outside the window, the sun was setting in the west, and warm orange light shone through the window frame, casting a dreamlike warmth on the cold interior.
Lou Guan sat there until dusk fell, when suddenly the eyelashes of the person on the bed trembled violently a few times.
Lou Tinglan's consciousness struggled to rise from a heavy darkness. He suddenly opened his eyes, and what came into view was Lou Guan's face, which was close to his.
She seemed momentarily stunned by his sudden awakening, and a hint of tenderness lingered in her all-knowing eyes.
"Second Elder..." Lou Tinglan subconsciously sat up, but was pressed back onto the bed by an irresistible spiritual force.
"Lie down," Lou Guan said.
"Ran Qinghe now..." Lou Tinglan couldn't help but ask.
"Solitary confinement." Lou Guan's expression grew even colder. "Since she has confessed, the Discipline Hall will handle the matter according to the law."
“This is not solely her fault…” Lou Tinglan said, forcing herself to sit up.
"That's enough," Lou Guan interrupted.
"Lou Tinglan, as the head of the Discipline Hall, ruined his own path for a female cultivator who betrayed the sect and repeatedly violated the prohibitions."
"You really... disappoint me."
She spoke the last few words very slowly and with great emphasis.
Lou Tinglan opened her lips, wanting to say something, but the fact that her mind was empty was undeniable. All explanations seemed pale and powerless in the face of the facts.
"Disciple... has nothing to say." In the end, he could only utter these few words.
"Nothing to say?" Lou Guan repeated softly, then suddenly bent down and touched his forehead with his cold fingertips again.
"Since there's nothing to say, then I'll make the decision for you."
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