Chapter 80
Murong Jing looked at the thousand-year-old demon in front of him with some resistance. Originally, he had gone to the "Three States" to investigate with his senior sister. However, just as they arrived, a letter from his sect asked him to go back and escort Gu Qingci to the Yan Yue Sect, and to travel with Sui Fu.
Indeed, he was grateful that Sui Fu had risked his life to deliver the intelligence about Guancheng. However, Gu Qingci was just an ordinary person, and she was not capable of protecting herself in the current situation.
Gu Qingci was a novice cultivator; she had only recently learned sword control and was not yet very proficient. This time, the sect leader wanted her to go to the Yan Yue Sect to participate in the investigation of the missing Shennong Cauldron.
The initial excitement dissipated as her strength waned in the air, leaving her only with fear—the fear of losing her strength and falling. If she did fall, she would become the first cultivator to die from a fall while flying on her sword, which would be incredibly shameful.
As she grew increasingly anxious, the sword beneath her feet became more and more unsteady. It was at this moment that Murong Jing, who was in front of her, slowed down and came to her side.
"Senior Brother Mu..." Gu Qingci was reluctant to delay everyone's trip, but she was about to fall. Before she could ask for help, Murong Jing interrupted her, "Come here."
Seeing Murong Jing's outstretched hand, Gu Qingci didn't care about anything else. She reached out and grabbed the strong arm, and came behind Murong Jing.
Feeling much more at ease behind Murong Jing, Gu Qingci quickened her pace considerably. Looking at Murong Jing's retreating figure, she thought about what everyone had said: that Murong Jing was a genius, his cultivation speed far exceeding that of others. She wondered how someone like him could be so clever; how come she couldn't even catch up to half of his abilities?
"Call me next time if you need anything, don't go alone." Murong Jing's voice interrupted her reverie. She felt a little guilty, afraid that he would know what she was thinking, so she nodded immediately. Then, realizing that he couldn't see her, she hurriedly replied, "Okay, Senior Brother."
Why am I so flustered? Isn't it normal that an ordinary person like me can't compare to cultivators?
Sui Fu, who was in front, seemed to have just remembered that there were two people behind him. He slowed down and saw Murong Jing carrying Gu Qingci, a playful look on his face.
Gu Qingci couldn't see that Murong Jing had noticed, but since Sui Fu didn't speak, he didn't know what to say either. "Senior, were you waiting for us?"
Sui Fu sighed and said, "You have to understand. I'm old now and I don't remember some things. Please be understanding of this old man!"
Gu Qingci didn't see the amused expression on Gan's face, so she naturally didn't know that Gan had just been teased. Instead, she said with a hint of unease, "I'm sorry, senior. I've caused everyone trouble because of me."
Seeing Gu Qingci, Sui Fu smiled and said, "It's alright. You've only just started cultivating and you can already fly on a sword. You're quite a rare little genius. Why don't you consider becoming a disciple..." Murong Jing interrupted Sui Fu, "Senior, you're getting old, so you should take care of yourself and not catch a cold."
I've never seen a monster like him, not wearing his clothes properly and exposing a large part of his chest.
“Alright, alright,” Sui Fu said, “It seems that this old man has nothing to say to you young people. Shall we continue our journey after we’ve rested enough?” He was asking Murong Jing, but his gaze was fixed on Gu Qingci.
Murong Jing moved slightly, blocking Sui Fu's view of Gu Qingci, "Senior, just lead the way."
Sui Fu, floating on Cuiwei Mountain, saw no one he knew, but smelled the stench of blood, mixed with a trace of demonic energy.
If he remembered correctly, there were several villages at the foot of this mountain. Sui Fu was no longer as calm and collected as he ran quickly toward the villages, hoping it was just his imagination.
"What's wrong, Senior?" In her memory, a senior like Sui Fu should always be calm and composed, no matter what. She turned to look at Murong Jing, hoping to get an answer, but Murong Jing's expression was not good either.
The situation here was bad. He really wanted to find the source of the smell, so he said to Gu Qingci beside him, "Stay close to me." The scattered bloodstains along the way made Sui Fu uneasy. Following the bloodstains further, a strong smell of blood hit him.
After taking two more steps, Murong Jing saw a place with signs of a struggle. There were sword marks on the trees and the ground, and even scratches from fingernails. But the place was very clean; there wasn't even a fallen leaf on the ground.
The stench of blood made Gu Qingci gag. Seeing Murong Jing searching the area, she knew this was the scene of the demon's attack. But she couldn't see any blood: "Why can I smell blood, but not see any?"
Someone must have cleaned it up. The villagers around here probably wouldn't dare to come. "It must have been cultivators who came and did it."
A lot has happened during this time, and she has heard about it all from the Exorcism Bureau. Those harmful demons were able to break into the capital city, which is protected by the Exorcism Bureau. But what about the ordinary people who are far away from the protection of cultivators?
"Have these demons been captured?" During his time with the Exorcism Bureau, he hadn't heard of anyone capturing those demons. Murong Jing didn't answer himself, his spirits low. Gu Qingci knew the answer.
"Let's go check on Senior Suifu's situation!" Gu Qingci knew the situation wasn't good, but she still wanted to go and see what she could do.
The two went down the mountain to the village at its foot.
The village archway stood there, its pillars bearing the marks of fire. Murong shielded Gu Qingci behind him and stepped forward to touch the blackened, charred pillar—it was the karmic fire of the demon race.
The cultivators who came here before must have cleaned up the place; at least it wasn't as bloody as expected. I wonder what kind of grief and anger they felt when they saw this scene. Did they discover anything? Are there other survivors here?
The two entered the village, which was completely burned and blackened. Crows circled in the air, showing no fear of strangers.
Gu Qingci followed behind Murong Jing. She could see small wooden horses, burned to half their original size, and scattered pieces of cloth in some people's yards. In a few other houses, rice and flour were scattered on the ground, along with the yellow fur of some unknown animal.
Sui Fu emerged from a house and saw the two people entering the village. He sighed and shook his head. There were no survivors here. Perhaps the cultivators who were driven away left, or perhaps there were no survivors at all.
“There’s no one here. They must have been taken away by the cultivators. Let’s search here for any clues,” Sui Fu said.
"Yes," Gu Qingci replied, knowing that they needed to find eyewitnesses and survivors.
Murong Jing looked at the village. The people here should have been living peaceful lives, but they had been ravaged by the demons. His eyes darkened; he would not let these people off easily.
Gu Qingci followed Sui Fu and Murong Jing and searched around outside the village, but found no trace of the perpetrator.
Beyond this village lies another village, and countless more like it. What are they to do? Gu Qingci stood there helplessly, gazing at the road ahead.
Murong Jing noticed Gu Qingci's downcast mood. "Qingci, what's wrong?"
"I just feel really useless, like I can't do anything," Gu Qingci said, lowering her head.
"Don't think like that, you've already done very well." Murong Jing didn't know how to comfort Gu Qingci, all he could do was stay by her side.
"Should we continue?" Gu Qingci asked.
“Yes, let’s go and meet up with Senior Sui Fu first.” Murong Jing looked at Gu Qingci, not wanting her to be sad because of his affairs.
Sui Fu caught a glimpse of Shi Wanqing's remnant soul on the outskirts of the village. He couldn't contact or find the Hanged Man, and he dared not think about what would happen next.
It was a complex emotion, a mixture of helplessness, despair, and anger, one that Sui Fu had never experienced before.
Two hundred years of planning, and this scheme has been ruined just like that. Why would the demons chase after the Hanged Man when they had already tried everything to get his attention and the Hanged Man had tried to minimize his presence?
Is it too late to retrieve Shi Wanqing's remnant soul? Chonghua has discovered Shi Wanqing's remnant soul. Can he guess their plan? Will Shi Wanqing be able to come back and stop him then?
This wisp of soul in my hand is fragile; if used properly, it could be my only chance of victory. But…
He turned to look at the two children, whose faces were solemn. Especially Gu Qingci, who was just an ordinary mortal in this life. In her previous life, she was killed shortly after birth. In this life, she was determined to spend her life with the one she loved, which was also Shi Wanqing's wish.
But what about the people of the world?
Sui Fu fell into deep thought.
Sui Fu's almost desperate expression made Murong Jing feel a pang of guilt. He remembered his master saying that Sui Fu had once been a guardian spirit, and if it weren't for the demons' chaos, he would have already ascended to immortality. He had a deep love for all the people in the world.
“Senior,” Murong Jing thought for a moment and said, “we can go and see the surrounding villages; perhaps the survivors are still there.”
Sui Fu looked at Murong Jing and then at the little girl beside her, and asked, "What did your master say to you when you came here?"
"I've only told you about your past, senior," Murong Jing said earnestly.
This wisp of remnant soul is very important. Chonghua might come looking for it himself. He looked at Gu Qingci with a heart full of apology, but the bracelet could only work on her. He would play the villain.
"Did your master say anything else?"
“Master told us to cooperate with your actions,” Murong Jing replied.
Sui Fu nodded after hearing this. Then he stretched out his hand, and a wisp of remnant soul was in his hand. He said, "This wisp of remnant soul is very important. Compared to her, my life is not worth mentioning."
He turned to look at Gu Qingci and said, "I want to put her into your bracelet to nurture her, but that would be very dangerous for you. The demons will hunt you down for this remnant soul."
Upon hearing this, Murong Jing immediately stepped in front of Gu Qingci, his voice carrying a hint of warning, "Senior, Miss Gu is just a mortal."
Sui Fu ignored him and waited for Gu Qingci's reply.
Gu Qingci was deeply moved by Murong Jing standing in front of her, but she stepped aside, met his gaze, and answered firmly, "I can."
Murong Jing turned to look at Gu Qingci and advised, "This is very dangerous. The demons are ruthless; you will die. Don't."
Gu Qingci smiled at him and comforted him, "Don't worry, Senior Suifu will protect me." She knew the origin of her bracelet; the remnant soul nurtured by her bracelet could only belong to that person. She met Suifu's gaze and said, "The people of Tianyu Mountain will also protect me, right?"
Sui Fu couldn't help but admire how clever this girl was. "They will send people to protect you, and they don't need to know the reason."
“I don’t want to know why they’re protecting me,” Gu Qingci said, stretching out her hand to reveal the silver bracelet on her wrist.
Murong Jing wanted to persuade her further, but Gu Qingci stopped him. "I know what I'm doing. Ever since I was abducted to Guancheng, I've often wondered what I can do. Whether it's protecting myself or fighting demons like you, after learning magic for a while, I realized that there's very little I can do. This is the only contribution I can make, something that will put my mind at ease."
Murong Jing looked at Gu Qingci, and after a long while, he gave in, "I will protect you and will not leave your side for a moment. Please let me protect you in return."
Gu Qingci nodded and agreed, "Okay."
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