Chapter 91
Lin Jichen couldn't remember how many people he had saved, nor how many demons he had killed. He only knew that when he first stepped onto the battlefield, the sun was high in the sky, and now it was setting in the west. His hands, which were used to pluck the strings, were covered in blood, and he had no strength left in his body.
The resentment of the tragically killed people gathered here and was absorbed by the demons, leaving very little spiritual energy.
Her blue and white clothes had turned bright red, stained with both her own and the other's blood. Her wounds were still bleeding and had not yet healed. Meanwhile, the number of demons was constantly increasing, and the common people had long been evacuated. It was clear that their target was not mortals, but rather the elimination of cultivators.
Just as Lin Jichen thought she was about to collapse, she seemed to hear the sound of chanting, and the demons surrounding her seemed to be feeling unwell. She looked around and saw a group of monks dressed in brown robes, sitting on the ground holding wooden fish and beginning to chant.
The entire city was enveloped in Buddhist light. Lin Jichen looked at the demons who had lost their ability to defend themselves, and with all his might, he delivered the final blow. After a blinding white light, the demons collapsed to the ground. Lin Jichen, however, no longer had the strength to stand up.
Upon seeing the Buddhist cultivators arrive to provide support, the demons who were still putting up a fight scattered and fled, with the remaining cultivators giving chase. The gate that had opened through the city had already closed, and no demons would emerge from it.
Lin Jichen lay on the ground covered in corpses and blood, watching the setting sun, and couldn't help but sigh, "It's good to be alive." But he was also worried. Why had the gates of Guancheng been closed? This was a perfect opportunity. The cultivators in various cities were exhausted; they could be wiped out in one fell swoop.
She didn't believe the demons were afraid of the Buddhist cultivators coming to their aid; there must be another conspiracy. She wondered how Shi Yunzhou was doing, and hoped he would regain his senses soon.
Zhou Xuanzhi, imprisoned in the demon realm, was nearly killed by the Gu worm that relentlessly gnawed at his flesh and bones. He was repeatedly awakened by the pain in his sleep, yet powerless to stop it. He had recited the Pure Tranquility Sutra countless times, but the excruciating pain and itching that penetrated to his very bones showed no sign of relief.
The jailers would occasionally come to check on this cultivator from Tianyu Mountain. Seeing him covered in sweat, they would jokingly remark on his willpower, truly befitting a cultivator. It was a pity, though; he was about to become a cripple. Even Zhou Xuanzhi himself hadn't noticed the several hair-thick black lines on his body—marks left by the worms that had devoured him.
The arrival of the jailer displeased Zhou Xuanzhi. He could be seen by anyone in his current state, except for the demons. "You really care about me."
The jailer just smiled and said, "I just pity you. How does it feel to be harmed by your own junior brother?"
The worms inside his body started moving again. Although Zhou Xuanzhi was sitting cross-legged and trying to appear calm, his trembling body and the sweat on his forehead betrayed him.
"This insect is incredibly dangerous. I'd rather avoid it altogether. You'd better pray to a god to come and save you!" The jailer mocked Zhou Xuan before happily leaving.
Zhou Xuanzhi coughed up a mouthful of black blood. He had just recovered some of his spiritual power and was trying to force the Gu worms out. But the Gu worms seemed to have taken root in his body; he couldn't get rid of them and had even injured himself.
Thinking of Shi Yunzhou made him feel terrible, and he also felt guilty towards his master. As the senior brother, he had failed to take good care of his junior brother, and had even caused him to lose his memory and reason and fall into demonic possession. He felt that he deserved to suffer all of this today.
He endured several days with this thought in mind. During this time, the Gu worms tormented him, and he could no longer distinguish between night and day.
When Shi Yunzhou arrived again, the man in the prison was so haggard that he could no longer be recognized as a cultivator. If it weren't for his face, Shi Yunzhou would have thought he was the mortal who had taken the Five Stone Powder.
But I don't know what these cultivators have to be so arrogant about. "It seems you still don't want to say."
Seeing that it was his junior brother alone, Zhou Xuanzhi staggered to the cell door. He reached out and grabbed the bars, noticing the black lines on his hand. He seemed to know that he didn't have much time left, and said with a bitter smile, "So? You've come to kill me?"
Seeing Zhou Xuanzhi like this, Shi Yunzhou didn't know what was wrong with him. It felt like a corner of his heart was empty, and then he felt a pain. It wasn't a physical pain, and he couldn't explain it. In short, it was very uncomfortable.
He moved away from Zhou Xuanzhi, his back to him, and said mockingly, "Killing you would be too easy for you. You can just stay here and enjoy the 'gift' I gave you!"
He didn't hear any sound behind him for a long time. Could he be dead? The thought of Zhou Xuanzhi's death made his heart ache again. He quickly turned around and saw the look in Zhou Xuanzhi's eyes. The emotion in those eyes made him panic.
He hurriedly spoke up to cover up his unusual behavior, "What? Scared? Then confess everything you've done."
Zhou Xuanzhi looked at Shi Yunzhou with gentle eyes and said, "Okay."
Did he just say 'okay'? He thought Zhou Xuanzhi could hold out for another two days, but it turns out he's a spineless coward. That's fine, then he won't have to bother anymore. However, Zhou Xuanzhi's look made him very uncomfortable.
"The message I sent to the sect is that I have found my junior brother and will bring him home. Please don't worry, elders." Zhou Xuanzhi looked at Shi Yunzhou. This was the only opportunity he could have to be alone with him, and he couldn't let it go to waste.
Shi Yunzhou felt extremely uncomfortable under Zhou Xuanzhi's gaze, as if Zhou Xuanzhi recognized him. However, he couldn't worry about that now; this demon race had an informant among them, and he was determined to find him. He forced himself to endure the discomfort and stepped forward, asking, "Who is your junior brother? Have you seen him in the demon race?"
Zhou Xuanzhi nodded, "I've seen him. He's doing well now and hasn't suffered. He's very different from my senior brother. Master always said that my junior brother is the smartest, and he won't make himself too sad no matter where he goes."
Shi Yunzhou had no injuries, so he must have been doing well lately. But given his personality, he would have charged at the Demon Lord to the death if they met, yet he's now working under Chonghua. There must be some inside story he doesn't know. We must investigate this thoroughly, no matter what.
"Where did you see it?" Shi Yunzhou was a little excited. If he did a good job, he would not only gain merit, but also help the Demon Lord. He was very excited.
He thought of the jailer. Although Chonghua couldn't really do anything to him, it was still satisfying to see him in such a sorry state. "He's right here. I've seen him here more than once."
Upon hearing this, Shi Yunzhou became somewhat excited. Before he could ask anything, Zhou Xuanzhi added, "I don't know what his name is now."
“I’ll bring the person here, and you can identify him.”
Zhou Xuanzhi shook his head and said, "That's my junior brother, I can't identify him."
Shi Yunzhou looked at Zhou Xuanzhi and felt that he seemed to be telling the truth, so he took out his flute from his pocket and started playing.
The music he played made the worm inside Zhou Xuanzhi's body uneasy, but it obediently crawled out of his wound. The worm, which was originally very small, had now grown quite large.
But Zhou Xuanzhi didn't care at all. He looked at the flute in Shi Yunzhou's hand, which his master had given him back then. Seeing that he still carried it with him even after losing his memory and becoming a demon, he immediately felt that everything he had done was worthwhile.
After summoning the insect back, Shi Yunzhou felt uneasy seeing Zhou Xuanzhi's tearful eyes, so he threatened, "If you dare to lie to me, I will never let you go."
Only after Shi Yunzhou left did Zhou Xuanzhi begin to feel nervous. He had just placed something inconspicuous on Shi Yunzhou's person: the breathing bottle he had used in Guancheng. It was small enough to stick to clothing without being noticed.
However, Chonghua is very strong, and Shi Yunzhou is very close to him; it's uncertain whether he can keep it a secret. If this attempt fails, then it's truly a failure, and he can only wait for his sect leader to come and help. He had been meditating and had only recovered a tiny bit of spiritual energy; this was all he could manage to take out.
After the demons' attack, there was no movement for a long time. Perhaps they were recuperating? However, none of this mattered to Xiao Mu at the moment. He was currently serving as a guard in a mortal settlement. When he had nothing to do, he would listen to their idle chatter. Just now, he suddenly heard them talking about his junior uncle.
The name Shi Wanqing has been mentioned by people in the mortal realm, immortal sects, and even the imperial palace. Originally, Xiao Mu didn't care, but it was wrong for them to put Chonghua's name together with his junior uncle's name.
"Who can argue with that? Who would have thought that they would end up as a demon lord! If I were Shi Wanqing, I would be so angry I'd come back to life!"
Xiao Mu remained silent, trying to minimize his presence. Did they mean his junior uncle had saved Chonghua? What a shocking revelation! His junior uncle and Chonghua were two people who had absolutely no connection whatsoever. He strained his ears to listen further.
"Do you think Shi Wanqing knows that Chonghua has become a demon?" someone whispered to the person next to them. After looking around and finding no strangers, he continued in a low voice, "I heard that Chonghua likes Shi Wanqing. Who is Shi Wanqing? She's a fairy. How could she like mortals like us? That's why Chonghua became a demon after his confession was rejected."
This kind of thing is really possible. Everyone has thought of it: a beautiful fairy saves you and teaches you to read and write. Any man would be tempted!
A woman nearby overheard this and said with a look of disgust, "Ask yourselves honestly, if you were cultivators, and a woman said she liked you and wanted to marry you, what would you choose? Would you lose your cultivation to be with this mortal woman, or would you refuse? Chonghua? He doesn't deserve it!"
When something like this happens to you, it seems so tragic, so how could you possibly have any romantic or tender thoughts?
Xiao Mu, however, couldn't stand it any longer and jumped out to ask, "Are you sure you're talking about my junior uncle?"
Everyone turned around and saw a young male cultivator. Judging from his clothes, he was indeed from Tianyu Mountain. They all felt a little embarrassed; their uncle, who had been talking about this, was overheard and was in a very awkward position. Even more awkward was that those present who were discussing this matter had all been rescued from the demons by Tianyu Mountain.
The woman realized she hadn't said anything unpleasant, so she stepped forward and said, "What we said...we were just...hearsay. Please, sir, don't take it to heart, we ignorant mortals."
In short, no matter how she explained, it didn't make sense. Seeing the other person's face getting darker and darker, the woman hurriedly said, "I'm sorry, there won't be a next time. You are all heroes who saved people, we shouldn't have said that. We will never get involved in this kind of thing again. Next time we encounter it, we will scold those scoundrels who talk nonsense."
"Who else is talking about this?" Xiao Mu was furious. If his junior uncle hadn't been guarding that mountain gate, his spiritual mansion wouldn't have shattered, and he wouldn't have died young. Now, they're even linking his junior uncle to such romantic affairs. It's really disrespectful.
The woman quickly waved her hands, "That's what everyone's saying, we don't know if it's true or not, so..."
Xiao Mu drew her sword and left, not even glancing at the people present. She had initially assumed they were praising her junior aunt for remembering her past sacrifices, but unexpectedly, some were comparing her to the Demon Lord. What then did her previous sacrifices amount to?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
