Chapter 59 The Art of Retrograde: To survive, kill!
What happened three years ago?
Shen Jiuxu held Jiang Yu in his arms and gently patted his back. He didn't want Jiang Yu to recall those terrible past events, but it was obvious that the woman had started cursing him as well, yet she couldn't say anything truly useful.
He could only look at Xian Chen.
Xian Chen's sword trembled under his gaze. In reality, it was just a sword, and without Jiang Yu's master's permission, it really dared not speak about this matter. If it said something wrong or let something slip, it would be all over!
Jiang Yu's eyes were lowered, so he didn't see Shen Jiuxu's gaze toward Xian Chen, nor did he notice Xian Chen's repeated slapping of the ground as he pleaded for help.
Seeing that he wouldn't save him, Xian Chen's face fell, and he slammed his sword sheath shut with a "whoosh." Out of sight, out of mind.
The woman's emotions stirred up a group of people who joined in the riot, with curses escalating. Fortunately, Dianxing and his group arrived. However, Dianxing had always stayed in Shenwuke and was gentle and polite, so he didn't have much contact with these people and couldn't bring himself to argue with them.
Yezishan is different.
Most of the disciples of their Star Palace were unruly. He had followed Lian Quesheng to many places and had seen this kind of thing many times. He immediately pulled Dianxing behind him and whispered, "Senior brother, you go and do other things first. I have the best way to deal with this kind of person."
"We still need to ask clearly."
"I know, I know."
Ye Zishan pushed the woman away, and taking advantage of her inattention, bent down and smeared mud on his face. He then took off his conspicuous outer robe and continued to rub his body with both hands until he was covered in black ash and mud. Only then did he walk over shakily, lose his balance, and fall on top of the woman.
"Big sister, could you help me up?"
The woman was cursing and had no time to pay attention to anything else, but unexpectedly Ye Zishan grabbed her clothes and wouldn't let go. "I also know about what happened three years ago. My child died in there back then."
Ye Zishan cried uncontrollably, “It’s all the fault of these hypocritical people. They keep talking about saving lives, but in the end they can’t do anything. Sister, I understand what you’re thinking.”
The woman immediately perked up, helped him up, and the two embraced and cried bitterly.
Even Shen Jiuxu, who was standing to the side, was shocked by this scene. He felt that when Lian Quesheng came over, he should thank him properly for raising so many "treasures".
From a distance, Lian Quesheng sneezed and couldn't help but urge the boatman to go faster, "Maybe Jiang Yu and the others need me!"
Xi Chuang glanced at him, then looked at other things, staring at the stacks of medical books, continuing to flip through them without saying anything.
The water rippled in the distance, creating white waves as the boat sped along.
They received a message from Jiang Yu as soon as they arrived at Bailuzhou. They quickly packed a large pile of medical books, and Lian Chisu assigned many doctors to accompany them. They then left.
With each person having their own thoughts, it wasn't until evening that Lian Quesheng finally breathed a sigh of relief; they had finally arrived. As soon as he got off the boat, he started running, only to bump right into the pitiful Ye Zishan.
"Zishan—"
Unexpectedly, Ye Zishan glanced at Lian Quesheng, gave him a look, and then scurried up the tree, picked the top few wild fruits, and hid them in his bosom.
"Big sister, eat quickly."
The woman seemed to know him very well. She called him into the cave where they lived, then glared fiercely at Lian Quesheng and his group of clean-cut, spotless people. She snorted coldly and left without looking back.
"What...what's going on?"
Lian Quesheng didn't react in time. He was focused on finding Jiang Yu and Shen Jiuxu, so he didn't think much of it and ran off into the distance.
Xi Chuang remained where he was, staring at the woman for a long while. He guessed what Ye Zishan was doing, placed the pills he had taken from Bailuzhou under the stone, and then protected them with a barrier.
A golden light drifted to Ye Zishan's front. He looked towards the west window, met Ye Zishan's gaze, and nodded imperceptibly, indicating that he understood.
He waited until everyone fell asleep, then quietly slipped out. "Senior Brother Xichuang, what are you still doing here?"
Xi Chuang didn't answer him. Instead, he brushed the leaves off Ye Zishan's ears and asked, "How are they?"
"It's not good. Senior Brother Dianxing said that at least half of the people have been infected by that strange disease and are now staying in the back mountain. One of the junior brothers said it's a '鹠' (a type of insect). Ye Zishan hadn't heard of these things before, and he looked at the west window with some worry. "Senior Brother, he said that the '鹠' can only survive by killing someone. If that's true, what should we do?"
"This is not something you should be thinking about. Young Master Jiang and the others will always find a way."
Avoiding his gaze, Xi Chuang stuffed some pastries she had brought from Bailuzhou into his hands. "Eat some if you're hungry. I brought some of your favorite ones. Keep some for yourself."
"Thank you, senior brother."
Although Ye Zishan felt it wasn't good to eat alone, he had no other choice now. He took a bite, put the food back, and chuckled, "I... I'll eat later, I'm not hungry now."
Lian Quesheng had just finished delivering food to the people when he brought over two bowls of warm porridge and placed them in front of Shen Jiuxu. "Eat something, so you don't go hungry."
Is there a way to quickly restore memories?
Shen Jiuxu looked at Jiang Yu, who had been knocked unconscious. The feeling of not knowing anything was too painful. He could only watch helplessly as his lover looked helpless. He wanted to help him, but he couldn't do anything.
“No, the Soul-Remembering Grass is the only way, but… but it will take at least half a month.” Lian Quesheng thought for a while, knowing what he was feeling, and patted Shen Jiuxu on the shoulder, “There’s no other way if we’re in a hurry.”
Do you know what happened three years ago?
Shen Jiuxu stared intently at Lian Quesheng, then shook his head. "This... three years ago, I really didn't know what I was doing when Jiang Yu ascended to immortality three years ago."
He couldn't remember it right away.
"Why don't you wait until Jiang Yu wakes up and ask him properly? He'll eventually find out." Lian Quesheng scratched his head. He really couldn't remember what he was doing at the time. It was really strange. Was his memory that bad?
"Besides, maybe that woman was lying. She just made it up on the spot, and you actually believed her. Zishan is trying to find out, right? Maybe he'll get the answer in a few more days."
“No.” Shen Jiuxu said decisively, “There’s no time. Those people don’t believe him, and the disease has already spread. If there are corpses everywhere, it will only make Jiang Yu more heartbroken.”
"He's the kind of person who likes to take everything on himself. If so many people died, he would feel guilty for the rest of his life."
Shen Jiuxu stroked Jiang Yu's sideburns. He had always known what kind of young master the person he liked was; he possessed extraordinary benevolence and righteousness.
Kindness and responsibility can sometimes overwhelm a person, and Shen Jiuxu didn't want him to be like that. He wanted Jiang Yu to live in the world he pursued from beginning to end, far away from the filth and unbearable things.
"Therefore, I must resolve the matter from three years ago as soon as possible."
Lian Quesheng knew he was right. He knew Jiang Yu was being too serious, but it seemed he had never really taken that to heart.
Lian Quesheng likes to judge everyone based on his own ideas, thinking that their behavior is too silly and naive, and won't work in this fleeting world. But these people are his friends, and he can't persuade them much.
"You watch over him for me, I'm going to find someone." Shen Jiuxu kissed Jiang Yu's forehead, then smoothed out the corner of the blanket for him before looking at Lian Quesheng again.
"What do you want to do?" Lian Quesheng agreed, but Hu Fangxin and Shen Jiuxu were just following the rules. In his heart, he was definitely not a person who followed the rules. Otherwise, he would not have become friends with him and Jiang Yu.
"The Retracing Technique." This was the only method he could recall. Even if it was just a fragment of memory from three years ago, Shen Jiuxu was content.
"Are you crazy? Retracing your lifespan will cost you your life. Are you out of your mind?"
"It's just one life, and besides, I've already died once." Shen Jiuxu looked calm and unconcerned, saying, "I know that in my heart. And it's just a few years less of my lifespan, not an immediate death."
"You...you're completely insane!" Lian Quesheng truly didn't expect that he could wait until this point. He only knew that a predecessor had tried the retrograde technique a long time ago, but he didn't know the result. Moreover, that person had passed away early.
Now that Shen Jiuxu also needs to use this, he's afraid that if he mishandles it, Jiang Yu will wake up and ask him for someone, and he won't be able to give it to her. Where will he find a perfectly healthy Shen Jiuxu?
"It's alright, I know what I'm doing, I won't implicate you."
"What do you mean by 'implicate'? Do you think I'm the kind of person who's afraid of being implicated by you?" Lian Que said defiantly, looking as if he was about to bravely sacrifice himself.
Shen Jiuxu glanced at him indifferently. At this moment, silence spoke louder than words. In the end, he still walked out and went to the cave. He saw Xi Chuang standing outside and nodded.
"Young Master Shen, what brings you here?"
"I need to find someone." Shen Jiuxu went in and saw a group of people sleeping soundly. Ye Zishan also had his eyes half-closed and was snoring softly.
He woke the woman up and met a pair of terrified eyes. Xi Chuang came in to see what was going on. He didn't know what Shen Jiuxu was saying to someone, but then they came out.
After an incense stick had burned, Shen Jiuxu's body stiffened, and he could no longer move himself. He could only see everything outside through the eyes of others.
Three years ago, he was wearing tattered clothes. He stood at a low place and heard a voice above him, which sounded like Jiang Yu's voice and his own.
...
"ah--"
Tang Ling scoffed, watching the people next to him writhing in pain, their extra red eyes staring at him as if they wanted to kill him.
"Do you want to kill me?"
The others looked at him with fierce expressions. The pain that emanated from their bones made them wish they could slice their bodies off. Some of the more ruthless ones took out knives and swung them down on his arms, instantly causing screams to echo throughout the world.
The man's blood splattered out, almost staining the ground red. But the pain still tormented him, seeping into every part of his body. Dianxing gave him medicine, but it was to no avail.
He then remembered what the disciple of Xingchenque had said: "A hawk cannot live without killing someone."
Among that group, only Tang Ling committed the murder, so is that why he's sitting so calmly as if nothing happened? Dianxing dared not think about it.
Two of the men, perhaps in too much pain, felt their jealousy surge to its peak as they looked at Tang Ling, and simply pounced on him and began to bite him.
Dianxing quickly drew his sword to stop them, but Tang Ling laughed and grabbed both of their necks, slamming them together. Dianxing realized he couldn't control him; Tang Ling's strength was extraordinary.
Those two people died instantly at his hands!
Dianxing could only call Lian Quesheng over, who knocked the man unconscious and carried him out. Zhang Xuan, who was watching from the corner, realized something. His four eyes blinked, and seeing the people around him start screaming again, he pretended to be in unbearable pain and began to roll on the ground.
One by one, several more people couldn't resist anymore. One of them even bared his fangs and bit the child next to him. The murderous aura rising within him made him lose control of his actions. Even as the child gradually stopped breathing, he seemed to feel no fatigue. He swung his fist to smash the tree again before finally lying down on the ground.
The pain in my body seems to have lessened considerably.
The man rubbed his wrists, feeling refreshed. He recalled Tang Ling's behavior over the past few days, realized something, and burst into laughter, "If you want to live, kill someone!"
"Killing someone will make you feel no pain."
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Author's Note: Xian Chenjian: Human, why didn't you save the sword! Human's Daoist partner is a demon, and the sword trembles with fear!
Jiang Yu: The person seems to be alive, but is actually about to die. Sword, hold on a little longer. Or you could try to sweet-talk the flowers; maybe they'll save you.
Hua: (smugly) I won't save her, I won't save her, I just won't save her.
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