"It wasn't me."
"It wasn't me either."
"Who is that? Could it be a ghost?"
The moment those words were spoken, the surroundings fell silent. The guards exchanged bewildered glances, their faces filled with shock.
Seriously? Do they attract all sorts of weird things? First, the old immortal suddenly appeared, and now this ghost is suddenly speaking up. Is it even possible to do a pleasant quest?!
The guards did not make any rash moves, remaining in their previous positions and waiting quietly, wanting to see what the ghost was up to.
"ah!"
Just then, a muffled groan caught the attention of the guards.
As soon as they turned their heads, they saw An Er's head violently swing to the left, and then violently swing to the right, while An Er let out a painful groan.
It looks like he's being slapped in the face by something...
Wait, that familiar movement, could it be...?
"An old immortal?!" Guard Four stammered out his guess.
Xu Jinhuan snorted coldly in a falsetto, "Hmph, so you still know I'm here? Not only do you break your promise to me, but you also try to deceive me. Tell me, what have you done?"
If you don't tell the truth, you know what I like to do when I'm unhappy.
The guards were surprised that the ghost that suddenly appeared was actually the old immortal. The thought of being caught by the old immortal at the gate of the mountain stronghold made them turn pale, fearing that the old immortal would be angry.
After hearing the threatening tone in the old sage's words, they dared not harbor any deceitful thoughts, after all, no one wants to be slapped all the time.
"I, I'll talk!" Guard Four was the first to raise his hand.
He glanced at An Er not far away, and after seeing the redness and swelling on his face, he silently swallowed.
"Old Immortal, this idea came from my second senior brother. He said that as long as we throw the note next to Xu Youyou, she will sneak out after reading it."
That way, we only need to meet Xu Youyou at the door when she escapes, which wouldn't break our agreement with you. But Xu Youyou is being so slow and hasn't come out yet.
After hearing his words, Xu Jinhuan silently raised her eyebrows, turned to look at An Er beside her, and thought to herself, how come she hadn't noticed that there was a "little rascal" here before?
They're really good at using the tactic of outwardly complying while inwardly opposing!
Seeing that the old immortal had remained silent after hearing what the fourth guard had said, An Er glared at the fourth guard.
You really are something else, aren't you the only one with a mouth!
After venting his anger, he smiled obsequiously at the void and said, "Old Immortal, please let me explain. Although this idea was mine, we were forced into it by circumstances."
As you should know, we are all subject to the orders of our masters. If we fail in our mission and return to the capital, we will at least be whipped, and at worst, we may not even be spared."
An Er felt a pang of sympathy as he spoke. If given the choice, who would willingly live such a life of constant danger?
But reality is cruel, and all he can do is try to climb up the ladder and gain more say in the matter.
After hearing An Er's words, the guards present all lowered their heads. In the end, they were nothing more than pawns, the kind that could be discarded at any time.
If they fail to rescue their master's beloved this time, and Xu Youyou is taken away by the exile team, even if they return to the capital, they may never have another chance to leave the city...
For a moment, everyone present except Xu Jinhuan was somewhat dejected.
Xu Jinhuan, however, smiled slightly. Very good, the fish has taken the bait, now it's time to start brainwashing.
"Since you don't like this kind of life, why don't you escape?" Xu Jinhuan asked deliberately.
Upon hearing this, An Er sighed, "Old Immortal, we are not people you can just wave your hand and leave."
We, the secret guards, were all picked up from various places by the masters of the secret guard camp when we were young. From the moment we passed the test, we would be given a kind of poison.
The poison takes effect once a month, and only by taking a temporary antidote can one ensure that the poison will not take effect during that month.
Within the entire Dark Guard camp, only the leader of the Dark Guards would take the true antidote and would never be poisoned, while the others were forever bound by an invisible puppet string.
This is also one of the reasons why Dark Two wanted to defeat Dark One; he wanted true freedom, not to have his life and death controlled by others at will.
The other guards sighed in unison after hearing An Er's words. Who wouldn't want to live an easy life?
Unfortunately, fate didn't give them a chance in the first place.
"It's just poison. You might have a hard time finding an antidote, but for me, it's just a matter of a snap of the fingers."
After the atmosphere had reached its lowest point, Xu Jinhuan suddenly spoke up.
"Old sage, can you really cure us of the poison?"
"Old sage, you're not lying to me, are you?"
"Quick, pinch me so I know this isn't a dream."
The guards present were completely energized by Xu Jinhuan's words, their eyes shining as they stared into the void, hoping for a positive answer from the old immortal.
Xu Jinhuan did not answer them directly, but instead asked, "If I help you detoxify, what can you do to repay me?"
Upon hearing this, the guards immediately began to answer in unison.
"Old immortal, if you can cure me of the poison, I will enshrine your memorial tablet at home and offer you fruits and vegetables every day, and burn incense and worship you daily."
"I will save up money to build a temple for you and encourage everyone around me to believe in you!"
"I, I, I do good deeds every day. When people ask my name, I will say it's because I believe in you, and I will try my best to spread your name throughout the country!"
...
After hearing these largely similar answers, Xu Jinhuan glanced at the guards with disdain. They were hopeless; how could they not grasp the central idea?
"Cough, I've told you before, I don't care whether anyone worships me or not, nor do I care about those empty titles. None of what you've said has moved me."
Upon hearing this, the guards' faces fell. If this wasn't enough, then it seemed they had someone else who could do it.
People say a woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea, how come even this old sage's thoughts are so hard to guess?
The fourth guard, who had been keeping his head down, hesitated for a moment before asking directly, "Old Immortal, what would you like us to do for you?"
Xu Jinhuan glanced at him with satisfaction. Finally, someone had a direct question to ask. These bodyguards weren't very proactive.
"My requirements are actually very simple."
As soon as the guards heard that the old immortal was about to state his request, they all pricked up their ears and listened intently, afraid of missing any crucial information.
"I want you to leave the Fifth Prince's secret guard camp and join the mountain stronghold on the other side."
"What?!"
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