Feng Qiwu put away the jade pendant and bowed to Jiang Chan and Mo Yu. “Thank you, Martial Aunts.”
Mo Yu winked at Feng Qiwu. “You should thank Jiang Chan. Without the Soul-Tracking Incense, we wouldn’t have found you so quickly.”
Jiang Chan’s expression softened. “There’s no need to thank us. We’re from the same sect. Where are the disciples from the other sects?”
They were not people who indiscriminately killed the innocent. If disciples from other sects were still here, they would naturally take as many out with them as they could.
Feng Qiwu smiled faintly. “This jade pendant is the key to opening the Heavenly Gate secret realm. With a single thought, I can transport all those disciples outside. From now on, we can also enter this secret realm whenever we like without waiting thirty years.”
“That’s good. Have you already refined the jade pendant?”
“Yes.”
“Then send those disciples out. We’ll rest here a little longer.”
Mo Yu pointed at Tang Yubai and Gu Miao’er. “What about these two? Should we send them out too?”
“Naturally. They’re an eyesore just lying here. Come to think of it, these two really are a perfect match.” Jiang Chan spoke teasingly. Was she destined to encounter this kind of innocent-looking schemer and scumbag in every world?
“They’re both unconscious right now. If they’re transported straight outside, I doubt much good will come of it.” Mo Yu was openly delighted at their misfortune. She disliked both Tang Yubai and Gu Miao’er.
“What does that have to do with us? We weren’t the ones who attacked them.” Jiang Chan rolled her eyes. After what Tang Yubai had just tried to do to Feng Qiwu, Jiang Chan had wanted to kill him with a single palm strike.
However, disciples of major sects like Tang Yubai usually carried a trace of their sect’s patriarchs’ divine sense. Jiang Chan worried that if she attacked him herself, the Yunshui Sect might trace it back to her.
Now that they would leave the secret realm along with everyone else, anything that happened afterward would have nothing to do with her and Mo Yu. Feng Qiwu remained silent, and soon Tang Yubai and Gu Miao’er vanished.
Outside the secret realm, the cultivators from the various sects had grown thoroughly impatient. Unexpectedly, ripples suddenly spread through the air, and all the disciples were expelled from the secret realm.
Some disciples were still dazed, while others were clutching the spirit herbs they had gathered. Only when they saw the delighted expressions on their sect elders’ faces did they realize they had already left the Heavenly Gate secret realm.
When they had been unable to leave all day, they had prepared themselves to remain there for another thirty years. Who could have expected a sudden wave of dizziness to sweep over them before they were all transported outside together?
Although the secret realm was rich in spiritual energy, being outside was still better. At least they would not be so lonely. Some of the more sensitive female cultivators had tears in their eyes when they saw their sect elders.
Seeing their disciples return, many sects happily gathered them up and departed. They had already been delayed for quite some time, and they feared further complications if they lingered.
Before long, nearly all the sect disciples had left. Tang Yubai and Gu Miao’er remained unconscious beneath a tree. Gu Miao’er was unconscious solely because of Jiang Chan’s Soul-Captivation Formation, while Tang Yubai was struggling against his inner demons.
Only a few independent cultivators remained outside the secret realm. How could they fail to notice two such conspicuous targets? But independent cultivators valued their lives too. When they saw the token of a Yunshui Sect inner disciple hanging at Tang Yubai’s waist, they abandoned their initial intention of killing the pair.
Since both were unconscious, the independent cultivators discussed the matter, stripped them of all their belongings, cleared away the traces around them, and hurriedly fled.
Jiang Chan paid no attention to what happened outside. In fact, she had some idea of what lay behind Tang Yubai’s inner demon. She cast an amused glance at Feng Qiwu, who was holding her broadsword. Wasn’t she the cause?
Tang Yubai had now reached the late Golden Core stage, yet he had never advanced to the Nascent Soul stage. What was the underlying reason?
Ultimately, the root of the problem was Gu Miao’er. How quickly had she cultivated back then? She had reached Foundation Establishment at seventeen, but that promising start had amounted to very little. After Tang Yubai broke off his engagement to Feng Qiwu, Gu Miao’er got what she wanted, yet her cultivation stalled.
To tell the truth, Tang Yubai did regret his decision. Had he known Gu Miao’er would turn out like this, he would never have broken off his engagement to Feng Qiwu.
What he found even harder to accept was that after their engagement ended, Feng Qiwu seemed completely unaffected. Instead, her reputation had grown even more illustrious.
Whenever Tang Yubai heard news of Feng Qiwu, his heart filled with regret. Meanwhile, whenever his fellow disciples spoke of Feng Qiwu, they inevitably compared Gu Miao’er with her. There were plenty of people discussing the two in private.
Thus, the further Feng Qiwu advanced, the more obvious Tang Yubai’s poor judgment became. He had taken something worthless for a treasure. Yet he could not break off his engagement to Gu Miao’er now. After all, in everyone’s eyes, their fates were already tied together.
If he stayed with Gu Miao’er, people might at least say that their affection was deep. If they parted ways, the rumors about him would become even more unbearable.
In truth, Tang Yubai had grown thoroughly tired of Gu Miao’er. Every time she approached him, he had to restrain his temper to keep from throwing her aside.
Living like that was certainly exhausting.
Outside the secret realm, everyone had departed, leaving only Tang Yubai and Gu Miao’er. With his higher cultivation, Tang Yubai slowly regained consciousness after the time it took to drink a cup of tea. The moment he opened his eyes, he sensed something was wrong.
Tang Yubai abruptly sat up, aggravating the wound on his chest. Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. He grunted and looked around, only then discovering that they had already left the secret realm.
He looked at Gu Miao’er lying nearby, still unconscious. Recalling everything he had experienced in the Soul-Captivation Formation, he regarded her with intense disgust.
However deep his affection had once been, seeing Gu Miao’er’s cultivation remain unchanged for more than ten years had gradually worn those feelings away. Disgust and disappointment had taken their place.
There was nobody else around. Why not simply get rid of Gu Miao’er? Tang Yubai stared at her, his expression shifting uncertainly as the thought suddenly surfaced. If Gu Miao’er no longer existed, the world would stop linking the two of them together.
The moment the thought arose, it spread through his heart like weeds. Tang Yubai circulated his energy and forced himself to channel his true essence. A fire dragon circled Gu Miao’er once, and in the blink of an eye, nothing remained where she had lain.
Discover more from Lilly Translations
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.