novelzi Chapter 31
Chapter 31
At the beginning of the morning, the morning market in Approaching Immortals City was already bustling with activity. Adults were busy at their stalls, while children played with sticks as swords in a corner of the street.
The name "Approaching Immortals" of Approaching Immortals City comes from its proximity to the Cloud Scripture Sect. The children in the city grew up listening to stories of sword-wielding immortals slaying demons and monsters, each harboring a dream of becoming a sword immortal.
Soon, the children's noisy chatter stopped, and they crowded around a man selling trinkets, watching him manipulate the wooden dolls in his hands.
The two wooden dolls wore sky-blue garments, their hair tied high like celestial beings. Upon closer inspection, their features were almost indistinguishable from real people. Strings were attached to their limbs, and they held tiny swords in their hands. Under the man's skillful control, the dolls exchanged blows, their sword moves swift and fierce, as if real immortals had descended to the mortal world.
After a round of sparring, the children erupted in cheers, clapping and asking, "Do you have any other dolls? Are there any male immortals?"
"Soon," the man replied vaguely, smiling. He placed the two dolls on a small wooden board. "Would you like them? If anyone wins, I'll give these two dolls to them."
A moment later, the noodle stall vendor nearby heard the children's screams and hurried to the empty lot. The man selling trinkets had already disappeared, and the children were fighting among themselves, their eyes red as if possessed. Several children lay motionless on the ground, their blood mixing with the muddy earth.
Soon, more and more people gathered at the empty lot, wailing and cursing. The conflict escalated, and eventually, they too began to fight like the children.
The wooden dolls that had sparked the dispute were trampled into the blood-soaked mud, their celestial appearance quickly destroyed and buried deeper.
Zhu Yan hid in the large pagoda tree beside the empty lot, his face concealed by the dense foliage. He took a deep breath of the blood-tinged, bustling city air and spat, "How foul."
He sensed that Xiao Ling had awakened and turned to her with a playful tone, like a child urging, "Xiao Ling, you haven't drawn the eyes yet. What kind of eyes do you like?"
As soon as Xiao Ling opened her eyes, she heard the voice in her spiritual core. Memories from the depths of the abyss of death surfaced, along with how Ye Jing had entered her dreams and how she had been ensnared by Zhu Yan.
Xiao Ling lay on the bed, tears soaking the white gauze. She pleaded repeatedly, "Zhu Yan, I beg you, let me go..."
"There you go again," Zhu Yan sighed with annoyance. "What? You want me to erase your memories so you can become the clean, innocent Xiao Ling again? And then you can muster the courage to reject me?"
"Xiao Ling, do you think that by forgetting, by not knowing, everything will disappear as if it never happened? Can you then live without any burden?" Zhu Yan laughed in her spiritual core, mocking her naivety.
Xiao Ling hugged her head, trembling with pain, as the male voice in her mind spoke slowly, each word dripping with chilling gentleness: "Xiao Ling, you can remain pure, but your roots are still in this mud. Sang Wumian, Meng Jin, Jing Chongshan—they are your nourishment, and so am I. Otherwise, how would you survive?"
His voice softened, and footsteps sounded outside. Someone pushed the door open and quickly entered, sitting by the bed and asking with concern, "Xiao Ling, what's wrong?"
Xiao Ling flinched and shrank to the corner of the bed. A small white bird landed on her shoulder, tilting its head to observe the newcomer.
Ye Jing smiled gently and reassured her, "Don't be afraid. Although the matter of Jing Chongshan's treatment hasn't been fully investigated, you truly had no knowledge of it. As for your time trapped in the abyss of death... you were deceived by Zhu Yan, which is understandable. I hope you won't be trapped by these past events and can find your way out of this predicament, regaining your former resolve."
"Elder Ye..." The three grand elders had always been cold toward her, and Xiao Ling was surprised to hear such words. She choked on her tears, unable to speak.
Ye Jing's eyes softened with pity. "Ten years ago, when you fell into the void, the sect canceled your record. Since your return, so much has happened, and you haven't been reinstated. Now that Sang Wumian is dead, I haven't taken any direct disciples. Would you like to join my sect under a new identity, leaving the past behind and starting anew?"
As one of the grand elders, Ye Jing's seniority in the sect was unmatched, not to mention her influence. Although she was not as powerful as Grand Elder Yan Yi, for Xiao Ling, being accepted by her was like a ray of light in her desperate situation.
Seeing that she didn't respond, Ye Jing added thoughtfully, "Take your time to consider it."
Xiao Ling immediately replied, "I'm willing." She got off the bed, poured a cup of tea from the side table, knelt down, and performed the formal master-apprentice ceremony.
"Good," Ye Jing said, taking a sip of the tea. "I'll inform Grand Elder Yan Yi about this and have your record re-established, placing you under Bitan Peak. You may rise."
Xiao Ling was overwhelmed with joy, bowing her head deeply. "Thank you, Master."
Ye Jing helped her up and checked her condition, then patted her head. "The restrictions on Bright Sky Peak have been lifted. You can go out more and clear your mind."
Even after Ye Jing left, Xiao Ling still felt a bit dazed, as if she were still in a dream.
Zhu Yan chuckled in her spiritual core, taking credit. "Now, you should be willing to draw the eyes for me, right?"
"A vicious beast and a demon lord, do you know each other?"
"We've crossed paths," Gu Jiang said nonchalantly, "I was the one who kicked it into the Abyssal Abyss back then."
"You did something so heroic?" Nie Yinzhi couldn't believe it.
Gu Jiang chuckled, "It was too annoying." Back then, he was being pursued by both the righteous and demonic factions, and Zhu Yan, drawn by the scent of blood, was like a pest, meddling in every situation, driving him to distraction.
The righteous faction wanted to seal it away, so he played along with them, luring it to the Abyssal Abyss and giving it a good kick.
"So you're a bit stronger than him? Can you kill him?" Nie Yinzhi asked tentatively.
Gu Jiang raised an eyebrow, "You want to kill it? Why?"
Nie Yinzhi boldly declared, "As a disciple of the righteous path, eliminating demons and protecting the world from calamity is our duty. What's the reason for that?"
Gu Jiang burst out laughing, choking on the orange juice and covering his face with his hand. The fiery rabbit next to him was even more exaggerated, laughing so hard it nearly rolled off the cliff.
"Shut up!" Nie Yinzhi glared at both of them, "It's annoying, and if it manages to brainwash the elders of the immortal sects, they might band together to attack us."
Feng Hanying raised his rabbit head, disdainfully saying, "Just kill them all. Righteous and demonic paths can never coexist."
Nie Yinzhi encouraged him, "Good, then you better keep your word. Your master won't help you." Gu Jiang's actions would only intensify the heavenly pressure on him, and it would be even more unbearable.
Feng Hanying: "..." You vile woman!
The fiery rabbit was so angry it stomped its feet, but after a glance from Gu Jiang, its ears drooped, and it hopped into the grass, returning to the Ten Thousand Demons Cave to sulk.
"Zhu Yan is very good at hiding," Gu Jiang frowned, not wanting to waste time hunting it down across the entire cultivation world.
Nie Yinzhi was about to speak when she noticed the bullet comments reappearing.
The camera must have switched back to them. She didn't want the bullet comments to know she could see them, in case they became wary or cautious in the future.
Nie Yinzhi wasn't sure how to handle it, so she simply leaned halfway over Gu Jiang, her head lowered, her finger pressed to her lips, and smiled at him, mouthing, "Let's wait for it to come to us."
Gu Jiang lay on the soft couch, and suddenly his vision darkened. Up close, he gazed into Nie Yinzhi's eyes, which sparkled with mischievous delight. His heart skipped a beat, and his lashes trembled slightly as he pretended to be unaffected, merely "mm"-ing in response.
Nie Yinzhi keenly noticed his brow furrow slightly and then quickly relax, and she retreated slightly, her fingertips brushing against his hand, feeling the feverish warmth of his skin.
He was feeling unwell again.
Nie Yinzhi immediately moved away from Gu Jiang, walking to the cliffside, "The scenery here is so beautiful, let's stay a few more days before leaving."
Gu Jiang placed his hand over his forehead, waiting for the boiling blood in his body to calm down. The spiritual mist rising from the stream in the forest quickly dissipated.
Save me, the contrast in the art style is too much. The supporting actress's life is way too leisurely.
【Confirmed: an old couple's retirement life】
What happened to the Demonic Cave talent show? Why is it delayed again? Nie Yinzhi, are you still pursuing your career?
If this keeps up, Nie Yinzhi's fighting spirit will be corroded by the demon lord's bad habits of 'inaction, slow action, and lazy action.'
Feng! The wild and unruly Feng! Have you really started thinking of yourself as a rabbit? The villain's role in this drama is truly concerning.
【Spring nights are short, and the sun rises high; from then on, the ruler no longer attends to the morning court.】
Spring nights are short, and the sun rises high; from then on, the ruler no longer attends to the morning court. ——"The Song of Everlasting Sorrow"