Chapter 402 Hehe hehe hehe
Smoke and dust rolled, obscuring the stars and moon.
Located within a volcano on the east side of Tian Mo Valley, a massive obsidian platform, suspended by countless fiery red chains from the surrounding rock walls, hung in the center. Below it, waves of lava heat distorted the air.
A purple flying sword entered from outside the mountain and landed steadily on the obsidian platform.
Gu Mingxin leaped off the flying sword and stood at the edge, looking down at the earth fire that had consumed countless Tian Mo Sect disciples. A hint of apprehension arose within her. If she returned from Donghuang without achieving anything, this earth fire might become her bathwater.
Two disciples from the Prison Hall saw her arrive, stepped forward, cupped their fists in greeting, and then led her towards the main hall of the Prison Hall.
After walking for about fifteen minutes along the stone steps, Gu Mingxin arrived before a stone door.
“Disciple Gu Mingxin, following the Sect Master’s orders, I have come to pay my respects to Elder Fu.”
As the words fell, the stone door slowly opened.
Gu Mingxin maintained a respectful posture, tilting her head up slightly. Her first glance, however, fell upon He Jiming, who was inside the stone room with a sheepish grin facing her.
Beside He Jiming stood a woman in red with an exceptionally curvaceous figure, her lips painted with deep purple lipstick and her eyes alluring, as if a ghost fox had taken human form.
—Fu Yuanhua, Elder of the Prison Hall of Tian Mo Sect, Nascent Soul stage, middle phase.
After the stone door fully opened, Fu Yuanhua stood up from her chair, hands behind her back, and replied, “Young Master Gu, Elder He has already informed me of the situation. The Sect Master has instructed me to accompany you to Donghuang to aid the Ghost Spirit Sect.”
Gu Mingxin nodded and replied, “Yes… This disciple will definitely atone for my previous failures and wash away my shame.”
However, upon hearing this, He Jiming, with a slash across his left cheek, said in a nonsensical tone, “Junior Sister Gu, I’ll be counting on your guidance~”
Gu Mingxin’s brows immediately furrowed. “Elder Fu, what is this…”
Fu Yuanhua glanced at He Jiming and explained, “Elder He just came here and told me to bring this brat along with you. Young Master Gu, there are rumors all over the sect now that you are colluding with immortal cultivators…”
“Elder Fu, do you also believe them…”
“Gossip, I don’t listen to it,” Fu Yuanhua interrupted, narrowing her eyes. “The Sect Master wants me to follow you. You should know what that implies.”
What it implies…
The Prison Hall of Tian Mo Sect was in charge of disciplining disciples.
Gu Mingxin’s expression turned somewhat grim. When Gu Yan had mentioned it earlier, she hadn’t fully grasped what it meant for Fu Yuanhua to accompany her, but now, hearing this…
“That is to say, the Sect Master wants Elder Fu to monitor you,” He Jiming added with a smile. “It seems, Junior Sister Gu, that even the Sect Master himself is beginning to doubt you…”
Seeing He Jiming’s arrogance, Fu Yuanhua felt somewhat annoyed.
Honestly, she didn’t like He Jiming either, with his slovenly demeanor.
However, this brat had a father who was a grand elder.
Before Gu Mingxin arrived, He Buqun had brought this brat over, insisting that she take him along as if for some training. She couldn’t refuse…
“Youngster He, be careful what you say.”
“Yes, Elder Fu.” He Jiming cupped his fists with a smile. “Junior Sister Gu, when we go to Donghuang this time, you have to listen to me…”
“Listen to you, a good-for-nothing? Elder Fu, Mingxin is worried this person will be a burden to me. May I…”
Fu Yuanhua quickly raised her hand to interrupt. “This matter is settled. I will be by your side the entire time, partly to protect you, and partly, as this brat said, to monitor. Young Master Gu, the Sect Master wants me to help prove your innocence. Just think of it that way. As for whether you are innocent or not, I will see with my own eyes.”
Gu Mingxin bit her lip slightly, glancing at He Jiming beside her, filled with unwillingness.
As her father had said—don’t push your luck three times.
However, now He Jiming was accompanying her to Donghuang…
If it were ordinary immortal cultivators, it wouldn’t matter if He Jiming dragged her down.
Gu Mingxin bit her lip slightly and requested again, “Elder Fu, I am worried about encountering that immortal cultivator named Ye Anping…”
“Ye Anping?”
“Yes! That person is skilled in scheming. If Junior Brother He becomes my burden, it would be one thing. I’m worried that Junior Brother He, under that person’s machinations, will become a burden to all demonic cultivators! Please, Elder Fu, reconsider…”
Hearing this, He Jiming could no longer maintain his composure and asked, “Junior Sister Gu, aren’t you overestimating him? What’s his cultivation level?”
Gu Mingxin replied immediately, “Early Core Formation.”
“Then that’s still one realm lower than me?”
“He Jiming, you can’t even compare to a fingernail on his hand. If you encounter him, you will…”
*Slap—!!!*
“Enough!!”
Listening to the two argue more and more outrageously, Fu Yuanhua slammed the table and interrupted, causing them to quickly fall silent and bow their heads.
“Young Master Gu, as Gu Yan’s direct disciple, is it appropriate to compare your fellow disciple with an immortal cultivator?”
Gu Mingxin: “…”
He Jiming laughed.
“That’s right. Junior Sister Gu, you’re not perhaps an inside informant for that Ye Anping, are you? Don’t tell him our whereabouts later and let him set an ambush for us.”
“Young Master Gu, go back and rest for a few days, and then depart.”
Gu Mingxin bit her lip slightly and spoke no further, instead relaxing and cupping her fists in acknowledgment.
“Yes.”
Then, she turned and walked out of the stone room, took to her flying sword from the Prison Hall, and soared towards her own cave dwelling south of Tian Mo Sect.
Although it was her cave dwelling as the young master, it was actually quite empty inside.
Unlike other demonic cultivators who liked to adorn their spaces with peculiar decorations, Gu Mingxin’s dwelling was austere.
A room with only a bed, a Spirit Gathering Array, a room with an alchemy furnace, and a shrine were the only structures within the approximately five *mu* of land. The rest was overgrown with weeds.
Gu Mingxin entered the house, feeling utterly exhausted. She unclasped the left hand ornament hanging around her neck and placed a nameplate inscribed with the name “Wu Tianci,” which she had retrieved from the disciple hall upon returning to Tian Mo Sect, on the shrine.
After burning an incense stick for the “Wu Tianci” and “Xu Mo” nameplates, she went directly to her bedroom, collapsed onto the bed, and buried her face in the pillow.
Xue E then emerged from her brow, her voice filled with worry, “Mingsin…”
“Don’t speak.”
“Mingsin, how about I play chess with you? Like before… Just rest for a bit.”
“No, I’m going to sleep for a while.”
Gu Mingxin turned to her side, closed her eyes, and pulled the covers over herself. Seeing her like this, Xue E could only look on with a hint of helplessness and disappointment, finally settling by the pillow and gently stroking her head.
“Then sleep~ I’ll stay with you.”
… …
—
Ten thousand miles away, at Tianyun Peak of Xuan Xing Sect.
The warm morning sun streamed through the half-open paper window, illuminating a young man in white clothes, currently at his desk, engrossed in painting.
Three days had passed since Ya Ting participated in the sect selection. For the past few days, Pei Lianxue and Xiao Yunluo had been assisting with the selection. He, apart from practicing swordplay with Feng Yu Die in the afternoon, had basically stayed in his room, refining his Donghuang Great Wall plan.
Three days were enough for him to finalize all the details.
However, because the current situation had deviated significantly from the game’s plot, there was one crucial point that Ye Anping had been unable to confirm.
—Who would be accompanying Gu Mingxin during the changes at the Donghuang Great Wall?
According to the game’s plot, when Gu Mingxin and Wu Tianci were in the Northern Region, they, along with other demonic cultivators, broke through four array eyes of the domain protection arrays. Although they were repelled by the Empress, all of them, except Lu Meimei, returned to the Eastern Domain alive and were even rewarded by the Sect Master of Tian Mo Sect.
After all, the demonic cultivators’ invasion of the Northern Region was originally intended to wear down and harass the Hantian Kingdom.
But now, Wu Tianci had died by his hand.
And Gu Mingxin, coupled with her previous failed expedition to the Central Domain, had already suffered two setbacks…
“Hmm…”
Ye Anping surmised that Gu Mingxin had likely exhausted Gu Yan’s patience. At the same time, disciples within Tian Mo Sect should have started suspecting Gu Mingxin of colluding with immortal cultivators…
Therefore, he deduced that Gu Yan would certainly have someone from the Prison Hall of Tian Mo Sect accompany Gu Mingxin to Donghuang.
And that person was highly likely to be…
—Fu Yuanhua.
Ye Anping wrote the name on the paper and murmured, “Elder of the Prison Hall, a sword cultivator at the middle Nascent Soul stage. If she accompanies Ah Gu, it will be difficult to deal with. For now, let’s assume she will come. If not, even better.
“And I also remember there was someone in Tian Mo Sect who had a grudge against Ah Gu… What was his name again? Although Junior Sister or Feng Yu Die could take him down with one sword, I still need to plan carefully to avoid any mistakes…
“Besides that, there might be Liu accompanying Ah Gu…”
Ye Anping muttered to himself, preparing backup plans.
It was at this moment, however, that he suddenly sensed a gaze from outside the window.
Turning his head, he saw Feng Yu Die. She had somehow come over and was now propped against his window frame, her large, watery eyes staring at him.
Xiao Tian was perched on top of her head, also looking at him like she was.
… …
… …
After staring at each other for a long time, Ye Anping slowly placed the brush in his hand back on the brush holder, his brows furrowed, and asked, “Aren’t you setting up your stall anymore?”
Feng Yu Die scratched the back of her head and chuckled awkwardly, “Hehe… I’ve been setting it up for several days and haven’t sold a single thing. I just felt lazy to go today.”
“Then why are you peeking through my window?”
“Huh?” Feng Yu Die was taken aback and quickly stood up straight. “I was just bored, so I came to see Young Master Ye writing, hehe…”
Seeing her grinning foolishly, Ye Anping simply mimicked her cold laugh.
“Hehe.”
“Hehe~”
“Heh heh.”
Getting dumber and dumber, these golden and white fools…
Ye Anping sighed, feeling somewhat weary. He looked at the draft plan in his hand, then stood up, picked up a page, walked to the bedside, and handed it to her.
“Since you’re free, help me buy ten portions of each spirit medicine on this list from the medicine pavilion.”
“Huh?”
Feng Yu Die took the list and looked at it. After reading a few lines, she realized she didn’t recognize any of these heavenly materials and earthly treasures. She then looked up at Xiao Tian, who was floating above her head.
Xiao Tian squinted and looked for a while, then took out the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao and flipped through it.
“Hmm… Panlong meat is…”
Ye Anping was speechless and, instead of the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao, explained, “They are all used to feed demonic beasts. In the Central Domain, there are many level seven and eight demonic beasts that haven’t awakened their intelligence. The aroma of these herbs can be used as bait, as a fallback plan to help us block demonic cultivators. Also, we need to capture foxes, which requires bait.”
“Oh~” Xiao Tian nodded as if enlightened, then directly threw away the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao. “Anping, you’re much more useful than this broken book.”
?
Ye Anping was stunned and reprimanded, “Go quickly!”
Xiao Tian looked down at Feng Yu Die.
“Feather Butterfly, hurry!”
“Ah… Oh, is Young Master Ye going with me?”
Ye Anping looked at her speechlessly.
Feng Yu Die flinched and pouted rebelliously.
“Alright, alright, I’m going.”
Then, reluctantly taking the medicine list, she summoned her flying sword and soared towards Xuan Xing Sect’s medicine pavilion.
After watching her leave, Ye Anping flicked his hand in a sword gesture, collecting the thick stack of plan drafts from the table into his storage bag. He then emerged from the side of the door, ignoring Xiao Tian, took out his flying sword and stepped onto it, soaring into the sky.
Seeing this, Xiao Tian quickly scurried after him, grabbed Ye Anping’s hair, and clung to his forehead.
“Anping, wait for me… Where are you going?”
“Tianyun Peak disciple residences.”
“Who are you looking for?”
“Hong Yu. I need her to help me deliver a letter to the Empress and also to help me deliver Brother Liang’s Core Formation congratulatory gift. Brother Liang should be forming his Core within a month. I’ll need his support then.”
… …
