Love & Redemption
Chapter 196: Volume 5 Phoenix Flower Blooms, - 3 Descend to Huangquan Together (3)

Chapter 196: Volume 5 Phoenix Flower Blooms, Chapter 3 Descend to Huangquan Together (3)

Second update.

Wrote two Chapters today, updating a bit earlier.

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Wu Tong hadn’t expected the person who came to be Xuanji instead of Linglong. He was quite wary of this young girl; seeing her from a distance in her white gown, her figure flitting about like a specter, he felt a momentary panic. But as soon as he clearly saw the expression of intense hatred on her face, he felt an immense sense of glee.

"Yo!" he exclaimed, leaning leisurely against a tree, watching with satisfaction as her expression transformed from shock to utter loathing and then burst forth with murderous intent, drawing her sword and charging without a word. Wu Tong didn’t budge, for his personal guard had promptly leaped forward to parry Xuanji’s attack.

"Seeking death!" Xuanji’s eyebrows inverted in fury, ready to slay the arrogant demons under her sword, when suddenly Bengyu began to emit a series of clear, ringing tones, vibrating buzzingly in her hand. This abrupt change left her stunned, nearly allowing a demon to slash her face.

Tengshe had thought he would find a gratifying battle here. But with only a few kittens running about at Buzhou Mountain, his interest quickly waned. Waving his hand dismissively, he sat down to the side and meditated, daydreaming about delicious foods. As Xuanji was distracted and Tengshe had left, it was left to Zi Hu and a few demons to tangle in combat. She was not adept at such close-quarter brawls, and after a brief engagement, she simply gave up. Fortunately, the guards, seeing them withdraw, did not pursue further, instead forming a protective circle around Wu Tong, watchfully eyeing them.

"What’s going on with you two? A moment ago you were all fired up and ready to kill," Zi Hu asked in confusion, clearly not understanding their intentions.

Tengshe snorted with irritation, "Boring, so boring! There’s no challenge here—why should I bother? You deal with it yourselves, I’m not playing along!"

Zi Hu respected Tengshe greatly and dare not contradict him, so she turned back to look at Xuanji, who was staring blankly at Bengyu in her hand. "What’s with the sword? It’s constantly chirping," Zi Hu inquired, as she couldn’t help but notice the crisp sound coming from Bengyu. Xuanji touched her head and hesitated, "I... I think I know. It’s warning me not to use Divine Power here. Strange, there was no such issue last time..."

Tengshe scoffed, "Fool! Last time you were just a clueless mortal! This time is different from the last!"

Xuanji knew what he meant, but she could only recall fragments of her past life, like how she fought, how she was eventually banished to the Lower Realm, and how in her subsequent reincarnations she suffered hardships before taking her own life. She remembered these major events, but some things remained elusive, such as where she originally came from, what crime she had committed, and why she was always fighting alone, in a daze.

Even though she had these memories, they didn’t carry a sense of reality. Chu Xuanji was still Chu Xuanji; even burdened with such a heavy past, she remained herself and not another person. She felt it was a different kind of memory, related to her, but not her own. It was an odd sensation, as if her being had split into two, yet the two strangely merged into one without any discomfort.

"Shen Tu and Yu Lei are guarding this place!" Tengshe gestured towards the distance, "Not just you, even I can’t use Divine Power here. Buzhou Mountain is a death ground, the domain of the Netherworld, not a place for us to flaunt our prowess. Even the Heavenly Emperor has to show some respect to Emperor Hou Tu. Sigh, otherwise, I would have longed to fight with those two Gate Gods; I heard they’re quite skilled! Too bad, what a pity..."

His lament was quickly interrupted by Wu Tong, who asked with a laugh, "You look so aggrieved, what’s the matter, has Shaoyang Sect been wiped out?"

Xuanji looked at him coldly and replied, "I’m sorry to disappoint, but no one died, except for the many demons you sent."

Wu Tong seemed somewhat surprised, raising his eyebrows in query, "Is that so? But we’re talking about thousands of demons here, more than the entire Shaoyang Sect combined."

Xuanji snorted, "Even ten times their number would die."

Seeing her demeanor did not suggest a lie, Wu Tong murmured, "Who would have thought... Hehe... Hehe..." His laughter grew increasingly eerie, sending shivers down one’s spine. Zi Hu shouted, "What are you laughing at! You’re in cahoots with those freaks from Li Ze Palace, aren’t you?! Well played, distracting us while sending your men off to die! Now just wait for Li Ze Palace to tear you apart limb by limb!"

Laughing while nodding, Wu Tong said, "Excellent! Excellent! Hahaha! You’ve played your part well, and now I, Wu Tong, am truly driven into a corner! Well done! Well done!"

Zi Hu saw his bizarre appearance and couldn’t help feeling creeped out. She turned her head in a panic to look at Xuanji, who, on the contrary, was very calm, just gazing at him steadily without uttering a word.

Wu Tong slowly stopped his laughter, still with a smile on his lips, but his eyes were completely devoid of mirth, colder than ice and snow. He said leisurely, "You’re lying. If no one had died, why would you have traveled thousands of miles to Buzhou Mountain? Hmm, aren’t you afraid that someone will blow out your candles again?"

Xuanji said indifferently, "Not afraid, because this time we don’t need candles at all." She lifted her wrist, and on her finger was a conspicuous black iron ring. Beside her, Zi Hu also proudly showed off her ring, laughing and saying, "Dumbfounded, aren’t you? Zhong Minyan and that what’s-her-name Ruo Yu both left with a ring. Ruo Yu’s ring was given to Zhong Minyan as soon as she left, and now we have them!"

Wu Tong was caught off guard for a moment, chuckled lightly, and said, "I see! I overlooked that." He glanced over at Tengshe, where there were only two rings, allowing Xuanji and Zi Hu to come in. How did this man, without a ring, get in? His appearance was so strange, with silver hair and black eyes, his whole body exuding a fierce aura; he seemed somehow familiar. Could he be some nefarious star from the heavens?

He didn’t ponder further, because it was already too late to do so. The attempt to bloodbath the Shaoyang Sect had failed, and it seemed the assault on Fuyu Island had failed too. The two Hall Masters from above had not returned. Well, if they had, he might indeed have been torn apart by five horses. He smiled slightly, feeling no fear at all.

Man proposes, God disposes. Perhaps he had to start believing in this saying as well.

He spoke in a low voice, "Tell me, who died in the Shaoyang Sect? Who made you rush over here so desperately... Let me guess, your wise and valiant father? Or your useless mother? Oh... could it be your dear Sixth Brother? Or perhaps... your sister—Linglong?"

With each name he mentioned, Xuanji’s expression darkened a shade. When he got to the name Linglong, her brows suddenly shot up, and she lunged forward without warning, brandishing her sword. Wu Tong didn’t even flinch; the guards had already rushed to block her. At this point, Xuanji paid no attention to the ridiculous rules that forbid using Divine Power. Ignoring the resonating hum of Bengyu in her hands, a brilliant light flared from the sword, and Samadhi True Fire blazed upon it. With several clanging sounds, she broke the swords in the demons’ hands. She pushed off with the tip of her toe, aiming straight at Wu Tong. The guards who had lost their weapons tried to stop her, annoying her greatly. Her sword danced, and in a flash, she had sliced the guards into several pieces.

Wu Tong watched calmly as she thrust her sword at him and suddenly asked in a low voice, "Linglong is dead, right?"

Xuanji’s wrist trembled slightly, and she said sharply, "She will never die! The only person who will die is you!" With these words, she thrust her sword, and with a thud, it violently chopped into his shoulder. She had thought that he would resist at least a little, as the strange wind he had deployed last time had also left her in disarray. But there he stood silently, like an ordinary person who couldn’t do anything, letting her stab at him.

This turn of events made her hesitate, and she paused for a moment. She was covered in blood, all from those guards earlier, and Wu Tong was also covered in blood, but it was all his own. He just squinted his eyes, and asked in a low voice, "She’s dead, isn’t she?"

Xuanji shouted, "You ask knowingly! You knew that my Sixth Brother and her were childhood sweethearts, destined to become husband and wife, yet you sent someone to assassinate my Sixth Brother! With him gone, how could Linglong possibly go on living?! And you dare to ask me this!"

Wu Tong was slightly taken aback, seemingly in disbelief, but then his eyes suddenly lit up, and he burst into loud laughter, "Zhong Minyan is dead? Hahaha! Good riddance! Well killed!"

"Still playing dumb!" Xuanji cried in anger, and as she thrust her sword again, he couldn’t help but grunt in pain. He then laughed again, the mirth reaching extremes, his laughter carrying a chilling note that was spine-tingling, "Indeed, I ordered the assassination of that little thief Zhong Minyan! His death truly delights me!"

Just as Xuanji was about to sever his head with one strike, she heard Zi Hu cry out in alarm from behind, "Xuanji! Those two Gate Gods... they’re coming this way!"

Startled, she quickly turned around, only to see Shen Tu and Yu Lei indeed looking in their direction with fiery eyes, as if they had sensed something amiss, and were rapidly approaching with every step causing the ground to shake. Zi Hu was most afraid of these two Gate Gods; she immediately scurried behind Xuanji, only revealing her eyes to watch them.

Tengshe suddenly leaped up, looking as if he had been injected with chicken blood, shouting, "Here they come! Are they looking for a fight? Wonderful, wonderful! When Emperor Bai asks me, I’ll just say they started it, not me causing trouble!"

Just as Xuanji was about to speak, Wu Tong laughed grimly, "I’m off, if you can, catch me!" She was startled again, the wind whistled by her ears, and Wu Tong, drenched in his own blood, unexpectedly rose on his sword lightly, as if he hadn’t seen the two massive Gate Gods, and crashed head-on into them.

Zi Hu yelled something in panic. Turning back to Xuanji, she was already gone, her form resembling a white lightning bolt, catching up in the blink of an eye. Desperately stomping her feet and screaming, Zi Hu didn’t know what to do—another shadow suddenly zipped by—Tengshe also excitedly charged forward. Zi Hu dazed for half a day, had no choice but to toss her braids, yelling, "Wait for me! I’m coming too!" (To be continued, for more of the story please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters available, support the author, support genuine reading!)