Love & Redemption
Chapter 74 - 31: True Form

Chapter 74: Chapter 31: True Form

The third watch.

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"If you want to save your friend, you must first find the true form of Zi Hu. Otherwise, all sorts of Immortal Law are useless against her."

Ting Nu pushed the wheelchair, surprisingly fast, keeping pace with Xuanji as they ran side by side.

Xuanji remembered how just moments ago in the grand hall, her sword couldn’t pierce Zi Hu at all. She seemed like a puff of smoke, elusive and unpredictable.

"Then where is the true form?"

Ting Nu thought for a moment, "Zi Hu is always crafty and treasures her true form greatly. She definitely wouldn’t keep it in any common place. Let’s search Tianji Pavilion, it’s very likely there."

What place is Tianji Pavilion? Xuanji helplessly looked at him, thinking that the demons’ lairs were really a mess.

"Tianji Pavilion is where the Sea Stabilizing Iron Chain is kept," he pointed upwards, "on the very top level."

Xuanji wanted to ask what the Sea Stabilizing Iron Chain was; she seemed to know nothing, it was all unheard to her. But this really wasn’t the time for chatting, so she simply shut her mouth tight and focused on running forward.

The cave was not large and they quickly reached the end, returning to the other side of the secret passage. Ting Nu didn’t seem to need light at all to see in the darkness, he pointed to the candelabra on the left, "Light this. There’s a shortcut to Tianji Pavilion."

As instructed by Ting Nu, Xuanji used the flint to light the oil lamp above, and indeed another crack opened up on the right, the cold wind howling as they entered what seemed like a vast space.

She pushed Ting Nu inside and saw two rows of dim candlelights stretching upwards, with only a three-foot-wide path beneath their feet, constructed of uneven steps. Beyond the steps was pitch-black darkness, likely the hollowed inside of the mountain, its depth unknown. A fall would mean certain death.

Unable to maneuver the wheelchair up the steps, Xuanji had no choice but to carry Ting Nu on her back, holding the wheelchair in the other hand, and swiftly climbed upward. Chilly gales periodically swept through the surroundings, colder still and carrying a whiff of decay, chilling to the bone.

The merfolk on her back leaned gently against the back of her neck, his hair still damp, imparting a cool sensation.

After a while, he suddenly said, "The Purple Cloud Helmet, the Golden Armor, the merfolk of the Heavenly Pond... do you remember?

Xuanji, sweating profusely from the run, shook her head and gasped for breath, "Haven’t heard of them, what armor? Isn’t Heavenly Pond up in the heavens?"

Ting Nu fell silent. Alas, she had forgotten everything, all of it, whether it was sorrowful, indignant, or even the warm moments, completely forgotten.

"It’s nothing... actually, maybe it’s better that you’ve forgotten," he said faintly.

Xuanji was silent for a long moment, then suddenly said, "Although I don’t know what you’re talking about... I feel like I’ve known you for a very long time. You feel very familiar and dear to me."

Ting Nu didn’t speak.

*******

Yu Sifeng felt like he was better off dead, now mute and immobile, pinned beneath Zi Hu. She had her own Bewitching Technique, which made people burn with desire, wanting nothing more than to shed their skin and flesh to savor her allure.

He clenched his teeth and endured bitterly, yet her hands seemed boneless, slowly untying his clothes and gently kissing his chest.

It was over; he was truly going to be ruined by her. His body trembled, ready to give up the struggle, when he suddenly heard Zhong Minyan outside shouting, "You shameless fox! Practicing such indecent skills! Even if you succeed, you’ll develop abscesses all over your body, you’ll never become an immortal!"

Yu Sifeng’s heart tightened, and he became slightly more lucid, continuing to resist desperately, not falling for her Bewitching Technique.

But Zi Hu laughed softly and said, "A big man cursing a mere woman like me, so endearing. Who told you I want to become immortal?"

Zhong Minyan had intended to curse her to stall for time, and seeing her responding to his taunts, felt overjoyed. He immediately retorted, "I’m cursing you, you shameless demon! I don’t care whether you become immortal or not! I only know that with such skills, you’ll definitely not die a good death. You’ll go to Tongue-pulling Hell after death and never be reincarnated..."

As he was cursing with great gusto, he hadn’t finished when he suddenly felt a tightness on his chin, pinched by Zi Hu. She narrowed her eyes and leaned in, the candlelight flickering, her pupils a merciless green reminiscent of a wild beast’s. Zhong Minyan’s heart chilled, and the chain of curses in his belly seemed to have vanished without a trace.

"Tongue-pulling Hell... do you think this world isn’t hell?" she hissed fiercely, "Shut your mouth, or I will break my vows and kill you right here and now!"

Zhong Minyan felt like his lungs were about to explode with rage, but he couldn’t summon any power and was like a lamb to the slaughter, with no choice but to obediently listen.

Zi Hu let go of him and was about to turn and enter when suddenly she felt a chill on her back, a terrifying sensation gripping her.

Someone was watching her!

She whirled around, only to see a flash of silver light that vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

A hallucination? Or reality?

Zi Hu suddenly had a bad premonition. Her true form was placed together with that thing; if it were discovered by others, it would all be meaningless. But everyone had been abducted by her, who else could be there? Did they have backup? Or...

That little girl!

She cursed in her heart, regretting that she should never have let her go!

Zhong Minyan saw her rise and leave as if in a hurry. He opened his mouth wanting to say a few more words to provoke her, but on second thought, he realized it would be worse if she stayed. So he bit his tongue hard, and only after she had left the room did he manage to sit up and open the green gauze. Ruo Yu and Zhong Minyan lay there unharmed, but Yu Sifeng’s overcoat was undone, revealing the white undergarment inside, which meant the deed had presumably not been done.

He breathed a sigh of relief and muttered, "Good... that fox suddenly left. Brothers, let’s hurry and leave, too."

********

The so-called Tianji Pavilion was nothing more than a small attic atop the palace. Xuanji, carrying Ting Nu on her back, ran all the way there. Bursting through the door completely exhausted, she simply lay down on the ground and said with difficulty, "Ting... Ting Nu, check if... the true form is here..."

Ting Nu, pushing the wheelchair, looked around and then turned back with a smile, "It’s here, you can see it if you get up."

Xuanji, elated at the news, struggled to her feet and indeed saw a half-transparent cabinet in the corner, a faint jade green as if carved from jade itself. Inside the cabinet lay a half-human-length fox with deep purple fur, seemingly asleep, as if a pat on its back would wake it, causing it to wag its tail and squeak at people.

She drew her sword and strode over, ready to smash the priceless Jade Cabinet, and raised her hand to kill the fox.

Ting Nu suddenly said softly, "Don’t kill her, it is extremely difficult for all beings to attain human form, give her a way out."

Xuanji shook her head, "No, she has done evil, she must die."

Ting Nu gave a wry smile and murmured, "You... are still the same as before..."

"What?" Xuanji didn’t catch that; this Merfolk mumbled and whispered as if harboring countless secrets but unwilling to disclose them, which was really frustrating.

"It’s nothing... look behind you first."

Ting Nu pointed behind her, and when Xuanji turned around, she saw a black iron chain hanging on the wall, dark and dull, with a circle of strange talisman paper stuck around it on the wall. The chain dangled to the ground, trailing very long, with a hole specially made in the corner of the wall for it, the chain extending down through it into unknown depths.

"What is this?" Xuanji walked over and felt the chain, which looked slender and delicate but was surprisingly heavy in her hand, as if made of Xuantie.

Ting Nu spoke softly, "This is one of the Sea Stabilizing Iron Chains. There’s one in each of the eight directions around the world, used to lock away a notorious demon."

After a pause, she added, "No demon has ever given up trying to save him. I guess, on your way here, you must have encountered some of those demons trying to rescue him, right?"

Xuanji suddenly remembered the instigators on Sea Bowl Mountain and the demon that did not look human. Hesitantly she nodded, "In... Wangxian Town we encountered..."

Ting Nu said indifferently, "Wangxian Town is located in the southeast; one of the iron chains of the eight directions is underneath the mountain. Gao Mountain is located due east, and this is the second chain."

(To be continued, for following episodes, please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters are available, support the author, support the genuine reading!)