Love & Redemption
Chapter 98: Volume 3 Heartless Xuanji - 5 Change (5)

Chapter 98: Volume 3 Heartless Xuanji Chapter 5 Change (5)

The disciples of Fuyu Island, who had previously been viciously attacked and fiercely bombarded by demons, finally began to come to their senses. No longer in chaos as before, more and more disciples from all over the island were rushing to assist. Gradually, the attacking demons couldn’t sustain the pressure and began to retreat.

"Leave thirty people behind, and the rest stay back, don’t linger near the main gate!"

Pian Pian, long unseen, had spoken. He was still dressed in red and wielding a red sword, but appeared more composed than before. Around him lay a circle of slain demons, each taken down with a single deadly strike, a testament to how much more exquisite his swordsmanship had become over the years.

The disciples took his words seriously. With the demons near the main gate repelled, they quickly organized themselves into teams to patrol and extinguish fires and to hunt down any demons that slipped through.

Dongfang Qingqi saw that fire arrows continued to rain down from the sky. Although not as numerous as before, the winds were fierce and clouds surged rapidly that night. Once a fire arrow hit the ground and caught wind, it would grow swiftly, and if not extinguished in time, it could lead to a massive fire. Chu Lei and Valley Master Rong were probably still using Sword Control to eliminate demons in the sky, but their opponents must have been numerous, causing a stalemate that was difficult to break through.

"Yu Ning, take some more disciples up there!" he ordered the white-clad woman who was directing the other disciples to fetch water and put out the fires. She quickly agreed, gathered a dozen people, and made her way to fight through the gate.

At this moment, young disciples like Lu Yanran arrived, sweat-soaked, and were swiftly organized by Pian Pian into small teams of ten to fetch water and fight the fires, containing the flames for the moment. The first wave of invading demons was almost completely wiped out by Xuanji and the others. This sudden event was truly unexpected and caught everyone off guard. The reaction of the youngsters was slow; they looked at each other’s disheveled state—some laughed, some were dazed, and some covered their faces and began to cry.

Seeing that the enemy’s offensive was waning and fewer fire arrows were falling from above, Dongfang Qingqi immediately ordered, "Quickly, take the injured disciples to Yushui Courtyard! Ask Manager Ouyang to take care of them!"

Fortunately, the number of disciples burnt was not many, with only one or two unconscious, while the rest of the injured could barely stand to leave. Lu Yanran and a few senior sisters evacuated the wounded, but soon came running back in a panic, stating urgently, "Sect Leader, we can’t find Manager Ouyang!"

Dongfang Qingqi frowned slightly, "Have you searched everywhere?"

"Yes, everyone... hasn’t seen Manager Ouyang."

Dongfang Qingqi waved his hand dismissively, "Have your Sect Leader’s Wife take care of them!"

Lu Yanran ran off swiftly, but shortly returned even more panicked, her face covered in sweat, and stammered, "Sect Leader! The Sect Leader’s Wife... she can’t be found either!"

Dongfang Qingqi was silent for a moment, "Enough, don’t come back here again; stay in Yushui Courtyard and look after the injured."

The blaze gradually dimmed, and the dark orange-red sky turned gloomy. Slowly, the dark orange hue faded away, reverting to the ink-blue night sky. Everyone understood that Chu Lei and the others had cleared the demons lurking above the sword net. Indeed, before long, Chu Lei and his group returned to the gate. Both Sect Leaders were unharmed, but the rest of the disciples were more or less injured, even Yu Ning’s hair and clothes were burnt beyond recognition.

Chu Lei, holding a severely wounded demon, looked around and said, "How are things here?"

Dongfang Qingqi shook his head: "Nothing serious, just many injured disciples. And this is...?"

Chu Lei dropped the severely wounded demon on the ground and indifferently said, "We captured this one alive. I’ve already applied soft cake; it can’t move a single finger, not to mention suicide—it’s completely impossible. We can properly interrogate it."

Xuanji saw the black cloth on the demon’s face had been removed, revealing the wild beast-like face underneath, covered in blood and extremely ferocious. Although the demon couldn’t move, its aura didn’t falter at all, glaring murderously at everyone with fierce eyes, reminding them of the demon they had killed on Sea Bowl Mountain, making them tense.

Valley Master Rong spread his robe to release the Demon-binding Rope, binding the demon tightly from head to toe, then spoke softly, "Demons usually don’t stay in one place and never band together. Where do you come from? Who commanded you?"

The demon let out a cold laugh but remained silent. Valley Master Rong stepped on its chest, pressing down hard enough to make its ribs creak, causing Xuanji a chill down her spine, and she involuntarily gripped Yu Sifeng’s clothes tighter.

"You don’t have to be stubborn with me; I have countless ways to deal with you. Speak up quickly, and I’ll end your life just as fast."

Valley Master Rong’s voice was usually even-keeled, sounding stable and kindly in everyday life, but in this context, it was chilling.

Unable to endure, blood streamed from the demon’s mouth as it spoke lowly, "This matter was never meant for you humans to meddle with... and yet you insist on fighting for power... in vain, providing only a source of mockery. When dealing with a group of demons, you had better assess if you... have the ability. If we hadn’t been lenient, ten Fuyu Islands wouldn’t be able..."

The voice abruptly cut off amid a cry of pain as its ribs were forcefully crushed, leaving it gasping for breath and eventually passing out.

Valley Master Rong, expressionless, turned and ordered, "Bring water."

Several young disciples nervously fetched a bucket of water and splashed it over the demon’s face. These disciples from reputable sects, though dedicated to eliminating demons and maintaining peace, had never witnessed such a cruel interrogation before. Besides, in their eyes, demons were ferocious beasts without human form or speech. The fact that this demon was nearly indistinguishable from a human was unsettling to behold. Even Zhong Minyan frowned uncomfortably.

Awakened by the cold water, the demon’s eyes flickered. Valley Master Rong squatted down, staring intently into its miserable green eyes, and said in a deep voice, "Even if you don’t speak, we already know. I’ve heard that near Buzhou Mountain in the Western Wilderness, there is a group of demons. That place connects to the Netherworld, and ordinary people never dare approach it lightly. You aim to break the chains and enter the Netherworld to rescue that person, right?"

He spoke softly, low enough for only the demon to hear. The demon seemed shocked by the words, but instead of erupting in anger, it scoffed, "Mere ants dare meddle in the affairs of the divine eagle! He is detained by gods, his peers are demons—what business is it of you humans?"

Valley Master Rong’s brows furrowed slightly, and Chu Lei coldly retorted, "All evil spirits deserve death at the hands of all! Not to mention that you cause chaos in the human world, harming countless innocents! And here you are, boasting!"

The demon whispered, "Since ancient times, you mortals have been insatiable as snakes swallowing elephants, building the Heavenly Ladder and Heavenly Tree, foolishly attempting to climb upwards... And now you interfere in divine affairs again... Aren’t you afraid of retribution?"

No sooner had the voice faded than there came a strange giggle from behind, "Well said, well said! Humans are never satisfied, just like snakes swallowing elephants... But it’s true that you harmed many mortals, and now you speak these words without feeling ashamed?"

Everyone hurriedly turned around, only to see the Vice Palace Master, who had been out of sight, strolling over unsteadily, holding a feather fan, looking clean and neat from head to toe, completely out of place in the sorry state of the surroundings.

Valley Master Rong snorted and lifted the demon, "Qingqi, lock this demon in the dungeon on your island, we will interrogate it thoroughly another day!"

The Vice Palace Master laughed again, "To the dungeons! The dungeons have been empty for a long time! Be careful and count your numbers, lest you fall for someone else’s trick!"

Dongfang Qingqi was alarmed and gave him a deep look before turning and instructing Pian Pian. Understanding immediately, Pian Pian turned and left. After a moment, a red shadow flashed, hurrying back, exclaiming, "Sect Leader! The dungeon door has been opened by someone... It’s completely empty inside!"

Upon hearing this, while the young disciples remained calm, the three Sect Leaders all changed color in shock. Valley Master Rong took out a copper mirror from his sleeve and swept his hand over it, projecting the entire scene of Fuyu Island into it. His forehead was covered in sweat, as he seemed to be searching for something with difficulty.

The Vice Palace Master continued, "In my opinion, since there are people around this door, they must have gone towards other exits from Fuyu Island!"

Dongfang Qingqi left with a flick of his sleeve, he naturally knew what the so-called ’other exit’ was—the northern slope! Surrounded by the boundless sea, it was impossible to enter the island, but to leave from that place, one only needed to be familiar with the terrain and sneak past the guarding disciples—an easy feat to escape Fuyu Island!

And who was familiar with the terrain of Fuyu Island?

"Ouyang!" cursed Dongfang Qingqi. Chu Lei followed him to the northern slope at once, and after exchanging glances, Xuanji and the others also ran after them, leaving only Valley Master Rong to slowly put away the copper mirror. With a palm strike to the demon’s chest, he caused him to spout blood violently and faint.

"Vice Palace Master, you seem to know quite a lot," he said icily.

The Vice Palace Master merely chuckled and said with a bow, "Dare not, dare not. I have always been ignorant, how can I compare to Valley Master’s vast knowledge, even knowing to detain that person in the Netherworld..."

Valley Master Rong huffed and left with a swish of his sleeve.

******

Dongfang Qingqi and his group charged towards the northern slope, but didn’t see a single person along the way, eventually stopping together by the cliff’s edge.

"Sect Leader, there’s no one here," Pian Pian looked around and immediately concluded.

Dongfang Qingqi’s brows were tightly knitted, staring at the dense woods on both sides, as if trying to see through them, to find the hidden person.

The sea breeze, mingled with the mountain wind, blew rapidly; everyone’s clothes flapped loudly. Xuanji suddenly covered her nose, pointing towards the forest and whispered, "Over there... There’s demon energy."

Her words, as a little girl, naturally went unheard; let alone that demon energy wasn’t something you could claim to smell on a whim. Chu Lei frowned and scolded her, "Stop causing trouble! What demon energy?"

Xuanji blinked and whispered, "It is demon energy! It’s moving fast! It’s reaching the edge of the cliff!"

She suddenly raised her hand, pointing towards a dark spot in the forest. Dongfang Qingqi turned and said, "Give me a bow!" Immediately, a disciple handed him a longbow and iron arrows. Summoning his True Qi, he pulled the bowstring with a long arm, his wrist steady as iron, while asking, "Little Xuanji, in which direction?"

Xuanji pointed and as he aimed the arrow tip in that direction, he fused True Qi into the iron arrow, suddenly releasing his fingers. Accompanied by the sound of whooshing through the air, the arrow shot out fiercely, and indeed, someone grunted from within the forest, followed by a woman’s scream. The wind swept through, rustling the treetops, and two dark figures lightly flew up from among the trees.

"Trying to escape?" Dongfang Qingqi drew another arrow, pulled it taut, and with a swish, hit one of the figures, causing it to fall down in an awkward tumble.

The crowd hurried forward and, upon reaching the forest, saw another person hurrying toward them. Dressed in black and wearing a short robe, with a bundle on his back and a face of exceptional beauty, it was none other than Lady Dongfang! Upon seeing everyone, her face turned pale, but she didn’t seem to be terribly frightened as she stopped there, gazing steadily at Dongfang Qingqi, as if waiting for him to say something.

To everyone’s surprise, Dongfang Qingqi seemed to have expected her presence and without a word, he just gestured, "Keep watch, don’t let her escape!"

Though the disciples were bewildered, they dared not disobey their Master and surrounded her. Lady Dongfang’s face turned from red to white and after a while, she said, "My lord, you treat me thus!"

Dongfang Qingqi appeared as though he hadn’t heard, instead going into the woods to bind the two who fell, one of whom was indeed Manager Ouyang, dressed in a night-vigil costume. Hit in the back by an arrow, his face was as white as paper, but he remained defiant without uttering a sound, being dragged forward followed by another person wrapped in burlap from head to toe, their face unseen.

Everyone was utterly astonished that the traitors were their own people—one being the Sect Leader’s Wife, the other the island’s Chief Steward. The Chief Steward, usually presenting as a weak scholar without the strength to truss a chicken, had hidden his abilities well. The light body skills demonstrated earlier in leaping into the air were something not even the island’s senior disciples, who had practiced for over a decade, could achieve.

Dongfang Qingqi fixed his gaze on the two, and after a long time, he tossed the bow and arrow to the ground, saying, "You... have hidden well from me." (To be continued, for future developments, please log on to www.qidian.com, more Chapters are available, support the author, support genuine reading!)