Chapter 536: For the Sake of a Friend!

Chapter 536: For the Sake of a Friend!

"Lu Yao?" Lu Qian's pupils shrank, her face twisting into an odd expression as she gazed at the youth before her. His face seemed harmless, and painfully handsome at that, but... she noticed the bloodstains on his clothing.

In Splinter Mountain, there was nothing but blood—almost always human blood. And tonight, besides herself, the place was swarming with Arbiters!

"What did you just ask me?" Lu Qian furrowed her brow, her eyes settling on Yun Xiao with growing unease and irritation. She had heard him mention the True Immortal Jade Mine.

That was her biggest secret!

"I said I heard you own a True Immortal Jade Mine." Yun Xiao stepped towards her, his celestial power growing more formidable with each step. Though he was only at the Early True Immortal Realm, the volume of his primordial celestial power was nearing that of the Essence Manifestation Realm.

"You!" Confusion and suspicion whirled within Lu Qian. Her gaze drifted past Yun Xiao, casting a cold glance behind him, "Where’s the young master? Where’s Jiang Lanyue?"

Weren't they supposed to feed Yun Xiao the Heartburn Gu to lure out the people behind him?

"Dead!" Yun Xiao’s reply was curt, and with a sword in hand, he crossed ten yards in a blink, arriving right in front of Lu Qian.

"This explosive power..." With just one glance, Lu Qian realized the terrifying truth. "There was no one behind him at all; this boy was a wolf in sheep's clothing!"

In that critical moment, Lu Qian suddenly raised her compass. The green compass spun, transforming into a wall that blocked Yun Xiao.

"Behind you." In the next instant, a white shadow flashed, and Yun Xiao, along with his sword, emerged from the void.

By the time Lu Qian realized, Yun Xiao’s Heaven Burial Sword Soul was already pressed against her back, the shadow of death looming over her.

A sensation of decaying, corroding pain spread from the spot on her back.

She was weaker than Lu Changfeng; it was natural she couldn’t withstand Yun Xiao’s murderous blow.

"Ah!" Lu Qian’s body stiffened instantly, her face turning deathly pale as cold sweat broke out on her forehead.

"Tomorrow, the gates of Sangju City will display thirteen bodies, and you will be the last," Yun Xiao’s voice rose coldly behind her.

"Lu Yao!" Lu Qian exclaimed in horror. She understood everything now. A seemingly harmless little lamb had bared its devil-like fangs in Splinter Mountain!

Before her terror could subside, Lu Qian's voice trembled, "The mine! I have a mine of True Immortal Jade. It's untouched, but you don't know the location!"

"If I knew where it was, you'd be dead by now," Yun Xiao replied.

"Right, right. I can take you there... and more!" Lu Qian raised her hand, her delicate body quivering, slowly turning around, her red lips trembling as she spoke, "You've killed so many Arbiters, you'll need to clear your name, right? I can help you!"

"You've thought this through, huh?" Yun Xiao lifted his chin slightly, his gaze cold as he watched her.

Lu Qian's eyes widened at the sight of the Heaven Burial Sword Soul’s tip. Barely daring to breathe, she slowly knelt down, tears brimming in her eyes, her voice pitiful, "I, I want to live, I don't want to die, as long as I'm alive, I'll do everything to clear your name."

"Why should I trust you? What if you meet a higher-ranking Arbiter and report me?" Yun Xiao sneered.

"I, I..." In her panic, Lu Qian's mind raced, desperate to offer something that would convince Yun Xiao.

"You don’t need to think anymore, I have a way to trust you," Yun Xiao suddenly said.

"Okay, okay, let's do it your way," Lu Qian agreed quickly without a second word.

"That decisive? Seems you really are afraid of dying," Yun Xiao said.

"You’re not killing me?" Sun Xiaoqi's face was pale, pointing at the corpses of the Arbiters around her, "B-but aren’t you afraid I'll leak your secret if you don’t silence me?"

Yun Xiao looked at her, a slight smile playing on his lips, "No need to fear."

"Why not?" Sun Xiaoqi asked, bewildered.

"Because you are a good person, and we are friends," Yun Xiao paused. "I don't kill good people, nor do I betray friends."

"Friends..." Sun Xiaoqi pouted, a touch of sadness in her voice, "I'm too lazy, I don't understand the ways of the world, I can't speak with convincing words. Can someone like me really have friends?"

"People like you are the best friends." Yun Xiao sighed. "In a world that is restless, materialistic, and cruelly hierarchical, genuine people like you are rare."

"Really? Am I that good?" Sun Xiaoqi could hardly believe her ears.

"Yes," Yun Xiao affirmed earnestly, "The Celestial Court needs people who are true and pure like you. If not killing you is a risk for me, then for the sake of our true friendship, I'm willing to take that risk."

"Lu Yao..." Sun Xiaoqi burst into tears then and there. Her tears flowed freely as she reached up to wipe them away, her lips quivering. "No one has ever said such things to me, I'm so touched."

"So, what will you do now?" Yun Xiao asked.

"I've decided!" Sun Xiaoqi bit her lip. "To repay your trust, I want to devote myself to you!"

"Pfft!" Yun Xiao's vision darkened. "Is that your repayment? That’s more like revenge."

"Hmph." Sun Xiaoqi pouted.

"Enough jokes." Yun Xiao became serious. "I need you to help me clear my name."

Hearing this, Sun Xiaoqi glanced at the bodies of Arbiters scattered around, a shiver running through her. She took a deep breath, clenched her fists, and said to Yun Xiao, "Alright."

"Are you sure? If you ever lie for me, and I get exposed, you will be implicated too," Yun Xiao said sternly.

"I'm sure!" Sun Xiaoqi looked earnestly at Yun Xiao. "I know you could just kill me easily and avoid all risks, but you respect me, and you take risks for the sake of friendship... Although I, Sun Xiaoqi, am useless, I'm also willing to go through fire and water for my friends."

"Good." Yun Xiao smiled in relief.

In the path of Immortals, it was easy for people to lose their original heart and turn cold and calculating.

Along this vast journey, meeting people who brought joy like Cai Maomao, Mu Xiaolong, and others—whose humanity blossomed like flowers on the path of immortality—convinced Yun Xiao that the world wasn't just full of darkness.

When met with people like this, Yun Xiao wouldn't care about losses or gains. If he was truly betrayed, he was prepared to accept it. He didn't want to become a utilitarian killing machine; he still wanted to hold onto the most beautiful hopes in his heart.

So much so that he even refrained from using the Soulfire Eye to control Sun Xiaoqi, for that too would desecrate the word friend.

And so, Yun Xiao dealt with Sun Xiaoqi and Lu Qian in a different way.

"Lu Yao..." Sun Xiaoqi scratched her head, asking, "Is she a friend too?"

Yun Xiao shook his head. "No, she's a puppet."

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