CH 44

Xiao Yuan listened to Xiao Du’s words and did not use the bodies of other people anymore. When he returned to Chanxin Courtyard, Le’er was shocked to see him: “Ma, Master Xiao?”

Xiao Yuan’s identity was no longer a secret in Xingtian Sect and he didn’t bother to hide it anymore. “It’s me, change all the clothes in the closet.”

Le’er was stunned, “Then Master An won’t be back?”

Xiao Yuan smiled and pointed meaningfully: “No, he will come back, just wait.”

Xiao Du ordered people to send newly tailored clothes, most of them red but not monotonous. Even if it was red, there were crimson, pink, magenta, carmine, garnet variations… Xiao Yuan’s eyes were going to turn red. He used to be passionate about red, but he had worn it less in the past two years, mainly because An Mu’s plain face was a bit difficult to match with red, so he gradually stopped liking red that much.

Xiao Yuan changed into a dark-colored brocade robe, a little less bright and a little more dignified than others. As Meng Chi said, this way he looked less like a vixen who harmed the country and the people.

Xiao Yuan didn’t know whether to laugh or not: “You mean I’m still a vixen.”

“Calling you a vixen is not an insult,” Meng Chi said with a smile, “it’s a compliment to your good looks.”

Xiao Yuan didn’t swallow it. Complimenting him on his good looks was not as pleasant as complimenting him on his money. “Let me ask you, you clearly said that you would put the antidote to Acacia Gu in an obvious place. Why did I search the medicine room up and down and didn’t find it?”

Knowing that Xiao Yuan would ask this question, Meng Chi explained: “I did say so, but then the Venerable Lord suddenly found me and asked me to give him the antidote. Later, the people from Yunjian Pavilion came and I didn’t have time to tell you.”

Xiao Yuan’s face was expressionless, “Oh, him again.” He was not surprised at all.

“His Lordship didn’t expect that there would be accidents. He just wanted you to relent on the matter of exchanging hearts.” Meng Chi said with a wry smile, “He tried his best to rush back and for this he received a sword from Yunjian Pavilion, but he was still a step too late.”

Xiao Yuan sneered: “I think he was a step too early.”

Meng Chi paused, her expression a little complicated, and slowly said, “You and Mu Yingyang… do you like him?”

“I don’t like him.” Xiao Yuan remembered the feeling at that time and said sincerely, “But it feels good to be intimate with him.”

Meng Chi said, “You were tortured to death by the Acacia Gu, and it would feel good whoever was making out with you.”

Xiao Yuan said casually: “Except for your Lord.”

Meng Chi disagreed, “You were already awake for a while, it doesn’t count – why are you looking at me like that?”

Xiao Yuan said, “I’m just a little curious. If you are disloyal to Xiao Du, why do you speak for him and think of him every time; but if you are loyal to Xiao Du, why have you helped me and my Shidi a lot behind his back. I can’t understand it.”

Meng Chi smiled indifferently, “It’s very simple. I was born with compassion towards good-looking men and I can’t bear to see them suffer. And the better they look, the less I can bear it. As long as you remember this, my behavior will be easy to understand.” Xiao Du was handsome and romantic, Mu Yingyang was a superb young man, and Xiao Yuan was more stunning than anyone in the world – she wanted them all.

Xiao Yuan really understood, “It turns out that my Jiejie’s attitude to a person depends on their looks?”

Meng Chi nodded happily, “That’s basically what it means.”

“Then please look at me a few more times, Jiejie.”

“I’m looking.”

Xiao Yuan smiled and said, “When Jiejie has seen enough, can she do me another favor?”

Meng Chi felt guilty about the antidote to the Acacia Gu, so she said, “As long as I can help, I will help. Tell me.”

“I want to see my Shidi.”

Mu Yingyang was locked up in Suoxian Prison, which was the forbidden place of Xingtian Sect. Many righteous cultivators and traitors among the disciples of Xingtian Sect were held there. Xiao Yuan had to get Xiao Du’s approval if he wanted to go in. He didn’t think Xiao Du would be so kind as to let him meet Mu Yingyang. And Meng Chi was Xiao Du’s most trusted subordinate, so she could go in and out of Suoxian Prison at will.

Meng Chi gave Xiao Yuan a dress that she used to wear, and Xiao Yuan put it on and became Meng Chi.

Meng Chi felt it was quite a novel experience. She looked at Xiao Yuan’s face, that is, at her own face, for a long time and exclaimed, “My face looks so big!”

Xiao Yuan comforted her: “It’s an illusion.” He imitated Meng Chi’s usual walking posture and took two steps, asking, “Does it look like you?”

Meng Chi said, “Your steps are too big.”

Xiao Yuan walked around again, looking down at his chest, “Why is it so heavy to walk?”

Meng Chi laughed with a ‘pu’, “Master Xiao is too kind.”

Xiao Yuan walked down all the way to Suoxian Prison. When the prison guards saw him, they respectfully said, “Elder Meng.”

Xiao Yuan remembered Meng Chi’s preference for handsome faces and said coldly to the ordinary-looking guard: “How is Mu Yingyang’s situation?”

The guard said, “Mu Yingyang has been very quiet, nothing happened.”

Xiao Yuan nodded lightly, “I’ll go and see him.”

“Yes, please follow me, elder.”

The cells in Suoxian Prison were cold and humid, reeking of decay and blood. The layout of each cell was not necessarily the same. Xiao Yuan saw a poison cell, a fire cell and a water cell. The people locked in them did not react when they saw someone coming. Xiao Yuan seriously suspected that they were either dead or crazy.

One of the cells didn’t look like anything special from a distance. Once you looked closer, you could see a ragged man nailed to the wall with a sharp weapon, unable to move. There were several shocking wounds on the man’s right wrist, and blood flowed out of it and fell in the pool drop by drop. Seeing his lifeless appearance, it seemed as if he had been subjected to such torture for at least four-five days.

This person was the Sword Seeker Lord who had tried to capture and kill Xiao Yuan on Dongguan Mountain that year, and was later used by Xiao Du under the soul-possession technique to exchange hearts with Xiao Yuan. It seemed that after Xiao Yuan refused to exchange hearts, Xiao Du put the Sword Seeker Lord into Suoxian Prison and bled him day after day, making him unable to live and unable to die for a while; the state even more miserable than Xiao Yuan’s when he gave blood to Lin Wulian.

Xiao Yuan didn’t stop for long. He continued to walk forward and saw a lot of cells that looked the same as the one where the Sword Seeker Lord was being held. Without exception, the people inside were bleeding slowly, and without exception, they were all people from Yunjian Pavilion.

After giving thirty cups of blood, Xiao Yuan felt uncomfortable every time he saw blood. The strong smell of blood made him almost sick, and he couldn’t help but speed up.

After a while, the guard said, “Elder Meng, here we are.”

Mu Yingyang’s cell looked normal, with a bed and a table. It was specially arranged by Meng Chi, who was reluctant to see the handsome young man suffer too much. Mu Yingyang sat on the floor with his back against the bed, his expression haggard; a layer of dark stubble grew on his chin and his long hair was still loose. The red hair band that had originally tied his hair was tied to his intact left wrist. Hearing the movement of someone coming, Mu Yingyang slowly raised his head and saw that it was ‘Meng Chi’. His blank face finally became a little angry, and he staggered to his feet.

Xiao Yuan grew up with Mu Yingyang since he was a child. He had seen all sides of Mu Yingyang: he saw his tantrums, saw his impatience, and him being proud and prickly. Later, he also saw Mu Yingyang who was crying bitterly because of his ‘death’. Never before had he felt sympathy for his arrogant and wayward Shidi. But now looking at Mu Yingyang’s pathetic appearance with his ruined right hand, for the first time, a little bit of pity came out of his heart.

According to Meng Chi, the tendons and veins of Mu Yingyang’s right hand were destroyed by Xiao Du. No matter how carefully he healed it, it was impossible to return to its original state. At most, he would be able to write and use chopsticks.

Xiao Yuan said to the guard: “You can withdraw now.”

As soon as the guard left, Mu Yingyang couldn’t wait to ask, “How is my Shixiong?”

Xiao Yuan said, “He eats well, drinks well and wears good clothes. If you have time to think about him, it’s better to think more about yourself.”

Mu Yingyang turned a deaf ear to the second half of Xiao Yuan’s sentence, “Did he…” Halfway through the sentence, Mu Yingyang suddenly stopped, as if the next words were unspeakable.

Xiao Yuan said, “What do you want to ask?”

Mu Yingyang pursed his lips and said, “Did you give him the antidote later that night?”

“Yes.”

Mu Yingyang breathed a sigh of relief, “That’s great.”

Xiao Yuan suddenly understood what Mu Yingyang wanted to ask just now and couldn’t help but smile: “At this point of time, you still care if he slept with someone else?”

Mu Yingyang turned away his face, his ears reddening slightly, “Go and tell my Shixiong, I will find a way to get out of here and then take him away.”

Xiao Yuan smiled and said, “Then let Xiao Du ruin your other hand?”

After being ridiculed, Mu Yingyang was not angry. His eyes widened and his pupils suddenly shone brightly as if he had seen a star in a cloud. “Shixiong?! Is it you, Shixiong?”

Xiao Yuan was taken aback and quickly figured out how he revealed himself. Meng Chi always called Xiao Du “Venerable Lord”, how could she call him by his name. He was careless.

“I am indeed not Meng Chi, but I am not your Shixiong either.” Xiao Yuan said, “I’m just An Mu who knows how to change my face.”

He didn’t want to admit it to Mu Yingyang, for no other reason that it felt troublesome. If he admitted it, the little Shidi might have red eyes and cry again. He didn’t have the leisure to listen to a bunch of nonsense.

Mu Yingyang tremblingly said, “It’s really you…”

Xiao Yuan was confused – what’s wrong with him?

As Xiao Yuan had expected, Mu Yingyang’s eyes reddened, “Shixiong, I missed you so much. I have been thinking of you, thinking when I was practicing, thinking when I was sleeping, thinking when I was about to die… I thought you were dead. Shixiong, I saw your remains and Shizun also said that you were dead… I thought I would never see you again, I really thought you were dead!”

Xiao Yuan caught the key point: “What did you think of me when you were sleeping?”

Mu Yingyang smiled, the corners of his eyes moistened with a smile, “Just thinking about you in a dream. You would appear in front of me, but as soon as I spoke, you disappeared again.” Mu Yingyang recalled his despair as he woke up countless times; he still had lingering fear in his heart. He took a deep breath and said, “Shixiong, it’s good you are alive. I have a lot to say to Shixiong.”

Xiao Yuan said simply: “Then you can talk about it now.”

Mu Yingyang looked at him through the prison door for a while, then raised his hand to wipe away the tears that were about to fall. He didn’t want to cry in front of his Shixiong. “I… what…” Mu Yingyang said very meaningfully, “I can’t say it to Meng Chi’s face, Shixiong, can you change to your face again?”

“No,” Xiao Yuan said firmly, “look at your current situation. Is this the time to stammer?”

To be honest, Xiao Yuan was quite unfamiliar to Mu Yingyang who couldn’t talk well. This made him as frightened as Xiao Du would make him feel when he suddenly started considering the feelings of others.

Xiao Yuan waved his hand and said, “Forget it, let’s stop talking nonsense. I am here to tell you that I will find a way to get you out. Take good care of your hand and don’t cause me trouble.”

“Okay, I’ll do whatever Shixiong says.” Mu Yingyang said obediently, “Shixiong, do you want to save me by changing your face? For example, if you become Xiao Du, you can go to Suoxian Prison and make them let me go?”

Xiao Yuan said, “In this way, even if we get out, we will be hunted down by Xiao Du.” His original plan was indeed to use Xiao Du and the face-changing technique to slip out of Xingtian Sect after getting rid of his Gu, but so many things happened one after another and he changed his mind again. “You also know Xiao Du’s abilities. Instead of being on edge in the future, it is better to think of a way to deal with it once and for all.”

“Once and for all?”

Xiao Yuan didn’t want to say more, so he asked casually, “Does your hand hurt?”

Mu Yingyang turned and showed his right hand to Xiao Yuan, “It hurts a little bit, Shixiong, please touch it?”

Xiao Yuan said, “It hurts but you want me to touch it? Did you go stupid from pain? Did Xiao Du hurt your head, too?”

Mu Yingyang: “…”

“I can’t stay for too long, I’ll go first.” Xiao Yuan said, “Meng Chi will often come to see you and heal your right hand for you. You have to listen to her, but you don’t need to tell her about the ‘once and for all’ matter. Do you understand?”

Mu Yingyang nodded and said reluctantly: “I understand.”

Xiao Yuan took two steps and couldn’t help but turn his head and say, “How on earth did you recognize me?”

Mu Yingyang’s ears blushed: “I… when I kissed my Shixiong, my heart was beating very fast. It happens only with Shixiong.”

Xiao Yuan felt incredulous. What was that? Then when Mu Yingyang wanted to find him in the future, he would just go and kiss people. If his heart beats fast – it’s him. What the h*ll is this?

When he went back, Xiao Yuan passed by a water prison and heard the sound of rushing water. This was the sound of the water prison working. Once the water prison was working, the cell would sink into the pool below, and the person inside would suffer from drowning. When the limit was reached, the cell would rise back to its original position, bringing the person inside back to life.

When the water prison rose, Xiao Yuan glanced in, wondering who was so miserable to be tortured like this. After he saw the man’s face clearly,  shock made him take a step back unconsciously.

The person in the water prison turned out to be Xiao Du’s younger brother, Xiao Rong.