CH 68

Lin Wulian didn’t make a sound; his delicate face was almost transparent and he could barely stand, holding the desk and gasping for air.

Xiao Yuan smiled, “When you look like this, I feel I am bullying the weak.”

Lin Wulian’s eyes were misted, “Aren’t you?”

“Hardly,” Xiao Yuan said slowly, “There is Gu Hang behind you and the entire Yunjian Pavilion. Who can match you in terms of strength?”

Lin Wulian smiled sarcastically, “Even so, I still fell into your hands. Do you know why?”

Xiao Yuan pretended to think, “Because I’m lucky?”

“Because someone is protecting you and risking his life to protect you.“ Lin Wulian couldn’t hold on anymore, so he sat down on the chair and said with his mouth full of blood, “If not, you would have died in Yunjian Pavilion two years ago.”

Xiao Yuan bent down, lifted Lin Wulian’s chin with the jade fan and whispered softly: “No one can protect me, except myself.”

Lin Wulian looked at Xiao Yuan without flinching and said, “Xiao Yuan, you are really just like I thought. You are cold and selfish. As long as the result is not as good as you want, you can deny everything completely. You are not worthy of my shidi giving his heart to you and you are even less worthy of him.”

In the past, Xiao Yuan would not have bothered to listen to such vicious words, but now a fire had risen in his heart, as if he had been angered by Lin Wulian. He didn’t know the reason for this anger, whether it was because Lin Wulian said he was selfish and cold or……

Xiao Yuan didn’t lash out but curved his lips in a smile, “Why do you sound so sour when you say that? If I am not worthy of Gu Louyin, then who is worthy? You?” Xiao Yuan shook his head, “I’m afraid that won’t work. Just looking at your appearance, it’s obvious you don’t match him. If you could look better, maybe there still would be hope.”

Lin Wulian bit his lip and said nothing, staring at Xiao Yuan.

“Enough of trite poetry subjects.” Bihai Chaosheng moved all the way down, along Lin Wulian’s neck and chest and stopped on his lower dantian, “I will ask for the last time, where are the earth souls and where is Qingyan.”

Lin Wulian’s eyes narrowed; he summoned his sword and swung it at Xiao Yuan. Xiao Yuan turned his head to avoid and hit Lin Wulian’s wrist with a palm blow. Lin Wulian cried out loudly, vomited a mouthful of blood and the sword in his hand slammed to the ground.

Xiao Yuan gave an impatient tut and suddenly added force to his hand. Lin Wulian only felt that a sharp weapon was pointed at his golden core; he didn’t dare to move.

Xiao Yuan suddenly said, “You should know very well that when you were poisoned back then, I didn’t do it.”

Lin Wulian sneered: “Even if I said it wasn’t you at the time, you would still hardly be able to escape.”

“I know that no matter if it was me or not, I had to give you blood. For ten consecutive days, three times a day. My cultivation base was exhausted and spiritual roots were damaged. In the end, I was not even as good as an ordinary person.” Xiao Yuan said, “But if you don’t tell me what I want to know, you will be worse than I was back then. Because I could still restore my cultivation base but without the golden core, you will be just a waste forever.”

Lin Wulian coughed violently, cold sweat covering his forehead. Bihai Chaosheng exuded a faint light that suddenly heated up and became extremely hot. Lin Wulian’s white clothes were scorched together with his flesh and the golden core in his body seemed to be roasted by fire, as if it would be burned to ashes a moment later.

“You didn’t want my golden core back then, and I don’t want yours either.” Xiao Yuan said, “As long as you tell me where the earth souls and Qingyan are, I will stop immediately.”

Lin Wulian closed his eyes and said nothing.

Xiao Yuan said again: “Gu Hang no longer has Gu Louyin. You are his and Yunjian Pavilion’s only hope.”

Lin Wulian’s eyelids twitched slightly; he opened his eyes and squeezed out two words through the gritted teeth: “Pangu Mountain.”

“Are they all in Pangu Mountain?” Xiao Yuan raised his eyebrows, “How do I know you are not lying?”

“If you don’t believe me, why do you ask me?”

Using Bihai Chaosheng guards, Xiao Yuan clamped Lin Wulian’s cheeks, stuffed a pill into his mouth and said, “When I come back from Pangu Mountain and confirm that you have not lied and I have not encountered an ambush there. I will order someone to deliver the antidote.”

Lin Wulian was sullen and angry, “Even if Yunjian Pavilion doesn’t set an ambush in advance, there will only be a dead end for you if you go there.”

“That’s okay, anyway, Gu Louyin will die with me.” Xiao Yuan smiled and said, “Do you feel upset?”

Lin Wulian said in disbelief: “Xiao Yuan, are you even human–”

Xiao Yuan knocked the back of Lin Wulian’s neck with the fan, and Lin Wulian passed out at once. With this fan, he used half of his strength, which was enough to put Lin Wulian, who was seriously injured, in a coma for three-five days. When Lin Wulian woke up, if things went well, he would have returned from Pangu Mountain a long time ago. As for the medicine he fed Lin Wuliann, it was not a fatal poison, but ‘Waste’ that would prevent his injuries from healing. No matter how clever Yunjian Pavilion’s medics were, they would not be able to find the reason for Lin Wulian’s long-term injury.

Xiao Yuan removed the barrier, manipulated Lin Wulian with his fan and led him back to his place, making it look like Lin Wulian’s old injuries relapsed and he was in a coma. After all this, he was going to withdraw.

When passing by Lin Wulian’s study, Xiao Yuan thought for a while and was about to go in and see if he could find some more secrets of Yunjian Pavilion. What he didn’t expect was that there was already someone in the study.

The silver-haired sword cultivator whom he and Lin Wulian had just discussed a short while ago stood at the desk, flipping through a booklet. It seemed that he felt something. He raised his eyes and the two of them looked at each other unexpectedly, both stunned.

Xiao Yuan was so surprised that for a while he forgot to make the performance of Jiang Liuyuan seeing Gu Louyin. Wasn’t Gu Louyin in Qingzhu Village? Why did he come to Yunjian Pavilion?

——What nonsense was this? If he could come, Gu Louyin could naturally come too.

Look what Gu Louyin had done! He obviously agreed to follow a long-term plan and move after making a decision, but now he sneaked into Yunjian Pavilion secretly without telling him. Although he didn’t seem to be qualified to blame Gu Louyin, after all, he was doing the same thing, but he was just… a little angry.

Xiao Yuan sighed out and he decided that he still hadn’t played enough. He put on a fierce expression and said, “Gu Louyin, you dared to come back!”

Gu Louyin: “…”

“Do you consider my Yunjian Pavilion to be an entertainment district where you can come if you want and leave if you want?! Unsheathe your sword!”

Gu Louyin frowned slightly, “Have you been to the entertainment district?”

Xiao Yuan: “…?” What kind of irrelevant question was Gu Louyin asking at this time? Does whether Jiang Liuyuan has ever been to the entertainment district have anything to do with him?

Xiao Yuan pretended to stab him but he really didn’t know how to use a sword and his steps were chaotic as he rushed over. He seemed to hear Gu Louyin’s helpless sigh and saw Gu Louyin turn around and easily avoid his sword. Meanwhile, he even supported him with his arm around his waist, as if afraid that he would fall.

Xiao Yuan’s face turned hot, “You, what do you mean by this?! Warriors can be killed, not humiliated!”

“I won’t fight you.”

Xiao Yuan held his breath and said, “But I am Jiang Liuyuan.”

Gu Louyin nodded, “En, you are Jiang Liuyuan.”

Xiao Yuan felt that his talents had been insulted. He put down the sword  and said sullenly: “You knew a long time ago and pretended that nothing happened. Gu Louyin, when did you learn to lie?”

Gu Louyin was quiet for a moment and said, “I’m sorry.”

Xiao Yuan pulled the corner of his mouth, “What are you apologizing for, what did you do wrong?”

“I lied to you.” There was no light in the study. Xiao Yuan couldn’t see Gu Louyin’s expression clearly, but he could hear a trace of anxiety in his tone, “I’m wrong, you… don’t be angry.”

Seeing Gu Louyin admit his mistake so readily and coaxing him so nicely, Xiao Yuan couldn’t keep being angry. “I lied to you first and you lied back, so we are even.” He said as calmly as possible, “But you haven’t told me yet why you didn’t expose me.”

Gu Louyin fell silent.

Xiao Yuan asked again, “Did you recognize me in the ancient mirror? That time in the secret passage, did you see me in the ancient mirror?”

“En.”

“Then how did you recognize me this time?” Looking at Gu Louyin’s reaction, it seemed that he concluded that he was not the real Jiang Liuyuan at first glance, otherwise he would have shedded blood on the spot. His face-changing technique was so seamless that he was absolutely identical to the orihinal. He didn’t say a word just now and didn’t have time to reveal a flaw, so how did Gu Louyin see through his disguise?

Gu Louyin’s answer was simple: “I felt it.”

“Felt?”

“I felt it was you.”

Xiao Yuan choked: “According to what you say, wouldn’t you see through it no matter whose face I use?”

Gu Louyin hesitated for a moment and said, “I can pretend that I didn’t notice.”

Xiao Yuan didn’t know whether to be angry – why did he feel that his ship was about to turn over at Gu Louyin’s hands.

“Forget it,” Xiao Yuan temporarily conceded defeat, “this is not the time to talk about this. Did you find any useful clues?”

“The list.”

“What list?”

Gu Louyin handed Xiao Yuan the booklet he was looking at just now. Xiao Yuan turned a page casually and saw Lu Yueyao’s name in the first column. The page was full of names. Apart from Lu Yueyao, he also saw the names of several disciples of Yunjian Pavilion he knew, but only Lu Yueyao’s name was followed by a cross. Xiao Yuan turned a few more pages and from time to time he would see a name of a person that had been crossed, and said, “Is it possible it’s crossed when a person is dead?”

Gu Louyin said, “The day I broke ties with Yunjian Pavilion, I destroyed a hand of a master. There is also a mark after his name.”

“It’s just a ruined hand, he shouldn’t die because of it, right?”

“En.”

Xiao Yuan thought for a while and said, “We can’t figure out anything at this moment. Let’s get out of here first.”

Gu Louyin asked, “Have you found out where the earth souls are?”

“I asked Lin Wulian.” Xiao Yuan said with a smile, “After all, Gu Hang tells him everything. Since you appeared here, you must have also had this idea. It’s a pity that I was faster than you.”

Gu Louyin complied with Xiao Yuan’s words and said, “En, you are very fast.”

Wearing Jiang Liuyuan’s face, Xiao Yuan could walk with his head high at Yunjian Pavilion. Gu Louyin hid in the shadows and accompanied him all the way. Just as the two of them were about to leave smoothly, they happened to meet an old friend in front of the gate of Yunjian Pavilion.

This old friend was dressed in a rich bright yellow brocade robe, had a flute pinned to his waist and a pretty girl beside him. It was Shen Fugui who had lended his identity to Xiao Yuan not long ago while the girl was Shen Fugui’s shimei, Cai Xunnian.

Shen Fugui and Cai Xunnian were visiting Yunjian Pavilion late at night for unknown reasons. As soon as they arrived, they were surrounded by the disciples of Yunjian Pavilion. The leader of the group said: “Elder Qian has an order. Shen Fugui of Xuanle Sect and Gu Louyin, the traitor of our Pavilion, are complicit in the crime, trying to steal the treasure of our Yunjian Pavilion. If you see them, seize them!”

Shen Fugui was completely puzzled, “I’m okay with you guys saying I’m in cahoots with Louyin, but what is this about stealing the treasure of your Pavilion?”

“I have sent someone to tell the Pavilion Master. Young Sect Master Shen, surrender immediately!”

Shen Fugui said anxiously: “Wait, don’t you understand human words!”

Cai Xunnian said coldly: “Shixiong, what are you doing talking nonsense with them? If they want to beat us, they can try and see whether they succeed!”

Xiao Yuan felt guilty when he looked at Shen Fugui’s face. Seeing that these two people were really going to fight with the disciples of Yunjian Pavilion, he couldn’t stand on the sidelines and said, “Gu Louyin, let me help Shen Fugui explain. Can you take me away in front of so many people later? If you can’t, I’ll call the members of Xingtian Sect.”

Gu Louyin nodded lightly, “Okay.”

With the word Gu Louyin’s “okay”, Xiao Yuan felt that he had nothing to worry about. He put on Shen Fugui’s face and took a deep breath, “Then I’ll go.”

Gu Louyin stopped him: “Xiao Yuan.”

Xiao Yuan paused, and said as if nothing had happened, “What?”

“Be careful.”