Chapter 71 I’d Like to See Who Else Can Save You…
“Swallow it down.”
The gentle, handsome man held half a bloody heart. With a faint smile on his lips, he grabbed the other person by the collar and shoved the heart into the person’s mouth.
“Shen… ugh…” Prince Li’s eyes widened, looking at the bloody hole in Shen Lanqing’s chest. The pungent smell of blood flooded his nose and mouth, and the soft raw meat pressed against his tongue, making him nauseous.
Just as he was about to struggle, Shen Lanqing pressed down on his jaw, using his fingers to force that half piece of heart down his throat: “I said, swallow it.”
“Didn’t you want to get rid of the Gu poison in your body? Then eat this half of a heart.”
Blood-stained fingers pressed against the heart, forcefully pushing it into the narrow throat. A distinct-knuckled hand—not perfect, but full of strength—grabbed Shen Lanqing’s wrist: “Brother Shen, calm down!”
“Calm down for what?” Shen Lanqing followed the hand upward. Raising his head, his usually warm, jade-like eyes now looked like a vengeful ghost: “Master’s talisman suddenly self-ignited, Cangfeng Island vanished without a trace, and my bracelet shattered too. He still hasn’t come.”
The bracelet shattered, yet the person who gave him the bracelet had not appeared even now.
His gaze snapped back to Prince Li: “This was the last thing he told me before he left. You must eat it.”
Seeing Shen Lanqing about to start poking the man’s throat again, Mo Yang gripped his arm tightly, speaking rapidly: “I’m not stopping you from curing his poison. But for half a heart, maybe divide it, or let him chew it a couple of times. If he swallows it whole like this, he’ll choke to death!”
Prince Li nodded in agonizing pain. His face, usually carrying a hint of sickness from the Gu poison, was flushed deep red from suffocating.
Shen Lanqing let go. The habitual motion of flicking his sleeve to straighten his clothes halted midway when he saw his blood-soaked hands: “Apologies, Brother Li, I lost my composure. But it’s best if you swallow it quickly. Master’s whereabouts are unknown, and I am burning with anxiety right now. I hope you can cooperate a bit more.”
Hearing Shen Lanqing’s gentle tone in this situation made Prince Li’s hair stand on end. Fighting the nausea, he hastily chewed the half heart in his mouth a couple of times and swallowed it raw, followed by a fit of dry coughing while covering his mouth.
Shen Lanqing yanked him back over, pried open his mouth, and looked deep into his throat, speaking with a voice devoid of joy or any obvious emotion: “You swallowed it.”
Will doing this help Master? Why hasn’t Master arrived yet? His jade bracelet was broken.
Prince Li, who had wanted to angrily lash out after being tormented for so long, met his eerie gaze filled with unfathomable emotion. He involuntarily held his breath and swallowed the words on the tip of his tongue.
“What are you all doing over there? Mo Yang, hurry and help!” Jin Hongqi wielded a sword in each hand, blocking four or five weapons simultaneously.
Two long arrows pierced through the air, shooting towards Shen Lanqing and Prince Li.
Mo Yang swung his sword upward, knocking the two arrows away, and strode to Jin Hongqi’s side. With a sweeping horizontal strike, he forced the enemies besieging Jin Hongqi to retreat.
Jin Hongqi took the opportunity to fall back. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a streak of light: “Watch out!”
Another cold arrow struck suddenly from the shadows, aiming for Shen Lanqing. Filled with anger in this moment of crisis, Prince Li still reached out and shoved him… but he didn’t budge. It felt as though he had pushed a thousand-pound boulder instead of a thin, frail, scholarly young man.
They were very close. The sound of tearing air pierced their eardrums, pulling the warning line in their senses to a high-pitched alarm. The wind carried by the arrow fluttered their hair before slowly settling, sweeping past Prince Li’s astonished eyes.
In Prince Li’s pupils reflected a hand gripping the flying arrow. Moving his gaze slightly, he met Shen Lanqing’s dark, gloomy eyes.
“Is your… hand alright?” Those with profound martial arts could catch arrows barehanded, but the force of the arrow itself would still cause injury.
As soon as he asked, Prince Li felt he was probably being foolish. Shen Lanqing was still alive after tearing out his own heart barehanded. Having a Master like that, could he still be a normal person now?
“No matter.” Shen Lanqing looked at him in surprise, holding the long arrow single-handedly. With a squeeze of his fingers, the arrow snapped into two. Flicking his wrist, the feathered end dropped to the ground.
The tip of the broken arrow was pointed at Prince Li’s chest: “The people from the Immortal Realm, you brought them, right?”
“Lanqing, what are you talking about?” Prince Li frowned, looking at Shen Lanqing in confusion. His facial expression showed no flaws, but his body stiffened for a split second, which Shen Lanqing, who was close at hand, saw clearly.
“Your eyes tell me that you find the taste of blood in your mouth disgusting. Duan Wenyin, you probably don’t know what expression you had when you used to drink my blood.”
It was the joy of a long drought meeting rain—relaxed, liberated, and comfortable, with a hint of lingering aftertaste, rather than disgust and repulsion.
“Who cured your poison? Is that why you chose to betray your friend and scheme with the tiger?”
Prince Li didn’t reply. The broken arrow in Shen Lanqing’s hand moved down two more inches, the tip tearing the clothing and pressing against the skin, sending a jolt of sharp pain.
“Speak.”
“Shen Lanqing.” Prince Li stared into his eyes and asked abruptly: “Do you like me?”
Liked him. Used to like him? Two answers flashed through Shen Lanqing’s mind, and he finally replied: “I don’t know. What does this have to do with you collaborating with the enemy?”
“I originally thought you were influenced deeper than I was. It seems I misjudged. In your heart, he is still more important.” Prince Li grabbed Shen Lanqing’s hand holding the broken arrow and asked: “Want to know where your Master went?”
Shen Lanqing: “You know…”
Shen Lanqing looked down at the dagger plunged into his abdomen.
“He died.”
Prince Li’s voice entered his ears. A surge of rage erupted in the depths of Shen Lanqing’s eyes, his gaze as sharp as a cutting knife. Grabbing the hand holding the dagger, he twisted it. With a crisp crack, Prince Li’s wrist bent at a horrifying angle.
Raising his arm quickly, he chopped at the side of Prince Li’s neck, knocking him unconscious. Shen Lanqing furrowed his brows, gritted his teeth, pulled out the dagger from his abdomen, and took out a porcelain bottle to swallow a pill.
While he was popping the pill, several more long arrows shot towards him.
Shen Lanqing pushed off the ground with one hand and vaulted into the air. Spinning in mid-air, he kicked the arrows away and landed lightly. In his left hand, he held the unconscious Prince Li; in his right, the broken arrow now had two long arrows impaled on it.
Jin Hongqi took a moment to glance over: “Oh ho, Brother Shen’s moves aren’t bad at all.”
Mo Yang frowned: “Prince Li defected? No wonder so many people suddenly appeared in this manor.”
Jin Hongqi analyzed: “The Guanzhu lost contact, and the poison in his body was cured. As a Prince, assessing the situation and choosing the more advantageous side based on changing circumstances is perfectly normal… Hey, what’s with that suspicious look?”
“Assessing the situation, changing sides—you’ve done that too.” Ever since being played by Zhao Sihai once, Mo Yang had grown more cautious toward his former friends from the Immortal Realm, not to mention Jin Hongqi had a precedent.
Jin Hongqi looked at him, heartbroken: “Is our friendship that fragile to trust?”
Mo Yang replied bluntly: “Yes.”
The people besieging them heard their conversation and turned to a man in a certain spot: “Lord Murong, they seem to be fighting amongst themselves.”
Murong Qi shifted his eyes, snapped open his folding fan, and spoke: “Brother Jin, since they have already discovered it, you should come back.”
Jin Hongqi’s expression changed: “Framing me right to my face, Murong Qi, you despicable scoundrel! Mo Yang, do you believe me or him?”
The answer was a longsword pointing at him. Mo Yang pointed the sword at Jin Hongqi, then turned it toward Murong Qi, backing away to Shen Lanqing’s side as he turned: “I trust no one.”
Glancing down from the corner of his eye at the unconscious Prince Li held by Shen Lanqing: “Wake him up. Ask him for Guanzhu’s whereabouts.”
With the people from the Immortal Realm on the left and Shen Lanqing and Mo Yang on the right, Jin Hongqi stood in the middle, saying powerlessly: “Mo Yang, I really didn’t defect this time. I am still on your side.”
Mo Yang: “I don’t believe you.”
Jin Hongqi sighed, turning his head to look at the enemy faction: “He doesn’t believe me. Murong, you set me up. What compensation do I get for joining you?”
Murong Qi fanned himself, casually watching the show: “I will plead with Xianjun to spare your life.”
“Bailing Xianjun?” Jin Hongqi asked.
“Naturally, it is Bailing Xianjun. Nanlin Xianjun has passed away. Nanlin and Kunwu have merged into the Bailing Sect. The three sects are now one. Your Huaxu Sect being absorbed is only a matter of time.”
As Murong Qi spoke, a hint of unwillingness lurked in the depths of his eyes. His own Nanlin Sect was one of the assimilated ones.
Jin Hongqi’s throat bobbed, his tone carrying a suppressed weight: “Nanlin Xianjun is dead? The three sects unified… What about Kunwu Xianjun? Is he dead too?”
Two out of three Xianjuns are dead?
“Murong Qi, you should have a limit when boasting. Nanlin Xianjun’s heavenly tribulation was approaching; failing to pass it and dying isn’t surprising. But you say Kunwu Xianjun is dead too? Who could possibly kill Kunwu Xianjun?”
A flash of fear and resentment crossed Murong Qi’s face: “An old monster who popped out of nowhere killed two Xianjuns in succession. Bailing Xianjun fought him alone for several days and broke through at the critical moment to slay him.”
“Killed two Xianjuns in succession… Nanlin and Kunwu are both dead.” Jin Hongqi almost couldn’t suppress his wildly rising mouth corners, roaring with laughter in his heart: They’re dead!
“That person… what did he look like? What was his name?” A gloomy voice came from behind. Jin Hongqi instantly snapped back from the joy of two-thirds of his enemies dying.
Wait, it couldn’t be…
“Naturally, it was that so-called Guanzhu. There couldn’t possibly be a second hidden Xianjun in the world. I assume his time was up, so he fought to the death to kill the Xianjuns.”
Murong Qi sounded somewhat regretful. Why couldn’t it have been Nanlin Xianjun who broke through smoothly and lived to the end?
Waving his folding fan, he cast a haughty look at the colorful sword cultivator: “Jin Hongqi, the backing behind the Son of Destiny is gone. You should know which side you ought to stand on.”
“Of course I know.” Jin Hongqi sighed, looking as if he felt regret and defeat over the current situation, and walked toward Murong Qi with his sword.
As he drew near, a flash of murderous intent crossed his dull eyes. Raising the sword to Murong Qi’s neck, he yelled at the subordinates behind him: “Don’t move!”
Murong Qi sneered: “This is merely an avatar of mine. Do you think I’m as stupid as those idiots who came down before?”
“Jin Hongqi, I gave you a chance to surrender considering your decent strength. Since you don’t appreciate it, then go down with the Son of Destiny.”
“Ah!” Murong Qi’s subordinates began wailing one after another, rolling on the ground.
“Snakes! There are snakes!”
Murong Qi looked over. Brilliantly colored venomous snakes crawled out from nowhere, biting the legs and arms of his subordinates.
A Silver Krait hung from a pale, cold finger, flicking its tongue. Seeing the newcomer, Mo Yang was puzzled: “Aren’t you…”
Liu Huansi maintained a cold expression, saying emotionlessly: “My Young Master ordered that Shen Lanqing must live. I am merely acting on the Young Master’s orders.”
Don’t ask him why he used to hunt Shen Lanqing and was now saving him. He didn’t know either.
Did the Young Master fall in love with the other’s Master? Did he succeed in his pursuit? Probably not. Was his Master someone who loved a house and its crows? He was definitely planning to keep Shen Lanqing alive to threaten his Master. Who knows if that Guanzhu’s disappearance had anything to do with his Master.
Could the Master have locked him up already? How did he do that? The opponent is very strong.
Thud!
A heavy blow snapped Liu Huansi’s wandering imagination back to reality.
Murong Qi opened his mouth to say something, but his vision darkened. A fist smashed into his face, knocking him to the ground.
Shen Lanqing viciously rained fists down on Murong Qi with an expressionless face, showing no mercy whatsoever.
“Who did you say died?”
“You dare curse my Master!”
“Insolent mortal… Ah!”
A crisp crack sounded as Shen Lanqing kicked and broke Murong Qi’s shin.
Jin Hongqi wore a look of ‘can’t bear to watch’ mixed with schadenfreude. Walking up to Mo Yang, he poked him: “Aren’t you going to stop him?”
Mo Yang: “Murong Qi aids the wicked; he deserves a beating.”
Jin Hongqi: “I mean, Brother Shen still has a hole in his chest. He’s missing half a heart, and he took a stab to the stomach. Moving so vigorously, is he really okay?”
“Stop! Ah! Why aren’t you attacking?! Ah!” Murong Qi yelled loudly while covering his face.
The people present looked around warily. Streams of white silk shot toward Liu Huansi’s venomous snakes, trapping them. Then, a massive swarm of spiders crawled out. Stabbing the snake-bitten men with their long legs, the men immediately stopped hurting, standing up and glaring at Liu Huansi with murderous intent.
The crowd parted to form a path, and a slender figure wearing a silver crown approached slowly: “Long time no see, Snake Envoy.”
Liu Huansi looked at the newly arrived woman, his expression turning stern: “Spider Envoy.”
“Where is the Scorpion Envoy? Why isn’t he here?” The Spider Envoy said with full malice: “It’s been so long, everyone in the Poison Mist Marsh misses him.”
“Brother Snake, can you beat the other side?” Jin Hongqi didn’t know Liu Huansi’s name, but hearing the Spider Envoy call him Snake Envoy, he coined the term ‘Brother Snake.’
Liu Huansi: “Her power has grown significantly, and the number of her Gu insects has increased. I can only ensure my own survival.”
Mo Yang spoke bluntly: “If you can’t beat her, you can’t protect us either.”
Liu Huansi nodded: “So I will take Shen Lanqing and Prince Li and run. You two are on your own.”
As he spoke, he suddenly groaned, clutching his chest with a look of intense pain: “Poison, transmitted over? How is that possible?”
The venom the Poison Spider injected into the Snake Gu had surged back into his body.
“How is my new poison?” The Spider Envoy smiled sweetly: “I prepared this for the Scorpion Envoy. You get the first taste.”
“Why are you wasting breath with them? Save me first, ah!” Murong Qi screamed. While they were chatting and having a standoff, he was still getting beaten.
Shen Lanqing said nothing, just kept hammering him.
The Spider Envoy, displeased at being interrupted, shot a glance at the man getting beaten on the ground and perfunctorily ordered the Gu insects to surround Shen Lanqing.
As the swarm surged forward, Shen Lanqing aimed the broken arrow in his hand at Murong Qi’s neck. Just as it was about to pierce his throat, his hand and the broken arrow were bound by several streams of white silk.
Murong Qi was dragged away from under Shen Lanqing’s hand by his subordinates. His previously handsome face was bruised and swollen as he mumbled indistinctly: “You are dead today. I’d like to see who else can save you!”
The sky suddenly tore open a rift. A talisman flew out from it, slapping directly onto Murong Qi’s forehead with a smack.
A figure dressed in a white robe and dark cloak stepped out of the rift, looking down from above at the people standing on the ground.
Shen Lanqing looked up in a daze. The heavy gloom that had accumulated in him for a long time dissipated instantly, and a bright light shone in his eyes: “Master!”
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