Part 2
For example, though there were clearly two “Children of Destiny,” the Guanzhu had taken Shen Lanqing as his disciple, given him protective talismans, and custom-tailored a cultivation method for him. He even left instructions before departing. In comparison, Prince Li was treated like a secondary gift saved along the way.
“Besides, Song Yilou might not be dead. Youâd better leave Qiu Ming Mountain now and take whoever you think you should take with you.”
Mo Yang didn’t help everyone indiscriminately; he had his own judgment. There truly weren’t many good people in Qiu Ming Mountain. The guest elder before him was one, and he was the “good person” Mo Yang had mentioned to Xiao Yu.
The guest elder nodded, then remarked with relief, “It seems you experienced quite a lot during your trip to the mortal realm. You feel much more mature.”
Mo Yang paused. Had he changed?
“By the way, where do you plan to go now? Back to Ziyun Sect?” the elder asked.
After Mo Yang gave an affirmative reply, the elder looked at him with a complex expression. “I take back my comment about you being mature. Before you head back to Ziyun Peak, youâd better ask around. Ziyun Sect… might not be a suitable place for you to return to right now.”
“Guanzhu, youâre crossing your tribulation too.”
Midway through Yun Wuxiang’s tribulation, a Song Yilou appeared out of thin air. The lightning charging toward Yun Wuxiang instantly expanded, with black Yin lightning mixing into the purple bolts. The combination caused the lightning to mutate, swirling into a unique shade of silver-grey.
The surging lightning swallowed both of them.
As the light faded, a crimson talisman hung above Yun Wuxiang’s head, while the ground beneath his feet had been hollowed out into a charred, massive crater.
Yun Wuxiang’s sleeves hung in tatters from his arms. Fragments of lightning shimmered like starlight on his skinâa scene that looked poetic but was, in reality, a series of painful heavenly punishments. “Where is the teleportation talisman I gave you?”
Song Yilou had also been blasted into a “refugee outfit,” a large hole torn in his shoulder exposing the black scorpion tattoo on his collarbone. He opened his palm to reveal a handful of talismans flickering with residual lightning. “It seems they stopped working.”
Yun Wuxiang didn’t have time for a second sentence before the next bolt fell.
The hybrid lightning seemed to be on stimulants, crashing down with a ferocity and speed far greater than before.
Under the blanket of lightning, Song Yilou secretly pulled a talisman from his black scorpion tattoo.
Just as he was about to use it, it was swept away by a crimson chain. Yun Wuxiang grabbed him by the hair, manipulated the Yin energy within the ghost’s body, and used the man’s finger to draw a Yin talisman while simultaneously condensing immortal energy in his left hand to draw a spiritual talisman.
One black and one white rune rose, intertwining and merging.
The runes exploded and decomposed, forming a half-black, half-white flower that bloomed above their heads.
The silver-white tribulation lightning slammed directly into the center of the flower. The petals began to dissipate. A trail of blood leaked from the corner of Yun Wuxiang’s mouth, only to be licked away by the male ghost who had leaned in regardless of the occasion. His blood-stained tongue appeared even more crimson.
In the glare of the lightning, Yun Wuxiang couldn’t see the ghost’s face clearly, but at such close range, the Daoist Companion Pact transmitted the other’s thoughts with absolute clarity.
[It wouldn’t be bad to die like this with the Guanzhu.]
What exactly is good about that?
Yun Wuxiang kicked Song Yilou, and the phantom of the Black-and-White Floating Life Flower showed signs of complete collapse.
The crimson chain wrapped around the man again and hauled him back.
“Song Yilou.”
Yun Wuxiang said nothing else, only calling his name. He channeled a stream of Yin energy into the phantom of the flower, causing the flickering image to solidify slightly.
It was only temporary. According to Yun Wuxiang’s estimation, this phantom could only block two more bolts at most.
The sky full of lightning and the phantom of the flower transformed into a different form in Yun Wuxiang’s eyes. He released the hand supporting the flower’s underside and said, “My life is in your hands.”
Without waiting for Song Yilou’s reaction, he handed control of the flower-shadow shield to him. He reserved only a sliver of focus to channel immortal energy into it, using the rest of his thoughts to construct a new array.
Song Yilou stared at him with wide eyes, but he could only see the top of Yun Wuxiang’s head.
The tribulation lightning descended from the heavens with the weight of ten thousand jun, roaring like a silver dragon as it tore at the flower’s shadow.
The shadow, large enough to completely cover both of them, continued to shrinkâfrom the size of a millstone to a wheel, then a basin, then a watermelon. Finally, only a fist-sized flower remained, covered in silver-white cracks like porcelain that had been shattered and forced back together.
A crisp cracking sound seemed to ring out, though in reality, all other sounds were drowned by the deafening thunder.
“Itâs done,” Yun Wuxiang said. Song Yilou only saw his lips move before another mouthful of blood erupted, hitting the ground. Crimson brilliance rose from the earth, connecting with the black-and-white flower shadow like growing vines and stems, forming a single plant.
The tiny shadow instantly expanded, covering their heads once more.
The petals swayed slightly in the lightning, looking visibly sturdier.
Yun Wuxiang released his grip and sat beneath the flower, exhausted. He used the last of his strength to kick the half-dead Gu ghost beside him.
The force wouldn’t have even knocked over a wooden chair, but Song Yilou began rolling to the side. Seeing that he was about to roll out of range, the crimson chain hooked his leg and hauled him back.
Yun Wuxiang retrieved a petal he had plucked from the lotus pond in the Qingdi Great Hall and stuffed a Yin-attribute spiritual herb into Song Yilou’s mouth. Then, he closed his eyes to adjust his internal breath.
“Guanzhu, you crossed your tribulation behind my back.”
“At least I didn’t bring the lightning to find you.”
“I was prepared to leave, but the Guanzhu wouldn’t let me go.”
“I hadn’t seen this kind of lightning before; I wanted to study it.”
Yun Wuxiang opened his eyes to find a pair of red ghostly pupils staring at him. “Guanzhu, my Love Gu…”
Again. Yun Wuxiang reached out to cover the ghost’s mouth, attempting to negotiate. “Song Yilou, Iâll let you plant the Love Gu. But can you guarantee that I stay alive, that you won’t play yourself to death along with me, that you won’t involve Qingdi Guan in anything you do, and that youâll help the Heavenly Dao advance so this world can continue to survive?”
“If you can do those three things, I will remove the suppression of the Tianqing Seal and let the ‘threads of emotion’ grow.”
Yun Wuxiang released his hand, indicating the ghost could speak.
Song Yilou curled his lips. “Ha, the Guanzhu was indeed doing it on purpose. If I didn’t know how to plant a Love Gu, wouldn’t I have been fooled by you for a long time? You can act like a perfect Daoist companion even without any threads of emotion.”
He ended with a sugary, gentle tone: “I really want to kill you.”
“I was actually treating you like a pet. So that counts as being a good Daoist companion? The world’s standards for a good partner are truly low.”
Yun Wuxiang ignored the comment about killing him. It wasn’t that he didn’t believe itâafter all, Song Yilou had just harbored the thought of dragging him into death under the tribulation.
It was precisely because he knew Song Yilou was capable of such a thing that he realized this Gu ghost time bomb was on the verge of exploding. The matter of planting the Love Gu could no longer be delayed.
Imitation was one of the instincts of a Xinmo. Yun Wuxiangâs understanding of a partner came from Yun Xinyangâs memories and what he had seen in the small world, but his relationship with Song Yilou had no template to follow.
So, he tried to construct a set of procedures to get along with Song Yilou harmoniously. Based on the current results, he had failed.
Compared to a mode of interaction, Song Yilou cared more about whether his Love Gu had successfully taken root.
A dark red seeped into the depths of Yun Wuxiangâs pupils. “Song Yilou, I am a demon. Do you know what a demon does when they fall in love with someone?”
A dangerous aura leaked from Yun Wuxiang. Song Yilou noticed this and laughed until his chest trembled. “Guanzhu, I want to know all too well.”
Slap. Yun Wuxiang slapped his head aside and pulled his ear. “Don’t just listen to the parts you want to hear. Those three things I mentionedâhave you remembered them?”
“Fine, Iâll try,” Song Yilou said reluctantly. He was excellent at doing bad things, but protecting something or helping others… it was strange.
He had never done such things; it didn’t seem fun.
Yun Wuxiang pinched his face and stared into his eyes, speaking solemnly: “You must do it.”
“A Xinmo is no ordinary demon. I was born from a demonic barrier; my nature is evil. The Tianqing Seal stabilizes my rationality and restrains certain terrible instincts so I don’t destroy fragile things. If I turn it off, you must become my new rationality.”
“Song Yilou, from the moment the Love Gu takes effect, our relationship will be inverted.”
“It will be your turn to restrain me.”
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