Chapter 109.1
[[Hahaha, it’s now at 60 points.]]
At Tiansu Immortal Sect, in the wooden house on the familiar Immortal Peak, Gu Xiyu rubbed his brow helplessly as he listened to the gloating voice of the main system. “Shut up.”
The door of the wooden house was open, and there was a rustling sound from outside. If he looked up, he would be able to see Lu Cheng’s busy figure. He was tidying up things that no one had touched for a long time. Although no one had been here for a long time, the items on the mountain hadn’t collected any dust, so it was clear that the original owner’s protection formation was so good that even dust couldn’t get in.
Gu Xiyu didn’t bother to pay attention to these small details. Seeing the target’s risk value increase by all these points made him suddenly lose his temper.
The main system didn’t say anything more, but it was still chuckling silently. A flame was ignited in his heart, but in the end, he could only extinguish it helplessly.
He knew that Bu Tianhan no longer put any restrictions on his movements in the Demon Palace, which was perhaps a sign of trust or a desire to test him. But he could not procrastinate any longer and made a plan in his mind that could end all this, so he took Lu Cheng and left while Bu Tianhan was out.
He had to admit that part of it was for revenge. This world’s great demon was not good to him in the early stages, so he couldn’t let him live too comfortably and wanted to use the opportunity to make him feel bad. He knew that if he made such a fuss, Bu Tianhan would definitely be angry, and a small increase in risk value was inevitable.
But he never thought that this little plan would coincide with the time Lin Wuhen set up a trap for Bu Tianhan, so his departure would have a different meaning in Bu Tianhan’s eyes. They had a spiritual contract, so it was impossible for him to misunderstand Bu Tianhan and believe in those rumors. So his departure was equivalent to betrayal in Bu Tianhan’s eyes.
Gu Xiyu sighed in his heart, then couldn’t help but curse Lin Wuhen a few more times.
This sect master is ruthless. Bu Tianhan had told him that Lin Wuhen was with Bu Mingfeng long before his original spouse passed away, using evil cultivation techniques to increase their power. But to clear his name, Lin Wuhen killed Bu Mingfeng, using his death as a stepping stone to absolve himself of the crime.
[[This risk value will continue rising if this keeps going on.]] Probably because he had teased it a few days ago, the main system was gloating from seeing his mission hit a wall, and its tone was full of undisguised pleasure.
Gu Xiyu slowly calmed down, lowering his eyes and saying, “Then let it go up. Even if it reaches 100, I still have a way to solve it.”
The people of the Tiansu Immortal Sect soon discovered that he and Lu Cheng had returned, and because of the timing, everyone was now even more certain that Bu Tianhan had killed Bu Mingfeng.
Gu Xiyu and Lu Cheng had just finished cleaning up the Immortal Peak when a group of happy fellow practitioners arrived: “Lord Tai Ling, so much has happened to the Immortal Sect during your absence, the Immortal Dao is in turmoil, and we still had to constantly worry that the great demon from the Demon realm would violate the treaty ……”
“All in all, with Lord Tai Ling around, that demon will not dare to act recklessly for the time being.”
“Since Lord Tai Ling has returned to the Immortal Sect, does it mean that Bu Tianhan broke the agreement and killed Lord Yuancheng? In that case, what the Sect Master said is true, we have been tricked by him from beginning to end!”
*No one knew Bu Mingfeng’s real name, he went by Yuancheng.
“Bu Tianhan is abominable, he has bullied us and even treated Lord Tai Ling with such disrespect… This time, we can’t let him off easily no matter what!”
The group was speaking with passion, but when it came to teaching Bu Tianhan a lesson, their eyes all drifted a bit, falling on Gu Xiyu several times, and the meaning was very obvious. Indeed, looking at the Tiansu Immortal Sect, even Sect master Lin Wuhen had been fooled by Bu Tianhan, so they subconsciously thought that the only person who could handle him was Gu Xiyu.
After hearing their comments, Gu Xiyu only frowned in displeasure, and his eyes were much colder than the naked eye could see.
The people of the Immortal Sect thought that he was also angry, but to their surprise, all he said was, “Bu Tianhan did not break the agreement, it was me who broke it.”
Before they could ask more questions, they saw Gu Xiyu wave his sleeve, and by the time they could react, they were already at the foot of the mountain. Not only was Lord Tai Ling not different from their memories, but he also seemed even colder and more indifferent, not even giving any extra explanations and simply throwing them out.
With Gu Xiyu’s words, public opinion in the Immortal Sect was once again thrown into a wobble. But soon, the words from those who had returned from Gu Xiyu’s mountain peak disappeared again, and everyone began to agree with Lin Wuhen’s statement. Yuanchen (Bu Mingfeng), had contributed so much to the Immortal Sect that he was almost bound to Lin Wuchen, and people on the outside were more inclined to think that it was Bu Tianhan, the great demon, who was trying to stir up the situation in immortal realm.
The Tiansu Immortal Sect began releasing the news of Gu Xiyu’s return to the public, but Gu Xiyu did not come forward to say anything, which made people on the outside even more certain of this fact.
After Gu Xiyu sent away those people, he gave Lu Cheng a few words of explanation and went straight into seclusion. He didn’t know what was going on outside, and Lu Cheng did try to say a few words for Bu Tianhan, but everyone seemed even more unwilling to accept the fact that Bu Tianhan was innocent.
Some even asked him in a sinister manner, “Have you been brainwashed by that demon when you were in the Demon Palace? Rivers and mountains are easy to change, so remember all the evil things he has done in the past. On the contrary, how many demon cultivators has our sect master slaughtered in the past, and how many places has he brought peace to? Isn’t that more trustworthy than that demon Bu Tianhan?”
“Just wait and see, now that Lord Tai Ling has returned to the Tiansu Immortal Sect, Bu Tianhan, who is no longer bound by rules, will come out for blood again.”
Lu Cheng also had nothing to say, and only silently thought back to the days when he was in the Demon Palace.
He was not sure what Bu Tianhan was like before he met their master, but at least when he came into contact with him later, whether it was at the Immortal Sect or the Demon Palace, he was not as terrible to them as the rumors had it. He was a man who was clear in his grudges, and even though everyone else on the continent shared a common hatred for Bu Tianhan, he, who had only received goodwill from him, was unable to develop an aversion towards him.
What’s more, they had been fellow disciples for many years.
To his surprise, the only one who believed his explanation was Lin Wuhen’s daughter, Lin Qianyue.
Lin Qianyue had been to the Demon Realm many times to deliver messages to Lu Cheng, and later on, she had bumped into Bu Tianhan more than once. Bu Tianhan didn’t like her, yet he was willing to take a step back for Gu Xiyu. And he had been at peace for so many years, during which time he had not sought trouble with Bu Mingfeng. She knew that teasing Bu Mingfeng brought Bu Tianhan more joy than killing him outright, so he did not need to break the agreement because of a Bu Mingfeng.
But in trusting Lu Cheng and Bu Tianhan, she had to accept that her father, whom she had loved for so many years, was even more sinister and terrible than she had imagined.
This was very torturous for her.
These days were equally torturous for another person who was far away in the demon realm.
Not only the people of the Immortal realm but also the demon cultivators in the Demon realm thought that Gu Xiyu had run away and left because Bu Tianhan had gone on a killing spree. They thought that Bu Tianhan would once again return to his bloodthirsty, ruthless, and violent ways, and they had already wiped their hands, ready to watch the scene of the so-called orthodox cultivators bleeding into a river. But to their surprise, several months passed and Bu Tianhan still hadn’t moved.
It was as if he had been possessed by Tai Ling; he was much quieter. In the past, he would have been upset if he had seen any of his subordinates making mistakes in the Demon Palace. But now, even if someone accidentally spilled some soup when serving him food, he would only say emotionlessly, “It’s alright.”
Although his indifference gave a greater sense of oppression and helped establish the majesty of the demon realm, the people in the demon palace were very uncomfortable with it. They were even lamenting whether they had let Bu Tianhan train them too much before and were now uncomfortable without the scolding.
Bu Tianhan had been in a very low mood these past few months, and he didn’t know what was wrong with himself. He originally thought he was just at a loss, but with some determination, he would adjust back in a few days. As it turned out, he not only didn’t, but he could feel the suffocating sensation of his heart-crushing whenever he woke up.
To leave an imprint on a lover’s yuanshen was a vow of sovereignty and possession, and the deeper and longer the imprint was left, the stronger that possession became. After recalling what had happened in the stone pagoda that day, he understood where the strong feeling of wanting to keep Gu Xiyu by his side had come from. Perhaps he had already developed feelings without his knowledge, and after spending so much time together, how could this affection just go away?
“Gu Xiyu, you’re so heartless.” He lay helplessly on the bed, covering his eyes with his arms, the corners of his mouth curving with a little bitterness.
On the system panel, the thing called “risk value” had gone to sixty-eight, and according to the information on it, Gu Xiyu needed to avoid it reaching one hundred. But so much time has passed, why hasn’t Gu Xiyu …… come to him?
The day Gu Xiyu left, the first thing Bu Tianhan wanted to do after a few days of wallowing in despair was to go find Gu Xiyu and ask him the reason for his departure. As a result, he had just stepped into the realm of the Immortal Dao when he heard the people there say that Lord Tai Ling had gone into seclusion.
In contrast to his sullen mood, those people seemed quite excited.
“I heard that Lord Tai Ling has already trained those two sets of techniques to the 17th level and is just a little bit away from being able to completely restrain the great demon. I guess he went into seclusion to completely break through those two sets of techniques and then kill Bu Tianhan.”
“I guess so, Bu Tianhan’s plan is already obvious, how could Lord Tai Ling, as the number one person in the emotionless Dao, let him continue to act recklessly?”
Gu Xiyu was in seclusion, and no matter what the real reason for his seclusion was, Bu Tianhan would not be able to see him or be able to ask what he wanted to ask.
He even felt a little uneasy—what if what those people said was true?
During these days in the Demon Palace, he had sent Gu Xiyu a lot of things from all parts of the continent to help him refine his cultivation, and his foundation had long since improved. With Gu Xiyu’s talent, it was only a matter of time before he could finish those two sets of techniques. Did Gu Xiyu go into seclusion at this time because he wanted to make a move on him after his breakthrough?
According to his old nature, he would have rushed to the place where Gu Xiyu was in seclusion and blown it up. He could also take advantage of the most vulnerable and sensitive period of his seclusion to disrupt his cultivation, lead him into a qi deviation, and destroy himself. However, even after coming to this point, he still didn’t have the heart to do it.
At least Gu Xiyu hadn’t said that he wanted to deal with him, so he could wait.
And so he waited until now.
Bu Tianhan didn’t know how long he had been lying in bed, but he was finally woken up by a sharp knock on the door. He got up and opened it gloomily, but he did not lose his temper with the person outside, and only asked in a light voice: “What is it?”
The person outside the door trembled as he bowed and whispered, “I heard from the people outside that Lord Tai Ling… has ended his seclusion.”
Bu Tianhan stood wordlessly at the entrance of the room for a long time, hesitating to move, only the fingers gripping the door frame were squeezed white.
After a long time, he found his voice: “Did he say anything?”
The guard outside pressed his head even lower: “Not yet.”
———–
The news of Gu Xiyu ending his seclusion soon spread across the continent, mainly because before he came out, layers of golden clouds and light spread out over the Tiansu Immortal Gate, stretching for thousands of miles. All the plants in the area, whether dead or budding, bloomed at this moment. Everything on earth was revived, and the spirit beasts hiding in the deep forests stirred. They climbed to the highest places in the mountains and forests and looked up to meet the golden glow from the sky, while the birds spread their wings and leaped into the sky.
It was as if the Tiansu Immortal Sect had become a place where a feast was held, with all sorts of birds circling and singing with their heads up.
Leave aside the fact that Gu Xiyu had reached the peak of his two techniques, the stir he created was a sign that the level of his cultivation had shot through the Great Transformation Realm. This alone was enough to dissuade the sects that were hesitant to cut their ties with the Tiansu Immortal Sect a while ago, and it made the demon cultivators in the Demon Realm even more restrained, not daring to act recklessly again.
The higher powerful cultivators climb, the more difficult it is to cross levels. Once the leap is successful, the boost in power is definitely not just a star and a half, the number of ordinary cultivators suppressed in one move can be doubled, which is a very frightening power.
When Gu Xiyu came out from the back of the mountain, many people had already gathered at the bottom of Immortal Peak. Most of them were shocked by the spectacle brought about by this breakthrough, some wanted to see if they could gain enlightenment through this instantaneous burst of intense aura, and some good junior disciples came to congratulate and pay their respects.
This was a joyous event for all in the Immortal Realm, meaning that no matter what Bu Tianhan thought now, as long as they had Gu Xiyu around, the great demon could no longer do as much harm as he had done before.
Lin Wuhen stood at the main peak, staring in the direction of the golden clouds, a touch of resentment and jealousy slipping through his eyes. Little did he know that Lin Qianyue was secretly observing his expression, and she caught the expression in his eyes. Her heart skipped a beat, and she took a step back with a pale face.
When Gu Xiyu’s breakthrough was successful, no one was more delighted than Lu Cheng. He had been waiting at the entrance to the pathway at the back of the mountain, and when he saw the white figure approaching, he knelt down and congratulated him, “Congratulations, Master, on advancing one more level in your cultivation!”
When Gu Xiyu looked down at him, his eyes were still filled with a beautiful aura, which only gradually sank deeper after he blinked.
“Thank you.” The voice was still calm and indifferent as he remembered, even though they had been master and disciple for many years, it still breathed a hint of impenetrable detachment.
Lu Cheng had already gotten used to it and didn’t think about breaking that layer, feeling that their current relationship was quite good.
What no one noticed was that Gu Xiyu’s eyes, which were always as cold as ice and as deep as black water, had a sudden flash of darkness. He stared into the distance for a long time before he turned back to Lu Cheng and said, “The Immortal Peak is not open to guests, I need to go out and do something, we’ll talk about it when I return.”
With these words, Gu Xiyu left without looking back. Many people inside and outside the sect who wanted to meet him failed to do so. Now that his cultivation was higher, it was easier for him to hide his whereabouts, especially since only a few people on the whole continent had a higher level of cultivation than him— no one knew where he had gone.
Lu Cheng thought that his master was going to the Demon Realm to find Bu Tianhan to clear up the matter of leaving because when Gu Xiyu took him away that day, all he said was: “Bu Tianhan has been too comfortable these days, I want to give him some displeasure. But don’t worry, wait until I have done everything I want to do before I consider whether to let it go.”