Chapter 144: Not asking the gods, but asking the people.
Qiao Wan didn't even look at her severed finger on her left hand, and continued playing with the beads.
The crystal ball rolled and the porcelain woman smiled, "Black, one inch."
Meng Canglang nodded slightly, witnessing the incense string in front of him being cut in half, leaving only a pitiful small portion.
The porcelain woman calmly said, "Black, two inches."
The sound of the scissors rose and fell, and the incense string before Meng Canglang was now only about one inch long.
Qiao Wan's eyelashes trembled, and she took a deep breath. This was her only chance, and if she messed it up, Meng Canglang would probably be the first unlucky guy to suffer because of her bad luck.
Even though Fang Lingqing couldn't blame Qiao Wan, he couldn't help but feel nervous as he watched each incense stick being cut short. He exclaimed in astonishment, "What ridiculous luck Lu Cixian has!"
Qiao Wan tightly held the crystal ball and couldn't help but glance at Meng Canglang.
Their eyes met. Meng Canglang's long hair was blood-stained, and he sat upright in the cage. His gaze still contained a hint of encouragement.
Meng Canglang silently watched from within the iron cage. He was definitely afraid of dying. However, if he were to die here, it would be fate. It had nothing to do with Lu Cixian. The burden of life was too heavy and shouldn't be carried by Lu Cixian.
So even though he was afraid, he wanted to reassure Lu Cixian. Just like Little Fang, Lu Cixian was young and easily swayed.
The elders of Chongde Ancient Garden once said that Meng Canglang's personality was too calm and lacked the passion of a young person. But Meng Canglang himself didn't see anything wrong with it. He believed that young people can be impulsive and get caught up in trivial matters. He was open-minded and had no worries in his heart.
In the moment when their eyes met, Qiao Wan saw in Meng Canglang's eyes that Taoist Friend Lu was willing to take a risk, even if it meant losing his life today, he had no regrets. Qiao Wan pursed her lips, her eyes shining brightly and determined. She said, "I won't let you die."
The young man's gaze was determined and bright, like a sharp blade breaking through the fog of blood. The young man sitting in the iron cage couldn't help but tremble, feeling a sudden skip in his heartbeat. And then, he felt a warmth and trust that he couldn't quite explain.
Qiao Wan turned her gaze back to the roulette wheel, contemplating the feasibility of flipping it right now.
As the crystal ball fell into the roulette wheel, Xie Xingzhi calmly pressed the sword. If anything unexpected happened, he would disrupt the gambling game and rescue Meng Canglang and the others!
The crystal ball swiftly rolled across the roulette wheel!
Wang Ruyi couldn't help but tightly grasp Yu Xingzhi's arm, her fingers sinking deeply into his arm. Yu Xingzhi didn't notice, he anxiously furrowed his brows, staring at the direction of the roulette.
Although reluctant to admit it, he couldn't help but pay attention.
Fang Lingqing silently squeezed the arm in his embrace, praying to protect Meng Canglang.
The crystal ball rolled along the wheel before it landed in a grid.
The porcelain lady looked down and smiled, "White, three inches."
"Congratulations to this taoist friend."
Xie Xingzhi's grip on the sword loosened.
Fang Lingqing let out a sigh of relief, his heart dropping heavily. He resisted the impulse to kneel down before Qiao Wan and couldn't help but look at her again.
Qiao Wan's heart suddenly relaxed, she did it!!
Even with her past life of over sixty years, she had never felt so nervous.
In the presence of the senior, the believer vowed to never go for SSR again to have Meng Canglang as her partner.
The porcelain woman said, "The gambling continues."
In the next few rounds, Qiao Wan seemed unstoppable.
Clang--
"White, two inches."
Clang--
"White, five inches."
...
But luck always comes to an end.
Clang--
The porcelain woman lifted her eyes and smiled mysteriously, "Buddha statue, finger."
Xie Xingzhi said in a deep voice, "I'll do it."
Qiao Wan shook her head and grabbed the knife on the table by herself. Suddenly, a slender hand blocked her path, just a step ahead.
Bai Shanhu tilted her head, her dark eyes showing an enchanting calmness, "Let me do it."
Qiao Wan pursed her lips, "No, let me do it."
Bai Shanhu, with her black flowing hair, despite being covered in blood, still couldn't hide her beautiful features.
She questioned coldly, "Why did you stop me?"
Before Qiao Wan could answer, Bai Shanhu coldly asked, "Is it because you're a man and I'm a woman?"
Bai Shanhu smirked, "Women don't need your protection. I can do everything you can, and even better."
After saying that, without hesitation, she picked up a knife before Qiao Wan and Xie Xingzhi , and chopped off a piece of her little finger.
Bai Shanhu tightly held the severed finger, looked around coldly, and angrily shouted, "Now that we are all trapped in this place, do we still need to differentiate between men and women?"
The woman had long black hair and a slender figure wrapped in white silk. Her gaze was proud and full of arrogance, surpassing all the male cultivators present.
"I am a practitioner of magic, and your sword skills are far more useful than my abilities."
The tower fell silent for a moment.
Fang Lingqing was speechless and couldn't help but smile bitterly.
His cousin had always been strong-willed, which is why she, as a girl, could compete with Meng Canglang and Xie Xingzhi and could even occasionally outdo Xie Xingzhi .
The gambling game continued.
The woman with colorful porcelain gently spun the roulette and said, "Buddha statue, foot."
Bai Shanhu was shaken by this and before she could even finish her sentence, several monks stood up one after another.
The young boy gathered his courage and stuttered, "Let me do it this time."
"I am an animal cultivator, losing a foot won't be a big deal. If I'm lucky, I might even be able to reconnect it after we get out."
"Let me do it," a deep male voice suddenly interjected.
Qiao Wan turned her head.
Yu Xingzhi had a gloomy look in his eyes and said, "Let me do it."
Qiao Wan asked, "You?"
A twisted smile appeared on Yu Xingzhi's face. He didn't blink as he picked up the knife from the table and aimed it at his ankle, slashing down with it!
Bang!
He dropped the knife and clutched his bleeding toes. His face contorted, and he gasped heavily, mocking, "What? You can do it, but I can't?"
Since he would be crippled even if he managed to get out, he might as well take this opportunity to do someone a favor.
Yu Xingzhi retreated into the crowd and collapsed to the ground. He covered his ankle, which was broken and bleeding, and didn't make a sound for a while.
When he closed his eyes, all he saw was a pool of bloody flesh.
Those were all... his fellow martial siblings. They had fought side by side with him before, but he couldn't save any of them nor protect even one.
Yu Xingzhi's throat was so dry that he almost coughed up blood: "Those... those were all my younger martial sisters and brothers that I spent time with..."
He knew that Lu Cixian didn't think highly of him, and he didn't think highly of Lu Cixian either. It was his own foolishness that led him to cut off his own foot. Perhaps their desperate act of cutting off their feet reminded him of his younger martial siblings. In this chaotic situation, who could say for sure?
Qiao Wan opened her mouth and whispered, "Thank you."
Yu Xingzhi, covered in cold sweat, held his ankle that wouldn't stop bleeding and looked away. His throat tightened as he said, "You can go ahead."
A woman's voice sounded from above, "Are you okay?"
Yu Xingzhi coldly lifted his eyelids.
Wang Ruyi knelt in front of him with a complicated look on her face. She cautiously extended her hand and asked, "Would you like me to wrap it for you?"
Before Yu Xingzhi had a chance to react, she quickly tore off a piece of cloth and hastily wrapped his foot, tying a butterfly knot in the process.
As he looked at the butterfly knot fluttering gracefully on his foot, Yu Xingzhi fell silent for a moment. He wondered how this small mummy's sense of aesthetics could be similar to that of Qiao Wan, the legendary beauty from Kunshan.
Wang Ruyi said, "There, all done."
Although he didn't like this small mummy, it had helped him several times. Yu Xingzhi clenched his lips and after a long while, managed to say, "Thank you."
He had done everything he needed to do. Touching the butterfly knot on his ankle, Yu Xingzhi pondered deeply about what else Lu Cixian could conjure up next.
"White, three inches."
"Black, two inches."
"White, four inches."
"Buddha statue, fingertips."
The person who made the purchase this time was another young person standing behind Bai Shanhu .
Releasing the knife, the boy was in so much pain that he couldn't speak properly, but he still looked at Qiao Wan and said, "Taoist Friend Lu, rest assured and continue, even if the sky falls, we will hold it up."
Qiao Wan lowered her eyes, silently clenched the remaining half of her little finger, and couldn't describe what she felt inside.
...
"Buddha statue, toe."
Fang Lingqing took a step forward and said, "Let me take over this time."
"Buddha statue, finger."
Wang Ruyi blinked and said, "I...I'll also do it."
"White, five inches."
"White, six inches."
"White, three inches."
"White, eight inches."
...
Although she was quite stubborn, there were still many people standing unconditionally behind her, not minding, not complaining, supporting her and forcefully turning the tide of the bet.
The burden of human life was too heavy, so they chose to bear it with her.
The colorful porcelain woman smiled unchanged, taking out a small and delicate brass key from her sleeve. She unlocked the big brass lock on the iron cage and said, "Congratulations, taoist friend, you can go back now."
Qiao Wan's breath almost stopped when she saw the key in the woman's hand.
The cage door opened, but Meng Canglang remained seated inside the cage, showing no intention of coming out.
Fang Lingqing asked, "Senior Meng?"
Meng Canglang calmly asked, "Can I exchange my chance with someone else?"
The colorful porcelain woman asked, "Who does the taoist friend want to exchange with?"
Meng Canglang's gaze fell on a man in another iron cage behind him, who was almost unrecognizable.
"I want to exchange with Liu Xinwen, the taoist friend."
Liu Xinwen! That's Liu Xinwen! He's not dead?!
The man in the cage was covered in blood, his features barely visible. It was clear that his flesh had been brutally cut off.
Meng Canglang closed his eyes, thinking, "He can hold on, but his taoist friend behind him might not be able to."
Protecting the weak is his path.
The woman with colorful porcelain looked at Qiao Wan and said, "If taoist friend wants to make a switch, they have to get permission from this taoist friend first."
Qiao Wan suddenly spoke out, "Taoist Friend Meng, I won't switch."
Qiao Wan spoke with determination, her gaze intense, "I won't switch."
Meng Canglang was momentarily stunned. After a while, his bewildered expression finally relaxed a bit and the young man nodded slowly, without pressuring her.
This opportunity was rightfully won by Lu Cixian. He didn't have the authority to force him to switch with Liu Xinwen.
Supporting himself on the iron cage, he stood up unsteadily and said, "Sorry, I made things difficult for Taoist Friend Lu."
Fang Lingqing immediately went forward to help, "Junior brother, are you alright?"
Meng Canglang pushed aside Fang Lingqing's hand and stood up straight with his back erect, "Little Fang, I'm fine. I'm sorry you had to worry about me."
Yu Xingzhi opened his eyes.
Even in such a perilous situation, this gentleman from Chongde Ancient Garden had to maintain his composure and dignity, regardless of how disheveled he looked and how dire the circumstances had become.
After stabilizing himself, Meng Canglang couldn't help but shift his gaze back to Qiao Wan. He felt slightly puzzled and deep in thought.
Even though he didn't have much interaction with Lu Cixian, Meng Canglang had some understanding of him. There must be a reason behind Lu Cixian's actions. What does Lu Cixian want to achieve?
Strength.
Xie Xingzhi fixed his gaze ahead and immediately understood what Qiao Wan wanted to do. Lu Cixian was trying to obtain as much usable strength as possible. From beginning to end, she only wanted to find out where the key to the porcelain woman was, free Meng Canglang, and then turn the tables.
Meng Canglang was startled but quickly realized what Lu Cixian wanted to do!
He understood! He understood what Lu Cixian wanted to achieve!
The gambling game began again.
"Black, three inches."
"White, one inch."
"Black, four inches."
"Black, two inches."
Liu Xinwen sat in front of the table, with a pleasant smell wafting towards him. The woman smiled gently and said, "My taoist friend, you have lost this game."
"If you don't mind, taoist friend," the woman with colorful porcelain walked up to the iron cage. She lifted Liu Xinwen out of it as if picking up a lamb to be slaughtered.
"I will offer this one to the heavenly bodhisattvas."
Liu Xinwen's face was pressed against the table, and he struggled to open his eyes. He was conscious enough to hear the conversation that had just taken place, and heard Lu Cixian's firm refusal.
He could no longer speak. His throat made hoarse sounds, and the taste of blood surged up.
His eyelashes were gone, and his whole body was as smooth as a shaved lamb. The woman with colorful porcelain slapped him onto the table.
Blood spread along the edge of the table, even dripping by Qiao Wan's feet.
Liu Xinwen's eyelashes twitched, and he gasped for breath.
Although Lu Cixian rejected Meng Canglang's request, he didn't blame him. Liu Xinwen even felt relieved that Qiao Wan rejected Meng Canglang's request. If it weren't for their impulsive actions in the temple earlier, Meng Canglang wouldn't have lost an arm while trying to save him. Liu Xinwen thought highly of himself, believing that he was at least a brave man. He preferred to die with honor rather than owe anyone a debt or live a cowardly life.
Liu Xinwen opened his tired eyes and looked at Qiao Wan with encouragement, even expressing a faint gratitude.
Thank you, Taoist Friend Lu. I will give my all in the upcoming gambling game.
The porcelain woman picked up a sharp knife and smiled at everyone. She aimed the tip of the knife at the man's sturdy buttocks and made a deep cut!
In that split second when the knife was about to strike, two flashes of black and blue, like flying darts, shot out!
The heavy Black Iron Sword and the Canglang Sword were unsheathed almost simultaneously!
Two shining cloaks, like waves in the sea, were pulled out. One took away the key from the woman's sleeve, and the other took away Liu Xinwen. Holding onto Liu Xinwen, Bai Shanhu took a few steps back and coldly shouted, "Bring it on!"
Fang Lingqing caught Liu Xinwen steadily and swiftly exited the battle arena, throwing away the key in his hand, saying, "Bring it on!"
Wang Ruyi lifted her wedding dress and soared into the air, biting onto the key and headed straight for the iron cage!
Bai Shanhu used her "Sea Reflection Belt" as her main strategy, while Meng Canglang combined his Canglang Sword's power with the wave-like force to trap and kill. With back and forth movements, the Sea Reflection Belt moved like a white wave travelling across the sea, going up and down, left and right, complementing the surging waves. They managed to bite the painted ceramic woman to death within ten steps.
Lone Sword was unsheathed and thrust into the air.
Xie Xingzhi had a cold and stern expression.
This sword was like crossing chaotic waves, stirring up giant waves for hundreds of miles, causing thousand-zhang tall waves.
The three of them combined their moves. It was such a spectacular sword move that everyone present couldn't help but be amazed.
Without asking ghosts or gods, we ask for the people.
The woman with porcelain eyes glanced around and said, "You...you all..."
Qiao Wan also moved, swiftly grabbing the woman in front of her and said in a deep voice, "Though there are gods and spirits in this world, do not underestimate humans."
"Without humans, there would be no gods. The power of mortals is much stronger than that of gods and Buddhas."
With that, she swung the porcelain woman in her hand towards the ground!
Boom!!
A loud crashing sound!
The porcelain woman landed on the ground, instantly shattering into pieces, with her eyes, lips, eyebrows, and limbs scattered all over.
First glancing at the railing outside the top floor, Qiao Wan angrily shouted, "Let's go!"
