Chapter 249: Little Fang is Alive
Should I say it or not, should I tell about Sister Wan'er's death.
Gan Nan's mind was also in a mess, the usually well-hydrated little white dragon felt a hint of sweetness and fishiness in his dry throat.
For a naive and sweet demon cultivator like him, the departure of a friend felt like a dream.
Just as Gan Nan hesitatedwalked over. Unfortunately, he forgot that Pei Chunzheng also had a jade pendant, and the jade pendant made a sound.
In the instant their gazes met the jade pendant in his hand, the young man's beautiful face froze, and his expression immediately changed.
Gan Nan's voice sounded a bit hoarse, "Pei, my taoist friend, this is what the jade pendant says."
"I... I think my connection with Sister Wan'er has disappeared."
Unable to find it, no matter how panicked the young man was, trying to find Qiao Wan's reaction to the dragon scale contract, it was all blank.
Gan Nan looked up and found that Pei Chunzheng was frozen in place, not moving at all.
In the past ten days, Gan Nan intentionally avoided Qiao Wan and hadn't seen her. The reason behind it was still "Mu Xiaoxiao".
For more than ten days, Pei Chunzheng had been thinking about his feelings for Qiao Wan.
His feelings for Xiaoxiao might not be what he imagined, not just a simple crush between a boy and a girl. He might have developed some affection and attachment, but the person who truly captured his heart... was Qiao Wan.
He experienced various emotions because of Qiao Wan. He felt angry, suspicious, lost, and most importantly, jealous and possessive.
This made Pei Chunzheng feel confused and embarrassed.
So, Pei Chunzheng was puzzled and uncertain, wondering how he could have fallen in love with Qiao Wan.
When Tingyun Mountain held him tightly, he realized that he truly loved Qiao Wan.
The young boy tightly gripped the jade pendant in his hand, feeling a sense of unknown confusion and helplessness.
He once promised Mu Xiaoxiao to protect her, and a gentleman always keeps his word. He admitted that he had fallen in love with Qiao Wan but couldn't ignore Xiaoxiao afterwards. Caught between the two, the young boy, experiencing his first taste of love, felt bewildered for the first time.
Having conflicting feelings is already considered despicable.
Pei Chunzheng clenched his fists and thought with embarrassment, if he were to betray his trust again, what kind of person would he be?
Although demons are selfish, hypocritical, and arrogant... they possess everything that humans consider negative, but demon cultivation is not despicable.
Choosing between Xiaoxiao or Qiao Wan? In this dilemma, he chose to honor his promise and protect Mu Xiaoxiao.
Upon hearing about what happened to Mu Xiaoxiao, he deliberately avoided Qiao Wan until now.
But now this jade pendant is telling him that Qiao Wan is dead?
Impossible.
This was Pei Chunzheng's initial reaction. The young man furrowed his brow and decisively said, "Qiao Wan cannot possibly die in this secret realm."
"But... but..." Gan Nan's voice became hoarse, and tears welled up in his eyes. "The mark of the dragon scale on my body has disappeared."
Sometimes, life is just so unpredictable.
Disease and death often ambush people when they least expect it, leaving them disoriented.
"Taoist friend Pei, you don't believe it. It's because you think Sister Wan'er is strong and always finds a way to escape, no matter how many times she gets into trouble." The young man's voice choked, and his body trembled slightly. "But Sister Wan'er is just an ordinary girl."
"Taoist friend Pei, you have also seen this secret realm, full of dangers. Strip away the words 'strong' and 'resilient' that others have added, and Sister Wan'er is still just an ordinary girl."
It's all because of him, her useless older brother.
The young man's body was actually taller and bigger than Pei Chunzheng's , but now he curled up into a ball, with his soft white hair hanging down on his face, tears uncontrollably falling.
That's why he wanted to protect Sister Wan'er. Even though they all mocked him for being useless, even a useless person has someone they want to protect.
Because he knew that besides him, no one else saw Qiao Wan as a "sister" anymore.
The boy's breathing suddenly stopped, his beautiful face turned pale, and he stood there with an ugly expression, stunned.
He kept his promise and was determined to protect Xiaoxiao.
Xiaoxiao is different from Qiao Wan. Xiaoxiao is delicate and weak, but Qiao Wan is just an ordinary girl who also needs someone to protect her, just like Xiaoxiao.
*
As soon as the message on the jade tablet was issued, disciples from different sects lined up in front of the secret realm, ready to depart.
This time, Ma Huaizhen led the team.
The man's face was as cold as ice.
It was too late, the Buddhist seal left by Venerable One Miaofa had already dissipated, and it was too late to save Qiao Wan. Now, they had to try their best to find all the disciples still in the secret realm.
Seeing that the disciples in front of him were ready, Ma Huaizhen raised his hand and shouted, "Let's go!"
Suddenly, the only teleportation array in front of them made a "crackling" sound, and the light disappeared.
It blocked the disciples who had already stepped into the secret realm, preventing them from entering.
"What's going on?!!"
"The teleportation array is gone?!!"
The team immediately became restless.
How could the teleportation array disappear?!!
Ma Huaizhen stared intensely at the teleportation array in front of him, his expression serious. He raised his voice and said angrily, "Everyone, be quiet!"
Realizing that this god of death was really angry, even using swear words, the supporting disciples fell silent.
"Lu Pihan from Kunshan has already led a team into the secret realm," Ma Huaizhen turned to Yuan Liu beside him and instructed, "The rest of you, wait here and stay in contact with Lu Pihan and his team."
"As for the array, we will have the disciples who specialize in magic come and repair it."
"Until the array is fixed, no one is allowed to enter the secret realm without permission," the man looked up, his face cold. "Anyone who dares to disobey this order will be dealt with by our undercover disciples."
"It'll be on me if someone gets stabbed!"
After saying these domineering words, Ma Huaizhen coldly turned his wheelchair and went to discuss the solution to the secret realm with Gongsun Bingzi and the other elders from the sect, while everyone watched in awe.
"What should we do now? The others are still trapped in the secret realm."
"To this taoist friend, my younger martial sister is inside. Do you think I'm not worried?"
KunshanQiao Wan and Hall Master Ma have a close relationship. Do you think Hall Master Ma is comfortable with it?"
For now, all we can do is wait and see if the disciples inside the secret realm can find a way to break free.
As Lu Pihan led the team inside, he felt a sudden movement behind him.
When he turned around, everything was eerily silent, with nothing out of the ordinary.
The secret realm has revealed its strangeness. Kunshan, our Elder Martial Brother, warned us not to overlook anything that feels off, even if we can't explain it.
Sometimes, these unexplainable feelings are often a cultivator's sharp instincts.
Thinking this way, Kunshan's disciple couldn't help but walk quickly to Lu Pihan's side and say, "Elder Martial Brother, I feel like something is not right."
Lu Pihan looked at him and stopped in his tracks: "Something is not right."
Kunshan disciple whispered: "Behind us."
It's the direction they came from.
Lu Pihan looked at him and raised his hand to instruct the other disciples to go back and investigate. In no time, the two disciples came back, with a terrified expression on their faces.
"Senior brother, the teleportation array is gone."
Did Hall Master Ma and the reinforcements he brought... not make it inside?
"Senior brother, should we still move forward now?"
Lu Pihan lowered his eyes and said coldly: "Our retreat is cut off, so now we must continue moving forward with all our strength."
With no retreat available, these dozens of disciples had no choice but to follow Lu Pihan's lead and head towards the direction of the fairy palace.
Halfway through, one of the disciples from the Lu family stopped in his tracks, his voice trembling: "Brother from the Lu clan! Th-there's blood here."
And there are bodies.
Not just one body, but multiple bodies. The individuals who attacked these bodies before their deaths used some kind of technique, causing them to be charred all over, making it impossible to recognize their appearance or original attire.
Lu Pihan walked forward quickly and immediately found a pink piece of clothing among the burnt corpse.
He recognized this piece of clothing.
It belonged to Qiao Wan.
Lu Pihan looked down.
The disciple behind him watched in confusion as the man bent down again, coughing painfully.
He coughed for a long time, and only then did Lu Pihan straighten up, his voice cold and devoid of emotion: "Let's continue."
Perhaps the one who killed Qiao Wan is not far ahead.
*
Is that... Fang Lingqing?!
Yu Xingzhi stared in horror at the young man floating in mid-air in front of him.
The young man was still wearing the green robe from Chongde Ancient Garden, with some peach blossoms clinging to the corners of the robe. His black hair was neatly tied with a hairpin, giving him a handsome and elegant look.
Isn't this the idiot from Chongde Ancient Garden who was with Lu Cixian?!
Yu Xingzhi's heart sank. It was said that in the demon realm, there was a strange technique. Aside from the corpse controllers of the White Bone Temple, there was another method that could turn a person into a living puppet, trapping their soul within it.
These puppets, though their souls remained alive, had their consciousness suppressed and were reduced to mere minions of the puppeteer.
And the Fang Lingqing standing before him had clearly been transformed! Apart from his head remaining his own, his body had been altered into a living, killing machine.
The former Fang Lingqing was just a young man with some quirks in his thinking. But after the transformation, his cultivation and physical abilities had undergone an astonishing leap and improvement. He effortlessly wielded various lightning, fire, and water spells, his spirit threads forming intricate webs that rendered Yu Xingzhi powerless.
Exhausted from both protecting Wang Ruyi and constantly fleeing, Yu Xingzhi felt like he was about to cough up blood.
Damn it all!
Worried about their previous alliance, Fang Lingqing, Wang Ruyi, and Yu Xingzhi hesitated to use force. What if, despite being soulless, Fang Lingqing could still be saved? If they were too forceful, they might accidentally harm him.
Alright, well, he couldn't really fight back anyway.
Yu Xingzhi pulled Wang Ruyi down to the ground, narrowly avoiding a fireball that was flying towards them.
Just as Yu Xingzhi began to relax, a young boy, who was still several yards away, suddenly appeared before them as if he were a ghost, teleporting right in front of them.
Yu Xingzhi felt a tightness in his chest.
Oh no, it seemed like this might be the end for them.
However, when the boy reached them, he didn't attack right away. Instead, he hesitated for a moment with two blades extended from his arms, but he didn't strike.
"Hurry..." Yu Xingzhi's face turned pale, and his eyes widened.
"What?!"
"Quick..." The blade slowly rose, and Fang Lingqingwhose brain usually didn't function properly, couldn't help but cry like a child in a messy state, even though he still looked like a decent gentleman: "Run quickly."
