Yue Yao finished speaking, and the surroundings were deathly silent.

Finally, Ming Xiao couldn’t hold it in and broke the silence: “Sever the ascent ladder… that’s just absurd, isn’t it?”

The thing was a derivative of the heavenly rules, invisible and untouchable. It only manifested as a phantom when ascending. It didn’t seem like something that could be severed by a mere person.

Yue Yao shook her head: “The heavenly secrets are essentially a shadow of the future. In any way, they must manifest one day. What seems absurd today might be the best choice when faced with great difficulties in the future.”

“The people here should all know that the upper realm is in trouble” she continued: “At this point, the people of this realm are too scared to ascend. It’s not impossible that one day, in order to protect themselves, they will sever the ascent path completely.”

Ming Xiao had objections: “Wait a minute, I think…”

He didn’t seem to know so much about all this. After all, he was just an ordinary sacrifice. Why was he being assumed to know everything?

Xue Heng glanced at him, then reached out and grabbed the back of his neck: “Shut up and listen. We’ll talk about it when we get back.”

Ming Xiao became obedient and said nothing more.

Chu Xinghui wasn’t very concerned about distant prophecies and remained skeptical about his future death. So, he chose to steer the conversation back to the present issue: “Now that what Cultivator Biyun saw has surfaced, shouldn’t we investigate what exactly Cultivator Biyun and Senior Zheng did?”

Although whether Yue Yao died or not didn’t concern him, another sacrifice involved was his friend.

Xie Liufeng pulled Chu Xinghui to his side and spoke: “Cultivator Biyun mentioned earlier that there are six sacrifices, and the Saintess was the last one she found. Based on what we know now, it’s likely that the sacrifices were young disciples with outstanding talent from various sects. And we now have a way to test if someone is a sacrifice. I’ll have Fang Yan discuss this with trustworthy people from various sects to see if we can find other people whom Cultivator Biyun may have taken as sacrifices.”

The others had no objections.

Yue Yao also took the initiative to say: “Later, I will return to the island to look for records related to Bihai Taohua Island and the Heavenly Ladder.”

Whether it was Cultivator Biyun or Old Zheng, both came from Bihai Taohua Island, and this situation was most likely set up when they were still on the island. Now that she was going back to look, she might be able to find something relevant.

Seeing the distrustful gazes from the others, Yue Yao took the initiative to say: “Everyone, rest assured. I’ve already said, at least on this matter, I am on the same boat as you all.”

Chu Xinghui glanced at the tightly closed prison cell and asked Yue Yao: “What about Cultivator Yue’s master uncle?”

The person was Yue Yao’s master uncle, also someone she had asked to be brought here. Now locked in the Beiyue Sword Sect’s prison, it could be considered a diplomatic issue, and how it was handled still needed Yue Yao’s stance.

Yue Yao thought for a moment and smiled: “My master uncle was expelled from Bihai Taohua Island a hundred years ago. From then on, his fortune or misfortune has nothing to do with the island. Fellow Cultivators can do as you please. He knows quite a bit. If you can ask him some things, it would be good for us. However, I’d trouble you to spare his life for now… If I’m not mistaken, to remove the sacrificial marks from me and Cultivator Ming, we will need his help.”

Chu Xinghui furrowed his brow: “Does Cultivator Yue know the specific method to remove the marks?”

Yue Yao confessed: “Not exactly. I don’t know the specific method to remove the marks… But since the three of us share the same lineage, even without key information, I can still guess a few things. Although you all may find us unusual, Bihai Taohua Island is actually a place that values honesty. The sacrifice… The contract has already been sealed. If we want the innocent sacrificial offerings to escape, we can only sacrifice the person involved.”

*

The discussion was temporarily concluded, and everyone returned to their respective places.

Xie Liufeng held Chu Xinghui’s hand and walked for a short distance. Chu Xinghui suddenly shook his hand: “Wait for me a moment.”

Xie Liufeng asked him: “What’s the matter?”

Chu Xinghui replied: “I’m going to ask Yue Yao about Qin Suyun.”

After reporting, he turned around and found Yue Yao again.

Yue Yao looked at him in surprise: “Does Cultivator Chu still have something to discuss?”

Chu Xinghui got straight to the point: “There’s something I need to ask you.”

“Alright, alright, of course, we can talk.” Yue Yao smiled shyly: “But I must remind Cultivator Chu, the truth-telling time is over.”

Chu Xinghui: “…”

Luckily, Chu Xinghui wasn’t here to discuss those mysterious topics with her. He directly brought up something they could address at the moment: “Since Cultivator Yue made a mistake in identifying someone, can Qin Suyun be dealt with?”

Although Qin Suyun seemed useless now and couldn’t keep up with the developments, leaving her around was still a hidden danger.

Yue Yao thought for a moment and advised: “Why not keep her around for now? Although she doesn’t seem to be directly related to the rupture of the Heavenly Ladder, she is still connected to the Book of Fate. She will be of use.”

Chu Xinghui thought for a moment. Being related to the Book of Fate… that indeed made sense.

“And… there’s another very important reason,” Yue Yao added, becoming even more embarrassed: “I’ve invested quite a bit of resources in this person. If I don’t get my investment back and she just disappears, I’m afraid I won’t be able to sleep peacefully for a hundred years.”

Chu Xinghui: “…”

That sounded like the truth.

Chu Xinghui couldn’t help but sincerely express his opinion: “But she’s still alive, and the danger is to me, not you.”

This person was like a firecracker, sitting idle, but no one knew whether she would explode.

Yue Yao thought for a moment and offered a compensation plan: “How about this, I’ll give you the sacred object from Bihai Taohua Island?”

Chu Xinghui: “…”

He really didn’t understand the status of the so-called sacred object in Bihai Taohua Island.

He wasn’t sure if they had reached an agreement, but the two of them still politely parted ways at the prison gate.

Once everyone had left, a slightly swollen old face finally appeared from the prison.

Old Zheng was a little confused.

Wasn’t it supposed to be an interrogation? Why was everyone gone? He still had a pile of vague things he hadn’t said yet.

*

Chu Xinghui and Xie Liufeng returned to Qingjing Peak.

As soon as they got home, Chu Xinghui eagerly entered Xie Liufeng’s room.

Xie Liufeng didn’t notice and before he knew it, Chu Xinghui had already entered the room.

He smiled helplessly and followed him in.

Chu Xinghui had already casually found a place to sit and was looking up at him.

Xie Liufeng walked over, casually rubbed his head, then touched the empty pot on the table, planning to find some tea leaves.

Chu Xinghui sat beside him, his gaze unconsciously following him from left to right, then from right to left.

Xie Liufeng didn’t notice at first, but when he turned around, he happened to meet Chu Xinghui’s gaze.

Chu Xinghui didn’t avoid it at all and blinked at him.

Xie Liufeng couldn’t help but laugh: “What’s with staring at me all the time?”

Chu Xinghui remained silent and continued to watch him.

Xie Liufeng chuckled: “Alright, alright, you can look all you want. After all, it’s all yours.”

Then Chu Xinghui continued to watch him walk back and forth.

Xie Liufeng finally found the tea leaves, made the tea, and poured a cup for Chu Xinghui first, then poured one for himself.

The mist mixed with the fragrance of the tea leaves lingered between them.

Chu Xinghui touched his cup and began to command Xie Liufeng: “Make it hotter.”

Xie Liufeng vaguely felt that he might be remembering their first meeting, but he still complied, using spiritual power to adjust the temperature for him.

Chu Xinghui was finally satisfied and took a sip of the tea.

He called the person across from him by name: “Xie Liufeng.”

Xie Liufeng looked up: “Hmm?”

Chu Xinghui asked: “That resurrection technique of yours, can I learn it?”

Though he wasn’t very eager to believe in the mysterious and cryptic things of Bihai Taohua Island, since it had already been prophesied that he would die, he still decided to prepare early.

He still had Xie Liufeng, and he didn’t want to die in such an inexplicable way.

Upon hearing this, Xie Liufeng hesitated.

It wasn’t that he wanted to hide things, but he was fully aware of the flaws in that technique.

And resurrection… It always required dying once first, and that experience wasn’t pleasant. He could bear it, but he didn’t want Chu Xinghui to go through the same thing.

Chu Xinghui looked at him, thought for a moment, then stood up, walked over to his side, and called him: “Master?”

Xie Liufeng choked on his tea, coughing violently.

The term “Master” used to make him happy when he had wanted to take on a disciple, but now that they were together, it sounded increasingly odd.

Chu Xinghui, sensing his discomfort, patted his back to help him and asked: “Master, can you teach me?”

Xie Liufeng felt his heart wasn’t in the best condition: “…Can you call me something else?”

Chu Xinghui thought for a moment and dug out an old term from his memories: “Brother?”

Xie Liufeng felt his heart wasn’t doing any better.

Chu Xinghui then tried something a bit more daring: “Husband?”

Xie Liufeng’s expression became even stranger.

Chu Xinghui, still watching him, finally chose to just call his name as usual: “Xie Liufeng.”

Xie Liufeng let out a long sigh of relief.

For the first time, he felt his own name was so intimate.

He pondered for a moment, then answered truthfully: “It’s not that I don’t want to teach you, but… this technique, you should be able to tell from my experience, though resurrection sounds useful, the conditions are very strict, and the risks… are quite high. Also, I’m the only case so far, and I’m afraid there might be other flaws.”

Chu Xinghui suddenly realized something: “Where did this technique come from?”

A resurrection technique… It didn’t seem like something from this world.

“I created it myself,” Xie Liufeng explained: “When the Xie family had me cultivate, they showed me that technique. I memorized it. Later, I was locked up and was extremely bored, so I needed to find a way to save myself. I referred to the operational rules of that technique and tried to come up with a new one.”

After all, it was a technique from the higher realms, and aside from the part that didn’t involve being human, there were plenty of things to reference.

Chu Xinghui asked: “How old were you then?”

“About… a teenager” Xie Liufeng recalled briefly: “When a person is pushed to the edge, their potential is limitless. I thought it was feasible and didn’t care much about the consequences, so I just tried it.”

Chu Xinghui looked up at him and summarized: “You didn’t know if it would work, you didn’t know the consequences, but you were willing to risk it on yourself.”

Xie Liufeng tried to defend himself: “At that time, I had no choice. I was going to die anyway, so I figured I might as well take a gamble. Maybe there would be a slim chance of survival.”

It turned out his life was quite tough. Look, he was still alive after all these years.

Chu Xinghui didn’t respond, silently taking a step forward and wrapping his arms around Xie Liufeng.

Xie Liufeng caught him and gently comforted: “Don’t be afraid, look, I’m fine now.”

Chu Xinghui stayed in his arms for a long time, before muttering: “Teach me.”

Xie Liufeng sighed: “You really want to learn?”

Chu Xinghui nodded in his arms.

 

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