After receiving the message from Fang Yan, Xie Liufeng and Chu Xinghui quickly returned to their sect.

By the time they got back, Fang Yan had already left the sect.

The news from Bihai Taohua Island had already been sent back in advance. As the representative of the Beiyue Sword Sect, Fang Yan had been running around lately, discussing the follow-up handling of the fate books with others from various sects.

Just as Yue Yao had predicted earlier, almost everyone had now agreed that the Heavenly Ladder could no longer remain.

Between the two choices of ascension and the survival of the world, the survival of this world had ultimately become the most important.

Moreover, with the pressure of the Exiled Land hanging over this world, ascension had forever been a false proposition.

Chu Xinghui and Xie Liufeng temporarily left all the matters of meetings and arguments to Fang Yan. The two of them, with the black bird, first went to the place where the two pseudo-gods were imprisoned.

The two pseudo-gods had been inhabiting human vessels. After being captured, they were interrogated by other sects for a while. When no useful information was obtained, they were sent to the Beiyue Sword Sect for disposal.

Now, the two pseudo-gods were both in a coma, which saved them a lot of trouble.

Xie Liufeng began extracting their souls.

The state of their souls was very similar to Qin Suyun’s earlier, with a layer of identical golden light covering the outer layer.

The black bird perched on Chu Xinghui’s shoulder, eager to try.

Chu Xinghui released the black bird.

The bird flew a full circle and returned, its size had expanded significantly.

Chu Xinghui and Xie Liufeng carefully observed its changes.

But aside from growing larger, there were no other noticeable changes.

Chu Xinghui reached out and poked it.

The black bird flapped its wings, proudly puffing out its chest, and as usual, made a loud, squawking noise.

It was unclear whether it was because its power wasn’t strong enough yet, or if it was simply that the bird’s intelligence was at this level… The bird still didn’t seem very smart.

Chu Xinghui’s hope of having a slightly smarter sword spirit was dashed. He felt quite disappointed and stuffed the bird back into the spiritual sword. He said to Xie Liufeng: “Let’s go back.”

Xie Liufeng nodded, cleaned up the scene a bit, and then they walked back together.

As they reached the prison gates, they saw Fang Yan returning from his meeting outside.

Fang Yan seemed to have been waiting at the door for a while.

He looked at Chu Xinghui with a somewhat hesitant expression.

Chu Xinghui more or less guessed his intention: “Master, did others send you to discuss the matter of severing the Heavenly Ladder?”

Fang Yan pressed his brow, and finally nodded: “Yes, that’s right. Most people think that you should try the method Yue Yao mentioned earlier, and quickly cultivate to the Ascension stage. Then… right now, the techniques used by Qin Suyun to conceal the Heavenly Dao have been sent for research. If you have any further requests, everyone is ready to support you.”

Chu Xinghui proactively expressed his request: “I agree. But before I begin, I still need some time.”

He looked towards Xie Liufeng, who had been standing beside him the whole time.

He needed to completely resolve the issue with Xie Liufeng’s soul before he could confidently undertake such high-risk tasks.

This point was no problem, and Fang Yan nodded: “The senior experts who are working to undo the concealment technique used by Qin Suyun on the Heavenly Dao will likely need some time. In the meantime, Chu Shidi, you can do whatever you want.”

Chu Xinghui took Xie Liufeng, who had not expressed any opinion, back to his home.

He placed Xie Liufeng on the chair in his room and cautiously asked: “What are your thoughts?”

Xie Liufeng shook his head: “None.”

Chu Xinghui could hear that Xie Liufeng’s voice was strained, so he leaned over and gently kissed him to comfort him.

Xie Liufeng embraced him, and after a long sigh, he finally expressed his true feelings: “I don’t want you to take risks, but if you have to, I won’t stop you.”

Chu Xinghui looked at him closely.

Xie Liufeng sighed again and said seriously: “Don’t worry about me. I will always be your support.”

Chu Xinghui let out a small sigh of relief and then pulled Xie Liufeng, urging him to quickly cultivate together.

The two of them finally had a brief period of peaceful life.

During this time, Xie Liufeng was very well-behaved and cooperative, mostly in a state of doing whatever was asked of him. His emotional state also appeared very stable.

However, occasionally he would sneak out and mutter something with Fang Yan, leaving Chu Xinghui wondering what they were up to.

Once Chu Xinghui completely resolved the issue with Xie Liufeng’s soul, the research on the magic that Qin Suyun had used also came back.

Several senior experts proficient in magic had already found a way to undo the spell on Qin Suyun. In a few days, Chu Xinghui would be able to begin his cultivation.

Chu Xinghui began preparing his things.

As he packed, Xie Liufeng walked over, pointing at things and saying: “Take this with you.”

The black bird saw the two of them huddled together and flew down from the tree, walking around their feet.

Chu Xinghui nearly stepped on the bird, quickly locking the troublesome creature inside the spiritual sword.

After handling the black bird, Chu Xinghui finally had time to address Xie Liufeng’s requests. He casually flipped through the things Xie Liufeng had pointed to: “Isn’t this yours?”

Xie Liufeng nodded, confidently answering: “Yeah, I need it.”

Chu Xinghui thought that his partner might have broken: “…I’ll leave it for you, then.”

It was Chu Xinghui who was going into seclusion to cultivate, not Xie Liufeng.

Xie Liufeng thought over this logic for a moment, agreeing with Chu Xinghui’s reasoning, then changed his mind: “Alright, I think you’ll need it.”

Chu Xinghui: “…”

He suspiciously looked at Xie Liufeng and raised a hand to feel his forehead.

…He didn’t seem sick.

Xie Liufeng allowed him to touch, blinking innocently.

Once done, Xie Liufeng glanced around and started pointing again: “These two things, take them too.”

Chu Xinghui looked and, as expected, they were still Xie Liufeng’s things.

He wanted to indulge his partner, but couldn’t think of a good excuse, so he turned to Xie Liufeng, asking for a reason: “…What are these for?”

Xie Liufeng thought for a moment, then had a sudden inspiration and answered decisively: “To help you think of me when you see them.”

Chu Xinghui: “…”

He silently packed everything up.

The place for cultivation had already been chosen. Fang Yan specifically cleared a space for Chu Xinghui in a secluded area where the senior members of the sect typically went to break through, allowing him to cultivate without disturbance.

On the appointed day, Xie Liufeng sent Chu Xinghui there.

Before parting, Xie Liufeng asked one last time: “Are you sure about this?”

Chu Xinghui looked up at him.

Xie Liufeng spoke seriously: “With your talent, you don’t need to rush. You won’t have to take such risks. With time, you’ll eventually reach the Ascension stage. If you don’t want to do this, I’ll take you home right now. I’ll deal with everything, and I’ll find a way.”

Most people now wanted Chu Xinghui to sacrifice himself, to reach the Ascension stage as soon as possible, sever the Heavenly Ladder, and end the nightmare hanging over this world.

He wouldn’t stop Chu Xinghui from making this sacrifice, as it was Chu Xinghui’s own path.

But he wanted Chu Xinghui’s choices to come from his heart, not to be coerced by others’ opinions.

Chu Xinghui looked at Xie Liufeng.

He knew that if Xie Liufeng could say this, he would do whatever it took, no matter the cost to himself.

He reached out and poked Xie Liufeng: “Do you want me to sacrifice myself, so you can take my place?”

Xie Liufeng gave his usual, somewhat lazy smile, reaching over to rub Chu Xinghui’s face: “Even if it costs me my life, I can’t let you do something you don’t want to do.”

Chu Xinghui seriously looked at his partner.

Then he stepped forward, rose on his toes, kissed Xie Liufeng, and said solemnly: “I’m willing.”

Not only for this world, for the friends living in this world, but also for Xie Liufeng, who was willing to say these words to him.

Xie Liufeng reached out, pulling the person into his arms with a soft sigh: “Alright, since that’s the case, I’ll send you in.”

Xie Liufeng accompanied Chu Xinghui to the deepest part of the cultivation area and stayed there for a long time.

Chu Xinghui slowly realized something and asked the persistent Xie Liufeng: “Aren’t you going back?”

Xie Liufeng nodded: “Ah, I’ll leave now.”

Though he said that, he turned around and decisively sealed the barrier behind him.

Chu Xinghui: “…”

Xie Liufeng looked troubled: “What do I do now? The barrier’s closed, and I can’t get out.”

Chu Xinghui looked at him: “…I can open it for you.”

This was just a place for cultivation, not a prison.

Xie Liufeng sighed long and hard: “I was supposed to leave, but my partner said he’d be scared alone, so I decided to stay and keep him company.”

Chu Xinghui clarified: “…I never said that.”

“Is that so?” Xie Liufeng made an exaggerated shocked expression, then quickly came up with a new reason: “Well, I’m scared.”

He looked at Chu Xinghui with innocent eyes, a hint of a smile in his gaze: “If I don’t have my partner with me, I can’t sleep at night.”

Chu Xinghui: “…”

He hadn’t known Xie Liufeng had such a good habit of sleeping.

Chu Xinghui stayed silent for a moment, then muttered: “It’s not like anything good is going to happen.”

After all, the thunder tribulation Qin Suyun had brought wasn’t a normal one. No one knew if something serious might happen.

From a rational perspective, when it comes to something where only one person needs to bear the risk, involving someone else in the process doesn’t seem like a good deal at all.

Xie Liufeng narrowed his eyes into a smile and looked at him: “When we got married, no one told me that I only needed to share the good times and not the hardships.”

Chu Xinghui was silent for a moment. He didn’t ask anything further, instead, he stepped forward and took Xie Liufeng’s hand.

Since they were already here… they might as well do it together.

The two of them stood quietly for a while.

Chu Xinghui still had some concerns: “If we’re both here, won’t it delay things?”

“There are plenty of people outside, they don’t need me,” Xie Liufeng stretched out a hand and pinched his face, explaining: “Besides, this place isn’t fully sealed off. If anything happens outside, Fang Yan will send me a message, so don’t worry.”

He had already reached the Ascension stage, so he didn’t need to focus on breakthroughs like Chu Xinghui did, he was far more autonomous.

From what he said, it sounded like he had already planned everything ahead of time. Unable to hold back, Chu Xinghui asked: “…When exactly did you start making plans for this?”

Xie Liufeng thought for a moment, then with a playful expression, he speculated: “I don’t really know, maybe the day I heard the news?”

He knew his partner well enough to anticipate every choice Chu Xinghui would make.

So, no matter what Chu Xinghui decided, he would be right there beside him.

 

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