The Forbidden Path to Immortality-Chapter 257

As Devour of Yang froze, not knowing what to say, Yan Shuiyue slowly woke up.

This time she hadn’t been knocked out by anyone. After Hundred Ghosts’ voice told her to break north, she ran for her life, pushing herself so hard that she literally passed out from exhaustion. Half-conscious, she vaguely remembered someone lifting her onto their back and speeding away like the wind.

Everything after that was a blank. She didn’t even know where she was now. But before she opened her eyes, she could already smell the thick, nauseating scent of blood. So strong it told her Hundred Ghosts had to be close.

Off to her side came a low voice. Strangely enough, it belonged to a woman. And it sounded oddly familiar.

“…You were way too reckless. I’m not saying you shouldn’t cultivate this technique, but you’re advancing so fast you can’t control it. If you’re looking to die, there are easier ways than this, you know?”

Hundred Ghosts snorted. “What was I supposed to do? Not cultivating means certain death. You should be grateful I reacted in time, otherwise you wouldn’t even be here to complain.”

He paused, then added, “But you... something’s off. Why are you coughing up blood just to deal with that Heart-Consuming Concubine? Was that really necessary?”

“‘Coughing up blood?’ Easy for you to say. Why don’t you try going all out against Luo Moshi first, then have a go at Mo Xuanye? Go on, hey! Don’t touch that!”

While those two kept bickering, Yan Shuiyue listened in stiff silence.

She suddenly remembered... wasn’t that female cultivator the same guest elder who’d come to Tenghua Valley half a month ago looking for Hundred Ghosts? The one they called Madam Li…?

Come on, that had to be bragging, right? In this whole world, the number of people who could go head-to-head with Luo Moshi and then come back lively enough to beat back the Heart-Consuming Concubine... well, you could count them on your fingers. Maybe even fewer.

And she was supposed to be one of them?

Just then she heard Hundred Ghosts give a cold laugh. “I knew you’d run off to the Southeast Forest Sea. But Luo Moshi really is something; he predicted you’d walk right into his hands, didn’t he?”

“There’s more to that story, but we’ll get to it later. For now, how long are you planning to let this girl listen in? Keep talking and you’ll spill every secret you’ve got!”

Yan Shuiyue's whole body went rigid like a block of wood. A wave of heat washed over her. Clearly the two of them had just swept their gazes in her direction.

At this point, if she kept pretending to be unconscious, she’d probably end up dead without even ashes left. She hurriedly opened her eyes, pushed herself upright, and forced a stiff smile onto her face.

And sure enough, not far away, seated on a boulder with her knees drawn up.

She looked completely at ease. She even gave a small smile; there was no sign at all that she’d been injured. Hundred Ghosts stood right beside her, wrapped in a long hooded robe so black it was impossible to tell whether the color came from fabric... or dried blood.

His face, though, was another story. His skin looked even paler and more porcelain-like than before. So white it held not a trace of color. Under the daylight it almost seemed translucent, giving him a strangely fragile look. And the red in his pupils was even stronger now, swirling and flashing in a really creepy way.

When he turned his gaze toward her, Yan Shuiyue nearly shut her eyes on instinct, unable to meet his stare.

Li Xun flashed a grin. “You should thank Madam Li. If she hadn’t rushed in to help, that Heart-Consuming Concubine would’ve swallowed you whole. Bones and all. But now she’s injured, and her underlings are too wary to make a move. So… it’s time we talked about what comes next.”

“...What comes next?”

Yan Shuiyue didn’t follow.

Li Xun kept smiling. “Yeah. You’ve stumbled onto a pretty big secret of mine, and you just overheard plenty more. Unless you’re completely hopeless, you’ve probably pieced together at least part of it by now... You’re not an idiot, right?”

She shook her head on instinct. Then realized that was wrong and hurriedly nodded instead. But under Hundred Ghosts’s damn unsettling stare, she panicked and ended up shaking her head again, harder this time, face twisted like she might cry.

Madam Li, standing off to the side, started whistling a cheerful little tune with absolutely no decorum at all, and Yan Shuiyue suddenly felt like bursting into tears.

So cute… Li Xun just chuckled and gave her cheek a friendly pat. “Don’t worry. Since I saved you, I’m not about to kill you. You’ll be able to return to your sect safely soon enough. But when the elders there start asking questions…”

“I won’t tell anyone!”

So that was what this was about. Yan Shuiyue let out a long breath and answered matter-of-factly.

“If you want to keep this secret, I absolutely won’t mention it to the immortal masters. And they won’t force it out of me, either. You know my sect, we deal with… unusual things. We hear plenty of hidden truths, and many of the people involved are powerful figures.

“But think about it, has any secret ever leaked from us? Has anyone ever kicked up trouble over something they shouldn’t know?”

“Oh? Is that so?”

Li Xun shot a questioning look at Shui Die Lan, who nodded in return. “If the Water Mirror Sect didn’t have this kind of code,” she said, “we would’ve been wiped out ten thousand years ago!”

“Good. Very good.”

Li Xun nodded slightly, pleased. Then he beckoned to Yan Shuiyue, motioning for her to come closer.

Yan Shuiyue hesitated but eventually stepped forward. Only then did she realize where the three of them were standing. A high cliff overlooking a dense jungle. The daylight was still good, and the world stretched out in every direction. The vast sea of emerald trees below swayed like rolling waves, the kind of view that instantly cleared the mind and lifted the heart.

Even though Yan Shuiyue was in no mood to enjoy anything, the stunning view still managed to relax her a little.

She heard Li Xun speak softly. “Do you see over there?”

He was pointing toward the distant horizon where sky and earth met in a thin line. Yan Shuiyue stared for a long while but couldn’t make out anything special, so she shook her head.

Li Xun slipped an arm around her shoulders, ignoring her slight resistance. “It’s fine if you can’t see it,” he said with a smile. “Just listen.”

“Listen?”

Her mind was still catching up when a powerful shove from behind sent her flying. She screamed as she launched over the cliff's edge and began to plummet.

Two deafening explosions cracked through the sky.

For a cultivator, a drop of a few dozen yards shouldn’t have been a big deal. Yan Shuiyue had just woken from a nap and recovered a bit of strength; she hurried to steady her true breath and prepare for a safe landing. But the moment she moved her energy, she was horrified to realize that her meridians had somehow been sealed again!

After a staccato of rapid, hard thuds, Yan Shuiyue lay on the ground, clutching her side. Her face was covered in dirt, with a leaf stuck to it, and her whole body ached from being scratched by branches and leaves. She gritted her teeth, held back tears, and let out quiet groans.

I hate you to death, Hundred Ghosts...

Several streaks of lightning ripped across the sky. Already jumpy as a startled bird, Yan Shuiyue panicked. She scrambled to her feet and was about to bolt deeper into the forest.

A voice called down from above, “Are you Yan Shuiyue of the Water Mirror Sect, Fellow Daoist Yan? I’m from the Three Sovereigns Sword Sect—”

A shrill voice cut in, “Shuiyue? Shuiyue, is that you? It’s me, Luo Yuji! Shuiyue!”

Yan Shuiyue froze and stared blankly up at the sky.

A woman in a pale-yellow dress shot down from above, rushing straight toward her. Without caring about how battered Yan Shuiyue looked, the girl swooped in and wrapped her in a tight hug. She started asking a few questions at first, but as soon as she got a good look at Shuiyue’s dirt-covered, dazed face, she burst into a mix of tears and laughter, completely choked up.

Only then did Yan Shuiyue dare believe her eyes. The overexcited girl clinging to her really was her closest friend, the “princess” of the Three Sovereigns Sword Sect... Luo Yuji!

Seeing her long-lost best friend, Yan Shuiyue felt something inside her finally unclench. She hugged Luo Yuji back, and all the fear and hurt she’d been holding in surged up. After two shaky sniffles, she couldn’t hold it anymore. She broke down and cried.

And in that moment, absurdly enough, the only person she could think about was Hundred Ghosts... that shameless, filthy, despicable, murderous demon! Then it hit her: so that’s why he suddenly shoved her off the cliff and left her looking like a disaster.

In that moment, absurdly enough, all she could think of was Hundred Ghosts... that despicable, shameless, vile, filthy, disgusting… and brutally murderous villain! Then it hit her why he had suddenly pushed her off the cliff, her a complete mess. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Because in a situation like this, who in their right mind would be “so cruel” as to ask how she’d managed to survive?

Right now, only one thought filled her heart:

Hundred Ghosts… I hate you to death!