Chapter 235 : Xingyue Sect
Chapter 235: Xingyue Sect
“Y-you… are you a human… or a ghost?”
Hearing the sudden voice of the woman in red inside the iron cage beside her, Jiang Yingxue was so frightened that her own voice trembled.
She had been locked here for almost a whole day. That woman in red had been sitting there all along, motionless, without the slightest trace of breathing. Jiang Yingxue had always thought she was dead.
Now that she suddenly spoke, it scared her out of her wits, almost as if a corpse had come back to life.
The woman in red said calmly, “Of course, I’m human. If I were a ghost, I would have eaten you long ago.”
At this moment, Jiang Yingxue noticed she was actually breathing. Her heart loosened. Thinking of those strange arts in the martial world, like Turtle Breath Technique and the like, she figured this woman must have been feigning death.
Patting her chest in lingering fear, she asked, “Elder Sister, were you also captured by those villains? I… who—?”
Before she finished, she suddenly caught sight of a figure flashing at the stone chamber’s entrance. She shouted sharply, “Old pervert! You think you can make me dual cultivate with you? Go look in a mirror first. With that filthy face of yours, even in your next life, don’t even dream about it! This filthy thing, I’ll return it to you! If you have the guts, kill me—I won’t let you go even if I become a ghost…”
She cursed furiously while picking up a book from the ground and hurling it out.
The walls of the stone chamber were inlaid with some glowing stones, casting a dim light.
After scolding, Jiang Yingxue saw that a young and handsome nobleman walked inside, casually catching that book. She froze—this man’s appearance and bearing clearly belonged to an aristocratic youth.
He flipped the book open with a smile and said, “Didn’t you just say whoever saves you, you’ll pledge yourself to him? Why are you cursing now?”
Jiang Yingxue was first dumbfounded, then overjoyed, and asked, “Young Master… you’ve come to save us?”
Chen Ming tucked the book into his robe with a teasing smile. “That depends. Does what you said earlier still count?”
“Young Master, you… ayah, how can you say that in front of Elder Sister…” Jiang Yingxue stamped her foot in mock shyness.
Had Chen Ming not already known that she was a little manipulative green tea, with superb acting skills, even he might have been fooled by her current demeanor.
Laughing heartily, he drew Po Jun Sword.
Jiang Yingxue hurriedly said, “It’s useless. These chains are forged from black iron. Even a divine weapon can hardly—”
Clang!
With one strike, the black-iron chain was cut apart. The broken links clattered to the ground.
Chen Ming sheathed his sword with a smile. “What were you saying just now?”
Jiang Yingxue’s mouth hung open in shock. “Third Grade?”
This youth was younger than Chen Ming’s elder brother by a few years, yet he already had Third Grade cultivation. What an astonishing talent! Since when had Jiangzhou produced such a peerless genius?
Seeing her frozen in place, Chen Ming teased, “What? Got addicted to staying inside? You don’t want to come out?”
Jiang Yingxue snapped out of it, hurriedly stepping out of the cage and walking up beside him. She introduced herself, “This humble girl is Jiang Yingxue. May I know Young Master’s name?”
“Gu Xianyu.”
After giving the alias, Chen Ming cut through another cage’s chains and asked the woman in red inside, “How should I address you, Young Lady?”
The woman in red was stunning, exuding a dignified aura at first glance. But upon closer look, her skin was delicate, her brows gathered gracefully—she was still a maiden, perhaps only a little older than Jiang Yingxue.
After a moment of thought, she answered, “Nie Hongyi.”
Chen Ming nodded. “This place isn’t safe. We must leave quickly. Do either of you know if there’s another exit?”
Jiang Yingxue, being quick-witted, guessed what was going on and her face changed. “Brother Gu, you sneaked in here?”
Chen Ming said, “You could put it that way. The situation’s complicated. In short, that old villain Xie Jianqiu may come after us at any time. If he catches us, we’re finished. Do you know of any way out?”
He repeated the question.
Jiang Yingxue grew even more frightened, clutching his sleeve tightly and shaking her head. “I don’t know. I was only captured yesterday. That villain drugged me unconscious. When I woke up, I was already here.”
Chen Ming hadn’t really held much hope, only asked in passing.
Unexpectedly, Nie Hongyi said, “I know a place where that old villain will never find us.”
“Oh?”
Chen Ming looked at her. “What place?”
“Please, follow me.”
Nie Hongyi led the way.
Chen Ming only hesitated for a moment before following. This woman had also been imprisoned, so she clearly wasn’t on Xie Jianqiu’s side. And as the saying goes—the enemy of my enemy is my friend. He couldn’t afford to think too much now.
Nie Hongyi was extremely familiar with the place, turning left and right for about fifteen minutes.
Suddenly, an angry roar echoed from behind in the tunnels, faint but recognizable. It must have been Xie Jianqiu realizing his prey had been rescued.
Jiang Yingxue grew more terrified, gripping Chen Ming’s clothes tightly, refusing to leave his side, as though it gave her safety.
“Young Lady Nie, that old villain will catch up soon. We must hurry.”
First Grade experts possessed strong perception and instincts. Even in a maze of twists, Xie Jianqiu could likely still track them.
“Mm.”
Nie Hongyi acknowledged and soon led them to a dead end.
Chen Ming looked to her, waiting for an explanation.
She didn’t say a word, simply pressed a spot on the wall.
Rumble!
With the sound of mechanisms, a stone gate opened, revealing a pitch-black hole. A moist breeze wafted out.
Nie Hongyi said, “Below is an underground river that leads straight to the Dan River. It takes about half an incense stick to swim through. There’s a cavern midway where we can breathe.”
Chen Ming’s heart leapt with joy. At last, a chance of escape!
Suddenly, Jiang Yingxue clutched his sleeve anxiously. “Brother Gu, I was fed a drug that scattered my internal strength. I can’t hold my breath that long…”
“Don’t worry. You have me.”
Chen Ming drew out a black rope from his pouch, tied one end firmly around her waist, and secured the other end to his own.
He asked, “Does Young Lady Nie need one?”
Nie Hongyi shook her head. Seeing him prepared, she entered the passage first.
Chen Ming pulled Jiang Yingxue along and followed.
Nie Hongyi pressed another switch behind them, closing the stone gate.
Descending the damp stairway, they soon heard rushing water.
At the end, a large cavern opened up, with a deep pool below. Streams of water poured into it from above.
“The underground river lies at the bottom of this pool. Stay close to me,” Nie Hongyi instructed, before leaping into the pool, entering with barely a splash.
Chen Ming turned to Jiang Yingxue. “Ready?”
She shook her head furiously, wanting to say something, but he had already pulled her down with him.
“Ah—”
She screamed, swallowed water, and only quieted after choking twice.
It was pitch black underwater. Chen Ming relied on his senses to locate Nie Hongyi and swam toward her.
The pool was at least twenty to thirty meters deep. At its bottom, he found the underground river.
There was no need to swim—its current sucked them in.
At first, the passage was narrow and slow, but soon it grew wider, the current stronger.
Before long, Jiang Yingxue tugged the rope desperately, signaling she was about to run out of breath.
Chen Ming pulled her close. Well, you’re in luck, he thought. Pressing his lips to hers, he transmitted a breath of true qi.
This was his first kiss in this world.
Not with Su Zhining, not with Yu Haitang, not even with Xia Mudan. Instead, it had gone to a little manipulative green tea.
Like this, he gave her over a dozen breaths of qi through the journey. He seriously suspected this girl was doing it on purpose to take advantage.
At last, they surfaced.
“You—” Chen Ming was about to scold her for overstepping.
But Jiang Yingxue clung to his arm tightly, pressing against him, whispering, “Brother Chen, you have to take responsibility for me.”
That one “Brother Chen” blocked all the words in his throat.
Chen Ming said evenly, “What did you just call me?”
“Brother Chen. You used a sachet to hide your scent, but after we went into the water, the fragrance was gone. I recognized your aura—”
Her voice carried a hint of seduction.
Even through her soaked clothes, he felt her body burning hot.
With a light shock of his inner force, he pushed her away. “You’ve mistaken me for someone else.”
Floating there, Jiang Yingxue’s eyes reddened. She pouted pitifully. “Brother Gu, do you dislike me for being frivolous? I’m never like this in front of others. I only thought you liked it, so I… I won’t ever do it again. Please, don’t hate me…”
Chen Ming really couldn’t tell how much of her words were real, how much fake.
“This isn’t the time for that. Young Lady Nie is over there.”
Pulling the rope, he leapt with her onto a high platform carved out by hand, several hundred square meters wide.
On it lay several corpses. Though their clothes had rotted, the bodies themselves remained intact—clearly experts above First Grade, whose flesh resisted decay.
Nie Hongyi stood before them in silence.
Chen Ming walked over. “These people are…?”
Calmly, Nie Hongyi said, “This is my master. This is my mistress, second mistress, and third mistress.”
“Our sect, Xingyue Sect, is little known. We inherit from an ancient Daoist branch, devoted to dual cultivation. Back then, my master and that old villain Xie were close friends. But he harbored evil intentions, coveting our sect’s arts. He poisoned my master and mistresses.
“He even wanted to force dual cultivation with me. After I refused, he locked me in that cage for years. Had Young Master not rescued me, I would never have escaped. For that, I thank you. I have nothing to repay with, except this—our sect’s secret engravings. All of our techniques are inscribed there. If Young Master is interested, you may study freely.”
Only then did Chen Ming learn this story. So, Xie Jianqiu’s caibu technique originated from Xingyue Sect.
Still, he doubted. “But you appear to be untouched. Would that old villain really spare you?”
Nie Hongyi replied, “That old villain started halfway. He only grasped the surface of dual cultivation. If he tried to drain me, he would only lose his own power. Knowing this, he dared not touch me.”
“I see.”
That made sense.
Since she had said so, Chen Ming did not hesitate further. He walked deeper inside and examined the stone walls, where the Xingyue Sect’s martial arts were engraved.