The Side Character Who Wins by Doing Nothing

Lu Sangjiu was absolutely resolute. Gu Jue wanted to say more, but when he met her determined gaze, he ultimately swallowed his words.

"...I’m sorry. I just wanted to do something for you."

"From the beginning until now, I’ve always said I would help you, but when it comes down to it, I haven’t actually been able to do anything for you."

Lu Sangjiu was taken aback, then genuinely confused. "Why would you think that? You’ve helped me so much along the way, Mr. Gu."

"Besides..." She smiled. "And for all my childish antics in the past, when I deliberately used you to provoke Ye Zhiyao, you never once blamed me. In fact, you often played along with my nonsense."

"In my heart, Mr. Gu, you’ve always been a very, very good friend who has helped me and put up with me."

"If anything, I’m the one who owes you a great deal. How could I let you sacrifice yourself to save me?"

"No matter what, I’ll handle this myself. The fact that you want to save me, Mr. Gu, is something I’m already incredibly grateful for!"

Lu Sangjiu rarely said such sentimental things, but hearing Gu Jue offer to help her like this today truly moved her.

Of course, there was no way she would actually let Gu Jue help her, so she had to make her stance crystal clear.

After saying this, Lu Sangjiu gave a carefree smile and bowed to Feiyun True Man. "Thank you, Senior. Farewell."

Only after they left Feiyun’s abode did Gu Jue speak. "Don’t lose heart. We can make a trip to the Golden Elephant Sect."

Lu Sangjiu thought for a moment, then shook her head. "Senior Feiyun made it very clear that this Love Gu can’t be removed by force. There’s no point wasting our time at the Golden Elephant Sect."

Gu Jue frowned. "What if? We can’t give up even the slightest glimmer of hope."

"Chi Yan is a disciple of the Golden Elephant Sect. If you ask him for help, he’ll definitely make an introduction for you."

Although Gu Jue appeared cold on the surface, he was actually a very gentle person.

Lu Sangjiu had never seen him force anyone to do anything. Usually, if someone refused, he wouldn’t ask a second time.

But on this matter... he was exceptionally resolute.

It was a stubbornness that made it hard to refuse him. So, after a moment of silence, Lu Sangjiu ultimately didn’t refuse again.

She nodded and smiled at him. "Alright, I’ll contact Chi Yan."

When she returned and saw Xie Ningyuan, Lu Sangjiu didn’t tell him about the possibility of transferring the Gu Worm to someone else. She only said that Feiyun True Man had no solution either.

Xie Ningyuan was disappointed, but he knew he couldn’t panic at a time like this. He needed to be her strength.

So, he simply said with composure, "It’s alright. We can still go check with the Golden Elephant Sect. It’s not time to despair yet."

Lu Sangjiu smiled. "Mhm, I’ve already contacted Chi Yan. We can head over directly."

At this moment, Gu Jue suddenly said, "I won’t accompany you to the Golden Elephant Sect. Just let me know what you find out."

"The sect’s Book Collection Pavilion has many ancient secret texts. I’ll search through them carefully. Maybe I can find a way to remove the Gu."

Xie Ningyuan nodded. "That’s a good idea. We’ll be counting on you, then."

Lu Sangjiu, however, frowned imperceptibly, a sliver of suspicion forming in her mind.

But she couldn’t ask anything in front of Xie Ningyuan, so she only said cryptically, "There’s no need to force things. Just do your best, Mr. Gu. I don’t want to see anyone get hurt because of me. Do you understand?"

Gu Jue was silent for a moment, then cupped his hands in a salute. "Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing."

Lu Sangjiu wasn’t entirely convinced, but it wasn’t as if she could keep Gu Jue chained to her side. She had said all that needed to be said; surely nothing would go wrong.

And so, she left the Lingjian Sect with Xie Ningyuan.

Gu Jue’s figure appeared outside Feiyun True Man’s abode.

He walked step by step to the entrance. Before he could even speak, the restrictive wards on the abode opened on their own.

Feiyun’s indifferent voice drifted out from within. "I knew you’d be back."

Gu Jue walked in without hesitation and bowed low. "Ancestor, you predicted my return."

Feiyun let out a rare, soft laugh. "I may be old, this Ancestor, but I was young once, too. I naturally understand a thing or two about love and affection."

"One look at the expression in your eyes, and I knew what you were thinking."

"A pity. The flower yearns for the flowing water, but the water feels nothing in return. That young lady doesn’t seem to have any romantic feelings for you. She probably doesn’t even know you like her."

"Even in this situation, you’re still determined to trade your life for hers. Is it worth it?"

Gu Jue’s expression didn’t waver in the slightest at Feiyun’s words. His face was calm and fearless.

"I want to save her, and not just because of romantic love."

"It’s also because of what she has done—it was for the sake of all living beings in this world."

"I admire her, and so I feel for her... She has already done more than enough. She absolutely should not die to an end like this."

"Besides, the burden of saving the world shouldn’t have been hers to bear alone in the first place."

"Even if it weren’t her today, but someone else in her place, I would still have come back."

"I am no world-saving hero, but I am willing to help a hero bear her burden, to take even a fraction of the weight from her shoulders."

Gu Jue’s words were delivered with such conviction that even Feiyun was taken aback.

For the first time, she truly and seriously sized up this disciple... She had heard of him before—everyone said his character was exceptional—but what she saw today was even better than she had imagined.

She looked at Gu Jue. "A seedling like you, if you don’t die, is destined to walk the Great Dao in the future. Are you sure you want to throw your life away here?"

Gu Jue’s gaze was firm as he knelt before Feiyun. "I will never regret today’s decision, for all eternity."

"I ask the Ancestor to bestow upon me the method."

Feiyun looked at Gu Jue, and after a long moment, she let out a long sigh. "I have not left my seclusion in a long time. Today, in a junior like you, I have seen the true bearing of an Immortal who feels compassion for the world."

"As an Ancestor of the Lingjian Sect, I should refuse you."

"But... as a fellow cultivator, I will grant you your choice."

As she finished speaking, Feiyun raised her hand, and a stream of Divine Thought entered Gu Jue’s brow.

Then, she took out another item and with a gentle push of her hand, sent it before Gu Jue.

"I’ve given you the method, but that girl is also a strong-willed person. I’m afraid she won’t let you have your way."

"And although her cultivation is lower than yours, if you truly come to blows, you might not be her match."

"This Ancestor is in a good mood today. If I’m going to help, I’ll see it through to the end."

"Here is an Enlightenment Stone and a Golden Spirit Pearl. They can help you break through to the Divinity Transformation realm."

Gu Jue was stunned for a moment, then bowed his head once more. "Thank you, Ancestor!"

"No need to thank me. I’m just a bored old woman who enjoys watching a good show. You may go."

After Gu Jue had left, a smile finally appeared on Feiyun True Man’s face.

’I just faintly sensed that this boy’s fate will change after he reaches Divinity Transformation. I don’t know if it’s for better or for worse, but... it’s a slim chance at survival, isn’t it?’

’A promising seedling like this... Heaven shouldn’t be so cruel as to let him be ruined by that Love Gu, right?’