Chapter 97 - 92: 500-Year-Old Stone Bridge
"What... are you doing?"
Mei Zhaozhao’s eyes snapped open, the scent of the Nether Monarch seemingly lingering in her nostrils.
The Nether Monarch’s voice echoed in her ears, even blurring her vision slightly,
but when the dizziness passed, she stared in disbelief at the scene before her.
What was she seeing?
The Little Ancestor of the Compassionate Palace had taken off her shoes and socks and placed her dainty foot in the man’s arms.
It was an exceptionally delicate little foot—plump, fair, and adorable. Her cute toes were as pink and tender as young lotus root sprouts, or perhaps like peach blossom petals in early spring. The soft arch of her foot resembled a fine pastry, tempting one to draw near.
Lu Changyuan, his face impassive, nudged Su Youwan’s little foot away.
He was baffled, too.
He had only asked if she could alter his fate, and in response, the silver-haired maiden had pushed aside her Daoist robe and placed her soft, tender foot in his arms.
Su Youwan didn’t seem annoyed at having her foot pushed away. Her expression remained as serene as ever, as if the person who had just done something so shocking was someone else entirely.
She leisurely smoothed out her moon-white inner robe, her voice steady and calm. "Other things can only be done after marriage."
The corner of Lu Changyuan’s eye twitched. "And what does that mean?"
"To change a person’s fate, you must be stained with their scent and establish a connection."
Su Youwan explained, "Youwan does not yet possess the ability to casually conceal someone’s fate. If I am to mask Young Master Lu’s fate with my own, then Young Master Lu must have a sufficient connection with me."
Lu Changyuan asked thoughtfully, "Then why did you stick your foot out?"
He had never cultivated the Destined Celestial Dao, nor had he ever seen anyone who did. His understanding of this Dao was limited, so he could only take Su Youwan at her word.
Su Youwan said matter-of-factly, "Aside from the things one does in marriage, Youwan doesn’t mind the rest. That day, Youwan saw you and Miss Xia in the room..."
Lu Changyuan quickly cut her off. "Alright, that’s enough. Don’t say any more."
’So you weren’t just playing your flute outside my door that day—you also saw Xia Lianxue’s little performance, is that it!’
Mei Zhaozhao understood their conversation but said nothing, merely biting her lip.
’Help Lu Changyuan. Kill Xiao Qingfeng.’
’How am I supposed to help?’
’You, Nether Monarch, you should have told me how!’
’I’m just the Hehuan Sect Saintess. What can I possibly do to help?’
’As for those seductive arts, I have learned them from my Sect’s scriptures. The Hehuan Sect has plenty of such texts, and I’m definitely more skilled than some cold Daoist nun from the Compassionate Palace.’
’But you asked me to help... Wait, I can’t even help with that first thing!’
Mei Zhaozhao forcefully pushed the thoughts from her mind. She looked at Lu Changyuan and said softly, "Just now, I..."
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!
A sudden knock on the door caught Mei Zhaozhao’s words in her throat.
Lu Changyuan narrowed his eyes.
’Who would be knocking on my door at a time like this?’
"Wait." Mei Zhaozhao started to speak, but she saw that Lu Changyuan had already crossed the room and was at the door.
Broken Thought was already drawn, its power slowly gathering along the blade.
Lu Changyuan yanked the door open.
Before the person outside could speak, his sword had already slashed out.
SCHLICK.
Flesh mixed with black qi fell to the ground with a THUD.
"Lord Yu, no need to be so fiery."
The man spoke with a grin, as if it wasn’t his own head that had just been lopped off.
He bent down, calmly picked up the head from the floor, and casually pressed it back onto his neck.
Lu Changyuan narrowed his eyes. "Xiao Hai?"
Standing at the door was none other than Xiao Hai, the very same man who had exploded into a single drop of blood before Lu Changyuan’s eyes not long ago.
"It is I, Lord Yu. The King wishes to see you."
Lu Changyuan frowned. "What state are you in right now?"
Xiao Hai smiled, his arm around the slender waist of the woman beside him. The woman, a flush on her cheeks, leaned against Xiao Hai’s aged chest, looking utterly submissive. "Thanks to the Ancestor’s blessing, even a piece of trash like me from the First Realm can now enjoy eternal life."
’Eternal life?’
Lu Changyuan’s brows furrowed.
No one in this world could achieve eternal life. A prolonged, pathetic existence was more like it.
Xiao Hai had been reborn by Xiao Qingfeng using the Transformation Technique; Wang Lian, beside him, had naturally undergone the same.
But in reality, the two before him couldn’t be considered living people at all. Whether they were truly Xiao Hai and Wang Lian was debatable. Most likely, they were just Spirits wearing human skin.
At this thought, Lu Changyuan struck out with his sword again, the blow both swift and vicious.
Xiao Hai and Wang Lian quickly lost their human forms, chunks of their flesh falling to the ground and releasing a nauseating stench.
Then, a sudden change occurred.
Wisps of black qi began to seep out from every chunk of severed flesh and bone. The qi quickly surged into a dark, roiling mass that devoured all the dismembered remains. It then slowly coalesced into a single black sphere, which split in two and molded into a pair of humanoid silhouettes. Facial features began to manifest on their surfaces.
Wang Lian and Xiao Hai stood before Lu Changyuan once more.
Xiao Hai was still neither angry nor annoyed. He just smiled and said, "With such strength, Lord Yu could become one of the Old Ancestor’s most capable generals if you were to submit to him. All you have to do, Lord Yu, is give up your title."
SLAM.
Lu Changyuan slammed the door shut.
He couldn’t be bothered to listen to them.
The Transformation Dao actually possessed such an ability. When Xiao Qingfeng had first been resurrected, he could only create black Spirits by relying on the rules of the Netherworld and the Nether Monarch’s Death Dao. Now, he could even give them flesh and form.
Su Youwan stood by the door. She had taken off her Lotus Crown, and her silver-white hair cascaded down softly, seeming to glow in the darkness.
"Those two?"
Lu Changyuan shook his head. "They’re just puppets created with the Transformation Technique. When Xiao Qingfeng dies, they will all die. And unlike the Nether Monarch’s Spirits, they won’t develop more self-awareness. In essence, they can be considered avatars of Xiao Qingfeng."