Severing Ties: The Sect Regrets My Departure

Chapter 237: Jiang Xun’s Fear—What Exactly Is His Background?

While Qin Meran was gathering her resolve to conquer the “test” left by the “Immortal,” Shi Siling was rubbing her temples back at the Azure Mystic Sacred Land. She let out a weary sigh and stepped out of the infirmary.

Jiang Xun, who had been waiting anxiously outside, immediately rushed forward. “Fourth Senior Sister, how is Seventh Senior Sister?”

“Her Nascent Soul has been stabilized,” Shi Siling replied. “She is no longer in mortal danger.”

“That’s good. That’s very good!”

“However…”

“However what?”

“Although she managed to break through and preserve her life, her Nascent Soul is like a premature infant—exceptionally frail. Her future path of cultivation…” Shi Siling shook her head, unable to finish the sentence.

She had always known Lu Qingyao was suppressing her realm, waiting for the perfect moment to break through. She had guessed that her Junior Sister wanted to amaze the world with a single, brilliant feat.

But now? There was no amazing feat—only a grotesque horror.

Lu Qingyao’s physical body had been devoured until only scraps remained. Her Nascent Soul was a twisted abomination, neither human nor ghost. Even if Xu Wanqing returned and used the finest heavenly treasures to reshape a body for her, her foundation was shattered. Her current Nascent Soul was likely weaker than her previous Golden Core.

To Shi Siling, such a fate was worse than death.

“It’s fine, it’s fine. Power doesn’t matter as much as living,” Jiang Xun said with a long sigh of relief. Seeing Shi Siling’s confused look, he quickly added, “As long as she’s alive, there’s hope. When Third Senior Sister and Master return, they’ll find a way to heal her. Perhaps she can still return to her peak.”

“One can only hope,” Shi Siling murmured. She didn’t have the heart to tell him that a comeback was nearly impossible. “Now that she’s stable, I can’t do much more. I’ll leave her in your care, Junior Brother.”

“You can count on me, Senior Sister.”

“Be vigilant. A Nascent Soul in this state is incredibly vulnerable. Even within the sect, you must be cautious.”

Jiang Xun nodded dutifully, then asked curiously, “Is Senior Sister going somewhere?”

“Yes. I’m heading to Cloud Firmament City.”

“Cloud Firmament City? For what?”

“To find Qin Meran,” Shi Siling said. “She seems to have run into trouble and sent a message asking for my help.”

Jiang Xun smiled warmly. “I see. Don’t worry about things here; I won’t allow any mishaps.”

“You… aren’t angry with your Fifth Senior Sister?”

“Why would I be?”

“The Earth Cloud Sprout… you truly don’t mind?”

“Haha, Fourth Senior Sister, do you really think so poorly of me?” Jiang Xun laughed freely. “The Earth Cloud Sprout belonged to her. I would never covet what is hers. Even if she tried to give it to me, I wouldn’t accept it.”

His spirit seemed so noble and untainted that Shi Siling couldn’t help but nod in approval. With such a temperament, he truly deserves to be my Junior Brother! She silently vowed to find a way to heal his soul injury. A talent like his deserved to reach the pinnacle of the world.

Before she left, Jiang Xun handed her an exquisitely carved wooden doll to give to Qin Meran. It depicted the Fifth Senior Sister in the act of drawing talismans.

Shi Siling, a master of Source Arts, felt a flicker of doubt as she took the doll. There was something… unusual about it. But before she could investigate, Jiang Xun spoke up.

“Fifth Senior Sister has been away for so long because of me. Please, tell her I’m sorry.”

Shi Siling accepted the request, summoned a warship, and soared toward Cloud Firmament City.

Jiang Xun stood at the door, watching with a look of profound reluctance until the warship vanished from the horizon. The moment it was gone, his expression shifted.

A chilling, predatory light flashed in his eyes.

He walked back inside and looked at the box containing Lu Qingyao’s monstrous, sleeping Nascent Soul. “Damn it! Damn it all!”

“Who is plotting against me? Why is everything falling apart?”

He glared at the box. “You stupid woman! I told you a thousand times the Demon Ancestor’s Infant-Assisting Method required absolute caution! And yet you turned yourself into a piece of trash!”

“Idiot! If I didn’t still need you alive, I’d refine you into nourishment right now—though you’re so full of impurities you’d probably taste like filth!”

He vented his rage for a long moment. To him, Lu Qingyao was supposed to be a prime source of essence for his future growth. Now, the “fruit” was rotten.

He took out his Heaven-Bestowed Ruyi and began to chant. The jade scepter rose into the air, bathing the box in streams of cyan-green light to keep the “trash” from dying.

While the Ruyi worked, Jiang Xun’s gaze fell on a white jade fan nearby—an item Lu Qingyao had been unable to master. He beckoned, and it flew into his hand as if it had always belonged to him.

He tapped the fan several times, and it emitted a faint white glow that enveloped him. Memories and images stored within the fan began to pour into his mind.

“That idiot Xu Wanqing…” he muttered, his eyes widening. “She was played? By an old ghost who’s been dead for centuries?”

He continued watching. He saw the treasure exchange between the sisters. He saw the horror Lu Qingyao faced within the formation. And then, he saw the key.

“The Myriad Beasts Heavenly Pearl in the Mountain River Remnant World… it was tampered with?”

He accelerated the playback, searching for the source. Then, he froze.

“Xu Wanqing tried to use the Awakening Spirit Valley to lure Gu Xiu… and failed? And then she was counter-schemed?”

“Gu Xiu!”

“That furnace cauldron… he isn’t a useless waste?”

Jiang Xun’s face turned deathly pale. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead. He thought of all the “accidents” at Azure Mystic, the sudden discord between the sisters, the string of bad luck. He had overlooked the most obvious variable.

Gu Xiu. The man who should have been an empty shell.

After a long silence, Jiang Xun pulled out an ancient jade slip marked with a lotus. He hesitated for only a second before activating it.

“Our agreement,” he whispered into the slip. “It begins now.”

Before a response could come, he felt a massive shift in the world’s spiritual pressure. He rushed to the window and looked at the sky.

His jaw dropped.

“Origin… the Origin Dao Rhyme!”

High above, a simple, profound, and terrifyingly vast Dao Rhyme imprint was manifesting on the horizon. As it appeared, the ambient Dao Rhymes of the world began to flicker and dance like a sea of stars, cheering for the arrival of their sovereign.

Jiang Xun’s heart hammered against his ribs in sheer terror. Without thinking, he grabbed his Heaven-Bestowed Ruyi and snapped the white jade fan open to shield himself.

Only when he felt “safe” did he stare at the horizon. He grabbed the jade slip again, his voice trembling.

“Faster! Speed up the plan! NOW!”

In Cloud Firmament City, the world had turned into a boiling cauldron of spiritual energy.

The Heavenly Dao Rhymes were leaping like fish in a frenzied sea. The Origin Dao Rhyme was even more visible here—vibrant, ancient, and overwhelming.

The city’s Talisman Masters were in a state of religious ecstasy.

Sui Xing, who had been busy counting his spoils, stared at the sky with a wide, singular eye. The anvil turned its gaze toward the back of the Listening-to-Rain Pavilion—specifically toward a flickering, restricted porcelain shard.

Finally, Sui Xing turned to the Carefree Jade Pendant and the little black monkey.

“You two have been with him since the beginning,” the anvil said, its voice uncharacteristically solemn. “Tell me one thing.”

“Gu Xiu…”

“Who—or what—is he exactly?”