Chapter 72 - Papaya Flavored Senior Brother Gong (10)
Mo Guanju died very miserably.
His clothes were soaked in blood, and his bloodstained face was frozen in shock of being caught off guard.
The blade was completely buried in his heart with only the handle poking out. There was a wound the thickness of a thumb on his chest—the murderer intended to dig out his heart but was interrupted.
The Northern Sword Sect Disciple who witnessed it said solemnly: “I live next door. I suddenly heard Senior Sister’s scream so I ran over to help. By the time I arrived, the murderer had already pierced through Senior Brother Mo’s chest. The other turned and escaped and I gave chase with my sword, but my qigong was inferior. I only saw that although the other was tall, underneath the black cloak was…a red women’s skirt.”
“Speak if you’re gonna speak, what are you looking at my sister-in-law for?!”
Si Tushuang blocked Gou Liang and glowered.
“Junior Sister, do not be rude.”
Yue Qian held Gou Liang’s hand and said gently.
Si Tushuang was unreconciled, “Just now, he wanted to push this murder onto my sister-in-law’s head. Senior Brother, how can you tolerate that? Plenty of people in the world wear red skirts, so why my sister-in-law? I also heard that the Demonic Cult’s Cult Leader wears red skirts too!”
“Not to mention, my sister-in-law is the only person that wears red skirts in the Southern Mountain. If she wants to commit murder, why would she wear a red skirt and even let you see her? Is she afraid no one knew she did the deed? What a joke!”
“Shuang’er, don’t be impertinent in front of your elders.”
Si Ti Zhang Tian reprimanded in a perfunctory manner. He furrowed his brows and said, “Though I haven’t seen it in person, I heard back then, the martial nephews from Fanyin Pavilion and the Northern Sword Sect also died with their hearts gouged out. Junior Sister Ye, Junior Brother Xia, what do you guys think? Does it look like the work of the same person?”
Pavilion Master Ye and Sect Master Xia both looked unwell. Mo Guanju’s death brought up the painful past.
However, Ji Chun who was confirming Mo Guanju’s cause of death said: “Although the perpetrator is skillful, the wound was formed with pure force without a trace of internal energy. If it was Bao Jiu, how would that be the case?”
Xia Xinya was in her mother’s arms without making a noise, but at this moment, she became excited, “It’s him, it must be him!”
“Ya’er, did you see something?”
Ji Chun asked.
Xia Xinya wept, “Although he covered his face, who other than him would harm my husband so, and in such a vicious way?”
Madam Xia hugged her daughter’s shoulder. She was full of heartache for her. She spoke in a sorrowful voice: “Ya’er, don’t cry. What happened, tell us in detail. Your Martial Uncle Si Tu is a righteous man, he won’t let Mo Guanju’s death go unresolved on the Southern Mountain.”
Si Tu Zhang Tianwas also quick to voice his agreement.
Xia Xinya did her best to contain her grief: “In two days will be the decisive battle of the martial arts conference. My husband and I were discussing strategies together inside the room, and at the peak of our conversation, there was suddenly a noise outside.”
“My husband went out to check on it. Seeing there was no one there, he was about to return when a person appeared without warning, and with a blade…pierced through my husband’s chest.”
“I screamed and shouted, and the person turned around to look at me…I’ll never forget that gaze. It was just like Bao Jiu from back then. He harmed two of my senior brothers right in front of me.”
Narrating up to here, Xia Xinya was overwhelmed with grief and sobbed, “He should be heavily injured, seeing how he doesn’t have a thread of internal energy. I pulled out a sword to fight with him and managed to injure his right shoulder. Then Junior Brother w.a.n.g came and he escaped.”
As she talked, she stared at Gou Liang with red eyes.
Yue Qian was displeased, “Junior Sister Xia, what do you mean by looking at Ye Gui like this?”
“I’m afraid Senior Brother Yue has been tricked by an unscrupulous person and is still in the dark about it! My mother said, his bones are strange, he’s not a woman at all!”
Xia Xinya seethed with hatred.
Seeing how the gazes toward Gou Liang had changed, Si Tushuang spread her arms and yelled, “What do you mean by that? Not only are you slandering my sister-in-law for murder, you’re also calling her the Demonic Cult’s Cult Leader? Can’t you guys even tell the difference between men and women?”
Madam Xia said: “Fellow senior brothers and sisters, you all know I come from the medicine valley. From a young age, I’ve studied the arts of viewing bones and have rarely had mistakes. Miss Ye’s bones…is indeed unlike a typical girl’s. May I ask Miss Ye, where were you just now, and was anyone else with you?”
Gou Liang smiled, “I was alone, there’s no one to vouch for me, whatever shall I do?”
Madam Xia was about to say something, but Yue Qian cut in with an icy face, “Madam Xian, although Ye Gui has yet to officially marry into my Southern Mountain, she is still my wife. Whether she’s a man or a woman, I’ve seen it with my own eyes, how could there be any falsehood?”
“This…”
Madam Xia was shocked. She didn’t expect them to already be intimate before their marriage. Suddenly, she wasn’t so confident anymore.
Si Tu Zhang Tian coughed: “Yue Qian and Ye Gui’s marriage has already been approved by me. It’s only because of some matter that it’s been delayed. We’ve let everyone see a joke.”
Xia Xinya was unreconciled, “If she’s really a girl, then perhaps my mother could check if Miss Ye has an injury on her shoulder? If best if she doesn’t, but if she does—”
“If she does, what of it?”
Yue Qian interrupted her, “If she does, does it mean she’s the Demonic Cult’s Cult Leader? Does Miss Xia think this is a joke? I may not be older than Miss Xia, but I have also walked the jianghu, and I could hardly be swayed with measly words. If I agree today, should Miss Xia remarry in the future and someone dies again, will you call us again to bring Ye Gui and have her strip as evidence?”
“You!”
Yue Qian’s words stabbed right into Xia Xinya’s heart, infuriating her.
Madam Xia and Sect Master Xia’s faces were also unsightly, yet they couldn’t criticize Yue Qian. They could only look at Si Tu Zhang Tian, “Senior Brother Si Tu, my daughter just lost her husband, her heart is in pain, so she said some rude words, please forgive her.”
Si Tu Zhang Tian quickly dismissed this matter, however, his att.i.tude also hardened. “Ye Gui has nothing to do with the Demonic Cult. This couldn’t have been done by her. However, a person of the Demonic Cult infiltrated the Southern Mountain and harmed Mo Guanju, that’s my mistake. I’ll promise here that I’ll spare no effort to give Junior Sister Xia an explanation.”
After saying this, he mentioned that Gou Liang must have been shocked by today’s matter, and had Yue Qian bring him back to rest.
Xia Xinya looked at the image of Gou Liang back. That unpleasant red made the hate in her eyes burn. Her mother never made mistakes in examining bones. She concluded that Yue Qian must be covering up for him. Immediately, she pulled out a sword and plunged towards Gou Liang’s back—
“Return my husband to me!”
Yue Qian raised his hand to block it, but Gou Liang stopped him. He turned around and faced the approaching blade.
Lifting his hand, he caught the blade easily with two fingers. A profound internal energy rushed towards Xia Xinya, sending her flying backward!
“Ya’er!”
Madam Xia screamed. Sect Master Xia flew over to catch Xia Xinya. After he landed, he was still pushed back several steps by the internal energy before stabilizing himself. Xia Xinya opened her mouth, but before she could speak, she spurted out a mouthful of blood.
Sect Master Xia was infuriated: “Miss, what do you mean by this?”
“What, a pot calling the kettle black much?”
Gou Liang sneered coldly. That beautiful face was like a deity, cold and merciless.
Guanju Sword personally forged and bestowed onto Xia Xinya by Mo Guanju was easily snapped into pieces by Gou Liang and reduced to useless pieces of metal sc.r.a.ps. He said condescendingly: “No one has ever dared to point a sword at me. But since three of her husbands died, this bit of madness is understandable, so I won’t hold it against her. Sect Master Xia should keep a careful watch on her, if there’s a next time, even if it isn’t me, there will always be other people who would take her life.”
“Ya’er!”
Madam Xia rushed over, “Ya’er, are you alright, Ji Chun, please take a look.”
Gou Liang threw Guanju Sword aside in disinterest. He left, pulling Yue Qian along. At the door, he seemed to have suddenly remembered something. He turned around and smiled, “Right, I’ll give Miss Xia a word of advice. Don’t hurt other people, it’s not like you can’t live without a man.”
“Y, you, die…cough, cough, cough.”
Xia Xinya’s anger reached her heart and she coughed up blood again.
Gou Liang sneered disdainfully. He lifted his arms towards Yue Qian, “I’m so tired, don’t wanna walk.”
Yue Qian hugged him without hesitation and left using qigong.
Landing in the courtyard, before Yue Qian could ask him about his martial arts, he saw Gou Liang unable to hold it anymore and coughing up a mouthful of blood.
“Ye Gui!”
Yue Qian was petrified.
“Lower your voice.” Gou Liang nonchalantly wiped his mouth, “Take me inside.”
Yue Qian’s footsteps were anxious, he placed Gou Liang on the bed and asked in a tight voice, “Where are you hurt? Is it serious?”
Saying this, he was about to transmit internal energy to heal him, but Gou Liang stopped him. “It’s just a backlash from forcibly using my martial arts. I’ll be fine after a couple meals.”
Yue Qian clasped his icy hands, “How are you, really. Don’t hide it from me.”
Gou Liang didn’t answer, he narrowed his eyes and looked at him for a moment. Suddenly, he smiled, “Hero Yue, has it never crossed your mind that it’s just as they say? That I killed Mo Guanju and I am indeed the Demonic Cult’s Cult Leader?”
“Nonsense.”
Yue Qian glared at him and carefully wiped away for him the trace of blood by his mouth. “Perhaps it was Bao Jiu who killed Mo Guanju, but the one they want to force out today isn’t the Demonic Cult’s Cult Leader, but rather ‘Ye Gui’. It’s not really to seek justice for Mo Guanju, what they’re after is the ‘Nine Dark Arts’.”
Otherwise, why did they make so many turns and corners to confirm whether Gou Liang had the birthmark on his shoulder?
Gou Liang hugged him and chuckled helplessly.
He originally thought Sect Master Xia and the Left Guardian would cook up a scheme for him so spectacular that it could be written into a novel. He was even prepared to ditch his current ident.i.ty. But in the end, it was merely loud thunder that brought a light drizzle.
Yue Qian stubbornly used internal energy to sweep through his meridians. He wanted to check on his injury, but to his surprise, Gou Liang’s body was devoid of internal energy as usual and his meridians were a mess. He indeed had a heavy injury!
Yue Qian’s face became even darker.
Seeing his inquiry, Gou Liang said, “I once possessed peerless martial arts, otherwise, how could I have been safe for all those years? But a couple months ago, I ended up falling to the hands of the Left Guardian. My internal energy was destroyed and my meridians flowed backward. These few days, I finally managed to gather some internal energy, but I squandered it all just now.”
Yue Qian furrowed his brows, “Why did you push yourself? Isn’t it the same if I did it?”
Gou Liang, “I always believed that offense is the best defense. Since Sect Master Xia is interested in the ‘Nine dark Arts’, should he decide to drop all pretense one day to take care of me, I need him to have misgivings in his heart so he won’t act recklessly against me. That way, I might buy enough time for you to come save me.”
Yue Qian’s eyes were solemn, “Your injury can’t be dragged out for longer. The Medicine Valley is southwest of here. The journey won’t take more than three days. We’ll go there and heal your injury, okay?”
“Them? Their medical skills might not even be as good as mine.”
Gou Liang, “I have an estimate on my own injury. At this point, the only choice I have is to cripple my martial arts and start over again.”
Yue Qian’s heart was in pieces. It would be a very difficult and painful process, but he knew Gou Liang already made up his mind. He couldn’t stop him.
Thinking about it, he said, “Then after the Martial Arts Conference ends, I’ll do it for you. Afterwards, I’ll guard you through the process.”
Gou Liang shook his head. “The Northern Mountain isn’t safe.”
Yue Qian thought about the people monitoring them and muttered, “I’ll ask my Master for permission right now, and take you away.”
After Si Tu Zhang Tian heard about Gou Liang’s injury, not only did he not refuse, he also said, “There’s no need to wait until it’s light. The both of you should leave at night.”
“Master means?”
Si Tu Zhang Tian let out a long sigh, “Peerless, be honest with your master, is Ye Gui really a girl?”
Yue Qian frowned, “Why is Master asking this?”
“With Madam Xia’s words, even your master can’t help being suspicious, much less other people. You’ve always had a good head on your shoulder, so your master won’t say anything else, but the Fanyin Pavilion and the Nine Underworld Tower will both probably chase you to the end. Now it seems that even the Northern Sword Sect has interest in the treasure that Ye Gui possesses. It’s best if you two go outside and hide for a while, lest they make any moves again.”
Hearing this, Yue Qian made a sound in agreement.
Si Tu Zhang Tian was about to leave, but then he heard: “Master, Ye Gui is stubborn, his temper is unpredictable, and he’s also willful. However, Master, you’ve always been good at judging a person. You should know that in his heart, good and bad are clear as black and white. He never makes things difficult for others without a reason…”
“Do I need you to tell me this? Relax, Master never thought of her as a bad person, there’s no need for you to worry.” There was a pause, Si Tu Zhang Tian smiled and continued, “When the both of you return, this master will hold the ceremony for you two.”
Yue Qian’s face revealed his happiness. He bowed, “Thank you, Master.”
Before the sky brightened, Yue Qian, without telling anyone else, brought Gou Liang with him and left the Southern Mountain just as dawn broke.
Gou Liang, who had wanted to stir up mischief, was unhappy, “If we flee like this, it’s like we’re scared of them.”
Yue Qian: “It’s better to cause less trouble. It’s not too late to pay them a visit after you’ve recovered your martial arts.”
Gou Liang didn’t argue with him. He also didn’t ask where they were going. He yawned, leaned against Yue Qian, and soon fell asleep.
Yue Qian lowered his head to look at him. He couldn’t resist smiling. He tightened his arm and held him more steadily.
South of Southern Mountain, the thousand li mountain range was like a slumbering dragon.
In one of the valleys, a tall, handsome man was starting a fire to cook a meal. He stared at the strength of the fire, as if facing a great foe.
Gou Liang came out from the cave. When he smelled the aroma of food, he smiled, “Not bad, it’s not burnt this time.”
Yue Qian raised an arm to wipe away his sweat. He stir-fried the rabbit meat in the pan and turned around, “Hungry?”
Gou Liang’s cultivated for more than 8 hours this time, he didn’t even drink a drop of water. Thinking of this, his stir-frying motion became even quicker.
Gou Liang hugged him from behind, he grinned and kissed him on the cheek, “Wifey, you’re becoming more and more virtuous.”
Yue Qian’s smile grew even deeper.
3 months ago, Yue Qian personally abolished Gou Liang’s martial arts, giving him a taste of pain. Yue Qian was extremely reluctant, but Gou Liang needed to endure through this period of time by himself. He could only do what was within his ability to take care of Gou Liang.
What he didn’t know was, Gou Liang had long blocked off his sensation of pain. It was just in the last world, he perfected the skill of acting like he was in ‘unbearable pain’ a little too well.
By now, Gou Liang’s martials arts had already recovered a level.
The martial art he practiced was none other than the “Nine Dark Arts”.
In order to fulfill the original body’s wish of becoming the number one expert in the martial world (all the better to harvest his soul force), Gou Liang even used 666 points to buy the “Number 1 Expert Cultivation Manual” from the system. Not only did it come with an expert that fixed and improved the “Nine Dark Arts” engraved into the original body’s mind, he also received an inheritance of various peerless martial arts.
However, Gou Liang was afraid of biting off more than he could chew, so other than the “Nine Dark Arts”, he only cultivated qigong, which he had been the most interested in.
Sometimes, when Yu Qian is practicing his martial arts, he would watch from the side and give him some pointers. After all, the prop was bought using a lot of points, it would be a waste not to wring every cent from it.
As a result, Yue Qian’s martial arts also improved by a lot during this period of time.
After eating, Yue Qian told him: “The black queen of night we saw on the cliff last month, I went to check on it today and it will bloom in 2 days. Should we go in advance to guard it?”
Gou Liang nodded, “Of course, it’s a rare to come by treasure!”
In the system store it sells for 10 points. It was even more expensive than the soul-recalling gra.s.s.
The two of them acted immediately.
Gou Liang: “Hero Yue, are you interested in seeing whose qigong is superior?”
Yue Qian was about to agree when the other disappeared without a trace, the sound of his snickering traveling from afar: “Hero Yue, step it up!”
Yue Qian shook his head and gave chase. The red and black figures flickered through the forest without giving an inch to each other. In the end, Gou Liang martial arts had yet to recover fully. Halfway, he had to stop on a tree branch.
The leaves on the tree shook gently as Yue Qian landed gracefully by his side. He crouched down and wiped off Gou Liang’s sweat while teasing him, “Can’t do it anymore already?”
“Telling a man he can’t do it, do you want to die?”
Gou Liang glared at him.
Yue Qian laughed. He carried him in his arms and leaped from tree to tree at a leisurely pace.
When they arrived at the top of the cliff, it was already dusk. The black queen of the night at the edge of the cliff was tightly furled. The two of them made a fire, set up their tent and watched the sun set as the night slowly spread out.
“Cold?”
Yue Qian hugged him tighter. It was already late autumn, the seasons in this region were like mild spring all year around, but the temperature was lower in the mountains.
Gou Liang: “Why would I be cold with you around?”
Yue Qian couldn’t look away from his smiling face. Gou Liang lifted his head and kissed him on the lips, his voice carrying a trace of temptation: “Are you satisfied just looking at me?”
Yue Qian smiled.
In the days of the two men living together, he managed to max out certain skills. Obediently lowering his head to kiss Gou Liang, Yue Qian said in a low voice, “As long as you’re by my side, I’m satisfied.”
Gou Laing raised his brow. He pushed him onto the ground, kissed him all over, held him, then asked in a meaningful tone, “Realllyy satisfied now?”
Pa.s.sion was ignited like fire, he couldn’t withstand any provocation in the first place. Yue Qian’s breathing became heavy, he flipped over and pressed him down on the ground and eagerly kissed him.
They tangled together in a way that was hard to tell each other apart. Their cloaks fell to the ground in a wrinkled mess and were coldly neglected. Gou Liang swallowed the rich soul force, just like a demon living in the mountains that preyed on human essence. He was completely shameless and insatiable.
Yue Qian’s eyes are dark, he was about to be driven mad. His held his face and kissed him, holding back his more dangerous desires.
However, Gou Liang said, “Continue.”
“Hm?”
Yue Qian didn’t understand.
Gou Liang cleared his throat, put on a calm facade, and guided his hand towards his back. He pursed his lips, his voice was hoa.r.s.e, “Yue Qian, you, continue.”
Yue Qian’s breathing changed again, his fingers lingering over that place. He looked into Gou Liang’s misty eyes, and in a tender yet savage manner, pressed him underneath him, “Xiao Keng’er, Xiao Keng’er…”
The moon was unimpeded by clouds, the starlights glowed the entire night without being extinguished.
The black queen of the night finally showed its beauty at the first dawn of light. Amidst the messy and unfamiliar sounds of breathing, like every other time, it showed its beauty in vain, then withered away.
[Ding, the mission progress has increased, current completion rate: 20%]