Chapter 301: A Sorrowful PersonTranslator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Gou Shang sighed as he said, “Not only did Mei Bashan ignore the sensory input of the Mirror Moon Peach, but he also shut off his six senses. He only kept a wisp of Spiritual Force and relied on his memory for movement.”
Mei Bashan is really formidable. Di Jiu sighed silently. It should have been enough just to ignore the sensory input of the Mirror Moon Peach. However, in order to avoid any accidents, he had even shut off his senses. He must have plotted this all along. He had also been very cautious about it.
“As for me…” said Gou Shang as his eyes were filled with self-ridicule, “My name is Jue Zhan. My father is the Protectorate Lord of the First Kun Protectorate, Jue Yueshao.”
“You sure have your way if you have not been discovered by Mei Bashan,” said Di Jiu. He was beginning to feel sorry for Jue Zhan.
Jue Zhan laughed with even more self-ridicule. “Mei Bashan knew that I was Jue Yueshao’s son from the very moment that I became his lackey.”
Di Jiu looked at Jue Zhan in shock. Mei Bashan hadn’t killed him, even though he had known that he was Jue Yueshao’s son? This was unbelievable. Why would Mei Bashan pick Jue Yueshao’s son as a lackey over other people? Di Jiu didn’t believe that Mei Bashan had such vulgar taste.
Jue Zhan would be spineless if he had lived such a meager life until now. Why did he continue to lead such a meaningless life when he couldn’t avenge his father?
Jue Zhan, who seemed to sense what Di Jiu was thinking, asked, “You must be wondering why Mei Bashan didn’t kill me and why I had the courage to live on, right?”
“You are right. Since you couldn’t seek revenge, why do you still lead such a… such a difficult life?” said Di Jiu as he laughed.
He had finally managed to phrase his thoughts in a tactful manner.
Jue Zhan looked into the distance with blank eyes and said calmly, “The First Kun Protectorate is over there. Back when my father and several elders from the First Kun Protectorate were killed by Mei Bashan, I had been picking flowers with her by a lake. Later on, when Mei Bashan came, he saw her before he attempted to kill me. He took her away and let me off because of her pleas. He only made me his lackey by planting a restriction in my body.”
“My only motivation to continue living was that I got to see her every once in a while. I am okay with being a lackey as long as she is fine.”
Di Jiu was dumbfounded. He couldn’t find the right words to describe Jue Zhan. He thought that Jue Zhan was extremely resilient if he had been able to ignore the fact that Mei Bashan had killed his father and exterminated his family and then continue to lead such a meager life just so he could occasionally see the woman who had been seized by his enemy.
Actually, Di Jiu thought that his life was worse than a dog’s. Other people had put up with insults in order to take revenge. However, Jue Zhan had lived so miserably just so he could catch a glimpse of the woman who now belonged to his enemy.
Jue Zhan finally regained his senses after a long while. He lowered his head and said in a low voice, “Her name is Shui Tianwan. Mei Zhiyun is her son.”
“Is Mei Zhiyun your son?” Di Jiu was surprised.
“I respect Wan-er. I didn’t ever violate her when I was with her. Mei Zhiyun was born to her and Mei Bashan,” replied Jue Zhan as he shook his head.
“When was the last time you saw her?” Di Jiu suspected that Shui Tianwan didn’t love Jue Zhan the way he loved her. He didn’t believe that a woman would bear a child for her lover’s enemy.
Jue Zhan was lost in his thoughts as he looked at Di Jiu and said, “I last saw Wan-er 198 years and 84 days ago. A year after that, Mei Bashan threw a huge banquet in celebration of Mei Zhiyun’s birth and all the experts in the True Dominion came to congratulate him…”
Di Jiu looked at Jue Zhan and sighed as he said, “If Shui Tianwan had wanted to see you, wouldn’t there have been an opportunity for her to do so in nearly 200 years? She just didn’t want to see you.”
“Maybe…” said Jue Zhan, “Maybe she has forgotten about me…” Suddenly, he seemed to lose all his motivation.
Di Jiu stared at Jue Zhan and said, “If you choose to forget that your father and family were killed by this man for the sake of this woman, then I shall leave. I will have nothing more to do with you. I would not work with such a weakling. That would only be a disgrace for me.”
“I am not a weakling,” retorted Jue Zhan firmly. He believed that if he had been one, he would not have been able to last such a long time just to see Wan-er.
Di Jiu laughed coldly before he said, “You chose to ignore your hatred over the fact that Mei Bashan killed your father and exterminated your Protectorate for the sake of a woman who had a change of heart. Your parents, brothers and everyone in the First Kun Protectorate shed a river-full of blood. Not even their souls would want to acknowledge your ungrateful existence. You forgot who brought you up and became the lackey of your parents’ murderer. You are disloyal, unfilial and inhuman. I think you are not even fit to be a dog. I shouldn’t be calling you a weakling either, because you shame both names—I think you are not even fit to be a human.”
When he heard Di Jiu, blue veins surfaced on Jue Zhan’s forehead and killing intent swirled around him.
Di Jiu just shook his head and left. He wouldn’t hesitate to kill Jue Zhan if he dared to make a move on him. He had hoped to get Jue Zhan’s help to ambush Mei Bashan and kill him confidently. However, Jue Zhan hadn’t lived up to what his surname had implied. He didn’t have any determination. Instead, he had betrayed his bottom line. Working with such a piece of trash would only spoil his plans.
Suddenly, after Di Jiu had taken a few steps, Jue Zhan kneeled down onto the floor. “Young Master Red Embellishment, please help remove my restriction. I will help you deal with Mei Bashan!” Jue Zhan shouted.
Di Jiu stopped, looked at Jue Zhan and said, “Have you finally come to your senses?”
Jue Zhan calmed down and regained his composure. Then, he said, “I still want to see Wan-er. However, you have brought me to my senses. I lost my family and my home. In all these years, I never even thought of avenging the First Kun Protectorate and my family. I am indeed worse than a dog.”
Jue Zhan knew deep in his heart that he had thought of seeking revenge. However, Mei Bashan was too overpowering. He hadn’t even dared think of seeking revenge as he had watched Mei Bashan’s cultivation level increase over time. Every time he’d thought of seeking revenge, he had gotten so torn that he had felt like dying immediately. Plus, he really couldn’t bear to leave Wan-er, so he had thought less and less about seeking revenge over time.
Di Jiu nodded as he said, “You are finally displaying the aura that the son of a Protectorate Lord should have. Let me help you remove the trapping restrictions that have locked you down.”
“If I die, please help me ask Wan-er if she had really forgotten about me when you see her, Young Master Red Embellishment,” said Jue Zhan. Although he knew that Di Jiu had a powerful Spiritual Force, he still didn’t believe that Di Jiu could lift the restriction that Mei Bashan had put on him. If Di Jiu failed, he would be reduced to smoke and ashes.
Di Jiu didn’t speak. He could tell that Jue Zhan was really infatuated with Shui Tianwan. This made him want to see what she looked like and why she had made Jue Zhan forget such a deep grudge and still long for her.
Suddenly, Di Jiu slapped Jue Zhan on the head and shouted, “Open up your heart and relax your spirit! Do not resist!”
Jue Zhan had long faced death with indifference, so he immediately did as Di Jiu said.
Mei Bashan’s restriction was brilliant, but it was nothing unusual for Di Jiu. His Saber Array was much more complicated than this. Plus, he possessed a level-eleven Spiritual Force.
Di Jiu opened Jue Zhan’s restriction in under half an hour. “Done!” he said as he let go of his hand.
“You’ve opened it just like that?” asked Jue Zhan as his Quintessential Essence revolved for one cycle. “But the restriction is still here!” he added as he looked curiously at Di Jiu.
Suddenly, he discovered that his whole body felt relaxed. It seemed as if the restriction no longer affected his life.
Di Jiu snickered. “I have broken the trapping restriction in you. The restriction that you see is but an empty sh.e.l.l. It will disappear after your circulate your Quintessential Essence once. Don’t move now. Mei Bashan will find out if you do. Remove it only after I kill him.”
“It is really broken…” Jue Zhan felt a tumultuous emotion. A strong desire to seek revenge surfaced in him the moment he heard that the restriction had been broken. Yes! I must seek revenge!
Di Jiu’s Spiritual Force could sense the change in Jue Zhan’s psyche. Suddenly, he had a realization and said, “Looks like the restriction in your body had prevented you from thinking about revenge in the past.”
“No matter what instructions you have for me, Young Master Red Embellishment, I will follow them. I am willing to do this, even if you only want me to take a strike from Mei Bashan. I only care about killing him.” Jue Zhan’s fighting spirits were high now that the restriction had been lifted.
Di Jiu waved his hand and said, “You should remain the yes-man that you were. I only need you to help me do one thing.”
Di Jiu handed a dagger to Jue Zhan as he spoke. “You only need to stand behind Mei Bashan while I am fighting with him. When I kick Mei Bashan in your direction, you will stab this dagger into his back. Then, everything will be accomplished.”
Jue Zhan looked doubtful as he took the dagger. He only spoke after a long while. “It is not that I do not trust you, Young Master Red Embellishment. You have a much higher cultivation level than me. However, I fear that it is not quite possible to send Mei Bashan flying with just one kick. Besides, Mei Bashan wears a top-notch armor. I don’t think I will be able to stab this dagger through his armor given my current strength.”
Di Jiu laughed and said, “Don’t worry. Firstly, n.o.body has been able to block my kick before entering the Immortal World. I may not be able to kill Mei Bashan, but I can surely send him flying and injure him seriously with this kick. Secondly, n.o.body can block this dagger of mine, not even in the Immortal World. You don’t even need to refine it. You will just stab this dagger into the back of his heart. I will handle the rest.”
Di Jiu had transformed the Floating Flame Flag into this dagger. Thus, not even a real Immortal could block this dagger, let alone Mei Bashan.
Di Jiu had decided to hand the Floating Flame Flag to Jue Zhan because he knew that Mei Bashan was an extremely cautious man. This was evident from the fact that he had ignored all the sensory input of the Mirror Moon Peach and shut off his six senses. Such a cautious man would surely fear death. The Floating Flame Flag would be his killer move.