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墨書 Inktalez
Autumn's words felt strange to me, as he sincerely gave such high praise to an enemy he had always shouted about wanting to kill.
Although the words were complimentary, the bitterness in his tone was still quite evident.
I felt a mix of sweetness and confusion inside. While I tried to comfort him, I struggled to think of how to express my desire to rescue Ren Pingsheng in just the right way.
"What are you thinking about, Zhenzhen?"
"Nothing... nothing at all..."
I really couldn't bring myself to say it. The matter concerning Ren Pingsheng was complicated, and did I truly need to clarify everything? Could I guarantee that my idol wouldn't mind or feel hurt after hearing it?
"Are you thinking about... helping him leave the Mirror Gate?"
"Ah... huh? How do you know this?" Once again, I was defeated by my idol's "mind-reading" abilities.
"Zhenzhen, you came here alone, didn't you? But since Ren Pingsheng took you away, he wouldn't leave you behind. If he did leave, there are only two possibilities: either he is dead, or he had no choice but to return to the Mirror Gate. When we mentioned him, you didn't show any signs of sadness, so he shouldn't be dead. Therefore, he must have been unwillingly taken away by the sect leader, right?"
"Ah... how do you know all this?"
How could he possibly know everything? It felt as if he had experienced it himself.
"Zhenzhen..." Nie Qiuyuan smiled helplessly. "Sometimes, only men can understand a man's thoughts."
He wrapped his arms around me gently, soothing me.
"Don't worry, whatever you want to do, I'll accompany you through fire and water. I will do my best to help you. Until he is free."
I felt a surge of emotion; for such a difficult task, he agreed so readily for my sake. What more could I ask for?
"I... I... how can I repay you?" My mind was in a jumble, and I blurted out something quite inappropriate.
The expression on the god's face turned serious.
"What do we need to talk about repayment for? You wanting to repay me for helping him is what truly hurts my heart!"
"No, no! I absolutely didn't mean that!" I hurriedly defended myself.
"Zhenzhen. Actually, saving him isn't entirely because of you; it's something we both owe him. So even if you hadn't brought it up, I would have eventually gone to find him."
Owe him? Was there something I didn't know?
"Zhenzhen, that day when I fought him at Baiyun Peak, we talked about quite a bit."
"Yes. Generally, I know; Brother Luo told me."
"So you two really have gotten that close. It seems my instincts were right; I believe he has noticed as well. Zhenzhen, you know about the Ghost Fire Five Poisons Curse, right?"
I nodded. A wave of bitterness surged in my heart. My autumn had been marred by this curse, leaving me severely injured and away from him for two years.
"At that moment, Ren Pingsheng had three opportunities, but he didn't seize a single one. If he had wanted to, with his strength, he could have easily catalyzed the Ghost Fire Five Poisons Pill before I could drag him off the cliff. But he didn't. If he had wanted to, even if it meant risking my life to push him off the cliff, it wouldn't have been that easy, yet he hardly resisted. Most importantly, I used all my power to try to neutralize the Ghost Fire Five Poisons Pill, but my strength was insufficient. He could have escaped unscathed, but suddenly he exerted himself and joined forces with me to neutralize the Ghost Fire Five Poisons Pill. This caused him significant harm as well, so when you see him, perhaps his injuries haven't healed yet."
I was taken aback. It turned out that so much had happened in that brief moment when they fell off the cliff. Ren Pingsheng had never mentioned any of this to me.
"You searched the mountain and should have found a lot of bloodstains below; those are from both of us. We lost a lot of blood at that time and were not fully conscious, but instinctively knew we had to hide our traces to avoid being found by the Mirror Gate. So we struggled and separated to hide. I didn't expect to wander so far and ended up in the woods fifty miles south of Luoyang City, where I fell unconscious and lost my memory. As for where Ren Pingsheng went, I'm not sure."
It suddenly dawned on me. The amount of bloodstains down the mountain, by my estimation, exceeded fifty percent of a normal male's total blood volume. Even for a martial arts master, losing that much blood would have led to shock long ago. My hope at that time was that Nie Qiuyuan was not an ordinary person and might survive, but this blood had been a thorn in my heart for two years.
That time, Ren Pingsheng claimed the blood at the bottom of the valley was his, using it to convince me that Qiu had perished completely. Yet it was this volume of blood that made it impossible for me to believe him. It turned out it wasn't just one person's blood; it was two people's. Who would have thought that these two mortal enemies would cooperate after falling into the valley?
"But... why?"
Qiu gazed at me with eyes as deep as the night sky.
"Zhenzhen, it's all because of you."
"Because... of me?"
"Because of my feelings for him; you were here. If the Ghost Fire Five Poisons Curse activated, even if we were lucky enough to survive with our lives, you wouldn't make it out alive either. Ren Pingsheng hinted to me that if he didn't activate the Ghost Fire Five Poisons Curse, Rong Fu would kill you anyway. So I hinted back at him that Rong Fu's spies were watching nearby; the best solution was for us to perish together."
I couldn't help but exclaim in surprise; it turned out things weren't as simple as I imagined? It wasn't that Qiu sacrificed himself to save innocent lives by dragging Ren Pingsheng off the cliff; rather... Ren Pingsheng was cooperating?
"As I anticipated, Ren Pingsheng indeed did not truly resist and was pushed off the cliff by me. I snatched the Ghost Fire Five Poisons Pill from him, but its catalysis was already halfway complete and could erupt at any moment. Even if it exploded at the bottom of the cliff, it would still take your life, so I began to exert all my strength to try and burn away the Ghost Fire Five Poisons Pill."
"But I never expected this thing to be so powerful. I almost used all my internal energy, yet it was still not enough to burn it away; instead, it accelerated its catalysis. In my heart, I was extremely anxious because I was keeping my promise to you. No matter what, I would adhere to the bottom line of valuing my own life. But at this moment, that was no longer possible. My actions could not be controlled by reason; all that remained in my heart was the desire to protect you from harm."
"For a long time, I felt that deep within my Dantian, there was an unknown power sealed away, incredibly dangerous yet unfathomable. I didn't know what it was, but my instincts told me it was something I could not control or harness, something that should never be touched lightly. However, at this moment, I couldn't care less about that. I began to attempt to mobilize and borrow this power, hoping it would help me resolve this crisis and keep you safe."
"Zhenzhen, don't laugh at me. At that moment, I wasn't thinking about common people; all I wanted was for you to be safe. But just as I started to tap into that power, Ren Pingsheng suddenly made his move."
"My internal energy is of fire. His is of wind, perhaps even a trickster's touch. Our energies combined surprisingly well. In the end, we managed to suppress the explosion of the Ghost Fire Five Poisons Pill and completely incinerate it. However, our bodies suffered immense shock; like me, his organs were severely injured, and he nearly exhausted all his internal energy."
"Zhenzhen," Qiu looked at me, "this is because he knows in his heart that if he doesn't act, you might die."
I didn't know what to say; there were so many things I simply didn't understand.
"Zhenzhen, he took you away and told you I was dead, didn't he?"
"Yes."
"And the fact that I'm not dead is also something he told you, right?"
"Huh? How do you know everything!"
Nie Qiuyuan gave a bitter smile and said, "So when it comes to men’s thoughts, perhaps only men can truly understand them. Now you can see why I'll accompany you to find him—sincerely."
My heart felt relieved, but there was one question that puzzled me endlessly.
"Qiu, how capable is Ren Pingsheng?"
"Very strong."
"How does he compare to you?"
"Zhenzhen, what are you doing? Why are you comparing me to him?"
"Don't be childish, I'm asking you."
"Well, how can I answer that? I can't possibly be worse than him in front of you. Let's just say we're about the same..."
"...What are you thinking! I mean, if you can survive and even reverse Mirror Gate, then surely he can too, right?"
This time, Nie Qiuyuan fell silent for a moment.
"Dark One was killed by Rong Fu, so I have an irreconcilable hatred towards Rong Fu. No matter what happens, I can never stay in Mirror Gate again; Rong Fu won't allow it. But Ren Pingsheng doesn't have such a reason. You know the price I paid to leave; it's not that easy to escape. Moreover, for someone like him, who has no attachments and is filled with resentment towards the world, killing might even be a source of joy."
"But he clearly doesn't want to return to Mirror Gate now. After leaving, he seemed so happy..."
Qiu let out a soft sigh.
"After all this time, there's something I suspect you've figured out too: who it was that killed Da Chun's brother Sikong Han, and who the master of the Medicine King Pavilion is."
I nodded; truly, he was my idol, and communication was so effortless!
"Have you figured out why, with so many opportunities, he didn't kill you?" At this, Qiu's eyes were filled with anger and fear.
"I know! It's because Rong Fu is actually... the master of Ye Liuhui!"
"Oh? I can't believe I didn't think of that!"
"Ah, you didn't think of it? Then what were you thinking..."
"Zhenzhen, do you think Rong Fu spared your life out of nostalgia for their past master-disciple relationship? You're wrong. Rong Fu is not that kind of person. Even if Liuying saved his life back then, he wouldn't hesitate to kill when the time comes. The reason he didn't kill you must be because your life still holds some value for him, something useful."
"My life... why?"
"Do you really think that with Ren Pingsheng's character, he would willingly go to the top of Baiyun Peak to harm himself as a trigger for the Ghost Fire Five Poisons Curse? Why do you think he is still willing to stay at Mirror Gate, serving Rong Fu?"
I gradually opened my mouth in astonishment; I was truly shocked.
"Zhenzhen, because if he leaves Mirror Gate, he might escape, but if Rong Fu wants to kill you, there’s no way for you to escape. That is the value of your life." (To be continued)
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