After Infusing Love Poison to the Cold Sword Sovereign - Chapter 53

Distant footsteps echoed from the stairwell, growing steadily louder likely Xinglin Sect disciples returning to their rooms.

There was no time left.

“Forgive my intrusion.”

Wu Nuo gathered her spiritual energy, concentrating it at her fingertips, and gave a forceful push against the door to Spring Grass’s room.

Inside, the luggage lay on the floor, still unopened. The bedding was pristine, without a single wrinkle.

It was as if Spring Grass had never stayed in the room at all.

The window was half-open, just wide enough for someone to slip through. Wu Nuo rushed to the window, braced her hand on the frame, and with a slight push, flipped out and landed steadily on the ground!

She glanced around she was in the backyard of the guesthouse. A small gate stood ajar, and muddy footprints, still damp, dotted the ground.

The gate creaked, and a hooded figure seemed to flash by, the hem of their robe embroidered with bamboo patterns.

“Spring Grass!” Wu Nuo called out urgently, but the figure paid no heed, not even daring to look back, scurrying away as if fleeing for their life.

Watching the figure she had finally caught up with vanish once more, Wu Nuo leaned against the wall, took a deep breath, then rolled up her sleeves and strode purposefully after the rapidly retreating shadow.

She refused to believe she couldn’t catch up!

One street, two alleys, three paths drawing closer and closer.

The route seemed to lead toward the Wish-Granting Temple.

As the desolate mountain where the red temple stood grew nearer, traces of demonic energy drifted faintly in the air. Passing by a dilapidated shack, Wu Nuo finally intercepted the figure from the front, manifesting a gentle yet solid barrier of spiritual energy to block its path.

“Spring Grass! You!”

The hood slowly fell back, revealing a face rigid and wooden.

The features were sketched in dark brown ink, crisscrossed with needle marks and scratches. Several large red acupoints and thick black meridian lines ran from the neck downward, disappearing beneath the tightly fastened robe.

It wasn’t Spring Grass, but a medical cultivator’s wooden model.

“What are you? Why are you running?” Wu Nuo frowned, forming a defensive sword seal with two fingers while her other hand hovered over her Qiankun pouch, ready to escape if the figure attacked.

Unexpectedly, the wooden model seemed to find a savior. Its mouth opened mechanically, and a dark brown centipede crawled out, making its way onto Wu Nuo’s hand, as if testing her aura with its legs.

It was a familiar Miaojiang gu technique using gu insects to control a wooden puppet, allowing it to move freely and appear human from a distance. With greater skill, the puppet could even temporarily carry its master’s will.

Back then, Spring Grass had been so inconsistent in her training, skipping more than she practiced. And now, she had mastered such a difficult gu technique?

A pang of emotion stirred in Wu Nuo’s heart as she gently stroked the centipede’s legs. But the next moment, the wooden puppet emitted a sharp cracking sound and collapsed to its knees with a thud.

“Teacher.” The puppet’s voice was stiff and monotone, yet Wu Nuo seemed to hear Spring Grass’s plea in its flat, lifeless tone.

Thud.

The puppet’s head struck the ground. Its stiff limbs assumed a kneeling posture, bowing reverently and solemnly to Wu Nuo, performing a full ceremonial bow of respect to a master.

Miaojiang did not advocate for such intricate and trivial etiquette, but Xinglin Sect, which upheld the reverence for teachers and education as its moral principle, placed the greatest emphasis on rituals honoring heaven, earth, parents, and teachers.

Perhaps during her time in Xinglin Sect, Spring Grass had grown accustomed to this respect for teachers and tradition, and…

“Spring Grass.”

Wu Ruo slowly crouched down and gently lifted the wooden puppet as if it were a real person.

The wooden puppet hung its head, not daring to look at Wu Ruo. Like a living being, it timidly lowered its head, resembling a well-behaved child afraid to face their teacher.

“Spring Grass, you never forgot me. You still regard me as your teacher, don’t you?”

She gazed quietly at the wooden puppet before her, finding it hard to believe, yet feeling a warm sweetness flowing through her heart.

Puppets never lie. Even if their masters might deceive, puppets, driven by instinct, only follow the commands rooted in their masters’ hearts.

The wooden puppet did not respond. The centipede crawled back into its mouth, and with a click, its jaw snapped shut.

“Save!” it uttered a mechanical word, “Master mountain, save.”

“What?” Wu Ruo grew alert. “Are you saying Spring Grass is in danger?”

“Master just went out danger. Demonic energy intrusion.”

“You mean, you ran out earlier not to avoid me, but because Spring Grass was in danger, and your instincts drove you to go to the Red Temple?”

The puppet repeated mechanically, its spring-mounted head bobbing slightly up and down. “Master, danger, demonic energy.”

“Was Spring Grass captured by demonic cultivators?”

The puppet nodded, then shook its head.

“Could it be?” Wu Ruo looked toward the desolate mountain not far away, where several demonic cultivators with sinister grins walked past the stream at the foot of the mountain, using the clear water to wash the blood from their faces.

Yet, she was only a few steps away from these demonic cultivators, and these oblivious fools hadn’t noticed her at all.

She speculated, “Spring Grass wasn’t captured but went up the mountain to the Red Temple on her own. However, she was caught by demonic cultivators, and now, with demonic energy invading her, her life is in danger. That’s why you rushed out to save your master, right?”

The wooden puppet’s head bobbed back and forth again, saying, “Red Temple.”

That was confirmation.

What should she do? Spring Grass was held by demonic cultivators, her life in peril. But the demonic cultivators were numerous and powerful, with countless experts among them. Breaking through their blockade to rescue Spring Grass seemed as difficult as scaling the heavens.

Wu Ruo watched the puppet pacing in place, as if frantic with worry. Unconsciously, she touched the message paper crane in her pocket. If she sought Luo Qingyi’s help.

But they had just argued. She had even spoken harsh words.

Moreover, it seemed Luo Qingyi’s cultivation hadn’t recovered after extracting the Dao Bone, making it impossible for her to take on a hundred enemies alone. Wu Ruo’s stubborn obsession would only burden Luo Qingyi, even endanger her life.

Luo Qingyi should be at the guesthouse now. She wasn’t particularly remarkable, and during this time, Wu Ruo had been troubling her constantly. Ever since meeting Jin Ruyun, Luo Qingyi had already done so much for her.

She had even stooped to placate a troublesome person like Jin Hua.

Truly, she had caused Luo Qingyi a lot of trouble, and in the end, she had exploded over a trivial matter and argued with her. With a partner like her, Luo Qingyi.

Forget it.

She gave a bitter smile and rubbed the paper crane’s head, no longer infusing it with spiritual power. Instead, she took out a Disguise Pill, recalling the appearance of the demonic cultivator she had encountered by the roadside the day before, and slowly swallowed it.

When it came to infiltration techniques, she was fairly skilled.

She admitted that ever since she had learned about the events of the past, she had grown increasingly confused perplexed by her own history, uncertain about the future, and questioning why Luo Qingyi had so persistently chosen her.

Even if their fates were tied by the Love Gu, the gap between her and Luo Qingyi was as vast as a thousand mountains. She stood at the foot of one mountain, surrounded by bustling crowds, while Luo Qingyi resided at the peak, shrouded in mist and clouds.

As a remnant survivor from Miaojiang, she was simply no match for the radiant and esteemed Immortal Luo. She could admit that openly, what was so difficult about it? The earlier outburst of anger was likely directed at Luo Qingyi’s poor judgment, stubbornly fixating on her, a lost cause.

So this time, it was her own affair. She wouldn’t trouble Luo Qingyi with it.

She patted the wooden puppet. “Are you coming with me, or heading back first to take care of those junior medical cultivators in place of Spring Grass?”

Perhaps sensing that Wu Ruo was going to assist, the wooden puppet remained quiet. “I’ll go.”

“Alright.”

Wu Ruo stored the puppet in her Qiankun pouch and slipped silently out from behind the small house, following the group of demonic cultivators as they slowly made their way up the mountain.

She kept her head lowered, her hands, feet, and body still her own. But to outsiders, she appeared as the demonic cultivator who had been killed by Jiang Qingbei the day before.

“Hey!”

After walking for a while, one of the demonic cultivators ahead turned around as if searching for something and caught sight of Wu Ruo from the corner of his eye. “Sneaking around, what are you? Oh, Lao Liu, where’d you go yesterday?”

It seemed this identity had acquaintances.

Wu Ruo recalled the subtle expressions of the demonic cultivator from the day before and winked at the man. “Went out to have some fun.”

“You went to have fun without your brothers?! Damn it, screw you!”

Listening to the vulgar language, Wu Ruo inwardly frowned but kept up the cheerful banter on the surface. “I was just scouting the way. I’ll take you guys along tomorrow.”

“You’re messing with us, aren’t you? That damned woman already said the temple’s been moved. The mission’s done, and who knows what she’s really up to. Anyway, we’re heading back early tomorrow!”

The Red Temple had already been relocated through spatial transference?

Suppressing the panic in her heart, Wu Ruo steadied herself and calmly asked, “Bro, what’s going on? Are we returning to the main sect?”

Recalling Luo Qingyi’s description that the Demon Sect’s Right Envoy had two faces she pointed to both sides of her face. The other man slapped her on the back, nearly injuring her internally.

“Dream on! A fool like you wants to enter the main sect? You should be grateful to return to your original branch! Damn it, I heard from Lao Er that the damned woman just captured some woman, said to be really beautiful. Wonder who she’ll reward her to.”

Spring Grass!

Wu Ruo remained composed, pretending to be lecherous. “Wow! How beautiful is she? Where is she?”

Before she could finish, she was slapped on the back again. The man glared at her, his expression instantly turning hostile. “Screw you! A toad like you still dreams of feasting on swan meat!”

“Bro, big brother, just tell me. You’re so capable, you’ll definitely enter the main sect this time. I just want a look, I won’t get any ideas.”

Under her flattery, the demonic cultivator seemed especially smug. He slapped one of his underlings and boasted loudly, “She was taken away by that damned woman long ago. Probably already at the headquarters!”

“Gone?” Wu Ruo widened her eyes, watching the dark mass of demonic cultivators approaching. Some were muttering curses, complaining that this lousy mission had yielded no rewards; others were bragging, while a few wore satisfied smiles, wiping blood from their lips.

Without another word, she quietly slipped into the ranks behind the demonic cultivator who had spoken earlier.

From the conversations around her, Wu Ruo pieced together the situation. It was said that the Red Shrine carried the remnant soul of the Demon Lord, and the demonic cultivators’ goal was to relocate it into the demon realm.

Currently, the Right Envoy had already used spatial transference to move the mountaintop where the Red Shrine stood to the demon sect’s headquarters. She had left first with a captured medical cultivator, while the rest of the demon army slowly retreated under the command of the guardians.

After walking for a long time, Wu Ruo spotted Lan Ting walking slightly apart from the crowd.

The girl was still clad in a few light layers of gauze, holding a small cup delicately in her slender fingers as she leisurely sipped a wine-red drink. Her gaze swept over the demonic cultivators like a supervisor’s.

Suddenly, her eyes fixed on Wu Ruo. Her crimson lips pressed into a thin line, and her brows furrowed deeply.

“You,” Lan Ting said coldly. “Step forward.”

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