After Redeeming The Beautiful and Tragic Heroine [Transmigration] - Chapter 19

Elder Qin froze in place.

The four people behind him quickly stepped forward to investigate.

In the first compartment, the City Lord lay in the corner, his eyes wide open. His mouth was stuffed with a long, white silk ribbon, part of which was piled on his ample stomach.

Moreover, the City Lord’s lower body was covered in blood, looking as if he had been cut in half at the waist.

In the second compartment, the City Lord’s wife was hung by a hemp rope, her body covered in cuts that looked like they had been made by a small knife, constantly dripping blood.

In the last compartment, the Young City Lord was dressed in wedding attire and covered in gold ornaments, though it was unclear how he had died.

After inspecting all the compartments, even Xue Qingshu looked a little surprised.

She examined the three corpses, each with a different appearance, and judged: “Aside from the City Lord and his wife, the Young City Lord looks like he was scared to death.”

Yu Yuan stood beside her, swallowing hard, murmuring inwardly, She’s about to be scared to death, too.

Behind them, Qin Niang looked utterly distraught.

Tears blurred her eyes as she looked at the City Lord lying on the floor, softly sobbing and asking Elder Qin: “Uncle Qin, my father… how could my father look like this?”

Elder Qin still hadn’t recovered.

He stared blankly at the people in the compartments, stammering his reply to Qin Niang: “T-this old man doesn’t know either.”

Silence fell over the four.

It was Wei Haoran, surprisingly, who appeared the most composed among them—if one ignored his sweat-drenched clothes.

After a long pause, he regained his composure, walked over to Xue Qingshu’s side, and suggested: “Immortal Lord, the most urgent task now is to find the Shadow Corpses’ true body and deal with the ones outside. We should leave these three for now.”

Since the City Lord’s family was thoroughly dead, the outer disciples who came out this time as ‘atmosphere organizers’ certainly wouldn’t be getting paid.

So, after a moment of heartache, he comforted himself: No reward is fine. I have to keep my life.

This led to his earlier suggestion.

To his surprise, Elder Qin interjected: “The Shadow Corpses’ true body is the City Lord…”

Wei Haoran: !

Why didn’t you say so sooner!

He, too, fell silent.

The City Lord’s death meant that the Shadow Corpses outside could not be recalled.

Yu Yuan’s heart sank at the thought. The images of those Shadow Corpses flashed in her mind, and she felt a momentary despair: “So, we have no choice but to fight our way out now?”

Xue Qingshu looked sideways at Yu Yuan: “Exactly.”

Yu Yuan: …

She was silent for a moment, then turned her back to the compartments and asked Elder Qin: “Can Shadow Corpses get in here?”

Elder Qin glanced at Yu Yuan and shook his head.

Yu Yuan stated bluntly: “If that’s the case, we should just cultivate here for a hundred or so years. It won’t be too late to go out once we’re strong enough.”

As a master of ten-level slacking, Yu Yuan secretly felt relieved: It’s a good thing I learned to abstain from food early, or I’d probably starve to death in this Brahma Illusion.

Also, she looked at Wei Haoran, who caused the heroine’s downfall, and her villainous master, and thought: If I trap these two here for a hundred years, the major plot would pass, and the heroine shouldn’t become a villain.

Yu Yuan’s mental abacus was clanging loudly.

Xue Qingshu smiled helplessly but agreed with her: “That is one method.”

The three people who had not achieved abstention from food: !

That was certainly not a good method for them.

Especially for Qin Niang.

She wasn’t a cultivator to begin with, and her body was covered in injuries.

If she stayed in this secret room for a hundred years, her bones would probably turn to dust.

So, after hearing Yu Yuan’s idea, she quickly asked Elder Qin: “Uncle Qin, besides having my father recall the Shadow Corpses, is there any other way to deal with the Shadow Corpses outside?”

“Hmm… well,” Elder Qin stroked his beard. “There is indeed one other method.”

He paused here, looking at Yu Yuan and Xue Qingshu to gauge their reaction.

However, the two of them were busy looking at the long cabinets used to store the Shadow Corpses.

Elder Qin: …

His lips pursed into a thin line, and the hand stroking his beard immediately felt awkward.

Since the two of them weren’t paying attention, he had no heart to continue.

But he wouldn’t speak, and Wei Haoran, waiting for the rest of the story, grew anxious.

“Elder Qin, hurry up and tell us, what is the other way?”

Wei Haoran certainly didn’t want to starve to death in this shabby secret room. He was still waiting for the day he would ascend to immortality.

Elder Qin squinted at Wei Haoran, slightly curling his lip, mentally evaluating him: A clueless junior.

Clueless as he might be, he figured the young man had a good face, suggesting he was destined for a good life.

So, Elder Qin continued: “Since you know that Shadow Corpses have a true body, you must also know about the Original Shadow Corpses.”

He posed the question without expecting anyone to answer.

Yet, a voice suddenly interrupted him: “What is an Original Shadow Corpse?”

Elder Qin: …

He looked at Wei Haoran, who had missed Xue Qingshu’s mini-lecture on Shadow Corpses, and dearly wanted to give him a sharp rap on the head.

“The Original Shadow Corpses are the first generation of Shadow Corpses produced by the true body.”

He was forced to explain to Wei Haoran first.

Then he continued with the main topic: “The City Lord created ten Original Shadow Corpses. Besides assimilating people into their own kind, they also replicate themselves every so often.”

“And the Shadow Corpses they replicate are called duplicates.”

“The duplicates have a close connection with the Original Shadow Corpses. Therefore, by eliminating these ten duplicates, you can also clear out all the Shadow Corpses.”

Yu Yuan, standing in front of the long cabinets and staring at them, was deep in thought.

Beside her, Xue Qingshu’s gaze was fixed on her.

Neither of them spoke.

On the other side, Wei Haoran pressed Elder Qin: “What’s the difference between these Original Shadow Corpses and the others?”

Elder Qin considered for a moment, then replied: “After sunset, they don’t disappear like common Shadow Corpses. They remain active, just as they are in daylight.”

Wei Haoran understood, nodding his response to Elder Qin, and then looked at the two women still standing in front of the long cabinets.

“Immortal Lord, Young Sect Master—”

He wanted to ask for their opinion, but before he could finish, Yu Yuan spoke first, asking Elder Qin: “The duplicates can be dealt with this way, but what about the people who were assimilated?”

Those people are innocent; is there really no saving them?

Yu Yuan felt a little depressed thinking about it.

But Elder Qin, sensing the emotion in Yu Yuan’s voice, spoke with indifference and apathy: “The Original Shadow Corpses and those assimilated are also inseparable. One rises with glory, and one is damaged by loss.” (i.e., when the Original is destroyed, the assimilated are too).

Yu Yuan had nothing more to say.

Xue Qingshu remained silent.

As for Wei Haoran, he didn’t dare speak due to Xue Qingshu’s warning glare.

Qin Niang and Elder Qin were silent too, not saying a word if the others didn’t.

After a long stalemate, it was Yu Yuan who finally broke the silence: “Forget it, forget it. If we have to go out now, we’ll go out now.”

Yu Yuan had realized the truth.

Burying her head in the sand was not a long-term solution.

After all, the other disciples of the Miaoyin Sect were still outside. If they were assimilated into Shadow Corpses, she, as the Young Sect Master, would have failed in her duty.

Furthermore, Yu Yuan glanced sideways at the shaky Qin Niang, knowing the other woman couldn’t stay here much longer.

Finally, and most importantly, Yu Yuan told herself: Father and the others don’t even know I left the Miaoyin Sect. I can’t let them worry.

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