After Saving the Immortal Sect, I Became a Heartthrob - Chapter 25

[Recommended Background Music: Ruomeng (Like a Dream)]

Little Junior Brother!

Even knowing that he could not change even a fraction of the events that had already occurred, Gu Congxing still could not help but rush forward.

Xiao Wangyou’s long sword pierced into Zhong Ming’s right arm, blood immediately flowing like a torrential river.

“Don’t move! If you want to successfully pass through the bloodline awakening period, you must shed blood!”

Facing the struggling Zhong Ming, Xiao Wangyou straightened up, chanting a mantra rapidly. A crimson-gold spiritual wave, shaped like a fire phoenix, emerged from his left hand.

He placed his left hand atop Zhong Ming’s head, his spiritual power slowly infusing into Zhong Ming’s body like water, causing golden spiritual markings to surge across his skin.

As Xiao Wangyou’s spiritual power poured in, Zhong Ming’s black scales gradually faded, and the dragon horns that had sprouted from his forehead vanished without a trace.

Half an hour later, Zhong Ming’s vertical pupils had returned to normal. He stared at Xiao Wangyou for a long time, eyes seemingly both observant and scrutinizing, his voice raspy and hoarse.

“…Thank you.”

After the exertion of channeling his power, cold sweat seeped from Xiao Wangyou’s forehead. He retracted his left hand, a few flashes of sharp light crossing his eyes as he gazed into Zhong Ming’s pupils.

Seeing Xiao Wangyou’s expression, Gu Congxing knew he was plotting something again, and the sense of foreboding in his heart grew heavier.

The scene before him began to change again. This time, the seasons had shifted; the time had arrived for Shen Mu’s Tribulation Transcendence.

Previously, Lan Jue had mentioned to Xiao Wangyou that there were important matters within the peak and hoped he would return to the Qianyuan Sect. Yet, Xiao Wangyou had gone so far as to tear open his own wounds just to linger at the Sword Sect.

Gu Congxing thought, It seems his scheme is about to be set in motion.

That day, the thunderclouds gathered above the Wuji Cliff suddenly split apart, as if the firmament itself had been violently torn asunder. Deep blue and purple lightning roared and flashed within, while Shen Mu stood alone on the edge of the cliff, holding his long sword, staring directly into the heavens.

Boom,

The first tribulation lightning strike crashed down. Shen Mu’s spiritual power surged, and the formation at his feet erupted with silver light.

Outside the Wuji Cliff, Lan Jue and Zhong Ming watched Shen Mu’s figure with anxious expressions. Behind them, Xiao Wangyou hid within the pitch-black night.

Gu Congxing still floated above, his gaze shifting until it locked onto Xiao Wangyou.

A fierce light flickered in his eyes. As he watched yet another tribulation bolt plummet down, the corners of his mouth slowly curled upward.

Gu Congxing’s heart sank.

Right at that moment, the winds and clouds underwent a sudden transformation!

The formation, which had been flickering with pure silver radiance, suddenly erupted with a ferocious blood-colored light, binding itself inch by inch around Shen Mu’s arms!

Shen Mu’s expression changed drastically. His spiritual power fell into chaos, and at that very moment, another Ninth Heaven Tribulation lightning bolt roared down!

“Master”

Lan Jue and Zhong Ming realized something was wrong. They rushed forward, shouting, but were blocked by a sword light from Shen Mu that kept them outside the Wuji Cliff.

“Don’t come over!! If you touch this Great Ascension Tribulation lightning, you will surely be reduced to dust!”

Shen Mu, amidst the sea of lightning, looked deathly pale, his silver hair already stained with blood!

Gu Congxing was shocked and pained. He flew closer and saw that the formation, originally meant to strengthen defensive techniques, had been forcibly altered into a formation that caused blood and qi to flow in reverse!

Without a doubt, it must have been Xiao Wangyou’s doing!

The Kong clan’s infiltration techniques were always incredibly formidable, but how had he managed to tamper with it without Master’s notice!

Gu Congxing looked at that black-red blood light and suddenly detected the aura of demonic energy.

So that’s it! The change was laced with Little Junior Brother’s blood!

Master always trusted his disciples deeply and would even personally impart techniques to them, frequently letting them assist in drawing the seal formations. Even if he had noticed a change in the formation, he would only have assumed it was Little Junior Brother coming to reinforce it!

Not to mention, the changes Xiao Wangyou made were extremely subtle, appearing as if they were indeed for reinforcement. Had it not been for the demonic energy within the blood being excited by the tribulation lightning, the formation would never have been able to reverse into a deadly trap!

Damn it!

This man, Xiao Wangyou, is truly treacherous to this extent!

Blue-purple lightning rolled down, striking that figure—which should have been pure and untainted—blow after blow, a sight that made one’s heart tremble.

Gu Congxing’s heart plummeted alongside the white light before him.

Until all eighty-one celestial lightning strikes had fallen, Shen Mu’s white robes were already soaked in blood. He coughed up a mouthful of blood and knelt on the ground on one knee, gripping his sword.

“Master!!”

Lan Jue and Zhong Ming, already frantic, flew forward to his side. But just then, several black shadows emerged above the Wuji Cliff, striking directly at Shen Mu’s Dantian!

Clang—

Lan Jue and Zhong Ming immediately raised their swords to strike back. They fought with the three black shadows, their sword intent as brilliant as a rainbow!

“Who are you people? How did you infiltrate the Qingxuan Sword Sect?!”

Lan Jue forced two of them back with a single sword strike, shouting sternly.

“It took quite a few of our clan’s Heaven-tier spiritual treasures just to get three of us inside; the barrier of this ‘World’s Number One Sect’ is indeed troublesome.”

A leisurely voice shattered the tension. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound to see Xiao Wangyou emerging from the darkness, holding a long sword.

He swept his gaze around, and when he saw the battered Shen Mu, he furrowed his brows imperceptibly. A crimson stream of light surged within his eyes, only to vanish as quickly as it had appeared.

“Xiao Wangyou?!”

“Why are you here?!”

Lan Jue and Zhong Ming exclaimed in shock simultaneously.

Shen Mu’s ice-blue eyes blinked, reflecting Xiao Wangyou’s figure.

“…It’s you.”

Xiao Wangyou stood with his sword, hatred surging in his eyes: “Correct! Shen Mu, I have come to collect a debt!”

He pointed his sword tip at Shen Mu and roared sternly: “For the lives of my Kong clan, over a hundred souls, today I will make you pay in blood!”

“Preposterous!”

Lan Jue immediately retorted: “Master has always been upright and honorable; how could he ever commit such an act! Furthermore, when the Kong clan was annihilated, Master was clearly at Zhuoguang Peak!”

Being scolded in such a shrill tone by the usually dignified Lan Jue made Xiao Wangyou’s brow twitch, followed by a scornful laugh.

“Why are you so anxious? Don’t forget, the one who brought me back to the Qingxuan Sword Sect”

“Was you, Lan Jue.”

Lan Jue’s pupils shrank; his speech faltered.

Right at that moment, a black shadow suddenly produced a Heaven-tier talisman seal and, taking advantage of everyone’s distraction, threw it to the ground—

Swish—

Black smoke rose everywhere, solidifying like a wall and completely separating Shen Mu from Lan Jue and Zhong Ming.

The sound of clashing blades rang out again. Xiao Wangyou, followed by a black-clad cultivator, walked slowly toward Shen Mu.

Shen Mu’s total defensive spiritual power had long since been shattered, and he had endured all eighty-one lightning strikes with his flesh alone. His meridians were completely destroyed, and his white robes were covered in bloodstains, no longer showing their clean original hue.

Yet, his gaze toward Xiao Wangyou remained awe-inspiring and calm.

“I am not the true killer behind the annihilation of the Kong clan.”

“Shut your mouth!!” Xiao Wangyou pointed the tip of his sword at Shen Mu’s face, interrupting him sternly, “The evidence is ironclad, yet you still refuse to admit it!”

“Hmph! Now you know, it was your own head disciple who brought me back to the Sword Sect, and your own junior disciple who provided the blood to alter the formation.”

“Shen Mu! You have already been betrayed by the disciples you cherished the most!”

Shen Mu’s expression tightened at these words. He jammed the Zhuoguang Sword into the ground and forced himself to stand up.

“Hold your tongue!”

He held his sword across his chest; even though his spiritual power fluctuations were now negligible, his sword intent remained sharp beyond compare. He struck out with his sword, aiming straight at Xiao Wangyou’s heart!

“Young Master!” The black shadow shouted, immediately raising his sword to resist, channeling spiritual power to neutralize the sword intent.

Gu Congxing, floating beside Shen Mu, was already trembling with rage. He longed to manifest physically right then and there to decapitate Xiao Wangyou and the black-clad shadow together!

Xiao Wangyou exchanged a look with the black-clad cultivator and immediately flew forward to engage Shen Mu in combat. Shen Mu’s spiritual sword moved, sweeping through a flash of blood!

“Nng—!” Xiao Wangyou cried out in pain; both his arms had been pierced by the Zhuoguang Sword!

He glared furiously at the battered Shen Mu, his eyes skimming over the golden feather sword tassel at the end of the Zhuoguang Sword, and his spiritual power surged in a violent outburst!

“Damn you, Shen Mu! You even use my clan’s Phoenix Plume as a sword ornament; you go too far!”

Upon hearing this, Shen Mu paused.

“…Phoenix Plume?”

Waves of turmoil surged through Gu Congxing’s heart. In this instant, he actually felt the urge to simply pull out of this vision.

However, even though he covered his ears, Xiao Wangyou’s voice still slipped into them, word for word.

“Even if that sword tassel has been refined and reshaped, it is still my clan’s secret treasure, the Phoenix Plume! The evidence is indisputable, yet you still refuse to admit it and persist in your stubborn resistance!”

Shen Mu’s ice-blue eyes blinked as he stared in disbelief at the golden feather on his sword.

He reached out to sense it, and his remaining spiritual power gradually dissipated. The color drained completely from his face.

His lips parted, whispering something very softly, before he squeezed his eyes shut in resignation.

Xiao Wangyou and the black-clad cultivator naturally could not hear what he said, but Gu Congxing was so close that the whisper fell into his ears as well.

Congxing.

So it was you…

In an instant, Gu Congxing’s heart shattered into pieces, and his tears flowed like a spring.

At that very moment, the black shadow shouted sternly again: “Well done, Shen Mu! Pretending to be the leader of the righteous path, while secretly slaughtering over a hundred members of the Kong clan! You are truly hypocritical to the extreme, and disgusting!”

Xiao Wangyou added: “Correct! I was a fool to think you had saved me in good faith; you only wanted to wipe us all out and seize my root bones!”

“No wonder your disciples have betrayed you one after another!”

“Shen Mu, you truly deserve to die!”

Shen Mu’s vast spiritual power had now thoroughly dissipated. His right hand gripped the Zhuoguang Sword tightly, the veins popping out on his knuckles.

Xiao Wangyou had been waiting for Shen Mu to refute him as he had done just moments ago, but he saw only that Shen Mu remained silent, two lines of blood slowly flowing from beneath his eyes.

Like blood-tears.

“…You?!”

Xiao Wangyou and the black-clad cultivator were both shocked and speechless. Right at that moment, an unfamiliar spiritual power suddenly erupted from Shen Mu, condensing into an ice-blue vine pattern.

Within that vine pattern, a six-petaled flower bloomed, solidifying from spiritual form into reality, before shattering with a bang.

At the same time, Shen Mu’s figure, which had stood as straight as a bamboo stalk, swayed and fell backward as if broken.

“Forgetfulness Vine Pattern?!” The black shadow let out an exclamation.

It was said that the Vine Pattern could absorb a cultivator’s excessive emotions, leaving their heart indifferent and peaceful. The more emotion absorbed, the more petals would bloom. Yet once it manifested into reality, it meant the Vine Pattern had been filled to overflowing with absorbed emotions.

Once the Vine Pattern shattered, one’s Dao Heart would surely cease to exist!

Xiao Wangyou furrowed his brows, dark light flickering in his eyes.

And just then, Lan Jue and Zhong Ming, who had defeated the other two shadows, also rushed over. Both had heard the words of Xiao Wangyou and the black-clad cultivator, their eyes splitting with rage.

“Master—!!”

As they cried out, Shen Mu seemed to sense them and looked up.

His ice-blue eyes were now completely crimson, no longer holding any holy luster.

He whispered: “Heaven and earth are heartless…”

“The common people are unforgiven.”

The corners of his lips curved upward in silence, seemingly both desolate and mocking, as he resolutely stepped toward the Wuji Cliff.

“Wait, Shen Mu!!!” Xiao Wangyou reached out in haste.

Lan Jue flew forward, but by then Shen Mu had already reached the edge of the cliff, leaping off without a moment’s hesitation!

His fingers brushed past the hem of Shen Mu’s robe, reaching out futilely into the air.

“No—!!” Gu Congxing floated in the air, letting out a roar that tore at his liver and gallbladder.

“Master—!!!”

Author’s Note: [Bursting into tears] I stabbed myself with my own knife. In the next chapter, Congxing will return to reality, wuwuwu. Little angels, don’t leave! The knife is in the past, and the future is still bright and brilliant!