The Immortal Lord Always Pretends To Be Affectionate Towards Me - Chapter 6

He had seen that old man carving the cave.

They had arrived in the cave out of thin air. Yu Zaixi did not understand how it happened, but he had looked up and caught a glimpse of a blurry figure on the other side of the cave. He was accustomed to observing with his own eyes, only using spiritual energy when he could not see clearly, but the old man’s movements were incredibly swift; he had vanished before Yu Zaixi could react.

Yu Zaixi turned back to the others and discovered they had all fallen under some form of illusion. They were in a state between dreaming and waking, a spell even Jiang Yan had been unable to avoid. Yu Zaixi had waited on the sidelines, but before he could finish exploring the cave, he too had slipped into an illusion. When he finally came to, he was back in that situation.

During the few seconds he locked eyes with Jiang Yan, Yu Zaixi rapidly recalled the events. He had not seen the old man clearly and certainly did not recognize him. Feeling slightly more at ease with this thought, he glared coldly at Jiang Yan. To prevent his composure from crumbling under Jiang Yan’s direct, questioning gaze, Yu Zaixi decided to strike first.

“If I walked in here while awake, why can I not tell you anything about it?”

Yu Zaixi was slightly annoyed, though mostly worried. He had a piece of something that had fallen off that old man tucked at his waist. It had nothing to do with exiting the cave, but he dared not let anyone present know about it.

Jiang Yan narrowed his eyes, the mockery in his gaze seemingly laughing at Yu Zaixi’s ignorance, but he did not expose him. He turned and sat on a rocky protrusion in the corner.

Yu Zaixi was left at a loss. He stared at Jiang Yan, unable to comprehend his intentions. “Why are you not saying it was me anymore? What exactly do you want? Is someone at the Mahayana stage really this childish?”

Qin Nai glanced between the two before grabbing Yu Zaixi’s arm. “Little Yu, let us focus on how to get out. Being trapped here is not an option.”

Yu Zaixi pointed forward. “If even he has no way out, how could I?”

He despised Jiang Yan, so every word he spoke was a targeted jab. He knew being at the Mahayana stage did not guarantee the solution to every problem, but he said it anyway, purely to be insufferable.

The cave was small, barely large enough for two people to practice sword forms. If the old man had truly carved this out by hand, he was either insane or a fool. That was Yu Zaixi’s assessment.

The four of them sat in pairs. Qin Nai began by drawing talismans to ensure their safety from any sudden attacks, then turned to discuss the situation with Yu Zaixi.

“I have never heard of such a thing. It is as if we are not trapped in a cave, but in a separate space. There must be an eye for the formation, but none of us can find it.”

Yu Zaixi nodded and remarked offhandedly, “Are you not skilled in these things? Why do you not find it?”

Qin Nai gave a bitter, embarrassed laugh. “I have searched for a long time and found nothing.”

Yu Zaixi leaned languidly against the cave wall and looked at him. “Do they destroy a person’s cultivation when they expel them from the Wufeng Tower?”

Qin Nai froze, then hurriedly shook his head. “Perhaps it is not a formation?”

Yu Zaixi watched him. Seeing the sincerity on Qin Nai’s face, he felt a pang of pity. He leaned in closer and whispered, low enough that the other two would hear but keeping his volume controlled: “We are still in an illusion.”

Qin Nai frowned. “How could two illusions be stacked on top of each other? That is impossible!”

Yu Zaixi pulled his head back. “There is no other explanation, is there? Decide for yourself: do you trust me, or your own judgment? Or do you trust those two who have circled the place ten times and found nothing?”

Qin Nai thought about it very seriously for a moment before turning toward Jiang Yan with a grave expression. “Brother Jiang, what do you think?”

At first, Yu Zaixi had thought Qin Nai was a smart man, given his refined appearance. Then again, Yu Zaixi was not particularly bright himself, otherwise, he would not have discovered it was an illusion only after confronting Jiang Yan.

Jiang Yan seemed not to have realized it either, as he looked up at Yu Zaixi. Yu Zaixi calmly shifted his gaze away, pretending he had not noticed; he offered no explanation and took no stance. He did not mind wasting time. He did not care about the wolf-tiger beast or Qin Nai’s master; he would be content to stay in this illusion forever. As long as Jiang Yan was unhappy, Yu Zaixi was satisfied.

Yu Zaixi smoothed the wrinkles on his sleeves. The high-quality fabric, embroidered with pure gold thread, was getting dirty in this cave. He regretted not wearing the black outfit instead. The young master sighed silently for his clothes, completely oblivious to the danger approaching.

The consequence of being too indifferent was slipping silently into yet another illusion. He opened his eyes to see Jiang Yan drawing his sword to strike him.

It was still Yuan Qi’s perspective. The timing was hard to judge, but they were on Wushang Peak. The plum blossoms had not yet bloomed, and the mountain was a sea of monotonous green. Yuan Qi moved quickly, stepping backward to dodge, but every strike from Jiang Yan was filled with killing intent. Yuan Qi was soon overwhelmed, his improvised plum-branch sword knocked away.

The next strike was aimed straight at his face. It was a lethal move, yet Yuan Qi did not dodge.

“Jiang Yan!” he shouted in a low voice.

Jiang Yan stopped in mid-air, the tip of his sword pressed nearly against the skin. Both men’s faces were like cold frost. Their eyes met, and Yuan Qi chose to look away first.

“I want to descend the mountain.”

He spat out these four words with great difficulty. The moment he finished, his shoulders slumped, leaving only his spine—stubbornly refusing to bend—to support his crumbling form. Jiang Yan stared at him for a long time, nearly frozen in place. His gaze was complex, but his killing intent remained undiminished.

“You must die.”

“I will send you on your way.”

Those were Jiang Yan’s two answers.

Yuan Qi’s mouth twitched, whether in a smile or a sneer, and he weakly lifted his chin. “Many thanks.”

Before the sound faded, the Wushang sword shifted, piercing through his heart. Jiang Yan was swift; he did not intend to give Yuan Qi a chance to dodge. Yuan Qi only shifted less than half an inch. The long sword thrust out from his back, and blood dripped from the blade, staining the ground. Wushang Peak had no flowers in mid-summer; Yuan Qi’s blood was the most vivid sight on the mountain.

Yuan Qi looked down at the sword, then up at Jiang Yan. His eyes were blood-red, as if he had gone insane. His hair danced in the wind, trembling with him, and his face quickly drained of color.

“Could you not just let me die on my own?”

Perhaps knowing he was dying, Yuan Qi’s suppressed personality returned. He was once again the hot-tempered swordsman trailing after his senior brother, ready to snap at anyone he disliked.

“You promised to send me on my way. Could you not wait until I had left the sect before killing me?”

Yuan Qi let out a cackle, gasping for air. Jiang Yan did not give him a chance to finish. He pulled the sword out with decisive, clean movements, as if he were simply dealing with the most mundane of demons.

Yuan Qi collapsed, blood gushing from his chest, still laughing in his final moments as if he found the entire situation absurd. Yu Zaixi could not leave the illusion after his death. Instead, his perspective shifted, looking down from above as Jiang Yan scooped up Yuan Qi’s corpse.

Yu Zaixi stared at the face that was identical to his own, feeling a bitter sensation in his heart. When he had climbed out of the Buer Prison and discovered this body looked exactly like his own, he had been shocked for a long time. He had even wondered if he was a version of Yuan Qi from a parallel world, though he could never confirm it. Now, seeing Jiang Yan carry that pale “self” into a cultivation chamber filled him with an indescribable sadness. He could not name the cause; perhaps seeing the same face had triggered a sense of pity.

Having watched it all, he could guess the truth. This was after Yuan Qi had become possessed; Jiang Yan was killing him to ensure he would not harm others.

Jiang Yan was truly ruthless.

Yu Zaixi clicked his tongue, but before he could reflect further, he realized he could move within this perspective. He wanted to sneak in and see why Jiang Yan had brought the body there. But before he could reach the spot, the space in front of him cracked. A slender, powerful hand tore the space open, and Jiang Yan’s freezing-cold face gradually emerged from behind the void.

Yu Zaixi clicked his tongue again. Look at this Mahayana-stage power; he could literally tear through illusions. But what was Jiang Yan afraid of? He had not allowed him to finish either illusion.

Every time he was about to do something to Yuan Qi, Yu Zaixi would force a smile and nod at Jiang Yan, though his curiosity only burned hotter.

“Immortal Venerable, there was really no need to save me like this. I likely could have found my way out just by wandering around,” Yu Zaixi said, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

Behind Jiang Yan, Miao Pei peered into the illusion. After seeing where they were, he was so terrified he immediately retracted his head.

Jiang Yan tore the illusion open just wide enough for a person to pass through and said coldly to Yu Zaixi, “Come out.”

Yu Zaixi walked out with his arms crossed, smiling at Qin Nai. “I still did not see that old man who carved the cave. Is my constitution just special?”

Once he was out, Jiang Yan shattered the illusion. Without waiting for the others, he summoned the Wushang sword and sliced through the mountain cave—which had no exit—with a single strike.

The Wushang sword intent was icy. Although it intentionally avoided them, Yu Zaixi still felt a buzzing in his brain, and several old wounds flared in pain. He quickly steadied himself by grabbing Qin Nai’s shoulder. Qin Nai caught him as he felt the weight. Two breaths later, the upper half of the mountain began to tilt, sliced open by the Wushang strike, and started to crumble downward.

Miao Pei carefully guarded the Divine Bone Candle. No one knew what the situation was outside, and the candle could not be extinguished, or they would be in trouble.

Yu Zaixi looked up as Jiang Yan sheathed his sword. He only saw a change in the dim light, but this time he had activated his spiritual energy in advance, allowing him to see the scene with perfect clarity. Before he could process the information, the spiritual energy in his body suddenly shifted. Yu Zaixi was stunned. He summoned his blade, slashed through the slowly shifting mountain, and activated a formation to escape.

In the blink of an eye, Qin Nai drew a talisman in the air with his jade brush. The talisman materialized, blocking the cascading rocks and protecting both him and Miao Pei.

After another heartbeat, the illusion finally gave way and dissipated into the night. The two of them looked up; they were back at the foot of the Western Mountain.

The other two were nowhere to be found.