Vindicated After a Wrongful Death - Chapter 8

Su Cansheng’s face was as pale as paper. He stood frozen, watching that cluster of ghostly fire grow dimmer and dimmer until it finally scattered into tiny sparks and vanished completely.

Jin Chuling reacted faster, leaping down almost the very instant Xiang Zhongjing fell.

Song Youqiu’s jaw nearly hit the ground. He hadn’t expected Xiang Zhongjing to be so ruthless toward himself, choosing to jump without a single word, leaving the two men without even a shred of closure.

Su Cansheng gripped his sword, his eyes staring blankly into the pitch-black abyss for a long time before he finally stumbled and fell to his knees at the edge of the cliff.

The venomous snake on Song Youqiu’s shoulder had already vanished. He cradled his small coffin, watching Su Cansheng’s grief-stricken state, and felt a secret sense of satisfaction bloom in his heart.

If you knew this day would come, why didn’t you leave him a way out back then?

Who is this display of regret and guilt for now?

Song Youqiu stepped forward, his voice low and almost malicious. “First Venerable, aren’t you going to search for him?”

Su Cansheng stared into the abyss with dead, ashen eyes, murmuring dazedly, “He would rather die than say a single word to me. That dragon…”

As he spoke, he seemed to remember something, and a sudden spark of light flickered in his despairing eyes.

The dragon?

The master of the Three Poisons Secret Realm was that very dragon. If the dragon had brought Xiang Zhongjing here to leap, perhaps it wasn’t a suicide attempt, but a desperate move to leave the secret realm entirely.

At that thought, a sliver of hope rose in Su Cansheng’s aching heart.

However, Song Youqiu had no intention of letting him off easy. He smiled and said, “Venerable, do you know what Xiang Zhongjing gave me when he ordered his coffin at my Funeral Pavilion?”

Su Cansheng struggled to his feet, leaning on his sword. He looked up at Song Youqiu with an indifferent gaze, though tear tracks still stained his face. “What?”

Song Youqiu curled his lips into a brilliant smile. “He gave me lamps. Countless lamps.”

Su Cansheng froze, not yet grasping the meaning behind those words.

Song Youqiu pulled a blood-red storage bracelet from his sleeve, which bore Xiang Zhongjing’s name. Su Cansheng’s eyes twitched.

Song Youqiu walked slowly to the edge of the branch and snapped the bracelet. In an instant, countless lamps of various designs emerged, each burning with an eternal mermaid-tallow candle, floating in the air.

Su Cansheng looked up at the sky full of bright lights, unsure of what this meant.

“He even wanted his coffin filled with bright lamps,” Song Youqiu said. “Can you guess why?”

Su Cansheng thought for only a moment before the realization hit him, making his expression even grimmer. He stumbled back half a step, looking at the floating lamps in disbelief.

“These are the countless lamps he traveled the three realms to find, intending to take them into his coffin even in death,” Song Youqiu said slowly, pointing at the lights. “He loved the light so much, yet you shut him away in a dark stone coffin for all those years.”

Song Youqiu looked at him seriously and asked, “Do you two even have hearts?”

Su Cansheng’s mind went blank. It felt as though a piece of his heart was missing, leaving a hollow space for the cold wind to whistle through, freezing his limbs until he could barely move.

Su Cansheng was the First Venerable of the three realms, the ruler of the Nine Provinces. He could not leave behind any stains on his reputation, nor could he throw himself off the celestial ladder as recklessly as Jin Chuling.

Jin Chuling was a true villain, but Su Cansheng was a hypocrite.

Song Youqiu feared Jin Chuling, but he wasn’t afraid of offending Su Cansheng.

After speaking, Song Youqiu waved his hand, releasing a stream of spiritual energy like a river of stars toward the bottom of the abyss. The countless lamps seemed to be drawn by it, drifting down the path made of spirit.

But the drop from such a height was vast, who knew when the lamps would finally touch the ground.

Song Youqiu glanced at the abyss and turned to leave. The clattering of the coffins on his back snapped the despondent Su Cansheng back to his senses.

“Song Youqiu.”

Song Youqiu paused.

Su Cansheng looked up, his face devoid of emotion. He asked coldly, “If Xiang Zhongjing survives and leaves the secret realm, where would he go?”

Song Youqiu looked at him incredulously. “You think he can survive that fall?”

Su Cansheng insisted, “Where would he go?”

Song Youqiu almost thought Su Cansheng had gone mad too, but seeing his hollow pupils and his wretched state, he hesitated for a moment before sneering, “In the three realms and Nine Provinces, didn’t he only have you two as friends? Quyizong treated him like a pawn and didn’t care if he lived or died. Do you really think he’d go back there?”

Su Cansheng swayed slightly, a flash of pain crossing his face.

“Where else?”

Song Youqiu toyed with the small coffins on his person, distracted. “Who knows. Even if he survives, he’ll have lost half his life. He’ll probably go to Man Qiuxia to treat his injuries.”

Su Cansheng whispered, “Man Qiuxia…”

The number one medical cultivator of the three realms, Man Qiuxia, was in the Wujindao.

In seven days, it would be the Great Spirit Beast Festival of the Wujindao.

**

The sound of roaring flames echoed in his ears. Xiang Zhongjing stood beside a massive stone coffin, watching a youth in black huddled inside it, clutching a red robe and crying heart-wrenchingly.

Someone nearby pulled at Xiang Zhongjing forcefully, shouting, “Zhongjing! We’ve got the Ghost-Fire, let’s go!”

Xiang Zhongjing turned in a daze, seeing a person whose face he couldn’t recognize holding two struggling clusters of ghostly fire, dragging him away.

The youth in black suddenly stopped crying and transformed into a giant dragon. It roared, its voice filled with undeniable despair and malice.

“I want you all to be buried with him!”

Then came the roar of flames and the screams of those around him. Xiang Zhongjing stood stunned for a long time before opening his eyes again to find countless cultivators standing across from him, their faces filled with identical loathing.

Xiang Zhongjing looked at them one by one, his gaze landing on his two familiar friends, and instinctively reached out to them.

However, what he couldn’t see was that dragon-like markings were slowly crawling across his snow-white face, eventually reaching his brow and curling there, becoming completely still.

Someone cried out in horror, “That is a Life-and-Death Pact with a demonic beast!”

A buzzing sound filled Xiang Zhongjing’s ears. He had no idea how the pact had been formed, let alone why they were looking at him with such hatred.

He wanted to explain, but his body was frozen, unable to move or make a sound.

Finally, amid a bright light, his left hand erupted in agonizing pain, and the stone coffin slowly closed, cutting off all light forever.

Xiang Zhongjing snapped his eyes open, gasping for air. He couldn’t help but cover his mouth as he coughed up a mouthful of blood.

His fingers were coated in thick, sticky blood. Xiang Zhongjing frowned and spread his fingers, wanting the Ghost-Fire to burn away the stains, but after waiting a moment, there was no sign of the flame.

He froze, taking a while to remember what happened before he lost consciousness.

He had apparently been pushed off the celestial ladder by that silly dragon, Gu Sancheng.

Xiang Zhongjing: “…”

Xiang Zhongjing bolted upright, about to settle the score with Gu Congxu, when he belatedly realized he had landed safely.

The Ghost-Fire had turned into two jade-like studs hanging quietly from his ears. The surroundings were dim, and for a moment, he thought he was still inside the Three Poisons Secret Realm.

But soon, a faint color appeared on the horizon, like mixed dyes gradually turning into a kaleidoscope of hues.

Xiang Zhongjing’s heart leaped. An unprecedented feeling surged through him, making his chest tremble uncontrollably.

An unbelievable thought surfaced in his mind. He didn’t dare to even blink as he watched the distant sky.

A moment later, a morning sun rose slowly, and the warm sunlight instantly hit Xiang Zhongjing’s face.

He hadn’t seen such intense light in so many years. In an instant, the brilliance pricked his eyes, causing tears to stream down. His eyes ached, but he didn’t dare close them, fearing that if he did, he would return to that eternal darkness.

Xiang Zhongjing stared dazed for a long time before reaching out as if to touch the sun. With tear tracks still wet on his face, he couldn’t help but smile.

The pain of sixty years in the dark seemed to vanish instantly under this magnificent light.

As Xiang Zhongjing continued to stare at the sun, Gu Congxu finally spoke up in his consciousness, “Do you still want your eyes?”

Xiang Zhongjing was startled.

As the sunlight illuminated the surroundings, he realized he was sitting atop a high mountain peak, surrounded by flowers blooming in a riot of colors.

He looked down at a cluster of flowers by his hand for a long time, then turned his gaze back to the morning sun.

Gu Congxu said crossly, “If you look for another moment, you’ll go blind.”

Xiang Zhongjing watched for a little longer before reluctantly closing his eyes and sinking into his inner consciousness.

Gu Congxu had taken human form and was sitting cross-legged amidst the ten thousand lamps. Seeing Xiang Zhongjing walking over while rubbing his eyes, he said with a mocking smile, “What a stupid, provincial look on your face.”

Normally, Xiang Zhongjing would have come up with a hundred retorts, but perhaps because Gu Congxu had specifically brought him here to see the sunrise, he unusually remained silent.

Xiang Zhongjing sat down beside Gu Congxu and said seriously for the first time in his life, “Thank you.”

Such a formal thank-you made Gu Congxu feel a bit awkward. He waved away a nearby lamp and said coldly, “No need to thank me. After all, I took payment.”

Only then did Xiang Zhongjing remember the deal he had made.

He held out his right hand and asked with interest, “Are you really going to gnaw on my hand?”

Gu Congxu pushed his hand away in disgust. “How precious is your hand? I wouldn’t eat it even if you begged me to.”

Xiang Zhongjing pulled his hand back. “Then what did you mean before?”

“My primordial spirit is trapped in your Nascent Soul. You can’t use spiritual energy, and I can’t break free,” Gu Congxu said. “Given your personality, you probably won’t agree to undo the seal.”

Xiang Zhongjing nodded. “Correct. If I undo it, I’ll be the first person you kill.”

Gu Congxu sneered. “At least you have some self-awareness.”

Xiang Zhongjing smiled. “Thanks for the compliment. My greatest virtue is being sensible.”

Gu Congxu: “…”

What a thick-skinned person.

“So,” Gu Congxu said impatiently, “just let me control one of your hands.”

That way, if they encountered danger, Xiang Zhongjing a waste who couldn’t use spirit energy, wouldn’t hold them back.

Xiang Zhongjing blinked, never having considered such a solution. He asked curiously, “What exactly do you want to do now that you’re out of the secret realm?”

Gu Congxu said coldly, “Find someone. And find my dragon bones.”

Xiang Zhongjing let out a “Whoa.” “Find who?”

Gu Congxu didn’t have the complex schemes of a human and didn’t feel there was anything to hide. He said directly, “My master fell a thousand years ago. I used several of my dragon bones to send his soul out of the secret realm and into the cycle of reincarnation. Once I find all the bones, I can find him.”

Xiang Zhongjing touched his lips and drew out a syllable suggestively. “Oh”

Gu Congxu frowned, dissatisfied with the tone. “What do you mean by that?”

“According to the plot of popular stories…” Xiang Zhongjing said seriously, “there’s an 80% chance the master you’re looking for is me.”

Gu Congxu: “…”

Gu Congxu exploded in rage. “How is that possible?! If the master were you, I’d bite my own tail and swallow myself whole!”

Xiang Zhongjing almost keeled over laughing.

How was he only just finding out how fun this dragon was?

Seeing that he wouldn’t give a straight answer, Gu Congxu demanded, “I saved you. You aren’t going to go back on your word, are you?!”

Xiang Zhongjing heard the desperation in Gu Congxu’s voice and burst out laughing. “Sancheng, how can you be so foolish? I haven’t given you any leverage. If I really went back on my word, what could you possibly do to me?”

Gu Congxu: “…”

Gu Congxu roared, “I’ll eat you!”

Xiang Zhongjing laughed even harder.

Gu Congxu was furious, but on second thought, if Xiang Zhongjing really did back out, there wasn’t much he could do.

This thought made him even angrier.

Stupid human!

Once he broke the seal, he’d eat them all!

Gu Congxu wished he could devour this unfaithful human right now, but before he could even think of a curse, Xiang Zhongjing grabbed his left wrist with his right hand and said with a smile, “I can’t give you the right hand, but I’ll give you the left.”

Gu Congxu froze, taking a long time to react and looking at him in disbelief.

Xiang Zhongjing tilted his head. “My left hand was injured by Su Cansheng’s sword intent and won’t heal anytime soon. We’ll go find Man Qiuxia to treat it first. Once it’s better, we’ll go look for your dragon bones.”

Gu Congxu was momentarily speechless.

His impression of Xiang Zhongjing had been one of despicableness and stupidity, yet now that Xiang Zhongjing clearly had the upper hand, he was still willing to give up a hand. Gu Congxu’s opinion of him shifted slightly.

Gu Congxu snorted, thinking this person had some redeeming qualities after all.

Since Xiang Zhongjing had agreed to sacrifice a hand, Gu Congxu didn’t hold back. Seeing that Xiang Zhongjing’s Nascent Soul truly allowed him to invade the left hand, he immediately swept forward and forcefully took control of the bloody limb.

The feeling of having a hand taken over was unpleasant, but since the hand had been useless for so long, Xiang Zhongjing didn’t feel much. He continued to chatter away heartlessly.

“How does it feel? Before I was injured, my left-handed sword was famous in the three realms. At the festival, I could drive back spirit beasts just with the pressure of my blade… Hm?”

Before he could finish, he saw a small dragon, about the thickness of two fingers with two tiny horns on its head, poke out of his wide sleeve and roar fiercely at him.

Xiang Zhongjing: “…”

Xiang Zhongjing said in surprise, “Tsk, Sancheng… Mmph!”

Gu Congxu could no longer tolerate this chatterbox. The first thing he did upon gaining control of the left hand was to use all his strength to snap the hand upward, his tail coiled around the wrist, and slap it firmly over Xiang Zhongjing’s annoying mouth.

Xiang Zhongjing: “…”

Gu Congxu finally had some peace and quiet.

With his mouth blocked, Xiang Zhongjing’s gaze met the small dragon on his hand. He wasn’t angry; instead, he squinted his eyes and stared at Gu Congxu. From his pupils to every lash, his gaze was full of a wild, unrestrained playfulness that Gu Congxu couldn’t handle.

Gu Congxu: “…”

This person could be annoying even with just his eyes!

Truly a talented individual.

However, the annoyance he caused with his eyes soon met with karma.

As he slowly made his way down the mountain, he reached the foot of the hill when his steps suddenly faltered, and he nearly fell over.

Gu Congxu swayed, poking his head out of the sleeve to snap at him, but then he noticed that those eyes, once bright as fire, seemed to have been extinguished. They were hollow and unfocused.

Xiang Zhongjing raised his right hand in a daze, looking at it back and forth, before murmuring, “Sancheng… my eyes. I think I can’t see anymore.”

Gu Congxu: “…”

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