When I Mistook My Arch-Rival for My Dao Companion - Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Fu Guzhou’s ability to read the situation clearly pleased Wenren Qian. His expression softened slightly as he said, “You do not wish to remain in Wujian, and indeed, it is not as if there is no way out.”

Fu Guzhou’s eyes lit up instantly. He looked at Wenren Qian, eagerly anticipating his next words.

“This Wujian does indeed possess some formidable qualities, but This Seat has just now discerned a bit of its inner workings. Wujian, in the end, is nothing more than a small world. It is simply that the gates of this small world are exceptionally sturdy, combined with things that suppress one’s realm. This is what created the illusion that we must follow its rules. But ultimately, as long as one’s strength is sufficiently great, what does a mere Wujian matter?”

Fu Guzhou’s eyes widened slightly; they practically had the words “what kind of enlightenment is this” written in them. However, he knew that since Wenren Qian dared to say it, he must have truly seen through something.

Wenren Qian first took a glance at Fu Guzhou. “I forgot to mention earlier—Immortal Venerable, you look quite wretched right now.”

Fu Guzhou: “……Actually, you could have continued to forget.”

Fu Guzhou did not want to hear such words at all.

Wenren Qian let out a low laugh. “Wujian, Wujian—nothing more than a small world, yet it dares to deceive us.”

The moment Wenren Qian spoke these words, Fu Guzhou finally felt as though he had grasped something. Before he could fully figure out the mysteries of Wujian, Wenren Qian had already swallowed his Demon Core again and asked Fu Guzhou: “Where is the door of Wujian?”

Fu Guzhou obediently provided the direction.

Wenren Qian looked toward that patch of void and asked again: “Can the Immortal Venerable use that Dingxie?”

Sensing his connection with the Dingxie Sword, Fu Guzhou nodded. When the Dingxie Sword had tried to seize control of his body to possess him, he had turned the tables on it and restrained the sword instead.

Wenren Qian nodded in satisfaction and told Fu Guzhou to strike with his strongest sword move.

As Fu Guzhou moved to act, a terrifying power gathered behind him. That horrific force made Fu Guzhou’s back turn cold. He trembled slightly, but then another hand, completely distinct from his own, gripped him. It actually led his hand, merging its own power into the sword.

Fu Guzhou specialized in the wind element, while Wenren Qian was a fire-element demon. The single strike the two of them swung together completely shattered the peak power of this realm.

No, it should be said that the power Wenren Qian displayed at that moment had already completely surpassed the power of this realm. The reason he required Fu Guzhou to strike was merely to conveniently borrow Fu Guzhou’s power and the Dingxie Sword in his hand.

Once this sword was swung, heaven and earth changed color.

The strike, enveloped in wind and fire, carried an aura of world-ending destruction. It headed straight for the door of Wujian, followed by a sudden, violent explosion in the void.

Did the door open? Not exactly. But that force was enough to make the heavens and earth shudder. Along with the tremors, the power suppressing Fu Guzhou and Wenren Qian immediately became unstable.

Wenren Qian seemed to have anticipated this long ago. He unhurriedly communicated with the power of space. Although they hadn’t opened the door of Wujian, since the door of Wujian dared to be used to lure everyone within the realm, it was inevitably the weakest point of Wujian. Using the weak point to lure everyone like moths to a flame—it must be said, Wujian was indeed impressive. But that was all.

After Wenren Qian successfully connected to space, he thought he would hear Fu Guzhou’s cheers. Unexpectedly, the person in front of him suddenly collapsed backward.

Wenren Qian reached out and caught him, looking at the completely unconscious Fu Guzhou.

As Wenren Qian had said before, the current Fu Guzhou was indeed wretched. There was even a trace of blood overflowing from the corner of his mouth, and those white robes were no longer dustless. However, it was precisely this version of Fu Guzhou that exuded a heart-stirring, fragile aesthetic.

Feeling the other’s faint breathing, Wenren Qian frowned.

He knew clearly that if he ignored Fu Guzhou or simply left him here, Fu Guzhou would truly close his eyes and his soul would dissipate within an hour.

Initially, after learning this place was Wujian, Wenren Qian had kept Fu Guzhou alive with the intention of utilizing him. Wenren Qian had not hidden his exploitation. However, while some people might look clever in the future, back when they were young, they were like fools—clearly being used, yet happily letting themselves be led by the nose.

So stupid. So stupid that Wenren Qian felt this Fu Guzhou could never grow into the person he knew.

Now that Fu Guzhou had fainted, it was an extremely good thing for Wenren Qian. He wouldn’t have to tear off the mask; he only needed to leave Fu Guzhou here in Wujian to fend for himself. Or he could destroy the other’s cultivation and leave a few things to keep him barely alive. After he left and Fu Guzhou woke up to find himself still in Wujian with his cultivation entirely gone, he would likely be filled with a mix of shock and rage.

If this were in the past, it would indeed have been a great way to take revenge on Fu Guzhou. But the usually decisive Wenren Qian hesitated on this matter.

Fu Guzhou would not feel regret for having dared to treat him that way in the past. The other would perhaps only feel disappointment, thinking he himself wasn’t good enough, or perhaps he would first worry if his Dao companion had met with an accident. Even if he suspected this so-called Dao companion, he would likely find excuses for him.

You could say this kind of Fu Guzhou lost his brain the moment he fell in love, but Wenren Qian knew clearly that this absolute trust wasn’t just because of the simple title of “Dao companion,” but because the other trusted him, possessed a sense of responsibility, and a sense of duty. That was why he would feel regret for his past treatment of him; that was why he chose to hand over all his trust while remembering nothing.

This behavior was truly foolish, but Wenren Qian had indeed never experienced it before. Having felt it, he found himself somewhat unwilling to throw it away.

Being trusted, protected, and treated as a responsibility was likely something he would never experience again even after ten million years. All strong people are lonely. Perhaps it was because of this bit of loneliness and this rare trace of pity that Wenren Qian picked Fu Guzhou up.

In a voice of nearly cruel tenderness, he said, “Immortal Venerable, pray that you never recover your memories. Otherwise, This Seat will kill you with my own hands.”

Unfortunately, the person deep in a coma clearly could not hear these words.

Wenren Qian took out a pill and fed it into Fu Guzhou’s mouth. This pill was quite aggressive; even though Fu Guzhou was still unconscious, he suddenly spat out a mouthful of fresh blood shortly after the pill entered his mouth. After spitting out the blood, his complexion did indeed look much better, recovering a healthy glow at a rate visible to the naked eye.

Wenren Qian carried the other and stepped into the space. Before leaving, he actually didn’t forget to hurl a mass of fire toward Wujian.

If Fu Guzhou were conscious now, he would know that Wenren Qian wasn’t doing this to vent his anger. The man was simply using the strength that had suddenly fully recovered through the spatial connection to begin refining Wujian.

Refining Wujian—this would be a fantasy for anyone else, but for Wenren Qian, it was not impossible.

The reason Wujian could become the terrifying form it was today was that many people who had been imprisoned there provided it with power. But in itself, it was just a slightly powerful small world. Refining a small world was not a difficult task for a demon of his cultivation; it only depended on whether Wenren Qian was willing to spend the time to do it.

When Fu Guzhou woke up, he felt better than ever before. If before everything hurt, now there was no pain at all. His body was so relaxed that Fu Guzhou couldn’t snap out of it for a long time.

Finding everything pitch black before his eyes, Fu Guzhou’s first reaction was: Why is it so dark here?

Fu Guzhou thought for a long while before belatedly realizing it might not be that the place was dark, but that his eyes hadn’t healed yet.

Fu Guzhou instinctively tried to use his divine sense to see on his behalf, only to hear a voice say faintly: “If the Immortal Venerable does not wish for his divine sense to also run into trouble, then it is best not to act rashly. Otherwise, the Immortal Venerable’s fake blindness might very well turn into real blindness.”

Hearing the familiar voice and feeling that equally familiar heart-palpitation, Fu Guzhou felt at peace and gave an obedient “Oh.”

After the “Oh,” Fu Guzhou didn’t forget to ask: “So, where are we now?”

“Why doesn’t the Immortal Venerable guess? Did This Seat bring you into a dragon’s pool or a tiger’s den?”

Fu Guzhou blinked. Even though he could see nothing, he used his eyes to look around, then twitched his nose. “Flowers… the scent of peach blossoms. A lot of them. So, is there a peach blossom forest here?”

Fu Guzhou caught a falling petal in his hand. As if thinking of something, he asked with a smile: “So, did you bring me to your residence?”

Fu Guzhou’s face was full of joy; he wished he could go explore on his own immediately. However, his beautiful fantasy was soon shattered.

Wenren Qian smiled as well, speaking words that completely defied Fu Guzhou’s expectations. “What a coincidence, the Immortal Venerable guessed wrong. This is indeed a peach blossom forest, but in a peach blossom forest with such dense spiritual energy, there will inevitably be peach blossom demons. If This Seat already has beautiful peach blossom demons, does the Immortal Venerable still think This Seat could take an interest in you?”

Fu Guzhou whispered: “I think I should be better looking than a peach blossom demon.”

The implication was: It’s only normal that you took an interest in me.

Wenren Qian raised an eyebrow. “That only proves the Immortal Venerable is extremely confident. Peach blossom demons are already considered the beautiful ones among flower demons.”

Fu Guzhou stood his ground, firmly believing he was definitely better looking than a peach blossom demon.

Wenren Qian laughed. He hadn’t realized before that Fu Guzhou was quite vain.

Fortunately, Fu Guzhou’s words weren’t actually arrogant. In terms of beauty, he was more delicate and beautiful than most women. It was just that the past Qingchen Immortal Venerable was too cold—so cold that many people even overlooked his good looks.

Fu Guzhou only insisted for a moment, then happily asked: “We are out?”

“Yes. The Immortal Venerable will soon be able to go back and continue teaching your ‘good disciple’.”

Fu Guzhou, not knowing what meaning he had read into Wenren Qian’s words, actually started laughing. “Then… will you be unable to bear leaving me?”

“The Immortal Venerable can rest easy on that point. This Seat is quite able to bear it.”

Fu Guzhou was slightly stunned and blinked. His originally shallow smile deepened. “I knew you wouldn’t be able to bear it.”

Wenren Qian: “……You could try listening a bit more seriously to what This Seat actually said.”

Fu Guzhou had listened seriously, of course, but no matter how he looked at it, those words sounded like sarcasm—it wasn’t as if he couldn’t even hear that much.

He got up from the ground, carefully discerned exactly where Wenren Qian was, and reached out to grope forward. After successfully grabbing the other’s sleeve, Fu Guzhou was satisfied and very graciously changed the subject: “Where are we going next?”

“Does the Immortal Venerable have any ideas?” Wenren Qian didn’t state his decision directly, but asked Fu Guzhou instead.

Fu Guzhou thought for a bit and said, “I have lost my memory.”

“Oh?”

“Although the reason for the amnesia is likely because something went wrong with my cultivation, I still really want to recover my past memories. Therefore, I intend to seek help from the Tianji Sixiang Sect.”

Wenren Qian didn’t say whether that was good or bad, only asked: “So, the Immortal Venerable intends to find Li Chengyuan?”

Fu Guzhou nodded. In his current situation, he truly could only find Li Chengyuan; perhaps he could get a clue or two for a solution.

“Then does the Immortal Venerable still know what the relationship between the pre-amnesia you and This Seat was?”

Ah, what kind of question was that?

Fu Guzhou was confused. “A Dao companion relationship.”

Wenren Qian laughed. Fu Guzhou couldn’t see the other’s expression, but only heard a light chuckle from across him, followed by: “It was an ‘until death do us part’ [irreconcilable] relationship.”

Fu Guzhou rubbed his hands, his desire for survival becoming extremely strong. “Then… I’m not in a hurry to recover my memories anymore.”

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