Chapter 18
Lin Queli only felt a dull pain in his chest. He didn’t understand why, until he saw that the formation at his feet seemed to be shining more brightly than in other places.
…Crap.
This formation and the one he had encountered when he first transmigrated into the book… it couldn’t be the same kind, could it?!
It was the formation Helan Xue used to find traces of demon cultivators!
Lin Queli took a few steps back in fear, but the light of the formation followed him like a shadow.
On the other side, through the black smoke and firelight, Helan Xue looked down and noticed the unusual movement around Lin Queli. He frowned slightly, and before he could see clearly, he heard a bang!
Lin Queli was also startled by the loud noise and flinched. He turned his head and saw a row of houses beside him, which had been burned down, collapse. He saw the beams and walls begin to crack and topple.
Before the beams and roof also came crashing down, Lin Queli was about to run, but he noticed a girl crying by the side of the house. Her lower body seemed to be pinned by a fence, unable to move. The flames were devouring her clothes and flesh, making her let out a sharp cry of pain.
Anyone who saw this couldn’t ignore it. Lin Queli gritted his teeth, stepped forward, and used a spell to send the fence flying. Then he used a water spell to extinguish the flames under the girl and scooped her up, running out with her in his arms.
Rumble—
The entire house began to collapse. The girl cried out loudly, “Big sister! Behind you…!”
Lin Queli was still searching for a spell when he saw frost and snow come towards him, surrounding him to protect him.
The seemingly light snow had an unimaginable spiritual power, intercepting the obstacles above Lin Queli’s head and melting the flames on the road, clearing a relatively safe path for them.
Lin Queli’s eyes lit up. He hugged the girl and said, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, there’s an immortal from the heavens protecting us!”
The girl looked up from Lin Queli’s shoulder. The flames were churning in the night sky, and smoke filled the entire area. An immortal in white robes, whiter than snow, stood floating in the air with white frost and a sharp sword.
After carrying the child out, Lin Queli had no time for anything else and was busy helping other cultivators save people.
He had thought he was a noob, but perhaps because this body belonged to the Demon Lord, he didn’t feel as uncomfortable, choked, or even faint in this sea of fire as an ordinary person would.
Lin Queli led the villagers out of the disaster area and, in doing so, stepped out of the formation.
He looked back and saw that Helan Xue was gone.
—He must have already found the traces of the Demon Clan.
Lin Queli couldn’t help but be lost in thought.
The first Demon Sword fragment, Helan Xue had killed the Demon Lord to obtain it.
The second, Helan Xue and Qiansui had heavily injured three demon elders in Yangjing Village and killed countless demons to protect it.
The third was now taken by the Demon Clan here in Zhaoming Village. Helan Xue was now in pursuit, and he didn’t know what the result would be.
But Lin Queli had a hunch that even if the Demon Clan had gone far with the fragment, or had set up numerous obstacles, Helan Xue would still be able to retrieve it.
“Young Master Lin!”
Qiansui shouted from the side, “Quick, come and help us carry the wounded onto the carriage!”
“Okay!”
Lin Queli turned his head. The fire had been extinguished, and only a thick layer of snow remained on the ground.
But the houses and land were scorched black, and the smoke had not completely dissipated, a testament to what had just happened.
Lin Queli swallowed hard.
It wasn’t that he had never seen a fire before, but he couldn’t imagine that this was man-made. There was even an area that was the center of the explosion, where many people had died.
No wonder… everyone hates the Demon Clan so much.
…
…
After the disaster, Helan Xue went to track down the Demon Clan, and Qiansui helped set up a formation. The other cultivators received news that there was a clue to another fragment at the foot of another mountain, so after settling the villagers and treating the seriously wounded, they left in a hurry.
On the fourth day after the disaster, Helan Xue and Qiansui’s mission ended, and everything was settled.
They returned to the village. Qiansui had already prepared the carriage, and after meeting up with Lin Queli, they would go back.
Helan Xue pinched his bracelet and followed the aura to… the clinic.
Qiansui was shocked. “Could it be that Young Master Lin is injured?! Why is he in the clinic!”
He strode into the clinic and ran into Lin Queli.
Lin Queli was carrying a basin of water and a towel, looking even more travel-worn and disheveled than they were. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and said with some pleasant surprise, “You’re back! Is everything go—”
—ing well?
Lin Queli looked at the person before him. Helan Xue still had that otherworldly, white-robed-whiter-than-snow appearance, not at all like someone who had just been through a fierce battle.
But in his hand, he was carrying a head, wrapped in cloth. Dark blood and a foul smell seeped out.
“…!”
It seems it went very smoothly.
That’s very good.
Qiansui hung the head up for public display, and the villagers who passed by would spit at it.
Lin Queli swallowed hard. “Is this… the head of a demon?”
“That’s right.” Qiansui explained that of the five elders of the Demon Palace, the three who had caused trouble in Yangjing Village had been heavily injured by Helan Xue and had teleported back to the Demon Palace. Of the remaining two who had taken the fragments in Zhaoming Village, one was the successfully escaped Elder Jin—after all, he was one of the villains in the original novel and naturally had some tricks up his sleeve—and the other elder… was the special delivery in Helan Xue’s hand, fresh and quality-guaranteed.
Lin Queli knew that he deserved it. He had done such a bad thing and sacrificed many ordinary people, so death was too good for him. But when he thought of his own Demon Lord’s body, he still felt a little scared.
“What about the fragment?” Lin Queli asked with concern. “Was it successfully retrieved?”
Qiansui sighed. “No… Grandmaster had originally gotten the mirror pouch, but when he opened it, it had vanished into thin air, and we couldn’t find any demonic energy or traces.”
?!
Lin Queli was greatly shocked.
This was too strange. Could there be something that Taxue Xianzun couldn’t find?
For a moment, Lin Queli even thought that maybe his identity had been exposed and Helan Xue was deliberately hiding it from him. But then he thought that was impossible. Why would Helan Xue need to hide it from him? It was like a human hiding candy from an ant.
Then could it be that the Demon Clan had used some trick?
Qiansui shook his head. “My junior martial brothers will continue to search. For now, this is all we can do. The grand competition is approaching, so Grandmaster and Young Master Lin have to go back to the mountain.”
“But I can’t leave today.” Lin Queli scratched his head. “Doctor Wang went out to gather herbs. I promised him I would help look after the clinic and the patients for half a day today. In the evening, I have to help the village chief draw a portrait, and before bed, I have to feed the mule. I can only leave tomorrow.”
Now that the village was being rebuilt, there were many trivial matters.
Helan Xue: “?”
Qiansui: “?”
After a moment of silence, Qiansui asked, “Why are you helping?”
The primary duty of a Myriad Sword Sect cultivator was to slay demons and exterminate evil. It would be better to return to the mountain to cultivate with this time. Besides, he felt that the common people didn’t need their help. They usually kept a distance from cultivators. Qiansui even worried that the common people might not like them meddling.
Lin Queli: “I was just passing by… and got roped into it.”
He also found it strange. There were so many people idle, but they only roped him in. Was it that obvious that a college student like him would work for free with just an internship certificate?
Qian ‘Usually-Avoided-by-the-Common-People’ Sui: “???”
As he spoke, Lin Queli heard someone call him to change a dressing and quickly turned and ran.
Later, he was so busy that he turned his head and saw Qiansui looking at him curiously. He directly pulled him over to help as well. Helan Xue… he didn’t dare to pull.
Qiansui was a little awkward, his movements still a little clumsy.
But most of the patients here were either immobile or unconscious. After helping for a while, Qiansui became adept. He followed Lin Queli to give water to the patients, change their dressings, and clean their wounds… He was a natural, and even knew how to comfort the patients.
Lin Queli later discovered that although Helan Xue seemed to be meditating on the side, oblivious to everything, he was actually using spells to treat the patients.
The patients lying here now were all severely burned or injured, and there were many of them. An ordinary cultivator like Qiansui could do nothing to help, but it was different for Helan Xue.
Lin Queli looked at the improving patients and thought to himself, Shizun looks cold and fierce, but he’s actually a soft-hearted person.
Unlike the time they had agreed on with Doctor Wang, they were busy until late at night when the old man, carrying a large basket of herbs, finally arrived.
“Thank you so much…!” Doctor Wang excitedly grabbed Lin Queli’s hand. “Thank you, Young Master, for staying until now. If it weren’t for you, I really don’t know what I would have done… You’ve worked so hard!”
“It’s nothing, it’s nothing.” Lin Queli said with a smile, “And Taxue Xianzun and this Brother Qiansui also helped!”
Doctor Wang looked at the two of them and lowered his head in embarrassment. “I-I’ve troubled the immortals.”
Doctor Wang also mysteriously pulled Lin Queli over and said in a low voice, “To have a god help you, you boy are blessed with heavenly fortune! We usually have to walk around these immortals from the Myriad Sword Sect, for fear of offending their immortal aura and desecrating them. You’re so bold, how did you get a god to help you?”
Lin Queli: “…?”
The two “gods” with excellent hearing: “…”
Lin Queli was completely oblivious and said frankly, “Mainly because I know them. Taxue Xianzun is my Shizun!”
“…”
…!!!
Doctor Wang immediately let go of Lin Queli’s hand and took a few steps back in fear.
“Y-you’re an immortal?!”
“Do I look like one!” Lin Queli smiled. “I’m just an apprentice.”
But when Lin Queli tilted his head and smiled, Doctor Wang was stunned.
This young master didn’t wear a Daoist robe like other immortals, nor did he have a purple aura or an unapproachable feeling. But his smile was so beautiful, brighter than the sun in the sky. He must be a little immortal too.
“That’s also very amazing…” Doctor Wang scratched his head. “An immortal is actually willing to… ah… I really, really don’t know how to thank you for your great kindness. You saved the lives of these patients!”
Qiansui stood to the side, and upon hearing this, he was stunned.
A cultivator slays demons and exterminates evil to save people, but after saving them, it was no longer their business. He never knew that they could “save them again.”
And…
Qiansui looked at Doctor Wang’s reaction and thought to himself, so it’s because the common people don’t dare to approach them?
Qiansui was thinking when he saw Doctor Wang on the side excitedly stuff a freshly picked ginseng into Lin Queli’s hand. “I don’t know if the immortals need this, but I have nothing else to give…”
Qiansui’s thoughts were interrupted. He smiled and shook his head, thinking that these mortal things were naturally unnecessary for cultivators. As Helan Xue’s semi-disciple, Lin Queli was noble and virtuous and would definitely refuse.
“Wow!!! Thank you!” Lin Queli happily put it in his spirit pouch, for fear that Doctor Wang would change his mind.
Qiansui: “…”
Seeing that Lin Queli had accepted it, Doctor Wang was immediately relieved and said happily, “That’s great… that’s great…”
After bidding farewell to Doctor Wang, Lin Queli hurried to his next stop.
“Going to the village chief’s house to draw a portrait…” Qiansui asked curiously, “Why draw a portrait?”
Lin Queli smiled and replied, “After the fire, many people were separated from their families, especially children. For example, yesterday a woman came to me. I drew a portrait based on her description, and the village chief took people to look for him. It was much faster!”
Qiansui was stunned. “You can also draw portraits…”
“Hehe.” Lin Queli said proudly, “This is one of my few skills!”
The three soon arrived at their destination. Seeing Lin Queli push open the courtyard gate, Qiansui shook his head. “But how did these trivial matters fall on you, a cultivator? Anyway, the village is only so big, and the villagers will look after each other and find them soon…”
Before he could finish, he saw a woman lift her skirt and rush to Lin Queli. She was holding a girl and said, “Young Master Lin… I came specially to thank you!”
The woman’s eyes were red as she said, “Thanks to your help, I found Xiao Wen today. I haven’t been able to eat or sleep these past few days. I thought Xiao Wen was already… I didn’t expect…”
The woman bowed. “Thank you…”
Qiansui was stunned for a moment, then went into the room to help Lin Queli grind the ink.
In the middle of the night, Helan Xue seemed to have returned to his room to cultivate. Lin Queli was busy until almost dawn.
When he returned to his room, he saw Helan Xue sitting on the bed meditating. He consciously fell onto the soft couch, spread-eagled, so tired he couldn’t even speak, feeling like even his hair was limp.
“Phew…”
Lin Queli stretched and turned to look at the sky outside the window.
It was almost sunrise.
“Shizun… we’re about to leave, right? But…” Lin Queli said pitifully, “Will you punish me if I sleep in the carriage?”
Helan Xue didn’t open his eyes. “No.”
“Yay!”
Lin Queli’s eyes darted around as he probed, “Shizun… um, where do you think the Demon Sword fragment is?”
“I don’t know.”
Lin Queli pouted. “How could you not know? Shizun is the most powerful in the world. I see the common people all say you are a true immortal, slaying evil and protecting the country, sheltering the divine land.”
“Just rumors.”
Helan Xue closed his eyes. He had cultivated the Dao of Cangsheng for a thousand years, and his cultivation had reached the semi-immortal stage, but he was still one step away from true godhood and the Great Ascension.
This one step had been on the verge for five hundred years. It was because he had not yet fully comprehended this Dao. Perhaps he would have a breakthrough in a certain moment. Helan Xue knew he couldn’t rush it.
“Anyway, Shizun is so powerful. If you don’t know, then maybe no one can find this fragment…”
Lin Queli secretly breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.
It’s good if they can’t find it!
I hope all the fragments are never found, and nothing will happen!
Just then, a few rays of light came through the window.
The dawn was faint, and a hint of fish-belly white appeared on the horizon. Lin Queli’s eyes lit up.
Sunrise!
Although this was a sunrise he saw after staying up all night, it was also the first one he had seen since transmigrating, a sunrise hidden in the mountains.
“Shizun, look!”
Lin Queli propped his hands on the window frame and leaned against the window. “It’s purple!”
He had indeed never seen such a special sunrise. As expected, the world in a novel was different. The sun poked its head out from the valley with an auspicious purple light, heralding the beginning of the day.
Helan Xue had seen sunrises for more than two thousand years, but perhaps it was Lin Queli’s excited and fresh tone that finally made him willing to open his eyes and look out the window.
The sunrise was, of course, the same as it had been for ten thousand years, but his gaze was attracted to the person by the window. From the side, he saw Lin Queli looking up at the sunrise, the sunlight spilling on his face, making his eyes full of light, his eyelashes even more clearly visible.
His clothes were a little dirty, and his face was also dirty. Because he had been tired all day, his clothes were even more disheveled, not in line with the rules of the Myriad Sword Sect. But at this moment, his body was full of the aura of the mortal world. Others might think he was also a person living in this village, only wondering how such a small village could produce such a beautiful person.
Helan Xue thought to himself, he has cultivated the Dao of Cangsheng for too long, perhaps he has also been detached from the common people for too long.
Lin Queli asked, “Shizun, why is the sunrise purple?”
“I don’t know.”
Lin Queli pouted. Again, I don’t know. He’s fooling me.
Helan Xue shook his head. “This world has always been full of many things we don’t know and cannot know.”
