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Translator: Prez
Proofreader: Silavin
It was only natural Yue Mingkong would believe so. After all, the World Purifying Green Lotus was precious. Even the Mortal One greatly desired it, and took great effort to cultivate it for who knows how long. It even took him a lot of trouble to find somewhere suitable for it to grow, which happened to be the Heavenly Star Realm. Furthermore, the time it would take to mature.
[Why would someone I do not know leave these previous lotus seeds after absorbing the World Purifying Green Lotus? Why did he not take them away? Is he planning to give them to someone in the later generations?] Yue Mingkong was confused. She looked at the seeds deep inside the lotus seed pods, twinkling with chaos as all kinds of thoughts flashed in her mind.
[What is this mysterious person actually just forgot about them? How likely is that?] She thought and soon shook her head, thinking that it was impossible. It was just too far-fetched to be true.
After all, even the Mortal One’s reincarnation died by this mysterious person’s hand, in the Sky Pool of Death, which was the Mortal One’s turf. Thus, how was it possible for someone that great to make such an obvious mistake?
Nonetheless, this incident made Yue Mingkong feel a sense of Déjà vu. A woman always trusts her intuition, and Yue Mingkong was no exception. She immediately frowned and was extremely close to concluding that this was deliberately left behind for her. However, since she had not seen this mysterious person’s face, she held back on her judgement.
No matter how she thought about it, she just couldn’t understand why the other party would leave something so precious to her. Likewise, she could not help but question if this monstrous figure was the one who had warned her not to approach the Sky Pool of Death while she was still out of its perimeter.
Regardless, there was one thing she knew for certain. She had never seen this person before. Thus, this mysterious person must be inside the Sky Pool of Death for the whole time, which meant only one possibility. [It must be that rumoured exalted Immortal!]
[Even so, why did he go so far…] Yue Mingkong frowned, feeling as though the truth was just within her reach. [It seems that the mysterious mighty Immortal had deliberately fell into the Sky Pool of Death to trick the whole realm. A scheme to lure in the Mortal One’s reincarnation. This kind of scheme… It’s just like him… Gu Changge!]
[Other than him, who else has the means to destroy the Mortal One within his own soil? A place he chose to reincarnate in. It all makes sense now. This must be the truth. It was you, Gu Changge!] Yue Mingkong clenched her teeth upon the realisation. After all, except for Gu Changge, there was no one else she knew of that could have such horrifying means to accomplish this.
She could not help but get mad. [That heartless bastard! He has been hiding the truth from me for so long! To think he has been secretly hiding in this Lower Realm!]
Even though she thought like that, she had no words to reprimand him. After all, in all fairness, she was also in the wrong. Although she had the idea of resolving the Mortal One’s reincarnation for him, to help him, he was also kept in the dark about it.
Now, it became obvious that he had been pulling her strings. He came to know of her whereabouts, and followed her secretly to this Lower Realm. He hid in secret, and never showed his face to her from beginning to end. In fact, the persona of the mysterious and mighty Immortal was also something he had come up with.
When Yue Mingkong thought back on the strangeness of Jiang Yang’s appearance at the appointed time, it now seemed obvious that Gu Changge had secretly helped her. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for Jiang Yang to move into her trap.
Now, realising all of this, Yue Mingkong couldn’t help rubbing her temple. Before, she felt that Gu Changge had placed people to spy on her. At that time, he said that he trusted her greatly. However, he was actually paying attention to her every movement.
Even in the Celestial Ancient Continent, he used that method to monitor her every move. Now, after she had clearly cleaned up all those around her, she could not help but wonder, [How did he find me?]
“It seems like the way I left the Gu Family at that time had caused him to grow suspicious of me. So, he had been tailing me…” Yue Mingkong whispered to herself, and found points of suspicious actions that would make Gu Changge doubt her.
[It should really be that. When I too hastily left the banquet. Being someone as thoughtful and meticulous as him, he would definitely notice something was off.. and grow suspicious of me.] Yue Mingkong thought, but was in no hurry to rush back to the Upper Realm to explain herself to him. After all, he had followed her all the way here, So, he should be aware of everything she had done. Thus, Yue Mingkong believed that Gu Changge would no longer be suspicious of her.
“But at least he is not that heartless. He still left me a sip of soup.” After Yue Mingkong understood what was going on, she breathed a sigh of relief. A small smile broke out. [It all makes sense now. He had deliberately left these seeds for me.]
*Buzz!* With a wave of her sleeve, a burst of five-coloured divine light swept across, directly taking all the seeds.
Afterwards, she left the place. She intends to tie up all the loose ends and eliminate any potential trouble here before heading back to the Upper Realm. Since Gu Changge had personally made a mode to solve the biggest hidden problem, the Mortal One, she no longer had anything here to worry about.
Since Gu Changge had no intention to meet her at this time, she knew that with her means, she would not be able to find him. Thus, it was best to leave the questions she had for him, back when they both returned to the Upper Realm.
She was worried about his temperament and character though. Instead of answering her, he might just refuse to accept his part in any of this, adamant that he was none the wiser. He might even flip the script on her, and blame her on secretly going down to the Lower Realm.
Naturally, Yue Mingkong could never claim to fully understand Gu Changge’s temperament. However, she still had some inkling to how he would act. After all, him leaving her with the World Purifying Green Lotus seeds were proof that she had a place in his heart. A fact which made her more than happy.
Thus, on this day, Yue Mingkong, who had always been indifferent in front of her subordinates, couldn’t help showing a faint smile.
…
On the other side, after being shot down into the Sky Pool from the grey fog in the sky.
Yao Yao felt that she had returned back from a state of complete indifference, whereby she saw everyone as ants.
She no longer held absolute power, whereby she could destroy the word with just a glance. She had once again returned back to being a weak girl, who could not even kill a chicken. And now, she was slowly falling into the bottom of the water.
She was now powerless and desperate. Let alone struggling, she could not even muster out the tiniest of strength. At that time, a frightening pressure rained down all over the Sky Pool of Death. It was so strong that all lives could only choose to kneel on the ground before it and dare not move.
Yao Yao knew that with Grandmother Yin Hua’s cultivation level, she would not be able to save her. In fact, if Grandmother Yin Hua rushed out against that terrifying pressure, and went against the person exuding that pressure, she would definitely fall faster than her. It was hopeless. Jiang Yang would not help them. Their relationship with him had already been ripped apart, so it is impossible for him to make a move to save Grandmother Yin Hua.
When such thoughts entered her mind, Yao Yao could not help but tear up.
This whole thing had nothing to do with her Grandmother Yin Hua. She could have stayed out of this, but she wanted to come here with Yao Yao, to accompany her. However, because of that, her life might end here. Yao Yao knew, apart from her master, no one else could deal with that mysterious figure exuding such terrifying pressure.
[I’m going to die here. I’m going to accompany Master, Grandmother Yin Hua, and older brother, Jiang Yang now, after he has been gone for so long…] Scenes flashed in her mind. Scenes of her playing with my brother when she was a child. Scenes where she spent her days together with Grandmother Yin Hua. Scenes of the time she spent with her master….
“Yao Yao could not avenge you, Master… But… I’ll see you soon.” The thing she felt most regretful for, was being unable to find any trace of her Master, not being able to kill Jiang Yang to avenge her Master, and avenge her brother.
*Buzz!!* Yao Yao closed her eyes tightly, and did not notice, in between her eyebrows, a peach petal-like pattern was blooming with dazzling brilliance. It was so bright that it even illuminated the bottom of the Sky Pool.
Strange rays of light seem to spread as a semi-visible peach tree took root in the endless chaos, as Divine Chains of Order spread out. This all occurred as Yao Yao could feel herself sinking deeper. However, instead of the water getting colder, it became warmer instead. The supposed darkness seems to have also dissipated. This feeling reminded her of the time she fell from the sky and got suddenly caught by her Master.
She wants to open her eyes. However, before she could, a gentle voice suddenly sounded in her ears. It was like a clear spring meandering around rocks, natural and filled with warmth. “Little girl, why are you so disobedient? I’ve obviously asked you to wait for me in Celestia Holy Land, just why did you sneak out here, alone?”
Hearing this familiar voice, Yao Yao suddenly opened her eyes and looked at the scene in disbelief. She did not know when, but the whole Sky Pool of Death had been completely drained empty. It was now a place which gave her a sense of comfort, a huge contrast from before. Furthermore, the one who spoke to her, and caught her, was a man wearing a white robe. It was her Master, who she was so familiar with.
“Impossible, Master… isn’t he already dead? Could this be? Is this the Hell of legend? Now, I get to see Master in Hell…” Yao Yao was completely in disbelief as she softly murmured. She believed herself to already be dead, that was why the place saw could meet her Master, was in Hell.
Nonetheless, without his face covered, she noticed how her Master was exceptionally handsome! It now made sense as to why he would hide his face in a veil of fog so others could not see it. If women were to just catch a glimpse of his face, there would be a huge scramble to be his mistress.
When she thought of how handsome her Master was, Yao Yao suddenly felt a little happy. Although she died, she had at least finally fulfilled one wish of hers, which was to see what her Master looks like. She always had the feeling that he was not that old, at least not old enough to be one of those ancient old men.
Still mesmerised by his looks, a sudden eruption of courage filled her from who knows where, as she stretched out her small hand in an attempt to touch his face. She wanted to confirm if the person in front of her was real or not. However, before she could a hand had already been swung, which directly struck her head. It was accompanied by a slightly helpless voice.
“Foolish girl, just what are you thinking? Your Master is already so powerful. How could I possibly die here? Even if you end up in Hell, I can still take you away.”
“Hmm!?” The gears in Yao Yao’s head seem to not be able to turn anymore. [Why is Master suddenly saying such a thing? Could it be? That everything so far has just been my imagination? That Master is still alive, and everything I thought was wrong?]
“Master…” Yao Yao intended to ask for confirmation. However, before she could, her Master had suddenly moved. His robes fluttered and the entire Sky Pool of Death began to tremble. It seems as though he was being pushed forward by a strong pair of invisible hands, which already forced him to leave the place.
Gu Changge took her to the sky and quickly left the place.
Looking at the scene in front of her, no matter how slow Yao Yao was, she still reacted once again to the realisation.
“Master, Master, you are really not dead…” She couldn’t help but let out a cry, face full of tears like rain as she thightly clung onto him. [Master… he is alright… he really did not die…]
At this moment, emotions such as worry, anxiety, sadness and grief had all erupted at once. It was as though the floodgates had burst open and the tears could not be stopped.
“How could Your Master die? Just what are you thinking?” Gu Changge helplessly pat her head. His voice was extremely gentle, as he explained, “it seems like during the time when I was away, a lot of things had happened. Sorry, Master made you worry.”
Naturally, he could not say that he had been waiting within the depth of the Sky Pool of Death as he watched how everything played out. Thus, he just told her that he got into an incident and got trapped there, unaware of what had happened outside.
For this pure and kind foolish little girl, Gu Changge did not know what else he should say to comfort her. All he could do now was to pamper her in the future as compensation. After all, he was her Master. Naturally, he could not abandon her at will.
Either way, from another perspective, even if he did not show up just now to catch her, Yao Yao would be fine. As a Dao Fruit, the power she had shown just now was just a small part of her true might. How could she possibly drown in water? It was only that she was unaware of her true might, which had led her to worry so much.
Hearing Gu Changge’s words, Yao Yao cried even more. It was as if she wanted to cry out all the sadness and grief she had experienced during this period of time.
Gu Changge slightly shook his head. This time, it could not be helped that she would experience such emotions and experience such an uplift. It was the easiest to move one’s heart when they experienced great joy or great sorrow, and in this foolish little girl’s heart, he had already occupied an unparalleled position.
As predicted, soon enough, Yao Yao’s great sadness had slowly been replaced with joy.
Thinking of the disrespectful act she had just tried to commit, her face turned a little red. She looked up, and her flawless eyes, akin to black gems, was stared at Gu Changge, “Master, don’t leave Yao Yao alone next time, okay?”
Hearing her pleading voice, Gu Changge shook his head and smiled, before he warmly said, “how could your Master leave you alone? Didn’t I promise you, that even if you could not cultivate, I would still be with you as your Master? Foolish girl. You have been delusional all day, thinking of all kinds of nonsense. Don’t forget, you are the disciple for this Master.”
When Yao Yao heard this, she was a little taken aback. For some reason, those words did not make her happy. Thus, in a low, dispirited voice, akin to having lost something, she murmured, “Yao Yao is just Master’s disciple…”
“Of course, our relationship is not as simple as being disciple and master. You must know that sometimes, masters and disciples have a relationship closer than that of family.” Hearing her murmur, Gu Changge once again patted her head and explained to her in a soft and calm voice, as per usual.
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