Yin Wushu seemed to sigh lightly, and his lowered gaze drifted down to the cliff, resting on Xie Bai. Because of the unshattered dark clouds and the backlight, Xie Bai couldn't clearly see the emotions in his eyes.

Even though he had almost lost consciousness from the pain just now, Xie Bai was still very clear that his arrival had not helped Yin Wushu in any way. On the contrary, it seemed to have hindered his plan. At least, before the anomaly occurred in his body, the person in the ice had not shown any signs of breaking free from the Golden Thread Peach Blossom... (NT: thread connecting soulmates, symbol of destined relationships. Concept from the Chinese mythology and Taoism)

Although he was not sure what had just happened—how could he be connected to the two people above and below the cliff at the same time, and why such a large stream of spiritual power was flowing through his body?

But no matter how confused he was about the process, the consequences were already in front of him. He didn't intend to let Yin Wushu take the fall for him, but it seemed that he had only made things worse.

Xie Bai felt a bit of self-blame and frustration in his heart. A shallow crease formed between his eyebrows, and he continued to meet Yin Wushu's gaze, subconsciously tightening the hand that hung by his side. His fingers scraped three shallow marks on the snowy ground due to their bending.

After looking at Xie Bai for a while, Yin Wushu suddenly waved at him.

Xie Bai was startled for a moment and subconsciously turned his head to look. He saw that the merman had dug a fish-shaped pit in the snow, wagging its tail and humming, while Lou Xianyue, a bit further away, had just sat up from the ground and was rubbing her waist.

He hesitated for a moment, then used his hands to prop himself up from the snow, slowly standing up.

Because he had been freezing and had been kneeling in the snow for quite some time, Xie Bai felt that his joints had become stiff all over, and there was a slight crackling sound every time he moved.

The little black cat, who had been clinging to him all along, circled his ankles twice, then lifted its round head and wagged its thin tail, softly calling twice.

Xie Bai moved his fingers, and the little black cat, understanding, walked a bit further away, took a run-up, and climbed onto Xie Bai's shoulder in a bound, continuously rubbing its furry face against Xie Bai's neck.

Xie Bai scratched the little black cat's chin with his hand, looked up to estimate the height of the cliff, and then moved his hands and feet. With a flip, he glided up the mountainside and landed silently in front of Yin Wushu without leaving a single trace.

"Why the long face again?" Yin Wushu said with some amusement. His voice was not loud and carried a hint of weariness, but he did not show any disappointment or displeasure. He reached out and touched Xie Bai's hanging fingers, frowned slightly, and clicked his tongue, "Even colder than the Tianshan Mountain. You're qualified to be its father."

But Xie Bai was not in the mood to joke with him. He curled his fingers, which Yin Wushu was holding, frowned, and began, "I have this—"

He didn't finish his sentence before Yin Wushu interrupted him, saying, "What's wrong? You think you messed up?" He casually laughed and continued, "No, you came at just the right time."

Xie Bai: "..." Was he speaking nonsense with his eyes open?

Looking at Yin Wushu's pale face, then turning his head to look at the mess below the cliff, Xie Bai self-deprecatingly said, "How is that good? Am I supposed to help you release the person you're dealing with?"

Yin Wushu nodded very naturally. "Yes."

Xie Bai: "..." Was this sarcasm?

"Did you see the nails just now?" Yin Wushu saw that Xie Bai still had a dull look, knowing that he was still stubborn, so he jokingly grabbed one of his fingers and shook his hand: "Maybe your finger is as long as this copper nail."

Xie Bai nodded: "I saw it. Did you nail them?"

Yin Wushu grunted, "Yes," and added, "I had some grudges with him in my early years. I couldn't stand him wandering around annoyingly, so I almost killed him and sealed him in the Tianshan Mountains. When I sealed him, I chose the thickest ice area, which pierced through nearly a hundred meters."

"Underground?" Xie Bai was stunned; that person had clearly been sealed in the ice wall just now.

"Because he escaped halfway." Yin Wushu pointed to Xie Bai's chest, "Later, I found out that your Hundred Ghosts Corpse-Nurturing Formation was related to him. Those nails were nailed in by me many years ago, a total of eighty-one, each inscribed with a curse. I re-nailed him into the ice layer on the mountain wall. Who knew that after being honest for a hundred and eighty years, he started to become restless again, and your recent abnormal physical condition is also related to him."

Xie Bai listened and said, "So I ended up causing trouble."

Yin Wushu waved his hand, "I was planning to let him out anyway. This thing is hard to kill. Nestled in the Tianshan Mountains, he would harm you on one side and plot against me on the other, wanting to turn the tables. He has coveted the spiritual power in my body for a long time, so I came over to give him a taste of it, and took the opportunity to plant something in his body while he thought he had succeeded."

"Why did that situation just happen when I arrived?" Xie Bai asked in confusion.

"The Hundred Ghosts Corpse-Nurturing Formation on your body is related to him. Whether he laid it out or used a third party to do it, he couldn't escape. He just lost control for a moment and thought that taking it little by little wasn't satisfying enough, so he used your Hundred Ghosts Corpse-Nurturing Formation as a medium to absorb my spiritual power."

Yin Wushu laughed, "I originally planned to pretend to be evenly matched with him, gradually infusing him with spiritual power, pretending to confront each other for a hundred and eighty days or even longer. It would seem more real that way. Who knew he wouldn't care about appearances, which is good; it saved me time."

"Since I came to help, why did you send me to Guha Mountain with one stick and then confine me in that room?" Xie Bai stared at him with his ebony-colored eyes without blinking.

At this mention, Yin Wushu chuckled, "Why did I send you away? Was being a medium not a good job? Isn't it particularly pleasant to taste the feeling of ice and fire intertwining, piercing to the heart and bone?"

Xie Bai: "..."

Seeing Xie Bai silent, Yin Wushu relaxed his shoulder muscles, lazily leaning against a half-person-high black stone behind him, and said unkindly, "Have you finished indulging in your hundred thousand whys?"

Xie Bai thought about it after connecting everything, stayed silent for a while, and then said lightly, "Half-believing and half-doubting."

Yin Wushu listened and chuckled, "How can you be half-believing and half-doubting?"

"Half-believing because you're too powerful—" Xie Bai had only said half of this sentence, but Yin Wushu squinted his eyes quite enjoyably.

Xie Bai paused, silent for a moment before continuing, "Although I've seen you injured and bruised, and your heart and lungs torn out, it's not like you're truly invulnerable—"

Yin Wushu: "..."

"But I've never seen anyone who could drain you of all color and greatly damage your spiritual power. As for half-doubting—" Xie Bai said expressionlessly, "It's because you have too many past crimes. Eight out of ten sentences you say are nonsense, gibberish to deceive ghosts, and you can say them without changing your expression or blinking your eyes, so your credibility is basically negative."

Yin Wushu: "..."

Xie Bai stood at the edge of the cliff and saw Lou Xianyue and the merman resting in the snow for a while from the corner of his eye. They finally recovered and were taking small steps around the broken ice and copper nails below the cliff, seemingly studying something.

He thought for a moment and then turned to Yin Wushu, asking, "Let's assume half of what you just said is true. Now that the person has disappeared, what should we do next?"

"He won't be carefree for long; he's too impatient and came out too early. Originally, a few days into the beginning of the month was the most suitable time for him. Now that he's gone and his soul isn't stable, coupled with what I did inside him, by the beginning of the month, his time will be up, and he won't be able to turn things around." Yin Wushu said lazily while leaning against the black stone, looking indifferent, not seeming to be lying.

"And now?" Xie Bai asked.

"Now?" Yin Wushu raised an eyebrow, "Since he was released early, he's probably gone back."

Xie Bai made a sound of acknowledgment and was about to jump off the cliff directly, but Yin Wushu stopped him, saying, "Hey—wait."

"Hmm?" Xie Bai paused, turned his head, and asked, "What's wrong now?"

Yin Wushu looked at Xie Bai with a mysterious expression for a while, then spoke, "Give me a hand."

Xie Bai: "Can't you stand up on your own?"

Still maintaining that mysterious expression, Yin Wushu said, "I've been sitting cross-legged here all day without moving; my legs are numb."

Xie Bai: "..."

He had played this trick no less than ten times back then. As a big guy, he would deceive a five or six-year-old child into thinking his foot was numb, his leg was broken, or his ankle was dislocated and couldn't stand up. When he was young, obedient, and honest, he would fall for it every time, but now, if he were to fall for it again, his brain must have been gnawed by a donkey.

With a cold snort, Xie Bai plucked the little black cat from his shoulder and held it in his arms, then jumped off the cliff without saying a word.

This shameless Yin Wushu, still pretending behind, said, "Young man, being unfilial will incur divine punishment. Even if you jump off the cliff to commit suicide, you can't escape..."

As soon as he finished speaking, he stood up properly, showing no sign of disability, and followed Xie Bai from the top of the cliff, landing straight down.

As soon as Xie Bai's feet touched the ground, he heard Lou Xianyue and the merman gathering together, looking at something.

When they saw the two of them coming down from the cliff, they held out a small handful of dark red objects in their hands and raised them to them: "We just circled around here and found this small handful of beads where the ice man disappeared."

Xie Bai looked at the thing in their hands in a daze and blurted out unconsciously, "This is blood."

Lou Xianyue and the merman were both stunned, even Yin Wushu glanced at him.

Xie Bai then briefly explained what the stork demon told him, and after finishing, he looked at Yin Wushu again, saying, "So you actually knew what this was long ago but pretended not to recognize it when I asked you."

Yin Wushu coughed and said, "After all, he's a troublesome character; the farther away from him, the better."

"In that case, the grave willow and the Yin Yang fish from before are also related to him?" Xie Bai nodded in understanding.

Yin Wushu nodded, "You've also been to those places. I originally sent his soul fire into the water, buried his heart under the soil, and used the grave willow and nailing soul nails to suppress him respectively."

Xie Bai understood. As a result, that person fought back and killed the turned demon grave willow and Yin Yang fish.

After Yin Wushu explained everything, it all came together, and there didn't seem to be any more doubts. However, there was one thing that had been bothering Xie Bai since earlier.

He glanced at the mess of ice and turned to Yin Wushu, asking, "I just saw the lower half of that person's face, why does it look so much like you?"

Yin Wushu was taken aback, "Like me?"

Lou Xianyue chimed in, "Yeah, yeah, I was wondering why it looked a bit familiar! It really does resemble you, but maybe the chin is a bit sharper? The nose isn't as high as yours?"

The merman smirked beside them, "Are you guys face blind? Where's the resemblance... Do different people see different things?"

"Is it an illusion? Or did he put on a disguise to confuse us? Or maybe just to make Xie Bai relax his guard?" Lou Xianyue couldn't help but speculate.

Upon hearing Lou Xianyue's words, Xie Bai had to admit that it was indeed possible. He had to admit that when he saw the lower half of that person's face, his hostility vanished in an instant. Perhaps that person took advantage of that moment, using his Hundred Ghosts Corpse Nurturing Formation to absorb Yin Wushu's spiritual power while he was off guard.

"Let's discuss this when we get back." Lou Xianyue suggested.

There were no objections from the group, and they turned to leave. Yin Wushu paused briefly, just a step behind Xie Bai. As Xie Bai turned around, Yin Wushu swiftly raised his hand and lightly tapped the back of Xie Bai's neck.

Xie Bai's whole body stiffened, and without warning, he collapsed, falling right into Yin Wushu's arms.

Lou Xianyue and the merman stared in astonishment. "What did you do?!"

Yin Wushu shook his head and said impatiently, "He's been pushed around quite a bit, and his strength is exhausted. He's just trying to save face, but after opening the Spirit Yin Gate and making a trip, he'll collapse when we get back."

With that, he picked up the unconscious Xie Bai and strode away.

The little black cat ran a few steps behind him, pounced, and jumped onto his shoulder. After taking three steps together, they vanished like a wisp of mist, disappearing from sight.

 

Translator : DarNan