[Qingyi, I promised you I would keep him safe. In this life, in every life, forever and always.]
Not knowing where else to go, Li Luoning walked all the way to Jiagu Qing's courtyard. He stood at the gate, staring into it blankly, not knowing what he was thinking, or where he even meant to go.
"Little medicine fool?"
Jiagu Qing happened to come out just then, carrying some dried flower seeds in his hands.
Hearing Jiagu Qing's voice, Li Luoning finally came back to himself.
"Senior Jiagu."
Jiagu Qing noticed the strange look on Li Luoning's face. He looked him up and down a few times, but asked nothing.
"It's been a long while since I've seen you, boy. Come on, come on. Have a drink with this old man," Jiagu Qing said.
"I..." Li Luoning hesitated for a moment, not knowing how to answer.
"Since you're here, stay a few more days. I've been worrying over this pile of flower seeds these past few days. There's no one to help me lay them out to dry," Jiagu Qing said as he fiddled with the seeds in his hand.
In Liaoyin Immortal Realm,
"Commander Ruling, bad news. Yun Wannian has been taken to the main hall by the Immortal Lord. They say he is going to be punished for Qingyi Immortal Master's death."
Ever since seeing Mie Xingzhe that day, Yue Ruling had been worried. She had arranged for several immortal soldiers to keep watch outside Jingyun Residence and report to her at any time.
"What!"
Inside Shangqing Hall,
Mie Xingzhe knelt there blankly, his eyes dull and lifeless. His body was tightly bound by the Immortal Binding Rope. His hair was a mess, and there was still a streak of blood at the corner of his mouth.
"Immortal Lord, in that battle, Yun Wannian only made the fatal mistake of killing Qingyi Immortal Master because he was under the influence of Qianmo. I ask the Immortal Lord to show mercy outside the law," said War God Qingyuan.
"Immortal Lord, no matter what, Yun Wannian is still Immortal Master Xiayi's disciple. Xiayi has already lost Yun Qingyi. If he were to lose Yun Wannian too, I fear..." Xuanming Lord also tried to persuade him.
"There are rules and laws in Liaoyin Immortal Realm. Yun Wannian killed a fellow disciple with his own hand. That crime cannot be forgiven. If this Immortal Lord does not punish him, how am I supposed to command respect in the future? You all keep saying he was bewitched by Qianmo, but where is your proof? I have heard that Qianmo is a poison with no cure. If he truly had been poisoned by it, then why is he so clear-headed now?" Situ Fanzhi said.
"But there truly was a reason behind it. All of us saw with our own eyes that Yun Wannian was being controlled by Qianmo. In order to use him, Li Minghan even planted the poison of the Demon Mushroom Ghost Umbrella in him. If the Immortal Lord does not believe it, let Apothecary Oushi examine him," Qingyuan explained.
"The poison of the Demon Mushroom Ghost Umbrella? Qingyuan, do you know what kind of poison that is? Anyone struck by it will have every meridian shattered and die the moment they use their full spiritual power once. And yet this Yun Wannian is still kneeling here just fine, is he not?" Oushi Nan said.
Situ Fanzhi looked at Mie Xingzhe kneeling below and asked, "Yun Wannian, do you have anything to say?"
Mie Xingzhe still looked numb, his gaze hollow. Calmly and coldly, he said,
"This guilty disciple Yun Wannian killed a fellow disciple. The entire sect witnessed it. My crime cannot be forgiven. I beg the Immortal Lord to grant me death."
After Qingyi-ge died, the light in Master's eyes had vanished too, and the gentle voice that used to call for him in his room was gone for good. No matter what, Mie Xingzhe thinks he deserved to die. He should have died in that battle.
Yue Ruling finally rushed in at that moment. The moment she heard what he had just said, she hurriedly cut in.
"No matter what, Yun Wannian is still Immortal Master Xiayi's disciple. If he is truly to be judged, we should at least hear what Immortal Master Xiayi has to say."
"A wicked disciple who killed his own brother. Do you really think Xiayi would still protect him? Fine. Then this Immortal Lord will hear what your master has to say. Men, summon Immortal Master Xiayi," Situ Fanzhi said in anger.
"As far as I know, ever since Immortal Master Xiayi returned from Wuming Demon Mountain, he has shut himself away and seen no one. A few days ago, after coming out of seclusion, he disappeared. As for where he went, I fear no one knows," Oushi Nan said.
"What? No one knows where Immortal Master Xiayi is?"
Silence filled the hall. No one truly knew where Li Luoning was at that moment.
Behind her back, Yue Ruling quietly released a Flowing Light Butterfly. Yun Qingyi had given it to her a long time ago.
Oushi Nan noticed it. He only glanced lightly at the Flowing Light Butterfly Yue Ruling had sent out, then let out a careless little laugh.
The butterfly fluttered out of Shangqing Hall. As it passed by a patch of grass, a black shadow suddenly leaped out and swallowed it whole. After giving a few cries, the black-ringed toad slowly hid itself among the grass and hopped away.
At Nangzhe's residence, Hua Ruoying was trapped in her room, pounding desperately on the door.
"Nangzhe, you bastard, let me out!"
After shouting for a long while, Hua Ruoying grew tired and sat down to rest.
"I don't even know where Qingping could have gone. And how much longer am I supposed to stay locked up by that lunatic?" Hua Ruoying could not stop complaining. Just as she was speaking, she noticed a small black shadow moving at the corner of her eye.
"Who's there!"
Puzzled, Hua Ruoying stood up to look more closely. The little black shadow slowly drifted toward her. Hua Ruoying held out her hand, and the tiny shadow came to rest in her palm as if it were alive.
"Little shadow, who are you?" Hua Ruoying asked.
The little shadow only turned in a circle where it stood and answered nothing.
"Can you take me to Qingping?"
But for some reason, the moment she finished speaking, the little shadow gradually changed from black to gray, then gave a soft puff and vanished right in front of her.
"Hey, don't go!"
"Could it be... could it be that something happened to Qingping?" Hua Ruoying guessed uneasily, and an idea formed in her mind.
At Wuming Demon Mountain, in the Demon Sovereign Hall, Shentu Zhuojia once again sat upon the Demon Sovereign's throne, a place he had not occupied for a very long time.
"We welcome the Sovereign."
"Sovereign." Hua Qiuyuan stepped close and whispered a few words into Shentu Zhuojia's ear.
"I see. I will deal with this matter myself. You may go," Shentu Zhuojia ordered.
A few days later, Li Luoning finally returned to Jingyun Residence.
The moment he stepped inside, Yue Ruling's anxious voice called after him from behind.
"Immortal Master Xiayi, wait. Immortal Master Xiayi. Xiayi. Xi— Li Luoning! Stop right there!"
Seeing that Li Luoning had no intention of stopping, Yue Ruling blurted out his real name in her panic.
Only then did Li Luoning stop. He turned around and looked at Yue Ruling with a cold expression, his gaze plainly saying, [If you have something to say, say it.]
"Your little junior brother has been thrown into the heavenly prison by the Immortal Lord. Every day he's suffering under heavenly thunder. If you don't want your line to end with you, you'd better go and explain things clearly."
After saying that, she turned and left, leaving Li Luoning frozen where he stood.
In Situ Fanzhi's study,
"So you truly think he would trade the Chixi Pill for that sinful disciple's life?" Situ Fanzhi asked.
"According to the rules written in the Master-Immortal Oath, one life may be exchanged for another. From what I know of him, the chance is very high. The only problem is that he should still have the Moon Shadow Pill in his hand, and that makes things troublesome," Oushi Nan said.
"This Immortal Lord saw that battle at Wuming Mountain before. If one has both the Chixi Pill and the Floating Light Golden Seal, then taking the Moon Shadow Pill would not be difficult," Situ Fanzhi said.
"If Li Luoning hands over the Chixi Pill in exchange for Yun Wannian, then getting the Floating Light Golden Seal afterward will not be difficult either," Oushi Nan said softly.
"Oh? And what exactly do you mean?"
"In the battle at Wuming Mountain, the Moon Shadow Pill had already been sealed by the scales of Yingde Dragon King. And judging from how Yun Wannian handled it, he seems to have no idea how to use the Floating Light Golden Seal properly. Now Yun Qingyi's death has become a thorn lodged between master and disciple. Even if both of them try not to touch it, distance between them is unavoidable. The Moon Shadow Pill came out of Li Minghan's demonic cultivation. If it is truly in Li Luoning's body now, then his temperament will gradually change with it." Oushi Nan said.
Li Luoning now stood inside the great hall.
"Immortal Master Xiayi, this Immortal Lord took into account the loss of your beloved disciple and so did not send anyone to disturb you these past days. But as for Yun Wannian..." Situ Fanzhi paused.
"Immortal Lord, my disciple only killed his senior brother Yun Qingyi by mistake because he was not in his right mind and had been bewitched by the demon race. The blame does not lie with him," Li Luoning said.
"You say he was bewitched by the demons. Where is your proof? He killed a fellow disciple. That is a grave crime against the sect. How should such a crime be punished? If he is simply let go, then how is this Immortal Lord supposed to maintain the respect of the people in the future?" Situ Fanzhi demanded.
As the two of them spoke, Mie Xingzhe was brought in.
He wore grimy rough cloth, and though the Floating Light Golden Seal protected him, it could only hold out against heavenly thunder for so long. Once the seal's power to protect its host was exhausted, the heavenly thunder lashes struck him without restraint. Several scorched marks were clearly visible all over his body. Strands of messy hair hung loose along his cheeks. His eye sockets had sunk deep, and his gaze was empty. His thin hands were covered in dried blood. The skin at his wrists and ankles had been rubbed raw by the iron chains until it was layered with scabs. Barefoot and filthy, he walked forward step by step.
Seeing Mie Xingzhe in such a state, Li Luoning felt as though someone had grabbed his heart in a fist. For a moment, his lips trembled slightly, and he wanted to say something.
[Li Luoning, look at yourself. Is this how you keep him safe?]
Mie Xingzhe walked past Li Luoning blankly. When he passed him, he did not even hesitate for half a moment.
Li Luoning had wanted to say something, but the word Nian'er died in his throat.
Mie Xingzhe had seen his master standing there in the hall. But he did not dare speak, and he did not dare lift his eyes to meet his gaze. He was afraid of seeing again the look his master had worn that day. He was afraid of being coldly ignored all over again.
Mie Xingzhe quietly knelt down without saying a word. His lowered eyes were dim and lifeless. His cheeks had become so thin the bones showed clearly. The clothes over his back were stretched tight over his sharp shoulder blades, and several marks left by the heavenly thunder lash could clearly be seen there.
Looking at Mie Xingzhe kneeling below, Li Luoning heard once more the last words Yun Qingyi had spoken before dying. He thought that no matter what, Mie Xingzhe was Yun Qingyi's younger brother by blood. Even if he still resented him, he had to keep him alive, if only for Yun Qingyi's sake.
"This guilty person Mie Xingzhe, greets the Immortal Lord... and Immortal Master Xiayi."
Mie Xingzhe spoke slowly. There was none of his old life in his voice now. All that remained was pallor and humility.
He did not dare use the name his master had given him. He felt he did not deserve it. He did not dare call him Master anymore. Ever since Qingyi-ge died that day, he felt that in Li Luoning's eyes he was no longer Yun Wannian, only the murderer who had killed Yun Qingyi.
That single phrase, Immortal Master Xiayi, was like a knife driven hard into Li Luoning's heart.
[Nian was always timid, shy, and insecure. It was only after he met Qingyi and me that he slowly became as lively and bright as he is now. And now look what I have done. I have turned him into someone who no longer even has the courage to call me Master.]
Li Luoning blamed himself bitterly in silence.
"Xiayi, if you are willing to cast him out of the sect and hand him over to the Discipline Office of Liaoyin, then this Immortal Lord will summon Xuanming Star Lord and have the Master-Immortal Oath between the two of you broken," Situ Fanzhi said.
The Master-Immortal Oath was the bond that tied master and disciple in Liaoyin Immortal Realm. Once it was broken, it meant the bond between them was cut off forever.
Mie Xingzhe knelt there with his head lowered. When he heard the words cast out of the sect, his body trembled. His lashes shook uncontrollably, and he crushed down the storm inside him so that the master behind him would not notice. Over these past days, he had prepared himself for this countless times. But now that the words had truly been spoken, the pain still cut through him all the same.
"Xiayi taught his disciple poorly. I am willing to suffer the punishment in my disciple's place."
Li Luoning had looked at Mie Xingzhe for so long that he seemed to drift away. Only after a long while did he slowly raise his head and speak.
"The crime committed by Yun Wannian is killing a fellow disciple and turning against his side in battle. Either one is a capital offense. How exactly do you intend to suffer punishment in his place?"
"Xiayi is willing... to hand over the Chixi Pill in exchange for my disciple's life," Li Luoning said in a low voice.
The moment Mie Xingzhe heard that, he froze in shock. He immediately turned around and stared at Li Luoning in terror, shaking his head again and again. Then he hurriedly begged,
"This has nothing to do with Master. I am willing to bear all punishment myself. I beg the Immortal Lord not to blame Master."
His throat worked hard, and his voice came out raw and hoarse. He had thought today would be the day of his final judgment. He had never imagined that Master would be willing to trade one life for another.
"Xiayi, do you understand what it means for you to give up the Chixi Pill?" Situ Fanzhi asked.
"Xiayi understands." Li Luoning had clearly already made up his mind. His voice was firm and without the slightest hesitation.
"No. You can't. You can't. Immortal Lord, do not take Master's inner core. I am willing to admit guilt. I am willing to accept any punishment. I only beg you not to harm my Master."
Mie Xingzhe panicked horribly where he knelt. He shifted forward on his knees twice, lost his balance, and fell face-first to the floor, hoarsely pleading again and again.
"Too much talk."
Li Luoning murmured the words, then with a wave of his hand sealed Mie Xingzhe's voice with a spell.