r18novel Chapter 136 The Missing Zhao Ling'er [Seeking Monthly Tickets]
Chapter 136 The Missing Zhao Ling'er [Seeking Monthly Tickets]
Chapter 136 The Missing Zhao Ling'er [Seeking Monthly Tickets]
"Junior brother, have you gone mad?!"
Xu Changqing was both shocked and furious. He drew his sword at Chu Yang, finding it hard to believe that his junior brother would do something so heinous.
"I know you're in a hurry, but don't rush!"
Chu Yang smacked his lips, flicked out a sword aura, and scraped open the dough of the grandfather and grandson. Underneath the dough, there was another face.
"Human skin masks! These two are suspicious!"
Li Xiaoyao exclaimed in surprise, then stepped forward and lifted the faces of the two men, revealing the faces of two unfamiliar men, who appeared to be in their early twenties.
A crescent moon was staring at their foreheads!
Li Xiaoyao shouted, "Brother Xu, they are members of the Moon Worship Cult!"
Xu Changqing stepped forward to investigate, then turned around in surprise and asked, "Junior brother, how did you know?"
How did you know?
Of course, you should check the guide!
"Although my granddaughter appeared panicked, her breathing was very steady, like someone who practices martial arts. The old man was the same; he walked unsteadily, but his breathing was not disordered at all."
"I could tell they weren't good people at first glance!"
Chu Yang said with certainty.
Li Xiaoyao scratched his head and asked, "What if I guess wrong?"
Chu Yang shrugged. "If I guessed wrong, I guessed wrong. What can I do?"
Xu Changqing's face turned ashen.
Li Xiaoyao wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. "Luckily, I wasn't wrong—"
Chu Yang said speechlessly, "More important than whether I guessed right is that the Moon Worship Cult is very close to us, and they already know our route of action!"
Li Xiaoyao was startled.
Xu Changqing fell into deep thought, his gaze solemn.
Chu Yang suggested, "Now that I've mastered Qi cultivation and Xiaoyao can fly on a sword, why don't we change our plans and head straight back to Mount Shu?"
Xu Changqing nodded. "This is the safest method. Once Brother Li formally becomes a disciple, we can openly and honestly fight against the Moon Worship Cult."
Li Xiaoyao was extremely excited. Joining the Shu Mountain Sect would mean he had one foot in the door of becoming a great hero.
This is his biggest dream in his life!
"Let's clean up these two bodies first, then wait and see if we can catch a few more fish."
Chu Yang instructed Li Xiaoyao to clean up the scene, and then the three of them began to wait for their prey to come to them. Once their companion lost contact, the rest of the Moon Worship Cult would definitely get restless!
As darkness fell.
The mountains and forests turned pitch black, with only a sliver of moonlight remaining in the dappled shade of the trees.
A rustling sound began to come from the bushes.
Several dark figures suddenly darted out, seemingly searching for something.
"The Gu worms are reacting violently; they should be here. Where did they go?"
"Did those two guys really get eaten by the snake demon?"
"They're not without legs; if they can't win, they can't run away, right?"
"That's a bit odd—"
As soon as he finished speaking, three sharp sword lights shot out from the darkness, and with a series of splattering sounds, blood gushed out like a fountain.
Chu Yang looked at the corpses scattered on the ground and nodded in satisfaction. "Alright! Now Bai Yue won't get any news from us for a long time."
Li Xiaoyao twirled his sword in the moonlight, looking quite pleased with himself.
No wonder, this is his first time making a move, and it can be considered that he has officially embarked on the path of a great hero.
"Let's go, lest we cause any further trouble."
Xu Changqing took the lead and flew away on his sword, seemingly disliking the scene.
"Senior brother needs to train more—"
Chu Yang shook his head and told Li Xiaoyao to dig out the bodies that had been buried earlier. Then, he cast a fireball spell, burning several Moon Worshipers and the Gu worms on their bodies to ashes.
After the three returned to Lin Family Fortress, Li Xiaoyao, who was overjoyed, heard some terrible news.
Zhao Ling'er has disappeared!
An enraged Li Xiaoyao immediately sought out Lin Tiannan to inquire about Zhao Ling'er's whereabouts.
Lin Tiannan showed no remorse whatsoever; instead, he looked at Li Xiaoyao with a complicated expression.
Liu Jinyuan hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.
Lin Yueru was at a loss, as if she was terrified.
Chu Yang observed their reactions and suddenly remembered something he had overlooked.
Zhao Ling'er is pregnant!
She revealed her true form as a descendant of Nuwa!
Li Xiaoyao was currently questioning Lin Tiannan in a great hurry.
"How could Ling'er have disappeared without a trace?!"
"Young man, please calm down. This matter is a bit complicated."
"What's so complicated? We entrusted someone to your care, and now that person is gone!"
"Sigh! Young man, let me tell you the truth, that Miss Zhao is a monster! She ran away on her own!"
"You're the monster! You old bastard, I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget!"
After saying that, Li Xiaoyao drew his sword, ready to fight Lin Tiannan to the death.
Chu Yang reached out and grabbed him.
Li Xiaoyao struggled fiercely, pleading, "Brother Chu, let me go! They don't know where they took Ling'er; they're just trying to fool me!"
Lin Yueru was furious. She had been quite frightened by Zhao Ling'er's half-human, half-snake form when she went to see her before, and now she heard Li Xiaoyao spouting nonsense.
"That Zhao Ling'er is a snake demon. Not only I, but also some servants and maids saw her. You can go and ask her if you don't believe me!"
Li Xiaoyao's eyes were bloodshot, as if he wanted to devour someone. "Try saying that again!"
Lin Yueru glared, her aura unwavering, "Fine, I'll say it—"
"Shut up, all of you!"
The domineering aura emanating from Chu Yang flashed by in an instant. He tried his best to suppress it, but the astonishing aura still frightened everyone present.
Lin Tiannan's face darkened; he felt he had been provoked.
Chu Yang took a deep breath, cupped his hands and said, "This matter is my fault. I did not explain it clearly to everyone beforehand that Ling'er is a descendant of Nuwa, not a monster."
The crowd looked bewildered, seemingly having never heard of the claim of being a descendant of Nuwa.
Xu Changqing's expression shifted, and he explained, "I once read some ancient books in the Scripture Pavilion. They said that when the world was first created, Pangu's essence and spirit transformed into three great gods, namely Fuxi, Shennong, and Nuwa."
These three great gods were also known as the Three Sovereigns by later generations!
"Because there were too few living beings in the world, the Three Sovereigns began to create holy spirits in different forms. Fuxi used the fruit of the divine tree in the heavens as his body, infused it with his own essence, and created gods, calling himself the Heavenly Emperor."
"Shennong used the earth's plants as his body, infused them with his own vital energy, and created beasts."
"Finally, it was the goddess Nuwa who mixed earth and water, sculpted a human figure in her own image, and then infused it with her own blood and spiritual power to create humans."
"Later, Shennong disappeared, and the lowly beast race began to run rampant in the human world. Not long after, a ruler with extremely high wisdom, Chi You, appeared."
"In order to seize living space, the beastmen, led by Chiyou, launched a war against the human race. The human race was unable to resist, so they asked the gods for help."
"The war between the three races broke out, and the beastmen were driven to the demon realm by the combined forces of humans and gods. In the years that followed, friction began to arise between the gods and humans."
"The Heavenly Emperor Fuxi was displeased with the human race's disrespect for Heaven, so he sent down calamities and ordered the gods to destroy the earth. Nuwa led the human race in rebellion, refined stones to mend the sky, and saved the surviving humans."
"Nuwa sacrificed herself due to exhaustion, and Fuxi reflected on his actions, ultimately sealing the gates of the heavens, completely separating the human and divine realms."
"Although Nuwa died, she left behind descendants who have protected humankind for generations."
"Nonsense! Nuwa is one of the Three Sovereigns, a great goddess, how could she be a snake demon?"
Lin Yueru panicked and immediately retorted.
Xu Changqing said respectfully, "The goddess Nuwa is indeed in a half-human, half-snake form. This is not only recorded in ancient books, but there is also a statue of Nuwa on Mount Shu, which we disciples worship day and night, so we are very familiar with her."
"As for why Miss Zhao was first in human form and then became half-human and half-snake, I have no idea."
Chu Yang continued, "The descendants of Nuwa are half-human and half-god. Their bloodline is not usually visible. It is because they are pregnant that the bloodline hidden in their bodies is activated, which is why they exhibit the phenomenon of atavism."
Chu Yang and Xu Changqing are disciples of Mount Shu, so their words are highly credible.
Even though no one had ever heard of the so-called descendants of Nuwa before, they now had to admit that Zhao Ling'er was indeed a descendant of Nuwa.
"So—that means we were mistaken."
Lin Yueru's face turned pale. She was the one who insisted that Zhao Ling'er was a monster. If anything happened, she would have to take the main responsibility.
"It is my ignorance that I have never heard of the descendants of Nuwa before. This is also the first time my daughter has encountered such a situation. I hope Brother Li can forgive me."
Lin Tiannan cupped his hands in apology to Li Xiaoyao, but Li Xiaoyao was completely disoriented and couldn't hear what Lin Tiannan was saying at all.
His mind was filled with Chu Yang's words, "Zhao Ling'er is pregnant."
The situation is far more serious when two people go missing than when only one person goes missing. Li Xiaoyao was gripped by immense fear, and his whole body trembled violently as if he had the malaria.
Seeing this, Lin Yueru also retreated in fear, quietly hiding behind Liu Jinyuan.
Worried about Zhao Ling'er's safety, Liu Jinyuan didn't even have time to chat with his cousin and hurriedly said, "Uncle, now is not the time to talk about this. Let's quickly mobilize the men of Lin Family Fort to search for Miss Zhao!"
Lin Tiannan nodded.
Xu Changqing immediately rejected Liu Jinyuan's suggestion, shaking his head and saying, "No! Ordinary people simply cannot accept Zhao Ling'er's current state. Even if we explain it clearly, they may not be able to accept it. It's better if we go find her ourselves."
"Senior brother, you're right." Chu Yang slapped Li Xiaoyao on the back of the head and said irritably, "What are you shaking for? Do you think she can outrun us sword riders? We'd find everyone in that time!"
Li Xiaoyao suddenly realized what was happening and immediately rushed out the door.
"The matter is urgent, Senior Lin. Please forgive my rudeness, I must take my leave now."
Xu Changqing, Chu Yangchong, and Lin Tiannan clasped their hands in greeting and followed Li Xiaoyao away.
Lin Tiannan watched their departing figures in silence. In his decades of wandering the martial world, he had never made such a huge blunder as today.
"I will personally go to Mount Shu to verify with the Sword Saint after some time. If it is true, I will take you to apologize to Miss Zhao properly."
Lin Tiannan felt bad looking at Lin Yueru, who was filled with self-reproach.
Lin Yueru stubbornly said, "This is my fault, I will bear the consequences myself!"
Lin Tiannan was furious. "How are you going to take responsibility? If something happens to that Miss Zhao, it will be two lives lost. Are you going to pay for it with your own life?"
"I'll pay with my life!" Lin Yueru roared and rushed out, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
"Cousin, wait for me!" Liu Jinyuan was extremely anxious, and didn't forget to bow to Lin Tiannan. "Uncle, don't worry, I will take good care of my cousin."
'
Lin Tiannan was so angry that he trembled, so he simply closed his eyes, trying to avoid seeing it and getting annoyed.
After leaving Linjiabao, the two embarked on a journey together to find Zhao Ling'er.
Meanwhile, Chu Yang and his two companions were also searching for Zhao Ling'er's whereabouts on their swords.
To improve efficiency, the three split up. Chu Yang circled the nearby mountains several times, but his Observation Haki gave him no response.
"That's strange. Why can't I sense Zhao Ling'er with my Observation Haki? Is she being shielded by spiritual energy?"
"That possibility cannot be ruled out—"
Things suddenly became complicated.
Chu Yang originally thought that his Observation Haki would be able to easily find Zhao Ling'er's whereabouts, but right now she was in her "Nuwa state," half-human and half-snake, and her body was constantly radiating spiritual power.
Just as electromagnetic waves can interfere with signals, Observation Haki can also be interfered with by this powerful force.
After searching for half a day without success, Chu Yang contacted Xu Changqing through a secret method and learned that the other party had also failed to find Zhao Ling'er.
late at night.
The three met up on a desolate mountain.
Li Xiaoyao sat on the ground, utterly dejected. The usually talkative boy was now completely speechless.
Chu Yang patted his shoulder and comforted him, "Although we couldn't find Ling'er, I just cast a divination for her. The divination showed that she would turn misfortune into good fortune and escape danger. Moreover, she is a descendant of Nuwa, so she has great blessings. You don't need to worry too much."
Li Xiaoyao excitedly grabbed Chu Yang's hand, "Brother Chu, is it really true?! Ling'er will be alright, right?!"
Chu Yang said firmly, "Of course, when have I ever lied to you!"
Xu Changqing stared blankly at Chu Yang. He had never heard that his junior brother could perform divination. But then he thought that it was normal for Chu Yang to know some miscellaneous things since he spent all his time in the Scripture Pavilion.
I just don't know if it's accurate.
After all, the ability to perform calculations is linked to one's personal cultivation level.
With Chu Yang's assurance, Li Xiaoyao finally felt a little relieved and, exhausted both physically and mentally, slowly lay down on the grass.
"I promised Grandma and Aunt that I would protect Ling'er, and then this terrible thing happened in the blink of an eye."
"Along the way, I didn't take good care of Ling'er at all. On the contrary, she indulged me in every way and even let me follow you to exorcise demons—"
Li Xiaoyao stared blankly at the starry sky, lost in thought.
Chu Yang and Xu Changqing exchanged a glance, and couldn't help but feel a little emotional. People really do need to go through some things to grow.
Xu Changqing comforted him, saying, "You're still young. When you're young, all sorts of things happen, and you make all sorts of mistakes. You have to pay the price for it before you can learn and grow."
Li Xiaoyao said with a wry smile, "The price is too high; I simply cannot afford it."
On the other side...
Zhao Ling'er, who has become half-human and half-snake, is first misunderstood and driven away by the villagers, and then she meets a kind old mountain god who explains her origins.
Upon learning that she was a descendant of Nuwa, Zhao Ling'er was able to confront her unusual situation and thus became eager to see Li Xiaoyao.
On the way back to Suzhou, Anu, who sensed Zhao Ling'er's location through the "One Line Connection," suddenly appeared.
Reuniting with her childhood playmates made Zhao Ling'er very happy.
The two talked for a long time, until late at night, when Zhao Ling'er mentioned that she wanted to find Li Xiaoyao.
Anu wanted to take Zhao Ling'er directly back to the Nanzhao Kingdom.
Zhao Ling'er pleaded desperately.
The two then had a minor argument.
It just so happened at that moment.
Lin Yueru and Liu Jinyuan, who were out searching for Zhao Ling'er, discovered the two.
Lin Yueru already felt guilty towards Zhao Ling'er, and seeing this, she thought that Anu was bullying Zhao Ling'er, so she drew her sword and rushed forward without saying a word.
Liu Jinyuan hurriedly shouted, "Cousin, calm down! Calm down!"
If Lin Yueru could calm down so easily, she wouldn't be herself. She prefers to use her sword rather than her brain.
Anu also has a temper. Although she is usually smiling, she can be just as reckless when she gets angry.
Seeing this inexplicable woman immediately stab someone with a sword, Anu immediately cast a spell, and a faint glow appeared between her hands.
After Lin Yueru forced Anu back with a single sword strike, she was about to explain to Zhao Ling'er when she discovered that she couldn't move.
"What evil spell have you cast on me, you vixen?!"
Lin Yueru was both shocked and furious.
"You're the witch! Anu is the Holy Maiden's disciple, the future priestess of the Nanzhao Kingdom!"
Anu stomped her feet in anger, preparing to use magic to teach this woman who spoke without thinking a lesson!
Zhao Ling'er was startled by this sudden scene!
It was already late at night, and the dark night made it impossible to see anyone clearly. Zhao Ling'er only recognized Lin Yueru after hearing her voice.
"Anu, stop! She's not a bad person!"
"What do you mean she wasn't a bad person? Didn't you see her trying to attack us with a sword?"
Hearing the two talking, Lin Yueru was also stunned, "You two know each other?"
Anu, hands on her hips, retorted angrily, "What else can I do!"
Liu Jinyuan quickly stepped forward to apologize to Anu and Zhao Ling'er, then said to Lin Yueru, "Cousin, I've told you to calm down, why won't you listen!"
Lin Yueru said aggrievedly, "How was I supposed to know they knew each other? I thought she was bullying Ling'er."
Seeing that their attitude towards her was completely different from before, Zhao Ling'er timidly asked, "Brother Jin Yuan, Sister Yue Ru, aren't you afraid of Ling'er?"
Lin Yueru blushed instantly, too embarrassed to say anything, and could only whisper, "I'm sorry—"
"Miss Ling'er, my cousin acted impulsively before. She didn't know you were a descendant of Nuwa and mistakenly thought you were a monster, which caused you to suffer. Jin Yuan apologizes to you on behalf of my cousin and asks for your forgiveness."
With that, Liu Jinyuan bowed deeply to Zhao Ling'er.
Upon hearing the word "monster," Anu immediately became displeased and angrily retorted, "This is our Nanzhao princess! Who are you calling a monster!"
'
Liu Jinyuan quickly apologized, saying, "Yes, yes, it's all our fault for being blind. Please forgive us, young lady."
"Anu, that's enough, they're not bad people," Zhao Ling'er pulled Anu back from her tantrum, then asked curiously, "How did you know I'm a descendant of Nuwa?"
Seeing that Zhao Ling'er didn't take it to heart, Liu Jinyuan smiled and then repeated what Chu Yang had said.
"I see." Zhao Ling'er sighed. "If Master Chu had been there, I probably wouldn't have panicked so much—"
Anu asked with some curiosity, "That Daoist Chu is quite remarkable. He actually knows about the Nuwa clan. The Holy Maiden told me all this, so where did he get it from?"
Thinking of the seemingly omnipotent Master Chu, Zhao Ling'er felt a strange sense of security. "Master Chu is learned and knowledgeable, so it's not surprising that he knows these things."
Anu didn't understand, but judging from Zhao Ling'er's attitude, she felt that the other person must be as smart as Uncle Baiyue.
Liu Jinyuan seemed to have thought of something and exclaimed, "Young Master Li and Daoist Chu left Suzhou this morning to look for you. Didn't Miss Ling'er run into them?"
Zhao Ling'er shook her head and began to recount her encounter with the Mountain God and Anu.
Liu Jinyuan said with some regret, "With the protection of the mountain god, perhaps we've missed out."
Just as the three were having a great time chatting, a voice suddenly broke in.
"I don't mind you guys chatting, but could you let me move a bit? I've been standing here for a long time," Lin Yueru said in a resentful tone.
Zhao Ling'er cried out in surprise and quickly told Anu to dispel the spell.
Anu glared fiercely at Lin Yueru and reluctantly released the spell.
Knowing that Li Xiaoyao was not in Suzhou, Zhao Ling'er gave up the idea of going into the city and prepared to leave with Anu.
Lin Yueru and Liu Jinyuan followed closely behind.
Anu looked at Lin Yueru warily. "What do you want to do?"
Lin Yueru snorted, "I'm not going back unless I get Ling'er safely to Li Xiaoyao!"
Zhao Ling'er said softly, "Sister Yue Ru, there's no need for that."
Lin Yueru kept her head down and didn't say anything, but she also showed no intention of leaving.
Liu Jinyuan sighed, "Miss Ling'er, please let us come along. My cousin feels very guilty about this and even had a big argument with my uncle. She won't feel at ease if we don't let her do something."
The understanding Zhao Ling'er realized Lin Yueru's predicament, so she smiled and said, "In that case, we'll trouble you two."
Lin Yueru's face lit up with joy.
Anu asked softly, "Princess, if we don't go to Suzhou, where are we going next?"
Zhao Ling'er was also troubled, as she was now looking for Li Xiaoyao, and Li Xiaoyao was also looking for her.
As the top scholar, Liu Jinyuan was quick-witted and immediately came up with an idea: "Let's follow the route you set before. Maybe we'll run into Master Chu and the others halfway there."
Lin Yueru reacted quickly, taking out a map from her bundle and placing it in front of everyone.
Zhao Ling'er looked around for a while, then placed her hand on a small village.
Baihe Village!
The next day.
Chu Yang and the others, who had searched all night without finding Zhao Ling'er, never dreamed that Zhao Ling'er would actually head towards Suzhou City.
They searched in the exact opposite direction, which is why they found nothing.
Although they didn't find Zhao Ling'er, the three of them encountered someone unexpected.
Suddenly, a group of people with synchronized steps appeared in the mountains. The leader was a burly man with a full beard, who looked to be an old man around sixty years old.
The old man walked with the stride of a dragon and the gait of a tiger. Even before he got close to Chu Yang, Chu Yang could feel the aura of a battlefield warrior.
Chu Yang murmured, "Such a strong killing intent...it must be some retired general."
The two passed each other by.
The young people surrounding the old man silently reached for the weapons at their waists, seemingly wary of Chu Yang and his group.
Seeing how wary this group of people was, Chu Yang became interested in their identities.
Just then, the old man suddenly stopped and whispered to the nearest young man, "Tang Yu, go ask for directions."
The young man bowed and clasped his hands in greeting, saying, "Yes, Godfather!"
The two whispered conversation did not escape Chu Yang's ears, and his expression changed.
Tang Yu?
Godfather?
Chu Yang roughly knew who these people were.
The elderly man at the head of the group should be Shi Gonghu, a founding elder of the Nanzhao Kingdom, who is also the adoptive father of Shi Jieren, the leader of the Moon Worship Cult.
He was the one who single-handedly nurtured this great demon who was on the verge of destroying the world.
In a sense, it could be said that he cultivated the first scientist in the world of Xianxia (fantasy martial arts).
Besides Shi Gonghu, a group of Southern Barbarian generals' subordinates also came to the Central Plains with him.
The young man was his other adopted son, Tang Yu. Learning from Shi Jieren's experience, Shi Gonghu was very strict with Tang Yu's upbringing.
Tang Yu's pedantry far surpassed that of Liu Jinyuan, who was a scholar.
Seeing Tang Yu walking towards him, Chu Yang had a new idea in his mind.
With Zhao Ling'er's whereabouts unknown, every additional person adds to the strength. With this in mind, Chu Yang took the initiative to ask for their help.
"Are you all going to Fairy Spirit Island to search for someone?"
Tang Yu suddenly stopped in her tracks, a look of shock on her face.
Shi Gonghu, who was walking at the front of the group, also heard the sound and turned around to stare at Chu Yang.
As a result, the entire team turned around in unison, creating an atmosphere of impending doom.
Xu Changqing sensed something was wrong and, recalling the Moon Worshipers they had encountered before, mistakenly assumed that this group of people were also members of the Moon Worshipers.
A flash of cold light, and the longsword was drawn!
Xu Changqing said coldly, "You bunch of people are really persistent!"
Shi Gonghu's men all drew their weapons, all of them standard curved swords, which were very similar to the weapons of the Moon Worship Cult.
Even Li Xiaoyao couldn't help but draw his sword and confront them.
The atmosphere suddenly became heavy.
Chu Yang looked at Xu Changqing with a puzzled expression: "Do you two have a grudge?"