Chapter 556: Black Jade Coffin

Lv Zhongtang lunged and missed.

His face was filled with terror as he glanced at the pool of blood on the floor. There were clearly fragments of internal organs mixed into that blood! Lv Zhongtang's face turned deathly pale; his figure swayed, and he flew out of the hall.

Duan Rong was trapped within the space ripples, unable to move a muscle, yet at this moment, two lines of clear tears had already fallen down his rock-hard face.

The final words Lv Qingzhu had spoken pierced his heart like knives. "Qingzhu..."

Just then, Zhu He finally reacted. With a wave of his large hand, the space ripples enveloping Duan Rong's body immediately dissipated!

The moment Duan Rong's body recovered, he channeled his intent, rose up by Wind Riding, flew horizontally out of the hall, and headed toward the deep valley.

Just after Duan Rong flashed out, Shen Mizhi also took advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention to slip out of Longyu Hall and return to the courtyard belonging to Shang Xiangyu.

The people in the hall all looked somewhat dazed. Although it had only been half an incense stick of time, the many sudden changes had come one after another, striking at their heartstrings.

Fan Hongjiao walked over, looked at Zhu He, and said with a worried expression, "Master, should I follow him to check on the little Disciple?"

Zhu He knew that Fan Hongjiao was worried about Duan Rong, so he sighed and said, "No need!"

As he spoke, Zhu He turned his head and cast an unkind look at Zheng Yi; he naturally understood the insinuations in that man's words just now.

Zheng Yi noticed Zhu He's gaze but did not care. However, his attempt to shift this matter onto Zhu He was clearly ineffective. Everyone in the hall had seen clearly that Duan Rong and Lv Qingzhu were obviously devoted to each other unto death. How could this matter have been plotted by Zhu He?

Nevertheless, Zheng Yi could not help but lament Zhu He's good fortune. With Duan Rong and Lv Qingzhu causing such a scene, the marriage between the two sects was clearly ruined, and the next Sect Master of the Taiyi Sect was now within Zhu He's grasp. After all their plotting, they had ended up in total defeat!

The people in the hall were all sighing with emotion, except for Li Ruozhou, who was there happily grinning with his bruised, pig-like head...

No matter what, he finally did not have to marry Lv Qingzhu. It was better that she died after severing her own meridians, wasn't it?!

Just as Li Ruozhou was rejoicing, Li Yunjing glared at him with a gloomy face, and Li Ruozhou immediately wiped away his smile. Ever since he had been caught by the Ancestor after this failed elopement, he felt that the way his father looked at him was different from before. In the past, his father's gaze toward him had always been filled with love and joy, but now it was filled with gloom.

Chu Qiushan walked over and said, "Sect Leader Li, the matter of the marriage can only be postponed. Let us settle the alliance treaty first."

Li Yunjing nodded with a bitter expression. With things having turned out like this, it had to be dropped; saying it was postponed was just a formality—there would be no follow-up. Even if there were, he would not dare to agree to it now. This had happened within the Taiyi Sect; if Lv Qingzhu had severed her meridians at their Tianyan Sect, that would have been truly terrifying.

The people in the hall were already dispersing.

Xiao Dezao, however, was kneeling at the entrance of the hall, unable to stop himself from weeping bitterly, his old tears streaming down.

"Yaozhang, you died for the sake of propriety; this is martyrdom!"

"I will build a cenotaph for you and personally preside over the grand ceremony!"

The place where Xiao Dezao knelt was where Jiang Yaozhang had turned into a blood mist and drifted away. Never mind a corpse, not even a scrap of blood remained; that cloud of blood mist had long since dissipated into the clouds and mist within the valley...

Duan Rong traveled by Wind Riding, landed at the Deadwood Forest, passed through it, and entered the deep valley.

As soon as he entered the deep valley, he saw Lv Zhongtang standing at the entrance of the Ancestor's Cave Abode, standing there like a walking corpse, utterly dejected.

He was completely unaware even when Duan Rong walked over.

Lv Zhongtang was a cultivator of the Dongming Realm, so his speed was naturally faster than Duan Rong's.

Just as Duan Rong reached the vicinity of the Cave Abode entrance, he felt an invisible barrier blocking his steps.

"A Space Wall!?"

Duan Rong's expression shifted, and he immediately released his Divine Sense, intending to envelop the interior of the Cave Abode.

Using Divine Sense to probe the Ancestor's Cave Abode was clearly an act of insubordination, but at this point, he could no longer care about such things.

The moment Duan Rong released his Divine Sense, Lv Zhongtang's voice drifted over from beside him. "It's useless."

Sure enough, Duan Rong's Divine Sense could not enter once it reached the entrance of the Cave Abode. Clearly, Lv Zhongtang had already tried and knew of this situation.

Duan Rong turned his head and glanced at Lv Zhongtang.

Lv Zhongtang noticed Duan Rong's gaze but lowered his head in a somewhat cowardly manner.

Duan Rong was quite surprised by Lv Zhongtang's reaction; Lv Zhongtang now looked like an abandoned puppy, hunching his shoulders and appearing as terrified as a stray dog.

Lv Zhongtang was indeed terrified in his heart at this moment!

The moment Lv Qingzhu severed her meridians in the hall, he had already panicked.

He was terrified because he knew very well what would happen if a Qi Cyclone Realm cultivator, determined to die, reversed the flow of Qi through their meridians!

The reason he was so anxious and even somewhat fearful of Duan Rong's gaze was that he was extremely afraid that Lv Qingzhu would die; that fear had pierced through all his mental defenses!

Lv Zhongtang had never thought that Lv Qingzhu would die!

Even in the hall, if Duan Rong had not intervened at the time, he would not have truly killed Lv Qingzhu! The space ripples he had sent out were merely intended to pull Lv Qingzhu over.

But now, Lv Qingzhu might truly die!

Even with the Ancestor's treatment, reversing the flow of Qi through the meridians was equivalent to shredding one's internal organs!

In the deepest part of the Cave Abode, inside a narrow stone chamber, a stone wall was covered in mushrooms emitting a faint cyan glow.

There was nothing else in this stone chamber.

Only in the center sat a Black Jade Coffin!

This Black Jade Coffin had been specially crafted by Lv Yinlin during his early years of cultivation.

Later, when his cultivation technique reached Great Accomplishment, this Black Jade Coffin was left in this stone chamber.

This Black Jade Coffin had been sitting here for hundreds of years, but at this moment, the lid was already open.

Amidst the cyan ghostly light, wisps of cold air visible to the naked eye were drifting out from the Black Jade Coffin...

And Lv Qingzhu, with bloodstains hanging from the corner of her mouth, was lying inside the Black Jade Coffin; she looked as if she were asleep, motionless, with a layer of frost covering her face and hands.

In the void above the Black Jade Coffin, Lv Yinlin sat cross-legged with a cold expression!

He released his Divine Sense, carefully probing every wound in Lv Qingzhu's internal organs and meridians; the more he examined, the more shocking he found it!

The moment he discovered it in the hall, he had stopped the reverse flow of Qi within Lv Qingzhu's body, but her internal organs had still been damaged to a degree that shocked him!

Lv Yinlin opened his eyes with a grave expression, looking at Lv Qingzhu, who lay in the Black Jade Coffin like a living corpse!

In Longyu Hall, the scene of Lv Qingzhu severing her meridians and her heart-rending screams rushed into Lv Yinlin's mind once again!

"Grandfather! I hate you!"

How similar this scene was to the one from over a thousand years ago!

The old scars of the past were ripped open in Lv Yinlin's heart.

That scar, at this moment where no one could see, was bleeding profusely, dripping with fresh blood...

Who could have imagined that an old monster who had lived for over a thousand years would also have a scar on his heart!

It is said that Lv Yinlin is indifferent to human sentiment, but in truth, he was not born to be such a person.

Lv Yinlin's eye sockets were slightly moist; he had not expected that after a thousand years, he would commit the same mistake again. He had actually driven Lv Qingzhu to her death as well.

Over a thousand years ago, his mistake was something he could not undo!

However, this time, he was already a cultivator of the Nascent Soul Realm; he would mend the fold after the sheep had escaped!

Lv Yinlin suddenly vanished like a ghost, and when he appeared again, his entire body was suspended horizontally above the Black Jade Coffin, his right thumb pressing against the center of Lv Qingzhu's brow.

Wisps of cyan ghostly light darted out from the pad of his right thumb, like fungal hyphae, and burrowed into the center of Lv Qingzhu's brow.

This kind of cyan ghostly light had the effect of nourishing the Divine Soul!

Lv Yinlin had to stabilize Lv Qingzhu's Divine Soul first!

Then, he would use the Black Jade Coffin to seal the wounds on Lv Qingzhu's body and slowly heal her!

This was the treatment method he had decided upon while on the road!

Duan Rong and Lv Zhongtang waited at the entrance of that Cave Abode for two full days!

Both of them had not closed their eyes for two days and two nights, their eyes red like rabbits; they were both very anxious, only Lv Zhongtang was even more listless than Duan Rong...

This day, Li Ruojian brought a plate of fruits picked from the mountain and came before Duan Rong, saying, "Brother Duan, eat some fruit. Staying up like this is no solution."

Duan Rong took it, his voice hoarse as he said, "Many thanks!"

Duan Rong took two fruits and set them there, then carried the plate over and placed it beside Lv Zhongtang.

Lv Zhongtang glanced at the plate and suddenly said to Duan Rong, "Duan Rong, I will not agree to Lv Qingzhu becoming your concubine!"

Duan Rong bit into a fruit and ignored Lv Zhongtang. With Lv Qingzhu's life or death currently unknown, he was in no mood to discuss this with Lv Zhongtang.

Lv Zhongtang said, "I am telling you, Duan Rong! Divorce that woman named Xiao Yu and make Qingzhu your primary wife! Otherwise, this matter is not over!"

Upon hearing this, Duan Rong was choked by the berry he had bitten into, coughing several times in succession.

Lv Zhongtang had also seen it that day at Longyu Hall: the affection between Duan Rong and that girl Qingzhu was sincere and would not retreat even in the face of life or death, but no matter what, he absolutely could not accept Lv Qingzhu being a concubine to someone else!

Duan Rong finally managed to stop coughing and said, "Qingzhu's life or death is still unknown, how can you..."

Lv Zhongtang said, "The Ancestor will definitely be able to save her."

Duan Rong gave Lv Zhongtang a strange look.

Lv Zhongtang said, "It has already been two days. This is good news. If there were no hope, there would have been movement long ago."

Duan Rong nodded and said, "I hope it is as you say!"

As the two were speaking, they saw Chu Qiushan walking over slowly.

Chu Qiushan walked to a spot not far from the entrance of the Cave Abode, looked at Duan Rong and Lv Zhongtang, and asked, "Has the Ancestor not come out yet?"

Lv Zhongtang looked at Chu Qiushan with an unkind expression and shouted, "What? Chu Qiushan, are you hoping that something happens to my Qingzhu?"

Chu Qiushan was left completely bewildered by Lv Zhongtang's words, not knowing why this person had suddenly flared up at him.

But Duan Rong understood very well why Lv Zhongtang was angry. Just as Lv Zhongtang had analyzed earlier, the Ancestor not coming out meant there was hope for Lv Qingzhu; if he had come out quickly, it would have meant the hope was slim. Lv Zhongtang was currently terrified and on edge.

However, Duan Rong did not want the two to quarrel here, so he said, "Sect Master Chu, the Ancestor has not come out at all these past few days."

Upon hearing this, Chu Qiushan nodded at Duan Rong; this was the only question he had come to ask anyway. He then gave Lv Zhongtang a silent, sidelong glance and turned to leave the deep valley.

The alliance treaty between the two sects had already been settled, and he had originally come to report this matter to the Ancestor. But the Ancestor was clearly in seclusion treating Lv Qingzhu and could not possibly see him.

Regarding the events at Longyu Hall, Li Yunjing had sent a secret letter via flying eagle to the Tianyan Sect Ancestor, Li Ku, that very day.

Regarding this matter, the Tianyan Sect could not say much more. Lv Qingzhu's refusal to marry Li Ruozhou even at the cost of her life might also be related to Li Ruozhou's reputation. This lad's usual conduct was indeed quite poor. Within the Taiyi Sect, there were even rumors circulating about his TenGreatLewdSins...

Their Tianyan Sect also bore responsibility for the outcome of Lv Qingzhu being driven to sever her own meridians.

Therefore, no one mentioned the marriage between the two sects again, and it was left unsettled.

The negotiations for the alliance, however, were completed in two days.

After the alliance was settled, the people from the Tianyan Sect departed the Taiyi Sect the next day riding Cloud-Feather Mad Eagles.

Chu Qiushan walked out of the Deadwood Forest and slowly made his way to a thatched cottage in a clearing within the dense forest.

In the vegetable patch in front of that thatched cottage, Chu Wushang, dressed in the attire of an old farmer, was squatting there digging up potatoes.

Chu Qiushan walked over slowly, bowed deeply to Chu Wushang who was squatting there, and said respectfully, "Mr. Chu!"

Chu Wushang rubbed the mud off a freshly dug potato while turning his head to look at Chu Qiushan, saying, "It is Sect Master Chu! Is there something the matter?"

Chu Qiushan said, "The alliance with the Tianyan Sect has been settled. It is just that the Ancestor is currently in seclusion! If the Ancestor comes out of seclusion, please trouble Mr. Chu to report it to me!"

Chu Wushang nodded and said, "Mm, this matter should indeed be reported to the Ancestor in a timely manner. If I am able to see the Ancestor, I will pass the message on for you."

Chu Qiushan bowed deeply once more and said, "Many thanks, Mr. Chu!"

But by this time, Chu Wushang was no longer paying him any mind, having turned his face away to continue digging his potatoes.

Chu Qiushan finished his bow and went on his way.

(End of this chapter)