Chapter 482: When the Wild Geese Return

"The Valley of No Sin has a total of eighteen members, all of whom are believers of the Weak God."

Lu Ran remained silent, having never heard of this organization before.

What surprised him considerably was that the Valley of No Sin was actually composed of such people?

Could this possibly work?

The elder surnamed Bai continued, "Our strength is not great; we gathered together to survive by sticking together, and even more so to avoid becoming slaves to others."

Lu Ran nodded slightly.

In this harsh world, believers of the Weak God truly had no rights to speak of.

Once discovered by believers of the Strong God, such people would either be slaughtered to the last man or reduced to slavery.

Jing Hong was the perfect example.

If not for the sheer luck of encountering Lu Ran and the others, she would likely still be within Sword Peak Mountain, bullied and enslaved by the disciples of Liangye Jian Yi.

The elder spoke slowly, "We fled for our lives from the south, and when we passed through this region, we were discovered by Luo Tiantu Mountain."

Luo Luo Tiantu wished to annex the Valley of No Sin; he first dispatched several teams to hunt us down, and after several searches yielded no results, he personally led a team to attack."

A plan formed in Lu Ran's mind.

Presumably, the fact that the Valley of No Sin could maneuver against Luo Tiantu Mountain for so long and escape multiple times must be largely due to the merits of this believer of the Curse Master.

Putting oneself in their shoes, the situation was truly despair-inducing.

For the weak to survive peacefully was harder than ascending to heaven.

Yet, disciples of the Weak God often possessed certain functional abilities, which made them even more likely to be coveted by others.

"Our side kept moving, but alas, our tracks were still exposed." The elder paused, then sighed, "During the final encirclement and slaughter, we seized an opportunity, launched a surprise counterattack, and succeeded, causing the enemy to lose several capable experts."

"Oh?" Lu Ran felt quite surprised.

The elder spoke only a few brief words, making it sound simple, but how difficult was it to defeat the strong while being weak?

The comprehensive strength of Luo Tiantu Mountain was right there for all to see!

The members of Shanzhai were mostly believers of Master Yu Fu, Prison Demon, and Nuo Sha, and every single one of them was a figure of the River Realm.

For the weak god disciples of the Valley of No Sin to maneuver against them for so long was truly no easy feat.

Who would have expected that the Valley of No Sin could actually strike back?

"We thought that our side could curb the momentum of Luo Tiantu Mountain's pursuit, gain a sliver of a chance to catch our breath, and at least buy enough time for a few teams to escape..."

As he spoke, the elder fell silent.

His face, piled deep with wrinkles, was filled entirely with sorrow.

It seemed heaven did not grant their wish.

Lu Ran did not believe the elder was lying.

The very fact that he could stand here indicated to the elder that he had already slashed his way through Luo Tiantu Mountain, and he might well have captives in hand.

With just a little interrogation, all information would naturally become clear.

If the elder were lying, he would be easily exposed.

Lu Ran comforted him, "Elder Bai did his best."

The elder shook his head slowly, "Fate, it is fate."

Deng Deng Yuxiang suddenly spoke up, "Are all the people of your Valley of No Sin dead?"

"Most died in battle, a few were executed."

Deng Deng Yuxiang looked at the elder, "And you? Why are you not dead?"

The elder said indifferently, "Luo Luo Tiantu lost several of his beloved generals and was furious beyond measure; the one he most wanted to kill was me."

"However, his Lady had some considerations and pleaded several times, which is how I was spared."

"Yet while the death penalty was waived, living punishment could not be avoided; my eyes were gouged out, my heel tendons severed, and I was thrown into this prison."

Lu Ran looked at the elder, whose plight was miserable, and said, "So, you caused Luo Luo Tiantu to lose face, and he intends to strip you of all dignity in return."

Clearly, this elder was the leader of the Valley of No Sin, or at least a pivotal figure who organized and led a series of breakout and counterattack strategies.

He had caused Luo Luo Tiantu, a great expert of the Sea Realm, to suffer a massive setback!

Only then did he earn the appreciation of Lady Kong, who wished to recruit him for her own use.

And only then did Luo Luo Tiantu treat him this way, to vent his rage.

From this perspective, Luo Luo Tiantu's magnanimity truly did not even measure up to that of his own wife.

"Young friend," the elder did not respond directly but instead said, "After today's battle, Luo Tiantu Mountain will be very peaceful, and you all can rest assured to recuperate."

Lu Ran naturally understood the meaning behind the elder's words and asked, "Elder, you did not flee amidst the chaos; do you intend to use my hand to take revenge for the Valley of No Sin?"

"Or perhaps, do you intend to join my Ran Sect?"

As stated before, this ordinary wooden prison could not trap a great expert of the River Realm; even though the elder's heel tendons had been cruelly severed, his hands could still move.

Moreover, when the Curse Master sect reaches the third stage of the River Realm, they adapt a life-preserving divine technique—the Invisibility Curse!

This technique allows believers of the Curse Master to enter an invisible state, making it more convenient for sect disciples to escape.

"If you do not disdain me, this old one is willing to serve you with the loyalty of a dog or horse." The elder knelt on the ground, facing Lu Ran, and bowed his head as he spoke in a deep voice.

Lu Ran and Deng Deng Yuxiang exchanged a glance.

Believers of the Curse Master possessed extremely strong functional abilities!

If the Ran Sect could possess a powerful disciple of the Curse Master, that would naturally be excellent.

Suppressing the buzzing in his brain, Lu Ran pondered hard for a long while before saying,

"Elder, are you not afraid that I will bully or enslave you?"

"This old one possesses the Divine Technique: Xin Gan Zhou," the elder said, still keeping his head bowed and speaking in a low voice.

"Oh, right." Lu Ran slapped his forehead in annoyance.

It must be clarified: the Xin Gan Zhou does not allow the caster to predict the future.

Rather, it causes fluctuations in the caster's mood, thereby granting a premonition of crisis!

A powerful believer in the art of curses can play with the Xin Gan Zhou to produce endless variations.

Just as believers in spiritual lots can draw "upper," "middle," or "lower" lots, believers in curses can also finely divide their own mood fluctuations into several grades!

Contentment, calmness, agitation, dread, panic, and so on.

The more powerful the curse believer, the more they can refine and distinguish their own mental state, thereby inferring the different situations they might encounter.

The old man before them must have received an extremely favorable feedback through the Xin Gan Zhou!

That was why he did not flee amidst the chaos.

That was why he wished to follow Lu Ran!

And the feedback the Xin Gan Zhou gave the old man was undoubtedly extremely accurate!

Lu Ran and his Ran Sect were different from the vast majority of powers in the Holy Lingshan Realm.

He had no habit of enslaving his own people.

On the contrary, Lu Ran treated his comrades with great sincerity.

"Bai Lao, cast the Moonlight Curse to heal your legs; let us go out first and find a place to talk in detail."

The old man's voice was hoarse: "This old one's Jiang Pin of Moonlight Curse is insufficient to heal both legs."

Lu Ran frowned slightly and called out in his mind: 【Evil Shadow.】

A figure abruptly appeared, kneeling at Lu Ran's feet.

"Go summon Mr. Cong Long and have him try to heal Elder Bai's legs," Lu Ran said, rubbing his temples. "Then go to Sect Master Luo's residence, fetch a set of clothes and shoes, and bring them all over."

"Yes." Yan Yan Shuangzi's figure flickered and vanished without a trace.

Looking weary, Lu Ran added, "Wait here for a moment; I will have a Sea Realm physician come over to see if they can help you."

The old man said in a deep voice, "This old one is endlessly grateful!"

Lu Ran stepped away, then remembered something and said as he walked, "I do not yet know the gentleman's name?"

"Bai Yanhui."

The old man's voice remained hoarse as he continued, "Yan as in wild goose, Hui as in return."

Lu Ran halted his steps, turned his head slightly, and glanced backward with his peripheral vision: "When the wild goose returns, the moon fills the western tower."

This line of poetry, rich with the color of Great Xia civilization, instantly dragged him back to his school classroom.

Lu Ran himself felt somewhat dazed.

The days of sitting at a desk attending language classes seemed like they were just yesterday.

Sitting beside him was little Jiang Ruyi, wearing a blue-and-white school uniform, her hair tied in a ponytail.

"Buzz~"

The buzzing in his brain dragged Lu Ran back to Holy Lingshan, returning him to the dark and damp cave.

"Heh." Lu Ran suddenly laughed.

This Bullshit World, this life with such a huge span...

It feels so unreal.

In the prison cell behind, Bai Yanhui lowered his head, his weathered old face showing no expression whatsoever.

Only a faint trace of bitterness surged into his heart.

Lu Ran paused for a moment, spoke no more, and continued walking outward.

Deng Deng Yuxiang exerted force with her back, used the rebounding momentum to stand upright, strode forward with her long legs, and kept pace with Lu Ran.

"Huff."

Outside the cave, Lu Ran took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled.

"Let us interrogate the prisoners," Deng Deng Yuxiang said, standing shoulder to shoulder with Lu Ran. "We cannot listen to just one side of the story."

"Mm." Lu Ran nodded casually. "You find a place."

"Luo Tiantu Mountain also has a Council Hall, which contains a sand table," Deng Deng Yuxiang said softly. "Let's go."

Led by the woman, Lu Ran arrived at a building of considerable size located below the main peak.

The Council Hall of Luo Tiantu Mountain exuded an aura of "hierarchy and order."

When the Ran Sect held council, everyone sat together around a large rectangular table.

But here, a huge main seat was positioned at the head, with two rows of wooden chairs arranged on the left and right below.

Lu Ran half-expected he had climbed Liangshan.

"Uh." Lu Ran casually chose a wooden chair and plopped down onto it.

He summoned a ball of black mist, and Deng Deng Yuxiang immediately shook her wrist, releasing the sole remaining departed soul from her Reincarnation Coin.

Moments later, a face filled with extreme terror appeared upon the ball of black mist.

"Whoosh~" The soul fire ignited.

"Ah! Ahhh!" Piercing screams followed immediately.

By now, Lu Ran had accumulated rich experience in interrogation and forced confession.

Too lazy to waste words, regardless of whether the other party was soft or hard, he would burn them first and talk later!

Deng Deng Yuxiang came up behind Lu Ran and removed his conical hat.

Lu Ran felt somewhat puzzled, but before he could turn his head, the woman reached out with both hands, her fingertips gently rubbing his temples.

"So sensible~" Lu Ran suddenly blurted out.

Deng Deng Yuxiang laughed and tapped his head once, then continued to press and rub gently.

What a pity; this Sea Realm expert condescending to act with such gentleness failed to make Lu Ran feel any more comfortable.

Not only did his head buzz, but the departed soul in his hand also shrieked wildly.

Lu Ran finally extinguished the soul fire and stated in a deep voice, "I ask, you answer."

"Okay, okay! I'll answer, I'll answer."

Immediately after, Lu Ran inquired about the Innocent Valley. The intelligence provided by the captive differed little from what Bai Yan had said.

Lu Ran felt reassured and nodded inwardly.

If Bai Laoyezi could truly follow the Ran Sect with loyalty, leaving aside other matters, the defense level of Cloud Sea Cliff would absolutely see a qualitative improvement!

Subsequently, Lu Ran asked about intelligence related to Luo Luo Tiantu's squad.

"Two Most Dongting disciples," Lu Ran murmured, his expression gloomy.

Luo Luo Tiantu and Lady Kong were truly willing to spend a heavy price!

In order to summon reinforcements, the husband and wife had the Most Dongting disciples absorb the Holy Spirit Qi first every time they embarked on a mission.

Were the Most Dongting disciples specifically here to counter the Evil Dog believers?

Heh,

you dare to wade into this muddy water; truly, you think your lives are too long.

A trace of cold killing intent flashed through Deng Deng Yuxiang's eyes; she gently rubbed his temples with her fingertips and spoke indifferently, "Aiding a tyrant in his evil deeds, they deserve to die."

Lu Ran felt as if thorns were on his back, his heart hanging right up in his throat!

His entire person became clear-headed, and his expression was no longer gloomy.

Lu Ran turned his head slightly and whispered, "Um... rein in that killing intent of yours; I'm cold."

Deng Deng Yuxiang did not respond; instead, she straightened his head and stated indifferently, "Those two, I will kill."

Lu Ran: "..."

(End of Chapter)