Chapter 229: Let You Be the Master

Where is the black star on the jade statue?

The Tianshan Tonglao and Li Qiushui both turned to look at Gu Qing, their eyes filled with shock and doubt.

Right under the nose.

Gu Qing reached out and tapped a spot beside his nostril.

Li Qiushui and Li Xiaomei resembled each other, but Li Xiaomei had dimples and a black star, while Li Qiushui had neither; in the three-volume edition, the black star was at the corner of the eye—a tear mole adding charm to a beauty—but in the revised edition, it was moved beneath the nose, making it awkward.

Gu Qing's gesture made both the Tianshan Tonglao and Li Qiushui suddenly understand.

Not you, not you…

It's her, it's her…

Li Qiushui's voice was filled with sorrow; the Tianshan Tonglao seemed elated, yet tears streamed down her face.

Back then, in the Jade Cave of Wuliang, your beloved sister stood right beside you, yet you stared day after day at the statue, ignoring me completely…

Li Qiushui lifted her gaze, eyes brimming with grievance—this was where their love turned sour—and now, hearing these details of the jade statue, her years of confusion were finally resolved.

Brother, back then, Little Sister was only eleven.

Li Qiushui cried out in anguish.

When the three of them fought most fiercely, Li Xiaomei was eleven, so even if Li Qiushui had seen the statue, she never once thought it resembled her sister; now, hearing this detail, she realized that back then, in the Wuliang Cave, though Wuyanga's body was with her, his soul was already bound to Li Xiaomei.

I…

Wuyanga looked utterly bewildered.

Gu Qing watched the spectacle cheerfully; helping the Tianshan Tonglao and Li Qiushui solve the mystery was a good deed.

Nearby, Wang Yuyan, Mu Wanzheng, and others, watching the tangled love and hatred of the previous generation, remained silent.

On the way here, everyone had overheard many conversations and roughly understood that Wuyanga had abandoned the Tonglao and taken up with Li Qiushui, but no one expected him to be chasing two birds at once.

I might have… idly touched it a little.

Wuyanga snapped out of his daze and said.

The Tianshan Tonglao sighed deeply; she now knew her junior's fickle heart—he had been with her, then with Li Qiushui, and even if he had truly won Li Xiaomei back then, years later, he would surely drift away again.

Yet throughout all these years, the Tonglao 's feelings had been sincere and unchanging.

Li Qiushui took the scroll beside Wuyanga and unrolled it; inside was a painting of a lady, whose features were nearly identical to Wang Yuyan's now, and beneath her nose, there was a faint, barely visible dot.

The statue was mismarked—could the scroll be mismarked too?

In the end, it was all wasted!

The Tianshan Tonglao and Li Qiushui stood beside him, as if silently interrogating Wuyanga.

In this wooden hut, Wuyanga's aged face flushed involuntarily; his gaze drifted forward, taking in the many Xiaoyao disciples before him, feeling utterly humiliated—he even saw Ding Chunqiu, who, upon learning Wuyanga had fallen for an eleven-year-old girl, had puffed out his chest.

In the revised edition, Azi fled the Xingxiu Sect because, as she grew older and developed, Ding Chunqiu looked at her with strange interest, often touching her face, her chest; terrified, she fled with the Divine Wood King Cauldron.

At this moment, Ding Chunqiu felt his own desire for Azi arose only because she had matured, whereas Wuyanga had acted far too early.

Wuyanga seemed to sense Ding Chunqiu's pride; his eyes grew dull, and he felt he no longer wished to live.

"This young man is called Gu Qing; he is no more than twenty, yet his martial arts have already surpassed mine," the Tianshan Tonglao said, her heart cold, eager to avoid emotional entanglements and turn to matters of the sect: "He wishes to join the Xiaoyao Sect and become its master. I have agreed—what do you say?"

On the journey into the valley, Li Qiushui had conversed with Madame Wang and was astonished that her descendant had come peacefully with the Tianshan Tonglao; she had privately asked, and Madame Wang said Gu Qing had bested the Tonglao —Li Qiushui assumed Gu Qing had merely won some bet against the Tonglao, never imagining it was through martial skill.

Hearing this, her beautiful eyes flickered over Gu Qing, and she said softly: "I think it's fine."

Any handsome young man, you'd say yes…

Wuyanga also looked at Gu Qing and said: "The Xiaoyao Sect's rule has always been that the strongest wins. Among the three of us, Senior Sister is the strongest—if she cannot defeat you, neither can we. Yet for many years, I have had a Zhenlong chess puzzle that remains unsolved. If this friend can solve it, I will submit wholeheartedly and hand over the master's ring."

Wuyanga had already lost the will to live and sought a successor to pass on his inner energy and iron ring; now that his secret had been exposed, he felt even more ashamed, and after much thought, he believed his only lingering regret was the unsolved Zhenlong chess puzzle.

Su Xinghe brought forth the chessboard and set out the Zhenlong puzzle.

The Tianshan Tonglao and Li Qiushui both stared at the board; back then, Wuyanga had set this puzzle, and they had both struggled endlessly to solve it, achieving nothing for years.

Fan Bailing, the Chess Demon, stepped forward, staring intently at the board, seeking a way to break it.

Gu Qing looked at the chessboard; the old Daoist had once claimed to be the best Go player, and when he came to Gu Qing's side to play, Gu Qing had picked up the board and smashed it; now another board lay before him, and Gu Qing wanted to smash Wuyanga's head.

!

"When I was weak, facing strong foes, I often used a strategy of mutual destruction—seeking death to force my opponent into exposing a weakness."

Gu Qing stared at the board and said to himself: "You've all struggled with this puzzle for years and never won—surely you've tried every possible solution. Then why not try suicide?"

Gu Qing casually placed a stone, filling in his own fatal path.

Su Xinghe easily countered.

The Tianshan Tonglao and Li Qiushui grasped the solution; their eyes brightened. They both stepped forward to the board, testing the "self-sacrifice" move, probing for the key; after several attempts, the Tonglao suddenly placed a stone, clearing the pieces, and the remaining path opened clearly—she and Li Qiushui alternated moves, filling in the board until the puzzle reversed from defeat to victory.

Good, good, good!

Wuyanga laughed heartily, his lingering regrets vanished; he removed the ring and handed it to Gu Qing: "From this day forward, you are the master of the Xiaoyao Sect."

The Tianshan Tonglao and Li Qiushui had solved the puzzle following Gu Qing's insight; at this moment, they felt respect for him, believing that with Gu Qing as leader, the Xiaoyao Sect's legacy would be secure.

Gu Qing held the master's ring and asked: "Will you still kill Ding Chunqiu?"

Wuyanga, the Tianshan Tonglao, and Li Qiushui all turned to Gu Qing and said: "You are the Xiaoyao master—you decide."

Gu Qing turned his face to Wang Yuyan and Madame Wang, smiled, and said: "He has guarded the Mantuo Villa for so long—let him be imprisoned here in the Deaf and Blind Valley…"

Imprisoning Ding Chunqiu, who cultivates the Hua Gong Da Fa, is the harshest punishment—his internal toxins will turn against him, eventually causing him to tear off all his skin and die.

Wang Yuyan and Madame Wang, unaware of this, both smiled.

"Qing Ge, you treat me… us so well."

Wang Yuyan said softly; she naturally recalled her plea at the Mantuo Villa, but when saying "me," her cheeks flushed, so she added "us."

Not well enough yet!

Gu Qing said.

Wang Yuyan took this as a term of endearment, believing Gu Qing would treat her even better in the future; Madame Wang, beside her, sensed a slight ambiguity in the words, and a faint smile touched her lips.

(End of Chapter)