Chapter 1770

Hu Xiaotian secretly sighed, never expecting that Senior Eunuch Li Yuncong would in the end have descendants, yet Li Yuncong never imagined in his lifetime that his son would actually be the Grand Commander of the Imperial Guard, Mu Rongzhan, and that Mu Rongzhan had already branched out, fathering such a lovely and adorable granddaughter, and that he himself was that granddaughter's future husband. If Li Yuncong were still alive in this world, hearing this news would surely make him jump for joy.

Ying Popo saw that Hu Xiaotian had remained silent for so long, assumed he was hesitating, and couldn't help feeling a bit anxious: "Do you agree or not?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "Of course I'll agree; even if Granny didn't say so, I would still do my best to help Mu Rongzhan. However, Mu Rongzhan is now on close terms with the Jinling Hu Family; although I'm willing to help him, he might not accept."

Ying Popo said, full of bewilderment: "How could he be mixed up with the Xu Family?" From this remark it's clear that Ying Popo knows little about Mu Rongzhan's affairs.

Hu Xiaotian said: "Granny, you shouldn't be unfamiliar with Su Yujin, right?" Su Yujin is Mu Rongzhan's wife, that is, Ying Popo's daughter‑in‑law, so she naturally shouldn't be unfamiliar.

Ying Popo nodded and said: "She was once a disciple of the Wuxian Sect, her character is quite upright, and I, the old one, don't really know how she met and married him."

Hu Xiaotian was half‑believing, half‑doubting her words; as Mu Rongzhan's birth mother, how could she not care about her son's affairs, especially such a lifelong matter?

Ying Popo seemed to have guessed what Hu Xiaotian was thinking, sighed, and said: "I always thought he was dead, and only a year ago someone told me about his origins."

Hu Xiaotian exclaimed in astonishment: "Who?"

Ying Popo said: "I don't know who, but that person explained everything clearly and produced solid evidence. Although I know my son is alive, I dare not acknowledge him, for I fear it would bring him trouble." Speaking of this painful point, Ying Popo couldn't help tearing up.

Hu Xiaotian said: "Perhaps that person is deceiving you?"

Ying Popo shook her head: "He wouldn't deceive me, Hu Xiaotian. I have a secret to tell you—apart from Mu Rongzhan, you must not tell anyone."

Hu Xiaotian nodded, and Ying Popo leaned close to his ear, whispering softly. The poison in her body had begun to act, her voice growing weak and feeble. Hu Xiaotian dared not miss a single detail, firmly committing everything she said to memory.

After Ying Popo finished speaking, she let out a long breath and said: "As long as you tell him these things, he will surely believe you. Although I, in this life, cannot acknowledge him, even if I die, my spirit will protect him and his family's safety."

Hu Xiaotian secretly sighed; Ying Popo evidently still regarded Mu Rongzhan as a child, unaware that he had long matured. Even if Mu Rongzhan learned his true origins, what could it change? His life was already predetermined; he had already made his own choices and would never alter them because of his birth.

Ying Popo said: "What is your relationship with my granddaughter……"

Hu Xiaotian briefly summed it up: "Mutual affection!"

Ying Popo sighed, closed her eyes, seeming to lack even the strength to open them. Hu Xiaotian felt a pang of anxiety, after all Ying Popo had not yet revealed the other escape route inside the Scarlet Flame Cave. He hurriedly reminded her: "Ying Popo, you just said there is another way out, didn't you?"

Ying Popo nodded, pointing ahead and said: "Opposite the Bat Cave's entrance to the Scarlet Flame Cave… you… you use the Violet Lightning Pearl to shine… and you can see… a dragon‑head… pattern; at the dragon's left ear… there is… a cave mouth; you… you follow the mouth out, crawl to the end, where there is… a mechanism, a pattern lock; I… I will teach you how to unlock it…"

Ying Popo's voice grew ever weaker; even with Hu Xiaotian's sharp hearing he had to lean close to her lips to barely make out her words. As she spoke, she suddenly fell silent, her head limp and drooping. Hu Xiaotian checked her breath—she had breathed her last. Yet Ying Popo had not finished explaining everything; she never said where the Violet Lightning Pearl was. Helpless, Hu Xiaotian bowed deeply three times before her: "Granny, I'm sorry for any offense."

Hu Xiaotian searched Ying Popo's person from head to toe; aside from a few medicine bottles he found nothing else, let alone the Violet Lightning Pearl. His heart sank, for although Ying Popo had told him how to escape, without the Pearl it was as if she had said nothing—how could he locate the dragon‑head pattern? Could he only try point by point? He naturally knew such hope was slim; he feared that before he found the exit he would already have starved to death inside.

His gaze fell on Xi Yan; he had come with the purpose of rescuing her, yet in the end he not only failed to save Xi Yan but also had to sacrifice his own life—not because he feared death, but because he still had too many unfulfilled wishes. Moreover, the Violet Lightning Pearl was not on Ying Popo's person, and before her death she had not had the chance to tell him where it was, leaving him wondering where to look. Perhaps heaven had ordained that he and Xi Yan would die together in the Scarlet Flame Cave.

Just as Hu Xiaotian was about to give up, a flash of inspiration struck his mind: What about Xi Yan? She, too, was a member of the Wuxian Sect; perhaps she had something like the Violet Lightning Pearl on her—though the chance was minuscule. Still, Hu Xiaotian decided to give it a try, searching her from head to foot. Although the beauty was before him and he could feel her however he liked, at that moment his heart harbored not a trace of lust—not because he had suddenly become a paragon of virtue, but because faced with life and death he simply couldn't spare a thought for anything else. From head to toe and back again, the only thing on Xi Yan that could be linked to the Violet Lightning Pearl was her hairpin, the very one she had previously used to pierce the transparent sphere. One end was sharp, the other bore a pearl the size of a peanut; whether it was the Violet Lightning Pearl, Hu Xiaotian did not know.

Before leaving, Hu Xiaotian kowtowed three times before Ying Popo; one reason was her kindness to him, another important reason was that Ying Popo was the birth grandmother of Murong Feiyan, and he himself counted as her grandson‑in‑law, so these three bows could be seen as fulfilling filial duty toward Murong Feiyan.

He lifted Xi Yan and headed back toward the Scarlet Flame Cave; upon reaching the entrance he felt waves of scorching heat blowing up from below. Hu Xiaotian looked ahead, only to see the opposite stone wall a solid blaze of red—no trace of a dragon‑head pattern.

Today I rushed 800 kilometers back home, updated two thousand characters, starting tomorrow updates will resume normal, with one push until the book is finished! (To be continued~^~)