Chapter 62: Third Brother, What You

At that moment, hearing the Jin Dan sect elder say Zhou Qing had no chance of survival, Lu Yaoyao panicked instantly.

She rushed to her master Cao Zhengyang, knelt down, and pleaded urgently: “Master, please save Zhou Shixiong! He just accomplished a great deed for the sect, and now he’s injured here—it makes no sense morally or logically!”

Watching Lu Yaoyao plead, Cao Zhengyang’s expression turned grim.

He first helped her up and comforted her gently: “Don’t worry—I’m here.”

Then he turned to Duanmuxu and said: “Shall I go in and take a look?”

Duanmuxu immediately refused: “This place was meticulously arranged by Taiqingmen since its founding. That thing has slept for years—if awakened by perception, it will turn against friend and foe alike, and the entire cavern realm might be destroyed. The cost is too high.”

Cao Zhengyang replied: “I understand, but we must find out where those wandering souls came from. Never before in history have we seen such things. This was once a perfect training ground—now it’s been ruined.”

Duanmuxu sighed softly: “We’ve all gone in before. Once the gravity field is lifted, the wandering souls vanish completely. And we can stay inside at most one day—if we don’t evacuate in time, great danger will strike.”

“Then what do we do now? Can we just charge in by piling up corpses? Besides…” Cao Zhengyang’s words were cut off by a cry of shock.

“Someone’s coming out! Look, someone’s coming out!”

“It’s Brother Zhou—he actually made it out alive! Unbelievable!”

“How did he do it? And why doesn’t he look injured at all?”

…

While everyone was murmuring, someone suddenly shouted.

Hearing it, Lu Yaoyao sprang to her feet. When she saw Zhou Qing stagger out, pale and unsteady, she burst into tears of joy and sprinted forward.

Cao Zhengyang and Duanmuxu, interrupted mid-sentence, froze in place.

In a flash, both appeared before Zhou Qing.

“Are you alright?” Duanmuxu asked urgently.

Zhou Qing, looking utterly drained, spoke slowly: “Elder, Senior Uncle—I’ve fulfilled my duty. The gravity zone has been lifted. I’m fine, no need to worry. Just some internal injuries, prolonged battle with the wandering souls, my meridians are dried out, dizzy and blurred vision, ringing ears, accelerated heartbeat, nausea and vomiting—that’s all.”

“Please, Elder, send me back first. I’ll borrow a mid-grade spirit stone from my master, rest a few days, and I’ll recover somewhat.”

Zhou Qing said weakly.

Hearing the key had been turned, Duanmuxu instinctively glanced at the bronze door ahead and quietly exhaled in relief.

She understood perfectly well his little scheme.

Without a word, she pulled out two mid-grade spirit stones and handed them over.

“No need to borrow from your master—this is your reward. Go rest over there!” Duanmuxu said.

Seeing the two mid-grade spirit stones, Zhou Qing’s eyes lit up instantly, yet he forced himself to hold back his excitement, trembling as he took them.

“Th-thank you, Supreme Elder!” Zhou Qing said.

Beside him, Cao Zhengyang shook his head with a wry smile—he never thought this kid was so greedy.

Didn’t you just reward him with a rare top-grade spirit stone not long ago? That should be enough for his slow cultivation.

Duanmuxu then handed him a sword-shaped jade slip: “Same as always—I chose for you. Twice now you’ve escaped from these wandering souls. Honestly, they can’t touch you.”

“You’ve outwitted them. This Sword Art, ‘Azure Thunder Sword Technique,’ suits you well—it draws upon Azure Thunder power, its strikes as swift as lightning, with immense offensive force and the ability to strike the enemy’s soul, especially evil and yin entities!”

Hearing Duanmuxu’s words, Zhou Qing’s back pain vanished, his legs stopped aching—he snatched the slip instantly.

“Thank you, Supreme Elder!” For a moment, Zhou Qing was as joyful as a nineteen-year-old boy.

Cao Zhengyang was also surprised—Duanmuxu had actually given such a rare Sword Art as a reward.

Especially how lenient she was with this kid—clearly she adored him deeply.

“Sect Master, time is short—I’ll go in first. Send the others out!” Duanmuxu said to Cao Zhengyang.

Cao Zhengyang nodded, then hesitated: “I’ll come in later—see if those wandering souls emerged from that coffin.”

Duanmuxu nodded, said nothing more, and stepped straight into the bronze hall.

“Brother Zhou—”

Seeing the Supreme Elder leave, Lu Yaoyao hurried over to support Zhou Qing.

Seeing he was unharmed, she looked at him with deep admiration.

[Heart Insight +5]

Lu Yaoyao’s head above 【Good Man】 instantly changed to 【So Amazing】.

How could he not be impressive? He crawled out alive from a death trap among wandering souls—and completed his mission flawlessly.

The others stared at him with envy.

The “Azure Thunder Sword Technique”—it was as rare as the “Silver Dragon Hand.” Even with endless mission points or spirit stones, there was no way to obtain it.

Now Zhou Qing had acquired two such treasures—and even got two mid-grade spirit stones on the side. The Supreme Elder hadn’t even gotten angry.

Envy and jealousy!

Watching his disciple’s admiring gaze, Cao Zhengyang smiled at Zhou Qing.

Luck is part of strength too.

“Alright, follow me!”

After speaking, Cao Zhengyang blindfolded everyone and led them out…

…………

“Little Four, you’re back alive?”

Zhou Qing had just returned happily to his courtyard when he saw Yan Xiaohu, one leg propped on a tree root, urinating.

Seeing Zhou Qing, he happily greeted him, then shuddered and rushed over.

He grabbed Zhou Qing’s face and started rubbing it all over.

“Did that old woman hurt you?”

“When I saw her take you away, I was terrified for you!”

Zhou Qing immediately shoved him away, disgusted, and wiped his face frantically.

“Third Brother, your hand isn’t sweaty—it’s piss stains! And is your urine toxic? You killed an entire patch of grass!”

Zhou Qing pointed to the grass beneath the tree.

It was barely alive last time he checked—now it was dead beyond recovery.

Yan Xiaohu grinned awkwardly, quickly wiped his hands on his clothes, then asked: “What did that old hag want with you?”

“Nothing much—just went into the cavern realm again,” Zhou Qing said.

Yan Xiaohu nodded, then seemed to remember something: “I’ve got a rumor—three days from now, Qingyu Immortal Sect will come. One reason is to mourn Bai Xi and the others; the other is to bring gifts to thank us.”

“Cui Yingying will come too—she’ll thank us especially, since the turning point was the area we investigated. Aren’t you excited? The gifts will be priceless.”

Zhou Qing looked at his third brother, puzzled.

Wait, where the hell do you get all these rumors?

The sect doesn’t even know yet, but you already do.

You even know about the Master of Cangyan Dao Palace, Sikong Yan, sending his disciple to chase after the Xuanyou Immortal’s pupil.

Do you have spies everywhere?

“Third Brother, don’t forget what Master said—maybe the Qingniu Ridge incident was a setup by Qingyu Immortal Sect. We still don’t know who the other side is,” Zhou Qing warned.

Yan Xiaohu nodded: “I know, I know. Why are you suddenly as nagging as Second Sister? I’m just thinking—Cui Yingying already believes we spied on them bathing in the Shanzhuang, and now we saved them. What do you think she’ll think when she thanks us?”

“What do you think? Fate plays tricks. Enough, Third Brother—I’m in a bad mood today. I want to rest. And don’t pee there anymore—the wind carries the stink into the courtyard!”

After Zhou Qing finished speaking, he walked back to his quarters, looking gloomy.

Watching the courtyard door slam shut, Yan Xiaohu scratched his head, then returned to the tree.

He stared at the dead grass, looked around, then crouched down and sniffed it cautiously.

“Damn it… did someone poison me?”

…………

(End of Chapter)