Chapter 113: Missing in Life, Missing in Death

The two of them had originally only intended to scout the City Lord's Mansion at night; they had not expected matters to develop to this point.

They could not spare the time to rest and immediately rushed back to Qinghe Academy to apprehend Ji Tang.

Perhaps they could obtain some desired information from Ji Tang's mouth.

They rushed back to Qinghe Academy and headed straight for Xuanyin Peak, but they had not expected that Ji Tang had actually run away; her cave dwelling was completely empty, and she had even taken a rare instrument furnace from Xuanyin Peak.

Jiang Miao saw Cheng Xi so angry that she cursed Ji Tang from head to toe and still did not feel relieved; the Academy's instrument furnaces were limited in number, especially those with some fame which were impossible to replicate, and yet one had been stolen.

Cheng Xi exchanged a glance with Li Zhi'an, and Li Zhi'an looked at her and said gently, "You stay and rest; I will go find the Dean and the others to discuss this matter."

Cheng Xi nodded, "Take care of yourself; the City Lord's Mansion has been destroyed, and I fear this matter will not just pass like this."

Ji Hang's physical body has been destroyed, and his father may not necessarily let the matter rest.

Li Zhi'an smiled, "Rest assured, City Lord Ji has not appeared for decades; whether he is dead or alive is not yet known."

Cheng Xi:...

Once Li Zhi'an left, Jiang Miao looked at Cheng Xi with a strange expression.

Cheng Xi met Jiang Miao's gaze and tried her best to put on an innocent smile.

Jiang Miao:...

After entering the Academy, she had been busy working like a horse and ox to cultivate, and she had even forgotten that she once liked Li Zhi'an.

"What are you looking at me for? I don't like him anymore; I won't fight you for him."

"And I wouldn't be able to win the fight anyway."

Jiang Miao:...

Cheng Xi's mouth was still as annoying as ever!

"So what if you can't win? You're amazing, alright?"

"Alright!"

Jiang Miao was so angry she slapped Cheng Xi, and Cheng Xi let out a cry of pain.

Jiang Miao's expression changed, "I didn't even use any force." As soon as she finished speaking, she smelled a faint scent of blood and looked at Cheng Xi, saying, "You're injured?"

Cheng Xi feigned fragility and said, "Yes, I accidentally got hurt while upholding justice and acting on behalf of Heaven."

Jiang Miao's face stiffened; the "tea-leaf" scent was practically hitting her in the face.

She helped Cheng Xi to her own cave dwelling, gave her a Pill to eat, and only then asked, "Was the commotion over at Wanxing City caused by the two of you?"

Cheng Xi nodded and briefly explained the situation, and Jiang Miao was completely petrified.

She was busy cultivating all day and knew about the various pieces of news coming out of the Academy recently, but she had not expected Cheng Xi to be this formidable.

"So you mean Ji Tang has run away; will she come back?"

"Having fled with treasure, would she dare to return?"

"That makes sense, but it's a pity about that Three Pure Pill Furnace. Although the Three Pure Pill Furnace is of excellent quality, it isn't the best one on Xuanyin Peak. Since she was going to steal, why didn't she steal the best one?" Jiang Miao asked, unable to figure it out.

"Who knows?" Cheng Xi couldn't figure it out either.

The two looked at each other, and Jiang Miao sighed, "You should just focus on healing your injuries first."

In the world of the strong, she was just a small fry who had no qualifications to stick her claws in.

"Mm." Cheng Xi closed her eyes to rest.

Jiang Miao sat at the entrance, and after a long while, she spoke again, "Cheng Xi, once the Star Gate is opened, what will be the consequences?"

What she actually wanted to ask was what kind of fate people like them, with low cultivation, would have.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Xi opened her eyes and looked at Jiang Miao, "Do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"

"What about the truth, and what about the lie?" Jiang Miao asked.

"The lie is naturally to trick you into thinking there is no big deal and that you can live well. As for the truth, that is that I don't know either. People say that the world after the Star Gate is a world with richer Spirit Essence.

Your cultivation speed will be faster, and you will grow faster. However, some also say that the Spirit Realm after the Star Gate is filled with sects and has more disputes; for the weak, the world of the strong may not necessarily be a good place."

Jiang Miao was stunned for a moment, "Is that so?"

"If that is the case, do you want to go?"

"Go, why wouldn't I go?" Jiang Miao sneered, "Are the weak not worthy of living? There are still many commoners here who cannot cultivate, and they live just fine. Could it be that in the place after the Star Gate, everyone is a powerhouse? I think not!"

Cheng Xi laughed, "That makes sense."

Jiang Miao shot her a glare, "Then will you go?"

Cheng Xi thought for a moment, "I don't know."

"What do you mean by 'I don't know'? Either you go or you don't."

Cheng Xi looked at Jiang Miao and smiled even more gently, "It just means I haven't decided yet."

A long time later, Jiang Miao finally understood the meaning of those words; it wasn't that Cheng Xi hadn't decided, but that Cheng Xi could not decide for herself whether she could go, or rather, whether she could go and survive.

Later, she learned that opening the Star Gate required paying a price.

This price was not something just anyone could bear.

"What is there to decide or not decide?" Jiang Miao muttered, then suddenly thought of something, and her gaze toward Cheng Xi became slightly complex, "It wouldn't be because of Li Zhi'an, would it? That's true, Li Zhi'an might not be able to leave; he still has to return to Jindu, right?"

Cheng Xi chuckled, "Who knows."

"You're already engaged to him, so naturally..." She wanted to say that naturally, wherever you go, he goes, but then that didn't sound quite right; it should be that the wife follows the husband's lead. Thinking about it this way, it was true: if Li Zhi'an didn't leave, Cheng Xi couldn't leave either.

In this instant, Jiang Miao suddenly felt that liking Li Zhi'an wasn't such a good thing after all.

Between cultivating for longevity and love, she still preferred longevity.

As long as one lives long enough, what handsome man can one not see?

Cheng Xi returned to Qingtian Peak from Jiang Miao's place, and Jiang Miao was busy going to collect materials to refine Dharma Artifacts.

Upon entering Qingtian Peak, she saw Senior Brother harvesting Spirit Plants for her in the Spirit Field she was responsible for. Seeing her return, he waved his hand at her, telling her she didn't need to come over as he was already finishing up.

Cheng Xi shouted a thank you from afar, and Yue Chen laughed heartily before putting the Spirit Plants into his Storage Bag and heading to the Academy to turn in the task.

Cheng Xi was pondering planting the Spirit Field when she had time in the afternoon, but when she woke up and went to the Spirit Field, she discovered it had already been planted; the Second Senior Sister, who came and went in a whirlwind, told her that the Second Senior Brother had planted it for her.

Cheng Xi simply sat under the flower vines by the edge of the Spirit Field to cool off, Precious Flower sat on her shoulder, and Beacon Fire also rarely came out to catch a breath.

When Kong Shuanghua returned, she saw this scene from afar, smiled, and left without coming over to disturb them.

Cheng Xi watched the Senior Sister's back from afar, looked up at the sky, and thought it would be good if things could just continue like this forever.

The breeze was leisurely, and the sunlight was just right.

After a short nap, Cheng Xi woke up.

She stood up and gazed into the distance, only to see Yan Shengyu climbing up Qingtian Peak with a poor expression on her face.

"What's wrong?" Cheng Xi went up to meet her and asked, looking at her.

Yan Shengyu looked at Cheng Xi, "Jiang Weiran asked me to pass a message to you: Cheng Yunjian has gone missing."

"What do you mean by missing?"

"Neither hide nor hair of him can be found."

Cheng Xi's expression turned stern, and she turned and headed toward Sixiang Peak; if Cheng Yunjian was missing, then what about Cheng Fenglan?