Chapter 132: Portable Village

Before outsiders, Hua Changxi couldn't study why the black fish pattern had suddenly appeared; she quickly shifted her attention from the back of her hand and cast a cold glance at Gu Jinfan.

Whether Gu Jinfan had truly discovered she was the one who opened the Lingguang Hall or was merely trying to trap her with words, her sudden arrival was nothing more than an attempt to threaten her into achieving some goal.

If she were truly threatened by her, endless troubles would surely follow.

Hua Changxi disliked being passive; the next moment, with a swift movement, she directly attacked Gu Jinfan.

Gu Jinfan hadn't expected Hua Changxi to strike, startling her. She quickly summoned her life-bound sword, but just as the sword came into her hand, her left shoulder was hooked by a soul-reaping iron claw, instantly losing control of her body.

Having subdued Gu Jinfan, Hua Changxi didn't linger. Riding a cloud, just as the ghostly officer had hooked her before, she hooked the puppet-like Gu Jinfan and swiftly flew out of the Medicine Department.

From the moment Hua Changxi made her move to her departure with Gu Jinfan, it happened in the blink of an eye. The servants in the Sixth Qihuang Hall hadn't even seen what had occurred before the two figures disappeared.

"Bam~"

In the forest outside the back gate of the Medicine Department, Hua Changxi flung Gu Jinfan heavily to the ground.

"Hua Changxi, how dare you treat me like this?"

"Slap~"

The Soul-Reaping Whip lashed fiercely across Gu Jinfan's body, the searing pain on her soul body robbing her of voice entirely.

Hua Changxi walked over to her, crouched down, grabbed Gu Jinfan's chin, and coldly looked at her: "You know, I hate trouble the most because I'm not good at solving problems. But I am very good at solving the people who cause me trouble."

As she said this, the back of Hua Changxi's hand ached again. This time, the black fish pattern on her hand didn't disappear immediately.

Gu Jinfan saw the undisguised murderous intent in Hua Changxi's eyes and was greatly shaken.

Before today, Hua Changxi in her eyes was merely a lucky one who had died early in a past life and survived this life because of her; she hadn't taken her very seriously.

But at this moment, truly feeling her life held in the other's hands, Gu Jinfan, for the first time, looked at Hua Changxi with genuine regard.

"You don't dare kill me."

"Is that so?"

"Slap, slap, slap~"

The Soul-Reaping Whip descended. Recalling how the capital prefect had clawed at her earlier—undoubtedly because Gu Jinfan had leaked news that she obtained the cultivation method from the Vermilion Bird's inheritance stone—Hua Changxi lashed her seven or eight times straight, contorting Gu Jinfan's features and making her curl up in pain.

As the Soul-Reaping Whip struck, Hua Changxi felt a sense of relief, but the pain on the back of her right hand grew worse. Only after she stopped did she realize the black fish pattern had deepened.

Staring at the black fish pattern, Hua Changxi furrowed her brows.

Awakening pattern, awakening, pattern...

'Does it mean "awareness"?'

'The black fish flew out from that lotus lamp burning with black and white flames. The black fish represents the black flame. Now that the black fish pattern has deepened, does it mean the black flame inside me has grown?'

"Haah~"

Gu Jinfan, who had been lashed seven or eight times by the Soul-Reaping Whip, gasped in cold air. For a moment, she felt as if she had nearly been beaten unconscious.

Hua Changxi really wanted to kill her!

"You cannot kill me."

Gu Jinfan's tone softened, changing from "dare not kill her" to "cannot kill her."

Hua Changxi looked at her with a half-smile, saying nothing.

Seeing this, Gu Jinfan quickly said, "Many people just saw you take me away. If I don't return, the Duke of Xinguo's Estate will not let you off."

Hua Changxi laughed: "Do you think I fear the Duke of Xinguo's Estate?"

Gu Jinfan's heart tightened: "If you don't fear them, what about your family? Don't they fear them? You might escape the Duke's pursuit, but can they?"

Hua Changxi's face darkened. She pressed the Soul-Reaping Whip against Gu Jinfan's chin and said coldly, "If the Duke of Xinguo's Estate dares to touch my family, I will destroy the entire Duke's Estate."

Hearing Hua Changxi's forceful words, Gu Jinfan was stunned.

Indeed, someone who could push the Four Realms into shifting its course could never be soft-hearted.

Gu Jinfan came to her senses, waking from the exhilaration of realizing Hua Changxi was the master of Lingguang Hall and thinking she could use this to threaten her into forming the Vermilion Bird Army.

She had underestimated Hua Changxi and overestimated herself, foolishly believing she could manipulate Hua Changxi into acting for her.

"Hua Changxi, I was wrong. I was possessed today, running to your lecture hall and spouting nonsense. I apologize to you. Please don't kill me — I can't die."

Seeing Gu Jinfan beg for forgiveness so smoothly, Hua Changxi actually felt a bit of admiration for her.

Noticing that Hua Changxi's expression had softened slightly, Gu Jinfan immediately raised her hand and swore a Heart Demon Oath, vowing never to reveal any information about Hua Changxi to anyone again.

When Hua Changxi had taken Gu Jinfan away from Qihuang Hall in front of everyone, she hadn't actually intended to kill her. Using the Soul-Severing Whip on her was for three reasons: first, to retaliate for Gu Jinfan leaking her information to the Magistrate of Jingzhao Prefecture; second, to teach her a lesson so she would stop scheming against her in the future; and third, to force her to beg for mercy.

"Gu Jinfan, considering that you once helped untie the rope for me, I'll let it slide this time. The world is in turmoil now, and you have enough trouble to deal with — don't provoke me again."

Of course, letting her off with just a plea for mercy wasn't enough. Hua Changxi noticed the storage ring Gu Jinfan was wearing and directly removed it.

"Consider this storage ring as compensation for provoking me."

When Gu Jinfan saw Hua Changxi take her storage ring, she felt a sharp pang of reluctance. Just as she was about to say that the ring bore her soul imprint and couldn't be bound by anyone else, she saw a fire lotus emerge in Hua Changxi's hand.

The storage ring, consumed by the fire lotus, had its soul imprint directly erased.

"Pfft~"

Gu Jinfan spat out a mouthful of blood, her gaze toward Hua Changxi filled with deep wariness.

To erase her soul imprint so easily — Hua Changxi's cultivation level was definitely above hers, and by a considerable margin.

After taking the storage ring, Hua Changxi retracted her Soul-Hooking Iron Claws, grabbed Gu Jinfan, and returned to the Medical Directorate. She led her through the back door all the way to the plaza.

"Gu Jinfan, remember this: from now on, we go our separate ways — I won't interfere with you, and you don't interfere with me."

Gu Jinfan looked at the people coming and going in the plaza, then glanced at Hua Changxi, deepening her understanding of her.

This person might be bold in her actions, but she was also cautious — worried that leaving her in the woods might cause trouble, she had deliberately taken her on a full circuit through the Medical Directorate.

Thanks to their walk together, probably no one would think that when Hua Changxi took her from Qihuang Hall, she was actually being captured.

Hua Changxi paid no attention to what Gu Jinfan was thinking. She turned and went back to the Chores Hall. When she returned to No. 6 Qihuang Hall, the chores disciples who had been attending the lecture had already left, leaving only Zhou Qiuyu and the others.

After sending them away, Hua Changxi took out Gu Jinfan's storage ring.

Just now, while erasing the soul imprint on the storage ring, she had discovered that it was a treasure — not only was the space inside enormous, but it also had a spirit river and spirit fields, as if an entire village had been sealed into the ring.

With such a large space in the storage ring, Hua Changxi tried to see if she could enter it physically. Unfortunately, she failed.

"If I can't enter physically, how am I supposed to tend the spirit fields inside?"

Gu Jinfan had only used the storage ring to store things — the spirit fields inside had nothing planted.

Hua Changxi slipped the storage ring onto her finger; the ring automatically resized to fit perfectly. "Gu Jinfan is truly a good person — she gave me a portable village."

If people can't go in, can animals go in?

Hua Changxi thought of the Azure Ox Demon. She decided to find time to visit the medicine shop in Feng'an Ward and see if she could put the Azure Ox Demon inside. If it worked, she could plant spirit herbs and spirit grain in there.