Chapter 222: with translation of chapter title

Did they succeed?

I grabbed Jiang Si Que and asked, "What are Liu Junyan and the others up to?"

At this moment, I was very panicked, very panicked.

I was afraid that Liu Junyan and the others, in trying to help me avoid this calamity, would do something foolish.

"Sister, Seventh Lord told you not to worry." Du Chan said, "He will find a way to draw the heavenly thunder to the Qilin Temple, letting the person who should bear the thunder bear all this; Seventh Lord tells you to trust him, stay here and wait for his return."

Let the person who should bear the heavenly thunder bear all this?

But Fengli Shu is already dead in the underground palace!

No, that's not right.

I suddenly realized that Liu Junyan's target was not Fengli Shu, but the legendary Qilin deity!

He wants to draw the heavenly thunder to the Qilin Temple.

The Qilin Temple has collapsed, and the Qilin statue is shattered, leaving only a golden phoenix.

But according to our speculation, the place where those infant spirits gather is beneath the Qilin statue's feet, in a large pit underground.

Only by destroying that place can we truly put an end to all this in Tafengcun.

Crack!

Another bolt of thunder fell.

This time the situation in the cave was worse, but I was much calmer than before.

I carefully discerned the direction where the thunder finally fell, and it seemed… really toward the Qilin Temple!

I clenched one hand into a fist and pressed it against my thumping chest.

Jiang Si Que protected Jiang Bin and all the important equipment, while Du Chan actually ran over to protect me.

She held me tightly, and I reached out to shield her head.

Crack!

The Third Heavenly Thunder struck right after.

Du Chan grew a little afraid, she whispered to me, "Sister, how many heavenly thunderbolts will there be? Can this cave hold up? Will we end up buried here?"

This cave was dug by Hui Moqiong's disciples and descendants; the work is fairly good, with signs of tamped earth.

But the cave is ultimately a makeshift excavation; how could it possibly withstand the successive devastation of heavenly thunder?

Earth flew everywhere, and Du Chan's breathing felt somewhat abnormal.

I also don't know how many heavenly thunderbolts will strike, but there certainly won't be few.

After all, Tafengcun has accumulated too much karmic obstruction, and the resentful spirits suppressed beneath the Qilin Temple are also too many.

When the sixth heavenly thunder struck, the part of the cave that had already collapsed suddenly echoed with a child's crying.

Jiang Bin woke up!

The moment Jiang Bin cried out, Jiang Si Que also shouted with a choking voice.

Jiang Bin is his life!

He has been under Suppression for too long!

Actually, at first I didn't quite understand why they brought Du Chan into the cave to expand the yin, and why they also brought Jiang Bin along.

Wouldn't it be better to put him in the west room of Dang Pu?

But later, when I saw the situation in Tafengcun and the image of my mother giving birth to that little monster, I understood everything.

Jiang Si Que tried every means to help the remnant soul that Jiang Bin left behind, but it was incomplete.

Part of the soul had already entered my mother's womb.

Jiang Si Que brought Jiang Bin into the cave, waiting for this very moment.

That little monster should have already been killed by Liu Junyan and the others, and Jiang Bin's incomplete soul returned to his body at once.

If Jiang Bin hadn't been brought here, how could we confirm that his soul had already returned?

Jiang Si Que's purpose was to bring Jiang Bin to the place nearest his remnant soul and guard him there!

Jiang Si Que patiently coaxed Jiang Bin.

The three-year-old child lay in his father's arms, crying heart-wrenchingly, his voice hoarse.

But we were all very happy.

When the seventh heavenly thunder struck, a squeaking sound came from the cave entrance.

It was Hui Moqiong's disciples and descendants digging the earth!

Not long after, Liu Junyan's figure appeared within my sight.

I almost instinctively let go of Du Chan and lunged forward; Liu Junyan reached out and grabbed me in an embrace.

The heart that had been lodged in my throat finally settled back into place.

I clung to him and asked in a muffled voice, "Are you hurt?"

"'I've suffered only a minor injury; everything is still going smoothly.' Liu Junyan said with concern, 'And you? Are you alright?'"

I hesitated a moment, then firmly told him, "I'm fine."

Liu Junyan immediately sensed something was off with me and said, "Xiao Jiu, don't hide anything from me, understand?"

"'It's not that I deliberately want to keep it from you, but speaking now wouldn't solve the problem.' I said, 'Let's talk alone when we get back to Dang Pu.'"

The Great Witch's face is parasitic on my soul; this can't be explained in a few words, and the cave is now in chaos, unsuitable for others to hear.

Liu Junyan still held me, saying, "Seven heavenly thunderbolts have already struck; it won't exceed nine, since we haven't reached the point of utter wickedness. Let's tidy up and prepare to leave."

As we spoke, the eighth heavenly thunder struck as well.

This heavenly thunder was noticeably much weaker than the previous ones.

After a tremor, the rumbling thunder gradually faded, and Hui Moqiong shouted from the cave mouth, "Seventh Lord, Xiao Jiu'er, a storm is coming; we need to withdraw quickly."

Liu Junyan took my hand with one hand and received Jiang Bin with the other; I reached out and grabbed Du Chan again, and we all climbed up to the cave mouth together.

Jiang Que quickly tidied up the important equipment and closely followed behind us.

Outside the cave mouth, Hui Moqiong stood guard there.

He narrowed his eyes, staring toward the Qilin Temple.

The Qilin Temple had been obliterated by heavenly thunder; a mountain fire had broken out, and the firelight turned half the sky red.

After we steadied ourselves, Liu Junyan asked, "Mo Qiong, what are you looking at?"

"Seventh Lord, do you really believe there is a Qilin Divine Lord?" Hui Moqiong asked, his gaze unfocused.

Liu Junyan gave no definite answer.

I asked him, "Why are you asking that?"

"I'm just curious," Hui Moqiong said. "If there truly is a Qilin Divine Lord, the Qilin Temple has collapsed—why has he never shown up from start to finish?"

The questioner meant nothing by it, but the listener took it to heart.

Hui Moqiong's words made my heart skip a beat.

If there truly is a Qilin Divine Lord, why has he never shown up from start to finish?

He... really hasn't shown up, has he?

No!

He has appeared...

A torrential rain poured down, the drops were huge, and the mountain fire was put out in just a few minutes.

Hui Moqiong took Du Chan and the others through the rain, hurrying toward the village entrance.

Hui Moqiong will arrange for someone to escort them away first.

"The whole Tafengcun is layered with formation arrays; now those who set them up are either dead or have left, the arrays cannot be maintained, and soon this area will collapse and split apart." Liu Junyan asked, "Xiao Jiu, do you want to go take one last look?"

I thought Liu Junyan would advise me to leave at once, but instead he asked if I wanted to take one final look.

Take a look at that large pit.

I nodded: "Yes."

Liu Junyan seized my waist with one hand and hauled me straight toward the Qilin Temple.

In an instant, we stood before the ruined Qilin Temple.

The Qilin Temple had been obliterated by heavenly thunder, and the spot where the Qilin deity's statue once stood had become a large pit.

The pit was filled with soil.

Among the dirt, faintly visible were countless white bones.