Chapter 439

It is Liu Zhengfeng.

The father of Second Master Liu.

He had also once served as Liu Junyan's 'false father' for a hundred years.

He finally managed to stop his coughing, and a weak, breathless voice came through: 'Looks like that useless thing has messed things up again.'

My throat tightened, and my voice trembled with anger: 'Release Yu Nian and Tang Tang; lay out your conditions—I'll accept them.'

"Conditions?" Liu Zhengfeng chuckled lightly, "The things I want seem rather numerous, Xiao Jiu—if I ask, will you give them?"

I struggled to suppress my anger, forcing myself to stay as calm as possible: 'Since you want quite a lot, there must be something I can afford—go ahead and name it.'

That irritating sound of him coughing into a handkerchief came again.

Liu Zhengfeng seemed to be giving it serious thought; after a while he said, 'Two living lives can't be exchanged for ordinary things—so, Xiao Jiu, let's trade life for life.'

I almost asked through gritted teeth: 'How? Whose life will you trade for theirs?'

"Take you, and the child in your belly." Liu Zhengfeng tossed off those words lightly, "Rest assured, Xiao Jiu—if you agree, we will surely treat you and your child well."

I asked: 'What if I refuse?'

"What will become of Yu Nian needs no explanation from me." Liu Zhengfeng said, "As for Tang Tang, this girl—her fate is precious, her soul…"

"Good!" I declared firmly, "Before nightfall, I want to see them both delivered unharmed to the pawnshop, and then I'll go with you."

From the other end of the phone came a familiar humming sound—Tang Tang, I could tell.

Liu Zhengfeng laughed, then coughed a few times while laughing, and then I heard him threaten: 'Just as you said, after dark I'll send people to fetch you, Xiao Jiu—don't think of pulling any tricks; today is a big day for Yan'er, and of course, it's also your big day.'

Having said that, the other party hung up first.

Everyone was looking at me.

I knew they wanted to persuade me, but also knew they couldn't.

Because at this point, it was no longer just about the lives of Tang Tang and Yu Nian.

Pull one thread and the whole body moves.

They were waiting for my countermove.

But the situation arose suddenly—how could I have a countermove at a moment's notice?

Since Liu Zhengfeng dares to threaten me with Liu Junyan, it shows that the Linghai Forbidden Ground side still has deployments in place, waiting for the moment the Millennium Great Tribulation arrives.

I said nothing, returned to the pawnshop, closed my eyes, and leaned against the back of the sofa.

What exactly should I do to deliver a fatal blow to them—even make it so they cannot return?

It was already past five in the evening.

Liu Zhengfeng said he would come, and he did.

"I'll lead people to launch a surprise attack on Wangting Mountain," Hu Sanjie decided, "I'll immediately summon all the manpower from the Yin Mountain side over."

Hu Sanjie intended thereby to restrain Liu Zhengfeng.

Never mind whether there's time; Wangting Mountain is Liu Zhengfeng's turf, and I even suspect he has the mythical bird Jilian hidden behind him—going there would likely result in heavy casualties.

Furthermore, Second Master Liu had previously told Hu Sanjie: when the evil monks first selected the master god, they chose both of them precisely because Second Master Liu had Wangting Mountain and Hu Sanjie had Yin Mountain.

And at that time, Yin Mountain might have been much stronger than Wangting Mountain.

The opposing side needs a mountain peak, likely to lay out a Chaos Formation Array.

Once the core forces of Yin Mountain are redeployed, they are likely to be ambushed from another direction; if Yin Mountain falls, we will be even more passive.

Thinking of this, I shook my head.

My hand unconsciously moved to my slightly bulging belly; in a flash, I thought of something, sprang my eyes open, looked at Hu Sanjie, and asked: 'Just who is the master god?'

"Not Second Master Liu," Hu Sanjie replied without hesitation, "Obviously not the Copper Coin Person either, otherwise the evil monks wouldn't have chosen one of us two as master god back then; now the most likely candidate for master god is Seventh Master Liu."

I shook my head: 'No, he isn't.'

A murmur of doubt came through.

Hu Sanjie patiently asked: 'Xiao Jiu, do you know what you're saying? If it's not him, who else could it be?'

"Or put another way, Āyàn might be the person guided by Dahui Chan Master; through fusion with the Copper Coin Person, he could become the master god." I said, "But this is creating a master god—he himself is not the master god's true form; do you understand what I mean?"

"I understand," Bai Shulan replied first, "The true master god is this one in Xiao Jiu's belly."

Correct.

The master god is the Dharma-body Buddha's true form.

Since the true form has not appeared, Dahui Chan Master guided the Copper Coin Person to the pawnshop; the Copper Coin Person is the manifested Buddha, and his task is to find the responsive Buddha—when the two merge, in a sense, could this attract the emergence of the Dharma-body Buddha?

Hui Moqiong's eyes lit up: 'So, the true master god's return to its proper place—what they've always wanted to do—we can already accomplish?'

I nodded: 'In theory, that's how it is.'

"Shall we try?" Hu Sanjie cautioned.

We went to the main courtyard; the four of them sat cross-legged according to the previously controlled directions, forming the formation, while Li Qingying stood guard.

I sat cross-legged in the exact center.

At the very moment I entered the formation, my abdomen surged.

The little guy, as if struck by a huge impact, churned violently inside, pushing against my stomach and making me vomit outright.

I opened my mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood.

Immediately, everyone was in a flurry.

Everyone was startled; Bai Shulan saw me clutching my belly, immediately took my pulse, brows furrowed tightly: 'The pulse is chaotic, but the inner power is tremendous…'

Hu Sanjie asked: 'Did you all feel that just now?'

Hui Moqiong immediately said: 'We felt it—the impact from forming the formation must have struck the egg, and this also shows from the side that Xiao Jiu's guess is correct.'

Bai Shulan, however, worried: 'After all, it's just an egg; I fear it will be hard to succeed…'

As her words fell, a strange war cry suddenly rang out from the direction of Xijiekou.

That sound came, and the hairs on my whole body stood up instantly…… I know that sound too well; more than once in a dream I have been lured away just like this by Fèng Xiànqiū.

Hu Sanmei also heard it: "The Sān jiǎo yā has come? Not Liǔ Zhèngfēng?"

I'll go check it out!

Hui Moqiong said, then got up and walked out; I grabbed him: "Don't act rashly, I'll go check."

I wiped the blood from my lips, steadied my mind, passed through the front courtyard, stepped over the Dang Pu's main gate, and stood firmly at the Dang Pu's doorway.

Xijiekou — sure enough, it was the familiar wedding scene: colorful bridal sedan, gongs and drums, a welcoming party with smiles that didn't reach their eyes…… The difference is, this time Fèng Xiànqiū stood at the very front of the procession.

And the two people bound tightly behind him were not Yu Nian and Tang Tang — who else could they be?

Fèng Xiànqiū wore a big red wedding robe, a large embroidered ball hanging before his chest, and he smiled at me gracefully: "Ā lí, I've come to marry you……"