Chapter 592

Yu Nian!

It's really Yu Nian!

A layer of faint black qi swirled around Yu Nian's body; that black qi would occasionally condense into shape, appearing unmistakably like a large bird!

It's actually a Ji!

Thus line 4: "It's actually a Ji!" We'll keep Ji.

Now continue.

Amidst the flashing lightning and thunder, Yu Nian suffered greatly, and that black qi was no different.

The black qi condensed into shape, then in the next moment was scattered apart; from time to time it raised its neck and let out two sharp cries, as if summoning something.

Immediately after, we heard a chorus of bird calls, and streams of black qi seeped in from the surroundings, rushing straight toward Yu Nian.

Most of that black qi couldn't withstand the impact of the lightning and thunder, being dissipated midway, but some still merged into the black qi surrounding Yu Nian.

I instinctively wanted to help, to pull Yu Nian out, but Liu Junyan grabbed me: "Xiao Jiu, don't act rashly; this is Yu Nian's tribulation, we cannot interfere."

I exclaimed anxiously, "Āyàn, it's obvious that Senior Sister is indeed entangled by the Ji; once the Ji condenses into form again, it will devour Senior Sister anew!"

"No, Xiao Jiu, the Ji's true form is already gone," Liu Junyan said solemnly. "Yu Nian's tribulation should be a lingering issue from long ago, a hurdle she once failed to overcome. No one can help her but herself. Think back to our earlier analysis, and consider why these outside birds have arrived so conveniently."

Liu Junyan's words plunged me into thought.

We had analyzed before: the remnants behind the Ji that haven't been fully eradicated want to strike at Yu Nian and make a comeback.

Now we can confirm that Yu Nian was indeed entangled by the Ji long ago; they wish to use the residual aura on her body to reshape a 'Ji' anew.

In other words, if Yu Nian cannot withstand this tribulation, she will become the next Ji.

But if Yu Nian endures it… everything will be thoroughly ended.

"Xiao Jiu, you must have faith in your senior sister," Liu Junyan said earnestly. "What she has endured may be no less than what we have, and her disposition has always been steadfast."

I understand the reasoning, but human hearts are flesh; especially for Yu Nian, I feel particular pity for her.

Just then, the whole space suddenly trembled; the surroundings of the Nineteen Grotto-Heavens began to blur, and faintly beneath our feet a mountain path appeared.

The little Daoist had said that after we finish our mission and descend the mountain, we would not go down the iron-chain bridge we came by, but would have another passage.

This mountain path, gradually becoming clear, is our return route.

We had no choice but to leave.

As time passed, Yu Nian's figure grew ever more indistinct, and I finally saw just how many birds had gathered in the outskirts, continually attacking and closing in on her.

Liu Junyan urged me to leave, but I couldn't move my feet at all.

In the end I still shook off Liu Junyan's hand, summoned Feng Wu, gripped the long bow in my hand, and aimed at the outer flock of birds: "Āyàn, I've taken this job, so I'm already entangled in karma; I won't interfere with Senior Sister's tribulation, but can I at least kill these outer birds?"

Both emotionally and rationally, I shouldn't let these remnants go.

Liu Junyan could not refute.

Just as we were about to attack the flock, a sudden flash of golden light appeared before our eyes; we looked up and saw a beam of golden light descending from the mountaintop with overwhelming force!

Liu Junyan grabbed me and hauled me onto the mountain path.

The moment we stood on the mountain path, we had already left the space of the Nineteen Grotto-Heavens and become true onlookers.

Liu Junyan and I stood on the mountain path, squinting our eyes toward that golden light.

Within that golden light, I actually saw the scene described on the forum, like a mirage!

I saw a man step onto the iron-chain bridge, strike outward at the outer bird flock with a palm, then quickly descend along the bridge, and rush straight toward Yu Nian!

The man opened his arms and embraced Yu Nian at the moment a heavenly thunderbolt split down from nowhere……

The earth shook and the mountains trembled.

The scene of the Nineteen Grotto-Heavens completely faded from our sight at the instant that heavenly thunderbolt struck.

Liu Junyan and I stood on the mid-slope of Junzhu Mountain, with the downhill path beneath our feet.

Above our heads, heavenly thunderbolts fell from time to time, each one shaking heaven and earth.

Until Liu Junyan led me to stand again at the foot of the mountain, before the City God Temple's gate, the heavenly thunderbolts were still falling, the temple doors tightly shut, and no amount of knocking could open them.

It seemed to have completed some mission, thereafter sealed and faded away.

On the way back, Liu Junyan drove, I sat in the passenger seat, gazing at the stone brought out from the Three Lives Hall, and I felt an intense sense of unreality.

That stone was translucent red, very much like cinnabar spirit bone.

Whenever a heavenly thunderbolt struck down over Junzhu Mountain, the stone's interior would flash with a bright line like an electric current.

This situation persisted for over ten days before disappearing.

During that period, the City God Temple's doors remained tightly shut; later, the area was enveloped in thick fog, eventually obscuring the entirety of Junzhu Mountain.

Such a large mountain, such a large City God Temple, seemed to have evaporated from the human world.

My feeling of having been set up grew stronger and stronger.

Ā Chén…… Fán Chén…… Wáng Fán Chén……

What I know best is Fán Chén.

In fact, aside from those cinnabar spirit bones and the times I heard his voice when he used Yu Nian's body to heal, I have never seen his face; I don't know what he looks like.

He said he was enlightened and bestowed a name by the City God Lord, who granted him the name Fán Chén.

And now, I have retrieved from the Nineteen Grotto-Heavens of the City God Temple a stone resembling cinnabar spirit bone.

Round and round, everything seems to revolve around the City God.

Moreover, logically, this stone is redemption money; it should rightfully belong to the pawnshop, so why must it be returned to the pawn client?

Could it be because that key and lock have completely fused together?

How do I feel that the pawn client is deliberately exploiting the rule 'In the gloomy gloom, one who seeks cannot be refused'?

Ā Chén, just who are you?

What exactly is his relationship with the City God?

I began to constantly review, from taking that redemption pawn order, to every word of the little Daoist in the City God Temple, and finally recalling the limited information given by the Fangchuan Sect, when I suddenly grasped something!

The file given by Fang Chuan Zong mentions that the Chénghuáng Lǎoyé of the Chénghuáng Miào of Jūnzhú Shān seems to have the surname Wang!

He probably wouldn't just be called Wang Fanchen, would he?!

There are many City God temples in the world, almost every region has one, but which City God temple could be as miraculous as this one on Mount Junzhu?

Speak of the mundane world and it is the mundane world; speak of the hidden world and it is the hidden world. Not only are there the Nineteen Grotto-Heavens, but also the Ascend-to-Heaven Hall!

In the Ascend-to-Heaven Hall of the City God temple, after cultivating to ascend to heaven, what corresponding position would one hold?

Besides the City God, I can't think of anything else!

If Wang Fanchen is the current City God, what is his cultivation path like?

This mandarin-duck heart-lock, along with what the little Taoist said, can give the answer.

Wang Fanchen and Yu Nian were once a couple; when they sought the mandarin-duck heart-lock in the Three Lives Hall, at the critical moment, one of them broke their promise, causing the mandarin-duck heart-lock to become a love-severing lock.

Wang Fanchen severed love and affection, ascended to heaven in a single step… (Today there's only one chapter, I'm feeling awful from the flu).