Chapter 93: Chapter 93: The Pinnacle of the Demon Realm (28)
 

Chuzheng found the exit and returned to look for Li Tang.

However, she only saw bloodstains at the original spot and did not see Li Tang.

Chuzheng frowned. Had someone dealt with him?

They didn’t even leave the body for me!

Which damned bastard did this!

Chuzheng circled around within the narrow passage twice but did not find Li Tang.

Just as she was about to leave and search elsewhere, a hand suddenly reached out from the darkness and dragged her over.

“Shh.”

Chuzheng’s attack halted abruptly as Li Tang pulled her into his embrace. There were sounds of wings fluttering in the passage outside, getting closer.

Light moved past from outside, it was those bugs…

Chuzheng pressed against his chest, listening to his rapid heartbeat and feeling the warmth coming through the fabric.

The bugs were numerous, and it took a while for the outside to quiet down.

“I found the exit,” Chuzheng said.

“Impressive,” praised Li Tang.

“You can let go of me now.”

Li Tang released her but immediately took her hand: “Let me show you something.”

He walked into the darkness, and Chuzheng followed. They passed through a stone door, and suddenly, the surroundings lit up as the stone door closed behind them.

The stone chamber was not large and empty, with few contents. On the stone chair to the left side of the chamber, there was a skeleton seated.

“You never asked me what I came to the Ziyun Sect for.” Li Tang paused before continuing: “I came to find my father.”

“Did you find him?” Chuzheng looked toward the skeleton.

“I did,” Li Tang nodded.

“My mother said that my father did not lack love for me, nor did he abandon us.” Li Tang’s voice was somewhat low: “When I was younger, I couldn’t understand why every other child had a father and I did not; they always called me a bastard.”

While others had pleasant childhoods, Li Tang’s was filled with taunts, humiliation, darkness, and even violence…

He had wished for someone to stand up and protect him then.

But there was no one.

“I came to the Ziyun Sect just to see what kind of man this person, who my mother yearned for, was.”

“How do you know he’s the one you’re looking for?” It was just a skeleton now, could it possibly have a name engraved on its bones?

Li Tang pointed to the skeleton’s palm, where a green flute one finger long lay amidst the stark white hand bones.

“I recognize that flute, my mother has one too.”

“That doesn’t prove his identity.”

Li Tang glanced at Chuzheng. He said slowly, “Maybe it’s just intuition, but I feel he is the person I was looking for.”

Upon hearing this, Chuzheng said nothing more.

The stone chamber fell silent suddenly.

Li Tang let go of Chuzheng and stepped forward to pick up a notebook in front of the skeleton.

His fingers trembled slightly, and he even hesitated to open it.

Chuzheng took the notebook and opened it in front of him.

The notebook’s contents were very chaotic, but contained many details about Li Tang and his mother.

“It says that when people from the Ziyun Sect found out about his identity from the Demon Clan, to avoid implicating your mother, he led the people of the Sect away by himself,” summarized Chuzheng the notebook’s contents.

He had intended to lead the people of the Ziyun Sect away and then return to Li Tang’s mother.

However, he had not anticipated that he would fail to shake off the Sect’s pursuit and instead, continued to be hunted down.

Alone, he found it difficult to contend with the Ziyun Sect.

In the end, he got captured.

He was confined within the Ziyun Sect, waiting for many years to find an opportunity to escape, and finally, an opportunity presented itself.

Regrettably, he still did not manage to get away and was discovered by the Sect’s people mid-escape.

During the fight, he suddenly fell into this place, which would open if it was filled with an excess of Demonic Qi.

No one knows who left it, but it saved his life.

Already gravely injured and on the verge of death, he stirred those luminescent bugs that could devour Demonic Qi.

Eventually, he found this stone chamber and took refuge inside, but never made it out.

Chuzheng set down the letter, and silently walked to the other side.

Li Tang seemed not to notice her departure, staring blankly at the white bones.

–

Li Tang buried the white bones, collected the letter and the flute, and there was no longer any sign of disturbance in his expression.

“Let’s go out.”

Chuzheng stood up from the ground, tossed away the old, tattered ancient scroll in her hand, and sauntered towards the exit of the stone chamber.

The ancient scroll lay lonely on the ground, with its yellowed and mottled pages vaguely revealing the words “Demon Clan Seal.”

The two left the dim passageway and stood at the base of the mountains, looking into the distance where they could still see the Ziyun Sect hidden in the mist.

This place was not far from the Ziyun Sect.

Really wonder who set up this life-saving measure for the Demon Clan.

[Main Quest: Miss, please spend a thousand Spirit Stones within two hours.]

Chuzheng: “…”

I want to go back!

Don’t stop me!

Let me go back!

There was a town not far from the Ziyun Sect, and Chuzheng rushed into the town in a flurry.

“Hey, look at those two people.”

“They look like…”

“Let’s go, let’s go.”

People pointed and murmured at the sight of them, then quickly left.

Chuzheng looked at Li Tang: “Did you scare them?”

Li Tang frowned, looking around with a hint of vigilance: “Maybe we shouldn’t enter the town.”

“No way.” How could she spend a thousand Spirit Stones if they didn’t enter the town?

A glimmer of Dark light flashed in Li Tang’s eyes, and he clenched his fist, suppressing the power inside him that was ready to explode at any moment: “What do you want to buy in town? I will help you, there’s something off about this place.”

“Afraid of what.” Chuzheng pulled him towards the town, “I’ve got your back.”

“…”

Chuzheng entered the town, and before she could even step into a shop, they would close up, if not run away entirely.

Chuzheng: “…”

The shopkeeper of a store up ahead was preparing to close when Chuzheng quickly strode up to block the door.

“Ah!”

The shopkeeper screamed, scrambling to take cover behind the counter: “Don’t, don’t kill me, please don’t kill me.”

Chuzheng walked into the shop, glanced at the goods for sale, and poured out a heap of Spirit Stones: “I want to buy things.”

“You can, you can take whatever you want, no need for payment,” the shopkeeper stammered, not daring to lift his head.

Chuzheng was perplexed—did she look that frightening?

Li Tang stood at the doorway, watchfully observing the townspeople scattering about and quickly shutting their doors.

These people seemed to recognize them.

Given the proximity to the Ziyun Sect, if the Ziyun Sect had warned the townspeople about the Demon Clan, this place would likely be the first to be notified.

He warned aloud, “Chuzheng, we need to leave.”

Chuzheng waved a hand dismissively—the Spirit Stones hadn’t been spent yet, what was the rush?

She turned to the shopkeeper: “You…”

“Really, take whatever you want for free, just spare me, don’t kill me, please don’t kill me…”

Chuzheng had no choice but to turn around and pick something; the goods in the shop weren’t great, and a thousand Spirit Stones would be hard to spend fully anyway, but a rich person doesn’t care about such a small amount of money.

Chuzheng, carrying the goods, left the shop. Only then did the shopkeeper dare to peek out.

Staring at the Spirit Stones on the table and those that had rolled onto the floor, he was a bit confused.

Were these real Spirit Stones or just rocks?

While the shopkeeper was bewildered, several people suddenly burst in from outside: “Where is the Demon Clan?”

The shopkeeper threw himself over the Spirit Stones, covering them, and pointed in the direction Chuzheng had left: “They went that way.”

The intruders immediately turned and chased after them, vanishing around the corner of the street in no time.