Ye Shuanghan entered sage mode ever since he had discovered the book. He never snapped out of it, so it was no wonder the two lovebirds never went into the woods anymore.
The love story playing out on the television entered the final scene in which Ye Shuanghan stole Qin Chuyue’s Emotional Seed as proof of his determination to become a sword master. What started out as a love story eventually ended as an age old tale of hatred and revenge.
Qin Yun was surprised. “I never would’ve taken you for someone who’d go for the cute type.”
Shi Ye nodded in agreement. “Yeah, he doesn’t look very smart.”
“I’m going to kill him!” shouted Qin Zhongshan.
Big Elder stroked his beard. “If my analysis is correct, a trap was set for Chuyue from the very beginning. The scene where Ye Shuanghan was chased was probably an act.”
Shi Ye glanced at Big Elder and said flatly, “It’s obvious isn’t it? I knew things would’ve ended this way ever since Tian Yu came into the picture. I can’t believe Ye Shuanghan’s his follower!
“It’s just that…” He frowned slightly. “I ran into both of them some time ago and felt there was something off about Ye Shuanghan. As if he had forgotten all his memories and emotions, only to become Tian Yu’s puppet. If this is the price to pay for practicing The Loveless Dao, why is Tian Yun immune to it?”
Qin Chuyue’s flashed for a moment. “Uncle Shi, are you saying that Ye Shuanghan is being used by his Master?”
“This is very common. It’s obvious he has become Tian Yu’s cauldron pot!” said Qin Zhongshan with a professional air. “It’s exactly because the price of forgetting love is too big that Tian Yu would make Ye Shuanghan into a puppet. He’s only waiting for the right time to harvest the greatest result. I’m not sure how he did it but… if all goes to plan, this would be the end result.”
“We have to go rescue him now, father!” said Qin Chuyue.
Qin Zhongshan shook his head. “It’s too late for him,” he said without hesitation.
After listening to their analysis, Li Nianfan already had a good understanding of all the going-ons. He never expected the two Qin siblings to have gone through so much. If it was not for the grounding aura of the Empath Sect, this would have definitely been a tear-jerking story.
Qin Chuyue passed the TV back to Li Nianfan and said, “Thank you, Mr. Li, for letting me use this.”
Li Nianfan was about to accept the TV when he suddenly had a change of heart. He decided to do whatever he could for them since they had given him the Double Flying Stone.
He immediately waved her hands away. “Lady Qin, why don’t you keep the TV for now. It might not be able to do much but it might jog Ye Shuanghan’s memories if you show him the times you’ve spent together if you ever see him again in the future.”
He suggested the idea because he had seen it worked in TV series.
“Oh…wow…” Qin Chuyue’s face was red with excitement. She stood up and bowed towards him. “Thank you so much, Mr. Li!”
She could not believe her good luck for getting a Chaos Spiritual Treasure! She was awed and touched by the expert’s generosity.
Besides, after thinking carefully about it, his idea could work out very well. No wonder he was the expert!
Li Nianfan smiled nonchalantly. “There’s no need to make a fuss about it. It might not have worked out but if it did, all the better.”
Qin Zhongshan put his hands respectfully together. “Don’t worry, Mr. Li. We would definitely return the TV back after all things are settled. We’ll take our leave now. Goodbye.”
“Goodbye and safe journey to you all.”
After sending away the Empath Sect group, Li Nianfan quickly called for Daji and Fire Phoenix.
“Little Daji, Fire Phoenix. Let’s quickly go to a place with no people and try out this Double Flying Stone.”
‘Ah, that’s right. I’ve forgotten to ask them for the exact steps in using the Double Flying Stone. I wonder if there’s a limit to the type of spell and the quantity that can be stored. Oh well, I’ll find out in my own sweet time. All the more fun it would be.”
…
The silence ticked by, bringing nightfall with it.
Somewhere in the Xia Palace, two shadows could be seen coming out of a dark corner. They were none other than Ye Shuanghan and Tian Yu.
Tian Yu was holding the Qi Swallowing Bug. In just two days, he seemingly aged a thousand times over. He stared at the caterpillar in his hand with sunken eyes, almost crying.
The caterpillar had shrunk a lot compared to the beginning and it had also changed from firm to limp. However, even till now, it was still stubbornly pumping out Luck.
“Why on earth is it so out of control? Will it only be satisfied after it has pumped out everything?” he asked out loud.
Tian Yu wanted to seal up the caterpillar’s mouth but he was afraid of hurting it. He felt the past two days had been the darkest 48 hours in his life.
“And don’t get me started about those Ministry rats! They only dare to work behind the scenes and not take responsibility for anything!”
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. So out of spite, he sneaked into the Xia Palace to look for the two Luck Treasures, hoping to turn things around.
Generally speaking, he would not have taken the risk without planning for all contingencies. He knew the benefits far outweighed the risks if he ever went head-to-head with anyone in the palace. They could suck away all his Luck in the blink of an eye. Then it would really be game over for him.
This could be likened to the villain going against the luckiest person in the world, the former would definitely be defeated by bad luck.
Of course he had considered it was not worth taking the risk to spite a few worthless people. But he was beyond reasoning, anger driving his every decision. So he had no choice but to bet all his chips on this.
With his power, he had no problem sneaking into the palace. However, just as he was about to enter the treasure room, he saw several dark figures appearing from afar.
“I sensed something was off this morning — I was right to guess the two of you didn’t leave the palace at all!”
“Tian Yu!”
“Ye Shuanghan!”
The Empath Sect group looked at them with solemn and cold eyes. Although they did not release their full power, a barrier had already been erected around them.
“You’re still alive, Brother Shiye?” Tian Yu was momentarily frozen but soon came out of it when he sensed that Shi Ye was still heavily injured. He turned his gaze toward Qin Zhongshan. “It sure didn’t take long for the Empath Sect to appear.”
Qin Zhongshan’s power started to rise in momentum. “Tian Yu, I wouldn’t have believed you not only quit the Empath Sect but have turned to Loveless Dao if I didn’t see it with my own eyes. How ruthless can you be! It is forbidden for The Empath Sect to practice that!”
“You’re too naive, Qin Zhongshan! The biggest lie in the world is love!” said Tian Yu with cold eyes. “Haven’t you realized after all these years? Love only ever brought pain for everyone. They’re also the greatest weakness of a monk. The only way to reach enlightenment is through the removal of all feelings.”
“I see you’ve already been possessed by the devil,” said Big Elder.
“Possessed by the devil? Don’t be ridiculous!” Tian Yu laughed mockingly and his eyes were hard to fathom. “The three of us were so talented before. We wouldn’t have ended up this way if we weren’t not hurt by love.”
His eyes started to have a crazy glint to them. “Qin Zhongshan, Shi Ye! I’ll forget the day our Junior died! I held her quietly in my arms while she called out Shi Ye’s name. And yet, Qin Zhongshan, you were the person she married!
“One of you managed to capture her heart and the other had her body. Only I got nothing!
“It was then I realized women were put on this world to play with men’s hearts! And thus, I’ve become enlightened — there is no such thing as love.”
