Yan Tianhen also fantasized about inadvertently letting Chang Sheng discover that he was actually not that bad, and that he too, had suffered a lot of grievances and injuries, and maybe because of this, Chang Sheng’s view of him would change, and he might even treat him better because of the heartache. But later, his dreams were destroyed by a landslide.
Even if he was a demon, he still had a heart. After suffering too much injustice, too many injuries, too much burden, and too many curses, Lingyu was no longer the good child who used to laugh carelessly and held good intentions to the world even after being cursed at. Initially, he killed people because he had no other choice.
Later it became a cathartic indulgence.
Dao Zu was dead, and no one in the world knew and understood him, so he would be like this for his entire life. He hated his past self, so he didn’t want to let Chang Sheng know all about his past, and he didn’t want Lin Xuanzhi to suffer from a heart demon because of his past life that shouldn’t be mentioned. He wanted to watch Lin Xuanzhi walk to the pinnacle of the orthodox Dao.
He wanted to repay everything he owed Chang Sheng.
“Cang Rong, just forget all this,” Yan Tianhen said.
“You will regret this.” Cang Rong looked at the stubborn and strong young man with a bit of pity.
“Indeed, I have done a lot of things that I regret.” Yan Tianhen smiled softly, as if laughing at himself. “But this matter is definitely not included.”
Since it had come to this point, Cang Rong naturally had nothing more to say.
His last will slowly dissipated, and the body of the man with long hair gradually became transparent, and finally became a faint gleam of flashing light, scattering in the wind like dandelion seeds as he gradually disappeared.
The light dimmed, and when Yan Tianhen’s consciousness returned, he was still in the cave.
Rong Zhishui’s eyes were full of shock. “When you put your hand on it just now, this scroll lit up!”
It took Yan Tianhen a long time before he recovered. He turned his stiff eyeballs and looked towards Rong Zhishui. “How long did it light up for?”
Rong Zhishui said, “It’s fleeting. It dimmed again as soon as you took your hand away.”
Yan Tianhen paused, then asked, “How long was my hand on it?”
Rong Zhishui’s eyes revealed a little inexplicable color. “Didn’t you pull your hand away as soon as you touched it? Don’t tell me you… lost your memories?”
The illusions Yan Tianhen saw for a few moments in the scroll were just an instant in reality. Yan Tianhen put away the scroll casually, as if nothing happened. “It seems that this scroll is really something from your Rong family’s ancestors. Even if outsiders touch it, they won’t see anything. Why don’t you put it away first and secretly ponder what’s written on it later?”
Rong Zhishui nodded, not thinking about it anymore as he put the scroll in his storage bag. “Thank you this time. If you want my help in the future, just ask.”
Yan Tianhen showed an enigmatic smile.
If there were no accidents, all the characters recorded on this scroll should be erased completely, and those past events would never be mentioned again.
The people of the Rong family searched for their young master everywhere, stirring up a fuss so that the entire Nine Lands knew about it. If it wasn’t for the fact that Rong Zhishui’s life tablet showed that he was still alive, the Rong family would definitely blame Myriad Dao Academy for everything and indiscriminately slaughter their way to the sect gates .
Although Rong Zhishui himself knew that there was a big disturbance, he did not care about it and he continued to follow Yan Tianhen to complete the mission. He completely regarded himself as Yin Changge who came out of the backwaters, and didn’t care how worried the Rong family was.
In Rong Zhishui’s words, “Anyhow, it’s not the first time that I suddenly disappeared. They’re simply going through the motions — I know there are many people in the clan who hope that I never return.”
Yan Tianhen said that he could understand it very well.
The mission the two of them accepted this time was very simple and could be completed by only two people. However, the spiritual plant that was required for the mission was grown alone in a deep mountain valley in the Northeast Land, located on a cliff. It took some effort to get it. For Yan Tianhen and Rong Zhishui, picking the spiritual plant was naturally not a difficult task. The two spent half a day completing the sect mission, and then they prepared to return to the sect.
When they arrived at the border town of the Northeast Land and the East Land, it was getting late, and the two of them were not in a hurry, so they looked for the most expensive and most magnificent inn in the town.
Originally, Yan Tianhen wanted to choose two rooms, but Rong Zhishui insisted that it was only safe to be together when going out, and finally they booked only one room.
Yan Tianhen took off his shoes and crawled to the bed with only his inner clothes on. He was quite worried and said, “After we return, you absolutely must forget about me sleeping on the same bed as you. If my Dage finds out, I won’t be able to explain myself.”
“If I wasn’t worried about my family coming after me and if I wasn’t such a heavy sleeper who needs someone to wake me up, I would never sleep with you.” Rong Zhishui thought that Yan Tianhen was climbing too slowly, so he kicked his ass and pushed him to the inner part of the bed. He then kicked off his boots, threw his clothes to the ground, and rolled onto the bed.
Yan Tianhen: “….”
Having known each other for so long, he didn’t even notice that Rong Zhishui was so formidable and wild in private. As expected, you can’t judge a book by its cover. The two laid down side by side on the bed.
In this atmosphere, it would be too incomprehensible to not have a late night pillow talk. So Rong Zhishui said, “This can be considered experiencing trials and tribulations together, right?”
Yan Tianhen said, “Don’t be so melodramatic, we are simply allying because of useful talents, villains colluding together, and a snake and rat living in the same nest.”
Rong Zhishui was amused. “Can’t you use something good to describe yourself?”
Yan Tianhen side-eyed Rong Zhishui. “I mainly want you to recognize the mistakes in your behavior.”
“So you’ll even drag yourself into the water?”
Rong Zhishui turned over and laid down on the pillow, with a pair of raised eyes looking at Yan Tianhen. He chuckled twice, “Ah Hen, how in the world did you and Huarong Sword Immortal hook up? I don’t think he looked like the kind of person who has emotions, but he was willing to follow you, even when you’re messing around. No matter how you look at it, this is true love.”
Yan Tianhen said, “No, wait. I approve of the ‘true love’ part, but what do you mean he follows me even when I’m messing around?”
“He went to the Tomb of Youshan without regard for his life just to find you the blood cypress sap. Isn’t this messing around?”
Yan Tianhen felt happy in his heart, but on the surface, he said, “Since my Dage was willing to go, he must have a plan already.”
“A plan that involves your Dantian shattering and your meridians breaking?” Rong Zhishui’s eyeballs turned slightly and continued, “Speaking of which, I didn’t expect that when I saw you again, not only did your cultivation completely recover, but it even increased instead of declined. What method did you use to repair your Dantian so quickly?”
Yan Tianhen sat up. “The medicinal pill you gave me is very effective.” When Rong Zhishui mentioned this matter, he suddenly remembered that he had never told Lin Xuanzhi about Lian Hua shattering his Dantian with a single finger.
When they were in the Tomb of Youshan, Lin Xuanzhi didn’t know and definitely did not suspect anything. But since they came out and Yin Chongyue and other insiders were around, Lin Xuanzhi would discover what he had concealed sooner or later.
“That medicinal pill can only heal your wound at best, but it can’t completely repair your Dantian.” Rong Zhishui said suspiciously, “You should’ve had other help?”
A shattered Dantian, broken meridians, and the Celestial Prison, which had accumulated tens of thousands of years of resentment, were the most suitable conditions for cultivating evil Qi. Naturally, Yan Tianhen couldn’t tell the truth, so he threw all the blame to Lian Hua, who was dead and therefore couldn’t expose his lies, “Your ancestor’s Dao companion is a pretty good person, and his skills are even better.”
Although he didn’t say how he recovered, he left enough space for imagination. Rong Zhishui let out a sudden realization.
Yan Tianhen let out a sigh of relief. If Lin Xuanzhi asked him in the future, he wouldn’t be afraid of exposing his identity.
“Ah Hen.” Rong Zhishui thought of something. He looked at Yan Tianhen and asked, “Have you ever done something that you regret, but nevertheless still had to do?”
Yan Tianhen paused and asked back, “What about you?”
Rong Zhishui turned over and laid on his back on the bed. He looked at the ceiling and said, “I have. I regret that when I was ten years old, I was tricked into entering the Tomb of Youshan by a disciple of the clan.”
At that time, the Tomb of Youshan was still a forbidden place. Rong Zhishui was just a son of a concubine in the main branch, so he became the object of insults and humiliation by the main wife and other concubines.
Rong Zhishui did not dare to resist. His mother, after he was bullied, could only hold him in her arms and weep in silence. She never stood up for him. As a result, the weak were always weak, and gradually the bullying from the main branch disciples became more and more excessive.
Until he was tricked into entering the Tomb of Youshan.
The Tomb of Youshan was a terrible place. Even Yan Tianhen and Lin Xuanzhi must be cautious when they entered, for fear that they would die there if they made a mistake.
Rong Zhishui was just a ten-year-old kid, so how could he not be afraid? But he was lucky because Lian Hua happened to be too bored at that time. Maybe it was because Lian Hua discovered that the intruder had the blood of the Rong family, so he saved Rong Zhishui in passing, who was about to be gnawed into bones by monsters.
“Most of my Daoist techniques were taught by Ancestor Lian Hua. He took me in for many years and only allowed me to leave when my cultivation reached the Profound Realm.”
Rong Zhishui’s voice was long and quiet, but his words were full of tears and blood. “Only after I came out did I realize that so many years had passed. I went back to the Rong family to find my mother. Thinking that now I have a lot of strength, I am no longer the child who was humiliated but could not resist. I planned to take my mother out of the Rong residence, but I didn’t expect that… They said that my mother, as early as a year ago, when I had just left for half a year, had already entered the Tomb of Youshan to look for me. She still hasn’t come out yet.”
At this point, Rong Zhishui’s eyes dimmed a little.
“But the Tomb of Youshan has been quiet for a long time. Ancestor Lian Hua can control everything in the Tomb of Youshan. Since he said there was no one in the tomb, there must be no one in the tomb.”
“The Rong family lied to me, but the Patriarch of the family who had been in secluded cultivation for a long time suddenly left closed-door cultivation. Just when I was about to demand justice for the crime, he personally appointed me as the successor of the Rong family. I really…… didn’t know what to do.”
“I accepted the position given to me by the Patriarch of the Rong family. I never let off a single one of those disciples who had humiliated and bullied me before, but I never killed them. When I accepted this position, it meant that I accepted their lie saying that my mother got lost in the Tomb of Youshan trying to find me.”
Rong Zhishui said: “I know my mother didn’t die like that, but I can’t continue to investigate it further, otherwise my current status may not be preserved.”
