CHAPTER 2125: CHAPTER 2123: FENG CHENG RETURNS

Bai Zepei returned home after more than half an hour, looking helpless. Fortunately, as soon as he entered the door, he saw his wife smiling and chatting with the family downstairs in the hall, and he couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. He then looked at Bai Ruozhu with a grateful smile.

He knew it was thanks to his little sister. Having such a sister, no matter where she came from, Zepei felt it was enough. She genuinely cared for him and the family; she was a true relative in this world, standing in for their little sister.

"Why were you gone so long?" Jiao Yunyun asked when she saw him return.

Bai Zepei quickly glanced at Jiao Ling and said, "Master kept talking to me and Bi Tao. I tried to excuse myself several times, but he wouldn’t let me go."

Jiao Ling sighed, looking ashamed, and said, "Zepei, don’t take it to heart. Master was hurt in his lungs and heart. His health situation is dire, and he probably only has a few years left. Don’t pay attention to what he says."

"Aunt, how did Master get injured?" Bai Ruozhu asked curiously. As a doctor, she specifically checked Mr. Liu’s condition, and she saw the signs of his vitality being depleted, something she couldn’t cure.

At the mention of this, Jiao Ling’s eyes reddened.

"The Jiuli Clan once had a traitor, which caused great turmoil back then. I wasn’t even married at that time, hadn’t even gone through trials, and my skills were mediocre. Master was the most powerful mechanist in the clan, able to hold off many Quanrong Clan experts alone, but in the end..."

Her voice choked as she continued, "The Quanrong Clan was despicable. They captured me and Wu Wu to threaten Master. Master was severely injured saving us."

"Did he use a forbidden technique to temporarily enhance his power?" Bai Ruozhu asked, suspecting that Mr. Liu’s condition seemed like it.

Jiao Ling displayed a look of surprise, "How did you see that? Do you have a way to save Master?"

Bai Ruozhu couldn’t bear to disappoint her aunt, but she really had no solution. Other things aside, the damage caused by using forbidden techniques is almost permanent, especially after so many years.

Perhaps Feng Cheng has a way, but Feng Cheng has been away for a while, and it’s unknown how things are going. Bai Ruozhu didn’t dare tell her aunt much because she wasn’t sure if Feng Cheng could help, to avoid giving her false hope and leaving her disappointed.

Seeing Bai Ruozhu not speaking, Jiao Ling knew she was overthinking. She sighed and shook her head, saying, "I should have thought about it. After all, it’s permanent damage caused by a forbidden technique."

She wiped the corners of her eyes as she spoke, "Actually, Master didn’t only have me and Wu Wu as disciples. We also had a senior brother who was five years older than me. He had already passed the trial assessment at the time and was an outstanding young member in the clan, excellent in mechanical techniques, the most likely of our generation to become the first mechanist. But in that battle, he was killed by the Quanrong Clan while saving us."

"In my life, apart from feeling sorry for my daughter, I feel most sorry for Master and my senior brother. I know Master’s actions are somewhat unreasonable, but I still ask you to bear with him a bit, considering his old age."

Si Yihuan was already crying, holding Jiao Ling’s hand, and said, "Aunt, don’t overthink it. Master is a good person. No matter what he thinks, it’s just a misunderstanding. He will change his view of me in the future."

Jiao Ling was even more touched seeing Si Yihuan so understanding despite the grievance and patted her hand, saying, "Don’t worry, Master is reasonable. I’ll talk to him slowly."

After dinner, Bai Ruozhu saw her second brother accompanied Si Yihuan back to their room and knew he was comforting his wife. That was a matter for the couple, and she didn’t need to worry about explaining anything.

Because of her aunt’s words, her impression of Mr. Liu changed somewhat, and she only hoped this kind-hearted old man would change his views soon.

That night, the night wind blew, bringing a whiff of peach blossom fragrance into Bai Ruozhu’s room. She got up, opened the window, and looked towards the Peach Forest not far away.

Sure enough, a white figure stood under a peach tree, slightly raising a corner of his mouth at her.

Bai Ruozhu suddenly felt that Feng Cheng seemed to have changed, not as pale as she used to see him, but she couldn’t pinpoint what had changed.

She jumped out of the window and walked to the peach tree.

"Is your injury healed?" she asked.

"I just got some medicine; the wound still needs time to recover," he said with a smile. "With your medicine, it will heal quickly."

Bai Ruozhu nodded, "That’s great, it’s rare to know an old demon. It would be a shame if you just died like that."

Feng Cheng laughed heartily, "I’m not old at heart, nor am I a demon."

The two had gone through life and death together, becoming close friends. Since Bai Ruozhu learned his true age, she regarded him as a familiar elder family member.

Seeing him open up a bit at this moment, she genuinely felt happy for him.

"By the way, there have been some events in the Jiuli Clan recently." Bai Ruozhu then told Feng Cheng about the clan members’ disappearance.

Feng Cheng’s smile disappeared instantly, replaced by a heavy expression, "Could it be him? How could he act so fast?"

Bai Ruozhu’s eyelids twitched. Others might not understand this seemingly random remark, but she immediately thought of it.

"Are you saying that monster is out?" she nearly screamed, "Didn’t you say everything was fine? Didn’t you say he couldn’t leave that palace?"

"He’s too cunning. Who knows when he made the second elder work for him and acquired fresh flesh and blood; the situation is naturally different. I rushed back this time to report the matter, and it’s already being taken seriously over there," Feng Cheng said.

"Are you saying that they will send people over?" Bai Ruozhu’s heart skipped a few beats. Would she meet those people?

Feng Cheng looked grim, "If it really is him out, people will try to seal him, but they can’t come immediately. At least they need to gather, make preparations, but before that, more Jiuli Clan members might die."

"This..." Bai Ruozhu thought of her second brother’s method. If the opponent was that monster, was the method really effective? Would it provoke and cause him to kill more people?

She could resist the monster’s black fog, but she was only one person and couldn’t be everywhere. If the monster avoided her, he could kill at will.

"But don’t worry too much. Even if he escaped the seal, it must have come at a significant cost. He must be at his weakest right now, or else he wouldn’t be hiding so sneakily in the Jiuli Clan," Feng Cheng comforted her upon seeing Bai Ruozhu looking worried.

She looked up at him, "If those people want to seal the monster, wouldn’t the Jiuli Clan members notice? To hide that secret, would they kill all the informed people to silence them?"

Feng Cheng paused, then smiled bitterly and said, "Don’t think of them as so ruthless. They will have explanations and won’t kill Jiuli Clan members."