CHAPTER 604: CHAPTER 583: ONE MORE UPDATE

"Lord Ju—" Xing Yu looked at Ju Nanyi with suspicion. Why did everyone seem so strange today, was Lord Ju not feeling well?

Ju Nanyi’s right hand clung tightly to the slanted tree trunk by the mountain path, the trunk almost bent by the man’s weight, the blue veins on his hand starkly visible, his pale face suddenly turned to look at Xing Yu.

Xing Yu was holding a wild hare in her hand, having crossed the mountain path through a small trail, her feet still smeared with snow mixed into the damp earth—clearly, she had slipped out and wandered around the mountain for a good part of the morning.

Ju Nanyi opened his mouth and slowly shook his head. He didn’t want to talk to anyone right now, especially not her people. Even upon seeing Xing Yu, he felt as though he was being betrayed by her.

In his past life, had Xing Yu not done enough things behind his back for their lady? Those disreputable things he didn’t even want to mention.

Every time Ju Nanyi thought of his past life’s events, his head spun again, and he wished Xing Yu would just disappear from his sight—the less he saw of her, the better.

"Lord Ju." Xing Yu didn’t have the heart to drop the wild hare, still dragging it in her hand. Seeing that Ju Nanyi wasn’t steady even with the support of the tree, she quickly moved to help him, and the wild hare swung onto Ju Nanyi’s chest.

The collision made Ju Nanyi’s blood surge, nearly causing him to faint. In his previous life, whenever she was displeased, Xing Yu would throw at him the hares she caught, dead or alive, without a second thought.

"Lord Ju, let me take you back," Xing Yu said, unaware of what was wrong with Ju Nanyi. As soon as she helped him, she immediately felt that the man was indeed in a bad state. "Or else, shall I call someone...?"

"No, there’s no need..." Ju Nanyi grabbed Xing Yu who was about to leave. He nearly fell from the effort and, no longer caring about the hare, clutched it tightly while struggling to control his emotions.

If she called for help, whom would Xing Yu call? Naturally, it would be people like Xue Liu and Nian Xia. Did he want everyone to know?

Xing Yu just felt that Lord Ju was even stranger—clearly unwell, quite severely so by the look of it, yet he wouldn’t let her call for help.

"Xing Yu, this matter is urgent and cannot alarm anyone," Ju Nanyi said, leaving Xing Yu startled. What did he mean by that? The next moment, he moved closer, a scent of damp earth mixed with the fresh mountain soil wafted towards her.

"My lord, did you discover something here?" Xing Yu asked very carefully, vaguely aware of some things, but her understanding only went so far. However, she wasn’t that interested either.

Upon hearing her words, Ju Nanyi nodded and looked at Xing Yu.

"Do not speak of having seen me today," Ju Nanyi said slowly.

Xing Yu wanted to ask more, but seeing that Lord Ju really couldn’t speak much, as if any more talking might make him collapse at any moment, she dared not ask further.

"Then, shall this servant leave first?" Xing Yu ventured to ask.

Ju Nanyi closed his eyes and nodded, hoping she would leave quickly.

Xing Yu wanted to leave, but she couldn’t bear letting go of the hare still held in Lord Ju’s arms. Noticing his firm grip, she dared not ask for it back and reluctantly turned away.

The hare that she had finally caught... Well, it belonged to Lord Ju now...

Ju Nanyi exhaled with relief, knowing Xing Yu was far away, and sat on the ground, panting heavily. What was wrong with him? What was happening to him—hadn’t he learned enough from his last life? He knew full well what kind of person she was, and yet in this life, he still...

Ju Nanyi’s fist fiercely struck the slender tree trunk, causing a flurry of withered leaves to rustle down. With punch after punch, the tree trunk helplessly swayed and rocked.

Xing Yu turned back around, watching this scene with wide-eyed shock.

Ju Nanyi, realizing someone was there, turned his head. His bloodshot eyes met Xing Yu’s, and for a moment, he panicked before regaining his composure. The previous outburst had begun to settle him, and he even found his own behavior rather ridiculous, especially since he was still holding a rabbit in his hand.

The rabbit, equally jostled about, was surprisingly silent. Ju Nanyi quickly understood why Xing Yu had returned.

Xing Yu looked at the rabbit in Lord Ju’s hands, clearly still feeling reluctant to part with the animal.

"Lord Ju, this rabbit..."

Without waiting for Xing Yu to finish, Lord Ju threw the rabbit over to him. Xing Yu hurriedly caught it, then turned on his heel and left without a moment’s hesitation, disappearing instantly.

...

Zong Yunqian had spent the entire day locating the dungeon, but the risk during daylight was too great for an impulsive move.

Of course, Zong Yunqian hadn’t been idle but had used this time to ascertain the distribution of the Disciples of Ghoul Ravine within Bu Er Temple.

Apart from the nearly a hundred members of the Ghoul Ravine, many Ghost Shadows were also imprisoned in a cave behind Bu Er Temple, closely guarded. Although Zong Yunqian didn’t know the exact number, he suspected it was substantial.

From this, it seemed Ghoul Ravine had been planning for a while, and to have ensnared the entire Qiandao Temple so quickly, Zong Yunqian, having experienced the terror of the Ghost Shadows, was most concerned about them.

He still didn’t understand why the people of Ghoul Ravine would consume the blood of Qiandao Temple’s mages, but Zong Yunqian faintly guessed that it had a lot to do with Ghoul Ravine’s sudden increase in power.

Zong Yunqian had even found the haphazardly discarded bodies of the mages behind Bu Er Temple, deathly pale, their blood seemingly drained completely. This matched his guess, and he observed carefully that his former brothers had lost more than just blood; their mage energy, mixed within the blood, was also gone.

Zong Yunqian fell into deep thought. None of the spells he knew matched this, leaving him uncertain of what Ghoul Ravine was up to. Even without clear knowledge, he could see it was nothing good, something even more sinister than the Evil Arts.

Zong Yunqian finally waited patiently for nightfall. The mountains were pitch black, clouds hiding the sky. Once he had a clear grasp of the patrol routes of Ghoul Ravine’s groups, he decisively made his move to enter.

However, as Zong Yunqian took his first step into the dungeon, he was completely unaware of thin wisps of black smoke, lurking in the darkness, that began to coalesce and leap towards the man’s surroundings.

Gu Dao and Xi Feng, following behind, glanced at the dimly lit dungeon, wondering if the number of guards was too few. They harbored some doubts; was this too easy?

Yet, having witnessed firsthand the demeanor of Ghoul Ravine’s disciples, who seemed to lack all sensibility, even the patrolling ones moved with a rigid gait, like the walking dead.

Suddenly, a noise came from the dungeon. Without time to enter, the three, including Zong Yunqian, had to immediately retreat. The black smoke, which had been wrapping around the man’s body as if reluctant to let go, only began to disperse and float aimlessly midair, slowly returning to the depths of the cave as they exited the dungeon.

A group of Ghoul Ravine’s disciples emerged from the dungeon with stiff steps and vacant stares. Zong Yunqian felt that even if he stood beside them, they might not notice him.

"Let’s go in—" After waiting for a moment, Zong Yunqian gritted his teeth and spoke out.