Under One Person, your rebellious life has reached the heavens?

"What made you abandon the Celestial Master's Mansion—was it profit, or fate?"

Honestly, even the Celestial Master couldn't make an accurate judgment.

A perfectly good disciple who had learned the Five Thunder Orthodox Method and was likely to inherit the position of Celestial Master in the future ran off to form a sworn brotherhood with a demon, ruining his future. The reasons behind this are intriguing.

Historically, it was not uncommon for disciples to betray the Celestial Master's Mansion, but it was only when this happened to her that Zhang Jingqing truly felt helpless.

........

wilderness.

Xu Xin and Dong Chang, fleeing in disarray, hid in a mountain stream. Their clothes were stained with blood, they were panting heavily, and they were on the verge of death.

After assassinating the leader of Quanxing Sect and the Japanese devils, they were pursued by a group of sorcerers and ninjas. They fought several times and killed seven or eight people, but they also suffered losses and injuries.

After fleeing for several days, traveling by water and land, by boat and horse, covering hundreds of kilometers in one go, they finally escaped the pursuit of that pack of mad dogs.

night.

Exhausted, Xu Xin lay in the stream, his mouth slightly open, drinking the cool river water. His face was extremely pale, and he was almost completely drained of his vital energy.

By the campfire on the shore, a weak figure sat, Dong Chang carefully tending to his wounds.

He held a scalding hot dagger, sterilized with alcohol, and focused intently on treating the wound in his abdomen, cutting away piece after piece of inflamed and festering flesh.

Even though his lips trembled from the pain, Dong Chang endured it without uttering a sound. He unscrewed the medicine bottle he carried with him, sprinkled a large amount of gray powder onto the wound, and quickly re-bandaged it with a bandage.

"Crash!!"

Xu Xin, having pulled himself up from the stream, slowly walked over, carrying four river fish.

"We're lucky, there's enough for both of us."

"Your skill at slacking off is quite impressive, Xiao Xu."

Dong Chang breathed a sigh of relief, wiping the sweat from his face. They hadn't seen any pursuers for a day, so they were finally safe.

"It's a pity that my skills are not good enough, otherwise I wouldn't be in such a sorry state. I couldn't kill more Japanese soldiers, which is really hateful."

Xu Xin attached his Qi to the blade of the dagger, skillfully took firewood, shaved it into a stick shape, pierced the fish's head and tail, and placed it next to the campfire to roast it.

"Sigh... We only killed some henchmen. We almost lost our lives. It wasn't worth it."

Dong Chang looked regretful and hesitated before saying:

"If I could learn the Dan Shi technique, I might be able to kill those old Japanese devils and Quanxing leaders a few nights ago."

Xu Xin didn't care at all; instead, he laughed loudly:

"It's alright, Lao Dong, we'll have plenty of opportunities; next time we'll pick some interesting ones to kill and have a good time."

"As you wish."

Just as the two were talking, a fleeting shadow streaked across the vast night sky as a carrier pigeon locked onto the campfire below and swooped down.

"Ok?"

"A carrier pigeon inside the door?!"

Dong Chang slightly raised his hand, and the carrier pigeon's claws gripped his wrist tightly. He then took off the note tied to it and slowly unfolded it.

"What's up, Lao Dong? What are the orders from inside?"

Xu Xin fiddled with the firewood while asking questions out of curiosity.

"Master is seriously ill and is urgently urging us to return..."

Dong Chang said with some concern, the incident happened so suddenly that he was not prepared at all, and he guessed that the old man's health condition might not be optimistic.

"Huh? Let me see."

Xu Xin took the note, and the familiar handwriting caught his eye. It was written by Master Hong, conveying the message that the sect leader wanted to see them again.

"This... Oh no!"

Xu Xin and Dong Chang were stunned, their expressions anxious, and they began to discuss countermeasures.

"We can't delay, we must go back immediately. If we don't see our master one last time, we'll never have peace of mind for the rest of our lives."

"Um...."

Dong Chang was in a state of turmoil. He slowly said, "It seems I won't be able to make it to Fourth Brother's gathering. Well then, farewell. I'll head back to the sect first."

"When do we depart? Now?" Xu Xin asked urgently.

"Eat some fish to replenish your energy, then we'll leave soon."

Dong Chang did not hesitate. To him, his seriously ill master was far more important than the gathering and the opportunity promised by Wugensheng.

I should go back and take a look.

Chapter 187 A Clear Mind

Trinity Gate.

dusk.

On the fourth floor of the Sutra Repository, Chengzhen sat on a futon, holding a dark red short blade in his hand, examining the alchemical runes on it. His fingertips lightly traced the runes, and a line of blood seeped out, healing instantly.

"hiss--!"

Zhuge Yu's eyes gleamed with envy, and he couldn't help but praise, "Senior brother, this is a wonderful thing."

"Yes... It's a weapon that my martial uncle asked You Sha to forge for me a year ago. It was too heavy to use back then, but it's about right now."

Chengzhen felt the immense weight of the short blade, gripped it lightly, and swung it—perfect for someone at the peak of the second level of Reverse Life.

"Can I take a look?"

Zhuge Yu noticed the alchemical patterns engraved on the blade and was surprised, as it was a completely different school of thought from weapon forging.

"Be careful, it's heavy."

Chengzhen naturally wouldn't refuse his junior brother's request, and instructed Zhuge Kai Nisheng, otherwise he wouldn't be able to support him, and the slightest carelessness could cause his flesh and bones to be deformed.

"Slower."

Chengzhen gathered his Qi in his palm, and the blue-white Qi surged and swirled around the dark red short blade, making it float in mid-air for Zhuge Yu to observe and test.

"Thank you, senior brother!!"

"Well.....?!"

"It's so heavy."

Zhuge Yu gripped the blade hilt with one hand, and his expression changed slightly the instant they made contact.

He felt his whole body sinking uncontrollably, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't move. He had no choice but to use his hands to lift himself up.

"Senior brother...aren't you tired of carrying this thing?"

"Fortunately."

Chengzhen picked up a cup of tea, took a sip, and said with a smile:

"You should cultivate diligently. Once you've mastered the second level, I'll talk to my uncle and ask him to get you a weapon you like."

"Really?! Thank you so much!"

Zhuge Yu was overjoyed and said expectantly, "That's probably a long time coming, probably seven or eight years."

"It doesn't matter."

"This was something my uncle had told me casually before. He was quite willing to instruct You Sha to forge weapons for you as long as you get close to the end of the second level."

At this point, Chengzhen couldn't help but miss Jiang Mo, as the two hadn't seen each other for over a year.

After he emerged from seclusion, Uncle-Master Si Chong also entered the sacred ground for seclusion.

Now, he and several elders manage all the affairs of the sect. On weekdays, he also helps his junior brothers check their cultivation and guides their practice of Ni Sheng and Zhen Fa.

"Hey, when my martial uncle comes out, I'll have to show him the little gadget I made."

Zhuge Yu confidently stated that he had used up most of the animal bone materials that Jiang Mo had given him in the past year, and that he had forged three decent magical artifacts in the small furnace, showing some improvement.

"Da da da!"

Footsteps echoed from bottom to top, and a figure in white stepped into the fourth floor, heading straight to Chengzhen and handing her a folded letter.

"Senior brother, we have news of the demon."

"This information was delivered to me by someone when I went home to visit my grandfather."

"Please sit down, Xiao Lu, let me take a look."

Chengzhen opened the letter, glanced at it, and her eyes, calm as still water, remained completely unmoved.

"Here."

As he handed it to Zhuge Yu, who had leaned over to look, he quietly pressed Lu Jin for an answer:

"What was the messenger's build and appearance like?"

"Hmm... I asked Brother Hou, the gatekeeper, and he said the messenger was short and suspicious. He left the letter and then left."

Lu Jin said with a hint of regret, "I was at the dock at the time, helping to inspect the goods. If I had been at home, I might have been able to catch up."

"Eh? People from the Celestial Master's Mansion..."

Before Zhuge Yu could even react, his pupils suddenly contracted as he saw a familiar name and exclaimed in surprise:

"Fifth Aunt...is here too?!"

"Tian Xiaodie is Senior Brother Zhuge's aunt?!" Lu Jin was quite surprised.

Zhuge Yu nodded stiffly, his heart filled with mixed feelings, and explained the relationship between them.

"Yes... my parents left the village a long time ago."

“I was raised by my grandfather. Before he passed away, he gave me to his apprentice, who is now my godfather, Zhuge Yunlan.”

“My godfather has a younger brother named Zhuge Yunhui, who is the fifth in his family and a little older than me. His wife is this Tian Xiaodie.”

After his explanation, the two gained some understanding, and Chengzhen then asked:

"Junior Brother Zhuge, what is your relationship with your fifth uncle and fifth aunt...?"

"So-so. I haven't spoken to them much, and I rarely see them. Every time I go home, I visit my godfather, the village chief, and a few elders from the clan, and that's it."

Zhuge Yu frowned, looking somewhat displeased, and said, "Fifth Aunt is being unfair..."

“My godfather treated me like his own son. He would praise me to everyone he met in the village all the time. Everyone knew that I was a disciple of our sect.”

"She's sworn brotherhood with the devil, isn't that putting me in a difficult position? Not to mention that Fifth Uncle will also be dragged down by her."

Chengzhen noticed Zhuge Yu's predicament and inner conflict, and offered him comfort:

"Junior Brother Zhuge, things are unpredictable, and everyone has their own choices. This has nothing to do with you, so it's alright."

Then, Chengzhen looked at Lu Jin, saw that he was calm but looked doubtful, and asked:

"Xiao Lu, you've dealt with Liu Deshui, Feng Ping, and Zheng Zibu before, especially Zheng Zibu, who was once your close friend. Aren't you angry that he's sworn brotherhood with the devil?"

"..."

Lu Jin remained silent.

In the past two years, since he started cultivating with his master, his personality has undergone a tremendous transformation. If it were the old him, he probably would have already shown his anger on his face.

However, he now merely sighed slightly and readily admitted:

"When I heard the news at home, I was annoyed for a moment, but it quickly dissipated..."

"What's done is done. My emotions can't control the facts or distort the truth, so why make things difficult for myself?"

“I had a disagreement with him back then, and I apologized afterwards. Now that we've become sworn brothers, it's his own choice. Am I supposed to blame myself for not pulling him back at the crucial moment?”

"If you need someone to supervise everything, then with this kind of mentality, I think you shouldn't bother with spiritual practice."

Lu Jin saw things clearly and no longer held back on the friendship between the two of them.

In the future, when we fight the demon, we will fight to the death. If this close friend tries to stop us, we will not back down an inch.

"Senior brother, you don't need to worry about my relationship with Fifth Aunt. Just handle it however you need to. Since she's colluding with the devil, I'll just disown her."

Zhuge Yu immediately stated that he and Tian Xiaodie were only superficially related by name, and in terms of friendship, this outsider was far inferior to every Zhuge villager in the village.