Chapter 220: The Figure That Fell from the Sky
No matter how Zhang Ping pressed him, Murong Xi refused to say what that treasure was. In the days that followed, Zhang Ping did not fall into despair. Instead, he practiced his cultivation by the lakeside, wanting to see whether an increase in his cultivation could allow him to heal himself.
Murong Xi, meanwhile, went to cultivate the divine art carved into the mountain wall.
Days passed one after another.
Zhang Ping’s legs never regained any sensation, causing his heart to sink to the bottom.
Occasionally, stones would be thrown down from above, and there were even shouts. Zhang Ping recognized those voices—they belonged to the people who had been hunting Murong Xi—so he did not respond.
Above the lakeside where he was, there was a slanted rock wall blocking the view. The people above the pit could not see his figure.
Those people lingered and refused to leave, clearly suspecting that they were still alive.
Zhang Ping worried that they might come down, so he did not dare to relax even for a single day.
Although his legs were broken, he was still confident that he could ambush and kill anyone who came down.
Even if he were to die, he would drag a few down with him.
……
On this day, flakes of snow drifted down from the sky. Zhang Ping opened his eyes and saw snow floating down through the sunlight descending from above, leaving him momentarily dazed.
He had actually been trapped here for more than a month already.
He had considered whether he should fly out on his sword. During this period, his vital energy had mostly recovered, but he found it very difficult to maintain balance. Trying to fly out of a pit more than two hundred zhang deep would be extremely dangerous.
Ultimately, it was because his skills were insufficient. After losing his legs, it became very hard for him to control the sword-flight technique.
Moreover, even if he managed to escape, running into that group of Murong Manor experts would likely still mean grave danger.
“What exactly is the background of this Murong Manor? How can it have so many formidable experts?” Zhang Ping was filled with confusion.
He had never heard of Murong Manor before. As someone at the fourth layer of the Nourishing Vital Energy Realm, he actually found it somewhat difficult to face those experts.
Although those experts were still far inferior to those of Yan Dao Sect, they were already enough to shock him.
Sure enough, one could not underestimate the people of the world.
The world was simply too vast. His immortal cultivation was not yet complete, and he could not afford to look down on everything.
As he was lost in these thoughts, Murong Xi walked out from the darkness, holding a red fruit in his hand.
“This is the last one. After eating it, we’ll only be able to go into the lake and see if there are any fish,” Murong Xi said as he came to Zhang Ping’s side, handing him the red fruit with a sigh.
Zhang Ping glanced at him and said, “If that’s the case, then you should eat it.”
Inside his storage pouch, he still had quite a bit of dried food and special spiritual food made by the Cultivation Hall, but he had never revealed this to Murong Xi.
Murong Xi did not respond. Instead, his gaze shifted to the snow falling over the surface of the lake. His eyes drifted, as though he were lost in thought.
After a while.
Zhang Ping asked, “By the way, have you felt that these fruits are somewhat special?”
Murong Xi snapped back to attention, looked at him, and asked, “How are they special?”
“Recently, I’ve felt changes in my sinews and bones. There’s always a warm current surging within me. I can only think of these fruits, but what’s strange is…” Zhang Ping replied, hesitating toward the end.
He had not sensed any spiritual energy from these fruits. Logically speaking, they should not have had any special effects.
Murong Xi hesitated for a moment, then said, “It has nothing to do with the fruits. It should be the Vermilion Bird blood taking effect.”
“Vermilion Bird blood? What’s that?” Zhang Ping asked in surprise.
Murong Xi took a deep breath and said, “When you were poisoned earlier, there was no cure. I could only use the Vermilion Bird Blood Jade that I carried with me to treat you.”
Thinking of that poisoning incident made Zhang Ping feel rather embarrassed. A dignified immortal cultivator had actually been taken down by poison from martial world figures—it was absurd. If word of this spread back to the Free Spirit Hall, he would definitely become a laughingstock.
It was precisely that poisoning that had caused his vital energy to suffer severe damage, after which he was hunted and forced into this place.
However, when he thought of how Bai Ning’er had also once been poisoned by people of the martial world, he felt relieved again.
The human heart was the most terrifying thing in this world—more terrifying than any spell!
“Actually, the treasure they’re looking for is the Vermilion Bird Blood Jade. Now that it’s been absorbed by you, if they come down, I’ll definitely tell them the truth directly. At that time, they’ll surely skin you alive and extract your blood,” Murong Xi said with schadenfreude.
Zhang Ping rolled his eyes at him and said, “This Vermilion Bird blood couldn’t even heal my legs. It doesn’t seem all that useful.”
As soon as he said that, Murong Xi became anxious and said, “This is the inherited treasure of our Murong Manor, passed down through generations. Only this single piece of Vermilion Bird Blood Jade remains. My grandfather handed it to me hoping that I would one day give it to—”
“Give it to what?”
“Nothing!”
Murong Xi turned his head away, his cheeks slightly flushed.
Vermilion Bird blood was extremely yang in nature. Women could not use it; only men could. However, this was something he did not want to tell Zhang Ping.
Zhang Ping was an immortal cultivator. Even in the dim lighting here, he could clearly see the changes in Murong Xi’s expression.
Instead of feeling happy, he felt worried.
This was bad—the mortal love tribulation had arrived!
He, Zhang Ping, had vowed to pursue longevity. He absolutely could not fall at the hands of this person.
He immediately changed the topic and asked, “How is the divine art on the wall? Have you learned it?”
Upon hearing this, Murong Xi immediately became excited. Looking at Zhang Ping, he said eagerly, “I’ve barely learned it. That divine art is exquisitely profound. This time, it truly was a blessing in disguise. If you don’t learn it, you’ll regret it later. Don’t come begging me to teach you then!”
Zhang Ping curled his lips, but her words about a blessing in disguise awakened him.
Did consuming the Vermilion Bird blood count as a blessing in disguise for him?
Zhang Ping’s thoughts drifted away.
The snow grew heavier and heavier, falling without pause day and night.
In the days that followed, the surface of the underground lake began to slowly freeze, with cold air surging across it.
On this day, near noon, Zhang Ping was still cultivating when he suddenly heard a voice coming from above:
“Is Zhang Ping of the Free Spirit Hall present?”
This voice was like muffled thunder echoing within the pit. Murong Xi, who was practicing nearby, was also startled.
“Free Spirit Hall?” Murong Xi looked at Zhang Ping in surprise.
He only knew Zhang Ping’s name and not his background. He could not help but feel curious—what kind of force was this so-called Free Spirit Hall?
Upon hearing the voice, Zhang Ping did not respond in joy. He frowned slightly, hesitating, unsure whether he should answer.
Could it be that the people of Murong Manor had already figured out his identity?
But then, why would people from Clear Sky Sect come looking for him?
There was still some time before the disappearance period he had set for himself. It should not have drawn the Sword Sect’s attention.
Suddenly.
A figure fell from the sky and smashed into the underground lake, piercing through the thin layer of ice and sending water splashing everywhere, causing Zhang Ping and Murong Xi to hurriedly go on guard.
Murong Xi came to Zhang Ping’s side, nervously staring at the lake surface.
As the splashes subsided, a surge of bloody water emerged, mixed with broken limbs—terrifying to behold.
Zhang Ping seemed to sense something. He suddenly turned his head, only to see a figure descending from the sky on a flying sword, stopping above the lake surface.
Sunlight bathed this person. Standing on one foot atop the flying sword, his blue robe fluttered, making him look like an immortal descended to the world. Murong Xi’s eyes widened at the sight.
This person was actually flying in the air!
Xiao Wuqing hovered in midair, his gaze falling on Zhang Ping and Murong Xi. Noticing Zhang Ping’s broken legs, he frowned and asked, “Are you Zhang Ping?”
Zhang Ping felt that Xiao Wuqing looked familiar. Soon, he remembered.
Wasn’t this Xiao Wuqing of the Three Xiao Brothers?
The Three Xiao Brothers were dazzling geniuses within the sect. Zhang Ping had naturally seen them before. He never imagined that one of the Three Xiao Brothers would come looking for him, leaving him both shocked and flattered.
“I am. May I ask why you’re looking for me?” Zhang Ping came back to his senses and asked cautiously.
Could it be because he had offended Lord Jing, and Lord Jing had sent Xiao Wuqing to trouble him?
That would be far too ruthless!
Thinking this way, Zhang Ping felt it was too absurd.
Aside from that, he could not think of any other reason why Xiao Wuqing would come looking for him.
After all, even Hall Master Zhang Yuchun could not mobilize the Three Xiao Brothers.
Seeing Zhang Ping so nervous, Murong Xi was quite surprised. Previously, when Zhang Ping had been poisoned and hunted to the brink of despair, he had never been this flustered.
After spending this time together, she had developed a sense of admiration for Zhang Ping, though she never said it out loud.
Thus, seeing Zhang Ping like this made her feelings rather complicated.
Hearing Zhang Ping’s question, Xiao Wuqing’s brows furrowed even tighter, causing Zhang Ping’s heart to skip a beat.
“Of course I’m here to save you. The people above are all your enemies, right?” Xiao Wuqing replied.
This person was really somewhat foolish. He was already in such a miserable state, yet upon encountering him in a place like this, he was actually worried that he had come to cause trouble?
Still, Xiao Wuqing was very curious about Zhang Ping. To have the sect master dispatch the three brothers personally to search for him meant that Zhang Ping must have something extraordinary about him.
Zhang Ping froze for a moment, then felt immediate joy. Although he did not understand, hearing Xiao Wuqing’s words greatly relieved the pressure in his heart.
“Yes, they’re the ones who forced me into this situation,” Zhang Ping quickly replied.
As soon as his words fell, screams rang out one after another. Immediately after, black-clad figures fell from the sky, dropping down behind Xiao Wuqing and smashing into the lake.
From beginning to end, Xiao Wuqing did not turn around. Looking at Zhang Ping, he said, “With us here, you no longer need to be afraid. We will escort you back to the sect.”
Zhang Ping gratefully raised his hands in salute and asked, “May I ask why the three of you came to save me?”
“Naturally, it was arranged by the sect master. We don’t know you. The sect master calculated that you might be in trouble and immediately sent us to find you. I’m also quite curious—what relationship do you have with the sect master? This treatment is almost on par with that of his disciple,” Xiao Wuqing answered truthfully.
Zhang Ping’s eyes widened, suspecting that he had misheard.
The sect master personally sent people to rescue him?
Since joining the sect all these years, he had exchanged fewer than three sentences with the sect master, and that was only during a chance encounter within the sect, where he saluted and the sect master smiled and greeted him briefly.
In his eyes, the sect master stood high above, like the sun in the sky—very distant. He had never dared to imagine receiving the sect master’s favor.
At this moment, Xiao Wudi and Xiao Wuming descended on their swords. Each of them held a person in their hands.
Seeing her most hated third uncle being carried like a chicken by Xiao Wudi, Murong Xi felt both satisfied and shocked.
She knew her third uncle’s martial arts very well. Within Murong Manor, he was absolutely among the top five. How could he be in such a miserable state?
Xiao Wudi snorted and said, “These people were really vicious. All those hidden weapons were coated with deadly poison. But trying to deal with us using poison is rather laughable. How could people like us possibly be affected by the poison of mere mortals?”
Upon hearing this, Murong Xi subconsciously looked at Zhang Ping. Feeling her gaze, Zhang Ping’s ordinary face instantly turned red.