CHAPTER 540: CHAPTER 502: NEWS OF AN OLD FRIEND

"How could I ever forget the kindness of uncle and aunt?"

His uncle’s expression eased slightly and said, "Well then, apologize to Chuchu right now."

Over there, Tang Chuchu was more annoyed with Ju Yunhai than Mei Xiangu.

She pointed at Mei Xiangu and Ju Yunhai, "I don’t want you to apologize to me; I want her to apologize."

Mei Xiangu sneered from the side, "You’re out of your mind. I’d rather apologize to a dog than to you."

Tang Chuchu, although foolish, knew she wasn’t a match for Mei Xiangu.

She simply put the pressure on Ju Yunhai: "It’s not me making things difficult for you; it’s your friend who won’t share your burden."

"It’s impossible for my friend to apologize to you."

After Ju Yunhai spoke, he took out a dagger from his Storage Bag.

As soon as he took the dagger, Tang Chuchu’s face changed.

Several elders from the Ju Family hurriedly protected Tang Chuchu, and Ju Yunhai’s uncle stood in front to reprimand: "Ju Yunhai, what are you trying to do?"

Ju Yunhai did not point the dagger at Tang Chuchu but instead at his own heart:

"Ju Yunhai, since childhood, has been without father or mother, relying entirely on the mercy of uncle and aunt to grow up. To defy uncle today truly goes against Ju Yunhai’s own heart.

But to force Brother Tian and Miss Mei because of filial piety goes against the way of friendship."

He wasted no more words and stabbed the dagger towards his chest.

The dagger he carried with him couldn’t possibly be a common object?

With this stab, he might really die on the spot.

"Brother Ju, stop!"

Over there, Ju Yunhai’s uncle saw Tian Lin step out, so he simply did not act.

Sure enough, Tian Lin was very fast, raising his hand to press against Ju Yunhai’s back.

With this press, golden light emanated from Ju Yunhai’s chest.

The dagger pierced Ju Yunhai’s clothes but was blocked by the golden light on his chest.

Seeing this, Ju Yunhai gathered all his True Qi to forcibly break the golden light on his chest.

As his dagger pierced into his chest, Mei Xiangu also made a move.

A branch sprang from Mei Xiangu’s sleeve, directly wrapping around the dagger in Ju Yunhai’s hand. Ultimately, Ju Yunhai couldn’t withstand the combined forces of Tian Lin and Mei Xiangu, and his dagger couldn’t resist Mei Xiangu’s Divine Lady Tree.

With a ’clang’ sound, the dagger was flung from Ju Yunhai’s hand, stopping his suicide attempt.

"A real man repays favors and avenges grievances, why resort to suicide?"

Having mocked Ju Yunhai, Mei Xiangu then pointed at Tang Chuchu:

"You’re merely at the early stage of Golden Core; I can kill you with a flick of my hand. If you want me to apologize, you’re not qualified. If you’re not convinced, bring your brother Tang Chujie here and let me see if the Tang Family is really that powerful."

Ju Yunhai’s uncle really didn’t want to escalate the situation further, nor did he want Ju Yunhai to commit suicide.

If Ju Yunhai died, the marital relationship between the Tang and Ju families would break, easily turning into a feud.

He also didn’t want to offend both Tian Lin and Mei Xiangu, so he snorted coldly and said, "Why are the younger members of the family just standing around? Hurry and bring the good stuff to the Wenda Sect!"

He exchanged glances with the family elder, whose wife understood and persuaded Tang Chuchu, leading her away first.

Soon, the Flying Boat restarted, and in midair, only Tian Lin and his servants, Mei Xiangu, and Ju Yunhai remained.

Tian Lin withdrew his hand, saying insincerely: "Had I known things would turn out like this, I wouldn’t have come up to greet Brother Ju."

Ju Yunhai smiled bitterly and said, "I know you have a grudge against the Tang Family, so I didn’t discuss the marriage with you."

Tian Lin bluntly said, "Forgive my bluntness, but the woman Brother Ju chose might be trouble—a hothead like her will likely cause you trouble in the future."

Beside them, Mei Xiangu said, "If I were you, I’d swiftly and cleanly divorce her. Lest any children born in the future don’t even know whose bastard they are."

Ju Yunhai’s face looked a bit grim, but he knew what Mei Xiangu said was true.

He shook his head and said, "Marriage arranged by my uncle, what can I do?"

"He’s just your uncle, even if he were your biological father, he couldn’t harm his own child like that."

As soon as Mei Xiangu criticized his uncle, Ju Yunhai’s face showed dissatisfaction.

Seeing this, Mei Xiangu chose to remain silent and only said: "Wise words cannot persuade a doomed ghost; if you don’t wish to listen, so be it. But I fear when you return, Tang Chuchu won’t leave you alone."

Ju Yunhai smiled and said, "A bit of trivial annoyance is nothing; I haven’t even congratulated you all on your safe return."

Tian Lin knew he didn’t want to talk more about Tang Chuchu, so he followed Ju Yunhai’s lead and said, "This trip was indeed eventful. But what surprises me is how quickly the Wenda Sect has changed."

"Isn’t that the truth? Since the flying locust plague, the population everywhere has sharply declined and countless have died. Ordinary people had no way to survive, while those relying on aristocratic families fared better—but after the evil spirit outbreak, even those dependent on families suffered.

Due to this, the sect decided to enter the secret realm. Although there are evil spirits there, they at least don’t have the flying locusts causing havoc. Entering the secret realm allows for the cultivation of sufficient fertile land.

Aside from this, the external situation worsens daily. According to the elders’ projections, in a few years, this world may belong entirely to the evil spirits. Comparatively, the secret realm has become much more stable."

Tian Lin asked him, "Elder Xue wrote to me saying that at the initial stage of entering the secret realm, the sect needs the service of its disciples. The sect has already established a reward and punishment system; if you effectively eliminate evil spirits, you might become a True Disciple."

Ju Yunhai shook his head: "Is the secret realm that easy to navigate? Doesn’t Brother Tian know about Junior Brother Zhou Jin’s situation?"

Tian Lin asked him, "I’ve corresponded with him a few times after arriving in Beiyed County, but after reaching the Goddess Sect, due to the mountains and roads being far, we haven’t exchanged letters. From what Brother Ju implies, did Junior Brother Zhou experience something?"

"He was in the second batch of Inner Sect disciples to enter the secret realm, and during an evil spirit elimination, he was gravely wounded and did not survive."

Tian Lin paused, momentarily unsure what to say.

His relationship with Zhou Jin wasn’t particularly close, as Zhou Jin always had a utilitarian approach to friendships, which Tian Lin disliked.

But thinking back, Tian Lin didn’t have many friends in the Wenda Sect that he could talk to. Though Zhou Jin’s friendship was utilitarian, he had been helpful to Tian Lin and never mistreated him.

Upon suddenly hearing of Zhou Jin’s death, Tian Lin couldn’t help but feel a bit down.

"What about Zhou Mengjiao?"

Ju Yunhai responded, "After her brother died, she stopped doing tasks to open up the wilderness. She simply got married, but Zhou Mengjiao is rather strong-willed; I’ve heard that the aristocratic one who married her can’t even share a bed with her and is forced daily to complete tasks in the secret realm to earn merits."

Tian Lin was speechless, unable to resist saying, "Indeed, people change, but in a way, it might be better. Considering her cultivation at the early Golden Core stage, the secret realm is still very dangerous."