CHAPTER 95: CHAPTER 88: JOURNEY’S END

"Junior Brother Yinian, it seems it’s just you and me left to share it."

No response was received.

"Junior Brother Yinian?"

Fan Wubing looked around but did not find Ai Yinian.

Jiang Maodian was stunned,

"Wasn’t he just here a moment ago?"

Fu Manman suddenly remembered and quickly recounted what had happened to Ai Yinian earlier.

Fan Wubing inhaled sharply,

"Oh no! I was just about to tell you all, don’t ever pick those fortune chances that approach on their own!"

"What exactly happened?" Jiang Maodian asked, frowning.

Fan Wubing said,

"Those fortunes that come to you willingly are all false fortunes! They’re traps filled with Evil Qi!"

Jiang Maodian: "So, you’re saying Junior Brother Yinian has already fallen for the trap, the Evil Qi has entered his body, and he is no longer in control?"

Understanding the urgency of the situation, Fan Wubing had no time to think about his own gains and said seriously,

"We have to find him immediately!"

Luo Qingyao looked up at the night sky and said solemnly,

"The air in Nanlai City is tinged with the scent of Evil Qi. I might know where Ai Yinian has gone."

"Where?" Jiang Maodian asked.

"The shantytown. It’s the only place left."

"How do you know?"

Luo Qingyao showed an unusually complex expression,

"It’s a feeling. We, those who came from outside, always thought of ourselves as hunters, with fortune as our prey. But perhaps, from the very beginning, we were the prey. The false fortunes that proactively approach those seeking fortune are just bait. The hunters are waiting for the prey to bite."

Fan Wubing nodded and said,

"It could only be there."

Fu Manman agreed.

Jiang Maodian knitted his brows,

"So, from the start, someone in this land had designs on us outsiders?"

"Yes," Luo Qingyao said.

"If that’s the case, then let’s face it!" Jiang Maodian always carried the pride of a Sword Cultivator.

Fan Wubing immediately refused,

"No. Senior Brother Jiang and Manman, both of you must stay behind."

"Why?" Jiang Maodian was puzzled.

"Do you have any means to prevent Evil Qi from entering your body?"

Although unwilling, Jiang Maodian clenched his teeth and said, "No."

Fan Wubing said, "I’m not joking. The concentration of Evil Qi in the shantytown is far beyond what we feel here. Moreover, now that events have reached this stage, the instigator must have already prepared well. Senior Brother Jiang, you haven’t fully recovered from your injuries, and if you push yourself to fight today and then expose yourself to the risk of Evil Qi, you will definitely be left with irreparable health issues."

"But Junior Brother Yinian!"

Fan Wubing said,

"Qingyao and I will bring Junior Brother Yinian back."

"I..." Fu Manman looked at Fan Wubing, hesitated to speak, and seemed a bit sad.

Fan Wubing knew what she was thinking and said,

"Manman, you’ve done more than enough, there’s no need to belittle yourself. Just take a good rest."

"Alright."

Fu Manman bowed her head. She wasn’t one to be unreasonable.

Fan Wubing and Luo Qingyao then set off.

Upon stepping outside, they saw eight neatly arranged corpses.

Honestly, seeing these corpses, Fan Wubing was quite tempted. Although the celestial energy had mostly dissipated with their deaths, there was still blood energy...

But, such things could be done discreetly, not in front of others.

He had to hold back.

...

On the road,

Luo Qingyao asked,

"Senior Brother, I’ve never mentioned it to you, so why do you think I’m not afraid of Evil Qi?"

Fan Wubing said, "Is there a need to guess? It’s written all over your face. You must have frequented the shantytown quite a bit."

Luo Qingyao touched his face and puffed his cheeks,

"Sorry, I didn’t tell you the truth."

Fan Wubing said,

"Even now, you don’t plan to tell me what your mission really is?"

Luo Qingyao immediately pulled a long face, looking aggrieved,

"I thought it was a simple mission, one that could be completed in no time. But as soon as I got inside, I realized it was anything but. After half a month with zero progress, I couldn’t even act together with you, Senior Brother. Yet, I didn’t want to admit that I couldn’t handle it on my own... Wouldn’t that make me look useless? Coming all this way for this task and still failing at it... I didn’t want to leave that impression on Senior Brother."

That... really sounded like something Luo Qingyao would do.

Fan Wubing said,

"Now, why not tell me? If it’s a secret, then never mind."

"Not really a secret... It’s like this..."

...

It’s actually not a complicated story.

Years ago, when a patriarch of Luo Qingyao’s family was young, they sought fortune in Peach Blossom Spring but encountered an accident, causing a part of their heavenly soul, among the heaven, earth, and human souls, to be lost.

It wasn’t severe at the time and didn’t affect cultivation, so it was overlooked.

But as cultivation advanced, symptoms of an incomplete heavenly soul gradually appeared.

The patriarch could never achieve great Divine Techniques or succeed in understanding the Dao; after continuous deduction, the issue was finally pinpointed.

Luo Qingyao’s task was to find that missing part of the heavenly soul in Peach Blossom Spring and bring it back.

After listening, Fan Wubing asked,

"So, the missing part of the heavenly soul couldn’t be found?"

"Right. It couldn’t be found. I followed my ancestor’s instructions, clearly feeling its presence in Peach Blossom Spring, but couldn’t find it no matter what!"

"Have you discovered anything else?"

"Any other discoveries... There’s a Parasol Tree in Nanlai City. I can feel that part of the ancestor’s missing heavenly soul had a relationship with that tree at some point, but I’m unclear about what exactly happened. The last discovery is... the missing heavenly soul is most likely deep in the shantytown."

Luo Qingyao found this quite troubling when he mentioned it,