Chapter 1418: Make Him Marry Me

Niu Youdao said slowly, "Now that you've fallen to this point, does it still matter who I am?"

Lü Wushuang replied, "If it were you, and you didn't even know whose hands you'd fallen into, would you be willing to accept that?"

"What difference would accepting it or not accepting it make?"

Lü Wushuang asked each word distinctly, "Niu Youdao? Are you Niu Youdao?" Nearly every time they met, she pressed him with the same question.

Niu Youdao was silent for a moment. Then he slowly raised a hand to his neck, caught hold of the false face, and tore it away with a sharp pull.

His true face appeared. Looking at her with a faint smile, he asked, "As you wished. Well?"

Lü Wushuang's eyes widened. She stared at him in disbelief. "It really is you. How is that possible?"

Niu Youdao gave a slight shrug, as if to say he was the genuine article.

"You clearly died! No... the one who died wasn't you. It was a substitute. Your death was a scheme you arranged, wasn't it?" Lü Wushuang asked.

"You could say that."

"How did you leave the Sacred Realm? You had someone inside acting as your agent, didn't you?"

"The Nine Saints lost the hearts of the people long ago. Finding someone inside the Sacred Realm willing to help wasn't actually that difficult."

"You laid a trap in the Fifth Domain. How did you know the Fifth Domain existed?"

Faced with the woman's stream of questions, Niu Youdao knew she had many doubts in her heart. He raised a hand to stop her. "We have plenty of time. There's no need to settle everything at once. First contact your people and help them survive this disaster. We can talk slowly afterward."

He turned to Yuan Gang. "Prepare brush, ink, paper, and inkstone for the Sacred Venerable."

Yuan Gang had only just turned when Lü Wushuang suddenly shouted, "Stop!"

Yuan Gang halted and looked back, uncertain what she wanted.

Lü Wushuang was staring fixedly at his arm. "The arm that was cut off actually grew back. Did you use Wuliang Fruit?" She abruptly turned to Niu Youdao again. "There was clearly something suspicious about your investigation of Wuliang Garden back then. Were you the one who stole the Wuliang Fruit?"

That question almost made Niu Youdao laugh. He had indeed stolen the Wuliang Fruit, but the way she had reached that conclusion—because Yuan Gang's arm had regrown—was completely wrong. He shook his head. "Sacred Venerable Wushuang, you're overthinking it. His regrown arm is related to the cultivation art he practices. It has nothing to do with Wuliang Fruit."

Lü Wushuang fell briefly silent. Thinking it through, she realized that the items stolen thirty years ago really should have had nothing to do with Niu Youdao.

Yet the two people before her were strange in every direction. One man had supposedly died but was still alive. The other had lost an arm, yet somehow grown it back.

Yuan Gang wasted no words. He quickly left and soon returned carrying brush, ink, paper, and inkstone.

Lü Wushuang kept her word and began writing a letter, but the two sides immediately disagreed over its form.

She wanted to write a confidential letter. Niu Youdao refused to allow it for the moment. Who knew what she might conceal inside? If she exposed this place, the consequences would be disastrous.

He required her to write an open letter and name a trustworthy recipient. His side would ensure that it was delivered.

Once he had the letter, Niu Youdao immediately found Yun Ji and gave her a series of private instructions, telling her to make the trip personally and deliver it.

Yun Ji had not been gone long when Guan Fangyi, who had taken over the matters Yun Ji had been handling, arrived with another confidential message.

"The Ghost Doctor and his disciples have returned to Medicine Valley. Shao Pingbo has replied as well. The matter is done. He's asking whether Shao Liuer can be released."

The reason this line of contact had still been kept in Yun Ji's hands was simple: Yuan Gang could be stubbornly inflexible, and he refused to take part in this kind of scheme that harmed others.

After reading the letter, Niu Youdao nodded slowly. "That Ghost Doctor really does have some methods. I only wanted to try it and didn't expect him to actually pull it off. We can release her. It would be inappropriate for Shao Liuer to remain missing much longer. Tell Shao Pingbo to pass a message to Wuxin: make sure Consort Yuan understands one principle. No matter how many eyes are transplanted back and forth, none will ever suit her as well as her own eye now sitting in Yuan Se's left socket."

...

Inside the Shao residence in the Jin capital, Shao Pingbo sat quietly in his study when the reply arrived.

After reading it, he gave a cold snort. "Jia Wuqun's methods really are vicious. First he makes Yuan Se gouge out Consort Yuan's eye, making her heart go cold. That creates a rift between them. Then he tempts her into taking it back. Every step follows naturally from the last. Women all care about beauty. She may endure it for a while, but she won't endure it forever. So long as Consort Yuan begins thinking about the eye of hers now sitting in Yuan Se's face, sooner or later she will turn against Yuan Se!"

Shao Sansheng reminded him, "If we release Young Mistress, will Wuxin still obey?"

Shao Pingbo asked in return, "Does the Ghost Doctor have any choice left? Would he dare refuse?"

...

Shao Liuer regained her freedom.

Che Buchi, Gao Jianhou, and Xie Longfei personally went to receive her.

With Hao Zhen's accession to the throne, the standing of all three men had risen along with his.

Shao Liuer had known nothing of what was happening outside during the period she was under guard. Only when she met Hao Zhen in a certain city did she learn that he had already become Emperor of Qi.

Hao Zhen naturally questioned her in private about what had happened and why Misty Pavilion had come for her.

Shao Liuer herself could not make sense of it. She said that after being taken away, she had simply been confined. Aside from the people who brought her food and drink, she had not seen anyone else at all, much less been questioned by Misty Pavilion.

Hao Zhen found it strange, but he had no energy to spare for it now. He immediately threw himself back into the precarious situation confronting the state.

Several days later, with no objections anywhere in Qi, Shao Liuer naturally became Empress of Qi. With the realm in turmoil, there was neither the energy nor the material wealth for grand celebrations. The ceremony was kept as simple as possible.

...

The combined armies of Yan and Han continued their offensive against Qin without pause. They swept forward with overwhelming momentum and encountered almost no meaningful resistance, seizing territory so quickly that it was scarcely different from staking claims on horseback.

The Qin army inside Qi could do nothing beyond protest and condemn the attacks.

The secular world was in turmoil, and the cultivation world was no calmer. Misty Pavilion was restless, while the Sacred Realm lurched from one upheaval to another.

Ordinary commoners who had not been touched by the wars might not feel much difference, but anyone of some status could clearly sense that all beneath Heaven seemed to have fallen into violent turmoil.

Then another major event erupted inside the Sacred Realm.

Just as rumors were spreading that Lü Wushuang was dead, everyone in Wushuang Sacred Land suddenly disappeared.

To put it plainly, they went into hiding, scattering to conceal themselves in different places.

After hearing that Lü Wushuang was dead and being unable to contact her, the people of Wushuang Sacred Land had already been in a state of panic. Then an order from Lü Wushuang suddenly arrived telling them to hide.

If Lü Wushuang herself had ordered it, how could those beneath her dare delay? They obeyed at once.

The moment this happened, Du Wuxu, Lan Daolin, Granny Xue, Wu Chang, Yuan Se, and Luo Qiu quickly gathered to discuss the matter. None of the six could make sense of what Wushuang Sacred Land was doing.

Even Wu Chang, who had released the rumor in the first place, was baffled. He no longer knew whether Lü Wushuang was truly dead or still alive.

If she were dead, this behavior would make some sense.

Yet none of the factions had ever been able to avoid planting a few hidden eyes among the others. After so many years, having one or two spies inside a rival's organization was perfectly normal. According to the intelligence they received, the sudden withdrawal of Wushuang Sacred Land's people had come after they received a decree from Lü Wushuang herself.

If Lü Wushuang could still issue a decree, then she was not dead.

But if she was alive, why had she ordered all her people into hiding?

They discussed it back and forth. In the end, regardless of whatever trick Lü Wushuang might be playing, the six factions decided to strike at her forces first. Ideally, they would force Lü Wushuang to appear and explain herself.

The six factions joined forces inside the Sacred Realm and launched a purge.

Again, every faction had spies planted among the people of Wushuang Sacred Land. Once the purge began, Wushuang Sacred Land immediately suffered significant losses.

Fortunately, its people had scattered when they went into hiding. Otherwise, they might truly have been wiped out in a single sweep.

The same purge naturally extended to Wushuang Sacred Land's personnel within Misty Pavilion. Only some were captured. Many key figures had received advance warning from Wushuang Sacred Land and fled first.

Not long after dealing with the people of Zhangsun Mi and Mu Lianze, they had now turned on Lü Wushuang's faction as well. The cultivation world was shaken.

Many people shared the same question. The balance of the Nine Saints had endured for so many years. Now disaster kept striking one after another. What exactly was happening?

...

At the Imperial Academy, a group of students was preparing to depart for various regions and begin practical study in the field. Shao Pingbo gave them a farewell address.

Only after seeing the students off did Shao Sansheng move closer and say quietly, "There's a reply from the east."

The moment the matter involving Lü Wushuang arose, Shao Pingbo had naturally wanted to know the inside story. He immediately had Shao Sansheng send word asking Jia Wuqun whether this was his work.

After exchanging a few pleasantries with the instructors around him, Shao Pingbo left quickly. Once he reached a secluded place, he took the sheet of paper Shao Sansheng handed him.

He unfolded it.

The letter contained only three words:

"Executed!"

That was the entire reply. Jia Wuqun was effectively admitting that Lü Wushuang had already been dealt with.

With the matter confirmed, Shao Pingbo slowly crumpled the letter into a ball between his fingers and murmured, "Another stronghold taken. Truly, his methods are impossible to fathom."

He was deeply shaken.

The Nine Saints stood above all living beings, yet one after another they were being silently eliminated without the slightest warning beforehand. How could he not be shocked? The speed of it had far exceeded anything he had imagined. He could not begin to understand how Jia Wuqun was accomplishing it.

...

For Niu Youdao, however, the situation was far from optimistic.

All these upheavals still could not stop the Six Sacred Venerables from continuing their investigation into the whereabouts of the Wuliang Fruit. The screening within Misty Pavilion continued. At most, the disturbances merely interrupted or slowed the investigation.

Niu Youdao could not sit idle and could not stop now. He intended to create more disruption.

So he went to see Lü Wushuang again.

He wanted to have a proper conversation with her, but Lü Wushuang remained very quiet and barely spoke.

Since she did not want to talk, Niu Youdao could only get straight to the point. "The Six Sacred Venerables have launched a large-scale purge against your people. Quite a few have already been killed. Don't you want to strike back?"

Lü Wushuang said nothing.

Niu Youdao continued, "I know who stole the Wuliang Fruit."

Her eyes lifted. "Who?"

"Du Wuxu. His disciples and grand-disciples have already used the Wuliang Fruit to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm. Ao Feng, for example, was discovered before. He killed the person who found out in order to silence them, and Du Wuxu suppressed the entire matter."

Lü Wushuang replied, "Does that matter to me?"

Niu Youdao continued, "Luo Qiu's wife, Yin Ji, is not dead. She's been hiding among the Demon Fox Clan all this time. Luo Qiu has been colluding with the Demon Fox Clan throughout."

Surprise flashed through Lü Wushuang's eyes. She was clearly caught off guard, but she did not ask whether it was true. Instead, she asked, "Why are you telling me this?"

"The Six Sacred Venerables have moved against your people. It would be perfectly natural for your people to expose these matters in response. We might as well discuss how we can cooperate."

Lü Wushuang's gaze flickered. "Do you know what I'm thinking?"

Niu Youdao smiled faintly. "I'd be glad to hear it."

"Nothing else matters. Right now, I only want to preserve my life. If you want me to cooperate, fine. Agree to one thing first."

Niu Youdao smiled. "Let's hear it."

Lü Wushuang looked toward the expressionless Yuan Gang standing nearby.

"Make him marry me!"

[End of Chapter 1418]