Chapter 438 - 218: Reminiscence and Affection
After their affectionate moment, Chu Xuan did not forget that his master was still standing in front of him. He immediately let go of Qingqing and began to narrate the experiences of the Grotto Heaven to his master in detail.
Qingqing, like a shy little wife, held his arm quietly, listening to the conversation.
Even now, she found it somewhat unbelievable, wondering if she was dreaming.
Fuyunzi had hurried over, and the people from the Return to the Dao Palace had traveled part of the way with those from the Returning Ruins. The two sides had not encountered each other, so he was unaware of the prior events.
Upon hearing everything, Fuyunzi’s expression turned more solemn as he sighed, "What do you plan to do next?"
Chu Xuan bowed again, "You will always be my master, and the Cyan Lotus Daoist Palace will always be my home, but I won’t be returning for a while."
"I hope that when you return, you announce to the outside world that I have been expelled from the sect. From now on, whatever I do has nothing to do with the Dao Palace."
Fuyunzi felt a pang of sorrow, "Mengyao is gone, and now you are leaving too. I’m afraid that in a hundred years, there won’t even be someone to see me off at the end."
"Master, please don’t say that," Chu Xuan also felt deeply saddened, "You will live for a very long time, and as for Senior Sister and myself, we will handle things properly. There will surely be a day when we three masters and disciples are reunited."
Only then did Fuyunzi put away his sorrowful expression and seriously considered, "Expulsion from the sect is unnecessary, since the Shangguan family currently doesn’t have any solid evidence. No matter how suspicious you are, they cannot act against the Cyan Lotus Daoist Palace without a legitimate reason."
"We will simply say that you have been missing since your trip to the Grotto Heaven and never returned to the sect."
"Also, I advise you not to admit under any circumstances that you are the Celestial Evil Demon Venerable. Neither confirm nor deny, just let others speculate."
Chu Xuan was somewhat puzzled. To him, having been exposed, it seemed no different, especially since he would not return to the Cyan Lotus Daoist Palace. Wasn’t this a sign of guilt?
If he were to act justifiably, Chu Xuan should not only return to the sect, but the Cyan Lotus Daoist Palace should even take him to the Shangguan family to demand justice, ready to fight to the death!
If the Shangguan family were a small force, this would indeed be feasible, but they are a long-hidden behemoth. Moreover, Chu Xuan developed a suspicion about the Shangguan family after earlier incidents:
Is it really worth it for them to remember a hatred six or seven hundred years old when they were the eventual victors?
This hatred seems too abnormal. Considering that the family’s descendants have changed generation after generation, the matters of ancestors are just texts in family history, stories in the elders’ mouths. Even if cultivators live long lives, very few people have lived from the times of the three righteous-evil wars to the present.
When educating their descendants, shouldn’t they emphasize "our family’s True Lord’s great Divine Techniques"? Could they be teaching them to hate a dead person day and night? A "defeated foe"?
This time, the Shangguan family went so far as to risk their righteous reputation, almost to the point of mutual destruction, just to put Chu Xuan to death.
Not to mention the "secret treasure left by the True Lord," which could even sense the exact time of Chu Xuan’s rebirth. This is even more preposterous.
Even Ji Mingyu, who knows him well, must annually search for whether the Six Souls Banner has reappeared in the world to judge if Chu Xuan has been resurrected.
How could the Shangguan family, this adversary unable to divine the secrets of heaven, know when the Celestial Evil would return?
Chu Xuan suspected that the Shangguan family hid a great secret related to the third righteous-evil war and connected to Celestial Evil and Shangguan Yu.
Under these circumstances, if he confidently went to confront them, they could indeed produce lethal evidence. Shangguanhe dared to invite Li Fanzhou and Chu Xuan to their clan to verify their identities, likely because of this confidence.
Moreover, their strength and foundation cannot be underestimated. After all, Cyan Lotus Daoist Palace is a small but elite sect, with few disciples. In the end, it’s uncertain who will win or lose.
In short, since he chose not to return to the sect, whether Chu Xuan admits it or not is useless. Others will certainly believe he is the Celestial Evil Demon Venerable.
Not admitting it at most reduces the public pressure on the Daoist Palace, but that is still not as effective as announcing his expulsion from the sect.
Seeing Chu Xuan’s puzzled look, Fuyunzi explained seriously:
"Righteous cause, the banner of righteousness, is very important. Though it is usually just a signboard, an excuse, with it, the obstacles in your actions naturally reduce significantly."
"The Celestial Evil Demon Venerable has been dead for so many years, regardless of whether he was truly as wicked as rumored, the established impression he left on the world is such, changing their perception is very difficult."
"Under these circumstances, letting outsiders remain uncertain if you are the Celestial Evil is itself a form of protection."
"Those who truly want to help you will do so whether you admit it or not; those who truly want to harm you will do so whether you admit it or not."
"Once you admit it, you will only push those who were originally neutral observers to become your adversaries."
"So from now on, facing external doubts, the sect will remain silent and will not respond."
"And if you are willing to do this, if things turn for the better in the future, you might not be unable to return to the Dao Palace..."
Chu Xuan fell silent. After such persuasion, he finally understood his master’s thoughts:
Deep in his heart, Fuyunzi still secretly hoped that this matter could be resolved satisfactorily, and ultimately, Chu Xuan could return openly and honorably as a disciple of the Dao Palace.
Additionally, his master had a deeper admonition: do not revert to being the Celestial Evil Demon Venerable.
Once Chu Xuan admits internally and externally that he is the "Celestial Evil," it means that his moral bottom line could align with Celestial Evil. He may gradually become that rebellious, reckless, and self-indulgent Demon Venerable from the past.
This aside, after this near-death experience, Chu Xuan secretly conceived a thought: to switch to cultivating the Celestial Water Returning Ruins Technique!
Qingqing almost lost her life saving him, which struck Chu Xuan immensely, especially recalling how Xiaoyun nearly died in a similar manner before.
He questioned himself, why does this happen again and again?!
The answer was simple: Being weak is the original sin.
After Chu Xuan transcribed the "Celestial Water Returning Ruins Technique," he hesitated for a moment and decided against switching his cultivation method. Besides the near-hopeless prospect of ascending with this technique, the biggest reason was:
He felt that he had no urgent need to enhance his power in the short term. He could take his time to develop, without rushing.
But now, the situation has completely changed. As a solitary cultivator in the fourth realm, if not for the fortunate loyalty of the Beauties, Chu Xuan would be like a rat crossing the street.
If he could switch back to cultivating this "Demonic Art," with Chu Xuan’s cultivation experience from the Celestial Evil Period, he could definitely enhance his power rapidly.
Originally, he estimated that by retreating for cultivation for a dozen or twenty years, he could reach the fifth realm. But with the "Celestial Water Returning Ruins Technique," that much time would be enough to achieve the perfection of the sixth realm.
Once Chu Xuan switches to this technique, everyone would know he is the Celestial Evil, making the phrase "neither admit nor deny" a joke.
As for ascension... To be honest, if he can’t protect those around him, Chu Xuan would rather not cultivate to immortality!
At this moment, facing his master, Chu Xuan ultimately said very little, only nodding silently, "I understand. I will try my best to do as you say, Master."
Floating Cloud Tzu nodded as well, not putting too much pressure on the disciple.
The two continued talking for a while, and after agreeing on future communication methods, Floating Cloud Tzu then said, "In that case, I will return first. Take this."
He had somehow prepared a storage bag, placing it into Chu Xuan’s hand. As the situation was unexpected, the treasures inside were few, mostly pills for cultivation and healing.
Chu Xuan initially wanted to decline, but upon seeing the hopeful look in the elder’s eyes, he silently accepted it.
Qingqing saw this and also spoke earnestly, "I will take good care of Chu Xuan. Please rest assured."
Floating Cloud Tzu smiled with a nod.
Before parting, Chu Xuan remembered something and said to his master, "I’m at ease with the other members of the sect, but I’m somewhat worried about the grandmaster."
"I trouble Master to look after her. During the natural disasters, don’t let her act too recklessly, and especially don’t let her cause trouble because of me."
"Just tell her... just tell her... that I will visit her in the future, so she shouldn’t be anxious."
Floating Cloud Tzu agreed, of course.
By the way, speaking of Jiang Yiyi, she used to keep clamoring for "roasted crane wings." Surely she wasn’t pointing at this very crane, was she?
Well, probably not, but among the sect’s immortal cranes, nine out of ten call this one "ancestor"...
And so, the two watched as the elegantly postured divine spirit bird carried Floating Cloud Tzu away into the distance.
On Qingqing’s side, Chu Xuan’s last words had made her a bit tense, but now that their relationship had just been mended, she carefully hid these emotions without showing them.
Unexpectedly, as soon as Floating Cloud Tzu left, Chu Xuan turned and smiled at her, asking, "Were you a bit jealous just now?"
Qingqing shook her head sheepishly, "No, not at all."
"Then should I go find Yiyi now?" Chu Xuan joked.
"You dare?!" Qingqing’s face flushed immediately, then she reacted, lowering her head a bit awkwardly.
Chu Xuan, however, gently cupped her face, "That’s better. This is truly you. From now on, you don’t have to intentionally stifle yourself in front of me. I want to see your true self."
Qingqing felt a secret joy grow within her, and she slowly grew bolder, "Then, then promise you’ll only like me in the future."
Chu Xuan was momentarily at a loss, and seeing him like this, Qingqing immediately pouted and playfully punched him, "I knew you would say one thing and do another."
Chu Xuan quickly changed the subject, "How’s your injury? Does it still hurt?"
Qingqing shook her head, "It’s fine. I feel great now."
Chu Xuan was still a bit worried, not even withdrawing the celestial energy he’d left in Qingqing’s body. Holding her hand, he carefully examined the functioning of her new heart.
Seeing this, Qingqing found it amusing, "Really, I’m fine now. If you don’t believe me, feel for yourself."
Saying that, she grabbed Chu Xuan’s hand and placed it on her heart.
Chu Xuan chuckled, "Miss, you’re not trying to seduce me, are you? That’s absolutely not allowed."
This slightly teasing remark made Qingqing’s mouth curve into a smile. She huffed softly, "If I wanted to seduce you, you wouldn’t last a single round~"
As soon as she spoke, tears suddenly welled up in her eyes.
This left Chu Xuan a bit at a loss, "What’s wrong? I didn’t mean to bully you."
Qingqing shook her head, choking up, "No, it’s not that. I just miss, and like it..."
The kind of playful banter they just had was the beautiful atmosphere they shared when they first met. Qingqing loved the way he teased her then, and now, after many years, they could joke like this again, which moved her to tears.
Understanding this, Chu Xuan just gave a gentle smile, "Then I’ll have to tease you and take advantage of you every day from now on. Are you scared?"
While wiping away tears, Qingqing straightened her back confidently, "I’m not scared of you at all~"