Chapter 69
The position was so comfortable that it wasn’t long before Xia Mo’s head tilted to the side and he fell asleep against Yu Tai.
Trapped like this without internet access to pass the time, there seemed to be little Yu Tai could do except cultivate.
The first problem, however, was that cultivating in this position was simply impossible.
The wind outside grew even more violent, but Yu Tai didn’t feel the slightest bit sleepy.
Nudging Shu Li behind her with an elbow, she asked, “Are you asleep?”
His answer was to lower his head and lightly kiss her earlobe.
It was one of the few sensitive spots on Yu Tai’s body. The lightest touch was enough to send a devastating tingle spreading from her spine until it swiftly swept through her entire body.
Yu Tai shuddered, then turned back in embarrassed anger and bit hard at Shu Li’s infuriating lips, absorbing some righteous qi while she was at it.
Still holding Xia Mo in her arms, Yu Tai remained in that position and continued kissing Shu Li behind her.
…
“You said before that someone stole your sword. Is the thief here, or did they hide your sword here?”
The cave was far too low. If they encountered a dangerous demon beast, there would be little room to fight.
Shu Li had originally been leading the way, but once Yu Tai realized danger might lie ahead, she had promptly and imperiously dragged him behind her.
Shu Li gazed fondly at the young woman before him and replied in a gentle voice, “It was most likely placed here.”
“No one but me can use my sword,” he said with absolute certainty.
Coming from anyone else, those words would have sounded confident to the point of arrogance. Strangely, when Shu Li said them, they sounded like nothing more than a simple fact.
As if no one could possibly doubt him.
“Oh. Impressive.” Yu Tai nodded to show that she understood.
System: […]
The Qingguang Sword. The original novel had indeed never mentioned the sword that had once become famous alongside Shu Li. Even after his Dao foundation was restored, he had never deliberately searched for it.
They walked for an unknown length of time before light suddenly appeared in the dimness ahead.
Yu Tai sheathed her sword and covered her palm with demonic qi.
She sensed it.
The aura of a living creature.
She knew there couldn’t possibly be nothing inside such an enormous cave.
Behind her, Shu Li calmly withdrew the hand he had extended.
Indeed, it would have been far too suspicious if there were truly nothing here.
Just as Yu Tai raised her guard, her footsteps abruptly halted and someone behind her pulled her back.
She stumbled into Shu Li’s chest, only then realizing that the path ahead had ended.
Before her lay a cliff so deep that its bottom couldn’t be seen. A stone she accidentally kicked tumbled over the edge, but no echo came back even after a long while.
Had Shu Li not pulled her back, she would have stepped straight into empty air.
But the most unbelievable part was-
She hadn’t sensed the cliff at all.
“Someone has placed a formation here that suppresses cultivation levels,” Shu Li said above her.
For some unknown reason, the demon beasts he had arranged here had vanished.
Yu Tai had clearly noticed the problem as well.
She tried to circulate the spiritual qi and demonic qi in her body, but both felt unmistakably obstructed. Her expression darkened.
A formation that suppressed cultivation levels.
She had never even heard of such a thing in the Middle Realm.
“Is there no way to destroy the formation?” Yu Tai looked up at him.
Shu Li shook his head. “The concealment illusion is extremely sophisticated. Without spiritual power, I can’t locate it at all.”
He wasn’t lying.
From the instant the light appeared, Shu Li had realized that certain things seemed to have slipped beyond his control.
Perhaps the sect leader of the Zuiyin Sect truly did deserve some praise.
Yu Tai narrowed her eyes at the long zip line stretching to the opposite side.
If this place’s owner truly didn’t want anyone to cross, why install a zip line here?
One had only to grasp the handle suspended beneath the pulley and let gravity carry them swiftly from the higher side to the opposite end.
Their cultivation might be suppressed, but the physical constitution of a cultivator was still extraordinarily strong.
The crossing looked easy, but anyone whose wrists gave out halfway across would plummet into the abyss.
Fortunately, their side was higher. Even if someone lost their strength midway, inertia should still carry them across.
After a moment’s consideration, Yu Tai turned to Shu Li. “I’ll carry you on my back.”
Then she shifted her gaze to Xia Mo, who looked eager to volunteer. “Or Xia Mo can carry you across.”
Knowing there was no malice behind her suggestion, Shu Li maintained the smile on his lips as he declined. “It’s all right. I can do it myself.”
Yu Tai gave him a skeptical look. “Are you sure?”
Shu Li stepped closer and slowly bent down beside her most sensitive ear. “Junior Sister, shouldn’t you know better than anyone how good my stamina is?”
Being teased, Yu Tai expressionlessly pushed aside that handsome face, which showed not the slightest blush even while making such a suggestive remark. “Oh.”
Don’t blame me if you fall.
With that, she deftly grabbed the handle, pushed off the ground, and slid across.
Unbothered by Yu Tai’s cold attitude, Shu Li shook his head and followed close behind. “Don’t go so fast. Wait-”
The moment Yu Tai landed, something unexpected happened!
Yu Tai had no idea what she had stepped on. She could only watch as the glowing formation beneath her feet gradually swallowed her. Lines of runes coiled around her like living creatures and dragged her inside.
“Yu Tai!”
Open panic filled the face and eyes of the ever-calm, gentle Shu Li as he lunged toward her with one hand outstretched.
It was the last thing Yu Tai saw before losing consciousness.
The person who had always remained by his side had vanished before his very eyes. Shu Li stood frozen in place, an inescapable chill veiling his dark eyes.
Xia Mo landed immediately after him and rushed to the spot where Yu Tai had disappeared, a whimper rising from his throat.
He could no longer sense Yu Tai’s aura.
He anxiously tugged at Shu Li’s sleeve. Even though the terrifying aura emanating from the man made him tremble with fear, Xia Mo forced himself to speak. “Shu Li… Where did Yu Tai go…?”
The little panda’s trembling voice and tear-filled eyes, which strongly resembled a certain someone’s, made Shu Li immediately restrain the murderous aura around him as scarlet began creeping into the whites of his eyes.
He raised a hand and stroked the trembling panda, saying gently, “Come. We’ll bring her back.”
Shen Zhiyou, your hospitality truly hasn’t changed at all.
…
Yu Tai knew she was probably dreaming.
If this wasn’t a dream, why else would she be seeing herself as a child?
Inside a dilapidated room that offered no shelter from wind or rain, a little girl stood in a corner, fiercely shielding the woman behind her.
Half the girl’s face was badly swollen, blood streamed from her nose, and her limbs were covered in livid bruises.
Even so, she kept her thin, battered arms spread wide, protecting the woman who wept incessantly behind her.
The man before them was handsome, but the sinister cruelty in his features made it impossible to mistake him for a good person.
“Move. Don’t make me whip you,” he threatened in a low voice.
The little girl gave him a disdainful smile. “You’ve already beaten me. You think I’m afraid you’ll do it again?”
“Fucking bastard! I should’ve strangled a useless bitch like you to death years ago. You can’t even kill someone!”
At his words, the woman behind the girl visibly shuddered.
The man seemed to think of something. His lips suddenly curved into a smile, undisguised malice filling his eyes.
“Yu Xiuxiu, how about I give you a choice?”
He glanced at Yu Tai and chuckled. “Will you come with me, or should I take your daughter instead?”
The woman named Yu Xiuxiu let out a loud sob. She didn’t want to return to that place, a place no different from hell!
No! She wouldn’t go back!
She didn’t want to!
Watching coldly as the man dragged away the little girl, whose face was filled with heartbreak and despair, while the woman in the corner kissed the ground in relief, Yu Tai rolled her eyes.
“You went to all this trouble to drag me in here just to show me this?”