ATLAS TRANSLATES

“Betraying the Way?” Li Guanxing froze, almost blurting out, “He Liansheng, do you know what you’re saying?”

Hadn’t he thought about the consequences? The He family wouldn’t spare him, Lingshan wouldn’t spare him, and the entire world wouldn’t spare him!

All for a spirit.

Disregarding life and death, betraying the Way.

He looked at Xing Shuishui, expecting her to try to talk him out of it.

Unexpectedly, Xing Shuishui brushed the dust off her skirt and stood up, saying, “If you really have nowhere to go, want to come with me?”

He Liansheng stared at her intently: “Don’t trick me.”

“I’m not,” Xing Shuishui tilted her head, “but my brother doesn’t like you.”

He Liansheng shrugged: “He can’t beat me.”

Xing Shuishui added: “I’m still on Lingshan’s wanted list.”

He replied: “Now it’s their Lingshan.”

Xing Shuishui couldn’t help but ask: “Why betray the Way?”

He answered: “Don’t like them. Haven’t liked them for a long time.”

Xing Shuishui asked: “What about your master? You don’t like him either?”

He said: “He doesn’t like you, so I don’t like him either.”

He Liansheng’s attitude wasn’t joking. Xing Shuishui looked away from He Tangzhou’s body, picked up a pear from the table and tossed it to him, smiled, and the two just left. Li Guanxing was dumbfounded.

A genius that Lingshan might see once in a thousand years, just left like that?! Didn’t he say he would grind her bones to dust when he caught her? And Xing Shuishui was actually Xue Jiuling! This demon woman was known to hold grudges, yet she didn’t kill him after how he had treated her! The situation was too complicated now, he didn’t know what to do.

In the Xue mansion, Xue Zhuangxin lay quietly like a porcelain doll, hands folded across her chest, eyes closed. Since fainting, she somehow wouldn’t wake up.

Xue Sansi gradually realized something was wrong. Checking her pulse again and probing with his spiritual sense, he finally noticed something hidden in Xue Zhuangxin’s body — something very subtle that was still squirming, which he had overlooked before.

The door pushed open, and the young woman entered carrying a bunch of pears, her skirt swaying slightly, traces of dried blood still on her lips, giving her a striking appearance.

Xue Sansi stood up and casually asked: “Little Nine, why were you gone so long?” Noticing another set of footsteps, his eyes narrowed, and his folding fan flew out but was caught bare-handed by that person. He Liansheng walked in and placed the fan by the vase.

Xue Sansi said coldly: “Have you come to die?”

Xing Shuishui said: “Brother…”

He Liansheng met Xue Sansi’s gaze and calmly said: “I’ve betrayed the Way and have no more ties to Lingshan. Also — I don’t care about the knife wound Xing Shuishui gave me back then.”

Xue Sansi could see right through his intentions and said with a cold smile: “Stop being so full of yourself! Only Lingshan cares if you betray the Way or not. Stay away from Little Nine! Otherwise, I’ll tell Lingshan you’re here right now!”

He Liansheng mocked: “I’m not afraid.”

Xing Shuishui pulled Xue Sansi aside. Xue Sansi was furious, almost grinding his teeth: “Your sister is always falling for good-for-nothing men, and now you’re learning from her? Have you caught Guan Wushan? Has your cultivation improved? Let me tell you, if you dare stay with this He Liansheng anymore, I’ll cut ties with you.”

Xing Shuishui said helplessly: “Third Brother, don’t worry, I know my limits. Think about it — He Liansheng is still the Sect Leader’s precious disciple. If Lingshan learns he betrayed the Way, they’ll be furious. That’s not bad for us.”

Xue Sansi still couldn’t accept it.

He said: “No matter what sweet words he uses to deceive you. Little Nine, you must promise me that any future partner must have my approval. He Liansheng may be a cultivation genius, but his personality is terrible. He won’t tolerate you, he’s not suitable for you. Most importantly, he’s a cultivator and you’re a spirit — who knows what he’s really planning.”

Xing Shuishui froze, her heart turning sour as she said: “Alright.”

While they were talking, He Liansheng had walked to Xue Zhuangxin’s bedside. Xue Sansi turned to stop him but heard him say: “She’s indeed infected with a gu (venom based poison).”

The young man touched Xue Zhuangxin’s forehead, and she frowned, suddenly spitting out black blood. Xing Shuishui immediately turned pale and asked: “How is my sister?”

Grabbing her sister’s hand and finding it very cold, Xing Shuishui lit Separation Fire to warm her, but Xue Zhuangxin’s condition showed no improvement. The young woman’s fingers trembled.

Xue Sansi also realized the severity of the situation and, putting aside his prejudice against He Liansheng, asked gravely: “Do you know what kind of gu it is?”

He Liansheng’s eyes turned cold: “Never heard of it before.”

Lingshan’s library recorded all kinds of mysterious arts in the world, yet even Lingshan’s people didn’t know what this gu poison was.

Xing Shuishui calmed down and thought for a moment, saying: “It must be related to Guan Yinzi. He liked to study these evil arts, including gu techniques. Unfortunately, I burned his Yin Mountain Scripture back then.”

He Liansheng said: “Whatever type of gu it is, it must have an origin. Once we figure out where the gu worm came from, we can naturally find a way to break it.”

Xing Shuishui thought this made sense.

The problem was not knowing which type of gu worm it was.

Her Separation Fire coiled around, discovering the gu worm feared heat. Seeing sweat beading on Xue Zhuangxin’s forehead, she quickly extinguished the fire, but knowing this wasn’t very helpful.

Seeing her like this, He Liansheng asked: “You haven’t lost the mirror I gave you before?”

Xing Shuishui said: “No.”

She pointed to her waist where the mirror hung, though covered by her skirt as if afraid someone would discover it. He Liansheng only now realized her careful consideration, and truly wanted to pin her against the wall and scold her fiercely.

But his tone remained neutral: “The Floating Spirit Mirror can see past lives and present ones, as well as the origins of all things. It might help.”

He took out a drop of blood.

“This is that dead fox’s blood. Do you still remember the mirror-opening incantation?”

Xing Shuishui said: “I remember.”

Dropping He Tangzhou’s blood onto it and reciting the incantation, the Floating Spirit Mirror emitted rainbow light. Xing Shuishui thought: This way we should be able to trace through He Tangzhou’s memories to find out what kind of gu my sister was infected with.

The Floating Spirit Mirror opened.

…

After being unconscious for who knows how long, when consciousness returned, she smelled a strong scent of blood. Xing Shuishui opened her eyes — this was in He Tangzhou’s memories. She didn’t know who she had become, though it could only be that dead fox, right?

She looked around and found herself locked in a cage. The blood smell came from her leg, and the intense pain made her instinctively reach out to try to pry open the cage to escape. That’s when she realized: her hands had somehow become furry paws.

Right, she had indeed become that dead fox.

Xing Shuishui settled down and looked around. There were many foxes and rabbits locked in cages — it seemed He Tangzhou had bad luck and encountered hunters, being caught to be sold at market.

Since she couldn’t get out anyway, she lazily leaned against the cage edge with her eyes closed. Suddenly, a hand reached in and roughly squeezed her injured leg.

The vendor angrily said: “I must have the worst luck in eight generations to get stuck with worthless goods like you. Too sick to sell, lying there like you’re dead — make some noise! Keep being stubborn and I’ll use you all for drinking snacks.”

The intense pain in her leg felt like her nerves were being torn apart. She instinctively bit him, drawing blood.

Xing Shuishui: “…”

This dead fox really bit hard.

The vendor’s eyes turned black, a terrifying kind of black. She was lifted out of the cage, limbs dangling in the air, as he smashed her head against a huge hard rock while cursing: “Dead fox, this is for biting me, this is for biting me!”

Pain pain pain!

Xing Shuishui’s vision went dark. She felt like she was dying and cursed this person’s ancestors countless times. Kill but don’t torture — was this person crazy?!

Her throat was full of blood and crushed teeth.

As she clung to life, she heard someone speaking.

— “Uncle, I want this fox.”

This voice was gentle, like a spring breeze in February.

She struggled to open her eyes a crack, then they suddenly widened. The young man leading the young boy before her — if this wasn’t Guan Yinzi from back then, who else could it be?

Guan Yinzi glanced in her direction and said: “It’s just a dying creature, buy it and it’ll be dead in days. Isn’t that unlucky? Little Shan, if you want a fox, uncle will catch you a good one another day.”

The fox’s ears drooped.

The young boy being led by Guan Yinzi wore a goose-yellow brocade robe. His face was fair, his eyes curved, and he carried several scrolls of ink-black poetry. He had a strong scholarly air about him, clearly the type who had studied himself silly. So this was Guan Wushan. The Guan Wushan who was so well-protected by Guan Yinzi.

Guan Wushan said gently: “Today at private school, the teacher taught me that even if there are three thousand streams of water, I should only take one dipper to drink. Uncle, there are many foxes in the world, but I think meeting this one is fate. I suddenly only want this one before me.”

At this time, Guan Wushan’s tone and manner were just like the deceased Guan Yousi. Guan Yinzi stared at him for a long while before smiling and agreeing.

And so Xing Shuishui was saved.

Though taken back to the Guan family, this fox clearly wasn’t one who knew how to show gratitude. Whenever Guan Wushan came close, it would bare its teeth to bite, its fur standing on end. In those first few years, Guan Wushan’s hands were covered in bite marks.

Xing Shuishui silently worried for this dead fox — this was Guan Yinzi’s precious nephew! He even cared about him more than his own daughter Guan Shuangshuang, yet it bit him like this! Not only did it bite! It bit him right in front of Guan Yinzi! Really not afraid of being skinned alive.

Well, forgive this dead fox for not knowing who Guan Yinzi was.

Over these years, Guan Yinzi’s gaze toward her always carried killing intent. He even asked Guan Wushan why, after the fox had bitten him so many times, he still chose to keep it?

Guan Wushan smiled and said: “If Mother were here, she would probably make the same choice as me.”

Guan Yinzi said “Oh” and asked: “What kind of person do you think your mother was?”

Guan Wushan thought for a moment: “She must have been a kind and gentle lady. Though without immortal bones, she cared for all under heaven. I also want to become someone like my mother! A lifetime of gentleness, a lifetime of tender feelings, chivalrous and passionate, helping all under heaven!”

Guan Yinzi said with interest: “Lingshan always imagines themselves like this, but unfortunately, they’re all hypocrites. But Little Shan is different from them, you and your mother are both different from them. Whether you want to be good or bad, as long as uncle is here, all of Little Shan’s wishes will come true.”