Fortunately, Shen Gurong was thick-skinned enough. He glanced at them indifferently as if nothing had happened and asked, "What is it?"
Perhaps Shen Gurong's demeanor was too intimidating, for Yu Xinghe was stunned again, beginning to doubt whether he had been blind earlier.
He exclaimed "Ah!" and hurriedly knelt down with Mu Zhe: "Master, Xinghe has come to apologize."
Shen Gurong wasn't used to these two children kneeling so easily, and frowned slightly: "Apologize for what?"
Yu Xinghe, however, misunderstood Shen Gurong's meaning and quickly kowtowed: "Yesterday I offended Master, causing Master difficulty..."
Mu Zhe, expressionless, suddenly knelt down and kowtowed heavily, whispering, "It was my fault. If Master wants to punish, punish me alone."
Shen Gurong: "..."
It's such a small thing that scared the two children so much; Shen Feng Xue is truly a sinner.
Shen Gurong straightened his robes, feigning indifference, and said, "Get up, both of you."
Yu Xinghe paused for a moment before staggering to his feet, pulling Mu Zhe up with him.
Mu Zhe raised his head; blood was seeping from his forehead, a testament to the force with which he had kowtowed.
Shen Gurong thought to himself, 'This child, so ruthless to himself at such a young age, he'll definitely be a ruthless one when he grows up.'
At that moment, the distant sound of the morning bell from Liren Peak echoed.
Shen Gurong glanced at the flock of birds taking flight in the distance: "What time is it now?"
Yu Xinghe whispered, "It's three-quarters past the hour of Mao (5:45 AM)."
Shen Gurong said, "No."
Yu Xinghe scratched his head, unsure what his master meant.
Mu Zhe spoke up: "The third day of the seventh month, the thirteenth year of Yongping."
Shen Gurong stared thoughtfully at the horizon, saying, "If there's nothing else, leave."
He needed to calm down and sort out the main plot of the book.
Yu Xinghe bowed awkwardly, then pulled Mu Zhe away.
Shen Gurong stood among the evening mist flowers in the courtyard, tilting his head slightly upwards to look at the sky.
He didn't remember the details of the miscellaneous book's plot clearly; he needed to search through his memories to find it.
The fourth day of the seventh month, the thirteenth year of Yongping.
Mu Zhe… was possessed by a plague demon and killed Li Suo, a disciple under Xi Guxing of Liren Peak.
Shen Gurong suddenly opened his eyes.
If he remembered correctly, the disciple who had been unusually flamboyant with the fan yesterday seemed to be named Li Suo, and when Xi Guxing spoke to him about ghost cultivators yesterday, he seemed to have mentioned that Li Suo was at the Golden Core stage.
The ghost cultivator who could easily kill a Golden Core cultivator after possessing another's body must be a force to be reckoned with.
Shen Gurong suddenly called out to his two young disciples who had already left Fanjiang Residence, "Stop."
Yu Xinghe, who had been walking briskly, trembled at the words, exchanged a glance with Mu Zhe, and broke out in a cold sweat.
Mu Zhe seemed used to this, turning around woodenly.
Shen Gurong said, "Mu Zhe, stay."
Yu Xinghe's face was filled with despair, but Mu Zhe looked as if he had expected this, calmly nodding, "Yes."
Yu Xinghe stamped his foot, anxiously saying, "Mu Zhe..."
Mu Zhe shook his head, "Go back."
Yu Xinghe pitifully tugged at his sleeve.
Every time Shen Feng Xue left Mu Zhe alone, he would always return to the side peak covered in wounds, and Yu Xinghe was terrified by the blood he was covered in.
Mu Zhe shook his head at him, somewhat resigned, "Let go, it's alright."
Yu Xinghe had no choice but to leave, turning back every few steps.
Once Yu Xinghe left, Mu Zhe slowly walked towards Fanjiang Residence.
Shen Gurong led him into a side room of Fanjiang Residence, saying, "You'll stay here tonight."
Mu Zhe said, "Yes."
Shen Gurong wore an outer robe draped over his shoulders; his figure was tall and slender, and when he slightly lowered his eyes, he seemed like a misty cloud, alluring and captivating.
But in Mu Zhe's eyes, this man was only attractive in appearance; in reality, he was nothing more than a hypocrite with a sanctimonious facade.
Just as Shen Gurong was about to return to the inner room to find Xi Guxing, he heard Mu Zhe say calmly, "Master, do I still need medicine?"
Shen Gurong was slightly taken aback and turned to look at him. "What medicine?"
Mu Zhe gave a short laugh, as if laughing at his feigned ignorance. "A spiritual medicine for cleansing the marrow and tendons."
His face was still youthful, but when he laughed coldly, he actually possessed the emptiness of an adult who had experienced many hardships, making him look extremely incongruous.
Shen Gurong was stunned again. In Shen Feng Xue's memory, taking the marrow-cleansing spiritual medicine was like having one's body shattered and rebuilt, the pain comparable to being slowly sliced to death.
Shen Feng Xue didn't know what grudge he held against this little disciple, but he had given Mu Zhe a bunch of marrow-cleansing spiritual medicines, making him take them frequently.
However, Mu Zhe's spiritual meridians were too weak; even after many rounds of marrow-cleansing treatments, he still had no spiritual power within his body.
Shen Gurong met Mu Zhe's deep, unfathomable gaze, feeling that the child's left eye screamed "beast" and his right "animal," filled with utter mockery and disgust.
Perhaps because Shen Gurong had been silent for too long, Mu Zhe turned his head and called out, "Master?"
Shen Gurong seemed to snap out of a daze, his expression complex as he said, "No need, you can just rest here."
Mu Zhe was slightly taken aback, seemingly not believing that Shen Gurong would let him off so easily, but he wasn't one to suffer in silence, so he simply nodded and said indifferently, "Yes."
Shen Gurong hurried away.
Back in his inner room, he pondered the scene of Mu Zhe being possessed for a long time before gently tapping the jade in his hand.
This jade was a spiritual artifact used by disciples of Liren Peak to send messages, and Shen Gurong spent quite a while trying to understand its purpose.
A moment later, Xi Guxing's voice came from the jade marrow: "Are you going out to die again?"
Shen Gurong raised an eyebrow slightly, finding this person's temperament truly peculiar. He was clearly worried about Shen Feng Xue, yet his words were relentless, always managing to annoy him.
Shen Gurong said, "Sect Leader, there's urgent business. I'd like to trouble you to come to Fanjiang Residence."
As expected, Sect Leader Xi immediately flew into a rage: "Shen-shidi! Are you courting death?!"
Shen Gurong felt a surge of satisfaction upon hearing his anger and said, "Come quickly."
After Xi Guxing's angry rebuke, the jade marrow fell silent.
Shen Gurong rested his chin on his hand, staring absently at the evening mist flowers in the courtyard.
In the book, after Mu Zhe killed Li Suo, Shen Feng Xue used all his spiritual power to suppress the plague demon possessing Mu Zhe's body, thus suffering severe injuries and falling into a deep sleep for several years. Mu Zhe was also imprisoned in the Burial Mound by Xi Guxing for murdering his fellow disciples.
Ten years later, Yu Xinghe, having reached the Core Formation stage, trespassed into the Burial Mound with a spiritual artifact of unknown origin, seemingly attempting to rescue Mu Zhe.
Mu Zhe possessed no cultivation whatsoever, yet somehow managed to survive for ten years in the demon-infested Burial Mound.
Upon seeing Mu Zhe again, the now-grown Yu Xinghe's smile remained unchanged.
He smiled harmlessly, yet gripped a sword, his eyes crinkling, uttering only one sentence:
"Junior Brother, give me that thing."
The book seems to be written from Shen Feng Xue's perspective, lacking clarity in some details, leaving a somewhat confusing impression at first glance. This is why Shen Gurong never understood what that thing was that warranted Yu Xinghe directly confronting Mu Zhe with a sword.
Subsequently, through some unknown negotiation, Yu Xinghe released the demonic cultivators from the Burial Mound, willingly succumbing to demonic possession, and severely wounded Mu Zhe, immediately betraying Liren Peak.
Because of Yu Xinghe's attack, which nearly destroyed his dantian, Mu Zhe unexpectedly awakened his spiritual meridians and leaped to the Core Formation stage.
Li Suo's death was a matter for tomorrow. If Mu Zhe was already possessed by the plague demon, then Xi Guxing could suppress it.
However, if Mu Zhe hadn't yet been possessed, staying at Fanjiang Residence tonight would easily prevent this.
Shen Gurong had calculated everything. He felt he could easily solve this predicament without even thinking, and returning home was just around the corner—he only hoped that Sect Leader Xi would be reliable.
Thinking of this, Shen Gurong's mood grew increasingly cheerful. He leaned lazily against the soft couch, his fingers tapping idly on the small table, humming an unknown tune.
In the side courtyard, Mu Zhe stared down at the lines on his palm, lost in thought.
Unbeknownst to him, a red birthmark on half his face was slowly changing, crawling up his brow as if it were alive.
Mu Zhe felt something strange on his face and gently touched it.
The lifelike, vine-like birthmark stopped an inch away from his brow and remained motionless.
The next instant, Shen Gurong suddenly emerged from the inner room, wielding a slender bamboo flute as if it were a sharp sword, his aura cold as he pointed it directly at Mu Zhe's brow.
Even though Mu Zhe's heart was as still as water, he was still young. Shen Gurong's murderous appearance startled him, and he took a half-step back, his pupils shrinking as he stared at Shen Gurong.
Shen Gurong coldly pointed at him, his wide sleeves fluttering.
Mu Zhe forced himself to remain calm: "Has this disciple offended Master in any way?"
Shen Gurong's brows were filled with coldness, his aura imposing.
He maintained the air of a sage, thinking, 'Hmm? Hmm? Why did I suddenly move?'
He was even more panicked than Mu Zhe.
After careful consideration, Shen Gurong realized that Mu Zhe had emitted an aura of a ghost cultivator for a fleeting moment. Only then did Shen Gurong act on Shen Feng Xue's instincts.
Just as Mu Zhe was about to raise his hand, Shen Gurong said, "Don't move!"
Mu Zhe froze on the spot.
The bamboo flute in Shen Gurong's palm radiated an undeniable murderous aura. Mu Zhe instinctively trembled, his forehead covered in cold sweat forced out by the killing intent. He pursed his lips, tilting his head slightly to coldly meet Shen Gurong's gaze.
Those eyes were like scattered stars, like a ferocious beast driven to the brink of despair.
Shen Gurong stared at the red birthmark that had crawled to Mu Zhe's brow, roughly guessing that it was the ghost cultivator who wanted to possess him.
Fortunately, the ghost cultivator hadn't taken human form, only a dark red birthmark. Otherwise, if Shen Gurong, who was terrified of ghosts, had seen it, he might not have even been able to maintain his aloof and arrogant aura as a Holy Monarch.
Shen Gurong took a deep breath, instinctively trying to pull the vengeful ghost away from Mu Zhe, but as soon as he activated his spiritual power, a sudden, excruciating pain shot through his meridians, almost causing him to spit out blood.
Shen Gurong: "..."
This pampered young master had never suffered like this before. His meridians felt as if they had been shattered; the pain was so intense he almost cried out, yet he still gritted his teeth.
Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!
Sect Leader, save me!
No, Senior Brother, save me!
Tears welled up in Shen Gurong's eyes from the pain before he belatedly remembered Xi Guxing's warning against recklessly using his spiritual power.
Seeing the ghost cultivator nearly burrow into Mu Zhe's brow, Shen Gurong hardened his heart. Ignoring the excruciating pain, he raised his hand and unleashed a surge of spiritual energy, suddenly lunging towards Mu Zhe's face.
Mu Zhe had never trusted Shen Gurong whatsoever. He stared in astonishment as Shen Gurong attacked him, thinking he was finally going to kill him, and instinctively tried to flee.
But the pressure from the Mahayana stage cultivator had made his legs weak, and he knelt heavily on the ground before he could even move.
Shen Gurong's face was even more ashen than his, and he shouted sharply, "Don't move!"
In that instant, the spiritual energy had already reached Mu Zhe's brow. A chill swept over him, directly hooking onto the red birthmark and pulling out a wisp of black mist mixed with red lines.
The black mist twisted wildly, emitting a ferocious roar.
It was a plague demon.
He didn't know how the plague demon, whose bones had been reduced to ashes, had possessed Mu Zhe and how its cultivation had increased so dramatically in such a short time.
Suddenly, Mu Zhe felt a chill creep up his brow, followed by a torrent of memories not belonging to him flooding his mind, accompanied by unknown screams and wails.
"They're all dead..."
"Please, no!"
"Ah—"
Mu Zhe abruptly opened his eyes, his once black pupils instantly turning into eerie, dilated crimson pupils. He trembled violently, his unfocused eyes staring at Shen Gurong.
Shen Gurong's meridians were still severely injured and not fully recovered. After slowly pulling half of the ghost cultivator from Mu Zhe's body, he was already exhausted. He gritted his teeth, his heart screaming for his mother, but he maintained a facade of composure and did not withdraw.
"Where's Xi Guxing? Where's Xi Guxing?" Shen Gurong, utterly pathetic, begged the sect leader for help while simultaneously cursing him, "Did Xi Guxing crawl here? Even that bastard was faster than him."
Mu Zhe, perhaps realizing Shen Gurong wasn't trying to harm him, stared blankly at Shen Gurong, his voice hoarse, "Master..."
Shen Gurong's face paled. He thought to himself, "You little brat, don't talk nonsense and distract me! One more word and your master will die!"
Just as Shen Gurong was about to give up completely, Xi Guxing arrived just in time.
Shen Gurong saw him as if he'd seen a savior, blurting out, "Sect Leader, Senior Brother!"
Xi Guxing: "..."
Xi Guxing's hand gripping his sword froze. For a moment, he didn't know whether to curse him for the "Sect Leader" or feel relieved by this hard-won "Senior Brother."
"Useless thing."
He drew his sword abruptly, expressionless. Its cold light flashed like a few stars in the night sky, and he charged towards the plague demon with the force of a startled swan.
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