Chapter 27
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This chapter is edited by Bakhtawar Kakar. Thank you for your contribution!
Chapter 27: Ten Thousand Years
Gu Jiu’s sword had once been sharp and formidable.
But the blade he wielded now was no more threatening to Bai Lian than a strand of wet noodles.
Bai Lian didn’t even need to strike him.
Dang! Dang!
With a few hard swings, the recoil from his own sword sent Gu Jiu tumbling to the ground.
“…”
He stared blankly at the sword in his hand.
The blade had disappeared, leaving only the short, black hilt—less than a foot long.
It was broken.
His sword had broken again.
But this time, Gu Jiu refused to admit defeat.
No matter what Bai Lian said or did, as long as he drew breath, he wouldn’t let her lay a finger on his sister!
Fueled by sheer obsession, Gu Jiu lunged at Bai Lian, wielding the broken sword like a madman.
“Let go of my sister!”
Duang!
The shattered blade struck the back of Bai Lian’s hand but didn’t leave even the faintest mark.
Gu Jiu fell again, collapsing to the ground.
His head hit the earth hard, and blood trickled down the side of his face, dripping into his eyes. The crimson streaks only made his ferocious expression more horrifying.
Bai Lian frowned deeply.
There was clearly something wrong with Gu Jiu’s mind.
She hadn’t done anything to him this time, yet he seemed to treat her as if they shared a lifelong, irreconcilable grudge.
Bai Lian raised her right hand, preparing to subdue him. She didn’t have the time to waste on this deranged struggle.
But before she could act, the little fox demon cried out, “If you keep this up, you’re going to die!”
Gu Jiu froze mid-motion.
He looked at her, his bloodied face unwavering, and said with absolute conviction:
“I would do anything for you!”
Was he speaking to the girl he called Yu Niang?
The little fox demon took a step back.
There was no warmth in her heart, only fear.
Was this grotesque, twisted obsession really love?
Gu Jiu charged at Bai Lian again, his movements reckless and desperate.
Bai Lian sighed. This time, she truly prepared to strike. But just as she was about to land a blow, the little fox demon darted between them.
She stood as a barrier between Bai Lian and Gu Jiu.
Gu Jiu had saved her life. She couldn’t stand idly by and watch him throw his own away.
“Yu Niang…”
Before Gu Jiu could finish his sentence, Bai Lian immobilized him with a wave of her Dragon Qi.
He collapsed, pinned helplessly to the ground.
The little fox demon looked up at Bai Lian with pleading eyes.
“Please,” she begged, “can you spare his life?”
Bai Lian snorted. “When he wakes up, he’ll try to kill you.”
“Why?”
The little fox was bewildered.
“He’s from Thousand Sword City,” Bai Lian explained.
“Thousand Sword City?”
“Have you heard of it?”
“No.”
Bai Lian’s voice was cold. “The people of Thousand Sword City are paranoid lunatics. Gu Jiu’s sole obsession is to exterminate every magical beast in existence.”
“Huh?”
The little fox shuddered.
If Bai Lian was telling the truth, hadn’t she just danced at death’s door?
Bai Lian proceeded to recount Gu Jiu’s childhood, his tragedies, and the events that had shaped him.
The little fox listened intently, her fear momentarily replaced by understanding.
She murmured, “No wonder he looked so torn between joy and guilt when he mentioned the name Yu Niang. No wonder he said the cave was safe and free of fox demons.”
Gu Jiu had always blamed himself for his sister’s death.
He believed that saving the white fox had set the tragedy in motion.
In his warped mind, there was only one way to make things right: to bring his sister back to life.
But no matter how hard he tried… he couldn’t.
So Gu Jiu fell into a black hole he could never escape.
The cave wasn’t warm or winding.
It was a straight descent, easy to reach the bottom, but all it held was dead silence and an unbearable chill.
Bai Lian said, “Let me take you somewhere else. If anything happens, let him lose himself here alone.”
The little fox hesitated. “He mistook me for his sister. Maybe I can help him.”
“You can’t,” Bai Lian replied, shaking her head.
“Maybe I can,” the little fox insisted.
“Even if your presence gives him some temporary relief, the moment he wakes up, he’ll remember his sister is dead. And then he’ll end up like this again.”
The little fox opened her mouth but closed it again.
This was an endless loop.
But was it truly impossible to break free?
Bai Lian waved her hand impatiently. “Let’s go. I’m in a rush to deal with the Blood Demons. I don’t have time to waste here.”
“But…”
“You think he’s pitiful?”
The little fox nodded.
Bai Lian’s voice grew colder. “And what about the innocent magical beasts he killed? Aren’t they pitiful too?”
The little fox’s face fell. Her voice was quiet, tinged with sadness. “They are pitiful too.”
“Then why are you hesitating?”
“I…”
The little fox trailed off.
Gu Jiu had saved her, but his act of kindness wasn’t enough to erase the weight of his sins. She couldn’t argue back.
“Let’s go,” Bai Lian said firmly.
The little fox nodded silently.
Bai Lian gently lifted her into the sky.
Above the clouds, the little fox looked down at Gu Jiu. He had just risen from the ground.
From such a distance, she couldn’t hear what he was shouting. She only saw him begin to run.
He looked so small, yet so persistent.
“Ah…”
The little fox sighed suddenly.
“Honestly, I’m not just grateful for his help. In some ways, he reminds me of my brother.”
Bai Lian remained silent, listening attentively. She had plenty of experience being a good listener.
“My brother doted on me so much,” the little fox began. “When we were young, he gave me all the best things. And I… I just took it for granted. I didn’t even thank him.”
“What happened after that?” Bai Lian asked softly.
The little fox bit her lower lip. Her eyes became distant, clouded by memories of sorrow.
“Later, I didn’t get the chance to say thank you. He left me forever, and that’s when I realized how important he was to me.”
Ten thousand years ago, the East Divine Land was in chaos.
The place where they lived was overrun by hordes of Blood Demons.
For the sake of their race’s survival, they had no choice but to fight back. They took up arms to defend their homeland.
The Blood Demons weren’t individually strong, but their sheer numbers were overwhelming.
Countless magical beasts fell in battle.
Eventually, they had to change their strategy.
They lured the Blood Demons into an abandoned small world, then sealed them there at the cost of many lives.
“I was meant to be one of the sacrificial offerings,” the little fox said, her voice trembling. “But when the magic array activated, my brother pushed me out and took my place.”
The array’s white light surged, thick and viscous like glue, sealing the entrance to the small world.
The barrier seemed thin, almost fragile, but it was incredibly tough.
The Blood Demons attacked it relentlessly—stabbing, slicing, burning.
They tried every method imaginable, but nothing could break through.
“And so, the crisis was averted,” the little fox concluded with a heavy sigh.
Bai Lian was stunned.
“Wait. If you’re telling the truth…”
Her voice trailed off. “Does that mean you’ve lived for ten thousand years?”
You’ve got to be kidding!
From what she could tell, the little fox’s cultivation level had only reached the Golden Core Stage.
Normally, a cultivator at the Golden Core Stage could live up to 600 years.
Even with rare medicinal pills to prolong life, the maximum lifespan wouldn’t exceed 1,000 years.
After all, medicinal pills have their limits!
It’s only after reaching the Nascent Soul Stage that a cultivator’s lifespan can significantly extend.
The little fox blinked in surprise. “Has it really been that long?”
Bai Lian raised an eyebrow. “You don’t even know your own situation?”
The little fox shook her head. “I didn’t realize it had been so long. When my brother pushed me away, I accidentally fell into the gap between the small world and the East Divine Land. Time there was nearly frozen. I only escaped recently when the seal on the small world’s exit was lifted.”
Bai Lian frowned. “And your injuries…?”
“They were inflicted by the Blood Demons ten thousand years ago,” the little fox murmured, her voice growing quieter.
Her gaze dropped to the rapidly retreating land below. She thought only a short time had passed, but…
Ten thousand years.
What filled her now was a deep sense of confusion and loss.
Friends, family, enemies—everything she once hated, everything she once loved—had faded into history.
They existed now only as names on paper or memories buried beneath the earth.
Here, she stood utterly alone.
The little fox suddenly felt the wind rushing past her face. It was colder than the bitterest winter wind.
“I can’t go back,” she whispered.
A bitter smile tugged at her lips, and tears welled in her eyes.
She thought she had only lost her brother, but in truth, she had lost everything.
Time had erased it all.
Bai Lian’s gaze fixed on the blood-red horizon.
The small world was close. Very close.
She landed gently, setting the little fox down.
“Stay here,” she instructed. “Don’t wander off.”
Without another word, Bai Lian pressed forward.
This tragedy wouldn’t repeat itself.
With the Dragon Qi in her hands, every last Blood Demon would be destroyed.
No matter how many of them there were, she wouldn’t spare a single one!
The little fox watched Bai Lian’s retreating figure.
Under the bloody sky, Bai Lian stood like a war god. Every strike she delivered felled a Blood Demon.
It was over in an instant.
Then, a voice rang out behind the little fox, filled with surprise.
“Yu Niang!”
The little fox spun around and froze, staring at Gu Jiu.
How did he get here?
