CHAPTER 17

This didn't sit well with Fu Changling. He was about to argue when he heard Qin Yan affirm, "He can."

Fu Changling was quite surprised. He turned his head and stared at Qin Yan, who seemed unperturbed, to the point that he indeed didn't look as if he were merely defending him.

Qin Yan seemed to be a much more reliable person than Fu Changling. When he gave his word, Wu Sisi said nothing else but, "All right then, you guys prepare first, and I need to prepare as well. If any other conditions arise, I will notify you."

When Wu Sisi finished, she turned around and walked out.

After she left, the room was left with three people staring at each other, creating an uncomfortable atmosphere for Yan Ming. He stood up and simply said, "I'm going out to practise my sword."

He then exited the room, leaving Qin Yan and Fu Changling alone. Fu Changling tapped on the tabletop while Qin Yan was seated across from him, sipping tea, and Fu Changling coughed softly. "You're quite trusting of me."

Qin Yan blew the steam off his cup of tea, and Fu Changling couldn't help but peek his head over and ask, "By the way, what did Su Wenji say about me that made you trust me so much?"

"Is there any problem with this formation?" Qin Yan opened his mouth and posed another question instead. Fu Changling took a glance at the formation. This formation was undoubtedly complex, and he needed to take another look to see if there were any problems.

"I'll familiarise myself with the formation later."

"You must remember what you promised me."

These remarks left Fu Changling stunned. He then recalled Qin Yan's one and only request and nodded, "Don't worry, I remember. The Xuanji Secret Realm formation's seal shouldn't be forced open."

Saying so, Fu Changling chuckled, "You're really something, to think that a Zhùjī level is capable of opening the Xuanji Secret Realm's formation?"

"Because it's you." Qin Yan took a sip of his tea, and Fu Changling's smile finally became somewhat difficult to maintain. After remaining silent for a while, he finally uttered, with a grin, "Qin Yan."

"Hmm?"

"I realised that I actually truly know nothing about you."

He thought he already knew Qin Yan well enough. He knew he was a demon lord; he knew he was cold-hearted and grim; he was familiar with all his fighting techniques and positioning strategies; he was also aware of all of his traits and habits.

He thought he knew enough about this person, but when he was reborn and looked at this young Qin Yan, he discovered that he bore little resemblance to what he had envisioned.

He couldn't resist saying, "Let me ask you one thing. Can you be honest with me?"

Qin Yan gazed up at him upon hearing this, but he didn't respond. His eyes were as bright as the moonlight on limpid autumn waters, and beneath the cold exterior, they belied a certain gentleness that was unique to this person.

As he stared into those eyes, Fu Changling suddenly lost the courage to ask.

He had intended to ask him if he was a good person.

Of course, what he really wanted to ask more than anything else was whether or not he had defected to the Karma Prison at this very moment.

However, he knew that Qin Yan wouldn't answer, and whether he did or did not, he dreaded for a moment that he would have some regrets. So he smiled and simply asked, "Do you think I'm handsome?"

Qin Yan quietly observed him for a while before nodding. Fu Changling burst out laughing. "Good, good, good. You have good taste."

Qin Yan lowered his head and sipped his tea, saying leisurely, "There is one thing that I should advise you on."

"What is it?"

"I know you're a flirt," Qin Yan drawled as he sipped his tea, "but now that we're in a dangerous situation, you need to be more cautious."

These words caught Fu Changling off guard a little. Subconsciously, he wanted to retort that he wasn't a flirt, but then he thought of the reminder in these words and couldn't help but ask, "Are you saying there's something wrong with Yan Ming?"

Qin Yan nodded, and Fu Changling arched an eyebrow. "What's wrong with him?"

When Qin Yan remained silent, Fu Changling couldn't help but smile and ask, "You don't like him, do you?"

Qin Yan set down his teacup, got to his feet, and simply said, "As you wish."

"Don't worry," Fu Changling called out to the person who was heading out, picking up his teacup. "I'll be cautious."

He received a sidelong glance from Qin Yan, who then walked out without a word.

After finishing his tea, Fu Changling got up and headed out the door, where he saw Yan Ming practising his sword.

The youngster's sword intent was clear-cut and direct, beautiful and precise. While Yan Ming's swordplay was comparable to Qin Yan's in speed, it was more gentle and lacked the same degree of Qin Yan's decisiveness.

For a while, Fu Changling leaned against the door and watched.

Back then, although he couldn't see, he was nevertheless able to guess Yan Ming's swordplay based on the sound of the swordwind. Yan Ming's swordplay featured a few minor quirks, despite sharing the same basic elements common to Yunze cultivators. For instance, after prodding his sword, he'd tilt slightly sideways, or he would always draw his sword half a bit slower than he did subsequently.

He confirmed every single detail of those days as he fixed his gaze on Yan Ming's sword. By the time Yan Ming had finished practising his sword, he was also certain that there was hardly any difference, so he quickly applauded and exclaimed, "Well done! Nice!"

"Fu Daoyou," Yan Ming spoke to Fu Changling with a gasp in his voice and a tone that was obviously different after finishing his sword practise, and he appeared to be in a much better mood.

Fu Changling couldn't help but smile as he watched Yan Ming gasp for breath while still bowing properly to him. He went up to Yan Ming and handed him a handkerchief. When Yan Ming hesitated for a moment, Fu Changling said, "Take it. Don't worry about it."

"Many thanks," Yan Ming took the handkerchief and wiped the sweat off his brow. Fu Changling then proposed, "Shall we go and have a meal together?"

Yan Ming nodded, put his sword away, and followed Fu Changling to the front hall. As they walked along, Fu Changling said, "Just now, your 'Snowdrops of Spring' move is quite impressive."

Yan Ming was a bit surprised to hear this comment. "Does Fu Daoyou know about swords too?"

"I know a little." Fu Changling gave a nod. After all, having lived so long, he thought Yan Ming was strong back then, but now, upon seeing him again, he naturally found him to be somewhat youthful and inexperienced. So, based on his years of experience, he provided a few remarks and suggestions regarding Yan Ming's sword stances. Yan Ming felt a little more at ease around Fu Changling after receiving his guidance. By the time they had finished their meal, Yan Ming was already filled with admiration for Fu Changling.

The two of them returned to the room together, and Fu Changling went to prepare the formation. Yan Ming sighed as he watched Fu Changling enter the room and said, "If I had known Fu Xiōng sooner, perhaps Yan Ming would have improved a lot."

"It's still not too late," Fu Changling said with a smile. "Improvement doesn't happen overnight. You'll have plenty of time for that once we get out of the Xuanji Secret Realm."

Yan Ming froze and then said enthusiastically, "What Fu Xiōng said is true. When we get out of the Xuanji Secret Realm in a few days, I'll come and find you!"

When Fu Changling heard these words, he gazed at Yan Ming and smiled without saying anything.

Yan Ming was somewhat confused and asked, "Fu Xiōng?"

"You said the same thing back then," Fu Changling let out a soft sigh, adding, "I'm just glad you have this same intention again."

Fu Changling then raised his chin in Qin Yan's direction, who was walking in the distance, lowered his voice, and addressed Yan Ming, "Let me tell you, in fact, Qin Daoyou's swordsmanship prowess is far superior to mine. Why don't you use this opportunity to ask him for extra advice while you're in the secret realm?"

"Thank you, Fu Xiōng, for your guidance," Yan Ming said, his guard down at the mention of the word "sword". He saluted and said cheerfully, "I'll go right away."

Having said this, Yan Ming turned around and proceeded towards Qin Yan. Fu Changling leaned against the door, watching Yan Ming approach Qin Yan. The moment he saw Qin Yan looking up at him with an astonished expression, the corners of his lips couldn't help but curl. He turned around and entered the study with the Ten Directions Gods-Slaying Formation, feeling as if he had done something good.

A formation must first be thoroughly understood before it can be used. If it had been in the past, it was not clear whether he would have been able to see through a formation like the 'Ten Directions Gods-Slaying Formation'. But now, despite his low cultivation level, his attainment in formations and talismanic scripts was already at the level of the Tribulation Transcendence, so it would only take a few days for him to fully grasp such an ancient formation as the 'Ten Directions Gods-Slaying Formation'.

As the sacrificial ritual of the Venerable One was imminent, he didn't dare to play around. So he shut himself in the study and spent each day meticulously studying this 'Ten Directions Gods-Slaying Formation'.

After six days of isolating himself in the study, Fu Changling had finally mastered the 'Ten Directions Gods-Slaying Formation', and he rushed out in a frenzy of joy. As soon as he flung open the door, he found Yan Ming and Qin Yan sitting in the courtyard playing chess, while Wu Sisi stood by the side, munching on melon seeds and watching. It was a beautiful day with clear skies, so the three of them seemed to be getting along well. Fu Changling held up the 'Ten Directions Gods-Slaying Formation' and said happily, "I did it! I've figured it out! I've..."

"Take a bath," Qin Yan said softly as he placed his chess piece. The rest of Fu Changling's words were stuck in his throat. He looked down at himself and quickly cast a cleansing spell, and his entire person appeared clean and fresh again.

However, even after casting the cleansing spell, he was still a little uncomfortable, so he quickly asked someone to fetch him some water so he could take a bath. When he was done, he came out again and saw that Qin Yan and Yan Ming had finished their game of chess, and all three were waiting for him in the room. Qin Yan was sitting and meditating as usual, and Wu Sisi was filing her nails. Only Yan Ming, seeing him come out, took the initiative to stand up and hesitantly call out, "Fu Xiōng."

"Sit, sit, sit." Fu Changling smiled as soon as he saw Yan Ming stand up and motioned for him to sit down. Turning to the two people next to him, he coughed softly and said, "Umm, the formation is fine. Let's plan everything out, have a drink tonight, and then just stick to the plan tomorrow."

Saying so, Fu Changling laid out the Ten Directions Gods-Slaying Formation on the table and then said, "This Ten Directions Gods-Slaying Formation requires the help of two people to set it up. Of course, it's fine if you don't help me, but the risk might be higher. I need to set up three small formations at two key spots before I can set up this formation, so I'll give you those two small ones."

Fu Changling then took out two pieces of paper, each of which had a small formation drawn on it, and handed them respectively to Qin Yan and Yan Ming, saying, "Tomorrow, you will first draw that Venerable One away from the altar, and then I will utilise the altar as the main position and stand in it to start setting up the formation. You two use your swords to carve the townlet in four directions, southeast and northwest, with me as the centre, then stand still while I activate the formation. This formation is controlled by me, and I get to decide who to attack in the formation, so you need not fear for your safety. Tomorrow, you will stall for time to give me a chance to set it up. The enemy will undoubtedly attack me first after I activate the formation, so you two just protect me at that point."

After examining the formation in their hands, Qin Yan and Yan Ming nodded.

"All right, it's decided, then. Tonight is the last night," Fu Changling said cheerfully as he tucked his fan into his palm, "so let's have a good drink!"

✎﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏

Author's Note:

[Mini Theatre]

Fu Changling: It's almost time to fight. Let's have a drink before the battle!

Wu Sisi: He's becoming increasingly unreliable to me. I wish to leave this group.

Yan Ming: +1

Qin Yan: ...

Wu Sisi: But since Qin Yan Gēgē is here, I made the decision to stay.

Yan Ming: +1

Fu Changling: When are you going to stop +1?

Qin Yan: +1

...❦❧❦❧❦❧❦❧❦❧❦❦❧❦...