Chapter 408: To Save or Not to Save?

"As the Mother-and-Child Poison Gu attract each other, any massive emotional fluctuation will cause them to lose control. The victim will suffer the agony of poisonous insects boring into their heart—this is the so-called 'Heart-Slaying.' During Heart-Slaying, the Celestial Master asks why they betrayed the sect, forcing the traitor to confess their crimes and accept punishment willingly. This latter half is known as the 'Dao Inquiry'."

The lightbulb cast a dim yellow glow, illuminating my slowly fading smile. The Heart-Slaying Dao Inquiry was a dual torment of body and mind, the absolute harshest punishment for sect traitors.

"And if the person being punished has a clear conscience, or is eventually proven innocent...?"

Blind Liu cut me off before I could finish. "Even if the Mother Gu extracts every Child Gu, the poison will have already struck the heart. The victim won't live past five years. On top of that, over the following period, their body will rot from the inside out, leading to an incredibly gruesome death."

I clenched my fists. As a prestigious cultivator of the Profound Truth Dao, Lu Jin actually intended to use such a method against me. Just how much hatred had he built up in his heart?

"Old Liu, say my relatives were infected with this poison gu. How would I break it?"

"A gentleman can wait ten years for revenge. If you really want my take, my advice is to lay low for now. While the Child Gu insects devour your blood relatives, the Celestial Master Daoist priests will use special talisman arts to trigger your bloodline connection. They'll chip away at your fortune and trigger the three disasters and five calamities within your body. Even if you don't die, you'll be flayed alive." Blind Liu sighed softly. "Going to save your relatives is certain death, and you'll be subjected to all sorts of humiliation. Hiding in the shadows might damage your state of mind, but at least you'll keep your life and live to stage a comeback."

"There's no better way?"

"The one moving against you isn't Lu Jin, it's Lu Chen. This man is highly renowned and possesses profound Daoist arts. He ranks among the very best of the Celestial Masters in the Miaozhen Temple. A hundred of me wouldn't be his match. I urge you not to clash with him head-on. Hide if you can." Blind Liu's meaning was crystal clear: even if my blood relatives were captured and infected with poison gu, he wanted me to stay out of it and protect myself first.

"I'm just asking hypothetically. My blood relatives aren't in Jiangcheng. Lu Jin's plan is destined to be a case where drawing water with a bamboo basket ends in vain." I forced a smile. Lu Jin wanting to subject me to the Heart-Slaying Dao Inquiry was a dangerous signal. He was certain I had studied the Profound Truth Dao Method, so he unscrupulously wanted to borrow the sect's power to eliminate me. Even if I luckily survived this time, there would probably be even more trouble in the future. "I need to think of a permanent solution. For instance, making Lu Jin silently disappear from the world."

I muttered this to myself. Blind Liu coughed, pretending he hadn't heard a thing. "Gao Jian, listening to you just now, I've realized your biggest enemy isn't the Profound Truth Dao, but the local Three Yin Sect here in Jiangcheng."

"You know about them too?"

"Naturally. Cultivators must keep their eyes and ears open in all directions. Though my Liu family is trapped in Jiangcheng and hidden away in the mundane world, we still have a decent grasp of the major and minor events in this city." Blind Liu untied his black blindfold, stepped over to the table, and dipped his brush into the cinnabar inkstone. "The Three Yin Sect's legacy is a mystery. They originally lived in seclusion here just like my Liu family, until they suddenly joined forces with Jiang Detao over twenty years ago. They stepped out from behind the curtain, stirred up a storm in the city, and ultimately suppressed the dragon vein to establish their dominance over Jiangcheng."

"They're incredibly powerful, though I don't know the exact extent of it. I can only give you a simple example. The Meng Po Lineage within the Three Yin Sect is deeply mysterious and has never shown its face in public. The Ghost Infant Lineage clashed with the Maoshan Upper Thirty-Six Grottos many years ago, suffering a glorious defeat. Today, only the Snake Lord Lineage steps forward to maintain Jiangcheng's underground order. You should still remember the incident five years ago when the Primal Destiny Divine Fiends wreaked havoc at Xinhu High School, right? It took a full twenty to thirty cultivators gathered together to seal the yuan chen that had mastered the Tongsang Talisman. And more than half of those twenty to thirty cultivators came from the Snake Lord Lineage! Just one lineage alone boasts over a dozen young cultivators who are no weaker than me. The profound foundation of their entire sect is beyond imagination."

"No matter how strong they are, can they be stronger than the Two-Faced Buddha?" My eyes shone brightly, entirely devoid of fear.

Blind Liu fell silent, shaking his head. "You're too aggressive. I don't know if that's a good or a bad thing, but everyone has their own fate. You must decide for yourself what to do."

He gripped the brush, writing continuously on the yellow paper.

"My Liu family has been trapped in Jiangcheng for generations. If you fight with the Three Yin Sect, it would be inconvenient for me to intervene. I'm gifting you this set of Clear Brilliance Moon-Ode Talismans. Although they are entirely comprised of Lower Vehicle Talismans, when used as a complete set, their power can rival a top-tier Lesser Vehicle Talisman. Moreover, this set of talisman paper can harness moonlight to disperse malevolent entities, making it perfect for battling evil cultivators at night."

I understood Blind Liu's situation and didn't act coy, simply putting away the complete set of talismans he had drawn. "A kindness this great goes beyond thanks. You've already helped me so much. I, Gao Jian, will engrave this favor in my heart and will definitely repay it."

"If you really want to repay me, then cause less trouble. Why must you make things so difficult for yourself every day? Every time we meet, reading your face shows either dark clouds looming overhead or imminent disaster. Yet the very next day, I still see you bouncing around alive and well while sporting a face full of terrible omens. I don't even know what to say anymore." Blind Liu looked extremely bitter. "I've placed all my bets on you now. I hope you can survive until the day you learn the Dragon-Capturing Technique."

"Old Liu, don't be so pessimistic. There's always a way forward." My optimism was entirely forced. Since I had to survive anyway, rather than cursing fate, it was better to turn all my fear into the strength to push forward.

"I don't know if it's me being pessimistic or you being too optimistic." Blind Liu then answered my questions in detail and gifted me many tools for drawing talismans. Still feeling uneasy in the end, he gave me two more protective talismans passed down from his ancestors before finally letting me leave.

It was nearly 3:00 AM when I walked out of Blind Liu's bungalow. That dim yellow light didn't go out until I stepped out of the alley.

The night shrouded everything. I lit a cigarette and stood at the alley entrance.

'During the tenth livestream, Xia Chi once said that a member of the Underworld Live Show is hiding by my side. Who could that person be?' The question was like a thorn in my heart. I finished my cigarette, unwilling to look back the entire time.

No matter the circumstances, Blind Liu could always set my mind at ease. Although he didn't possess formidable strength and couldn't directly help me overcome my trials, he was undoubtedly my mentor on the path of cultivation. Without him, I probably would have died in one of those earlier livestreams.

...

I returned to Ting Tang Road at 3:30 AM. The sun had yet to rise; this was the darkest hour of the night.

I opened the window, sat cross-legged on the bed, and gazed at the distant city. The blurry black silhouettes resembled fierce beasts waiting to devour people.

My mind was restless, and my right eyelid kept twitching. I forcibly circulated the Profound Truth Mental Method, but it failed to drive away my unease.

Around four o'clock, a call suddenly came through on my phone. The ringtone was exceptionally piercing.

When I saw the caller ID was Mr. Gu, the ominous premonition in my heart slowly morphed into reality.

"Hello?"

"Gao Jian! Hurry to Jingying Sanatorium! Wang Yu is missing!" Mr. Gu panted heavily. His tone was urgent, sounding as if he were sprinting somewhere.

"Don't panic. Take it slowly," I said, my gaze as dark as stagnant water while various guesses flashed through my mind.

"The psychological counselor treating Wang Yu couldn't make it today, so Bai Qi was keeping Wang Yu company. I saw them playing in the bedroom and didn't pay it much mind. Tonight, I went out to draw in the moonlight to refine my Gu. When I came back, I found Bai Qi paralyzed by a golden talisman, and Wang Yu was gone without a trace!"

"Paralyzed by a golden talisman?" I had Mr. Gu describe the talisman's appearance and its divine patterns in detail, confirming it was the Profound Truth Dao's Draw the Ground as a Prison Curse.

"I knew it was you!" The Profound Truth Dao leaving behind a golden talisman meant they weren't afraid of being discovered. In fact, it was safe to say they were deliberately telling me that Miaozhen Temple had taken Wang Yu. If I wanted Wang Yu to live, my only choice was to obediently seek them out and do exactly as they said.

Connecting this to Leng Qingxuan's previous letter, the entire sequence of cause and effect became clear. Lu Jin and Lu Chen had somehow learned of Wang Yu's existence and misunderstood the relationship between us. Thus, they intended to use Wang Yu as bait to subject me to the Heart-Slaying Dao Inquiry.

"Despicable! Such methods are no different from an evil cult's, yet they falsely claim to be an orthodox sect!" A child had inexplicably appeared by my side, been placed in the highest-end Jingying Sanatorium, and I had spared no expense to hire a psychologist for around-the-clock treatment. All of this was indeed easy to misunderstand. But in truth, my taking care of Wang Yu was solely because of a promise—a promise I made to his mother.