kingnovel Chapter 1228: Only by living can there be hope
Chapter 1228: Only by living can there be hope
Ning Ruan's gaze remained fixed on the lobby.
He watched the two cultivators leave.
They also heard someone in the hall urging the two cultivators to continue drinking.
The Fire Ape Clan cultivator clearly had no interest in that. He quickly left, waving his hand at the person who had called out, "I have something to do, I have something to do. Let's drink another day."
"What is it?" someone chuckled, their gaze lingering on the second floor for a moment. However, the second floor was now sealed off again, and they couldn't see anything even through the windows.
"In my opinion, it's not that something's wrong, it's that you just got a good deal and are afraid everyone will try to take it from you, right? Hahaha."
"It's normal to be afraid. I saw it myself. They threw down a spirit crystal. That's a generous gesture. I've never seen anyone give away a spirit crystal before."
"I wonder who that person up there is. They're so generous. Could they be some kind of destiny?"
"What is the Destiny doing in our Eternal Realm? People don't even bother to set foot here."
"That's not necessarily true. The Destiny also came here ten years ago."
"..."
The lobby was very noisy.
Even cultivators who don't know each other can quickly start a conversation.
As the Fire Ape Clan cultivator and the Spirit Sand Clan cultivator walked out the door, the topic quickly changed.
And it changes every now and then.
Soon, the conversation shifted from the unidentified 'Destiny' upstairs to the Destiny who had visited ten years ago.
They then started talking about the current list of top talents.
Then circle back to Long Lingzhu from the list of prodigies.
Although she has never been on this list, what can she do when she has a genius younger sister who is on it?
When mentioning Long Lingzhu, one must praise Long Lingbi, the prodigy of the Jiaolong clan.
And when mentioning Long Lingbi, it's no surprise that the infamous Long Lingzhu must also be criticized.
Ning Ruan didn't listen.
She took out a communication talisman, too lazy to set up any more restrictions, and simply became invisible on the spot.
Contact Li Yuan.
They thought the other party would reply quickly, since according to the timeline, Li Yuan should have only recently left the Eternal Domain.
We won't be able to reach the Hundred Flowers Clan anytime soon.
But the unexpected happened very suddenly.
Li Yuan did not reply.
Ning Ruan's attempt to send a message was met with complete silence.
"...This guy looks like he has terrible luck. Could he have run into the Flame Dragon Clan?"
Although this possibility is not high.
After all, just a moment ago someone said that the Flame Spider Clan had not shown up for a long time.
"He's not smart."
The invisible Little Red, shaking the sword, spoke with utmost seriousness in her childish voice.
Ning Ruan: "..."
"Do you know where he is?"
Xiao Hong: "My master told Xiao Hong not to speak."
Ning Ruan: "...You can speak now."
Xiao Hong: "Xiao Hong doesn't know about ducks."
Ning Ruan: "..."
She sat down silently and finished the drink on the table.
It tastes so good, we can't waste it.
After finishing the drink, Fang took out a talisman from her storage belt—a tracking talisman she hadn't used in a long time.
Then, with great reluctance, he took out the Hundred Flower Soul Essence that Li Yuan had given him.
Unfortunately, she did not place a tracking talisman on Li Yuan.
Therefore, if you want to track someone down using talismans, you can only try using the Hundred Flower Soul Essence that the other person has condensed from their very essence.
There are truly very few essences of a hundred flowers.
It's like using a drop and then having one less drop left.
But now we have no choice but to use it.
She painstakingly squeezed out a drop of Hundred Flower Soul Essence and placed it onto the talisman.
And then, unusually, he raised his hand and formed an intricate hand seal.
"It has to work out, otherwise it would be such a waste."
Oh dear—I never imagined that Ning Ruan would one day feel like she was wasting her time.
All the heartache stems from having too little.
Those bastards, the Flame Spider Clan!
Why fight a war when everything is fine? Why exterminate an entire race?
The essence of a hundred flowers quickly and completely permeated the talisman.
However, the talisman did not get wet.
Instead, it actually made the talisman react.
Ning Ruan could feel the talisman guiding her in a certain direction...
……
"Come out, stop hiding. You're all going to die sooner or later anyway. Go see your people now, so you can be reunited as a family, right? Hahaha."
"Actually, if you were willing to tell us the location of your hideout, we might be in a good mood and spare your lives. It's not impossible."
"Come out, you can't hide for long."
"..."
Several voices, like the whispers of demons, uncontrollably drilled into Li Yuan's ears.
He clenched his fists.
His eyes were completely bloodshot.
"Let me go!"
"I'm going to kill them!"
"I'm going to kill them!!"
Unable to speak, Li Yuan could only communicate through sound.
Every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth.
Beside him was the peony cultivator who had also transformed into a human.
His face was pale.
His entire body was covered in blood, clearly indicating that he had suffered serious injuries.
He exuded an aura of dejection and death.
She did not release Li Yuan from her restraints, her voice filled with exhaustion:
"If I let you go, will you be able to kill them?"
"Will killing them avenge my Hundred Flowers Clan?"
“Li Yuan, this enmity is too great. The Flame Spider must also pay the same price as our clan before we can truly avenge it.”
"If you go out now, you'll only be throwing your life away for nothing."
“…I’m sorry…” Li Yuan finally stopped struggling.
Immense grief and powerless anger were like a pair of giant hands, squeezing his heart tightly, almost crushing it.
Something burning hot was desperately gathering in his bloodshot eyes, but it was suppressed by a deeper hatred, making his eyes ache.
"Sorry……"
"……sorry……"
He was not there when the Hundred Flowers Clan faced extinction.
He wasn't there when his sister needed him.
Just now, he almost killed his clansman in a moment of impulse.
He... he really, really sorry to everyone.
He should have been the one to die.
He's a complete waste, so how did he manage to survive unscathed?
“Li Yuan…” The cultivator whose true form was a peony sighed and released Li Yuan from her silencing spell. “Don’t be like this. These things are beyond your control.”
“Our enemy is the Flame Spider Clan. You weren’t there at the time; it was fate that wanted you to live.”
“Yes.” Next to the peony cultivator was the orchid cultivator, whose injuries were slightly less severe. He chimed in, “Bai Zhuo is right.”
"Besides, Li Yuan...we've known each other for so long, how could I not know your temperament?"
"You went to find the elixir for Li Bai. If nothing unexpected happened, you would have returned as soon as you got the elixir. It's impossible that you've been delayed for so long. These three years... you must not have had an easy time, have you?"
Li Yuan's body trembled violently, as if those words had touched her most hidden wound.
He didn't answer, but simply lowered his head further and his shoulders shrugged slightly.
For the past three years... he was captured by Long Lingzhu, imprisoned and tortured as a plaything, and his life was worse than death.
He almost begged to die several times.
It was his sister who kept him going day by day.
He thought that was the biggest nightmare of his life.
But all of these seem insignificant in the face of the tragedy of annihilation.
He even felt that the pain might be a punishment for his failure to live and die with his people.
The orchid-wielding cultivator understood his expression and didn't press further, only whispering:
"It's good to be alive; as long as you're alive, there's hope."
"So many elders and fellow Daoists in our clan... risked their lives to fight for a chance of survival for us, not to leave us here to blame ourselves and wait to die."
Even the orchid monk's voice choked with emotion as he spoke the last sentence.
But more people cried.
Then the tears stopped.
He couldn't cry.
I can't cry anymore.