By the time I returned to Lanjiang City, dawn had broken.
I went home first, then drove over to Seventh Master's place.
When I arrived, Seventh Master was just returning from buying groceries, carrying Xiuzhu on his back.
I told him everything that had happened in Ping County.
After hearing it all, he was rather helpless too.
I had finally found Zhang Chengfeng, the only person who knew the Soul-Peeling Art, but the man I found was dead.
In truth, I was even more dejected than An Ning, but I couldn't show it in front of her.
"Seventh Master, is there any other way...?"
When I asked that question, Seventh Master didn't answer me directly. Instead, he asked, "You should have prepared yourself for this long ago. This was never going to be easy, so why are you so discouraged?"
I sighed. "No matter how many times I fail, I won't lose heart. If I don't succeed once, I can try again, but I don't want to see An Ning disappointed. She's actually very fragile. More than I do, she longs for this relationship to lead somewhere. She's never had a home, not since she was little. I want to give her one."
Seventh Master nodded. "I understand, but don't forget who she was in her past life, or who you were in yours. Some things may be very unfair to you both, but this is the karmic retribution of the Ghost King's sins, and it was Gongsun Jing's own choice too. There's nothing to be done."
I lowered my head and said, "Those people have incredible power. They could have Zhang Qihong transferred out of the village without any trouble. I keep thinking that even if I change my fate pattern, Wu Huaqing still won't leave me alone."
"You