Lin Qingyang had been a genius sword cultivator of the kind the Nine Skies Sect saw only once in a century. With his talent, he would surely have become a grandmaster of the Cultivation World, but that voice in the Bamboo Grove had changed everything.
He had thought it was his own Heart Demon, and so he had been filled with remorse and self-reproach. He and his senior brother had grown up together and were closer than anyone, yet he had developed such an evil thought over nothing more than the Sect Leader Position.
He had tried going into secluded cultivation to purge the thought, and he had also tried talking things through with his senior brother to resolve their differences and repair their relationship. But every time he saw his senior brother, that terrible thought would burrow uncontrollably into his mind, and he would even say hurtful things against his will.
The growing loss of control terrified him. It was as though someone had split open his head and forcibly stuffed someone else's thoughts inside. He did not understand what was happening to him. He searched ancient texts and tried every kind of spell, but his condition only grew worse.
While hunting down a snake demon, he had once again lost control and let it go. At the same time, the voice in his head began telling him to work with that snake demon to get rid of Shi Ruobai. Afraid that he really would seek out the snake demon and do something irreversible, he tried to leave the Nine Skies Sect, only to find himself inexplicably returning after some time. Eventually, he simply shut himself in his room and refused to see anyone.
He had no heart for cultivation or teaching his disciples. Apart from Feng Shu and Feng Yi, whom he had taken in earlier, he accepted no more disciples, and he had even less interest in managing sect affairs. Everyone in the sect simply assumed he resented losing the Sect Leader Position, but since he was an elder, they dared not say anything. Shi Ruobai indulged him all the more out of guilt toward him.
But no one knew that, during those years, Lin Qingyang had nearly been driven mad by that so-called Heart Demon. He had tried every method he could think of, yet he had still gone against his will to seek out Chimei and obtain Demon Poison. He was not even sure whether the person he was now was truly himself. Sometimes he had to hurt himself just to regain clarity. He had considered ending it all, too, but every time, at the final moment, that will that did not belong to him would emerge to stop him.
That day, he had watched helplessly as he walked into the Stone Hut Studio. His senior brother had been so happy that day; it had been many years since he had last come to see him of his own accord. He watched himself put poison in the tea, watched his senior brother drink it and succumb to the poison, then watched the expression on his face change from shock to anguish.
By the time he regained control of his body, he had already returned to the Clear Wind Pavilion. He looked at himself in the mirror, his eyes full of despair, and remembered his master's judgment of him all those years ago: his heart was impure. Perhaps that really was what he was like. He stared at the person in the mirror, then suddenly raised his hand and struck at the crown of his own head. But his hand still stopped at the last instant. The voice in his head told him that everything had only just begun; he still had to replace Shi Ruobai as sect leader. He suddenly burst out laughing like a madman. More than a madman, he felt like a monster, unable to live properly or even die. Who could save him? His body seemed unable to bear those agonizing emotions any longer. His heart suddenly hurt as though it were bursting apart. He coughed up a mouthful of blood, and his vision began to blur. Could he finally be free?
"Elder Lin?" Jin Buhuan's voice pulled Lin Qingyang out of the memories.
Lin Qingyang collected himself and said, "My senior brother and I grew up together. How could I hate him this much over the Sect Leader Position?"
Although Lin Qingyang had felt dissatisfied upon learning of Tianyi's decision, he had never hated Shi Ruobai, much less thought of killing him. The voice in his head had not been a Heart Demon at all, but the author's will. It had all happened simply because he had been designated as a villain. But Lin Yao's careless character design had made the character internally inconsistent, resulting in the original owner's confusion and self-doubt.
Lin Qingyang could feel the turbulent emotions surging against his chest. He suspected that his initial desire to stay and find an antidote had also been influenced by the original owner's emotions. He looked at Shi Ruobai from a distance, taking one more look for himself and for the original owner. Unfortunately, he would not be able to stay here and watch him wake up.
"I'll head back now." With that, Lin Qingyang turned to leave, but after he had taken a couple of steps, Jin Buhuan followed him.
"I heard you took that Demon Slave along when you went to deal with the snake demon this time?" Jin Buhuan asked, waving his fan.
"I wanted to see whether he had anything to do with the poisoning. He really has no connection to Chimei." Lin Qingyang's expression paused briefly before he continued, "As for who actually administered the poison, that will become clear once the sect leader wakes up."
Jin Buhuan nodded. "Since he has nothing to do with this, there's no need to keep him under guard. But if you like him, there's no harm in keeping him at the Clear Wind Pavilion to serve you. Six hundred Spirit Stones isn't expensive."
Ever since Lin Qingyang had vouched for Qi Mo and taken him back to the Clear Wind Pavilion, rumors about the two of them had spread throughout the Nine Skies Sect. It was hardly surprising that everyone had read more into it. After all, Lin Qingyang had been acting very unusually over that Demon Slave lately, and with the Demon Slave's beauty, it was truly difficult not to think along those lines. Though it would not sound good if word got out, Lin Qingyang presumably did not care.
Lin Qingyang gave him a speechless look. "I only kept him because I didn't want an innocent person to be wronged. Since the matter is settled, I'll send him back to you later."
Somewhat surprised, Jin Buhuan waved his fan again. "I could make it cheaper. Five hundred would do."
"I have no money." Leaving him with that, Lin Qingyang headed back with Feng Shu.
Along the way, Feng Shu kept stealing glances at Lin Qingyang and finally could not help asking, "Master, are you really going to send him back?"
Lin Qingyang said nothing. He would be making his escape soon. If he did not distance himself now, once the truth came out, Feng Shu and Feng Yi would be all right as his disciples, but Qi Mo might well be dealt with as his accomplice.
When Lin Qingyang did not answer, Feng Shu dared not ask any more. As they walked, Lin Qingyang took a Qiankun Bag from his sleeve and pressed it into Feng Shu's hand.
"Split the Spirit Stones inside equally between yourself and Feng Yi," Lin Qingyang said.
Feng Shu's hand sank under the weight, startling him. There were at least several thousand Spirit Stones inside. Inner disciples like them received only ten Spirit Stones a month, and even with holiday allowances, their yearly total came to no more than two hundred. This was a fortune.
"I've neglected you both over the years. Think of this as a gift of money for the two of you," Lin Qingyang said.
Sensing that something was wrong, Feng Shu asked in puzzlement, "Master, are you all right?"
"What could possibly be wrong with me?" Lin Qingyang said. Seeing Feng Shu frown, he teased him, "What, you don't want it?"
Feng Shu said no more and silently put the Qiankun Bag away, but a strange unease lingered in his heart.
They walked in silence for a while before Feng Shu spoke again. "Actually, you've treated us quite well over the years."
Lin Qingyang looked at Feng Shu in some surprise and heard him say, "Although you haven't been very involved over the years, you've given us plenty of pills for both cultivation and healing. Three years ago, when I nearly suffered cultivation deviation because I was too eager for results, you spent your Spiritual Power guiding mine for an entire day and night. I know you care about us."
Lin Qingyang said nothing. Although he had not spent much time with them, he could tell that the original owner's two disciples were both simple-hearted and gentle by nature. He had taught them well. The original owner must have been a very good person, and perhaps it was precisely because he was a good person that he had suffered so much.
Looking at Feng Shu, Lin Qingyang could not help thinking again of the fates of everyone in the Nine Skies Sect in the book. Although they had survived this crisis, there was no knowing whether their ultimate fates could be changed. But he was only an outsider who had transmigrated here. There was only so much he could do.
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