A Pawn's Passage

Under normal circumstances, it would be extremely difficult for Qi Xuansu to hurt Desmond, even if Duke Desmond was so weak that he only had the strength of a Baron. Even if Qi Xuansu managed to stab Desmond, it would not do any real damage to the latter because of a sinner’s terrifying regenerative ability. Desmond would be able to recover in an instant.

However, the Superior Black Blood caused too much damage to Desmond. Even without external injuries, Desmond’s skin and flesh were falling off on their own. He also lost the ability to heal and transform.

In addition, Qi Xuansu used Arthur’s high-purity holy water. Although it could not compare to the Superior Black Blood, it was also a weapon specially designed to target sinners.

Under all these conditions, Qi Xuansu successfully cut open Desmond’s heart. While Qi Xuansu drew his sword, he stuffed the Phoenix Eye Bomb, which he had previously injected his qi with, into Desmond’s chest wound.

The next moment, the Phoenix Eye Bomb exploded, and Desmond instantly became a human-shaped torch. His chest was completely hollowed out, including his heart, which was the source of a sinner’s power.

Qi Xuansu glanced at his short sword. Desmond’s blood and the holy water were absolutely incompatible. With a hiss, they turned into smoke and vanished from his sword.

Desmond’s figure in the raging fire started to fade. At first, it was a silhouette, then it turned into a blurred outline. In the end, only a few simple lines remained before his body completely disintegrated in the flames.

All that was left on the cracked stone ground was a scorched black mark where Desmond stood. This duke left nothing behind, and everything of his turned into nothingness with the fire.

By this time, Qi Xuansu was the only one left standing.

Lingquan sat on the ground with his legs stretched out. He had witnessed the entire process of Qi Xuansu killing Desmond and sighed in relief. “Deacon Qi, you are a brave yet cautious man. The Deputy Hall Master sure has a keen eye for people. You two youngsters are truly promising.”

"Superintendent Lingquan, you’re too kind.” Qi Xuansu put away his short sword and walked toward his senior. “What should we do now?”

Lingquanzi said, “You don’t have to worry about me. I’m just exhausted. I will recover after taking the Qi Replenishing Pill. The Deputy Hall Master’s condition is more concerning. She should have a Purple Yang Pill used for healing in her magical receptacle, so you should go in there and help her retrieve the medicine. Her magical receptacle is the beaded bracelet on her wrist. Just inject some qi into it to gain access.”

Qi Xuansu hesitated for a moment and came to Zhang Yuelu’s side. Zhang Yuelu withstood Desmond’s life-threatening blow, and her back was leaning against the stone wall, which had an indent full of cracks from the impact. She was also unconscious.

He looked at her carefully. Even though she was in a coma, she was still frowning slightly, and her face was tense. She was clutching the Amorphous Paper that had returned to its original appearance in her hand. Qi Xuansu figured that Zhang Yuelu’s injuries were not life-threatening, but they were still quite serious.

Qi Xuansu stretched out his hand to hold down the beads on Zhang Yuelu’s wrist. Then he slowly injected some of his qi. After about a few breaths, a portal slowly opened in front of him.

Behind the door was a cabinet-sized space in which weapons, books, maps, telescopes, elixirs, clothing, and so on were placed neatly in categories. To his surprise, there was also a medium-sized makeup box. He guessed that Zhang Yuelu used it to put away some jewelry, makeup, and other personal items.

Qi Xuansu did not touch anything else. He only took out a ten-centimeter-tall clear jade bottle that had round pills in it. From an outside perspective, Qi Xuansu had conjured this jade bottle out of thin air. He poured out a lavender-colored pill and stared at Zhang Yuelu’s tightly shut lips, feeling a little flustered.

He subconsciously turned his head and glanced at Lingquanzi, only to see that the Diviner had already taken the Qi Replenishing Pill and was sitting cross-legged with both palms facing up on his knees and his thumb and index finger touching. His eyes were closed in meditation.

Qi Xuansu sighed helplessly. He silently muttered an apology before he pinched Zhang Yuelu’s cheeks to forcefully open her mouth and feed her the pill.

Fortunately, the Purple Yang Pill melted in the mouth without the need to swallow or chew. The medicine traveled throughout the body along the meridians, making Zhang Yuelu’s body glow with a faint purple aura. However, Zhang Yuelu still showed no signs of waking up.

At this moment, Lingquanzi slowly stood up.

Qi Xuansu said, “Superintendent Lingquan, the Deputy Hall Master still hasn’t woken up.”

Lingquanzi went straight to Arthur, fed him some pills, and said, “Then please carry her out, Deacon Qi.”

Qi Xuansu was startled.

At this moment, Lingquanzi and Arthur had already supported each other and walked out. Arthur was even considerate enough to help Qi Xuansu carry his swords and the Green Bird Pistol that he had removed earlier.

Qi Xuansu cursed under his breath, but he had no choice but to carry Zhang Yuelu. He thought of piggybacking her, but he felt awkward considering that her soft breasts would be pressed against his back. In the end, he decided to cradle-carry her.

When they got to the rotunda, Zhang Yuelu slowly awakened and saw that Qi Xuansu was carrying her. She did not feel shy at all but asked, “Where’s Desmond?”

Qi Xuansu roughly told her the story of how he killed Desmond without feigning modesty.

Zhang Yuelu nodded. “Tian Yuan, you didn’t disappoint me, and I didn’t misjudge you.”

Qi Xuansu said, “Before leaving, I took a look and found nothing in that dungeon. These sinners are very poor. I think they used the money they stole to buy people.”

He mentioned this because there was still a slave trade going on in Wugeshanli. Those slaves probably became food for this group of sinners.

Zhang Yuelu nodded and said softly, “Put me down.”

Qi Xuansu stopped and put her down, as instructed. As a result, Zhang Yuelu could not stand firmly, so Qi Xuansu reached out to support her.

She leaned against Qi Xuansu and frowned slightly.

Qi Xuansu did not dare move, so his body was awkwardly stiff.

Zhang Yuelu closed her eyes again. “I feel very weak.”

Qi Xuansu was silent for a long time before he asked, “Shall I carry you?”

In fact, Qi Xuansu was not the kind of man who was awkward with women. He only felt awkward because Zhang Yuelu was his boss.

"Sure,” Zhang Yuelu murmured.

Qi Xuansu picked her up again in a princess carry and looked straight ahead.

Zhang Yuelu did not open her eyes or speak. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and concentrated on her breathing. Gradually, her breathing became steady as she fell asleep again.

Qi Xuansu sighed helplessly and sped up his pace to catch up with Lingquanzi and Arthur, who were no longer visible.

When he got to the castle aboveground, Lingquanzi and Arthur were already waiting for him. Seeing Qi Xuansu cradling Zhang Yuelu, Arthur smirked in a way that only men understood.

Qi Xuansu coughed lightly and asked, “Superintendent Lingquan?”

Lingquanzi was mature and composed, so he did not comment on Qi Xuansu carrying Zhang Yuelu. He said, “I will arrange for our people to search this place again to prevent any demons from getting away. Especially since this concerns the Ancient Immortals, we can’t be careless. Deacon Qi, you should bring the Deputy Hall Master back to Wugeshanli first. I will meet you there after I finish handling the matters here.”

Qi Xuansu nodded and said, “Yes, sir.”

......

Zhang Yuelu felt as if she were floating in the clouds or bobbing in the water. It was indescribably uncomfortable. She opened her eyelids with difficulty and found herself lying on a bed. From the corner of her eye, she vaguely saw Qi Xuansu sitting on a stool beside the bed with his back toward her.

She asked softly, “Where am I?”

Qi Xuansu turned around. “You’re awake! This is the city lord’s mansion in Wugeshanli.”

Zhang Yuelu exhaled a breath of turbid air, like she had been holding her breath for a while. She felt like a boulder was lifted from her chest. She sat up and asked, “How long have I been sleeping?”

Qi Xuansu took out his pocket watch and took a look. “About four hours have passed since we left Fort Cimut.”

Zhang Yuelu was silent for a moment, then asked a little embarrassedly. “Did you carry me back?”

Qi Xuansu coughed lightly. “Well, because Mu Jin isn’t here.”

Zhang Yuelu said, “Fortunately, she isn’t here. If she were to replace you, we would have been wiped out. Tian Yuan, I really didn’t misjudge you. You don’t need to be humble because you did a good job this time. I’m not flattering you.”

Qi Xuansu simply asked, “In that case, can I be promoted to the sixth rank?”

Zhang Yuelu hesitated for a moment. “I can ask on your behalf, but the approval will depend on Ziwei Hall.”

Qi Xuansu asked tentatively, “Then should I find a connection?”

"What connection?” Zhang Yuelu was startled for a moment. When she came to her senses, she glared at Qi Xuansu. “I told you before that I despise such behavior.”

Qi Xuansu saw how angry she was and quickly explained, “I don’t like it either. Who is willing to give away their hard-earned money anyway? But it’s common practice, so how can I, a lowly priest, be exempt from it?”

Zhang Yuelu snorted. “Anyway, I said no. Don’t you dare mention this again.”

Qi Xuansu obliged. “Yes, Deputy Hall Master. I will obey your orders.”

Zhang Yuelu was still angry at him, so her expression was grim. “I told you not to call me Deputy Hall Master in private. Aren’t we alone in this room?”

Qi Xuansu thought to himself, Women are so difficult.

However, he dared not show it and said, “Yes, my lady.”

As soon as he said this, Qi Xuansu felt like his address was a little too intimate. Zhang Yuelu also noticed this. A slight blush appeared on her face for the first time, but she said nothing.

No matter how high her position was, she was still inexperienced in romance, so she was not completely unfazed.

Qi Xuansu changed the subject. “How is your injury?”

Zhang Yuelu wanted to escape from this awkward tension between them, so she welcomed this diversion. “It’s nothing serious. I just need to rest for a few days.”

Qi Xuansu nodded. “Great. You’re the backbone of our team. Everyone hopes that you will recover soon.”

Zhang Yuelu mumbled in assent.

When Lingquanzi came to the door, he happened to hear the last part of the conversation after Qi Xuansu changed the subject. It made Lingquanzi wonder if he had the wrong opinion of their relationship.

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