When the Beautiful, Strong, and Tragic Meets the Unbeatable Protagonist | Chapter 62

Lin Ji followed the route in his memory to find Lu Xiaobai. The timing of their sudden separation was just too unfortunate; it had only been a day since Little Bai's birthday, and the words he wanted to say were only half-finished.

The more than ten days Lin Ji was forced to be isolated were unbearable. Besides worrying about whether their journey would go smoothly, he also felt a bit unwilling. So, after coming out, he really didn’t want to wait. He was too anxious to go pick up Lu Xiaobai and complete the words left unsaid.

Actually, what Lin Ji wanted to say wasn’t complicated at all. “I hope we can… keep walking together from now on.” It was that simple. He couldn’t bring himself to say anything more direct or mushy.

However, when he arrived at the ancient tree according to his memory, there was no tree hole, no spiritual energy fluctuations, and everything was quiet, even the sound of the wind rustling through the grass had disappeared. The sky was overcast.

After coming here a few times, along with the experiences from two lifetimes, they had actually guessed the identity of the master of the secret realm. Haomiao Laozu was the legendary powerful elder who hadn’t ascended for seven hundred years.

Lin Ji remembered that the other party was easy to talk to and very considerate of juniors, like a seemingly stern but actually soft-hearted old man in a family. So, Lin Ji respectfully bowed and expressed his desire to meet the old ancestor three times, hoping the other party could open the secret realm for him to enter.

But after a long while, there was no change at all. Just when Lin Ji felt something was off and worried about Lu Xiaobai’s safety, he suddenly felt a pat on his back.

He turned around and saw Lu Xiaobai lowering his hand. Lin Ji’s eyes lit up when he saw him: “Little Bai.” He didn’t realize his voice was intentionally softened and a bit nervous.

Lu Xiaobai, however, looked as usual: “What are you doing here?”

Lin Ji paused, looking directly at him: “I came to pick you up.”

Lu Xiaobai scoffed dismissively: “I’m not a lost child; why would I need someone to pick me up?”

Even so… Lin Ji asked, “When did you come out? Did you return the Guancheng Mirror to the old ancestor?”

Lu Xiaobai replied, “I came out a long time ago. I’ve finished what I needed to do. I took a stroll around; we don’t need to disturb the old man.”

“That’s good.” Lin Ji sighed in relief. However, in his previous life, Haomiao Laozu had lent him the Guancheng Mirror and hadn’t rushed him to return it. He wondered why he was so eager this time.

After learning about his deeds, the old ancestor even asked if he wanted to use the Guancheng Mirror to confront the Punishment Division and publicly expose the misdeeds of the Lingyun Sect, clarifying the reasons behind his actions.

But at that time, he had already fallen into madness, his thoughts were extreme, and he had made a grave mistake. He thought that even if he explained, no one would believe him, and in a self-destructive mood, he gave up on defending himself.

Looking back, Lin Ji realized he had indeed acted too impulsively. He never expected that in this life, there would be a day when he could publicly clear the grievances suffered by the Lin family and vindicate himself and his family.

All of this was brought to him by Lu Xiaobai.

Thinking of this, Lin Ji’s heart completely softened. He slowly stepped forward, reached out, and held the hand that hung by Lu Xiaobai’s side: “Little Bai…”

Just as he was about to sincerely thank him and express his feelings from his birthday, Lu Xiaobai suddenly showed surprise and forcefully withdrew his hand, “What are you doing?”

Perhaps realizing his tone was a bit harsh, Lu Xiaobai quickly adjusted his mood, a smile appearing on his lips as he said, “I’m a bit tired. Do we have to stand here and talk?”

“Since you came to pick me up, let’s go back quickly.”

After saying that, Lu Xiaobai put his arm around Lin Ji’s shoulder, smiling as he urged him to return.

Lin Ji looked at him with a bit of disappointment, uncertain if Lu Xiaobai was deliberately avoiding him.

There had been a few times like this before; whenever he thought they could get a bit closer, Lu Xiaobai would always have some concerns he didn’t know about, either avoiding the topic or skillfully rejecting any further intimacy.

But after Yuqiong Island, they had already opened their hearts to each other. Lin Ji thought from then on, they wouldn’t need to distinguish between you and me anymore. Could it be that even now, Little Bai still couldn’t accept them… like that?

But that night, he had initiated the kiss.

However, such things only work when both parties are willing. If Lu Xiaobai resisted, Lin Ji couldn’t force him to accept his feelings.

Seeing Lu Xiaobai acting as usual, Lin Ji didn’t know what to say. He could only suppress the thoughts in his heart for now and flew back with him on their swords.

The two figures disappeared.

Unbeknownst to them, inside the tree hole of the ancient tree, the secret realm was in chaos, with flying sand and stones shaking, and the furnishings scattered, looking as if it was about to collapse and be destroyed.

The spiritual objects were exhausted, and evil energy overflowed, no longer resembling their former selves.

Lin Ji and Lu Xiaobai returned to the Peifeng Sect.

While Lin Ji was still worried about what his fellow disciples thought of him, their usual companions who got along with them were the first to surround them, chattering away.

“You guys are amazing!”

“You don’t know how worried and surprised we were when Lin Shixiong was taken away by the Punishment Division.”

“What’s there to say now that it’s all over? Thankfully, it was just a scare; I was really sweating for you guys!”

“Let’s talk about something happy! Do you know that Mo Qingming, who was inexplicably targeting Lin Shixiong? I heard that the Qi Ling Sect Leader has colluded with his father, and his father might lose his official position, possibly even ending up in prison! Right now, he’s kneeling in front of the Punishment Division, begging the Division Leader for leniency.”

“But the Punishment Division has always been fair and strict; I think it’s hopeless.”

“I thought he was a righteous person, but it seems he was just blinded by the situation. It turns out he’s just strict with others and lenient with himself…”

“Lin Shixiong, I didn’t expect your background to be so difficult… I used to say you were too cold, but it’s all understandable now.”

“…” Lin Ji felt warmth rising in his heart as he looked at his concerned fellow disciples: “I thought you would be afraid of me when I came back this time.”

Others chimed in, saying that no one is a saint, and it’s understandable. If it were them, they wouldn’t let the Qi Ling Sect off either.

Lin Shixiong saved so many people on the island; they believed in Lin Ji’s true nature.

Just as everyone was enjoying the moment, Lu Xiaobai suddenly spoke up: “You’re all busy praising him; have you forgotten about me, the great contributor?”

“If it weren’t for me, how could this matter have been resolved so smoothly?”

Lin Ji’s whole body trembled as he looked at him.

Lu Xiaobai was clearly joking, but his voice carried a coldness, and his expression wasn’t good, looking genuinely angry for being temporarily overlooked.

Lu Xiaobai looked at Lin Ji, his face full of smiles: “What do you say?”

Lin Ji: “...That’s true.”

The atmosphere froze for a moment. Those with keen eyes quickly praised Lu Xiaobai: “Speaking of which, Lu Shixiong has truly opened our eyes time and again. Not only is his mastery of techniques superb, but he’s also so eloquent, single-handedly vindicating Lin Shixiong!”

“Yeah, Lu Shixiong’s presence is also very strong. If I didn’t know him, I would think he was some esteemed elder from a powerful sect, completely not inferior to the heads of the various sects present!”

Only then did Lu Xiaobai turn his anger into joy, wrapping his arm around the shoulder of the disciple who spoke, “Do you want to hear me tell a story about the dangers involved?”

He was surrounded by people as he walked in, not looking back or glancing at Lin Ji even once.

Their friendly companions hesitantly approached and asked, “Lin Shixiong, did you two have a falling out again?”

Lin Ji: “…”

After playing around with his fellow disciples for a while, Lu Xiaobai finally returned to Luoxia Peak.

Meng Wanqiu saw him and quickly waved, “Little Bai, come here.”

“You’ve really worked hard this time. On my way back, I met the owner of Ming Ding Manor, and he gave me a few jars of wine, just in time to celebrate A Ji’s survival after the tribulation.”

Lu Xiaobai looked at Meng Wanqiu, “Where’s the wine?”

Meng Wanqiu used his spiritual power, and soon a wine jar appeared in his palm. He said excitedly, “See?”

Lu Xiaobai showed a puzzled expression: “I see. But what’s there to celebrate? With something like this happening, we should reflect instead.”

“Master, you have time to fuss over these trivial matters; why not supervise the disciples’ cultivation more?”

After saying that, Lu Xiaobai took the wine jar from Meng Wanqiu’s hand, gave a perfunctory bow, and left.

“I’m going back to my cave to rest; don’t call me unless it’s urgent.”

Meng Wanqiu: “?”

What does this little brat mean? He’s becoming more and more unreasonable, even disregarding his master!

When Lin Ji arrived, he saw Meng Wanqiu’s incredulous and frustrated expression. He pointed in the direction Lu Xiaobai had left, asking, “Who upset him? He’s acting like he’s on medication.”

Lin Ji, feeling flustered, suddenly said, “Master, I need to go out again!”

Meng Wanqiu: “…”

Lin Ji inquired all the way and heard from his fellow disciples that the Yunshang Immortal Sect had lingered at the Punishment Division for a while and might not have left yet.

Clearly, just the day before, he had expressed that he would never set foot in this place again, but not long after, he was back.

When he was about to enter, the people from the Yunshang Immortal Sect happened to come out of the Punishment Division, and the Punishment Division Envoy was chatting and bidding farewell to the Yun Sect Leader.

Seeing him, the Punishment Division Envoy looked a bit puzzled: “Did you forget something?”

Lin Ji lowered his head: “Yes.”

The Punishment Division Envoy said, “Then you can go in later to get it; I’ll have someone find it for you.”

“Thank you, Envoy.”

While talking to the Punishment Division Envoy, Lin Ji secretly raised his eyes to look at the Yun Sect Leader.

The Yun Sect Leader was much quieter than before. After exchanging pleasantries, he led his disciples away.

As they brushed past each other, Lin Ji maintained a respectful bow, but at one moment, the Yun Sect Leader seemed to glance at him unintentionally, the corners of his lips curling slightly, his gaze sharp, even somewhat sinister.

Lin Ji froze.

After the Yunshang Immortal Sect left, the Punishment Division Envoy called Lin Ji over, but he saw Lin Ji’s expression was solemn as he walked up to him, “Envoy, may I ask why the Yunshang Immortal Sect lingered for so long this time?”

The Punishment Division Envoy sighed: “There’s been a problem in their sect. According to the Yun Sect Leader, a disciple practiced an evil technique that absorbs others’ spiritual power and fell into madness. Many innocent disciples suffered, their years of cultivation wasted, and their realms greatly diminished, resulting in numerous casualties.”

It was well-known that the competition within the Yunshang Immortal Sect was fierce. If someone’s spiritual power was drained and they became useless, it would be worse than death in the sect.

Some couldn’t accept that their years of effort had gone to waste and ended their lives, while others were bullied to death by their peers…

“The Punishment Division absolutely does not allow such insane acts to happen recklessly! I will definitely catch the hidden culprits!”

You must know that the evil technique practiced by the Mo Shangxian back then was this kind of technique, using others’ cultivation and spiritual power to nourish oneself. Once such evil cultivators appear, it’s a serious matter.

The Punishment Division Envoy originally planned to finish speaking with Lin Ji and personally investigate the case, his tone very cold.

But when he looked at Lin Ji, he found the other’s expression was incomprehensible.

It was a look of shock and sudden realization.

Lin Ji was stunned: the events that happened in his previous life were now reappearing in this life.

It turned out that besides him, so many others were suffering from this.

But in his previous life, he had his power drained years later, not at this time. Was the development of the plot not entirely following the timeline…

And why did the disaster start with the Yunshang Immortal Sect? Could it be that in his previous life…!

Lin Ji connected the dots and quickly asked the Punishment Division Envoy, “Do you think the Yun Sect Leader’s temperament is very different from before?”

The Punishment Division Envoy was taken aback, waving his sleeve: “I never discuss others behind their backs.”

Lin Ji urged, “But this matter is very important; please enlighten me, Envoy!”

The Punishment Division Envoy: “…”

Actually, he also felt that the Yun Sect Leader was like a different person.

He rarely spoke, didn’t intentionally cause trouble, always wore a mysterious smile, but occasionally, when he looked over, his expression was dark.

The next evening, Lin Ji came to find Lu Xiaobai.

This time he maintained an appropriate distance, and the other didn’t seem to mind him, but still acted indifferent.

Lin Ji pretended not to notice and softly said, “Little Bai, Master asked me to call you to the Spiritual Artifact Library to pick a new sword.”

“Now that you’ve broken through to the Golden Core stage, although that sword is of good quality, it still has its shortcomings. Master has a top-grade spiritual sword; it’s time for you to change.”

Lu Xiaobai looked at the Mo Huai in his hand and agreed, “That makes sense.”

He followed Lin Ji, walking one in front and one behind toward the Spiritual Artifact Library on Luoxia Peak.

As they approached their destination, Lu Xiaobai turned his head to look at the sword in Lin Ji’s hand.

The blue sword body, with a sharp and cold gleam, was clearly a good sword.

Lu Xiaobai grabbed the sword body, his eyes showing greed: “This sword must be top-grade; why can’t the sword in your hand be given to me?”

Lin Ji sneered: “My sword can be given to you, but it depends on whether you’re worthy.”

Lin Ji drew the sword, pointing it at Lu Xiaobai.

In the next moment, Meng Wanqiu and the Sect Leader appeared, casting a barrier to trap them in the middle.

Lu Xiaobai smiled: “When did you find out?”

Meng Wanqiu snorted coldly: “You didn’t even try to pretend; how dare you ask?”

When had Little Bai ever been so cold to others? He was acting so arrogant, from head to toe, he didn’t seem like himself at all.

Lu Xiaobai said, “Then you should have exposed me immediately; why go through the trouble of setting a trap?”

Lin Ji coldly replied, “That’s naturally because you’re occupying my Shixiong’s body. Do you think I don’t want to tear you to pieces?”

“No matter what kind of ghost you are, it’s best to be sensible and come out!”

The last two sentences, Lin Ji shouted out loud.

After learning about the chaos in the Yunshang Immortal Sect, he finally remembered. When he was stimulated and fell into madness, there was always a voice in his ear tempting him.

He thought he was hearing his own inner voice, but in his chaotic state of mind, he had hallucinated.

Now that he thought back, sometimes the voice he heard was his own, and sometimes it wasn’t.

Lu Xiaobai calmly clapped, praising, “Very good; then guess what I really am?”

Lin Ji quickly replied, “Evil energy.”

At this moment, Lu Xiaobai’s expression finally changed drastically.

Lin Ji transformed the magic energy bottle, “Although you guys are much higher in rank than ordinary evil energy, the magic energy bottle that Lu Xiaobai captured for me has no reaction at all, but I just know.”

Meng Wanqiu closed his eyes, his voice for the first time filled with suppressed anger: “A Ji, there’s no need for more words; capture him and find a way to extract the evil energy from Little Bai.”

Evil energy should not be underestimated; once it enters the body, it will erode a person’s heart, seeking out their dark side and leading them astray. If Little Bai was now possessed by evil energy, with a little carelessness, he could fall into madness; extracting the evil energy would be countless times more difficult than removing demon poison!

Meng Wanqiu wished he could pull out the evil energy and scatter it a thousand times, but at this moment, he could only trap it and slowly find a way to bring Little Bai’s consciousness back without harming his body.

Suddenly, Lu Xiaobai burst into laughter, his face full of evil: “Very good; it seems you guys are quite clever, managing to think so deeply in such a short time.”

“Unfortunately, you’ve miscalculated one thing: when did I say I occupied Lu Xiaobai’s body?”

As soon as he finished speaking, he waved his sleeve, revealing his true form, which turned out to be—Haomiao Laozu!

With a casual wave of his sleeve, the old ancestor broke the carefully arranged barrier set by the others.

“Just based on you, do you think you can trap me?”

The Sect Leader was greatly shocked: “His form and appearance were merely illusions!”

Before this, everyone thought that evil energy had possessed Lu Xiaobai. They never expected that the one possessed by evil energy was Haomiao Laozu, who then transformed into Lu Xiaobai, deceiving everyone.

Lin Ji’s mind went blank for a moment, and after realizing it, he shouted, “What have you done to him?!”

If the person here wasn’t Lu Xiaobai, then where had Lu Xiaobai been taken by these ghostly things?!

But Haomiao Laozu no longer spoke. Despite his appearance being so old that he looked like he was about to die, he flicked his sleeve and sent everyone flying!

The Peifeng Sect was thrown into chaos.

The last great ascendant half-immortal in this world suddenly appeared.

The Sect Leader issued an emergency order for all disciples to retreat and take refuge, while the elders and lords rushed to Luoxia Peak.

The so-called great ascendant was just a step away from ascending; if a fight broke out, even if everyone joined in, they would only end up with their bones scattered.

At Luoxia Peak, besides Lin Ji, all the others were elders.

However, the heads of the Peifeng Sect fought for half a day without any casualties, while Haomiao Laozu’s figure gradually faded.

But before he disappeared, he laughed loudly, his voice echoing: “Just a two-tenths power clone, and you’re so wary of me, helpless?”

“Don’t worry; Lu Xiaobai is in a wonderful place, enjoying the offerings we specially prepared for him. If you want to find him, wait for your next life!”

Meng Wanqiu was supported by his fellow brothers, while Lin Ji remained silent and was about to leave.

The Sect Leader quickly pulled him back, “Lin Ji, where are you going?”

Lin Ji’s tone was calm: “I’m going to find him. I know where Haomiao Laozu’s true body is.”

Meng Wanqiu quickly waved away the others, standing straight: “I need to go too.”

The Sect Leader rubbed his aching temples, “But the other party is a half-immortal; you’ll be walking into death!”

Lin Ji turned back, his eyes bloodshot: “So what?!”

After saying that, he flew away on his sword, throwing aside all notions of being the Dragon Ao Tian protagonist.

Lin Ji only wished for Lu Xiaobai to be safe.

His mind was filled with a single thought: wait for me!

Meng Wanqiu quickly caught up: “Let’s go together!”

The Sect Leader had no choice but to grit his teeth and turn back to make arrangements.

The half-immortal was going mad, and the cultivation world would once again face destruction; no one could remain unscathed.

He notified the various sects in the cultivation world while leaving an elder to guard the Peifeng Sect, taking all remaining subordinates to fly toward the secret realm.

But when they arrived at the ancient tree, even though they worked together to draw out the tree hole, they couldn’t open the secret realm no matter what.

The tree hole vortex was completely sealed, and no one knew what was happening inside.

Despite everyone being anxious, the secret realm just wouldn’t open.

The Sect Leader tried to calm everyone down: “Wanqu and Lin Ji have gone in; it’s likely they sealed the barrier.”

“As long as Haomiao Laozu doesn’t come out of the secret realm, he won’t harm the outside world. Their master and disciple are doing this for a good reason! Since the seal hasn’t been broken, it means they’re fine!”

But just two people, with such a huge difference in cultivation level, even if they sacrificed themselves, how long could they hold out?

The Sect Leader comforted others, but in his heart, he was already in despair.

Half a day later, the barrier loosened, and they hurriedly entered the tree hole, using the same method to reinforce the seal, not allowing the great power to come out. They also went in with the determination that they might not return.

But after searching through countless ruins for a long time, they still found nothing, nor did they hear any sounds of fighting. Could it be that Wanqu and Lin Ji had already…

Finally, the Sect Leader led his subordinates to a mountain water pool, the only place that hadn’t collapsed into ruins, surprisingly showing no signs of damage.

However, the mountain was dry, the water was exhausted, and everything was a dull yellow, resembling the scene of withered branches and fallen leaves in late autumn.

As everyone stopped at a certain point, they stood in silence after the shock.

Haomiao Laozu was sitting cross-legged by the stone edge, his eyes tightly closed, his body withered.

Meng Wanqiu sighed deeply, reaching out to tidy up his remains, allowing him to leave with dignity.

Lin Ji, however, sat on the ground, holding a jade pendant in his hands, feeling dazed.