The Elixir is for You, The Poison is for Me

#209 - Sword Shadow Under the Moon

Chapter 208: Sword Shadow Under the Moon

After dealing with the paper doll general and his ginkgo leaf subordinates, Lu Jing abandoned the idea of escaping.

Firstly, his tracks had already been discovered, and after such a long time, the other side must have made ample preparations. If he ran back towards the cave, he didn't know how many more troubles he would encounter along the way.

Secondly, even if he wanted to escape, he had to find Xia Huai first.

And until now, Jing Xiang, who had gone to gather information, hadn't returned. Not only hadn't he returned, but he hadn't even sent back a single message.

Lu Jing had reason to suspect that this senior from the Sitianjian might also have encountered some trouble.

That being the case, he couldn't leave even more.

In any case, Jing Xiang had risked himself to help him. He definitely couldn't abandon him like this.

So, Lu Jing already knew where he should go next.

He gripped the meteorite iron Zen staff, simply no longer concealing his tracks, and using the Qinggong of Surging Waves, he strode towards the center of the village.

The previous few battles had also given him confidence. Although the secret force in this place was rich, making it a natural home for the mage profession, his warrior profession was almost maxed out.

He ran all the way to the open space in the village where the banquet had been held earlier, and from afar, he saw Jing Xiang's figure.

The latter was hunched over, like a cheetah in a pre-hunt stance, one hand pressed on the hilt of the black-sheathed iron saber, and the iron saber had already been drawn a third of the way out, with a chilling aura.

However, his posture seemed to be frozen, standing there motionless, like a statue.

Even after hearing Lu Jing's arrival, he didn't turn his head.

Seeing this strange scene, Lu Jing also stopped.

His gaze followed Jing Xiang's direction and saw a barefoot, disheveled man in a grey Daoist robe, standing by a stone mill, looking up at the moon in the sky.

Lu Jing was certain that he hadn't seen this person in the village before.

In other words, this person was likely not a villager of Worry-Free Village. Combining this with Jing Xiang's tightly furrowed brows and his glances towards the village entrance.

Lu Jing had reason to believe that this man was the real worry in Jing Xiang's heart.

And he did indeed feel a long-lost aura of danger from this man, an aura so strong that Lu Jing's heart rarely felt a trace of regret.

But he quickly suppressed this regret.

At this moment, the barefoot, disheveled man moved his gaze from the moon above to Lu Jing, and without rushing to attack, he asked with interest, "A disciple of the academy?"

"That's right," Lu Jing said, now completely composed.

In any case, he couldn't abandon Jing Xiang.

So, no matter who this barefoot, disheveled man was, he would have to confront him.

"It seems that after a thousand years, the academy has developed better and better," the man said with a sigh.

Upon hearing this, the hairs all over Lu Jing's body stood on end, and his pupils suddenly contracted.

The man nodded in satisfaction, "A promising young man. It seems you've already guessed my identity. That's right, you can call me senior."

As soon as he finished speaking, the door of the house next to the stone mill was pushed open from the inside.

An old man with white hair and beard poked his head out under the protection of two paper doll swordsmen, urging the barefoot, disheveled man, "Stop reminiscing about the past, quickly do what you need to do…"

His voice suddenly stopped, because after a gust of cold wind, he found that the heads of the two paper doll swordsmen beside him had suddenly fallen to the ground.

"No one can speak to me in that tone," the barefoot, disheveled man said calmly, as a small silver sword flew back into the sleeve of his Daoist robe at the same time.

"I work for you only because the Otherworld has twisted my common sense, just as it has twisted your common sense and that of the others in this village, but I strongly suggest that you don't lump me in with you ordinary puppets."

The old man with white hair and beard originally wanted to say something, but after meeting the man's eyes, he couldn't say a word.

He obediently retracted his head behind the door.

The barefoot, disheveled man waved his hand, as if shooing away a fly.

Then, he looked at Lu Jing again and smiled, "I don't seem to have introduced myself yet. My name is Gu Zhongling, a supervisor from the Sitianjian."

"I'm sorry to meet you in such a situation, my young colleague. I know what you're thinking. That's right, in order to deal with a very powerful strange object, I died on the other side of the cave a thousand years ago."

"But Jing Xiang, that idiot, always felt that he was the one who harmed me, so he came to the Otherworld, and using the characteristics of the Otherworld, he resurrected me."

"And to prevent me from dying again after he left, that idiot simply stayed here, even marrying a wife and having a daughter. As for me, because I have a natural wandering nature."

"After being resurrected, I didn't stay in this small village for long before I became impatient and left to wander the outside world. I heard that someone from the Sitianjian later threw the Otherworld into the academy as a scenic spot."

"Actually, given the dangerousness of the Otherworld, I personally strongly advise against doing this, but probably because the then-director of studies at the academy felt that this place could help young students hone their minds and also remind them that the danger of strange objects is everywhere…"

Gu Zhongling paused and continued, "Well, of course, the most important thing is that there is Jing Xiang, a member of the Sitianjian, inside. If someone is determined to make up for the past and wants to stay here permanently, it will only last three days at most."

"Even if he doesn't want to leave, Jing Xiang will find a way to drive him out, making him suffer a small loss and gain a valuable lesson."

"In short, the academy's plan is good. It not only trains newcomers, but also allows Jing Xiang to have someone to accompany him from time to time. Anyway, one day here is equivalent to a hundred days outside. In Jing Xiang's view, the people from the academy are constantly running over here."

"But probably because he feels that he is a negative example, he has always concealed his identity as a supervisor in front of those students. Apart from the successive directors of studies and supervisors of the academy, few people know his true identity, only considering him an ordinary villager."

"Until… you came," Gu Zhongling said here, sighing, "You have no regrets, which is a bit troublesome. It's troublesome for me, and it's troublesome for you."

Thanks to Saillll and other students for the rewards~