Chapter 427: Because You Stole My Best Friend's Man
Luo Wusheng had always prided himself on his steady mindset.
Even now—trapped inside a hidden space controlled by the Netherkin race, with only limited means at his disposal and all contact with the outside world cut off—he could still keep his cool.
This was the first time he had ever seen the Sword Fairy's message-sending short sword fail to function.
Yet even with that, he remained composed.
"I just caught another glimpse of the black flood dragon," he murmured to himself.
"That guy was muttering about how it can't contact the other Netherkin anymore… Looks like this communication block isn't targeting only me."
"Still, from its tone it's obvious—before it sealed its nether soul into this so-called Demon Moon, the Netherkin hiding in the capital could still talk to each other."
"Heh. That chicken Netherkin that came after me earlier must've been dispatched after one of their little group chats."
"On top of that, as expected, it can still use part of the Demon Moon's power remotely… at the very least, the ability to move freely inside this space is still in its claws."
Luo Wusheng narrowed his eyes.
Around him, a faint, ethereal zither melody echoed, sharpening his mind like a refreshing breeze, helping him stay clear-headed while he analyzed the situation.
He glanced at the seven-string guqin floating beside him—[Phantomless 2.0]—which was automatically playing background music on its own.
Once again, he silently thanked the little pink fox who had gifted it to him.
The Antediluvian Nether Eye she had given him earlier went without saying.
The power of the tribulation lightning he had devoured had helped him tremendously.
And now, even this tranquil heart-clearing zither was proving invaluable.
The only gift he hadn't yet used—the Ancient Phoenix Essence—remained his final trump card, one that gave him considerable confidence.
To be honest, among all his high-level allies, that little pink fox was by far the most trustworthy.
A certain white-haired loli and his bargain-bin master were always up to some elaborate scheme, refusing to reveal their true intentions—not exactly a recipe for trust.
Though, Yue Xuanji was a bit better.
Pretty girls really did get special privileges.
Though he often grumbled inwardly about how that old hag liked to act like a young innocent maiden, he had to admit he was weak to that particular act.
As for his so-called master… Luo Wusheng frowned and deliberately shifted his thoughts away.
He continued to chip away at the seal on the black flood dragon's nether soul.
Here in this little white room, aside from listening to music, this was about all he could do anyway.
To his surprise, he found the process oddly entertaining in its own way.
He still hadn't figured out the pattern behind the visions it revealed, but so far, not a single image had been completely uninteresting.
'It almost feels like scrolling through random short videos back in my previous life while listening to music…'
No, not quite.
After all, he was still carefully planning his next move.
"Honestly, I could just stay here and be a neet until the Netherkin Uprising starts… If I don't interfere, things should mostly follow the original story, right? No unexpected changes?"
"But if I do that, I won't be able to save Kirin…"
He let out a soft sigh.
"In the end, I'll have to improvise. For even the Mortal Alter Ego of the Empress to end up completely erased… the one making a move has to be at least Nascent Soul stage."
Luo Wusheng's eyes flickered with a cold light.
'If it really comes down to a fight to the death, that method of mine should be enough to suppress a Divine Transformation realm cultivator… but the uncontrollable risk is too high. I don't even know if it will succeed. And if I really use it, even the Ancient Phoenix Essence might not guarantee my resurrection…'
He had considered using this opportunity to die a dramatic, earth-shaking death.
But he certainly didn't intend to actually reincarnate and start some bland second life.
He had too much attachment to this world.
For example—his wife.
His wife.
And… his wife.
"Better not spook myself. Who knows—maybe the task will turn out easier than I expect?"
"In the best case, I'll pull off a perfect hero-saves-the-beauty scene. Then the Empress, having no way to repay me, will choose to offer herself in gratitude… and in the end she'll dive headfirst into my Luo family's fish pond…"
Smack!
Luo Wusheng gave his own swollen ego a sharp slap.
Smack!
Strange.
Why was the little pink fox soothing melody failing to keep his inflated thoughts in check?
Was this just his normal mindset all along, or…
The Demon Sect Holy Saint paused mid-thought, falling silent with a complicated expression.
Then, mood tangled, he resumed grinding away at the seal on the black flood dragon's nether soul.
As he worked, the visions in his eyes gradually shifted from bright daylight to deep night.
During this stretch, the scenes most often shown were those of the Human Immortal List battles.
For instance, Luo Wusheng witnessed Lu Yuliu's first match—a single sword strike to defeat a nameless green-robed disciple of the Martial Alliance.
The opponent's cultivation was only at the late stage of the Foundation Establishment realm, so her victory didn't draw much attention.
Most spectators were still completely absorbed in the terrifying strength that Bai Xiaoyao had revealed.
After all, Bai Xiaoyao had eliminated a championship favorite with a single move—and she had done it while clearly in less than peak condition.
People were already whispering predictions: would the Demon Sect's Holy Maiden follow in the Holy Saint's footsteps, sweeping the entire tournament from start to finish with nothing but one-strike victories?
Luo Wusheng offered no comment.
He next saw the first match of that trouble-loving friend from the Heavenly Divination Tower—Daoist Gao Shi.
That fellow's luck was equally good: his opponent was another late-stage Foundation cultivator, easily crushed by sheer cultivation difference.
Perhaps people who love stirring up trouble really do have better fortune.
Not every vision focused on the duels.
Some shifted to the spectator stands reserved for the upper echelons of the Immortal Nation.
In one such scene, the camera seemed to linger on two particular figures: Xuan Ming, and a Golden-Ranked Six Gate Bureau member wearing a spider-web patterned mask.
The masked one—whom the others called Tian Zhu—muttered drowsily:
"It's so noisy here… I can't even nap properly. Little Turtle, can I go back to the Six Gate Bureau first?"
Xuan Ming replied with exaggerated seriousness:
"No way. Her Majesty ordered that we stay alert. We don't know when the Netherkin will make their move. When they do, you're the one who has to activate the Heavenly Net Formation…"
Tian Zhu let out a pitiful wail:
"Uuuu… If I'd known it would come to this, I never would've been born with a natural formation core!"
The big guy tried to comfort them:
"Don't cry, Tian Zhu. Here, let me tell you again about my legendary battle of thousands of rounds with the Demon Sect's Holy Saint—"
Luo Wusheng: Heh.
That guy sure knows how to brag.
With his build, even without using his Artifact, he could probably cut him in half with a single strike.
'Still… the Heavenly Net Formation? That must be the same one that appeared in the original story. So it really belongs to the Six Gate Bureau.'
Counting this "Tian Zhu," Luo Wusheng had now seen five of the Six Gate Bureau' Golden-Ranked members. In the original, there were seven in total… which meant two were still unaccounted for.
He thought for a moment, then pulled his focus back.
The rest of the night brought no new images of the black flood dragon or any other major Netherkin.
Even so, he could feel it—just a little more effort and he'd grind down the nether soul's seal enough to begin affecting the space around him himself.
"I can tell that both Lu Yuliu and Bai Xiaoyao are pretty worried about my sudden disappearance," he muttered with a faint smile.
"The Empress is harder to read, but she probably cares too, right? Hah, all that effort raising my favorability with her wasn't wasted after all."
He stifled a yawn.
His spiritual awareness was once again overtaxed.
Still, he forced his weary mind to stay awake and continued his relentless work on the black flood dragon's seal.
This time, many details from the original story had already been altered.
The Netherkin race might make a move earlier than expected, so he needed to resolve his current predicament as soon as possible.
Fortunately, judging from the pace of the Human Immortal List battles, it should still last the usual three days, just like in the original.
Not every participant was as monstrous as his Junior Sister or Little Yuli.
Most of the Foundation Establishment battles were evenly matched, often dragging on for half a day, with the two sides fighting until their spiritual energy was nearly exhausted before a victor emerged.
"Speaking of which, where's my wife?"
"Her sword body should already be fully condensed, but none of the visions have shown her at all…"
"Did she just happen to not be caught on screen? Or did she follow through on what she told me before and head to the Sword Sect, and simply hasn't reached the Royal City yet?"
Luo Wusheng pondered with a furrowed brow.
———
In a boundless, starry space…
Ling Shuangxue stood with an unsightly expression, staring coldly at the figure before her.
The figure sat atop a strange, gigantic divination disk.
Petite in stature, dressed in a water-blue gown, her silky white hair draped down as her bare feet swung lightly in the void.
"Who are you?"
Ling Shuangxue 's face was as cold as her voice.
Ever since she had left the Sword Sect, she no longer knew how much time had passed.
During this period, she had been trapped in this strange space.
Of course, Ling Shuangxue hadn't sat idly by.
She had tried repeatedly to shatter this domain, a fact plainly visible from the countless broken stars floating in the void.
But after realizing her efforts weren't yielding results, she changed her approach, gathering her strength instead, hoping to unleash a single sword strike powerful enough to rip the entire space apart.
Yet before her preparations were complete, the white-haired girl appeared.
"To match this appearance to my name," the petite girl narrowed her eyes slightly, "there is only one person below the Tribulation Trascendence realm who could do so… and at the moment, I have no intention of adding a second."
Clearly, she had no plans to reveal her identity.
Ling Shuangxue remained unfazed.
She could sense it—this seemingly childlike girl's cultivation was above her own.
And she herself was already at the Peak of the Nascent Soul realm, a Grandmaster.
In other words, the other party was in the Divine Transformation realm.
However, the girl didn't seem inclined to attack.
Ling Shuangxue frowned. "It was you who trapped me here?"
"That's right. It was me."
The white-haired girl admitted it without the slightest hesitation.
"Why?"
For once, Ling Shuangxue was truly puzzled.
She was cold by nature, rarely forming ties with either friend or foe, and she couldn't think of any reason she might have provoked a Divine Transformation cultivator into acting against her.
What she didn't expect was for the white-haired girl to sigh softly, as though lamenting the whims of fate.
"Because… you stole my best friend's man."
"???"
"My poor best friend—she finally managed to fall for someone, even shared a kiss to seal their bond, but who would've thought…"
"It was clearly she who came first! Whether it was the kiss, the hug, or the feelings themselves—she was first! Ahem, well, you get the idea."
"As her best friend, I really can't stand watching her sob all day, wiping her tears away with her fluffy little tail."
"So—"
The girl's voice suddenly shifted, bright and playful.
"I've decided to side with you instead."
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Note: It's Yue Xuanji by the way
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Note: Link to the character Illustration:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1lkIcPnCxeyuyZA4Kkb621dPC05UvWjhD
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Tn: I updated the story daily, but if you want to see more chapter of this story ahead of time, please go to my Patreon.
Latest Chapter: Chapter 571: To See or Not to See?[1]
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[1] https://www.patreon.com/u93297024/posts/chapter-571-to-163855664
[2] https://www.patreon.com/u93297024/posts/chapter-571-to-163855664