Jingliu was silent for a moment before she slowly said, "Jing Yuan, what do you think I came here for?"
Jing Yuan shook his head. "This disciple does not know."
"But I do know this much: if Master did not have something she absolutely had to do, she would never have set foot on the Luofu again."
His tone was calm, but there was a trace of emotion buried deep within it.
Eight hundred years ago, his master had fallen to mara and left the Luofu.
Eight hundred years later, she had returned.
What had happened in those eight centuries? What had she gone through? He knew none of it.
But there was one thing he was sure of.
Whatever had compelled her to come back despite the risk, it could not possibly be something trivial.
Jingliu looked at the disciple before her, no longer the少年 she once knew, and suddenly smiled.
"You've grown up," she said.
Jing Yuan fell silent for a moment, then let out a faint chuckle. "Is that Master being sentimental? I recall that Master was never one for such reflections."
"People change," Jingliu said lightly. "Even those who have fallen to mara can change."
Jing Yuan did not reply.
Instead, he turned to Cecilia and said seriously, "Miss Cecilia, thank you for taking care of my master."
"These past years… I imagine they cannot have been easy for her."
Cecilia was a little stunned.
No, wait—Jing Yuan, what exactly have you been imagining here?
Judging by the look on his face, he seemed to think his master had spent all these years together with her.
Then again, Cecilia had no intention of correcting that misunderstanding.
With that layer of identity in place, Jing Yuan would, at the very least, have to give her some face.
And as for whether Jingliu would expose the truth—
Heh. Cecilia didn't think she would.
So Cecilia let out a soft laugh. "It certainly hasn't been easy. But now that I'm here, she'll gradually get better."
Jingliu: ???
Sure enough, the moment Cecilia said that, Jingliu visibly froze for a beat.
Her lips moved slightly, but in the end she said nothing.
Forget it. It was only an inconsequential misunderstanding. There was no need to quibble over something like that.
Besides, Cecilia truly had helped her.
That kindness, Jingliu would remember.
Jing Yuan took in the exchange and became even more certain of his guess.
Still, this was not the time to dwell on such things.
He looked back at Jingliu. "Master, may I ask again—what is the purpose of your return to the Luofu?"
This time, his tone was clearly all business.
Everything he had said and done before that had been what Jing Yuan the disciple ought to say and do.
Given Jingliu's current status, the fact that he had already lowered himself this much was enough to get him reported if someone wanted to make an issue of it.
But now that the matter concerned the Xianzhou and the Luofu, Jing Yuan, as the Luofu's general, could no longer afford to be vague.
Jingliu's answer was just as direct as ever.
"To kill the Abundance."
At those words, neither Cecilia nor Jing Yuan showed much reaction.
After all, both of them already knew that.
Only Cecilia's expression turned slightly strange.
Though she was currently keeping her identity as an Emanator of Abundance hidden, she obviously had no intention of concealing it forever for the sake of her grand plans.
She really was curious what everyone's faces would look like once they learned she was one of Yaoshi's "children."
Jing Yuan gave a quiet sigh. "…I see."
"And what is it that Master wants us to do?"
Jingliu lifted her scarlet eyes and looked straight at her former disciple. "There is nothing I need you to do."
"I returned only to take something. Once I have it, I will leave."
Jing Yuan's brows drew together slightly. "And that thing would be…?"
Your divine spirit.
That was the answer Jingliu gave in her heart.
Unfortunately, in her current situation, there was no way she could speak the truth.
Luocha was not here, and without him, their plan could not proceed smoothly.
And if she directly asked Jing Yuan for it…
Even as his master, she would probably end up thrown into the Shackling Prison.
"It is not yet time. You will know when the time comes."
Jing Yuan: …
Since when had his master become the type to speak in riddles?
Jing Yuan was baffled, but if she refused to say more, then naturally he could not press the issue.
With no better option, he turned to Cecilia instead. There was still business waiting on that side as well.
"Miss Cecilia, I have heard that your visit to the Luofu concerns a matter of mara, and that you wished to discuss a certain arrangement with us in detail?"
"That's right," Cecilia admitted openly.
"Wen Liang should already have mentioned it to Lady Fu. I came to the Luofu specifically because of mara."
Jing Yuan's gaze sharpened. "Miss Cecilia, do you mean to say that you have a way to cure mara?"
That question was too important.
Cecilia looked at Jing Yuan, then gently shook her head.
"A cure? Not yet. At present, the most I can do is delay it or suppress it."
That was a lie.
With Cecilia's holy blood constitution, feeding someone a sufficient amount of her blood would make suppressing mara almost laughably easy.
But Cecilia had no intention of telling Jing Yuan that.
Though the Xianzhou Alliance looked upright enough on the surface, who knew how many petty schemers lurked in the shadows?
Her current strength might indeed be formidable, but she was not arrogant enough to announce to the entire galaxy that she had a body like Tang Monk's flesh.
In any case, if the Xianzhou still held hope regarding mara, then merely being able to delay or suppress it would already be enough to tempt them.
And on that point, Cecilia had guessed correctly.
For the people of the Xianzhou, mara was the Sword of Damocles hanging above the heads of every long-life species.
Countless alchemists, physicians, and scholars had devoted themselves to it over the ages, yet none had ever found a true cure.
At most, only powerful figures like Jingliu could suppress it temporarily through sheer will and special means.
If someone really could cure mara…
Then the significance of that to the entire Xianzhou Alliance would be no less than the second arrow loosed by the Hunt.
But there was another side to that.
The people of the Xianzhou had never forgotten the suffering that "long life" had once brought them.
"I understand," Jing Yuan said with a nod. His face remained unchanged, but his golden eyes lowered slightly, as though deep in thought.
Sure enough, in the next moment he looked up again. The lazy ease on his face had faded, replaced by complete sincerity.
"Miss Cecilia, I have an immodest request."
"Please, General, speak."
Jing Yuan was silent for a moment before looking at Jingliu with a complicated expression.
"In the Shackling Prison of the Luofu, there is… an old friend of mine."
"As General, I should handle the matter impartially. But as his old friend, I… cannot bear to watch him suffer like this."
"If it would not trouble Miss Cecilia, could you accompany me to the Shackling Prison and remove the blessing of Abundance from him?"
"If this matter succeeds, then whatever Miss Cecilia asks of me, Jing Yuan will do everything in his power to satisfy."
Hearing that, Cecilia nodded in understanding.
She could more or less guess who this "old friend" was.
Naturally, she had no intention of helping for free. Since Jing Yuan was being so sensible, she saw no reason to be polite.
"All right," Cecilia said with a nod. "I can go with the General."
"But I have one condition."
Jing Yuan's expression did not change. He inclined his head slightly. "Please name it, Miss Cecilia."
"Do you still remember Yuanqiao?"
"The Xianzhou ship that crashed and disappeared long ago."
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter108)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter144)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 99
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 95
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 99
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 92
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 47
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 44
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 43
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 26
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 32
Uma Musume: From Beginner 26
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