Chapter 268 - 266: It Was His Final Wish

Chapter 268: Chapter 266: It Was His Final Wish

’So, the night before last, not only had she and Huang Ziyue been fighting in the room all night long.’

’Bai Chaosi had stood in the courtyard all night, and even Xiao Ya had been killing in the West City Forest and Luoxi Town all night.’

’Everyone had certainly been busy.’

And yesterday morning, after Xiao Ya returned to the City Lord Mansion from the forest, she rushed straight to her courtyard and pretended to be looking for Bai Chaosi as if nothing had happened.

’Her routine was so efficient, she was practically a master of time management!’

Hu Tu heard Shen Yue’s question but hadn’t opened his mouth to speak yet.

Bai Chaosi looked up, recalling the events of yesterday, and was the first to speak.

"That’s because Xiao Ya never went to see a physician. Yesterday, after leaving your courtyard, I sat alone on the back mountain of the City Lord Mansion. Before long, I saw Xiao Ya walk into the woods on the back mountain."

Bai Chaosi said that he followed Xiao Ya into the woods and discovered a secret passage hidden behind a large rock.

Bai Chaosi followed the secret passage for half an hour and arrived at the West City Forest.

At the time, he had no idea where he was. He just followed Xiao Ya’s aura, weaving through the dense woods.

’So that’s how Bai Chaosi got to the West City Forest yesterday? By following Xiao Ya?’ Shen Yue thought.

’No wonder. I’d been wondering how he could have suddenly appeared there after being injured by Huang Ziyue and leaving on his own!’

"When I arrived, Xiao Ya was gone. Following her aura, I searched for her in the woods for a long time and found countless corpses that had been drained of their blood essence. Then I heard the sounds of your fighting and ran into you."

After he finished speaking, he looked at Shen Yue.

In fact, it was only by following Xiao Ya’s aura all along that he managed to find Shen Yue and the others.

So, when Xiao Ya’s aura abruptly vanished and that violent Purple Rabbit appeared in its place, he had already suspected that Xiao Ya was very likely the Purple Rabbit.

And at that moment, the first time he got a clear look at the Purple Rabbit, he felt he had seen it somewhere before.

It wasn’t until he was poisoned by the Poison Powder and fell unconscious that he remembered: the Purple Rabbit’s appearance was identical to the carved statue within the Blood Seal Array on Snow Ridge.

So, in that instant, he finally understood why Xiao Ya was the person guided by the blood mark and why she was connected to the Blood Seal Array.

Because the Purple Rabbit was the blood beast suppressed beneath the Blood Seal Array, and Xiao Ya was very likely that Purple Rabbit.

Most importantly, after being injured and falling into a deep sleep, the Purple Rabbit possesses a Qi-draining ability, allowing it to siphon the blood essence and power of others.

This was something he had read in the Nine-tailed Fox Clan’s records on blood beasts.

So, when he woke up and learned that Xiao Ya was dead, but Shen Yue was in Xiao Ya’s room preparing to save her...

He knew that Xiao Ya wasn’t dead at all—she was trying to steal Shen Yue’s power. That’s why he had burst into the room like a madman!

At this thought, a wave of lingering fear washed over him.

If something had really happened to Shen Yue last night, he didn’t know how he could go on living in this world!

He would definitely have followed her in death.

After hearing Bai Chaosi’s explanation, Shen Yue turned to Hu Tu.

"So, you used that secret passage on the back mountain to move the nine children before the stone chamber collapsed?"

’No wonder I couldn’t figure out how those nine children had vanished into thin air right under my nose, only to reappear in the City Lord Mansion!’

’So there really was a secret passage on the back mountain leading to the West City Forest!’

Hu Tu didn’t intend to hide anything.

"That’s right. I moved the children through that secret passage."

He paused here, took a deep breath, and revealed the truth.

"Actually, the reason you were able to find the West City Forest yesterday wasn’t because you were so skilled. It was all part of his plan. He wanted me to lure you into the forest."

Shen Yue listened, unsurprised.

Yesterday, when she and Huang Ziyue were led into that stone chamber by four versions of Hu Tu, she understood that they had been set up!

Perhaps their entry into the forest had been a conspiracy from the very beginning.

Otherwise, why would there be Soul-devouring Flower Seeds in the stone chamber?

Hu Tu looked at Shen Yue and said:

"I originally thought he wanted me to lure you into the forest simply to kill you with the Devouring God Flower. But in reality, he knew that A zhi has an incredibly strong sense of her own feeding grounds. So, the moment you stepped into the forest, A zhi would immediately rush back. You were bound to have a direct conflict with her. His main goal was to expose the Purple Rabbit to you!"

Listening to this, Huang Ziyue and Bai Chaosi also understood that the black-robed man had orchestrated everything from behind the scenes.

No wonder the Purple Rabbit had been perfectly fine at the City Lord Mansion yesterday, only to suddenly appear in the West City Forest.

He had simply wanted to make Shen Yue and the Purple Rabbit meet.

Everything they had experienced over the past few days, every single event, had been guided and pushed forward step-by-step by that black-robed man.

And they could only react passively, caught in these pre-designed events, unable to break free.

Shen Yue’s expression turned cold. She had already guessed as much ever since she realized the black-robed man’s target was the Purple Rabbit.

’What happened in the forest yesterday was just the black-robed man’s way of using my power to injure the Purple Rabbit.’

’Then, he would let the Purple Rabbit awaken by absorbing my power. That way, he would not only get the Purple Rabbit but also steal my Vitality Power.’

’He knew that he himself couldn’t bear or take my power, but the Purple Rabbit could while it was in a deep sleep.’

’That was his goal.’

Hu Tu continued, "Yesterday, I was originally waiting in the forest. After you appeared, I planned to lure you to the stone chamber and kill you with the Devouring God Flower that man gave me! But I didn’t expect A zhi to suddenly show up in the forest and start fighting you. So, I had no choice but to rescue A zhi first."

"You know what happened after that. Beneath the stone chamber, I used the spiritual power from those children’s bodies to awaken the Devouring God Flower. I thought that the legendary Doomsday Flower would be able to kill you. But to my surprise, you still made it back to the City Lord Mansion alive."

"Only now do I understand that it was all just part of his plan. He made you suspect A zhi step by step, made you injure her, and then, step by step, used your power to turn A zhi into a complete monster..."

Hu Tu said a great deal.

By the time he finished, all the puzzles in Shen Yue’s mind had finally been solved.

Just as she, along with Huang Ziyue and Bai Chaosi, stepped out of the City Lord Mansion’s gates, a cry of alarm came from behind them.

"Someone, help! It’s terrible! The City Lord is dead!!"

Shen Yue didn’t turn back, but the rabbit in her arms lowered its eyes slightly.

Hu Tu choosing to end his own life was something Shen Yue had expected.

He didn’t have much time left anyway. The pain wracking his body was such an agony that his life was worse than death.

In truth, the moment he had been willing to tell them everything, Shen Yue knew he had already made his choice.

And Hu Tu’s last words to her as she got up to leave served as his final testament.

That phrase:

"Take care of my sister for me. I’ve wronged her!"

It was his final wish.

As for whether he truly cared about the Purple Rabbit before he died, or if he was just trying to ease his own regret, that was impossible to know.

In any case, Shen Yue had no time to guess. However, she was quite surprised when he had finally told her about the origin of the Golden Bell on the Purple Rabbit.