Chapter 434: Luring the Tiger Away from the Mountain

Cangming said nothing. He simply paused, his gaze lifting to the magnificent, sprawling vista before them.

After a long moment, just before Lu Sangjiu could speak again, he finally said, "If you say so, then I suppose it is."

Lu Sangjiu: "..."

She was at her wit’s end.

Her life was in his hands; he had no need to justify himself.

Even if he admitted it, what could she do? He was toying with her, and she had no choice but to grit her teeth and bear it.

Lu Sangjiu had lost track of how many places she had been dragged to by Cangming in one long journey, and just how many Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures she had acquired.

All she knew was that it was a lot. So much so that they had probably traversed half the Spirit Void Realm.

Throughout the entire journey, Cangming seemed to be in high spirits, often pausing to admire the scenery before forcing her to cultivate.

He would force-feed her all sorts of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures on a strict schedule. Then, as she circulated her energy to absorb them, he would simply sit nearby and wait.

As a result, Lu Sangjiu’s cultivation, already at the Mid-stage Divinity Transformation, began to skyrocket at an enviable pace.

The entire process was a mix of pain and pleasure for her.

The pain came from the Love Gu he used to threaten her and the powerlessness of her situation.

The pleasure, of course, came from the rapid advancement of her cultivation.

One day, a message arrived from the sect. "Sect Leader, we’ve found a trail leading to one of He Guang’s Integration Stage Cultivators. You cannot afford to be absent again."

He had missed one confrontation already to help Lu Sangjiu. While there was some discontent from the rest of the Cultivation World, no one had said much.

But if he were to be absent again, this so-called alliance would truly begin to crumble.

Moreover, he had already suffered a backlash from the Power of Contract last time. If it were to happen again, the backlash would likely be twice as strong—something he could not withstand.

Cangming lifted his gaze toward Lu Sangjiu, who was meditating and cultivating a short distance away.

She had now reached Late-stage Divinity Transformation. Although a breakthrough was still a distant prospect, the power he had helped her build through his meticulous planning was solid and real, unlike the haphazard, forced enhancements Ye Zhiyao had undergone.

However, advancing to the Body Integration Realm was not something he could help her with.

The difficulty in reaching the Body Integration Realm lay not in one’s cultivation level, but in finding the right catalyst—something no one could help her with.

Besides, this journey had not only helped her raise her cultivation, but it had also fulfilled a wish of his own.

They hadn’t walked hand in hand, but at least they had traveled across countless mountains and rivers together.

What he had once yearned for but could never have was now, at last, a reality.

And yet... He touched his chest, feeling that he wasn’t nearly as happy as he had imagined he would be.

He stared blankly at her face, so different from the one in his memories. As he watched, it was as if he had traveled through time, back to the woman she used to be.

She was alone, a jug of wine in hand, turning to give him a radiant smile in the morning sun.

"Cangming, what are you dawdling for? Hurry up and catch up!"

Now, he had caught up, but she had vanished from his sight.

Only at this moment did Cangming seem to truly accept it: the Gu Huang of the past was dead. The Lu Sangjiu of today was her, and yet not her.

Lu Sangjiu finally absorbed the last wisp of Spiritual Power from the Spirit Fruit. She exhaled, concluding her session, and opened her eyes.

As always, the first thing she saw upon opening her eyes was Cangming, seated a short distance away.

Only this time, he wasn’t looking at the mountains or the river. He was looking... at her.

Cangming rarely stared at her so directly. And this time, even when he saw her eyes open, he didn’t look away.

In that brief moment their eyes met, an indescribable feeling welled up within Lu Sangjiu. Before she could even begin to process it, she heard him say, "We’re going back."

She had waited so long to hear those words. Now that he had actually said them, Lu Sangjiu couldn’t quite process it. "...What?"

Cangming rose and walked toward her, his words concise. "Back to the Cold Crow Sect."

In the blink of an eye, Lu Sangjiu was back at the Cold Crow Sect, standing once more in that familiar courtyard.

While they were away, Cangming’s constant watch had given her no opportunity to contact anyone.

Now that she was back, the courtyard was once again sealed by a Barrier, cutting her off from any outside news.

She was going crazy. She wanted to say something, but Cangming gave her no chance.

"Get some rest. I have things to attend to."

Lu Sangjiu froze. Her complaints died on her lips as she quickly asked, "Is there more news about He Guang?"

Cangming grunted in affirmation. "One of his subordinates, an Integration Stage cultivator."

"Don’t worry... I’ll be back soon."

Though he knew perfectly well she wouldn’t worry about him, Cangming still offered the self-deceiving words before turning to leave.

Lu Sangjiu stood rooted to the spot for a long while, her gaze lost in the distance. ’I miss Xie Ningyuan.’

’I wonder when he’ll come to take me home.’

With a final sigh, she turned and returned to her small room.

Lu Sangjiu thought she would have to endure this life for a long, long time to come.

She never expected things to change so quickly.

While she was sitting cross-legged in meditation, a deafening BOOM suddenly echoed from outside!

The sound was so immense, ’it was as if half the Cold Crow Sect had collapsed!’

A chill shot through her heart. She rushed into the courtyard and saw that, just as she’d feared, all the halls and pavilions on the other side of her compound had been reduced to ash!

An ominous, black aura spread through the rising smoke and dust.

She saw disciples of the Cold Crow Sect dying violent deaths before they could even scream.

The lucky survivors were gathering together, trying to mount a unified resistance.

And there, hovering in mid-air, a familiar figure stood proudly, coldly observing the naive struggles of the ants below.

’It’s... Qin Miao!’

Looking at the carnage, an idiom surfaced in Lu Sangjiu’s mind: ’Lure the tiger out of the mountains!’

With Cangming gone from the sect, and judging by the state of his disciples, it was clear most of their combat strength had been taken away with him.

And right at this moment, Qin Miao had appeared to massacre the entire Cold Crow Sect. ’This had to be a setup!’

Lu Sangjiu was protected by Cangming’s Barrier, so the battle had not yet reached her. But for that very reason, she had no hope of escape.

The ominous black miasma now shrouded the entire Cold Crow Sect, cutting it off from the outside world and eliminating any chance of calling for aid.

A cold sneer played on Qin Miao’s lips, her eyes filled with endless killing intent.

"After being hounded by you dogs for so long, it’s about time I collected some interest."

"Don’t worry... At my hands, your deaths won’t be swift. Just obediently become fodder for my cultivation!"

Lu Sangjiu tilted her head back slightly, her gaze fixed on the distant Qin Miao as her hand tightened around the Domination Map Blade.

The last time she had seen Qin Miao was in Yuelin City.

Back then, with her Golden Core Stage cultivation, Lu Sangjiu had been utterly powerless against the Body Integration Realm Qin Miao, only surviving thanks to Xie Ningyuan’s protection.

Today, Lu Sangjiu, at the Late-stage Divinity Transformation, faced Qin Miao, at Late-stage Integration. No one was here to protect her, but she... could finally put up a fight!