Chapter 906 - 872: Utterly Devoid of Conscience

Xiahou Zun’s original plan was to drain Xu Chunliang’s Inner Strength and then kill him; the best way to keep a secret was to silence him forever. But human plans can’t beat heaven’s will—he schemed for so long, seized Xu Chunliang when he was off guard, yet never imagined it would all be ruined by Yan Hong.

Xu Chunliang definitely wouldn’t have laid this trap specifically for him; his initial intention must have been to leave a backup on Yan Hong. No one could have foreseen that Xiahou Zun’s greed would draw that needle onto himself.

Xiahou Zun hoisted Xu Chunliang onto his shoulder, then had Cao Mulan and Hongxiu move Yan Hong’s corpse down below together.

Cao Mulan cried out inwardly that things were going wrong—it looked like her father had developed a murderous intent toward Xu Chunliang as well. In her impression, her father had always been kind, and valued Jianghu righteousness and brotherly loyalty. She had urged him many times before to expel Wu Yuanyi from the tired sect, but he couldn’t bear to. Yet his behavior today had completely overturned her image of him; if he truly cared about Jianghu codes of honor, he wouldn’t have killed Yan Hong.

Xiahou Zun brought Xu Chunliang back into the Reincarnation Array. Cao Mulan and Hongxiu were carrying Yan Hong’s corpse, and had only just entered the Soldier Transport Path when Xiahou Zun appeared in front of them.

Cao Mulan said, "Father, where should we put him?"

Xiahou Zun didn’t even look over and said, "Don’t bother with him. You two come with me first."

The two of them followed Xiahou Zun to the place where he cultivated. Xiahou Zun let out a sigh and said, "What happened today is truly against my will. But if I don’t do this, everything here will soon be exposed. By then, all that we have painstakingly built will turn into bubbles and vanish."

He went to pour two cups of tea and handed them to Hongxiu and Cao Mulan. "Xu Chunliang is insidious and vicious. Just now I was almost secretly harmed by him."

Cao Mulan said, "Wasn’t he just trying to save you?" After all, she had seen it with her own eyes—it was clearly her father who struck at Xu Chunliang first.

Xiahou Zun said, "You think he’s that kind-hearted? Don’t be fooled by what you just saw. Yan Hong died by his hand. He deliberately left an Autumn Death Needle inside Yan Hong’s body. Even if I’d wanted to save him, there was no time."

He took a jade bottle from his pocket and poured out two red pills, handing one to Hongxiu and one to Cao Mulan. "Daughter, take this Detoxification Pill first to cleanse the toxins in your body. I’m worried Xu Chunliang may have done something to you."

Cao Mulan swallowed the Detoxification Pill, then took a sip of tea.

Hongxiu’s lips moved as if she wanted to speak but held back. She was holding the pill but still hadn’t taken it. Xiahou Zun said, "Why aren’t you eating it?"

Hongxiu said, "I don’t seem to feel anything wrong."

Xiahou Zun said, "What do you know? Hurry up and take it."

Hongxiu smiled and said, "Mulan, you go first. I want to speak with the Sect Leader alone for a moment."

Cao Mulan looked at them, feeling there was something odd between the two, not knowing why Hongxiu wanted her to avoid the conversation.

Xiahou Zun stared coldly at Hongxiu and said, "If you’ve got something to say, just say it. My daughter isn’t an outsider."

Hongxiu said, "It’s better said in private."

Cao Mulan picked up the cup of tea and took several more sips. Strangely, the more she drank, the thirstier she felt. She suddenly wondered if this was a side effect of the Detoxification Pill, and asked in surprise, "Father, why am I so thirsty?"

Xiahou Zun smiled and said, "If you’re thirsty, drink water. I forgot to tell you, taking this Detoxification Pill does indeed make you a bit thirsty. Drink more water and you’ll be fine."

Cao Mulan nodded, but the more she drank, the thirstier she became, her face flushing and her heart racing. At this moment she noticed Hongxiu secretly making faces at her, and Cao Mulan grew even more puzzled. Why was Hongxiu doing this? Could her own father really harm her? Yet the feeling of thirst grew stronger and stronger, and images that made her blush and her heart pound surged into her mind—she was entangled with a man. The man’s features were somewhat blurred, but she could still tell it was Xu Chunliang.

Cao Mulan took a step forward, her footing unsteady as if drunk. She stumbled, and Hongxiu caught her, taking the chance to lean close to her ear and whisper, "Run!"

Hongxiu’s voice was quiet, yet Xiahou Zun heard it clearly.

Xiahou Zun said, "Hongxiu, what did you say?"

Hongxiu pushed Cao Mulan behind her and said in a trembling voice, "Mulan... she... she’s your daughter!"

Xiahou Zun laughed. "Do you even need to remind me of that? My daughter is naturally mine to care for and look after."

Hongxiu shrieked, "Run, run! He’s a beast, he’s a beast!"

The dizzy, muddle‑headed Cao Mulan understood something from Hongxiu’s shrill cries. She turned and bolted outward. Although she kept telling herself over and over that her father shouldn’t harm her, a primal fear of danger still drove her to choose escape.

Hongxiu drew a small knife and thrust it at Xiahou Zun’s chest, but Xiahou Zun caught her wrist in one grab. Xiahou Zun stared coldly at Hongxiu. "What did you say?"

Hongxiu said, "You’re an animal. I’m your goddaughter—no matter what you do to me, I’ll swallow it. But Mulan is your real daughter. Let her go. If you’ve got anything, come at me... I’m begging you..."

Xiahou Zun’s face was full of mockery. "Come at you? You think you deserve that? At best you’re just an appetizer, you’ll never be the main course. Mulan’s Xuan Yin body is something I spent over twenty years cultivating. How could you possibly compare?"

Hongxiu screamed with all her strength, "Mulan, run!"

Xiahou Zun said with contempt, "Run? In this Soldier Transport Path, where could she possibly run to?"

Hongxiu cursed, "You’re a beast who’s lost every shred of conscience, worse than a pig or a dog. All these years you’ve humiliated me every way you could, torturing me, controlling me, and now you actually want to lay your hands on your own daughter."

Xiahou Zun chuckled. "How can a sparrow understand a swan’s ambition? My whole life has been devoted to pursuing supreme martial arts. I saw through worldly dust and vulgarity long ago. What Jianghu code of honor? What blood kinship? All of it is bullshit!" His gaze toward Hongxiu grew increasingly vicious as he reached out and seized her neck, squeezing tighter and tighter. Hongxiu struggled desperately, but her meager strength before Xiahou Zun was a mere drop in the ocean, utterly insignificant.

As Xiahou Zun exerted force, there was a crisp crack. Hongxiu’s cervical spine snapped in the middle, and her whole body collapsed to the ground like a roast chicken with its neck wrung, limp as mud.

When Xiahou Zun exerted strength, he still felt the stabbing pain from his Tianchi acupoint. Fate toyed with him: his divine skill was on the verge of completion, yet a side issue had arisen. If he wanted to force the poisonous needle back out of his meridians, he could only borrow the power of a furnace.

That furnace was Cao Mulan. From birth, Cao Mulan had been fed the essence of medicinal pills and bathed in decoctions of a hundred herbs. To shape her Xuan Yin body, Xiahou Zun had paid a tremendous price. You could say Cao Mulan was a work he had painstakingly crafted, a unique creation made solely for his own enjoyment.

That was why, when Xiahou Zun discovered Cao Mulan’s guardian sand had disappeared, he felt as though the sky had collapsed. But soon he realized Cao Mulan was still a Xuan Yin body. This false alarm only strengthened his resolve to refine the furnace in time.

Cao Mulan, after all, was already an adult. As she aged, the risk increased rapidly. The key was that her Xuan Yin body was fully formed.

Just now, when Xiahou Zun absorbed Yan Hong’s Inner Strength, he accidentally drew the poisonous needle into his meridians. Now that needle was lodged in his Tianchi acupoint. Even with Xiahou Zun’s ability, he couldn’t successfully force it out. So he thought of the furnace method: use Cao Mulan’s Xuan Yin body to break through the final layer of cultivation and enter the perfection realm—then that poisonous needle would naturally cease to be a problem.

Hongxiu was his goddaughter, and also one of his furnaces. Now Hongxiu had lost all value. Originally Xiahou Zun hadn’t intended to kill her, but once Hongxiu perceived his true intent and actually dared to warn Cao Mulan, how could Xiahou Zun possibly let her live?

Xiahou Zun felt no pity whatsoever for Hongxiu. He stepped over her corpse and followed in Cao Mulan’s footsteps. He wasn’t in a hurry. As he walked he said, "Mulan, you don’t need to be afraid. Hongxiu has a twisted heart; she’s always been sowing discord between us, father and daughter. How could I ever hurt my own daughter?"

Cao Mulan stumbled toward the elevator, only to discover the elevator was already out of order. Someone must have tampered with it in advance. Yan Hong was dead, Xu Chunliang was still unconscious, and Hongxiu couldn’t have done this—if it were her, she wouldn’t have warned Mulan to flee. The only possibility left was her father.

Cao Mulan truly couldn’t understand why her father wanted to harm her. Isn’t there a saying that even a vicious tiger won’t eat its cubs? All these years of his care—had it all been an act?

Cao Mulan’s body was getting hotter and hotter. She didn’t dare stay in place. Though this Soldier Transport Path crisscrossed in all directions, with many hiding spots, when it came to familiarity with the underground, how could she compare to a father who had lived down here long-term?

At this moment Cao Mulan was utterly alone and helpless, her heart sinking toward despair. But she still refused to await death. In her chaotic mind, the image of a man and a woman entangled together kept appearing; Xu Chunliang’s face flashed again and again in her thoughts.

There was still another living person down here. Xu Chunliang was still alive. Now Cao Mulan had only one thought left: to find Xu Chunliang as quickly as possible. He was her only hope of escaping the demon’s clutches.

Cao Mulan still clearly remembered that her father had said Xu Chunliang had been thrown into the Red Dust Reincarnation Array.

Right now, Cao Mulan couldn’t even walk in a straight line; she staggered like a drunk as she fled into the Reincarnation Array.

Xiahou Zun was walking toward the entrance of the Reincarnation Array with a flashlight in hand, his face twisted in a ferocious grin. "Mulan, don’t be afraid. Let your father dote on you properly."

Cao Mulan’s consciousness was gradually blurring. She bit through her lip hard, using pain to stimulate herself to stay awake, because once she lost consciousness, she would fall into an abyss from which there was no return.

She finally saw Xu Chunliang. He was sprawled on his back in the Reincarnation Array, arms and legs spread, his life or death unknown.

Because she had run too frantically, her foot slipped; she fell beside Xu Chunliang. Ignoring the pain in her body, Cao Mulan grabbed Xu Chunliang’s arm. "Wake up, wake up!"

Xu Chunliang remained motionless. Meanwhile, Xiahou Zun’s footsteps were drawing closer and closer.

Cao Mulan was terrified and panicked, tears streaming down her face. "Xu Chunliang, wake up, I beg you, wake up!"

Light from the flashlight poured in from outside as Xiahou Zun, unhurried, stepped into her field of vision.

The beam lit up Cao Mulan’s panic-stricken face. Xiahou Zun spoke softly, almost tenderly. "Be good, don’t be afraid."

Under normal circumstances, Cao Mulan would have taken this as her father’s gentle, loving concern. But now, hearing these words, all she felt was fear and revulsion.