Chapter 909 - 875: Bridal Attire

As the small iron gate was smashed open, the wall behind Cao Mulan surprisingly slid, revealing an opening. The opening was small, barely enough for an adult to bend and pass through.

Though Cao Mulan was in a daze, her survival instincts helped her notice it first. She tugged Xu Chunliang’s arm, pushing her towards the opening, urging her to crawl in quickly.

Cao Mulan crawled in first, with Xu Chunliang closely following behind.

Xiahou Zun had already broken through the iron gate and jumped into the storeroom, rushing towards Xu Chunliang’s location at full speed, raising his right fist to attack Xu Chunliang fiercely.

The punch felt like a needle prick; it was Xu Chunliang meeting his fist with a needle, choosing not to confront him head-on under these circumstances.

Xiahou Zun withdrew his hand in time, so the needle didn’t pierce deeply. Xu Chunliang hurriedly crawled forward, accidentally hitting Cao Mulan’s protruding rear because he charged too hard, propelling her outwards. She gasped, the space ahead suddenly vanished, and her body fell straight down.

Xu Chunliang reached out to grab hold but only managed to catch one of Cao Mulan’s feet. Rather than pulling her back, he was dragged down with her due to her downward force.

Both of them fell into the water one after another. The cold water jolted Cao Mulan back to some degree of consciousness, prompting her to flail and struggle desperately.

Xu Chunliang realized she couldn’t swim, immediately holding her from behind to help her float to the surface.

Xiahou Zun had crawled to where they had fallen. Though he couldn’t see, he clearly heard their splash into the water. As he reached out, he found no path ahead, unable to swim himself.

Seeing that Xiahou Zun dared not jump after them, Xu Chunliang guessed he too couldn’t swim, feeling secretly grateful—it seemed even heaven was aiding them.

Xiahou Zun cursed viciously, "You damn lovers ruined my plans. This will be your grave."

Xu Chunliang replied, "Who dies first is still uncertain. If you dare, come down here, and we can have an honest fight."

Frustrated to the limit, Xiahou Zun, despite craving the Profound Yin Body, didn’t dare gamble with his life. After thoughtful consideration, he retraced his steps and exited.

Soon after, Xu Chunliang heard the sound of the hidden door closing, thinking Xiahou Zun leaving would be a good thing.

By the light of his phone, he looked up to see the water surface about ten meters below the point where they had fallen—probably an ancient well in a concealed grain supply route, originally to provide water for soldiers.

Xu Chunliang instructed Cao Mulan to grab the brick seams of the well wall, as he wanted to check below for any other possible escape routes.

Xu Chunliang dove into the icy well water. Though it had been around for over eighteen hundred years, the water remained clear.

At about two meters below the surface, he spotted an opening about a meter wide, noting just how good modern waterproof phones were—the flashlight bright enough to illuminate the underwater world. Xu Chunliang followed the underwater passage forward, swimming roughly five meters until he reached the end, surfacing to find another world.

A square underground space appeared before him, much larger than the secret room he had previously seen.

Xu Chunliang quickly returned the way he came, finding the dazed Cao Mulan. He pressed her acupoints to wake her, whispering, "Hold your breath, I’ll swim us across."

Cao Mulan shook her head, saying, "I can’t do it, you go... leave me behind..."

Xu Chunliang whispered in her ear, "Dying like this would be a waste."

Cao Mulan, still muddle-headed, assumed he coveted her Profound Yin Body too and sighed, "Do as you wish... I’ll listen to you..."

Once more, Xu Chunliang reminded her to hold her breath, carried Cao Mulan on his back, and dove underwater again, traversing to the adjacent underground secret room.

Xu Chunliang laid Cao Mulan on the ground, realizing she had lost consciousness, possibly never hearing his instructions in her confused state.

Xu Chunliang performed CPR, diligently providing artificial respiration until she suddenly awoke, her beautiful eyes staring fearfully at Xu Chunliang. Upon recognizing him, she instantly calmed down.

Xu Chunliang explained, "I was giving you artificial resp—" Cao Mulan abruptly wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him close, murmuring, "Xu Chunliang... save me..."

Xiahou Zun couldn’t bear leaving Cao Mulan’s Profound Yin Body behind, soon returning to toss an iron chain into the water, calling out loudly, "Grab the chain, I’ll pull you up?"

Only his echo returned from the well, Xiahou Zun thought they were deliberately silent. He sighed, "You two have two choices: either obediently climb up, or I’ll seal this opening completely, leaving you to stay here forever as lovers doomed by fate."

Mm... ah...

Xiahou Zun heard Cao Mulan’s soft moans, the sound not originating from the well bottom. Expertly tuned in, he swiveled his head but couldn’t pinpoint the source—it was a continuous series of soft cries and breaths that followed.

Xiahou Zun’s heart was pounding wildly, and he shouted: "Mulan, is that you? Where are you? What... are you doing?"

"...Chunliang... you... you..."

Xiahou Zun’s anger was burning fiercely. Anyone normal could understand what that voice represented. The iron chain in Xiahou Zun’s hand shook, striking the water surface below like a whip with a crack that sounded like fireworks.

"Wench, are you trying to provoke me deliberately? Did you shout for me to hear on purpose?"

The only response he got was the mournful sound of Cao Mulan.

Xiahou Zun was going insane. After twenty years of arduous cultivation, he finally achieved Cao Mulan’s Profound Yin body, and now it was benefiting Xu Chunliang for nothing.

He waved the iron chain in his hand, lashing the water surface repeatedly, yet the sounds persisted. If someone was underwater, they would have been shattered to pieces.

Xiahou Zun realized that the two must have escaped to a place unknown to him. The secret chambers were connected by vents, so their sounds of intimacy traveled here and were amplified by the well.

Xiahou Zun felt a stabbing pain in his Tianchi acupoint again. He reminded himself to control his emotions. Cao Mulan’s provocative sounds continued, something unimaginable given her usual arrogant character. It was all thanks to the Nine Yang Burning Yin Pill he had given her.

Xiahou Zun felt like the world’s biggest fool, carefully planning for twenty years only to end up being the groom’s best man. Time seemed to stretch painfully long, with every second tormenting Xiahou Zun. Yet, the two refused to wrap things up.

Xiahou Zun said bitterly: "I’ll make you both become wandering spirits!" He was almost certain that Cao Mulan’s Profound Yin body was no more, meaning she had lost her value.

Driven to the brink of frustration, Xiahou Zun began sealing the entrances to the secret chamber one by one. After withdrawing from the side chamber, he finally couldn’t hear Cao Mulan’s maddening voice. Xiahou Zun returned to his training chamber based on memory, took a pill from a porcelain bottle and swallowed it, then opened a corner urn, burying his face inside to cleanse his temporarily blinded eyes.

When his face left the urn, he tried opening his eyes. The scenery ahead was hazy, but it was a significant improvement compared to earlier.

Xiahou Zun pried up a floor tile in the corner, revealing a bronze dragon head. He grabbed and twisted the dragon head counterclockwise twice, resulting in a booming sound inside the passage to the reincarnation array. A massive stone fell from above, blocking the passage completely.

This stone was known as Dragon-Falling Stone, typically used to seal tomb passages. If grave robbers triggered the mechanism, the Dragon-Falling Stone would block the tomb entrance, burying them alive as the tomb owner’s companions.

This supply and troop passage had multiple mechanisms for sealing passages. Originally, these were designed to resist enemy invasion. If Xiahou Zun hadn’t lost all hope, he wouldn’t have resorted to such extreme measures with Cao Mulan. Since she could no longer be attained, he had to destroy her.

Cao Mulan entered a surreal world, seeing the surging ocean waves and a beautiful giant whale riding the winds and waves, diving and surfacing repeatedly. After an indeterminate amount of time, a red sun rose from the east.

The giant whale’s massive body emerged above the surface, spraying a towering white water column into the sky, gleaming under the golden sunlight.

In the distance, volcanoes erupted simultaneously, flames and smoke blocking out the sky. Volcanic ash danced like snowflakes, eventually settling into a blood-red desert. As the moon rose, a rocket spewed flames and white smoke, shooting into the vast sky, shaking the entire world.

Cao Mulan felt Xu Chunliang’s body tremble violently, instinctively hugging him tightly, soon realizing the trembling wasn’t from the ground, but Xu Chunliang himself.

Xu Chunliang used Yang to suppress Yin, neutralizing the lethal Profound Yin Qi that could have killed Cao Mulan. In fact, he absorbed all the Profound Yin Qi into his own body.

Cao Mulan was reborn through exposure to this essence.

Xu Chunliang sensed the ground trembling and murmured: "Oh no, that old guy is up to no good again."

Cao Mulan gently replied: "Ignore him."

Boom! Another rumbling sound came from outside, causing the pool behind them to swell significantly, spilling over its edges onto the ground.

Xu Chunliang said: "We must leave now."

Cao Mulan wasn’t scared at all, certain Xu Chunliang wouldn’t abandon her.

Xu Chunliang picked up his clothes and dressed quickly, but noticed Cao Mulan didn’t have much clothing left, so he handed her his jacket: "Here, make do with this."

Cao Mulan’s Nine Yang Burning Yin Pill poison had been entirely purged, and her mind returned to its usual clarity and rationality. She bashfully turned away and donned Xu Chunliang’s jacket.

Xu Chunliang watched the rising water level, realizing Xiahou Zun must have activated some mechanism.

Cao Mulan gathered her disheveled long hair, her beautiful eyes surveying the surroundings. She had never been here before, seemingly unaware of the many secrets within this supply passage.