Chapter 17: The Protective Jade Pendant

“Xiyao!” Qiao You rushed straight to the backyard and saw Xiyao surrounded by disciples. He was lying on the cold floor of the woodshed, seemingly unconscious. Qiao You’s expression instantly changed. He hurried forward, lifting Xiyao into his arms and checked him carefully. Upon confirming it was only a minor injury, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiao Tangqing was a step slower. When he arrived and saw Xiyao cradled in Qiao You’s arms, he hesitated briefly before asking, “How is he?”

“Temporarily stable, just some external injuries. He fainted,” Qiao You said, looking down at the man in his arms. “It’s likely he was drugged. I’ll take him back inside.”

“All right.” Xiao Tangqing followed behind. He scanned the entire backyard and then ordered, “Two disciples guard the inn, four guard the backyard; the others rest. We continue our journey tomorrow.”

They had already turned over the bodies of the dead evil cultivators, but found no clues.

Since Xiyao was injured, Qiao You volunteered to take care of him, while Xiao Tangqing took a separate room. Passing by Ji Guanqi, Xiao Tangqing paused momentarily but said nothing, returning straight to his room.

After closing the door, a scroll appeared in Xiao Tangqing’s hand.

Though tattered and worn, the scroll exuded a faint yet unmistakable aura of danger. Xiao Tangqing sealed it with his spiritual energy and skimmed through it. His eyes flashed with surprise before, after much hesitation, he carefully stored the scroll in his dimensional pouch.

He had discovered it inadvertently near the innkeeper’s corpse. With years of experience in dealing with evil cultivator techniques, he knew this was an extraordinarily powerful dark cultivation manual.

“Good and evil have no true boundaries,” Xiao Tangqing murmured softly as he sat cross-legged on the bed. “Strength is the only righteous path.”

Meanwhile, Ji Guanqi stood outside Wu Xingbai’s door, pacing back and forth for the fourth or fifth time. Finally, Wu Xingbai spoke abruptly, “If you have something to say, speak.”

“Master, did you already realize that junior brother Xiyao had been replaced?” Ji Guanqi asked respectfully.

Wu Xingbai opened his eyes, his gaze calm and steady. Without uttering a word, Ji Guanqi understood the answer. He bowed again, “I understand, Master. It’s late. Please rest; I will keep watch outside.”

“Come in,” Wu Xingbai said. “Rest with me.”

“I dare not.” Ji Guanqi was reluctant to get close to Wu Xingbai. If he could escape, he would have moved to the farthest guest room, even the woodshed. Now, he could only say, “I will stand guard for you, Master. You should rest.”

Wu Xingbai had initially felt that Ji Guanqi was less attentive toward him than before. Hearing this, his heart brightened, and he smiled faintly at the figure outside the door, convinced he had worried unnecessarily.

Ji Guanqi cared for him just as before, wholeheartedly.

“Come in.” Wu Xingbai rose and pulled Ji Guanqi inside without waiting for a reply, closing the door behind him. “Rest now. With me here, no one will disturb us.”

Ji Guanqi was speechless.

He wanted to say that even with Wu Xingbai here before, evil cultivators still attacked. But before he could speak, he sensed a subtle shift in the surrounding spiritual energy. He carefully examined it, and his expression changed abruptly. Looking up at Wu Xingbai in surprise, he said, “Master, did you use the Fangtian Halberd?”

Wu Xingbai instinctively averted his gaze, hesitated briefly, then nodded. “Not quite. It’s the ‘Drawing the Ground Prison’ technique.”

***

Ji Guanqi recalled Wu Xingbai had used this move before—without wielding his life weapon.

The entire inn was sealed within a specific boundary, instantly forming a formation. No evil cultivator, not even a fly, could enter. Ji Guanqi knew Wu Xingbai had no intention to fight yet but hadn’t expected him to casually cast such a powerful trap. He didn’t think it was for his sake; thinking of the injured Xiyao, he immediately found reason for Wu Xingbai’s action.

“Yes, Master.” With no choice, Ji Guanqi rested in the room, too cautious to sit on the bed, instead sitting cross-legged on the floor, closing his eyes to cultivate.

“Get on the bed,” Wu Xingbai suddenly said. “I’m going out for a while. You rest well.”

With that, Wu Xingbai pushed the door open and left, leaving Ji Guanqi alone and confused. After glancing at the bed, he decided it was better not to cause trouble and resumed meditating on the floor.

Where Wu Xingbai went, Ji Guanqi didn’t know or care. The next morning, as they resumed their journey, Ji Guanqi noticed the Fangtian Halberd was no longer by Wu Xingbai’s side but did not ask about it.

“Master,” Xiyao came over as soon as he woke, bowing respectfully. “Last night’s attack by the evil cultivators caused trouble for you and the senior brothers. I apologize.”

“How is your injury?” Wu Xingbai asked calmly.

“Not serious,” Xiyao replied after a pause. “It won’t delay our journey.”

Ji Guanqi watched the group standing together—a true master-disciple circle. Standing by the side, he felt out of place.

He laughed lightly, feeling somewhat relieved, and touched the sword in his arms.

See, only they were of the same kind, able to walk together. Those who were not, forcing their way in, would only end in death and ruin. Truly, nothing in this world could be forced.

Unfortunately, Ji Guanqi only understood this after dying once.

“Senior Brother,” a disciple nearby asked, “what should we do with the bodies of the four evil cultivators?”

“Burn them,” Ji Guanqi said. “I don’t know what cultivation method they practiced. Leaving their bodies behind would be a hazard. Burning is the safest course.”

“Yes, Senior Brother,” the disciple replied immediately.

After tidying up, the group set off again toward Luo Town. Qiao You and Xiao Tangqing flanked Xiyao, standing on either side, fussing over him. Xiyao kept saying, “I’m fine, thank you, Senior Brother,” countless times along the way.

Ji Guanqi, however, never spoke from start to finish, trailing behind Wu Xingbai with a somewhat dull expression—the very look Qiao You found most irritating.

“Master,” Ji Guanqi suddenly spoke as they neared Luo Town. “We should arrive in half a day. May I go ahead to scout the situation? I respectfully request your permission.”

If Ji Guanqi remembered correctly, Luo Town was deserted. Last time he came, the small village resembled a living hell—every household hung white flags, coffins lined the streets, and many corpses were too decomposed even for coffins.

Evil cultivators were universally condemned because they delighted in slaughtering innocents wherever they went.

Thinking of this, Ji Guanqi recalled Xiao Tangqing, who had practiced dark cultivation techniques in his past life.

“Junior will accompany Senior Brother,” Xiyao said, stepping forward respectfully. Though injured, his face was pale but resolute. “I was careless last night and allowed the ambush. This journey down the mountain is to improve my skills. If I can go with Senior Brother, I am sure to learn much.”

“Xiyao is injured and shouldn’t exert himself,” Ji Guanqi refused without hesitation.

“You need not go. Rest well. Guanqi and I will go see,” Wu Xingbai said.

Ji Guanqi’s expression changed instantly; he quickly amended, “However, Junior thinks what Xiyao said is reasonable. I’m willing to go with him.”

Given the choice between going with Wu Xingbai or Xiyao, Ji Guanqi would choose Xiyao every time.

No matter who he picked, it would never be Wu Xingbai.

More than Xiyao’s earlier betrayal, Ji Guanqi could not accept the fatal blow from Wu Xingbai. He had never expected much from Xiyao, but he once placed complete trust in Wu Xingbai.

In the end, neither Xiyao, Xiao Tangqing, nor Qiao You could kill him. Only Wu Xingbai could.

How ironic.

Wu Xingbai lowered his gaze, eyes fixed on his eldest disciple with an intense pressure that made Ji Guanqi speak up, “Master.”

“You will go with Xiao Tangqing,” Wu Xingbai said, averting his gaze and waving his hand. “Be careful. If there’s trouble, crush this.”

He tossed a jade pendant to Ji Guanqi, who looked down to find it was a protective talisman. Wu Xingbai continued, “If you face danger, crush it. It contains my spiritual energy. A single powerful strike will have about thirty percent of my attack strength… It will protect you.”

In truth, Wu Xingbai meant that by crushing the pendant, he would immediately sense Ji Guanqi’s location and come to aid him.

But for some reason, his intuition warned him not to say this aloud, lest the result be something he did not want to hear.

“Thank you, Master,” Ji Guanqi said, raising his hand in acknowledgment.

He tucked the heavy pendant at his waist and set off with Xiao Tangqing for Luo Town. Watching their figures vanish as they soared on their swords, Wu Xingbai withdrew his gaze. Qiao You immediately felt the pressure multiply.

“Master,” Qiao You stepped forward to speak, but Wu Xingbai raised his hand again, silencing him.

Everyone could sense Wu Xingbai’s foul mood. No one dared to make a sound. The once silent group fell into an eerie stillness, heads bowed as they hurried along, not even daring to breathe heavily.