The No.1 Undercover in the Immortal World-Chapter 339 - 328: Jiang Chenyu, This Name is Unlucky, Huh?
The Flower Fairy’s hostility was no longer disguised; Jiang Chenyu subconsciously circulated the True Qi within her body, only to feel it stagnate and unresponsive.
"You...you’ve poisoned me?"
"It’s not poison, it’s Concentration Powder."
The Flower Fairy said coldly, holding the Sky-splitter in her hand.
Jiang Chenyu’s heart sank; Concentration Powder wasn’t poison but a medicinal aid for cultivation, requiring several precious spiritual medicines to concoct.
As a cultivator reached the Upper Realm, the size of their Qi Sea remained relatively unchanged; at that point, cultivators could seek a higher quality of True Qi.
Just as water can be gaseous or liquid, Upper Realm cultivators pursue the liquefaction of True Qi. However, True Qi isn’t water; it won’t turn liquid merely by high compression, which is why Concentration Powder was developed.
The effect of this medicine is to strengthen the cohesion of True Qi. Once ingested, it helps to compress True Qi and transform it into droplets of True Essence.
Taking Concentration Powder causes True Qi to stagnate for a short period; the same applies to True Essence. Only after cultivating and digesting the powder will it restore, usually taken during seclusion.
She was easily caught off guard precisely because Concentration Powder was non-toxic. The Flower Fairy suddenly doing this clearly indicated a premeditated plan.
She was a disciple who was both shrewd and intelligent, possessing the makings of a great general. Now that she came directly to her with a knife in hand, she likely had a foolproof strategy. Jiang Chenyu feared her chances were slim.
She had been careless!
"I have treated you well, why are you doing this to me!"
Jiang Chenyu was quite heartbroken; the two disciples she had nurtured with utmost care, the first was deceived by a man and willingly gave up the position of Saintess; the second, the Flower Fairy, was now trying to seize her position as Palace Master.
She wasn’t particularly power-hungry; the relationship between the Palace Master and the Saintess was like that between an Emperor and the Crown Prince. Outsiders would naturally lash out with malicious speculations, and now the Flower Fairy rose so rapidly and dominantly as the Saintess.
But Jiang Chenyu asked herself if she harbored such insidious thoughts; she imparted the secret supreme teachings of Guanghan Palace without reservations. Even when the Flower Fairy acquired a Divine Artifact, she, as a master, had never schemed to take it for herself; she merely envied it a little.
The only thing she hadn’t handed over immediately was her position as Palace Master, which was understandable. The Flower Fairy had not yet mastered the highest level of the Taiyin True Scripture, and had only recently broken through to the Celestial Knowing Realm; she lacked both the strength and prestige to inherit the position of Palace Master.
That’s why Jiang Chenyu asked this question, to which the Flower Fairy sneered, "You indeed regard me as your successor, but do you remember, fifty-seven years ago, when you razed Thousand Mechanism Valley to the ground? I was hiding inside a Puppet Beast and saw the massacre you carried out. Back then, I wanted to ask you, does being weak justify oppression by the strong?"
"Thousand Mechanism Valley...you are a descendant of Thousand Mechanism Valley?"
Jiang Chenyu was stunned for a moment, not expecting the Flower Fairy to have come for revenge from the beginning. Seeing the hatred in her eyes, Jiang Chenyu felt less aggrieved than before.
If the Flower Fairy harbored vengeance from the start, no amount of kindness from her would have changed her.
At least she, as a master, hadn’t done anything wrong.
"Yes, the Valley Master of Thousand Mechanism Valley was my mother. So before you die, answer me: should the weak just die? Do you now regret the sins you committed back then?"
"It’s not about the weak deserving to die. At that time, we received information that Thousand Mechanism Valley was colluding with the Demon Race, attempting to steal the Demons’ power. We of the Orthodox Sects couldn’t just stand by and had to intervene, asking Thousand Mechanism Valley to cooperate with an investigation. You resisted to the death, leaving us no choice but to fight. Even though no evidence was found afterward, the obstinate resistance of Thousand Mechanism Valley was highly suspicious.
Even now, with a knife at my throat, I would not regret it; we acted with clear consciences back then."
"Well spoken with a clear conscience, then die!"
Upon hearing those words ’clear conscience,’ the Flower Fairy was so enraged that she almost lost her reason.
As she struck with the Sky-splitter, a light shield appeared in front of Jiang Chenyu.
Despite her True Essence nearly stagnating, Jiang Chenyu could still employ some techniques. However, in the face of the Sky-splitter, the light shield instantly shattered. Jiang Chenyu was taken aback and could only rely on her Immortal Garment for protection, but how could an Immortal Artifact withstand a Divine Artifact? Especially since the Sky-splitter was a Divine Artifact of the rending way. With a few slashes, several cuts appeared in Jiang Chenyu’s Immortal Garment.
Jiang Chenyu knew her chances were slim and couldn’t count on anyone for rescue at this point.
If this had been a normal outing for a Palace Master, there would have been several Elders or maidservants aboard the Cloud Boat, which would have given the Flower Fairy more to worry about if she intended to attack.
But now, in a wartime state, there were just three of them on this ship. Recalling that Zhang Biyu had also drunk the fruit wine given by the Flower Fairy, Jiang Chenyu felt almost desperate.
Jump through the window and flee!
Jiang Chenyu decisively leapt down.
What she didn’t know was that although Zhang Biyu had drunk the wine, she was quite alright.
Even Zhang Biyu herself didn’t know that she had been to the brink of death at Ghost Gate and returned.
The reason was simply the words she spoke.
According to the Flower Fairy’s plan, she was supposed to kill both of them and then pin the murder of Jiang Chenyu on Zhang Biyu. After all, Zhang Biyu was affiliated with the Demon Sect, so people would believe her, a Disciple of the Righteous Path with untainted roots, or a member of the Demon Sect who vanished without a trace?
However, after hearing Zhang Biyu’s explanation of why the White Lotus Sect rebelled, all five of the Flower Fairy’s personalities were touched.
Moreover, those past enemies did not include anyone from the Three Great Demon Sects.
If she indulged in indiscriminate killing to avenge herself, especially killing a good person, then what made her any different from those she wanted to slay?
It was for this reason that the Flower Fairy changed her strategy in a short time. Zhang Biyu wasn’t poisoned—she was perfectly fine.
Upon hearing the noise, she hurried over to investigate, only to see a hole broken in the cabin. The Flower Fairy was unconscious on the ground, her life or death unknown, while Jiang Chenyu was nowhere to be found.
Lifting the Flower Fairy, Jiang Chenyu leaped out through the hole and saw Jiang Chenyu being struck in the abdomen by a woman in white, who then delivered several more blows to her chest. Jiang Chenyu spit out mouthfuls of blood and had already lost consciousness.
"Stop!"
Zhang Biyu shouted, releasing streaks of white lotuses. The masked woman in white, upon seeing Zhang Biyu, kicked Jiang Chenyu into the river without hesitation and, not even rattled by Zhang Biyu’s presence, quickly fled.
Judging by the surroundings, this must be the Gan River, which connects to the Dragon River and is a smaller river that runs north to south.
For a moment, Zhang Biyu was torn, uncertain whether to save someone or to give chase.
Then, a streak of sword light flashed by, and she saw a white glow pursuing the white-clothed woman, the sound of a voice trailing in the air, "You go save them..."
Whoever it was, it was unclear, but for now, she had to go look for Jiang Chenyu.
From the looks of it, the odds were not in her favor.
Cultivators are not immortal; if the heart is destroyed, there is little chance of survival. And that woman attacked with such ferocity that Jiang Chenyu’s meridians must have been shattered to pieces. Moreover, having fallen into the water, she would have perished even if she hadn’t died from the blows.
The current of the Gan River was strong, and suddenly, several small whirlpools appeared. Even Zhang Biyu’s Divine Sense, when it swept below, was repelled.
Goodness, is it possible I could encounter the emergence of a relic while trying to save someone!
Wouldn’t that mean Jiang had perished?
Alas, if only she had chosen a better name, her fate wouldn’t have been that of a fish sinking in the river!
Zhang Biyu dove into the water, searching for Jiang Chenyu, but failed to find her. If Jiang had been carried away by the current to the Dragon River, it would be even harder to locate her.
"May Jiang have escaped calamity and found fortune," she hoped.
Emerging from the river, Zhang Biyu could only press her hands together and offer a silent prayer.
Helpless, unable to save someone nor even find them.
Jiang, most likely, was gone. With severe injuries and unconsciousness, falling into the river made drowning a charity, she might otherwise be swept away to the sea by the current. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢
Of course, it would be overly optimistic to expect to be carried out to sea. Most likely, she’d be eaten by fishes along the way.
But we still have to hope: May she be safe.
Back on shore, looking at the still-unconscious Flower Fairy, Zhang Biyu couldn’t help but wonder who could be strong enough to incapacitate the Flower Fairy and leave Jiang Chenyu with no chance to retaliate.
When had such a person appeared?
Zhang Biyu felt that something was amiss.
Elsewhere, Lin Yu pursued the white-clad woman. Her speed was incredibly fast, and from a distance, she launched a sword Qi, forcing the woman to dodge. Capitalizing on this evasion, Lin Yu caught up quickly, sword in hand once more.
Lin Yu’s assault was fierce, yet the woman in white was not weak; their fight roused waves sky high. Lin Yu noted the woman’s exceptional hand-to-hand combat skills and her iron-like body, immensely strong.
"I must see who you are!"
Lin Yu aimed her sword at the woman’s veil. The woman’s stature was distinctive, impressively tall, comparable only to that of Fang Yu.
Her strength was indeed greater; after several forceful attacks, the woman’s veil finally came off. Lin Yu was stunned.
"Elder Hu!"
It was Hu Yuling; no wonder her build was so conspicuous. She had, subconsciously, thought of Hu Yuling when comparing with Fang Yu, but she had not expected that after defecting from the Shenxiao Sect, Hu Yuling would lie in wait here to ambush Jiang Chenyu.
Seeing her identity exposed by Lin Yu, "Hu Yuling" became desperate and, with a punch to the water, created a giant wave. Lin Yu’s sword struck, but it hit nothing but air; by the time the water cleared, the woman had disappeared.
Lin Yu’s pursuit failed, and she had no choice but to give up and return to find Zhang Biyu and the Flower Fairy.
The Flower Fairy was still unconscious, an occurrence similar to the one they had experienced before on Purple Cloud Mountain, the dream-like state.
It was, indeed, another of Hu Yuling’s spells.
"Little Flower, wake up."
Lin Yu pinched the Flower Fairy’s philtrum, and finally, she awakened. The Flower Fairy, upon regaining consciousness, looked bewildered and said, "Huh? Sister Yu, what are you doing here?"
She looked around in confusion at Lin Yu, then turned her head towards Zhang Biyu, gradually realizing that she was no longer on the boat, but by the river’s edge.
"What happened?"
She looked around as if searching for someone, then asked, "Where is my master?"
Lin Yu, with a grave expression, said, "You were attacked. Your master has suffered severe injuries and has fallen into the Gan River..."
