The Great Wei Music Bureau

Chapter 471 The Return Journey (Page 12)

Last time, we talked about how Li Yi used the Five Elements Wood Sword given to him by the Old Man of the Moon to slash at the Gu God Grass, aiming to cut off its resentment. But if this sword could even cut off resentment, why couldn't it directly kill the Gu God? Also, what happened to Li Yi? Please read on to find out.

Lanze landed beside Wuya and reached out to touch her forehead to wake her up.

"Wuya, where are Brother You, Wei Le, and Kong Qinglin?"

Uya told Lanze everything she witnessed before she fainted. However, in her opinion, Li Yi ultimately chose to perish together with the Gu God Grass. The latter shook his head repeatedly after hearing this.

Lanze refused to believe Wuya's words, refused to believe that this battle had cost her her dearest loved ones. It wasn't until Wuya took Youtu's body out of the tie-dye bag that Lanze was unable to refute anything Wuya had said.

Lanze tried to find the remaining spiritual power of Youtu, but to no avail, meaning she couldn't even create a walking corpse. At that moment, Lanze completely broke down, holding Youtu's body and weeping uncontrollably. Wuya, who had also lost her beloved, couldn't comfort Lanze and could only cry with her…

When the two sisters could cry no more, Lanze looked at the strange tree in front of them and suddenly said, "Old Man of the Moon! Wuya, it was Old Man of the Moon who saved you! Since Old Man of the Moon could save you, he can definitely save Wei Le too! I've already lost Brother You, I can't lose him too! Come on! Come with me to find Old Man of the Moon, maybe there will be some turning point!"

So the two arrived at the Ailao Secret Realm and knelt down before the Moon Laurel Tree. Five-colored light converged into a human form, and the Old Man of the Moon reached out to help them up.

"Alright, I know why you've come. Get up and speak." The Old Man of the Moon walked up to Lan Ze, grabbed a wooden sword, and handed it to him. He then said, "This is what he promised to give to Xiang Ying. That girl will be coming to find him soon. When that happens, you will give this sword to her."

"The Matchmaker..."

The Matchmaker interrupted Lan Ze and said, "Don't worry, he's not dead. But you should announce to the outside world that he has perished together with the God of Gu. After all, he was using a false identity. Saying this will help him escape from Western Chu."

Upon hearing this, Lan Ze finally felt relieved and asked, "Where is he?"

"Although his life is not in danger, his injuries are naturally quite serious, and he is currently healing."

Can I see him?

The Old Man of the Moon shook his head and said, "No, besides healing his wounds, he also needs to suppress the Gu God with his own will. This is a critical moment. If he hears your voice or senses your spiritual power, he might be distracted. If he fails, the Gu God can take over his body and revive again. Nobody wants to see that happen, don't you think?"

"Disciple understands, then I will trouble the Old Man of the Moon to take good care of you."

“Compared to him, Lanze, you still have your own mission.”

"Disciple understands. This battle has affected Sangchuan, and everything needs to be rebuilt. However, this is a good opportunity to let those Miao people who have left their homes return to their hometowns. But what about those demons?"

"Didn't we agree before that the demon race would be stationed in Ailao Mountain, and I just happen to be short of people to guard the mountain?"

"What if they don't want to go into the mountains?"

"That's your problem. Do I have to teach you how to intimidate them?"

"Disciple understands."

The Old Man of the Moon turned to Wuya and said, "Heiyuan has been imprisoned in Hell, but that boy performed a ritual for him and even spoke with Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, so he won't suffer any major punishment. Once his sentence is served, he can re-enter the cycle of reincarnation. You will definitely meet again in your next life, but..."

"Just what?"

"If you fail to accumulate merit in this life, your fate in the next life will likely be just as difficult."

"Then what should I do?"

“Naturally, you should accumulate more merit. First, assist Lanze and help the Miao people rebuild their homes. The Canglan River has changed course, and Lanze Lake is about to dry up. Jinglan City may not be able to stay. Go back and persuade your people to find another water source and rebuild the town.”

"Disciple understands!"

The Matchmaker nodded and said, "Yes, your heart knot has been untied, and you can now cultivate the Wood Spirit Affinity Technique, Lanze!"

"The disciple is here."

“Teach her well. Alright, you’ve asked all the questions you wanted to ask. Now you can go back. Don’t come to this Ailao Secret Realm again without my permission. I don’t like being disturbed.”

Lanze and Wuya bowed and took their leave, and only parted ways after arriving outside Jinglan City.

After the two left the Ailao Secret Realm, the Old Man of the Moon summoned a thick tree branch, waved his hand, and the branch opened, revealing Li Yi lying inside.

"Don't blame me when you wake up. This was all that crazy girl's idea. She insisted that I help you settle your worldly affairs." With that, the Old Man of the Moon waved his hand, tossing out a few leaves that were blown away by the wind from the Ailao Secret Realm and drifted into the distance…

On the other side, Lan Ze arrived at the demon stronghold alone. Kong Qinglin, having lost his feathers, refused to see her, so he had his younger brother Kong Qingye and Li Danshan receive Lan Ze.

"What brings Fairy Chan'e to my elder brother?"

"As agreed before, you should go into the mountains now."

"Oh, my brother has already explained this. We just finished a fierce battle and need some time to rest. We will move into the mountains in half a month."

"Okay, then it's settled."

Lanze returned to Sangchuan and held a funeral for Youtu. Although the scene could not be described as grand, all the people of Sangchuan attended, showing how much they loved the youngest high priest of the Witchcraft Cult. Lanze took the opportunity to announce that the God of Gu was dead, the Witchcraft Cult was renamed the Moon Worship Cult, and she would become its leader.

From then on, the witchcraft cult ceased to exist, and all Gu worms that required feeding with living people and related Gu techniques were banned, ushering in a new era for the Miao region.

Half a month later at noon, Lanze stood in front of You Tu's tomb, lost in thought. A red light streaked across the sky and landed beside Lanze with a bang. The newcomer was none other than Xiang Ying, who looked anxious. Having fought against the demon army many times, she had now also stepped into the transcendent realm.

"Why are you all alone? Where is my husband? Lanze, I'm asking you a question!"

Lan Ze took a wooden sword out of the tie-dye bag and handed it to Xiang Ying, casually saying, "He perished together with the Gu God."

"Impossible! You're lying! If he were really dead, would you be so relaxed?"

Just then, a member of the Moon Worship Cult ran over, bowed, and said, "Reporting to the Cult Leader, the Demon Stronghold has not made a sound at all; it doesn't seem like they are about to set off."

Lan Ze glanced at Xiang Ying and said coldly, "Which eye of yours saw me leisurely?" She turned to the cultist and said, "Go and inform Elder Lei to come with me to the demon stronghold." After saying that, she left Xiang Ying behind and leaped away.

"Don't go! Explain yourself!" Xiang Ying tried to stop Lan Ze by grabbing at him with her qi, but he simply turned around lightly in mid-air and dodged her. "She's also at the Transcendent Realm?"

Without a second thought, Xiang Ying immediately gave chase. When she reached Sangchuan City, Tu Xiu happened to see her and immediately shouted, "Commander Xiang!"

"Who are you? How do you know me?"

"I am Tu Xiu!"

"Tu Xiu?"

Xiang Ying stared at the walking corpse before her, her face full of questions. The corpse then recounted everything that had happened in the southern borderlands...

"So, he's really dead?"

Tu Xiu laughed, "Both personally and professionally, Wei Le's death is a good thing. Personally, he was the one who harmed me, so he deserved it. Professionally, for our Great Chu, he quelled the demon rebellion and the witchcraft scourge, so his death can be considered a death..."

With a loud bang, Tu Xiu was embedded in the ground by Xiang Ying, his body was smashed to pieces, and only his head was still barely attached to his body.

"Commander Xiang, what do you mean by this? Elder Lei just left, and there's no one to help me repair my body right now!"

Without a word, Xiang Ying smashed Tu Xiu's head with a single punch, then turned and left Sangchuan...

Let's switch the scene to Lanze's side. She and Little Corpse Girl have arrived outside the demon stronghold. Upon seeing Lanze, the little demon immediately steps forward and smiles, "Oh, isn't this Fairy Chan'e? Here to see my king again?"

With a loud crash, the little demon burst through the gate and flew straight into the tent!

"Who dares to be so insolent here!" Li Danshan shouted and charged out with his great axe, but when he saw Xiao Shimei in the distance, he immediately put away his axe and went back into the tent.

"Big brother, Lanze is here. He doesn't seem to have any good intentions."

Kong Qinglin said to Qingye, "I don't want to see her. Send her away."

Kong Qingye said helplessly, "Brother, we can't keep dragging this out like this."

"My agreement with that bastard was to take up residence in Ailao Mountain. Now that he's dead, that agreement is no longer valid. I just can't meet with people. Otherwise, given her relationship with that bastard, I would have taken her down by force!"

A strong gust of wind blew open the curtain of the main tent, and Lanze and Little Corpse Girl stepped inside. She said coldly, "Then show me how to use it."

Kong Qinglin immediately covered his head with the blanket and shouted, "I just didn't want to argue with you, but now that you've trespassed into my tent, don't blame me for being impolite! Third brother, Qingye, don't hold back! Throw them out!" This third brother was naturally Li Danshan, who had already removed Li Yi from his sworn brothers.

Li Danshan remained standing, while Kong Qingye stepped forward alone. But after drawing his sword and uttering only a single word of apology, he transformed into an ordinary green peacock, staring at Lan Ze in shock.

Kong Qinglin threw back the covers and angrily demanded, "What did you do to my brother?"

"Don't be nervous, I just used the Green Wood Seal to lock his spiritual power. Kong Qinglin, if you don't order the camp to break out and enter the mountains soon, you'll be the next one locked up! I heard you had all your feathers plucked, I really want to see what the Peacock King without a tail looks like!"

"The Old Man of the Moon actually taught you how to control the Azure Wood Seal?" Kong Qinglin looked at Li Danshan and shouted, "Third Brother, what are you standing there for? Why aren't you making a move?"

Little Corpse Girl said coldly, "Stupid ox, we're all busy rebuilding our homes, and you're just loafing around here? Go to Sangchuan right now and help everyone cut down trees and bamboo, build houses and towers! What are you standing there for? Hurry up and go!" After saying that, she casually pointed, and Lidanshan immediately revealed its true form, mooed, and then broke through the tent and ran wildly towards Sangchuan.

Lan Ze said seriously, "After all, we joined forces to deal with the Gu God before, so there's no need for things to get so tense, right? Letting the demon race settle in Ailao Mountain is also the Old Man of the Moon's idea. Surely the Peacock King wouldn't disobey the Old Man of the Moon."

With Li Danshan gone, Kong Qinglin had no more powerful allies by his side. He could only say helplessly, "Very well, then I'll go ask the Old Man of the Moon what he means by this 'crossing the river and then burning the bridge' approach. Men, break camp and head into the mountains!"

As Lanze and Xiaoshimei watched the demon army enter the Ailao Mountains, just as they were about to return to Sangchuan, Lanze suddenly stopped.

"what happened?"

"You go back first, I'll stay with them for a while longer."

"I'll stay with you."

"No need, I'm afraid I'll cause trouble without you."

“That stupid ox wouldn’t dare!” Little Corpse Girl said, but then saw Lan Ze’s serious expression and had to change her mind, saying, “Then I’ll go back and take a look first.”

"Okay, be careful on the road."

Lanze watched as Little Corpse Girl rode away on her flying ant, then immediately flew into the mountains, knowing someone was waiting for her there. Upon seeing Li Yi, Lanze threw herself into his arms.

"I thought I'd never see you again!"

"Alas, I had no choice! It was Chang'e who forced the Old Man of the Moon to spread the news of my death everywhere, saying that she would help me end those mortal marriages."

"Then why did you come to see me? Aren't you afraid she'll punish you?"

"You are officially recognized, not a worldly marriage. We can't avoid seeing anyone else, but we can't avoid seeing you."

"Hmph, you're so good at talking."

"So, is Kong Qinglin still obedient?"