"What is this? A mirror world?" Original content can be found at novel★fire.net
Unlike the dry land outside, the soil inside the gate was somewhat moist, as if it had been soaked for years on end.
"Hm? Xu Yi, why did you bring this kid in!" A voice, old yet powerful with a hint of surprise, came from the mist.
As everyone moved forward, the fog dissipating for hundreds of miles around Zhou Yuqing, they finally saw the source of the voice.
An elder with silver hair as old as the voice, exuding an awe-inspiring presence, had a knife similar yet different from the one in Xu Yi’s hand placed beside him.
Now, this elder was sitting on a large rock in front of Liang Yi and the others, with a bonfire burning fiercely in front of him, its intense heat felt from afar.
In the elder’s hand was a stick, speared with a chicken that had been roasted until oil sizzled on its skin.
"There was a bit of an unexpected situation, so I brought this girl over." Xu Yi strode to the forefront unabashedly, tearing off a juicy chunk of chicken flesh without any reservation. He didn’t mind the heat, didn’t sprinkle any seasoning, and just threw it into his mouth to savor the flavor.
"Grandpa Liu? Why are you here?" Liu Rouxin blinked in disbelief, a bit puzzled as she asked.
"Oh, this... let your master explain it to you," said the Grandpa Liu in Liu Rouxin’s mouth, his face filled with a benevolent smile upon seeing Liu Rouxin. If it wasn’t for the lingering terrifying killing intent he exuded, Liang Yi would have really thought he was a kind old grandpa.
"This matter is a long story. Come, sit down here, and let me tell you about it." Xu Yi crossed his legs and sat down on a large rock by his side.
Liang Yi and the others perked up at the mention of Xu Yi starting to recount the story and promptly found places to sit down.
"As for this matter... um... you all know the cause. The third princess of the Xuanzhou Immortal Dynasty was assassinated by the Devouring Spirit Sect, which resulted in Fang Zhi’s partner also being grievously wounded, so naturally, Chen Hua was furious." Xu Yi thrust his large knife into the ground, pulling a chicken leg from the sizzling chicken, eating while talking.
Liang Yi sneaked a glance at Zhou Yuqing and saw that even though the person involved was herself, she still displayed no change in expression. Moreover, it seemed that Xu Yi had actually never met Zhou Yuqing before; otherwise, he wouldn’t have fallen for her at first sight.
"Chen Hua’s little aunt perished, and naturally, Chen Hua was extremely enraged," Xu Yi continued, slapping his thigh in a resentful manner, "I don’t know which son of a bitch did it, who directly shifted Chen Hua’s wrath onto our Blood Control Sect, making us bear the blame."
"If it just stopped there, it’d be alright, but if Chen Hua really dared to make a scene at our Blood Control Sect, even if I couldn’t beat him, I wouldn’t let him off easily."
"Ah? So what happened after that? Didn’t Chen Hua make a mess at our Blood Control Sect in the end?" Liu Rouxin felt a bit downhearted. What was the point of these bold words now? The events had long passed, and it sounded like she was rebuking after the facts.
"Alas, wasn’t it because our own Blood Control Sect had some internal problems?" Sitting beside Xu Yi was Liu Yishou, wearing an equally frustrated expression. Both Blood Control Sect heavyweights felt angry just mentioning the matter.
"What problems, exactly?" Liu Rouxin keenly sensed that this might just be the crux of the entire issue.
"When Chen Hua came looking, he didn’t start with violence; we had a calm discussion, trying to solve the problem. But who would have thought, as soon as Elder Jia Xian appeared, everything we had done before was in vain."
"Who is Jia Xian meow?" Mr. Orange directly inquired.
"One of the two Supreme Elders of our Blood Control Sect, but he was seriously injured by the Banished Immortal in that previous incident, and should still be healing deep within the Blood Sea," Liu Rouxin explained on one side. But then something occurred to her, and she turned her head to ask Liu Yishou, who was somewhat silent:
"By the way, Grandfather Liu, didn’t you say you were healing with Elder Jia?"
Liu Yishou’s eyebrows quirked up, and his hand unconsciously reached up to his smooth silver-white hair, caressing it.
"We did heal together, it’s just that the method might be a bit different from what you think."
Liang Yi’s expression shifted. Although he knew it was impossible, why did this sentence always lead him to think impure thoughts? Could it really be that he’s seeing everything in a yellow hue because he’s wearing yellow-tinted glasses?
Uncle Orange also thought somewhat astray, his gaze strangely sizing up the old man, only to feel that looks can be deceiving. It couldn’t possibly be the healing method he was thinking of, could it?
Su Youyi looked at her senior brother, then at Uncle Orange. Although she didn’t know exactly what they were thinking, the expressions on their faces completely gave them away.
"What do you mean? And weren’t you healing? What is this place?" Liu Rouxin, however, didn’t catch on to anything and continued to ask with a curious face.
"Well, let me explain that to you..." Xu Yi took the initiative to take over the conversation, but before he could continue, a sudden shout interrupted him.
Zhou Yuqing’s gaze suddenly turned sharp, her fair hand waved lightly, and flames whirled around her, with the mythical bird revealing itself from the sky, its cries resounding in all directions!
Zhou Yuqing didn’t hold back at all in this move, the intense and overwhelming flames surged in all directions, turning into countless Vermilion Birds circling.
Under such an offensive, the figure hiding in the thick fog was directly forced out, clumsily dealing with the flames which were somewhat restraining for him.
"Is that... Elder Jia!?" Liu Rouxin’s expression changed, she stood up sharply and spoke out, her eyes filled with surprise and doubt.
The Elder Jia Xian who appeared in front of her was completely different from the Elder Jia of her memories! Liang Yi and Su Youyi also furrowed their brows and stood up to examine the gaunt figure in the distance.
"Ah, here we go again." Xu Yi and Liu Yishou sighed softly, shaking their heads helplessly before picking up the knife beside them.
"Grandfather Liu, what’s going on?" It was only after observing for a while that Liu Rouxin was sure that this person, who now looked very different from Elder Jia, was really the kind-hearted and wine-loving Grandfather Jia Xian.
"To put it in one sentence, Jia Xian rashly attempted to absorb the Blood Demon’s Blood Core to break through to the Great Perfection of the Seventh Realm. After his failure, he turned to the Devouring Spirit Sect to seek a way out but ended up with his cultivation technique going out of control, turning into what he is now," Liu Yishou said, looking at his almost unrecognizable old friend with a complex expression.
"This..." Uncle Orange scratched his head, at a loss for words, only feeling that this Jia Xian was pretty bold.
The cultivation technique of the Blood Control Sect was already somewhat unorthodox to begin with. Wanting to absorb the core of the Blood Demon and then turning to the Devouring Spirit Sect, that is, turning to the Abyss. Wow, he really knows how to play big!