Help, I’m Being Forced to Marry a Frail and Sickly Immortal Doctor! 109p2

Chapter 109: Towards the Mortal World p2

Ning Ruoque looked at the sky and very naturally walked to Yin Buran’s side, blocking most of the wind for her.

After walking for about a quarter of an hour, the little girl led the two of them to the other side of the guest house.

Unlike the quiet environment just now, this place was obviously much more noisy.

A few small courtyards were only separated by low walls, and not far away, a team of guards was stationed outside the door.

Compared to living, it was more like being uniformly monitored.

It seemed that what the woman had said was not false. Something big had indeed happened in the Taiyi Sect, but whether it was a thief or something else was still up for debate.

Seeing that the night was gradually falling, and the depths of the bamboo forest were dark, with a murderous aura, Ning Ruoque quickly pulled Yin Buran into the courtyard.

After checking that there was nothing wrong, she brushed away the thin dust on the tables and chairs and lit a lamp.

The lamplight flickered, and Yin Buran covered her mouth with her sleeve and yawned, a hint of fatigue on her face.

She propped up her head with her hand, and a strand of hair fell from behind her ear. She was too lazy to even drink the tea that was placed by her hand.

She hadn’t rested well last night, and it seemed that she wouldn’t be able to sleep well tonight either.

Ning Ruoque felt sorry for her, but she couldn’t find a good way to coax her.

So she could only discuss, “Ranran, why don’t you rest tonight? I’ll go and find Mingyue.”

With her current movement technique, she could at least come and go as she pleased in the Taiyi Sect.

Yin Buran refused without any hesitation. “Improper.”

She tapped the teacup with her fingertip. “Although Mingyue is not good at fighting, with her strength, it should not be difficult for her to escape from the Taiyi Sect.”

There was no need to specifically ask them for help.

Ning Ruoque instantly understood. So Si Mingyue had not “gone astray” and was trapped here, but something was holding her back, and she could not leave.

But in this way, things became even more difficult.

She quickly reacted. “Since Mingyue can transmit messages through a letter, she must be paying close attention to the movements on this side of the guest house.”

Yin Buran’s eyelids were half-closed, and her voice became lower and lower. “Mm, let’s look for clues first. Or, can we make some noise to get her attention?”

The candlelight suddenly shot up a little, and the shadows of the two of them stretched, and they were close together.

Ning Ruoque stared at the wall shadow for a long while, then got up to look for clues.

She did not dare to go far, afraid that something would happen to Yin Buran.

So she only circled around the nearby courtyards to check if she could find the marks and secret codes that the four of them used.

Unfortunately, she found nothing. Instead, the sky was getting darker and darker, and thick clouds began to gather above.

There was a damp smell of soil in the air, as if a massive storm was brewing.

Ning Ruoque climbed over the wall and into the house, and a clanging sound of a sword just happened to come from her ear.

Immediately after, a white light cut through the sky, and even the layers of clouds were illuminated.

She stared for a while, pushed the door open and into the house, and the window was blown by the wind, making a cracking sound.

Yin Buran happened to be leaning against the window, looking out, her eyes half-closed, looking listless.

The two of them’s gazes met, and Ning Ruoque said with certainty, “This is a move from the Sword Pavilion.”

She had fought with the people of the Sword Pavilion no less than a hundred times and would never be mistaken, but this sword move seemed to be subtly different.

Yin Buran was lost in thought for a moment, and then said in a hoarse voice, “The Immortal Alliance has been investigating the Taiyi Sect recently. The Sword Pavilion might be here for this.”

“It’s a good thing. The more people, the more chaotic it is, and the easier it is for us to fish in troubled waters.”

Although she said so.

But raindrops suddenly came, and they hit the windowsill with a pitter-patter, like some kind of chaotic drumbeat.

In the distance, the guards, holding lanterns, could be vaguely seen walking through the heavy rain, and there were many of them.

Ning Ruoque felt a sense of panic for no reason, so she took out her own sword from the small medicine box. “Ranran… I have a bad premonition.”

“If anything happens, you must remember to hide behind me.”

Yin Buran stared at Ning Ruoque for a long while, then nonchalantly leaned over and rested her chin on Ning Ruoque’s shoulder.

“…Alright.”

It was clear that she had not taken Ning Ruoque’s words to heart at all, and she was as at ease as if she were on vacation.

Ning Ruoque was silent.

She took a deep breath, and while she was always on guard against the movements outside, she couldn’t help but soothe Yin Buran’s fur.

Her fingers passed through the cool, water-like hair, and she actually had a strange sense of security.

So she could find time to think. Just as Yin Buran had said, if they wanted to find Si Mingyue, they either had to take the initiative to make a move, or wait for the right opportunity.

Looking at Yin Buran’s appearance, she seemed to be more certain that it was the latter.

The rain was getting heavier and heavier, accompanied by occasional muffled thunder. The air was unusually stuffy, and one felt as if they were a fish out of water, a little breathless.

Ning Ruoque pulled Yin Buran a little closer into her arms.

Another clap of thunder, and Ning Ruoque covered Yin Buran’s ears, but she heard a cry of alarm in the rain.

“Oh no! The medicine field is on fire!”

After a few breaths of hesitation, Ning Ruoque climbed onto the roof to take a look. However, just as she had stepped on the windowsill, her hem was tugged.

She turned her head, and Yin Buran was reaching out to her, and she even said with perfect justification, “If you don’t take me with you, how can I hide behind you?”

Ning Ruoque: “…”

Ning Ruoque put a conical hat on Yin Buran at the fastest speed, held her by the waist, and leaped onto the roof as lightly as a hawk.

The sound of her footsteps was completely drowned out by the sound of the rain, and no one noticed.

Looking into the distance, the firelight shot up to the sky, almost illuminating half the sky.

The heavy rain poured down, and the bean-sized raindrops hit people, causing a sharp pain.

In this situation, the fire in the medicine field was still burning fiercely and strangely, which was clearly not normal.

Could it be Si Mingyue’s doing?

Without having time to think, the people who had been putting out the fire in a scattered manner had a new movement.

The person in the lead shouted, “The Sect Master has given an order! Retreat! No one is allowed to get close!”

The next second, a vast sword qi came from a distance, and a cultivator who had not had time to dodge was affected and was sent flying several feet away.

Ning Ruoque sucked in a sharp breath.

The Dao is Hidden and Nameless sword in her hand let out a light hum, as if it were urging her to go and investigate.

And Ning Ruoque held Yin Buran, and just felt that all of this was extremely terrifying, and she wanted to quickly find a place to hide Yin Buran.

What a joke. Watching the fun and protecting Ranran, she could still tell which was more important.

So she lifted Yin Buran with one hand and was about to turn and run.

But Yin Buran patted her. “Don’t be in such a hurry to leave. See if you can find Mingyue. She should have disguised herself.”

Ning Ruoque had no choice but to stop in her tracks, jump onto a higher building, and search for Si Mingyue’s figure among the people who were fleeing in all directions.

The movements in the distance were getting louder and louder, and several times, rubble had brushed past Ning Ruoque.

From this, Ning Ruoque had also gotten a good look at the two people who were fighting.

Wide-sleeved white clothes, using a sword. This dress and figure were very familiar. Ning Ruoque estimated that it was Jiang Ai.

Ning Ruoque did not recognize the other black shadow, and only knew that it was messy, and its moves were also without any form, with a faint state of qi deviation.

Sword qi and firelight flew chaotically, mixed with the pouring rain. Ning Ruoque was anxious in her heart, and wished she could just set off a firework into the sky so that Si Mingyue could see.

But that black shadow had summoned several fire arrows, and they all poured down, just like the stars falling from the sky.

Ning Ruoque nimbly moved through them, but she was still inevitably scratched on the shoulder by a fire arrow.

She was now glad that she had brought Yin Buran with her. Otherwise, if she had left her elsewhere, she would not have been at ease.

A rapid reminder suddenly came from her ear. “Be careful!”

Ning Ruoque did not turn around, and drew her sword with her left hand, her movements faster than lightning.

After the sword qi had cut through the fire arrow, it continued forward, and even cleared out a clearing.

She gritted her teeth, and in the sound of the thunder, she struck out with her sword again, and the sword hum was as crisp as broken jade.

Not far away, Jiang Ai looked back as if she had sensed something. “Hmm?”

Before she could see clearly, a fierce move came straight for her face.

She didn’t have time to care about anything else, and went straight up to meet it, and once again, she was in a fierce fight with the black shadow.

Seeing that the scope of the fight was getting wider and wider, Ning Ruoque had no choice but to take Yin Buran and retreat with the crowd.

Among the chaotic crowd of fleeing cultivators, Yin Buran suddenly looked up and tugged on Ning Ruoque’s sleeve. “There.”

Following her line of sight, a round, dark shadow was slowly moving under the eaves.

Ning Ruoque pulled out a cloak and covered Yin Buran with it, and silently slipped into the courtyard door beside her.

That shadow also passed through the bushes and the collapsed roof, and approached them at an extremely fast speed.

Before long, the shadow stood in front of Ning Ruoque, lifted its hood, revealing a face stained with coal ash, and a pair of particularly bright purple eyes.

She smiled softly at the two of them. “Hehe, you’re here so quickly.”

*

Without much communication, Si Mingyue signaled for the two of them to follow.

So the three sneaky shadows twisted and turned, bypassed the guest house, passed through the spirit field, and came to a dilapidated thatched hut.

To be precise, this should be a shed for lambs, commonly known as a sheep pen.

Ning Ruoque did not speak, but just used her spiritual energy to support a barrier, so as not to let Yin Buran step on anything strange.

Si Mingyue stroked the little lamb at the entrance of the thatched hut and pushed the door open.

Just as she came in, Yin Buran couldn’t help but frown. There was a thick smell of blood in the room.

Si Mingyue raised three fingers and swore, “This was an accident.”

She had already made up her mind before. No matter what Yin Buran said, she would insist that this was an accident.

But she lit a fire starter, and in the faint light, she saw the wound on Ning Ruoque’s arm and Yin Buran’s cold, pond-like eyes, and she was so scared that she had no backbone.

She shrank into a small ball of cotton, lowered her head to stare at her own toes, and apologized in a mournful voice, “I’m sorry. There were too many accidents. I couldn’t handle it.”

Forced to, she could only call for help.

Why not Chu Xuan, and she had to trouble Yin Buran, was mainly because she had other difficulties.

She walked to the side of the thatched pile, and after peeling away a clump of thatch, only then did Ning Ruoque see that there was actually a person hidden underneath.

This was the source of the thick smell of blood.

It was a pretty-looking woman, but more than half of her body was stained red with blood.

Si Mingyue did not know how to deal with it and had only randomly applied some medicine, but she still could not stop the injury from worsening, so she could only use a spirit pill to hang on to her life.

In the quiet room, this woman’s breath was as thin as a thread, and her breathing was almost inaudible. If some measures were not taken, she would most likely not survive the night.

Si Mingyue cautiously squatted down and introduced to the two of them, “Her name is Zhou Chan. She is the person who had reported the Taiyi Sect at the Immortal Alliance’s regular meeting before.”

“Her junior sister had died mysteriously in the secret realm, and her bones had traces of being gnawed by a demonic beast. In addition, with all sorts of clues, she suspected that the Taiyi Sect was raising demonic beasts and killing people for their treasures.”

At this point, Si Mingyue pouted. “But she wouldn’t listen to my advice and insisted on coming to the Taiyi Sect to investigate personally.”

The simple cause and effect were there, and Yin Buran could guess the course of events with eighty or ninety percent accuracy.

She was not moved in the slightest, but instead asked in a cold tone, “So you came with her?”

“Yes,” Si Mingyue clenched her fists. “This matter is very important.”

However, her determination did not last for three seconds, and she lowered her head in dejection and hugged herself, muttering, “And then… and then, I didn’t watch her, and she was injured by a formation, and her whereabouts were also exposed…”

Yin Buran closed her eyes, suppressing the urge to bristle and scratch Si Mingyue.

The Immortal Alliance had been in turmoil for a long time, and the major powers were on guard against each other and suspicious. They could not afford any more trouble.

She did not distrust Si Mingyue, but she reasonably suspected that someone had deliberately led Si Mingyue to make a move.

“If our actions are discovered by the Taiyi Sect, the current situation will become even more tense.”

She said calmly, “So you have to give me a reason to save her.”

Si Mingyue quickly gestured to Yin Buran. “Ranran, she has a demon core on her. She can’t die.”

And because of this, Si Mingyue had to stay by her side and could not force her, so she had no way to get away.

From Ning Ruoque’s experience, anything that had to do with this thing was not a good thing.

She casually stroked Yin Buran’s hand and asked patiently, “What kind of demon core?”

Seeing this, Si Mingyue quickly rolled up Zhou Chan’s sleeve and showed it to Yin Buran.

On Zhou Chan’s bloody wrist, a white demon core was clearly embedded.

The demon core had no impurities and was as pure as snow.

But it gave one an extremely ominous feeling, as if a cold aura was crawling up one’s spine, making one shiver.

Ning Ruoque had seen this thing, once and only once, but it had left a deep impression.

Jiegou, to see it is to see a great plague. (Jiegou (絜钩) is a mythical creature whose appearance signals or causes a widespread plague or epidemic.)

It was a Jiegou that had somehow bypassed the ancient battlefield’s grand formation and had snuck into the human world. It was small and good at hiding.

By the time it was discovered, several mortal cities had no living people left, and even more than half of the cultivators who had been sent had died or been injured.

Ning Ruoque could only kill demons and could not cure the plague. Even if she killed the Jiegou, the plague would still exist, and it would even have a tendency to become more and more severe.

In the end, it was Azurefall Creek who had solved this matter. Otherwise, the harm would have been endless.

And the aura of this demon core had long been entangled with Zhou Chan, and it was difficult to separate them. If it were to be forcibly taken, it was uncertain what problems would arise.

It was now embedded in a person’s body, like a bomb that could explode at any time.

“Heh,” Yin Buran let out a mocking sound.

Because she could not get a fair treatment, she had to seek it through another wrong way. This was also a kind of irony.

Noticing that Si Mingyue was cautiously peeking at her several times, Yin Buran lowered her eyes and placed her fingers on the woman’s pulse.

She asked with a lack of interest, “Are you saying that if she dies, a plague will appear here?”

Si Mingyue nodded her head like a chick pecking at rice. “Mm-hmm… something like that…”

Knowing that she was not telling the truth, Yin Buran was also too lazy to argue with her.

She tapped a few acupoints, and a continuous stream of spiritual energy with medicinal properties poured into Zhou Chan’s body, nourishing her damaged meridians.

It was unknown how long had passed, but the little sheep outside the window were bleating non-stop.

The person on the bed also let out a muffled groan and finally woke up.