The deepest affection in Gu Long's world

Chapter 124 The Iron Triangle

Fang Yunhua packed up and left, but there were still some unresolved issues at the Oasis base.

The King of Kucha went to search for the remains of his queen, while the guards and warriors began to deal with the corpses of Shi Guanyin's disciples.

General Qing immediately sought out Chu Liuxiang.

After the man introduced himself, Chu Liuxiang realized that he was one of the four generals under Black Pearl.

She then explained that Black Pearl discovered that the Pearl Horse had returned alone, and because she was worried that Chu Liuxiang might encounter danger along the way, she and Su Rongrong and the other two women returned to the Central Plains to search for its whereabouts.

This completely stunned Chu Liuxiang.

Furthermore, General Qing did not hide the fact that Black Pearl was a woman.

At that moment, Chu Liuxiang understood everything.

"So...it was all just a misunderstanding?"

"Hehe, I don't know what we've been busy with all this time. It was only because some smart person came up and wanted to tie that divine steed to Old Dragon Bay that we hadn't made a fuss."

Hu Tiehua began to make sarcastic remarks.

Ji Bingyan, whom he specifically named as a smart person, no longer cares about his faults.

They began to list the stupid things he had done along the way, such as approaching two travelers who had tricked them without any precautions, and how he had been so reckless that he had forced Chu Liuxiang to reveal his identity right away.

Most importantly, after being inexplicably married, he inexplicably witnessed the death of his new wife, and then inexplicably became Fang Yunhua's prisoner.

Speaking of this, Ji Bingyan also looked at Chu Liuxiang.

When did you find out his true identity?

"I thought he was suspicious from the beginning, and I told you that too," Chu Liuxiang said innocently.

In fact, he did feel very innocent. He had that feeling when he first saw Fang Yunhua's back, but after discussing it with Ji Bingyan, she completely took it as a hysterical episode.

Of course, he himself did not have a firm belief and was persuaded by Ji Bingyan's logic.

Thinking of the reasons Ji Bingyan gave, he also thought of a key factor that had kept him suspicious of Fang Yunhua's identity but had never been able to confirm it.

What kind of disguise did he put on his face?

The two, who had just been arguing, exchanged a glance, neither knowing how to explain themselves.

They witnessed Fang Yunhua's dramatic change of attitude firsthand, which made them even more incredulous.

"Bone-shrinking technique, you know what I mean, right?"

"These are the essential skills for a master thief."

"That young master Fang has mastered kung fu to a very high level."

"He's so skilled that he can not only control his bones, but also perfectly control his muscles, which allows him to twitch his face and end up looking like that."

"Yeah, that's it."

Chu Liuxiang was dumbfounded, thinking to himself, "Holy crap, this is possible!"

He quickly accepted the outcome, after all, without this trick, Fang Yunhua wouldn't have been able to fool him, nor would he have been able to fool Shi Guanyin, who was skilled in disguise. The other party had naturally made preparations before arriving in this vast desert.

"There's another thing. How could he be sure that we just happened to arrive at this oasis and then just happened to get involved?"

This time, Chu Liuxiang's question will remain unanswered.

Ji Bingyan sighed.

"Just like the experience you described before, to my opinion there was some coincidence involved. To attribute it all to how powerful Young Master Fang is would be too far-fetched."

But now that I've experienced all of this firsthand, I think one of your most unbelievable ideas might actually be the most correct.

"what?"

"He might actually be able to foresee the future."

Chu Liuxiang opened his mouth, but the words he was about to say just wouldn't come out.

Having experienced the same event twice, he didn't know how to describe his feelings, especially regarding the idea that Fang Yunhua could really predict the future. Based on his rational thinking, he absolutely did not believe it.

Just like when he received the note left by Black Pearl, his first thought was to go to the Huashan Sect to find Fang Yunhua.

This is enough to show that deep down, he has already equated Fang Yunhua with a highly capable fortune teller.

He was indeed unwilling to delve deeper into this topic, because it was an unsolved mystery destined to remain unanswered.

The other two shared the same view, including Hu Tiehua, who seemed the most carefree. In any future similar incidents, they would naturally think that it was Fang Yunhua after all. He could do such an unbelievable thing, so wasn't that normal?
Well, with this kind of psychological comfort, they can successfully bypass this mystery that gives them a headache whenever they think about it.

At this moment, Hu Tiehua also tactfully changed the subject.

"Where did they rush off to? Is the celebration banquet still going to continue? They said the wine might be poisoned, so I didn't dare drink a single drop."

"They must have gone to raid Shi Guanyin's lair," Ji Bingyan said, looking at Chu Liuxiang.

During his previous conversation with the other party, he learned that Chu Liuxiang was there as a representative to exchange for the Star of Bliss. Later, based on a series of clues and fragments, he also guessed that Chu Liuxiang was a target thrown out by Fang Yunhua to attract the other party's attention.

Seeing that he had returned safely, even looking quite well, with only slightly dirty clothes and no body odor, it was clear that he had been doing quite well these past two days.

Chu Liuxiang was very conflicted about this issue.

"They're going to raid the enemy's hideout and also to kill people."

"Oh," Ji Bingyan replied indifferently.

Hu Tiehua then found a wine pot from somewhere, and after pulling over a Tang Clan disciple to check that it wasn't poisoned, he began to drink heartily.

"You...you don't have anything to say?" Chu Liuxiang still felt a little uncomfortable with the two men's seemingly normal responses.

"What did you say? The two sides have a deep-seated hatred. Didn't you tell us before that Shi Guanyin almost ransacked the Huashan Sect's home base? And later, her two sons were also restless, secretly causing trouble for the Huashan Sect."

As the young master of the Huashan Sect, Fang Yunhua's actions were merely a reasonable counterattack. As for Shi Guanyin's disciples and subordinates, they were mostly no good either. Old bug, you haven't forgotten how ruthless those two travelers who were pretending to be dead were when we came here!

"If it weren't for the stone camel leading the way, the three of us would have died in the desert long ago, let alone come here to try our luck."

At this point, Hu Tiehua suddenly stopped, even putting down the wine jug in his hand, because he saw Gao Yanan walking towards him.

Of course, Princess Pipa was also by his side, but at this moment, he only had eyes for Gao Yanan.

Perhaps because they hadn't seen each other for many years, he felt that Gao Yanan seemed even more beautiful now. Her feminine charm far surpassed the tomboyish recklessness and willfulness she possessed when they first met.

Gao Yanan didn't even look at Hu Tiehua. She spoke to Chu Liuxiang, "Before the young sect leader left, he asked me to explain some key information to you. He thought you would definitely feel uncomfortable. Although no one can stop him from doing what he wants, having these reasons might make you feel better."

First of all, Shi Tuo's real name is Huangfu Gao. He was once the leader of the Seven Swords of Mount Hua and also my and the young sect leader's senior uncle. After obtaining his senior uncle's consent, he does not mind telling you some of his past experiences.

Especially those who had saved him from dire straits.

At this point, Gao Yanan bowed respectfully to Ji Bingyan.

"The young sect leader has other important matters to attend to, but he also asked me to convey the Huashan Sect's gratitude to Brother Ji. It was Brother Ji's timely assistance to our senior uncle that saved him from his suffering; otherwise, he would have continued to live that hopeless life like a donkey."

"This favor will be forever remembered by our Huashan Sect. Our young sect leader has also repeatedly assured us that if Brother Ruoji needs any help, our Huashan Sect will not hesitate to offer our assistance."

This favor carries considerable weight.

After all, the Huashan Sect of today is not the same as the few big cats and little cats of the past. Fang Yunhua alone can grow into a strong person at least as strong as Shi Guanyin and Xue Yiren in the future, and his charlatan attributes are even more valuable.

This prompted Ji Bingyan to return the greeting with a formal bow.

Moreover, he might have harbored some ulterior motives after seeing his beloved again.

In particular, this little thought, due to Hu Tiehua's provocation, is showing signs of escalating from a small spark into a large flame.

At this point, Gao Yanan also got to the point.

"Are you all curious as to why Shi Guanyin didn't completely wipe out my Huashan Sect? The reason lies with my eldest grandmaster. Shi Guanyin had her eye on my eldest grandmaster, and she probably intended to use the Huashan Sect as leverage to coerce him into submission."

It's also possible that they felt that leaving such a half-dead Huashan Sect was a deeper form of revenge, and also a favorable condition to manipulate their senior master.

This allowed the Huashan Sect to continue.

In fact, before the young sect leader went to great lengths to revive the sect, our Huashan Sect was on the verge of falling out of the ranks of the seven major sects. In fact, at that time, our sect's strength was no longer sufficient to maintain that position.

It was only due to the reputation of our predecessors and the fact that no prominent sects had emerged in the martial arts world to replace us at that time.

This is what gave us the chance to hold out until the young sect leader came and turned the tide.

Therefore, regarding the issue of revenge against Shi Guanyin, even if the young sect leader is lenient because of your friendship with Xiang Shuai, we disciples will do our utmost to eliminate all those associated with Shi Guanyin.

It's nothing more than justice versus evil, and has nothing to do with mercy or ruthlessness. This is a pure revenge, a feud that can only end when one side dies completely.

If Chu Xiangshuai insists on blaming someone, he can blame me; consider it as me for forcing the young sect leader to make this decision.

Chu Liuxiang remained silent, then chuckled wryly and touched his nose.

"What right do I have to blame others? And what right do I have to blame Lady Gao? Just as you said, this matter has nothing to do with justice or evil; it's just a matter of revenge."

Although Chu felt a pang of sympathy for those disciples, he knew he had no right to say a word about the matter.

"Alright, alright, we were just here to watch the show. Whether it's blame or not, we didn't kill Shi Guanyin. Let that young sect leader Fang deal with it however he wants, right, you old bug?"

Hu Tiehua started making jokes, but it was obvious to everyone that he sided with the Huashan faction.

Perhaps it was because of Gao Yanan, or perhaps this had always been his guiding principle.

In short, he had already spoken, and Ji Bingyan nodded repeatedly. What could Chu Liuxiang say? He could only continue to touch his nose and smile bitterly.

"Of course, the young sect leader also asked me to pass on a message to Xiang Shuai: when he returns, he will treat you to a drink to express his apology for the harm he caused you this time."

In the end, Gao Yanan carefully considered her words before finally coming up with the word "hurt".

Chu Liuxiang, who was initially a little conflicted, was able to calm himself down immediately upon hearing the word "apology".

The other party is going to apologize to him, and it's a formal apology with a banquet. How could someone as magnanimous as him continue to hold a grudge against his friend? No way, Chu Xiangshuai is a gentleman with a good temper.

"Okay, I'll wait for his drink."

However, after saying that, he added another sentence.

"Really, really, please don't let it happen again."

His tone was filled with a pleading quality, showing that the Blood Sea Fragrance storyline and the Great Desert storyline had really tormented him.

The key point is that Chu Xiangshuai himself took the initiative to step into this situation. Fang Yunhua only went along with it. He let Chu Xiangshuai do whatever he wanted until the end, when he was asked to go to Shi Guanyin's residence. Fang Yunhua gave him some reminders.

These reminders, in a sense, are all well-intentioned.

After all, he had been eating, drinking, and sleeping well there for the past two days. When he had nothing to do, he would go and flirt with the beautiful Shi Guanyin. Occasionally, she would take advantage of him. Of course, to be honest, it was hard to tell who took advantage of him.

When he returned, everything was arranged, and in the end, it wasn't his turn to take action.

Thinking back on this experience, it seems that these last two or three days have been the most pleasant and relaxing time he has ever had.

Then, noticing that Gao Yanan was about to turn and leave with Princess Pipa, he thought for a moment and added a sentence.

“If there is a next time, he can actually tell me in advance. After all, it has happened twice already. As long as he can find a legitimate reason, I will not necessarily ruin his plans.”

These words, coming from Chu Xiangshuai, sounded rather humble.

The others present didn't find it strange, because Fang Yunhua's image in their eyes was now exceptionally lofty and mysterious.

After watching the two women leave, Chu Liuxiang finally breathed a sigh of relief.

It's finally over.

He had already asked General Qing to contact Black Pearl and have Su Rongrong and the others wait for him on the big ship. Now he really needed to take a good rest.

Just as he stretched and prepared to find a place to lie down for a while.

Ji Bingyan suddenly spoke up.

"Xiao Hu, I won't let you win this time."

"What do you mean, 'let me'?" Hu Tiehua pretended to be confused.

"You understand what I mean. Seven years ago, I chose to withdraw because Gao Yanan chose you, and the result was that you didn't cherish her. Now we have a chance to meet again. I think this is a sign from God, no, this is a sign from Young Master Fang!"

Ji Bingyan then bowed respectfully in the direction Fang Yunhua had left.

"Whatever! But if she doesn't choose you, I hope our heroine Ji won't cling to that Huashan Sect disciple so shamelessly!" Hu Tiehua picked up the wine pot, took another big gulp, and left indignantly.

Chu Liuxiang, seeing the scene before him, felt a headache coming on again.

What on earth is going on here?!

(End of this chapter)