Ascending to the Clouds Alone

The inspector frowned for a moment, then relaxed, his face returning to its emotionless state.

After a long pause, he finally spoke:

"New Moon Town, have the Thousand Machine Shuttle make a temporary stop, you all disembark."

Having said that, he withdrew his foot, and with a flick of his sleeve, two talismans were in the hands of the female deacon. He then transmitted his voice secretly:

"Junior Sister Liu, this talisman was made by Senior Brother Wang He. It can seal the spiritual power of Foundation Establishment cultivators. You can send them on their way. This matter started because of you, so handle it yourself. This is all I can do to help."

With a snap of his divine sense, he turned and left without the slightest hesitation, not even lingering for a moment.

"I will obey Senior Brother Yang's orders!"

The female deacon agreed, her anxiety instantly replaced by murderous intent.

Only by retrieving the jade slip and eliminating all traces of the culprit can we atone for our mistakes. With this "Spirit-Locking Talisman," everything is now under our control.

Looking into the female deacon's eyes, Lin Su suddenly realized that the real danger was yet to come.

Under the stone lamp, Han Xiangyu turned his head with difficulty to look at Lin Su, and clearly uttered a sentence:

"Live! Make yourself useful."

Lin Su felt a bitter taste in his mouth, rushed over and hugged Han Xiangyu, choking back tears as he replied:

"I'll listen to you from now on!"

At this moment, he felt Han Xiangyu's body trembling, an uncontrollable shaking caused by pain seeping from the bones.

The female deacon, observing the scene, coldly said:

"Stop trying to play tricks."

She thought to herself: This scoundrel can no longer cause any trouble. Once we arrive in Crescent Town, we'll deal with these two.

Then, she sat cross-legged on the futon, her body radiating a halo of light, as if she were confident and prepared.

The darkroom fell silent again, as if even breathing was about to stop.

Just as Lin Su grasped Han Xiangyu's sticky hand, something suddenly appeared in his palm, and a faint whisper entered his ear:

"revenge!"

These two words were like two needles piercing Lin Su's ears and nailing into his heart.

He froze, not daring to let anyone see the expression on his face, and even less daring to respond, only looking at what was in his hand.

It was a talisman, folded into a triangle, with the Lin family crest printed in the center.

The Lin family’s private weapon talisman!

But it was slightly different from what he remembered; how could there be his own scent inside?

His father had taught him how to activate the private army talisman and repeatedly warned him that it should never be used unless in dire straits.

Lin Su suddenly remembered that two years ago, Han Xiangyu had taken a drop of his essence blood, saying at the time that it would be useful.

Only now did he realize that Han Xiangyu had actually modified this last private military token into something he could use to save his life.

But what can Uncle Han use to save his life?

Lin Su's eyes welled up with tears, and he gripped Han Xiangyu's hand tightly, along with the talisman.

Han Xiangyu stopped him and said slowly:

"It's alright, you just need to remember... why you came."

Why did you come?

The light emitted by the luminous stone lamp seemed to have gained weight, pressing down on Lin Su's eyelids.

He dared not close his eyes, but he was still dragged into that leaky night.

Three years ago in Junling City, the Lin family's ancestral home struggled to survive a fire.

The mother infused her spiritual power into the "Phoenix-Perching Zither," placed the zither in Lin Su's arms, and then pushed him out with both hands:

"The zither holds the primordial chaos, Su'er, let's go!"

Lin Su was thrown backward and landed in the flooded courtyard. When he looked up, the beam engulfed in flames had already collapsed with a crash.

"boom--"

He heard that sound many times afterward.

Thunder makes this sound, falling rocks make this sound, and the Thousand-Mechanism Shuttle makes this sound too...

But none of those were true! It was because there was a mother in that voice.

The fire roared out like a crimson "beast," instantly leaping onto the roof and tearing a huge gash in the night sky.

He screamed and scrambled to his feet, rushing towards the water, but the "beast" merely exhaled casually and slapped him back into the puddles.

Coughing, he lunged forward again, but the "beast" grew even more frenzied, its fiery body arching forward and sending him flying once more.

He got up and frantically stomped and screamed in front of the scorching hot gates of hell.

But his mother could no longer hear his voice...

That night, it solidified into a piece of black amber, sealing away every breath he had taken over the past three years.

Raindrops slid down the glass window, leaving trails of water.

"We've arrived!" The female deacon's voice was like a chisel cutting into amber.

Lin Su's body trembled, and he burst out from inside. He swallowed twice, and it seemed that the smell of that night still lingered in his nostrils.

Each time I was pulled back, I would swallow hard a few times before coming out again.

He didn't know why, but this was the only way he could feel better.

The Thousand-Machine Shuttle had now come to a stop.

At the spiritual vein node, the three large characters "New Moon Town" on the boundary marker looked particularly lonely in the rain.

The female deacon withdrew the aura, and as she stood up, a faint wave of spiritual energy flashed through her sleeve.

Without hesitation, Lin Su helped the weak Han Xiangyu up and followed her off the Thousand Machine Shuttle.

The entire journey was speechless.

In this suffocating silence, Lin Su recalled every moment of practicing the zither, as well as the zither-playing techniques his mother had taught him.

He touched the Qifeng Qin behind him, and the sensations from playing it for thousands of days and nights seemed to have deepened.

Stepping on the muddy ground filled with puddles, Lin Su looked up at the sky.

Let the rain fall harder; if it falls harder, it can cover up the dangers and perhaps create a way out.

Just as Lin Su's thoughts drifted between the past and the present, Han Xiangyu's voice came softly:

"The outskirts of Crescent Town are a rocky forest; heading west is the fastest way to leave this area."

How big must this rocky forest be to surround the entire Crescent Town?

Hearing Han Xiangyu's weak breathing, Lin Su felt a pang of pain in his heart:

"Uncle Han".

Lin Su didn't know how to escape from this place, but his mind was made up:

As long as I can still breathe, I'll carry Uncle Han on my back and leave this place!

The rain blurred the view, and dark shadows loomed deep within the stone forest, like ghosts.

Suddenly, Lin Su felt the faint spiritual energy within his body suddenly stagnate, but he didn't know why.

Han Xiangyu, standing to the side, paused for a moment. His inner spiritual energy, like water turning to ice, had been sealed. He exclaimed in surprise:

"Spirit-Locking Talisman!"

Lin Su didn't know what had happened, but something was definitely wrong.

With a blur before her eyes, the female deacon appeared in front of the two in a flash, her hand still radiating the spiritual energy that activated the Spirit Locking Talisman.

"Jade slip!" she said.

Then, the pressure from the mid-Foundation Establishment stage spread out, and the surrounding air seemed to be compressed to the point of being unable to move.

Han Xiangyu glanced at Lin Su, then turned to the female deacon and chuckled in a hoarse voice:

"Is the fairy in such a hurry? Aren't you going to catch up with us?"

"Shut up! Who has any past connection with scum like you!"

"Haha, it seems even fairies are pitiful."

The laughter reached Lin Su's ears, stirring up his memories of Han Xiangyu.

When Lin Su was still a child, Han Xiangyu visited his home several times. He would always squat by the courtyard wall and bask in the sun, never speaking to anyone.

After that, he disappeared without a trace until he reappeared three years ago, his personality completely different.

Where did he go during those ten years?

Lin Su had never asked, and Han Xiangyu had never mentioned it either. But now that he wanted to ask, it was too late.