TRYMBPIETM 144: When I went in the Past (26)
by LotusChi Qingzhou blinked at the red-robed youth, his smile taking on a hint of slyness.
“You finally noticed, huh?”
The red-robed youth’s gaze darkened, and his face turned a sickly pale.
His fingers, hanging at his sides, trembled nervously, and his voice was filled with an indescribable sense of restraint.
“Chi Qingzhou, you’re truly insane! How did I never realize how crazy you are before?!”
“Maybe because you never received nine years of compulsory education?”
Chi Qingzhou couldn’t help but laugh again.
He hadn’t come to this tomb to purify his bloodline, of course.
He repeatedly used this excuse purely to mess with his new friend, who clearly had very little knowledge.
After all, in his new friend’s understanding, it was normal for cultivators to purify their bloodline to gain stronger power.
But the truth was, this action didn’t help increase power at all.
Chi Qingzhou’s reason for entering the tomb wasn’t to purify the bloodline, but because it merged with the Absolute Yin Land and once lay above the Dragon Vein.
He only wanted to use these two characteristics and the tomb’s formation to transfer some power.
Looking at his new friend’s darkened face, Chi Qingzhou solemnly gave some advice: “So, people should trust science. If you had studied high school biology properly, you wouldn’t believe in bloodline purification.”
If human genetic code could be so easily and painlessly modified, he could just publish a few papers and shock the academic world instead of becoming an artist, right?
With a bit of luck, he might even win a Nobel Prize.
The red-robed youth took a heavy breath, glaring at Chi Qingzhou with increasing hatred in his eyes.
He cursed, “Don’t get smug,” but the frequency at which his fingers tapped his thigh increased rapidly.
Chi Qingzhou watched him for a moment, then asked, “Oh, you want to delay?”
The red-robed youth’s expression changed. Half of his body dissolved into smoke, and he quickly sank toward the lower part of the tomb!
He had merged with the Dragon Vein, and had a natural advantage in the mountains.
Even though the Absolute Yin Land had some suppressing effects on this, as long as he was determined to flee, the Absolute Yin Land could only temporarily slow him down.
Feeling only minimal resistance, he sighed in relief.
Just before sinking into the ground, he cast one last glance at Chi Qingzhou and saw him smile in a strange and expectant way.
He paused, and the next moment, he felt an intense burning sensation on the smoke-like half of his body.
A strange, ancient, and twisted energy entangled him, and the powerful backlash prevented him from maintaining the Dragon Vein’s state. He could only groan and return to the ground.
In agony, the red-robed youth staggered, collapsing onto the ground.
He forced himself to lift his head, and saw that the starry array above had extinguished, with shifting shadows closing in on him like an invisible birdcage.
A pair of red, blurry eyes watched him from the dome, stone walls, and the floor, their presence everywhere like a form of mental pollution, completely unraveling his control over his emotions.
Irritable, frustrated, and terrified, chaotic visions swirled in his mind, pushing him to the brink of madness.
So this is how it is.
The red-robed youth took a deep breath, his gaze filled with increasing hatred.
So this is how it is.
He repeated this thought in his mind, unconsciously recalling a conversation from long ago.
— “Humans are the favored children of the world. Even when the new age arrives, humans will find their place in it.”
— “Really?”
— “Of course. But the process may not be beautiful.”
— “Hmm… Will there be many zombies, like in post-apocalyptic novels?”
— “Probably not, but there will definitely be things beyond human understanding. But, you know… human imagination is endless. Maybe other novels have already mentioned something like that?”
The red-robed youth had long forgotten where he had heard these words, but now, looking at Chi Qingzhou, he felt he had found the answer.
Chi Qingzhou was different from everyone else.
His destiny had ensured he would have experiences different from ordinary people, and it was completely logical for him to be the first to find a way forward.
He lowered his head, staring at the chilling shadows, and sneered coldly.
So, this is how Chi Qingzhou’s special powers came to be.
But is Chi Qingzhou really still human now?
Why should someone like him survive into the next era, while he himself is destined to be purged and die within the laws of causality?!
It’s unfair!
If he is going to suffer, anyone else should!
Especially Chi Qingzhou, with his special fate!
The red-robed youth’s heart hardened, and he suddenly pushed against the ground. His body dissolved into smoke and leaped up, condensing into physical form, rushing toward Chi Qingzhou’s face with lightning speed!
The short blade formed from incense tore through the air, and with a sharp sound, the tip of the blade quickly neared Chi Qingzhou’s brow.
The source of the dragon vein’s power was extracted by the red-robed youth, attaching itself to the blade and emitting an aura that felt familiar.
He did not hide the aura of the dragon vein, nor did he conceal his intentions.
The hesitation that had previously arisen disappeared entirely. In this moment, he only wished to perish together with Chi Qingzhou.
He gave up on fancy moves, intending to use himself as a vessel to make Chi Qingzhou bear the polluted fate that would destroy the dragon vein.
“I will die from karma, and you won’t escape this fate either!”
He shouted violently, his roar laced with an undertone of desperate sorrow.
Xing Shuangzhan and Cheng Shang’s faces both changed.
“Get out of the way!”
“Zhou Zhou, dodge!”
His speed was too fast, too fast for both of them to react in time.
The instant they realized something was wrong, the tip of his blade had already neared Chi Qingzhou’s brow.
Both of them couldn’t care about anything else and rushed to intercept the red-robed youth.
Xing Shuangzhan, who was closest to Chi Qingzhou, immediately took a step in front of him, pulling him behind while turning his body.
But the next second, the blade passed by Xing Shuangzhan’s cheek, bypassing his obstruction and stabbing directly at Chi Qingzhou’s eyes.
Cheng Shang screamed, tears pouring from his eyes as he made a hand seal and hurled it towards the red-robed youth in an attempt to divert his attack.
The red-robed youth sneered derisively.
Amidst the chaos, the one who should have reacted the most, Chi Qingzhou, did not move a muscle.
He merely stared at the suddenly aggressive red-robed youth, lightly lifting the corner of his lips.
This fleeting smile did not escape the red-robed youth’s gaze.
A dangerous premonition rose from his heart, rapidly spreading to every nerve, incessantly urging him to escape.
But by this point, where could he retreat?
The red-robed youth’s face darkened, and he extended his arm, trying desperately to thrust the short blade towards Chi Qingzhou.
In the end, the blade stopped just a few centimeters from Chi Qingzhou’s face—
The omnipresent shadows wrapped around his limbs, forcibly halting his movement.
The shadows.
It was Chi Qingzhou’s shadows.
The moment he realized this, unwillingness erupted from his heart and quickly filled his eyes.
He glared at Chi Qingzhou, filled with resentment and despair.
Xing Shuangzhan, too tired to care about the red-robed youth’s attitude, forcefully picked up Chi Qingzhou and quickly moved away, casting a cold glance back at the red-robed youth.
Chi Qingzhou gently patted Xing Shuangzhan’s back, still with his calm expression.
He even had a light smile on his lips, his gaze drifting past the red-robed youth toward the tunnel connected to the main tomb room.
Two hurried footsteps echoed from the tunnel, accompanied by Luo Ting’s urging voice, “Hurry up,” as they quickly approached the main tomb room.
Chi Qingzhou tilted his head slightly, his tone carrying a hint of feigned regret and pity: “Ah Ting, Ah Yu, they’re a bit late. But it’s fine. My new friend didn’t cause me much trouble.”
The red-robed youth sneered, moved his arm, and found he couldn’t break free from the control of the shadows, his expression growing darker.
Chi Qingzhou, as if oblivious to the red-robed youth’s reaction, looked up at Xing Shuangzhan, who was holding him tightly.
“Su-ge, do you trust me?”
Xing Shuangzhan lowered his head, one hand brushing over Chi Qingzhou’s neck, and gently replied, “Of course, I trust you.”
Chi Qingzhou’s eyes curved into a smile, one that carried a hint of innocence and joy: “Then in a while, you’ll be lying in your own coffin.”
Xing Shuangzhan didn’t ask any questions, simply replying, “Alright.”
The moment he finished speaking, Luo Huaiyu and Luo Ting also entered the main tomb room, carrying the coffin they had brought.
They exchanged glances, both waved at Chi Qingzhou, and said, “Zhou Zhou, we brought the coffin you asked us to carry! Where should we put it?”
“Hang it here.”
Chi Qingzhou raised his hand and pointed to the center of the tomb room.
There, the coffin locked with iron chains had long ceased to sway, standing silently as if the tomb’s master had already entered the cycle of reincarnation.
The two of them looked up and didn’t find anything unusual, casually saying “Oh,” and walked over to place the coffin.
Only the red-robed youth froze for a moment, screaming in terror, “No! Stop! Chi Qingzhou, I am the dragon vein now, you can’t touch me, you can’t touch me!”
“You’ve said that many times already.” Chi Qingzhou responded indifferently, “My new friend, please be quiet.”
The red-robed youth nearly went mad: “Chi Qingzhou, you madman! You can’t touch me! I am the dragon vein! I am the dragon vein!”
Chi Qingzhou, who had been talking to Xing Shuangzhan about the things to pay attention to, was interrupted several times by his noisy ranting. He couldn’t help but turn and look at him: “You won’t be for long. Why are you so unkind? My friends are all kind. None of them are unkind.”
So, can you guess how I deal with those unkind friends?
The red-robed youth choked, trembling as he said, “You can’t do this to me.”
Chi Qingzhou tilted his head: “Why can’t I? Of course, I can.”