Chapter 112

It was really something else to hear his father’s name coming from Lu Guoxian’s mouth.

So Tang Jiaming couldn’t help but laugh out loud: “What connects me with him? You’re just asking that now?!” As he said this, Tang Jiaming slowly turned his head and stared at Li Guoxian. The smile rising from the corners of his mouth was gradually lost in the overwhelming hatred present in Tang Jiaming’s eyes.

“I have been following you for so many years, and you never noticed who I look like?” Tang Jiaming walked up to Li Guoxian and leaned down. “Or are you only capable of remembering my father’s festering face when he died, so you have already forgotten what he really looked like?”

“Your father?!”

Li Guoxian was utterly shocked, and his body froze upright. Looking at Tang Jiaming’s withered and thin body, Li Guoxian said in astonishment: “It’s impossible! As far as I know, Qi Shengkang’s son is called Qi Zhiyuan….and your surname is Tang….”

However, upon mentioning this, Li Guoxian’s words abruptly stopped as he closed his mouth. When Li Guoxian was young, he and Qi Shengkang could be considered best friends. However, there was always something that Li Guoxian found strange. Qi Shengkang had always shown himself as a father who loved his son very much, so he often mentioned him in front of others. Still, Qi Shengkang never invited anyone to his house. Every time Li Guoxian mentioned wanting to visit his ‘sister-in-law and his nephew’, Qi Shengkang became somewhat distant, even revealing a reluctant expression. Therefore, Li Guoxian never met Qi Shengkang’s wife and son.

He just heard….

That Qi Shengkang’s son was named Qi Zhiyuan, while his wife’s surname…..was Tang….

“You took….your mother’s surname?” Li Guoxian asked without thinking.

Tang Jiaming, on the other hand, simply smiled and said: “My original surname was supposed to be Tang.”

“Tang….” Li Guoxian was unable to realize until now that Tang Jiaming was related to the ancestral family that guarded the tomb in Pingyao. Thinking that Tang Jiaming’s mother was a member of that family, he was finally able to realize why Qi Shengkang knew so much about the tomb back then….

“Heh, I used to think that he was so talented and impressive for having discovered the tomb of a lost Dynasty, the Xu Dynasty. But who would have thought that it was through your mother that he did.”

Hearing those words, Tang Jiaming looked at Li Guoxian as if he was looking at a poor pathetic ant: “In fact, everything he has studied is related to the Tang family, who have protected the tomb for generations. However, since thousands of years have passed, the records the Tang family had of the tomb had been lost long ago. Everything my father told you was from his own deduction. You’re still inferior to him in all respects, just as you’re vastly inferior to a 25-year-old Qin Cheng.”

“What did you say?!”

“You know damn well what I’m talking about!” Tang Jiaming sneered. “Who do you think you can compare to? Professor Li, you were so jealous of Qin Cheng’s innate talent that you had tried to stagnate his career by only teaching him the theory of the books, without allowing him to gain experience in the field.”

“You son of a bitch!”

“Are you angry? Are you ashamed? Where’s the gentle and elegant Professor Li everyone knows? Why are you spouting such dirty words? Li Guoxian, ah Li Guoxian. Don’t think I don’t know why you had agreed to have a tunnel dug to the main chamber of the Ninghua Village tomb after Jiang Bo’s death, and why you let Qin Cheng be responsible for the excavation.” When he said this, Tang Jiaming approached Li Guoxian and pulled him by the collar. “That’s because you were afraid. Although Qin Cheng met with the ghosts inside the tomb, he didn’t die. After so many years, he was the first one to not die! According to Qin Cheng’s stubborn personality, he would only feel more confused, suspicious, and more interested in the tomb.”

“You should already know that even though Qin Cheng seems calm on the surface, in reality, he’s much more obsessed with archeology than Jiang Bo was. A person like him, as long as he doesn’t die, sooner or later will become the backbone of the academic community. You’re afraid of the new talents, afraid of what’s to come. You’re afraid that, one day, Qin Cheng’s reputation will surpass yours. You hypocrite! You want him dead!”

After these words, Tang Jiaming threw Li Guoxian away with disgust.

“Haha….” Li Guoxian laughed with an ugly expression on his face, and when the mask was lifted, he said: “So what?! In the end, your father, Qi Shengkang, has long died, and Qin Cheng may not live long. I, Li Guoxian, will live forever! The whole world will only remember that I, Li Guoxian, dug out a buried part of our history! A forgotten Dynasty in the long Chinese history!”

Li Guoxian’s face was so contorted that Qu Zhiwen couldn’t bear to continue looking at him. Therefore, Qu Zhiwen stretched out a hand, ready to cast a spell, and seal Li Guoxian’s mouth. But Qu Zhiwen didn’t expect his spell would, instead, shine with a golden light and disappear.

A person capable of transforming a spell cast by Qu Zhiwen cannot be someone simple. Furthermore, neither he nor Tang Jiaming heard anyone approaching!!

Qu Zhiwen and Tang Jiaming went on alert, as they looked around with the utmost concentration.

However, after waiting for a long time, no other sound was heard other than the sound of the wind brushing against the eerily calm mountain. Qu Zhiwen looked at Tang Jiaming, and when he saw Tang Jiaming nodding, Qu Zhiwen said aloud: “I don’t know what senior immortal is here, but we juniors haven’t seen anyone come. We are timid, so we ask this elder to show himself.”

The words echoed in the empty mountain, but no one responded. This time, Qu Zhiwen spoke more softly: “Please, elder, show yourself.”

No matter what he said, it was as if there was really no one else present on the mountain. Qu Zhiwen not only couldn’t hear any sounds, but he couldn’t feel any qi either. When Tang Jiaming realized this, he whispered: “I remember that you once provoked three half-immortals. Could it be that the three of them have come to seek revenge?”

“No,” Qu Zhiwen frowned. “When I went to steal those artifacts, I already expected that those three men would go through a Heavenly Tribulation ¹ soon, approximately in two years’ time. Therefore, they have been very eager to find those artifacts even since, but I have hidden myself very well all this time. Not long ago, they accidentally touched Jiang Ping, a human, which would only hasten the arrival of the Heavenly Tribulation. Since then, they haven’t reappeared, and there is no one in their cave either… When the time comes, without the artifacts, they can only flee from here and go through the tribulation without them.”

“Then….” Tang Jiaming thought of the people who have been following them recently, hesitated, and said: “You used one of those artifacts as a means of establishing the barrier in your home. Can there really be someone in this world who is able to destroy that kind of barrier with ease?”

“….”

“Those three half-immortals can’t do anything against you, but still, there is someone who can destroy your barrier. Seriously, Qu Zhiwen, albeit from an archaeologist’s perspective, I’m curious as to who was the person who had the ability to wipe out an entire Dynasty, the Xu Dynasty, from history. Without leaving a single trace.”

“That man’s name is Su Jingyan.”

“Su Jingyan….” Tang Jiaming knew this name.

‘ Isn’t he the owner of the great Mausoleum in Pingyao? ’

“Are you sure? Have you seen him?”

Qu Zhiwen nodded: “He looks quite similar to Su Jingmo…. In fact, I had been wondering whether Su Jingyan hadn’t died back then….”

“Didn’t die?” The meaning behind these words amazed Tang Jiaming, making his eyes lit up. “You mean to say that Su Jingyan used the Taowu bones to live forever? No, no, he can’t have that ability. If that were the case, he would be no different from an Immortal!”

“I’m not so sure myself….”

“Does that mean that it was him who had captured Qin Cheng not too long ago? Is this tomb his true goal? If he also wants to maintain this tomb….”

Qu Zhiwen didn’t answer, because he suddenly remembered the sentence Su Jingmo said to him a few days ago when he dragged Qin Cheng into the tomb: “Since the life of this foolish man is worthless in my eyes, of course I don’t want it.”

‘ What does he mean by that? ’

‘ If Su Jingmo doesn’t want Qin Cheng’s life….then what is he going to do? No one in this world, except for Qin Cheng, would be willing to stay in the tomb…. ’

There was a slight guess inside Qu Zhiwen’s mind, but it was something he possibly couldn’t believe. ‘ No, it’s impossible. What Su Jingmo said at the time was to confuse me. Qin Cheng is inside the tomb right now, and as long as he dies, it would be useless for us to destroy more formations. Although the eight small formations outside can be easily destroyed, the formation present inside the tomb needs Qin Cheng’s blood….and Su Jingmo’s demise…. ’

‘ In the end, the key to completely destroy the formation still lies in Su Jingmo. ’

Qu Zhiwen knew this, and as the owner of the tomb, Su Jingmo was even more aware of it. ‘ When the formation disappears, Su Jingmo will disappear too. Once he’s gone, the tomb will also be gone. Unless, of course, someone willingly replaces Su Jingmo, before his demise, as the new owner of the tomb….and there’s only one person in this world who would be willing to do such a stupid thing…. ’

…

His missing arm, coupled with his translucent body, made Su Jingmo look somewhat unpleasant. Su Jingmo gently lifted Qin Cheng up, but then, he saw that Qin Cheng’s eyes, which hadn’t opened for days, trembled slightly. Su Jingmo knew then that Qin Cheng should wake up soon.

As expected, Qin Cheng’s blue face gradually returned to normal, and his breathing slowly smoothed out.

Su Jingmo couldn’t help raising the corners of his lips.

When Qin Cheng finally opened his eyes, Su Jingmo said: “You have slept for a long time.”

Qin Cheng heard a familiar voice, but he still felt slightly dizzy from having just woken up, so everything around him seemed as if it was shaking. Besides, he didn’t have his glasses, so Qin Cheng had to squint his eyes to try to see what was in front of him. Qin Cheng took a deep breath and slowed his speech down as he spoke: “Jing….mo?”

“It’s me.”

After hearing that voice, Qin Cheng smiled. Since it had been a long time since the last time he had eaten something, Qin Cheng was feeling extremely weak. As he leaned against Su Jingmo, Qin Cheng shook his head. Only then did he see what was in front of him.

‘ Am I inside the tomb? ’

Thinking of this, Qin Cheng struggled to turn to the side. Su Jingmo was very close to him, so Qin Cheng was perfectly able to see Su Jingmo’s translucent body, as well as his missing arm….

Qin Cheng fiercely narrowed his eyes, and with a hoarse voice, he roared: “What’s happening to you?! Jingmo, your hand…no, no, Jingmo. You can’t g—!” Just before Qin Cheng could finish speaking, Su Jingmo leaned over him and silenced Qin Cheng with his cold lips.

Qin Cheng froze for a short moment, but right after, he raised his hand to hug the ghost right in front of him, as fiercely as he could. As if he was venting, Qin Cheng bit Su Jingmo’s lips, trying to make Su Jingmo to swallow his Yang Qi, with the intention of bringing back his normal appearance….

But no matter what, Su Jingmo was unwilling to absorb even a single trace of Yang Qi from Qin Cheng. His arm remained missing. Qin Cheng said: “You’ll recover quickly….. Su Jingmo, I’m not afraid of dying. I don’t want anything, I just want you to recover, okay? Promise me, will you?”

Qin Cheng pleaded with a trembling voice as countless tears slid down his cheeks, brushing against Su Jingmo’s lips that were resting against his own. At that moment, Qin Cheng’s hot tears burned Su Jingmo’s heart….

As the bitter taste spread between his lips, Su Jingmo thought: ‘ If I could feel anything, Qin Cheng’s kiss would hurt me, the same way my heart hurts right now…. ’

Su Jingmo slowly raised his hand to gently caress Qin Cheng’s cheek. As he kissed Qin Cheng’s lips again, Su Jingmo kissed the tears still falling down his cheeks…..

“Qin Cheng…. Qin Cheng….It’s alright, I’m alright.” Su Jingmo said. As he closed his eyes, Su Jingmo hid the pain that was about to overflow from his eyes.

“I’ll be alright soon.”

When Su Jingmo opened his eyes again, they suddenly turned as red as blood. In that instant, the Ghostly Qi scattered throughout Ninghua Village completely disappeared….

⭐🌟💫✨Extra Chapter from the Ko-fi Goal✨💫🌟⭐

The dramaaaaaa!!!

When Su Jingmo and Qin Cheng are together, it’s both sweet and sad (and here I am once again to remind you that this novel has a HAPPY ENDING 😂)

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Ko-fi goal for extra chapies~~ °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°

Footnotes

<ol><b>天劫</b> <b>tiān jié</b> ; It generally refers to when a Taoist cultivator goes against the Law of Heaven, or interferes with the balance of nature, and suffers from a backlash. Since Immortal Cultivation generally goes against the Law of Heaven, the Heavens will send down tribulations to oppress their progress towards Immortality in the form of powerful lightning storms.</ol>