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After the group from the Demon Realm dispersed, the tension in everyone’s hearts instantly eased, and their faces showed the joy of surviving a calamity.
Shen Liuxiang found a place to hide from the rain, his whole body soaked, black hair sticking to his back, and the ground around him quickly becoming wet from the water dripping off his clothes.
He covered his mouth as he sneezed, untied his storage bag, and wanted to find another robe to put on. The bag was filled with various items, and he rummaged through it for a while before finally finding a piece of clothing.
When he took it out and looked at it, it was a crimson fox fur coat.
It was the one Zhou Xuanlan had put on him when they were in the bamboo forest, feeling cold.
Shen Liuxiang glanced around, but didn’t see his disciple’s figure. His disciple used to be the first one to come to him.
He suddenly felt a bit uncomfortable, put on the fur coat, leaned against the railing alone, and started cracking melon seeds that were a bit damp.
After finishing a handful of melon seeds, the spiritual energy around him returned to calm, and Ye Bingran had successfully stepped into the Harmonization stage.
He opened his eyes, a trace of shattered light flashing in his gaze.
Glancing around and not seeing anyone from earlier, Ye Bingran’s expression showed a touch of sadness. He got up and bowed to Yu Fusheng, “Thank you, Master, for your help.”
Yu Fusheng stood with his hands behind his back, and the night wind blew, causing his sleeves to flutter. “You’ve just stepped into the Harmonization stage, and your spiritual energy is unstable. Go back and stabilise it first. Leave the external matters to your Master and Senior Uncle.”
Ye Bingran nodded slightly and looked towards a long corridor before turning to leave.
Yu Fusheng followed his line of sight, his brows slightly furrowing. With a wave of his wide sleeves, he appeared in front of a young man in the blink of an eye.
“You are Zhongqing’s disciple.”
Shen Liuxiang was startled by the sudden appearance of Yu Fusheng. For some reason, every time he saw Yu Fusheng, he would be frightened, as if he subconsciously feared him.
After calming down, he bowed and said, “Greetings, Daoist Jianzhen.”
Yu Fusheng didn’t say anything, stepped forward, and pressed his shoulder.
Shen Liuxiang felt a cold spiritual energy rushing into his body, making his whole body ache, and his face turned pale.
At this moment, Ling Ye appeared and also greeted, “Daoist.”
Yu Fusheng stopped, looking at him, “You said last time that your disciple was affected by an incurable demonic poison, and I didn’t believe it. Now it seems that it was not a lie.”
Shen Liuxiang freed himself from the constraint and immediately moved closer to Ling Ye’s side.
Seeing this, Yu Fusheng said, “You are afraid of me.”
Shen Liuxiang shook his head and rubbed his shoulder, “Daoist’s power is awe-inspiring, and I have a deep sense of awe. That’s why I don’t dare to approach easily.”
“You have become much more restrained than when you were a child,” Yu Fusheng’s eyes darkened with a hint of uncertainty. “I remember I held you before. Do you recall? At that time, Qing was still there, and every time he came to my Sword Sect, he would bring you along.”
Fang Zhongqing was the name of his Master, the Wuyuan Taoist.
Ling Ye spoke, “My junior brother was young at that time and may not remember those things. Please don’t take it to heart, Daoist.”
“How could I blame Zhong Qing’s disciple,” Yu Fusheng said, “You two brothers were watched over by me as you grew up. Now that he is gone, I treat you both as my direct disciples.”
He took a step forward, placed his hand on Shen Liuxiang’s shoulder, and patted it lightly and heavily twice. “I remember, Zhong Qing doted on you the most.”
After saying that, Yu Fusheng disappeared from sight.
Shen Liuxiang wrapped the fox fur tightly around him and inexplicably felt cold.
Ling Ye lightly tapped his forehead with his fingertip, and a warm breath enveloped him.
“Master and Daoist Jianzhen had been in contact for a long time and were both friends and teachers. After Master left, he searched for a long time before giving up. When he saw the two of us, he was reminded of Master, so his emotions were inevitably stirred. Don’t worry about it.”
Shen Liuxiang blinked his eyes. “Where did Master go?”
In the original work, there was very little information about characters like Yu Fusheng and Fang Zhongqing.
“I don’t know,” Ling Ye shook his head, showing a hint of nostalgia on his face. “Master left in a hurry and only said a few words to me.”
Shen Liuxiang asked, “Why in a hurry? What was he anxious about?”
Ling Ye smiled mischievously, his eyes teasing. “You are about to return to the sect after your experience, so he naturally wanted to leave quickly. Otherwise, if you cling to him, cry and make a fuss, he won’t be able to leave.”
Shen Liuxiang touched his nose in annoyance. “Are you saying that he deliberately sent me away during the experience?”
“Most likely,” Ling Ye said, withdrawing his hand when he saw that his long hair and robes were dry. “When Master was here, he always decided the locations for your experiences.”
Shen Liuxiang was taken aback.
Was it Wuyuan Taoist who sent him to Nanzhou and the Eastern Wasteland? Did he already know something?
Ling Ye glanced at the sky. “There are still some hours left. Rest for a while, and we will return to the sect tomorrow.”
After Yu Fusheng returned to his cave, his figure flickered, and his slender fingers embedded into the cold stone wall, causing fresh blood to flow.
His fingertips were in pain, but he felt extremely delighted inside.
On that day, Fang Zhongqing severed the cause and effect of the world and disappeared without a trace. Many believed he had ascended, but Yu Fusheng didn’t believe it. There must be something he still cared about and couldn’t let go of… even if it wasn’t him.
Now, he finally found a clue.
There should be clues about Fang Zhongqing’s whereabouts hidden in Shen Liuxiang’s body. That Wuyuan Taoist cared so much for his disciple, contemplating the opportunities for him and sending him to Nanzhou and the Eastern Wasteland. How could he ignore him and ascend when he learned about his great calamity?
Yu Fusheng chuckled silently.
He looked up, his face covered in a faint demonic aura.
Shen Liuxiang returned to the dwelling of the Qingling disciples and glanced at Zhou Xuanlan’s room. It was still quiet inside.
He wondered where he had gone.
Just as he was considering whether to look for him, a small figure dashed out from the shadows, opening its arms and hugging his leg, turning into a leg accessory.
“Daddy~”
Shen Liuxiang could only lift the chubby baby with one hand and return to his room.
“Daddy is fine, it’s great,” Shen Bubu clung to his neck, happily rubbing against him.
His small face buried in Shen Liuxiang’s fair neck, a few golden leaves swayed above his cheeks, brushing against them.
“Bubu will go back to Mount Ginseng with Grandpa, the team leader, tomorrow.”
Tonight, he was particularly clingy, and he instructed, “Daddy, remember to think of Bubu often, once a day, okay?”
Shen Liuxiang pinched his white and tender cheeks, soft and elastic.
Thinking that he wouldn’t be able to pinch him like this anymore in the future, he felt a little melancholy. “If you really can’t bear it, you can come back with me to Qingling.”
Shen Bubu raised his black bright eyes and looked at him for a while. The light in his eyes dimmed as he said, “Daddy said that Bubu is most suitable to stay in Mount Gingseng. We made a promise that Daddy will come to Mount Ginseng to pick me up when Bubu grows up.”
Shen Liuxiang pondered for a moment and asked, “When will you grow up?”
“When I bear a fruit, I’ll grow up,” Shen Bubu touched the golden leaves on his head and smiled, “It won’t take long, maybe a hundred years.”
Shen Liuxiang said, “…Then I’ll take the time to visit you in Mount Ginseng.”
T/N: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! Shen Bubu is leaving the scene so sad he was my favourite character.
Speaking of Shen Bubu, I am going to quickly open up the Theories Corner again!
I was scampering through the comments, as all good translators do, and I saw two interesting theories on Shen Bubu existence since he clearly did not exist in the original novel:
Commenter haha theorises that Shen Bubu is a fragmented part of Shen Liuxiang – perhaps transmigrator Shen Liuxiang is actually OG Shen Liuxiang but something   happened to his memory, or perhaps he’s from a multiverse….. Commenter LicoLico theorises that Shen Bubu is actually OG Shen Liuxiang but with his memories sealed away – it would be quite fun to have double Shen Liuxiang
I do NOT trust Yu Fusheng!!!!! I have a feeling OG Shen Liuxiang might have seen something that Yu Fusheng did that he didn’t want anyone to see, and caused Shen Liuxiang to forget everything (maybe he is the cause of the mysterious demonic poison???)