The notification reading 【Great Record Favorability +5】 hung quietly in his sea of consciousness. Gu Chengming stared at it for several breaths, his brow furrowing tighter and tighter.
That punch just now had landed solidly on her abdomen. He hadn't used Love Infinite, nor had he called upon Emperor Bai, help me. It was pure physical strength, enough to beat any cultivator below the Third Realm into a meatball out in the real world.
Logically, even if her favorability dropped to negative numbers, it would be reasonable. How did it jump up by five points instead?
Gu Chengming quickly mulled it over in his heart.
After all, this was the first time in ten thousand years she possessed a physical body. Every single thing she felt was an unprecedented novelty.
Perhaps even 'pain' was a groundbreaking experience for her? Was it because of this that she developed favorability toward the person who let her taste something so new?
Gu Chengming quietly tucked this deduction into the depths of his heart. His expression remained unchanged, and he was in no hurry to follow up with another move.
This was no ordinary opponent. If he truly pushed her too far, no one could guarantee what kind of trump cards she might be holding back.
On the other side, the Great Record slowly pushed herself up from the ground. Her black hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her face was a few shades paler than before, yet her demeanor had returned to that indifference belonging to an observer. The pathetic sight of her curled up and clutching her stomach was still fresh in his mind, yet she insisted on putting on an act as if nothing had happened.
“I do not wish to fight you.”
Her voice paused slightly. Her fingertips unconsciously touched her abdomen before she suddenly realized this was unbecoming of her status, and she quickly pulled them back into her sleeve.
“It is not worth it right now.”
Gu Chengming translated these words in his head: it meant she couldn't win and was too lazy to run.
He didn't voice his translation, giving her some face by using a more dignified phrasing. “Since you don't want to fight, why don't we sit down and talk?”
“What do you wish to discuss?”
“A way out.” Gu Chengming dropped his combat stance and stood a few paces away with his arms crossed. “You are trapped in this domain, your essence restricted, and the range you can perceive is suppressed to within three zhang. As for me, I need your compromise.”
Outside, there was still an old gentleman's soul stuck in the recursion of the Myriad Thief Spiritual Eye. If they delayed any longer, he might truly go senile on the spot.
The Great Record tilted her head slightly.
That old Daoist's Myriad Thief Spiritual Eye was currently locked in a mirrored corridor by her 'observation sealing observation' method. To her, it was just a casual setup, but for the one outside, the more he struggled, the deeper he sank.
“Releasing him has no benefit or loss for me,” she said flatly. “But what about you?”
“For me...” Gu Chengming chuckled. “If you're willing to let him go, it shows your sincerity to continue talking.”
“As for you...” He pointed at the Great Record, then at this pure white Great Record of Love space. “You should have a scale in your heart. The one imprisoned here isn't me, it's you.”
“I can leave with a single thought, but you are forced to be tied to this mortal coil of flesh and blood. I'm in no hurry to leave. Are you?”
The Great Record lowered her eyes and remained silent.
Her fingertips moved secretly within her sleeve, trying to condense a slice of time. Just as a wisp of silver-grey brilliance gathered, it was crushed into light fragments by rules of this domain that she completely failed to understand, as if the world were directly telling her: “This technique does not exist here.”
Hiding the silver light that was about to dissipate beneath her sleeve, she fell silent for a moment before suddenly asking, “Your method... exactly what is it?”
“It’s a long story.” Gu Chengming didn't intend to waste words on this question. “Why don't you agree to let him go first, and we can talk as we walk?”
The Great Record stared at him for a while.
In ten thousand years, she had observed all phenomena and thousands of chess games. Cultivators with struggling souls, thief cultivators coveting Dao Thrones, and juniors seeking treasures and the Dao—she had seen every kind of path in the Great Record. Yet, someone like Gu Chengming... she could search through every entry and find not a single word that matched him.
This was inherently quite interesting.
“Fine.” She finally nodded. “But on one condition.”
She looked down at her fair and slender body, then looked up at Gu Chengming.
“After we leave, you must find a way to let me leave this skin and return to the void.”
Gu Chengming nodded. This condition was within his expectations.
“In exchange—” He immediately threw out his own part. “After we leave, you must withdraw your suppression of that old gentleman and tell me everything I want to know.”
“Agreed.”
The contract was settled.
There were no oaths, not even a solemn promise. But both sides knew full well that the binding force of this contract lay not in words, but in the hidden cards each held in their hands.
Gu Chengming intended to keep a grip on her, while the Great Record was entirely focused on how to break free from this body.
Each had their own schemes, seemingly united but divided at heart, yet for now, they stood side by side moving in the same direction.
...
After several attempts, Gu Chengming still exited by following the original path he used to leave the Laboratory of Love.
Just as he suspected, even without clearing the Laboratory of Love, he could enter and exit at will.
The pure white before him dissolved layer by layer, and light and shadow reassembled.
Gu Chengming thought the Great Record's fair body would descend into the real world with him, or perhaps turn into a dialogue box like the other techniques.
As it turned out, neither happened.
The dense black-purple veins at the top of the cavern spread out in his vision once more. Beneath his feet was the cold, damp stone, and the air carried the distinctive stench of the Dao Plague. Daoist Don't Know stood stiffly a few paces away, the golden light deep in his pupils still flickering, but he finally no longer looked like he was stuck in a stagnant swamp.
The Great Record didn't have a dialogue box, which made sense; he hadn't cultivated this technique at all.
But where did she go?
Just as Gu Chengming was furrowing his brows in deduction, a line of text that did not come from a dialogue box floated directly into his mind.
【The Great Record watches coldly from the sidelines, attempting to fathom why such an absurd situation has arisen.】
Gu Chengming: ...?
He tentatively replied in his mind: “You can hear me speak?”
【The Great Record originally had no desire to pay any heed, but being forced to reside within this person's physical cognition, she has no choice but to deign to give a response.】
【Essentially, yes.】
Gu Chengming felt a sense of subtle strangeness.
This was like he had suddenly transmigrated into a character in a novel, where even his every move was being written clearly in the third person, and from time to time, he was being fed subjective commentary by a narrator.
And this narrator was one with the Great Record's perspective.
He tested again in his mind: “You are—”
【The Great Record senses that this person wants to get to the bottom of her current situation. Her heart stirs slightly, yet she does not intend to offer much explanation.】
【She is a mark left in the void and originally had no physical form. Being forcibly dragged out of her domain this time, she neither manifested as a physical body as expected nor was she stored as an object in his sea of consciousness, simply because this person has never learned the Great Record technique.】
【Therefore, she can only reside here in the form closest to her essence, recording his words and deeds, recording his circumstances, and recording everything within his field of vision.】
【This is the most undignified situation she has encountered in ten thousand years; she will not say another word.】
Gu Chengming felt even more amused: You say you won't say another word, but you're explaining things quite enthusiastically, aren't you?
【As if sensing Gu Chengming's inner thoughts, the Great Record is quite embarrassed. She clearly only had a thought; why was it heard in its entirety by this person?】
【It seems that in this current state, it is unwise to let her mind wander.】
Gu Chengming felt more and more amused and was about to speak.
“Oh, Patriarch's spirit has appeared—”
Beside him, Daoist Don't Know suddenly shuddered, stumbling as he sat on the ground like one waking from a dream, rubbing his temples with a face full of lingering fear.
“Was I just sucked into an infinite hell? Layer upon layer, eye upon eye, I saw myself seeing myself seeing myself...” The old Daoist gritted his back teeth, forcibly cutting off that recursive thought, nearly losing his breath.
Gu Chengming stepped forward to help him up, giving a half-true explanation. “Senior was caught in a trap just now. I fortunately used a secret technique to temporarily suppress the evil spirit guarding this place.”
Daoist Don't Know glanced at him skeptically. His Myriad Thief Spiritual Eye swept over him, but he only perceived that the karma around Gu Chengming was as messy as a bowl of eight-treasure porridge as usual, with no extra clues to be seen.
“You kid...” The old Daoist was about to ask further.
Before his words could land, the entire cavern suddenly shook violently.
The 'giant eye' originally composed of thousands of veins, after losing the maintenance and suppression of the Great Record herself, went on a rampage like a runaway horse. The deep purple veins churned as if boiling, and gusts of foul wind carrying intense malice erupted from the deepest part of the earth, shattering the remaining cold moonlight from before.
Daoist Don't Know's face changed drastically. “What is this?”
【The Great Record examines the chaos before her.】
【That unborn Dao Throne has lost her maintenance and has been defiled by the accumulated malice of the Dao Plague here. It is accelerating its fall. If allowed to hatch, every living being within a hundred miles will become fodder for the fallen throne.】
Gu Chengming looked at this narration and asked in his heart: “So, how do we clean up this mess?”
The text stalled for a moment.
[...]
【The Great Record thinks to herself that this person did not ask 'what is this' but immediately asked 'how to clean it up'.】
【He actually treats her like a common tool to be ordered around. How is that any different from when she was driven by Ji Yixi?】
【Thinking of this, the Great Record actually feels a bit of sorrow.】
—Why are you so awkward?
Gu Chengming's expression remained unchanged. “You just personally agreed to cooperate. If this fallen throne explodes, we'll all be finished together.”
【The Great Record admits that what this person says is reasonable, but she still maintains her reservations about his lack of respect.】
He tried asking again: “Is there a clever way to break this? I'm all ears.”
【The Great Record does not intend to easily hand over the core method. She only needs to share a few simple principles to let this person block this wave. Once she escapes, she will have her own plans.】
—So you're still thinking about dumping the responsibility and running away.
Gu Chengming wasn't angry either, his tone remaining steady. “Think carefully before you answer. If I can't hold out on my end, we'll all turn to ashes together. Although you are a reflection in the void, this 'record' of yours is currently attached to me. If I die, neither of us can say for sure what will happen to you.”
[...]
The stalled narration in his vision finally began to churn again.
【The Great Record thinks to herself that this is merely your rhetoric. Perhaps when you fall, she might just be able to break free from this strange restraint. Of course, all of this is uncertain. Therefore, she decides to first use your karma to peer into the past and see if she can find any clues.】
【The Great Record attempts to deduce your past along your karma lines, but repeatedly fails when reaching the point of the last three years.】
【The Great Record is startled to realize she seems to have misjudged you.】
【Beneath those few ordinary karma lines on your body, there is actually a surging undercurrent, hiding a river of laws she has never seen before.】
【Silver threads, golden lines, and black seals interwoven with crimson gold—not a single part matches any entry in her ten-thousand-year Great Record.】
At the same time, the techniques naturally sensed this new neighbor.
【Hundred Bones Resonating snorted in dissatisfaction: Emperor Gu, why is this new arrival in black and white so noisy? To dare shout at the Heavenly Emperor, this Emperor must show her some color!】
[?!!]
---
【In her ten thousand years, the Great Record has observed all phenomena, yet she has never seen a technique that has developed intelligence like herself—】
【The laws of the Heavenly Dao clearly state that 'spirit cannot be man-made.' The spirit of all things is bestowed by the Heavenly Dao; this is a fundamental principle of the world.】
【Let alone... dozens of them gathered together.】
【She originally thought she sat high in the void, calculating everything without fail, the eternal observer transcending the mortal world. Even if she temporarily borrowed this mortal coil of Gu Chengming's, she could still hold him firmly in her palm. Who would have thought this kid doesn't follow the common sense of heaven and earth at all? She had clearly calculated everything, only to run straight into such a jinx who specifically counters techniques!】
【How can this be?! How can this be!!?】
【Hundred Bones Resonating, fearing the world wasn't chaotic enough, shouted even more cheerfully: Emperor Gu, why has this black-and-white newcomer gone quiet?】
Deep in the cave, the dark purple veins exploded again, and a foul wind carrying the malice of the Dao Plague slammed toward them.
Gu Chengming waved his hand to chop down an incoming vein, his tone leisurely. “Have you thought it over?”
The narration fell silent again.
Before long, Gu Chengming felt information he had never encountered before surface in the depths of his mind—the structure of an unborn Dao Throne, the principles of bestowing a name, the method to clear the cause of the fallen throne, and how to temporarily stabilize that cavity throbbing at the bottom of the Cuiping Mountain abyss... every detail was laid out.
Although she didn't mention a single word of the core bestowing a name, it was enough to pass the current hurdle.
【This is an emergency method; do not push your luck.】
Gu Chengming took a deep breath, suppressing the information into the depths of his sea of consciousness, and turned to look at Daoist Don't Know, who was still dusting himself off with a face that screamed 'who the heck did you just call upon'.
The old Daoist read the seriousness in his eyes and sensibly refrained from asking more, simply stuffing his wine gourd back into his sleeve and stretching his limbs.
“Little friend, do you have a plan?”
Gu Chengming closed his eyes for a moment, re-organizing the flow of information poured into his mind.
The essence of an unborn Dao Throne might look mysterious to an outsider, but when dismantled, it was nothing more than an empty slot waiting on the chessboard of the Heavenly Dao. Whoever's dao intent filled it, it would recognize that person as its master.
The trouble now was that the malice of the Dao Plague had been pouring in through the seal's cracks for over ten thousand years, already coating this empty 'shell' with a thick layer of filth. If they continued to wait, by the day it truly descended, its name would have to be changed to 'fallen throne'.
If a natural fallen throne were born, every living being within a hundred miles would become its fodder.
But the method given by the Great Record was quite tricky. Since the corruption stemmed from 'the gestation period being too long and the malice soaking in for too long,' then they would simply cut off the root of the gestation and catalyze an early birth.
Forcing the 'unborn' to become 'about to be born.'
Once a Dao Throne reached the final moment before its decree, its own laws would reject all external things that had not formed a bond with it. It was like a woman in labor; the mother's body would naturally force out the fetal toxins. It was roughly that principle.
As for the price of this catalyzed birth, the Great Record left a meaningful pause after that entry.
【This method can solve the immediate crisis. As for the consequences, you shall bear them yourself.】
Daoist Don't Know hung his wine gourd back on his waist, the golden light in his Myriad Thief Spiritual Eye finally stabilizing. The old Daoist looked around at the churning deep purple veins; the rate of corruption far exceeded expectations. If they delayed for another half a stick of incense, this cavern would likely turn into a boiling pot of rotten meat.
“Senior, please protect me.” Gu Chengming said frankly. “I'm going to tamper with this Dao Throne.”
The old Daoist was stunned. “Tamper with it? Do you know what you're saying—”
“An unborn Dao Throne; I know what I'm doing.” Gu Chengming nodded. “I won't take it; I'm just pushing it from 'unborn' to 'about to be born,' letting it spit out the Dao Plague itself.”
Daoist Don't Know's expression froze. He stared fixedly at Gu Chengming for a long time before letting out a long sigh.
“I've lived for over five hundred years, and today is the first time I've heard the word 'catalyze' being applied to a Dao Throne.”
He didn't ask further, his Myriad Thief Spiritual Eye spreading out a karmic protection net. Although a thief cultivator's protective arts weren't as profound as orthodox techniques, the old Daoist's ability to 'borrow a path without returning' was enough to divert all the overflowing malice elsewhere when Gu Chengming acted.
Gu Chengming held his breath and focused, verifying the method passed down by the Great Record with his own karma-disrupting method.
Catalyzing was, to put it simply, reverse deduction.
He didn't need to understand the true meaning of the Dao Throne; he only needed to forcibly change that 'yet to be formed' haziness on the shell into the 'about to be formed' clarity. It was like a painter who left the final stroke unplaced, and now he was doing it for them.
He didn't care what was in the painting; he only cared about making the painting take shape.
Gu Chengming raised his hand, silver-white and crimson-gold brilliance condensing at his fingertips.
The light source came from the Hundred Bones Resonating of Love; this was currently his only reliance that could penetrate the level of rules.
【Hundred Bones Resonating: Emperor Gu! Is this Emperor going to show off?!】
“I'm counting on you, Emperor Bai.”
【Hundred Bones Resonating laughed arrogantly: Such a trivial matter is not worth mentioning!】
【A certain black-and-white narrator next door: ...】
The light followed the karmic protection net straight down, penetrating layers of pulsing black-purple veins, and touched the haziest edge of that pale light source deep in the cavern.
“Buzz—”
The entire cavern suddenly shook violently.
This touch seemed casual, but it completely pierced through that barrier as thin as a cicada's wing.
White light surged, and the pulsing deep purple veins faded like a receding tide. The malice of the Dao Plague was forcibly squeezed out by the Dao Throne, turning into billowing black smoke that poured toward the walls. The giant eye that had once dragged Daoist Don't Know into infinite recursion was scattered by the clear light, turning back into ordinary rock walls.
The corruption process came to a sudden halt.
Daoist Don't Know looked up at that increasingly dazzling white light, his withered fingers trembling slightly, as if something were stuck in his throat.
“I've lived for five hundred years... and it's the first time I've seen someone deliver a Dao Throne with their bare hands.”
“...” Gu Chengming said nothing.
Seeing this, the old Daoist didn't press further, simply gathering the last golden wisp of his Myriad Thief Spiritual Eye and staring intently at the formed white light.
Stealing the secrets of heaven, stealing karma.
The Myriad Thief Sect Master's intuition was screaming: This thing is worth stealing!
However, things did not follow his script.
...
【The Great Record spreads her field of vision once more. Although she is trapped within these three zhang, she can use Gu Chengming's karma lines to extend her observations outward.】
In the western border of Great Qian, in a certain cultivation cave dwelling.
An old man with white hair and beard suddenly opened his eyes. His cultivation was at the late Fifth Realm, and his dao title was True Monarch Baicang. He had been in seclusion for over ten years, yet now he forcibly pulled himself out of his meditation. He looked toward the east, a streak of interwoven silver and gold divine light reflected in his eyes.
—A Dao Throne about to be born?
He stood up, the sword chime in his sleeve clear and resonant.
In the miasma-filled lands of the southern border, a scholar in green robes closed the bamboo scrolls in his hand.
An unborn Dao Throne... gestating in Cuiping...
The scholar tapped his fingertip, and a small boat emerged from the mist to carry him up.
From the shores of the East Sea, to the peaks of the Western Desert, to the lands beyond the Northern Desolation.
Those great cultivators stuck at the late Fifth Realm with no way to advance all raised their heads at the same instant. Whether they were in seclusion, traveling, or locked within their sects, they all rushed toward the Cuiping Mountains at their fastest speeds.
A Dao Throne is about to be born, its master undecided.
This was a once-in-ten-thousand-years opportunity.
Whoever could get there first would have a ladder to ascension.
...
The old Daoist extended his divine sense, his face twitching as he let out a whistle mixed with a bitter laugh.
“Hoh, what a lineup. Song Heng of the Hunyuan Sect, the Grand Elder of the Yunyue Sect, True Monarch Baicang of the western border—even the old monsters in death-seclusion are acting. More than a dozen late Fifth Realm experts are coming.”
Gu Chengming felt a headache coming on.
“Senior, let's plan—”
Before his words could land, that ball of formed white light shuddered violently without warning.
The white light turned into a meteor-like radiance, directly piercing through the thick rock layers at the top of the cavern and flying away.
It was so fast that even Daoist Don't Know only had time to make a futile grab at the air.
The narration stopped in place, leaving only a string of speechless ellipses.
“...”
Even as a mark in the void overseeing all ages, she had never seen the bizarre sight of a Dao Throne about to be born growing legs and running away.
The Great Record clearly didn't know what was going on either and couldn't give any decent answer.
“What are you staring for? After it!”
Daoist Don't Know was the first to snap back to his senses. To him, that was a shining Sixth Realm ticket; the chance for the Myriad Thief Sect's ancestral graves to smoke with luck was right before him.
Gu Chengming immediately followed.
If the Dao Throne continued to corrupt, there would be endless trouble; moreover, he had a contract with the Great Record. They had to determine the ownership of the Dao Throne first and absolutely could not let it wander outside.
The two of them, each with their own thoughts, sped along like lightning, clinging tightly to the residual rhythm of the laws.
Ultimately, they actually chased it all the way into the mountain gates of the Yunyue Sect.
...
The scene ahead made Gu Chengming stop in his tracks.
In the center of the Yunyue Sect's bustling plaza stood a young girl wearing the grey cloth robes of an outer sect disciple.
Her black hair was like a waterfall, her face fair, and her features so exquisite they were untainted by dust. She looked exactly like the Great Record did when she was pulled into reality!
Only now, this 'Great Record' had suppressed her aura completely, appearing as a First Realm rookie who had just entered the sect, blending into the crowd of disciples without any sense of disharmony.
Gu Chengming asked in his heart: “Why does it look exactly like you?”
【The Great Record didn't understand at first, but after careful deduction, she barely managed to come up with an explanation.】
【She spent ten thousand years gestating this Dao Throne, and the underlying template of the Dao Throne was cast according to her true form. If the Dao Throne lacked a complete 'earthly manifestation' at the moment it was 'about to be born,' it would automatically pull the most familiar template as its skin.】
【And her appearance when she was forcibly dragged into reality and given a physical body by Gu Chengming dozens of breaths ago happened to be the most vivid and complete 'Great Record physical manifestation' in the entire Cuiping Mountain Dao Throne network.】
【Therefore, the Dao Throne naturally picked this appearance as its vessel.】
【This explanation sounds logical, but the Great Record still maintains her reservations about 'why it had to pick my skin'.】
—A Dao Throne you gestated for ten thousand years picked your own skin as its shell. You're really its biological mother.
Gu Chengming considerately did not voice this remark.
Accompanied by a heavy sobbing tone, a weak female voice suddenly rang out.
In the center of the plaza, that 'Junior Sister' had red eyes, tears pitter-pattering down as her thin shoulders shook like a sieve. She extended a trembling jade finger and pointed straight at Gu Chengming, who had just stepped into the outer perimeter.
“Elders, Senior Brothers and Sisters...” the girl sobbed, “you have to stand up for me!”
While her voice was still echoing in the air, that Dao Throne-turned-human suddenly raised her head.
Her eyes were bloodshot, tears hitting the bluestone floor, her voice thin, soft, and full of grievance.
“...It's him!”
On the plaza, the disciples who were still in morning practice and the passing deacons all turned their heads in unison.
In the next instant, an elder spoke sternly: “Gu Chengming, why did you steal our Yunyue Sect Junior Sister's second realm breakthrough pill?!”
“?”
Stealing a second realm breakthrough pill?
This plot direction, this brain-dead setup conflict that made his scalp tingle, this cliché trope where 'the junior sister was wronged so the whole sect must demand justice'...
Is this still a male-lead novel? Where the heck have I ended up?
But soon, Gu Chengming understood the cause and effect.
The birth of the Dao Throne distorted reality, and everyone in the Yunyue Sect was unconsciously contaminated by this intelligence-lowering meme.
And the drama currently playing out was clearly 《Innocent Junior Sister Cruelly Bullied by Outer Sect Bully, Sect Elders Domineeringly Back Her Up》.
As the thought landed, an old man in dark green Daoist robes on the left had already slammed the table and stood up, his beard trembling with rage.
“Gu Chengming! Both witness and evidence are present; why don't you surrender quickly?!”
Before Gu Chengming could even complain, another elder on the right smoothly took over.
“The world praises you as the Hunyuan Sect Holy Son, clear and bright, but who would have thought that in private you have such a filthy heart! Do you truly think our Yunyue Sect has no one?!”
Gu Chengming: ...
Another elder, overcome with grief and indignation, beat his chest in pain.
“I already saw that this boy's heart was not right! That day on the platform when he shattered our sect-protecting artifact with one punch, I already felt his character was lacking. Seeing him today, it's exactly as I thought!”
—So you were waiting for this?
However, before Gu Chengming could figure out how to break the situation, the array of people stepped up another level.
An elder in a dark green robe was the first to step forward.
“What a beast in human clothing from the Wenjian Sect!”
He pointed at Gu Chengming, his voice shaking the leaves off the trees at the edge of the plaza.
“Our Yunyue Sect has no grudge with the Wenjian Sect, yet you actually committed theft within our sect! If Junior Sister hadn't plucked up the courage to identify you publicly today, who knows how many more months or years you would have hidden it!”
Gu Chengming raised an eyebrow and turned to look at the girl in the center of the plaza who was currently weeping like a pear blossom in the rain. She happened to meet his gaze, and the tears in her eyes immediately intensified.
The girl shrunk back, a pitiful look of being too scared to speak, timidly hiding half a step behind that elder.
“Elders... I-I'm fine...” Her voice was as thin as a mosquito, carrying a trembling grievance, “The pill... if the pill is lost, it's lost. I can refine it myself after another three years of cultivation... You, you shouldn't get into a conflict with the Wenjian Sect for me. I... I'm not worth it.”
Hearing this, that elder felt even more pained.
“I vaguely remember the day Junior Sister first entered the sect; she was so thin and frail. I even personally served a bowl of spiritual rice porridge to warm her stomach... Now she has actually suffered this unprovoked disaster. My heart truly cannot find peace.”
“Gu Chengming, for the sake of your sect's reputation, I will give you one last chance. Publicly bow your head and admit your guilt, and by making amends, this sect may still show leniency!”
Before his words could land, an elder beside him couldn't hold back and interjected impatiently.
“How can such a malicious act be dismissed with leniency? According to our sect's iron laws, those who trespass into the pill repository and steal from fellow disciples should have their cultivation crippled and be expelled from the sect at best, or be executed on the spot as a warning to others at worst!”
What was even more breathtaking was that after such an astounding statement was thrown out, the other elders didn't even blink, nodding in agreement one after another.
At the edge of the plaza, the expressions of the outer sect disciples also shifted. There were originally a few young disciples who had developed a secret admiration for Gu Chengming because he shattered the bell on the platform, but now the gaze they directed at him actually surged with a sense of genuine hatred.
How could the pure and innocent Junior Sister be allowed to be bullied by this outer sect tyrant at will?
The memetic contamination was spreading wildly across the plaza at a speed visible to the naked eye, as if someone had pressed the fast-forward button.
Daoist Don't Know stood quietly beside Gu Chengming. His deep Fifth Realm cultivation was naturally enough to protect his mind. But even so, he could sense a soft, dark force deep in his sea of consciousness, tirelessly trying to 'straighten his thoughts' and attempting to forcibly shove him into a set character shell—for instance, a 'honest elder being coerced by a villain's force.'
The old Daoist sneered, waving his large sleeve. The Myriad Thief Spiritual Eye beneath his sleeve shimmered with light, effortlessly shedding that dark force completely.
“Tsk.” He murmured in a low voice, “Little friend, this little thing really knows how to claim a mountain as its own.”
The elder in the dark green robe took another step forward, his sword intent suddenly tightening, showing faint signs that he was about to act.
“Gu Chengming, do you have anything to say in your defense?”
“If you do, say it now. If not—” The old man's voice sank half an inch, and the chime of an ancient sword faintly echoed from his sleeve, “then you shall be executed on the spot according to the Yunyue Sect's rules.”
On the plaza, the Yunyue Sect disciples gasped in unison.
Gu Chengming complained in his heart: How did you even steal our gasping in unison? You've really stitched a lot together.
【Hundred Bones Resonating was so angry on the spot that smoke was coming from the top of her head: This reckless witch! How dare she frame Emperor Gu! This Emperor will definitely show her what's what today!】
—I was waiting for you to say that, Emperor Bai.
Gu Chengming made a decision in his heart.
In the next moment, his figure flashed.
The elders on the field only felt their vision blur. When they looked again, that 'Wenjian Sect thief' was nowhere to be found.
The leading elder in the dark green robe's expression changed drastically: “Not good! He escaped—”
Before his words could land.
The Junior Sister's mouth, which had been open halfway through her sobbing, hadn't even had time to shout the next line of her script when a familiar figure appeared before her. Her silver-grey eyes suddenly widened.
“Thud!”
A shot of Love Infinite, without any fancy tricks, landed directly on the 'Junior Sister's' abdomen.
As for that pitiful 'Junior Sister'—
“Guh—!”
A very familiar muffled groan was squeezed out of the girl's throat with difficulty.
Then, her body flew out like a tattered sack.
Rate on N.U.
