IMMFBCG Chapter 51

Chapter 51: A Reunion After a Long Separation

“When exactly was Bao Wenxuan possessed and his soul taken over? Was it when he went to prepare tea for us just now when he encountered the ominous Red and White Shas, or perhaps…

From the very beginning, had Ye Xue and the others only met an impostor of Bao Wenxuan back in Fengyang Village?

Ye Xue understood that the situation was urgent and had no time to think further. She pulled out a bottle from her pocket, aimed its opening at Bao Wenxuan’s spirit, and commanded, ‘Return.’

The spirit beneath the bed responded to the summoning and quickly flew over. Ye Xue sealed it away, protecting Bao Wenxuan’s soul, and sighed as she held the last copper coin, saying, ‘Luckily, I have you.’

Who knew what that thing was? She hadn’t noticed anything strange about Bao Wenxuan. If it weren’t for the copper talisman falling off, who knows when she would have realized that his soul had been replaced.

Ye Xue turned and left, but when she returned to the front yard, she found a barrier sealing the door, blocking any sounds from reaching outside. She couldn’t hear any activity from the front yard.

She took out a talisman, ready to break through the barrier, but just as she was about to place it, she noticed the barrier rippling like a lake disturbed by a stone, and her hand passed through it without resistance.

Ye Xue was momentarily stunned. The barrier didn’t affect her?

At the same time, a loud crash came from the living room.

Ye Xue quickened her pace and rushed over.

Yu Qi was leaning against the wall, clutching his bleeding arm and staring at the figure before him.

A strong glow emitted from the beads on his wrist, sensing its master’s danger. The Wuyue Diagram formed a protective shield.

The sword in ‘Bao Wenxuan’s’ hand was stained with Yu Qi’s blood, and drops of fresh blood dripped from the blade.

Seeing Ye Xue approaching, he flashed a smile and said, ‘You figured it out a bit sooner than I expected. What a shame, Mr. Yu. I haven’t even finished you off yet…’

As soon as he finished speaking, a fierce wind swept through, scattering objects in the room, though Yu Qi stood firm.

‘Bao Wenxuan’ was enveloped in a dark mist that started as a small wisp but spread, filling nearly the entire room.

A figure emerged from the shell.

As Ye Xue entered the living room, she saw only a thick black mist, and beneath it, Bao Wenxuan’s body suddenly collapsed to the ground.

Before them, thick layers of mist circled, splitting off a strand that flew toward Yu Qi.

Ye Xue sprinted over, grabbed the Sword of Evil-Banishing by the sofa, and swung it at the mist, unleashing a radiant light.

At that moment, Yu Qi felt a powerful vibration on his wrist. The beads seemed almost alive, eager to merge with the Sword of Evil-Banishing.

He raised his hand with difficulty, activating the array on the obsidian bead. It combined with the sword’s light, forming a brilliant golden beam that slashed toward the dark mist.

The black mist aimed at Yu Qi dissipated, clearing part of the surrounding fog.

As the mist dispersed, Ye Xue saw a figure dressed in black, wearing a heavy cloak that covered him entirely, revealing only part of his pale chin.

The moment Ye Xue saw him, she knew this cloaked figure was the one who stole the female sword and injured the ghost official, releasing a vengeful spirit.

‘Well, I won’t play this game with you anymore,’ he chuckled, his voice as raspy as sandpaper scraping a desk. ‘Ye Xue, I hope you enjoy the gift I left you.’

Hearing his cryptic words, Ye Xue frowned at him.

The black mist gathered around him again and spread in all directions.

Seeing that he intended to leave like this, Ye Xue threw her sword with all her might. The mist split briefly, but it was unclear if it hit him, and he soon disappeared with the mist.

The Sword of Evil-Banishing clattered to the ground. Ye Xue picked it up and hurried to help Yu Qi up, worried, ‘You’re bleeding a lot.’

‘It’s nothing… just a minor wound.’ Yu Qi grasped her wrist, concern evident in his gaze. ‘Are you alright?’

Ye Xue was surprised that he, injured, was worried about her instead. She shook her head in confusion. ‘I’m fine.’

As she helped Yu Qi sit down, he explained, ‘Right after you left the living room, I felt a piercing pain in my heart, like being struck by thousands of arrows. I lost focus for a moment, and suddenly, he had a sword in his hand and lunged at me. I barely avoided it, but he wounded my arm. He then asked me…’

– ‘How’s the water? Hurts too much to think, doesn’t it? Don’t worry, the pain will pass soon.’

With that, he raised his sword to strike again.

Yu Qi dodged clumsily, colliding with the wall, realizing with horror that Ye Xue had also drunk from that bottle. He feared she might be in pain too.

Thinking of this, Yu Qi looked at her again and asked, ‘Are you really alright? Do you feel any discomfort?’

Ye Xue placed a hand on her chest, shook her head, and said, ‘I don’t feel anything unusual…’

After a moment, she added, ‘That bottle of water was handed to me by that man. Could it be that…’

She quickly dismissed her thought. ‘No, from his tone, that water was intended for you.’

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have asked how the water tasted.

So…

The cloaked man deliberately gave her the problematic bottle, knowing Yu Qi would open it for her and switch bottles.

He wanted to act swiftly and catch Yu Qi off guard. Even if Ye Xue hadn’t left the living room, he would have found another excuse to send her to the backyard.

But what puzzled Ye Xue was why he didn’t just put something in both bottles; that would have been safer since Yu Qi might have simply opened hers.

And why did he leave the moment he saw her?

Even if his target was Yu Qi, there was no need to spare her.

Ye Xue’s thoughts were tangled, but Yu Qi felt fortunate. ‘Luckily, it was only my bottle that was tainted.'”

He didn’t want Ye Xue to feel pain.

Ye Xue snapped back to reality and noticed Yu Qi’s arm was still bleeding. She glanced around at the chaos in the room, then took out the bottle containing Bao Wenxuan’s soul and opened the cap.

Bao Wenxuan’s soul hovered at the center. Ye Xue was about to bite her finger to draw blood but paused, then reached out to Yu Qi’s arm. “Let me borrow some of your blood.”

Her fingertips were cold, yet when they touched his skin, warmth spread through him.

Yu Qi lowered his gaze, feeling his heart race again.

Ye Xue let his blood drip onto the soul, guiding Bao Wenxuan with a gesture toward his body on the floor. “Soul, return!”

After completing everything, Ye Xue sat down beside Yu Qi and asked with concern, “Does it still hurt?”

Yu Qi shook his head. “It doesn’t hurt anymore.”

The stray soul quickly returned to its body. Bao Wenxuan groaned, suddenly sitting up straight with a loud warning, “Daoist Ye, Mr. Yu, be careful!”

Ye Xue: “…”

Yu Qi: “…”

Not sure what expression to show, Ye Xue sighed. “Bao Wenxuan, how did you end up separated from your body?”

“I don’t know. I was fetching water from the well when someone knocked me out, and everything went black. I don’t remember anything after that,” Bao Wenxuan replied.

No wonder he’d been taking so long in the backyard—it was during that time that his soul was swapped out.

Ye Xue asked a few more questions, but Bao Wenxuan seemed confused and unaware, not even realizing that the one who knocked him out was the black-cloaked man who sold him the sword.

Seeing she wouldn’t get any more clues from him, Ye Xue changed the subject. “Do you have a first-aid kit here?”

Bao Wenxuan turned and, finally noticing Yu Qi’s injuries, exclaimed, “Mr. Yu, you’re hurt?!”

Yu Qi simply held Ye Xue’s hand, saying nothing.

Ye Xue sighed. “Your reaction is a little slow, don’t you think?”

Scratching his head in embarrassment, Bao Wenxuan replied, “I didn’t realize right away. The first-aid kit? I’ll go look.”

He finally noticed the state of the room. Chairs and tables were overturned, bloodstains marred the sofa, and even the wall calendar hadn’t been spared from the chaos.

Bao Wenxuan looked around in despair. “My sister is going to kill me when she sees this!”

Ye Xue reassured him, “It’s okay. I’ll help you clean up later.”

Since the electronics were undamaged, they just needed to clean the mess and rearrange the furniture.

Relieved, Bao Wenxuan went to fetch the first-aid kit. Soon, he returned with a white kit marked with a red cross and handed it to Ye Xue.

Ye Xue opened it, noting the supplies were comprehensive with all the essentials.

Taking scissors, she carefully cut away the fabric around Yu Qi’s arm where blood had dried, making it difficult to remove. She worked carefully, finally freeing the wound.

Throughout the process, Yu Qi silently watched Ye Xue. Despite the pain of pulling fabric from his injured skin, he remained stoic, accustomed to pain.

Bao Wenxuan winced at the sight, finding it painful to watch, but Yu Qi’s expression remained steady, as though he were used to it.

Ye Xue examined the wound, relieved it wasn’t contaminated with dark energy. She disinfected the area, washing away the blood and exposing the raw wound.

Though it looked grim, it wasn’t life-threatening.

After cleaning and disinfecting with iodine, Ye Xue bandaged the wound.

“All done.” Finished, she turned to Yu Qi. “I’ll help Bao Wenxuan tidy up.”

Yu Qi, however, didn’t want her to do the work alone. “I’ll help too.”

Seeing his injured right hand, Ye Xue asked, “Are you left-handed?”

Yu Qi shook his head, puzzled. “…No.”

“Then rest. You’re injured; if you strain it, the wound will reopen,” she replied.

Yu Qi pursed his lips, looking at her with concern.

Ye Xue smiled. “Don’t worry, it’s not much. I’ll be done quickly without needing your help.”

“Um…” Bao Wenxuan interrupted, “My sister will be home tonight. We should hurry and finish up. I promise I’ll leave you two to your couple time afterward!”

Ye Xue froze at his comment, about to correct him, but Yu Qi had already responded, “If you need help, just let me know.”

Distracted by this, Ye Xue forgot what she was about to say and smiled. “Go rest.”

By the time they finished cleaning, the sun was almost setting.

Ye Xue picked up the last bag from the floor and handed it to Bao Wenxuan. “You should put the sword you brought in a safe place.”

Bao Wenxuan looked confused, holding the bag uncertainly. “What sword are you talking about? I don’t have a sword.”

Ye Xue said, “Two swords for twenty silver, right? You said—”

She suddenly trailed off, glancing at Yu Qi.

No—that was the black-cloaked man’s line, not Bao Wenxuan’s.

Taking the bag from him, she unzipped it and found a long object wrapped in black cloth inside.

A thought struck her, and her hands trembled as she pulled away the cloth.

As she unveiled the jade sword, the male counterpart to her Zhan Xie sword hummed in response, flying toward her.

She caught it, grasping the hilt of each sword in her hands and connecting them.

The hilts fit together perfectly, forming a double sword.

The blade vibrated, emitting a soft glow that cast warm light across Ye Xue’s face.

The long-lost pair of Zhan Xie swords…

The very relics left by Zhang Tianshi—of immense importance to Ye Xue and her sect.

Yu Qi opened his mouth, ready to congratulate her.

But Ye Xue, with a gleam of excitement in her eyes, instead exclaimed, “Hell yeah—three million bucks!”