Dog-Blooded Love Story 13
Qin Jingzhou had long guessed that Zhong Dewen and Xuan Helin, as husband and wife, were planning something for him, but he truly hadn’t expected just how far the Gu family, grandfather and grandson, would go for him... No matter. He was about to witness it for himself.
There were fewer than a hundred thousand Extraordinaries in the entire world, and just over eight thousand had reached the Golden Core stage. At last night’s conference, more than six thousand Golden Core Extraordinaries chose to support Zhong Dewen and his wife—gambling on destroying the array for a chance at survival.
Gu Jing and the other two Nascent Soul cultivators no longer had any faith in Zhong Dewen and Xuan Helin, but were powerless.
With only three early Nascent Soul cultivators and just over a thousand Golden Cores who refused to destroy the array—about half of them had actually come out of the main array’s spiritual coffins—these people, when banded together, were no match for the coalition of over six thousand Golden Cores.
Once the result came out, it wasn’t just the returning Gu Jing who felt disheartened. The Golden Cores from the Officials were even more alarmed. How could they not see that Zhong Dewen’s plan didn’t care about ordinary people’s lives?
As each country’s Officials existed to represent the interests of ordinary people, the Official Extraordinaries came seeking out Qin Jingzhou that very night.
Last time the Official Extraordinaries had come on orders, they’d been a little more at ease, but this time... they were clearly urgent. The visitors had obviously done their homework; they were both fearful and in awe of Qin Jingzhou, not daring to look him straight in the eye. They could only hope that, for the sake of shared origin, Qin Jingzhou would point them to a way out.
Qin Jingzhou only smiled ambiguously, neither agreeing nor refusing outright.
The Official Extraordinaries could only compromise, but fortunately they were on familiar terms with both Xuan Qing and Yuan Lingmei. With soft words and a mountain of promised resources, they finally managed to move Xuan Qing.
Words meant nothing without a contract.
Xuan Qing collected his “intentional protection fee,” making a solemn promise that he would not stand by and watch the world be destroyed. Only then did the somewhat reassured Extraordinaries take their leave.
Turning around, Xuan Qing grumbled to his father, “I really don’t like dealing with them.”
Qin Jingzhou smiled. “As long as you’re capable of making the decisions, that’s enough.”
Unable to tell his father’s true meaning, Xuan Qing, despite his years, replied, “Got it, Dad.”
In a blink, “the day of decisive battle” arrived. Xuan Helin specifically sent an invitation a day in advance, bluntly stating in it the Extraordinaries’ aim and warning Qin Jingzhou: “The wrath of the people is not to be provoked.” If he really had the nerve to execute the majority of the Golden Core Extraordinaries in one fell swoop, who would support the Energy-Sealing Array and the Sealing Array?
The Sealing Array needed to be powered by the lifespan of Golden Core cultivators, and just to mine the Supreme-grade Spiritual Stones in this world’s veins, a set number of Golden Cores were required to preside and operate the process.
After reading the invitation, Ling Jing rolled his eyes. “They’re so brazen.”
Qin Jingzhou didn’t care at all. “Let’s go.”
A group teleportation brought the four of them once again to just above the Energy-Sealing Array, within the mountain.
Xuan Helin was waiting where the main coffin of the Sealing Array lay, looking at them. “Ying Jingzhou, you really are as arrogant as I imagined. I had thought of giving you a chance...”
Before she could finish, the six thousand Golden Core Extraordinaries—who had rehearsed this many times—acted in perfect unison. As Su Jinxi, seated cross-legged atop the main coffin, abruptly opened her eyes, a crack appeared at her brow. A stream of black-red energy shot from her forehead, surging recklessly toward the suspended Energy-Sealing Array’s core, together with the combined assault unleashed by the six thousand Golden Cores in formation.
Standing near the rift in the ground below the array, Gu Jing shouted, “Take action!”
The Golden Cores behind him also formed up, trying to stop the opposing side’s all-out strike.
At this critical moment, the two Nascent Soul cultivators beside Gu Jing exchanged a glance. The golden-haired cultivator suddenly lashed out, sending a shining pillar of light directly into Gu Jing’s back.
Gu Lingfan, standing a little further away, felt his eyes redden, but it was already far too late to intervene. Fortunately, the strike hadn’t been fatal.
Even so, the golden-haired cultivator’s unexpected betrayal left Gu Jing gravely injured, unable to form a defense. He and his grandson could only watch, powerless, as the black-red energy and the blinding pillar generated by the joint forces of six thousand Golden Cores struck the suspended Energy-Sealing Array squarely.
When the light faded, the Energy-Sealing Array was gone without a trace, and fewer than one in five of the spirit coffins on the ground remained intact.
Supported by his grandson Gu Lingfan, Gu Jing couldn’t help but shed tears. Senior Ying, floating midair, seemed unscathed, but this did nothing to ease his worry. For at the edge of the crevice, a gaping opening suddenly appeared, and a black claw reached across from the other side, already tugging at the newly-formed rift between planes...
Xuan Helin and Zhong Dewen, on seeing this, immediately lost their complacency. Only a moment before, pride had still shown on their faces.
The six thousand Golden Cores in formation looked grave. They were promised two rifts between planes: one to deal with Ying Jingzhou had appeared as expected, but the other, for their own escape... where was it?!
Noticing Ling Jing and his son looking at him questioningly, Qin Jingzhou spoke up for everyone to hear. “Theoretically, blasting two portal-level arrays like this, where the crystal wall is thin, should create two rifts between planes. But if there’s already a Domain passage nearby, it will most likely just... widen the passage, instead of opening new rifts.” He shook his head slightly. “This actually isn’t a careless slip-up from Zhong Dewen and company. The inheritance they received just didn’t mention that under different circumstances, things might turn out differently.”
At this point, that black claw, which brought dread with even a glance, had already stretched more than halfway through. Aside from the disturbance caused by the claw, there wasn’t even a single breath to be heard inside the entire mountain.
Bear in mind, there were over ten thousand Extraordinaries gathered in this enormous mountain right now!
Qin Jingzhou finally looked Zhong Dewen and Xuan Helin in the eye for the first time today. “You’re counting on this thing to take me down with you?”
Anything further from a big shot would seem to diminish his aura, so Ling Jing very tactfully stepped forward. “I’ve been holding back for so long, seriously. You dare speculate about a big shot’s power based on a few vague lines of inheritance and a handful of random demonstrations? Who gave you the courage?”
Suddenly, Xuan Qing spoke. “Ever since Senior Xuan Yuan developed the great array and became the first main coffin, everyone with talent for cultivation has been meticulously tested. Geniuses like me, once identified, are allocated resources, and, upon reaching Golden Core stage, are invited into the spiritual coffin. Genius cultivators have definitely thought of resistance, but even if you fight for your life once you are a Golden Core, you can’t make a splash. Dad, just look how they’re treating Senior Gu Jing—they think you’re not much different from him. In the realm of Extraordinaries, it’s always been like this: when mediocrities rule, the law doesn’t punish the crowd.”
At Xuan Qing’s words, Xuan Helin and her husband remained unmoved. Their attention stayed fixed on the black claw widening the rift, worried only about their own futures.
Qin Jingzhou just nodded to his son.
Though Xuan Helin and company seemed flustered, in reality their malice toward him was already coalescing. Should he make a move, those six thousand Golden Core Extraordinaries would join forces against him again.
Of course, Qin Jingzhou despised moral coercion, but it didn’t conflict with his need to stand on moral high ground.
So, he sent Ling Jing and Xuan Qing a soundless message: “Do not act rashly.” Then he floated toward the black claw, gathering spiritual energy into a long sword and stabbing it at the center of the palm.
At that very moment, those six thousand Golden Cores launched their attack in concert: a silver pillar, over a hundred meters wide, shot straight at Qin Jingzhou.
Without thinking, Xuan Qing made to rush to his father’s rescue, only to be yanked back by the ever-prepared Ling Jing.
Before Xuan Qing could even protest, he saw his father sweep over gracefully, effortlessly waving a hand to shield them, as well as Gu Jing and the Extraordinaries at their feet, within a protective barrier of spiritual energy.
Inside this completely clear shield, they watched the pillar slam into the black claw, driving it back. Yet the lingering shockwave swept into the chasm before them, and nearly a hundred years of repressed negative energy finally flooded out...
The negative energy rampaged indiscriminately. From within the shield, Xuan Qing and company could only watch in shock as Xuan Helin and the others were instantly corroded, their bodies riddled with wounds and reduced to inhuman husks.
Xuan Helin was gnawed away by the negative energy until only half her body remained. Seated atop the main coffin, Su Jinxi opened her eyes again, murmured, “It’s time,” and blood poured from her seven orifices.
The main coffin lid popped open, and Ye Lingtian, lying inside, met the gaze of his cousin Gu Lingfan with a deep look. “Take care of Grandfather. I owed you once in my last life. In this one... we’re even.”
Gu Lingfan froze for a moment, then bolted forward.
He hadn’t died and been reborn. He didn’t know what the ultimate backstop in the Sealing Array’s main coffin was, but when a cousin says something like a last farewell, it was obvious what was coming next.
But just as he left the ground, Xuan Qing, quick as a flash, grabbed him by the collar. A glance outside the barrier told Gu Lingfan that with over six thousand Extraordinaries in such pitiful condition, if he ran out now, he probably wouldn’t even make it to Ye Lingfeng’s side before... dissolving.
Elsewhere in the barrier, Yuan Lingmei and Yuan Lingyi, standing back a little, breathed a sigh of relief.
With time to spare, Qin Jingzhou said to Ling Jing, “He’s a pretty good young man.”
Ling Jing asked curiously, “You want to take him on... as a disciple?”
Qin Jingzhou neither affirmed nor denied it. He stepped leisurely out of the spiritual shield he’d raised. Though negative energy was raging everywhere, he strolled along the edge of the rift as if he were taking a walk, not at all affected, and made a closing gesture toward the split.
The surging negative energy ceased at once.
Qin Jingzhou even lit a cigarette. “They could’ve just brought up someone in the Divine Transformation Stage, and that would’ve been it.” He glanced at the shattered remains of the six thousand Golden Cores lying around. “Man dies for wealth, birds die for food—I get where you’re coming from. Not that undeserved, really.”
The over ten thousand Extraordinaries present: …
Ling Jing burst out laughing. “I said it before! You lot... really paid the price for being ignorant!”