33: Ling'er's suspicion, a half-true secret

Inside the Immortal Cave, the air seemed to solidify.

Zhao Linger, with incredibly precise movements, affixed sound-proofing talismans to the four corners of the stone wall.

A flash of spiritual light flickered and vanished.

This place had become a forbidden zone.

The flame of the oil lamp was the only source of light in this deadly silence, casting the shadows of the two on the stone wall, stretching, twisting, silently confronting each other.

Lin Gou remained motionless.

He simply watched Zhao Linger complete all of this.

From the moment she stepped into the Immortal Cave, he knew that tonight, there would be no more joking.

Her eyes were too clear, and too persistent.

It was a gaze stripped of all emotion, leaving only the purest inquiry.

Finally, Zhao Linger turned around.

Those beautiful eyes, once filled with grief and despair, now resembled two bottomless cold pools, locking onto him firmly.

Silence spread, each breath incredibly long.

“In Black Wind Cave, I saw with my own eyes…”

Her voice was soft, yet every word was like a knife.

“Your life force was completely severed.”

This was not a question.

It was a statement.

A statement of an undeniable fact she had witnessed firsthand.

“Under a Soul Search, even Heavenly Gods cannot save you.”

She took a step forward.

The distance between them shortened to three feet.

Lin Gou could even smell the scent on her, a mixture of herbal fragrance and a faint smell of blood.

“Now, you can tell me.”

Her gaze was like a sharp knife, wanting to dissect his flesh and peer into the deepest secrets of his Soul.

“You didn’t die.”

“How did you do it?”

She paused slightly, as if feeling this question was not enough.

Immediately after, the ultimate question that truly unsettled her was softly uttered in an almost dreamlike tone.

“Or rather…”

“Junior Brother Lin Gou…”

Her voice carried a tremor she herself hadn’t noticed.

“Are you… still human?”

Boom.

That last question, like an invisible heavy hammer, struck fiercely at Lin Gou’s heart.

【Here it comes, here it comes, the ultimate philosophical interrogation.】

【Senior Sister’s aura, it’s truly a waste for her not to be an interrogation Elder.】

【If I answered ‘Actually, I’m a System,’ would she draw her sword on the spot and format me?】

Lin Gou’s mind was frantically scrolling, but his face remained calm.

He knew that any jesting would only invite her sword.

Zhao Linger had no ill intentions.

He could see confusion, shock, and worry in the depths of her eyes, but no killing intent.

She just needed an answer.

An answer that could re-glue her crumbling worldview.

Lin Gou fell silent.

He slowly lowered his eyelids, avoiding that gaze that seemed to penetrate everything.

For a long time.

So long that Zhao Linger thought he wouldn’t answer.

Only then did Lin Gou slowly raise his head.

His characteristic laziness and playfulness had vanished without a trace.

In its place was an unprecedented heaviness.

A weariness and vicissitudes of life as if burdened by the ancient heavens.

His eyes became distant and profound, as if they pierced through the Immortal Cave, seeing a distant, bloody time and space.

“Senior Sister.”

He spoke, his voice hoarse, with a hint of self-mocking bitterness.

“You’re right.”

“In Black Wind Cave, the Lin Gou who was Soul Searched by Black Fiend and thrown into the blood pool…”

“He is indeed, dead beyond dead.”

Zhao Linger’s heart tightened abruptly.

Lin Gou didn’t give her a chance to ask further; he seemed to have made a certain decision, ready to unveil a bloody secret.

“I am not from some ordinary mortal Family.”

With a heavy expression, he began his carefully prepared “strategic confession.”

“My Family is a mysterious aristocratic Family that has long been hidden in the river of history.”

“Our clan, a curse flows in our Bloodline, or rather… a talent.”

He spoke each word exceptionally slowly, as if expending all his strength.

“Our Family possesses a secret art that allows clansmen, after their Divine Soul is destroyed, to reconstruct their Physical Body and return by consuming a token called a ‘Substitute Death Ancestral Talisman’.”

“Substitute Death Ancestral Talisman?”

Zhao Linger subconsciously repeated.

This explanation, absurd, yet it seemed… reasonable.

The Cultivation World is vast, full of wonders, and indeed there exist similar Substitute Death Puppets or single-use life-saving Magic Treasures.

Lin Gou nodded, the bitterness in his eyes deepening.

“But this resurrection is not without cost.”

“Every time an Ancestral Talisman is used, it causes unimaginable damage to my Origin; that kind of pain is no less than dying again.”

“Moreover, the Ancestral Talismans are imprinted by our ancestors with their lives and Souls; one used is one less.”

“I don’t have many left.”

As he spoke, he extended his right hand, slowly opening it before Zhao Linger.

His palm was clean, his fingers long and slender.

But in Zhao Linger’s eyes, this hand seemed to be enduring invisible torture, trembling slightly.

This was the result of Lin Gou’s deliberate manipulation of spiritual Qi, precisely simulating the neurological muscle spasms after long-term immense pain.

This detail instantly boosted the credibility of his words.

The sharpness on Zhao Linger’s face was replaced by traces of emotion.

But she was, after all, keen-minded, and a hint of rational suspicion still lingered in her eyes.

If such a secret art existed, why would he end up in Qingyun Sect, as a low-level Disciple?

Lin Gou seemed to see through her thoughts.

He continued to raise the stakes, adding the final piece to this story.

“The reason I ended up here, living incognito, is because… my Family provoked a powerful enemy that we couldn’t contend with.”

“The entire Family was almost annihilated.”

“Only I, under the cover of my Elders, escaped by chance with the few remaining Ancestral Talismans.”

His voice dropped even lower, carrying unconcealed hatred and powerlessness.

“That enemy’s power is immense! So I must hide myself, I must become stronger as quickly as possible!”

“I don’t have top-tier Aptitude, no profound background; the only thing I can rely on is this cursed Bloodline!”

“I can only use repeated ‘deaths’ to exchange for a sliver of life, to seize Opportunities that ordinary people wouldn’t dare to imagine!”

At the end of his speech, he suddenly raised his head, and those deep eyes, for the first time, looked at Zhao Linger with such “sincerity.”

The previous heaviness in his gaze was gone.

Only a desperate obsession remained, and a trace of deeply hidden… vulnerability.

“Senior Sister.”

“This is my biggest secret, and my heaviest shackles.”

“Once it is exposed, it may not bring the Sect’s protection, but endless covetousness and pursuit, and may even bring catastrophic disaster to the Sect.”

“At that time, there will be no place for me in heaven or on earth.”

“I have only told this secret to you.”

“Can you… keep it for me?”

Inside the Immortal Cave, there was a deathly silence.

Zhao Linger stared at him blankly.

Looking at his “sincere” yet vulnerable eyes.

In her mind, scenes began to replay uncontrollably.

Black Wind Cave, his resolute figure blocking her, shouting “Senior Sister, retreat quickly.”

The tragic sight of him bleeding from all seven orifices, his life force severed, when he was Soul Searched by Black Fiend.

Even earlier, in Sect missions, he always rushed to the front “fearlessly”… So that’s how it was.

It turned out that each “death” was not a game for him.

But rather, he was expending precious “Ancestral Talismans,” enduring unimaginable pain, walking on the edge of a cliff.

He was not a monster.

He was just a pitiful person burdened with deep-seated hatred, desperately trying to survive and become stronger in the most extreme way.

Zhao Linger’s last trace of rational doubt was, at this moment, completely swept away by a surge of pity and heartache.

Her clear, cold eyes, unknowingly, became veiled with a faint mist.

She looked at Lin Gou, at this Junior Brother who was even younger than her.

What a heavy fate was carried on that face, pretending to be strong.

She slowly, and with utmost solemnity, nodded.

“I won’t tell anyone.”

Her voice was no longer cold, carrying an unprecedented tenderness and firmness.

“Don’t worry.”

She paused, then added.

“But you… don’t push yourself so hard anymore.”

“Ancestral Talismans… save them if you can.”

【Done!】

【Senior Sister really is soft-hearted.】

【This Oscar-level acting, even I almost believed it.】

Lin Gou breathed a long sigh of relief in his heart, but on his face, he showed a perfectly timed, touched, and relieved smile.

“Thank you, Senior Sister.”

The sharing of this secret, even if it was fake.

Was like an invisible bond, instantly drawing their relationship to a whole new level.

Zhao Linger’s feelings for Lin Gou, from initial curiosity and admiration, quietly transformed into a unique protective instinct mixed with heartache and pity, and a sense of closeness she herself hadn’t even noticed.

She put away the sound-proofing talismans, and the chirping of insects and the sound of wind from outside the Immortal Cave returned.

“You should rest well.”

Zhao Linger gave him one last look, then turned and left.

Her silhouette, in the moonlight, seemed to have lost some of its coolness and gained a touch of softness… The next day.

Qingyun Sect’s Contribution Hall was once again bustling.

“Deacon, I want to exchange these items.”

Lin Gou handed over his identity jade token.

The deacon took it, swept it with his Divine Sense, and his previously calm eyes suddenly widened.

“One… one point three two million contribution points?!”

He gasped in surprise, drawing the attention of all the Disciples in the entire hall, who looked over in unison.

One point three two million!

What kind of concept was that?

For an ordinary Inner Sect Disciple, saving thirty to fifty thousand points a year was already a benchmark.

Over a million, that was a terrifying number that many Core Disciples couldn’t even produce!

“Lin Gou! It’s that Lin Gou!”

“Oh my god, how much reward did he get from his last mission?”

“First achievement! I heard he was the first achievement! Not only did he slay Black Fiend, but he also provided astonishing intelligence!”

Discussions, envy, and jealousy rose and fell.

Lin Gou seemed oblivious to these gazes, simply handing over a list calmly.

“Three portions of ‘Purple Cloud Flower,’ two ‘Spirit Condensed grass’…”

The deacon looked at the list and nodded; these were expensive, but for Lin Gou, they were a drop in the ocean.

But when he saw the last two items on the list, his hand involuntarily trembled.

“One… ‘Dragon Blood Ganoderma,’ a supplementary medicine for the Foundation Establishment Pill?”

“And… the qualification to Cultivate in the ‘Thunder Pool’ for one hour?!”

If the previous items only caused envy, then these two were enough to shock everyone.

Dragon Blood Ganoderma meant Lin Gou was already preparing for Foundation Establishment!

And the Thunder Pool… as soon as this name was mentioned, the entire Contribution Hall instantly fell silent.

Everyone’s faces showed expressions mixed with awe and fear.

Thunder Pool!

One of Qingyun Sect’s three Forbidden Grounds!

A deadly place formed by the convergence of Nine Heavens Divine Thunder!

In the Sect’s history, there were Geniuses who tried to imitate ancient powerful beings and temper their Physical Body with heavenly thunder.

But without exception, their fate was to be struck into charcoal, their Divine Soul and form utterly destroyed.

Was this Lin Gou crazy?!

Having just returned from a mission where he barely escaped death, he actually wanted to go to that place to seek death?

“Junior Brother Lin, are you… are you sure?” The deacon’s voice was a bit dry.

“I’m sure.”

Lin Gou’s answer was crisp and decisive.

【Just kidding, how long have I been waiting for this day.】

【Dragon Blood Ganoderma is just a smokescreen.】

【This Thunder Pool, it’s not a Forbidden Ground; it’s practically a five-star, highly rated, all-you-can-die buffet restaurant! Michelin-level, no less!】

【I wonder what good things I’ll get if I’m struck dead by lightning?】

His heart was filled with anticipation for a new way to die.

Soon, the news of Lin Gou’s high-profile exchange for the Thunder Pool Cultivation qualification spread like a hurricane throughout the Inner Sect.

“Senior Brother Lin is truly brave and diligent, a model for our generation!”

“Hmph, a fool who doesn’t know his place.” In a luxurious Immortal Cave, Li Mo listened to the report, a cruel sneer curling his lips, “Does he really think he’s invincible after a few strokes of luck? I’d like to see how he comes out of the Thunder Pool alive!”

Lin Gou ignored the rumors and gossip.

He adjusted his state to optimal in his Immortal Cave.

Then, under countless gazes of admiration, pity, or schadenfreude.

He held the ancient token and walked step by step towards the Forbidden Ground mountain peak, which was shrouded in lightning all year round.

The mountain path was rugged.

The higher he went, the more oppressive the air became.

Faint streaks of electric arcs drifted in the air, emitting soft “crackling” sounds.

Deafening thunder rolled down from the dark clouds at the mountaintop.

The violent aura of lightning made his skin tingle with pain.

Lin Gou, however, felt no fear.

Instead, the blood in his body began to… boil uncontrollably.

Those deafening thunderclaps.

In his ears, they were not the bells of death.

But the most beautiful notification sound when System rewards arrived.

The smile on his lips grew wider and wider.