As per normal procedure, even if she was unwilling to give up the "prey" she was about to catch at this moment, seeing that he was willing to die for her, shouldn't she have been deeply moved, even if she hadn't fallen in love with him yet?
But how could she refuse him with such a look of pity and gentleness, yet with an unyielding tone?
To onlookers at this moment, it was as if all her affection had been fed to the dogs... ahem, misplaced like water flowing away.
Hearing his question, "Why," was almost heartbreaking.
Lu Ziyin, for reasons unknown, suddenly felt some sympathy for the young man who met such a "principled" woman in his first infatuation.
Gu Junshi lightly patted Li Sheng's slender shoulder, channeling her cultivation into his body to help him slowly guide the powerful, surging force that had entered him.
"I can only guarantee that I won't use it against the righteous sects of cultivation. Does that put your mind at ease?" While doing all this, she remained composed, even finding the leisure to tuck a stray strand of hair behind his ear. Her eyes were deep, with an unfathomable hue.
This scene was so much like a deeply scheming female demon being touched by the pure and naive actions of a righteous young man, marking the beginning of ambiguous feelings.
But such a combination of good and evil, unaccepted by the world, would always have someone to break them apart. For instance, at this moment, a monk emerged, intending to persuade people to "wake up."
"Why do you try to deceive him with sweet words? The Demon-Breaking Arrow itself has little power against spiritual cultivators and won't actively harm those protected by righteousness. So, you intended to use it for some other purpose from the beginning."
His words were like a thunderous clap that made Li Sheng understand instantly.
His breathing had stabilized. While the attack was potent against Yin and evil entities, for Li Sheng, it had merely caused discomfort to his spiritual meridians due to the overwhelming force.
Gu Junshi answered Li Sheng's questions with relative ease, as she had exploited the young man's enthusiasm and thus owed him a favor. However, she offered no such courtesy to the righteous and troublesome Cheng Hong. She glanced at him, let out a lazy snort from her nose, and said, "Guess?"
Cheng Hong's face, devoid of human desire like that of a Buddha, showed no reaction to her provocatively nonchalant question. He knew she was becoming impatient with his inquiries.
He sighed inwardly with helplessness, like falling snow brushing past branches before gently landing on the ground.
Li Sheng anxiously and nervously gripped her hand. This time, she was somewhat tolerant of him, not throwing him away as she had before.
"Hua Mi, if you really need the Demon-Breaking Arrow urgently, I can help you ask Abbess Huiming for it. But please, return it to them after you've borrowed it, okay?"
His words and gaze at this moment were as pure and innocent as a small bird nestled in the forest, as if he believed the world was filled with love and peace. It was unknown where such an interesting young man had emerged from.
A semblance of feigned indulgence flickered across Gu Junshi's cool and clear face. She said magnanimously, "Yes, after I've done what I need to do with it, I will return it to them."
However, by then, whether she returned it to them or not would likely be of little importance to her.
Upon hearing this, Li Sheng's face lit up with joy and gratitude. "I knew you weren't a bad person. You're just doing this because you have no other choice, right? I'll explain everything to Abbess Huiming and the others for you."
"Then I'll have to trouble you," Gu Junshi replied indifferently.
Cheng Hong had always believed that people in this world grew through three stages: innocence, maturity, and worldly wisdom.
But looking at the young man before him, he felt that the boy's mind might be even more naive and fearless than a child's.
Had he forgotten how he had been thrown to the ground, covered in blood, by this so-called "not a bad person" just moments ago?
If she were truly so kind, why would the Buddhist Lotus Lanterns and the one hundred and eight sarira relics attack her?
All of this indicated that she was actually a person with wolfish ambition, even wicked. Yet, with just a few words, she could cloud his judgment and make him believe her deceitful tales. Was his definition of good and bad based on blind faith and hearsay?
Others also felt the young man was too gullible. Did he think that with just his passion and unwavering trust, he could pull the misguided "darkness" back to the righteous path?
"Now, you should let me go." She lowered her eyes, patiently instructing him.
Li Sheng followed her gaze and instantly flushed red, lowering his head and murmuring softly, "Oh, I... I'm sorry..."
As if just realizing his movements had been too forward, his face turned red all the way to his ears. He shyly and self-reproachfully released her, as if he had done something immoral.
Gu Junshi stood up.
"Mom..."
She heard the hesitant and cautious call, turned her head, and looked at Gu Sijun, who was clutching the corner of her clothes. The cold, charming, and enchanting gaze she had moments ago was now filled with a gentle, mild, and ordinary warmth. This was a relaxed and warm look, different from how she looked at anyone else.
"Wait here for me."
With just this seemingly casual instruction, Gu Sijun's tension and anxiety vanished. He grinned and couldn't help but smile brightly, "Okay!"
In fact, Gu Sijun was stable regardless of his mother's changes in demeanor—from calmly and kindly conversing with a highly respected abbess, to becoming the focal point of everyone's attention as a savior, and then, upon achieving her goals, flipping to blacken and become a thorough villain of schemes and tricks.
Don't ask why; the answer is he'd seen bigger scenes.
Back in the Thorn Wood, all the fierce demons and monsters had been subdued by his mother and became her subordinates. He had long suspected that his mother wasn't a good person, but... he always felt she was a "bad person" with principles, and her wickedness had a bottom line.
For example, what she said earlier – although she came for the "Demon-Breaking Arrow" initially, she wasn't taking it for free; she would also save the trapped people in the city incidentally.
At his age, he didn't quite know how to describe it, but he felt his mother wasn't bad. When he was wandering outside over the years, he had seen truly bad people. They killed for pleasure and fleeting desires, no different from beasts. Their eyes held only hollow and numb bloodlust.
In contrast to Gu Sijun's composure, Le Bao's young heart was greatly struck. He found it difficult to believe how to handle the chaotic scene before him. His father was a righteous person, but his mother was a villain. His elder brother had been rebellious since childhood, leaving him to shoulder the burden alone. He had finally found his mother; would their family have to separate from now on?
Upon seeing Gu Junshi's true face, Le Bao had confirmed it.
She was his mother.
Absolutely his mother!
Before, no matter how he looked at that face, it felt strange, but her true appearance made him feel very familiar and emotional. This was because Mother indeed resembled Gu Sijun. He had often stared at Gu Sijun's face before, realizing he looked like his father, but his brother took after their mother. So, which part of her did he resemble the most?
Now he knew: it was their eyes.
His small face turned red and tender with excitement, and his little heart pounded with joy.
He was so happy that he was stunned for a long time. The only thing that was not so pleasant was that Gu Sijun had found their mother earlier than him and had already acknowledged her.
Being a step late, seeing the more familiar interaction between Mother and Gu Sijun, his heart couldn't help but feel a sour pang.
Did Mother also prefer Gu Sijun more?
He didn't know how to make Mother pay more attention to him.
A child's possessiveness is sometimes stronger than an adult's, especially for children like Le Bao and Gu Sijun who lacked maternal love since childhood. They wished their mother would only love them.
Sharing?
Brotherly affection?
Such thoughts had never occurred to the two brothers.
It was likely they would never have them in the future either.
A battle for maternal love had already begun in their hearts, and it was up to whoever was more capable.
Le Bao knew that being a step behind, even if he acted cute, sweet, and obedient like Gu Sijun, he couldn't become the unique one in his mother's eyes. Therefore, he had to find another way to compete for status.
"Dad, what should we do now?"
He was communicating with Liu Jiang Fusheng through telepathy. Sometimes, there was a special connection between father and son, like how he could always vaguely sense his father's hidden, frantic possessiveness beneath his calm facade.
His indifferent and hostile attitude towards his mother was not a lack of love, but an intense one.
Liu Jiang Fusheng remained silent for a moment and said, "She wants the Demon-Breaking Arrow, likely to deal with Fengdu... Let her have what she wants for now. If anyone obstructs your mother, you should know what to do?"
"Dad, why don't you tell Mother... that Junjun and I are her children?"
Liu Jiang Fusheng was silent for a moment and only said, "Le Bao, it's not time yet."
---
Finally, no one obstructed Gu Junshi. She entered the stone gate with Cheng Hong. Above the misty white light, one hundred and eight sarira relics floated. They emerged from the white lotus altar, clearly resentful of her as an "intruder."
With every step she took closer, their gathered power intensified. But just as they were about to attack her, Gu Junshi pulled Cheng Hong in front of her.
The majestic and solemn offensive instantly seemed to freeze, forced to stop.
Facing each other, one seemed bewildered and angry, while the other was extremely casual and composed.
Was this a decline of morality or a distortion of humanity? To use a Buddhist disciple as a shield, this shameless cunning of hers was simply breathtaking.
Cheng Hong was also stunned.
He hadn't expected that she had brought him in to help her clear the obstacles.
"Gu Junshi."
His Adam's apple bobbed, and he called her name softly, his tone sounding helpless yet amused.
Gu Junshi looked at him. "If I had directly destroyed this place, you wouldn't want to see that, would you? So, please lend yourself to me for a moment."
"When you borrowed my blood, did you ever ask for my opinion?" he asked.
He emphasized the word "borrow" slightly. The Buddhist disciple didn't know how to question someone with sarcastic tones, but such a plain, almost rhetorical, questioning tone could still make a "culprit" with a guilty conscience feel uneasy.
But Gu Junshi was not his "culprit." She was someone who was very good at manipulating people and never revealed her true intentions.
"You will agree. After all, everyone knows how benevolent and righteous the Buddhist disciple of Maha Chan Temple is. You wouldn't want Ci Bei City, a place with a long history and the sarira relics, treasures of your Buddhist faith, to be destroyed."
If she were to act recklessly, what could the defense barrier of this mere underground palace do to her?
Gu Junshi led Cheng Hong forward. All attacks seemed to avoid them.
At first, she was dragging him. Later, he held her hand, awkwardly, unsteadily, yet firmly.
"That is the Demon-Breaking Arrow."
There was a bow on it.
As she stepped forward, she was knocked back. After all, it was a celestial artifact. Cheng Hong flew up and embraced her.
Gu Junshi was not surprised that he could break free from her restraint.
"You can't touch him."
"Help me."
She looked at him, then moved closer, almost intimately.
Cheng Hong said, "Okay, I'll help you."
She narrowed her eyes and stared at him for a moment. His tolerance towards her was unusually strange.
"Do you know what to do?"
"Have you heard of spiritual union?"
"Of course. I naturally wouldn't defile our holy Buddhist disciple, but I need to borrow your essence."
Her hand rested on his abdomen. A hot energy surged from his Dantian, and Cheng Hong gasped, letting out a low moan.
Gu Junshi watched him in her hand with a playful yet indifferent gaze.
Obtaining what she wanted from him, she then flew up, took the bow, and stored it in her spiritual consciousness.
"Cheng Hong, I hope in this life, you can still be your lofty Buddha."
As she swept away, Cheng Hong let out a bitter smile.
"Gu Junshi, no matter the life, I can't see through it."
Upon emerging, Gu Junshi looked at Gu Sijun. He immediately understood and ran towards her, only to be lifted by Liu Jiang Fusheng and held in his arms.
"Liu Jiang Fusheng, give the child back to me."
"In what capacity do you demand the child? This is my child."
Gu Junshi said, "That is your son."
Knowing who Gu Sijun's child was, and after learning about Gu Sijun's experiences while wandering outside over the years, and knowing that he would rather consider himself an orphan, she had no intention of easily returning the child to Liu Jiang Fusheng.
"I found him in Fengdu Shuofang City. He was alone, without parents, and desperately pursued, looking for anyone to recognize him as a father for protection..."
Liu Jiang Fusheng felt a pang of pain in his heart.
A smile flickered on her lips, but her eyes were dangerously dark. "Don't fight me for him."
"Mom... let me go, I want Mom!" Gu Sijun struggled and roared, flailing his limbs.
Liu Jiang Fusheng refused to let go. He lowered his gaze to look at him, his voice hoarse, "Junjun..." He seemed to want to explain, but for a moment, he didn't know where to begin. "Dad did not intentionally neglect you and cause you to be lost outside. I have been searching for you all these years."
Gu Sijun's lips curled into a sneer. "Then why is it that since I was young, you only took Le Bao with you everywhere you went, while I was handed over to others?"
Liu Jiang Fusheng's face turned pale and stunned upon hearing this.
That was because, at that time, he had no time to attend to him. Le Bao's condition was such that he couldn't be left alone for even half a step.