Long Lin bit her lip. Instead of answering immediately, she asked another question, "Why did Gu Yuan transfer Man Yue's soul into Dan Zhu's body?"
Sure enough, when I told him that I was a spirit of the artifact that day, he had already guessed Gu Yuan's plan.
Since he was also a celestial being in my altar, I didn't need to hide anything from him.
I undid the buttons of my cotton-padded jacket and showed him the red mandala flower tattoo on my collarbone.
When Long Lin saw it, his eyes flickered with an expression of disbelief.
Presumably, he also saw that Man Yue's soul was reviving while mine was gradually withering away. If things continued like this, she would surely replace my soul and take over my body one day.
"Is this still the Man Yue I knew?"
I buttoned up my clothes, not understanding the meaning behind his words.
"Isn't this what you've always dreamed of?" My voice was calm and emotionless.
Long Lin's eyes paused for a moment, then he asked another question:
"So Gu Yuan wanted to forcibly separate Man Yue's soul for your sake. Did he agree to have spiritual union with Dan Zhu?"
"Gu Yuan didn't agree. Instead, he made another deal with her."
"What deal?"
I thought for a while, wondering if I should tell him.
"Don't worry. I don't have a good impression of Dan Zhu. There's no harm in telling me." Long Lin had never talked to me so seriously before.
Since he was a celestial being in my altar, we rose and fell together. Apart from liking to compete with Gu Yuan, he had never done anything harmful to the altar.
I could tell that day that Long Lin didn't just dislike Fairy Dan Zhu; his dislike was written all over his face.
If Gu Yuan, the grand master of the altar, were to submit to Dan Zhu, then the entire altar would have to submit to her. If that were the case, Long Lin would surely be the first to object.
So I didn't need to hide anything from him.
"Fairy Dan Zhu wants something from Gu Yuan and for him to submit to her from now on."
Suddenly, I felt something was wrong and quickly asked, "Long Lin, haven't you already found out everything? Why are you still trying to get information from me?"
"I just want to confirm it again." Long Lin squinted his peach blossom eyes slightly, looking rather gloomy.
"So... what exactly did you find out?" I was so anxious that I kept scratching the tablecloth with two fingers.
"This matter wasn't exactly something I found out. To be precise, it was something I analyzed..."
To nourish a soul, one must have powerful magical power. Although Dan Zhu was a celestial being from above, nourishing a spiritual body would also consume a great deal of her magical power. To avoid losing her magical power, the best way was to have spiritual union with someone she loved.
That meant that when Gu Yuan was with me at first, his original intention was to nourish Man Yue's soul. Then he planned to swap our souls, which was why he had physical contact with me.
Later, Gu Yuan recognized his own heart and knew that I was the one he should protect. So he was thinking of a win-win solution, a way to save Man Yue without sacrificing me.
But now that Man Yue's soul had just recovered, she couldn't wait to come out. That was why Gu Yuan came up with the idea of separating Man Yue's soul and transferring it into Dan Zhu's body.
Dan Zhu was a spiritual body and could suppress Man Yue's soul. When the eight tears were gathered, they could send her into the cycle of reincarnation, thus saving both my life and hers.
The premise was that Dan Zhu was willing to help, and she surely wouldn't do it for nothing.
Either Gu Yuan agreed to have spiritual union with her, or he provided her with enough magical power.
Since it wasn't the first option, it must be the second.
When Long Lin said this, I still didn't quite understand how to provide her with enough magical power.
"How can the magical power be provided?" I asked impatiently.
"By cutting out the inner core."
When I heard these two words, my head "buzzed" as if it had been hit hard by a hammer. It was extremely painful.
The inner core was the foundation of a celestial being and the source of their magical power. Without it, one would never be able to enter the celestial realm and wouldn't even be considered a mortal.
Gu Yuan was a sinful dragon and had to endure the heavenly tribulation every month. If he lost his inner core, he would surely die.
No wonder he could say that if this was the outcome, it would be better if they had never become a couple.
"No, this is absolutely not acceptable. If this is the price, I'd rather die right in front of him now."
Hearing my words, Long Lin blurted out without hesitation, "Don't do anything stupid. If you die, Man Yue's soul will directly replace yours."
"Isn't this what you want?"
Long Lin was silent for a full half a minute, then he directly changed the subject and said, "Fairy Dan Zhu is very selfish. If she can't get what she wants, she will try to destroy it. So to subdue her, we must find her weakness."
I told Long Lin my previous idea about the identity of the person who had spiritual union with her. Long Lin also thought this was a breakthrough.
But after thinking for a long time, I decided not to find her weakness for the time being.
I still wanted to talk to Dan Zhu again. If there was another way, I would do my best to help her achieve it. After all, a woman's reputation was very important.
After hearing my opinion, Long Lin showed an expression of admiration on his face.
"Little lady, you must live well."
"Don't worry. I will also do my best to help you save Man Yue. But I'd like to give you a piece of advice. You'd better find out Man Yue's identity. I always feel that her identity is not ordinary."
"Okay. I'll accompany you to the end on this trip."
After the meal, I returned to the altar first. I found Ji Xiang and Bai Ling Er and asked them to secretly find out who the person Dan Zhu had a tryst with that day was.
Then Long Lin and I went to see Dan Zhu again, hoping to find another way to replace Gu Yuan's inner core.
After assigning the tasks, we went our separate ways. Long Lin took me directly to Fairy Dan Zhu's cave.
Celestial beings were really different. Although it was a cave, it was a place full of spiritual energy. Outside, it was freezing and snowy, but inside, it was full of singing birds and fragrant flowers.
Long Lin was a celestial being from above. When he came to visit, he was generally not refused.
After entering the cave, we waited for a while before Dan Zhu slowly walked over from the back hall.
Inside the cave, Dan Zhu was wearing a luxurious golden dress with a golden hairpin on her head, shaking gently. She looked like a celestial being floating in the air, completely different from the dissolute look she had in the bamboo building that day.
She also spoke much more steadily.
"I didn't know Young Master Long was coming. I'm sorry I didn't greet you properly. Please forgive me, Young Master Long."
"Fairy Dan Zhu, you're too polite. I came here today on someone else's behalf. Please give me a little face."
The way they talked was so formal, as if I was watching a period drama.
Dan Zhu's phoenix eyes drifted towards me, and the corner of her mouth curled up into a sneer. "Could it be on her behalf?"
"Exactly. Lan Lan was rude in the bamboo building that day. She came here sincerely to apologize and hopes you can give her a chance to atone for her sins."
"Apologies should be made in the proper way."
Dan Zhu sat down on the chair and told the servant to pour a cup of tea and hand it to me.
This meant that she wanted me to offer the tea to apologize. But it didn't matter. She was also a celestial being in my altar. Even if I knelt on the ground to offer the tea, I wouldn't lose a piece of my flesh.
I picked up the tea and walked in front of Dan Zhu. I knelt on both knees and held the tea in front of her, saying, "I was very disrespectful that day. Please forgive me, Fairy Dan Zhu."
Dan Zhu waited for a long time before slowly moving her body. She picked up the tea in front of her and gently skimmed the foam off with the lid of the bowl.
"Ouch, it's too hot." Suddenly, the cup of tea slipped out of her hand. The teacup turned over, and the scalding tea was directly splashed on my face.