"Are you looking for me, Qingyun?"
Suddenly, a figure emerged from the small building behind. The person was hunched, with gray hair and beard, and a wrinkled face. He looked like an octogenarian or nonagenarian.
Daoist Qingyun scrutinized the figure for a long time before he finally recognized the person in front of him.
He widened his eyes in astonishment, hardly believing what he saw.
Actually, he had just met Gu Huan not long ago.
It was precisely because of that encounter that he had broken into Yunjia Village and stayed for so long, firmly believing that he could find his lover and enemy there.
But when he saw Gu Huan a couple of days ago, the latter looked about the same age as him.
Now, when they met again, Gu Huan looked twice his age.
If it weren't for the deep - seated enmity between them, and if he could recognize Gu Huan even if the latter turned to ashes, he might not have recognized him no matter how carefully he looked.
"Why did you curse my disciple?!"
Daoist Qingyun was stunned for a moment, then quickly regained his composure. He glared at Gu Huan menacingly and shouted.
But he was also afraid that his other two disciples would fall into a trap.
He held Shen Weixun and Mu Yanchen tightly, preventing them from moving.
When enemies meet, their hatred burns hotter. Everyone around Niannian actually wanted to kill the hunched old man immediately.
But no one made a move.
There was nothing they could do. Niannian's life was in the old man's hands.
If they easily killed him, Niannian might not be saved.
"Hahaha... cough... cough cough..."
Gu Huan laughed inexplicably.
He laughed loudly and vigorously, but his broken body couldn't withstand such intense emotional fluctuations. After laughing for a while, he coughed continuously, as if he would stop breathing the next second.
Daoist Qingyun and the others watched nervously.
"For what reason? What other reason could there be? Of course, it's because I'm jealous of you, and this child is the youngest, so I can extract the most lifespan from him. Just by cursing this one child, it's worth the lifespans of several of you old fogeys."
After catching his breath, Gu Huan said with a sinister smile.
The look in his eyes when he looked at Daoist Qingyun was filled with jealousy and hatred.
This emotion seemed to come out of nowhere.
Daoist Qingyun was also completely at a loss.
"What do you mean by that?"
"Hehe, it means exactly what it says. Who told you all to meddle in other people's business? You gathered all those who broke into Yunjia Village together, which prevented me from dealing with them one by one. So I had to start with those around you. I originally planned to take your lifespan, but seeing that you could regain your senses after just a few words from this little girl, I knew you must value her very much. In that case, I might as well let you taste the pain of losing a loved one again."
Gu Huan didn't try to hide his malice at all. He showed his utmost hostility towards Daoist Qingyun.
His cold eyes emitted a chilling light, making people tremble with fear.
A person who could harm a six - year - old child had completely lost his conscience.
"You..."
Just as Daoist Qingyun was about to curse, Gu Huan interrupted him.
"Your two disciples should have inquired quite a bit. All those who could enter Yunjia Village have a grudge against our Holy Cult. Originally, we gathered them here, planning to wipe them out and make good use of them. But some smart - aleck among them spread the news that there was a peerless treasure here, causing us a lot of trouble."
"Fine, as long as we keep them outside, they won't cause much of a stir. But you and your disciples are truly cut from the same cloth. You like to meddle in other people's business. You shouldn't have gotten involved in this matter, but you did. This is a lesson for you, and also a warning for you not to oppose the Holy Cult in the future."
"You people claim to be the righteous ones in the Taoist sect and label all the techniques that don't match your ideas as heresies. Thousands of years have passed, and you still want to oppose us. Isn't all this what you deserve? I'd like to see whether your righteous magic is more powerful or my heretical techniques will prevail."
When Gu Huan said this, he tried hard to straighten his back, but his physical condition didn't allow it. He could only raise his head slightly and puff out his chest.
He didn't look very imposing.
But his appearance didn't make Daoist Qingyun and the others relax their vigilance.
A person like Gu Huan, who had abandoned his conscience, might not have great skills, but he would have many underhanded tricks.
When dealing with him, if there was even a single wrong thought, it might lead to an abyss.
So they couldn't underestimate the enemy, no matter how weak he seemed.
"What do you want to do to let Niannian go? If you hate me, then I'll exchange my life for my disciple's and my wife's. Is that okay?"
Daoist Qingyun was both anxious and angry. He gritted his teeth and tried to negotiate.
But Gu Huan remained unmoved, looking like he was watching a show.
"Hehe, Qingyun, I'm really envious and jealous of you. You know, although you're an orphan, you're extremely talented in Taoism. After being adopted by the Taoist temple, you could become successful even by self - study. When you were young, you met a woman who understood you. By the age of thirty, you were already well - known in the Taoist sect. People called you a young hero and the number one Taoist among the younger generation."
There was a mocking smile on Gu Huan's face, and there was also a hint of bitterness in it.
"On the contrary, I'm inferior to you in every aspect. Although I have parents, it's like I don't. Since I was born, I've had to bear the curse passed down by my family. My lifespan was determined on the day I was born. I'm doomed to live only fifty years. The techniques I've learned are all harmful. I also wanted to be a person praised by others like you, but people were afraid of me when they saw me. They never bothered to understand me and just labeled me as a heretic. Why?"
Gu Huan's voice became more and more vicious, and his emotions more and more agitated.
He seemed to be venting the grievances he had suffered for many years.
The resentment and hatred in his words were hard to tell whether he was really hating Daoist Qingyun, or himself, his family, or those who had labeled him without understanding him.
"I also wanted to be a good person, but no one gave me a chance. I couldn't break the secular prejudice. Only the Holy Cult was willing to accept me."
"Qingyun, as an old friend, I'm not being unreasonable. Raising a ghost king is my mission. If this mission fails, I'll die. Now I'll give you a choice. You've always strived to have a clear conscience. Now you can only save one person. Do you choose your wife or this little girl?"