Junior Brother Pays Respect to You: Chapter 53 - The Spirit Pillar of Nanchuan
Chapter 53: The Spirit Pillar of Nanchuan
Qin Zheng and the others didn’t realize the trees were disappearing.
Their eyes remained locked on the slowly fading golden formation array.
Although Qin Zheng hadn’t formally studied spell formations, he knew that immortals could only use golden arrays.
“I didn’t expect the demon clan to be colluding with immortals.”
Qin Zheng was certain that the masked man wasn’t Wei Feiluan.
Someone like Wei Feiluan wouldn’t bother to hide his identity like that.
Qin Zheng glanced at Qin Su and said, “I remember they called him Ling Yan, right?”
“Could he be related to Ling Fei, the one we met before?”
Qin Su nodded. “Ling Fei is the daughter of the demon king. Ling Yan is the heir to the demon race.”
“However…”
Qin Zheng looked at Qin Su in surprise. “The next heir of the demon clan is an immortal?”
“Why do these demons care so much about the seal?”
Qin Su shook his head.
“If they really cared about the seal, they wouldn’t have left so quickly.”
Qin Zheng nodded half-understandingly. But he figured this must be why the demons were able to infiltrate Tianque Sect so easily.
By this point, the previously dense forest around them had become sparse.
Qin Zheng finally noticed something was wrong.
Ever timid, he grew nervous watching the surrounding trees continue to vanish. “Don’t tell me — a new wave of enemies is coming?”
“I should’ve asked Master for a life-saving treasure before coming down the mountain…”
He muttered while subtly inching closer to Qin Su, seeking a bit of comfort.
Qin Su glanced at him calmly and said, “Not an enemy. There’s no killing intent.”
The two stood still, quietly waiting to see what would happen next.
Gradually, all the towering trees vanished from the area.
Qin Zheng realized that the disappearing trees were exactly the same type — the ones that had been growing in the same region.
Now, not a single one of those trees remained in sight.
The place had suddenly transformed from forest to open meadow.
Looking up at the base of the mountains, they saw a patch of white mist.
But the mist didn’t linger. Instead, it began to dissipate visibly before their eyes.
In a blink, the mist had completely disappeared, and a sparkling lake appeared before them.
The lake looked exactly like the one in the restricted area.
At the center of the lake stood a transparent pillar, glowing with constantly shifting light.
Beside the lake was a curious wooden hut — and every wooden beam had fresh leaves growing on it.
At that moment, an old man with a white beard slowly walked out of the hut.
It seemed all that had just occurred was caused by this old man.
He squinted at the two of them and said, “My old friend reincarnated into not one, but two people?” Then, glancing at the spirit pillar in the lake, he added, “I figured you’d be showing up soon. The seal has been fading more rapidly lately. If no spirit energy is infused into it soon, I fear it won’t hold for much longer.”
Qin Zheng nodded. “We’re disciples of Tianque Sect. The sect master sent us here today to reinforce the seal.”
“May I ask who you are?”
The old man laughed heartily. “Just an old monster who owes Yu Jingchen a favor.”
Now, sure the man was the guardian of the spirit pillar, Qin Zheng politely asked, “May I ask what we need to do?”
“Very simple,” the old man said, pointing at the spirit pillar. “Just pour your spiritual energy into the pillar.”
“But… even if you’re the reincarnation of Yu Jingchen, you both look so young. I wonder if you have enough spiritual energy for the task.”
“This seal is far more significant than ordinary ones.”
Qin Zheng laughed, “Well, we won’t know unless we try, right?”
Then he patted Qin Su on the shoulder and smiled, “We’re counting on you.”
“The spiritual power I have is only good for backup.”
Qin Su said nothing more and walked over to the lakeside, sitting cross-legged in meditation.
He slowly began to circulate his energy.
A golden stream of light extended from his fingertips into the spirit pillar.
As more spirit energy was infused, the pillar began to glow with dazzling colors.
The old white-bearded man stroked his beard as he watched Qin Su work his spell, saying nothing.
Qin Zheng’s eyes slowly drifted from the spirit pillar to Qin Su himself.
As the energy drained from him, Qin Su’s face grew noticeably weary.
Even though he knew there was no real danger, Qin Zheng couldn’t help but ask the old man anxiously, “It’s been so long — is it not done yet?”
“My junior brother might not last much longer!”
The old man shook his head. “Patience. When the time comes, the spirit pillar will fade on its own.”
Qin Zheng had no choice but to turn back and stare at Qin Su again, brows furrowed.
Suddenly, Qin Su’s body wavered slightly.
Sharp-eyed Qin Zheng quickly rushed forward, wanting to help.
However, before he could reach Qin Su, his body swayed and collapsed to the ground.
It was clear he could no longer continue the reinforcement.
“Sigh~”
The old man behind them let out a long sigh.
Qin Zheng turned to look at the old man, and seeing him frowning, quickly turned back to check on the spirit pillar.
The pillar was still there! That meant Qin Su’s spiritual energy wasn't enough! And now, he had already lost consciousness.
“What should we do now? If the reinforcement isn't completed within the time it takes for one incense stick to burn, all the spiritual energy used so far will be wasted!”
“In other words, the seal won't hold. Is this truly fate?”
The old man sounded visibly anxious.
Qin Zheng looked up at the glowing, golden spirit pillar that was now shining even more brilliantly than before, then sat down right next to Qin Su.
He tried his best to muster all the spiritual energy within him and channel it into the spirit pillar.
After all, he did have some spiritual energy—he had to give it a shot no matter what.
As the energy drained from his body, Qin Zheng felt waves of dizziness wash over him.
He had only experienced this feeling once before.
When he had just descended the mountain and used his spiritual energy to keep warm. Because he overexerted himself, he passed out.
Since then, he had never again endured the pain of spiritual depletion.
Eventually, Qin Zheng felt he had nothing left to give. Darkness overwhelmed his vision, and before he could even check the state of the pillar, he fainted.
After Qin Zheng also collapsed, the spirit pillar in the lake suddenly flared with dazzling light, then gradually faded from sight.
The old man looked down at the two unconscious figures on the ground, his expression unreadable. “What now? Yu Jingchen has become two people, and even their spiritual power is divided.”
Then glancing at the now-empty surface of the lake, he added, “Seems I worried for nothing. That old bastard Yu Jingchen probably had it all planned out long ago.”
Slowly, the two unconscious bodies were enveloped in a green glow, lifted into the air, and floated into the small wooden cabin by the lakeside alongside the old man.
***
Qin Zheng slowly regained consciousness. Staring up at the unfamiliar ceiling, he couldn't immediately recall where he was.
He turned his head and saw a handsome profile right next to him.
“Qin Su?”
Qin Zheng quickly sat up and gently patted his junior brother.
But there was no response.
“Stop that—he’s still recovering,” came a voice from the doorway.
Qin Zheng turned toward the speaker, and as soon as he saw the old man, all his memories from before fainting rushed back.
Thinking about the spirit pillar, Qin Zheng immediately asked, “Did it work?”
The old man stroked his beard and smiled. “It worked!”
“Looks like you two will need to reinforce the remaining two spirit pillars together as well.”
Relieved, Qin Zheng nodded. “As long as it worked, that’s good enough.” Then he looked at Qin Su lying beside him and asked, “Why hasn’t he woken up yet?”
“Because his body is special. He needs to recover more spiritual energy before he can regain consciousness.”
Qin Zheng looked puzzled. “Special body?”
“Is it because he has no human aura?”
“Surprising you knew that,” the old man said, a bit taken aback.
After all, Qin Zheng didn’t have a spiritual root—he was nearly indistinguishable from an ordinary mortal. Logically, he shouldn’t be able to perceive such things.
Qin Zheng explained honestly, “I once visited Yu Jingchen’s residence. The big rat there told me.”
The old man glanced at Qin Su and asked, “Why don’t you have a spiritual root?”
“Don’t try to fool this old man. With your face, clearly destined for immortality, how could you not have a spiritual root—especially such a complete lack of one?”
Qin Zheng glanced at the man.
Since this spirit pillar guardian knew Yu Jingchen, and Yu Jingchen was enemies with Wei Feiluan, maybe this old man knew something too?
Qin Zheng hesitated, didn’t answer the question, and instead changed the subject.
“Do you know Wei Feiluan?”
“Wei Feiluan?” The old man thought for a moment, then nodded. “Yes.”
Then, glancing out the window at the lake, he added, “Now that you mention it, this barrier is also related to him.”
Hearing something related to his suspicions, Qin Zheng perked up and looked at the old man with interest. “How so?”
The old man replied casually, “This seal doesn’t just seal the demon realm’s passage. It also seals Wei Feiluan’s son.”
“Huh?” Qin Zheng thought he had misheard and repeated, “His son? Like, his actual biological son?”
The old man nodded. “What else? Would a son be anything but biological?”
Qin Zheng didn’t want to get caught up in word games, but suddenly recalled what his master had said about a monster when he descended the mountain.
Could that monster be Wei Feiluan’s son?
If so, Qin Zheng couldn’t help but suspect he might really be the reincarnation of Yu Jingchen, as everyone claimed.
But without a spiritual root, Yu Jingchen could only be Qin Zheng.
Suddenly, Qin Zheng remembered something important and asked, “How long was I asleep?”
“Ten days.”
Tsk tsk—he had slept away a third of such precious time?
Qin Zheng turned to look at Qin Su.
He didn’t know if Qin Su would wake up within the month. After all, he still wanted to visit Nanchuan.
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