Senior Sister Went Mad After My Fake Death Chapter 44

“My Lord, here is your treasured sword.” A prison guard demon with three eyes respectfully presented the sword to Han Xiao.
In truth, the demon soldiers and generals of their Crimson Smelting City rarely used such weapons. Swords and the like were more common among human cultivators. As demons, they scorned and were unwilling to use them.
But the owner of this very long sword had driven their previous City Lord, Pugu Yanxi, from his throne. No matter how unwilling they were, the demon guards could only switch to swords.
As for that poor former City Lord, he was still imprisoned in the dungeons, awaiting an audience with the new City Lord.
“Is Pugu Yanxi awake?” Han Xiao asked.
The demon guard’s three eyes were all downcast. “My Lord, Pugu Yanxi has not rested. Knowing you were coming, he was too excited to sleep for three days and three nights.”
The corner of Han Xiao’s mouth lifted in a faint sneer. “He still hasn’t accepted it, and he’s excited?”
Ever since he had been captured alive and imprisoned by her, Pugu Yanxi had probably not gone a day without cursing her.
Today will be no exception, Han Xiao thought.
She didn’t care what others thought of her. Whether they hated her, loathed her, or liked her, it had nothing to do with her.
Han Xiao rode a black cloud straight to the cage where Pugu Yanxi was imprisoned.
As she expected—Pugu Yanxi was still raving.
Beneath his damp, filthy black hair, a pair of dustless, pointed black shoes stepped in gracefully, extremely light, extremely smooth.
In the demon-infested, chaotic Nether Realm’s Crimson Smelting City, there would be no such demon.
Except for that anomaly, that thief!
Pugu Yanxi’s eyes widened, and he looked up fiercely, cursing, “Han Xiao, you thief, give back everything that belongs to me!”
Before he could finish, Pugu Yanxi shot up, his filthy head almost hitting the cage as he rushed to the front, his hands tightly gripping the black iron bars. “Speak! Why aren’t you speaking? You ambushed me that day, while I was still drinking, and luckily defeated me!”
“If you have the guts, let me out and let’s fight again! Didn’t you go to the human realm to be one of those whatever-they-call-it cultivators? Weren’t you in the Bright Snow Sect? Isn’t that a place where the leaders of the righteous path gather? Is this what they taught you…?” Pugu Yanxi grew more and more enraged, pouring out all the anger he had accumulated over the past days.
But cursing was only half the battle. Because Han Xiao’s expression remained indifferent, like the deep snow, frozen for thousands of years.
She just lowered her gaze, playing with her slender, handsome fingers, and finally asked, “Are you done?”
Stung by her calm demeanor, Pugu Yanxi stammered for a moment, then cursed again, “Done? What done? If I don’t eat your flesh and drink your blood today, it won’t be enough! I’ve never eaten snake meat before!”
As soon as his words fell, a wave of energy slammed into Pugu Yanxi’s mud-caked cheeks, leaving a bright red bloody mark.
“You, you… huh? What’s this?” Pugu Yanxi clutched his left cheek in pain. “Crimson Smelting Qi? Why do you have…”
He murmured, his face a mask of disbelief.
Crimson Smelting Qi was unique to the Crimson Smelting City. Generally speaking, even if one became the City Lord, one might not be able to master this art.
This was why Pugu Yanxi, although only the City Lord and had not yet expanded his territory, was still confident in unifying the Nether Realm.
He had mastered Crimson Smelting Qi. With a laugh, he could easily burn someone.
Pugu Yanxi felt the burning pain on his face even more acutely. “You thief, where, where did you steal this skill from?”
“I am the City Lord of the Crimson Smelting City. Is it not normal for the City Lord to know these things?” Han Xiao sneered. “I mean nothing else, I just want to tell you that what you think is ‘special’ about you is not worth mentioning at all.”
Frustrated, Pugu Yanxi’s face turned a darker shade of purple. He could only stop cursing Han Xiao and blame someone else. “Hmph, if it weren’t for my stupid sister, do you think you’d be standing here now?”
Speaking of Pugu Yanjin, he was furious.
Yanjin had discovered the anomaly outside the city a few days in advance, but she had only told him and had not taken the initiative! This had led to him being ambushed by Han Xiao while he was drinking and thrown into prison!
“However, you still have one last use to me,” Han Xiao laughed softly, her delicate hand extending and opening to reveal a black lotus.
Pugu Yanxi swallowed hard, stammering, “Wh-what do you want to do?”
“I came to find you, naturally because you are useful,” Han Xiao said faintly, a black halo instantly condensing in her hand, forcing Pugu Yanxi to raise his head and look directly into Han Xiao’s eyes.
—Those eyes could definitely not be called “beautiful,” Pugu Yanxi thought involuntarily.
The whites of her eyes were too large. In human aesthetics, such a person would probably be fickle and fierce.
The most terrifying thing was that there were also crimson-black, fine, dense lines under her eyes, though they were quickly hidden in the shadow of her thick lashes.
“City Lord, what do you want from me?” Almost involuntarily, Pugu Yanxi used the respectful title for Han Xiao.
He desperately pinched his thighs, his waist, but only the feeling of pain came, and it could not stop him from continuing to grovel before Han Xiao.
“I want you to open the Ghost Gate.”
Pugu Yanxi’s pupils instantly widened—
The Ghost Gate was an important pass between the human realm and the Nether Realm. Normally, there was a fixed entrance from the human realm to the Nether Realm, but it was far. The Ghost Gate was different. It could be opened anytime, anywhere, for humans, demons, and devils to come and go.
But the difficulty also came with it.
First, opening the Ghost Gate would consume the caster’s lifespan. Second, opening the Ghost Gate was extremely loud, and it was very likely to be closed by someone before it was fully opened—in that case, the caster’s lifespan would be consumed even faster.
Pugu Yanxi gritted his trembling teeth and said, “I-I can’t open it…”
What a joke! You stole my position as City Lord, and now you want to use my lifespan? This Han Xiao is truly shameless!
However, the black lotus in Han Xiao’s hand spun faster, emitting an even more dazzling light.
In the halo of black and white light, Pugu Yanxi only heard Han Xiao say, “The lifespan, of course, will be on me.”
—She wanted to go see Jiang Chunai. How could she not shed some blood and tears?
It was just lifespan.
She didn’t care about such ethereal years. In the thousands of years Han Xiao had lived, only the few decades she had spent with Jiang Chunai were worth remembering, worth praising.
“On you?” Pugu Yanxi was incredulous.
Han Xiao’s words were simple, but he also understood her meaning.
He just needed to open the gate. As for the loss of lifespan, it would be on her.
That was also possible, but if the person offering their lifespan was changed, that person’s lifespan would decrease at ten times the normal rate.
For Pugu Yanxi, his lifespan was no more than five hundred years. Opening the gate once would cost him at least fifty years of his life. At most, it was incalculable.
He had actually never opened the gate once. He did cherish his life.
But how could Han Xiao be like this?
Seeing Han Xiao’s eyes grow colder, Pugu Yanxi knew he couldn’t think any longer and immediately began to open the gate.
Bah, who cares if Han Xiao dies or not? It’s best if this madwoman dies sooner!
Who cares what she’s opening the Ghost Gate for? There are clearly easier ways to leave the Nether Realm!
There were indeed easier ways to leave the Nether Realm, but in that case, Jiang Chunai would be even less likely to know.
Besides, it wasn’t as if Han Xiao hadn’t done this kind of thing before.
As Pugu Yanxi was opening the Ghost Gate, Han Xiao’s thoughts were in turmoil.
Of course she wouldn’t forget what she had done in the Crimson Smelting City. Those actions were almost like a peacock displaying its feathers.
Unfortunately, the effect was minimal.
After Han Xiao had gathered her strength and attacked Pugu Yanxi to become the City Lord, she had been plotting how to meet Jiang Chunai again.
She was not a person who was good at being considerate of others, so it was only natural that she had caused a lot of trouble for the people of the Crimson Smelting City.
The dazzling lights in the sky, the thunderous drums that penetrated the three realms, and her great achievements as the new City Lord of the Crimson Smelting City…
She wanted everyone to know these things.
Not the demons of the Nether Realm, but the people of the human realm.
Han Xiao firmly believed in the voice in her sea of consciousness, and a heartbeat that did not belong to her was beating actively in her chest again.
Actually, she should have understood long ago that Jiang Chunai was not dead.
But that one strike that had pierced her heart, she knew how heavy-handed she had been, which had made her not dare to believe it at first.
As long as Jiang Chunai was alive, it would be fine. She had liked her so much before, she would surely go to great lengths to find a way to have contact with her…
She had done such a thing in the Bright Snow Sect to show her determination.
She, Han Xiao, was no longer as indifferent to Jiang Chunai as before.
The junior sister who had revolved around her from her youth to her young adulthood would surely be overjoyed and would remember her again.
And then she would come to find her.
That was what Han Xiao had originally thought, and everything she had done in the Crimson Smelting City had been guided by this.
But all of that had come to nothing.
Han Xiao thought she had done enough. She had let the entire human realm know of her experience after betraying her sect:
Stealing the Wunian Sect’s divine artifact, entering the Nether Realm to become the City Lord of the Crimson Smelting City, her fame spreading far and wide.
She, Han Xiao, was still alive, and living well.
She was in the Nether Realm, in the Crimson Smelting City.
Her little junior sister, who had liked her so much before, would surely come to find her upon hearing this news.
With this thought, Han Xiao had waited day and night outside the Crimson Smelting City.
To say “day and night,” in the Crimson Smelting City, the boundary between day and night was not clear.
There could be no light, no sound.
It was on the night before she waited that Han Xiao realized her foolishness.
She had once been in the human realm, looking down on countless clear nights. At that time, she had felt it was pointless.
Until now, as she watched the silent darkness of the Crimson Smelting City, she finally realized how unattainable that clear moonlight of the human realm was.
…How could she hope that the moon would be soft-hearted and take the initiative to shine into the Nether Realm to pity her?
She couldn’t help but wonder if Jiang Chunai had ever had such a time of waiting.
For example, that day in the Cave of Severed Affections, when she had asked for her help.
And at that time, Han Xiao had been extremely arrogant, unwilling to bow her head or listen to her, only throwing back the sharp, ungrateful question to Jiang Chunai.
She didn’t know the difficulty Jiang Chunai had faced walking alone in the cave at that time. Perhaps, it was also a form of repayment.
She thought silently.
Suddenly, another possibility flashed through her mind: could Jiang Chunai also be like her at that time, arrogant, cold, and unwilling to see her?
No, there was absolutely no such possibility.
Han Xiao considered herself a clever person.
Perhaps Jiang Chunai was busy with other things and had no time to come see her.
Fine, then she would go over herself.
They would surely be able to be together smoothly, they just needed to meet once.
So Han Xiao had sought out Pugu Yanxi again and had him open the Ghost Gate.
The distance between her and Jiang Chunai, wasn’t it just the distance of a gate?
The basis for Han Xiao’s decision was so simple:
Jiang Chunai had once liked her so much.
The Ghost Gate rarely appeared in the human realm. There was no shortage of cultivators who had come upon hearing the news.
Jiang Chunai and her group were among them.
Although Lan Xu had kept telling her that there were definitely more cultivators near the Ghost Gate and she didn’t need to worry too much, that the two of them were enough.
But Jiang Chunai was still not at ease and still asked Senior Sister Chang Xin to accompany them.
“Senior Sister Chang Xin is, after all, highly cultivated and has experienced many things. With her around, our journey should be much smoother,” Jiang Chunai had said.
Lan Xu stammered, “Yes, but we can also ask others along the way. It’s not like we’re in the middle of nowhere and can’t find anyone…”
Hearing this, Jiang Chunai finally found it strange and glanced at her. “With Senior Sister Chang Xin coming with us, it’s just two people becoming three. Besides, we’re all from Yanqiu. What’s wrong with bringing Senior Sister Chang Xin along?”
With it said so clearly, Lan Xu couldn’t say anything more. Instead, she took the initiative to go find Senior Sister Chang Xin, inviting her to come with them, and also to bring Zhi Zhi, so that there would be a group of four.
Jiang Chunai suppressed all the strange feelings in her heart. Two, three, or four, it was all about the same.
Besides, with Zhi Zhi, they could liven up the atmosphere along the way.
When they arrived at Mount Xialian, Jiang Chunai’s group met many cultivators who had rushed over. They were dressed in all sorts of colorful clothes, and their hairstyles were all different.
If there was a particularly unique style, it could be recognized at a glance in the crowd.
Chang Xin casually pointed out a few familiar sects. “I didn’t expect the people of the Bright Snow Sect, Mengling Immortal Manor, and Hehuan Sect to be here. It seems the appearance of this Ghost Gate has indeed caused a sensation.”
But the area around Mount Xialian was shrouded in thick fog. Looking up, one could only see clouds and mist. It was not easy to distinguish more cultivators from other sects.
The group’s conversation returned to the Ghost Gate.
“Yes, yes, that’s the Ghost Gate!” At the mention of these three words, Zhi Zhi proudly puffed out her chest, as if she were honored. “This represents the boundary between life and death, and also the pass between the human realm and the Nether Realm.”
“The pass between the human realm and the Nether Realm?” Jiang Chunai asked curiously.
Although she had seen her past memories through the Pearl of Retrospection, those memories were ultimately related to Han Xiao and her own death. She still didn’t know common knowledge like the “Ghost Gate.”
Jiang Chunai asked Zhi Zhi to continue.
Zhi Zhi then explained the origin of the Ghost Gate and finally said, “But opening this Ghost Gate is extremely difficult. It consumes the caster’s lifespan, and there’s a possibility that it will be closed by some busybody.”
Chang Xin nodded beside her and said in a low voice, “That’s right. I observed those few people from Mengling just now… they all have jade seals on their belts. I don’t think they’re some low-level cultivators. It’s probably as Zhi Zhi said, they want to close this Ghost Gate.”
“They want to close this Ghost Gate, so let them,” the previously silent Lan Xu finally spoke up.
But Jiang Chunai said with a serious expression, “Our purpose on this trip is to slay demons and defend the righteous path. If we are in Yanqiu, we only need to protect Yanqiu’s peace. But outside of Yanqiu, it is different.”
Lan Xu choked for a moment, then looked up helplessly, seeking help from Chang Xin and Zhi Zhi.
Zhi Zhi scratched her head and just smiled with her eyes.
Chang Xin said, “Yes, what Chunai said makes sense. Besides… Chunai used to be a cultivator of the Bright Snow Sect, so she’s more sensitive to these things.”
This was not false. Yanqiu was often criticized in the cultivation world. People often accused the cultivators of Yanqiu of only caring about their own safety and not the survival of the world.
The Bright Snow Sect was the opposite. After all, it was an old immortal sect, a leader of the righteous path. It naturally had to be a role model for the cultivators of the world.
Jiang Chunai was about to ask Zhi Zhi about the Ghost Gate.
Since it was a “gate,” there must be some people or demons coming in and out. She had just called out “Zhi Zhi,” when she heard a loud bang from not far away—
“Ghosts! Ghosts are coming out!” a female voice shouted, followed by a chorus of agreement. “Quick, use your swords!”
A cold light suddenly flashed in Chang Xin’s eyes. “It’s probably demons released from the Ghost Gate! Let’s go take a look!”
As Chang Xin had expected, when the four of them parted the thick fog and arrived at the location of the Ghost Gate, a group of cultivators were already waiting in formation, each holding their magical artifacts, watching the thick fog with great concentration.
But after parting the thick fog, the open area was still covered in a thin layer of mist, and there seemed to be no difference from other places.
Jiang Chunai frowned. “What are they doing?”
The Ghost Gate… where is it?
Chang Xin shook her head slightly, as if she didn’t know either. Zhi Zhi and Lan Xu also remained silent.
Suddenly, someone among the cultivators stood out. She took a tassel and threw it into the air—
The next moment, the white tassel disappeared into thin air!
Seeing this, the four of them said in unison, “The Ghost Gate!”
It seemed the legendary pass between the Nether Realm and the human realm, the distance between life and death, was right before their eyes.
It was just transparent, dissolved in the thin mist, and could not be seen directly.
“Hey, wait, that tassel!” another shout came from among the cultivators. “It’s been thrown out again!”
“That’s right, it came out. Can it come out directly? Or did a demon come out?”
“If it can come out, we can go in again! A few of my brothers went in just now, and they haven’t come out yet!”
…
From their conversation, Jiang Chunai understood what these people were talking about. It turned out that a few bold cultivators had gone into the Ghost Gate first, but had not yet come out.
What had come out were just wisps of wandering souls. Wandering souls would not send their brothers out.
But the tassel had been thrown out, as if it had been discarded.
Following closely behind the white tassel was another male cultivator.
“Ah!” he cried out in pain as he fell to the ground. His originally clean clothes were stained with black mud from the Nether Realm. “Demons, demons, it’s full of demons inside…”
Someone who was clearly his companion came forward and asked, “What demons? Is the Ghost Gate the Nether Realm? What demons did you see inside?”
However, the male cultivator who had been thrown out at the beginning seemed to have been frightened out of his wits, stammering and repeating “just demons,” “all demons,” making it impossible for anyone to understand what he was saying.
“This fool, he barely survived, why won’t he talk now that he’s out—” his companion cursed, but before he could finish, he felt a chill behind him.
Someone exclaimed, “Daoist, be careful!”
It was a wisp of a ghost in the shape of a demon that had floated behind him. The ghost had sharp, giant claws on its hands, and with a sudden move, as if it were a real object, it tore the back of the companion cultivator!
With a “tear,” the sound of ripping silk was heard, followed by a deep pain that was almost unbearable, as if it had seeped into his bone marrow.
“Ah!” the male cultivator screamed, and casually pulled out the sword at his waist, hacking fiercely at the demon soul.
The demon soul screamed, and its soul was scattered. The male cultivator began to dodge again.
Seeing this, everyone present knew that the demon souls were back. They each took out their magical artifacts and told the male cultivator to take his brother and dodge to the side. “You go to the side! I want to see if I can blast this broken gate open!”
The woman raised her hand, formed a seal, and chanted. A white and blue halo gradually enveloped her hand, and in an instant, it transformed into an electric dragon, striking straight at the transparent area!
However, the fate of this white and blue electric dragon was not like that of the white tassel. It was reflected straight back.
“Ugh!” the woman spat. “This damned Ghost Gate.”
At this moment, a clear and beautiful figure appeared beside her, patting her on the back. “Alright, alright, Xiao Lu, let’s go to the side and take cover.”
“Sister Yanyan!” the female cultivator who had just been rebuffed cried out, “Xiao Lu can’t do it.”
That woman seemed to be very gentle. She even bent down to comfort the female cultivator. “Xiao Lu is still young. It’s normal not to know.”
From not far away, Chang Xin saw this scene and suddenly said, “Oh, those two are from Mengling. The one who’s talking with her head down now is Su Yanchen.”
“Su Yanchen?” Jiang Chunai tilted her head curiously. “Why is it her?”
Senior Sister Chang Xin had once been in a demon-slaying team with Han Xiao, and this person from Mengling had been there; at the same time, that day in the Zhaoyang Forbidden Ground of the Bright Snow Sect, this woman had also been present.
Even today, outside the Ghost Gate, she was also there.
Chang Xin seemed to have something to say, but the current moment did not allow it: from inside the gate, cultivators with torn clothes were being continuously thrown out!
These cultivators, regardless of age, were all gritting their teeth in pain, saying that they had entered the Nether Realm through this gate and had been miserably humiliated.
Although these fortunate cultivators who had come out needed to be received, the people on the side did not dare to go forward: because wandering souls would still come out of this Ghost Gate.
Sure enough, after another almost naked cultivator was thrown out, a group of demon souls rushed out, screaming their hearts out and pouncing on everyone present.
It was as if the evil ghosts of the Nether Realm had finally torn open a crack in the human realm and were now scrambling to get out, to take revenge on these living people.
There were too many cultivators who were unfortunately caught in it. Even Jiang Chunai’s group had to take in three injured cultivators.
They were gritting their teeth in pain, as if in great agony. The wandering souls were looking for targets everywhere and soon chose Jiang Chunai’s group, rushing over in a swarm.
Zhi Zhi was already terrified and just hid behind Jiang Chunai. “Senior Sister Chunai, Senior Sister Chunai, they’re coming! They’re coming! Are they coming for us, or for these cultivators at our feet?”