Chapter 1315: Reluctant but Upright

Venerable Zhenyan's slap landed three feet from Jiang Fan's chest, but she couldn't bring it down. It was as if she was being controlled by something. The curse words that had spilled out abruptly ceased. With almost no power to resist, her eyes quickly softened, filled with tender affection. The hand that had been raised to strike Jiang Fan instead hooked around his neck. Her soft, fragrant body leaned into his embrace, and with a dazed look, she tilted her head back, exhaling like orchids as she murmured:

"My Jiang Lang, my dearest Jiang Lang." She stood on tiptoes and gently kissed Jiang Fan's lips.

Only then did she regain consciousness. Horrified by what she had done, she couldn't help but scream as she shoved Jiang Fan away:

"Ah! How could I? How could I do this?"

Grandmaster Xingyuan spread his hands and said, "See? Didn't I tell you? Though you complain about Jiang Fan, your body is very honest; you genuinely like him."

Venerable Zhenyan was stunned. She couldn't believe what she had just done. Listening to Grandmaster Xingyuan's words, she retorted angrily, "Impossible! How could I possibly like him?" She glared fiercely at Jiang Fan, then flashed forward again, raising her palm and yelling, "You scoundrel, what did you do to me...?"

Her renewed attempts to hit and curse him once again triggered the Wise Engraving. The previous scene played out again.

"Ah! Believe me, I really don't feel anything for this scoundrel...""My Jiang Lang, I like you so much.""Ah! What is going on? Jiang Fan, I'll chop you..."*smooch, smooch, smooch*"Ah!"

As a result, everyone in Hunyuan Province watched with wide eyes, witnessing a blatant display of affection.

Only when Jiang Fan's face was covered in red lipstick marks did Grandmaster Xingyuan wave his hand, separating the two. He said with a smile, "Zhenyan, trust your body. You can't do without Jiang Fan."

Venerable Zhenyan was numb; her mouth opened and closed, but she couldn't utter a single word of rebuttal. It was too bizarre! She had actually, uncontrollably, embraced and showered Jiang Fan with kisses and affection for what felt like an eternity! Thinking of her shameless and wanton behavior, she blushed crimson and looked around, saying:

"If anyone spreads what happened today, I swear I'll die right in front of them!" This was simply too humiliating! It made her want to sink into the ground!

Venerable Zixiao's expression was odd as he said, "Ahem, Fairy Zhenyan, there's no need to worry about that. Because everyone in Hunyuan Province was watching. Whether we speak of it or not, it's already known."

Venerable Zhenyan froze. Jiang Fan also paused, then suddenly remembered something, and his face changed drastically as he clutched his forehead. With a gentle scratch, he pulled out a Sky-Eye Crystal!

"Huh? The Sky-Eye Crystal is still on?" He had experienced so many dangers in the Celestial Realm that he had forgotten about the Sky-Eye Crystal's existence! So, the whole Hunyuan Province saw him giving the formation-breaking hammer to trick Xiongxiong and extorting Venerable Qianjiao? His vision swam; he felt like the sky was falling! This... this was too embarrassing, wasn't it?

Venerable Zhenyan was even more mortified, her face beet red as she covered it and shrieked repeatedly, "I can't live like this!" She had actually behaved that way towards Jiang Fan in front of the entire Hunyuan Province! Wait! Didn't that mean the scene of Jiang Fan falling, holding her naked in the abyss, was also... Although only her back was visible, it had also spread throughout Hunyuan Province!

"Ah!" Unable to bear it any longer, she let out a frantic scream and shot into the sky. She couldn't bear to stay in Hunyuan Province for another moment!

Grandmaster Xingyuan secretly smiled and did not stop Venerable Zhenyan from returning to Taicang Province. A wife follows her husband wherever he goes. Since Venerable Zhenyan was betrothed to Jiang Fan, it was natural for her to return to her husband's home, wasn't it? Besides, with Venerable Zhenyan accompanying Ancient Sage Yunhuang's people, it would be easier for her to survive this catastrophe.

"My daughter, take care. Perhaps, this is the last time we father and daughter will meet." He watched Venerable Zhenyan depart, a long sigh escaping his heart.

He then turned to look at Jiang Fan, his eyes full of infinite hope, and patted his shoulder, saying:

"Jiang Fan, take good care of Zhenyan. I haven't been a good father; I owe her so much. I hope that with you by her side for the rest of her life, her future will once again be brilliant."

"Was this a trust?" Jiang Fan retorted, annoyed, "Senior Xingyuan, you don't actually think that after this whole farce, Venerable Zhenyan and I are husband and wife, do you?"

Grandmaster Xingyuan gently shook his head. "Of course not. But, everyone in Middle Earth knows that you are my recognized son-in-law." Jiang Fan was speechless. This was to make them engaged in name. From now on, no other man would dare to harbor thoughts about Venerable Zhenyan. Unless Venerable Zhenyan chose not to seek a man, if she did, it could only be Jiang Fan.

"You should still be kinder to your daughter; it's not easy for her alone in Taicang Province," Jiang Fan said, shaking his head. When he first met Venerable Zhenyan, he encountered Venerable Xieya coercing her to sacrifice herself. Even so, Venerable Zhenyan did not reveal the secret that her father was suffering from the Five Declines of Heaven and Man. It was clear that she had achieved her current status in Taicang Province entirely on her own. Only she knew how much hardship she had endured during that time. Grandmaster Xingyuan merely sighed and did not explain further.

"When do you plan to return to Taicang Province?" Jiang Fan thought for a moment and said, "I want to see Venerable Lianjing first. Have you found her?" Venerable Lianjing had fallen with them; she should have woken up by now.

Grandmaster Xingyuan sighed softly, "Her Tribulation of the Five Declines of Heaven and Man has already begun."

"What?" Jiang Fan's expression shifted slightly, and he quickly said, "I'd like to see her alone."

Grandmaster Xingyuan nodded, "Follow me."

Soon, in a quiet detached courtyard, Jiang Fan saw the unconscious Venerable Lianjing. Faint wisps of putrid air lingered in the room.

He didn't dare to hesitate. He took out a wishing paper, grabbed a handful of Time-Space Dust and put it in his mouth, then looked at Venerable Lianjing's face and softly sighed:

"Since you've helped me so much, I'll save you this one time. From now on, our grievances and favors are settled."

With a thought, he activated the wishing paper. "Venerable Lianjing's domain restored!" As the wish was uttered, his body felt like it had an bottomless pit, his life force being devoured frantically. He aged at a visible rate. Fortunately, the Time-Space Dust sensed something was wrong and immediately released an incredibly powerful life force, restoring his body. This cycle repeated for a full ten breaths. Over a hundred beads of Time-Space Dust in Jiang Fan's mouth were depleted before the wish was successfully activated.

"My heavens, a hundred Time-Space Dusts?" He secretly clicked his tongue in amazement. Back when he dealt with the Cold Mountain Giant King, using ten Time-Space Dusts was already a lot. Now, one wish consumed a hundred Time-Space Dusts! Out of over a thousand Time-Space Dusts, only nine hundred remained! He felt a pang of heartache: "This stuff, I should avoid using it if I can; it's too extravagant!" A life-extending divine item, extremely rare in the outside world, he had used over a hundred of them in one go. Luckily his mother wasn't around, or she would surely scold him for being a spendthrift.

Moreover, he still needed to consume three more Time-Space Dusts. Because there wasn't enough Time-Space Dust just now, his body had aged immensely, turning him into an old man with white hair and a wrinkled face. He was just about to take more.

Venerable Lianjing slowly woke up, immediately sensing that her domain had been restored. She was greatly astonished and said, "My... my domain has been restored? How is that possible?" Unless all the powerful experts of Wenhai Academy acted together, expending most of their Righteous Qi, or a Sage made a move. But neither was possible.

Suddenly, she noticed the aged, white-haired old man by the bed and frowned slightly. She felt like the old man looked familiar. She couldn't help but ask in surprise, "Elder, who are you?"

"Just a passerby. Since you're fine, I'll take my leave." How could Jiang Fan let her know who he was?

Venerable Lianjing watched Jiang Fan's hunched back as he walked away, a thoughtful expression appearing between her brows. The more she looked, the more familiar he seemed. Suddenly, her heart pounded. This... this couldn't be Jiang Fan, could it? Could it be that he used the wishing paper and expended his life force to restore her origin? Impossible, right? That kid, so kind-hearted? Impossible! It definitely wasn't him! However, when she sensed the aura of her mirror coming from the white-haired old man's embrace, her entire body trembled violently, and her pupils gradually constricted. Her heart felt as if it had been severely pierced by something.

Jiang Fan, had actually become like this for her?