After being reborn, all I want to do is run away.

Chapter 518 The Secret of Amber

"Qiwen, do you know what happened to the previous courtesan of Fusheng Pavilion? Why is everyone saying that she ruined Fusheng Pavilion?"

"This... this matter is actually quite a secret. I only found out about it not long ago, but I don't know if it's true or not?"

Lin Qiwen lowered his voice and continued, "The previous winner of the Hundred Flowers Award was the top courtesan of the Floating Life Pavilion, but she was already pregnant at the time, and the previous owner of the Floating Life Pavilion concealed this fact."

"Another one of the Hundred Flowers Maidens!" Shen Xu felt a sense of unease.

"Is that all? Are there any further details?"

"I don't know about that."

"Then do you know who might know?" Shen Xu immediately pressed.

"Well... I think it would be better for Brother Shen to ask Lord Li Fang." Lin Qiwen replied hesitantly.

"We should go!" Shang Xueyi's cold voice rang in his ears.

Shen Xu immediately realized that he might have stumbled upon a corner of the Blood Fiend Palace's scheme, but with Shang Xueyi by his side, he was destined not to find out more.

With a sigh, Shen Xu said, "Qiwen, I have to go now. Please give my regards to Senior Liang."

"Yes! Where is Brother Shen staying? After the Hundred Flowers Festival, we can go back to Tianjian City together."

"No need, I won't be returning to Heavenly Sword City for now."

"Alright!" Lin Qiwen's voice couldn't help but betray a hint of regret.

"Fate brings us together even from a thousand miles away; we'll have another chance to meet," Shen Xu said with a smile.

"Most definitely!"

Shen Xu, who was about to turn and leave, hesitated for a moment, then asked Shang Xueyi, "May I have a private chat with Brother Lin?"

"I have never restricted your freedom," Shang Xueyi said softly.

"I believe you ghost!"

When Lin Qiwen saw this scene, his eyes flickered. He was not unreasonable, and he could see that Brother Shen seemed to be under the control of this beautiful girl.

Shen Xu took Lin Qiwen aside and told him that Bai Lu was a stargazer, which he thought would be helpful to Liang Yu.

After hesitating for a moment, she took out the amber that the old temple keeper had left her. "Qiwen, do you recognize this amber?"

"This... Brother Shen, where did you get this amber from?!" Lin Qiwen was utterly shocked.

"Is there anything special about this amber?" Shen Xu pressed.

"It's more than just special. This amber is called 'Soul-Sealing Amber,' and it's a treasure of our Giant Axe Gang. Every piece is incredibly precious and has never been leaked. How did it end up in your hands!"

Oh right, I remember now. Ten years ago, Uncle Liang seemed to have taken a piece of Soul-Sealing Amber and traded some things with Hundred Flowers City.

"Brother Shen, this Soul-Sealing Amber you have is very likely the one Uncle Liang took ten years ago."

"What does it do?"

"As the name suggests, this amber can seal the soul and form the most essential pattern of the soul within it. However, it is not a permanent seal, but only a delay in the time it takes for the soul to dissipate."

Simply crush the amber, and the soul sealed within will be released once more.

Hearing Lin Qiwen's words, Shen Xu played with the amber in his hand, his thoughts drifting far away.

……

They remained silent the entire way, and Shang Xueyi's silence made Shen Xu feel uneasy.

"Um, Xueyi, is there anything else you want?" Shen Xu asked tentatively.

"What exactly is our relationship now?" Shang Xueyi asked Shen Xu.

Shen Xu's expression stiffened. He had brought trouble upon himself. He knew that saying those things would anger Shang Xueyi, but he still wanted to retaliate.

After a moment of silence, Shen Xu replied, "I don't know what kind of relationship we have. We're closer than friends, but it's not quite right to call us lovers."

"What's wrong with it?" Shang Xueyi immediately asked.

“A lot! At least I shouldn’t feel restrained when I’m with my lover.”

"It seems you feel I've put a lot of pressure on you. That's because you have other thoughts in your mind. When you only have me in your heart, your pressure will naturally disappear," Shang Xueyi said softly.

You can force me to stay by your side, but you can't make me fall in love with you.

"What about the Love Flower? According to Li Linghui, you will definitely fall in love with her under the influence of the Love Flower."

"No matter how real my feelings for her were, the moment she fell in love with me, a thick barrier existed between us."

Love will never fade, nor will barriers ever disappear.

If, as she says, I eventually fall in love with her, that is the love of the love flower, not my love.

She and I were nothing more than puppets of the flower of love!

I'm glad you have this idea, but I don't agree with your view. Feelings need time to develop, and you'll never fall in love with me if you're not by my side.

Rather than gambling that you'll suddenly realize something someday, I'd rather keep things firmly in my own hands.

And how can you be so sure you won't fall in love with me?

Although I don't know why, I'm special to you, aren't I?

Shen Xu was taken aback, then fell silent.

He had to admit that the witch was right, and he couldn't help but sigh that the witch was always the same witch, and would never relinquish control to someone else.

The only person in the world who could make her make concessions is probably Li Xiaoyi.

But he couldn't let the witch control him; tomorrow was his last chance to escape her clutches.

He believed that the old temple keeper would not have asked him to take her ashes to the temple on Goddess Peak for no reason, and that the amber must be connected to the temple.

Now that Baihua City is on guard against him, one of the witch's purposes in having him around is probably to keep an eye on him.

If Qingyun can't get there in time, there's very little he can do in Hundred Flowers City. He might as well take a gamble at Goddess Peak, since the source of everything is that goddess.

Moreover, the clues to the antidote for the Love Flower are also on Goddess Peak, and he will have to go there sooner or later.

Unfortunately, he still knows nothing about what Hundred Flowers City and the Crimson Origin Sect are planning, nor does he know anything about the Goddess's condition.

Guan Bi's move was just a side hustle; he didn't expect to gain anything from Guan Bi, and there wasn't enough time.

Thinking of this, Shen Xu frowned. He had very few cards to play. The Crimson Origin Sect had been operating in Hundred Flowers City for so long that it was impossible for him to shake it in just a few days after arriving in Hundred Flowers City.

But things have progressed to this point, and he can't leave even if he wants to.

The witch and the love flower were like two sharp swords hanging over his head; without the goddess's power, it would be difficult for him to escape unscathed.

The fact that Qu Lan encountered the goddess indicates that the goddess still possesses a sliver of reason and is capable of communication.

According to the ending of the previous life, the goddess is likely to have an accident after the Hundred Flowers Festival, and tomorrow is her last day.

However, there was one thing he couldn't understand, and that was the attitude of the Four Directions Sword Alliance.

Logically speaking, the Four Directions Sword Alliance shouldn't have remained completely indifferent to what was about to happen in Hundred Flowers City, given Qingyun's status.

As the mastermind behind the scenes, Zuo Chen must have foreseen the events in Hundred Flowers City.

Even the resurrection of the goddess of Goddess Peak is an open secret, yet the Sword Alliance only sent one Transcendent Elder to witness the ceremony.

He didn't believe that the elder didn't have the means to directly contact the Sword Alliance; Qingyun's disappearance was no small matter.

Unless that Sword Alliance elder was also a member of the Crimson Origin Sect, news of Qingyun's disappearance must have already reached within the Sword Alliance.

But the Sword Alliance's reaction was far too indifferent, unusually indifferent, as if they didn't care at all about what was happening here.

Did they have ulterior motives, or were they truly unaware?

What exactly did Zuo Chen do with the Sword Alliance?

What roles did he and Qingyun play in all of this?

But no matter what, everything will be clear after tomorrow.