Chapter 380: Final Awakening
"Father," Zhou Moran's voice was low, "Now, do you really think I'm the one who colluded with the Zhao family?"
Zhou Hong's lips trembled: "Unfilial son! The evidence is conclusive, what else is there to say!"
Zhou Moran turned his gaze to Lin Xinyao, carrying a final glimmer of hope in his eyes: "Xinyao, we grew up together since childhood. I once thought... you understood me."
Lin Xinyao's fingers tightly clutched her sleeve, her fingertips turning white, but she didn't dare to look up at him.
"Moran, just confess. In the future... I'll stay by your side..."
"Do you still remember?" Zhou Moran didn't answer, just asked softly, "When you were seven, you got lost in the peach grove. It was me who found you. You cried holding me, saying you never wanted to be apart from me again."
Lin Xinyao's shoulders trembled slightly, no longer continuing to speak.
Zhou Moran looked at Liu Yunyao again: "Yunyao, when the Liu family fell into hardship, it was my father who took you in. You said you would never let me down in this life."
Liu Yunyao turned her face away, avoiding his gaze.
Finally, his gaze fell on Zhou Qingyang, his voice icy: "And you... my father treated you like his own son, yet you repaid kindness with enmity."
Zhou Qingyang sneered: "Brother, playing the emotional card at this time is useless. The 'Zhou Family Ancestral Teachings'—those who collude with external enemies shall have their cultivation abolished in public and be expelled from the family! But don't worry, I will plead for you."
"Plead?" Zhou Moran suddenly burst into laughter: "Hahahahaha..."
"Come! Drag the eldest young master down!" Zhou Hong waved his hand.
The surrounding guards were about to step forward—
"Wait!" Zhou Moran sneered, his voice icy: "Then take a look at this too?"
He raised his hand, and another jade slip emerged. A new image unfolded—
Under the night, Zhou Qingyang and Liu Yunyao stood behind a rockery in the back garden.
"Sister Yunyao, as long as things succeed, everything in the Zhou family will be ours." Zhou Qingyang laughed in a low voice, "When the time comes, you can deal with Zhou Moran however you want."
Liu Yunyao's expression was cold: "I don't care how he dies."
Zhou Qingyang sneered: "Indeed, just a waste."
The image shifted, Lin Xinyao was being held in Zhou Qingyang's arms. She struggled slightly but ultimately didn't push him away.
"Qingyang, us being like this... isn't it sorry to Moran?" Her voice was weak.
Zhou Qingyang gently stroked her hair: "Xinyao, he doesn't deserve to have you at all. When things are over, I will openly marry you."
Lin Xinyao closed her eyes, gently leaning on his shoulder.
The image shifted again—
In the final image, Zhou Qingyang, Liu Yunyao, and Lin Xinyao sat around a dark room.
"The letter is already prepared," Liu Yunyao said coldly, "As long as it's found at the family banquet, he's finished."
Lin Xinyao lowered her head, her voice so light it was almost inaudible: "...Isn't this too cruel?"
Zhou Qingyang sneered: "Cruel? If he doesn't die, how can I get the Zhou family?"
...
The image ended, and the hall was silent.
Lin Xinyao finally collapsed, staggering back two steps, tears streaming from her eyes: "No... it's not like this..."
Liu Yunyao's face turned deathly pale as she suddenly looked at Zhou Moran: "You... you knew all along?"
Zhou Moran didn't answer, just coldly looked outside the hall: "Bring him in."
Two guards escorted a gray-clothed servant in. When that person saw Zhou Hong, he immediately knelt and kowtowed: "Family head, spare my life! This servant was just following orders! It, it was Young Master Qingyang who had this servant put the letter in the eldest young master's room!"
Zhou Hong's figure swayed, almost unable to stand steady.
He slowly turned his head, looking at Zhou Qingyang, his voice hoarse: "You... what else do you have to say?"
...
After a deathly silence—
Zhou Qingyang's face was ashen, suddenly shouting hysterically: "Yes! I did it! So what?!"
He suddenly pointed at Zhou Moran, his eyes full of resentment: "Why are you the legitimate son? Why does everyone revolve around you?! I'm the most suitable heir for the Zhou family!"
Zhou Hong was furious, slamming the table into pieces: "Beast! I treated you like my own son, yet you harbor such wolfish ambition!"
Zhou Qingyang laughed madly: "Own son? You took me in just to show your benevolence!"
He suddenly pulled out a talisman from his sleeve, spiritual power pouring in, instantly turning into a black light attacking Zhou Moran!
"Go to hell!"
---
Zhou Moran was already prepared. His figure flashed, avoiding the attack, and he countered with a sword thrust—
"Pfft!"
The sword blade pierced through Zhou Qingyang's chest, blood gushing out.
Zhou Qingyang's eyes widened in disbelief as he looked down at the sword in his chest, blood frothing at the corner of his mouth: "You... how could you..."
Zhou Moran coldly withdrew his sword, watching him fall: "This sword is to repay the debt from your previous life."
Zhou Qingyang twitched twice and completely stopped breathing.
The hall fell into dead silence, only Lin Xinyao's suppressed sobs could be heard.
Zhou Moran turned around and looked at his father: "Father, now, do you believe me?"
Zhou Hong's tears streamed down as he staggered forward and hugged him tightly: "Moran... it was this father who was muddled!"
Zhou Moran closed his eyes, neither pushing him away nor responding.
His gaze passed over his father's shoulder, looking at Lin Xinyao and Liu Yunyao.
The two sat paralyzed on the ground, their eyes full of regret and fear.
"Moran..." Lin Xinyao trembled as she reached out her hand, "I... I know I was wrong..."
Zhou Moran looked at her quietly and suddenly smiled.
That smile was cold, without a trace of warmth.
"It's too late."
He turned around and strode out of the hall, his figure resolute and lonely.
The night wind blew up his robes, and the moonlight spilled onto his shoulders, as if draping him in a suit of silver armor.
In this life, he wouldn't stop for anyone anymore.
The Zhou family, perhaps in the eyes of many, was already a prestigious family.
But having experienced the previous life, he knew what the true scenery at the top of the cultivation world looked like!
This Zhou family, he could do without!
In this life, I will surely attain Immortal Venerable!
Let everyone prostrate at my feet!
...
The knots of two lifetimes were completely untied in an instant.
Zhou Moran tread on clouds, his robes rustling in the wind, feeling immense pride in his heart!
He closed his eyes and concentrated, recalling the details from his previous life—Falin City, located three hundred li southeast of the Zhou family. In the city, there was a "Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion" that held a large-scale auction every ten years.
In his previous life, he had heard that a Flood Dragon's pearl was purchased at a low price by a loose cultivator. Later, that person relied on the dragon pearl to greatly increase his cultivation, even becoming a powerful figure for a time.
In this life, he would never miss such an opportunity again!
Zhou Moran opened his eyes, his gaze firm. The cloud qi beneath his feet churned, and his speed increased a few degrees.
However, after flying for a long time, the scenery before him became increasingly unfamiliar.
Mountains undulated, clouds and mist swirled, but there was no sign of Falin City.
"Strange..." He frowned slightly, a hint of unease rising in his heart.
According to his memory, Falin City should be in this area, but the surroundings were now a barren mountain wilderness, without a trace of human habitation.
He suppressed the unease in his heart and continued forward. After flying for another half hour, he still found nothing.
Finally, he pressed down on the cloud head and landed on a mountain peak, looking around, his expression gradually becoming grave.
"Wrong... this shouldn't be like this..."
He muttered to himself, the unease in his heart growing stronger.
Just then, a stream of light streaked across the sky in the distance. A loose cultivator was coming on a sword, seemingly about to pass by this place.
Zhou Moran's eyes flashed, his figure moving to block in front of that person.
"Fellow Daoist, please wait."
The loose cultivator was suddenly blocked, startled at first, then cautiously sized him up: "This senior, what instructions do you have?"
Zhou Moran suppressed the anxiety in his heart and asked as calmly as possible: "May I ask, fellow Daoist, in which direction is Falin City near here?"
...
Unlock 30 chapters instantly (for the price of the old 20-chapter tier) and get 50–55 new chapters every month.
If you're enjoying the story, consider supporting me here:
patreon.com/Alex_Cruise