Chapter 329: Sacrifice

Seeing Gu Yang lose his composure like this, Kong Nian knew he was anxious.

"Brother Gu Yang, I don't want things between us to end up like this either. But I hate Su Yan. She didn't just steal my energy; she stole you. That's why, no matter what, I won't let her live a peaceful life."

"That's not what Yan Yan wants." Gu Yang could not understand why Kong Nian had become such a despicable person.

Kong Nian's expression turned hideous, her emotions spiraling out of control. "Is that person the only thing in your heart? Did you ever think about me? For an Exorcist, losing one's energy is equivalent to losing one's dignity and life!"

So, did he truly not care at all?

Gu Yang froze slightly, his emotions more complex than they had ever been. "Yan Yan didn't do it on purpose."

"Heh, she didn't? Then why don't you dare let her stay here?" Kong Nian couldn't understand what was so great about Su Yan that he couldn't let her go!

"Kong Nian, you must understand that even if Yan Yan learns the truth, I will not leave her." Gu Yang reminded her word by word, warning her not to let anger and jealousy cloud her mind.

"Then let her know the truth and see if she'll leave you of her own accord!"

Kong Nian sneered. She had long since realized that in this relationship, Su Yan was nowhere near as devoted as Gu Yang.

Or rather, compared to what Gu Yang and Su Yan wanted to achieve, her feelings were simply too insignificant.

Gu Yang's hands clenched into tight fists, the veins on his arms bulging with rage.

"What, are you afraid now? Since you want to keep this secret, you'd better listen to me obediently." A flash of ruthlessness surfaced in the depths of Kong Nian's eyes.

The tension between the two was palpable, like a drawn sword. Gu Yang's gaze toward Kong Nian was as cold as ice in the twelfth lunar month.

After an unknown amount of time, Gu Yang's clenched fists slowly relaxed. He spoke in an extremely heavy and disappointed tone, "Kong Nian, you weren't like this when we were children."

He could not connect the current Kong Nian with the "Yan Yan" of his childhood. Every time he saw her like this, his heart would ache with a tightening pain.

If Uncle Su woke up and learned the truth, and if Auntie Kong knew from beyond the grave, they would surely be heartbroken to see her become this way, wouldn't they?!

"The 'me' from childhood was long ago erased by you. You say I'm not like I was when we were kids, but are you still the Brother Gu Yang of my childhood? You were the one who changed your heart first, and that is why I am like this now!" Kong Nian's words stabbed fiercely into Gu Yang's heart, leaving him suffocating.

Gu Yang's eyes flickered violently. For a moment, he truly wanted to find his old sister Yan Yan again.

"Fine, I promise you. As long as you don't hurt Yan Yan, I will listen to you."

As his voice fell, Kong Nian felt no joy or satisfaction; instead, the flames in her chest burned to an extreme.

"Do you really love her that much?"

To be manipulated by others just for the sake of that fake!

Gu Yang no longer wanted to discuss this. "This is between us. I have already promised you, so please, go back to being your old self. Even if it's not like when we were children, just go back to the person you were when we first met, alright?"

Back then, she was a free-spirited, mysterious, and powerful Exorcist.

She would extend a helping hand to an ordinary person like him, rather than being filled with nothing but hatred and jealousy as she was now.

Kong Nian froze suddenly, as if something deep within her heart had shattered.

The old her...

Now, she had lost all her energy and most of her spiritual power. She was nothing.

"Gu Yang, you don't know anything at all. How could I ever go back? Right now, I truly only have you."

Her voice choked up slightly. She felt pain, she felt tired, and she felt afraid.

Looking at the suppressed tears in Kong Nian's eyes, Gu Yang thought of too many people and too many things.

***

In another hospital room, Su Yan was also having a conversation with Gan Hua.

"What is it you need from me?"

"You will also be participating in the trip to the Zhou family's ancestral lands, right?"

Su Yan's affairs had already become a hot topic throughout the entire circle; it wasn't surprising that Gan Hua knew.

"Yes," Su Yan gave a definitive answer.

Gan Hua hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back.

Su Yan did not press him, waiting for him to find his words.

Ten seconds later, Gan Hua spoke almost as if he were pleading, "Could you please not participate?"

Su Yan faced him calmly. "Why?"

In truth, Gan Hua had undergone a fierce internal struggle before coming here, but thinking of the life-saving debt he owed Su Yan, he decided to tell her everything he knew.

"Do you know why the Zhou family has been unable to obtain their ancestral treasure for all these years?"

Su Yan: "I don't know."

"That is because to obtain that treasure, one must pass through all the trials set within the ancestral lands, and almost every trial requires a sacrifice." As he spoke, Gan Hua was filled with helplessness and tension; this meant that everyone entering would face the threat of death.

Su Yan's expression turned surprised. "A sacrifice?"

She truly hadn't expected that.

Gan Hua nodded solemnly. "Yes. If it were just a sacrifice, the Zhou family naturally wouldn't lack people, but one must also pass the trials. And this final trial has remained unbroken for decades. The reason the Zhou family is so insistent on waiting for you is because they heard of the extraordinary strength you have displayed lately. They want you to attempt the final trial—they might even make you the sacrifice."

That was why, when he heard the Zhou family was even willing to delay their trip to the ancestral lands time and time again just to wait for Su Yan, he felt nothing but deep worry for her.

A shadow crossed Su Yan's eyes. So that was the situation.

Ma Chulong and his sister likely didn't know either; otherwise, they definitely would have warned her.

Her main reason for wanting to join this trip was to get close to the Kong family and uncover more secrets regarding her own origins. However, she truly did not like being schemed against and used like this.

"If that's the case, why are those people still scrambling to go?"

Furthermore, Ma Chulong was the legitimate successor of the Ma family. It was impossible for the Ma family not to know the risks of the Zhou family's trip, so why would they agree to let the siblings participate?

Gan Hua let out a heavy sigh. "It is because the benefits promised by the Zhou family are simply too tempting. After weighing the pros and cons, the heads of various families all feel that sacrificing one person from their clan is a fair price to exchange for an alliance with another family. If it were you, Miss Su, how would you choose?"

Though cruel, this was reality.

Su Yan's heart sank. She was not one of those clan heads.

"Miss Su, I know you do not belong to any family, so as long as you are unwilling, no one can force you to participate." Gan Hua was sincerely concerned for Su Yan's safety.

"Alright, I understand. Thank you for coming all this way specifically to tell me this. I will think carefully about what to do." Su Yan did not give an immediate answer.

Just as Gan Hua had said, no one could dictate what she was unwilling to do, not even life or death.

(End of Chapter)