Undying Life

Chapter 222: Negotiation across time and space

zhongshan, accompanied by Ah Da, headed straight to the Heavenly Prison.

On the way, they quickly reverted to their normal appearances and discarded their disguises.

At the entrance of the Heavenly Prison, two officials were already waiting. One was the ceremonial officer from the Great Luo Heavenly Dynasty, and the other was an official from the Great Yu Dynasty who had accompanied Princess Qian You into the prison last time.

At this moment, the official from the Great Yu Dynasty wore an impatient expression.

Approaching them, Zhong Shan greeted, "Mr. Qian, it's good to see you again."

The ceremonial officer from the Great Luo Dynasty let out a relieved sigh and stepped aside.

"You... You're that attendant of Princess Qian You?" the official from the Great Yu Dynasty recalled.

"Mr. Qian has a good memory. It's been a while, yet Mr. Qian still remembers me. Today, I'm here again to trouble Mr. Qian. By order of the princess, we need to enter the Heavenly Prison once more," Zhong Shan explained.

"Hmm, King Julu instructed that every time you enter, we must accompany you and report to King Julu. Why have you suddenly come here? His Majesty's birthday is approaching. What business do you have in the Heavenly Prison?" Mr. Qian furrowed his brows and asked.

"The great battle between the emperors is imminent. Once victorious, the princess will request Emperor Na Lan to release our Great Luo prisoners. To ensure everything goes smoothly, the princess has sent me to communicate with the prisoners, advising them to be cautious in their words and actions to avoid offending Emperor Yu in the future," Zhong Shan replied with a smile.

"Oh?" Mr. Qian squinted his eyes.

"Hehe, I knew Mr. Qian would be willing to help," Zhong Shan said, leaning slightly towards Mr. Qian and gesturing with his sleeve.

Understanding his gesture, Mr. Qian reached out his hand, and Zhong Shan handed him a bottle of pills.

With a slight examination, Mr. Qian's eyes lit up, and he immediately smiled, "Very well, this is what I should do. Please."

"Please," Zhong Shan replied.

Then, Zhong Shan, accompanied by Ah Da, followed Mr. Qian into the Heavenly Prison, while the previous ceremonial officer from the Great Luo Dynasty was left outside to wait.

Representing King Julu, Mr. Qian encountered no obstacles along the way. None of the prison guards dared to stop them.

Inside one of the prison cells where Wu Wanli was held, Lu Jianping knelt before him.

"Master," Lu Jianping said with concern.

"Jianping, the time has come. Today is Emperor Na Lan's birthday, and Princess Qian You will stage a prison break. My end is near," Wu Wanli said with a sorrowful smile.

"Master, maybe nothing will happen. As long as you refuse to leave, Princess Qian You can't take you away," Lu Jianping said.

"Refuse? If I stay, my entire family will be destroyed. If I return, my entire family will also be destroyed. It's better to die on the road than to die now," Wu Wanli said with a bitter smile.

"Master," Lu Jianping exclaimed, heartbroken.

"Sssssss..."

Suddenly, Wu Wanli tore open his shirt, revealing his chest.

On Wu Wanli's chest, there was a square-shaped drawing covered with intricate and mysterious patterns. At first glance, it looked as if it had been splattered with ink.

"For the past ten years, you've been protecting me diligently. Even though you've left behind an unmarried wife, I'm grateful to you," Wu Wanli said.

"Master, please don't say such things. Everything I have is given by you. I've served you without complaint or regret," Lu Jianping said.

"Hehe, with you, Lu Jianping, as my disciple in this lifetime, I'm satisfied. I've taught you everything I can. Except for those cities, on my chest is the strongest city from the Encyclopedia of Ten Thousand Cities, the number one city under the heavens. I've already erased this city from the Encyclopedia, leaving only one copy in the world, which I've taught you to see through special methods," Wu Wanli said.

"Lǔ Jiàn Píng," Lù Jiànpíng's face suddenly showed a panicked expression.

"Tear~~~"

A gush of blood sprayed out, and Wu Wànlǐ's chest instantly became a mess of flesh and blood. But on Wu Wànlǐ's palm, there was an extra piece of human skin parchment.

Gently handing the human skin parchment to Lù Jiànpíng.

Lù Jiànpíng was stunned, completely speechless.

"Take it. This is the last thing I can give you," Wu Wànlǐ said with a relieved smile on his face.

"Master!" Lù Jiànpíng hugged Wu Wànlǐ tightly.

"After I die, don't bother with me. Don't look at my body. You are still a prison guard. After this, regardless of whether you want to go to any dynasty or heavenly realm, I will support you," Wu Wànlǐ's chest was drenched in fresh blood, growing weaker and weaker because he had sealed his true essence with a special method, rendering him no different from an ordinary person.

"Master~~~~~" Tears poured down Lù Jiànpíng's face as he held the human skin parchment Wu Wànlǐ had handed him.

"Put it away," Wu Wànlǐ stared with widened eyes.

"Yes." With tears streaming down his eyes, Lù Jiànpíng took the human skin parchment and placed it into his storage bracelet.

"What are you doing?" Outside the Heavenly Prison, Mr. Qián's angry shout suddenly sounded.

Zhōng Shān, Ah Da, and Mr. Qián arrived.

Zhōng Shān gave Ah Da a meaningful look, and Ah Da swiftly struck Mr. Qián unconscious with a palm.

Wu Wànlǐ looked at Zhōng Shān and Ah Da outside, smiling bitterly. With his last breath, he got up and bowed respectfully to Zhōng Shān and Ah Da, "Wu Wànlǐ thanks His Majesty the Great Luo for his kindness."

Ah Da quickly stepped forward, unleashing his true essence, releasing Wu Wànlǐ's restraint, and Wu Wànlǐ regained his cultivation.

However, the next moment, Ah Da widened his eyes, staring at Wu Wànlǐ, who had a crazed and satisfied expression on his face.

"Sir, Wu Wànlǐ has self-destructed his Nascent Soul and severed his meridians. He's dead," Ah Da said with an incredulous expression.

On the side, prison guard Lù Jiànpíng slowly retreated to the corner, filled with reluctance. He wanted to approach but seeing Ah Da and Zhōng Shān, he did nothing because he knew that whatever he did would be futile and might even get him caught, betraying his master's trust.

"Dead!" Ah Da sighed lightly.

"Ah Da, guard the outside and don't let anyone disturb. I'll talk to this Lù Jiànpíng," Zhōng Shān narrowed his eyes.

"Sir, did you call me?" Lù Jiànpíng immediately pretended to be puzzled.

"Yes," Ah Da quickly responded and swiftly exited.

Zhōng Shān set up a formation inside, isolating the sound, and Ah Da didn't complain, diligently guarding outside.

"Sir, what did you call me for?" Lù Jiànpíng still pretended to be clueless.

"Collect your master's body. Then, find a good place for his burial," Zhōng Shān said calmly.

Conflicted and doubtful, Lù Jiànpíng glanced at Zhōng Shān. Seeing Zhōng Shān's indifferent attitude, Lù Jiànpíng felt torn. Finally, he weakened psychologically and immediately approached, picking up Wu Wànlǐ's body.

"Who are you, and how do you know he's my master?" Lù Jiànpíng asked.

"Sit," Zhōng Shān gestured to the seat in front.

Lù Jiànpíng stared directly at Zhōng Shān, not giving in for a moment, but eventually sat down.

"I'm Zhōng Shān, currently working under Princess Qian You. As for knowing you're Wu Wànlǐ's disciple, it wasn't me who said it. It was your father," Zhōng Shān said gently.

"Father?" Lù Jiànpíng's eyes widened in rage, immediately standing up as if Zhōng Shān's words had touched his bottom line, ready to fight Zhōng Shān to the death.

Seeing the fiery Lù Jiànpíng, Zhōng Shān became even more satisfied. Such a righteous person was exactly what he needed.

"Sit," Zhōng Shān said.

Lù Jiànpíng sat down slowly, glaring at Zhōng Shān with extreme hostility.

"You don't know whether I'm good or bad for now, but it doesn't matter. I'll show you something," Zhōng Shān said.

Then, a memory crystal suddenly appeared in Zhōng Shān's hand.

Lù Jiànpíng stared at the memory crystal, feeling a sense of foreboding.

Zhōng Shān expelled his true essence, and in the memory crystal, a scene from several months ago at the Lù residence appeared. The young master of the Zhào family led a large group of experts to besiege the Lù family, intending to massacre them. Lù Jiànpíng's father stood in front alone, and the Lù family was on the brink of destruction. At that moment, Lù Jiànpíng's fiancée bravely sacrificed herself to save the Lù family.

"Father, my daughter-in-law is an unfortunate person. Before the wedding, Jiànpíng suddenly disappeared, and his life or death was unknown. Today, he has brought disaster upon the Lù family. I'm sorry for the Lù family, sorry for Jiànpíng. I can't watch the Lù family perish because of me. However, in my daughter-in-law's heart, she has long been Jiànpíng's wife. Whether in life or death, she belongs to Jiànpíng. I'm sorry, Father. When Jiànpíng comes back, tell him not to be sad for me, to live well." Listening to Dù Nà's tragic and heartbreaking words, Lù Jiànpíng boiled with emotion. At this moment, his mind was completely drawn into the images in the memory crystal. His father supported the Lù family, and his fiancée waited dutifully for ten years without complaint or regret. All of this melted Lù Jiànpíng's heart. But these most important people, forced into such a situation by the young master of the Zhào family, made Lù Jiànpíng wish he could immediately rush forward, kill the young master Zhào, and tell his father that he was safe, and reassure his fiancée that he was well.

Seeing Lù Jiànpíng's expression, Zhōng Shān smiled faintly and retrieved the memory crystal.

"What happened next? What happened next?" Lù Jiànpíng asked anxiously, his whole body like an ant on a hot pan.

"What do you want to happen next?" Zhōng Shān asked with a smile.

"Kill Zhào's young master, save Dù Nà, save Dù Nà!" Lù Jiànpíng looked at Zhōng Shān eagerly, as if the salvation of the Lù family depended on Zhōng Shān's nod.

"If I save them, then what? If I don't save them, then what?" Zhōng Shān asked.

"If you save them, I will be grateful to you. Whatever you want, I will give you," Lù Jiànpíng looked at Zhōng Shān hopefully.

In this strange scene, although this was an event from several months ago, Zhōng Shān's words made it seem like it was happening right now. Only Zhōng Shān could save them. As long as Zhōng Shān agreed, he could travel through time and space to intervene.

"I only want you!" Zhōng Shān said solemnly.

"Me?" Lù Jiànpíng's heart eased a bit because Zhōng Shān's words indicated that he would save them.

"Yes, I will save your fiancée and your entire Lù family. I only want you. For the next hundred years, you will listen to my orders and serve me with all your might," Zhōng Shān said.

Before coming here, Zhōng Shān knew this deal would succeed because Lù Jiànpíng was a person of clear grievances. For the sake of his family and fiancée, he would definitely agree, and once he agreed, he would surely keep his promise. As for a hundred years, Zhōng Shān was extremely confident. Even the most stubborn person, given a hundred years, would be completely loyal and obedient to him.