Translator: Fate Translation Checker: Silavin Gu Changge’s plan was thorough. Even if Lin Wu didn’t follow his plan, he still had other ways to break into Sky Deer City. After all, the Sky Deer Goddess was now in his hands. Her life and death were completely under his control. Since she accompanied Lin Wu to rescue Lu Luo this time, she must have prepared herself to lose her life here. That meant that she must have made arrangements for her end. After her death, her disciple or Successor would succeed her and continue to guard the Array Core in Sky Deer City. This was what Gu Changge was concerned about. With the Sky Deer Goddess in his hands, Gu Changge had a way to force them to submit. After all, there were very few people in this world who could turn a blind eye when they saw their Master in danger. Furthermore, it should be someone personally trained and raised by the Goddess herself. Even if there was a difference in character between them and the Goddess, they were probably more or less the same as her. Sky Deer Goddess, the guardian of Sky Deer City, was now in his hands. The Eight Wastelands and Ten Domains might already be panicking by the time the final decisive battle broke out. Moreover, there was probably no better hostage in this world than the Sky Deer Goddess. In addition, no one knew more about Sky Deer City and Aether Abyss than her. [It seems like she’s the only one I can rely on to get the correct route through the Aether Abyss.] Afterwards, Gu Changge left the place with the two of them to capture Lin Wu and proceed with the next plan. … “Who the hell are you? And where is Lu Luo?” A voice rang out at the same time in a desert a million kilometers away from the shore of the Boundary Marker Sea. As yellow sand rolled, skeletons that were buried under it were revealed—this place was once a battlefield. An aggrieved, heavily injured, and bloodied young man angrily demanded an answer from the tall and slender woman in front of him. The young man was Lin Wu, but he now had a deep wound on his body, and he was bleeding out. The rest Lin Wu brought this time also surrounded the woman with equally angry and cold expressions. They never thought that the Lu Luo they rescued would be an imposter. Lin Wu was distracted when the imposter’s sword almost split him in half. If it weren’t for Lin Wu’s quick reflexes and strength that far surpassed others, he would have been severely injured by the sword. The tall woman was Mi Chun, who was ordered by Gu Changge to disguise herself as Lu Luo. Her expression at this moment was cold and mocking. As if she was confident nothing would happen to her, she wasn’t worried at all even though she was surrounded by so many powerful foes. “A word of advice: watch yourself if you want to know whether that girl is alive. If I die, she dies,” Mi Chan said indifferently. She didn’t care despite the murderous expressions on everyone’s faces. She was holding a shiny, powerful blood-stained longsword in her hand that she had almost used to pierce Lin Wu. “Damn it!” Lin Wu was as surprised as he was mad at this moment. His face was cold as he clenched his fists tight. Despite that, he didn’t dare make a move on her because he feared he would indirectly harm Lu Luo. He would constantly be worried as long as he hadn’t gotten confirmation of Lu Luo’s safety. It filled him with rage and contempt to have his Achilles heel in the hands of this woman. “Our effort has all gone to waste. We don’t even know what happened to the Master who helped us.” Lu Cui and the others had bitter expressions on their faces as they cried out. They didn’t expect things to turn out this way. They were furious, but they were even more unwilling to submit and were afraid. They thought that the matter had finally come to a peaceful end and they could escape back to Sky Deer City, but who would have thought that the rescued woman would turn out to be fake? [Gu Changge! That despicable bastard!] [No one would have expected him to be this despicable with how he looks!] They kept cursing Gu Changge in their hearts. If cursing did any physical harm, they would have killed Gu Changge countless times by now. And at this moment, the light suddenly extended in their direction from the sky in the distance to form a golden platform. As if tearing apart the universe, it soon fell in front of everyone. Lin Wu and the others couldn’t help being mortified when they looked at the young man who travelled a million kilometres in the blink of an eye towards them. [Gu Changge!!!] Who else could it be, if not him? There were two other figures behind Gu Changge. One of them was Ah Da in his armour made of Hell Iron, while the other was the Sky Deer Goddess. However, what Lin Wu found unbelievable and bone-chilling was that although the current Sky Deer Goddess was the same as what he had seen before appearance-wise, her energy had undergone earth-shaking changes. It felt mysterious and bottomless, and it gave off a frightening uneasiness. It was like she was a different person altogether. He couldn’t help shaking as a sense of absurdity and uneasiness arose in him. [Could something have unexpectedly happened to the Sky Deer Goddess for her to become… like this? But she was my best bet!] He had thought that she would be able to take on Gu Changge, but the Goddess had returned as someone completely different. [How could this have happened!? Is he really so powerful that no one can stand against him!?] This made Lin Wu even more unsettled, and even a little powerless and hopeless. [Am I really going to die here today?] Sky Deer Goddess was now looking at Lin Wu and the others calmly as if she didn’t know them. Lu Cui and the others were as dumbfounded as Lin Wu, but they didn’t know Sky Deer Goddess’ identity. [It turns out that the person who rescued us just now has been captured.] Their hearts were bitter and filled with helplessness and despair. “Gu Changge, cut me or kill me. Just do as you please. But you have to remember. Even if you kill me, you can’t make me surrender or beg for mercy!” Lin Wu seemed unyielding as his eyes were filled with cold hatred. He had calmed down after he thought everything through. [Why should I care when I am already a dead man? The only thing I hadn’t done is chew his head off and rescue Lu Luo.] The rest were silent. They knew that resisting at this time was futile. In fact, they were ready to die before coming here. They did see hope for a moment, but it was shattered once again. This feeling was like falling straight from the clouds to the abyss. Hearing that, Gu Changge took a glance at everyone there. “Don’t worry,” he hummed. “I’m not planning to kill you bunch just yet.” His gaze then stopped when it landed on Lin Wu. He seemed intrigued by Lin Wu’s Gold Finger. However, Gu Changge decided it was better to keep Lin Wu alive before they successfully conquered Sky Deer City. Seeing this, Ah Da behind Gu Changge shot out a jet-black rune which merged with the sky and earth before it turned into shackles. A cage was then built to imprison everyone in it. No one fought back during the whole process. Aggrieved and angry, Lin Wu gritted his teeth. However, he could only obey, considering their difference. Everyone here would die too if he had put up a fight. Swiftly after that, Gu Changge rolled his sleeves, and everything visible turned blurry. The void was torn apart, and a passage through the universe leading all the prisoners to the place where they would be held captive appeared. [Goddess, what is the meaning of this!?] Imprisoned in a cage built by runes, Lin Wu couldn’t help but ask through Voice Transmission as he looked at Sky Deer Goddess in front of him. Hearing this, the Goddess looked at Gu Changge in front of her, and she only turned her head back to Lin Wu when she saw that Gu Changge wasn’t paying them much attention. [I want to save Sky Deer City and the Eight Wastelands and Ten Domains.] Hearing her short and sweet answer without any explanation took him aback. Judging from her expression and tone of speaking, Sky Deer Goddess was the same as she was before. [But why is she saying such a thing? How can she save Sky Deer City and the Eight Wastelands and Ten Domains like this? Is she going to feed those demons with her body?] After the brief conversation, glowing Dao Energy surprisingly began to appear on the Goddess’ face. Gradually, her face became blurry and vague. She could move freely as there were no restrictions or limitations on her body, and she was not suppressed like Lin Wu and others thought she was. Lin Wu remained stunned when he saw the blur on her face. He thought that she became a prisoner of Gu Changge because she was being forced to obey. But now that the truth was right in front of his eyes, he couldn’t seem to comprehend what was happening. He could tell that the energy in her body had changed considerably. However, there was no difference in her behaviour, the way she spoke, the changes in her expression, and the fluctuations in her cultivation. Gu Changge was on the golden platform when he glanced at Sky Deer Goddess, who walked up and stood just next to him. “I thought you would save them.” Intrigued, he smilingly commented, “You are the Goddess of Sky Deer City, and yet you’re not going to care whether they live or not?” The Goddess shook her head and replied, “It is meaningless to do this. If I want to save all lives in the Eight Wastelands and Ten Domains, I have to make certain sacrifices.” “So,” he narrowed his eyes, “you think they are the necessary ‘sacrifices’?” Wanting to know if she was pretending or being truthful, he scrutinised her with an odd look in his eyes. For him, it didn’t matter whether she was pretending, or her Dao Heart had been tainted by Demonic Energy. It was the same thing to him. With her as his hostage, the defences of Sky Deer City and Aether Abyss would be nothing to him. Moreover, after she was possessed by the Heart-Possessing Demon, her attitude towards the invasion of the Eight Desolation and Ten Domains by the Upper Realm obviously changed a lot. The primary reason for the change was the tragic scene of a ruined city and corpses seen in the Morphing Demonic Domain. Subconsciously, Sky Deer Goddess already thought of it as a fact that couldn’t be changed in the future, that it was the manifestation of a small part of the future. After all, someone of her cultivation level already knew the truth and falsehood of a lot of things. Her belief in that being the future was the reason why she changed so much after being possessed. “It’s worth it if sacrificing them would protect Sky Deer City and the Eight Wastelands and Ten Domains,” the Goddess calmly answered. Her answer brought a smile to Gu Changge’s face, and despite the curious look in his eyes, he didn’t say anything else after that. Soon, the golden platform stretched and landed at the Gu Family Residence. Other than Lin Wu, the rest, Sky Deer Goddess included, were all imprisoned in other dungeons under Gu Changge’s order. As Gu Changge’s prisoner of war, Sky Deer Goddess still hadn’t earned Gu Changge’s trust. He needed more time to observe her. However, she was a True Daoist after all. Normal seals and restrictions wouldn’t be all that useful on her. Therefore, the Immortal Gu Family had assigned some experts to watch over Gu Changge’s prisoners so that they would be notified of any changes at any time. Finally, Lin Wu and Lu Luo met again in the dungeon after being separated for a long time. They both had mixed emotions written on their faces. “I hope he didn’t make things hard for you.” Lin Wu was the first among the two of them to break the silence. He felt helpless when he saw how sickly Lu Luo looked. He himself had become a prisoner of war. Hearing that, Lu Luo shook her head, face pale. When she noticed the injury on Lin Wu’s body, she asked worriedly, “Was it the imposter the one who hurt you?” Lin Wu smiled wryly and nodded. “It’s nothing serious. I didn’t know that person wasn’t you at the time, and I thought I could escape with you. But look at what happened,” he sighed before telling her about the entire story while leaving out Sky Deer Goddess’ identity because of how big her involvement in the matter was. It was also for this reason that the Goddess didn’t let him reveal her whereabouts. Sky Deer Goddess was of noble and extraordinary status. Once the Eight Wastelands and Ten Domains knew that she had fallen into Gu Changge’s hand, there was a high possibility of mass panic. At that time, if the other experts knew that the Goddess was going to help him, they would definitely change their minds about letting him take such risks. It was a pity that an accident had happened with the Goddess, and she was the complete opposite of who she was before. It was to the point where Lin Wu thought she was a different person. Lu Luo further paled after she listened to Lin Wu’s detailed story. She couldn’t stop herself from shaking when she heard that almost everyone in Sky Deer City, her family included, had given up on her. Even though she had already guessed this would happen, she was still hit by a wave of sadness. “It seems like everything he mentioned has happened.” She took a glance outside the dungeon to look at Gu Changge, who had been there the whole time with a faint smile on his face. She couldn’t help trembling in fear at the sight of him. From the beginning to the end, the development of the matter was exactly as Gu Changge said to her before. Even the attitude of everyone in Sky Deer City towards her and Lin Wu was as he had predicted. His method of uncovering the hearts of others disturbed her to no end. “What’s the matter?” Lin Wu asked. He had a heavy heart as well. He could see no hope in this cold, damp, and dark dungeon. Lu Luo was ashen as she asked in a shaky voice, “Lin Wu, how about we hear Gu Changge out?” One could only imagine how much determination she needed when she said those words. “What did you say?” Lin Wu could hear a buzzing in his ears the moment she suggested that. His mind went blank like he had been struck by a giant bell. “Hear him out?” He even doubted his ears and wondered if he had misheard Lu Luo, who was supposed to regard Gu Changge as her arch-enemy. He couldn’t believe she said they should listen to what Gu Changge had to say. “Tell me, Lu Luo. Are you being threatened by Gu Changge? Or is he using one of his tricks to make you say those words?” Lin Wu’s eyes were wide as he asked incredulously. His voice was also shaking. “No. None of that happened.” Lu Luo shook her head with a bitter expression on her face. “We are now in his hands. Do you think the people from Sky Deer City will come and rescue us?” Lin Wu fell silent upon hearing her words. Not only would they not come, but the people imprisoned might even expose the many secrets of Sky Deer City. But… It wasn’t like he could do anything about it. Anyone who came to rescue them now was doomed to lose their lives. Likewise, was it worth it to try and save them? “But that is no reason for us to betray the Eight Wastelands and Ten Domains, and our families.” He looked righteous as he firmly rejected her suggestion. Lu Luo knew that it would be very difficult to persuade Lin Wu. After all, his family valued him very much. They had further exhausted their resources after Lin Wu showed his powerful Talents. With his personality, he couldn’t do something that would betray his family. “But Sky Deer City will be invaded sooner or later. All forces will be swallowed by the army from the Upper Realm. We can take our families and go to the Upper Realm. The Immortal Gu Family behind Gu Changge is the oldest force in the Upper Realm. Their background is unfathomable. As long as we help Gu Changge, he can guarantee that the families supporting us will be brought to the Upper Realm safely,” Lu Luo spoke with great difficulty. She hadn’t thought of this before, but now that she had seen Lin Wu, she started having a change in mindset. The family that supported her had always been generous to her. That was why she didn’t have any complaints even after knowing that they had abandoned her. However, what exactly have the forces of Sky Deer City and the sects and families from the Eight Wastelands and Ten Domains ever done for them? Why should they lose their lives because of those powerful forces while they stayed in this hellhole? Furthermore, she knew that Gu Changge would definitely use other methods to force Lin Wu if he refused. In other words, they never had a choice from the beginning.