When the Cannon Fodder Male Supporting Role Picks Up the Script - Chapter 137

Su Pengpeng struggles to climb up from the snow, one trembling hand wiping the blood from the corner of her lips. Her voice is hoarse as she says, “If I do nothing, I will regret it for the rest of my life.”

The Law Enforcement Elder looks at her with an expression of deep disappointment, as though hating that iron cannot become steel. He hesitates, then sighs: “You have been a member of the sect for more than twenty years. The teacher trusts you, and your fellow disciples respect you. But I never expect that your purpose in joining the Sword Sect is impure from the start. Junior Sister Su, I want to ask you: besides trying to stir disputes between the Sword Sect and Penglai, have you done anything else over the years to harm the Sword Sect?”

Li Jianming’s brows knit tightly, his fists clench and then relax. After the elder finishes speaking, he steps forward and says to Su Pengpeng, “Senior sister, if you have any difficulties, you can tell us. You’ve been with us for more than twenty years. How can you not know that our Sword Sect has always been kind, and it is impossible to destroy the Wu Clan without reason? I also don’t believe your relations with everyone over the years are fake. As long as you tell us about Fengtian Temple, you can turn back!”

The heart demon frowns in disagreement, about to refute, but Yun Zhuoran stops him by holding the back of his hand.

The heart demon turns his head sullenly, only to see Yun Zhuoran’s calm face—clearly, he tacitly agrees with Li Jianming’s words.

If Su Pengpeng is willing to give up the dark path and join the light, it is not a loss to let her go in exchange for information about Fengtian Temple.

Su Pengpeng supports herself on the blood-stained snow with both hands, then barely half-sits up, coughing dryly as another stream of blood trickles from the corner of her mouth. Her face is extremely pale, and she wipes the blood away indifferently with her bloody hands.

Seeing the pool of blood, Li Jianming can no longer bear it and says anxiously, “Senior Sister Su! Even if you don’t care about us, your juniors who have grown up under your watch, do you mean to abandon even your senior brother, the one who exchanged sword tassels with you? Do you mean to abandon your master, Peak Lord of Lingxue Peak?”

Hearing this, Su Pengpeng instinctively clutches at the concentric-knot sword tassel at her waist. Her pale face twists into a bitter smile. “I can no longer turn back. I already betray the Sect Master and Senior Brother…”

Everyone’s expressions change at once.

Li Jianming seems to realize something, quickly stepping forward. “What do you mean?”

Yun Zhuoran and the heart demon exchange looks and walk toward Su Pengpeng. It seems that Su Pengpeng’s deeds go beyond their expectations.

Since it involves the Sect Master, the Law Enforcement Elder loses his previous mercy and says sternly, “Su Pengpeng, tell me clearly, what have you done to the Sect Master?”

Su Pengpeng lowers her eyes and looks at the melting snow beneath her palm, stained red by warm blood. “I knew what the Sect Master and Senior Brother were doing. They broke into the heart of the Wu Clan to rescue people and angered the clan leader. I just send their whereabouts to the clan members. I guess by now, the Sect Master and… the Senior Brother are intercepted halfway by my clan members. I’m afraid they can’t return to the Sword Sect for a while.”

Yun Zhuoran suddenly realizes why Li Jianming has been so tight-lipped this time and refuses to reveal where Wen Jianxian has gone. Wen Jianxian has gone into the heart of the Wu Clan. From Su Pengpeng’s words, Wen Jianxian’s life is likely safe, but there will be trouble.

The Law Enforcement Elder’s expression is complicated, unsure whether to relax or be nervous for his Sect Master.

Li Jianming pauses, looking at Su Pengpeng with growing disappointment. He shakes his head and unconsciously steps back, eyes confused and bewildered. “How did you know Master went to the Wu Clan? I didn’t tell you!”

Su Pengpeng looks up at him, her lips stained bright red with blood striking against her pale face. She slowly curls her lips into a gentle smile. “Don’t blame yourself. It really isn’t you who exposes it.”

Li Jianming is puzzled. “I’m the only one in the entire Sword Sect who knows about this. If you didn’t find out from me, then how did you know?”

Su Pengpeng looks at him with a gentler expression. “I am not comforting you, Junior Brother. If I want to know where Senior Brother is, I don’t need to ask anyone.”

Even so, Li Jianming still can’t let go of who has leaked the secret.

At that moment, a lazy young voice drifts up from below the mountain— “She really doesn’t need to ask anyone. The Wu Clan has a secret spell. As long as she has a token with the breath of Wen Jiuchuan or his disciples, she can find their whereabouts. With her identity, it’s effortless to get the token.”

Several people turn toward the voice and see Lu Yu, Ji Ruo, and Yun Shaowei walking down the mountain road, followed by the four Sword Sect disciples assigned to guard Ji Ruo and the others. The four look a little embarrassed.

The Law Enforcement Elder is stunned for a moment, then guesses that they ran out after defeating the Sword Sect disciples.

Su Pengpeng looks at Lu Yu and the others in astonishment, her face falling again with dejection. “I think I can accomplish at least one thing, but I don’t expect your strength to be far beyond my expectations.” She turns to Yun Zhuoran and sighs with a smile, “Penglai really is full of talented people. Su Pengpeng admires them very much.”

Yun Zhuoran looks at Lu Yu, silently asking.

Before Lu Yu can speak, Ji Ruo, wrapped in a small cloak behind him, curses with a gloomy face, “She must have put a lot of big bugs in the building. We are all injured by the bugs. It’s disgusting!”

The four Sword Sect disciples lower their heads shamefully under the questioning gaze of the Law Enforcement Elder, tacitly admitting that Ji Ruo’s words are true.

Lu Yu says, “The witch clan’s methods are not hard to deal with.”

The Sword Sect disciples lower their heads further.

For Lu Yu, this is a small trick, but for the several Golden Core-stage Sword Sect disciples, these bugs are stronger than the monsters they’ve faced, and Lu Yu’s words make them ashamed.

After Ji Ruo says this, Li Jianming, Yun Zhuoran, and the others realize that Su Pengpeng has attacked both Ji Ruo’s group and theirs at the same time. Even if one side fails, she still has a way out.

“What a good plan!” Li Jianming laughs sarcastically. The facts are before him. He doesn’t want to see Su Pengpeng again, but he still needs to ask where his master and senior brother are. He takes a deep breath to calm himself and asks deeply, “Okay, you betray the Sword Sect for the Wu Clan. That’s your choice. But I only ask: where are the master and senior brother?”

The bitter smile on Su Pengpeng’s face fades. She looks up at the empty sky and sighs. “At this point, I have nothing to say. You can kill me or cut me apart. As long as it makes the Sword Sect vent its anger, it’s up to you.”

“Vent our anger?” Li Jianming clenches his fists, revealing a rare and difficult-to-hide anger on his usually optimistic face. “I respect you as a senior sister who has cared for us for so many years, and I don’t want to do anything to you. But Su Pengpeng, from now on, we are no longer fellow disciples. Since you are so ruthless to us and my senior brother, don’t blame the Sword Sect if we treat you unfairly!”

The Law Enforcement Elder shakes his head in disappointment, summons the four disciples, and orders, “Lock her up.”

The four Sword Sect disciples hesitate for a moment, then one after another reluctantly follow the order, looking embarrassed and confused. None of them expect Su Pengpeng to fall so low.

Li Jianming turns to Yun Zhuoran, subconsciously glancing back at Su Pengpeng as she is taken away by the four disciples. He slaps his forehead in frustration. “I forgot! She hasn’t explained herself to you yet.”

Yun Zhuoran doesn’t care much. “You Sword Sect should handle it. Or you can ask Ji Ruo.”

After Su Pengpeng is sent to the dungeon, Lu Yu and the others approach.

When Ji Ruo hears Yun Zhuoran’s words, he looks inexplicably pleased, then frowns and says to Li Jianming, “So it is your senior sister who framed me? I’m the young master of the Demon Palace, not someone to mess with. If you don’t give me a proper explanation, I won’t let this go!”

“Alright, alright, we admit we wronged you this time. We apologize,” Li Jianming says heavily, not in the mood to argue. “I don’t know how the master and the eldest senior brother are doing. They are supposed to return last night.”

The Law Enforcement Elder feels uneasy hearing Ji Ruo’s words. He has never trusted Ji Ruo completely. Hearing Li Jianming’s update, he grows curious. “Nephew Li, the sect master and your senior brother…?”

Everyone looks at Li Jianming.

“It’s come to this point, I can’t hide it anymore,” Li Jianming sighs and explains, “A few days ago, Tianji Sect and Mingyue Valley sent word that their leaders were lured into the Wu Clan and their whereabouts became unknown. They asked the Master for help. Master took Senior Brother and sneaked into the Wu Clan secretly. They were supposed to return yesterday. I never expected Senior Sister Su… would betray the sect.” At the end, Li Jianming smiles bitterly, “I think Su Pengpeng and Senior Brother are in love and will become a legendary pair in the Kunwu Sword Sect, but I never imagined she would betray him.”

The Law Enforcement Elder doesn’t know that the Sect Master has snuck into the Wu Clan, but given the gravity of the situation, he says nothing more, only adding, “Unfortunately, Su Pengpeng doesn’t reveal anything, and we still don’t know the Sect Master’s whereabouts.”

“How difficult can this be?” Lu Yu says indifferently. “If you find your Sect Master’s token, I can help locate his approximate position.”

Everyone is surprised.

Yun Zhuoran is also a bit surprised.

Li Jianming opens his mouth blankly and after a moment finds his voice, “Really?”

“Yeah,” Lu Yu says casually. “Do you have the token?”

“Yes, yes!” Li Jianming hurriedly searches his body and soon finds a jade talisman. His voice trembles from anxiety, “Th-this is the Sword Intent Talisman Master gave me before he left. Please, Senior Lu!”

With the token in hand, Lu Yu quickly calculates the approximate location of Wen Jianxian and his apprentice.

Li Jianming decides without hesitation to find help. But Wen Jianxian is very strong, and if even he is trapped, the enemy must be formidable. So only Yun Zhuoran, Weiran, and Lu Yu go.

Ji Ruo and Yun Shaowei stay behind at Kunwu Sword Sect, both reluctant.

Especially Ji Ruo, who stares warily at the Law Enforcement Elder, his mood clearly holding a grudge.

As Yun Zhuoran and the others leave, the Law Enforcement Elder awkwardly assures them he will treat the guests respectfully this time.

The group of five sets out. Lu Yu holds a compass to confirm their direction as they head deep into the snowy mountains.

Yun Zhuoran doesn’t think Wen Jianxian’s life is in danger. He has met him before and knows he is strong, only slightly weaker than Gu Shenshu, and unlikely to get into trouble easily. But since Li Jianming rarely asks for help, Yun Zhuoran still assists. He is a little surprised Lu Yu volunteers to help this time.

The deeper they go, the stronger the wind and snow.

After half a day on the magic tool, the sky darkens. They find the approximate location, get off the cloud boat, and walk on the endless snow. The north wind cuts their faces like ice knives.

Li Jianming is shocked but soon feels a warm current from his vest relaxing his tense body. He glances back and sees Yun Zhuoran and Weiran holding hands quietly. He feels both touched and sad.

Broken snow falls, quickly covering their long trail.

After about half an hour, Lu Yu, walking in front, stops and puts away the compass. Before them is a mountain covered with ice and snow.

Yun Zhuoran lets go of Weiran’s hand and asks, “Senior Lu, have you found someone?”

Li Jianming runs over with his longsword, staring at the mountain. “There’s nothing here. Could Master be on the mountain?”

Lu Yu stares at the mountain. “The person is here, but I can’t see him. It’s strange.”

Li Jianming looks suspiciously at Lu Yu but chooses to believe him and walks to check the thick snow.

Yun Zhuoran and Weiran stand side by side, watching Li Jianming’s back, whispering, “Senior Lu and Wen Jianxian are old acquaintances?”

Lu Yu raises his eyebrows and glances at him with his pale eyes. “Prying into my affairs?”

Yun Zhuoran replies calmly, “Just a casual question.”

Lu Yu snorts. “I also knew your brother long ago, but I particularly hated him.”

This isn’t the first time Lu Yu says that, but there is no disgust on his face when he says it. Yun Zhuoran looks at him steadily, then casually looks away and follows Li Jianming and Weiran.

Lu Yu looks at their backs and quickly catches up. “You’re not going to ask why this time?”

Yun Zhuoran shakes his head silently.

Weiran has been absent-minded since they arrived. He frowns, looks around, then suddenly leaves Yun Zhuoran’s side and approaches the mountain wall covered in thick white ice. Raising his hand, he presses it against the wall.

Surprisingly, he doesn’t touch solid ice—his fingers actually penetrate it!

The heart demon understands, pulls his hand back, and shouts, “Brother, there’s an illusion here!”

At that, Lu Yu stops trying to provoke Yun Zhuoran into asking questions about his grudge with Yun Peiran and hurries over.

Li Jianming also rushes up.

The heart demon waits for Yun Zhuoran and explains, “Brother, I can go inside the mountain wall!”

Yun Zhuoran silently takes the heart demon’s fingers, which are slightly red, probably frozen from the cold. He frowns, warms the fingers in his palm, then tells Lu Yu and the others, “Weiran seems able to ignore certain formations and prohibitions. There must be a barrier here.”

Li Jianming, who tries and fails to pass through the ice wall, says, “Let’s go in and take a look!”

“Don’t rush.” Lu Yu asks everyone to move aside.

Suddenly, a golden light appears in his eyes, and he swings out a burst of spiritual power.

On the steep white ice wall, several figures and a spacious cave with bright firelight slowly materialize—four people sit in a circle, all with their eyes closed.

A child sits in the middle, also with closed eyes, while the spiritual power from the four flows to the child as if healing him.

“Master! Senior Brother!”

Li Jianming immediately recognizes Wen Jianxian and Pei Heng and rushes forward with his sword.

Lu Yu frowns and stretches out his arm to stop him. “Don’t rush in. There may be a trap inside.”

Li Jianming’s joy fades. He looks at the people in the cave with a pale face, calming down a little. “Besides my master and senior brother, the other two are the leaders of Tianji Sect and Mingyue Valley. I haven’t seen the child before, but judging from his clothes, he seems to be a member of the Wu clan.”

Lu Yu frowns. “That’s strange. Why would your master and the others be saving a member of the Wu clan?”

Li Jianming is momentarily stunned but quickly defends his master. “It might not be a rescue.”

Yun Zhuoran listens thoughtfully, then his eyes suddenly turn cold. He grabs the heart demon’s wrist and shouts urgently, “Be careful!”

As soon as he speaks, the thick ice and snow beneath their feet shake violently. Several cracks spread instantly, and a rumbling sound comes from an unknown direction, making everyone uneasy.

Luckily, Yun Zhuoran warns them just in time. When the snow fully cracks and reveals dark abysses, he, Weiran, and Lu Yu grab Li Jianming’s collar and pull him into the air.

Li Jianming is slow to react. When he summons his flying sword, Lu Yu throws him off and flies down himself.

Li Jianming staggers on his sword, patting his chest in relief. He doesn’t expect to see Lu Yu descending into the abyss below.

At the same time, several massive centipede-like monsters, pitch-black from head to tail, burst out from the fissures in the earth. From above, Lu Yu seems like bait about to fall right into their gaping maws!

“Call your master out!”

Li Jianming’s face drains of color. Even with Lu Yu’s command ringing in his ears, he doesn’t know what to do and instinctively turns toward Yun Zhuoran and Weiran.

Yun Zhuoran does not follow Lu Yu to fight the worms emerging from the ground. Instead, he quietly looks down.

Outside the cave where Wen Jianxian is, the flat land they originally stood on collapses, revealing a deep pit filled with countless long worms. The pit is wide, stretching all the way to another snowy mountain a hundred feet away.

What Yun Zhuoran focuses on is the top of that distant snow mountain—A man stands there, dressed completely differently from them. Pale-skinned and thin-clothed, with long hair, two long black snake-shaped earrings, a large exposed chest beneath dark green clothes, and a black short flute beneath his purple lips.

What is strange is that no one hears any flute music.

“Yun Zhuoran, are you scared stiff?” Li Jianming, seeing Yun Zhuoran frozen in place, hurriedly flies his sword to his side. Only then does he catch sight of the strange man standing atop the distant peak. Shocked, he cries out, “Who is that?”

Yun Zhuoran shakes his head and looks down at the deep pit.

Lu Yu is very capable, no doubt. The snowy mountain night, cold and windy, is dim and harsh. Below, many black long worms crawl out to attack Lu Yu as if trying to devour him alive. But Lu Yu hangs on the edge of the deep pit, completely out of their reach, and as soon as any worm appears, he strikes it down with spiritual power.

This senior Lu, invited by the Penglai Immortal, makes beating the long worms look like a game. Yun Zhuoran thinks and flies toward the cave with the heart demon.

Li Jianming hurries after them.

Since those giant slimy worms and the strange man appeared, the barrier in front of the cave also emits a strong fishy smell, similar to the smell from the worms in the pit—clearly the work of that man.

Yun Zhuoran no longer hesitates. After some effort, he roughly breaks the barrier and enters with the two others.

Unexpectedly, the fishy smell inside is stronger than outside, and a layer of faint dark green mist floats in the air.

The mist gives a suffocating feeling, making it hard to breathe.

Yun Zhuoran realizes something is wrong and extends spiritual power to protect Weiran and Li Jianming.

“This mist is poisonous.”

Li Jianming immediately covers his mouth, then looks cautiously toward his master. Seeing Yun Zhuoran nod, he dares to rush forward with his spiritual sword.

Only then does he see Wen Jianxian and the others shrouded in the dark green poisonous mist, their breaths weak.

“What should I do?” Li Jianming asks cautiously, refraining from touching anyone. He turns to Yun Zhuoran and Weiran for guidance.

Yun Zhuoran circles the five and stops behind Wen Jianxian. He gathers a little spiritual power between two fingers and gently taps the back of Wen Jianxian’s neck. Then he frowns and says, “The poison entered their bodies and seems to have trapped them in a dream.”

The Heart Demon opens his eyes wide and quickly grabs Yun Zhuoran’s hand as the spiritual power withdraws. He glares fiercely and a layer of black mist appears in his palm, instantly dispelling the dark green mist there.

Yun Zhuoran rarely sees the Heart Demon glare at him. He is stunned for a moment before realizing the Heart Demon is warning him not to take risks.

Feeling relieved, he purses his lips slightly and rubs the Heart Demon’s head.

Li Jianming coughs lightly to bring their attention back. “What should I do now?”

Yun Zhuoran puts down his hand without expression. “I’ll remove the poison from their bodies first. You find a way to wake them, especially your master.”

Li Jianming nods vigorously. “Okay!”

He arranges things for Li Jianming, but not for himself.

Weiran feels a sour sting in his heart. To attract Yun Zhuoran’s attention, he takes the initiative to ask, “What about me?”

When Yun Zhuoran looks at him, his eyebrows curve into a smile, and his eyes are clearer and more moving than the snow’s light under the night sky.

“Weiran, would you protect me while I work?”