Chapter 3095 — You Go First, I Go First

So all along, Ye Rou'er had simply been far too meek. True, the inheritance had ultimately failed—but before that failure, had she only been a little firmer, had she told the Grand Elder that she would refuse to cultivate unless she was allowed to see Gu Mengyao and Gu Pengzhan, or that she would refuse to cultivate unless someone was sent to protect Gu Mengyao, then things might have turned out differently!

Had she done so, the Grand Elder would likely have had no choice but to comply, just to let her cultivate in peace. But Ye Rou'er had never once thought of bargaining with the Grand Elder, and that was precisely what had bred the Grand Elder's towering arrogance.

And now, how the tables had turned! The mother had failed to gain any leverage over the Grand Elder—yet the daughter, Gu Mengyao, who possessed not a shred of strength, had managed to corner her. You had to admit, it was a fine bit of role reversal!

The car had been driven off by the black-robed elder; after all, there was still a dead man in it, and this was the mortal world—something had to be done about it. The man had been killed by the Grand Elder, but the corpse still had to be handed over to the Dongfang family for them to claim. Granted, they were in the wrong, but a man was dead, and that much face simply had to be given. Such were the rules of the ancient circles: kill a man, and you return the body.

On the way back, with Wei Zhao, Gu Mengyao, and Shen Yushu, Gu Mengyao's brows stayed tightly knit, her mood somber and brooding, her mind heavy with the matter of the Night Palace. Xiaoshu, by contrast, seemed not to care in the least. Giggling, she said, "Sister Yaoyao, you're going to become a successor! That's amazing! Then you'll be able to help Brother Arrowhead..."

"Xiaoshu, I'm leaving, and you actually look happy about it?" Gu Mengyao was torn between laughter and tears at Shen Yushu's words, and shot her a glare. "Don't you know that once I'm gone, there'll be no one left to keep you company?"

"Oh... you going first is still better than me going first..." Shen Yushu muttered under her breath.

"What did you say?" Gu Mengyao had not caught it clearly and thought Shen Yushu was complaining about her words, and her temper flared. "I know I'd gain strength by leaving, but... have you even thought about it? If I go, won't I end up just like Xiaoxiao? Even getting to see you all again would be hard..."

"I know, right? If she could stay, who'd want to leave? But... the way that old hag was acting, it seems like she won't take no for an answer from Sister Yaoyao." As she spoke, Shen Yushu glanced at Wei Zhao.

Wei Zhao naturally knew what Shen Yushu was getting at. Shen Yushu herself was a successor too—but Yaoyao did not know that. One day, Shen Yushu would leave the villa, say goodbye to him, say goodbye to Yaoyao, and begin a new life of her own.

But Shen Yushu was afraid it would break Gu Mengyao's heart to know, so she had never told her. Still, if Gu Mengyao left first, the weight on Shen Yushu's own heart would be that much lighter—and besides, as sisters and both successors, they would be able to look after each other.

"Let's go back... and talk it over..." Gu Mengyao was at a loss now. It had all happened so abruptly that she felt caught completely off guard.

Wei Zhao nodded. True, there was bad blood between the Night Palace and himself, but Wei Zhao also knew that once an ancient sect found its successor, it would never let the matter drop. If she refused, Gu Mengyao would face endless trouble down the road.

And at first, these ancient sects might still have the patience to invite you, to plead with you—but later, if you still failed to show proper appreciation, there was no telling what coercive measures they might resort to.

To be honest, Wei Zhao and the young lady had lived together for quite some time now—three months short of a full year. The time had flown by. If the young lady were to leave suddenly, Wei Zhao knew his heart would feel hollow, and he would find it hard to get used to.

The three of them, each with their own thoughts, reached the school parking lot. Wei Zhao got into the car, and Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu followed. Han Xiaochao was rather surprised that Wei Zhao had come to the school today; in the past, Gu Mengyao had driven herself, or Wu Chengtian had come to pick them up. Wei Zhao rarely came to the school in person anymore.

And even Han Xiaochao, bookworm that he was, sensed something off in the atmosphere once he got in the car—though he had no idea what had happened.

"Xiaochao, how's your sister been lately?" It had been a long time since Wei Zhao had seen Han Jingyi. She had appeared once, back when he was injured, and then for so long she had not shown herself. Wei Zhao rather missed her.

"She's all right... Her door's been shut, and she doesn't pay me much mind, but I think she's probably researching something?" Han Xiaochao thought for a moment, then said.

Wei Zhao nodded. "Next time your sister comes out, tell her we've all been missing her, and ask her to come by my villa."

Gu Mengyao and Han Jingyi got along well too, and since Gu Mengyao was leaving, she would naturally want to say goodbye to Han Jingyi. Though nothing had been decided yet, in Wei Zhao's heart he had already accepted it: Gu Mengyao would surely go—it was only a question of sooner or later...

"All right." Han Xiaochao nodded to show he understood, then started reading in the car. This bookworm—even for the few minutes' drive from school to home, he had to read. He was positively possessed.

Soon the car returned to the villa. Han Xiaochao went back to his own home, while Wei Zhao, Gu Mengyao, and Shen Yushu went into the villa.

"Wei Zhao, Yaoyao, Xiaoshu, you're back!" Xu Shilan had stayed inside the villa these past two days, not daring to go out at will. At least until the trouble was resolved, she did not dare venture out lightly.

"Mm, we're back. Xiaohan, no work today?" Wei Zhao was a little surprised—Xu Shilan really was free these days, staying home every day as though she had nothing at all to do.

"I was going to ask you to come out shopping with me, but you seemed so busy every day that I didn't want to disturb you." Xu Shilan had noticed that even when Wei Zhao was home, he stayed shut in his room, and she had no idea what he was doing, so she had not felt right interrupting.

Wei Zhao was slightly taken aback, then realized that he spent every day cultivating in his room. He had only recently begun cultivating the third level of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art, so he was eager to advance, and in his spare time he kept trying to condense the forging flame, hoping to quickly refine the jade pendant space and the essence necklace—laying the groundwork for forging divine weapons in the future.