Chapter 147: Settling Accounts After the Fall

Gu Xun wore a faint smile, noting that this round of prisoner ransom had been unexpectedly smooth, costing even less than they had anticipated.

Without even counting the spirit stones, Yuan Ming shoved them into his sleeve, then gesturing eagerly toward the pot of tea on the table, he greeted them, "Immortal, and fellow cultivators, care to rest your legs and have a cup of hot tea?"

"No need. We have other matters to attend to and will not linger," Gu Xun said, waving his hand.

Seeing that the negotiations had concluded, Gu Qingzhou merely nodded faintly toward Yuan Ming and walked straight toward the flying vessel.

Gu Weiyu and the others naturally followed without a second word.

Hearing this, Yuan Ming heaved a sigh of relief, the smile on his face growing even more sincere as he watched the group step onto the vessel.

He had finally managed to send this formidable Buddha, Gu Qingzhou, away!

Yet, before his sigh of relief could fully settle, a massive golden brick plummeted from the sky, hurtling aggressively toward his direction...

Staring at the sudden airborne brick, Yuan Ming felt his heart nearly leap out of his chest. What was going on here?

Had he not just been polite to that immortal?

Just as his thoughts raced through his mind, he saw the brick execute a demonic turn, abandoning him to smash heavily onto the back of Manager Wu, who stood not far behind.

Yuan Ming: "..." Why did it feel like that brick had done it on purpose, just to scare him?

Manager Wu wore a bewildered expression as the giant brick knocked him flat onto the ground with a loud thud.

Not only did he get a mouthful of dirt, but when he spat, a couple of teeth fell from his numb mouth.

Clearly, he had humbled himself earlier, so why were these members of the Gu family settling scores after the fact?! Manager Wu felt utterly resentful, yet swallowed his grievance, too terrified to speak out.

The surrounding miners felt a secret surge of exhilaration. The Dao has its cycles, and heaven spares no one!

Gu Weiyu looked at her Great-Great-Grandfather with starry eyes. Others might not have known, but she was crystal clear—that brick was definitely her Great-Great-Grandfather's handiwork!

Gu Weilan exchanged a glance with her, a flicker of amusement flashing through her eyes.

Xu Weizhou remained as steady as a mountain, but Chu Liuxing could no longer contain himself. Being naturally thick-skinned, he brazenly sidled up to Gu Qingzhou and fawned:

"Great-Great-Grandfather, the move you just pulled was utterly fierce, cool, and handsome! Could you teach Starry?"

Gu Qingzhou raised an eyebrow at Chu Liuxing, his tongue as scathing as ever: "Talk to me after you successfully build your foundation!"

Chu Liuxing's face fell. Successfully build his foundation? Who knew how many monkey years away that would be? He had only just barely reached the high stage of Qi Refinement!

Yet, he quickly cheered himself up—once he built his foundation in the future, his destiny magical treasure would definitely be forged into the shape of a brick!

Seeing Gu Qingzhou be so fiercely protective of them and venting their long-held grievances, Gu Qingyun and the others felt a wave of profound relief, their faces naturally breaking into expressions of joy.

"Seventh Brother, your hand?"

Gu Weiyu suddenly spotted with sharp eyes that Gu Qing's right hand had an abnormal protrusion, looking quite unusual.

Gu Qingyun let out a cold snort and said indignantly:

"That mine is simply no place for humans! Seventh Brother's hand was injured, but those beasts refused to even hire a physician, and even threatened us that if Seventh Brother didn't go back to mining, they would throw him out..."

Throw him out? With low-tier ferocious beasts roaming everywhere outside the mining area, throwing an injured man out like that wasn't that just sending him to his death?

By the time Gu Qingyun reached this point, he was sobbing uncontrollably. Gu Qingxing, Gu Qinghu, and the others all wore furious expressions. If Seventh Brother hadn't pulled himself together...

Looking at the dozen or so Gu family brothers before her, all equally thin to the point of being skin and bone, with exceptionally thick jointed hands and palms covered in thick layers of calluses, looking haggard and weathered—

Gu Weiyu suddenly felt that Great-Great-Grandfather's brick strike earlier had been far too gentle!

"Great-Great-Grandfather, why don't you hit them with a few more bricks?"

Gu Qingzhou cast a faint glance at her and shook his head, saying, "Too far away, and we still need to hurry to other places."

Hearing this, Gu Weiyu fell silent. There were other Gu family members waiting for them to rescue; they truly shouldn't waste time here!

She rose, walked over to sit beside Gu Qingxing, and produced a dozen or so top-grade Dragon Scale Pills. "Seventh Brother, why don't you all take one?"

Having mined for a full two to three years in the quarries, their bodies must have suffered damage to varying degrees.

Gu Qingyun happily accepted a Dragon Scale Pill and asked with curiosity, "Eleventh Sister, did you refine these pills yourself?"

Gu Weiyu nodded, watching as the several of them swallowed the Dragon Scale Pills.

The medicinal pills slid down their throats, transforming into a warm current that rapidly spread from their abdomens to all four limbs and bones.

Feeling warmth flood their entire bodies, Gu Qingyun and the others couldn't help but close their eyes to guide the medicinal power to repair the hidden injuries within.

Gu Qingxing felt a pleasant warmth inside his body, especially in his injured right hand, where a faint tingling itch began to surface.

At the same time, the soreness and discomfort previously entrenched in his body gradually vanished as the medicinal efficacy dispersed...

Seeing the healthy flush return to Gu Qingyun and the others' faces, Gu Weiyu's expression brightened with delight. It seemed the Dragon Scale Pills were remarkably effective!

"Alright, next stop is Anlin County!"

Seeing that the bodies of Gu Qingyun and the others had largely recovered under the healing power of the Dragon Scale Pills, Gu Xun felt the heavy stone in his chest finally lift.

In Anlin County, quite a few of Gu Weiyu's uncles, aunts, and older cousins had been trafficked and sold off.

However, because most of them possessed relatively high cultivation bases, they had not been thrown into the mines, instead mostly ending up as servants for immortal-cultivation clans.

"Is Twelfth Brother about to break through?"

Sensing an unusual fluctuation within the flying vessel, Gu Weiyu looked closely and realized that Gu Qingyun was on the verge of a breakthrough.

Gu Qingzhou had already guided the vessel to a halt in an open clearing amidst a forest, using his spiritual power to telekinetically lift Gu Qingyun and Gu Qinghu onto woven meditation mats.

"Eighth Brother is breaking through as well."

"It must be that the Dragon Scale Pills repaired the hidden ailments in their bodies, and coupled with their accumulated efforts over time, they've triggered a breakthrough..."

Watching the younger generation break through their bottlenecks, Gu Xun stroked his beard and smiled.

"My hand..." Inside the vessel, Gu Qingxing opened his eyes, casting his gaze down upon his fully restored right hand, and burst into tears of joy.

His hand could finally move with flexibility once again!

He had previously thought his right hand was ruined for life, and that it wouldn't be long before he shared the same tragic fate as others.

Gu Qingzhou and the others stood guard nearby. After the space of half an hour, Gu Qingyun took the lead, successfully advancing to the fifth layer of Qi Refinement.

"Twelfth Brother, congratulations!"

"Twelfth Brother, congratulations!"

As soon as Gu Qingyun opened his eyes, he was greeted by everyone's congratulations, and his mouth immediately split into a broad, delighted grin.

The stifled resentment in his chest dissipated, transforming into an indescribable joy as his mind suddenly opened up to a vast clarity.

Shortly after, Gu Qinghu also broke through to the sixth layer of Qi Refinement.

The successive breakthroughs of Gu Qingyun and Gu Qinghu completely shattered the previously gloomy atmosphere inside the vessel.

Feeling the renewed vitality and abundant spiritual energy within their bodies, everyone was filled with bright anticipation for the future.

"Alright, let's head back onto the vessel," Gu Xun said, gesturing toward the cabin.

Just at that moment, a communication talisman cut across the sky, flying toward them and hovering uncertainly before Gu Qingzhou.

Gu Qingzhou reached out, pinched the talisman between his fingers, unfolded it, and cast his gaze upon the message.

A fleeting look of displeasure crossed his face. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "Ah-Yu, come with me!"

With that, he turned and walked off toward a secluded grove nearby.