Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1067: How Could There Be a Path to Immortality in This World? (75) – Rescue

Boom—!!!

Dozens of beams of light shot down from above the mountain cave, converging at the entrance where Su Zijun and the other two were hiding.

The massive energy seemed powerful enough to tear everything apart.

In an instant, a large section of the mountain housing their hiding spot was destroyed. Thick dust, like a fierce sandstorm, poured down, engulfing the forest below.

But the Gaia units in the sky didn’t stop—they instantly split into two groups and dove downward.

Below, two streams of air rapidly moved through the dust. Qin Chuyu, Su Zijun, and Jessica quickly broke through the dust cloud and plunged into the forest.

They intended to use the complexity of the primeval forest as a natural shield—a standard tactic when outnumbered.

However, they hadn’t anticipated that the Gaia units wouldn’t care about destruction. Without hesitation, they launched a blanket attack on the entire forest, beams of light firing nonstop from their cannons.

This forced Su Zijun and Qin Chuyu to flee the forest in a rather disheveled state. Jessica, lacking the ability to fly, could only temporarily hide within the forest.

In Qin Chuyu’s hands, the Green Lotus Sword Song released a surge of powerful sword energy. With a distant swing, the energy slashed forward—but she faced no fewer than thirty-nine Gaia units.【Target Detected】

One Gaia scanned Qin Chuyu’s body, locking its gaze onto the Green Lotus Sword Song. At the same time, deep within the Penglai Treasure Vault, the originally activated Gaia received the data transmitted by this Gaia.

Inside the space containing the Universal Material Pool, the earliest combat-type Gaia projected the Green Lotus Sword Song—and simultaneously recalled memories from its battle with the Taibai Sword Immortal.

The two projections of the Green Lotus Sword Song began to overlap and match.

The original Gaia immediately issued a command:

【Eliminate priority target confirmed】

Then, it turned to the next data feed—a video image, clearly showing Da Zhe.

【Level-One Authority Holder Confirmed】

But that was all. This Gaia paid no further attention. Designed for battle, it existed solely to fight. Though programmed to obey authority holders, guarding the Penglai Treasure Vault came under a higher directive—that of the Vault’s master.

Even so, it issued an order:

【Do not engage Da Zhe】

【Enemy threat level: Extreme】

The Gaia began analyzing feedback from destroyed units and made a new judgment:

【Plan initiated: Manufacture specialized combat-type Gaia… Requesting host system… No response from host… Entering autonomous mode… Manufacturing specialized combat-type Gaia…】

The brilliant, swirling Universal Material in the massive pool suddenly began to boil, churning wildly.

At the same time, a new batch of mass-produced combat Gaia units finished printing. A new opening appeared above the pool, and the units launched into the air instantly.

…

As Su Zijun fought and dismantled Gaia units one by one, she quickly noticed—these Gaia were weaker than the original one she had encountered.

They were far less capable—beatable, at least. She could break through their defenses.

She glanced at Qin Chuyu. Though the situation looked dangerous, that woman, relying on the Green Lotus Sword Song, could still hold out for quite a while.

But just then, a crack split open in the sky above, and countless figures burst out—over a hundred in a blink.

Su Zijun's mood soured immediately.

“Screw this! I’m done! What’s the point anymore?!”

Her Demonic Energy would eventually run dry, but the Gaia kept increasing in number. Just like how too many ants could kill an elephant—how could this centuries-old Jiangshi, still in the form of a young woman, not understand that? And these weren’t ants. Each one could go toe-to-toe with her under normal conditions!

Fortunately, the Gaia’s attack patterns were relatively simple.

“Qin Chuyu! Wait for me ahead! If you’re still alive, we’ll regroup!” Su Zijun shouted to the side, unleashing a massive crimson mist with her Demonic Energy before charging into the forest and scooping up Jessica.

She didn’t have deep feelings for Qin Chuyu—they were just a temporary team. Her only concern was the Green Lotus Sword Song. That was all. When it was time to be ruthless, she didn’t hesitate.

Qin Chuyu wasn’t offended. She simply glanced in Su Zijun’s direction, then focused entirely on her own battle.

Meanwhile, the newly emerged Gaia began to join the battlefield. Each activation of the Green Lotus Sword Song drained massive spiritual power. Though the sword could easily slice through Gaia units, the energy cost was overwhelming.

The sword gave off a gentle hum.

Qin Chuyu sighed. This sword was still unwilling to yield, still eager to fight.

“Too bad I’m not my master. I can’t unleash your full power.” She exhaled, knowing that retreating would only be a temporary escape. If she couldn’t find a way out, she’d have to face them again eventually.

“But still…”

She stopped and stood alone, facing the encircling Gaia. The new units didn’t chase Su Zijun—instead, they sealed off all her escape routes, drowning her in despair.

“I shall not shame the name of Huan Zhen Dao,” Qin Chuyu said, gripping the Green Lotus Sword Song with firm resolve. “I am the disciple of the Taibai Sword Immortal!”

As if responding to her rising fighting spirit, the sword’s hum turned into a resounding cry!

Blades of azure sword light shot forth from the sword!

Around Qin Chuyu, a giant Green Lotus bloomed. Each petal carried the sword’s supreme intent.

It was as if the sword were singing:

Zhao guest's tassel strings flutter, Wu swords shimmer with frost and snow.

Silver saddle on a white horse, galloping like a shooting star.

Kill in ten steps, travel a thousand miles.

Once the deed is done, disappear without a trace…

Letting the sword guide her arm and consume her energy, Qin Chuyu closed her eyes.

As if transported back in time.

Standing atop the sacred mountain of the Daoist temple, watching the white-robed man drink wine, wield his sword, write poetry, gaze at the drifting clouds—and smile at her.

As if she had grasped something in that moment of life and death, Qin Chuyu suddenly opened her eyes.

The great Green Lotus exploded into full bloom. Countless green beams surged into the sky!

“Kill in ten steps, travel a thousand miles!”

The sword energy did not travel thousands of miles—it ultimately dissipated in the sky, transforming into specks of starlight. Seventeen Gaia units had been utterly shredded into fragments by the unleashed fury of the Green Lotus.

But that was only a fraction of this batch... The others quickly filled the void, raising their cannon-formed arms in unison.

Massive power rapidly gathered in the mass-produced Gaia units.

Qin Chuyu looked up and around, then down at the Green Lotus Sword Song in her hand. "Green Lotus Sword Scripture... I’ve finally touched Master’s level."

"San-niang didn’t let you down, right..."

The moment she touched the level of that man’s swordsmanship was also the moment of her death… Yet Qin Chuyu felt a strange sense of peace in her heart.

Over a hundred beams of light now shot straight toward her with destructive force, converging on her position.

Time seemed to slow.

Qin Chuyu slowly closed her eyes.

—"Little fox, how did you get hurt?"

San-niang ultimately never found you...

…

Suddenly, everything went quiet. All Qin Chuyu could hear was the wind... and footsteps.

She opened her eyes, only to see that the beams had not pierced her body. The powerful light beams were frozen, stopping less than a meter from her.

They were still connected to the Gaia units’ cannon arms—forming an eerie scene.

"Are you alright?"

Qin Chuyu quickly turned. Outside the encirclement of deadly beams stood a young man, calmly walking toward her with a beautiful maid by his side.

The floating Gaia units above were all frozen in place.

Qin Chuyu looked surprised... She didn’t know why this man was here. But clearly, because of his appearance, she had been saved.

Luo Qiu walked forward. As he did, the frozen beams began to dissipate before him. No matter how much energy they held, they scattered into sparkling particles, blown away by the wind.

This dissipation traveled along the beams… all the way to the Gaia units themselves. Their bodies began to dissolve in that instant.

In the end, only one Gaia remained.

This Gaia appeared to be wrapped in some kind of force, slowly descending to the ground, its body frozen like a statue.

"Why are you injured?" Luo Qiu blinked and asked.

…

Qin Chuyu rapidly assessed the situation—she had been saved by Luo Qiu… or more accurately, by the Club.

She was well aware of the Club's nature. It would only intervene—if there was a request.

And because of that nature, its help always came at a cost—she had once paid such a price.

Though she had later purchased temporary residence from the Club, that didn’t seem like reason enough for Luo Qiu’s intervention this time.

Qin Chuyu glanced at a wound on her arm—deep enough to expose bone, caused by one of the Gaia’s blades. Similar injuries marked her legs and back.

Blood soaked her white robe.

"More importantly… why are you here?" Qin Chuyu frowned but then relaxed.

Maybe it was because his help came out of interest—that actually made her feel safer.

"At someone’s request," Luo Qiu replied softly. "An elder hoped we could safely evacuate any surviving members of the Daoist or Demon worlds from this place. Miss Qin counts as a Daoist from Divine Land, so you're within our service scope."

"…Who?" Qin Chuyu asked after a moment of silence.

Luo Qiu didn’t answer—just smiled faintly.

"Not revealing your client’s identity, huh..." Qin Chuyu nodded. "So, I’m temporarily safe then?"

"That’s correct." Luo Qiu nodded.

Qin Chuyu let out a long breath… but her body had reached its limit. She closed her eyes and collapsed toward Luo Qiu.

At that distance, she was sure to crash right into him...

The Club’s Miss Maid quickly stepped forward and caught her by the waist.

Luo Qiu didn’t react much—though he did mentally grumble: Why do women always faint the moment they see me...?

"Master?" You Ye asked softly.

Luo Qiu thought for a moment and said, "Miss Qin is one of our old clients. She still has an active contract... Take good care of her."

You Ye nodded and dragged Qin Chuyu to rest under a large tree.

Luo Qiu knew exactly what You Ye was about to do—process her information.

But… she did drag her, right?

Luo Qiu shook his head and pretended not to see it.

From the road ahead came the sounds of fierce fighting—Da Zhe, most likely.

He had been dispatched to support Su Zijun—on the way here.

Da Zhe was reliable, so Luo Qiu wasn’t worried. As for Wang Hu and Daoist Baijie, they were still catching up from behind. Hearing the sounds of battle, the Club’s trio had simply moved ahead first.

They could’ve brought the others too, but Luo Qiu was always a minimalist.

"Hmm?"

With nothing else to do, Luo Qiu looked at the ground—where an ancient longsword lay.

It had fallen when Qin Chuyu collapsed.

He bent down and casually picked it up. The sword gave off a light hum, pleasing to the ear.

On both sides of the blade, faint ancient characters shimmered in the light.

"Green Lotus… Sword Song?"

Luo Qiu read aloud, then smiled. "That’s your name? It sounds pretty nice."

A blue gleam flickered across the sword’s edge, then it returned to calm, lying quietly in his hand.

Luo Qiu smiled again, feeling that this sword seemed to have a spirit—very well-behaved too.

He then brought the Green Lotus Sword Song to You Ye and placed it beside Qin Chuyu.

The maid was truly versatile—Qin Chuyu’s wounds were now fully healed, and she was even dressed in a new outfit.

"Mm..."

Why a maid uniform though??

(End of Chapter)