Chapter 34: Recruiting Two Actors

Luo Yuanshan and Luo Yan still hadn’t reacted.
They had thought for certain they were doomed this time, yet Luo Jiutian showed no intention of killing them.
The two stood frozen where they were, unsure whether they ought to breathe in relief or remain tense.

Seeing their expressions, Luo Jiutian smiled faintly and helped them both up with his hands.
“I know what kind of men you are.
If not for Luo Chen pressing so hard, things would never have come to this.”

Luo Yuanshan paused, his expression tangled with conflicting feelings.
“…Thank you.”

But Luo Yan furrowed his brows in wariness.
“You’d let us go this easily?
That’s not like you.”

Luo Jiutian patted his shoulder.
“Don’t get me wrong.
I’m no great philanthropist.
It just so happens there are matters that require your cooperation.”

As soon as he spoke, he turned to Yuanshan and said directly,
“I need you to return to Luo Chen’s side.
Continue serving under him, win his trust.
At the first sign of trouble, you report to me immediately—and remain on standby.”

Luo Yuanshan blinked, glancing at him in surprise.
“You want me to… be a mole?”

“Exactly.” Luo Jiutian nodded.

Luo Yan fell silent for a moment, then probed carefully.
“And me… what is it you want me to do?”

Luo Jiutian rubbed his chin.
“Don’t worry.
You have your part to play as well.”

He then laid out the details of his plan, one by one.

When the explanation ended, Luo Yuanshan frowned.
“Wait, something feels off.
Shouldn’t our roles be switched?
I can’t act to save my life—sending me to trick Luo Chen is just asking for trouble.
Yan here could do a far better job of pretending.”

But Luo Jiutian only chuckled.
“And that is precisely the effect I want.”

He paused, then continued.
“Luo Chen isn’t stupid.
At the start he’ll certainly be suspicious.
But as long as you both follow the script, sooner or later he’ll lower his guard—until he trusts you completely.”

Yuanshan still looked uneasy.
“But I really am terrible at acting…”

Luo Jiutian unhurriedly pulled a thin book from his robes.
The cover read in bold characters: The Actor’s Self-Cultivation.

He handed it to Yuanshan.
“Take this.
Study it along the way.
Guaranteed to learn it in no time.”

Yuanshan took the book, dumbfounded.

Jiutian then turned to Luo Yan.
“Remember—never appear at the ruins’ exit at the same time as Yuanshan.
Follow the plan exactly as I’ve just given it.”

Luo Yan didn’t answer.
He only stared at Jiutian in silence.

Jiutian clapped his shoulder again.
“Relax.
I never go back on my word.
When the time comes, the Essence-Tempering Persimmons—one for each of you.”

Yuanshan and Yan exchanged a look.
At last, they both nodded.

“But…”

Jiutian’s smile remained warm and sunny as he spoke again.
“Since we’re to cooperate, could I ask you to agree to a tiny little request?”

A shiver ran down Luo Yan’s spine.
As expected, it couldn’t possibly be that simple.

“I’ll need each of you to hand over a wisp of your soul.” Jiutian spoke without hesitation.
“Don’t worry.
I won’t use it to threaten you.
It’s just a safeguard.”

At that, both their faces darkened.

Luo Yuanshan instinctively gripped the book The Actor’s Self-Cultivation tighter in his hand, hesitating.
“Must it really be this way?”

Luo Yan’s face was grim.
He didn’t refuse, nor did he agree—he only stared coldly at Jiutian.

Jiutian put on an innocent look.
“You know me.
I’m timid by nature.
Most afraid of being stabbed in the back.
If anything were to happen in the middle of our cooperation, my fragile little heart just couldn’t take it.”

He added reassuringly,
“Relax.
As long as you don’t step out of line, I guarantee you’ll be perfectly safe.”

The two men were silent for a long moment.
In the end, they both nodded.

They knew full well there was no choice left.
If they refused, they would likely end up just like Su Zimo and Su Xinyuan the next instant.

When your life is already in another man’s hands, what more can you choose?
If agreeing could preserve their lives, make that arrogant Luo Chen suffer a little, and even earn them each an Essence-Tempering Persimmon, then it was worth it.

The two shut their eyes and each condensed a wisp of soul, which floated as faint points of light before Jiutian.
Without hesitation, Luo Jiutian accepted them both.

At once he could clearly sense it—an invisible tether had been forged.
With but a single thought, he could end their lives.

“All right. Time for you to set off.” He waved casually, his tone light.

Yuanshan and Yan glanced at each other, their eyes full of conflicted emotion.
Without further words, they drew deep breaths and turned to leave.

When only Luo Jiutian remained in the stone chamber, his smile slowly faded.
His gaze fixed on one of the walls.

It was the only wall in the entire chamber still perfectly intact.

He suddenly recalled—back in the simulated world, when he and Su Wan’er had entered this chamber, they had been driven out in embarrassment by that phantom beast, too harried to notice anything amiss here.

Now that he studied it in silence, he saw—
That wall was different.
Its material was unlike the others.

When the beast’s phantom rampaged just moments ago, the other walls had cracked to varying degrees.
But this wall remained untouched.

Jiutian stepped forward, activating his Chaotic Flower Eyes to examine it carefully.
The very next instant, ripples spread across its surface.
A strange suction burst forth.

“Damn!”

He tried to retreat, but his body was already being pulled in.
Resistance was useless.
He had only time for a quick curse before he vanished into the wall.

When he opened his eyes again, everything was pitch-dark.
Alert, Jiutian scanned his surroundings.

He was standing inside a narrow secret passage.
He instinctively turned back.
Behind him was the wall he had just been drawn through.

Once more he tried activating the Chaotic Flower Eyes to examine it.
But halfway through, it was as if he had slammed into an invisible barrier—his spell was forcibly broken.

He frowned, gathering his spiritual power and striking the wall with full force.
Nothing. Not a scratch.
Instead, the recoil shook his body, his blood and qi roiling.

Breathing out slowly, he withdrew his fist.
This wall was far beyond what his current cultivation could shatter.
To break through would require at least Golden Core stage strength.

“Brat, stop wasting your strength.” The White Tiger Lord’s voice sounded, as cool as ever.
“This place bears a special seal.
With your current abilities, it’s impossible to break.”

Jiutian lowered his head with a sigh.

The White Tiger, misreading his silence as discouragement, softened her tone ever so slightly.
“Do not despair.
I sense an unusual aura here.
This is no ordinary sealed place.
There may be fortune ahead.
Explore it.
If danger arises, I will protect you.”

But Jiutian lifted his head with a grin and blurted out,
“I’m unstoppable, kids.
Even staring at a wall, I trigger hidden dungeons.”

“…”

She seriously began to doubt this boy’s mental state.
Someday, she’d have to find a chance to drag him to Hundred Flowers Valley for a checkup.

Before she could speak further, Jiutian had already composed himself, striding deeper down the passage.

At the end stood an ancient stone door.
He pushed cautiously.
The door trembled faintly, then slowly opened a gap wide enough for one person.

After scanning the surroundings to ensure no immediate danger, he stepped through.
The scene changed before his eyes.

It was a secret chamber, small and plain in layout.
Yet at its center, one thing drew his gaze at once.

A cluster of gray-white matter floated silently in the air.
Its shape was eerie—neither lotus nor not-lotus.
Its edges twisted and shifted ceaselessly, releasing a pressure that weighed heavily on the heart.

“This is…”