Chapter 165 Bai Heng kneels and begs to stop; Sikong Changfeng begins pre-selling seats for the &quo

The wind was still blowing in front of the Taiji Hall.

But when the wind blew over the cracked white jade bricks, over the shattered altar, and over the faintly lit platinum runes along the edge of the immortal cage, the feeling was completely different.

Just now, everyone was watching "The Descent of the Guide".

Now, what we are seeing is—

"How the guide was dismantled."

Moreover, it wasn't a swift and decisive ending—not a single palm strike, not a single slash, and not being reduced to dust.

It will be dismantled gradually.

Disassemble them one by one.

Like peeling bamboo shoots, like unpacking a box, like removing fish bones.

The most outrageous thing is that Su Changqing really wasn't in a hurry.

He stood there, his robes fluttering gently in the wind, his expression as calm as if he were waiting for a pot of soup to slowly boil.

But the more this happened, the colder Bai Heng felt.

This "not in a hurry" means he's not gambling.

It's not about fighting.

It's not that I'm afraid of accidentally breaking something and letting the prey escape.

Rather, it was unwavering.

I'm certain you can't escape.

He was certain that every bone left in your body would eventually end up in his hands.

I am certain that you, the guide who came through the Heavenly Gate, have completely transformed from a "human" into an "object to be dismantled."

This is what truly terrified Bai Heng.

……

By this time, Bai Heng had regained his footing.

But this kind of "stability" is only superficial.

His left shoulder slumped slightly, his chest was filled with intermittent energy, and the meridians in his body that had been forcibly restrained, rearranged, and staggered were still trying to return to their original order, only to be constantly pulled off course by the faint blue aura that remained within them.

It feels like someone who is already standing up straight, but there's still a string of tiny hooks inside their body, pulling at their tendons and bones, and occasionally giving them a gentle nudge, so that they can never fully recover.

He could clearly feel the gap left by the removed lateral sacrum.

It's just sitting there empty.

It's like a spot that should have fit perfectly has been forcibly carved out.

Logically speaking, given the structure of the Dharma body of the Guide, even if it is missing a secondary bone, it should not be so unbalanced.

But Su Changqing didn't just extract bones.

When he extracted the bone, he disrupted the sequence, flow, and direction of force of that entire bone, along with the bone itself.

So what's troubling Bai Heng the most right now isn't "missing a piece".

Rather, "when this part is missing, all the forces that should belong to it have nowhere to go."

This lack of direction leads to chaos, turmoil, blockage, and backflow deep into the internal organs, causing the entire bone-setting body to resemble a cold appliance that is missing crucial tenons and mortises but is still being forcibly operated.

Bai Heng had never imagined that one day he would be able to "perceive" his own bones so clearly.

Because normally, they are order, authority, guidance, something natural and as stable as breathing.

But now, they have become the problem itself.

Every breath he took reminded him:

One is missing here.

There was a layer of chaos there.

This place has been seen through.

It's still hidden there, but it might not be able to stay hidden for much longer.

This feeling made Bai Heng's eyes grow even more gloomy.

But beyond the gloom, for the first time, a genuine sense of anxiety that was hard to suppress was mixed in.

He knew Su Changqing was waiting.

Let him continue hiding.

Let him continue to change.

Once he thinks he has found a new balance, it will be easier for him to make a second cut.

Therefore, Bai Heng dared not make the slightest unnecessary move.

He's collecting.

Try your best to collect it.

The remaining, yet-to-be-exposed bone fragments were gradually hidden deeper.

The two scapulae below the shoulder blades press into the spine.

The row of ribs below the right rib is half an inch horizontally across the chest.

The thinnest cervical vertebra at the back of the neck sinks even lower, almost touching the least noticeable part of the midline of the back.

He even went so far as to forcibly twist his own bone structure to make some misalignments that did not originally conform to the standard structure of the Dharmakaya.

Because of the standard structure, Su Changqing understood it perfectly.

Then let's shatter the standards.

Then hide it in a place that even you feel awkward about.

As long as he can't find it—

As long as the other party cannot be found for a while, I still have a chance to catch my breath.

At the very least, the second bone cannot be pulled out as easily as before.

The series of extremely subtle changes in Bai Heng's bone structure are almost imperceptible to outsiders.

Lei Wujie felt that the white-robed man was standing there motionless, his face growing increasingly grim, as if he was holding back something big.

Wushuang saw a little deeper than him, but could only vaguely sense that the originally sharp and complete "bone force" in Bai Heng's body was undergoing some kind of extremely complex contraction and misalignment.

Like a knife, it no longer tries to cut people head-on, but instead hides its blade back in its sheath, while secretly changing the positions of the components inside the sheath.

That's strange.

It's also very sinister.

Xiao Se, on the other hand, sensed some clues from the changes in Qi.

Bai Heng was still standing there, and he hadn't made another move yet, but the "danger" emanating from him hadn't disappeared. Instead, it seemed to have sunk deeper into his previously flamboyant demeanor.

This kind of heaviness isn't necessarily stronger.

But it's even harder to see clearly now.

If it were someone else, they would likely be more cautious in the face of Bai Heng's change, and might even test the waters first before slowly figuring things out.

But Su Changqing is none other than himself.

He looked at Bai Heng as if he were looking at a fish that had already been pressed onto a chopping board, but was still trying to retract the fish bones into its flesh.

He didn't say anything.

I just watched quietly.

As he watched, he even turned his head and asked Sikong Changfeng a question:

"How tall are you planning to make the cage?"

Sikong Changfeng was listening intently while his mind raced over the plans for the afternoon and evening sessions, but when he was suddenly asked the question, he immediately perked up.

"Mr. Su, that cage was originally three zhang tall."

"If I were to make a deluxe version just for Bai Heng, I would want it to be four and a half zhang long."

"Four and a half zhang?"

"right."

Sikong Changfeng got more and more into his speech, and even started gesturing.

"Too short and it won't look impressive enough; too tall and the guests will get a headache looking at it."

"Moreover, the identity of the guide must be viewed from a positive perspective."

"I was thinking of raising the ground another half a meter to create a stepped viewing platform, so that the front row could look up, the middle row could look straight ahead, and the back row could see the overall cage structure..."

Lei Wujie was stunned.

"You've really started designing?"

"nonsense."

Sikong Changfeng rolled his eyes at him.

"For projects of this scale, early planning is the most important."

"You think I'm like you, with only food on my mind?"

Lei Wujie immediately objected.

"That's called having a big picture perspective!"

"People should be full before they look at immortals, right?"

"Yes, you're right about that."

Sikong Changfeng nodded, surprisingly agreeing.

"So we can add a limited edition of the 'Guide's Scenic Snacks' to the menu."

Xiao Se stood to the side, silent for a long time, and finally said only one sentence.

"You are beyond saving."

But it's unclear whether this statement refers to Sikong Changfeng or to himself.

Because he's now even subconsciously thinking—

If a "Special Event for the Receiving Envoy" were to be held, how would the order in front of the Taiji Hall, ticketing, the movement of the Imperial Guards, the tiered arrangement of VIPs, the recording of the event, the news blackout, and the control of public opinion in the court be arranged?

The absurd thing is that the more he thought about it, the more he felt that there was actually a high probability that this would come to fruition.

Meanwhile, Li Hanyi quietly watched Su Changqing in this incredibly bizarre "wartime operations discussion".

She knows best.

Su Changqing isn't asking these questions casually.

He genuinely believed that Bai Heng had begun the "follow-up handling phase".

So while he was looking at the design, he also came up with a cage design.

Others would be considered crazy to do this.

Su Changqing did it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Su Xiaonuo hugged Li Hanyi's neck and whispered:

"Mother, isn't four and a half zhang too high?"

Li Hanyi gently patted her head.

What do you think?

"I think there should be a slide."

Why?

"That way, if bad guys don't obey, they'll slide down from up there."

"..."

Li Hanyi remained silent for a moment, surprisingly not immediately finding the suggestion absurd.

Because she could almost imagine Sikong Changfeng's reaction upon hearing that.

really.

The next moment, Sikong Changfeng's ears twitched, and he immediately turned his head, his eyes shining.

"Little Nuonuo is right!"

"We don't necessarily need to build a real slide, but we can design a drop-off tunnel!"

"If the guide refuses to cooperate, you can slide directly from the second-floor transfer cage area into the main cage area."

Xiao Se: "..."

This can no longer be called a cage.

You're preparing to build a theater.

……

As Bai Heng listened to these words that kept drifting into his ears, he finally realized something even more disgusting.

He was trying to bury his bones.

They were discussing how to lock themselves up.

When these two events occur simultaneously, the whole situation becomes more than just humiliation.

Rather, it was a contemptuous way of completely excluding him from being an "equal dialogue partner."

He wanted to shout angrily.

I really want to interrupt.

I really want to use my status as a guide, my authority, and the law to shut these people up.

But he also knew very well—

It's no use saying anything now.

No matter how tough your mouth is, if the bones keep being pulled out, then you'll really have nothing left.

So he had no choice but to endure it.

Enduring the discomfort caused by the constant misalignment of her internal skeletal structure, enduring the stares of everyone in the room as if she were a new resource about to be released, and enduring Su Changqing's calm as if he had seen through everything.

This act of forbearance only made him appear more pathetic.

Su Changqing finally shifted his gaze from Sikong Changfeng back to Bai Heng.

Then he spoke.

"Hidden well?"

Bai Heng's heart skipped a beat, and his pupils instantly contracted.

A very light and casual question gave him the feeling that all his actions had been seen through.

He did not answer.

Because I dare not answer.

Su Changqing seemed to read the answer in his silence.

"OK."

"Then I'll start looking for the second one."

The words fell.

He finally took a step forward.

Just one step.

Bai Heng felt as if something was gently pressing against his breath, and he instinctively tensed up.

He wanted to quit.

But they dared not back down too obviously.

Because any unnecessary movement now could expose the new trajectory after the changes in bone sequence.

So the scene at that moment looked extremely strange.

Su Changqing simply took a step forward.

Bai Heng, however, was like a cold beast cornered against a wall, his whole body tense. He was still standing, still dressed in white with blood on his clothes and exuding a chilling aura, but in terms of his presence, he had completely lost the upper hand.

Su Changqing did not touch him immediately.

Instead, he first raised his hand and made two vague gestures around Bai Heng's shoulders, chest, ribs, and back.

The movement was very slow.

Like a carpenter measuring materials with a ruler, or a cook determining the bone joints before making a cut.

Sikong Changfeng subconsciously held his breath.

Lei Wujie didn't dare to make a sound either.

Wushuang stared intently, not even daring to blink.

To others, this scene might just be something to watch and enjoy.

But for someone like Wushuang, who focuses on swordsmanship, structure, gaps, and the finer points, it's like watching a true master disassemble the most complex mechanism on the spot.

Su Changqing walked around halfway before finally standing to Bai Heng's right front.

Bai Heng's eyes were gloomy, and cold sweat was beading on his forehead, but he still kept his body firmly in place.

Su Changqing looked at him and suddenly smiled.

"You're quite smart."

Bai Heng's gaze froze.

clever?

Su Changqing continued:

"After I removed that lateral sacrum, you stopped sticking to the original bone sequence."

Instead, he displaced the three ribs under his right rib and used them to cover up what he really wanted to hide.

"good."

"They knew to use a fake bone structure to cover a real bone gate."

These words shattered any lingering hope Bai Heng had.

Because he was absolutely right.

Not a single detail is off.

Wasn't that exactly what I did during the bone order rearrangement just now?

The right costal margin misalignment is just a ruse.

The circumflex bone at the back of the neck sinks down, which is one of the core parts that they really wanted to hide.

But Su Changqing not only saw through it, but he could even explain his thought process completely as if he were standing next to him watching him do it.

This is no longer strong.

This is an overhead view.

It's a kind of looking down that's even more terrifying than dismembering bones itself.

Bai Heng felt a tightness in his chest, and even his voice began to sound heavy.

"How...did you figure that out?"

"You want to learn?"

Su Changqing countered with a question.

Bai Heng gritted his teeth and remained silent.

Su Changqing was too lazy to explain further, and simply said casually:

"Too straightforward."

"And you're not good at hiding it."

"Those who truly know how to hide will not make the false path too obvious."

"The arrangement of the bones under your right rib is deliberately off-center, as if to tell me—don't look here, look elsewhere."

Lei Wujie, listening from the side, was stunned and couldn't help but whisper to Wushuang:

"Is this considered going too far?"

After a moment of contemplation, Wushuang surprisingly answered seriously:

"Calculate."

"It's like deliberately holding the knife at an angle when chopping vegetables; it's more like you're reminding others that there's a problem here."

Lei Wujie: "..."

You can now compare everything to chopping vegetables.

But then I thought—

That actually makes some sense.

Su Changqing didn't give Bai Heng any more time to react, and reached out towards the back of his neck.

Bai Heng was terrified almost instantly.

Because he knew that the other party had already figured it out.

That circumflex bone is located one inch above the midline of the spine, below the back of the neck!

He mustn't touch it!

With this thought, Bai Heng finally couldn't care less about maintaining his outward composure. He suddenly shifted his body to the side and twisted his back, attempting to hide the circular bone completely into the deeper layers of the bone structure in an extremely strange twisting manner.

But Su Changqing simply shifted his foot, as if he had known he would dodge like that, and gently hooked his fingertip along the almost invisible white line under the skin of Su Changqing's neck.

"I've found you."

Bai Heng's expression changed drastically.

next moment--

laugh!

There was another extremely faint and soft sound of something being pulled away.

It's not like bone extraction.

It's more like pulling a main filament from an extremely taut web.

Bai Heng's entire back trembled violently, and his body even staggered forward half a step because of it. His face instantly turned almost transparently white.

Because the concave bone that he had desperately tried to hide was actually pulled out by Su Changqing from the back of his neck!

This time, the bone extracted was thinner than the first one.

Like a crescent-shaped white jade bone hook, its edges are covered with extremely fine circular patterns. It is astonishingly thin and exquisitely crafted.

As soon as it left his body, the bone structure within Bai Heng's body, which had been barely able to circulate and harmonize, became even more disordered, as if it had lost a crucial circuit.

He felt a sweet taste in his throat, and finally couldn't hold back the third mouthful of blood, spitting it out violently.

This time, the blood was spilled directly onto the shattered white jade bricks beneath their feet.

Silver-red, cold and dazzling.

Bai Heng, the guide, had his second bone removed.

The area in front of the Taiji Hall was completely in an uproar.

"Another one was pulled out!"

"This is the second one!"

"Mr. Su is really tearing things down!"

"His face in white is as white as paper!"

"Nonsense! If we keep whipping him, how much bone will be left?!"

"My goodness... this is even worse than being beaten to death!"

"Ruthless? That's called professional!"

"..."

Sikong Changfeng was so excited he almost dropped the account books. He quickly grabbed them and steadied them, then turned and yelled at the shop assistant beside him:

"Remember this quickly!"

"The second repositioning bone has been removed!"

"With Bai Heng losing blood and his Dharma Body in disarray, the luxurious Immortal Cage project is secure!"

The guy's hand was sore from writing, but he still gritted his teeth and kept memorizing.

Lei Wujie was completely convinced.

"The boss is really..."

"They dismantle bones without hesitation, not a single one is wrong."

Wushuang looked at the ring bone in Su Changqing's hand and whispered:

"This one is even better."

"It is not a purely load-bearing bone, but a moderating bone."

"If we remove it, it will be even more difficult for the bones inside Bai Heng's body to be reconnected."

Lei Wujie stared wide-eyed.

"You figured it out again?"

Wushuang nodded calmly.

"I just understood a little bit."

"..."

Lei Wujie suddenly realized that, apart from the owner, the most terrifying person in this courtyard was probably Wushuang.

This kid is chopping vegetables, and he's really getting the hang of it!

……

In the arena, Bai Heng finally lost his balance.

After the second bone was removed, the "spinning sensation" that had been barely stabilizing the order of his bones in his spine was completely severed.

He is now like a skeleton machine that is already missing a piece and has broken a link.

It can stand firm.

But every time they exert force, it causes more chaos.

He stared intently at the cyclic bone in Su Changqing's hand, his eyes finally revealing more than just gloom.

Instead, a genuine, overwhelming sense of fear welled up within him.

Yes.

Fear.

It's not that I'm afraid of dying.

Rather, they fear that the demolition will continue in this manner.

I fear that every layer of my Dharma body, every bone, and every bit of pride and order I brought down from my high position will eventually be stripped away inch by inch on this white jade square.

This fear is more like torture than being killed.

Su Changqing held the two bones in his hands and examined them against the light, as if comparing their materials.

After a moment, he nodded.

"This one is more suitable as a lock than the previous one."

"It bends just right."

Sikong Changfeng immediately responded.

"Mr. Su is wise!"

"Is this the only lock used for the main door of that luxurious fairy cage?"

"Can."

"good!"

Sikong Changfeng was overjoyed and even began to draw the picture in his mind.

He was initially worried that the lock on the new cage wouldn't be impressive enough.

it's good now.

He directly used the convoluted bone on his body as a door lock.

What could be more advanced than this?

As Bai Heng listened to their question-and-answer session, his chest trembled with anger.

But beyond the trembling, the fear became even clearer.

Because he suddenly realized—

These people aren't just talking.

They are actually planning how to use their own bones to make a cage for themselves.

absurd.

terrible.

It also carries a sense of despairing reality.

He clenched his teeth tightly, his voice noticeably strained for the first time.

"Stop..."

The moment those two words were uttered, the entire room fell silent.

Because many people could tell.

This is not an order.

It's not a threat.

It is not the lofty and unapproachable "stop".

It's more like a request that's forced out when pushed to the limit.

Lei Wujie's eyes widened in surprise.

"What did he just say?"

Xiao Se's eyes deepened, and he slowly said:

He said, "Stop."

Sikong Changfeng was stunned for a moment, then his eyes lit up.

The guide, Bai Heng, actually asked to stop?

This is a major selling point!

He almost flipped through the ledger again on the spot to add a record for "the first time the guide yielded."

Li Hanyi looked at Bai Heng quietly, without a trace of pity in her heart.

Because she knew that the reason this kind of person would say those two words was not because he realized he was wrong.

It's only because it's been dismantled that I finally know what pain is.

Upon hearing those two words, Su Changqing indeed stopped.

But it didn't stop as Bai Heng had hoped.

Instead, he stood still, as if he had heard something slightly interesting, and raised an eyebrow slightly.

"You're begging me?"

Bai Heng's lips tightened, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he didn't speak immediately.

Clearly, those two words were the limit for him.

He couldn't bring himself to say anything more.

But Su Changqing seemed to be doing it on purpose, deliberately not in a hurry.

He held the two connecting bones in his hand, slowly looking at Bai Heng, waiting for him to finish his sentence.

Before the Taiji Hall, the wind passed silently.

Everyone is waiting.

Will this high and mighty guide actually utter the word "beg" completely?

Bai Heng's hand slowly clenched.

But after clenching it tightly, it slowly loosens.

Because he knew that he didn't have much leverage left.

If Su Changqing continues to dismantle them, the third, fourth, seventh, tenth... in the end, they might not even be able to stand up.

At that time, let alone the face of the guide.

He couldn't even preserve the last vestige of being a "complete person".

at last.

Bai Heng lowered his head, his voice hoarse.

"...Stop."

"Please."

The moment those two words were uttered, it was as if even the air in front of the Taiji Hall trembled.

Bai Heng was appointed as the guide.

I'm really begging you.