Lin Muci glanced at Helian Lanyan, at this moment she had no time to consider if the man opposite her had a thousand holes in his demonic heart.
Her gaze flickered slightly, then she spoke.
"Take your Qingque and scram."
The man opposite her turned pale and his face was ugly. He smiled bitterly, and finally waved his hand helplessly, then stumbled away with Qingque.
"Xiao Ci doesn't want me anymore..."
She would never forgive him.
She knew everything... It was a pity that the damage caused could not disappear. Even if he exhausted the blood of his five-clawed golden dragon, it would be difficult to get her to turn around.
Just as Helian Lanyan was about to disappear, he turned his head, took a deep breath, and his voice suddenly became deep and hoarse.
"Xiao Ci..."
He knew Lin Muci would no longer be moved by his words, but he couldn't help but continue. He muttered to himself.
"Xiao Ci, Duanqing is a secret medicine of the Qingque clan, almost impossible to cure in this world. Once you fall in love, your spiritual veins will break... Xiao Ci, staying by his side is not good for you..."
"I know I no longer have the right to ask you to do anything. But I can guarantee you that if you are willing to go back, no one will be able to hurt you."
"You can still be yourself, carefree, let me protect you once, okay?"
His voice was so humble and pleading, the humility seeped into his bones, as if an unforgivable sin. His eyes were full of pain, the pain gnawing at his heart inch by inch, making even breathing painful.
But the girl still showed no reaction.
She disdained to respond to him.
...
After Helian Lanyan disappeared, she rushed to Ling Qianhe's side. The system had blocked the pain for her, but the opponent's Duanqing was still acting up, and a blood-colored lotus bloomed on his chest. That bit of bright crimson almost burned people's eyes.
But the young man suddenly looked up.
In the depths of his pupils, there was an indescribable look of heartache. Even though he was the one suffering from Duanqing to the extreme, he held her without regard.
The young man dared not open his mouth, for fear that his broken voice would make her feel distressed.
After a while, when the continuous pain subsided slightly, Lin Muci heard him whisper in her ear.
"Xiao Ci—I really feel so sorry for you..."
His voice was very light.
But Lin Muci suddenly understood.
He had heard it.
He had heard all her conversations with Helian Lanyan.
Lin Muci pursed her lips and remained silent, while Ling Qianhe hugged the girl tightly. His voice was low and hoarse, filled with deep weariness.
"They all bullied you..."
"They all hurt you..."
"I want to... kill them all."
"I won't let them have an easy time..."
Even though the young man was the one in extreme pain, he bit his tongue fiercely, his voice muffled as he comforted her. The emotions swirling in his dark pupils were clearly concern for her.
Lin Muci's fingertips slowly traced his cheek. On that exceptionally handsome face, there was an expression that made people's hearts ache.
She was silent for a moment, then the girl leaned down and lightly kissed his lips.
For a moment, heaven and earth seemed to become gentle.
The little system in her mind was excitedly howling.
And Lin Muci said.
"Don't be afraid, I'll take you back."
"Whether it's Duanqing or Jue'ai,"
"I will not let go."
...
When Ling Qianhe woke up, she was not by his side. He was a little flustered, and instinctively widened his eyes, searching for the shadow of his little maid. Then Lin Muci walked to his side.
Her fingertips slowly brushed his shoulder, and then he heard her voice, indistinctly sounding in his ear.
"Will you blame me?"
"Since you heard my conversation with Helian Lanyan, you should know that the Jade Bone Lotus was poisoned with the Qingque clan's secret medicine, Duanqing. But that Jade Bone Lotus was originally aimed at me, and it was my fault for dragging you into this, I'm truly sorry."
She apologized sincerely, but the young man quickly grabbed her wrist in return and looked at her intently.
As long as the young man's Duanqing did not act up.
He would still be that unrestrained young emperor, that extremely unruly demon, he said.
"How can this be your fault? It's not your fault at all."
His gaze was dark.
"It's someone else who wanted to harm you."
"I'm rather fortunate that I used the Jade Bone Lotus, otherwise you wouldn't be able to fall in love."
He looked at her, and suddenly a bright light appeared in the corners of the young man's eyes. Then his lips curved slightly.
"In that case, how could I make you fall for me?"
But—is the current situation any better.
Lin Muci could only sigh. According to the little system, if his Duanqing acted up again, his spiritual veins would shatter. For him, this would be more painful than death.
She actually wanted to pack her bags and run. She didn't expect Helian Lanyan to come and reveal the matter of Duanqing.
If she ran.
This guy would also guess what was going on.
It wouldn't achieve the effect she wanted at all.
The young man smiled and looked at her.
"So you're really not an ordinary maid?"
"Judging by the tone of that scoundrel who came before, you must be remarkable. Hmm, it's not that a little maid like you is reaching too high for me, a human prince, but rather I'm reaching too high for you?"
He was clearly teasing her, and also intending to ease her mind. Lin Muci was still somewhat distracted. She smiled wryly and shook her head, her voice very light.
"There's no such thing as reaching too high or not."
"As you heard, I'm just a pitiful person with no home now. I had a falling out with them back then and couldn't even go home, so I had to wander outside."
"Later, I finally found a place to take me in, met some senior brothers and sisters, and thought I could finally live a good life, but I never expected..."
Her voice was very light. This involved another painful past event of hers.
And the young man was silent for a moment, then suddenly reached out and hugged her.
"So... there's more than one enemy?"
"Everyone is bullying my Xiao Ci, right?"
Lin Muci sighed. The young man opposite her narrowed his eyes. He was so clever that he immediately thought of something.
"Is it those immortals in the sky? I remember that so-called divine realm envoy who came before, she kept muttering something. The jade token she brought, its owner and you, must have some grudges, right?"
He looked at Lin Muci. Lin Muci was thinking about Helian Lanyan's messy affairs, which had made him laugh—she was planning to casually cover it up.
The little system in her mind informed her of something with great sorrow.
"Host—I regret to inform you that Xuanyuan Yuting is also coming down to find you!"
Lin Muci's heart felt like it was being squeezed hard. With a thud, she widened her eyes, and for a moment she even felt a sense of disbelief.
"What?"
"What did you say?"
The little system wished it had a megaphone to shout in her ear.
"You don't think Xuanyuan Yuting will never find you, do you? Remember last time, didn't Ziyan Ling come down?"
"She was tortured by you guys to that extent, sliced into pieces, and her soul was shattered piece by piece..."
The little system sighed, very mournfully.
"So, she definitely wants revenge on you!"
The little system said.
"If you count the time, it's about time. She went to find Xuanyuan Yuting to ask for help... Xuanyuan Yuting naturally has to come down to find you."
"I think you'd better tell the truth. Helian Lanyan is the Demon Emperor, and he can show mercy to demons, but Xuanyuan Yuting is the Human Emperor. He bears the merit of heaven and earth. Back then, when he blood sacrificed the demonic races in your Shan Hai Tu Ce, he never showed mercy."
"Guess what he'll do when he sees Ling Qianhe?"
"And Ling Qianhe still has the poison of Duanqing, I'm afraid... he can't beat him at all."
This was simply the worst news! Lin Muci's breathing hitched. She reached out and rubbed her temples, suddenly feeling an extreme headache.
But no matter how much her head ached, there was nothing she could do. She smiled wryly, and after a moment, her voice became low and hoarse.
"The owner of that jade token..."
"Is my senior brother."
"After I left the demon realm back then, I didn't know where to go in the vast world. Later, by chance, I joined a sect."
Under the Dao Ancestor's sect back then... it was still a sect, more or less.
Although she had hidden her demonic identity, she was still a phoenix in her true form and had some talent.
And back then, to vent her anger, she was still thinking about dealing with that Qingque. However, the demonic methods would probably be blocked by Helian Lanyan, so the only thing she could use was human methods.
She cultivated very diligently back then, and her senior brothers and sisters liked her very much.
Ziyan Ling was her maid, and she also benefited from her, receiving many spirit pills. Otherwise, with her shallow talent, she wouldn't have achieved the cultivation and destiny of a goddess today!
Lin Muci sighed.
Although these memories were part of the plot, when the little system used the method of backtracking the past, letting the past reappear one by one in her mind, it was as if she had experienced such a long time back then, and it still made her unable to help but feel a sense of loss.
"I also had a grudge with him back then."
The young man opposite her looked at her face and leaned into her ear. His breath lingered by her ear, and then he asked her seriously.
"What kind of grudge? Xiao Ci, tell me about it. Back then—what did he do to you?"
"Since he's your senior brother, did he have ulterior motives?"
She was still a little dazed. Thinking of the scene of the Shan Hai Tu Ce being blood sacrificed back then, her heart was still full of sorrow, and she slowly nodded.
But she looked up and saw the fierce look in Ling Qianhe's eyes. The young man's pupils had already begun to show redness, and the redness was continuous. Lin Muci's heart accelerated, and she quickly said.
"No—it's not what you think."
"He didn't really have ulterior motives towards me, he didn't do anything to me... he had ulterior motives towards a magical artifact in my hand."
She smiled wryly.
"It's just that when I interacted with him back then, I truly believed he was a benevolent and righteous senior brother, and trusted him wholeheartedly. I never expected that he had already seen through my identity, and his kindness to me was entirely for my magical artifact."
"Although he destroyed that extremely important magical artifact of mine."
"But I also destroyed something of his, forcing him into seclusion until today, unable to come out."
"It can be considered a draw!"
She blinked her eyes, then turned to look at the young man beside her, and asked him earnestly.
"Am I the kind of person who would suffer a loss?"
"You should know, I'm not that kind of person who swallows her grievances and sheds tears silently!"
"Whoever bullies me, I will definitely fight back fiercely, and I will never forgive him!"
Ling Qianhe's pupils were still gazing at her. His gaze gradually became dark and deep, as if hiding profound and dense emotions like ink in the depths of his pupils. Then he curved his lips.
His lips approached her lips, and he said.
"I know, Xiao Ci will not suffer a loss."
"But, I feel sorry for Xiao Ci."
"Xiao Ci hates evil like hatred, this is very good."
"I am also such a person."
"I will never let go of those who have bullied me."
The young man's palm was slightly cold, but his lips were hot. He approached Lin Muci's lips and spoke word by word. With every word he uttered, his lips seemed to lightly touch her lips for a moment.
Lips touching—
She could feel his breath close to her.
She could also hear his heartbeat.
But, is this really okay?
If Duanqing acted up again... his spiritual veins would be completely shattered.
Lin Muci stared blankly into his eyes.
But in his eyes, she saw herself with rosy cheeks. His fingertips slowly brushed through her black hair. He held her, as if he possessed the entire world.
In Lin Muci's mind, the little system sighed faintly.
"Duanqing is not incurable."
"If he doesn't like you, it will naturally be resolved."
"But..."
"He is unwilling."
In other words, he valued love over life, right?
Lin Muci was so angry that her teeth itched. Wasn't the demon king supposed to be detached from love and desire, to be able to twist the clouds and command the rain, not caring about anyone, even crushing the neck of his beloved with a snap? Why was he so... so lingering?
It made her feel quite embarrassed.
And the young man continued to exhale like orchids by her ear.
"Does your senior brother like you?"
She was startled, not expecting Ling Qianhe's focus to be on this—she thought for a moment and said.
"I don't care if he likes me or not. He destroyed my magical artifact, which is a deep hatred between us, and I will never forgive him."
"Just like Helian Lanyan, if he stood in front of me, I would also tell the truth, I have never had any improper feelings for him."
"Senior brother is just senior brother, I have never had even a shred of romantic thought towards him."
"As for if he likes me..."
"Pah, he's not worthy, I would only find it disgusting!"
"What a lofty Human Emperor, just a despicable and shameless scoundrel!"
She cursed with great satisfaction.
Hearty and uninhibited.
The young man opposite her lips curved slightly, as if something had made him extremely pleased—Lin Muci heard her senior brother's voice, the voice of the current Human Emperor Xuanyuan Yuting, with a hint of tremor.
"Xiao Ci—"
"Do you really..."
"Never forgive me?"
She didn't know when he had come out of seclusion and managed to descend to the mortal realm, and was now standing behind her, having heard everything she had just said!