"What?" Shen Yan exclaimed, startled. She looked down and saw Mu Anxiao arrive at the alley entrance. Murmuring "Not good," she turned and dived down.
The Yin Messenger watched Shen Yan's rapidly disappearing figure, then sighed and looked at the motionless dark cloud, saying, "You are also a type of demonic energy; it should be possible to retract you."
As if understanding the Yin Messenger, the dark cloud spun twice on the spot and vanished.
A smirk played on the Yin Messenger's lips. "Everything he creates is so timid. It's no wonder the Vine Spirit chose him, valuing this very trait." With that, he flew down.
At the alley entrance, Mu Anxiao stared in terror at Ye Yin, who was heavily injured with a face full of scars, shielding the Narcissistic Girl. Swallowing, she glanced back at the Vine Spirit, which emitted a faint greenish glow, and forced an unnatural smile. "You're not a real Vine Spirit, you're human, aren't you?"
At this moment, Mu Anxiao's heart was completely consumed by fear. She didn't even know what she was saying.
Conversely, the Vine Spirit understood her words. "This Vine Spirit's body belongs to me. You won't possess it."
Mu Anxiao didn't comprehend the Vine Spirit's words at all, but to make him afraid of her, she feigned understanding. "How could I possibly have such abilities? I just..." She swallowed and approached him slowly, "want to chat with you, to understand more about the secret to your possessing such power."
"I have nothing to chat about with you. Now," the Vine Spirit narrowed his eyes, "I'm going to eat. You, get lost."
"Eat?" Mu Anxiao repeated, glancing at the Narcissistic Girl huddled in the corner, crying incessantly, and then at Ye Yin, who had fallen to the ground. "You mean you're going to eat them?" she pointed at Ye Yin and the Narcissistic Girl.
"You truly understand nothing," the Vine Spirit said.
Mu Anxiao chuckled awkwardly. "I don't understand, which is why I want to ask for your guidance. If I understood, I wouldn't be wasting so much breath on you."
"Do you know what I use to maintain my life and physical balance?"
Mu Anxiao shook her head.
"Idiot."
"Why are you calling me an idiot?" Mu Anxiao frowned deeply.
"I use the lifespans of those Immortal Destiny girls to maintain my body's balance and enhance my magic. Therefore," a green glint flashed in the Vine Spirit's eyes, "don't interfere with me, or I'll eat you."
"Those lifespans," Mu Anxiao repeated, suddenly recalling the words of a relative of an elderly Immortal Destiny girl.
"My old partner left long ago. If I had known this, I wouldn't have married her. If she had married an immortal, she wouldn't have had such a short life."
Thinking of that person's words, Mu Anxiao's heart sank. "Are those married Immortal Destiny girls also useful to you?"
"You've gotten clever."
"It's you," Mu Anxiao couldn't help but step back half a pace. "It's you who has eaten their lifespans... creating a false impression of short-lived Immortal Destiny girls for their families."
"That would be too troublesome. Those so-called short-lived claims are just their own ideas," the green glow in the Vine Spirit's eyes shone ever brighter.
Mu Anxiao mustered her courage, staring into the Vine Spirit's eyes, and asked, "Why can you, a human, possess the body of a Vine Spirit? Where is the Vine Spirit's soul now?"
"Why do you ask so much?" the Vine Spirit said impatiently.
"Were you in great pain in your life?" Mu Anxiao said, glancing cautiously at Ye Yin, who was struggling to open his eyes.