Mu Miyan watched Ouyang Ye’s skilled movements and then glanced at the now-calm Mu Anxiao, breathing a sigh of relief.
Not wanting to disturb Ouyang Ye’s assistance to Mu Anxiao during the summer break, Shu Jia stepped back to Mu Miyan’s side and explained, "He asked for it to be deciphered, and I know how to do it too." Fearing Mu Miyan would look down on him, he offered this explanation.
Conversely, Mu Miyan paid no mind to Shu Jia, continuing to watch Ouyang Ye treating Mu Anxiao’s wounds and asking, "Who is he?" She cast a glance at Shu Jia.
Shu Jia crossed his arms, leaning his body slightly towards Mu Miyan, and said, "He is a demon."
"A demon?" Mu Miyan repeated, preparing to step forward.
Seeing this, Shu Jia grabbed Mu Miyan’s arm and said, "Don't move. He won't harm Mu Anxiao, don't worry." With that, he pulled Mu Miyan closer to him.
Mu Miyan, hearing this, relaxed and quietly asked, "Are you telling the truth?"
"Of course. Otherwise, I wouldn't be following him," Shu Jia replied, his gaze still fixed on Ouyang Ye.
Mu Miyan found Shu Jia’s words reasonable and nodded.
Over there.
The moment Ouyang Ye placed his hand on Mu Anxiao's temple, she fell into a dream.
In her dream, she stood in a desolate forest, the surrounding mist a deep red. Not only that, but the mist was also filled with a fragrant scent. Yet, to her confusion, the scent posed no threat to her whatsoever.
Instead, she seemed to have accepted the aroma, her entire being relaxing, her heart undisturbed. She then looked down at the stone in her hand and quietly recalled the incident when Feng Qishi was taken away by Zhao Meier.
With this thought, she dropped the stone, turned around, and searched for a way out.
Outside her body.
Ouyang Ye could keenly feel Mu Anxiao's dream. Watching her slightly furrowed brow, he said softly, "There is no path there."
"No path," Mu Anxiao murmured the words from her dream, but Ouyang Ye couldn't hear her clearly.
"What are you saying? Don't babble inside," Ouyang Ye said, removing his hand from Mu Anxiao's temple. "You can wake up now."
"Wake up..." Mu Anxiao vaguely repeated Ouyang Ye's words. Then, she casually dropped the stone in her hand and, after a struggle, suddenly opened her eyes, gasping for breath. She turned to look at Ouyang Ye, her brows knitted.
Ouyang Ye saw Mu Anxiao’s expression and chuckled, "What, you don't want to see me?"
"Why are you here?"
"This is my territory," Ouyang Ye said casually, standing up and looking at Shu Jia and Mu Miyan. "Yin Chai, you can leave."
"I want to go, and I don't want to go. It's none of your business," Shu Jia retorted, unwilling to be dictated by Ouyang Ye.
Ouyang Ye smiled, "If you follow me, you will be punished. Are you sure you want to follow me, along with her?" As he spoke, he glanced at Mu Anxiao again.
"Who wants to follow you?" Mu Anxiao exclaimed, standing up abruptly.
"I was talking about her, not you. You... don't want to understand about vengeful spirits," Ouyang Ye said, looking at Mu Anxiao.
Hearing Ouyang Ye's words, Mu Anxiao suddenly remembered Feng Qishi being taken away by Zhao Meier, as well as Zhao Meier's parting words. Her eyes darkened, "You will really help me."
"They are on my territory, which is quite troublesome for me," Ouyang Ye stated calmly.
"You..."
"Alright," Ouyang Ye said, placing an arm around Mu Anxiao's shoulders. "Just agree to follow me, and I will tell you what you most want to know."
"Really?" Mu Anxiao tilted her head up, staring intently at Ouyang Ye.
Ouyang Ye nodded, "Of course it's true. If I'm in a good mood, I might even help you save Feng Qishi." With that, he met Mu Anxiao's gaze.
Mu Anxiao's mind raced upon hearing this, and she exclaimed excitedly, "You were always there."
Ouyang Ye listened to Mu Anxiao's excited tone, smiling as he removed his arm from her shoulder and said, "Yes, you could say that." He took a step back.
Mu Anxiao narrowed her eyes. "You saw me faint."
"I did," Ouyang Ye replied, his eyes beginning to dart away. "But I had something to do, so I didn't come over."
"You could watch me make a fool of myself the whole time, but you couldn't come help me, Ouyang Ye, you... you scoundrel." Mu Anxiao said, glaring fiercely at Ouyang Ye.
"That's not fair. You're the one who’s been rejecting me. Besides, that scent can cause hallucinations. Look," Ouyang Ye glanced at Mu Miyan and Shu Jia, continuing, "You've already misunderstood them. If I had woken you up then, you would have attacked me."
"You think ahead. Then why dare you save me now?"
"..." Ouyang Ye's lips curved into a smile. "With two scapegoats already here, what do I have to fear? Even if you accuse me wrongly, I'll have witnesses." He pointed at Shu Jia.
"You know a lot about that scent?" Mu Anxiao asked, looking at Ouyang Ye with suspicion.
Seeing Mu Anxiao's expression, Ouyang Ye immediately took two steps back and said, "See? I've only said this much, and you're already suspecting me. Fortunately, I didn't come out."
As Ouyang Ye had said, Mu Anxiao was indeed suspicious of him. However, upon hearing his words, she suddenly realized she might have been overthinking.
So, her eyes flickered as she asked, "How did you know how to break the scent's effect?"
"I was harmed by it before, so of course I know."
"You were harmed by it?"
"Mmm... it wasn't me who was harmed, it's just... this, that, that, this..."
"What are you trying to say?" Mu Anxiao grew impatient.
Ouyang Ye pursed his lips and shifted his gaze to Shu Jia.
Seeing Ouyang Ye look at him, Shu Jia uncrossed his arms and said, "This scent is a failed product of Yuan Xian. It couldn't be destroyed even in the heavenly realm, so it was temporarily placed in the underworld. We have half of it here, and the other half is over there. For our safety, Yuan Xian taught us how to break its effect."
"Yuan Xian?" Mu Anxiao repeated, looking at Ouyang Ye and saying faintly, "No wonder you didn't want to say."
"He made me test the poison on myself, almost costing me my life. I will never forget this grudge."
The scent was a magical artifact. Whoever possessed it would have an easier time and could turn danger into safety.
From Zhao Meier’s use of the scent, Mu Anxiao surmised that it must have been a gift from Yuan Xian to Ouyang Ye. As for the flaw, it was only discovered by Yuan Xian after Ouyang Ye had used it.
Thinking this, she showed Ouyang Ye a look of disdain. "Your mindset is problematic. I'm not talking to you."
"What's wrong with my mindset?"
"If your master wanted to harm you, he wouldn't have taught you how to break its effect."
"You don't need to advise me," Ouyang Ye said coldly.
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao’s lips curled. "Who's advising you? I'm just answering your question. Speaking of which," she furrowed her brow, "why did I become confused after fainting, instead of before?"
Ouyang Ye said calmly, "That is the problem with the scent. Anyone or any immortal who smells it will faint for fifteen minutes, after which hallucinations will occur. Some will be good hallucinations, and some will be bad, depending on individual constitution. And breaking the scent’s effect also depends on timing. It can only be dispelled when the person is calm. Otherwise... it's useless." He spread his hands.