Li Ye’s footsteps faltered as he looked toward Zhu Yan.

The latter hesitated momentarily before quickly responding with a bow and a smile: “This humble immortal has matters to attend to. I shall go out for a stroll. Please excuse me.”

Instantly, everything else in the King of Hell’s Palace retreated cleanly, leaving only Zhong You standing with his sleeves gathered, looking at him with a smile.

Taking a deep breath, Li Ye explained to him seriously: “That person in the Water Pavilion is merely a minor immortal from my Upper Bing Palace.”

“Mm.” Zhong You nodded. “And then?”

“And then, stop assuming I want to see her,” he narrowed his eyes. “I don’t want to do that much.”

His eyebrows twitched slightly as Zhong You smiled without speaking.

How could he not see clearly what Li Ye was thinking? But after so many years, it was rare to see Li Ye so embarrassed and angry.

After pondering for a moment, Zhong You said: “If you don’t want to see her, I’m somewhat interested. Although she’s just a minor immortal, she and that immortal lord who accompanied her injured quite a few of my demons. Their cultivation is impressive.”

…

…

Accompanying the immortal lord?

Li Ye raised his eyes, pressing his lips together.

Zhong You raised his eyebrows in surprise: “You even care about this? Li Ye, you’re an ancient god of eighty thousand years.”

“Therefore, I long ago mastered the art of saying one thing while meaning another.” Turning his back expressionlessly, Li Ye said, “What you see is not necessarily what I think.”

What’s the point of such sophistry? Zhong You’s expression grew complex as he clicked his tongue, his eyes turning as he gathered his black robe and walked outside: “I’d like to see just what kind of heavenly beauty this female immortal is.”

“Zhong You.”

“Since she’s come to my domain, if you won’t see her, surely I can, can’t I?”

Smiling as he stepped out of the great hall, Zhong You extended three fingers.

Three.

Two.

One.

Li Ye followed him across the threshold.

Both shocked and amused, Zhong You turned his head: “The Supreme Immortal’s behavior truly leaves me at a loss.”

These cunning, old immortals were all adept at concealing their thoughts. Like the Heavenly Dao Diviner, whose face forever wore a compassionate smile—apart from himself, no one would know what he was thinking. Immortals could not afford to have weaknesses in others’ hands; once they had a vulnerability, they could no longer remain lofty and aloof.

Li Ye’s behavior seemed like candid friendliness, yet Zhong You dared not fully believe it.

Could such a Supreme Immortal truly be experiencing a love tribulation?

***

Er’er sat in the pavilion of the Water Pavilion compound, grimacing as she tried to avoid Meng Wan’s hand.

“Don’t move,” Meng Wan said with a dark face. “You’re a young woman—what will you do if your face is scarred?”

“Master’s medicine doesn’t work! Really!” Er’er twisted left and right, wailing, “It’s too painful!”

Laughing from extreme irritation, Meng Wan glared at her: “Why weren’t you afraid of pain when you rushed out earlier?”

So many demons and monsters had swarmed like ants, densely packed, yet she had dared to form hand seals and step forward, countering with fire techniques.

It was fortunate that he had reacted quickly and lent her his strength; otherwise, neither of them would be alive now.

Er’er’s left cheek had been clawed by ghostly talons, leaving several bloody scratches that seemed filled with dark energy. Medicine had to be applied.

Meng Wan held both her wrists with his left hand while bringing the medicinal ointment closer with his right. The two leaned against the railing of the pavilion, appearing from a distance as intimate as a single person.

Zhong You felt a chill down his spine and, without thinking, sent a streak of fierce energy toward them.

Swish—

Meng Wan’s expression tensed as he turned and drew his sword to deflect the energy. His long robe spread wide as he shielded Er’er: “Who goes there!”

“Brother, you jest. In this place, how could there be people?”

Approaching unhurriedly, Zhong You revealed himself, glancing behind with the corner of his eye, his pupils shifting slightly.

Li Ye stood in the shadows with no intention of revealing himself.

Turning his head back, Zhong You continued to stare at the two before him: “Why have you trespassed into my netherworld realm?”

Looking at him warily, Meng Wan scrutinized him up and down several times before finally speaking in a muffled voice: “We accidentally entered your precious domain. Please grant us passage.”

“Oh?” Looking at him, then at the young woman behind him, Zhong You smiled lightly. “You entered by accident, but what about her?”

Er’er stuck out her head and raised her paw toward him: “I came to find someone.”

“Who?”

Looking at the King of Hell before her with a complex expression, Er’er blurted out without restraint: “Since you can discern others’ thoughts, why bother asking again?”

Zhong You was taken aback, the casual smile on his face instantly disappearing.

He walked a couple of steps closer, frowning as he lowered his head to look at her carefully.

A lively young woman with gentle, charming features, but those eyes—they seemed to know everything, making his heart uneasy.

Something was wrong.

Zhong You rubbed his eyes.

He could indeed discern others’ thoughts. As long as the person stood before him, with just a slight examination, he could see through their mind. But this young woman—why couldn’t he tell what she was thinking even after looking for so long?

Moreover, with such shallow cultivation, obviously an immortal of just a few hundred years, how did she know about his abilities?

The all-knowing King of Hell, Zhong You, felt fear of the unknown for the first time.

“You…”

Seeing his expression wasn’t quite right, Er’er belatedly slapped her mouth.

Zhong You had been killed by the Heavenly Dao Diviner in that world-ending catastrophe, but that was all in the future. Before that, she had never met him and shouldn’t have known about his ability to discern people’s hearts.

Turning her face away guiltily, Er’er said: “This is your domain after all, everything is under your control. If you truly didn’t know who I was looking for, how would you have spared my little life?”

Looking at her suspiciously, Zhong You shook his head.

No, this minor immortal had something unusual about her.

“Before entering your precious domain, I sent word to the Nine Heavens,” Meng Wan shifted his body to shield Er’er more completely and said solemnly, “If we are delayed here too long, I fear someone will come looking.”

“Are you threatening me?” Zhong You withdrew his sleeves and snorted lightly. “I’m not afraid if they dare to come.”

His face darkening slightly, Meng Wan gripped the scabbard of his sword tighter.

“Senior Brother, why don’t you go back first?” Er’er stuck her head out from beside his arm, blinking. “I won’t be in danger here, but you might not be so safe.”

“What kind of talk is that?” Meng Wan scolded her. “Have your wings grown so strong that you can even disdain your Senior Brother?”

“It’s not disdain; I’m worried about you,” Er’er pouted. “You’ve only just recovered, and your spiritual energy was somewhat weak earlier.”

“It’s still enough to protect you.” Turning his head back to look at Zhong You, Meng Wan said, “There’s no reason to leave you alone here.”

“…”

Zhong You held his cheeks, his teeth feeling sour as he frowned: “What kind of place do you think this is? A venue for your romantic tryst?”

Meng Wan froze, the tips of his ears turning slightly red: “Stop speaking nonsense.”

“You’ve accepted it in your heart; why contradict yourself?” Making a clicking sound with his tongue, Zhong You said vaguely, “Childhood sweethearts, innocent and pure—quite a suitable match.”

In comparison, he and Li Ye were ancient relics of tens of thousands of years; how could they have the face to interfere with these young people?

From far away in the darkness came a cold laugh.

The hair on his body stood on end as Zhong You wiped his face and spoke again: “This is a realm of no return. Since you’ve come, the two of you might as well settle in comfortably. I cannot open a path for you to leave, but if you can find the way yourselves, I won’t stop you.”