The Butterfly Mistress walked at the front, and in the blink of an eye had already moved far into the distance.

Although Hu Shuang’s lightness technique was no poor thing, it still fell somewhat short of the Butterfly Mistress. And with the added burden of escorting Feng Jiu’er, she was slowed considerably no matter how she looked at it.

By the time they finally made it back to Butterfly Valley, the Mistress had long since vanished without a trace.

Feng Jiu’er had been escorted along the entire way without so much as a trace of resistance, her demeanor completely composed and unruffled, with not even the faintest intention to struggle.

Upon returning to Butterfly Valley, Hu Shuang noticed that her complexion was none too good — far paler than most — and thinking that she must have truly been exhausted of late, she gave a casual press along the side of her neck.

Feng Jiu’er gave a light cough. She could speak again. “Listen, you could just tie me up with something sturdy. It would be far better than sealing my pressure points — because with my pressure points sealed, I can’t even take two steps without you having to do it for me.”

Hu Shuang considered it for a moment and found a certain logic in that. She reached out and grabbed at random — from who knew where — a length of cowhide rope, twisted Feng Jiu’er’s hands behind her back, and bound them tightly in one smooth motion.

“Sister, your hands are very practiced at that. Do you tie people up often?” Feng Jiu’er asked with a grin, tilting her head to look at her.

Hu Shuang truly could not make heads or tails of this girl. How could she still be so flippant when death was staring her in the face? Did she truly not fear death in the least?

“Ye Luosha injured you that badly — doesn’t it hurt?” She frowned.

Feng Jiu’er coughed again a couple of times, and said with resignation, “It hurts! It hurts terribly! Look at the corner of my mouth — I’m coughing up blood with every cough right now. Of course it hurts!”

Hu Shuang’s gaze fell to the corner of her mouth, and she truly saw the faint traces of blood there.

Her heart softened a little. She raised her sleeve and wiped the blood away for her, then pressed her long fingers firmly at a point on her shoulder and back. Feng Jiu’er immediately felt a wave of relief spread through her entire body, and some mobility returned to her limbs at last.

“Thank you, Sister. You’re such a kind person.” She pulled another smile to her lips.

Hu Shuang gave her a cold look. “Don’t try to get friendly with me. You were brought here by the Mistress. No matter how close you get to me, I cannot help you.”

By the time she reached the end of those words, even Hu Shuang’s own voice had grown subdued.

She truly could not help Feng Jiu’er — this was no jest. Surely this girl herself understood that, having been brought here this time, there was a nine-in-ten chance she would not leave with her life intact.

Did she truly not fear death, or did she simply not know how deeply the Mistress detested her?

The Mistress was that kind of person. Whatever she despised, she would destroy.

The Mistress… would destroy Feng Jiu’er.

“What do you mean, you can’t help?” Feng Jiu’er seemed not to believe it, and blinked at her. “You just have to do what you did last time — slip me a few restorative pills when I’m on the verge of dying. That way no one has to die.”

Hu Shuang was taken aback. She had not imagined that this girl, who had been unconscious at the time, had still somehow been aware that she had once given her restorative pills.

But last time, even she had been unable to guarantee whether Feng Jiu’er would survive. This time, the Mistress did not need to save the Ninth Prince — she would be directing her full, undivided attention toward dealing with her. How could the Mistress possibly be careless enough to allow those under her command to give Feng Jiu’er free rein?

“Your fate looks very grim this time. Even restorative pills cannot save you.” Hu Shuang was not trying to frighten her — she simply wanted her to see the reality of her current situation clearly.

Jiu’er stopped smiling. This time, her tone was equally serious: “But I can’t spend all my time weeping as I wait for tragedy to arrive, can I? In any case — thank you for what you did last time. So even though you helped the Butterfly Mistress capture me this time, I don’t hold it against you.”

Each served their own master. One could not always choose one’s circumstances.

Hu Shuang’s lips moved slightly, as though she wanted to say something. But looking at those clear, transparent eyes, she found she could not get out even a single word.

She gave Feng Jiu’er a light nudge. “Move along. Stop chattering.”

“Alright.” Jiu’er was rather cooperative, and walked forward alongside her.

After all, she was already inside their Butterfly Valley. Trying to escape at this point was out of the question — first, because Ye Luosha’s blow had left her vital energy not yet restored; and second, because even Hu Shuang’s martial arts were something she might not be able to match, let alone the Butterfly Mistress herself.

So there was no point dwelling on any of it right now. She might as well take advantage of the time while the Butterfly Mistress returned to rest, and get some proper rest herself.

Hu Shuang brought her to a sealed chamber and pushed her inside. As she did, she pressed something into Feng Jiu’er’s hand without anyone seeing.

It was a medicinal pill! How sharp was Feng Jiu’er’s nose? Just a small sniff, and she could tell it was a superb remedy, exceptionally effective for restoring vital energy and healing internal injuries.

But this sister of hers, Hu Shuang — she could give it to her if she was going to give it to her, but couldn’t she have been a bit more generous about it? What would have been the harm in simply feeding it to her directly?

And now, pressing it into her hands like this — had she somehow forgotten that her hands were bound behind her back?

Feng Jiu’er truly felt a little helpless. Once the door to the sealed chamber was shut, she gently flicked her long fingers and sent the pill spinning up into the air.

She then turned her head, opened her mouth, and caught it on the way down. The pill landed precisely in her mouth without the slightest deviation, dissolving the moment it touched her tongue. Perfect.

She found a corner and settled herself down into it, before she could not help coughing a few times. Traces of blood still came up, but thanks to the nourishing pill Hu Shuang had given her, warmth had begun to gather steadily within her dantian, and the meridians throughout her body seemed to be far less painful than before.

That palm of Ye Luosha’s had landed with full force and solid conviction. In truth, the meridians all throughout her body ached. The lighthearted, smiling banter she had kept up with Hu Shuang just now — she had been pushing through all of it.

But now that she had calmed herself down, she found she could not truly bring herself to hate Ye Luosha.

In truth, if she were in Ye Luosha’s position — would she have acted any more ruthlessly? She did not know.

She had been turning the matter over in her mind for a while now — once they arrived in Phoenix City, how was she to get along with both Mu Mu and the Ninth Imperial Uncle?

The closer they had drawn to Phoenix City, the more the question had weighed on her. But now that she had been taken away by the Butterfly Mistress, if Ye Luosha could truly find a way to strike a balance — a way for Mu Mu and the Ninth Imperial Uncle to coexist in peace — then perhaps this was not such a terrible outcome.

The only one left with the worst fate would be herself alone. Given the Butterfly Mistress’s venomous character, what good ending could possibly await someone who had fallen into her hands?

Feng Jiu’er closed her eyes, and resumed practicing the cultivation method Xue Gu had taught her, allowing her body to rest and recover.

Xue Gu’s cultivation method was a rather peculiar one. In the beginning, there seemed to be nothing particularly remarkable about it — everything progressed at a steady, measured pace, step by step, nothing out of the ordinary.

Her inner energy did grow rapidly, but certainly not at any miraculous speed.

Yet over these past few days, Feng Jiu’er had suddenly begun to realize: the further along Xue Gu’s method was practiced, the more formidable its effects became.

She could say with certainty that the progress she made practicing through a single night now was absolutely superior to what she would have accomplished in an entire month of practice before.

Such a remarkable cultivation method — and Xue Gu had simply given it to her, someone she had only met a handful of times. Was it fate, or had Xue Gu known her from some time long past?

The cultivation progressed. Feng Jiu’er gathered her mind fully inward, suppressing the vital energy in her dantian, then releasing it, allowing it to circulate through every corner of her being, every last one of her meridians.

The searing agony of the blow she had taken to her chest gradually faded under this warm, flowing energy, until it vanished entirely.

Ye Luosha had still shown some restraint. Had she truly unleashed her full power, ten out of ten parts of her strength would have cost Feng Jiu’er half her life.

But though she could understand it — she could not accept it.

Given time, that palm would be repaid.