Five or six silk handkerchiefs, each one bearing her portrait—some with her hair pinned up, some sitting quietly, some smiling and gazing—the brushwork flowing and graceful, extremely vivid.

The last handkerchief depicted her leaning against a tree in deep sleep, her cheeks rosy red, her brows holding the essence of spring, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. Below the painting was a line of small characters: “Wine doesn’t intoxicate—people intoxicate themselves.”

Hu Sha didn’t dare look any further. With trembling hands, she forced herself to put the papers and handkerchiefs back in their original positions. Her entire being felt as if someone had violently thrown her into the air, her spirit flying to an invisible place.

A sound like a groan emerged from her throat. She suddenly jolted awake and turned to embrace the robe hanging on the clothing rack, as if seeking some kind of strength and comfort. She still couldn’t accept this reality—a hope so impossibly distant had suddenly been grasped in her hand.

Master, Master… She repeated it tens of thousands of times in her heart, burying her face deeply in the robe, as if he were holding her like this.

Even if she died this very moment, she would have no regrets whatsoever.

A soft knocking sound suddenly came from behind. Hu Sha was so startled she threw Fang Zhun’s robe away. Utterly ashamed, she turned around, only to see someone leaning against the door—with features like a painting and hair like flames. It was Feng Yi.

“Little Hu Sha.” He tilted his head with a smile, looking at her face alternating between flushed and pale. “Secretly doing this kind of thing behind people’s backs isn’t good. Otherwise, like now when I’ve caught you, how embarrassing for you.”

Hu Sha’s face changed from white to red, from red to green, and finally to a deathly pale.

Without a word, she held the Shuiliu Qin in her arms. With a flick of her sleeve, the Eighteen Orioles immediately whistled and flew toward him.

Feng Yi probably didn’t expect her to strike without warning. He froze for a moment, then his figure flickered, transforming into a wisp of red smoke. The Eighteen Orioles passed straight through it, finding no target to encircle. They could only circle around and around on the roof, emitting high-pitched cries.

Hu Sha was about to raise her hand to recall them when she suddenly felt someone lightly press on her shoulder. Feng Yi’s voice sounded right against her ear, “How heartless. Do you plan to kill me to silence me?”

Her heart turned cold. The Eighteen Orioles on the roof immediately found Feng Yi and turned to fly downward, but he suddenly reached out and held her tightly. If the Eighteen Orioles were to stab him, they would inevitably stab her as well.

Feng Yi placed his chin in the hollow of her shoulder, watching helplessly as the Eighteen Orioles flew hesitantly around the two of them. Finally, she gritted her teeth and forcibly recalled them into her sleeve. The cheerful chirping immediately stopped, and the room fell silent again.

“I told you long ago that I would never give you the Shuiliu Qin.” Hu Sha’s entire body was rigid, held by him like a stone, speaking coldly.

Feng Yi smiled and shook his head, “Don’t change the subject. The little Hu Sha I saw just now wasn’t like this.”

Hu Sha wanted to struggle, but felt his arms holding her extremely tightly. The more she struggled, the more their bodies twisted together, creating a very strange sensation. She could only stop, her heart filled with shame and annoyance, unable to say a single word.

Feng Yi reached around from behind and gently pinched her chin, his fingertips rubbing back and forth on her lips. After a long while, he said in a low voice, “Hu Sha, do you really like Fang Zhun? Actually, I once thought you might also like me, didn’t I?”

She said coldly, “I don’t want to talk to you.”

So he stopped talking as well. His palm slowly slid downward along her shoulder, clearly about to touch the Shuiliu Qin.

Hu Sha said, “It’s useless even if you snatch the Shuiliu Qin away. I told you long ago, it hasn’t been restored yet.”

Feng Yi’s fingers skipped over the Shuiliu Qin and continued downward, pressing against her hand, separating her slender fingers and interlacing his five fingers with hers.

“Hu Sha, answer me.”

She paused, “I have no need to answer any of your questions!”

“Hu Sha.” That gentle yet pleading voice of his sounded again, “I want to know. It’s very important to me.”

Clearly knowing he was pretending, that he had always been playing her for a fool, that she had never heard a single sincere word from him, Hu Sha still fell silent.

“Yes, I like him. No, I love him. In all the world, I only love him. From the first moment I saw him, my heart was moved.”

Hu Sha used all her strength to break free and turned to look straight into his eyes.

“As for you, I’ve never liked you. You misunderstood.”

She spoke with utter finality, as if that could allow her to ignore the trace of panic at the bottom of her heart. Had she really never liked him? Not even a tiny bit? Perhaps only heaven knew.

“You come again and again, actually just for the Shuiliu Qin. The reason you can make me helpless now isn’t because you have any means to win me over.” She took a breath and continued calmly, “It’s because I still hold some regard for our past relationship in my heart and can’t bear to let it go. If you force me again and again until I forget even that bit of sentiment, then even if you kill me, don’t expect to hear a single word from my mouth.”

Feng Yi looked at her quietly, as if he didn’t recognize her, or as if he was just recognizing her for the first time. After a long while, he couldn’t help but let out a “chi” laugh.

“You’re too heartless, Hu Sha.” He shook his head, as if recalling something, and said lightly, “You truly surprise me. From the moment you smashed the Shuiliu Qin, I felt I had been seeing you wrong all along. I thought you were a fool.”

Hu Sha said in a low voice, “You thought I was a fool, so you deliberately treated me well, rushing to tempt me when I left Qingyuan, teaching me to like you so you could manipulate me at will? If I were a fool, you would be the most despicable person under heaven. Unfortunately, I’m not. I’ve never liked you, so you’re not the most despicable—just a bastard who thinks he’s clever.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, he grabbed her arm. Her entire body seemed about to be lifted up by him. Her bones creaked in his hand, the pain making it seem they would crack open at any moment.

Hu Sha’s face turned pale with pain. The Eighteen Orioles in her sleeve immediately began whistling, about to burst through the fabric. Feng Yi suddenly threw her aside, coldly watching as she staggered several steps and steadied herself by holding onto the door.

“Hu Sha, you’ve angered me.” He said coldly, “Apologize.”

Hu Sha pressed against her agonizing arm and glared back fearlessly, “You’re the one who should apologize! You angered me five years ago!”

Before she finished speaking, a scorching wind swept past her ear, followed by a tremendous “bang” sound. The thatched cottage’s door was forcibly shattered by his magic, fragments flying everywhere. Feng Yi rubbed his temple and revealed a cold smile, “I said yesterday that I would kill you sooner or later. But I’ve changed my mind now. I need to teach you a lesson so you clearly recognize your own position. Hu Sha, apologize to me, or else what breaks next will be your arm.”

His expression was so terrifying that Hu Sha couldn’t help but shudder. But immediately after, she steeled her heart and shouted loudly, “Even if you shatter my entire body, I still won’t apologize!”

Feng Yi stared at her with a sinister expression, not speaking for a long while. Finally, he slowly revealed a gentle smile instead. Because it was so inappropriate to the situation, that smile actually made one’s hair stand on end.

He folded his arms and simply leaned back to sit on Fang Zhun’s bed, resting against the headboard, saying calmly, “Very well, if that’s the case, I won’t bother with you anymore. Today I came with good intentions to help you out of a predicament. Since you’re so ungrateful, you can reap what you sow.”

What did he mean? She watched him warily.

A cold voice suddenly came from overhead, “You’re the guardian of the Shuiliu Qin?”

Hu Sha was startled and quickly turned around, only to see a handsome young Daoist boy floating in mid-air. She had seen him once at Taoyuan Mountain. At that time, he had stayed by Qingling Zhenjun’s side and hadn’t come over. The one who spoke with her then and rushed to the Old Stone Mountain Hall was another Daoist boy named Mingwen, who had already been killed by Feng Yi.

Then this must be Mingwu.

Hu Sha was about to speak when she suddenly felt him raise the horsetail whisk in his hand and strike down at her head.

Her heart filled with terror. Instinctively, she protected her head and face. Who knew that the horsetail whisk was a soft object—it feinted before her face, then suddenly struck downward, hitting precisely between her waist and abdomen, sending her flying backward. She crashed outside the door and couldn’t get up for a long time.

Mingwu, his face expressionless, hooked his horsetail whisk and lifted up the Shuiliu Qin that had fallen to the ground.

Just as he was about to put it in his sleeve, the qin actually sensed that the person approaching wasn’t Hu Sha. Although it hadn’t been completely restored, it already had four strings. Immediately, it shot out cold light. Mingwu couldn’t dodge in time. One arm instantly became covered in blood, pierced with countless holes.

He really couldn’t hold it. He had no choice but to gently toss it out, letting the qin fall on Hu Sha’s body.

Looking at the expression on his face, he was probably puzzled that the not-yet-restored Shuiliu Qin also had killing power, making Feng Yi laugh repeatedly.

Mingwu put away his horsetail whisk, turned back to give him a cold look, and said grimly, “So it’s you. You killed Mingwen. I should immediately take your dog life, but today I have important business and will temporarily let you live a few more days. You’d better behave yourself and not move around, or else you’ll bear the consequences yourself.”

Feng Yi didn’t speak. He folded his arms and leaned against the headboard with an expression of watching a good show, truly not planning to get up.

Mingwu’s face turned iron-blue as he went outside, walking all the way to Hu Sha’s side. She had been struck extremely hard by that blow and still lay unable to move. Her ribs hurt unbearably—who knew how many ribs were broken. Even moving her fingers slightly made her feel like she was about to suffocate.

She gasped painfully, stubbornly refusing to submit, glaring at him with wide eyes full of defiance, opening her mouth to recite an incantation to summon the Eighteen Orioles from her sleeve.

As if knowing what she was about to do, he immediately curved his finger and touched her throat. Hu Sha immediately couldn’t make a single sound, no matter how hard she tried.

Mingwu raised his foot and kicked her shoulder, “This Daoist master has been guarding at the foot of the mountain for several months, finally waiting for the day that old thief Fang Zhun went out. If you’re smart, quickly take the Shuiliu Qin and come with this Daoist master. When Zhenjun achieves his great success in the future, he might spare your life.”

Her eyes seemed about to spew fire. Although her throat was sealed by magic and she couldn’t speak, even an idiot could see the disdain in her eyes.

Her eyes told him: If you’re capable, take the Shuiliu Qin away yourself.

Mingwu truly didn’t have the ability to take the Shuiliu Qin away by himself. Moreover, the divine instrument hadn’t been restored yet—taking it away would be useless. His temper was even more explosive than Mingwen’s. In extreme anger, he raised his horsetail whisk to strike her again, but suddenly remembered she was still just a mortal. One more blow and she would likely die. If the Shuiliu Qin lost its guardian, that would be a great disaster.

Having no choice, he changed the direction of his raised horsetail whisk mid-strike. With a whoosh, it smashed toward the apricot blossom grove ahead. A fierce wind instantly broke countless apricot trees that were relatively close. Faintly, Little Guai’s wailing could be heard. It turned out it had discovered Feng Yi going up the mountain early on and had been too frightened to move, hiding in the apricot blossom grove. As a result, it was swept by Mingwu’s horsetail whisk and rolled on the ground several times, even more afraid to come out now.

Mingwu bent down, planning to carry both Hu Sha and the Shuiliu Qin away together. Suddenly he tilted his head and thought for a moment, then placed his hand at his lips and recited a few incantations. With a “boom” sound, the thatched cottage where Fang Zhun lived immediately burst into fierce flames. The fire was so fierce, unprecedented—almost in an instant, the small cottage was burned to pieces, creaking and groaning as it collapsed.

Hu Sha stared blankly as the cottage was burned to ashes. That stack of pink silk handkerchiefs had probably also turned to ash. Feng Yi… Feng Yi was still inside and hadn’t come out. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her ribs immediately hurt so much she was covered in cold sweat.

Mingwu revealed a trace of a smug expression, turned his back, and bowed three times facing east, saying, “Junior brother, your elder brother has avenged you. If you learn of this in the netherworld, you can rest in peace. Unfortunately, this person has become a demon and will be scattered like ashes after death, not entering reincarnation. Otherwise, if you two were together in the underworld, tormenting him daily would surely be a great comfort!”

Hu Sha heard the sinister meaning in his words and couldn’t help but feel a chill in her heart. If she were captured by him this time, who knew what kind of torment awaited her.

Mingwu bent down to pick her up when he suddenly heard someone behind him say calmly, “What revenge have you taken?”

His entire body stiffened, and immediately his neck was lightly grasped from behind by someone. Five scorching fingers—the force used was clearly not great, yet he felt he couldn’t move at all.

Feng Yi unhurriedly pinched his neck and said softly, “Such a tiny little fire isn’t even enough for cooking, and you want to burn people?”

Mingwu’s back went rigid, his voice also stiff, “How dare you! What are you doing?”

Feng Yi sighed, “Originally I didn’t plan to interfere, but you unnecessarily added insult to injury against me. If I don’t return the favor, wouldn’t that make me seem petty? How about I let you experience what real fire mastery is.”

He suddenly released Mingwu’s neck. Mingwu struck back with his horsetail whisk but hit only empty air. He couldn’t help but freeze, then suddenly felt something burning his face with unbearable pain. He couldn’t help but roar loudly, and the horsetail whisk fell to the ground with a thud.

Hu Sha’s hair stood on end all over her body. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing—his entire head and face covered in flames, rolling on the ground in agony, his screams making one’s hair stand on end.

Feng Yi watched him roll with a smile, his arms folded. Finally, he kicked him in the back. Mingwu was kicked off the cliff barely alive—he probably wouldn’t survive.

Hu Sha lay on the ground, watching him wipe his hands in terror, wearing a trace of a sinister smile as he turned and walked toward her.

Stand up quickly! She shouted frantically to herself in her heart, but her ribs hurt unbearably. She couldn’t even move her neck, only able to watch helplessly as he walked up to her and crouched down to look at her.

“Broken bones?” Feng Yi asked her gently while pressing hard on her injury with his hand, as if seeing Hu Sha’s appearance of dying from pain made him very happy.

“Still won’t apologize to me?” He revealed a very strange expression, like regret, like pity. “Apologize to me, beg me to take you away, to heal your injuries. Otherwise, if your broken bone pierces your internal organs, you’ll die.”

Hu Sha’s face turned green with pain, covered in cold sweat, yet she stubbornly glared with wide eyes, refusing him with her gaze.

Feng Yi suddenly remembered something and smiled, “I forgot—that Daoist boy used magic on you so you can’t speak.”

He lowered his head, as if to release the spell for her, but suddenly stopped. He moved close to her face, and the two of them stared at each other eye to eye for a long time. He slowly raised his hand and tenderly wiped away the sweat at her temple, saying softly, “Never mind, I’d better not release the spell for you. Your mouth probably won’t say anything pleasant to hear. Mm, you rely on the fact that I want the Shuiliu Qin and can’t kill you, so you deliberately provoke my anger. You’re truly very disobedient.”

He ran his hand down her shoulder all the way to her injury and pressed hard again. Hu Sha’s vision exploded with golden stars from the pain. She nearly fainted, curling into a ball on the ground.

Feng Yi moved even closer to her, their noses almost touching, staring at her intensely as if wanting to kill her.

“I can let you step one foot into the gates of hell, then pull you back. As long as I keep you alive to continue nurturing the Shuiliu Qin, that’s all that matters. What do you think—is that good?”

He circled his finger around her injury but didn’t press anymore, afraid that one more press would make her faint, which would be very boring.

It must hurt terribly. Her breathing was so rapid, as if she could hardly breathe. The sweat on her head was larger than soybeans, rolling down drop by drop, like tears, but actually not.

Why wasn’t she crying?

Feng Yi couldn’t help but cup her face and examine it carefully, from eyebrows to mouth, not missing a single feature.

He truly hated her. He didn’t even know why he hated her so much. He really wanted to kill her immediately.

But this hatred was different from before.

At first, he felt her existence in the world was a kind of humiliation. Seeing her innocent appearance reminded him of his formerly foolish self. Every step she took was the same as his own.

He wanted to erase this person, preferably not have her flaunting about in front of him. Otherwise, every day he would have to face his former humiliated self, living without any glory.

Later, that kind of hatred gradually changed flavor, becoming a new, very alternative kind of humiliation.

She said she had never liked him—it was just his misunderstanding.

Just hearing this one sentence made him want to crush her right in front of him.

He was only using her. The scheme just failed. If soft methods don’t work, use hard ones. There’s always one move that can make her submit.

But why did hearing this sentence make him so uncomfortable, as if his self-esteem had been damaged?

Had she really never liked him at all?

He gently and softly caressed her cheek. Her skin was cold and moist, her lips pale from pain.

He had a desire in his heart to torment her like this, best to tear her to pieces, then burn her to ashes. Then all humiliation would be gone.

Yet he lowered his head and pressed against her forehead, a trace of sorrow at the bottom of his heart.

“Ah, Hu Sha…” He sighed and kissed her cold, trembling lips once, feeling it wasn’t enough, couldn’t help but kiss again.

After kissing more than a dozen times, he finally scooped her up in his arms, “Come with me. Now you can no longer say you won’t give me the Shuiliu Qin.”

Feng Yi couldn’t help but laugh. His heart somehow felt a bit elated, and not just because he had obtained the Shuiliu Qin.

Looking down again, she had long since fainted from the pain, not reacting at all.

He brushed aside a lock of disheveled hair stuck to her forehead. Just as he was about to rise on clouds, he suddenly heard footsteps ahead. Looking carefully, it was Fang Zhun.

Feng Yi knew this was bad. In an instant, countless thoughts turned in his mind, but not a single scheme could allow him to retreat safely with Hu Sha. He simply stopped, held Hu Sha even tighter, and said with a smile, “Master…”

Before his words fell, he suddenly saw Fang Zhun stride forward in a few steps. A cold light cleaved down toward his head. Feng Yi couldn’t help but be greatly alarmed. He hurriedly dodged. With a tremendous “clang” sound, the cold light struck the rock and actually split the incomparably hard rock in half.

Only at this moment did he see clearly that the cold light wasn’t light at all, but an enormous long blade.

He had seen this long blade before.

Feng Yi held Hu Sha and slowly turned around, staring fixedly at the “Fang Zhun” opposite him. His entire body was wreathed in golden light, his face expressionless, completely different from the usual Fang Zhun.

He suddenly understood, “…You’re not Master. Who exactly are you?”

“Fang Zhun” lifted the great blade. When he turned his head again, his features and figure were already different—it was clearly that golden-armored divine being, the Paper Doll Number Two that Hu Sha spoke of.

Mister Number Two said coldly, “Put the young lady down.”

Feng Yi acted as if he hadn’t heard, smiling, “You transformed into his appearance, planning to catch me off guard and kill me? Unfortunately, you didn’t succeed.”

Mister Number Two said nothing more. The heavy long blade in his hands was like a swimming dragon and dancing phoenix, so nimble it dazzled the eyes—sometimes striking upward, sometimes slashing horizontally, sometimes chopping vertically, sometimes sawing diagonally. Even without carrying Hu Sha, Feng Yi couldn’t fend it off, much less while holding her.

His back was slashed once, blood spattering everywhere. Seeing the golden-armored divine being strike again with his blade, about to cleave him in two, he suddenly lifted Hu Sha up toward the blade’s edge. The golden-armored divine being had no choice but to forcibly drag the blade aside, letting Hu Sha pass.

Feng Yi smiled cheerfully and wiped Hu Sha’s face, then forcefully threw her out, laughing, “Catch her properly! Don’t let her break. I’ll be back for her!”

The golden-armored divine being saw Hu Sha flying straight toward him. He had no choice but to drop the great blade and raise his hands to catch her securely. When he looked again, Feng Yi had long since transformed into a wisp of red smoke, dissipating gracefully.

He couldn’t help but frown and curse under his breath. He hurriedly placed Hu Sha carefully on the ground and examined her injuries closely. Suddenly noticing half her face was covered in blood, he was greatly alarmed. He quickly tore off his sleeve to wipe it away. Only after wiping did he discover it wasn’t her blood—it was probably smeared on by Feng Yi just now.

He kept thinking what a sin this was, secretly complaining that Fang Zhun shouldn’t have been soft-hearted five years ago and let this disaster escape. Now he was stirring up endless trouble. If he had arrived one step later, the young lady would have fallen into demonic hands.

He roughly examined Hu Sha’s injuries and shook his head. The injuries were too severe—he probably couldn’t heal them. He still needed to find Fang Zhun. He picked up Hu Sha and turned to go down the mountain when he suddenly heard a series of whimpering sounds from the apricot blossom grove. A snow-white figure crawled out—it was Little Guai, frightened into softness.

The golden-armored divine being frowned, “You’re a spirit beast suanni after all. When a strong enemy attacks, how can you hide in the grove and watch others go to their death?”

Little Guai walked over with teary eyes, biting his clothes with its mouth, looking utterly aggrieved and whimpering continuously.

The golden-armored divine being’s frown deepened, “You should have been able to speak long ago. Why are you still making cat sounds? I don’t know how Fang Zhun raised you to be like this!”

Little Guai apparently also felt it had done wrong. It hung its head with drooping ears, silently shedding tears.

“…Forget it.” The golden-armored divine being sighed, “Let’s go find Fang Zhun. The young lady’s injuries can only be healed by him.”

At first, Hu Sha felt unbearable pain throughout her entire body. Even breathing caused her terrible agony.

She thought she would die. All along the way, she drifted in and out of consciousness, tormented to the point of death by the injury in her ribs. She only felt someone holding her, wind blowing on her face.

Half her face was icy cold, while the other half burned unbearably, as if on fire. This scorching heat made her feel dizzy. Slowly, her body seemed to become light and floating. The tormenting pain from before also lessened considerably. For some unknown reason, a very unrestrained pleasure emerged from the bottom of her heart, as if she couldn’t help wanting to strip off her clothes, or immediately wake up, rush down the mountain, and kill a few people to relieve it.

She seemed wrapped in a mass of pitch-black warm water, indescribably comfortable and content from head to toe, with inexhaustible energy.

A gentle, seductive voice spoke to her in her ear: Go ahead, go ahead, follow your desires. You can do whatever you want. What’s wrong with that? Why not?

She couldn’t help but want to do as it said, but suddenly a trace of clarity flashed through her mind. She vaguely felt something was wrong.

Just as she was in a confused state, she suddenly heard Fang Zhun’s voice saying, “How did it become like this? Didn’t I tell you to guard the mountain?”

Hu Sha’s heart suddenly jolted violently. All the illusions instantly receded like a tide. She again felt piercing pain and truly couldn’t hold on anymore, fainting dead away.

The golden-armored divine being carefully placed Hu Sha on the bed, then turned and knelt before Fang Zhun, saying in a low voice, “It was my mistake. After guarding for most of the day and seeing nothing happen, I momentarily craved wine. I transformed into your appearance and went down the mountain to buy wine. If I had returned earlier, the young lady wouldn’t have ended up in such a miserable state. Feel free to punish me.”

Fang Zhun shook his head and said calmly, “Go down first. We’ll talk about it tomorrow.”

The golden-armored divine being knew he was always restrained. If he flew into a rage on the spot, it wouldn’t be too serious. But if he maintained this calm demeanor, it meant he was truly angry. Knowing he was in the wrong, he didn’t dare say another word and immediately burrowed into the shadow, never coming out again.

Fang Zhun took a long breath and sat by the bed, lowering his head to look at Hu Sha.

Her face was completely bloodless, her hair matted with sweat and sticking to her forehead. Her expression still carried a trace of pain.

He couldn’t help but use his hand to brush aside the disheveled hair, stroking her cheek tenderly. Then he untied her sash, exposing her ivory-white chest binding. He placed his hand lightly flat on her waist and abdomen. With a slight test, he knew where the injury was.

Three broken ribs, and miraculously they hadn’t injured her internal organs.

Fang Zhun immediately used magic to heal her, the power slowly and gently flowing out, afraid that using it too urgently would be more than she could bear.

After sending power for some time, he suddenly felt a strange force inside her body resisting him. Fang Zhun couldn’t help but freeze. He slowly withdrew his hand and lowered his head to examine her carefully.

Hu Sha lay quietly on the bed with her eyes closed, her upper clothing removed except for her chest binding. Her skin was exceptionally white, like white porcelain without any flaws.

The trace of pain in her expression had somehow disappeared, replaced by slightly hooked corners of her mouth. Her cheeks even showed a rosy flush. Her eyelashes were long, her lips pert and full.

Such an adorable face, still wearing a smile—it was very intoxicating. Yet Fang Zhun frowned. His hand caressed her cheek, carefully searching, as if looking for something.

His hand was suddenly pressed down by a soft, delicate small hand.

Hu Sha slowly opened her eyes. Her eyelashes opened like butterfly wings. Her eyes emanated a dark red glow, and her features seemed to have suddenly matured, becoming extremely seductive.

She smiled sweetly at him, suddenly tilted her head, and gently bit his finger.

Fang Zhun gently pushed her away, persistently stroking her face, not missing any trace of a clue.

Hu Sha’s arm suddenly wrapped around him, tightly embracing his neck. Her face pressed against his, her nearly naked body trembling like a young deer. She opened her mouth and gently bit his ear, her tongue licking him with fine, close movements.

Fang Zhun seemed to hesitate for a moment, then slowly raised his hand and grasped her thin shoulder, as if about to immediately draw her into his embrace.

Hu Sha kissed down along his cheek all the way to his throat, then began to untie his sash. He supported her nape with one hand while the other hand gently caressed her face, as if encouraging her actions, allowing her to open his outer robe. Her hands groped their way inside his inner garment, pressing against his warm chest.

A palm suddenly covered her forehead. Fang Zhun pushed hard, pressing her down onto the bed. Immortal power flowed from his palm and entered through her forehead. Immediately, he heard her painful gasping sounds in his ear.

She had fallen into demonic possession. Someone had sprinkled the blood of a demonic cultivator on her wound. Fortunately, the possession wasn’t deep, and her heart was pure. There was still time to expel it.

Fang Zhun held her down tightly, mercilessly sending immortal power into her forehead. He felt her continuously twisting and writhing under his palm, her hands grasping wildly. She even tore the bed curtains.

After an unknown time, she no longer had the strength to struggle, only crying—crying without sound, tears seeping into his palm, wet and slippery. Her eyelashes scraped against it, tickling unbearably.

Because half her face was covered by his palm, he could only see her lips continuously opening and closing, as if wanting to speak but unable to.

Fang Zhun touched her throat and immediately understood: someone had placed a silence curse on her. She wouldn’t be able to speak for twelve hours.

He released the spell for her, leaning close to her ear and saying in a low voice, “Hu Sha, can you hear my voice? Talk to me, say anything.”

She didn’t move under his hand, still crying. After a long while, she choked out, “Master… Master, please kill me! I can’t bear the pain anymore…”

Fang Zhun stroked the top of her head, “Good girl, endure a bit more. It will be over soon.”

Because he needed to release even more immortal power below, he pressed down on her tightly. He felt where his palm pressed was soft and delicate. He couldn’t help but be slightly distracted and looked down.

The moon had climbed onto the branches, illuminating the room brightly. After Hu Sha’s violent struggles earlier, the ties of her chest binding had also broken. Her flower-like breasts were thus presented before his eyes. Her skin was like pearls—in the moonlight, it made one unable to resist touching it, kissing it.

Fang Zhun’s heart couldn’t help but pound. He quickly pulled the bedding to cover her body, not daring to look more.

This was a critical moment—he couldn’t allow even the slightest distraction. With one hand cradling her head and the other sending the last of his immortal power into her skull.

Hu Sha’s entire body curled up from the pain, suddenly screaming shrilly, screaming desperately.

She only felt pain, couldn’t say where it hurt. Her head felt like it was about to explode. Her five internal organs and six bowels were all being roasted on an iron plate, turned over and over, yet she wouldn’t die.

In her dizziness, she felt someone hold her tightly, then two warm lips kissed her lips forcefully, turning and pressing, inexperienced yet ardent. Her screaming immediately broke off. She opened her mouth to bite—she felt she had to bite something, otherwise she would go mad from the pain.

A hand tightly pinched her jaw, preventing her from biting down. Immediately something slid into her mouth, slippery and agile, coiling around her tongue, rubbing it carefully. Finally, it gently bit her lip, making a sound like a sigh, “Hu Sha…”

The world spun. The sensation of pain gradually disappeared. Water gushed from her face, carrying a fishy smell.

It was blood.

Fang Zhun propped up his body, looking at half her face suddenly gush with a large amount of fresh blood, the color red mixed with black. He quickly reached out to wipe it away, absorbing all that demonic blood into his palm. Looking at Hu Sha again, he discovered that half her face had some abrasions, probably from when she fell. Feng Yi had smeared his own blood on them to lure her into demonic possession.

He used magic to heal the abrasions on her face, then checked once more to confirm there were no other injuries on her body. Only then did he get off the bed and wash the bloodstains from his hands.

Looking back, Hu Sha was already exhausted and had fallen into a deep sleep. Half a section of her crystalline shoulder was exposed outside, and her lovely raised breasts could also be seen clearly.

Fang Zhun held his breath and sat by the bed. He raised his hand to grasp the bedding, not knowing whether to pull it down or cover her back up.

After what must have been a brutal battle between heaven and “spirit,” he finally chose to tuck the blanket in tightly, arrange the bed curtains properly, and cover her well. Only then did he pace to the door.

At that time, the moon was at its zenith, and all around was as bright as day. Not far in front of the door came the sound of gurgling flowing water. Within the stream, five-colored divine light shone brilliantly and magnificently, flickering in the night.

Five-Colored Stream—the purpose of his trip. He had finally waited for the day when the divine light was released.

But his thoughts at this moment were not there at all.

He raised his hand and lightly brushed it across his lips, as if still savoring a certain warm and tender taste.

Like being drunk.

As soon as dawn broke, Hu Sha woke. Opening her eyes, she saw an unfamiliar room canopy.

Whimpering cries came from the head of the bed. She turned her head with difficulty and saw Little Guai lying by the bed, its eyes full of tears as large as beans, looking at her miserably as if she were about to die at any moment.

Hu Sha was helpless at its crying. She could only raise her hand to pat its head, “Little Guai, I’m not dead yet. Don’t cry like that. By the way, where is this place?”

Little Guai shook its head forcefully, just refusing to speak. She remembered that in the first year after they moved out, on a summer evening, she clearly heard Little Guai call out to Master and eldest senior brother. Unfortunately, afterward it refused to open its mouth again, and even Fang Zhun teasing it didn’t work.

Hu Sha could only sit up by herself. Her entire body felt drained, without an ounce of strength.

Servant Girl Number One’s old-fashioned voice came from the doorway, “Don’t move around. Last night was spent healing your injuries. Having just washed away demonic blood is always like this—it takes three days to recover. Quickly lie back down.”

As she spoke, she rushed in and roughly pushed Hu Sha down onto the bed, covering her firmly with the blanket.

Hu Sha struggled to poke her head out from under the blanket and asked curiously, “Demonic blood? What demonic blood?”

“You don’t even remember?” Servant Girl Number One looked at her incredulously. “That person who entered the demonic path used his own blood to defile you. Fang Zhun spent an entire night helping you wash it away. You screamed like a pig being slaughtered. How could you forget after just a few hours?”

The more she didn’t mention it, the better. As soon as she mentioned it, fragments floated up in Hu Sha’s mind. She remembered the voice in her heart tempting her, and she also remembered that sensation of indulging desires and not being bound by anything.

But… it seemed she had also seduced Fang Zhun?

Hu Sha instinctively looked down at herself. Sure enough, she was only wearing her chest binding, which was wrinkled and creased. On her shoulder were clear finger marks—precisely from when Fang Zhun pinched her during the healing to prevent her from moving wildly.

She also remembered that scorching yet novel sensation on her lips. To prevent her from screaming shrilly, so… he kissed her?

Her face suddenly burned up. She wished she could immediately crawl under the bed and never come out, never see him.

Servant Girl Number One looked at her strangely, her face full of rosy clouds, “Why is your face so red? Are you uncomfortable? Wait, I’ll go call Fang Zhun.”

If she really called Fang Zhun over, that would be truly terrible. Hu Sha desperately pulled her back, “I’m fine! Fine! Don’t disturb him! Master… spent last night healing me. It’s still early now. Let him sleep a bit more!”

“He didn’t sleep at all. He’s been sitting in meditation by Five-Colored Stream all night.” Servant Girl Number One sighed in an old-fashioned manner, “Making everyone unable to rest well—he’s always so selfish.”

“Five-Colored Stream?” Hu Sha immediately grasped the key term. Suddenly remembering something else, she couldn’t care about being shy anymore and asked repeatedly, “Where is this place? It’s not the mountain? Who brought me to Master’s side?”

Servant Girl Number One said seriously, “Five-Colored Stream is the Five-Colored Stream of Yuanzhou, the legendary place where heavenly deities created the Shuiliu Qin. Every year, the stream water only releases divine light for a few days, capable of bringing the dead back to life. That Shuiliu Qin—didn’t the last string always refuse to grow? Fang Zhun went to consult Yunyou Yuanjun and learned that although the vital energy of a living person on your body is sufficient, the Shuiliu Qin is after all a divine instrument and still needs to be touched by the immortal energy of Five-Colored Stream to be completely restored. So he came here first to scout the way. Originally, he planned to directly take some water from Five-Colored Stream back, but who would have thought that Number Two fellow would neglect his duties and abuse his position, not watching over you properly, letting you get injured so badly you almost died. He didn’t have the ability to heal you, so he had no choice but to bring you to Yuanzhou to find Fang Zhun. That’s how it is.”

“Mister Number Two?” Hu Sha thought for a long time before remembering that Paper Doll Number Two was that golden-armored divine being. “But I didn’t see Mister Number Two.”

Servant Girl Number One revealed a mocking smile, “He made a mistake, so naturally he has to be punished. Even though his status is completely different from ours, he still can’t avoid it. You don’t need to worry. As long as Fang Zhun doesn’t die, we can’t die. At most we suffer some physical pain, and we’ll be fine in a couple of days.”

Having finished speaking, she turned and left.

But Hu Sha could no longer sit still.

She hugged Little Guai’s neck and said softly, “Little Guai, let’s go find Master, alright? To plead for Mister Number Two, okay?”

Little Guai continued shaking its head. Because it had been cowardly before, hiding in the apricot blossom grove and watching Hu Sha go to her death, it had been severely scolded by Fang Zhun this time. It was the first time he had lost his temper with it. He spoke until it felt both ashamed and guilty. How would it dare go provoke him again now?

Hu Sha could only get up and put on her clothes and shoes, “Then I’ll go by myself.”