The Game with Fairies

Yan Xiaoru’s sudden words broke the dead silence in the tent.

Li Muyang lifted his head, looking at her in astonishment.

But the woman looked back at him calmly and said, “Go down the mountain.”

She repeated the phrase once again.

On the face of this woman, who was always aloof and arrogant, Li Muyang saw such a peaceful expression for the first time.

For Yan Xiaoru, who was known for her expressionless ‘three-no’ face—no joy, no anger, no expression—this peaceful demeanor was already incredibly gentle.

She quietly looked at Li Muyang, her eyes no longer indifferent.

Her tone was also calm and detached.

“Everyone on Pingyang Hill is doomed. The Blood Lotus Sect will not let them go. But you are different, you still have a way out.”

As Yan Xiaoru spoke, she took off the Qiankun Ring from her hand and handed it to Li Muyang.

“This is my Qiankun Ring. Rather than letting it fall into the hands of the Blood Lotus Sect demons after my death, I’d rather give it to you.”

“You will have a brighter future in the Blood Lotus Sect than in the Demon Refining Sect.”

Between Yan Xiaoru’s fair fingers, the light green ring looked like a grass loop.

But against her pale fingers, this simple light green ring inexplicably looked beautiful.

Looking at the ring being offered to him and listening to Yan Xiaoru’s words, Li Muyang scratched his head and then gave a wry smile: “It’s not that bad yet…”

He still had his last trump card, the ancient times immortal weapon Startling Swan Immortal Sword, obtained from the secret realm of Demon Sword City.

Even though his cultivation was sealed and Li Muyang couldn’t activate his spiritual energy, reducing the power of the Startling Swan Immortal Sword, it was still an immortal weapon of immortal rank.

The strange blood fog that sealed everyone’s cultivation was only a treasure of the same rank as the immortal sword.

The Startling Swan Immortal Sword’s power was indeed limited in this region, but it was still easy to sweep through a group of Blood Lotus Sect demons who also had their cultivation stripped away.

However, the repercussions of exposing the immortal sword were too great.

With Li Muyang’s current cultivation level and reputation, once the world knew he possessed an ancient times immortal sword, the entire cultivation world would go mad.

An ancient times immortal sword in the hands of a mere Golden Core realm cultivator?

It would be a disgrace to the heavens if the powerhouses of the cultivation world didn’t come to snatch that immortal sword!

Moreover, they hadn’t reached the point of desperation where they needed to risk their lives.

Li Muyang sighed and said, “Elder Yan, why lose heart? We have been trapped here for ten days, and the number of people surrounding us at the foot of the mountain is increasing. This is actually a good sign.”

Li Muyang’s words made Yan Xiaoru frown slightly.

“A good sign?”

Li Muyang nodded: “Yes, a good sign. The increasing number of people surrounding us means that the Blood Lotus Sect followers who went to hunt down other Demonic Sect elders are returning one after another.”

“I believe that with the strength of the Demonic Sect elders, they won’t be easily captured by the Blood Lotus Sect demons.”

“Ten days is enough time for most elders to escape this region and return to the outside world.”

“Now, the armies of our Demon Refining Sect are surely fighting against the Blood Lotus Sect demons at the border of this forbidden area.”

“The Blood Lotus Sect is indeed strong, but after all, they are only a force of tens of thousands. Demon Refining Sect has a vast territory and a large population. Mobilizing a few hundred thousand mortal troops here is not a problem.”

In this world, cultivators are the ones who dominate everything.

With those great supernatural powers and flying boats, transporting hundreds of thousands of troops in a short time is not a problem.

The beast cavalry of the Blood Lotus Sect is indeed formidable, and their warriors are much stronger than ordinary people, but faced with the relentless assaults of the Demon Refining Sect, even the strong soldiers of the Blood Lotus Sect cannot withstand the overwhelming numbers.

Li Muyang smiled and said: “Perhaps if we hold out for a few more days, we can wait for reinforcements.”

Li Muyang’s smile was gentle, his tone peaceful.

“…We haven’t reached the point of utter desperation.”

In the drizzling rain, Li Muyang gently took Yan Xiaoru’s hand in his, looking at her sincerely and openly.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“Elder Yan, I will stand with you until the very last moment!”

Li Muyang’s words were so natural, his movements so deft.

Yan Xiaoru’s hand, which she had extended to give him the Qiankun Ring, was gently held by Li Muyang instead of accepting the ring.

Their eyes met, and the air seemed to freeze.

Clearly, Yan Xiaoru was flustered.

She was startled by Li Muyang’s audacious behavior.

The sound of the rain outside the tent seemed to fade in her ears.

Her pupils contracted, and the only thing left in her vision was the gentle smiling face before her.

Everything in the world seemed to drift away from her.

The warmth from the man’s palm, like a red-hot iron, caused Yan Xiaoru to jerk back several steps.

“Have you… have you lost your mind?!”

Yan Xiaoru’s voice was shaking with anger as she questioned Li Muyang, hiding her trembling hand behind her.

The once fearsome enforcer elder, whose voice of angry questioning was now so low, as if afraid of being heard by people outside.

She stared intently at Li Muyang, her aloof face showing anger for the first time.

As an elder of the Demonic Sect and the head of the Hall of Enforcement, she should be angry at being so rudely offended by an inner disciple… Yan Xiaoru was supposed to be angry.

But this expression of anger, combined with her subdued voice, seemed so lacking in confidence, so guilty.

Seeing Yan Xiaoru step back in anger, Li Muyang did not persist.

He stood in place, facing the woman with the icy gaze, and helplessly spread his hands.

“Ten days ago, on the night in Tianjiao City, on top of the city walls, Elder Yan, you asked me a question.”

“At the time, I was slow to respond and failed to express my true feelings, which I regretted.”

“Over the past ten days, I have been pondering this question, thinking about how to answer Elder Yan.”

“Now I think I have thought it through… Elder Yan, could you ask me again?”

“This time, I will tell you what I truly think.”

Li Muyang’s gaze was earnest and serious.

Yan Xiaoru stared at him intently, trying to see through whatever was hidden beneath that young and handsome face.

She stared at Li Muyang for a long while before finally saying, expressionless and word by word.

“I can pretend I didn’t hear what you just said.”

“You are just a disciple of the Demon Refining Sect, no matter what inappropriate thoughts you have in your mind, I hope you will completely extinguish them!”

With that, Yan Xiaoru turned and left with an icy gaze.

That chilling, cold profile was enough to terrify everyone in the Demon Refining Sect—Elder Yan was truly angry.

However, as she turned, the man’s warm and large palm reached out and grabbed her again.

“Elder Yan…”

Slap—

A crisp slap echoed in the tent.

The two who were pulled together fell silent in an instant.

Yan Xiaoru silently looked at Li Muyang, then at her own hand that she had unconsciously swung out, and at the man in front of her who, despite having been slapped by her, still firmly grasped her wrist…

The originally furious Elder Yan’s momentum suddenly weakened.

“…You’re not allowed to hit me!”