“What?”
Xu Songhe stopped as he did, tilting her head and looking at him in confusion.
“You mean that sun?” She thought for a moment, a scene suddenly flashing through her mind.
What kind of thoughts? What thoughts? Why does he always have to ask me these kinds of questions?!
After some serious consideration, Xu Songhe shook her head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“…” Qi Wuyang narrowed his eyes, but he didn’t act immediately. Instead, he graciously waited for her to explain.
Xu Songhe picked up a wooden stick and carefully wrote something in the snow.
A moment later, she dropped the branch and looked at him, her eyes curving into a smile. “Young Master, come here a moment.”
Qi Wuyang didn’t move. He just watched her with a faint, unreadable smile.
What is she writing?
Even if he saw it, he wouldn’t know what it meant—he could barely read a word.
What am I supposed to do then?A flicker of murderous intent flashed in his eyes. Why can’t she just say it? I hate these kinds of roundabout games.
Xu Songhe had no idea he had just murdered her in his mind.
When he didn’t react, she tilted her head and looked at him curiously. “Is something wrong?”
“…”
Finally, Qi Wuyang gave in and shuffled over to her side.
His gaze dropped, and he saw a crudely drawn little sun.
It had a face and a smile.
“You didn’t draw it vividly enough,” Xu Songhe said, tapping the sun with her stick and tracing its outline. “It needs to be like this to be truly satisfying.”
In the distance, the sun rose between the rolling mountains. She smiled, her eyes curving, as if they held a sliver of the golden sunlight.
Being cursed meant certain death. Xu Songhe knew he was testing her reaction to his killing.
At a time like this, she couldn’t afford to take a stand against him. Besides, the man at the tavern had been a bully, probably tormenting countless innocent women. She didn’t think he was wrong.
Qi Wuyang glanced at the crooked sun, his expression blank as he listened to her explanation.
“It’s ugly.”
He looked down at her, then tossed out the words coolly.
Xu Songhe didn’t get angry. She just tilted her head to look at her drawing and muttered, “So what if it’s ugly? I’m not an artist… Besides, how is this ugly?”
She looked up, only to find him gone again.
…He walks so fast. He never even thought about taking me with him!
Xu Songhe had been tempted to stop following him, but the sharp wind suddenly carried a few howls. Her nerves tightened instantly, and she looked around anxiously.
Please don’t let another monster jump out of some corner, she thought.
Brushing the snow off her hands, she stood up with practiced ease and hurried to catch up.
She walked beside him, tilting her head up to look at him, her gaze tinged with caution. “Young Master, will you always look like this?”
He had changed again. Since she first met him, he had already taken on three different faces.
Qi Wuyang’s voice was cool. “What about it?”
“I just think… you look very handsome like this,” Xu Songhe said after a moment’s hesitation.
His gaze swept over her, and a faint smile touched his lips. “Does it hurt?”
Xu Songhe looked down. He had arrived before Zhuo Bufan’s whip could even strike her. The only injuries she had now were the chafed marks from the iron chains.
She rubbed her reddened wrists, her expression turning a little aggrieved. “It hurts.”
“I heard there are medicinal herbs over there,” Qi Wuyang said, raising his hand to point the way. “Do you dare to go?”
He was pointing toward a cliff. As far as she could see, there was only a vast expanse of white snow. There was no sign of any herbs at all.
Xu Songhe hesitated, twisting her fingers in the folds of her skirt.
When she looked back at him, her eyes held a hint of a plea. “Then don’t leave me behind.”
She was in an unfamiliar place, and those strange howls from earlier still echoed in her mind. If he left her now, she truly wouldn’t know what to do.
Qi Wuyang smiled gently. “Of course I won’t.”
Half-convinced, she started walking.
Every few steps, she glanced back to make sure he was still there. Only when she saw him standing in the exact same spot did her heart finally settle.
Suddenly, her foot caught on something. Xu Songhe stumbled and fell face-first into the snow, her hands and cheeks covered in white powder.
The icy cold stung her skin. As she quickly wiped the snow away, a faint metallic scent of rust wafted into her nose.
Xu Songhe froze, staring at her fingers. Amidst the white snow, a striking splash of red stained her hand.
Human blood? Or demon blood?
Before she could dwell on the question, she looked up and her entire field of vision was filled with a vibrant green.
Startled, she leaned in closer and discovered a small patch of grass growing right at the edge of the cliff.
The blades were short and sturdy, having survived the heavy snowfall. They stood tall and stubborn, a defiant burst of life in the middle of winter.
She knelt down, brushed the snow off the leaves, and carefully plucked a blade.
Will this really work? She looked at her wounds, then at the grass. Afraid it might be poisonous, she hesitated to touch it to her bleeding skin.
Just then, a small rabbit-like demon hopped over and nibbled on a blade of grass.
“Hey—!”
Xu Songhe shot to her feet, worried the grass might be poisonous. But after the little creature took a few bites and swallowed, it simply hopped away.
So it’s not poisonous?
She examined the rest of the patch and noticed most of the leaves had chew marks. It seemed these little beasts fed on them, which meant the grass was safe.
Xu Songhe crushed a leaf between her fingers, extracting the juice and gently dabbing it onto her wound.
Instantly, her wrist throbbed with a pain so sharp it felt as if it might tear away from her body.
Gritting her teeth, she finished squeezing out the juice. To her astonishment, the wound had completely vanished. She tapped her wrist hard—no pain at all.
Such a wonderful herb. I have to take some with me, she thought.
Still, she only picked two more blades, holding them carefully in her hand. After all, the animals here might depend on this grass to survive.
A thought of Qi Wuyang crossed her mind. He seemed to have a lot of enemies. No matter how powerful he was, he was bound to get injured eventually, right?
After tucking the grass carefully into her robes, Xu Songhe looked up.
A flash of white light blinded her, and a sword tip, radiating a single-chilling aura, was suddenly pressed against the tip of her nose.
Her pupils dilated. She choked back a cry, forcing herself to stay still as she stared at the man.
His attire was identical to the Flowing Cloud Sect cultivators who had captured her.
Oh no. Not again. They’re not going to take me back, are they?
Her eyes swept the surrounding brush and trees, searching for anything she could use to fight back.
“Hey! Have you seen a man and a woman escape into this area?” the man demanded, his voice harsh.
What?
Xu Songhe froze, then silently thanked the heavens. He hadn’t recognized her. That changed everything.
She abruptly bent down, scooped up a handful of snow, and smeared it all over her face, leaving only her eyes visible.
“Yes, sir,” she replied, pointing toward the bottom of the cliff. “I saw them. They fell off together.”
The man raised an eyebrow, his expression suspicious. “What were you doing just now?”
“Sir, I’ve suffered from a strange condition since childhood. I need to apply snow to my face to soothe it.”
“See?” she said, gesturing to the herbs in her robes with a pitiful look in her eyes. “I’m just a herb gatherer. That’s all I know.”
Xu Songhe deliberately pushed the plant toward him. It seemed like she was trying to prove her story, but in reality, the herb’s pungent smell hit him full in the face.
The man wrinkled his nose in disgust. He sheathed his sword and waved her away impatiently. “Fine. Just get out of here.”
Exactly what I wanted, Xu Songhe thought.
She kept her slow pace, turning to leave with measured steps, afraid that any sudden movement would arouse his suspicion.
Once she was far enough away, she broke into a light jog and lowered her voice. “Young Master? Young Master…”
The ground where he had been standing was now empty, with only wind and snow swirling past. There was no sign of him.
Xu Songhe glanced down at the herbs in her arms. I was thinking about him just now, and he just vanishes without a word?
With a hint of resentment, she kicked a stone at her feet. The stone rolled, moving unexpectedly fast. It kept going, rolling a great distance before disappearing from sight, never stopping.
Huh?
She momentarily snapped out of her frustration. This is flat ground, and I barely kicked it. How could the stone roll so far?
Xu Songhe looked up in confusion and saw a blue light flashing in the snow nearby.
What is that? Her instincts screamed that it was nothing good.
She turned to flee, but it was too late. A beam of light descended from above, quickly enveloping her and the vast expanse of snow before her.
Cold… so cold…
When she opened her eyes again, her body felt heavy, as if covered by a thick blanket that only radiated cold.
Xu Songhe wiggled her fingers, poking a hole through the snow. She emerged from the drift, shaking off the snow like a rabbit.
Her teeth chattered as she glanced back. She gasped in horror.
The snow behind her had piled up higher than a person.
You’ve got to be kidding me!she thought.
I’m lucky I didn’t get crushed to death just now.
Xu Songhe took two terrified steps back. Suddenly, a series of thunderous booms echoed in her ears. She looked up to see massive slabs of snow crashing down from the sky.
“Oh my god! Help!”
She covered her head and darted into a nearby cave, without a second thought.
The cave was already filled with snow, but it was still safer than being left out in the open.
The sudden avalanche showed no signs of stopping. Xu Songhe closed her eyes and curled up in a corner, wondering how long this small cave would hold. It would probably collapse under the heavy snow soon…
She didn’t dare think any further, only taking a few deep breaths of fresh air before her impending death.
System, oh System, when I respawn next time, please let me be the daughter of a rich family who doesn’t have to worry about food or clothing. At the very least, just give me a normal life… as long as it isn’t like this…
“How did you get in here?”
A cold voice, sounding as if it were mixed with wind and snow, echoed in her ears after what felt like a century.
Xu Songhe opened her eyes and looked around in confusion, finally escaping the blank void in her mind.
The first thing she saw was a young man, roughly twenty years old, dressed in coarse cloth with a bundle of firewood on his shoulder.