The sky darkened in an instant, the transition even more abrupt than a scene change in a play.
The commotion they had just caused had attracted a swarm of demons. Xu Songhe glanced at the barrier, her expression hesitant.
This man just suspected me of stealing his body, she thought. And now he’s suddenly willing to help? I can’t believe it.
Well, I’m dead either way, she reasoned. This is my only chance.
Xu Songhe covered her mouth and stumbled back several steps, her face a mask of terror. She pointed at him, her voice nearly a scream.
“Young Master Qi Wuyang! I am but a weak woman! My body is unworthy of your immense power! Please, have mercy and spare me!”
I’m so sorry, Great One, she apologized frantically in her mind. Please don’t blame me after this. I was forced into this!
Qi Wuyang seemed taken aback by her reaction. The smile on his lips froze as he averted his gaze from her face, turning it instead toward the horde of demons charging recklessly toward them.
His name alone seemed to act as an invisible shield, weakening the tide of monsters as they surged forward.
Xu Songhe struck while the iron was hot. She threw herself to her knees, tears streaming down her face.
“My Lord! These demons are all so powerful! If you’re looking for a worthy body to take over, they are a thousand times stronger than I could ever be!”
Her words hit the mark. The demons exchanged glances, their furious charge slowing to a halt.
They began to speculate among themselves: Who here is strong enough to attempt a soul snatching?
Could it be…
The sudden silence was a relief. Xu Songhe tentatively lifted her head. Most of the monsters had stopped tens of feet away, though a few braver ones edged forward to investigate.
A burst of laughter shook the leaves above. “And here we were, thinking we’d run into some mighty immortal! Turns out she’s just a pathetic little woodcutter.”
The mocker sneered, his voice booming. “We all let this slip of a girl trick us! If this gets out, we’ll be a laughingstock!”
Fury ignited in the crowd. “Kill them! Kill them all!”
Qi Wuyang’s gaze swept over them, impassive.
“Good, very good,” he murmured, though it was unclear who he was addressing.
With a fluid motion, he raised his hand, and a bow materialized from thin air.
The atmosphere turned heavy. He didn’t even reach for an arrow. Instead, he simply hooked his fingers to the bowstring and drew it back with a casual pull.
The demons kept advancing, closing in like a relentless tide. The bowstring was drawn taut. Xu Songhe, kneeling on the ground, looked up and met Qi Wuyang’s dark eyes.
Though his face had changed, his gaze remained as detached and calm as ever, as if he weren’t facing a life-or-death situation.
The moment he released the string, a faint smile touched his lips, and the darkness in his eyes seemed to soften.
When had she ever seen an expression like that?
Xu Songhe searched her memories and thought: A child playing with a toy bow and his friends would look just like that.
In an instant, arrows formed from pure spiritual energy rained down like a dense storm. The demons collapsed into a chaotic heap. Before a single scream could escape their throats, the snow was already speckled with blood.
Xu Songhe’s pupils dilated. She quickly clamped a hand over her mouth to stifle any sound.
But as she looked closer, she realized he had only killed the few demons at the very front. This was a warning, a tactic to terrify the rest into retreating.
With his ruthless efficiency, why wouldn’t he just kill them all?
“What a nuisance,” Qi Wuyang sighed softly. He turned to her with a smile. “Were you trying to get me killed?”
The question hit her like a physical blow, leaving her completely stunned.
“What are you talking about? Young Master, you are so powerful. How could a mere few demons possibly harm you?”
“Someone has taken my true form. My spiritual power is far weaker than it used to be.”
Qi Wuyang leaned against the rock wall, looking down at her with a faint, ambiguous smile.
So that’s why he left the other demons alive? Xu Songhe’s heart jolted. Why is he telling me this?
Before she could say a word, a wave of fierce roars erupted from the shadows.
As she turned, the flickering torchlight revealed a new swarm of grotesque demons charging toward them. Their numbers were far smaller this time—perhaps only seven or eight.
“What do you think we should do?”
Qi Wuyang sighed and spread his hands, though his tone betrayed no fear. “This body is too weak. I’ve already drained my spiritual power; I can’t even run now.”
“Then let’s stay inside the barrier. You said they can’t get in, didn’t you?”
He reached out and tapped the shimmering veil of energy.
“Just broke,” he said, a mischievous glint in his eye.
Suddenly, a chilling wind whipped past her, and a hand clamped down on her shoulder from behind. Xu Songhe froze, her mind going completely blank.
With a sharp slap, Xu Songhe’s eyes flew open. She turned her head anxiously, relieved to find her shoulder was uninjured—only her clothes were torn.
The young man gazed coldly at the breathless demon sprawled on the ground, then raised his hand to wipe away a smear of blood from his knuckles.
“You’re hurt?” Startled that he’d stepped in to save her, Xu Songhe rushed forward, grabbing his hand to pull him away.
“That punk was definitely bluffing just now, daring to pretend to be Lord Nine-Tails to scare us. Let’s all charge them together! We’ll capture the man for a meal, and the woman… hehe!”
A pair of eyes emerged from a snowdrift, staring at them without blinking.
Xu Songhe’s body trembled all over, though she figured it was just the cold.
These creatures had nothing but brute strength; their brains were utterly useless. If they had just struck one of the two snowbanks beside them, she was certain her body would never have been found.
She took a quiet breath, trying to calm her racing heart, but a few snowflakes drifted into her nose. Her eyes widened, and she hurriedly held her breath. Only when her cheeks were flushed crimson and her chest ached with spasms did the urge to cough finally fade.
When will these demons ever leave? She wondered. Even if they don’t eat us, we’re going to freeze to death crouching here.
Xu Songhe shifted her gaze, trying to see how her companion was doing. The sight made her heart hammer against her ribs.
A straw hat had rolled off the top of the snowdrift, landing on the ground with a soft thud. Crap, I forgot about his hat!
As if sensing her stare, Qi Wuyang blinked, meeting her eyes with an innocent expression.
“…”
If we’re going to get caught, we might as well go all out!
At the critical moment, Xu Songhe quickly poked a hole in the snow, thrust her hand through, and scooped up a handful of it. She hurled the snowball fiercely at the demon who was just about to turn around.
The snow struck his face, extinguishing the torch in his hand.
“Agh!”
The demon shrieked, wildly slashing his blade. But with his vision completely obscured by snow, he stumbled back several steps, knocking over the demon behind him.
Another torch went out.
“Who is it?! Who’s attacking us?”
The demons descended into chaos, their remaining torches flickering weakly in the wind.
Xu Songhe seized the opportunity to leap out of the snow. She grabbed the straw hat from the ground and hurled it in the opposite direction. When she looked up, she met a pair of smiling eyes.
She didn’t want to know when he’d managed to get out. She just rushed over, grabbed his hand, and gasped, “Run! Run!”
“What are you idiots doing?” a demon roared, his voice carried by the wind. “Didn’t you see where that person’s hat fell? They can’t have gone far! Chase them!”
Xu Songhe glanced back one last time. Sure enough, the demons had already picked up their weapons and were heading in the direction the hat had rolled, guided by the faint glow of their torches.
She didn’t know how far they needed to run to be safe, so she didn’t dare stop.
She kept running until her heart hammered against her throat and her breath tasted of blood. Only then did she have to double over, gasping for air.
Qi Wuyang stood nearby, arms crossed, taking in her disheveled state.
He casually brushed some snow off his robes, tilting his head as if the frantic sprint had been someone else’s legs that had done all the work.
Xu Songhe looked up, her gaze meeting his dark, deep eyes.
She stared at his arm for a long moment before stammering, “Your… how’s your hand?”